XS ROCK Featured Artist: Holy Mother

Holy Mother's Mike Tirelli talks to XS ROCK about their latest album "Face This Burn", the bands' history, as well as Mike's lengthy career in the music business that started when he was just 18 years old. If you're not familiar with Holy Mother, you absolutely have to check them out.  There's also a good chance that you've heard Mike singing in the bands' Messiah's Kiss, Riot, and Jack Starr's Burning Starr.

Listen to our in-depth interview with Mike Tirelli at the link below:

MIKE TIRELLI - SINGER/SONGWRITER/GUITARIST - BIO

Background:

Mike Tirelli, born on Long Island, New York, is an American Rock Singer/Songwriter. He is known for his exceptionally wide vocal range, as well as his powerful voice which has been compared to the late great Ronnie James Dio. Mike was born into a family of police officers.  His father and two older brothers spent their careers with New York police departments, but Mike knew from a young age that he was heading in another direction. Tirelli started singing at the age of 14. And at 15 he joined his first band and spent the next couple of years playing all around the New York area.

Holy Mother, the early years (1995-2003)

Mike Tirelli started Holy Mother with bandmates: James Harris on drums (formally of Dirty Looks), bassist Randy Coven (Yngwie Malmsteen, Zakk Wylde, Steve Vai) and guitarist Spike Francis. Holy Mother signed a deal with independent German record labels and went on to record five successful albums, the last album on SPV/Steamhammer records. The highlight of Holy Mother's early years was playing major festivals in Europe, including Wacken Open Air, one of the largest Heavy Metal festivals in the world, and one of the largest open-air festivals in Germany.

Messiah's Kiss, 2002-present

Mike Tirelli was contacted by the German power metal band, Repression, which would transform into Messiah's Kiss when Tirelli joined the band in 2002. Messiah's Kiss's signed to SPV/Steamhammer, and was immediately booked at Wacken Open Air, which was Messiah's Kiss's very first live show together. Messiah's Kiss then went on their first tour covering all of Europe, supporting metal queen Doro Pesch. Mike is still writing, recording, and touring with Messiah's Kiss, and they are currently working on their fifth studio album.

Messiah's Kiss - Heavy Metal/Power Metal

www.messiahskiss.com 

Riot, 2005-2007

In between touring and recording with Messiah's Kiss, Mike joined the band Riot, an American hard rock band founded in New York City by guitarist Mark Reale. Mike toured with the band for three years in the USA, Europe, and Japan, until his cancer diagnosis in 2008

Stage III Stomach Cancer, 2008-2009

In the fall of 2008, Mike was diagnosed with Stage III stomach cancer and went into treatment for this life-threatening illness. After extensive chemotherapy treatments, he underwent full gastrectomy surgery (removal of the entire stomach), followed by additional chemotherapy treatments. His treatments and surgery were grueling, but thankfully a huge success in eradicating the disease, and today he remains cancer-free. Mike reflects on the fact that he had the same cancer as his hero, Ronnie James Dio, who sadly succumbed to the disease

Las Vegas 'Rock Star' at Planet Hollywood, 2009

Tirelli went on to star in the hit show 'Rock Star' in Las Vegas, playing the character of David Coverdale.  The show featured different singers portraying different characters such as Steven Tyler, Bon
Scott, Nancy Wilson, Robert Plant, and several others. That show lasted eight months

Entourage, a wedding band, 2004-present

Tirelli also dabbles in all styles of music and is currently in the eight-piece band, Entourage, an exceptionally talented and well-rehearsed band that has performed at thousands of weddings, corporate events, and private parties around New York.

Entourage Band - Eight Piece Band covering all genres of the '70s, 80's, 90's, 2K, and hits of today

www.entouragebandny.com

Almost Whitesnake, 2014-present

Tirelli is the singer in this band, where you can hear and see all the subtle nuances and musical inflections of seeing Whitesnake in the 80's as Mike captures David Coverdale's early soulful voice.

Almost Whitesnake - tribute band

www.almostwhitesnake.com

Holy Mother, 2020-present

Today, Mike Tirelli and James Harris are enjoying success once again with the reunion of Holy Mother. Their new album, 'Face This Burn', signed to Massacre/AFM Records, has a diverse collections of modern, hard-driving, strength, and fever-pitched intense songs. Tirelli's powerful voice and the band's innovative hard rock riffs caught the attention of renowned producer Kane Churko (Ozzy Osbourne, Disturbed, Five Finger Death Punch, Bad Wolves, just to name a few). To enhance the music's intensity and bring the production to the next level, Tirelli brought in Kane Churko to co-produce, mix and master his songs at The Hideout Recording Studio in Las Vegas. New to the band is guitarist Greg Giordano. Greg came as a recommendation from Nick Lee from the band RIOT. Having Greg in the band opened up the sound for HOLY
MOTHER as far as progressiveness goes, especially in the guitar solos. Randy Coven was the original bassist of Holy Mother. Randy sadly passed away in 2014. Randy was a very unique Bass Player as everybody knows, and hard to replace, so we decided to dedicate the album in his name. Our new bass player, Russell Pzutto, was recruited from Dee Snider’s band, and played on one track on this album, called ‘The River’. Russell will continue playing with Dee, and will be the bass player in Holy Mother as well. We’re happy to have Russell on board! We also will be working with our new manager, Danny Stanton of Coallier Entertainment. We look forward to his experience and expertise to help lead Holy Mother to have great success.

Holy Mother

https://www.facebook.com/holymotherband

Band Geek, 2020

I’ve done some shows on YouTube, one in particular called ‘band geek’. Band Geek features Richie Castellano, the guitar player and singer for the band Blue Öyster Cult, along with his musician friends. I’ve done three songs on his YouTube channel.

https://youtu.be/IFgG7hRsfdU Here I Go Again - Whitesnake cover

https://youtu.be/Y-92hm69qx0 Children Of The Sea - Black Sabbath cover

https://youtu.be/OJ1BXA-RR5A To Be With You - Mr. Big

Mike Tirellli's Influences

Black Sabbath, especially the Heaven and Hell album, which featured Ronnie James Dio, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Queensryche, and Ray Gillian from Badlands.

Mike Tirelli personal life

Wife: Janet, Daughter: Violet, Son: Michael.

Tennis with wife, working out at the gym.

New York Mets

Mike Tirelli social media:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe4KYT0ihuRb-SogWXY7JTw?view_as=subscriber

https://www.facebook.com/miketirellimusician

https://www.instagram.com/mike_tirelli_musician/

Holy Mother (1995)

1. Call Me by My Real Name
2. Eden
3. The Train
4. In Our Minds
5. Say Goodbye
6. The Innocent Only
7. Your Song (Elton John cover)
8. Indian Summer
9. Dealin' with Me
10. Rage
11. Kayla

Tabloid Crush (1996)

1. Spit
2. In the Gutter
3. Electric Love
4. Yesterday
5. Disconnected
6. Machine World
7. Time of the Season
8. Hole in the Sky
9. Shoot the News
10. Spanish Skies
11. Prince of the Garden

Toxic Rain (1998)

1. Wars
2. Electric
3. Toxic Rain
4. The Rats Keep Runnin'
5. My Destination
6. Live to Die
7. The River
8. You've Got Another Thing Comin' (Judas Priest cover)
9. Symptom of Withdrawal
10. Melting Pot
11. Losing My Bet

Criminal Afterlife (1999)

1. The Rage
2. Criminal Afterlife
3. Holy Diver (Dio cover)
4. Cycle of the Sun
5. Call the Ghost
6. The Memory Dies
7. Armageddon, Part 1
8. Armageddon, Part 2
9. Turned in Your Gun
10. What If Tomorrow Never Comes
11. Lies...
12. Life in Stone

My World War (2002)

1. Livin' on Luck
2. Freakshow
3. The Itch
4. My World War
5. Where Their Children Play
6. Yesterday
7. Rebel Yell (Billy Idol cover)
8. High
9. Hunting
10. Save Me
11. Mr. Right

Dealin' With The Devil (Compilation) (2002)

1. Livin' On Luck
2. Freakshow
3. The Rage
4. Criminal Afterlife
5. Turned in Your Gun
6. Call Me by My Real Name
7. The Train
8. In Our Minds
9. The Innocent Only
10. Indian Summer
11. High
12. Wars
13. Electric
14. Toxic Rain
15. Electric (1996 demo version)
16. Live to Die (1997 demo version)
17. The River (1997 demo version)
18. Call the Ghost (1997 demo version)
19. In the Gutter (1996 demo version)

Agoraphobia (2003)

1. Success
2. Modern Day God
3. Heaven's Door
4. Agoraphobia
5. Hungry for Exxstacy
6. Society, Anxiety
7. Skitzo
8. Nympho
9. Never Say Die (Black Sabbath cover)
10. Sheer Erotica

Listen to it On Spotify:

Rock Diamonds (Split) (2003)

Holy Mother - You've Got Another Thing Comin' (Judas Priest cover)
Holy Mother - Holy Diver (Dio cover)
Holy Mother - Rebel Yell (Billy Idol cover)
Holy Mother - Your Song (Elton John cover)
Holy Mother - Time of the Season (The Zombies cover)

Wake Up America (Digital Single) (2020)

Listen to it on Spotify: 

Face This Burn (2021)

1. Face This Burn
2. Love Is Dead
3. Legends
4. No Death Reborn
5. The Truth
6. Prince of the Garden
7. Wake Up America
8. Mesmerized by Hate
9. Today
10. The River
11. Superstar

Review: I absolutely love it when an album comes across my desk that surprises me with how good it is. As rock a journalist I receive a lot of stuff for review on a daily basis and honestly only about 5-10% of it is actually good, interesting, or worth listening to.  Holy Mother's Face The Burn is one of those albums that simply surprises and blows you away. Lead by the excellent vocals of former Riot V vocalist Mike Tirelli this album is simply outstanding. It's classic-sounding metal with just the slightest amount of modern touches that actually work really well and make this a cut above your standard metal album. Holy Mother isn't new. The band started back in 1995 and they have released six full-length albums prior to this one with the last one being released in 2003. This album sees a reunion of vocalist Tirelli and drummer Jim Harris to bring back the band. The album is dedicated to former band bassist Randy Coven who died in 2014. The songwriting and structure are really, really good and it elevates the entire album.  This album has everything that you love and nothing to dislike. The sound quality and production are near perfect and the band really nails it song after song. You may think I'm exaggerating about how great this album is, but I'm not. This is is my first recommended "Must Hear" metal album of 2021! Don't sleep on this one! The entire album of Holy Mother's Face This Burn is any metalhead's dream come true. It gets released on February 12. 2021. Put it at the top of your list of albums to listen to!

Tracklisting:

01. Face This Burn
02. Love Is Dead
03. Legends
04. No Death Reborn
05. The Truth
06. Prince of the Garden
07. Wake up America
08. Mesmerized by Hate
09. Today
10. The River
11. Superstar

Holy Mother is:

Mike Tirelli - vocals
Jim Harris - drums
Greg Giordano - guitar
Russell Pzütto - bass

Follow Holy Mother On Their Social Media Sites:

Facebook

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeTirelli

Instagram

Holy Mother Complete Bio

HOLY MOTHER

Modern, hard-driving ROCK

Hometown: New York, USA

Years active: 1995-2003, 2020-present

Influences: Dio, David Coverdale, Disturbed, Five Finger Death Punch

Capitalizing on the songwriting magic produced when powerhouse vocalist, Mike Tirelli, and mind-blowing drummer, Jim Harris started writing again together, they decided to reunite in 2020, with a fresh, heavy, modern rock sound. The duo rounded out the group's lineup with Greg Giordano (guitarist), who is known for his hyper-accurate blazing guitar leads and victorious riffs. They then recruited Russell Pzutto from Dee Snider's band to replace the late great Randy Coven on bass.

Holy Mother is back with a killer new album called Face This Burn, released on January 22, 2021, in Europe and February 12, 2021, in the USA and worldwide, by Massacre Records.  Mixed and mastered at Hideout Recording Studio, Las Vegas, by the famous Mr. Kane Churko (Disturbed, Ozzy, Papa Roach, In This Moment).  Holy Mother is bringing modern, hard-driving, bang-your-head rock back to audiences worldwide. The band's high energy performances bring the audience to their feet with their fists in the air chanting for more. Holy Mother keeps their fans moshing, singing, and fist-pumping from the first note to the last.

In an article from Metal Odyssey online: "You are getting the entire metal ball o' wax with Holly Mother's playing", and, "No standard stuff or copycat crap going on with this band". And from XSrock.com: "Holy Mother's Face This Burn is one of those albums that simply surprises and blows you away. The entire album...is any metalhead's dream come true. Put it at the top of your list of albums to listen to!"

Mike Tirelli (lead vocals) thought he would never sing again after being diagnosed with stage 3 stomach cancer in 2008. Despite the debilitating illness taking him out of the music scene for some years, Mike bounced back....better than ever. This American singer/songwriter is known for his exceptionally wide vocal range, as well as his powerful voice which has been compared to the late great Ronnie James Dio, who, coincidentally, had the same stomach cancer as Mike, but Dio tragically lost his battle with the disease in 2010. Mike was the former vocalist for Riot and Burning Starr and is the current vocalist for the German band, Messiah's Kiss. Mike's vocals add a harder edge, supercharged performance, and can hit the high notes.

Jim Harris (drums) is the songwriting partner and drummer with Tirelli during the early years of Holy Mother, as well as the Holy Mother of today. Jim was half of the powerhouse rhythm section alongside of legendary Bassist Randy Coven, with whom he recorded in excess of 50 songs. Jim also played drums for illusionist Criss Angel early in his career, Burning Starr (with Mike Tirelli), and national recording artists Dirty Looks.

Greg Giordano (guitar) is the frontman and founding member of progressive metal act Turrigenous. He has toured with New York-based thrash band Martyrd, opening for Fear Factory and Soilwork as well as appearing on the final voyage of the Motorhead Motorboat.  Greg is also known for his hyper-accurate guitar covers of Opeth and Kiko Loureiro (Angra, Megadeth), available on YouTube. He is also an accomplished guitar, bass, piano, and vocal teacher.

Russell Pzutto (bass) was born and raised in New York City and worked with Twisted Sister as an understudy for the bassist Mark "Animal" Mendoza. Russell is a permanent bassist for Dee Snider's solo band and completed a two-year world tour with Dee for the album "For The Love Of Metal' on Napalm Records. Russell is a versatile musician with a strong passion for bass who also plays guitar and drums. Now, Russell has joined Holy Mother to replace the late great Randy Coven. Russell has the talent and experience that Holy Mother was looking for.

Follow Holy Mother:

Holy Mother On Twitter

Holy Mother On Facebook