VINNY APPICE: Why Punctuality Is Important In Rock And Roll

In a brand new interview with Tom Leu of Sound Matters Radio, legendary drummer Vinny Appice spoke about the importance of punctuality when it comes to being in a band, especially as it relates to performing live.

Asked why he left KILL DEVIL HILL, the group that also featured former PANTERA and DOWN bassist Rex Brown, Vinny laughed and said: "This was just a crazy band. And I like to be on time. All the bands I worked with, including [BLACK] SABBATH and Ronnie [James Dio]... on time. [If] rehearsal's at 2, everybody's there sometimes 1:30, 2 o'clock. KILL DEVIL HILL, 2 o'clock means 'yeah, some time in the afternoon.' So that got old. It got hard when we were doing gigs. We'd [be scheduled to] meet in the lobby at 7. And that meant anywhere between 7 and 8:30. There was a lot of time wasted. And it started to spill into going on late at these gigs. And you can't go on late when it's Monday night. People are going to work the next day, and you're just going on at 11:30 when you're supposed to be on at 10. So that got to be old for me, and eventually I couldn't deal with it anymore. So I decided, 'I can't do this.' As much as I love the band, and I thought we were a great band — so heavy; there was a lot of fun in it — but just that waiting around killed me."

Vinny continued: "I do Rock ['N' Roll] Fantasy Camps [where fans get the opportunity to play with some of rock and metal's biggest stars], and I did one with Gene Simmons [KISS]. And Gene was a special guest, obviously. And he came in, and he was talking to people and he was telling them how honored he is to be on the stage. The stage shouldn't be taken for granted; you're lucky to be on the stage. And he was saying that. And then talking about being on time. And he pulled out something from his boot, a little book, and he had somebody read it. And it was the schedule he had that day. And he flew into L.A., and he was at the Rock Camp. He was supposed to be appearing at 2 o'clock. But before that, at, like, 5 a.m., he woke up and did this, at 6 a.m. he was here, at 7:30 he was at a meeting — all this stuff. He did five or six things before this appearance at 2 o'clock. And then he said, 'What time did I get here?' And I said, 'You got here at 1 p.m.' So, he was trying to stress the point of how you're lucky to be doing this anyway, and how important it is to be on time and not take advantage of your status… [It's about] being a professional. He doesn't need to be there. He doesn't need to be anywhere. He can stay home. He doesn't need to be anywhere. He was just stressing the point that he doesn't take it for granted that he's supposed to be on stage, 'cause he's Gene Simmons. He's happy to be there and he wants to be on time, and all that stuff. So… I thought that was great."

Vinny left KILL DEVIL HILL in March 2014. He has since been replaced by Johnny Kelly (DANZIG, TYPE O NEGATIVE).

KILL DEVIL HILL's sophomore album, "Revolution Rise", was released in October 2013 via Century Media Records.