Reviews

This is GLASS WOLFE’s second album, worthy of ten new songs and almost a full hour of melodic metal. Vocalist Maria Glass profiles herself as some kind of Xena, the warrior princess, holding a giant Samurai sword. Whereas Philip Wolfe is the more the invisible musician of the two. Now you know, where they got their name from. On the album, these two musicians from California are helped out by a lot of interesting names from the local music scene. Like on the first album, GLASS WOLFE knows how to make interesting songs, that are full with Blackmore-like guitar riffs and good female vocals. So if you take the later work of RAINBOW as a reference, you will know how this band sounds like. Although their music is sometimes a bit sweeter than the image of the band would imagine. Despite this little contradiction, the songs of GLASS WOLFE sound very well, and it will certainly appeal to the many melodic metal fans out there. There is a central place in the music for the keyboard parts of Philip, who sounds like Keith Emerson in a melodic metal jacket. Maria’s voice is warm and in the harder parts, she remembered me a lot of Betsy BITCH. “Liar” is one of the most powerful songs on this album, and therefore one of the highlights on the CD for me, next to the more lengthy songs, like “State Of Mind” and the bluesy “Prophecy / Autumn Moon”. If you like later RAINBOW or DEEP PURPLE (Joe Lynn Turner-era), then it’s wise to check out “Predator”. I think, I’d better drop Maria a line for an interview, because GLASS WOLFE definitely needs to be introduced to our dear readers more closely. Website: http://www.glasswolfe.com. [(8 out of 10 points)] (Toine van Poorten)

Glass Wolfe was formed in 1998 by vocalist/ lyricist Maria Glass and keyboardist/ producer Philip Wolfe. Maria is originally from Rhode Island, but moved to LA and found the rock music scene. She has written lyrics for Keith Emerson(ELP), appeared in the movie Say Anything and in the TV series Houston Knights, before she formed Glass Wolfe. Philip Wolfe is a veteran in the music scene in LA, and he has played keyboards with WASP, Keel, Impellitteri , Rox Diamond, XYZ, Driver, Angel, Vinnie Vincent Invasion and Attakk. Philip has also worked with sound libraries for many years who has been reviewed and advertised for many years in Keyboard magazine, Electronic Musician, Sound on Sound, and in the Pro Tools Developers Catalog. Glass Wolfe released their debut CD in october 2001. It was reviewed in many international rock magazines and sold in countries like Japan, Germany, Holland. England, Spain, Brazil, France and the USA.

Their second release, Predator, was released last year. Musically Glass Wolfe is a band that combines many different musical directions from melodic hardrock, heavy metal with undertones of prog and melodic metal with female vocals. The album features a lot of guest appearances from amongst other Neil Citron (Steve Vai, Lana Lane), Stuart Smith (Sweet, Heaven and Earth, Ritchie Blackmore), Ray Schenck (Hellion), Howie Simon (Glass Wolfe, Jeff Scott Soto, Ken Tamplin) and Mark Tremalgia (Bang Tango) to name a few. It took me a few listenings to get familiar with the songs on Predator, but I feel the songs grow the more I listen to them! The first song, Take No Prisoners, is an uptempo rock song with good rhythm and drive. The vocals by Maria are nice and special and suits the style good, the instrumentation on the album sounds very real with technical details on each song. Driven is a more melodic and heavy song, stylewise it reminds me of a mix between Led Zeppelin, Kingdom Come and Lana Lane. The song starts slow, but it gradually builds up throughout, the chorus and the instrumental parts is cool! Sexecutioner is partly a more experimental song. It takes us through a lot of different musical landscapes like ballad, progressive and hardrock oriented parts. Shifting Sands is a melodic song with an egyptian like style, while Children Of The Night is a slow song with a cool melody and fine vocals. Shattered Image is one of the most commercial songs with much focus on the melody and chorus: Great Song!!! Liar is a straight forward Melodic hardrock oriented song, with cool guitars and a fine chorus! Whispers can best described as a rock ballad, it reminds me about some of the songs from Lana Lane, it`s something about the way the song is built up. State Of Mind and the last song Prophecy/ Autumn Moon are both songs that gave me a feel of seventies rock, especially the last one. The song starts slow with nice keys and vocals, it gradually builds up and the instrumental parts is cool. A really good and variated album from Glass Wolfe, that deserves to get some attention so check them out now!!
Read My Interview with Maria
http://www.glasswolfe.com/

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Interviews

Philip Wolfe, a legendary musician from the L.A.Rock Scene, has followed his Album Glass Wolfe, which he shares with female vocalist Maria Glass, with a brand new CD titled Predator which is out now, so its definitely time for a chat.

Glass Wolfe, your newest project, the new CD, Predator is great. Every serious hard rock fan does know Philip Wolfe for sure, but would you like to introduce your actual bandmates?
Maria Glass is the lead Singer and Lyricist and we have worked together for several years.
This CD was recorded with various guest stars depending on who was available and interested in helping us make our project a reality. I have been happy to play on their projects and live performances as well. From time to time we have a lineup to play live shows which changes depending on who is around at the time. Some of our more notable guest stars are...
on Guitar..Ray Schenck, Stuart Smith, Neil Citron, Howie Simon, Iain Ashley Hersey, and Dennis Lotka on Bass.. Pat Cicinelli, Dario Seixas and Kurt Barabas on Drums...Stefan Svensson and Dave Norwoods on Backing Vocals... Paul Daniels, Swan Montgomery, Steve Johnstad and Dyna Shirasaki

Glass Wolfe’ s sound has got an evident epic/gothic flavour, while we’ ve got used to know you for appearances in bands playing a quite different kind of hard rock. Does this actual sound perfectly mirror your own true musical tastes, or is it the result of some kind of compromise between different songwriting contributors?
The songwriting style mainly reflects my musical taste for this project and Maria’s lyrical direction.
Ray Schenck brought in the music to “Driven” and Dennis Lotka “Children of the Night”.
All the rest was mainly written by Maria Glass and myself.

How does a Glass Wolfe song flour out?
I usually write a guitar part (with guitar samples played through a marshall stack) to a drumbeat that I programmed and then see what lyrics and melody that Maria has to fit. Next is tracking the real drums and bass and guitars and keyboards and so on.

In their previous record Glass Wolfe featured a lineup including a couple of promising musicians such as Howie Simon and Dario Seixas, who have actually joined some more famous bands. Do you think that their departure has somehow been negative for Glass Wolfe?
Cheers and best of luck to my friends Dario and Howie and thanks for the contributions that they made to the first Glass Wolfe CD and the new CD Predator which has them as guest stars.

The legendary Keith Emerson is said to have heavily influenced both Maria Glass and you, so I wonder: how did your musical partnership get started?
I had been playing in an ELP tribute band (Knife Edge) and other projects (1998) when Maria and I first started writing and recording demo’s. We also put together a cover band which had Maria singing songs by a number of females of rock including Heart, Benetar, Melissa Etheridge and more.
Keith saw me play in the tribute band and invited me to his rehersal. Later Will Alexander came to me and asked if I knew a lyricist to write with Keith and I suggested Maria. She has penned 2 songs with him that got to the demo stage but ELP soon broke up and the songs remain unpublished.

You have a great reputation as keyboards wizard as well. But is there any particular ability you think Keith Emerson is out of reach for?
If I understand your question correctly... Keith’s playing is one of the “stars” that I will always reach for... as well as many compositions by Bach, Beethoven, Chopin and other classical masters.

Among the new generation of keyboards players, can you mention any particularly talented one who truly impressed you?
(answer): ???

After a long search, I managed to get a decent copy of the Impellitteri’ s live at Powerstation ’88 homevideo. Seems like both Chuck Wright and Pat Torpey, who were credited on the “Stand in line” album, did not go touring with the band, and a completely different rythmic section joined you guys onstage that nightˇDo you remember who was given the task to replace the originary bandmates?
I remember playing left hand bass at rehersals for 2 weeks at Mates Studios untill Dave (the Beast) Spitz (Black Sabbath) arrived to play bass and Stet Howland (with us for 2 months) on drums later got me the WASP tour in 1992 after he landed the gig with Blackie Lawless.

The lineup on “stand in line” was a real all-star parade: how easy was it for you to get that role as keyboardsman?
A piece of cake... Chris had already seen me play with Rudy Sarzo and Tommy Aldridge in Project Driver (NRG) in 1986. When Rudy and Tommy went on to Whitesnake, I started working with Impellitteri on what I thought was to be an instumental album with me playing double leads with Chris and shredding. A few months later, Graham came into the picture and it became what you hear on the record ...Stand In Line.

I’ ve always got a big curiosity about vocalist Graham Bonnet, for being so “different” from the typical cliché of the hair bands that were highly popular at those times. Graham was a great screamer, but probably paid his lack of an image as a true rocker, and never received an adequate highlight by the pressˇ So I wonder: what can you tell us about him, having got the chance to share a touring experience with?
What can I say....A legendary singer and a real classy guy. A good friend and bandmate with advanced musical ability like perfect pitch (Graham can sing a Beatles tune acapella and tell you the chord changes off the top of his head!!) and down home British charm and wit.

You’ve been having loads of further important appearances during your career: can you reveal to us any funny episode or curiosity about some of the bands you happened to work with?
In Tokyo after Impellitteri’s 1st gig (Powerstation) the fans were lined up outside behind velvet ropes. When I came out they were chanting “fear, fear, fear”. I asked what they were afraid of and I was told that they were trying to say my name “Phil, Phil, Phil”...
Billy Joel picked me up in his limo on the streets of Tokyo at 2 AM and it took 3 hours to got back to the hotel only 2 miles away..and he wasn’t driving...
I thought I had been thru everything in 20 years of rock and roll when one band leader put a gun to my head and informed me that I was not to leave his band. We’re still friends...
After I had played in England with WASP a reviewer from Karrang (Dave) published a review about WASP that featured me !! much to the disaproval of Blackie..

I know you’re often busy on other musical projects and on live activity. Do you manage bringing your own Glass Wolfe songs onstage, or do you just happen to play cover versions with different musicians?
We have played Glass Wolfe gig’s where we played our songs and an occasional cover and we have also played with other bands doing covers (Stuart Smith / Perfect Strangers), unless I am doing an original show with another artist (Iain Ashley Hersey).

You’ve also recently released a solo recording, “Lifeforce”. What are the main stylistic differences on that cd, compared to the Glass Wolfe music? Who’s playing with you on that album?
I had written this material around the time of my Monsters of Rock Tour with Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath and WASP (1992 -93) after the tour ended I started recording with Steve Fontaine and later replaced him with Mark Weitz whom I had met when working with Impellitteri (1989) At that time I was influenced by Asia, Rainbow and Foreigner as far as songwriting.
I wrote and played all the musical parts on the keyboards (including all the guitars) as well as about 1/2 of the lyrics and Mark Weitz did all of the singing and the balance of the writing.

As far as I know, the band is in the process of finalizing some deal for a regular distribution of the album Predator at the moment: but how can your fans order the Glass Wolfe cds in the meanwhile?
glasswolfe.com
cdbaby.com/glasswolfe2

Any other message for all your fans out there?
Everyone needs a break in this business , a chance to get a gig that means something, maybe everything to them... I was given my “break” when Rudy Sarzo called me to audition with him and Tommy Aldridge for the band Driver in 1986. I had been playing in cover bands for 7 years all over the rocky mountain states and was living in my van on the streets of LA to “make it” or die trying. Although we did not get a “deal” after writing, recording for 9 months and showcasing for every major label, the experience changed me and made me ready for what came next. In the same spirit, I have been happy to work with a promising younger player and give them a chance to make it happen with our project as a vehicle. Through times of feast or famine, riots, fires and earthquakes, I have remained true to my musical ideals and have not sold out, and will continue to record and play what I and hopefully you will enjoy.
Cheers

A couple of music releases from the keyboards wizard Phil Wolfe are 
available now on the website www.philipwolfemusic.com. The first one is 
the brand new Glass Wolfe cd, titled "Predator". The album is strongly 
characterized by the performance of the lead singer Maria Glass, whose 
vocal style is definitively unique and hard to be compared to any other 
vocalist as terms of reference. Her unique way of singing is laid on an 
excellent instrumental base, crafted by various great musicians, 
including minor appearances by Howie Simon (J.S.Soto, Talisman, Ken Tamplin) 
and Dario Seixas (Firehouse). In comparison to the previous chapter, 
"Predator" features a by far more solid and mature songwriting, at the 
same time offering an old-flavoured sound and tunes full of feeling, 
which might encounter the taste of every early Ozzy' s fan.
>
>A completely different music style is featured on "Lifeforce", a solo 
project by Phil Wolfe which includes a bunch of songs he had been 
writing in the early nineties, during a tour with Blackie Lawless' WASP. A 
much more melodic rock-oriented album, and not just an instrumental one 
as we could expect. Mark Weitz (Eyes,Ramos) is responsible for the 
lyrics and vocals over the whole album, which turns out to be a brilliant 
release, worthy of  a proper attention by every serious melodic rock 
fan.
>
>
>
>all the best and stay in touch
>Alessandro Lilli

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