Electric Frankenstein, Continued...
HG: Electric Frankenstein and a visually stunning array of horror-inspired images undoubtedly go hand in hand. What are some of your favorite horror movies? Do you prefer the classics from the days of yore or today's technically enhanced screamers?
Sal Canzonieri: I still prefer the classic Universal monster films from the original days. The films were very well made and had lots of spooky atmosphere that nothing from today can ever compare to, because those kind of films were brand new at their time and scared an awful lot of people of all ages! I love the old Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolfman, Creature From the Black Lagoon films, as well as lots of lesser known independently made monster films from the 1950s to the 1970s. The films that are too technical are too boring to me ‘cause they forget about the story and keeping the audience in suspense.
HG: I often anticipate seeing the cover art of each Electric Frankenstein release almost as much as I yearn for the music inside. Who are some of the artists that have designed the artwork for your CDs, seven-inchers, etc? And, also, who creatively conjures the wildly dazzling graphics for the kick-ass Electric Frankenstein t-shirts that I'm always longing to buy?
Sal Canzonieri: Well, luckily for a lot of our fans, all the record cover and poster artwork that was done for our first ten years or so has been collected into a big full color book called Electric Frankenstein!, and it was published by Dark Horse Comics. It came out around March of last year and is already in its second printing. It features art by Coop, Kozik, Alan Forbes, Johnny Ace, Cliff Mott, Art Chantry, and tons of famous poster artists. What's really great is that our new album cover was painted by none other than Basil Gogos! He was the great artist that did all those wild and amazing Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine covers in the 1960s! Also, the back cover features art by Neal Adams, who is the great comic book artist that did all those amazing new style comics in the 1960s like Green Lantern and Batman. And last but not least, the inside CD art and the enhanced portion of the CD was done by Johnny Ace, who was Big Daddy Roth's longest running assistant and was famous in the early 1980s in the Thrasher magazine skate punk art scene.
HG: Since it seems like Electric Frankenstein is always in the studio or on the road, I'm wondering if there's a life for each of you outside the band. Day jobs? Hobbies? Recreational vices? Or any EF-related side projects of which the steadfast-and-true Horror Garage readers should be aware?
Sal Canzonieri: Doing EF is really hard work for sure, but at home we have day jobs ‘cause we like our day jobs. We don't want to become music prostitutes like a lot of bands are that wind up being desperate for a record label to take care of them. Instead, we can do what we want, where and when we want to. I also teach Chinese martial art classes here in New Jersey and New York where I live. I have a black belt in Chinese Kung Fu. Most of the band is also in side projects. I am in The Kung Fu Killers, which is like the ‘80s-style Misfits/Black Flag/Bad Brains hardcore punk. Steve has Cherry Thirteen, which is a more ‘80s Rock kind of band. Bill plays in a rockabilly band called the Tombtones. John is in the High School Sweethearts. Dan is in a band called When I Was Dead, a gothic rock band. Rob is in some local New York City music projects, as well.
HG: Curiosity is eatin' me alive here, so I just gotta ask: what’s your very own personal favorite EF song, and why? For the record, my favorite is a three-way tie between “The Time Is Now,” “It's All Moving Faster” and “Burn Bright, Burn Fast.”
Sal Canzonieri: Hmm, that’s hard to say. I like a bunch of them. “Demolition Joyride” is an obvious favorite, so are “Gone to the Other Room” on the new album and “Burn Bright, Burn Fast.” “Up From the Streets” is another favorite, and so is “Sweet Baby Arrogance.”
HG: Electric Frankenstein has managed to grandly keep the true, rip-roarin' spirit of rock n' roll alive and thriving during an otherwise musically bland era when corporate-backed, mainstream plasticity unfortunately reigns supreme. What is your opinion of the current state of rock n' roll? Where do you see it headed for the next generation?
Sal Canzonieri: Well, the mainstream continues to be a load of shit, as it always will since it is not made for real music fans, but just for a quick buck. In the underground, once you get past trendy stuff like emo and screamo and the Good Charlotte kind of pop crap, REAL raunchy high energy rock n’ roll is alive and well, and the next generation is headed towards a full punk-influenced rawk n’ roll. It’s hard rock played by punks, as punk rock and stoner rock meet together in the middle. I've been putting out a thirteen-volume compilation series called A Fistful of Rock N Roll where I let the world know about all the world's best high energy rock n’ roll bands. There are over three hundred and fifty bands on these thirteen volumes of music so far, and lots of fans buy them to keep up with what's going on. Kerrang magazine said they are “the Who's Who in Rock n’ Roll today.”
HG: What does the foreseeable future hold for Electric Frankenstein? And how long do you anticipate the band to continue rockin' with such enormous vigor?
Sal Canzonieri: We are going to play as long as the people are there that want to buy our music and see us live. Who knows how far that will go? In the near future, there will be a lot of fun Electric Frankenstein stuff coming out, such as Electric Frankenstein toy figures, a video game, a DVD of our live shows, and a Best of Electric Frankenstein record that will be multi-media, showing cartoons that illustrate the lyrics of the songs!
HG: Thanks so much, Sal, for being a patient victim of my rowdily rambling inquisitiveness! Since Electric Frankenstein is one of my all-time favorite bands, it is my bluntly outspoken opinion that y'all will leave a long-lasting legacy of loudness, grit, and determination. In closing, what do you hope the Electric Frankenstein legacy will be?
Sal Canzonieri: Well, we’ve been featured in a lot of books about rock music, and that makes me feel great, so I hope that our legacy will be like that of the New York Dolls, Ramones, Dead Boys, and other New York City-based bands that wound up being beloved by their fans, and their music stayed alive forever as many new bands became inspired by their music. What was cool that recently The Hives listed us as one of their only two influences in Rolling Stone and Mojo magazines. It was good to be acknowledged like that. X
*****
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN HORROR GARAGE #10.
BUY THIS ISSUE
*****
WWW.ELECTRIC FRANKENSTEIN.COM
