It was a high holy day when the UPS truck showed up last night. I was out teaching but still knew that when I arrived home, a package would be waiting for me.

And here it is!

The second batch of MOOD SWINGS cds has arrived, and orders are going out the door. As I said previously, this is without question the fastest-selling album in my catalog. GO BERZERK! was a good mover too back in 2011 but this steals the show. Considering how slow my last cd MARBLEHEAD moved, this is a welcome change of scenery.

I realize that I’m placing almost too much emphasis on how much something sells but keep in mind that I am proud of my music, first and foremost. Yet we musicians are fragile creatures, and we want to see our hard work pay off. Nothing worse than putting your heart into something (unless the only thing you care about is money) and having it blend with the furniture.

More interviews are happening, so you can check out what’s going on over at the UPCOMING EVENTS page. Also, more rehearsals with Naked Glory are coming up since the gig is October 30th. And…wait…something else?

You’re just going to have to wait a bit longer.

The Ibanez RG7420MC 7-string, affectionately known as Pinkie (thanks to my daughter), got a make-over today at the Ibanez warehouse in Bensalem, PA.

This looks almost brand-new now!!

Their tech Mike really knows how to work his mojo! He serviced my Universe 7 back in 2019, and he’s done work on guitars for artists such as Steve Vai, John Petrucci, Tom Martini, and the like. His attention to detail is truly amazing. Things we can’t see he zeroes in on with laser precision.

Pinkie got the bridge and pickups cleaned up (they look new!) as well as installing new volume/tone pots and a new pickup selector. Fixed the next, put on new strings, adjusted the saddles, and you’d think this guitar came off the rack this morning. IT’S THAT GOOD!

I can’t play it for a day because the glue is settling in on one side of the bridge. Otherwise, it’s good to go. And I got to take a nice scenic road trip there, so win/win.

But the Philadelphia Mills mall was DEAD! Oh man…

As of a few minutes ago, the 100th copy of MOOD SWINGS just sold.

I’m a sellout!!

More copies are coming, but you can still order through this link:

MOOD SWINGS CD

And since the arrival of the second wave won’t get here until Sept 23-28, I will send free downloads of the new album while you wait for your signed hard copy.

Break out the Mountain Dew!

You know you have something hot when complete strangers say “I saw your album cover, it’s really cool!”

Again, a first for me. Nobody ever commented on any of my album covers until now.

But MOOD SWINGS is on the move, and so am I. Two interviews down, one to go, and waiting on a fourth. The Q&A with Jeff Rickett on CBJ Radio was very cool, asked me questions about Linus as well as the album (the cat is as popular as I am!) I have to say, the second interview on Jerry Declet’s Metallicave was a riot!! Another band were on the air, local band called Pierced, and we all had a great time talking about guitars and the NJ club “scene” (is there one?) But the funniest was this one guy who did a drop-dead impression of Hank Hill from the show KING OF THE HILL. Oh man, he had me in stitches. I like to make people laugh but he blew me away!

Next up is an interview with my friend Wendy Chandler, aka “The Metal Mistress” this Saturday September 18. Your eyes are not deceiving you; I was there back in March when I really had nothing to promote. But it was still a lot of fun. Now I have this way-cool cd and she’s dying to talk to me about it on the air. Best part is that it will be broadcast on both internet and terrestrial radio! She asked me to hand-pick a list of songs I like from other artists as well as tunes from my new cd.

More Q&As are being worked on with Metal Maiden Vicki, as well as Tom Hanley on WRAT 95.9FM. Feels like I’m doing a spoken word tour like Henry Rollins.

Except he has a cooler speaking voice.

Might not be a big deal to some but for me, this is a first…

Been on Reverbnation for years and for the first time, I am in all four slots as you see in the screen shot above. Even if it lasts one day, fine with me.

#1 Local, Regional, National and Global

Dude, where’s my limo?

Was going to wait until Wednesday to premiere this but was tough to sit on this a bit longer…

This is the second single/video from my new album MOOD SWINGS, called “Stranded On Pluto”. Those who purchased the cd said this piece was their second fave, following the first single “Never Be The Sane”. So if you like this, feel free to truck on over to this link to buy the album: MOOD SWINGS

I ordered 100 more copies that should be arriving between Sept 23-28. There’s 16 copies left from the first batch so once those are gone, the wait is on for the next round.

Great problem to have!

MOOD SWINGS still continues to sell. And sell. And so on…and so on…

I just ordered a second batch that should arrive at my doorstep between September 26-Oct 1. Which means once this first wave of CDs are gone, the wait is on.

I’m averaging three to five orders a day. I mail out 10 orders at a time, so as not to piss off the postal workers HA! But they have been very cool with me. They see me walk in with a bag of envelopes and the games continue.

Still working on a second video which should be released maybe mid-September. More interviews coming soon as well.

This is definitely one for the books!

My new album MOOD SWINGS has only been out since Wednesday (August 25) and it’s already selling faster than my previous cd. Granted, I will always be proud of MARBLEHEAD for so many reasons but I did not expect my newest opus to fly out of my hands so quickly.

I’ve been to the post office more times this week than in the last three years!

Some people have already received their signed copies, others are waiting, and more are about to go out very soon. Of course the timing could not have been more strange, as I threw my back out a few days ago. I guess I have to take the sour with the sweet. Still, the show much go on. Or in this case, the trips to the post office must go on.

The first single “Never Be The Sane” has garnered some strong press, being played on various radio stations and more will follow soon. I’ve been doing interviews that will be posted soon. And one question that pops up: “Is that a typo?” No, the song is called “Never Be The Sane” HAHA! Definite play on words but oh so fitting for someone like me.

I am getting nice feedback from some of you about another song that is grabbing your attention. I won’t say which one but I am working on a video for that, and hoping to release it in mid-late September. Everyone seems to have a song they gravitate towards, which is awesome. Each song is different and unique, yet there’s a cohesiveness and a theme that runs through. Not sure what it is exactly but it’s working!

Keep your eyes and ears peeled for more interviews, reviews, videos, whatever happens. It took Judas Priest seven albums to hit their stride, Rush took eight, and Scorpions nine.

Is this my turn now?

Here it is, August 25, 2021…

And as promised, you are looking at the brand-new Steve Bello album entitled MOOD SWINGS.

I am about to sign 40 cds and send them out. Not bad, huh?

If it wasn’t for Michael Sabatini and Jon Hanemann, this music would not have been brought into reality. Joe Lambert also killed with the mastering; this is the best-sounding album I’ve ever heard in my catalog.

Free downloads are off the table when you order this but I will still sign every single copy. You have my word.

Here’s the link: MOOD SWINGS

Digital downloads sold through: MOOD SWINGS (Bandcamp)

Now hop to it!

Pre-orders for MOOD SWINGS have been happening since July 17th, one day after the first single/video for “Never Be The Sane” premiered. I am genuinely surprised at how the new music is being well-received. Been saying over and over how I think I finally wrote something that connects with people. The hardest part about making music is getting people to listen.

They’re listening now.

I had to run to Staples to get more envelopes! I bought 36 originally as part of a sale, so I figured “Why not?” Now I had to purchase 36 more just in case I get inundated with more orders. There’s an excitement that I had not seen since 2011, when GO BERZERK! was released. Don’t get me wrong, there was some good vibes with LAYERS OF TIME in 2015 and MARBLEHEAD in 2018. But this? Well, this is the first time people are saying they like the album title and cover! Again, something connected, something clicked.

But how?

Maybe I shouldn’t question it and just roll along. Being the Scorpio that I am, I always have to find answers. My friend Kristi Enigl, who is a DJ on www.plutoradio.com told me that the album title was “relateable”. Hmmm, I can see that. I won’t go into detail as to how the title happened but when I do interviews, the answer will be revealed.

So let’s see…more pre-orders, more envelopes…that’s a good problem to have.

BTW: Someone asked me “Why do you always say ‘8th album’?” The answer is simple: I am surprised that I’ve gotten to this point. When I did TWISTED METAL in 2003, the last thing I thought of was “Imagine if I made eight albums?” I honestly thought after the third cd JUPITER RETURN, that I was finished. Creativity and inspiration continue to strike so I act on them. So if anyone is bothered that I always say “My new 8th studio album”, oh well!! I will always be proud of that.

And I know you are keeping tabs 🙂