WICKED - Danny Martin

By: Lori Smerilson Carson

Rockin’ out to “Reptile Roots” with its heavy hitting drum intro, followed by riveting guitar riffs and strong vocals that create a rock song capable of making you forget your troubles of the day is only one of many amazing tunes that WICKED has made since their formation in 2012. With two albums under their belt and another due for release in the next few months, bandmates Lead Singer/Guitarist Chad Michael, Bassist Danny Martin, Guitarist Scotty V and Drummer Gunnar Coston have been steadily making their mark in the music world. These extremely talented musicians are doing some touring, hoping to get Florida on the bill.

Having the opportunity to chat with Martin just prior to their new WICKED show on location up north, he revealed some details about what fans can experience, their new music, and a bit about what people can look forward to.

SFL Music Magazine: WICKED is opening up for Ace Frehley this Friday. Is there a tour planned as well?
Danny Martin: So, it’s the first of probably what we’re hoping is a few sporadic ones. Ace is doing a lot of casino dates and stuff like that, so they don’t typically do openers for those. We’re fortunate enough to jump on when he’s not on those dates and they are his own, but we’re going to try to do a few dates like that in the summer with him, and we also have a week run of dates with Vicious Rumors in September. So, we’re kind of just gearing up, getting back out there because we have a new album coming out at the end of the summer going into the fall.

SFL Music Magazine: What can you tell me about the new album?
Martin: I can tell you a bunch about it. We haven’t announced exactly a specific date, but we’ll start with some singles, and the album is called GO REBEL. It’s really exciting because you’re always trying to push your creativity and musical prowess as you do these creations. We’re so excited and happy because from the last couple albums THE LAST AMERICAN ROCK BAND and SUNBURN, this is really like a great evolution. Us really honing in on our influences that we’re super excited about right now, and the album has a lot of diversity on it. Everything from like Thin Lizzy “Cowboy (Song)” ballad to fast anthem-etic punk like songs, and even some heavy songs too. So, it’s got a really nice balance, but the whole branding of this GO REBEL album is really interesting too because it’s not just hey, we’re slapping our faces on it and it’s just another band putting out an album. This one is really about that action within that word GO REBEL. It’s almost a verb, right? So, it’s about community, and it’s about freedom, individuality and like that lust for life is really what we’re trying to push. It’s going to be fun because the campaign is going to, like what I was just alluding to, involve more than just hey, we’re a band and we’ve got a new album. It’s going to be bringing in people in our community that skateboard, or maybe they ride motorcycles, or all these very cool exciting things that make people individuals. We want to highlight that because that’s the path that we walk. Try to be individuals and bring that excitement. There are so many people around us that are a part of that rock and roll community, So, that’s what GO REBEL is about. We’re super excited for it.

SFL Music Magazine: Is there anything new you all are doing with these upcoming shows? The last time we spoke, you were telling me about pranks that you all did at the shows and that they are high energy. I’m sure they still are high energy!
Martin: Oh yeah, absolutely! You’re still going to get the whole shebang with the high energy rock and roll, but yeah, we are doing something a little different. We’re mixing it up. I think what you could expect is, we’re going to bring that upbeat high energy attitude, but we’re going to be putting in a couple of classics that people might not have heard in a while from our portfolio, as well as teasing a couple of these GO REBEL songs and bringing them into the fold. There’s something that I really enjoyed growing up as a music fan, and that was going to see some of my favorite bands and getting some of those sneak peaks at a new song. It’s hard because you don’t know the song yet, maybe if the single’s not out or what not, but it kind of builds that interest and excitement that hey, you were there when they tried it out on the crowd. So, for better or worse, that’s what we like to do.

SFL Music Magazine: Having done these tours now, is there anything you would pass along to a new up-and-coming band?
Martin: Yeah, absolutely. It seems a little cliché’ but first and foremost, you got to have fun with what you’re doing, and when you go out with these bigger acts on these tours, there is a certain level of professionalism, of course. You’re kind of stepping into the big boy leagues if you will, that’s expected, but really enjoy those moments because coming off of the Raven tour and everything, the memories that we’ve made are priceless. So, it’s really exciting, and if you take a moment while you’re doing that and kind of let the nerves go away and all of the logistics and everything and you can just be there and be present, I think that’s super important because like we were just out in Anaheim doing the show with Metal Allegiance at the House of Blues and I actually did that for a moment, and it’s so cool to see the people who are engaged with you in the crowd. That community at that moment. I’m always excited to meet new markets of fans of rock and roll, not just for the fan-based bill and the business end that goes with it, but you really are building this community of people with common interest, and for me, that’s a huge part of what we do.

SFL Music Magazine: Is WICKED going back to Florida?
Martin: I think actually we might. I know it’s not on the books yet, but some of those Vicious Rumors dates might bring us down there in the fall.

SFL Music Magazine: Speaking of building the market, when you played in Florida the last time, what were some things you really liked about being there?
Martin: It was awesome! Besides for the nice weather, right? There were certain pockets of the country, like some are hit and miss, and you try to focus on the key markets, but Florida is great! I find that super refreshing to see the appetite for live music and rock and roll in general and metal, and so all the Florida dates that we did were a blast, and just on the fun end of things, we had some of the best times when we were down there. I remember we had a couple of days where we could get a B&B during the Raven tour, and the one had a pool and everything. There were just some real funny moments of like inviting the other bands over and having a party and cops coming. I remember there was a noise complaint, and our guitarist Scotty was out front with a bottle of whisky in his underwear, and they’re like, “we had a noise complaint for here.” He’s like, “oh, there’s no party here. I think it’s the neighbors,” (he laughed).

SFL Music Magazine: I know you have your ROCK N ROLL CIRCUS SHOW on YouTube. Did that one go on there? I didn’t see it.
Martin: It should have! I’m glad you brought that up. We’re doing an iteration now. I like the idea of that growing too. What we want to do is, we’re going to do a new iteration of it. It may or may not have a different name, but it will be in the same vein. We’re going to try to make the shows a little bit shorter, but we’ve got tons of content from some of these past things and then things coming up. We love the idea of being able to visually bring people behind the curtain with us.

SFL Music Magazine: The last time we spoke, you said you and your brother Chad were influenced to become musicians by your grandmother and you talked about how you guys made time to go see her. Do you still have that kind of time for family visits with all the touring and recording or is it more difficult?
Martin: We still have time. Those were some of the core values that we were raised in and instilled in us. So, now unfortunately since our grandmother has passed, we’re able to do it with the other band members grandparents and family members. You know how life is, it’s never ending, but it’s nice to be able to pay homage to these special people in our songs like “Summer & Sun” that was written for our grandmother, my Babcia, and then we continue that. We’re always busy with the band, but it’s important to have balance, and whether it’s for your significant others or family or even like I said, just community and people around you, I think it’s important because it keeps you whole and as an artist at least, I think that it’s important to have that value in you because it produces better music and stories.

SFL Music Magazine: Those are your influences when you write music?
Martin: Absolutely! And it’s funny that you say that because we’ve got all this going on. A new album that isn’t out yet and we had a little down time going into the summer here. So, we actually embarked on kind of a pivot or a U-turn in terms of plans and we said, let’s go into the studio. We have some really cool ideas and we’ve got a little bit of time. So, you’ve kind of find those opportunities where you can. So, we’re about half-way through making another album and this time, it’s a little different approach. So, we’re actually approaching it with almost a fifth member, a writer/producer from Nashville. His name is Tuk Smith and he’s an artist himself. Formally of the Biters and now he has his own solo project called Tuk Smith & The Restless Hearts. From Atlanta, lives in Nashville now, and it’s an interesting new process for us that’s going really well because again, like we were just talking, you could be so stuck in your own bubble and microcosm and maybe become a little out of touch, and so this was us having a little self-awareness and saying hey, what if we tried this? Wonder what it would be like, and it’s been great! A whole different perspective. New things that we’re learning and being challenged on, and I got to say, kind of a little bit of a dream come true because we’re fans of Tuk, and it’s so cool to be working with an artist in rock and roll that is in kind of a similar age range as us. A little bit older, but it’s such a cool experience. There’s a lot of that energy and excitement that’s kind of in it. So, look out for that going into next year. It’s really been a great process and we’re having a blast! A nice ten song album and it’s really coming along.

SFL Music Magazine: Are there any new videos or anything else fans can look forward to?
Martin: When we were in Anaheim in February busy with the House of Blues show and the Heavy Metal Hall of Fame, in true WICKED fashion, we crammed in having some fun shooting some videos. So, we’ve got a couple of videos that are going to go with the GO REBEL album, singles that are going to start coming out at the end of the summer, and we had a blast! I’ll give some teasers like everything from of course, doing the beaches out there, but we have this really cool ’67 GTO convertible and wait ‘til you see the fun we had in it (he laughed)!