What inspired the name of the band? What are your influences and are they the same as when you started out?
My musical influences are quite obvious, Pink-Floyd, Led-Zeppelin, Supertramp, Kansas, Billy Joel, Elton John, David Bowie, Alice Cooper, Genesis, …
As a young guy, I was writing my own songs and recording some demos. Regularly, friends would tell me: “Hey, these songs sound good, you should make an album!” and I would always give the same answer: “What for? Nobody knows me and it’s never gonna work!”
Later on, I moved to Amsterdam and joined the local scene there. Then I got to meet one of my childhood heroes, Steve Hackett from Genesis. I opened a gig for him and we had a long discussion. At some point he said to me: “Your songs sound good, you should record an album!”. So I fired my usual response to this, but then he replied: “Well, just do it for yourself, that way you can’t be disappointed, if it works you’re happy, if it doesn’t, you’re still happy because you did it for you anyway!”
The next day, I started the recording of my first album “Oddity”. Steve was very supportive in the process and he apparently enjoyed the album because he then offered to play on the next one, which he did on “Torn Apart” in 2015. So I guess, everything I achieved as a solo artist, I owe it to Steve somehow, I wouldn’t be here without his wise words. We even opened for Sting this year, how cool is that?
When I released “ODDITY” in 2011, I didn’t have a band. That’s the reason the artist name was simply “Franck Carducci”. After that I got some gigs offers so I had to form a band. The lineup has changed several times since then, but that’s the life of any band I suppose.
How do you approach songwriting?
I wrote all my songs. Most of them are about fantasy. I want to make people dream, travel through my music. But I’ve also got a few more down-to-earth numbers, about relationships and stuff like that.
I often take inspiration from 60s and 70s Hollywood movies, I love Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Steve McQueen, Bob DeNiro, Brando and so many others … But also Greek mythology, English literature (Lewis Caroll, …)
How do you approach songwriting?
I wrote all my songs. Most of them are about fantasy. I want to make people dream, travel through my music. But I’ve also got a few more down-to-earth numbers, about relationships and stuff like that.
I often take inspiration from 60s and 70s Hollywood movies, I love Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Steve McQueen, Bob DeNiro, Brando and so many others … But also Greek mythology, English literature (Lewis Caroll, …)
Why do you write the sort of music that you do?
I’m a new classic-rock artist with strong 70s rock influences and a lot of visual stage effects. Some call it “Theatrical Rock” I kinda like the term.
The good thing about 70s music is that it is limitless, you can do anything you want to do !!!
How do you decide what to perform live?
For me, it’s all about taking the audience to a journey of dreams where, they can forget about reality for a while. And it’s not only the music. Visuals play a big part in our live shows, because I want to offer something more than just the music. I want to move the eyes as well as the ears. That’s why I love artists like Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Pink-Floyd, Genesis, Elton John … They combine the music and the visuals in a proper show!
I always tend to think that even if the music is awesome, when you’re gonna ask people to go out, buy a ticket and come to the show, music alone is not enough. If it’s just for the music, they’ll be better off listening to a quality recording sitting comfortably on their sofa at home.
So I gotta give them more than just the music. I want my show to be a real visual experience for the audience. Costumes, make-up, staging, lighted-wings, laser-gloves, hats, …. you name it!
So whichever songs I choose to perform, you can expect a lot of fun, a lot of smiles, and a lot of visual effects.
How do you decide what to perform live?
For me, it’s all about taking the audience to a journey of dreams where, they can forget about reality for a while. And it’s not only the music. Visuals play a big part in our live shows, because I want to offer something more than just the music. I want to move the eyes as well as the ears. That’s why I love artists like Alice Cooper, David Bowie, Pink-Floyd, Genesis, Elton John … They combine the music and the visuals in a proper show!
I always tend to think that even if the music is awesome, when you’re gonna ask people to go out, buy a ticket and come to the show, music alone is not enough. If it’s just for the music, they’ll be better off listening to a quality recording sitting comfortably on their sofa at home.
So I gotta give them more than just the music. I want my show to be a real visual experience for the audience. Costumes, make-up, staging, lighted-wings, laser-gloves, hats, …. you name it!
So whichever songs I choose to perform, you can expect a lot of fun, a lot of smiles, and a lot of visual effects.
What plans do you have for the future?
A new album with new material I wrote during lockdown, plus a live album we recorded in September 2022 in The Netherlands, plus putting up a new show for 2023 … a lot of things!!
But first, we will be ending the current tour :
🇫🇷 NOV-30 : BOURG-EN-BRESSE (01)
🇫🇷 DEC-01 : PARIS
🇧🇪 DEC-02 : VERVIERS
🇫🇷 DEC-03 : ENSISHEIM (68)
🇬🇧 DEC-06 : NEWCASTLE
🇬🇧 DEC-07 : CAMBRIDGE
🇬🇧 DEC-08 : SOUTHAMPTON
🇬🇧 DEC-09 : WIGAN
🇬🇧 DEC-10 : LONDON
🇬🇧 DEC-11 : WOLVERHAMPTON
🇫🇷 DEC-16 : LA ROCHELLE
🇫🇷 DEC-17 : BORDEAUX
More info on my website : www.franckcarducci.com