Conventions
Journey Connections - Soul SirkUS
Neal Schon, Deen Castronovo and Jeff Scott Soto were all members of Soul SirkUS.
Neal Schon - Guitar
Jeff Scott Soto - Vocals
Marco Mendoza - Bass
Virgil Donati - Drums. (original drummer Deen Castronovo)
The band was born out of the ashes of Planet Us, the project featuring Journey's Neal and Deen Castronovo with Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony – who eventually returned to their roles in Van Halen.
Neal had heard of Jeff's reputation (Talisman, Rock Star 'movie', Yngwie Malmsteen) and the pair first met then jammed at LA's 2004 Winter NAMM Convention in Los Angeles. Neal also caught Marco (Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy) playing a showcase that weekend that sparked an idea for the 'baddest band anyone's ever seen or heard'. From there Neal & Jeff quickly got working, collaborating on songs, the results which will be heard on their debut album. Neal Schon recently commented on the vibe of the band: "The new stuff is cool, melodic and has plenty of edge. We are very much looking forward, to getting it out soon and playing live. I definitely feel we have the goods. It is sounding very cool to say the least."
The quartet recorded tracks for their debut album. 11 songs were written and recorded in San Francisco at Jonathan Cain's studio, and the album was released on Soul SirkUS Records/Warner Music but sold only on Warner's online store. Just before embarking on the group's live debut, a mutual decision was made for Deen to depart & concentrate solely on his duties with Journey, replacing the throne with none other than reknown Australian sensation Virgil Donati.
The band played one tour in spring 2005 starting in the US on to the UK and Europe.
Photos taken at Bradford Firefest 2005
Photographs by Marty Moffatt
Album - World Play released 2005