Band Interview: Cruel Juno
Games, Brrraaains & A Head-Banging Life are pleased to bring you an interview with energetic hard rockers, Cruel Juno!
1. How did you get started as a band?
When I moved back to Texas a few years ago, I couldn’t find a local band to join. So I thought I’d ask the musicians on some of my favorite albums if they’d just record with me. I had met Italian guitarist Luca Princiotta (DORO, BLAZE) when he was on tour with DORO, and so I asked him and Sicilian vocalist Gandolfo Ferro (HEIMDALL) to record our first single, “Swallow My Medicine.” Somehow they thought my crazy plan was a good idea, so I produced the song and then went in search of additional artists to work with, such as Fabio Lione (RHAPSODY, ANGRA, VISION DIVINE), Oliver Palotai (KAMELOT, EPICA), Gian-Andrea Costa (DREAMSHADE), and Jasio Kulakowski (KOBRA AND THE LOTUS). And there’s still more people I’d like to work with! I sometimes think of the project as “My Avantasia,” since it’s more of a collection of guest musicians than a band.
2. How would you describe your sound?
Cruel Juno is straight up full-throttle hard rock. Loud at any volume! Drum-wise I play single bass, and it was a very purposeful decision. I want the songs to sound wild through the music itself, not because I’m just slamming double bass underneath it. I want the song itself to sound like a car swerving down a narrow road.
3. What bands/artists would you say have influenced your style of music?
I taught myself drums by trying to play along to JUDAS PRIEST records. “British Steel” was pretty manageable for an aspiring metalhead, and I spent ages playing along to that record. When I’m writing a song and working on the guitar parts, I think, “What would Glenn Tipton play?” The first CRUEL JUNO song I wrote was “Swallow My Medicine,” and I sequenced a guitar solo for the demo I made. The whole time working on that solo, I tried to honor Glenn’s style of playing. When Luca recorded the real guitars for the song, he of course made the solo much better, but he kept the overall structure and style just as I had written it, and I really think you can hear the JUDAS PRIEST in that solo. I’m very proud of that first effort.
4. Has the rise of YouTube & music streaming helped or hindered you as a band?
The internet is the only way people can learn about this project, connect with us, and hear our music. My biggest obstacle is figuring out how to get our music in front of people that would like it if they new it existed. I’m still working on that.
5. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not making music?
I used to make drum-related videos for YouTube. That all stopped once I became much more involved in music. There simply isn’t time for making videos these days.
6. What are your future plans musically? Tours?
Our first EP, “Playing With Monsters,” will be released January 10th! It will be available online pretty much everywhere – Spotify, Amazon, Google Play, Apple, etc. Videos are on Facebook and YouTube. And I’m currently pressing a VERY limited number of CDs – only 50. I’ll likely put the CDs on Reverb, but people can email me here to get one, too. I’ve got handwritten lyrics and the drumsticks used on each song for anyone who likes that sort of thing.
New music is on the way! I am collaborating with Jasio Kulakowski (KOBRA AND THE LOTUS) on a new song as we speak. I’ve also just finished recording drums for another song that Luca wrote, and there are several others in the works. We already have enough material for another EP. I guess we could have waited and put it all together as a full album, but it’s taken a year to get these 4 songs done, and I thought it best to go ahead and release them as an EP. So if you check out CRUEL JUNO and like our music, you won’t be waiting long for new music!
Links
Spotify | Website | Facebook | YouTube
