Adrenaline Mob Members Talk About the Albums That Molded Them (VIDEO)

Last week, Noisecreep had the pleasure of hanging out with Adrenaline Mob while the band was in Los Angeles handling some promotional duties. The group was in town to film an interview segment for VH1's 'That Metal Show' and other press-related engagements in support of their recently release debut album, 'Omertà.'

For those of you living under a rock recently, Adrenaline Mob features drummer Mike Portnoy (ex-Dream Theater, Flying Colors), vocalist Russell Allen (Symphony X), guitarist Mike Orlando and newest member, bassist John Moyer (Disturbed).

While they are technically a new band, the musical and personal chemistry between the four members of Adrenaline Mob makes it feel like they've been together much longer. Spending just a few hours with these guys made us feel like they were truly enjoying playing music together.

Interestingly, Portnoy told Noisecreep that a lot of what he is doing today is a direct reaction to the UPROAR Festival tour he did in 2010 with Avenged Sevenfold, filling in for the late, great Jimmy 'The Rev' Sullivan.

He described how musically, what he was playing with Avenged is more directly tied to Adrenaline Mob than a lot of his other work. "It was more radio-oriented, a little heavier and more aggressive than what I had done in the past. Coming off of that, it was the right time to tap into that musical head pace I wanted to follow up on," the drummer told Noisecreep.

Portnoy says it's refreshing to be involved in something that is not "prog-related." He also cites the presence of other bands on the UPROAR Festival, including HELLYEAH, Stone Sour and Halestorm, as having influenced his more recent song-heavy approach with "big riffs and bouncy grooves." Portnoy added, "And hey, look at the band – John Moyer from Disturbed was on that tour as headliner and we even have Lzzy Hale singing a duet on the record so that tour is still pretty connected to this band. That tour spawned three elements to this band and this album."

Moyer, who only joined the band officially in the last several weeks, explained what it is that led him to join the Mob. "Disturbed is taking a big long break so I wanted to keep working and being creative, " he said. "So when Mike heard about that he hit me up and said 'What are you doing for the next year?' He sent me the music, I didn't know what to expect but once I listened to it I was blown away. I love music that is about the songs first, with a hard rock groove. It was right in line with what I already love. What's different is that the Mob has a soulfulness that none of my previous bands have had. There's definitely something new being offered with these guys compared to what I have done before. We jammed once, it felt great, sounded great and that's it. I'm a made man now."

Portnoy said 'Omertà' is a record he'd buy whether he knew the guys or not. So we got curious – what are the records that got each band member sucked into music in the first place?

Mike Orlando: "I'd have to say 'Blizzard of Ozz' and 'Diary of a Madman.' I was just so rooted in that kind of metal. Those are song-oriented albums, which really got me into writing, and shredding."

Mike Portnoy: "My taste is pretty eclectic. My favorite classic rock stuff was like 'Sgt. Pepper,' and 'Tommy' and 'The Wall.' Then there was prog-rock stuff, like 'Permanent Waves,' 'In the Court of the Crimson King' and 'Close to the Edge.' Then there was the metal stuff, like 'Master of Puppets,' 'Piece of Mind,' but if I had to pick three albums that reflect what Adrenaline Mob is about, I'd have to say, 'Van Halen,' 'Back in Black' and Alice in Chains' 'Dirt.' Those are all so song-oriented. Every song is just a killer. And that's what we went for on this new record."

Russell Allen: "For me, as a kid, 'Van Halen' was it. I actually wanted to play guitar, pretty much like everyone else in the world after hearing that record. But my fingers started bleeding so that was that and I ended up singing! AC/DC's 'Back in Black' is another one. And '1984' from Van Halen, because of all those awesome videos, like 'Hot for Teacher.' The other big record for me was Iron Maiden's 'Piece of Mind.' That's what got me into metal."

John Moyer: 'Appetite for Destruction' was a huge influence on me. That made me want to pick up a bass and I didn't know what music really was before that. It just made me want to be in a band. 'Master of Puppets' is another one, and a Faith No More record called 'The Real Thing.' Those are still the records that I chase today, to create moments like that."

Adrenaline Mob's 'Omertà' is available now.