VINNY APPICE Says Taking Part In HEAVEN AND HELL Writing Sessions Will Be 'Fantastic'

Glam-Metal.com recently conducted an interview with legendary heavy metal drummer Vinny Appice (HEAVEN AND HELL, BIG NOIZE, DIO, 3 LEGGED DOGG). An excerpt from the chat follows:

Glam-Metal.com: With all the projects you have going on HEAVEN AND HELL, 3 LEGGED DOGG, HOLLYWOOD ALLSTARZ, DERRINGER, and BIG NOIZE how do you find time to balance such a heavy schedule?

Vinny: I have all of those going on? Wow! (laughs) Actually, I'm not playing with the HOLLYWOOD ALLSTARZ anymore and 3 LEGGED DOGG is on hold. So it's just the three bands: DERRINGER, BIG NOIZE, and HEAVEN AND HELL. It's hard to juggle around a schedule, you know? You get guys that say, "Hey, can you come down and play this weekend?" I always say I don't know and I have to check my schedule to make sure the gigs don't overlap. It's pretty crazy! Of course, the number one priority is HEAVEN AND HELL.
Glam-Metal.com: Why did you decide to take on another all-star type of band with BIG NOIZE?

Vinny: "We actually started this before the HEAVEN AND HELL thing came about. I've known Joe [Lynn Turner] for years, Carlos [Cavazo] for years, everybody actually. So we wanted to do it. It was a fun thing and we got along really well. We were just ready to start booking gigs and HEAVEN AND HELL came along. Then I did that and we put this on hold for awhile. Now we're able to do some shows and this is like our fourth show. It's "born," so to speak.

Glam-Metal.com: Are you surprised by the overwhelming success of the HEAVEN AND HELL tour in 2007?

Vinny: I think we were all a little surprised of the reaction. Originally, it was supposed to be the tour in support of the compilation CD that came out. Then things went so well and the band got better and better and tighter. We thought musically, everybody was so happy that towards the end it was like, "Hey, want to do an album? Yeah, let's do an album!" We are in album mode. I'm so excited about that! It's going to be fantastic!

Glam-Metal.com: Reports are that you will be heading off to L.A. to join the rest of HEAVEN AND HELL to begin working on a new CD. Can you tell the status of this?

Vinny: Actually, right now, Ronnie [James Dio] flew over to England to meet with Tony Iommi and they are writing. Geezer [Butler] has some stuff written himself and they are going to play around with that. Ronnie should be back by this point. We start April 7th where we will sit in a room with the gear and start laying down some of the ideas and jam and put the whole thing together.

Glam-Metal.com: How involved are you in the creative process with the guys from HEAVEN AND HELL?

Vinny: I write within the band and always have a lot of ideas and stuff. If I feel they are really strong ideas then I will express myself. Some of the stuff works and some of the stuff doesn't work. I don't play guitar and write that way, but I have a lot of shit going around in my head.

Glam-Metal.com: Reports are that there will be a huge tour with HEAVEN AND HELL and JUDAS PRIEST later this year. Can you comment on that?

Vinny: No. (laughs and smiles)

Read the entire interview at Glam-Metal.com.