[ct] Interview
With a debut album right around the corner, Control Freak is preparing for not only becoming household names in the homes of rock n' rollers, but also reigniting the genre with new sounds mixed with old school vibes which have been inspired by the likes of old school groups like Aerosmith, Black Sabbath and Canadian band, RUSH.
We got together with lead vocalist, Salvatore Vieri to find out whats going on both on and off stage and what we can expect to see in 2009.
LVW: Hey Sal! First off, thanks for talking with us today. You need anything before we start?
SV: Dude, have you seen the spread over there? I think you have every kind of food...oh wait. You forgot to pick out the red M&M's. Sorry, I can't do this interview...[Laughs]
LVW: [Laughs] Is this where I get to call you a diva?
SV: Hell ya! Move over Justin Timberlake.
LVW: Oh shit...I'm sorry, I can't do this interview now...[laughs] Alright. So, you come from Chicago. You get together with a couple guys and get a band going, throw together a massive tracklisting, jump on a bus and start touring the States. After, what? Almost 10 years, you guys are now just settling into rock star super status with an impending album and shows zig zagging across the Strip. There isn't a corner in Vegas that doesn't have you're guys' mugs on it--
SV: Ugly mugs at that.
LVW: [laughs] Enough to make the baby Jesus cry..
SV: Hey! Actually, look a little to your right, you'll see a much prettier face.
LVW: You mean Channing Vale, don't you? We'll have to get to that later. [laughs]..So why take so long to fulfill the dream, man?
SV: Uh oh..[laughs] You know, I really don't know, man. The guys and I just started to make the music and sure, we all talked about our hopes to get to the next level, but we weren't really in any big rush. Honestly, we didn't really think we had what it took to get to the next level. We we're happy just travelling and seeing new and different places--meeting new people, that kind of happy stuff.
LVW: And now you've settled in Vegas for the time being, are recording you're first album and about to get signed. You're almost there. How are you and the rest of the band adjusting to the local celebrity status?
SV: Yeah, we actually recorded 80% of our total material to date and are sifting through what we want and don't want on the first record. Can't imagine what we'd do without the help we've gotten so far. This rock star shit is fuckin hard!
LVW: The the help you're talking about Ziyah Ambrogio? Who else is there?
SV: Dude, you're not gonna make me go down the list are you? Yeah, she's definitely the one that has gotten us this far, business wise, but I think it all started with Antonia Graves who, ironically, Tim and I met online. She spread the word around pretty damn fast.
LVW: That's not the only person you met online, is it?
SV: You fuckin suck at being indirect, y'know that right? [laughs] I met Channing the same night.
LVW: [laughs] What do you expect? Anyways, you two have been heating up almost every red carpet event in town and just recently Miss Vale finally went public with your relationship. You glad the cats finally out of the bag?
SV: It's cool. I wasn't really bothered. I think her fans wanted to know. I'm just the guy. What do I know?
LVW: You two happy?
SV: You have no fuckin idea man. We fight all the time and sometimes I wonder how it is she puts up with me, but at the end of the day, we completely balance each other out. You realize you might dislike one thing about the other person, but there's probably a few hundred that you're partner dislikes. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter. That's how it is for us. Anyways, I got one word here to sum it all up.
LVW: What's that?
SV: Love.
LVW: Congratulations! Alright, one more question. When is the album due out?
SV: Uh, I'm thinking May or June. Maybe a month or two sooner if we select the tracks quickly.
LVW: Nice. Thanks so much Sal. I think you can go eat the M&M's now. One of the staff removed all the red ones for you.
SV: ...Shit. It was the green ones, not the red ones.
We got together with lead vocalist, Salvatore Vieri to find out whats going on both on and off stage and what we can expect to see in 2009.
LVW: Hey Sal! First off, thanks for talking with us today. You need anything before we start?
SV: Dude, have you seen the spread over there? I think you have every kind of food...oh wait. You forgot to pick out the red M&M's. Sorry, I can't do this interview...[Laughs]
LVW: [Laughs] Is this where I get to call you a diva?
SV: Hell ya! Move over Justin Timberlake.
LVW: Oh shit...I'm sorry, I can't do this interview now...[laughs] Alright. So, you come from Chicago. You get together with a couple guys and get a band going, throw together a massive tracklisting, jump on a bus and start touring the States. After, what? Almost 10 years, you guys are now just settling into rock star super status with an impending album and shows zig zagging across the Strip. There isn't a corner in Vegas that doesn't have you're guys' mugs on it--
SV: Ugly mugs at that.
LVW: [laughs] Enough to make the baby Jesus cry..
SV: Hey! Actually, look a little to your right, you'll see a much prettier face.
LVW: You mean Channing Vale, don't you? We'll have to get to that later. [laughs]..So why take so long to fulfill the dream, man?
SV: Uh oh..[laughs] You know, I really don't know, man. The guys and I just started to make the music and sure, we all talked about our hopes to get to the next level, but we weren't really in any big rush. Honestly, we didn't really think we had what it took to get to the next level. We we're happy just travelling and seeing new and different places--meeting new people, that kind of happy stuff.
LVW: And now you've settled in Vegas for the time being, are recording you're first album and about to get signed. You're almost there. How are you and the rest of the band adjusting to the local celebrity status?
SV: Yeah, we actually recorded 80% of our total material to date and are sifting through what we want and don't want on the first record. Can't imagine what we'd do without the help we've gotten so far. This rock star shit is fuckin hard!
LVW: The the help you're talking about Ziyah Ambrogio? Who else is there?
SV: Dude, you're not gonna make me go down the list are you? Yeah, she's definitely the one that has gotten us this far, business wise, but I think it all started with Antonia Graves who, ironically, Tim and I met online. She spread the word around pretty damn fast.
LVW: That's not the only person you met online, is it?
SV: You fuckin suck at being indirect, y'know that right? [laughs] I met Channing the same night.
LVW: [laughs] What do you expect? Anyways, you two have been heating up almost every red carpet event in town and just recently Miss Vale finally went public with your relationship. You glad the cats finally out of the bag?
SV: It's cool. I wasn't really bothered. I think her fans wanted to know. I'm just the guy. What do I know?
LVW: You two happy?
SV: You have no fuckin idea man. We fight all the time and sometimes I wonder how it is she puts up with me, but at the end of the day, we completely balance each other out. You realize you might dislike one thing about the other person, but there's probably a few hundred that you're partner dislikes. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter. That's how it is for us. Anyways, I got one word here to sum it all up.
LVW: What's that?
SV: Love.
LVW: Congratulations! Alright, one more question. When is the album due out?
SV: Uh, I'm thinking May or June. Maybe a month or two sooner if we select the tracks quickly.
LVW: Nice. Thanks so much Sal. I think you can go eat the M&M's now. One of the staff removed all the red ones for you.
SV: ...Shit. It was the green ones, not the red ones.