David Fleming

Indy rock... Garage rock... surf rock flirting with some of the ska bands in the area...Astronaut Samurais is Alberto Alvarenga II and Tyler Stevens. Alberto handles all the lead vocals and the songwriting, and he and Tyler trade off on lead guitar. They came up in the Moreno Valley, CA area, then really found themselves and started gaining a following with like-minded people and music in the Pomona/Upland area.The band ended up taking a bit of a hiatus - mainly driven by the pandemic, and as recently as late last year going into early this year are back. At one point it was a full band, but these days it's Alberto and Tyler only - adding a bass player and drummer for gigs. They were VERY well received in September at the Unquiet Fest, and will be at the Los Muertos Fest in Downtown San Bernardino on Friday November 3rd (along with September, God Is Evil, The M16, and Desperate Measures). More on Instagram at astrosamurais4ever.

Having just passed KVC-Arts #500, this edition of the program has the tables turned - with KVCR's Lillian Vasquez in conversation with David Fleming. We'll hear a bit about David, his background in and passion for the arts, also a bit on what goes into an interview... and an episode of KVC-Arts

KVC-Arts #500!From David Fleming: I’ve spoken with Trans-Siberian Orchestra's Al Pitrelli quite a few times by now, and it’s always 90% or more TSO, and then just a glimpse at some of his past, with some REALLY cool music and experiences there. I finally asked him if we could do a NON-Trans-Siberian Orchestra interview sometime, to which he agreed… and then he agreed again to make that a rather lengthy interview to be used for show number 500. He agreed before I could even finish asking.We started with his work with Randy Coven. Maybe around age 22 or so, Pitrelli played 2nd guitar on one of the tracks for Coven's "Funk Me Tender." By the 2nd Coven release, "Sammy Says Ouch," it was solidly a three-piece band (with guests), with Coven, Pitrelli, and John O'Reilly at the core. They recognized that by the third release, and instead of calling it The Randy Coven Band, then naming the cd, it was simply called CPR. The CPR release is mostly instrumental, though one of the two songs include Stevie Wonder's "I Wish," with the mighty Zakk Wylde on vocals. You can find a video of this easily enough on YouTube by the way. It clearly comes from an old VHS tape which was starting to stretch out, but it's SO much fun, and beyond vocals, Wylde really burns it up on the final guitar solo (of course). A reference point: For Wylde, this would be the year after Ozzy’s “No More Tears,” and a couple years before his bands Pride & Glory and Black Label Society.This is the next KVC-Arts - Sunday October 15th at 6 pm PST, and Tuesday the 17th at 2 and 6:30 pm PST. Streaming live at kvcrnews.org, and locally at 91.9 FM.We spoke at such length exploring the non-Trans-Siberian Orchestra side of Al, that there’ll be a special one hour KVC-Arts Saturday October 21st at 7 pm PST. More funk and fusion, some Alice Cooper, Dee Snider, Morning Wood (a wonderful acoustic project), Asia, and touching quite lightly on Savatage and TSO. I could've easily included more Savatage and TSO, as well as Megadeth, but after the 50-minute mark I started leaning more toward sounds or bands of which people are not (or less) aware.

David Fleming speaks with Anoushka Shankar. The initial conversation was when she was in the area to perform, with orchestra, one of the concertos for sitar and orchestra written by her father, the late Ravi Shankar. Beyond the concerto works, we spoke about some of her other releases, as she'll be in the area quite soon in quintet form. A rather atypical grouping, though SO nice! We'll hear about this, a couple of her releases, "Rise" and "Breathing Underwater." We'll also hear about her work with Herbie Hancock, Sting, and more, as well as a VERY moving piece called "In Her Name," combining music, dance, and spoken word. Originally called "In Jyoti's Name," the piece is "in loving memory of Jyoti Singh Pandey, who was beaten and gang-raped on a bus in Delhi," leading to her death two days later. VERY powerful! Also touching lightly on Anoushka scoring one of India's first three movies ever made!

David Fleming speaks with Chris Oberg, CEO of Path of Life Ministries along with Peter Curtis, professor at Riverside City College, and one of the organizers of a concert to benefit Path of Life Ministries Homeless Shelter. Then it's more from Al Pitrelli, with Trans-Siberian Orchestra. TSO is coming to Ontario December 2nd. David and Al speak about Jeff Scott Soto (pictured with Al) along with a few other specific singers and specific songs... a bit of theory as well.

David Fleming speaks with Al Pitrelli, music director for, and one of the guitarists, with Trans-Siberian Orchestra, touring live again this year, with two performances in Ontario December 2nd. We'll hear about how, when and why TSO split into two touring groups, the story of Ghosts of Christmas Eve, Leonard Bernstein, Steve Vai - which ties in with David Lee Roth AND Alice Cooper - the latter of which ties BACK to both Bernstein and TSO...And more.

Do a Google search for "Steve Lukather Glen Campbell." There are a couple of hits which will say, "Studio Jam" or "Studio Rehearsal," and both will take you there. It's a little over 8:20 in length. It's neither a rehearsal nor is it a jam - though there IS a bit of NICE jamming going into it, and a little interspersed throughout this incredible impromptu conversation. We'll get a conversation about that conversation with Steve Lukather this evening on the next KVC-Arts. Lukather also shares how Glen Campbell is indirectly responsible for Lukather having a career with Toto... and Toto even - being. While you're on YouTube listen for Lukather's 50-some second solo near the end of Lionel Ritchie's "Running With the Night." That was a "zero take." A little faster than a first take. He did one of those with David Crosby as well. We'll hear about those too.Oh yeah. And also “Beat It.”Also - on Saturday September 23, the Mucho Gusto Music Festival takes place from 3 to 11 pm at North Park in Downtown Riverside with performances from bands and musicians from across the Americas. Afro-rock, cumbia, son jarocho, and more rhythmic sounds inspiring the festival that aims to bring a musical celebration without borders. KVCR's Anthony Victoria-Midence sat down with festival organizers Ulises Rodriguez of Santo Golpe, Eddie Valencia of Quitapenas and Richie Velazquez also known as Deladeso. More at muchogustofest.com

David Fleming welcomes Steve Lukather back to the program. Lukather is the original guitarist and one of the founding members of Toto. He has several releases under his own name, and we'll hear about the latest, called "Bridges." We'll hear about some specific songs, songwriters, and more - with several sidebars along the way, and always returning to the music and another great album. More at stevelukather.com

David Fleming speaks with Yngwie Malmsteen, one of the forerunners and driving forces behind neo-classical hard rock or metal. That’s not to disregard Ritchie Blackmore, of Deep Purple and Rainbow. But we’ll get to him and this obvious influence. Yngwie has several dates in our region QUITE soon – details a bit later. We'll also hear about much of his history, including his first solo release, as well as the band which got him to the US from Sweden. More at yngwiemalmsteen.com

David Fleming continues his conversation with Judy Tschann, and her recent book, "Romaine Wasn't Built In a Day - The Delightful History of Food Language." This is a tossed salad of etymology, mixed with puns, history, and storytelling. This is the second part of a wonderful conversation - fascinating at SO many levels. Check out the first part at kvcrnews.org/arts, also, more at judithtschann.com