ANGELO TRISTAN of COLLATERAL – AN INTERVIEW

If you’ve seen Angelo Tristan, frontman of British six-piece Rock band Collateral, perform live, you may have noticed an uncanny resemblance to a young Steven Tyler – not just in the way he looks and dresses, but in how he moves on stage and the Rock star charisma and confidence he exudes. Hardly surprising then that he’s been cast to play the Aerosmith legend in a brand new series for CBS, which in turn led to him snagging a film role as Whitesnake bassist Rudy Sarzo, with other starring roles likely to follow. I chat
with Angelo about the art of juggling band life with a blossoming acting career, and what that could mean for Collateral’s future

[Anne] Collateral released an EP of acoustic covers last year – how did you choose which four songs to include on the record?
[Angelo] They are four of my favorite tracks. I recorded them initially at the start of lockdown for something to do in between writing for the second album. ‘Hysteria’ was a fun one to do as I changed the layout and went experimental and just let myself go a little. ‘Hallelujah’ has been a special song
to me from when I was young. ‘Livin’ On A Prayer’ I did, well because it’s just awesome and ‘Dream On’ was me just trying to push myself.

[Anne] What has the band been doing during lockdown and do you have any new releases planned for 2021?

[Angelo] It’s been a weird one as we had just released our debut album, which charted at number 5 in the Official Rock charts, then a month later half way through our tour Covid hit.

So where many bands found the time to write, we had just finished writing. We tried to write but it felt forced at the beginning, but over the course of the last year we have pretty much finished writing the second album and are developing the demos as we speak. On top of that we have been planning pretty much our whole future and not leaving any stone unturned. From making and developing a bigger and better show to recruiting a bigger and better team around us, so when the world opens up again, we will be off the block with no time wasted, haha!

[Anne] What is your tour schedule looking like for the rest of the year?

[Angelo] Our touring schedule has never been busier! We are pretty much fully on the road starting this December (2021) to later in 2023 with the likes of Skid Row, Reckless Love, Dan Reed Network and HEAT, with another being announced soon. I think it’s around 27 countries in total, which is pretty exciting. The second album is planned for a late 2022 release. We also have a surprise release due to come out around this summer.

Festival-wise, we have Steelhouse, Winter Storm, LoveRocks, NozFest, Planet Rockstock and HRH AOR as headliners. We just received the news that Ramblin’ Man Fair has been cancelled so we are gutted about that, as we were due to grace the main stage.

[Anne] Congratulations on the film and TV roles you recently announced! What was the auditioning process like and why do you think you were chosen for those particular roles?

[Angelo] It was pretty random really. Someone just sent me a link to the Aerosmith audition so I just said, “Fuck it” and sent the casting company a photo of me on stage. They replied a day later saying they wanted me to send in an audition tape of me miming to ‘Walk This Way’. I did that and got a meeting with the director who couldn’t ask for a better match. Because of that, ITV just asked me if I’m available for other similar roles!

[Anne] So… when will we be able to see you on our TV screens?

[Angelo] It’s a CBS series and is only available in the USA for now. I’m trying to get someone to rip it to YouTube, haha!

[Anne] Apart from Steven Tyler and Rudy Sarzo, who else would you most like to play?

[Angelo] I’d love to play Richie Sambora in a Bon Jovi doc! That would be cool.

[Anne] Is it true that you’re going to audition for a part in an upcoming KISS Biopic, to be directed by Joachim Ronning?

[Angelo] We are currently speaking to the relevant people to see if we can make it happen.

[Anne] Has it been hard juggling your acting career with band commitments? Has Collateral had to be put on a back burner while you focus on acting? What has the reaction been from your band mates?

[Angelo] No not at all. These are all the things that I love and I’ve always wanted to be a busy guy. I tend to find more time for these sort of things the busier I am. At the end of the day, everything I do is for the band’s progression. The band is my baby and will always be my first priority.

[Anne] Apart from performing, you also own a record label, AT Records. Which bands and artists do you have on your label?

[Angelo] Yeah, so I started AT Records a number of years ago. At first only to release my own stuff but then the more people I met and played with, I just started to help out other bands and musicians as a stepping stone in the industry. The label is on a bit of a back burner at the moment while Collateral are in the middle of a thousand things…

[Anne] Tell us something about yourself that might surprise people…

[Angelo] Do you know what? I’m pretty much what you see is what you get. I don’t really hide any part of me. So I guess I love to be the center of attention, but not sure if people would find that surprising, haha. But… I absolutely love Country music! Bands like the Dixie Chicks and Shania Twain really get me moving!

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To learn more about Collateral, check out their website

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Purchase:  Amazon 

Anne Estella
Freelance Music Journalist & Presenter
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