RNV 63: Live from Aftershock | Motionless in White, Sick Puppies, Evan Konrad

This past weekend's sold-out Aftershock Festival not only provided an eclectic array of musical offerings on the stage, it also provided an opportunity for fans to engage with some of the non-music creative rock and roll endeavors. More than ever, bands are branching out to get involved in new ventures, many of them in the beverage industry, Slipknot has their No. 9 whiskey, System of a Down bassist Shavo Odadjian was in town for his 22Red cannabis line, next year's headliners were in full feature with their Blackened Whiskey and Enter Night beer collaboration, while present year headliners Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan's Caduceus Cellars Wine from Arizona was also prominently featured. Rock'N Vino was on the scene to check out all of this, take in the show, as well as to catch up with some of the bands performing throughout the electric weekend.

First up, Chris 'Motionless' Ceruclli is the frontman for Scranton metal band Motionless in White. The band fuses hard rock sounds with goth and electronic influences, while still mixing melody into the mix. The band has been riding high following the release of the latest album Disguise, as well as touring the country with some of their idols. The band first toured alongside metal heroes Atreyu before jumping on the road opening for the legendary Alice Cooper and Halestorm. Motionless joked that being a member of a band and touring with your idols isn't drastically different from being a fan and having nerves about meeting your favorite artists and hoping they match up with the internal portrait you've painted of them. Luckily for Motionless, he says his tourmates could not have been more gracious. He said the opportunity to open for Cooper even allowed the band to play for a generation of fans that might not have otherwise heard the band. Motionless in White also getting set to reveal their early 2020 tour plans; while Cerulli couldn't reveal quite yet who the band plans to tour with in the new year, he did drop the hint that they were friends and shared a spot on the Aftershock bill on the same day.

While it's been three years since the release of their last album Fury, the band has not spent idle time in between projects. The band has made it a point to travel overseas and play for active duty members of the armed forces in a number of locales. The band is grateful for an opportunity to give back and have found that playing the live shows is the best avenue for them to do it. Recently the band was even dispatched to Guantanamo Bay Cuba to perform for the troops, a part of the world that few get to see at all, let alone a rock band. The trio is putting the finishing touches on their latest as-yet-untitled album to be released in the new year, a project produced by Goldfinger frontman John Feldman. The band took advantage of the Aftershock stage to premiere hard rocking Rage Against the Machine-inspired new track "There Goes the Neighborhood."

Frontman Bryan Scott says he's feeling as comfortable as ever both on the stage and in the studio as he prepares for the release of his second album as frontman with the band. He teases that fans can expect the band pushing the envelope in both directions to discover some of their heaviest sounds as well as their softer side.

Finally, newcomer Evan Konrad sits down to talk about his eclectic musical foundation of influences as well as his love of storytelling through lyricism as well as creating dramatic and creative visuals. It's been a whirlwind year for the Canadian born artist, who was signed on the spot when LAVA Records founder Jason Flom heard Konrad's music from his SoundCloud on headphones at an underground vegan restaurant in Toronto. Konrad takes a very DIY approach to his music, locking himself away to write, record, and produce his own music. He says the process can take anywhere from a couple hours to a number of weeks to figure out when a song is ready to go. Konrad also made waves for the release of a haunting piano-driven cover of Soundgarden's "Back Hole Song." A longtime fan of frontman Chris Cornell, Konrad said covering the song was in a way an homage to his own musical upbringing.