Never too old to rock 'n roll

I recently found out that a drum hero of mine (from when I was kid) is working with a new band on a new project.  In my younger days I was into the "heavy metal" (I know... shocking) and really enjoyed the Ronnie James Dio-era Black Sabbath and the subsequent DIO band and albums up through "Dream Evil" and then I turned my attention to more rootsy stuff like Little Feat and The Band.  That's college for you.


So the drummer in question was/is Vinny Appice who is the younger brother of rock legend Carmine Appice.  Vinny is a New Yorker and followed in his brother's footsteps - while Carmine was on tour with Vanilla Fudge Vinny took his older brother's drums and began to fool around on them.  He eventually took some lessons and like most teenagers started a rock band and began to record.  He eventually ended up in a NYC studio down the hall from John Lennon who was recording with Yoko.  I can only imagine what was being laid down on tape... Anyway this led to Vinny recording with John Lennon (on some obscure tracks) but they also appeared on TV - wearing all white and some crazy-ass face masks.


Here is guy who was in the right place at the right time and recorded with one of the biggest stars of rock/pop music.  However, John had to recognize that the kid could play his drums.  He wasn't some wanker who was trying to cut a demo in the studio next door - he was a bona fide musician.  Was being Carmine's brother a plus?  Probably.  But I stand by my previous statement that this brother could lay down some mighty fine beats.


I could go on and on about Vinny's life and times.  Fast forward to 1980.  Vinny is a 23 year old dude playing drums and leading his own band called AXIS and he is hand picked to join the heavy metal kings Black Sabbath, halfway through their Heaven & Hell tour and the rest is metal history.  He made charts for the first gig he played at an outside ampitheater and during the show the rains came and blurred out the charts.  Welcome to the big time kid!


Vinny does not play like a traditional metal drummer.  He plays fills the way he wants to; he plays very interesting fills and reacts to the music almost like a jazz drummer would.  Vinny is a powerful drummer and his ability to play the sludge tempos is nothing short of amazing (check out "After All - The Dead" or "Shadow Of The Wind" and you'll understand.)


His new project is called KILL DEVIL HILL and it is shaping up to be a very heavy deal.  I am actually looking forward to some new music, meaning music that was recorded within the past 20 years.  What's the whole point of all this rambling?  Here is a guy who is 54 years old and still wants to create new music and he is not afraid to beat the hell out of the drums while doing it.  And that boy can HIT.  He has earned his stripes, he is making music on his terms, he is an inspiration.  I have recently rediscovered his playing by listening to some of my old DIO and Sabbath recordings.  He sounds as fresh as anything that's out there.  Good for you Vin.