RadioStar SF:

MetalHeadRadio:
Whats the origin of your band name?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Jay originally came up with the name RadioStar in rebellion to Video
Killed the Radio Star.

JAY: Back for vengeance! The original concept of the band was that music
video’s ruined rock by making it smaller than life on the T.V. screen. The only
music that was good from that era was punk and metal. Our goal was to restore
the hammer of the gods to real rock ‘n’ roll, and never play like punk and metal
never happened. Plus it sounds like a big corporate rock band name. We got tired
of corporations ripping off the counterculture. So we figured we’d turn the tables
and mock the corporate suits and bean counters at every turn. That’s also why
our debut album is ‘Greatest Hits Volume 1.”

CAM: Plus we were making fun of our hippie conspiracy theory friends who think
we are receiving radio transmissions from the dog star Sirius.

JAY: The SF stands for San Francisco, amongst other things. But if we told you
Cameron would have to kill you.

CAM: Plus there is a SF tradition of having your band name slightly too long.

MetalHeadRadio:
How long have you all known each other? How did you meet?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Jay and I have been working together since May 2002 going through at
least 13 different bass players along the way! We first met when our two previous
bands played a show together back in Oct 2001. Due to irreconcilable differences
with his band members Jay ended up leaving the band immediately after the show.

JAY: I knew I was done when I saw your band wearing feathers in their hair.

CAM: Not long after I was let go from the Tribal Goth band that I was playing
in for playing too loudly and replaced by a drum machine. Two weeks later after
I was let go one of my bandmates contacted me to let me know that Jay was
looking to try out members for his band and would I be interested? Well I
responded immediately, went in to audition and the chemistry between Jay and
I meshed immediately...therefore I was hired right on the spot!

JAY: Plus, he was the only one not wearing feathers in his hair.

MetalHeadRadio:
When did you form your band? What inspired you to make music together?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Jay first started the band in November 2001. When I joined in the spring
of 2002 what inspired us to make music together was the fact that we shared the
exact same classic rock influences such as Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Black
Sabbath, Pink Floyd.

JAY: Plus, we both are huge metal fans. I also turned Cam onto Danzig and punk
rock, and he gave me a new found appreciation for Iron Maiden.

MetalHeadRadio:
What is your music background?

Radio Star SF:
JAY: I’m Fourth generation show business. I come from a long line of singers and
classical pianists. I ‘rebelled’ by playing guitar. I started playing at the age of 12,
forming various punk, metal, and garage rock bands. Although my skills were
pretty weak at the beginning I learned something very important. Mojo,
performance, and a shameless love for the music you are playing count just
as much as technical wizardry. Even now having more chops than we could have
ever imagined, we play every show as if it’s Madison Square Garden or the Cow
Palace. I’ll dredge up every bit of pain and emotion I’ve ever experienced for the
entertainment of drunks at even the crappiest dive bar.

CAM: I started playing around with the drums when I was 10 years old after
hearing my best friend's big brother playing drums with his band out in their
garage. Immediately I decided I wanted to start a rockband. Of course at the
time I couldn't afford a real set so I grabbed some old used cymbols that his big
brother was using and hung them from my bedroom ceiling with a piece of wire
and picked up a pair of old used toms and sticks from the flea market. Then my
friend got an accousitic guitar and we put together a band called the Cobra's. Long
story short, being as young as we were, we weren't very good so we gave it up after
a couple of years and moved on to other things. When I really started playing
seriously was a couple of years after I graduated high school when I went over to
a friends house where his roomate was rehearsing with his band and they were really
good! After hearing them play I decided to save up and buy myself a drumset so that
I could put together my own band. I went through at least four different bands in the
ten year period between when I started playing regulary and the time that I hooked
up with Jay. I can say now that I have been steadily playing for almost 15 years.

Chris has been playing in bands around San Jose since the early 90's. We auditioned
him in November 2006 and he was an immediate fit with us both style, image and
personality wise. Therefore we hired him right on the spot and are very pleased
with what he has contributed to us musically. His intricate bass playing has added
a lot of personality to our new CD Skulls Stars and Guitars!

Marc, originally a keyboard player, joined us on rhythm guitar back in October
2007 and has played several successful shows with us!

MetalHeadRadio:
Who are your musical influences?

Radio Star SF:
JAY: Hendrix, Danzig, Samhain, Danzig-era Misfits, Dirtbag era Metallica, Dead
Kennedy’s, AC/DC, Sabbath, 70’s Pink Floyd, Big Brother and the Holding Company,
Slayer, Elvis, Motorhead, Randy Rhoads. I also really like a lot of heavier metal like
Deicide, Sepultura, Boltthrower, Celtic Frost, on so on. I love pretty much every era
of rock and metal except for Nu-Metal and Butt-Rock (although I have a soft spot
for Guns and Roses and 10 limbed Def Leppard).

CAM: Well there's a lot of those but I'd say that my immediate influences starting
from the begining are Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, Black Sabbath, The Who, Iron Maiden,
Judas Priest, Queensryche, Rush, Pink Floyd and Alice In Chains just to name a few.

MetalHeadRadio:
What are your immediate music career goals? (Next year or so)

Radio Star SF:
CAM: To play as many gigs as possible and really push our new CD out there. Our
biggest goal for the next year is to start touring and opening for big bands such as The
Misfits, etc. We plan on hitting Oregon for sure this summer!

JAY: Bigger and better shows are the goal. That’s what we live for.

MetalHeadRadio:
Who handles your daily business activities? (Bookings, promotions etc.)

Radio Star SF:
CAM: As of now Jay and I are taking care of all that until we can find somebody
who's reliable enough whom we can pay to take care of all those things.

JAY: It sucks but S.F. is filled with slackers.

MetalHeadRadio:
Do you have a record label? Are you a member of any music organizations?

Radio Star SF:
JAY: We get offered deals all the time. But when I ask “what kind of distribution
can you offer us, what kind of advertising budget do you have, and what tours can
you get us on?” They never respond. We are totally open to signing with a label
that can get our music to more people. We are not about to sign away half our
profits for the vanity trip of being on an indie label no one has heard of.
I’m a member of BMI.

MetalHeadRadio:
Do you think internet radio is a viable means to get your music "out there"?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Absolutely!! With commercial radio becoming as repetitive as it has I
feel that more people are turning to internet radio for its wide and open variety.
It is definitely the wave of the future as commercial radio is slowly becoming a
thing of the past.

JAY: It’s all I listen to. Internet radio is putting music back in the hands of the
fans, it is unstoppable.

MetalHeadRadio:
Where have you performed?
What are your favorite and least favorite venues?
Do you have any upcoming shows?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Off the top of my head, we've played The DNA Lounge, Kimo's, Red
Devil Lounge, The Eagle, Thee Parkside, Voodoo Lounge, Annie's Social Club,
Jelly's Pier 50, San Francisco State University, The Rockit Room, The 6th
Street Fair, The Transmission Theater and The Rawhide all in San Francisco.
Also we've played The Quarternote in Sunnyvale, Waves in San Jose, Rooster's
Roadhouse in Alameda, the Brookdale Lodge, C&J's Sportsbar in Santa Clara,
and Davidson's Distillery in Reno, Nevada. And a whole lot more I can’t
remember offhand.  My favorite venues where we've had the most fun have
been The Eagle, Thee Parkside, The DNA and Davidson's Distillery. Least
favorite would have to be Rooster's Roadhouse.

JAY: Rooster’s Roadhouse show was so bad-ass even the cops showed up!

CAM: Don’t know how you got us out of that one.

JAY: My advice to all bands: Always remember: Cops Love Classic Rock.

MetalHeadRadio:
Where would the "ultimate" venue for you to play be?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Shoreline Amphitheater!

JAY: Madison Square Garden

MetalHeadRadio:
Which songs do you perform most frequently?
Do you ever play any covers?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Songs we most often play at shows are Nothing to Die For, Junky Angel,
Led On and Left to Die, Puppy, Sixth Sense, Didn't I?, Blood and Fire, Burried
Alive, Space Wolf, Not My Life and Love Your Enemy. The only time we've
ever played covers was at an all cover song venue four years ago where we
performed Misty Mountain Hop by Led Zeppelin and Aqua Lung by Jethro Tull.

JAY: We also did Ziggy Stardusrt by David Bowie. We always close with
Junky Angel.

MetalHeadRadio:
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of
your songs? Who comes up with the most song ideas?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Jay pretty much writes all the songs. He writes all the lyrics and melodies
while Chris and I help to stucture the songs with our own ideas for rhythm
especially in songs like Sixth Sense, Burried Alive, Space Wolf and Puppy.
Other than Puppy which was written for a horror movie, starring Alice Cooper's
daughter, about a mini Schnauzer puppy who kills and eats college frat girls most
of the topics are about Jay's personal life experiences with women and friends
whom have battled drug addiction.

JAY: Yeah, it’s largely my dysfunctional relationships vivisected in 4/4 time.
And some dumb stuff I find entertaining.

MetalHeadRadio:
What are your rehearsals generally like? Do you have a set time each week
in which you practice or are rehearsals more spontaneous?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Our practices I have to say are quite enjoyable for the most part, it's
fun just to get together and jam. We always get a lot accomplished yet we have
fun at the same time. We normally have a set day for practice, however with us
all living so spread apart and the price of gas being so ridiculously high now we
have to pick one day out of the week when all of us can make it.

JAY: Until there are upcoming shows and recording dates, then it becomes
very focused and professional.

MetalHeadRadio:
How has your music evolved since first began playing together?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: Oh big time! Just listen to our first CD and then listen to our second CD
right afterwards. You will most definitely hear a difference!

JAY: It becomes bigger, badder, and more shameless with each song I write.

MetalHeadRadio:
What advice do you have for people who want to form their own bands?

Radio Star SF:
CAM:When searching for band members make sure that everybody is on the
same page and has the same goals. If staying home to watch the football game
is more important than making practices then that's a red flag right there! Finding
members with the right musical chemistry is very important also. Don't ever get
discouraged and give up, if you stick with it long enough and make it your number
1 priority in life eventually the right members will come to you!

JAY: RECORD, RECORD, RECORD! You are nothing without a catalog.

MetalHeadRadio:
What is the name of your most current CD? Where can it be purchased?

Radio Star SF:
CAM: The name of our latest CD is Skulls, Stars and Guitars and it can be purchsed
online at CD Baby http://cdbaby.com/cd/radiostarsf2

MetalHeadRadio:
Do you maintain a webpage or myspace page? If so what is the URL?

Radio Star SF:
JAY: Yes we have both, they are www.radiostarsf.com and www.myspace.com/radiostar
We also have a site for our skateboards: http://skateboards.villainsociety.com