Metal Shock Finland (World Assault )

The Man behind Eurosmith and LaceBlack…
Italian musician, Luca Celletti, writes on Eurosmith Facebook: “I would never have imagined our headway could be so unpredictable, but if I look inside of me, going back in time, the image of an answer I got so timely, so unexpected and determined, and yet unknowing, still amuses me…As if everything had been already expected and determined, it’s a journey that won’t stop when facing the inevitable obstacles that reality places when it becomes a dream, and this dream turns real.. Still today, even more…Luca”

I know Luca since 2008, when he and Eurosmith played at SanremOff (Sanremo-Italy). The other day we had a pleasant long chat, and this is what he told me…

Hi Luca, I’m Tarja, a warm welcome to Metal Shock Finland! … to start, how’re you doing today?

Hi dear Tarja, a warm welcome to You as well, I’m doing fine, thanx!  Kinda relaxing now writing to you, after some good working with the band.

How and at what age you found the music? and can you tell us about your first band-experiences?

Well, I remember several funny episodes in my life regarding the way I got into Music, especially into Hard Rock music. My big brother was really a maniac in listening to songs from Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and many more of the genre when he was just a young kid… You can imagine the volume in the room! I started to be obsessed but  then soon addicted by Hard’n’Heavy bands since when I was 8 yrs. I bought my first Drums when I was 14, could not stop driving myself on that way from there on. My first band was called Rising, name inspired by the Raimbow’s abum “Rising”, it was formed on 1983, playing covers and original stuff too.

In 1997 you formed Eurosmith, which is the first running Aerosmith Tribute band in Italy… and nowadays you’re one of the most requested Tribute band all over Italy and Europe… England, Ireland, Sweden, Germany, Hungary, Switzerland, Austria… besides this we’ve seen you performing often and with great success in the most famous live rock clubs, open air shows and rock festivals. But what about the future, what plans do you have with Eurosmith?

I’m very glad you could have been a part of the audience several times at our live-acts, tellin’ me now your kind words, it’s an honour for us. Actually we enjoy playing together, the most important thing is to know that everyone in the band is a fan of Aerosmith, things are cool and natural when you work together with a certain spirit. All in all we like to enjoy all it’s possible to share with this band, never know where we can wharf to play…It is fascinating a lot.

Eurosmith has given life also to the “Aero-Meeting” in 2003, the Italian event for everyone who loves Aerosmith… tell us about this experience.

In that period of time I was also playing in an english Aerosmith tribute band and at the same time I was performing with Eurosmith as well…I used to live in London and got very often to Camden town to search for unpublished dvd or videotapes, especially regarding Aerosmith. My idea was to propose a special night to the Aero fans all over Italy, for a meeting together, exchanging and showing Aerosmith memorabilia, showing amatorial unpublished Aerosmith live concerts in occasion of an Eurosmith concert where also took part several musicians gettin’ on stage as guests, performing Aerosmith songs together with the band. It was just brilliant! The Aero-meeting was repeated in Milan on 2004 and then in Rome again on 2006.

You’ve met Steven Taylor several times… what would you like to share with us about those moments?

There’s a lot to say but as you can imagine words could not be enough to describe the intensity and the details of the moments, especially when I met Steven and Joe at the first time in 1999 in Naples. Ok, I can try to make a short summary about that… I came to know by the Italian Aerosmith  Fans club that Steven had the opportunity to see a picture of me on a newspaper while I was on stage, wearing the kinda black and white stripes dress that Steven used to wear in the 70′s…They told me he was curious and glad to meet up. It was a big emotional impact for me.  The moment we met he got a surprised face and he asked around were the camera was to take a picture together, I think he enjoyed the kinda nice and funny situation like I did. After our presentation Steven invited me and some of us of the band together with miss Marinella Carraro, the founder of the Italian Aerosmith fansclub, to assist at the show from the stage. I remember I could see a huge crowd from there, about 60.000 people. It was really unspected hearing a big rumbling by the audience when I made a pirouette at the side of the stage, close to the curtains… It was really funny to imagine that some people thought I was Steven, funny and dangerous as I immediatelly got cought by the security eyes…I was very close to be kicked off the place when I made it twice…

The Show was delirious, Aerosmith started with the same three songs we Eurosmith used to start our concerts, Eat the rich was the opening… Steven showed us he was wearing the bracelets we previously exchanged to eachother…Incredible man, so real so cool, so sensitive and generous! On the song Fallin’ in love Steven came towards me and miss Marinella Carraro who was beside of me, he came singing and I found myself close to him singing few lines of the song together with him at the same microphone… In the meantime of the concert I got his harmonica in “C” as a present…Magic moments to remember and to tell!

The second time I met Steven was on 2001 march 23th in Munich, Germany, for their meet and greet dedicated to the new album “Just push play”. It was very difficult to meet Steven this time ’cause of some kinda of squalid event between me and a supposed friend I was helping while he was trying to solve a critical situation with many fans from Italy who had the invite and the hope to meet Aerosmith personally…I will probably speak about this story in another moment, in a different contest. Anyway in the end good luck did not let me down, I passed over the security and I could spend few words again with Steven. I could give him a present for his very close birthday and told him that I organized a show at the Hard Rock Cafè of Rome on march 26th, right to celebrate his birthday with our performance. A lucky picture taken by an unknown guy is a testimonial of the moment when Steven holds the poster dedicated to the event.  Unfortunately I had not the chance to meet the rest of the band in that occasion.

The third time I met Steven was on 2011 july 4th. The meeting is pure energy in the heart of the night, on the Venice canal.  Steven, who had just returned to the hotel along with his stunning partner Erin Brady, from a romantic ride on a Venice gondola after the show, stops quite happily for and pleasant and friendly conversation together. Steven seemed to sincerely appreciate our meeting after 10 years, greeting by a worm embrace to each other. I first got impressed by the light in his eyes. We spent about forty minutes  in the hotel hall, so funny when he told us about some jokes made by the soundengineers putting a cow verse in his airmonitors when it was supposed he was making singing mistakes out of tune…too funny. The following day Steven Tyler is conferred the Honorary Citizenship of the city of Cotronei by the Major of Contronei Mario Scavelli and by the alderman of tourism and events Giuseppe Pipicelli, curator of the project.  In a way I was part of the team who organized and reached this ambitious objective. A dream come true again……

One curious question… and I’m sure I’m not the first one to ask this … but your resemblance with Steven is really breathtaking, and so is your voice. Were you born like this or what?

I got surprised when I first saw Steven on a video long time ago, I immediately could see the resemblance between us. Even my voice  is naturally a bit rough sometimes…I can say it’s good to be similar to Steven but please don’t consider me as a clone or someone who wish to be someone else…I love myself ’cause I am what I am and a bit kinda Steven too…lol

…and do you think that this fact led you somehow to do the tribute for Aerosmith?

Since the beginning I tryed to sing the Aerosmith tunes by the way they are so beautiful…I could not resist so long time improving and performing if only because of the looking alik.

Let’s talk now about your rock/hardrock based solo project LaceBlack…December 2008 was released a mini-cd with three songs… How the things are proceeding today?

My debut three tracks album produced in a home studio was very important for me, in a very particular moment of my life. It helped to let me reach out part of the artistic world inside of me. It helped me in several ways even to discover the right musicians for the official LaceBlack line up. It was a good start as a pre production for the first  whole album I’m next to record. I hope you all will hear about this soon…

Can you tell me something about how your new song sees the daylight? From where do you take your influences and ideas?

I mostly take inspiration by episodes of life in general, I like to spend sometimes alone to dig into myself…very often I speak about something that happened to me but in the way that everybody can figure severals situations and make ‘em their own situations…

What has been, so far, the best act or event where you’ve performed?

Sanremo Off was one of the most emotional stage for a certain gig, when I sang Aerosmith and I also had the chance to sing some LaceBlack songs as the first time, in front of a great big audience, when I had then the opportunity to know and to speak about this with someone special right after the gig.

Besides Eurosmith and LaceBlack, I guess you’re involved also in other projects… what would you like to reveal us about them?

I believe that LaceBlack is my most important project at the moment together with Eurosmith but sometimes you could see me around singing the Rolling Stones or Seal or something else…but this is another story…
How do you see the Italian underground scenes, comparing them to Europian ones?

Italians are very much talented people, I think the difference between Italy and the rest of Europe comes from the structures and the kind of approach of the important local labels towards what’s considered “new”…But music business is now changed by the rise of certain media in the whole world, we all know that. Very difficult…it’ s like the snake biting it’s own tail. It needs a solution!

What advices would you give to the newcomer bands?

Be yourself, strong, brave and enjoy!!!

Talking about the future, where do you see yourself in 5 years from now? and what are your dreams you’d still like to realize?

Good question…sorry, I have not idea. For the moment I’d like to complete for good what I started. My album it’s a good point where to dock in at the moment… a good port where to sail from again.

The last question, a rite… what are your greetings to those who will read this interview?

You know, there’s life after life…Living Life is feeling and it’s a mirror too…One is all and All is One…Love is life!!!

Thanks a million Luca for this pleasant chat. Wishing you all the best for everything! See you soon again on the road…

Interview by Tarja Virmakari

Eurosmith I don’t want to miss a thing- Jagger Club