THE DEAD DAISIES‘ Doug Aldrich has once again spoken out about the recent departure of Deen Castronovo. The drummer announced his exit from the group two days after THE DEAD DAISIES‘ publicist revealed that Tommy Clufetos (BLACK SABBATH, OZZY OSBOURNE, ROB ZOMBIE, TED NUGENT, ALICE COOPER) will rejoin the band when they hit the road in support of their new album, “Holy Ground”. Clufetos previously toured with THE DEAD DAISIES in 2015.
In a new interview with Jeff Gaudiosi of MisplacedStraws.com, Aldrich stated about Castronovo‘s decision to leave THE DEAD DAISIES: “We got to rehearse, actually, in October. It cooled down a little bit in Los Angeles, and everybody came in; me and Glenn [Hughes, bass/vocals] were already here. And we got to rehearse. But Deen was having a hard time [with his back problems]. It was bumming him out. It’s just like anything — like, if I had a problem with my fingers, it would bum me out; I can’t do what I’m supposed to do. So he was definitely not feeling good about that. But also last year, he had started up a thing with some other guys called THE RISE ABOVE. It was a band where he was going to be singing more; he would be kind of the main singer, I think. He’s got a great voice for this kind of melodic rock, like [our side project] REVOLUTION SAINTS. So I think he wants to do that; he wants to go sing. And that’s fine.
“That’s the whole thing about THE DEAD DAISIES — it’s been kind of a revolving door, and people can come and go,” Doug explained. “[Deen] played great on [‘Holy Ground’]. But I’ve gotta say, I’m really excited to have Tommy Clufetos come in. He’s a monster player. I’ve always wanted to work with him. I couldn’t believe it. I know that he had been busy with SABBATH, and he’s been in Ozzy‘s band for quite some time. And I’ve seen him play, and I was just, like, ‘Dude, that guy is insane!’ He’s very powerful.
“Everybody’s got their strengths, [Deen], obviously, was a super percussionist, kind of in a sense like Ian Paice [DEEP PURPLE], where Tommy Clufetos has got his own thing, which, I think, it’s probably gonna lend itself to being a little bit heavier, with Tommy, just because he’s been playing with Tony Iommi and Ozzy,” Doug added. “Glenn‘s bass tone is ferocious. He doesn’t even need a guitar, and now he’s got two guitars, which is actually cool. It’s the first time Glenn has been in a situation with two guitar players. But, yeah, it’s gonna be thunderous. I can’t wait.”
“Holy Ground” was released on January 22. Recorded at La Fabrique Studios in the south of France with producer Ben Grosse, the LP is the band’s first to feature Hughes, who joined the group in 2019 as its new bassist and vocalist, replacing John Corabi (MÖTLEY CRÜE) and Marco Mendoza (THIN LIZZY).
Castronovo‘s 17-year tenure with JOURNEY ended in 2015 when the group fired him after his arrest for a variety of charges involving his now-wife (including physical abuse, coercion, and unlawful use of a weapon).
