Interview with 80s Metal Heavyweights Hurricane
By Mick Michaels
Cosmick View: Hello, Gentlemen! Welcome to The Cosmick View. Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated.
HURRICANE: Thanks Mick for having us.
CV: What do you feel is the allure 80s Metal bands have over newer competing bands in your genre? What has fans wanting more? Is it more than nostalgia?
TONY CAVAZO: I don’t think it’s that 80’s metal bands have something over newer competing bands in our genre, it has to do with people loving the music they grew up with. I believe it is about nostalgia, it takes a listener back in time to when they were younger.
MIKE HANSEN: I don’t feel there is a competition due to the fact the eras are completely different of 80s and today. I think fans want good music and messages in lyrics that they can relate to.
DAN SCHUMANN: 80’s metal bands played a big part in creating a strong era for rock music during that decade that resulted in so many classic songs and rock anthems that are still just as popular today as they were back then. They had a distinctly live, big sound that can’t necessarily be replicated by today’s digital and more refined instruments and I think that is what still makes 80’s bands appealing - I think people want to be transported back to that time and that sound.
ROBERT SARZO: Their history with hit video songs that were played
on MTV in heavy rotation. With that platform, MTV, we had in the 80s really
made the difference.
CV: How does a veteran band like Hurricane
view internet radio? Do you feel it offers itself as a valuable resource for
bands to gain awareness with an audience in comparison to the tried and true
old-school mainstream radio?
TONY: I view
it as a tool to promote. I think it does because it is very hard to get your
music on mainstream radio anymore.
MIKE: I think internet radio is today’s modern radio but honestly I feel old radio is still powerful to reach your audience and is being overlooked by corporate America that doesn’t seem to get this. Old radio is still a powerful platform.
DAN: I think internet radio is another very useful platform for music in general. Nothing will compare to having a physical vinyl or CD in your hand, with the cover, lyric booklet, pictures etc., but internet radio, streaming, downloads etc., are amazing tools to give people more access to more varieties of music, which can only be a good thing.
ROBERT: The internet radio works as well as the radio station’s we had
back in the 80s. Exposure is the way to gain fans.
CV: In your opinion, can a band truly be independent given an industry that
relies heavily on big budgets and massive marketing campaigns to gain exposure
and fan appreciation?
TONY: I think
it can be extremely difficult. But the internet is now offering ways for
musicians to showcase their own music.
MIKE: Yes, a band can still be independent. That’s why we have Indy labels. It may take a bit longer to saturate the marketplace, but you will gain your fan base still just at a slower rate.
DAN: It’s definitely more difficult as an independent artist or band. We are very lucky as a band to have Escape Music and DEKO Entertainment behind us with this new album Reconnected.
ROBERT: I feel that a band has to have a solid marketing plan to gain exposure,
but you must have good songs.
CV: Tell us a little about Hurricane's new
album, "Reconnected."
What can listeners expect to hear?
TONY: “Reconnected”
is a variation of a lot of different things. We wanted a fresh sound but at the
same time wanted our longtime fans to recognize our music while at the same
time attracting a new fan base.
MIKE: Hurricane’s “Reconnected” album will still give you the old integrity and vibe but with a modern day sound.
DAN: Reconnected is a mixture of classic Hurricane meets new Hurricane. The sound is still a blend of those powerful rock riffs, big vocals and killer drums and the result with this current line-up, is a more modern vibe to that classic sound. I hope the fans will dig it.
ROBERT: Hurricane’s “Reconnected” album has a organic sound. We wanted
to bridge our original sound to today’s vibe. All the songs have a message with
a melodic theme.
CV: As a musician, as an artist...as a songwriter, how does you feel playing
music helped you better express yourself to those around you?
TONY: Playing
music is just one way; there are many ways to express yourself.
MIKE: Playing music helps as a musician to share your personal experience with others and by sharing it might help someone not feel they are the only ones going through something.
DAN: Sounds cliché but music has always been a big part of my life and has always provided me with an outlet to express myself. Sometimes it’s all you have.
ROBERT: As a musician, artist, songwriter, I connect
emotionally with the songs so that I don’t have to think of what I’m
performing, better to feel the songs.
CV: Many veteran bands seem to want to live in the past, holding on to older
material without ever considering new material for the fans. With the new
album, "Reconnected," Hurricane demonstrates otherwise. Why do
you feel many established acts avoid releasing new material?
TONY: I can’t
speak for other musicians, for me I’m always open to try and express myself in
new ways.
MIKE: I’m guessing on this but I’m assuming that those bands might have lost their edge to writing songs or a key member who writes might not be in the band.
DAN: Because they’ve probably got some absolutely rocking songs in their catalogue. They’re the songs that made them. But most bands evolve over the years in their songs, band members, they discover new things, new sounds, things that excite them and gives them a chance to challenge themselves as musicians and song-writer’s etc. I think Reconnected is a pretty good blend of both - and because it was over 30yrs since Hurricane’s last album, we wanted to remind the fans why they loved Hurricane in the first place with a new version of I’m On To You as well as a whole bunch of new original material including the first single from the album, Rock Star Cheater. So we kind of took the best of both worlds with this new record.
ROBERT: Music is the soundtrack of your life, you
hear a song and it takes you back in time to when you first heard it. Hurricane’s
new songs will contribute to today’s soundtrack of your life.
CV: As a follow up question, do you think fans want new material from their
favorite 80s rockers...or are they content with the tried and true classics?
TONY: I think
a lot of fans only want the tried and true and many of them are open to new
material from their old favorite bands. But for a band to move forward, you
have to try to gain new fans along the way.
MIKE: I think fans do want new music from their favoring bands but they also can be the worst critics as well once we give them music. It’s a catch 22.
DAN: I think the fans feel pretty similar, they became fans for a reason - for a certain band’s classic hits, the tunes they fell in love with. But a lot of fans are also very adaptable and look forward to hearing whatever else these bands can pull out too. I know when I personally go to concerts, I want to hear a few of the absolute classics but also their newer stuff too - I want to see how they do it in a live setting as opposed to just listening to the song on a record.
ROBERT: I say yes, they want to listen to new songs. As of today, our first single Rock Star Cheater is being accepted by our original fans and the new ones.
CV: What's been the greatest lesson you learned being in a rock band?
TONY: In order to protect yourself in this
business, you have to be more than just a musician. There are a lot of people
out there willing to take from your plate. Learn the business; don’t rely on
trusting everything you hear.
MIKE: Rock is here to stay regardless of what others think.
DAN: It’s much more fun to be in a studio rehearsing material than on a Zoom meeting! LOL
ROBERT: You have to keep learning new ways of doing things in the music business.
CV: In addition to the new album, what more can fans expect to see coming from Hurricane in the second half of 2023? Will a tour be scheduled?
HURRICANE: There are two more music videos coming in August with the full Album release on August 25th. There is a lot of preparation before a tour but we hope to be announcing a schedule soon.
CV: Thanks again Gentlemen for taking the time to share with our readers. We wish you all the best and continued success.
Check out Hurricane at:
https://hurricaneofficialrockband.com/
www.dekoentertainment.com
Order “Reconnected”: https://bit.ly/HURRICANE-RECONNECTED
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