Drum Legend CARMINE APPICE Reflects On His Formative Years - "I Was Playing Harder Than Most Drummers Of The Day, And By Doing That, I Had My Own Sound"

August 25, 2023, a year ago

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Drum Legend CARMINE APPICE Reflects On His Formative Years - "I Was Playing Harder Than Most Drummers Of The Day, And By Doing That, I Had My Own Sound"

Drum legend Carmine Appice recently guested on 95.5 KLOS and discussed being cited as an influence by drummers including Roger Taylor (Queen), Neil Peart (Rush), and Phil Collins (Genesis)

Appice: "I've been around longer than those guys, and back in the day, when it was, like, '67, there were no monitor systems, there was no P.A.s hardly, so I used to have to really beat the drums to get the sound out. And then I said, 'I'm gonna get a big bass drum...' because the bigger, the louder. So when I got an endorsement, I got all big drums, all oversized drums, and I had to hit 'em harder to get the sound best. I was playing harder than most drummers of the day, and by doing that, I had my own sound. It was a big fat drum sound played very heavy, very hard. I did that out of necessity, and then people followed me to do that, like John Bonham. As it went on, after Cactus and Beck, Bogert & Appice, other people followed it."

It’s been almost four decades since the mighty King Kobra first burst onto the melodic metal scene. Pulled together by superstar drummer and mastermind Carmine Appice (Cactus, Vanilla Fudge), King Kobra quickly became a worldwide fan favorite with a deadly mix of stellar musicianship, killer metal hooks, and of course a whole lot of teased up hair!

Now, a new lineup of the band, perhaps their strongest gathering yet, is ready to announce the release of We Are Warriors, the band’s hard-hitting seventh studio album. KK founder Appice is joined once again by longtime bassist Johnny Rod, and vocalist Paul Shortino who welcome to the den the newest vipers, Quiet Riot guitarist Carlos Cavazo and former Dio member Rowan Robertson. With these two talented virtuosos aboard, We Are Warriors is bound to be one of the band’s most celebrated albums.

Check out the first single, the supercharged title track, which is being released today on all digital platforms. The band even recorded a captivating performance music video that proves these veteran rockers still have what it takes to bring the rock! Watch the video below.

Cavazo declares that the new single “is the anthem of how our lives were in the ‘80s,” while vocalist Shortino looks forward to the release of the entire album saying “we put a lot of love into this record!” And finally, founder Appice says, “the album has some great moments in playing, singing and songwriting... it meets the standard of KK... it ROCKS!!”

Stream/download the single here.

The full release of We Are Warriors is set for August 11 and will be available on digital, CD and a gorgeous silver/black splatter vinyl. Order the CD/Vinyl here. Pre-order/pre-save the digital here.

Tracklisting:

"Music Is A Piece Of Art"
"Turn Up The Music"
"Secrets And Lies"
"Drownin'"
"One More Night"
"Love Hurts"
"Dance"
"Darkness"
"We Are Warriors"
"Drive Like Lightning"
"Trouble" [CD only]
"Side By Side" [CD only]

"We Are Warriors" video:


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