Page 27 - Black Velvet Issue 91

BV91 pg24,25,26,27,28,29_BV91 pg27 21/12/2016 19:53 Page 4

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addiction’, boom, amazing the amount of help to be somebody I’m not. That’s just who I am They usually get through everyone on their
you can get. You just have to be willing to reach and I dig it. It’s the real me, because I don’t have own headline tours though. They make venues
out… to realize that you have a problem first. A to pretend, you know what I mean?” aware that they’ll be doing signings after their
drug addiction and alcoholism is a common set and are ready to do them, again, almost as
symptom. The first symptom is denial. “I don’t ans get to meet Marco and his band soon as they’ve finished their set.
have it, I can stop anytime, I’m gonna take a lit- Fmates; John Corabi, Brian Tichy, David
tle, I’m going to substitute this for that,” – that’s Lowy and Doug Aldrich after most Dead Daisies his year, in between headline shows and
what I was doing. And it ended up blowing up in shows when they do signings for everyone. TKISS support shows, the band also
my face. That’s the hardest step, the first step – They don’t charge fans to meet them like many played for the troops in Korea at the end of Oc-
realizing that you have an issue. If I get a call bands. They will happily sign as much as they tober/beginning of November. While there they
from anyone to be of help, I’m here, of service, can, shake as many hands as they can, and that got to meet some inspiring people. Marco says
MarcoMendoza.com, I’m on Facebook. Please time allows. that everyone there was inspiring. “From the
reach out and I will do my best to get to you.” “That’s one of the cool things about this commanding officers all the way down to the
band; if you put us together, the amount of years troops that are just signing up to go there for the
nd so now Marco is clean and sober of experience and credits and profile and all that, first time for a year. There’s a commander that
Aand really living life to the fullest. And we’re using it to our benefit,” Marco says. “So we met that’s been in hand-to-hand warfare, I
when you meet him you’ll feel that attitude of we’ve learned how not to do things, we’ve don’t think that happens too much. You can see
gratitude. He is so warm and open to everyone learned what things work and we also know the influence, what he’s experiencing and how
that he meets. He’s such a friendly, extroverted what the fans appreciate more than anything. he deals with it. Very focused. Seemed a bit dis-
character without the need of stimulants – but And fans really appreciate when you take the tanced from the real world, real life. If you imag-
he says it’s the real him. time to spend some time, to say hello, to sign a ine going off and blowing people away, it’s got
“We’re introverts. There’s a bit of shyness in few things. Unfortunately circumstances don’t to have some kind of effect. But his heart was in
all of us,” he says about humans as a whole. allow for us to hang out a little more. Sometimes the right place and that’s what I identified with.
“We don’t want to crack to that wall, it’s comfort- we have 30 minutes. For example, on the KISS Him and his family, and his kids and his wife. I
able so why not stay there? I came from a family tour that we just did… we’ve done four or five had a brief talk with her. She was like, “Yeah, he
that at holidays were close to 100 people… 90 tours with KISS… so we’re the opening band. still has some issues here and there, dealing
people, 80 people all singing with instruments, There’s another band, us, and then KISS. So with post-traumatic stuff, but he’s good. He’s a
everybody’s drinking, eating food. In Mexico, it’s between finishing our set and KISS going on good guy, he’s going to come through it. And
one of those things; you celebrate life in every stage, there’s 30, maybe 35 minutes. So we an- these are the sacrifices that all these men and
possible way; music, food, the arts, and when nounce it, we get offstage, it’s arenas and the women make for us and we don’t appreciate it.
family gets together forget it. So that’s where I merch booth is always on the other side, so We’re so separate from that reality that we’re not
come from. We hug, we’re touchy-feely, we kiss. we’re running after we’ve done our set, with tow- aware of it. It’s our way of going there again and
I used to kiss my father on the mouth. I didn’t els floating around, trying to get to the merch saying, ‘Hey, we love you, respect you, much
know any different. No sexual connotations booth to sign. And unfortunately, 9 out of 10 love, and we hope to do it again soon.’”
whatsoever. A sign of respect. It’s a kiss. So I times, there are too many people to accommo- There has actually been a viral awareness
grew up in that environment. For me, it comes date. There are 200 people and we have 30 campaign going on, the 22 Pushup Challenge,
natural. Once I got rid of the layers, the crap. minutes, so we have to stop at a certain point to raise awareness for veterans that commit sui-
That’s who I am. It’s not a put-on, I’m not trying and say ‘Sorry, thank you’.” cide and how every day 22 veterans take their

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