Tag Archives: shred

Metal Chick of the Month – Gia Federico

Posted on by
1

Shred it, Gia!

Attention, guitarists and shredders of the world! Summer is just around the corner, and here at The Headbanging Moose it’s time to pay a short and sweet tribute to a metal lady that knows how to extract pure fire and heat from her guitar. She might be currently working as a stock investor and real state agent, even saying she’s a “retired pro guitarist”, but we all know once you let Rock N’ Roll and Heavy Metal run through your veins there’s no turning back, you become a metalhead forever. I’m talking about Gia Federico, also referred to as simply Gia G, a well-known guitarist from the Boston, Massachusetts area who will certainly blow your mind with her undeniable talent and electrifying style. Having said that, are you ready to rock with such talented American guitarist?

Born and raised with her middle-class Italian family in Somerville, a suburban city located directly to the northwest of Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States, Gia mentioned in one of her interviews that she started late in the world of rock and metal music, only when she was around 17 years old by listening to her parents’ collection of albums, taking lessons with Boston-based shredder Joe Stump (Alcatrazz, HolyHell, Raven Lord) for three and a half years before continuing on her own and developing her own style, focusing mainly on instrumental rock and metal while also having her Alternative Metal band Devil In The Mist, plus doing studio work for various projects and owning her own commercial home studio. In addition, she mentioned that she bought her first guitar at a music store a long time ago for only 90 US dollars, a remake of a Fender Telecaster, but that she doesn’t have that guitar anymore.

Regarding her solo project Gia G, which is obviously her moniker when playing with that project, Gia explained that her middle initial is actually G (as her legal name is Gia G Federico), and that Gia G sounds and feels catchy. Managing to elevate her sound and show distinction from her prior projects, she has infused “jazz modal and scalar legato” into the mix, adding an extra kick to her instrumental creations while also presenting elements from metal, shred, rock, alternative, experimental, indie, blues, jazz, classical and acoustic pop, among others, representing all her freedom as a musician. With the project’s most recent lineup being formed of Gia on the guitars and keyboards, Mark George on drums, and Paul Angle on bass, and by the way they didn’t know each other before (having met through Gia’s sound engineer), she released the singles The Chase (2013), Interwoven (2015), Spontaneous (2017) and The Ladder (2019), as well as the three-track EP Cosmic Wave (2022), which can be appreciated in full on Spotify, on YouTube and on BandCamp. Furthermore, Cosmic Wave can be considered her most successful release to date, reaching number 1 for one week on KB Radio in Canada on their Top 25 International chart and on Paramount FM 94.5 Radio, number 3 on Radio Guitar One Top 30 Rock, and number 6 on Holy Noise Radio.

Speaking of her Alternative Metal/Grunge band, named Devil In The Mist, despite the fact the band released their debut self-titled EP in 2018 and the full-length album Hidden In Plain Sight in 2022, via Sliptrick Records, the band formed of Gia Federico on the guitars and keyboards, Mark George on drums and Paul Engle on bass seems to be on a hiatus or defunct, as all of their social media doesn’t work anymore, plus the fact that Katy Reign is no longer their vocalist (and therefore Gia decided to focus on her solo project instead). More open to every style including jazz, blues, classical, acoustic, pop, country and so on, the project looked very promising if it wasn’t for the lineup changes (and for Gia’s career change, of course), but you can still enjoy some of their songs on YouTube including Mercy, Far Gone, and Severed Ties. And on a side note, you can also find her lending her guitar abilities to Lakes Region, New Hampshire-based Heavy/Groove Metal band Infinite Sin, playing the guitar solo on the song Temple of Darkness as a guest musician.

Highly influenced by guitar heroes such as Eddie Van Halen, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen, Randy Rhoads, Allan Holdsworth, Scotty Moore, Ritchie Blackmore, Chuck Berry, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix, as well as renowned rock and metal giants the likes of Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Aerosmith, The Beatles, Black Sabbath, The Police, Tool, Metallica, Van Halen, Led Zepplin, Queen and Alter Bridge, just to name a few, Gia writes her music by going over scales and modes, by listening to other artists (including all types of music from pop to blues, from shred guitar to old metal music, and so on), and inspired by things going on in her life, her past, her present, and even her future. In addition, when asked which band in the world she would love to play with, she mentioned some big names including Judas Priest, Ozzy and Dio, also saying she would enjoy doing something like what Nita Strauss did with Alice Cooper, but not forever, as she likes to create her own music. Moreover, when asked to pick three people in history (dead or alive) she would love to sit down and have dinner with, Gia curiously didn’t mention any musicians, but people in business who invented something relevant, such as Steve Jobs, Elon Musk and Warren Buffet.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Endorsed by several companies the likes of Seymour Duncan, Fishman, SKB Cases, SIT Strings, Coffin Gear,  FU -Tone Copper Sound Pedals Emperor Cabinets, Revv Amplification, ZT Amplifier, and WB Gear, among others, and known for her tap harmonic style, Gia loves her custom shop Fender Stratocasters, having custom ones from 2005, 2015 and 2022, and also having four custom shop Jacksons, among others, to a total of around 27 guitars. In addition, she also mentioned in one of her interviews that she wants to get a custom shop Les Paul to be able to compare it to the other guitars. When asked about her favorite guitar setup, she said it’s tough to say it exactly because it always depends on which song she’s playing or writing, although she mentioned that during her live performances she was using her custom red Fender Stratocaster with a Marshall JVM. Having played for a very small crowd on her first ever concert in a small club in Somerville, but of course feeling nervous just because it was her first live show, Gia said the best way to overcome stage fright is by pretending you’re jamming in your room when it’s time to hit the stage. Furthermore, she said she would love to play in big festivals like the ones in Europe alongside some of her favorite bands like Metallica; however, due to the significant change in her career now, I guess that, unfortunately, we might not see Gia playing anytime soon in any festival or small venue.

Gia has already won many prizes and was featured in different charts in her career as a guitarist, such as for example being ranked in 4th place in the “Top 15 Hard Rock & Metal Female Guitar Shredders” chart by Metalholic.com in 2014; winning 1st round, being 3rd place in the 2nd round, and advancing to the finals at Emergenza Festival in 2004; seeing her EP Cosmic Wave reaching position #1 for one week on KB Radio in Canada on their Top 25 International chart, position #3 on Radio Guitar One Rock Top 30, and position #6 on Holy Noise Radio (as already mentioned); being ranked #1 in local charts for instrumental artists in Boston, and also on ReverbNation in their national and global charts for instrumental artists many times; among several other awards. That’s not just amazing for her as a guitarist, but also as a woman, as Gia herself mentioned already that female guitarists do not get the same respect as male ones, also saying it can be really hard for a woman who plays the guitar in the United States to have the same support as a man.

Having already reached over 100,000 unique views on YouTube in one month for one of her videos (and that number went up to 500,000 views later), and with around 6 million views in total on her channel plus almost 70,000 subscribers, Gia thinks that at the same time that streaming is great, many musicians can get screwed up with that due to the insignificant amount of money made. In addition, she obviously prefer buying vinyl over digital music, as she believes vinyl has a much more organic (and therefore less mechanical) feel to it. She also mentioned she would certainly sell her back catalog if a big label such as Sony or Universal offered to buy everything, but of course she said she’s not even close to the size or level of the artists managed by those labels.

As aforementioned, Gia considers herself now a “retired pro guitarist”, focusing now on her career in the investing and real state market, something she has actually been doing for quite a while (even when she was still playing the guitar on a professional level). However, our talented guitarist/businesswoman still has some advice to give to young musicians who are just starting to learn how to play the guitar. She said new musicians should look at it as a hobby and with an open mind, playing mainly for their personal enjoyment, and never thinking they’ll become the next big thing in music because that’s not the reality for most people in such competitive market. Wise words by a seasoned guitarist, I might say, and you can find a lot more information about Gia and her work as a musician online, such as this nice interview to ROX TV in the beginning of 2022. Good luck to Gia on her not-so-new endeavors in the business world, but of course we’ll all receive her back to the rock and metal community with open arms anytime her mind, heart and soul feel the need for the riff again.

Gia Federico’s Official Facebook page
Gia Federico’s Official Instagram
Gia Federico’s Official YouTube channel
Gia Federico’s Official Twitter

Metal Chick of the Month – Akane Liv

Posted on by
1

Sing with Akane Liv! Be brave! Free your soul!

Do you know what happens when the Land of the Rising Sun, the Land of the Morning Calm, the Land of Fields, and the Elongated Country are combined in the name of heavy music? Well, the result is our metal lady of the month of March, and I’m sure you’ll fall in love with her beautiful vocals, stunning looks and undeniable charisma after knowing more about a woman who perfectly unites Japan, South Korea, Poland and Sweden in her blood. Her real full name is Akane Okamoto-Kaminski, but everyone knows her by her stage name of Akane Liv, the multi-talented frontwoman of Japanese Symphonic Power Metal band Liv Moon, owner of a unique voice that will bring warmth to your soul during the last month of winter in the northern hemisphere without a shadow of a doubt.

Born on August 24, 1978 to a Polish-Swedish father and a Korean-Japanese mother in Gothenburg, a major city in Sweden situated off the Göta älv river on the country’s west coast, Akane Liv was actually raised and educated in the ultramodern yet traditional Japanese capital Tokyo. After graduating high school, she joined Takarazuka Revue, an elite Japanese all-female theatre troupe introduced to her by her aunt who was already a fan of the project (and she took Akane Liv there for the first time when she was still in elementary school), having performed with the company for six years before departing, enrolling at a small international college in Oxford, England. Whilst in England, Akane Liv took lessons in classical singing and performed at the 2004 edition of the Beckenham Music Festival, where she was named the Singer of the Year and, therefore, attracted a lot of attention worldwide. Despite being accepted to the prestigious Royal Academy of Music, she didn’t study there for long. Following a solo recital in Poland, she returned to Japan in 2005, where she continued to perform, graduating from Takarazuka Revue and meting producer Tatsuya Nishiwaki, leading to the founding of Liv Moon in 2009 while also releasing music under her own name, Akane Liv. Furthermore, when questioned about the main reasons why she left Takarazuka Revue the first time, Akane Liv mentioned that after seeing how musicals work in other parts of the world she felt that Takarazuka Revue was a dream world where she had to stay in character and wear makeup and costumes all the time, something very demanding for her.

Needless to say, there’s no Liv Moon without Akane Liv and vice-versa, with our metal lady being the heart and soul of the band since their inception in 2009. Currently formed of our diva Akane Liv together with Tatsuya Nishiwaki on keyboards, Masaki on bass, Kentaro on the guitars, Hideki Harasawa on drums, and Saori Hoshino on the violin, Liv Moon play beautiful Symphonic Power Metal dealing with topics such as tragedy, poetry, love and dark romanticism, having already released the full-length albums Double Moon (2009), Covers – Scream as a Woman (2010), Golden Moon (2011), Symphonic Moon (2012), The End of the Beginning (2012), and more recently Our Stories (2022), as well as a compilation called The Best of Liv Moon (2015), the EP R.E.D (2016), and a series of live albums and videos, those being Liv Moon Club Show Golden Moon (2011), Liv Moon Club Show 2012 “Symphonic Moon” – Black Night (2012), Liv Moon Club Show 2012 “Symphonic Moon” – White Night (2012), Liv Moon Club Show 2012 “Symphonic Moon” – White Night & Black Night (2012), and Liv Moon Live 2012 “The End of the Beginning” (2013). If you want to have a taste of the music by Liv Moon, you can enjoy the official videos for Escape, Never… and El Dorado on YouTube, or simply stream all of their releases on Spotify.

As aforementioned, our beloved diva also has her own solo project since 2013, simply named Akane Liv, having released her debut album titled Liv back in 2014. From that album, you can enjoy Akane Liv’s mesmerizing vocals in songs such as Night Parade, Summer Shadow, and Hikari, where you can easily see how she managed to blend international rock and pop music with Japanese pop. Apart from that, you can find Akane Liv as a guest vocalist in the songs Angel of Salvation, from the 2012 album by the same name by Japanese Neoclassical Power Metal act Galneryus; Incredible Bass Show, from the 2013 album Psycho Daze Bass by Japanese Heavy Metal/Shred project Masaki; Alone, from the 2010 album Crying Stars – Stand Proud!, and Chaotic Reality, from the 2019 album Vorvados, both by Japanese Neoclassical Power Metal project Syu; and Poison Eyes, from the 2013 album Devils in the Dark by Japanese Melodic Power Metal/Shred project Takayoshi Ohmura.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

A huge fan of Queen and Bon Jovi, playing songs such as Livin’ On A Prayer to cheer herself up, our diva mentioned in one of her interviews that she opened her eyes and ears to Symphonic Metal after listening to The Phantom of the Opera on the radio in a taxi while she was studying in England. She said that everyone in that musical showcased a powerful voice, saying she was moved by that, and also mentioning that The Phantom of the Opera has a strong rock vibe even among musicals, with its bass and drums sounding truly heavy. She also said that she doesn’t think Symphonic Metal and Takarazuka Revue are too different, because when she sings Symphonic Metal she also play various characters, sometimes even a different one every four or five minutes when a new song comes up (as opposed to Takarazuka Revue, where she used to play only one character for one hour or two), as Symphonic Metal has a stronger theatrical element than most metal styles. For instance, she mentioned that the role of Madame Red in Black Butler is a character that she couldn’t have created if she hadn’t invested in a darker and heavier world with Liv Moon, as that was a character full of jealousy, passion, affection and all kinds of emotions that are common to most women, whereas on the Liv Moon side, she wants her fans to have a very theatrical experience as if they were watching a theater group like Takarazuka Revue.

Having played a male role during a considerable amount of time with Takarazuka Revue, Akane Liv believes that the project’s appeal is that it expresses men and women of all ages as one single gender, with all of its gorgeous costumes making the whole experience of watching it even more compelling. Perhaps the only “issue” she had during her time with Takarazuka Revue was that she often sang only low notes despite being a good soprano, albeit that also helped her build her own layers when singing with Liv Moon. Lastly, despite being an accomplished singer and performer, Akane Liv said she still feels a little shy when she has to speak in front of an audience instead of singing, which by the way happens to several amazing artists out there, as after all is said and done, we’re all humans and we all have our fears, weaknesses and flaws, right? And being not just a great vocalist and artist, but above all that, an amazing person, is what turned Akane Liv into one of the most interesting names of the current Japanese music scene, as well as into our beloved metal lady this month.

Akane Liv’s Official Instagram
Akane Liv’s Official Twitter
Liv Moon’s Official Facebook page
Liv Moon’s Official YouTube channel