Interview

Interview: Vinny Appice (of Black Sabbath, Dio, and Last in Line)

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , .

VINNY LIVE
Vinny Appice (Photo courtesy John Lappen Enterprises)

Saturday, May 16, marked the 10th anniversary of the death of legendary singer Ronnie James Dio from cancer. Tributes poured out across the internet from his contemporaries like Rob Halford and artists he influenced such as Lzzy Hale and Scott Ian to his former bandmates in Black Sabbath.

Vinny Appice, the drummer for Ronnie James Dio in both Black Sabbath and Dio, along with his older brother Carmine, took their tribute a step further and released “Monsters & Heroes,” a tribute video honoring their departed band mate and friend.

Earlier this week, Vinny Appice spoke with Parklife DC’s Chris Smyth about why the brothers decided to make the tribute video and his memories of Dio.

Continue Reading

Interview: Jesper Anderberg of The Sounds

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , , .

TheSounds2
The Sounds (Photo courtesy Reybee Inc.)

The Sounds burst out of Sweden in 2002 with Living in America, blowing us away with fantastic new wave. The five-member band, fronted by Maja Ivarsson, then became the toast of the town with their hip second record, Dying to Say This to You.

Over the past 20 years, The Sounds have remained very busy while maintaining a consistent lineup. Key to that lineup is Jesper Anderberg, keyboardist, pianist, and guitar player — a versatile contributor and a thoughtful presence during The Sounds’ kinetic performances.

Mickey McCarter of Parklife DC caught up with Jesper to chat about Things We Do For Love, the upcoming sixth full-length album by The Sounds, scheduled for release on June 12, and about what he’s been up to the past few years.

Continue Reading

Interview: iNTeLL (of GFTD and 2nd Generation Wu)

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , , , .

GFTD - Photo Courtesy of 2nd Generation Wu
GFTD during a pre-pandemic performance (from left, iNTeLL, PXWER)

“My seeds grow with his seeds, marry his seeds/ That’s how we keep Wu-Tang money all up in the family,” Ghostface Killah rhymed on “Glaciers of Ice,” off Raekwon’s classic solo album Only Built for Cuban Linx. That was in 1995. Twenty-five years later, the words from the Wu-Tang Clan rapper has proven prophetic.

Will Colbert of Parklife DC recently spoke with iNTeLL, who is the son of Wu-Tang Clan member U-God, and one of half of the group GFTD. His partner in rhyme is PXWER, a fellow Staten Islander and son of Method Man. The pair are part of the 2nd Generation Wu rap collective whose members include Sun God (son of Ghostface Killah) and YDB (son of the late ODB).

The progeny of hip hop royalty constitutes the new Tao of Wu. Enter the next chamber!

Continue Reading

Interview: Ronnie McCoury (of The Del McCoury Band and The Travelin’ McCourys)

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , , , .

Del McCoury Band - Ram’s Head Annapolis - Nov 3, 2017
The Del McCoury Band performs at Ram’s Head On Stage in Annapolis in November 2017. (Photo by Casey Vock)

Ronnie McCoury, the eldest son of bluegrass legend Del McCoury and the longtime mandolin player for The Del McCoury Band, says he’s never had this much free time in the four decades he’s been performing music.

Ronnie was just a 13-year-old kid when he got his first glimpse of his father’s buddy Bill Monroe playing the mandolin, and, not long after, he was playing gigs alongside his dad. All these years later, Ronnie’s an eight-time International Bluegrass Music Association Mandolin Player of the Year and, just last year, produced the association’s Album of the Year — “Del McCoury Still Sings Bluegrass” — with his dad.

Continue Reading

Interview: Jason Thomson of Vast Robot Armies

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , , , , .

cover
Vast Robot Armies album cover for Paper Crown Parade (Artwork by Victor Malang)

Vast Robot Armies describe themselves as “three cities, two countries, one band.” John Agee (guitar, bass, and vocals) and Joe Wells (guitar, bass, synth, and backing vocals) hail from Kansas City, Missouri. Jason Thomson (guitars, piano, synths, and vocals) lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The band recently released a new full-length album titled Paper Crown Parade. I caught up with Jason to ask him about standout song “Little Detroit.”

Continue Reading

Interview: Seán Ó Corcoráin of Outsider

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , , .

Outsider_credit_Paudie-Bourke
Outsider (Photo by Paudie Bourke)

Inspired by musicians such as Joy Division and The Jesus & Mary Chain, Ireland’s Outsider makes music that strikes you with its depth. Certainly, Outsider writes poetic lyrics and sings them with passion, but he also crafts melodies that dance and soar through you.

Outsider took his name from Colin Wilson’s 1956 book, The Outsider, “which examines the psyche of great artists and their place in society,” reads his bio. His real name is Seán Ó Corcoráin. Seán is a terrific talent and a wonderful person, and Parklife DC’s Mickey McCarter had the absolute pleasure of chatting with him recently about his debut full-length album, Karma of Youth, released April 17 by OK! Good Records.

Continue Reading

Interview: Scott Terry (of Red Wanting Blue)

Posted on by in Interview and tagged , , , , , , .

RedWantingBlue
Scott Terry, frontman for Red Wanting Blue, on stage at Gypsy Sally’s, May 4, 2019. (Photo by Ari Strauss)

Scott Terry is a road warrior. Red Wanting Blue, the Columbus, Ohio-based band he founded in 1996 while a student at Ohio University, has spent the better part of two-plus decades on what seems like a perpetual tour.

Comprised of Eric Hall on lead guitar, Dean Anshutz on drums and percussion, Greg Rahm on keys and guitar, Mark McCullough on bass, and Scott on lead vocals and ukulele, Red Wanting Blue regularly plays 200 or more live shows a year.

With no touring scheduled due to the national coronavirus emergency, Scott chatted with Parklife DC’s Ari Strauss from Brooklyn about his thoughts and activities during the lockdown.

Continue Reading