READ HERE  ‘BACKBONE‘ SONG REVIIEW

• Dino it’s so often we don’t remember so much from our childhood, it’s amazing you remember the case of your friend Elmwood in your latest song ‘Backbone’, why is this the memory you chose to make a song about in particular?

That song was from an unfinished concept album based on my own book about my best friend, whom I call “Elmwood” (available on Kindle). So, there were many songs about meeting Elmwood and finishing grade school with him, but this song concerns the earliest part of that tale. These stories are easy to remember because I started writing about Elmwood just a couple years after these events, and never quit.

• What would you say according to your extensive work in musicto young people trying to find their style in music, especially rock?

Sadly, Rock is no longer a viable career path for most young people. You can play shows and put out music, but your share of the audience will never be what it was in Rock’s heyday. Of course I would say if Rock music speaks to you, you should do it. A younger person can certainly make it work more easily than an older married person with house payments. I personally have no other language for own my music than Rock, though some of my songs veer into baroque or classical just a tiny bit. I was never able to support myself through music: my main job was always movie and TV sound effects.

• I’m so amazed with how you juggle between work, home and making music altogether, what inspires you to write and to keep releasing music?

Well, that’s easier now because I’m no longer working in the sound industry. It’s all my own music, aside from reviewing for the Pitch Perfect site. I might still have been doing some movie or TV work but Covid made that difficult even for current sound designers, so I’m way at the back of the line now. But what inspires me to keep going is simply that I built up a huge backlog of songs and music over the years – at least 30 hours – and I want to commit the best of those songs and ideas to CDs and online. For example, this Backbone song was started literally 18 years ago. Not to mention my new ideas!

• If you were to describe your musical style in sound, what words would you use?

I would describe my music as avant-rock with classical influences. I wish I could say I was prog rock, and there’s moments where I almost make it, but in general my structures are not experimental enough to claim that genre. Though I personally love that style of music, I know most listeners don’t have the patience for it. So, I use just enough of those progressive tropes to keep my stuff interesting, then pull back to a more standard rock format.

• Are there any challenges you’d like to share about self producing your own music?

There are some challenges. You have to work extra hard to make sure your music is technically listenable. With another set of ears, there’s someone to reaffirm what you think you’re hearing. But whatever benefit that might be to me, I also chafe at other peoples’ opinions. For example, I sometimes send tracks to SubmitHub, and one playlister’s feedback is often a total contradiction of another’s. “The vocals are great!” “The vocals are weak!” etc. So in general I trust my own judgement and I do pretty well.

• Is there any song or album in particular you have a love/ hate relationship with ?

If we’re talking about my own albums, I’d have to mention the CD “Train Going Nowhere.” It was designed to be a straight-ahead rock album, quickly recorded, with a lot of guest musicians using a fully professional 24-track studio. That’s mostly what happened, but my wife at the time cut off my funds halfway through, meaning I couldn’t go back to the 24-track tapes until I sold off most of my record and CD collection to pay for studio time. As a result the album took a ridiculous five years to complete. It’s my only true studio album with awesome mastering, but the songs were meant to be simple and quick, so nothing about it turned out quite right. But I can still enjoy it.

• Can you share the reason why you weren’t so big on percussion in your relatively older releases ?

Well, if we go all the way back to when I started recording at home, there’s two problems that crop up being a home taper. Number one: it’s more than likely you have a pedestrian, mediocre singing voice. It may be unique and fun, but it’s not commercial. If an artist can really sing, he will most probably seek out a working group who will appreciate his vocals. Number two is that it’s very hard to find drummers, and in the old days there were barely enough tracks for yourself, let alone for recording a big 8-piece drum kit in stereo. Thus, many home tapers used drum machines or samples. Eventually I began to use drummer friends of mine on certain albums. I had three different drummers who appeared on multiple albums. But logistically it’s still difficult to get a drummer and find a way to record them, and they are not always available. Besides that, it was always my dream to get my own kit and drum for myself. I finally got my drums over 12 years ago, and with each album I’m trying to improve my drum sound. I’m not the greatest drummer, but I know what I want and I’m available 24 hours a day!

• tell us a crazystory or a fun fact during your work in one of the motion pictures you participated in as a sound designer

My favorite work story was right after my classic 1970 Mustang got rear-ended and I had to sell it to a local junkyard. About a week later I was asked to help out a friend at 6:00 AM on an HBO “Tales From The Crypt.” He gave me 10 minutes of film to work on (this was before digital). A scene in a junk yard came up. I thought: “Hey, that’s the same junk yard that bought my Mustang!” Cut to the actors doing a scene right in front of my Mustang! I could tell it was mine from the window stickers. I said to my boss: “Hey, that’s my car!” He said: “What’s it doing in there?” The thing is, this was a totally random coincidence for me to get that particular reel of film. I never would have known otherwise. I snipped a couple frames for myself and now you can find that episode on youtube.

You’re gonna get rock and rollin with this new upbeat song. It has a country-ish vibe to it because of the singing technique and guitar playing, with a 50’s twist. The song tells the story of Dino’s childhood best friend Elmwood who refused to give in during Nazi grade school. A topic that is so unusual, this element elevates the song onto a higher level due to its novelty. The overall sound of the song is happy and mellow. It’s perfect for pubs, live jams and morning radio shows. The musical arrangement is really good, with a soundscape of slow alternative rock. There is a steady acoustic guitar with a soft melody, and a set of prominent  drums and cymbals that lead the beat and shake up the mood. Don’t miss out this song for a nostalgic rock and roll moment

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picture sound effects editor where he won several awards including an Emmy, and received features in a number of films and series including the sound design for the Netflix series NARCOS. With influences from Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, and They Might Be Giants, With his new double CD “Heatstroke Alley” coming up, Dino DiMuro teased it with his latest single “Maniac Chasing Me”,  a song he perfectly describes as 

“It’s a quirky, jumpy, funny-rock song in the Zappa or They Might Be Giants tradition

about the scary people that populate our nighttime streets, along with the annoying

people who watch our kids at summer camp.”

So, let’s see how it goes,

“Maniac Chasing Me” is not your typical rock song, its funky groove mixed with the deep, full-of-bass guitar tone and that piano melody added a layer of heaviness alongside its jazzy-progressive nature. Dino DiMuro’s way of arranging fluid organic melodies with smooth transitions and changing tempos in an entertaining dynamic structure with lots of energy yet, in a groovy storytelling soundscape is incredible! And his sense of creating a catchy easy melody appears clearly in that playful laidback vocal melody.

“Maniac Chasing Me” is a fun enjoyable trip that I would like to get on a lot! It’s not the usual rock song you’ll have on your playlist but, it’s the chassis rock, jazzy, funky mix you always wish existed. Dino DiMuro’s choice of guitar tone and music writing shows he is a seasoned musician with a keen eye for details and a clear vision. Looking forward to more from Dino DiMuro, keep on rocking!

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Find previous Dino DiMuro features here.

• “Like An Almond Joy” is an interesting song! You mentioned in your EPK what caused it, but can you provide more details for the readers?

Yes! Having been a fan of Captain Beefheart since I was a teen, I’ve always wanted to create a whole album of Beefheart covers or tribute songs. Though this never happened, I’ve been revisiting the demos I recorded. “Safe As Milk” was the Captain’s very first LP, and I already did a tribute to that album’s “Electricity” on my CD “The Dunning-Kruger Effect.” For my upcoming CD I chose to create an alternate version of “Abba Zabba” which I’ve also released as the first single.

• Where did the idea for your song “Like An Almond Joy” come from?

The song it was modeled after, “Abba Zabba,” is partially based on the candy bar we all grew up with, but also deals with Beefheart’s childhood fascination with apes. Conceptually for my version I chose a different candy bar, and instead of apes I talk about chocoloate chimps, monkey toys, and a child who eats so much chocolate he gets diabetes.

Review: Like An Almond Joy by Dino DiMuro

• You said that no matter how hard you try to imitate someone else’s music, you will always leave your mark… so what melodic variations/your imprint did he make in your song?

Like most great songs, the Captian Beefheart original is pretty much perfect as it stands, so it’s very difficult to come up with something different that sounds similar but still works. Basically your brain wants your fingers to play the same parts the Magic Band did, because they work so well. I wound up keeping the drum beat and the structure of the tune almost exactly the same, but then I took each part and analyzed it. If a melody went up, I tried to go down. If there was a bass solo, I tried to create a “mirror image” of it. And since I am vocally no match for Beefheart, it was easy to be different there.

• We know you’re working on a solid schedule of two to three CDs a year. Tell us about this year’s projects?

My upcoming double CD is called “Heatstroke Alley” and is close to being finished. After that I will be working on an unusual project called “Machine” that will be based on drum machines, sample loops, and a few specifically recorded drum tracks by Scott Steadman of Kritters. I myself won’t be playing live drums: they will all be generated from tapes or samples. There are other projects after these two but they will take up most of my year.

• You released a series of albums in the ’80s and ’90s. Do you think this is the right time for this type of music to come back?

The kind of music I make has never really been popular, even for many of the artists I admire. In the early 90’s I did have a strong fan base for a cassette artist, but with the rise of the internet I think it’s much harder for a single, unknown artist to make their mark. There are many more opportunities to be heard but thousands of other musicians vying for attention. So, all I can do is continue to make music that certain people enjoy and a few others may discover. One big difference is that you can have your entire music catalogue on Bandcamp or elsewhere, which anybody can sample at any time. In the old days, you either had to own the albums, or hear a track on a mix tape or underground radio show. Having active digital archives is an amazing change.

• Choose a recently released series/film in which you liked its sound engineering, and tell us about it?

“Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” both have amazing sound design. In fact I wrote a fan letter to the sound designer but he never answered. What’s interesting is that the sound of “Breaking Bad” started out fairly commonplace but became better as the show progressed. Now with “Saul” there isn’t a moment that doesn’t ring out beautifully with sound. The whole reason I recorded “The Ballad of Heisenberg” was to profess my love for the Breaking Bad Universe. Not surprisingly, that song is seeing a resurgence on Spotify thanks to the upcoming return or Walter White on “Better Call Saul.” I’ve retired from sound design but I was very proud of my work on seasons two, three and four of “Narcos.” It was a great way to go out!