Interviews

Dreams into Realities An Interview with Neverwake

Published

10 years ago

July 29, 2016

George Archibald

Dreams into Realities

An Interview with Neverwake

By George Archibald

Pittsburgh natives Neverwake, have had a very successful year. From playing festivals in the Carolina’s and Texas, to recording with Disturbed’s own Jon Moyer, the also landed an endorsement deals with EMG and Schecter Guitars. It seems they are moving leaps and bounds in the music industry. They have also been preparing their upcoming album with finishing touches and promotional photography. On the wake of their soon to be released EP, I had a chance to talk with the band consisting of Johnny Dicarlo(vocals/guitar), Justin Sanford (guitar/vocals), Marcus Giannamore (drums) and George Scott (bass), to learn more about this emerging rock metal group.

GA: How did Neverwake begin? Who helped form the band?

Justin: NeverWake was originally formed by Johnny Dicarlo and James (original co-guitarist), back in their high school days about seven years ago. They needed a drummer for the studio, so they asked Marcus Giannamore to play on their demo. Once they finished the demo, they wanted to start playing out so they kept Marcus on-board, and asked George Scott to play bass. After about five years together as NeverWake, James left the band, and Justin Sanford was brought in to fill the open position.

GA: What got you guys into playing music?

Justin: My dad was always a huge music fan being a DJ, so I was brought up around the rock and metal that my dad was into. That’s how Zakk Wylde became my favorite guitarist well before I ever picked up a guitar. Blues greats Stevie Ray Vaughn and Kenny Wayne Shepard are also amongst my favs/biggest influences. I did take lessons for a bit from Nick Catanese (formerly of Black Label Society), where I learned/picked up on some scale stuff and some of his ideas of lead guitar, BUT I’m mostly self-taught.

Johnny: My father has been a musician for 30+ years, so it started in the family for me. He’s a keyboardist, so I started out the same. He learned by ear and didn’t know how to read music, so I did the same. By the time I tried to take lessons, I always ended up remembering the song instead of reading it. I didn’t actually start pursuing music until I picked up my father’s acoustic guitar randomly at probably age 10. At that time, I was listening to hard rock like Godsmack and Disturbed, there was no room for piano in that type of music. I figured I’d try something new. So I wrote a song about monsters. It was terrible lol, but it was a “song,” and I guess that’s all that mattered. I wrote a couple more and recorded them on a cassette, on my dad’s boom box. My parents saw what I was doing, and bought me a small 32 track Boss recording system for my birthday. From that point on it kind of clicked like writing music was something I was really into.

Marcus: I took lessons for piano and other instruments starting from age 8, but most of my drumming is self-taught. Everyone in my family played an instrument so I was interested from an early age.

George: I started playing guitar when I was 10 years old. Shortly after that I started taking lessons, but ended up leaving lessons and teaching myself. It wasn’t until the end of high school when I decided to pick up a bass with NeverWake.

GA: (Justin) How did you get involved in Neverwake?

Justin: I joined a band who had been on hiatus for a while due to being short a few members who’d left. We planned a big come back show. We had Neverwake join the bill because they kicked ass. I met the guys the night of the show. A few years later, I was no longer in that band and Neverwake had lost their other guitarist. George initially reached out to me to see if I’d be interested in jamming with them. I sat down with them, and told them where I was at in life, and what I wanted in a band. We seemed to be on common grounds, so we went ahead with me learning the material, and even doing a handful of shows. Then they finally (lol) asked me to officially join the band.

GA: I seen you played some big festivals in Texas and Carolina, what are some of your fondest memories of these shows?

Justin: For me, the entire experience. Being involved in such big festivals was amazing. Getting a taste of what it’s like to be at that level was a dream come true for me.

Johnny: Definitely playing at Carolina Rebellion. It was 11am and we had a mosh pit going as soon as the gate opened. It was so amazing. After the show was over, we went and took selfies with the crowd, and it just felt right like “this is where I want to be”.

Marcus: Playing in front of crowds the likes of what we saw at SXSW, and especially Carolina Rebellion, was an experience I’ll never forget. It’s definitely something that I want to experience many more times. It’s surreal to play to thousands of people.

George: The whole experience was amazing to be honest. We got a taste of what it was like to be on tour in a way. Driving all night, seeing places we’ve never seen, and then walking out onto a stage bigger than most people’s houses was breathtaking. I guess the best memory would have to be the fact that it was a huge year for us, and we all went out there and killed it for a crowd that barely knew us, and went absolutely nuts.

GA: Are you planning on expanding your participation in festivals in the future?

Justin: Yes, absolutely.

Johnny: Without a doubt. We are trying to expand upon this after the release of our new EP!!

George: That goes without saying. We plan on getting onto every show we possibly can when this EP releases.

GA: You recorded your upcoming EP with Disturbed’s own Jon Moyer, how did you hook up with him, and where did you record at?

Justin: We met John 3 years ago at Millennium Music Conference. Our manager Dino had kept in touch w/ him as we’d discussed working together at some point. Finally, the time was right for us to work together on this EP. We recorded at Innovation Studios in Steubenville Oh, with Mike Ofca as engineer and co-producer.

GA: I know Justin has been a long time user of EMG pickups and Schecter guitars, how did you guys get enrolled with those companies?

Justin: EMG was simple. I emailed them though their general contact US email asking for contact info for an artist rep. The response I got was from the rep himself asking for MP3’s of music, and links to our sites. A few days later it was a done deal. For Schecter, through a mutual friend I got to hang on the bus with Butcher Babies. When they were at Mr. Smalls Theater with Gwar. I was chatting with their bassist Jason (Schecter user/endorser) about how we both loved Schecter. He asked if we (NW) were endorsed with them. When I replied “No, but we’d love to be”, he gave me the name and info for his rep. We got in touch with him and like EMG sent him all the music/sites, and that was that. I had already previously been endorsed with Splawn Amplification so getting that partnership renewed/extended over to NW was easy. Our endorsement with DR Strings took place pretty much just like EMGs.

GA: So What gear do you all use?

Justin: I use a Splawn Nitro head and Splawn Hybrid 4×12 w/ Celestion Vin30’s and G12T75’s in an “X”. Dunlop, Boss, ISP and MXR pedals. Various Schecter Tempest models (6strings) 2 w/ EMG 81/60, 1 w/ EMG 57/66. Schecter Garza sig. PT7, and A7 Avenger (7strings) both w/ EMG 81-7/60-7.

Johnny: My first “serious” guitar of my career was a Schecter C1+ with passive pickups. I love that guitar, and didn’t want to change. When Justin joined the band we noticed he was a little bit of a gearhead. It rubbed off on me big time, and I started to explore other options. So now I have a Schecter Blackjack ATX Solo II, Schecter V-1 FR Bloodsplatter with EMG 81/89, Schecter JL7 FR with EMG 57/66 and I turned the C1+ into active with an 81/60 combo. I’ve been moving around with amps, but at the time I’m using an Eleven Rack powered by a Bugera 333xl infinium and a Splawn 4×12 with Vintage 30’s and G12T75s in an X pattern.

Marcus: I use a Mapex Horizon birch 6-piece kit, with a Mapex MPX Hammered Steel snare. All Evans drumheads (EC2 Frosted for the toms, Heavyweight on top/hazy300 on the bottom for the snare, EMAD 2 for the bass drum), a Tama Speed Cobra double bass pedal. As for cymbals, I have a 17″ Sabian HHX Evolution crash, a 16″ Zildjian A custom medium crash, a 14″ Zildjian A custom fast crash, a 19″ Sabian Holy China, a 20″ Zildjian A custom medium ride, a 10″ Sabian AAX Air splash, a 10″ Zildjian zil-bel, and finally 14″ Sabian B8 hi-hats.

George: I use an Ampeg SVT-7 pro head, Ampeg Cabinets. My go to basses of course are Schecters. I use a Schecter Stilleto Studio and a Schecter Stilleto Custom live. I use the same EMG pickup setup in all of my basses which is a EMG 40J and EMG 40P combo. As far as effects, I don’t use a lot but I will run a Sans Amp Multi Effect processor live.

GA: What were your favorite parts about the recording process?

Justin: For me, I loved the entire process. This was my 1st time really recording in an actual studio setting. I think maybe because it was all so fresh to me I dug every bit of it.

Johnny: This was the 4th time we were in the studio. I love how everyone comes together. It’s an all-around understood concept of “Let’s buckle down and kick this thing in the ass.” Everyone does their part, and does it great. I love seeing everyone’s personal ideas, and influences that get added to the song on the fly too. It gives the music a unique feel. My ultimate favorite part of the studio, is when we are listening to a finished song for the first time, and our engineer Mike Ofca turns around and gives me that look like “Holy shit this is brutal.”

Marcus: I love being able to hear the songs come to life as we all work through our parts. It’s fun to see how much a song can evolve. From its very raw state in a demo, to the finished product after everyone of the band members, up through the engineer and producer has put their feelings and talent into it.

George: My favorite part of the studio hands down is the first listen. It’s amazing to hear what the finished product sounds like after it was only an “idea” a few weeks earlier. I feel like this being our third major release, we all really got into it this time, and took care of business.

GA: Were there any difficulties in the recording process?

Johnny: The only real difficulty we had this time around was change. This was the first time we worked with an outside producer. We weren’t used to having someone step in, and give their opinions on our music. John came in, and had stuff to say, and he had ideas. At first it was like “Woah, woah, woah, now wait”, after some deep thought we loosened up, and I’m so happy we did. It takes a bit of training to step outside of yourself, and see things from a different perspective. John really taught us that. Thanks brother!

Marcus: Not really. We had a lot of early mornings and late nights, but it was totally worth all of the extra hours!

GA: Your managers are parents correct, how do you feel this may be different from working with an outsider for management?

Justin: While all our parents are very supportive and close to the band, none of them are our managers. We are managed by Dino of Atomic Cowboy Productions. With that being said, we’re always open to input from our families, but Dino runs the show!

Johnny: Our manager, Dino Giovannone takes care of us and we couldn’t be happier. He’s been a musician for 30+ years and has toured around the US along with my father. So he’s got all areas covered of the music business. Plus, he’s one of the most charismatic people I’ve ever met and that’s a great thing to have. That being said I always look to my parents for advice and support, and they are 1000% always there. My father gives me guidance when I’m stuck whether it may be music or business related. He’s been doing this for a long time and there’s no better place for advice. He’s an amazing singer, and I learn all of my methods from him. My mother is an essential utility player. She provides great perspective from different angles where the band can’t see. She helps with our accounting and merch. She’s also a huge driving force! She kicks me in the ass from time to time to get me going!

GA: What’s next for Neverwake?

Johnny: We will be releasing this new EP along with a music video in August/September. After that we are looking to get out in front of a lot of people where we can. We are working to get booking and festivals so we’ll have you updated when that comes around!

Sounds very promising for this band the future that lies ahead for them. Be sure to check up on Neverwake through their Facebook page, as their calendar continues to grow with the anticipation of their soon to be released EP. Thank you guys for this interview, I wish you all well with the new album and future touring.

About Author

George Archibald

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1 Comment

J.Shapaka

July 29, 2016 at 10:48 am

Great interview with an awesome band! They killed it in Texas!

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Interviews

EIHWAR COME TO BALTIMORE TO BRING THE VIKING WAR TRANCE

Published

6 days ago

August 20, 2026

Ron

IVE BEEN SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THE UPCOMING TOUR FOR EIHWAR. I FOUND THEM ON THE INTERNET AND THEY BLEW ME AWAY WITH THEIR VIKING/FOLK/PAGAN MUSIC MIXED WITH ELECTRONIC. EIHWAR WILL BE COMING TO THE RECHER IN TOWNSON MARYLAND ON AUGUST 30TH. EMPIRE EXTREME GOT TO ASK THE DUO A FEW QUESTIONS BEFORE THE SHOW.

ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT DOING YOUR FIRST AMERICAN TOUR? ANY AMERICAN THINGS OR PLACES YOU WANT TO EXPLORE?

ASRUNN: For now, I have to admit I’m still completely stunned. I’m not excited or imagining it yet at all. Right now, I feel like I’m about to go to a country that only exists in TV shows, so I’m still kind of wading through disbelief.

Once I’m actually there, though, I’ll probably start talking way too fast and way too loud, and I’ll want to go way too everywhere.

HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN VIKING WAR TRANCE AS A GENRE OF MUSIC?

MARK: Viking War Trance is basically what happens when you mix Nordic folk influences, tribal rhythms, electronic music and something much more primitive and aggressive. We wanted music that makes you want to dance, fight and enter some kind of trance at the same time. So instead of trying to fit into an existing genre, we just called it Viking War Trance. And about the word “war”: it’s not a war against others, but a war against ourselves. Against our rigidity, our limiting beliefs, our fears. Victory is letting go.

WHAT CAN FANS EXPECT WHEN SEEING THE BAND LIVE?

MARK: Our concerts are much more physical than people sometimes expect from listening to the albums. We want people to dance, scream, jump, crowd surf and completely lose themselves for an hour. It’s somewhere between a concert, a rave and a pagan ritual, but with a lot of joy. “Joyful chaos” is the word that Asrunn often use.

WHAT WAS IT LIKE PLAYING HELLFEST AND WACKEN?

ASRUNN: It’s basically spending an entire hour on stage thinking, “Seriously, what the hell am I doing here? This makes absolutely no sense,” and then, the second it’s over, thinking, “Fuck, that was WAY TOO SHORT!”, hahahahaha!

In reality, it’s a mix of intense concentration and this explosion of joy inside when we manage to bring such a huge crowd into our madness with us. It’s as if, all of a sudden, we’re no longer men and women, but one human tribe, united by joy and raw energy.

HOW DO YOU FEEL THAT YOUR STYLE OF VIKING MUSIC AND IMAGE DIFFERS FROM OTHER VIKING AND FOLK METAL?

MARK: What sets us apart from folk metal is simply that we’re not metal. We don’t use distorted guitars or acoustic drums. As for pagan folk, I think the differences are pretty obvious too. Most pagan bands take a fairly ceremonial approach, resulting in atmospheric, ambient music. Some of them are even very serious. From our point of view, seriousness is a symptom of bad digestion. We prefer to fool around.

As for the peace you find in atmospheric ritual music, we don’t know much about it. Asrunn, our leader, is nothing like a priestess in a linen dress singing with butterflies in the forest. She’s living anger. Our music is joyful and brutal, primitive techno made to dance to until the end of the night.

The biggest difference is also, and perhaps above all, harmonic, in the musicological sense. With ancient instruments, it’s difficult to modulate frequently or to play every note in every octave. We use machines, and that gives us much more freedom to create melodies and chord progressions that evolve constantly and are far more pop-oriented than ancient instruments would normally allow.

DREAM TOUR: YOU CAN GO ON TOUR WITH ANY 2 OTHER BANDS, WHO DO YOU CHOOSE?

ASRUNN: MmmmdzgebhfugzFDBZueisfg that’s WAY too hard to choooooose HAAAAA! I’d say……….. NIN and… well, Sofia Isella, lately. She’s tooooooo good to be true.

MARK: The Prodigy and Peter Gabriel

FAVORITE GAME OF THRONES CHARACTER?

MARK: Don’t know, but I like the soundtrack.

ASRUNN: Bree Van De Kamp.

IF YOU COULD RESURRECT ONE HISTORIC VIKING WHO WOULD IT BE?

MARK: Honestly, my memories from that time aren’t clear enough for me to really know. But I was very fond of the monk Eadwig of Durham, and I’d be curious — and happy — to see him again.

ASRUNN: Lagertha, to prove to Mark that he’s wrong when he says she had bigger boobs than me.

IF YOU HAVEN’T BOUGHT UR TICKETS YET GET THEM HERE

About Author

Ron

Ron has keen eye for new talent, a love for the underground, and a tremendous passion for music of any genera. You’ll probably bump into him at a horror convention or some seedy club checking out the next need-to-know band.

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Interviews

INTERVIEW WITH KURT DEIMER

Published

4 months ago

May 8, 2026

Ron

EMPIRE EXTREME GOT TO INTERVIEW KURT DEIMER ABOUT THE NEW ALBUM “A GROG IS BORN” HIM WORKING WITH GEOFF TATE AND JOSH TODD AND BEING KILLED BY MICHAEL MEYERS AND HORROR MOVIES

About Author

Ron

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Empire Interviews

Inferious—Interview

Published

4 months ago

May 5, 2026

Josh Drespling

by Josh Drespling

I was at Preserving Underground to cover Filth and Resistor. I was all set with my photo pass and cameras at the ready. And then this young band exploded onto the stage. No grand entrance, no intro music, no flashy lights—just a wall of noise from the first guitar chord and a guttural growl that seemed to come from somewhere below the floorboards. I was blown away. Thoroughly impressed.

This band was Inferious, out of Dayton, Ohio. If you look up the word “inferious,” most dictionaries will tell you it means something low-status, submissive, or fit for sacrifice. But this Ohio metalcore outfit Inferious has spent the last several years proving that definition couldn’t be more wrong. Tonight in the basement of a converted church, Inferious delivered raw, sweat-soaked fury to all who were smart enough to show up early.

Before their set was even half over, I made up my mind that I had to talk to them and let our readers know about this band. Here is how it went:

Empire: This was the first time I have ever seen you guys. I’ve heard your name before but never had the chance to listen. The show tonight was freaking awesome. I loved it from the first few notes. The vocals and the guitar tone just hit ya right in the chest.

Since I am a new fan, can you give me the nickel tour of how you came together and I understand you are from Dayton, Ohio.

Shaun O’Shaughnessy – Guitarist: I live in Dayton, and the original band members all formed in Dayton, but it was kind of a collage of multiple band folks. People from the southwest Ohio area. Gabe [McQueen – vocals] and I were there at the beginning, and then through some line-up changes, this is our current and most solid touring line-up so far with Cody and Kyle. They also are from the area and have been in several bands. So they were always in the same circles, at the same shows, talking to the same people. It all worked out one day.

Empire: Given that, it seems like there is a healthy music scene in Dayton. Are there any good clubs, any fields to play in?

Shaun: It’s hard to say Dayton, Ohio, specifically so much as just southwest Ohio because of the way that Dayton, Columbus, and Cincinnati form like a little triangle. You’re only an hour apart from each other. So we can get into that larger music scene pretty easily. So Dayton itself has venues, but the whole collective area has stuff. There’s some house venues, like Gnome House, there’s Bob’s, but then Cincinnati has Madison Live, and Design Collective [DSGN CLLCTV] was doing shows for a while, but I think they got in trouble.
Cody: Yeah, it some code stuff.

Empire: I think there are a couple decent places in Akron, and even across the border is Huntington, WV?

Shaun: Yeah, that area still does have sick stuff. It’s just farther away from our personal local scene. Cleveland is kind of separate from us too.

Cody: That’s not necessarily our scene, but there is such a good underground local scene from the Huntington / Athens / Charleston area. Shout to Feverwar.

Shaun: We were just at the Grog Shop [outside Cleveland].

Cody: We were at the New Foundry not too long ago.

Empire: Oh, yeah, like upstairs?

Shaun: No, it is Foundry’s new location.

Empire: I’ve not been there.

Shaun: It looks basically like the old one, but it’s new.

Empire: You mentioned the Grog Shop. Were you guys there with Filth and Resistor?

Shaun: Yeah, we’ve been on tour with Filth and Resistor. The first half of the tour had Two-Piece on it; we missed them, but now Mono’s [Monochromatic Black] on for the second half, and they’re homies.

Gabe and I toured with them in Inferious a couple years ago with band called AMTAE, and Monochromatic Black. So, those are long-time homies as well. So, we’ve known Tanya [Elizabeth (Beickert) – Vocals] and Eddie [DeCesare – Drums] for a long time, and Pierce [Akers – Guitar] is our new best friend as well.

Empire: So, it’s just like a big hang for you guys.

Shaun: Yeah, all the homies are back. We’ve toured with Filth before too; we were out with them on the Oceano tour, and then actually a year ago, I think like right now, like today a year ago, we toured with Filth also. So, it’s Filth and Oceano, and then Filth again.

So, it’s been fun to have a full circle of friend hangs, and every night’s been sick. The show turnouts have been amazing, and then just hanging out with all our friends has been amazing.

Empire: That’s part of what makes it fun. Whether you have 50 people or 1000, you have that camaraderie and shared experience.

Empire: So do you currently have an album out? Where do you guys stand with that?

Gabe: We have music out everywhere, on all music platforms: Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and YouTube Music. Shit, if you even got to rip that shit, YouTube to MP4, do it, man!

Shaun: We got your back. We got three full lengths and an EP. We are working on a new EP with a label we’re signed to that we’ll announce here soon, but that’s going to be really exciting stuff, and just stoked to be able to get that out soon.

Empire: Cool. So don’t say the label name, but your deal is in place, and then the new album in the fall, winter, spring?

Shaun: Yeah, the EP should be coming out sometime this year, if all the schedules align and everything, but that’s in the works.

Empire: Cool. Filth tour, what’s after that?

Shaun: Finishing up the EP. Record release cycle, and then hopefully touring in support of that. Whether it’s co-headlining with somebody or doing some more support stuff, we’re down for whatever. Hopefully we can fill up the rest of the year.

You know, touring is hard financially, so while we’re able to still make ends meet on the road, it’s hard to pay all the bills, so we’ve got to go home, stack our bread back up, and then be ready to go back out again.

Empire: I understand. Is this your first time in Pittsburgh?

Shaun: We’ve actually played Preserving. This is at least the fifth time.

We played the DIY room, we played this room, this orientation, we played this room when it was facing the other direction. AJ, the owner, has been good to us. He is a rad dude.

Empire: AJ is great.

Shaun: The record shop and merch store upstairs is sick, I just bought a shirt, a Never Ending Game shirt, because we have to do a laundry soon, and I bought a shirt to extend one more day to get through.

Empire: Anything you guys want to add, anything going on? Shameless plugs?

Shaun: This has been a kind of sick tour, because I think we’ve all got to see family members. Gabe’s dad dropped him off, so we got to see Gabe’s dad. We got to go get breakfast with my mom and some family, I saw my aunt. Cody’s mom let us stay at her crib, and we got to hang out with her and his family. Kyle’s family came out last night and hung out, and that was pretty sick, so it’s been a good time.

Empire: Kyle hasn’t said anything, so tell me about your family coming out and seeing the show.

Kyle: I mean, it was my sister’s first time seeing us live.

Empire: What did she have to say? I mean, I’m sure she knew the style.

Kyle: Oh, yeah, she’s conditioned to it.

Empire: She’s not like a Britney Spears fan at a hardcore show?

Kyle: No, no, she’s by far not a normie, but close to it.

Empire: Thank you, gentlemen. That’s all I have today. Appreciate it, and thanks for the show. It was great; loved it.

Shaun: See you next time.

Before that night at Preserving Underground, I’ll be honest: Inferious was just a name on a show flyer. Another opening band before the acts I actually came to see.

That’s the thing about this level of heavy music. The headliners get the lights, the longer set, and the crowd that’s already warmed up. But the openers? They get twenty-five minutes, a soundcheck that barely counts, and a room full of people who are mostly looking at their phones. Inferious didn’t just overcome that. They incinerated it.

What struck me most, sitting down with Shaun, Gabe, Cody, and Kyle after the show, was how unpretentious they were. No egos. No rock-star posturing. Just four guys from southwest Ohio who’ve been grinding in the same circles, playing the same basement venues, and slowly building something real. They talked about the small venues with the same reverence other bands reserve for stadiums. They shouted out Feverwar. They bought merch from the shop upstairs to make it through one more day on the road.

That’s the part you don’t see from the crowd. The financial grind. The van trouble. The “stack our bread back up” reality of modern touring. And yet, here they were—genuinely stoked to have seen family members at shows, genuinely grateful for AJ at Preserving keeping the doors open for underground bands, and genuinely excited about an upcoming EP they couldn’t even name the label for yet.

Inferious may have a name that suggests something low-status, something sacrificial. But after watching them level a converted church in New Kensington, and after listening to them talk about their scene with the easy confidence of people who have nothing to prove, I think the definition needs an update.

Check them out on all the streaming platforms. Catch them when they roll through your town on the next tour. And for the love of God, show up early.

You never know which opening band is going to blow your doors off.

About Author

Josh Drespling

Josh is the Publisher and creator of Empire Extreme and it’s sister publication Kingdom Extreme Magazine. He is an accomplished writer, photographer and graphic designer. He is always conjuring up new ideas and has a amazing passion for the music industry and all the things that surround it.

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