Blood Feast Interview With CJ Scioscia

I've known you for years. Now did you always live in NJ all your life? What sort of kid were you growing up? What did you want to be when you were growing up?

 

CJ: Yep, always an NJ boy.  Born in Columbus Hospital in Newark, then spent the next 39 years in Bloomfield.  I moved to Belvidere in Warren County in 2002 and have been here ever since.  Rural northwestern NJ took some time to get used to, but I greatly dig it.

I played sports as a kid.  A lot of baseball, then tennis and soccer.

When did you discover music? Was it in high school? Did you go and hang out at the NJ shore a lot in the summers?

 

CJ: I always loved music.  My earliest musical memories are of listening to 8-tracks on our family stereo.  My father had damn fine taste, and he introduced me and my brother to Black Sabbath and Deep Purple.  He also had a bootleg 8-track of some of the Woodstock soundtrack, and Who’s Next by The Who.  Sabbath, Purple, Yes, Pink Floyd, Queen, and Rush became my go-to bands.

As for the Jersey Shore, we only went a few times.

Now when did you discover heavy metal? Was it by the radio on a college radio station or by a friend in school? What did you think of it when you 1st heard it? Are you a fan of any of the bands still today?

 

CJ: I pretty much gravitated to heavier bands as time went on.  I didn’t think in terms of ‘heavy metal’ until around 1980 or so when I discovered Judas Priest.  Buddy Lim brought Unleashed In The East to my house.  It was a definite game-changer for me, for sure, and I still play that one a lot.

Now how did you discover the underground? What were some of the 1st bands that you heard? Did you get into it right away or did it take a few listens and then you were hooked?

 

CJ: I was a little behind the curve as far as underground bands, but I caught up quickly.  I’d been reading Kerrang for a long time but didn’t act straight away.  In early 1984 I was finally introduced to Accept.  Another game changer.  That led to Raven, Mercyful Fate, and eventually Metallica.  All were immediate for me like I’d found what I was looking for.  5-6 weeks after hearing Kill ‘Em All I was jamming with the dudes in INSANIAC.

At what point did you want to take up an instrument? Did you know immediately it was going to be the guitar? Did you take lessons or were you self-taught? Who are some of your favorite guitar players?

 

CJ: Always wanted to play guitar, and just after seeing Rainbow [with Ronnie James Dio!!] at the Capitol Theatre in Passaic, I finally got serious about it.  I had played a little violin, trombone, and piano in school, and then fooled around with my Grandfather’s acoustic guitar.  I had lessons for 5-6 months, and then on and off with a few other teachers over the next few years.

Blackmore was always my favorite as a teenager, along with Tony Iommi, David Gilmour, Brian May, and Alex Lifeson.  Later on along came Edward Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, Steve Morse, Ross The Boss, Yngwie Malmsteen, Steve Vai, Gary Holt and Alex Skolnick.

What were some of the early shows you attended and at what clubs? There were a ton of clubs booking metal I know back in the day.

 

CJ: Once we got Insaniac going I started hitting club shows a lot.  I was fortunate to see Overkill early on when they still had their 'stage show'.  Metallica/W.A.S.P./Armored Saint at L’Amour in January 1985.  I attended the famous Venom/Slayer/Exodus Studio 54 show.  Seemed like I hit L’amour every other weekend in 1985.  Saw Exodus play their infamous ‘instrumental’ show in August of that year, and then the make-up gig 5 days later.  Early Carnivore and Nuclear Assault shows.  Blessed Death.  S.O.D. opening for Overkill at The Show Place in Dover.  Manowar [with Ross still in the band] at L’Amour East.  Anthrax at L’Amour on Thanksgiving 1985.  Celtic Frost with Voivod and Whiplash in ’86.  Kreator and Voivod in ’87.  So many shows...(I was at several of those Lamour's shows as well- Cenk)

Now take me through the story of Insaniac and then we will move on to Bloodfeast. Did you form the band or were you asked to join?

 

CJ: I got a call from Tom Nolz [guitar/vocals] asking if I’d like to jam with him and Eddie Sciortino [drums].  He went to Montclair State College with my friend Charlie and mentioned he was looking for a guitar player.  Charlie told him about me, and then Tom remembered seeing me play in my previous band earlier that year.  We chatted and it sounded cool, so I went down.

I remember the date well – it was 12 September 1984.  A Wednesday.  I took my Marshall and a Strat and we jammed Metallica covers.  It was a lot of fun so we decided to jam again.  Tom and Eddie started it, so in theory I was asked to join.  We then got a singer but lost the bass player.  By the end of that month, we already had our first original written.  2 weeks later we had Tom Medcraft on bass and began working on 2 more songs.  Our first gig was at the Brick Roller Forum, and it was FUN!!  We continued writing songs, most of which would evolve into our Screams From The Asylum demo.  We officially christened ourselves INSANIAC in April of 1985 and played our first gig under that name at The Dirt Club in Bloomfield in June of 1985.  It was the last as a 5-piece, with Tom Nolz moving over to lead vocals along with his guitar duties.

The Screams... demo came out in November 1985.  We were learning our trade.  I wrote most of the music and was absorbing musical influences left and right.  Screams… was kinda basic thrash, even a little power metal [before there was such a term].  However the first song on the tape, “M.A.D.”, kinda became the blueprint for where we were heading.  Heavier riffs, more chromatic and musical twists.  Our contemporaries at the time, Fantom Warior and Blood Feast, had similar ideas on their demos, but way better production.  Those bands would morph similar to ourselves in retrospect.

The next demo was a live one, called At Large.  It was taken from board tapes at shows recorded in late ’86 and early ’87.  There were songs from the Screams… demo, but also new tunes.  It also had a ‘hidden track’ way before that was a thing, in the form of our cover of “Subliminal” by Suicidal Tendencies.

The next studio demo was Psychomania, which was recorded in a proper studio. An eye-opening experience.  This demo showed that we were moving forward at a rapid clip.  However, we failed to include our best song at the time, “Plead Insanity”.  I remember us voting on what 5 songs to include, and no one picked it.  We preferred to use our newest material.  Looking back now we should have swapped that one in over a song like “Rabid Fire”, or even the title track.  Maybe we would’ve gotten more label interest.

We kept moving forward, kept writing, and kept playing shows.  We were all in, but we couldn’t gain any traction.  Another demo followed, but by the time things started looking better, we parted ways with Tom Medcraft.  Patrick Hamel came in about 2 months later, and we spent 1990 pushing hard.  By this point, I was so immersed in the underground that I was looking for us to get even heavier.  We did one last demo in late '90, did a few shows in early ’91, and then called it a day.

That put me out of the thrash business as a player.  I kept playing music, of course, but not thrash again until that fateful text from John Chernack of Fantom Warrior in July 2013.

So exactly what led to the end of Insaniac? Did you ever get any label interest over the band's career I know you promoted yourselves well in the underground.

 

CJ: I’d have to say it ran its course.  It was nearly 7 years, and we worked hard.  By the end, the riffs kinda stopped, and adult life started to take over.  It was no one’s fault, per sé.

There was only ever one label offer, and it wasn’t great.  We got ourselves a lawyer and tried to change it to be a little better.  After 15-16 months the offer was pulled.  The enthusiasm kinda went with it.

Now whose idea was it to put that 2 CD compilation called "Terminal Madness" back in 2013? Was it cool seeing all your stuff out on CD finally? Is this still for sale or is it long gone and if it is long gone, may it see a re-release?

CJ: That was your folly, wasn’t it Chris… LOL!! (I completely forgot ha ha-Chris) You got in touch with me, and then you put me in touch with Wang from Area Death.  It all went from there.  I mastered everything and was even able to re-mix the Psychomania demo for it.  Fun project, and very proud to finally see it all come out on CD.

We still have a bunch left, along with the patches.  The posters are gone, though.

(If you would like one or more info about it, you can contact CJ at his Facebook account below:

Now after Insaniac broke up, did you get any offers to join any other bands, this is before Bloodfeast of course. Did you think your days of being in a band were over?

 

CJ: Only one that I can remember.  Probably in late 1991 or early 1992.  But I didn’t learn the songs well enough for the audition.  My heart wasn’t into it.

I knew I’d still be playing, though.  Tom Nolz and I still had NO REFUND, our "cross-core" side project band that started in 1987.  He was on lead guitar and I played bass.  That lasted until the end of 1995.

I started an instrumental rock trio called SHROUD OF SILENCE in late ’92.  We did one album.  That lasted about 4 years.

At some point, I started playing in a cover band with Eddie from Insaniac.  We did 4 years of that, ending in early ’99.

In August 2001 Tom Nolz and I reconnected, after a few years of not seeing each other.  We talked to Eddie and decided to have an Insaniac jam.  We did like 2 of those, and then Eddie decided he didn’t want to play the heavy stuff anymore.  Tom and I stayed in contact, and about a year later we started writing new tunes. This morphed into a new band, SKULLSHIFTER.  We got Dan Davie, our drummer from No Refund on board, and then J. McCaffrey from ELYSIUM and EXXPLORER in on bass.  We wound up releasing an EP [mixed by Simon Efemey] in 2005, and a full-length in 2008.  It was heavier than Insaniac and less thrashy.

Then Skullshifter ran its course, similar to Insaniac.  But we continued forward, changing to a Metallica tribute act called DEATH METALLIC.  That band is still active, although we just lost our bass player to cancer. (sorry to read that-Chris)

The FANTOM WARIOR thing was mid-2013.  I guess we’re getting to that in a bit.

Now you said you attended the Ultimate Revenge show back in the day? How crazy was that how crowded was the show and how bad was Venom ha ha?

 

CJ: It was crazy!!  Exodus was badass, and that’s the night I ‘got it’ with Slayer.  I bought Hell Awaits when it came out a few weeks before, but it wasn’t sticking.  Seeing them live was the clincher.

Venom without Mantas that night was a total letdown.  We left after 5-6 songs.

So you touched on getting a text from John from Fantom Warrior back in 2013. How long had it been since you had been in a band and picked up a guitar? Why do you think they asked you to join?

 

CJ: I had been doing the Metallica tribute thing for about 2 years at the point when John reached out.  The Fantom Warior guys had recorded with me the year before [in 2012], doing one new song.  John Keith and Jamie jammed and tracked at my studio, and Steve [the other original guitarist] recorded his stuff up in Massachusetts, where he’s lived since 1988.  I’m sure they asked me to come on board because of the work I had just done for them, along with the connection to our past in Union when both bands were active and very friendly.  It was only supposed to be one show, opening for RAVEN and BLACK ANVIL at St. Vitus, but offers kept coming.  I was along for the ride at that point, but wasn’t just a passenger.  We wrote a few new tunes, to which I contributed.  The old material was totally in my wheelhouse, too.

Suddenly I’m getting to do cool stuff again.  I got to play on Long Island for the first time.  And I got to play in Philly for the first time [which we did twice].  So I didn’t question much of it, but there were old issues between those guys that kept it from being completely fun.

CJ: As for BLOOD FEAST, here’s the short version – in the Summer of 2012 I mastered a project for Adam Tranquilli, what became the Last Offering Before The Chopping Block CD.  It was great to spend time with him in the studio and get to know him.  Then in 2014, Death Metallic had a gig at St. Vitus, a tribute night booked by our mutual friend Ed Farshtey.  Adam was playing in RETALIATION, a Carnivore tribute.  I knew BF was going to Puerto Rico for a festival in a few weeks, but Adam told me his other guitar player backed out so they had to cancel.  I told him if the spot opens up to let me know, I’m interested.  2 days later we’re on the phone and I’m IN.  No audition needed… wow!!

What he also did soon after was fire Kevin Kuzma, the original drummer.  Adam wanted to move forward on new tunes.  He had a bunch ready to go, but Kevin wasn’t interested.  About 2 months later I finally got to jam with the band, when they were auditioning a drummer.  That didn’t work out but the guys all liked what I did, so that kinda made it more official for me.  Within a few weeks we got my friend Joe Moore behind the kit, and off we went.

During all this, I was still in Fantom Warrior.  At the point I joined Blood Feast it was all about writing a new album.  But within 2 weeks of our first jam, we were getting gig offers, so Joe and I had to learn the back catalog – and quick.  Those 3 shows were in VA and Chicago, and we played 8 old songs along with 3 new ones.

About 2 weeks before the VA show I quit FW.  There was a big blowout at rehearsal between 2 of the guys, and I’d had enough.  They played one more show, as a 3-piece, and they haven’t done anything since.

So you go over, obviously you knew the band members and stuff, so take me through when you went over for the 1st time. Before going over to jam for the 1st time, did you learn some songs from them?

 

CJ: Yes, I had a few of the old songs ready for that first jam.  Probably “Blood Lust”, “Menacing Thunder” and “Kill For Pleasure”, maybe even “Vampire”.  But we played what the drummer was ready for, although he wasn’t ready for any of it.  While we were there they started throwing “Hunted Stalked And Slain” at me, which was much more advanced.

So how soon after you met/jammed with them did they offer you the guitar spot in the band? How long were you in the band before you played your 1st show with them?

 

CJ: As I mentioned above, I was in on that first phone call back in March of 2014.  The first jam was in mid-May ’14, and then it started in earnest when we got Joe a month later.  Then the first show was on 13 September 2014 at Empire [formerly Jaxx] in Springfield, VA.  Chicago, at Elbow Room, was 2 weeks later.

Had you followed the underground much since the Insaniac days as gone were the days of tape trading, letter writing, fanzines (sad to see all 3 go-Chris), and the internet was a big thing at the time and of course, now it's even bigger?

 

CJ: I stayed abreast of things, but not in the way I had back in the Insaniac days.  I managed to keep up with my favorite bands, though, like NAPALM DEATH, VOIVOD, KREATOR, etc.

CJ: We gigged pretty hard once the new-look Blood Feast was birthed. I think we were averaging 12-15 shows a year, getting the band-tight live.  And we went all over – Japan and Peru internationally, from Philly up to Worcester, and west as far as Cleveland through the end of 2016.  We were also prepping for the new album, which became The Future State Of Wicked.

As for playing those songs – some fit me like a glove, while a few others were a battle.  Once I got them, though, they stuck.  Adam has written some twisted riffs!!

I remember playing at True Thrash Fest in 2015 in Osaka, and at the first show we opened with “Chopping Block Blues”.  I was so not ready.  It was the first time we played it live, and only my 6th show – no pressure, ha ha ha.  I only had myself to blame, though, because I made the setlist.

So what was it like playing in Japan and also Peru? Are the fans as crazy as I have heard? How did you get hooked up to play these shows?

 

CJ: Japan is an amazing place, and playing there was magical. The fans treated us great. Can’t wait to go back!!

Peru was a different experience, but still wonderful. That was an outdoor festival and we went on after dark. Difficult to see the fans, but they were definitely into it.

In both cases, the festival promoter reached out to us.

So what led you to decide to go record some new music? Did you just not wanna be an oldies type of thrash band and just play old stuff only?

 

CJ: Adam brought Joe and me on specifically to work on new music, as he had a bunch of new material. Before us, when Kevin Kuzma was still there and running things he treated it like an oldies act. Adam wanted to move forward.

Once Joe was in place [June 2014] we got to work on 3 songs – “Off With Their Heads”, “The Burn” and “Who Prays For The Devil?”. And that’s all we worked on for 2 weeks until offers came in for shows. Then Joe and I started to learn the back catalog. At the first 2 shows [September 2014] we played those 3 songs plus 8 old tunes.

We also did a demo for “Off With Their Heads” just before the shows.

CJ: Hells Headbangers reached out to Adam. It was very casual and it felt comfortable with them, so we did the deal.

The rest of the songs came together reasonably quickly, as Adam had the arrangements set in his head. I contributed one song, “Last Rites”, that I had written with my SKULLSHIFTER bandmate J. McCaffrey. I wrote the music on a 7-string guitar and had to transpose it for us. The original demo had me singing Death Metal style, so the key change helped me get back to thrash.

CJ: Cheers for that Chris!! I think the album still holds up. It took a long time to get it to sound right – I think it was 16 months from the first tracking session to the final mix. To me “INRI” and “Off With Their Heads” are classic BLOOD FEAST, right there with the ‘80s stuff. “The Underling” fits as well, but is different with the super-slow middle section.

I know Joe Moore only played drums on this release, but how much did his death affect you and the band when he passed away in 2022?

 

CJ: I miss Joe a lot. Such a ball of energy. He and I met in 1988 and remained friends most of that time. We had a couple of fallingouts, the most notable being when he was out of BLOOD FEAST. We did reconnect, though, before his cancer diagnosis, and things were better. The last time we spoke was hard, but I thanked him for being my friend and part of my life. I told him we’d get that INSANIAC record out – he played so well on it.

I know Adam misses him, too. He posted a video on his FaceBook page just before the new year of Joe tracking during the TFSOW sessions.

So how soon did you start to work on your EP, which was called "Chopped, Sliced and Diced"? I assume Hell's Headbangers was happy with you guys since this put this one out as well.

 

CJ: Adam Tranquilli always wanted to do an EP next. When Adam Kieffer came on board [in November 2017] we decided it was a good time to do so, to get him on a release straight away. Hells Headbangers was with us with this decision.

Now this EP was 5 songs with one live song.  How quickly did the 5 studio songs come together? Now the live tune is from Osaka, Japan if I'm correct. Why not throw on a couple more live tunes and make it a full-length?

 

CJ: The recording was pretty quick, maybe 5-6 sessions in all. Most of the songs were part of our repertoire, so it was just us learning “Concubine” [the new song we recorded] and “Chemically Imbalanced” from Chopping Block Blues. As for the live song, when we played at the 10th anniversary of True Thrash Fest in Osaka they recorded everyone’s performances. When I received the files we gave it all a listen and decided “By The Slice” was the song to go with. I felt it important to represent the Future State album and everyone agreed. It was actually only AK’s second show with us.

Now where did you find drummer Adam Kieffer, who plays on this release? Did you audition many drummers until the band knew he was the one?

 

CJ: AK and AT have a friendship dating back to the late ‘80s, and had played together in a few bands. One of those was HEADLOCK, who put out an album in 1994 and toured with M.O.D. in Europe. AK was the only drummer considered, and he was the right choice.

I'm sure you played a bunch of live shows around this release. Any that sticks out in your head?

 

CJ: TTF for certain, Japan is a special place. We finally got the band out to California, doing LA and Oakland with DECEASED. Always fun playing shows with King Fowley and the boys.

Now how much longer was singer Chris Natalini in the band before you parted ways with him? What exactly happened between you guys and him that caused the breakup?

 

CJ: Chris was let go during the recording of the new album, in April 2021. It was felt that his voice wasn’t really what we needed. It was a tough decision because we love the guy, he’s a wonderful dude.

Now I know original singer Gary Markovitch is back in the band, which I'll get to in my next question, but did you play shows live with a different singer after Chris left and before Gary rejoined?

 

CJ: The first shows we did after Chris were with AT on guitar and vocals. His voice is more like Gary’s and harkens back to the essence of the band and of thrash in general.

So how did Gary end up re-joining the band? I imagine things have been working out great having him back in his old stomping grounds ha ha?

 

CJ: Our time with Gary – in the first half of 2022 – was special, but he wasn’t rejoining the band. The way forward was with AT on lead vocals. We all thought it was cool to do Maryland Death Fest with Gary, and then Rage Of Armageddon Fest the following month. I thought both shows were great, especially MDF. It was an honor to share the stage with him.

CJ: The new album is titled "Infinite Evolution". Still awaiting a release date, but it should be out in late Spring. The recording of this one was a struggle, but we got there in the end and we’re proud of it. The songs weren’t difficult to put together musically – it was the lyrics this time. Adam wrote most of the lyrics on the Future State album, but this time he was running on fumes. It’s stepped up and wrote a lot of lyrics, which is really out of my comfort zone. But I think I did alright, but I guess it’ll be up to others to decide.

CJ: I believe the fans will be happy. There are many fast songs, of course, but there’s more diversity. Adam wrote some really weird riffs, stuff that verges on progressive or technical metal, but it’s still Blood Feast. It doesn’t stray too far. There needs to be growth, for sure.

CJ: No, I never looked that far ahead. My tale is odd, in that I just kept playing and looking for an opportunity. I finally found it with Blood Feast, but there’s still more to come. Heck, I just finished writing a song for the next album yesterday. At this point that gives us 5 tunes for LP #5.

CJ: Thrash is over 40 years old now. Who knew?? I think there’s still great music to come from the genre, but my concentration is on Blood Feast. What we do has to be the best it can be.

CJ: Good one there, Chris. Let’s see…

1 – The early days of Insaniac, for sure. Writing the first demo, playing those first shows. Exciting times.

2 – Playing the first SKULLSHIFTER show, on 24 July 2004. After years of being away from doing thrashier stuff, it was amazing that we got a crowd to react so positively to an unknown band. And that I was doing it with great friends was magical.

3 – THE DICTATORS at the Little Steven Garage Festival in August of 2004. I had been working for them as a road manager for 4 years at that point, and they destroyed the crowd that day. That I’m back working for them again has been wonderful.

4 – My first show with FANTOM WARIOR. That was the true comeback to thrash. It was probably our best gig out of the 13-14 I did with them, and opening for RAVEN… wow!!

5 and 6 – Both trips to Japan with BLOOD FEAST. Unforgettable!!

CJ: Here ya go…

Just hit the SHOP link on the band’s website for all our stuff – CDs, vinyl, cassettes, t-shirts, toques, patches, hoodies, etc.

CJ: First off thank you for your patience with this Chris. Looking forward to playing the new album for folks, starting with the album release show on 22 June 2024 at Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ. It’s ATTACKER’s album release night as well, it’s gonna be fun. Lots of shows to come, and then it’s time to get on to the next album. CHEERS!!