Most people probably recognize Marty Casey as the runner-up from the hit show Rock Star: INXS, but if you haven't taken the opportunity to check out his band Lovehammers then you're really missing out. While Marty may not have won the singing gig for INXS, he and his band mates have garnered tons of support from their loyal fans along the way. His band, Lovehammers, has been rocking out for the better part of two decades and will be touring later this year in support of their new album which should be hitting store shelves this Fall.

For updated information on Marty Casey and Lovehammers make sure to visit the band's website at Lovehammers.com or MartyCasey.org. Already a fan? Check out the official fan club of the Lovehammers at LovehammersFanClub.com. In the meantime, enjoy our extended interview with the lead singer of the Lovehammers, Marty Casey.

Q: What is something that most fans would be surprised to learn about you?

MC: I think that people don't understand that I'm an extremely quiet and reserved person off the stage. I think that from the stage persona that is put out there that they assume that I'm a crazy party dude all the time, but it's kind of exactly the opposite. I'm really reserved off the stage and I pretty much save all the drama for the stage.

Q: Kind of like comedians when you expect them to be funny off the stage, huh?

MC: Kind of exactly like that, yeah.

Q: How do you feel about the current state of rock music?

MC: I actually think that there's a resurgence. The type of rock that I like is Buckcherry, Velvet Revolver, and there just aren't that many bands that are breaking and doing that style of music. That gritty, sexy rock n' roll. So I'm kind of happy to see that there's some of that coming back and kind of putting the energy back in rock n' roll and not pre-formulated, crafted tunes made in some magical formula of a laboratory. It's the real deal rock n' roll that's gritty and kind of tough.

Q: Have you had a chance to see Velvet Revolver?

MC: I've seen them a number of times and I've got to meet a couple of the guys and I'm a big fan of theirs.

Q: Were you a fan of INXS before appearing on Rock Star: INXS?

MC: You know, I was a little too young for the heyday of INXS, but I remember probably in 2001 or 2002 I actually bought their greatest hits. I was just starting to come into my own, really just trying to write my own songs and kind of learning. And I bought the INXS greatest hits because I loved their style of song writing. I was kind of more a fan of their musicianship actually and their songwriting skills. And when it came around time for the show I really dug in and got into the records and not just the hits.

Q: Was there anything interesting that happened behind the scenes that didn't make the show?

MC: A large part of the story of the show wasn't on film, you know, we only got filmed three days a week. We got filmed three days a week and then there were two performance days, so there was a lot of time that wasn't captured. I think when the cameras are rolling you're only going to get so much reality. So I think a lot of those true heart-felt relationships that evolved from the show and the friendships that happened; that was all off camera.

Q: And they can make their own reality with the editing room floor anyway.

MC: The shining moment of when I realized how much they can twist stuff was the one day we had the photo shoot for Levi's. And everybody just went in there and you did a photo shoot with Levi's, with some famous photographer whose name I can't recall. So you just stand in front of the camera and you have a good time and they take some photos for half an hour. And I remember when Jordis did hers, she did it just like everybody else, but then when she walked away they showed her walking away in slow motion with some sad music playing like she didn't do a good job. But that wasn't the case at all and that's when I was kind of like "Oh man, they can twist anything they want to twist."

Q: Did you feel that you had to be a little bit more careful then, as far as your persona so that it didn't get twisted with their editing room?

MC: You know what, I really was careful. Every interview I did, they'd ask a question and I'd take five to ten seconds before I'd answer. They didn't necessarily like that, but I knew that you make one stupid statement and it could define you for a long time. Beyond anything I was just really cautious about what I said.

Q: Go ahead and take a moment to inform our readers about the other members of Lovehammers.

MC: We've got Bob Kourelis on drums and he and I started playing in 1988. He was a drummer, I was a guitarist, and we started jamming in 1988! So we'd play some tunes, we'd play Sabbath, AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, and Deep Purple. So we were playing these tunes and his brother said, "Ah man, that looks like a good time," so he bought a bass and started to learn how to play the bass. Then somewhere along the way we picked up Billy Sawilchik who we kind of stole from another band. His band was called Nine Arms because it was five dudes and their drummer only had one arm.

Q: That is interesting though that you guys have been together for so long.

MC: I mean, yeah, we learned together you know. We were just a bunch of kids that didn't know what we were doing and it just really slowly evolved into actually being something that people could even make any semblance of. I mean, we were terrible for years, but it finally came on.

Q: You mentioned that you played a lot of Sabbath and Zeppelin. Who was your greatest musical influence growing up?

MC: I'd really have to say, if we really boiled it down, more than anything in my life I've listened to more Zeppelin than anything. My older brothers were huge Zeppelin fans and I was really blown away because their songs were like stories. It was the only time where I've ever met somebody and done a handshake and felt like "I'm never gonna wash this hand again," was when I met John Paul Jones. Something about that band is so beyond even the mysticism of rock and they were such an amazing group. I'm just pissed that I never got to see them live.

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