The Sonic Revolution of Secret Rule

The Sonic Revolution of Secret Rule

Secret Rule is a dynamic modern rock/metal band in the grand tradition of Nightwish, Lacuna Coil and Delain.  Based out of the historic city of Rome, Italy, Secret Rule is ready to burst out onto the worldwide music scene.  Against is their latest masterwork now available through Pride & Joy Music.  Jammed packed with thought provoking lyrics and spiraling melodies, Against by Secret Rule is an album music fans seeking on an auditory adventure will want to revisit time and again.  Highwire Daze recently caught up with vocalist Angela Di Vincenzo and guitarist Andy Menario to find out a whole more about the sonic revolution found within the realm of Secret Rule.  Read on…

Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Secret Rule, and how long the band has been together.
Andy: Hi, I’m Andy, guitarist, keyboardist, and producer of Secret Rule. I’m a metal lover, I’m an old school metalhead (Black Sabbath, Ozzy, Manowar, Judas Priest, etc.) but I’m always curious about new sounds, so I also like something symphonic, or industrial, or alternative, or black metal. Music is full of opportunities (LOL).

Secret Rule was born at the end of 2013, Angela, Michele and I are the founding members, Alex was the last arrived.

Angela: Hello, I’m Angela, singer and songwriter of the vocal melodies and lyrics.

Where is Secret Rule based out of and what is the music/metal scene like there?
Andy: We are based in Rome (Italy), and it’s a bit hard to play/listen to metal music here. It’s not exactly what the Italian people love (LOL). In order to do it, we choose to spend our energy playing abroad. No doubt there are more opportunities around Europe than in Italy. Anyway, we know there are good metalheads in our Country too.

Is there any overall story or concept behind the Against title?
Andy: Not exactly. We wanted a more aggressive album, more direct, so conceptually, Against is our shout out against the powers that be, the society, against the manipulation, so from this point of view, it could seem like a concept album.

Angela: I personally write the lyrics but about the general concept, we all agreed to speak about the reality, of what this society is living in this era made of digital lives and easy feelings, where power guides the destiny of the world.

Select two songs from Against and what inspired the lyrics.
Angela:
Digital Revolution is aimed at society, embedded in the digital world, a cyberspace pawn, continuously conditioned by false information, robbed of its privacy, it is manipulated in its life choices, and above all, it is controlled. It would be nice to be able to “break” all codes (computer codes) and be free, discovering the truth, finding out who is hiding behind this diabolical network. Could we be ready for a similar choice? It would be complicated, impossible, but that’s how we imagine a new paradise where we can finally be free.

Purgatory: I think we’re living it here, on this Earth. We spend our life between good and evil, always fighting against all the temptations out there in the hope of being saved at the end of our life. What is awaiting us? Heaven or Hell? Who knows…

What could one expect from a live Secret Rule show?
Andy: We live for playing live. So we can put all the energy we have into it. So you can find a great sound with a cool energy, and smiling faces… ours 🙂

Angela: The most important thing is the interaction with the crowd, it has to be an exchange of energies and only in this way, can the show become magic.

If Secret Rule could open for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why?
Andy: mmh, hard question. Because everyone could answer you in a different way. Anyway, I think we would like to open for Nightwish or Within Temptation, yes I think so. Because they probably represent two of the most important starting influences on the decision to create Secret Rule.

Angela: Yes, I agree with Andy and I could add Delain.

What are you looking forward to the most about your upcoming tour with Semblant?
Andy: We are looking forward to playing live, we love the new songs and we want to play them ASAP.

Angela: We accepted to support Semblant because first, they are a great band and because we think it’s a good opportunity to reach new fans not only those solely tied to Symphonic Metal.

Has Secret Rule ever played here in the States or plan to do so in future days?
Andy: Nope, unfortunately, we have not played in the US yet. It’s one of our dreams…we hope to do it soon.

Against is your 5th album since 2015? What do you think has kept Secret Rule so prolific and imaginative for so many albums in such short a time?
Andy: Yes, many people say this. Really, it’s very simple and natural for us. Fortunately, we still have fun writing music, so every time, we have a lot of ideas, and every time, it is a new challenge to do something better than last time.  It’s a cool part of the musician’s activity. We love to write new material.

Angela: Actually, I never stop to write music because all my vocal ideas end up on my phone so, when we have to start with the next album, we already have a lot of stuff to work on.

Are you involved with any other bands or projects outside of Secret Rule?
Andy: Angela and I are 100% concentrated on Secret Rule, Michele has a side band called Graal, Alex plays with many cover bands here in Rome, it’s his full time job.

Angela is very dramatic in the videos and vocal performances. Does she have an acting background at all or is that something that interests here?
Andy: Hahahah! It’s really funny to read that. Nope, she would be very happy to read this in your question. Actually, she works hard on every video to find the right hooks. She’s always very attentive to all the details. She’s a bit of a maniac about all aspects regarding Secret Rule. So, I think she is very good now when we have to shoot a video.

Angela: It would have been a dream to become a singer, actress, and dancer! 😊

Any final words of wisdom?
Andy: Yeah, I would like to say to all people, if you wanna listen to some fresh new metal music, with great en-ergy, and catchy melodies, then check our music out…you can find it everywhere on the net (Youtube, Face-book, Spotify, Instagram….you just have to type in SECRET RULE!
Thank you! See you on the road!

Secret Rule is:
Angela Di Vincenzo (Vocals)
Andy Menario (Guitar & Keys)
Michele Raspanti (Bass)
Alex Beccati (Drums)

(Interview by Ken Morton)

Secret Rule on Facebook