I’M AN ARTIST, DAMMIT! :)

I used to take art classes in middle and high school. Putting pencil or charcoal to paper was something I enjoyed doing. But then teachers decided to tell me how to draw and the joy was taken out of it. I can still hear Sr. Virginia’s voice as I drew a cool picture of Deep Purple singer Ian Gillan: “You don’t have to draw every single tooth in his mouth, Mr. Bello!”

Even back then, people tried changing me. So it’s nothing new.

I was always under the impression that being an artist of some caliber meant not being chained to the Earth. You could drift off, whether with a pencil or a guitar, and be creative and free. Even Picasso once said something like everyone’s born an artist, please stay that way. But there’s this thing called society. It likes to beat the inner child out of you and turn you into a soulless being. You’re not living, you’re just existing to make others happy (and make them money).

So I turned my attention to being a guitarist and potential songwriter. But there’s this thing called OTHER PEOPLE who love to get in the way. People think they know my vision and how things should go. Long before I became an Ibanez endorser, I pounded the pavement like everyone else who had hopes and aspirations of being in magazines, on radio and television. But you see, I never followed the flock. I could never have the big booming Bon Jovi hair, or the pretentious tortured look like Alice In Chains. I was always…me. And people didn’t like that.

Your planet is strange.

People have perceptions and pre-conceived notions of what or who I should be. It makes them comfortable and easier to label me. A dude I went to high school with famously said to me “You don’t play like Eddie Van Halen…YOU SUCK!” He’s right, I didn’t play like Eddie. Nor did I suck. But he wanted me to sound like Eddie so he could pretend to identify with me. And well, I’m not good at giving people what they want.

Playing the clubs was another lesson in abnormal psychology. Lots of pretenders much like what I see today, but back then, there was hope of getting somewhere with original music. Was/is there a scene? Not really. New Jersey will never have a scene like Los Angeles, Seattle, England, Nashville. Why? Oh there’s LOTS of factors but I will let you think of the reasons.

One day I will opine and then see the pitchforks come after me.

When I was working on what became the LAYERS OF TIME album, the producer said to me as we were stuffing our faces with salads, “What you’re doing is art! It’s not just banging.” I stopped and asked “Art? Really?” He said “Yes, you’re doing something different than what’s around here.” THAT’S very true but…art?! And if I go backwards a few years, a photographer-friend told me after my debut Starland Ballroom gig that “You’re an artist, everyone else are just trying to be famous.”

I wanted fame too but glad it never happened. Save that for another blog.

So…art? All the years of being reprimanded for my perfectionism, the years of hearing “Nah I don’t like when you do that”…I was always creating something a bit deeper than the power chords or silly noises. Others have tried thwarting me for sticking my neck out because, ta-da, they can’t handle what I’m doing. You can’t slot me. I have heard nice things such as “You remind me of Steve Vai/Joe Satriani” or “I definitely hear Rush and Living Colour in what you do” but ultimately, nobody can really put their finger on me. Many have tried. Am I totally original? No. Am I unique? Yes. Am I what people want to hear? No.

That means I’m doing something right!

I’m an artist, dammit 🙂