Chris Impellitteri (Impellitteri)

Interview by Woody

Guitarist Chris Impellitteri rose to fame in the late eighties when the young guitar virtuoso was compared to the likes of Yngwie Malmsteen. The title track from the first full length Impellitteri album Stand In Line which featured legendary vocalist Graham Bonnett saw him make a massive impact worldwide and has since seen the band forge a loyal fan base as they continue to release new material. On the 20th of April they released their brand spanking new album Venom on Frontiers Records. Woody caught up with American shredder Chris Impellitteri to discuss the new album.

Hi Chris, you have just released your latest album ‘Venom’ on Frontiers Records has the album turned out as you originally planned?

Yes! We could not be happier with the completed record. The recording captures the bands power, energy and excitement. I honestly think this is the best record we have done to date!

You have been writing and recording albums for many years now, do you ever find writing new songs a struggle or do you find song writing easy and what inspires you?

I only write music when I am inspired.  My writing process is similar to an artist that paints a picture on a blank canvas. I have a blank template that first needs a great riff. Once I have a great riff written I then work on creating music that will complement the riff. When writing the music for the riff I always hear a vocal melody in my mind which directs me to choose certain scales or chords that compliment that vocal melody. If all goes well, the music leads me into a solo section, of which usually calls for a lot of excitement and energy. Once the music is complete, I hand it over to Rob Rock, and he works on creating a great vocal melody. James Pulli and Jon Dette also create their own parts to complete the song! In effect, our writing and recording on Venom is very much a group effort!

Also, in all honestly some songs are written with great ease, while other songs take a lot of work to develop into a masterpiece.  ‘Nightmare’ is one of the harder songs, whereas ‘Empire of lies’ was very easy song to write!

Talk to us about a few of the songs on the album? Are there any meanings or stories behind the song’s fans would be interested in?

‘EMPIRE OF LIES’ is about the fall of the Roman Empire, and how the Roman Empire parallels the current condition of the UNITED STATES. It is basically a prediction!!  Scary!

‘WE OWN THE NIGHT’ is a celebration of rock and metal, it is a celebration of a band that kicks ass when they hit the stage at night!

‘DOMINO THEORY’ is a story about how news organizations around the world spin the truth. These new organizations usually tell a very biased opinion of an event that leads the viewer to believe what the storyteller wants them to believe.

‘TIME MACHINE’ story takes you through different eras of heavy metal, the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s and 2015 and so on.

In effect the stories on our record Venom are diverse and exciting. The album is very adventurous and exciting to listen too!

Do you have any plans to play live in the UK?

GOD, I HOPE SO!  Thousands of fans in Europe are begging us to play live. We are doing everything in our power to find an agent that will contact the promoters.  If we get an offer, we will come and play live for all of you!!!!

Which songs do you enjoy most to perform live?

From Venom, I love playing the title track ‘VENOM’, ‘WE OWN THE NIGHT’, ‘NIGHTMARE’ and ‘RISE’. 

Of the older IMPELLITTERI songs I love playing ‘LOST IN THE RAIN’, ‘SPEED DEMON’, ‘POWER OF LOVE’, ‘ANSWER TO THE MASTER’ and the list goes on!

Is playing live important to you or do you prefer song writing and recording?

I LOVE PLAYING LIVE AND CREATING MUSIC IN THE STUDIO!  Playing live is very rewarding, our live concerts are so much fun because the audience rock hard with us and give us so much energy to play off of.

Writing and recording is also extremely rewarding as I enjoy creating music. If the music, we write is great it will last forever! So, I would say it is equal.

Which Impellitteri song from the past are you most proud of and why?

‘LOST IN THE RAIN’- It was the very first song we wrote and recorded together as a band. We recorded the IMPELLITTERI black EP in Hollywood California. The black EP has now become a cult favourite and is filled with energy and youth!  It was also a very live album as we did not have much money to record back then. So, we pretty much cut everything live!

Following the release of ‘Venom’ what are the bands plans now?

WORLD DOMINATION!!! HA HA!

We plan on promoting this record all over the world followed by a very long tour! We intend on working this record for years! Venom is our masterpiece and we will do everything in our power to play this music for everyone that will listen!

Is there anything else you would like to add or say to readers?

Rock with us! Pick up a copy of Venom, enjoy the music and performance and I hope to see you guys and girls at our shows!!!!