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Rocklahoma is just a couple weeks away and with bands like Five Finger Death Punch, Twisted Sister, Kid Rock,Tom Kiefer, Jackyl and so many more it will be a weekend full of nonstop rock. We recently introduced you to the young new band, Tempt which will be making their debut at this year’s Rocklahoma. You can read more in our original post here.

The New York City based Tempt is Zach Allen (vocals), Harrison Marcello (guitars, keyboards, vocals), Zak Gross (bass, vocals), and Jimmi Kane (drums). Together these four are breathing the life back in to rock and roll with their big sound. Their music is highly guitar driven, up-tempo rock that will have you with your fist in the air and ready to party.

Now it is time for you to get to know Tempt, we are pleased to bring you our interview with the band:

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Music Junkie Press: Thank you guys so much for taking the time out to talk with us here at Music Junkie Press! We are excited to hear that you will be hitting the stage at Rocklahoma. What are you most excited for?

Harrison: It’s only been about 10 months since our first show. It’s all been exciting. Many kids our age have never seen a rock show and when they see it they love it. Converting people into new fans of not just us but of rock music has been so exciting. Now I’m really psyched for the release of our EP and then album and our first tour and of course hitting the stage at ROK.

Zach: I’m excited to spend time with the guys on tour. I’m also looking forward to long van rides and hearing the endless stories from our FOH engineer, the legendary Nite Bob and continuing my Rock and Roll education!

Zak: I am most excited about hitting the road with the band for the 1st time. I’m also very excited about seeing and hanging with all the great bands over the three day period at ROK.

Jimmi: I am most excited to play Rocklahoma as it’s been a dream to play. I cannot wait to make new fans as well.

Music Junkie Press:Have you ever been to Rocklahoma and this year the lineup is great, who are you most excited to see while you are there?

Harrison: This is our first year and we are super excited! I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone play, especially on our stage. There are a lot of great artists that will be playing on the Retrospect Records stage this year! I am hoping to also catch both Kix, and Tom Keifer as well! I’d like to thank Sammy McCaslin of Retrospect, AEG and everyone associated with ROK for the opportunity.

Zach: I’m absolutely thrilled to be playing Rocklahoma and getting a chance to play with all of the great bands this year is such an honor. I’m most excited for Twisted Sister, Black Label Society, and Skid Row.

Zak: I have never been to Rocklahoma and I can’t wait. Looking forward to seeing the Deftones, Kix, Skid Row, Kill Devil Hill, Trivium, Extreme, Black Label Society, and Down.

Jimmi: I have never been there. I am most excited to see bands like Pop Evil, Gemini Syndrome, Theory of a Deadman.

Music Junkie Press: How did Tempt form?

Harrison: Tempt originally started when Zach and I got together. We shared a similar interest and passion for rock music. We started writing together and things really took off. After we had written a bunch of music we got Zak Gross, and Jimmi Kane on board and finished off an album and started playing out in the summer of 2013!

Zach: Tempt formed when Harrison and I met through the magic of the Internet. I saw him doing guitar covers of classic Whitesnake songs and was completely blown away at how he nailed every bit of every song. We talked and met up a few weeks after that. He and I really hit it off; within weeks of knowing each other, we had already written about 12 songs together! I feel really fortunate to have met someone with his talent who shares the same love for rock n roll that I do! We knew we needed an amazing drummer, and I thought of Jimmi because I had seen him in some of my friends’ bands, and always wanted to play with him. We invited him down to rehearse with us and he brought a completely new energy and feel to the songs. After that first play together we knew we had our drummer. Finally, we needed a bass player, and Harrison called up his cousin Zak to play bass. Zak came down to a rehearsal with Harrison, Jimmi, and me, and Tempt was complete!

Music Junkie Press:You guys are very young and really are bringing back the old style 80’s rock, where did your rock and roll inspiration come from?

Harrison: I was always brought up on rock music, and have loved it my entire life. I originally got into 80’s rock when I was around the age of 13, and first heard Round and Round by Ratt on the radio. As someone who was just starting to take the guitar seriously hearing that song was a huge inspiration. I had never heard anything like that before. All of us are all really serious musicians, and we all have a passion for melodic rock, a genre that demands a high level of musicianship. Its fun, challenging, and we all get a kick out of playing it and listening to it! The 80’s were all about great songs and guitars. We’re using that as our starting point.

Zach: I’ve always listened to rock n’ roll, ever since I was young. I remember buying my first album when I was about 11 years old. It was Guns n’ Roses’ “Appetite for Destruction”, and to me it was (and still is) a masterpiece. It was so cool to hear Slash’s blazing guitars, and how every song was so catchy and easy to sing along to. Also, my mom would always play the Rolling Stones in the car nonstop when I was growing up, so rock n’ roll has been in my blood for a long time.

Zak: My inspiration for playing music started at a very young age. I was always surrounded by music growing up. My mother is a singer and my father is a bassist.

Jimmi: My inspiration came from drummers like Tommy Lee, Ringo Starr, John Bonham, Mitch Mitchell, Rob Affuso

Music Junkie Press: Did you start playing music at a young age?

Harrison: I originally started with the piano when I was very young. I played around with the guitar a little bit but didn’t seriously start playing until around the age of 12. The biggest thing for me was growing up in a very musical environment where I was exposed to all kinds of music. Anyone can learn how to play an instrument technically, but to be able to translate something more than just the notes takes a lot of listening and personal understanding of many different types of music.

Zach: Yes, I started taking piano lessons when I was four years old, and started singing when I was 6. I’ve always been extremely passionate about music, and was eager to learn from a young age. Then, when I was about 11, I picked up a guitar and taught myself how to play! Music’s been a huge part of my life since I could barely talk!

Zak: started taking piano lessons at age 9, and then when I was 10 I received my first bass guitar and pignose amplifier. At age 11 I started playing electric guitar after discovering Jimi Hendrix. I have continued playing various stringed instruments since.

Jimmi: Yes I started playing drums at the age of 4. My parents noticed me rocking on my rocking horse on beat to Michael Jackson’s Thriller album and the rest is history! I am self taught.

Music Junkie Press:Who are some of your favorite bands?

Harrison: When I first started listening to the genre of 80’s rock my favorite bands, and the most influential on my playing and songwriting were Ratt, Dokken, Europe, Bon Jovi, Winger, Whitesnake, etc. Even though I still love those bands today, over the past few years I’ve gotten much more into the sub genre of AOR. Listening to bands such as, Treat, Glory, Alien, Aviator, Bonfire, Dare, FM, Mark Free. The Scandinavian scene back in the late 80’s was great. A lot of awesome melodic music that has heavily influenced me came from there.

Zach: My favorite bands are Guns n’ Roses, Aerosmith, Def Leppard, Van Halen, Motley Crue and Led Zeppelin. They’ve all inspired me in different ways!

Zak: Some of my favorite bands include, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Whitesnake, White, Lion, Blue Murder, Winger, and the list goes on and on. My favorite new band is The Winery Dogs (Richie Kotzen, Billy Sheehan, and Mike Portnoy).

Jimmi: The Beatles, Motley Crue, Skid Row, Blink 182, The Used, Volbeat, Led Zepplin, The Who

Music Junkie Press: We understand that you will have a 4 song EP available at Rocklahoma, how about for all your fans who can’t make it out to the show, How can they get your music?

Harrison: Right now we have our single, Under My Skin, out and available! We completed 14 songs and worked with the amazing Michael Wagener on most of it. It truly is an entire album of rockin’ material. We are in the midst of trying to acquire a record deal and are talking to a few labels now, so hopefully we will be releasing the full album for everyone soon! We also will most likely make physical EPs available online or via Facebook. We can’t stress enough how important it is to take the time to go to Amazon or Itunes and purchase our single. Right now it is extremely difficult for guitar driven music to get distributed by major labels or to get played on the radio. Fans make a difference and it’s up to the fans to effect a change.

Zach: For our fans who will not be able to make it out to Rocklahoma this year, they can get our music on iTunes and Amazon. We’re strongly encouraging everyone to come out to Rocklahoma to get the special 4 song EP, but if they cannot, there are other ways to rock out to Tempt!

Music Junkie Press: If you could put together your dream lineup, what three bands (living or dead) would you want on the bill with you?

Harrison: Europe (with Kee Marcello), Whitesnake (original Whitensake album line up), and Alien!

Zach: Motley Crue, Guns n’ Roses (the original lineup, of course), Aerosmith

Zak: A dream lineup with Tempt would be White Lion, Blue Murder, and Whitesnake.

Jimmi: The Beatles, Motley Crue, Led Zepplin

Music Junkie Press: Your song Under My Skin is a great rockin track, can you tell me more about it?

Harrison: Under My Skin is just a simple uptempo rocker! It’s a fun song, and we love to play it. Originally it was in the key of E minor, but that was a little uncomfortable for Zach’s voice at the time so we dropped it down a major second to D, and it gave it an awesome sound with a little heavier vibe!

Zach: Thanks, I’m glad you like it! Under My Skin was the fourth song Harrison and I wrote together. He came up with the awesome verse riff and chorus, along with the chorus lyric and hook. I remember that he originally had thought the song should be in the key of E, but we talked about it and he ended up tuning his guitar to drop D. I came up with the idea for the verse lyrics when I thought back to a girl I knew in high school, who was a real pest, and I mean that in the best way possible. She crawled under my skin and stayed there for way too long, probably because I let her! I wrote the lyrics about my experience with her, and Under My Skin was born!

Music Junkie Press: Do you have any more shows planned? Maybe a West Coast tour, we would love to see you play on the Sunset Strip?

Harrison: We are touring out and back to Rocklahoma, and we have some shows lined up in NYC but that only takes us into June so who knows! Of course playing the strip would be amazing!

Zach: We have a lot of upcoming shows planned! Before and after Rocklahoma, we are playing gigs in Louisville, Nashville, Pittsburgh, Columbus, and Raleigh-Durham. We also have some gigs booked in New York City coming up. We are always looking to book more! While we do not have any West Coast dates booked, I know I can speak for all of us when I say we would love to play out there, especially on the Sunset Strip, where some of our favorite bands made a name for themselves. It’s always been a dream of mine to play a show in California, especially on Sunset Blvd! We will definitely be working on it!

Music Junkie Press: Lastly, what is something you would like to share with our audience?

Harrison: I think we covered a lot already! Stay tuned for the album, and go and buy our single!!!!!! It’s up to you to support the bands you like and to support rock music.

Zach: I would like to thank all the people who have supported us from the start, we would not be able to play these cool gigs like Rocklahoma if it weren’t for all of your support! In a world where rock music is not prevalent on the radio, it’s really refreshing to know that there are kids out there who still love rock music as much as we do! It is with your help that we will bring the rock music we all know and love back to the forefront, where it belongs! Stay tuned; we hope you join us on this crazy journey we’re embarking on!

Zak: Stay tuned for our full-length album and a lot to come from Tempt!

Jimmi: As you might be able to tell I love getting tattooed. I have over 50% of my body tattooed and plan on getting the rest tattooed in the near future. Every single tattoo on my body means something to me and tells quite a story. I’m like an open book! haha

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They will have available at the show a four song Rocklahoma collector’s EP sampler. To get you ready, they have released their bad ass track, Under My Skin on iTunes or Amazon. “We’re so thrilled that our record is finally mixed and mastered and we wanted to get one of the tracks out there for our fans. ‘Under My Skin’ represents our sound and we’re ready to hear our fans sing it at Rocklahoma” You can check out the song here

They will be performing on the Retrospect Stage on Sunday May 25th at 4:20. You can get more details about Rocklahoma by visiting their website at www.rocklahoma.com Make sure to also visit their social media sites so you can stay up to date on the latest Tempt news.

~ Marisol

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