Interviewed by Brian Rademacher
Date: June 2008

Brian Rademacher: Hey Rich, Congratulations on the new release “Light It Up”

Rich Luzzi: Oh thank you very much and thank you for the review, it was awesome.

Brian Rademacher: Where did you grow up?

Rich Luzzi: Closter, New Jersey.

Brian Rademacher: What kind of kid were you growing up?

Rich Luzzi: I was a normal kid, good family. The friends I had as a kid I still have today.

Brian Rademacher: What was the first concert you attended?

Rich Luzzi: When I was seven years old my sister took me to a Billy Joel concert, it had a huge effect on me. It was in a huge arena and I watched a guy do a back flip off a baby grand piano. It was amazing to me a person can control thirty, forty thousand people with music.

Brian Rademacher: What was the first record you owned?

Rich Luzzi: I was a product of my parents, I had an older sister and cousins and was a product of theirs, I pretty much listened to what they listened to untilI was old enough to make my own decisions. I really had a wide array of different things.

Brian Rademacher: When you first started touring were there any horror stories about it?

Rich Luzzi: Yeah the first six years where a hard time on the road (laughing) and it’s still pretty hard. It doesn’t get easier overnight and it doesn’t get easier once you get a record deal. The first show we ever played when we decided to quit our jobs to do this full-time, we played in Baltimore, MD and we played for six people, my sound guy, the owner of the bar, the bartender, our bass player’s mom and a friend of mine from high school.

Brian Rademacher: So I guess it didn’t discourage you, because look where you are now?

Rich Luzzi: No, no it didn’t. It makes you stronger, if you can overcome it, it makes you a better person.

Brian Rademacher: How did you gain a fan base?

Rich Luzzi: We just kept touring extensively. We traveled through markets across the country, that’s what it takes, getting back to markets over and over again. No matter how many times you have to do, you might play for five people the first time, then next time maybe fifteen or twenty. It’s just a matter of touring and gathering a fan base.

Brian Rademacher: You recorded a demo EP that was released, how many were made?

Rich Luzzi: Yes, actually raised the money through fans, family, friends and different avenues of business which we respectively paid back. We shopped our first demos to a bunch of labels which all said NO! At that time our managers believed in us, we still believed in ourselves. So we decided to finance our first record ourselves and that’s what we did. I think we sold forty or fifty thousand of that.

Brian Rademacher: : In 2005, you were tapped for the Girls Gone Wild series?

Rich Luzzi: It basically happened in 2005 because it was hard for us to get a tour. An unsigned band on no label without any tour support it was tough to get a tour. So our managers created a tour with Girls Gone Wild. At the time Girls Gone Wild was at the height of its popularity and they were doing all these hip-hop tours, so why not bring it to the rock culture? It was a cool way to get in the back door getting into these venues, putting us in front of fifteen thousand people a night and it was with HINDER at the time. It was a crazy tour.

Brian Rademacher: You have a new release called “Light It Up and the title track was used for World Wrestling Entertainment's WrestleMania XXIV. How did that come about?

Rich Luzzi: Over the last couple years we worked extremely hard creating working relationships with a ton of people. So nobody has anything bad to say about our band, they only say good things about our band. Yeah we have creative managers that think outside the box, they’re really young and we have an unbelievable label in Interscope Records. We are fortunate that they are pushing the hell out of us.

Brian Rademacher: What does REV THEORY ask for on their tour rider?

Rich Luzzi: (Laughing) We kick, we scream, we claw for beer, water and Jäger and towels. You needs towel because you don’t get to shower everyday, you need a towel to wipe yourself down and most venues if you get to shower they don’t have towels, god because we don’t have them.

Brian Rademacher: Do you plan on taking this tour overseas?

Rich Luzzi: Yeah we are, but we need to establish ourselves here first, this is our home and bread and butter, we would like to go to Europe, Japan and Australia. We are on a label that has the ability to do that. Skies the limit and we don’t want to get to ahead of ourselves.

Brian Rademacher: “Ten Years” is my favorite tune, does that surprise you?

Rich Luzzi: No, know I think week to week it varies to me. “Ten Years” is our most mature song and the fact it really hits home with a very heavy question that everybody asks themselves. Where are you going to be ten years from now? Was it worth everything you sacrificed? That’s our lives. We gave up a ton when we decided to do this six years ago, people don’t really realize what you give up, privacy, financial security, family, friends and yeah you are living a crazy lifestyle, it where’s on you. Normal people have a steady check coming in and they have the one they love close to them. You give all that up and it takes a really long time to get to that place again.

Brian Rademacher: What band did you have the best time touring with?

Rich Luzzi: I can honestly say every single band has been unbelievable to us. We have a special relationship with the guys in HINDER. Both our records came out at the same time; we share the same legal people, same producer. We were on our first tour together and they are crazy, they are lunatics. Anytime getting out on the road with them it’s a good time.

Brian Rademacher: You guys have any kind of competition on the road between band members?

Rich Luzzi: We have this thing called the mangler’s and basically what happens which guy can get most mangled out of the band on any given night.

Brian Rademacher: What are you hopes?

Rich Luzzi: It’s an exciting and nervous time; I don’t know what to say. I really want our release to do well. I am proud of the record and the band is proud of the record. We distinguished ourselves in our genre of music. I think it’s a good time to see rock come back around. With the stresses of life and the state of our country and our political situations going on, it’s like, people are pissed off and upset enough, I think it’s a good time for music to be a release again. Buy a record, listen to it and have a good time.

Brian Rademacher: How long did this record take from writing to completion?

Rich Luzzi: We started writing in Dec 2006 and completed March of 2008, (so) a long time.

Brian Rademacher: Did you film any of the recording sessions of this record in the studio?

Rich Luzzi: Yeah we recorded B role that will be available at a later time. We shoot a lot of stuff, this way people can get a taste of our lives.

Brian Rademacher: Did you write any songs that were not included on this album?

Rich Luzzi: Yeah, there were a couple songs; hopefully they will see the light of day.

Brian Rademacher: What are you hopes for the future?

Rich Luzzi: To have a successful record

Brian Rademacher: Rich it’s been fun; would you like to say anything in conclusion?

Rich Luzzi: Get out there and buy this record and come and see us live, we won’t disappoint ya!
Thanks man!