The Rock is George Podcast

George Dionne interviews THE CALLING frontman ALEX BAND about their comeback album BEFORE THE WORLD TURNS TO DUST.  The album is out now through TLG | Virgin Music Group. “THE CALLING (in 2001) was never like a band, I just hired people…This is actually the first time that I have band members that are contributing.” - Alex BandHighlights include: -Why now was the right time for a new album-Roadblocks and delays along the way-Maintaining their early 2000’s sound-Recovering from symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease-Working with producer John Fields again-Cutting down the amount of songs written over the years-Stories behind the singles-Recent & future live performances-25th anniversary of ‘Camino Palmero’-Signing with RCA Records when he was 15 -THE CALLING’s first major tour-One billion Spotify streams of "Wherever You Will Go”-Changes in the industry since THE CALLING’s last album-What ended THE CALLING back in 2005-Why he didn’t release the current album as a solo album-Not following his father Charles Band into filmmaking-And much, much more!

George Dionne interviews musician JAMIE JAMES about his ‘Stepping Back’ series of albums, chronicling unreleased material from 1988-2009. The albums are available now through Oglio Entertainment. JAMIE JAMES was a member of the NEW STEPPENWOLF, fronted THE KINGBEES, played with actor HARRY DEAN STATNON’s band, and was a key member of DENNIS QUAID AND THE SHARKS.”[THE KINGBEES] toured for a long time, out there beating a path that had not really been forged yet, for what we were doing. Radio stations didn’t know what to do with us…after two or three years of that, I was done with the spotlight” - Jamie JamesHighlights include:-How the ‘Stepping Back’ series came to be-Where had all this unreleased material been-Recording music and demos for fun back in the day-Working with engineer Warren Dewey (KISS, BOSTON, SAMMY HAGAR)-How each release differs from the other-Actors and musicians-Preferring to collaborate over being in the spotlight -His time in THE KINGBEES-How they got their record deal with RSO-Appearing on Dick Clark’s American Bandstand-The impact his open heart surgery had on his songwriting-Other gems found in addition to the ‘Stepping Back’ material-His time with PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY (PCH)-An un-released LINDA PERRY produced movie he worked on-First time meeting HARRY DEAN STANTON-Collaborating with DENNIS QUAID for the first time-His time in the NEW STEPPENWOLF-Working recently with Blues artist PEACH-Local unheard bands and the heart of music-And much, much more!

George Dionne interviews vocalist LEE-LA BAUM and drummer DAVE TRAINA of THE DAMN TRUTH about the Deluxe Edition release of their 2025 self-titled album.  The album is out now through Frontiers Music and was produced by Bob Rock (BON JOVI, AEROSMITH, METALLICA, THE CULT).““Be Somebody” has become a defining track in [our] shows.  It sets the tone.” - Lee-La BaumHighlights include:-Why the album got the deluxe edition treatment -Working with Bob Rock over two of their albums-Recording at Warehouse Studios in Vancouver -Is Rock laid back or strict with his production style?-Extra material included on the re-release-Stories behind the singles-The vinyl experience-Their recent tour with CROBOT-Opening for EUROPE and meeting them ahead of it-THE DAMN TRUTH in the USA-Working on new music for the next album-The origins of the band’s name-And much, much more!*Photos by Rob Blackman & Phil Honley

George Dionne interviews LED BY VULTURES mastermind BRIAN TICHY about their self-titled debut album. The album is out now through Deko Entertainment. Tichy has played drums for such Hard Rock luminaries as WHITESNAKE, BILLY IDOL, FOREIGNER, and SASS JORDAN. He is currently performing with the GENE SIMMONS BAND.”It’s no fun to get excited about an original piece of music and have it sit on a hard drive as a demo” - Brian TichyHighlights include: -How the project came to be-Handling all parts except keyboards-Derek Sherinian pushing him to release his music-“Waves” becoming an unlikely single-Mixing older ideas with newer ideas-Fronting a band back in the ‘90s-The story behind “Massivity”-Avoiding AI in his music-LED BY VULTURES live plans-His current gigs with the Gene Simmons (KISS)-Appearing on the next ONE MORE SATELLITE album-How did he settle on the name LED BY VULTURES-And much, much more!

George Dionne interviews PAUL LAINE about his first solo album in over 30 years, ‘The Long Road Back’.  The album is set for release on September 25, 2026 through Frontiers Music.  Laine is also the current frontman for the Canadian Rock act TROOPER and the Melodic Rock trio THE DEFIANTS.  He also fronted DANGER DANGER from 1993-2003.For me, this is a follow up to ‘Stick It In Your Ear’, because the “Can’t Get Enough’ record was just a record of a bunch of demos.”  I never got to produce that album, or have too much involvement with it.” - Paul LaineHighlights include:  -His return to making music as a solo artist-Writing fresh instead of mining old material-Not knowing what the first single would be-His longtime friendship with Bruno Ravel   -Getting the gig in TROOPER-Large crowds and having fun on stage-Possibility of new music with TROOPER-Planning live shows to support his solo album-Working on new music for THE DEFIANTS-Writing and scoring music for television & movies-Creating the music without seeing the product-And much, much more!*Photo by Dee Oliver