Taken from Bravewords.com
http://www.bravewords.com/news/166545
1) How did your new project Hotel Diablo come together?
“Mike Duda (bassist, W.A.S.P.) and I have been talking about putting together a band like this for a while and had been actually kicking the name around for a few years. This past spring we got together with Rick Stitch (vocals, LADYJACK) and Mike Dupke (drums, W.A.S.P.) to play some covers at a bar out here in Hollywood and things really clicked. Rick and I had been writing a lot together when we played together in ADLER’S APPETITE as well so it really was a work in progress all along that kind of just fell into place.
2) What are the short term and long term plans for the band? Is this a one shot deal or do you hope to still be doing this in ten years?
“We are really doing things as they come, as we all have our other commitments. It’s been good so far because it’s all happened very organically. I would like to get a whole record out and place some of this stuff in movies and TV, which we are currently talking to some people about. I would like to keep Hotel Diablo going as long as we can, as it’s a super tight band with a great vibe and no egos. I think Rick has a really cool and distinct voice and a ton of potential.”
3) GILBY CLARKE of GUNS N’ ROSES fame is producing your new music. How did you choose Gilby as producer and when do you expect to have a full album out?
“Gilby actually contacted Rick when he found out about the project, as he had produced some tracks for Rick’s band Ladyjack a few years ago and wanted to step in and help with this. I think he has done an amazing job so far and has a great ear for guitar-driven rock. I was a big fan of his record Pawnshop Guitars so this has been really cool on a lot of levels. His studio Red Rum Recording has some amazing gear and an over-all great vibe.”
4) You’re also busy with Quiet Riot – will Hotel Diablo be a touring entity and if yes, what are your tour plans for the next year?
“We have been approached about doing some Hotel Diablo dates in different parts of the country, but for now we are keeping it in the LA area, We are headlining the Whisky on September 2nd, where we hope to play some of these new songs live for the first time. If you are in LA, come on out! Down the road when and if the time is right and schedules permit I see no reason why we wouldn’t go out and tour.”
5) Musically, what can fans expect from Hotel Diablo?
“Some of the newest stuff we have been working on is even heavier then what we have done so far with Gilby. Duda and Dupke are a pretty brutal rhythm section and I really want to utilize the heaviness of what they do. I think the balance of that heaviness coupled with Rick’s more rock sensibilities will make for a pretty cool combo that fans of both metal and good old fashion rock n’ roll will connect with. We released the first track ‘Set It Off’ last month via iTunes as well as other online music stores and the response has been great so far.”
6) You recently spent time in the Steven Adler camp. Are you still recording or working with him? If not, why not? Any cool Adler stories to tell?
“I am no longer working with Adler and company, simply because my schedule got pretty full and I could not be in two places at once. We wrote and recorded three songs together: ‘Alive’, ‘Fading’ and ‘Stardog’ (available on iTunes) and I am proud to have been able to do that with the drummer of one of my favorite bands of all time. The one drawback of playing in that band is that Steven is primarily known for his work in GN’R (our set was 90% GN’R covers) and more recently, his Celebrity Rehab stint – so new music sometimes takes a pretty big backseat to those two things. It was great playing those songs with Steven though, he is the groove behind those classic songs without a doubt. I love the guy, he is one of the sweetest people you will ever meet. Chip Z’Nuff is great as well… (Chippy is VERY under-rated).
As for stories? – there are literally hundreds. Here’s one: During our 2009 summer bus tour I actually watched Steven do an impromptu ‘meet and greet’ in the CD section of a Wal-Mart that our driver stopped at to buy paper towels or something at somewhere in Oklahoma… He just started ripping open copies of Appetite (For Destruction), signing them, and handing them out to anyone who wanted one. It was pretty awesome to watch the store manager try to moderate, I don’t think he was too happy about it. Steven did end up buying about $600 worth of Family Guy DVDs and Hot Pockets so I guess it ended up being ok.”
7) You were in Quiet Riot when Kevin DuBrow passed away. How did the news of his passing affect you and what did Kevin mean to you?
“Kevin was a great friend and taught me a lot in the years that I knew him and played with him. The news of his passing hit me pretty hard, as it did a lot of people. It still seems very strange that he is gone, I miss him every day.”
Early on in your career, you were in the next big thing – a band called Beautiful Creatures and after a somewhat successful first album and tour (as part of Ozzfest) – the band fizzled. What happened? And will there ever be another BC show or album?
“I joined Beautiful Creatures right as they were beginning work on the second record Deuce. It worked out great for me as I was a big fan of the first record and got to jump in and write and record the whole record. I think as much as a lot of industry people say they love ‘real rock’, most radio programmers will only stick their necks out so far. That, coupled with the big AOL/Time Warner merger pretty much sealed BC’s fate at that time.
Deuce ended up coming out on JVC Records in Japan and Spitfire Records in North America, and over the past few years we have actually gotten a few pretty big placements – ‘Freedom’ was used in the 2009 Walt Disney Pictures The Proposal and ‘Anyone’ was used in the FX series Sons Of Anarchy. As for another BC album? No idea… I did just write and record a new track with Joe LeSte (which actually sounds a lot like Creatures) for a new record he is doing, which I would imagine will be out soon.”
9) What motivates you to keep playing in a band? At any point, have you thought ‘it’s time for me to lay down the guitar and get a desk job?’
“My motivation is that it’s something that I love to do, and have found a way to make a living at it – I have been touring for almost my entire adult life and can’t imagine doing anything else. As for the desk job? When I am not on the road sometimes I do bookings for an LA-based booking agency, and they do have desks in their office, but that’s as close as I’m gonna get!”
10) The tough question: Why should people care about Hotel Diablo?
“I won’t say that they should care, but rather they should give it a listen and then decide if they care or not…”
Bonus Question – 11) Complete this sentence: KISS is…
“What you get when you want the BEST!”
