West Bound are a hard hitting new rock band formed in the LA area by vocalist Chas West (Resurrection Kings, ex-Bonham, Lynch Mob etc.) and renowned guitarist/producer Roy Z (Bruce Dickinson, Halford, Tribe of Gypsies).With a lineup completed by Jimmy Burkard (guitar), Jason Cornwell (bass), Dave “Chilli” Moreno (drums), and Stephen LeBlanc (keyboards) the guys offer their take on the classic hard rock sound with soulful vocals and killer melodies.
If the great bluesy hard rock explosion of the early ‘90s and modern throwback hard rock like Rival Sons are your thing, then you are going to love West Bound!
Interview with Chas West
– What’s new in the world of Chas West?
Well I’ve got my debut solo record—“Volume I”—which came out on the 22nd of February so I
have been extremely busy with interviews for magazines, blogs, etc. throughout the world and
planning for the release. I have poured my heart, my soul and my blood, sweat, and tears into
this record. It’s a great feeling to have the fruits of my labor realized—of OUR labor I should say.
I look forward to doing a lot more!
– Where did most of the inspiration come from with writing and recording Volume 1?
Well obviously I have been inspired by the great bands of the ‘70s and ‘80s like Led Zeppelin,
Aerosmith, Whitesnake, the Who, Van Halen, and all the greats of that era. (Luckily, I have had
the chance to play with a few of the people who inspired me!)
I like the old stuff better, it feels more real. It was long before sampling and auto-tune and all of
the digital “perks” that you see today. It was real and passionate and came from the heart and
soul and that’s what moves me and inspires me. That is what rock ‘n roll is all about. ANY real
music is all about that. If it is real and good, and I feel it, it inspires me.
– How long have you been playing with the band members on the album for West Bound?
I’ve known these guys for quite a while. Roy Z I originally met back when he was playing with
Bruce Dickinson and I was with The Jason Bonham Band. We were on tour together in South
America. We kept in touch because we both live in Southern California. Then years later, of
course, we did the Tribe of Gypsies record and toured in Japan for that. As for Dave “Chili”
Moreno, I’ve known him for over 25 years now. Brian Tichy and I have known each other for
quite a few years now too. We have an All-Star Zeppelin tribute band we do called The Moby
Dicks. Jimmy Burkard I met thru my friend Stephen McGrath who is the bass player for Billy
Idol. When I met him I just thought to myself, “Wow, this guy is phenomenal.” It’s like I have my
own Jimmy Page. Jason Cornwell I know him because we did some shows on the east coast a
few years ago in New England on another separate side project. We got on really well. It’s kind
of funny because he is a Berklee guy too—as is Brian Tichy—so it’s a small world there. I wanted
to make sure that my band was a group of guys that weren’t a bunch of strangers. Not just a
bunch of hired guns. I wanted to have the old school bonding and a real family unit. I wanted
to do it the old school way—the way I grew up. You know, like when you’d go after school and
rehearse with your bros!
– Do you consider album artwork as important now that music is mostly downloaded?
I do. And here’s why. As humans, we get a feeling instantly from design and shape (mostly
subconsciously) than we do from stopping to read text. Remember spending hours in the
record store just flipping thru album covers? You could determine if the cover you were looking
at promised your kind of music. Maybe that wasn’t true 100% of the time, but I’d say in general
you just got a feeling from it. You just knew. These days, even though we are all playing music
digitally, we still need to surf thru album covers in music libraries to find our music, right? It is
a quick identifier and tone setter. It’s the best advertisement of your music. I think it makes the
entire experience feel more complete. Beyond the artwork, I know that some people, myself
included, enjoy reading the liner notes—the lyrics, the thank yous, etc.
– Do you have any tours coming up in the near future?
I’m currently working with a booking agent and we are setting up shows for the spring, summer
and fall. Our first debut show will be on Tuesday, February 26th at the Whisky a Go-Go in West
Hollywood, California. After that, we are going to be doing the Viper Room on April 25 and then
Counts Vamp’d in Las Vegas on April 26th. Everything else is being set up right now. So, yeah, I
want to take this far and wide—here, there, and everywhere across the globe!
– How many shows do you play per year on average, and how crazy does the schedule get?
I like to stay busy as much as possible. I enjoy touring, I enjoy doing shows, but as I get older
I also enjoy being at home and the creative aspect of being in the studio. It’s like that happy
medium, that balance. If I had to put a number on how many shows per year—with all the
different projects I get involved (obviously West Bound is my main focus now)—I’d say its in the
neighborhood of about 100 shows per year—give or take. I hope to make it more especially now
that the record is out and getting great reviews and reactions. I want to take it here, there, and
everywhere!
– The song Never Surrender with it’s music video gives a good feel of being a musician. How was it working on the music video? Also, do you find it is essential to make music videos in 2019?
If you only knew what went into the making of that video! It rarely rains in Los Angeles and
when we scheduled that video shoot it had been raining in LA for a solid week! I had people
flying in from other parts of the country and couldn’t cancel the shoot for financial reasons.
Somehow, someway, we found a window of the early afternoon when it wasn’t raining and just
WENT FOR IT. In hindsight, although stressful at the time, I think it came out looking very cool.
It almost looks like we are in the rolling hills of England or Scotland. A little bit of serendipity!
Music needs promotion. With so many choices out there today, good music can go overlooked
so having a video just gives it that little extra push. I think people WANT to hear the song AND
see the video and if you are lucky enough to be able to make one, it only helps. It becomes
an extension of you and your brand. It clues the audience into who you are that might not be
evident just from the song itself. And it is just an additional way to connect. Some people are
more visual than auditory.
– Without social media could bands today manage to survive now?
I could probably argue this topic both ways for hours. In general, I think you could survive without it, but I think social media does more good than bad. It allows us to connect to the audience in a more personal way. It gives artists a platform to engage with their fans and grow their fan base in ways that didn’t seem possible 20 years ago. And that is important these days – fans want you to be transparent and accessible and want to know you on more of a personal level. You won’t see me posting pictures of my lunch ever, but I get it. Also, as an artist, it gives you more freedom to reach your fans in YOUR way, with YOUR message. However, it sure does take a lot of time and attention and if you get off track with your social media, you can lose buzz quickly. In the old/traditional days, it took a lot of time too – it was just more physical. And by that I mean meetings, networking face-to-face, attending events, etc. Social media still does all of that, but it is in a virtual setting…making it possible from anywhere.
– What would we be surprised to find in your music collection at home?
You’d expect that I would have a lot of classic hard rock and heavy metal, which is true. I guess
the thing you’d be most surprised about is that I also know where the roots come from. I have
Robert Johnson. I have James Brown. I have some BB King. Marvin Gaye is one of my favorite
singers. I think those are the things that would surprise people the most. I also even love singers
like Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler and The Rose. Stuff like that. If it is a great performance
from the heart and soul—and a great song—then you feel it. That’s what I am all about, if it is
real. I love Tom Jone and Elvis too. They’re the real deal. And of course the Beatles.
– Where do you see music in general going in 100 years from now?
Ha! If I only had a crystal ball to see that far into the future, how lucky would I be??