Interview with Spread Eagle Bassist Rob DeLuca
By Mick Michaels
Cosmick View: Hello, Rob! Welcome to The Cosmick View. Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated.
CV: What's your definition of Rock, and how do you see its place in the modern music landscape? Is it still relevant?
Rob DeLuca: What people call Rock these days sounds very light to me. So I’ll discuss Hard Rock. Hard Rock is a feeling of expressing yourself through power and aggression, which will always be relevant to us. We’re not concerned about being modern or anything in particular. We just want to make quality music that’s unique to Spread Eagle.
CV: Spread Eagle has had a massive resurgence of awareness and popularity in the last couple of years following the pandemic. What does that mean for a legacy band to have renewed interest after so many years?
RDL: It feels reaffirming and is the product of relentless hard work and self belief. We’re just getting started.
CV: How does a legacy band, such as Spread Eagle, look to stay relevant with today's newer audiences? Is there some special ingredient that other bands seem to overlook? What sets Spread Eagle apart in your opinion?
RDL: Being honest will always be relevant. We’re still in touch with the feelings of why we started doing this in the first place. We heard a sound that wasn’t being made and created it.
Also we don’t use any live backing tracks,
while many other bands cheat and rely on them. Instead we choose to fill any “production”
void with added raw emotion and improvisation.
CV: Many believe that success for a band relies heavily on three major
components; good distribution, good PR and good booking, and in the today’s modern
music industry, all can now be achieved by the artist themselves. Do you feel
more and more established acts will go the independent route and eliminate the
middle man; in this case, the label and associated managements, opting to do
more or even all for themselves?
RDL: I’m unsure of what other bands will or should do. The music
industry is so crazy, there’s no formula and random things happen all the time.
On our last album cycle we did it both ways. We initially had a few weeks of outside promotion then back to the band promoting ourselves. Sometimes it’s nice to have a bit of help, but in the end no one gives more heart than yourself.
Distribution and PR can be virtual and
everywhere via the online web. For now, we do most of our own booking too.
CV: Many veteran bands seem to steer clear of writing and releasing new music
these days; opting to hold the fans' attention and admiration by keeping back
catalog hits alive and kicking. Some look at new music as a “kiss of death”.
What's your take on such a sentiment? Is new music a deterrent or even
detriment for more established bands when it comes to fan interest?
RDL: We’re blessed that people want to hear our older songs. However,
our fans are totally with us for the new music ride. Our current set includes 4
or 5 new songs. At one point it included 6.
I love writing, recording and releasing new music. I’ll always do that but yes it’s becoming a money loser. However, you can’t fall into the trap of skimping on quality or time invested because the financial returns will be small or nonexistent. If you’re gonna release new music, it has to be great. No exceptions. You have to invest a lot of time to make that happen.
Back in the day you toured to promote new
music. Now you release new music to promote touring.
CV: If you were given a chance to do something over again, what would you
change or do differently?
RDL: Release a third major label album in the 1990’s, before everyone
quit.
CV: What do you see is the biggest factor keeping you still going?
CV: On a personal level, what have you come away with, both as a musician and as an individual, after being in the industry for so long? Has there been a lesson learned for you?
RDL: Don’t try to be good at everything. Be the best at one thing. Say something unique and own it.
CV: In addition to lots of tour dates, what more can fans expect to see coming from Spread Eagle in the remainder 2023 and beyond?
RDL: We already have a lot of gigs scheduled and more coming in everyday. The fact that people want to book and see us live is exciting. We’re really looking forward to the Monsters of Rock Cruise to Jamaica! We’re going to keep pushing for more to see how far we can take it.
CV: Thanks again, Rob, for taking the time to share with our readers. We wish you all the best and continued success.
Check out spread Eagle at:
On Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7zHsOl9ubyE9f0sKiCOfet
On Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/spread-eagle/43487078
On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/SpreadEagleBand
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spreadeaglenyc
Twitter: https://twitter.com/spreadeaglenyc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spreadeaglenyc
Official: https://spreadeagle.us
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