Page 26 - ROCKNATION ISSUE 26

PAGE 26 ROCKNATION ISSUE 26

Hello LYPSWITCH and welcome to Rocknation. Let’s look back in time to 1988, you
guys were from Florida and you made the move to Hollywood. What was the 1st
week like being in Hollywood?
DW: Most exciting and terrifying time for a 17/18 year old kid. We had all the dreams and
ambition in the world. But it was no longer a dream, it was a reality, it was time to play. The
scene was amazing. The excitement exhilarating. We drove across the country in 2 vans
on a mission to make it big. Looking back, wow; that was and is just badass. I remember
the Lights of LA and Hollywood, it was magical and we were about to be a part of the
magic…
MO: I was young and impressionable. It was a magical, exciting and overwhelming 1st
week in Hollywood. Coming from a small town like Orlando, Hollywood was WAY crazier
and larger than life at that time. The Sunset Strip was packed every night with thousands
of beautiful girls and bands handing out their flyers. I couldn’t wait to get in the mix with
the music scene and show everyone what we were made of. I was very motivated to get a
record deal.
How long before you guys played your 1st show and please name some bands you played with in Hollywood.
MO: We played our first show at Gazarri’s only a week after arriving in L.A. We opened for Snake Rock that night. It didn’t take long and we started playing bigger shows
with Bang Tango, Love/Hate, Funhouse, The D’Molls and many other cool bands. I always loved playing gigs with Bang Tango. They had the hottest chicks at their
shows!
KA: Yep it was just a week, we rehearsed at Goldstar studios in N. Hollywood for 2 days and then I called Alibi Artists on April 10th and booked us a show at Gazzarri’s for
the following Sunday, April 17th at 8pm. Only 3 people were there but we didn’t care, we were playing our first show in Hollywood and it was exciting.
What was your most memorable show in Hollywood?
DW: The first time we sold out the Whiskey. March 30th 1990 I believe. My favorite moment though happened at the Roxy. They have a little window that you can see the
audience in front of the stage from the stairs backstage. A peephole so to speak. We were about to go on and the band always went on a few minutes ahead of me. When
they walked down I looked out and only saw a small crowd through the window. I thought “oh man nobody is coming.” By the time I walked down the stairs and came on
stage to sing the first words of the song, the club was PACKED! That was a 60 second lag between the first look and running on stage and we filled that club, people were
there to see us!! I remember that feeling and it still gives me goosebumps. OUR BAND WAS ON TOP and we were killing it. Nothing can describe that powerful intense
moment. We were living the stories we heard about being kings of the Sunset Strip and you now see that in the Motley Movie “THE DIRT.”
MO: We played a sold-out show at The Whiskey. The atmosphere was electric! I felt so proud of the band that we sold out the same club that The Doors, Led Zeppelin
and Motley Crue had played. That was an amazing accomplishment for us!
KA: August of 1988 our first big show opening for Funhouse, Bang Tango and The Wild at Gazzarri’s. The place was packed and this show really got our name out there
and helped us get better gigs.
Being in Hollywood did you ever bump in to any movie stars while out there?
DW: I met and was head over heels for Christina Applegate one time at a club. That was awesome. I met Chuck Norris at a vocal lesson! That’s a whole other story. I’m
sure if I thought about it more there would be more, but those two are the most memorable for me.
MO: I met a ton of rock stars, but I did meet Pauly Shore at a gas station on Sunset Blvd one time while I was pumping gas. He was super chill and cool.
Your CD is titled “30 Years” it mentions 6 Songs recorded in the 80’s and 8 Songs recorded in 2018. Were the 8 songs from the 80’s or did you guys write
some new material?
MO: The 8 songs we recorded in 2018 were a combination of old songs and new songs. We didn’t have any good recordings of some of the old songs like ‘World Of Sin’,
‘Somewhere Someplace’ and ‘American Song’, to name a few. But ‘Domination’, ‘Thirst’ and ‘Carry Me Away’ were written in 2018
The CD was dedicated to Dave Brandani and Curt Lorraine please tell us about them.
DW: Dave Brandani was our buddy and brother and came with us on the dream to make it in Hollywood. He was our counselor, inspiration, comedian and the best
person you will ever meet. He was an awesome road manager for us, Love Hate, Funhouse, Hardly Dangerous and many other bands.
He actually made it and toured the world with Love/Hate. They did tours with AC/DC, Dio, and Skid Row…
We lost him way too early in a motorcycle accident. He was a member of the band, he was and still is our brother.
Curt was our Manager, and he really believed in us, he invested in us and he helped us rise to the level we got.
He loved the music; old and new. We lost him in 2018 to Cancer. We was excited when he heard the new tracks
and the Lypswitch 30 Years rough tracks. He is missed.
MO: Dave Brandani was a very good friend of mine before we moved to Hollywood. He played bass in a band
with me back in Florida called Fatal Vision. He was such a cool dude. He was funny, kind and very smart. He was
the type of guy that would give you the shirt off his back. We had a lot of good times together. He and I drove from
Orlando to Hollywood in his van. He built our stage and designed and made our lights at our practice facility back in
Florida. He was really good at that stuff. He went on to be the road manager for Love/Hate a few years after we
moved to Hollywood. Unfortunately, he died in a motorcycle accident in late 1992. We were all devastated and
heart-broken by his passing. Curt Lorraine was the head of Curent Management. He really elevated our exposure
in the L.A. music scene and got us in the studio and on the radio at KNAC. He really cared about us and was
genuinely looking out for our best interests. He even worked with us as a consultant on the 30 Years CD.
Unfortunately, he passed away from cancer during the process. We all miss him very much and we are very
grateful for everything he did to help us throughout our careers.
If you had to tell someone what LYPSWITCH sounded like, what bands would you mention?
DW: This is funny because if you ask 10 people you’ll get 10 bands. I think there are flavors from the Cult,
Ozzy, Motley, Guns, AC/DC…. We played what we loved. David was an amazing writer capturing the scene Lypswitch: Danny Whaley - Vocals, KA - Drums
and glimpses of our reality. David Love - Bass, Mick O’Brien - Guitars
MO: If I had to mention a band, it would be Motley Crue. But we really were Underground Punk Funk Street
Rock and that was OUR sound. Band website:
KA: Hard for me to say but I know we have had plenty of comparisons over the years.. including GNR, www.lypswitch.com
Kix, Motley, Dangerous Toys and Junkyard… Email: info@lypswitch.com
Thank you for taking time for this interview. Any last words to the fans? Twitter:
DW: Check out the CD, email us, contact us and let us know what you think and where you would like to https://twitter.com/_Lypswitch_
see us come play! Thank you all for your support and love for ROCK! YOU ALL ROCK! Facebook:
KA: Thanks for taking the time to read this, and please visit www.lypswitch.com for more info on the band www.facebook.com/Lypswitch-86546431155/
and the CD. CDBaby:
https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/lypswitch