DEVIL'S ISLAND featuring Monkey Intrusion
Welcome to this weeks edition of Devil's Island! Every week we maroon a band or artist on the island and see what they get up to, how they cope with being all alone on a small island in the middle of the ocean. It's not your average desert island and we'll see just how each person copes with the extreme conditions.
This week when we arrived at Devil's Island we find Monkey Intrusion sat on the beach. The island is far from their home, so how did they end up here and how did they cope with life on Devil's Island?
Find out now...
Welcome to The Razors'e Edge and our somewhat lovely, warm desert island. Don't worry about it's name I'm sure it's not as bad as that would suggest.
You're marooned here on this island, but before you ended up shipwrecked you chose one album that you couldn't live without. Which album did you each chose and why?
Marco B: Goddamn’ … there are too many… It could be one among Keeper of The Seven Keys part I (or II) by Helloween, Metropolis part 2 by Dream Theater or Rust in Peace by Megadeth (… of course… this “Devil’s Island" reminds me both to the Megadeth song with the same title and to the old movie “Papillon” … while the word “marooned” reminds me to a Running Wild song with the same title… you can easily argue some of my main references)
Vincenzo: Oh my God, just one! I will definitely pick a prog album. To always listen to the same stuff it has to have many chords and different tempos: The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway by Genesis is my choice.
Marco P: I guess it has to surprise you every time… so it will be The Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd.
Just behind that palm tree is a shack for each of you to stay in, with enough space for you to put up a poster on the wall of one album cover. What album cover do you each chose?
Marco B: Again, there are too many… surely one of the most attractive points in rock/metal albums is the cover artwork… there are many in my collection, but I think that the Live After Death from Iron Maiden could be the chosen one. That album has a special value for me, and it is one of the best artworks in rock/metal history. Moreover, it is one of the best heavy metal live albums of all time…
Vincenzo: I chose Abraxas of Santana. If you see it, it’s pretty clear why:... the wonderful colours.
Marco P: Oh well, I’d say Frank Zappa’s The Man From Utopia… it always cracks me up with laughter!
There's also a bar on this here island. But alas each of you only get to choose one drink for the entirety of your stay. What's your tipple of choice?
Marco B: Ok… this is easy: I choose double malt red beer.
Vincenzo: Definitely a bloody mary… because of the vitamins…
Marco P: Single malt scotch whiskey… water I suppose I can find aplenty… but that taste!
Your suitcases were lost when your ship sank, but you each managed to salvage one item of band merch. What’s the merch and for what band?
Marco B: Ok… maybe a T-shirt from the Metropolis pt. 2 Tour, dated 2000. That was a special period for me, and I grew up in many ways at that time.
Vincenzo: One AC/DC black T-shirt. Old school.
Marco P: A Foo Fighters bandana… I guess the sun must be scorching on that island!
You’re sat on the island thinking “I’m stuck here on this island with my bandmates for eternity”… who would you rather have been shipwrecked with?
Marco B: Damn… instead of three men, I would prefer three beautiful girls… (a brunette, a blonde and a redhead…)
Vincenzo: I could almost bear Victoria De Angelis of Maneskin but my bandmates are irreplaceable.
Marco P: Come one… as the others said before… instead of three men? But just for the sake of conversation Pat Smears must be a good laugh!
There's a walkman in your pocket, on the tape inside is the recording of the one live show that stands out for you. It could be any show, from any band, anywhere in the world. What show is on that walkman?
Marco B: Mmm, this is difficult because each show I’ve seen gave me something in some way… A live show can change your life (if you’ve seen it but also if you’ve heard it) but it could also awaken your sleeping side… However… I will cite the Live at Marquee by Dream Theater. It is perfect.
Vincenzo: Halestorm. The last time I saw Lizzy Hale singing I was crying like a little boy.
Marco P: So it’s a tape… must be old school then… probably the very first gig of The Police!
You're getting desperate, you decide the only course of action is to put a message in a bottle and hope someone finds it. Your message could be to any member of any band, but should be the most suitable for a rescue attempt. Who is it?
Marco B: Wait… I am on a desert island… with my bandmates and my favourite drink… so the message could be “bring us our instruments (and the girls)”.
Vincenzo: Dave Grohl, c’mon Dave you’re capable of everything.
Marco P: Well, that’s easy… Keith Richards has got the money for the attempt!
You've been stuck here for a while and food supplies are running low. There's only one thing for it... which fellow band member gets sacrificed to help the others survive?
Marco B: Mmm … as I am the fattest one in the band … I will kill them all to survive (and I need all my limbs to play drums…)
Vincenzo: I will candidate myself… but before give me the drinks of all the others.
Marco P: That’s no good! We all drink too much for tasty meat!
Finally, when the ship sank you each managed to save one person from the wreckage. That person is the one musician that has influenced your career the most, shaped your way of thinking and your outlook on life. Who did you save?
Marco B: Ok, this is very difficult… choosing a drummer, he will be again Mike Portnoy because in my vision he is the summary of many aspects I like ... a representative cocktail we can say. However, each musician, writer, scientist etc etc with an open mind and view was an inspiration for me. Maybe, considering a philosophic path, the figure that resumes better what I am trying to explain was Miyamoto Musashi, the most famous samurai in Japan history: in his “Book of Five Rings”, he explains that the way of the smith is the same that the way of the warrior… only instruments change, but the path is similar. I think that this is an important lesson we must learn.
Vincenzo: Easy for me, Peter Gabriel.
Marco P: Oh crap… again just one… then if I think back to my long gone teenage days I must choose Mark Knopfler, he really inspired me in the songwriting.
Thanks for your time. We hope you get back to dry land before you're next due out on tour!
Marco B: SURE!! Monkey Intrusion is like Jack Sparrow… you only can “almost” catch them… or see them live!!!
