Steven Juliano the Man, the Musician, the Artist, What more do you want?



"Thanks for the memories" is the best way to describe what artist and musician Steven Juliano has been through, over the course of his musical and artistic career. The man has done so much being in numerous bands from his early work in The Silence, Fallout, to Monsta Zero to later being best known as the frontman to his previous act as of two years ago I Am Ghost. When asked if his previous bands would seen the light of day ever again if be even for one night he responded "To be honest, probably not. Those were amazing times of my life. All I have our great memories of those bands.... "

The past  has now dispersed  so looking ahead towards the present and oncoming future, Juliano has focused on his brand new band Requiem For The Dead and artistic talents with the recent successful release of his graphic novelization of a tale entitled "Lovers and Kings". He says that this tale can be described as this; "It's a very dark fantasy/horror novel with a lot of twists and more gobbity goo.  The best way to describe it is somewhat in the vein of Pans Labyrinth meets the movie Seven."

When in question about his band Requiem For The Dead and what they have been up to as of late, Juliano says that they are in pre-production mode which they never did for their debut album it was a fast paced fun time overall. But this time around we thought about doing it a little better by taking our sweet time on the songs and recording. Not being signed nor do they bother to care this band just go with the flow when it comes to creating music.

Discussion goes further into detail about the new album, how music affects his everyday life, to the unexplained beginning's of the untold future.


1. For those who do not know who you are tell me in 5 words.

Steven: Five words? Wow, that's indeed a tough one. How about: "Hi, I am Steven Juliano...." They can Google me if they need more info.


2. Can you give me a brief summary as to what your graphic novel "Lovers and Kings" is about?

Steven: It's a very dark fantasy/horror novel with a lot of twists and more gobbity goo.  The best way to describe it is somewhat in the vein of Pans Labyrinth meets the movie Seven. You know, the fucked up film with Brad Pitt. The novel takes place in 1916 worn torn France during height of World War One. It follows the lives of children living in the town whom begin to see things coming out of their forest and moors....

3. How does it make you feel that your novel has hit the scene far and wide what have the fans and critics said of it?

Steven: It is amazing how a writer and artist such as myself can do something this big, and then get it out to the masses with little trouble. My book is in stores everywhere now, including all the online/apps stores such as iPad, Kindle Fire, Nook, Barnes and Nobles online, Graphically and more. I wrote/drew the entire book, so it's a labor of love. So far, the reviews have been stellar. I have not seen anything bad what so ever.

4. Where in the recording process are you and when can we expect to see this album to be released?

Steve: Well, right now, my band Requiem for the Dead is currently in pre production mode. We never did it for our first release. We just wrote music we liked and then just recorded it. There was no picking apart the songs what so ever. It was a fast paced, fun time. But this time around, we thought about doing it a little better by taking our sweet time on the recording and the songs. We are not signed, nor do we care to be signed. We just meet up when we feel like it, write songs, and then talk about it. We change things, make the songs shorter, sometimes longer... sometimes we change entire chorus's and re write them. Pre production is the key. We are just having a good ol' time with the songs.

5. Do you have any ideas as to what the debut single off the new album will be? Will that also become the next music video as well or will that be a whole another song completely?

Steven: I am already having a favorite, but from my experience, it can all change when we start doing the real recording. Sometimes, another song just comes out of left field and hits me hard. It sounds "ok" in demo format, but suddenly we start arranging it in real recording time, adding violins, cellos, synth and it just turns into this huge, awesome monster. So right now, I am not exactly sure. We are definitely shooting another music video, I just don't know for which song yet. 

6. When did you start writing for this album? How was the songwriting process different/similar to the previous Requiem For The Dead album?

Steven: We started to write it around January 2012, I believe. I could be wrong. It started off very slow, but was partly my fault in a way. I was away in Los Angeles at least once every two weeks flying back and forth working on films and doing things with my graphic novel. It was super swamped and couldn't really do much band wise. Ty Oliver kinda kept everything a float by writing song after song... and then sending them to me via email. Bobby Burns, our other guitarist wrote a song on the album as well, which is keen. It's been a good mix. The only difference really from this album from the last is that we are not rushing the recording. Again, we are kinda sitting back and listening to the songs, re working them, re recording them in demo format, then listening again.

7. What are your songs about? What specific themes do they cover?

Steven: There is no theme, per say. I think this album is more of me talking about my life and all the things I did right, did wrong, or didn't do at all. We all have regrets. Yet we all have good memories of our past, I think. The album is going to be called "Memories" so it kinda explains it all.

8. Are you using any new instrumentation you've never used in the recording process before?

Steven: We are using a lot more orchestra it seems in this new album. We didn't have Bobby Burns on our first album, so the orchestra was kinda low key. We had friends in Southern California do the orchestras for us, which were minimal. Bobby is a very good piano player and has a great set up at his home with synth and keyboards and sounds... so we are using that to our advantage .

9. Did the band have any definitive goals they were shooting for before the recording process began for this album?

Steven: Not really. I think we all talked about it a little, and the only think that came up was it has to be better than the last. That's what all musicians hope for. You hope you progress and get better with time and that your next CD is bigger and better than the last. It doesn't always work, but we try... and we hope.

10. How would you describe the overall sound of the new album? How does it compare to "Always and Forever"?

Steven: This is a harder album by far. Its more aggressive for sure, yet we do have our moments of slow pop rock. To be honest, I am just not into this "Wrar Wrar Chug Chug" music that every mother fucker is doing. I can care less if people think we are hardcore, or punk. It really never affected me even with my last band, I Am Ghost. We had plenty of opportunity to go hella dark and hardcore screaming, but we stuck to our guns and did the music we liked. That's what we are doing now...

11. Did you feel any pressure to follow it up?

Steven: No, not really. Of course I want this new CD to be good. I want people to like it. If a band says they don't care what people think are fucking liars. But pressure wise, I think we are fine and don't have much. We live in care free Santa Cruz. Everyone is so relaxed here its kinda insane...

12. Can you go into one or two tracks on the new album? If so, can you give us the track title and brief description of how the track sounds and how it came about?

Steven: Well, one song that is pretty much finished does not have a name yet. But, it's pretty fun to listen to. Again, we got a little more aggressive with our guitar playing this time around, yet kept the chorus's insanely catchy. The song is my love letter to a girl I once knew... talking to her directly saying "Look, we were madly in love, we are to this day inner twined forever, but god damn it, the two of us together was so pathetic..." It's not trying to be mean, it's just saying that after thinking long and hard about the relationship, it really was not healthy and its best we just stay close friends. But nothing more.

13. Why did you want to release your first and upcoming for free? Do you ever think back that it wasn't such a good idea?

Steven: To be honest, it was an amazing idea. No one buys rock music anymore. No one buys CDs. Who are we kidding? Plus, we could care less about making money on this band. Not to toot our own horns, but everyone in the band does very well on their own financially so we just put it out for free. And, we are going to do it again with our new release. It will be available for free just like the first!

14. Which of your own songs is your favorite out of all of the projects past and present that you've been a part of?

Steven: There is a special place in my heart for the song "This is Home" by I Am Ghost. Sometimes that song comes on when I'm working out or drawing, and I always find myself singing along to it. Plus, the guitar solo at the end of the song is so god damn bad ass. It is just an all around amazing fucking song....

15. Speaking of past projects, "The Silence", "Fallout", "Monsta Zero" and "I Am Ghost" do you ever see any of these acts returning to the stage? Would you consider doing a showcase with these acts and Requiem for the Dead even if it were for one night?

Steven: To be honest, probably not. Those were amazing times of my life. All I have our great memories of those bands.... especially the earlier ones like Fallout and The Silence. We are just so god damn young, and there was just something about being young and in a band and just playing cuz you like music. There was no labels, no management.... just five dudes in a garage playing their heart out. I don't see us ever reuniting, even for one night, cuz it won't be the same. It can't be. Time has passed, and those are just memories now....

16. Are you in good terms with the former members of these acts or has everyone gone their own ways?

Steven: I am friends with all my past bands except for the last band I was in with I Am Ghost. What a fucking storm of great memories mixed in with utter misery. It's insane. I think about the times I had with that band, and it's like a 50/50 "Oh, that was a fun time" to "Oh man, I hated that time..." It had NOTHING against the former members as people, to be honest. They are all swell dudes. I just really, REALLY, hated touring. Never liked it. I was also insane, to a degree, and handled things badly on my end. But, mix it with a major label, money, the firing of three managers, and endless array of booking agents that fucked up most of our tours... I just one day had it. I quit the band out of the blue and pissed off everyone that was a part of the band, and friends of the band. Everyone took sides, and being the fact that I was the odd man out, the guy who left everyone, they went one way, and I went the other. But I had to do it. I just had to let go....

17. Do you miss being a part of those bands or are they dead to you?

Steven: I miss the good songs we wrote with I Am Ghost. Not to hype myself or the band, but that band was seriously ahead of its time. I listen to the songs we wrote and sometimes just think, "Jesus Christ, we were fucking sick!" I don't miss the touring. I don't miss the inner turmoil of the band. I just miss the music. I also miss the fans who were so amazing to us.

18. What was your life like before you started playing music?

Steven: Sitting in a room working on films, doing animation, and working 15 hour days... literally. I would leave for work at 6AM and come home around 11pm every single night. It's the reason why I started bands, it was my only time to escape and play with my buds and get away from work. We built a studio in my garage so I could make practice after I got home from work... then it kinda all just snow balled from there. 

19. What has music meant to you in your life?

Steven: It has given me so many god damn good stories to tell my grandchildren.... that's for sure...

20. What’s the best part of being a performer for you?

Steven: I have always liked entertaining people. Ever since I was nine years old doing musicals... it just makes me happy to perform.

21. Describe your happiest feelings…

Steven: So many.... the newest one was when I got my first book mailed to me hot off the press. I opened the box, opened my graphic novel, and started to look through all the pages and got kinda teary eyed....

22. …and your saddest ones.

Steve: Any time a family member or good friend passes away. The older you get, the more you start to see these things, which hurt a lot.

23. Imagine you’ve always wanted to re-work a line in a song, and you are now getting the chance to - what would your improved lyrics be?

Steven: Hmmmm.... maybe "So taste it, and you will never be a clone, I'll have the first bite, yea I love toooooooassst!!!!" (Pretty People Never Lie)

24. Vinyl records, cassettes, CDs or downloads? (regardless of current popularity)

Steven: Ugh, man, it's hard. I prefer CDs still. I just like it that I can still just get a CD and pop it in my car and listen to it. There is no sitting there downloading it and transferring it to my iPod and blah blah blah.

25. Playing live or recording in studios?

Steven: Playing live, but not touring. Just like a show here or there is fine. But sitting in a bus or a van for hours upon hours... sometimes days, is not my cup o tea.

26. Your favorite show that you played to this day is which and why?

Steven: Honestly, it was YEARS ago, but my band Fallout played the Glass House in Pomona with band such as Sum 41, River Fenix and more... and we played in the middle slot. Sum 41 was not even famous yet, and no one heard of them, and they opened the show and played before us. It was my first ever 900 person show and the crowd just went ape shit the entire 30 minutes we played. I don't even think they really knew who we were, but they were moshing and dancing and crowd surfing and I just remember walking off stage going "Holy fuck that was awesome!"

27. Is this the longest interview you have ever done if so what is one word to describe it as?

Steven: No, I have had longer interviews.... but I love doing them. It's fun.... if I understand the questions. Sometimes people try to be sassy and funny and are like "If you could be a tree, what kind of tree would you be...?" and I just stare back going "Are you fucking kidding me?"

For more info on Steven Juliano, go to:
Check out Requiem for the Dead on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/requiemrock

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