Saturday, July 27, 2019
Saturday, July 13, 2019
Monday, July 8, 2019
DJ Interviews: Jordan Spivack
Hello there everyone DJ Dizzy here, And I had the pleasure of interviewing a singer by the name of Jordan Spivack as he shared his humble beginnings.
Special thanks to him for this interview & I wish him nothing but luck in his music. So until then I'll catch you on the flipside! Stay Awesome & rock n roll!
How'd you get started in music?
My Mom Sophie was a singer, and when I was
very little she started teaching me many songs. By the time I was 3 years old I
was singing for anyone who would listen – at family parties my parents would
stand me up on a table, and I would sing my heart out. When I was 3 1/2, my
parents bought me my own little record player. At age 5 my 2 sisters were both
taking piano lessons, and I would crawl up on the bench and try out the keys,
fascinated by the sound. One night my Mom called the family in to dinner, but I
was playing the piano. My Dad asked my sisters which song of theirs I was
playing, and they said it wasn’t one of theirs. That is when my parents
discovered I was already writing my own little piano songs. This was followed
by piano, singing and dancing lessons. I joined a children’s song and dance
troupe, and every Sunday morning until I was 9 I was featured singing a solo
song on the local radio station in Parkersburg, West Virginia as “Little
Jordy”.
Who are your inspirations or influences?
Of course my Mom was the first to magically
touch my life with music. My Dad Gershon was a fine poet and playright, and I
definitely got my gift of creativity through him.
In classical music:
Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Sergei Prokofiev, Claude Debussy, Frederic
Chopin. In jazz: Dave Brubeck, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones. In the pop field:
Laura Nyro, James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Burt Bacharach.
What advice would you offer aspiring performers?
Learn and hone your
craft. Practice, practice, practice. Be professional. Be kind. Use failure as
fuel for your next opportunity. March to the beat of your own heart. Do what
you love. Be prepared when the door opens. Find what is unique about yourself
and your music. Learn music theory.
How do you set yourselves apart from other bands or singers?
I compose in all different genres – both
lyrics and music, and I am proficient at the piano and keyboard. I can sing,
harmonize, arrange for all instruments. I have experience in the studio producing
and performing. And most important of all, my music doesn’t sound like anyone
else’s.
Any new gigs or albums in the future?
By the end of 2019 I plan to release 2 new
albums: one will be a collection of my original solo piano compositions, both classical
and jazz, all live recordings; the second will be a new jazz album of original
instrumental tracks, and including for the first time a few songs, including my
current single “Lucky Day” featuring the outstanding vocals of wonderful singer
Christine McHoes. I have also just released a single of my jazz instrumental
“Free”. Currently I’m not playing any gigs, but I don’t rule out that
possibility in the future.
Special thanks to him for this interview & I wish him nothing but luck in his music. So until then I'll catch you on the flipside! Stay Awesome & rock n roll!
Sunday, July 7, 2019
Thursday, July 4, 2019
DJ Interviews: Silent
Hello one & all DJ Dizzy here & I recently sat down with a hard rock band who answer to the name Silent despite their name they have a serious loud sound to offer & a lot to say on their musical beginnings.
How'd you get started in music?
Gustavo: I started very young, at age 11, because I wanted to learn a song and play it for my father. I’m self taught, so it took me six months to learn and, after that, all I wanted to do was write songs. At 15, I joined my first band and, not much after that, I was in a band with L.A.Tilly, Silent’s drummer, and we’ve been playing together on and off for over 30 years.
Who are your inspirations or influences?
My first influences were The Beatles and Elvis. Growing up, I loved Slade and later on, in the 80s, I jumped into hair metal. As a band, we’re inspired a bit by Def Leppard, AC/DC, Queen, Bon Jovi, Marillion but also, as a songwriter, I’m very much influenced by melodies and lyrics of bands like Matchbox Twenty and some Alternative rock bands from the 2000’s, like Train and The Verve Pipe.
What advice would you offer aspiring performers?
Learn how to do it yourself, in every level. From recording to marketing your music. Growing up as a musician in the 90’s, when I look at all of today’s opportunities to connect with your fans, it’s almost overwhelming. The freedom might even be scary sometimes, but it’s amazing what you can accomplish with a couple of clicks. There’s always someone out there that will connect with you. It’s not a matter of trying to be different or stand out, I believe it’s about being true to yourself.
How do you set yourselves apart from other bands or singers?
Silent is a very mature band, even though we only have 3 albums recorded (the 3rd is coming out pretty soon). We value the lyrics of our songs, which is not a very common thing in the AOR/Hard Rock scene, and that keeps us more connected to contemporary minds. Our music is very melodic driven, very emotional and we write it to take you places, to boost your sensitivity and to share our perception of a world that needs awakening.
Any new gigs or albums in the future?
We are releasing our 3rd album. It’s called Fragments and it’s a conceptual album. It tells the story of a special kid named Bo, who has vivid memories of what could be his past lives. He struggles with trying to be set free from this endless cycle of being reborn and, at the same time, is faced with the reason why he's trapped in it. He is in love with a woman that he keeps following, life after life. We are going to start a crowd funding to help release the album and you can find out all about it at our website www.silent.band
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/
Special thanks to them for doing this interview & I wish them luck in their career & their success so until then I'll cath you on the flipside! Stay awesome & rock n rol!
Special thanks to them for doing this interview & I wish them luck in their career & their success so until then I'll cath you on the flipside! Stay awesome & rock n rol!
DJ Interviews Sons Of Morning
Hello everyone DJ Dizzy here & I have f=got an interview for you which features a band who calls themselves Sons of Morning
How'd you get started in music?
Special thanks to them for this interview & I wish them luck in their career so until then I'll catch you on the flipside! Stay awesome & rock n roll!
How'd you get started in music?
My first creative outlet was visual art. From a very young age I was completely absorbed by the world of
It did not take long after my proper exposure to rock n roll until I HAD to have an electric guitar. I could not sit through lessons so I taught myself with the help of whatever pointers I could glom from the older kids in school that could actually play real songs and had their own amplifiers and everything! Interesting thing is that, through comic books I had met the three Del Favero brothers- the youngest was in my class- and we all were bit by the same bug and made the transition from comics to rock n roll together. None of us could really play so we were a band before there was any music! The middle brother, Tom, was the one that stuck with it after college and the two of us had recruited a new 2nd guitar and a bass player to play hundreds of shows throughout NY, NJ, PA, and all up and down the East Coast for years. Tom and I also formed the nucleus of Sons Of Morning and save for some harmony work and bass on Didn't See The Man (which duties were performed by Randy Velez, our bass player and back up vocalist with us for many years), and keys on Hard Living' (by Howard Gorr, who interestingly enough was oe of those older fellows that were so patient with me in high school), the two of us played every instrument on the album and soon-to-be-released Not For Sale EP. That's one of the reasons why the album took three years of hard work to bring across the finish line! The other reason is that we did everything else too, including photography, cover art, etc. All but the final mastering!
Aside from the Beatles and early Stones, there are many influences that went into the sound of SOM. When we became interested in a band, we never set out to sound like them, but soaked up what they were doing, and just as important, we would check out their influences. So from the Stones we were turned onto Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter,
Make music-or noise- and be persistent. Your energy, enthusiasm, and talent will push you along and things will happen. If you don't push yourself and reach out to others, no one is even going to know that you want to make music. This is even more important now than it ever has been. Too many kids that would have years ago would have formed a garage band are isolating themselves and letting the world of the internet supplant the real world. The other thing is to not get hung up on anything when writing. Don't spend time worrying whether or not something sounds too much like another song. You shouldn't be TRYING to sound likeother bands, but there are only so many chord progressions and clever phrases. just write from the heart and you'll find that you're gonna sound like yourself. Other folks might hear influences, but thats a lot different from sounding like a rip-off!
Any new gigs or albums in the future?
Personally, I am always coming up with cool little licks and bits of lyrics that I like and I try to save them all. Some I'll come back to when the inspiration is happening and some are better off forgotten! This said, when there's enough new stuff happening there will be new Sons Of Morning released. As of now, the debut album has been out for a while and I've been pleasantly surprised with its staying power and the airplay we've received all over the world. The release of of our first official cover (Baby Whats Wrong?) on Detour Records' Glory Boy Mod Radio Show Compilation, our independent release of I Just Don't Understand, and most recently Cold and Blue/Evangeline as part of the Big Stir digital single series has kept things fresh while new material is explored.
Just follow Sons Of Morning on FB, and hit us up on Twitter for updates. In the meantime, sonsofmorning.com is full of cool SOM stuff and even has an Indie Scene page, where we pay homage to the cool folks that work their tails off keeping the Indie Scene
comic books. Remember, and I am going to expose my age here, folks, this was time when there was no internet, no cell phones, and TV consisted of what could be pulled in by an aerial antenna on the top of our house. When I was 7 years old we moved from Long Island to upstate NY. Our house was situated between two mountains, which was not exactly ideal for reception! This meant three, sometimes four stations, and in the summer, when the leaves covered the trees, we were lucky to have two watchable stations. This left the
door wide open for SOME KIND of entertainment to take root! I still had all of my brain cells at the time and
was a 'good reader' as they would say. So, a comic book was not a chore to read. It was like watching a video
and all encompassing. Aside from a few DC war titles like the Haunted Tank and Sgt. Rock, the classic
Marvel titles were my mainstay.
That meant the original Iron Man, Captain America, the REAL X-Men- all deserved classics by the masters of this art form- Kirby, Lee, Ditko, etc. I was always creative so it was only natural for me to make my own comics. This, very early on, put me in the mindset of someone that would set out to create something from beginning to end for others to enjoy- hopefully...….On the 10th anniversary of the Beatles arriving in the States there were a few special segments on some of the TV shows of the time. Not sure if I was home from school, or if it was the weekend or what, but I did catch one of these segments- could have been on the Mike Douglas Show- and I was instantly captivated. Up to that point my musical background had been restricted to what I heard in the car when my parents had the AM on, what I caught at breakfast- usually in the winter when the local station was tuned in to catch a possible school delay due to snow, or the occasional snippet on TV. I was too young to stay up and watch Don Kirschner's Rock Concert, so this was VERY limited. So on this day they spoke to some folks- mostly women- that had seen the Beatles when they came to our shores. This would have been those lucky enough to get concert tickets, or maybe part of the huge TV audience that caught them on the Ed Sullivan Show, or maybe even people who had been present at one of their unprecedented airport arrivals. The insistent undertone of all of these happenings was created by thousands of very young, mostly female audiences screaming. It created a sound like I had never heard before and the excitement was infectious- even so many years later
Who are your inspirations or influences?
That meant the original Iron Man, Captain America, the REAL X-Men- all deserved classics by the masters of this art form- Kirby, Lee, Ditko, etc. I was always creative so it was only natural for me to make my own comics. This, very early on, put me in the mindset of someone that would set out to create something from beginning to end for others to enjoy- hopefully...….On the 10th anniversary of the Beatles arriving in the States there were a few special segments on some of the TV shows of the time. Not sure if I was home from school, or if it was the weekend or what, but I did catch one of these segments- could have been on the Mike Douglas Show- and I was instantly captivated. Up to that point my musical background had been restricted to what I heard in the car when my parents had the AM on, what I caught at breakfast- usually in the winter when the local station was tuned in to catch a possible school delay due to snow, or the occasional snippet on TV. I was too young to stay up and watch Don Kirschner's Rock Concert, so this was VERY limited. So on this day they spoke to some folks- mostly women- that had seen the Beatles when they came to our shores. This would have been those lucky enough to get concert tickets, or maybe part of the huge TV audience that caught them on the Ed Sullivan Show, or maybe even people who had been present at one of their unprecedented airport arrivals. The insistent undertone of all of these happenings was created by thousands of very young, mostly female audiences screaming. It created a sound like I had never heard before and the excitement was infectious- even so many years later
Who are your inspirations or influences?
So my first stirrings of the passion for music and the world of music was stoked by the very early Beatles. Dollars were dear so I did not exactly run out to Record World (an hour drive from our rural location) or the local dep't. store and stock up on albums. While I very slowly built up a small collection of vinyl I read everything I could about the Beatles. I must stress that my interest was in the EARLY Beatles. Eventually I got a hold of a copy of The Man Who Gave The Beatles Away' by Alan Williams, which has a very absorbing account of the pre-fame days, specifically their days in Hamburg. It was all there with two guitars, bass, and drums. Later on I 'discovered' the Rolling Stones and I was off and running. These guys were cool in a different way and although I still loved the Merseybeat sound, the London R&B scene was just too cool.
It did not take long after my proper exposure to rock n roll until I HAD to have an electric guitar. I could not sit through lessons so I taught myself with the help of whatever pointers I could glom from the older kids in school that could actually play real songs and had their own amplifiers and everything! Interesting thing is that, through comic books I had met the three Del Favero brothers- the youngest was in my class- and we all were bit by the same bug and made the transition from comics to rock n roll together. None of us could really play so we were a band before there was any music! The middle brother, Tom, was the one that stuck with it after college and the two of us had recruited a new 2nd guitar and a bass player to play hundreds of shows throughout NY, NJ, PA, and all up and down the East Coast for years. Tom and I also formed the nucleus of Sons Of Morning and save for some harmony work and bass on Didn't See The Man (which duties were performed by Randy Velez, our bass player and back up vocalist with us for many years), and keys on Hard Living' (by Howard Gorr, who interestingly enough was oe of those older fellows that were so patient with me in high school), the two of us played every instrument on the album and soon-to-be-released Not For Sale EP. That's one of the reasons why the album took three years of hard work to bring across the finish line! The other reason is that we did everything else too, including photography, cover art, etc. All but the final mastering!
Aside from the Beatles and early Stones, there are many influences that went into the sound of SOM. When we became interested in a band, we never set out to sound like them, but soaked up what they were doing, and just as important, we would check out their influences. So from the Stones we were turned onto Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter,
and so on. Of course, being into the two biggest bands of the 60's, we also would check out all the other bands that made up the scene of the time. Not living in a vacuum, we were of course aware of what was happening in the present time.The Sex Pistols were huge for us, as were the Damned, Buzzcocks, the Clash and many others in the UK punk scene. I would say the attitude of punk was more important than the actual sound, although that was soaked up too! When the UK scene was all over the media of the time, mentions of the punk forefathers turned us onto the NY Dolls, Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers, Iggy and the Stooges, the MC5 and so forth.
When you listen to the Sons Of Morning album, you will hear R&B, straight rock n roll, country, pop, and a bit of grunge (Judy Judy). Like the albums of the '60's, it is meant to be a full listening experience that captures you from beginning to end without getting 'old' after a few cuts. And although the pallet is varied, each song is definitively Sons Of Morning. In terms of offering advice to aspiring performers, my personal advice is simple but all important. The advice is DO SOMETHING.
What advice would you offer to aspiring performers?
Thinking about making music and performing is not going to accomplish anything if you don't have action. If you are just thinking and talking about it, waiting for everything to fall into place, forget it. If you are ever going to be on stage or in the studio, waiting until you have the perfect guitar (or drums, bass, whatever), or until you find the perfect partners in crime will only hinder you. If its in you, you will create because you HAVE TO. You'll get something done if you have to play a crappy $50 guitar or start recording songs, or even song ideas, on a handheld device- even a phone- just to get it out.
How do you set yourselves apart from other bands or singers?
When you listen to the Sons Of Morning album, you will hear R&B, straight rock n roll, country, pop, and a bit of grunge (Judy Judy). Like the albums of the '60's, it is meant to be a full listening experience that captures you from beginning to end without getting 'old' after a few cuts. And although the pallet is varied, each song is definitively Sons Of Morning. In terms of offering advice to aspiring performers, my personal advice is simple but all important. The advice is DO SOMETHING.
What advice would you offer to aspiring performers?
Thinking about making music and performing is not going to accomplish anything if you don't have action. If you are just thinking and talking about it, waiting for everything to fall into place, forget it. If you are ever going to be on stage or in the studio, waiting until you have the perfect guitar (or drums, bass, whatever), or until you find the perfect partners in crime will only hinder you. If its in you, you will create because you HAVE TO. You'll get something done if you have to play a crappy $50 guitar or start recording songs, or even song ideas, on a handheld device- even a phone- just to get it out.
Make music-or noise- and be persistent. Your energy, enthusiasm, and talent will push you along and things will happen. If you don't push yourself and reach out to others, no one is even going to know that you want to make music. This is even more important now than it ever has been. Too many kids that would have years ago would have formed a garage band are isolating themselves and letting the world of the internet supplant the real world. The other thing is to not get hung up on anything when writing. Don't spend time worrying whether or not something sounds too much like another song. You shouldn't be TRYING to sound likeother bands, but there are only so many chord progressions and clever phrases. just write from the heart and you'll find that you're gonna sound like yourself. Other folks might hear influences, but thats a lot different from sounding like a rip-off!
Any new gigs or albums in the future?
Personally, I am always coming up with cool little licks and bits of lyrics that I like and I try to save them all. Some I'll come back to when the inspiration is happening and some are better off forgotten! This said, when there's enough new stuff happening there will be new Sons Of Morning released. As of now, the debut album has been out for a while and I've been pleasantly surprised with its staying power and the airplay we've received all over the world. The release of of our first official cover (Baby Whats Wrong?) on Detour Records' Glory Boy Mod Radio Show Compilation, our independent release of I Just Don't Understand, and most recently Cold and Blue/Evangeline as part of the Big Stir digital single series has kept things fresh while new material is explored.
Just follow Sons Of Morning on FB, and hit us up on Twitter for updates. In the meantime, sonsofmorning.com is full of cool SOM stuff and even has an Indie Scene page, where we pay homage to the cool folks that work their tails off keeping the Indie Scene
alive and fun!
Special thanks to them for this interview & I wish them luck in their career so until then I'll catch you on the flipside! Stay awesome & rock n roll!
DJ Interviews: Silksided
Hello, hello people! Its DJ Dizzy here & I sat down with the band SilkSided who had a lot to say regarding their humble beginnings
How'd you get started in music? All the members started playing around the ’90 years, a period during which metal music started to be contaminated by other genres. In the following years we all had previous experiences with other bands until we finally met in 2012.
Who are your inspirations or influences? He list would be so long.. we surely owe so much to the ‘90s alternative rock\metal, moreover every member takes his own musical preferences from 70s prog, psychedelic, and even electronic music.
What advice would offer aspiring performers? We feel more like we should take than give advice… lol By the way, we found it’s very important to accurately plan everything, from arrangements to the sound you want to obtain before you record.
How do you set yourselves apart from other bands or singers? We don’t hide our influences and we know we didn’t create anything new. It’s not easy to find your own musical identity nowadays. Our music is sincere: in our songs you can feel who we are and where we come from. We think music should generate an open range of emotions in the listener, from rage to relief, and inspire reflections. This is what we are trying to transmit to listeners.
Any new gigs or albums in the future?
After one year from Leave no stone unturned was released we finally got back in studio with a new producer and just finished to record one song. The sound is always the same but… heavier.
Special thanks to them for this interview & I wish them nothing but luck in their careers so until then I'll catch you on the flipside! Stay awesome & rock n roll!
How'd you get started in music? All the members started playing around the ’90 years, a period during which metal music started to be contaminated by other genres. In the following years we all had previous experiences with other bands until we finally met in 2012.
Who are your inspirations or influences? He list would be so long.. we surely owe so much to the ‘90s alternative rock\metal, moreover every member takes his own musical preferences from 70s prog, psychedelic, and even electronic music.
What advice would offer aspiring performers? We feel more like we should take than give advice… lol By the way, we found it’s very important to accurately plan everything, from arrangements to the sound you want to obtain before you record.
How do you set yourselves apart from other bands or singers? We don’t hide our influences and we know we didn’t create anything new. It’s not easy to find your own musical identity nowadays. Our music is sincere: in our songs you can feel who we are and where we come from. We think music should generate an open range of emotions in the listener, from rage to relief, and inspire reflections. This is what we are trying to transmit to listeners.
Any new gigs or albums in the future?
After one year from Leave no stone unturned was released we finally got back in studio with a new producer and just finished to record one song. The sound is always the same but… heavier.
Special thanks to them for this interview & I wish them nothing but luck in their careers so until then I'll catch you on the flipside! Stay awesome & rock n roll!