MARCO AIELLO

Throughout Marco Aiello’s music career, people have often struggled to define his style. This isn’t the cliche story of an artist with an original sound – but rather, an exploration of what happens when the son of struggling Italian immigrants experiences powerful artistic influences from two vastly different musical cultures.

The result is evident on Aiello’s first solo album August Light, where there’s an undeniable intimacy. Aiello’s voice and vocal phrasings draw you in with a softness that glows as it bounces around the musical textures of acoustic guitars merging with telecaster counter melodies. There’s a vulnerability and sweetness that is the foundation of the songs on August Light – and Aiello is able to be soft without compromising his command for your ear. There’s intensity behind every note – and by the time you’ve listened to the entire album, you’ve experienced a dynamic vocal style that’s rare in today’s singer-songwriters. Aiello unleashes his voice at just the right moments, too. Aiello is so confident with tenderness, that in the movements in August Light where there is explosion – it has a deeper and dramatic impact. The vocalist and producer are clearly intentional about this – Mike Castonguay (imaginationsurplus.com) supports Aiello with arrangements and musical choices that accentuate Aiello’s take on songwriting – which is oddly modern and throwback at the same time. Castonguay approaches August Light like a young Daniel Lanois flirting with Phil Spector while throwing in some of Aiello’s 70’s Italian singer-songwriter influences. It’s strange – but it’s comforting to hear the “wall of sound” approach work so well with such a quieter and acoustic based record.

The haunting thing about Marco Aiello’s voice is that while it stands out with phrasing, tonal qualities and cadence that’s uniquely his – it’s immediate and familiar at the same time. Why shouldn’t it be? You’ve heard this voice before even if you weren’t aware of it. Aiello has spent his musical career using his voice in so many ways within professional entertainment – the chances you haven’t heard him before are unlikely. You’ve heard or seen him on every major network whether it’s NBC, CBS, MTV or even NICKELODEON. You’ve heard his voice on TV, Films and national commercial jingles. When the Grammys honored the Beatles, a jingle featuring Aiello’s voice rendering a take on “Hello, Goodbye” for Target was aired. Whether it’s a songwriter singing in the background in AMC’s Mad Men, an inspirational song during The Biggest Loser – or an American car commercial where “that guy sounds reminiscent of Bono – but different” – his voice has been there all along. He toured nationally with his acoustic band – “The Red” – and gained critical acclaim for being a skilled live performer. Reviewers like to muse that Aiello’s performance style “makes you feel like you’re hanging out with him in his living room” – and he is one of those performers that easily commands an audience. August Light is the album that finally captures that very essence – and packages it in a way that a bigger audience can explore. This record elevates Marco Aiello’s emergence in an extreme way because Castonguay is the producer that figured out how to introduce a strange talent so that it’s accessible and timely. The 11 songs on August Light don’t hurt either – this is a songsmith who isn’t afraid to push the boundaries of songwriting while keeping every track true to its immediate goal – connecting with a listener in the simplest and most direct way possible.

“I’m often asked about my ‘sound’ and how I came up with it,” explains Aiello. “You don’t come up with a sound – your sound is a reflection of who you are and what your soul is here to express. I was introduced to music very young by my father. On the one hand, he was listening to great American artists from the 60’s and 70’s – The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd… On the other, he played records by Italian Singer-Songwriters – Lucio Battisti, Umberto Tozzi, Pooh – wow what a mouthful, right? Kids growing up here would never have accessed this music – these were legit Italian folk and rock artists. They had very original arrangements, weird production, poetic lyrics and were known for being great singers – not because they were necessarily technical singers – they just had expressive and passionate voices. My earliest memory in life – is sitting in front of my father’s stereo, I must have been 3 or 4. My first conscious thought that I remember was – ‘Wow – somebody made that music and now i’m listening to it.’ It happened with spreads of music that to anyone else would seem conflicting. That blend – that insane distance between the two cultural frameworks in music merged inside of me at a really young age. It was a time when my family was immigrating to a new country and it was an unstable time – that music got written inside of me and maybe it was confused. Maybe the code had to get screwed up for that mini version of me to process it. I think some of the tendencies in my music are perhaps unfamiliar to American ears – and that may give the illusion of a new sound – but I’d argue that it’s only the feeling of it that is foreign. American artists are the coolest – they are the epitome of brilliance and cool and emotional power. Italian artists from the 70’s were ridiculously vulnerable – there’s this place they were willing to go as artists that’s pure and a raw exposure of personal flaws and pain – and there’s a courageousness there that you can’t ignore. I consider myself an American artist in that my music is speaking directly to an English speaking audience. But then there’s that blend of Italian influences – a language I still speak. It’s something that’s deep in my soul and I feel like August Light captured the emotional signature of the two coming together.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYOTQEH8TUU

KAYD CURRIER

Actor/ Model/Stuntsman Kayd Currier is a curious study in the polarity of opposites. While maintaining an easy, natural, rugged American masculinity, he is simultaneously emotionally sensitive and open, with a developed feminine side. The dichotomy of contrasts creates a most interesting male archetype—the sensitive tough guy with the heart and soul of a poet–strong yet vulnerable. The Brad Pitt visual references are obvious, as well as the Fallen Angel model that Heath Ledger and Kurt Cobain personified, without the victimized tragedy. With his quintessential American mannerisms, good looks and boyish charm, he easily represents the new order of a young Hollywood star in a hip and contemporary way.

Originally from the New England area, Kayd had first lived in Boston, then in Arizona before coming out to the West Coast to pursue an acting career. Born July 22, 1983 in Derry, New Hampshire to Heather Angers, a nurse and to Richard Currier, an avid motorcycle rider who would later operate his own machine shops, Kayd was placed on a motorbike from age one, and was riding his own first motorbike at three years old! At 17 Kayd Started racing motorcycles then in 1998 became a factory sponsored motorcycle roadracer. Kayd has also owned multiple motorcycle shops. Specializing in custom builds, rigging for film and motorcycle stunt specialties.

Kayd’s professional work history in Arizona and Hollywood includes a host of stunts, dramatic leading roles in film and TV such as LEGION, THE END TABLE, Born to be a Star, The Cure and many and a Sci-Fi feature film, ISF1. He also hosted TV shows, including 37 episodes of STARQUEST. His California theatre experience includes THE NEXT STAGE THEATRE featuring PINK FLOYD: THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON, Angry young women. While his modeling work includes a striking SUE WONG fashion campaign for the noted designer. Kayd also recently did the campaign for designer, Antonio Barragan’s DEMON RIFF, a contemporary collection of Avante-Garde menswear.

Dr Rich Snyder is an osteopathic physician board certified in Internal Medicine and Nephrology (the study of kidney disease). His areas of specialization include kidney disease, high blood pressure, adrenal health and medical education. He is Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at Temple University School of Medicine and Clinical Professor of Medicine at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. He is the author of five books including Adrenal Fatigue For Dummies and What You Must Know About Kidney Disease: A Practical Guide For Using Conventional and Complementary Treatments. He is also the author of What You Need to Know About Dialysis: The Secret to Surviving and Thriving on Dialysis and is also the High Blood Pressure Expert on About.com

My second guest, Board Certified Gastroenterologist Lawrence Hoberman, MD, is the creator of EndoMune Advanced Probiotic and founder of Medical Care Innovations. He has spent more than 40 years practicing medicine and is board certified in both Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology. Frustrated by the lack of options to treat his patients suffering from Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD) in the early 2000s, Dr. Hoberman met with a PhD microbiologist to identify a combination of bacteria that might work to destroy the harmful bacteria living in the intestines, improving and maintaining the health of adults. The result is the development of his own effective probiotic supplement: EndoMune Advanced Probiotic.

Dr. Hoberman currently sees patients as a part of a health and wellness practice that stresses preventative medicine. He is in practice at Health by Design, located in San Antonio, Texas. He is available for speaking engagements about digestive health and the benefits of probiotics and has spoken at several conferences. 

Owner of Wiccan Moonsong, Priestess, Writer, Artist, and Mom to two amazing little ones. For those who may not know me I am a Wiccan Priestess, and highly intuitive.  I also work closely with the Angels and my guides.  I work with several divination methods, holistic healing, intuitive counseling, and I teach. 

Since I can remember I’ve been deeply fascinated by plant life. As I child I loved having my hands in the dirt. I spent a lot of time alone in the backyard eating strange bugs and poisonous berries. This deep connection to the natural world and the spirits of the plants encouraged my self-study. After many years of self-practice I began honing my studies and completed an advanced medical herbalism program led by Paul Bergner at the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism in Boulder, CO. Teaching people about herbs is what I live for. I specialize in dream-work, stress relief and aphrodisiacs. I also trained with indigenous shamans in the jungles of Ecuador, learning many healing practices including cleansings (limpias), purgatives and herbal bathing.

In 2011, I created this herbal company Dream Catcher Botanicals so I could share these exquisite medicines. We joyfully handcraft my products including potent tinctures, exotic teas, incenses, and rare species of seed from all around the world. We use organic or wild crafted herbs and only the finest most vibrant ingredients available to produce these lovely products! We carry a special line of handcrafted Rare and Exotic plant medicines from all around the world. We strive to have excellent quality products made with love for Dream Enhancement, Divination and Healing.

I was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, but moved to Pacific Palisades in southern California when I was three. My dad had an office in the house, but then built one in the back yard so he could find some peace to write by getting away from my sister, me and our menagerie of dogs, cats and even two pet rats.



Always preferring the East Coast, the change of seasons and the slower pace of small college towns, I remained in upstate New York to attend college. First Alfred University and then transferring to Elmira College where I earned a degree in Elementary Education with a minor in English.  Upon graduation I substitute taught, worked at a school for children with special needs, and then was a preschool teacher at Cornell University's Early Childhood Program & Cooperative Nursery School.

        

I have always loved writing. If my dad liked my writing he said so. Conversely, if not, he would declare it “interesting.” I wrote predominately poetry until I was published in The Twilight Zone, The Original Stories, an anthology, in which I adapted two of my father's teleplays, One for the Angels and The Changing of the Guard into short stories. The latter was subsequently published in The Twilight Zone Magazine. Additionally, I have had poetry published in The Cornell Daily Sun and Visions. I am represented by Erica Spellman-Silverman at Trident Media Group.

Recently I started work on a novel and continue to promote my father's legacy as a Board Member of the Rod Serling Memorial Foundation.