When I was told I would be interviewing Cinder Road I thought – oh boy, another rocker. Rock stars are not known among writers for their loquaciousness or eloquence. Mike Ruocco was a pleasant surprise. Well Spoken, obviously intelligent, well traveled, a rocker and humanitarian, Mike is the millennial answer to Alice Cooper.
Cinder Road is a Baltimore, MD band that got started as a cover band in High School. As Plunge they began to tour the Eastern seaboard relentlessly. In 2007 they changed the band name to Cinder Road. Soon they were signed by EMI and released their first album Superhuman.
These are men who know and love women. These are men who know and love music. Cinder Road might not be a household name – but they will be. As they wrap up a tour with rock legends Tesla lead singer Mike took a few minutes to chat.
Mike Ruocco – Lead Singer
Q. When you guys started as Plunge – and subsequently Cinder Road, who would you say your inspirations were – who are your rock gods?
A. When I was young I always remember music playing around the house, Beach Boys, the Beatles, Three Dog Night. When I was 8 or 10 years old I got my hands on Def Leopard’s Hysteria cassette and it changed my life, it is still my favorite album of all time. That’s when I went from enjoying music to wanting to make my own. As I got older I discovered Elvis and Elvis is still my favorite singer – he was the first rock star.
Q. As Plunge and Cinder Road you got to tour with the AFE (Armed Forces Entertainment Network). What was that like: scary or just awesome?
A. AFE accomplishes so much and on so may levels. Touring on the AFE is a really feel good activity. When you play for the troops they are starved for entertainment, you just see the reactions on their faces and how thrilled they are that you are there. You get to see the direct result of your actions, not many jobs offer that. We also get to travel the world and the country; we get to see places that no one ever gets to see. We went to Korea, Japan a couple of times, but by far the two most unusual places were Guantanamo Bay and Greenland. People never go to Greenland, you don’t hear someone saying – oh I’m going to Greenland for summer vacation, but it was great. Cuba wasn’t a resort, I mean it’s a US military installation - but it was beautiful, this tropical island. There’s always, you know, the idea that there are some missiles pointed there, there are a lot of people who really don’t want us there, but it was really cool to check out recent history and get to see Cuba, because you just aren’t allowed to go there unless you’re not a US citizen.
Q. How is the current tour with Tesla going?
A. With every tour we find ourselves always saying that it’s a trip to be a touring musician and all of a sudden to go from fan to friend. I mean we have toured with some major rock names and these are people we grew up listening to and not only do you know them by name but you’re hanging out and grabbing lunch. I remember listening to Candlebox when I was 16 and got my driver’s license – after we toured with them we got close; I still talk to them once a week. Tesla are legends from the 80s and we weren’t sure what to expect. Tesla fans are known to be Tesla fans. They show up and pay $35 to see Tesla, not Cinder Road. We’ve been very fortunate that the Tesla fans have welcomed us with open arms. Our merch sales have been off the charts this tour and we’ve sold more cds on this tour than in last 6 months. This is an older fan base; but they still buy albums.
Q. How has the Tesla tour differed from the Daughtry tour? Is it just a whole different fan base?
A. In some ways they are similar. With both tours all the shows were pretty much sold out. It’s always nice to have a sold out show. With Daughtry it was both of our 1st national tours. We played a lot of smaller clubs. There was a whole different level of press, publicity, and police. He’s not only a rock star, he’s a T.V. star; and that comes with a whole different set of circumstances. One thing that was cool is that Daughtry fans were crazier, more manic or obsessive. About 90% of the audience was female so it was cake. Our fans have always been about 80 to 90% female. So they understood us. There were no dudes standing in the front row with crossed arms staring at us waiting to flip us off or to punch us or throw beer at us. As we’ve been touring more and more we’ve reached all different crowds. When we toured with Hurt all of Hurt’s fans were dudes. You just get to a point where you get up there and say I’m gonna do what I do - if you like it- great.
Q. So, what’s the next big thing for you guys? What do you want your fans to know about?
A. In the next couple of months we’ll be staying out on the road, we’ll be touring indefinitely for the rest of the year. I can’t say with who or where; but we will be out there. We will be releasing a live album and DVD this year, at least by year’s end, so we are working hard on that now. We just want to see you when we come through town.
http://www.myspace.com/cinderroad
http://www.cinderroadmusic.com/
Interview by Linsey Griffith
Photos by David Heasley