Sonic Perspectives

For the past thirty years Billy Sherwood has been involved with the band Yes to varying degrees: songwriter, touring support musician, producer, full-time member, friend and finally, filling the role of the late Chris Squire on bass. During that time, Sherwood’s own career has flourished and traveled many roads, from early bands like World Trade [...] The post YES Bassist BILLY SHERWOOD: I Was Always Being Told in My Earlier Bands, “Can’t the Bass Just Stay on the G Chord?” And I’d Say, “No CHRIS SQUIRE Wouldn’t Do That!” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

One of the most adventurous and prolific power trios of recent times, The Aristocrats are back with a brand new album, entitled You Know What…? which we recently reviewed. Released only a mere week ago, this collection of tracks sees them taking unexplored territory once again, and bringing the listener on a musical roller coaster [...] The post BRYAN BELLER and MARCO MINNEMANN Talk THE ARISTOCRATS New Album: “We’re Always Thinking about What Each Other Can Do with the Songs When We Bring Them to the Table” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Resurrected from the ashes of one of the most influential death metal bands of all time, NOCTURNUS AD was initiated by founding mastermind/death metal legend Mike Browning (also co-founder of Morbid Angel). His intention? To continue the path laid down twenty-eight years earlier, by the legendary Florida death metal band (named Nocturnus at the time) [...] The post NOCTURNUS AD’s Leader MIKE BROWNING Reflects About New Album: “I Write Music Based on the Drums Rhythms and the Lyrics Instead of the Melody” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

This year has been filled with wonderfully crafted music coming from all genres, and out of the most unexpected surprises thus far has been the album Sweet Oblivion, some sort of a project put together by former Queensrÿche and current Operation: Mindcrime frontman Geoff Tate and DGM‘s guitarist Simone Mularoni, under the auspicious of Frontiers [...]

For the past 15 years, Mike Morton has been the one constant in the British Prog band The Gift.  Composer, lyricist, singer, frontman, and the occasional multi-instrumentalist—Morton did it all with a revolving set of bandmates. But The Gift membership began to solidify with 2016’s Why the Sea is Salt.  And its most recent release—Antenna—features [...] The post THE GIFT Leader MIKE MORTON Talks New Album: “We Wanted to Go In A Different Direction, Make the Music a Little More Raw—And We Did it.” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Scandinavian rock and roll legends D-A-D took their time to record their new album A Prayer for the Loud, but the wait was certainly worth it! The new songs fall right into the vintage D-A-D mold, and will surely please the long time fans, with a clear musical link to classic D-A-D albums such as No Fuel Left [...] The post D-A-D Frontman Jesper Binzer Talks New Album: “We Experimented a Lot in the Past, But on This Record We Wanted to Sound Instantly Recognizable as D-A-D” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Currently on the road supporting their 2018’s studio release God Damn Evil, STRYPER have been on a continuously successful streak since 2013 when they released No More Hell to Pay. The faith-driven rockers have endured by continually writing, playing and producing over the years. God Damn Evil shines with a modern heaviness and edge that carries [...] The post STRYPER’s Leader MICHAEL SWEET Talks Tour and Upcoming Solo Album: “The Record Will be Called TEN and it’s a Metal Album, with a Different Guitar Player on Each Song” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Talking Perspectives is normally a fun show where the panelists talk both music and trash with and at each other, but Episode 25 will be more somber. On the morning of 8 June 2019, Andre Matos‘ wife posted on social media that she’d found her dear husband dead in their Sao Paulo home. An official statement [...] The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: A Tribute to ANDRE MATOS (Episode No. 25) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

For the past 47 years Alan White has been synonymous with the band Yes, taking over from Bill Bruford in 1972 without missing a beat. From the classic era in the 70s to the chart-topping success of the 80s to Union and various lineups of the 90s and beyond, Alan and Chris Squire delivered one [...] The post Legendary YES Drummer ALAN WHITE: “YES is All About Looking Over The Horizon, Not At It” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

As part of the Graham Bonnet Band‘s 2017 “The Book” tour in Japan, a three night special engagement and reunion of Alcatrazz was presented much to the delight of the Japanese hard rock faithful. Founding Alcatrazz members, Graham Bonnet (vocals), Jimmy Waldo (keyboards) and Gary Shea (bass), reunited after 33 years for a unique series of shows [...] The post JIMMY WALDO Remembers ALCATRAZZ Early Days: “Our Record Company Wanted Us to be FOREIGNER or SURVIVOR, and We Were a Hard Rock Band” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Picking up on their first mammoth hour-long interview, the legendary original Fates Warning singer spills the beans on his love of Iron Maiden, his own history with the city that gave Fates Warning its next two singers, and the possibility that the one and only Bruce Dickinson might be a John Arch fan. Yeah, read that last part again.  And [...] The post Former FATES WARNING Singer JOHN ARCH Talks Lyrical Themes And Musical Influences: “Most of My Friends Have Met BRUCE DICKINSON. I Hate Them All” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Coming off several weeks of technical foulness and work-related brutality, the ever-obnoxious triumvirate of twits that is Jordan Blum, Nick Andreas, and Gonzalo Pozo resurface to bring you a long-overdue 24th episode of Talking Perspectives. This time around, our panel discuses their favorite releases 2019 has given thus far (spoiler: The Mute Gods and Empath are brought up yet again); exciting album [...] The post TALKING PERSPECTIVES: “Favorite 2019 Albums Thus Far / Upcoming Summer Concerts / Most Exciting Anticipated 2019 Albums (Episode No. 24) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Some statements are so unambiguous that they require no further explanation: “If you like the first song, then the odds are you’ll like the whole album. It’s balls-to-the-wall heavy metal, song after song. No ballads and nothing your mom will be humming,” promises Carl Canedy, drummer of legendary US metal act The Rods. Recorded at [...] The post Drummer CARL CANEDY Talks THE RODS New Album: “It’s Balls-to-the-Wall Heavy Metal, Song After Song. No Ballads and Nothing Your Mom Will Be Humming” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

JOLLY, the genre-defying band from New York City, has endured more than their fair share of struggles in their ten-year career. Everything from having their homes and band gear destroyed by Hurricane Sandy, to seeing the death of a beloved friend and the births of their own children, JOLLY has weathered a lot in the [...] The post JOLLY Drummer LOUIS ABRAMSON On New Album ‘Family’: “We’ve Been Dying to Give it to Our Fans For So Long” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Whenever and wherever guitarist, keyboardist and composer Turilli and vocalist Lione have been working together, the result has been something extraordinary. Something both metal and rock lovers around the globe loved, cherished and remembered forever. Now, after eight long years, the two brothers in arms are finally back together again. They reunited to start an exciting new chapter on their [...] The post LUCA TURILLI Talks Upcoming TURILLI/LIONE RHAPSODY Album: “We Wanted to Modernize Our Approach to Symphonic Metal” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

In the midst of their longest tour of North America, Riverside leader Mariusz Duda takes some time to speak with Scott Medina right before taking the stage in the beautiful Boulder Theater, in Denver, Colorado. Their conversation focuses on the band’s experience on tour and how the evolution of Wasteland is bringing Riverside to a [...] The post Report From the Road: RIVERSIDE’s Mariusz Duda Talks Experiencing Wasteland in North America appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

People will be approaching Terraformer, the third album from Thank You Scientist from a lot of different angles. Of course there will be those who have never checked out the band before, and excited current fans ready and waiting for new material. Of that latter group some may have expectations set by the advance singles [...] The post Thank You Scientist – Terraformer (Album Review) appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Neal Morse does not stand still for long. Mere months after releasing double-album The Great Adventure with the Neal Morse Band, he is back with an epic musical of the life of Jesus, in Jesus Christ the Exorcist. Written and performed extensively by Morse, a wide host of guest vocalists take the spotlight including Ted [...] The post NEAL MORSE Talks Prog-Rock Opera “Jesus Christ: The Exorcist”: “I Never Wanted to Make a Double Album, Like Ever! But You Got to Follow The Music Where It Wants to Go” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Evan Carson is a world-class percussionist and highly sought-after bodhran session player who is best known in this corner of the musical world as go-to percussionist and live drummer for iamthemorning with Marjana Semkina and Gleb Kolyadin. After a successful crowdfunding campaign in summer 2018, Carson is releasing his debut solo album on July 1st, [...] The post Solo Artist EVAN CARSON Talks Theme of Debut Album: “To Win that Sort of War, You Have to Become Almost as Violent and Self-justified as the People You’re Fighting Against…” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

Pattern-Seeking Animals is a brand new progressive rock band founded by frequent Spock’s Beard songwriter John Boegehold. The band formed organically over the past year, initially bringing in Jimmy Keegan on drums, then Dave Meros on bass and Ted Leonard on vocals and guitar. Once InsideOut Music responded favorably to the new quartet and offered [...] The post Behind The Scenes of Building a New Band: John Boegehold Introduces You to PATTERN-SEEKING ANIMALS appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.