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The
"6th Member of moe." Contest Winners Interviews
On December
29, moe.rons made their way to the Palladium in Worcester, Massachusetts.
They came from far and wide, braved a cold and very snowy evening,
to see and hear their favorite band. They were not disappointed.
It was night 2 of moe.'s 2012 NYE run, and featured "6th
member of moe." contest winner JOE BALLANTI. We caught up
with Joe and asked him all about his experience. We're now happy
to share it with you:
Q: What
motivated you to enter the contest?
A: There were a bunch of things, but I'll give you the top three:
1. The music: I love moe.'s approach to music. They come from
the same Buffalo jam band scene that I do. One of the hallmarks
of that scene is that the line between the band and the fans is
pretty blurry. Every gig feels like a frat party where everyone
is just there to share the music and have a good time. A few people
just happen to be the ones with the instruments. The thought of
being able to blend into that, even a few minutes, was something
I really wanted to take a shot at. Yet, I was waffling about it
at one point and I had a couple conversations with my good friend
Corey Kertzie, a drummer that also lives in Buffalo. He got me
all fired up to enter and really motivated me to follow through
with it.
2. Parental
Consistency: I always tell my daughters that, when you love something,
you have to try. You may win or you may not, but you have to try.
It was great to be able to share the whole experience with them
and my wife, Mary, who was really supportive through the whole
process. Once I told the girls about it I really wanted to follow
through.
3. Personal
challenge: I had some fairly major issues that affected my playing
during the first part of 2012. I am very fortunate that I am actually
better now that I was before. I had some doubts about whether
I could still play though-especially at a professional level.
The contest was a great opportunity to focus on a specific goal,
and follow through with getting my entry submitted.
Q: What
about choosing the songs "Nebraska" and "NYC"
to play? How did that come about?
A: I was looking for songs that I felt would sound good with a
piano added in. I play other keyboards and instruments too, but
piano is my main instrument. "NYC" is my favorite moe.
song. I love the melody, the signature line that Al plays during
the intro and that Chuck and Al play together during the break
before the solo section, and the fact that it was in the key of
G, which just happens to be a comfortable key for me on piano.
"Nebraska" came about a little by accident. The contest
rules said that if you were chosen you could play one song with
the band - you pick a song and the band could say yes or no. Vinnie
called me to let me know that I had been chosen (which was amazing
in itself) and asked me to send over three songs and they would
tell me which one. I sent over "NYC," "Nebraska"
and "Tambourine." A couple days later Vinnie sent me
back a note and said that they had decided on "NYC"
because they liked my audition video, but they also wanted to
do "Nebraska" because of the Dixieland-style part where
Chuck plays the talk-box solo. That was really fun to play live.
Q: Any
particular moment that stands out that day of the show?
A: Probably my favorite moment of the whole experience was at
the sound check - we had just finished running through "Nebraska"
and I had figured we would play "NYC" the same way the
guys play it live. Al turned to me and said, "We were thinking
you could play the intro like you did in your audition video and
we would just blend in after a while". So I'm thinking, "...
you want me to play the intro ... alone ... in front of people??
... a lot of people???..." - but all I remember saying was,
"OK - sounds good". The fact that they wanted me do
that really meant a lot to me.
Q: You
seemed very comfortable up there, have you performed before that
many people?
A: Only once in front of an audience that big, which was at the
University of Buffalo, Springfest, when a band I was in, Wild
Knights, opened for Cheap Trick-that was in the last century.
Other than that I have played a ton of shows over the years and
just really enjoy sharing music with an audience.
Q: When
you sat down at the keyboard, what did you feel when you looked
out on the crowd, or did you look at all?
A: I definitely looked-at first the spotlights were on and I could
not see anyone, but as soon as we started "Nebraska,"
the lights shifted and I could see everyone all the way up to
the top of the balcony. Definitely a stellar moment. My cheeks
were actually sore from smiling when I walked off the stage after
we were done!
Q: Do
you perform regularly these days?
A: I haven't for several years because of family, children, job,
and health considerations but things have stabilized and I had
made plans to get a band together and also start playing some
solo shows about 3 months before the contest was announced. The
contest really sealed it for me. I will be posting news about
it at www.joebellanti.com and on my facebook page if anyone wants
to check it out.
Q: How
does it feel to know your performance video is up on Relix?
A: Awesome and hilarious at the same time - If you go to the page
at Relix.com where the video of "Nebraska" and "NYC"
is posted: http://www.relix.com/blogs/picks-and-pans/2012/12/31/moe-with-joe-bellanti my mom left the
first comment - who knew she reads Relix? Too funny. It was great
the day they put up the page with the videos of the guys that
played. We were listed with a bunch of great bands. I thought
Taylor Frederick and Matt Mahoney both did an outstanding job
as well. I have been talking to both of them on Facebook and Taylor
stayed over for the second show in Worcester so we got a chance
to talk and had a great time at the show I played in.
Q: Any
feedback you wish to share about your experience?
A: In terms of feedback that I have gotten, the response has been
overwhelmingly positive which has been great and really humbling
at the same time. My favorite messages have been the ones from
moe. fans that were at the show or saw the video, and took the
time to find me online and have sent some great notes. I've gotten
a lot of great messages from fellow musicians too, which has also
been very humbling. For my own part, the guys are probably getting
sick of hearing it, but I would like to take one more opportunity
to thank Chuck, Rob, Al, Jim, Vinnie and the whole moe. crew for
both the chance to play and for really making me feel at home
when I was at the show. moe. runs a first class operation and
it is easy to see why their fans are so loyal. From the minute
I pulled up at the loading dock door to the minute I hit the road
to head back to Buffalo, everyone I came in contact with went
above and beyond to make sure that I had everything I needed.
I can't tell you how much I appreciate everything that everyone
did. Thanks again and I am really looking forward to seeing you
all down the road.
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