Interview with Guitar Master Vinnie Moore
By Mick Michaels
Cosmick View: Hello, Vinnie! Welcome to The Cosmick View. Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated. Vinnie Moore: Thanks very much for the interview. It is also greatly appreciated.
CV: “Double Exposure” marks your first
album to include both vocals and instrumental arrangements. What prompted you
to do so and what surprises do you believe are in store for longtime fans?
VM: I
like doing crazy and unexpected things. Haha. This record was initially
supposed to be an instrumental EP. I was at home for quite a while because the
world was locked down and no one could tour. So I thought I’d put a handful of
tunes out there just to do something and not waste the time. During that
period, no one had any idea how long this would last. It seemed like it would
be a fun and quick thing, but man was I wrong. It turned out to not be quick at
all because it took an unexpected turn. I was listening to the song demos one
evening to brainstorm for ideas, and what happened was that I started hearing
vocals and singing along. So I got this idea to record the original
instrumental songs but then also do versions with singers. There was something
about the world being locked down where I felt I could be less formal and more
experimental than usual. I am unaware of anyone ever doing a record with twin
songs like this. So this is how it all came about. I think if there are any
surprises, it will be regarding some of the musical styles. Although, fans of
mine know that I have covered a lot of territories stylistically in the past.
So maybe it won’t be too much of a surprise. We’ll see.
CV: The new album also features an array of talented vocalists including Riot's Mike DiMeo, Keith Slack, Ed Terry and Brian Stephenson from Old James. How did you connect with these gentlemen and do feel having a variety of singers for this project brings “Double Exposure” to an entirely different level that a single vocalist would not achieve alone in your opinion?
VM: I have known or worked with all these guys in the past. I met Keith in 1999 when I toured with MSG and he was their singer. We have always talked about working together and it just never happened for whatever reason. DiMeo has played in my band as singer and keyboardist in the past and we also wanted to do something together. I played on a project with a band called Ruffyunz a couple years back and Ed sang on it which is how I found out about him, and Brian and I met on the Xtreme Guitar tour back in 2016, I think it was. I thought it would be cool to get a few different singers on this because there were some differences in musical styles. For example Keith was perfect for “Hummingbird” as it has a bit of a southern rock Allman Brothers type of vibe and he’s from Texas and has that in his voice and his influences. So basically I tried to match song styles with singers. Although I really do think that any of them would have been awesome on any of the tunes. I want to eventually start a new band and this album seemed like it was a great way to head in that direction…sort of a gateway.
CV: If you were to chose only one track from the new album to represent the entire project, which would it be and why?
VM: That is of course a tough question. I honestly don’t know if there is any one song that could do it actually. Maybe “Vertical Horizon” because it is a rocker with a lot of energy and that’s pretty much why I put it first on the album.
CV: Barring the effects of the COVID-19
pandemic, did you found any of the last two years as an unexpected recharge
as an artist and songwriter?
VM: I didn’t really feel a recharge but I did feel a vibe
where I thought I could just say fuck it and put something different and
experimental out there. I’m not sure exactly what made me feel this way but I
am glad I rolled with it. Album releases have more of a formal kind of feel
nowadays. “Let’s work long and hard and polish every bit of this thing into
perfection”. There’s a certain protocol about how things are done. But if you
look back at say Zappa, he was putting out albums frequently and just being
experimental, letting it flow, and doing whatever the fuck he wanted to. I miss
that attitude. I would like to take things less seriously than I have in the
past. Anyway, I’m off on a tangent, so back to the question, that time period
made me feel like who cares, just do anything you want.
CV: As a guitar player who has influenced
countless fans and aspiring musicians alike, who or what have you found
personally to be the most inspirational source for you as an individual and as
an artist?
VM: I
would say listening to many different styles of music and also always having my
ears open as you often find inspiration in unusual places where you would never
expect to. I can hear a 10 second piece of music while watching TV and that can
set me off on a path for a new song. So as Keith Richards said, “you always
have to have the antenna up.”
CV: Being a seasoned and well-experienced
performer with decades of knowledge, if you could make one change to the
current music industry, what would that be and why? How would you see that
change greatly impacting artists as a whole on all levels?
VM: It
would have to be the whole streaming thing for me. We have such an unfair model
with these services and the artist gets barely anything and some business
tycoon makes millions of dollars by using the hard work of others. I have heard
the philosophy where you have to play the game because your music will reach
many more people if it’s on Spotify, and have joined in on that game in the
past and I just don’t see that it has done much for me. If there was a fair
model for artists, then yes I think it would be a great thing. I think with
technology, we have lost our way not only in the music biz but in many areas of
our lives.
CV: In recent times, many critics have griped
that music is not evolving; that it’s only maintaining a level that seems to
appease the lowest common denominator of listeners; hence the “Rock is dead”
sentiment. Do you agree with such an opinion? Has music been
“dumbed-down” as so many like to claim? And has it become just a “cash grab”
robbing the music of its substance?
VM: It’s
funny that if you go to see a band that has been around for a while, people
seem to only want to hear the old songs and not the new stuff. A lot of these
bands were breaking ground when they started and fans were open minded and
receptive to their music which was of course new at the time, but people seem
to not be as open to something that is new now even if it’s really good. People
romanticize the past and you can see why. Music has that magic ability to take
you back to another time in your life and that’s an awesome thing to
experience. The “play the old hits man” is a weird thing for older bands to
have to be locked into. I’ve dealt with that in UFO.
CV: Has music in general, regardless of
genre, become more about looks and visuals then about the music and the
experience of listening in your opinion? Or has the visual end of the music
world always been an key component?
VM: I
think looks and visuals have always been a huge part of it. Fans have always
wanted to see something that is attractive or looks cool to them…whether
they’re aware of it or not. It’s not only the case with music. It can be
actors, your coworkers...whatever. You can be seduced visually and that’s just
the way it is.
CV: What more can fans expect to see coming
from you as 2023 begins to draw closer?
VM: Touring
would be the next phase for me. I’m excited to get out there and do some solo
shows.
CV: Thanks again Vinnie for taking the
time to share with our readers. We wish you all the best and continued success.
VM: Thanks
so much man
Check out Vinnie
at:
Official: www.vinniemoore.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Vinnie.Moore.Official
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vinniemooreofficialfanpage
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vinnie_moore_guitarist/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Vinnie_Moore
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