Drummer Phil Varone announced his retirement last week, so I thought I'd get him on the show to talk about his career, and dispel some mis-truths that have been circulating on the internet in the last few days. This whole interview came about after I met Phil in passing before a recent show with the band he's now in, Jake E. Lee's Red Dragon Cartel. I congratulated him on his retirement and he told me about all the fake news that's out there about it, so this is his chance to set the record straight. We talk about a ton of subjects.....

*His band Saigon Kick and how it got their name

*How many more gigs he'll play with Jake E. Lee and the guys

*His retirement and the rumors around it

*What he's going to do after he hangs up his sticks

*When he decided to retire

*The Red Dragon Cartel

*Playing with Jake

*His writing, books, shows....

*Touring sober

*His time on reality TV

*The moment he decided to get sober and his advice to others

Al Beck is back with Rock news. What's the next step in the evolution of Stone Temple Pilots, a documentary about the Bay Area thrash scene, Woodstock and a movie that's going to be released next year after lots of rumors.

http://www.reddragoncartel.com/
https://twitter.com/REALPHILVARONE
https://wrif.com/podcasts/talkin-rock-with-meltdown/
https://twitter.com/MeltdownWRIF
https://twitter.com/TalkinRockwith1
https://twitter.com/AlBeckRadio
http://www.fullaccessmagazine.com/category/unphiltered/

Drummer Phil Varone announced his retirement last week, so I thought I'd get him on the show to talk about his career, and dispel some mis-truths that have been circulating on the internet in the last few days. This whole interview came about after I met Phil in passing before a recent show with the band he's now in, Jake E. Lee's Red Dragon Cartel. I congratulated him on his retirement and he told me about all the fake news that's out there about it, so this is his chance to set the record straight. We talk about a ton of subjects.....
*His band Saigon Kick and how it got their name
*How many more gigs he'll play with Jake E. Lee and the guys
*His retirement and the rumors around it
*What he's going to do after he hangs up his sticks
*When he decided to retire
*The Red Dragon Cartel
*Playing with Jake
*His writing, books, shows....
*Touring sober
*His time on reality TV
*The moment he decided to get sober and his advice to others
Al Beck is back with Rock news. What's the next step in the evolution of Stone Temple Pilots, a documentary about the Bay Area thrash scene, Woodstock and a movie that's going to be released next year after lots of rumors.
http://www.reddragoncartel.com/ https://twitter.com/REALPHILVARONE https://wrif.com/podcasts/talkin-rock-with-meltdown/ https://twitter.com/MeltdownWRIF https://twitter.com/TalkinRockwith1 https://twitter.com/AlBeckRadio http://www.fullaccessmagazine.com/category/unphiltered/

The biggest names in rock music are Talkin’ Rock with Meltdown. From Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame members to bands just starting out, Meltdown takes rock music fans behind the scenes to find out what these talented musicians are really about. Come along for the ride as Talkin’ Rock with Meltdown invites you to find out more than you ever thought you knew about all genres of Rock from Classic to Prog to Grunge and everything in between.

Talkin' Rock With Meltdown Podcast

Talkin' Rock With Meltdown

Drummer Phil Varone joins Meltdown to discuss his retirement, career, reality TV and tons more.

Talkin' Rock with drummer Phil Varone

What a pleasure to have James "JY" Young in the studio to talk all things Styx, and more. The upcoming "Renegades and Juke Box Heroes" tour features Foreigner and John Waite. They'll be playing Pine Knob on June 15th.

We talked about a lot of topics. Playing in the band with great musicians like Tommy Shaw, and Lawrence Gowen.

Where does Styx live in the music world...Rock or Progressive Rock? JY answers that question. "It's hard to define us because a lot of the stuff is prog. But, ya know, some of the ballads are pretty much straight-ahead rock ballads." That led to how JY got into music.

How did the Grunge era affect them? At first, he said "Zero" as far as the music was concerned.  But he did say that the band may have seen a dip in concert attendance, but that's passed and now they're selling lots of tickets.

Did the Beatles playing on The Ed Sullivan Show influence him? He said they did, but older siblings did too. He expanded on that.

What legendary guitarist did he see live five times? I'm not sure if I've ever met anyone who has seen the player so many times. "That's the most profound influence on my playing," he said of the guitarist.

I asked him his thoughts on the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame. "Well, I don't know. It's very East Coast-centric for people that have a vote. Styx probably deserves to be in there, but I'm not holding my breath." He didn't mention names, but at the end of the day, he said it's about the fans and music. He spoke of fans telling him about how Styx's music helped them through periods of their lives. "Music affects everyone differently, and we've made some great records."

It was a thrill to have JY, and the band's manager, George, in the studio with me. A huge pleasure.

What a pleasure to have James "JY" Young in the studio to talk all things <a href="/tag/styx">Styx</a>, and more. The upcoming "Renegades and Juke Box Heroes" tour features Foreigner and John Waite. They'll be playing Pine Knob on June 15th.
We talked about a lot of topics. Playing in the band with great musicians like Tommy Shaw, and Lawrence Gowen.
Where does <a href="https://styxworld.com/">Styx</a> live in the music world...Rock or Progressive Rock? JY answers that question. "It's hard to define us because a lot of the stuff is prog. But, ya know, some of the ballads are pretty much straight-ahead rock ballads." That led to how JY got into music.
How did the Grunge era affect them? At first, he said "Zero" as far as the music was concerned.  But he did say that the band may have seen a dip in concert attendance, but that's passed and now they're selling lots of tickets.
Did the Beatles playing on The Ed Sullivan Show influence him? He said they did, but older siblings did too. He expanded on that.
What legendary guitarist did he see live five times? I'm not sure if I've ever met anyone who has seen the player so many times. "That's the most profound influence on my playing," he said of the guitarist.
I asked him his thoughts on the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame. "Well, I don't know. It's very East Coast-centric for people that have a vote. Styx probably deserves to be in there, but I'm not holding my breath." He didn't mention names, but at the end of the day, he said it's about the fans and music. He spoke of fans telling him about how Styx's music helped them through periods of their lives. "Music affects everyone differently, and we've made some great records."
It was a thrill to have JY, and the band's manager, George, in the studio with me. A huge pleasure.

The Legendary James "JY" Young Of Styx on Talkin' Rock

Sebastian, Remington, and Emerson from Palaye Royale were nice enough to stop by the station before their show earlier this week. After playing three songs for the staff, they hopped into the studio with me to talk about the band.

I had seen on X that Remington said that Songs For Sadness was very personal to him. He spoke about how his mother's illness has really affected each of them, who are brothers. Being on the road, and leaving their mother is always hard. This was a very touching part of the interview. I wish nothing but the best for "Mama Royale".

The guys talked about the dichotomy of how Palaye Royale writes songs. Sebastian said Remington brings a lot to the lyrics, Emerson is good on the piano even though he's the drummer, and each of them bring something different. "We had eighty songs - for the upcoming album - so we narrowed them down to ten" Remington told me. He also said "If there's not a deadline, I will tinker with it" when talking about recording songs.

They also talked about the success they've found overseas. Over here in the States, they've opened for so many bands but they're looking to do a headlining tour of their own. As a matter of fact, they're playing Wembley Arena in November. Sebastian said Gene Simmons gave them some great advice early on, which they still use to this day.

The band actually started out on the Disney channel. They talked about the difference between playing Disney shows, and then going off on their own for shows. They went from big crowds to playing to empty rooms.

I was shocked to hear that the guys were hockey players, as their family has roots in Canada. I didn't think we'd be talking about that during this interview!

Sebastian, Remington, and Emerson from <a href="https://www.palayeroyale.com/">Palaye Royale</a> were nice enough to stop by the station before their show earlier this week. After playing three songs for the staff, they hopped into the studio with me to talk about the band.
I had seen on X that Remington said that Songs For Sadness was very personal to him. He spoke about how his mother's illness has really affected each of them, who are brothers. Being on the road, and leaving their mother is always hard. This was a very touching part of the interview. I wish nothing but the best for "Mama Royale".
The guys talked about the dichotomy of how Palaye Royale writes songs. Sebastian said Remington brings a lot to the lyrics, Emerson is good on the piano even though he's the drummer, and each of them bring something different. "We had eighty songs - for the upcoming album - so we narrowed them down to ten" Remington told me. He also said "If there's not a deadline, I will tinker with it" when talking about recording songs.
They also talked about the success they've found overseas. Over here in the States, they've opened for so many bands but they're looking to do a headlining tour of their own. As a matter of fact, they're playing Wembley Arena in November. Sebastian said <a href="/tag/gene-simmons">Gene Simmons</a> gave them some great advice early on, which they still use to this day.
The band actually started out on the Disney channel. They talked about the difference between playing Disney shows, and then going off on their own for shows. They went from big crowds to playing to empty rooms.
I was shocked to hear that the guys were hockey players, as their family has roots in Canada. I didn't think we'd be talking about that during this interview!

Palaye Royale On Talkin' Rock

"It's incredible, man" is how Spencer Charnas from Ice Nine Kills responded to touring with Metallica. That's the last time he was in the Detroit area when that tour played Ford Field. Well, he's coming back this weekend to sign autographs and take photos with fans at Astronomicon. That happens in Livonia, Michigan April 12-14th at the Burton Manor.

He recalled the first show he saw from the Metal Legends back in Boston. He said they treat the band very well on tour. They have more Metallica dates left with them this year. "It's going to be quite a summer"

He told me the band is always writing and visual aspects for the band. "We're constantly in creative mode"

"Never" is how he answered the question of if he ever gets pushback for "using" some famous horror movie characters. He said he's become friends with some of the people responsible for these films and Ice Nine Kills is helping to promote the movies. I'm a horror fan so we did talk about some of the latest ones out right now. He also told me what sparked his love of the genre.

Believe it or not, even though they're from the same part of the country, he's never met Rob Zombie. He spoke to the love he has for his movies. "I think some of the stuff he does is truly brilliant".

Guitarist, Doc Coyle told me to ask him about the tuxedo place they get their suits from. He spoke to how Doc has stepped in and helped the band out. "He's an incredibly talented guy, and it was so good to have him out"

Spencer's appearance is sponsored by Rock City Music Company in Livonia.

"It's incredible, man" is how Spencer Charnas from <a href="https://iceninekills.com/">Ice Nine Kills</a> responded to touring with Metallica. That's the last time he was in the Detroit area when that tour played Ford Field. Well, he's coming back this weekend to sign autographs and take photos with fans at <a href="https://www.astronomicon.com/">Astronomicon</a>. That happens in Livonia, Michigan April 12-14th at the Burton Manor.
He recalled the first show he saw from the Metal Legends back in Boston. He said they treat the band very well on tour. They have more <a href="/tag/metallica">Metallica</a> dates left with them this year. "It's going to be quite a summer"
He told me the band is always writing and visual aspects for the band. "We're constantly in creative mode"
"Never" is how he answered the question of if he ever gets pushback for "using" some famous horror movie characters. He said he's become friends with some of the people responsible for these films and Ice Nine Kills is helping to promote the movies. I'm a horror fan so we did talk about some of the latest ones out right now. He also told me what sparked his love of the genre.
Believe it or not, even though they're from the same part of the country, he's never met <a href="/tag/rob-zombie">Rob Zombie</a>. He spoke to the love he has for his movies. "I think some of the stuff he does is truly brilliant".
Guitarist, Doc Coyle told me to ask him about the tuxedo place they get their suits from. He spoke to how Doc has stepped in and helped the band out. "He's an incredibly talented guy, and it was so good to have him out"
Spencer's appearance is sponsored by Rock City Music Company in Livonia.

Talkin' Rock with drummer Phil Varone

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