- How would you describe the Burden Brothers to an Izzy fan who is thinking of picking up an album?

The first CD "Buried in your black heart" was written by the singer and I. The singer, Vaden Lewis was formerly the singer songwriter for a band called the Toadies. This album was written when both of us were basically taking time away from music. Or at least the music industry. It was written without input of label or management. We had no fan base to speak of so we had no one to impress we simply wrote music that we felt like writing. It is a fun rock and roll record. It's not as "Stonesey" as the Izzy stuff but it is a good rock record. Ii hope those of you who pick it up will enjoy iy. The next Burden Brothers CD will be released this Sept or Oct. It is much more put together. We have a full band that has been in place now for three years (with exception of our new bass player) and the writing is much more mature as we now have a label, management and a radio audience to please. It has taken us months to complete and I am very excited about it. I think it will blow a ton of people away.

- Do you play any other instruments besides drums?

I play a little guitar, but only enough to write music.

- Does it take a long time to work out/arrange a demo into a real song?

Sometimes yes and sometimes no. It depends on how complete the song sounds when you begin writing it. Some arre simply more easy than others.

- If you had to choose; What is your favorite Izzy album, released or unreleased, that you played on? Why does the album mean more to you?

I don't know that I have a favorite as they are all very special to me. I guess 117 comes to mind because thats the first one we all played together on. Thats the one that began my friendship with Izzy, Rick and Duff.

- What kind of kit do you use, and what preference of head do you like, studio and live?

I play DW drums. I use Remo coated emperor heads. In the studio and live. Sometimes coated ambassador in the studio just to get a quicker decay because they are one ply thinner than the emperors.

- Can you tell us something about the latest Izzy album recorded in Miami last year? What kind of style is it? Hard Rock, Acoustic, Reggae etc. or general other info, line-up etc.

We had such a good time recording this one. We did it before Christmas and when we got back home decided it was so much fun that we should go oback and do some more so thats what we did. The studio "The Hit Factory", (aka Criteria) is world famous. I mean everyone has recorded there from The Bee Gees to Black Sabbath. While we were there Missy Elliot and the Black Eyed Peas were recording as well. This recording is more loose. We spent time Jamming the songs out

a pinch more than normal. I was in a great place mentally so I think that carried over into the recordings. Izzy, Rick and I found a hole in the wall cuban restaurant that we would walk to every day for lunch. The vibe was relaxed and the songs are as strong and diverse as alwayes. I have only heard a couple of the trax and I myself cant wait to hear everything.

- Do you have a lot of contact with Izzy and Rick outside of recording albums?

Yeah, I talk to Izzy all the time, Rick and I only get to catch up once a month or so. Rick is always playing witch is a great thing because he kicks so much ass. But sinse he's gone alot it limits our ability to stay in touch as much as we would like to. I talk to Duff alot as well. Once we had 117 degrees and Ride on done, Duff and I started a band called Loaded for about a year. This also included Dez Cadena from Blackk Flag and Michael Berrigan from Plexi. But to answer your question, yes we talk when we aren't in the studio.