DOLCE FORTE

Artist's Website
Contact Artist
California, USA

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"Sweet and Loud!

Dolce Forte is a band that you may not yet be familiar with. They are not one of the many pop / punk / dance / hard rock or cover bands that inhabit Hollywood , instead, they are one of the few progressive bands to be hailing from the Southland. Unique in a sea of self-perpetuating clones, they deserve attention. Dolce Forte is a mixture of sounds and influences emanating from Leon Panepinto on guitar and vocals, brother Brian Panepinto on bass and keys, and Paul Wells on percussion.

I found the band at Paul's house hanging on the patio sipping a cold one. It seemed the perfect setting for an interview, a sunny and warm Southern California afternoon, a well-kept patio and a refrigerator with a tap extruding from the door. It seemed senseless to be more than arm's length from the cold beer, so we pulled up a chair and began right there.

So tell me about Dolce Forte. How long has the band been together? How have you all met?

Brian began, "Well Leon has been doing this for quite some time. Since like the early '90s and, in the beginning, I was actually a roadie for the band."

Talking the brother into schlepping around the gear really is a lesson in BAND 101. Brothers work cheap and are fun to pound on during those breaks in the action.

"A lot of guys came and went during that time. I joined the band in January of 1994. We instantly started collaborating."

Isn't that the way it always works? One day, brothers are beating the hell out of each other and the next; you're writing partners and working on a mutual dream. Initially, Dolce Forte intended to pursue a straight rock format, but eventually Leon and Brian began writing in a more complex style.

"We were bored of doing 4/4 rock and roll." Brian continued. "We wanted to do something different. Something a little more appealing to the people."

The brothers continued learning their craft and forming bands over the next several years, never finding the perfect drummer to match their style. But luck changed when, in 1998, they met Paul Wells.

"It's difficult to find people to work with, someone that is in the same realm. If you can't find that vibe then the band will go nowhere. So when you find someone to vibe with you something really great happens" Brian explained.

At this point, did you once again start from scratch or did you adapt the older songs?

"Some of these songs were written for 4-5 years before Paul came along and he has really contributed to them. For a guy who came out of 4/4 bands he really has adapted well to progressive music" Leon replied.

So then you feel that Paul has offered a slightly different perspective to many of the older songs?

"Oh yeah because it was so hard to find a drummer that could do what we wanted him to do. Paul was skeptical at first to what we were doing but he really opened up."

Was the intent always to be a progressive band?

Leon explained, "No, not at first. We had been listening to Yes and Genesis and 'prog' music all our lives of course, but trying to develop to be able to play it, well when you first start you just can't do it! We listen to so many different forms of music like Jazz and everything. My dad got us into Charlie Parker and John Coltrane, that's what pushed us toward playing more progressive forms of music. Progressive music is something we love and we strive to get better as musicians and as a band and we want to continue to keep moving toward different musical territories."

Yes, I understand the difficulty. Progressive music hasn't been extremely popular for the last decade or so, back during the 70's when bands like Yes and Rush were coming up and more popular, it wasn't uncommon to hear them on the radio; it gave the more skilled musicians a reference point. There was always something fresh and new available, but currently you're stuck hearing less talented artists. These days there really isn't a musical mentor on the radio to spark your imagination.

"I would say that as far as progressive rock, Dream Theater was really the first band to open musical doors for us," Brian continued. "I mean, we would listen to Yes and ELP as kids, but it was always categorized as rock whereas when DT first came out, it was labeled progressive music. When we first heard "Images and Words" it was like, 'Wow, now this is the direction that we want to go in.' Unfortunately in this Southern California pop culture that we live, we never get to hear DT on the radio."

I first heard DT on KNAC, driving home at night and listening to "Pull Me Under" on the radio. I had to buy the CD; I had to hear the music.

Leon added, "DT, along with Fates Warning and bands like that, with their vocals and what not, it inspired me. I never planned to be our singer. I just started doing it because we were auditioning singers but couldn't find anybody- it was just a nightmare. And if we did find someone, they either had a drug problem or relationship problem or other things going on, so I just decided to take on the singing too."

I know that you've got a new Web site together, aside from general information what are your plans for the site?

Leon began, "We want to finish the CD that we have been working on and eventually sell it on our site. We want to market to people around the world. The main goal is to reach people that may or may not be familiar with this music and are willing to embrace it."

Paul adds, "Some live video and audio feeds to give everyone a sense of what we are like when we play live would be great. Any band on stage is different than playing in the studio. It will give people a perspective of what we are all about. I mean, how many times have you heard a band and said, 'you know they are pretty good' but when you saw them live you said 'Hey this band is great!'?"

Brian rounded out the response by adding, "We also want to put MP3 files on the site for people to download."

In the studio or live, Dolce Forte is working hard to bring progressive music back to the forefront of the local music scene. See them live and, when you do, meet the band. Leon, Brian and Paul are all very personable individuals and a pleasure to speak with. And finally, check out their Web site! Later." - Dave Schwartz, DABelly.com