Serge Pizzorno
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Sergio Pizzorno | |
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 Sergio Pizzorno performing with Kasabian, July 2010. | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Sergio Lorenzo Pizzorno |
| Born | 15 December 1980 |
| Origin | Newton Abbot, Devon, England |
| Genres | Indie rock, space rock, neo-psychedelia, electronica |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, guitarist |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, synthesizer, piano, omnichord, bass |
| Website | www |
Sergio Lorenzo "Serge" Pizzorno (born 15 December 1980) is a British guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the indie rock band Kasabian.[1] He is Kasabian's lead song-writer since the departure of Christopher Karloff. He is also one half of Psychedelic Indie-Rock duo, Loose Tapestries, which he formed with Noel Fielding after they worked together on the music for the latter's sketch-comedy show, Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy. Pizzorno supports Leicester City F.C.[2]
Biography
Serge's grandfather emigrated from Genoa, Italy to England and settled in Leicester.[3] Despite being brought up in the city, Serge was born in Newton Abbot, Devon because his mother liked the hospital.[4] Serge originally had intentions to start a career in football. He says “I told my careers adviser I wanted to be centre forward for Leicester City. When he said 'No' I thought I'd be in a rock 'n' roll band." He also stated as a young boy that his main aim in life is to become as successful as possible. Serge attended Countesthorpe Community College in Leicestershire.
Kasabian
Serge is not seen as being fond of Kasabian being compared to similar, older bands, including Oasis and The Stone Roses. He says “The foreign fans listen to the music more and don’t call us The Stone Roses or anything. I think they get us for who we are, especially in France and places like that. There’s no baggage like in the UK.”[5]
Despite this, Serge is still a keen admirer of Britpop band Oasis, in particular former lead guitarist Noel Gallagher. “At our school, if you played guitar you got beat up for being a ponce. Then Oasis came along and suddenly playing guitar was cool. They inspired a whole generation of bands. When we started out as kids, it was Noel Gallagher who inspired me more than any teacher or historical figure I’d heard about.”[6] “For Oasis to ask us to go with them is an honour and a pleasure. I imagine they see a lot of themselves in us and I don’t imagine they’d go on tour with a band they didn’t like.”
Other work
Serge has also worked with former Kasabian lead guitarist and song writer Chris Karloff on the DJ Shadow track “The Tiger” from the album The Outsider. He notably scored a fabulous volley in the "Road to Wembley" segment on Soccer AM.
Serge was at Wembley in December 2010 to make the draw for the FA Cup Third Round Proper, along with former Oasis guitarist and good friend Noel Gallagher. There were allegations of the draw being fixed after both men drew out their favourite teams - Leicester City and Manchester City - to play each other in a Third Round tie, however these were denied by the FA, Pizzorno and Gallagher.
In 2010, he composed the music for the movie London Boulevard, starring Colin Farrell, Ray Winstone and Keira Knightley. Together with Noel Fielding Serge also wrote and recorded the soundtrack for the E4 comedy sketch show Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy. The soundtrack has been released under the name The Loose Tapestries.
Pizzorno scored the opening goal for the Rest of the World in a Soccer Aid match against England, played by celebrities and ex-footballers on 27 May 2012. Although the Rest of the World went on to lose 3–1, Pizzorno won the man of the match award.
Equipment
Serge’s guitar of choice is a red Rickenbacker 481 which he has played in nearly all of Kasabian’s music videos (excluding the video for Switchblade Smiles), and nearly all their live performances. He also uses another rare guitar, a red 1966 Fender Coronado II with a golden pickguard, notable for unique guitar sound from their 2009 single "Underdog" despite the Rickenbacker 481 being shown in the music video. The Fender Coronado is used for their live performances of the song. The Fender Coronado is also during live performances of their 2009 song "Where Did All the Love Go?". A full list of his guitars is:
- FireGlo Rickenbacker 481,
- JetGlo Rickenbacker 481,
- MapleGlo Rickenbacker 480,
- Red 1966 Fender Coronado II,
- Vox Ultrasonic
- Epiphone Casino (Resprayed with matte black finish)
- White Vox teardrop (Also resprayed with Matte black finish)
- Mick Johnson Vox Teardrop,
- Vox Semi acoustic,
- Gibson J-160e Acoustic,
- Gibson Hummingbird,
- Gibson J-200
- 1950's Höfner Senator (which he borrowed from his guitar tech, Rick)
- Zemaitis GZA200-SUN-NT
Sergio Pizzorno utilises many guitar pedals to achieve his sound such as Electro Harmonix POG, Electro Harmonix Deluxe Memory Man, Electro Harmonix Microsynth, Roger Mayer Voodoo Vibe, Boss tuner, Vintage Fuzz Face, Electro-Harmonix Big Muff, Roger Mayer Octavia Fuzz, Line 6 Echo Park, an Mxr Phase 100, a Vox TimeMachine delay, a Death by Audio Harmonic Transformer, an CAE Line Booster, Dunlop Crybaby, a Boss line-selector, a Boss Digital Delay, and an Mxr Blue Box. He uses a Fender Bandmaster Reverb head or a Fender Dual Showman Reverb into a Marshall 412 Cab and a Vox AC30 30th Anniversary through it's Low-Impedance Normal Channel, and also a Fender Blues Deville combo.
On Kasabian's new video: Days Are Forgotten, Sergio is seen using a Marshall MA Series amp.
Discography
With Kasabian:
- Kasabian (2004) - Rhythm guitar, backing vocals and piano.
- Empire (2006) - Lead and rhythm guitar, backing vocals.
- West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum (2009) - Lead guitar, backing vocals.
- Velociraptor! (2011) - Lead and rhythm guitar, backing vocals.
Other:
- London Boulevard soundtrack (2010) - composer
- Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy (2011) - composer, with Noel Fielding
References
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