Tag Archives: joey cassata

Reflections & Photos From KISS Expos Past (2002-2004)

And now a little rewind for you…

kiss expo
NY/NJ KISS Expo

KISS seems to be getting more attention than ever thanks to their smoking new CD “Sonic Boom”, the “Gene Simmons Family Jewels” TV show and the always rousing concerts that they do for sold out audiences worldwide.  With this being the case, I felt that I should go back into my personal archives and add some fun never before seen images to the PiercingMetal Blog so the readers of our adventures can enjoy them in terms of some KISS related fun.  After all, they do no real good by being in a random folder on a hard drive only seen once in a blue moon by the occasional curious visitor to the Metal command center.

That being said, this little side story is not about KISS themselves but more about an event that was called the NY/NJ KISS Expo.  It was an annual affair that was put together by Richie Ranno (of the band Starz) and was the means for those who sold KISS memorabilia and those who collected it to mingle together along with musicians that had some part of their history connected with KISS or were just interested in being a part of the fun.  My friends had been going to this convention for years already but my first go round would be in 2002 but I could not find any photos outside of the scanned ticket below.

kiss expo
KISS Expo 2002: Your Ticket To KISS Purchases

This event was in Hackensack, NJ and only $16 bucks to get in.  That was cool to know since you would end up spending hundreds more in terms of KISS things you might have had interest in.  If I manage to find any photos from that event I will edit the narrative to allow them to fit in.  So far there seems to be only one which you get below.
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Fozzy @ B.B. King Blues Club (4/28/2010)

Logo - Fozzy

Artist: Fozzy
Venue: B.B. King Blues Club
Opener: ZO2, Razer
Date: 4/28/2010
Label: Riot! Entertainment

Yes Metal fans your prayers have been answered and the Fozzman cometh to New York City to lay down the Metal justice in a fashion that only he can deliver. Of course its long been known that Fozzy is actually the brainchild of World Wrestling Entertainment’s Chris Jericho and guitarist Rich Ward (The Duke, Stuck Mojo) . For a number of years they played up an identity and back story about their origins but seem to have moved on from that premise for the sake of the Metal material that they have. I had to admit that even though the band featured the wrestler, when I first heard them I wasn’t very impressed and this would be around the time of their covers album. The reason was more based on at that point in my Metal life, I was more focused on the up and coming Power Metal bands from Finland and all of their output since it was so energetic and unique. I write this down based on the change of opinion that I had when the band released the “All That Remains” CD (not to be confused with the band of the same name) and now their latest effort “Chasing The Grail”. With these recordings Fozzy has really shown to be coming into their own and an interesting Metal force to be reckoned to boot. Their show this evening would be live at B.B. King Blues Club and it would also feature the band Razer from Phoenix, AZ and Brooklyn’s own ZO2. Going in I hardly knew what to expect and even wondered if it would be crowded but after observing the activities that happened tonight it was pretty safe to say that if you missed this one you will very likely be kicking yourself. Here is how the night went down for those who are among that number.
Continue reading Fozzy @ B.B. King Blues Club (4/28/2010)

ZO2 In-Store Appearance @ J&R Music World (4/17/2010)

Logo - ZO2

Artist: ZO2
Venue: J&R Music World (New Yotk, NY)
Opener: n/a
Date: 4/17/2010
Label: In Tune Music

Now that your taxes were paid you could sit back and relax and see what money you had left to use for that wonderful musical holiday that they call “Record Store Day”. At this stage of the game in music purchasing I am guessing that it should be called either “CD Day” or “MP3 Day” when you think about it. Of course there are vinyl releases coming out every now and again these days but they are no longer the ruler of the musical roost when compared to the dominant mediums. The fun today would take place at J&R Music World where we have covered a number of in-store appearances and intimate performances in the past and among the many that were taking part in the day would be Folk legend Judy Collins and Brooklyn’s own ZO2.
Continue reading ZO2 In-Store Appearance @ J&R Music World (4/17/2010)

“Z-Rock: Season 1” by ZO2

Artist: Z02
Title: “Z-Rock: Season 1”
Label: Anchor Bay
Release Date: 6/9/2009
Genre: Comedy/Rock Reality
Rating: 3/5

If you are from NYC and you hit a lot of shows then I think that there is a good chance that you are aware of one of our local music sensations with the band ZO2. The guys are always entertaining with their brand of KISS meets Aerosmith tinged Hard Rock and their very catchy original tunes are laced with wonderful harmonies. However, this review is not about the band’s music or live show but about the recently aired scripted reality comedy that was a weekly feature on the IFC channel at the tail end of 2008. The show stars the brothers Z (who are also known by Paulie and David Zablidowsky and are brothers in real life to boot) along with their drummer and longtime friend Joey Cassata. The premise of the program shows the bands struggles as a group that is trying to make it big by meeting the right people, playing their shows and keeping a busy regimen during the daylight hours doing other jobs that allow them to fund the musical enterprise. Of course the daytime job is that of being a band that performs at children’s parties so the chaos ensues as they walk the fine line between decency and Rock and Roll decadence. As you can probably tell already that is a very fine line for sure.
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ZO2 @ Webster Hall (6/7/2009)

I met the guys in ZO2 a few years ago when they had opened for KISS and as I have mentioned in past reviews had already known of their members previously from their work with either KISS tribute bands and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. I really enjoy their sound as it’s a solid and grooving Hard Rock that we don’t always get a lot of exposure to these days and the time is right for such a vibe in the Rock world to return in full force. The guys have been very busy over the last year as they had been the stars of their own scripted reality program called “Z-Rock”. The show is a comedy series on IFC (or the Independent Film Channel) and on this show we follow the guys who are on their own quest for Rock stardom at night while performing at kids parties during the day as the “Z-Brothers”. “Z-Rock” follows the bands misadventures and the colorful characters that they encounter along the way. The cast includes the real life Z Brothers David and Paulie, Joey Cassata, comedians Lynn Koplitz, Jay Okerson and the one and only Joan Rivers. It’s a show that you either loved or hated as a fan of the band and that is where we have some good news and some bad news. The good news is that if you loved the show you will be happy to know that it is returning for a second season and the bad news is that if you hated it, well, it is returning for a second season.

Logo - ZO2

PiercingMetal had the chance to be at the 2nd Season Premiere gala that was being held at Webster Hall this evening and while this was open to the public, there was a lot of confusion about how one could actually obtain tickets. Some told me that a contest was being held so they could get in and this was achieved by emailing the band and telling them why they should be in the venue, and then others told me that it was open to the general public for the small sum of $10 while a third group said that the whole shebang was free. Either way, the doors were open for 8pm and the first episode was going to be aired and then followed by a performance of the band and as we made our way inside the club there was already a nice group of people in place for the event. They started it off with a bloopers reel that was rather good and showed us a number of shenanigans that occurred as the guys filmed the second season of the show. The clips featured the likes of Steel Panther, Dee Snider, John Popper from Blues Traveler and even Mini-KISS. I am generally on the fence when it comes to blooper reels but this was one that amused me and it was a good lead in to the second season premiere of the show.  All photos in this article were done by Peter Parrella (copyright 2009) so please don’t use them without contacting us first.

Executive Producers:  Andrew Gottlieb and Mark Efman
Executive Producers: Andrew Gottlieb and Mark Efman

Continue reading ZO2 @ Webster Hall (6/7/2009)