Vince DiCola

Anime, Featured, Film, Game Music, Television

Capturing The Dream: Stan Bush Interview

March 22, 2011 | Audun Sorlie | 3 Comments Share this

When I recently traveled to the fine city of Los Angeles, I had the luck and fortune of doing what for many remains a dream or a wish, I got to meet my musical idol. In the late 80s, with my big brother at my side, I was introduced to the world of martial arts cinema through the movie Bloodsport. In its own right the movie remains a cult classic and is a fine piece of motion picture history, but what became the most memorable part of Bloodsport to me were the songs featured at key scenes.

Those songs were sung by Stan Bush, a man most famous for his works on Transformers: The Movie, singing such classics as “The Touch” which is widely recognized as the unofficial Transformers anthem. But to say that was his only claim to fame would be wrong, dead wrong. Over his nearly 30 year career as a musician, Stan has won an Emmy, been featured in movies, TV shows, and toured extensively. Recently, he also entered the world of video games by supplying music to Transformers: War of Cybertron from Activision. I sat down with The Man to discuss his long and wonderful career, and got an insight into his views on music, friend Vince DiCola, his partnership with Chikara Pro and his future plans.

Join us as we sip our coffees and stroll down memory lane in our interview with the legendary Stan Bush! (more…)
Featured, Film, Game Music

A Blast From The Past: Vince DiCola on Gran Tursimo 5 and His Career

December 28, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | Comments Off on A Blast From The Past: Vince DiCola on Gran Tursimo 5 and His Career Share this

It should come as no surprise by now that most of us here at OSV are huge fans of Vince DiCola. From his work on Rocky IV and The Transformers (the animated film), to some of the recent YouTube postings he’s been involved with, he’s extremely talented and generous with his time. I conducted an interview with him while at Music4Games back in March 2008 after learning that he was involved with an arrangement of popular “Moon Over The Castle” theme from Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. It’s shocking to think that it was nearly 3 years ago that Prologue was released, huh?

In any case, this is one of my favorite interviews that I ever conducted. Vince DiCola is not only very detailed in his responses, but also very genuine and open about his career, the challenges he’s faced in the music business, and his hopes for the future. Interestly, the project he alludes to at the end of the interview is still in the works, and trust me when I tell you that it’s going to blow you all away when it’s finally out there. Hopefully we can provide a preview on that soon, but in the meantime, take a trip back with us to enjoy this Blast from the Past entry with Vince DiCola.

What are you waiting for? Hit the jump! (more…)
Film, Reviews

Lost Files: Vince DiCola’s Complete Rocky IV Soundtrack (Review)

July 28, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 5 Comments Share this

We were shocked (and delighted) to hear that INTRADA Records had decided to release Vince DiCola’s score for Rocky IV back in May. While the film received an official soundtrack release back in the 1980s, it featured mainly licensed music with only a few contributions from Vince DiCola. This means that the majority of DiCola’s score has been lost in the void for nearly 25 years, unavailable outside of the movie-watching experience.

So, is the album’s 32 minutes of music worth the $19.99 price tag we mentioned back in May? Well, one of the most interesting things about this album is that it shows DiCola’s versatility as well as his ability to masterfully work in references to classic Rocky themes from the past, both of which you may have missed if you were only familiar with his two tracks that made the cut for the 1980s soundtrack release.

Hit the jump for more in our review of the Rocky IV Original Motion Picture Score. (more…)
Film

I Must Break You: Rocky IV Like You’ve Never Heard It Before

May 23, 2010 | Jayson Napolitano | 3 Comments Share this

We here at OSV are undeniably some of Vince DiCola’s hugest fans. We’ve mentioned him numerous times on the site, including his work solo work and his soundtrack for The Transformers animated movie, but he was also responsible for the music behind Rocky IV. Now, there was a Rocky IV soundtrack released back in the 1980s, but it unfortunately only contained a few of DiCola’s many compositions, and was mainly dedicated to the licensed commercial music that was featured in the film. For the most part, Vince DiCola’s score was unavailable for outside listening… until now!

INTRADA has stepped in to save the day nearly 15 years after Rocky IV was released. They’ve obtained the rights to release all of Vince DiCola’s underscore for the classic film, and are taking orders as we speak on their website. While “Training Montage” and “War,” the two longest tracks on the album, were featured on the old Rocky IV soundtrack I mentioned above, there are over 10 new tracks on this album that have never been heard outside of the film. This is huge! The only setback is the price. They’re asking for $19.99 for approximately 32 minutes of music, but hey, supporting a cool move like this is definitely worth the cost. You can buy the album at the Intrada website.

Are you a fan of Vince DiCola’s work? Are you surprised that we’re seeing a Rocky IV soundtrack release in 2010?
Film

Vince DiCola and Friends Transform and Roll Out A Stellar Remix of the Transformers Theme

August 2, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 1 Comment Share this

Well, we were right. Back in May, Vince DiCola teamed up with a group of friends to create a rockin’ song and video titled “Invasion of the Machines (Pt. 1),” and just as we predicted, the “(Pt. 1)” did in fact suggest that there was a second installment in the works. Aptly titled “Invasion of the Machines (Pt. 2),” this time DiCola, guitarist Kenny Meredith, and violinist Scarlet Rivera take on the classic Transformers theme, and it seriously rocks.

While it’s a tragedy that Vince DiCola wasn’t featured in the recent Revenge of the Fallen film, I hope that somebody somewhere hears this stuff and pulls him back into films or even games. Not only is the track amazing, but the video editing is really top-notch, syncing perfectly with the music. I would have died to have heard this during the Transformers film credits.

Do you prefer the nostalgic approach taken with “Invasion of the Machines (Pt. 2)?” Would you like to see Vince DiCola scoring some videogames?
Film

Vince Dicola and Friends Wage Their Battle To Be Included In Revenge of the Fallen

May 5, 2009 | Jayson Napolitano | 5 Comments Share this

While I rarely get the opportunity to talk about him here, Vince DiCola is one of my favorite musicians of all time. Not only did he score The Transformers, the animated film and Rocky IV 1980s, but he has released a slew of amazing solo and group-based efforts of the past twenty-plus years that are definitely worth your attention.

It was an absolute tragedy that DiCola wasn’t brought on to at least contribute to the recent Transformers film by Michael Bay, but DiCola is back to give it another shot. This video, titled “Invasion of the Machines (Pt. 1)” is a tribute to robot films throughout the decades, but more importantly, the music playing throughout the video, ” BOUND & GAGGED,” is DiCola’s demo submission for the upcoming Transformers:Revenge of the Fallen. With DiCola on keyboards and drums, Kenny Meriedeth on guitars, and Rick Livngstone belting out some killer vocals, I hope Bay opens up his ears and includes the song in this film. Also, the fact that this piece is titled “(Pt. 1),” hopefully there are more treats like this in store for fans in the future.

Are you a fan of DiCola’s work on Transformers or Rocky IV? Do you think “BOUND & GAGGED” should be featured in Revenge of the Fallen?