FEATURES!

Baby Animals

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 19:53:04 +1000

* Image courtesy of photographer, Danni Nix

“It’s Rock, some of it is, some of it’s not rock, that’s always the case. We’ve always had a bit of both you know...”

20 years ago The Baby Animals burst onto the Australian music scene and took it by storm. With hit after hit from their debut self titled album, selling 8 x platinum, numerous awards and what turned out to be a 12 year stint as the highest selling debut Australian rock album of all time they were on fire. A second album ‘Shaved And Dangerous’ was released in 1993, and relentless touring world wide with the likes of Robert Plant, Van Halen, Bryan Adams and many more they could do no wrong. Then in 1996, the band was no more. Suze DeMarchi had relocated to LA and then released a solo album in 1999. With no word at all from The Baby Animals all hope was lost, until 2007 when the band came back together to rerecord some of their biggest hits acoustically, we won’t say too much but will let Suze explain below.

We had the chance to speak to Baby Animals’ singer Suze DeMarchi and she let us in on what’s happening with the band and the prospect of a new album, touring plans and how she almost joined INXS… That’s your ‘Early Warning’, now read on…

I have to start by asking what was the catalyst to getting the band back together?
Well the catalyst was that we did this acoustic record for Liberation and that was the catalyst, it was basically “Alright, let’s make this record” and we did it really quick and we did it in LA and then we had to promote it. So we thought we’ll get the band back together and we’ll do some shows and see how it goes and that was it. Then a year ago I moved back to Australia and so I’ve been able to be close by and actually just really get some songs written and things finished you know. 
Your last release ‘Il Grande Silenzio’ was a collection of stripped back versions of your biggest hits as well as a couple of new tracks, how much fun was it putting this spin on the old songs?
It was great fun, it was really fun actually and we did it with Justin Stanley and he just had a really good approach to some of those songs, and I didn’t think it would work and I sat down with him and we talked about it and it ended up being great fun and we did it in a week. 
When if ever can we expect to hear some new material?
We’ve written a new record, we’ve pretty much got it written and done and demo’d and everything but we’re just trying to find the right home for it all you know and the right team of people to make sure it’s going to be right.

Is it Rock?
It’s Rock, some of it is, some of it’s not rock, that’s always the case, we’ve always had a bit of both you know… 
You’re hitting the road again in Rocktober for a few dates including headlining the Sydney Blues & Roots, are you planning on stripping it back a little for the different crowds that will be in attendance?
No we’re going to hammer them ha ha ha we have to close the show with a bang. We’ll just do what we normally do, I think they can handle it, it’s not that heavy, we’re not bloody Iron Maiden you know ha ha ha 
You’re also playing a tribute to Greg Clarke on the 2nd September at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney with Rose Tattoo, The Screaming Jets, and more, why was it important for you to be a part of this event?
It was really just for Greg, it’s going to be a fun show, it’s a good line up and it’s just really foot on the floor, bring your earplugs for that one. It’s for him and it’s a really good cause and he was a really great man and I’m privileged to be involved actually. 
Over your career, you’ve toured with some of the biggest names in rock music, who stands out as the one that blew you away the most?
Well, god, we were lucky, we did a lot of touring with Robert Plant, he was unreal, he was just so legendary and a great man, but then the Van Halen thing was just super fun and just an outrageous rock tour with everything thrown in. Then Bryan Adams was great too because he’s just an amazing performer, that guy was bloody amazing every night, incredible performer. So I don’t know, I’d have to say Robert Plant. 
Also, is there one show that will always stand out for you as the greatest you have ever played?
One of them that comes to mind is the Marquee in London. And we shot a video, we shot a video for ‘Ain’t Gonna Get’ that night and that was a pretty intense great show that stands out as a highlight, but we did a lot of shows, so there were a lot of really great night and there were some not so good but I’d say the Marquee in London was a memorable one. 
What I find is that all your hits still stand up today in a sea of for lack of a better word trash being released onto our airwaves, how does it feel knowing that these songs are still being played today?
Awww that’s good to hear. I’m always blown away when people turn up to the gigs to be honest with you, it’s like I feel really grateful, I’m surprised and I’m really, really proud of all the work that we did and the songs that we wrote and it was a good time.

I actually came and saw you back in 2008 and what I love is that your voice is still as good now as it was back then, what’s the secret?
I reckon your voice gets better when you hit your forties and I also think the more you use it the better it gets, so I need to start using it again.

I don’t want to make you feel old but the first time seeing you for me was back in 1994 at the ‘Where to Be’ concert with The Hunters & Collectors and a few in between…
Yeah that doesn’t make me feel old, I don’t feel old, you can throw any numbers at me

You’re not old, just older
I’m just older but I feel exactly like I did when I was in my first band 
Surrounding your solo album ‘Telelove’ back in 1999, how was the experience of making that compared to a Baby Animals album?
Very different, I just prefer being in a band. I don’t know about the whole solo thing, I don’t know, it was fun to do, but I had a new baby then and I was just in a different place and my head was in a different place so it was different. I’m a band girl, I’m a band bitch, I like being in a band. 
Do you think we can we ever expect another Suze DeMarchi solo album?
Never say never, but for now just the band.

So no songs you’re written you thought they’d be perfect for a solo release?
No, I always think I can make stuff work in the band 
Live you guys are as good as ever and there were some changes in the band recently, but what dynamic have Matt and Mick brought to the band?
Liberty… They’re just easy guys to work with, they’re great players and I just feel that Dave and I have worked together for so many years and for so long that we’ve got a really solid working relationship and friendship and I think whoever we put around that, as long as they’re fun and they’ve got a sense of humour and they can play great then it’ll all work, it’s all fine. 
Now this may sound corny, but of course one of your biggest hits was of course ‘One Word’ so let’s try this. Can you give me One Word answers on the following topics:
Touring: Fun Songwriting: Hard Recording: Great Dave Leslie: Monster 1991: Tiring Your fans: Gorgeous
Your fans that are in their 40’s but still wear their 1992 tour T-shirts: Ha ha unbelievable ha ha
Karma: It’s a Bitch – That’s 3 words – Bitch ha ha Rush You: Hit ha ha ha, Opener.. That’s our opener

On that, I’ve noticed you open with the stripped back version but then you do the rock version, I’ve seen you do that a couple of times
Yeah because we were promoting the acoustic record and we liked actually doing that version so much, it was fun to play so we would do both, we didn’t want to upset people, gotta give them what they want.

And you do
Yeah we give them what they want after we get what we want ha ha

Now you said you’ve moved back to Australia, its better here isn’t it?
Betterer, I’m still just giving you one word answers

Oh I’m off that now ha ha
Yeah I’m really happy to be home, it’s fantastic.

And it’s better for the band
Oh my God, its almost impossible doing it from 12,000 miles away, it’s much better, it’s good timing, we all have kids to work with and raise, work with? What? Torture… I’m very excited about the new songs and the new record, it’s great.

So you’re in the process of shopping it at the moment?
We’re actively trying to get the right label to come on board you know.

So what’s next after the touring? Is it all about the new record?
Yeah, new record, recording new record, getting a producer and then touring on it

Are you playing any new ones at the moment just to throw them in and see what happens?
Yeah we will definitely, we’ve got a new one, well one in particular that I’m excited about called ‘Warm Bodies’ and then we’ve got a few others and we’ll throw a few more out there.

Is it just you and Dave that’s done all the writing?
I’ve been doing a bit of work with Lior lately, and I’ve always written over the years with Andrew Farriss a bit and who else? I like to write a lot with Dave

Speaking of Andrew Farriss, there was a rumour back in the day you were going to join INXS, what happened with that?
Hmm… we talked about it a lot, they did ask me to do it, we talked about it, I wrote with Andrew for a few months and, yeah, then they went and did that TV show and I was like ‘Hmmm ok…’ I just thought, maybe it’ll work and they said ‘well we’re going to do this TV show’ and I said See ya later.

So it was as simple as that?
Yeah

That would’ve been great though!
I know! Ha ha ha

I don’t understand ha ha
Well you know, they took the other road and that’s Ok, I mean who knows? Michael is not replaceable so I think the girl thing, having a girl would’ve been good because they couldn’t have made those comparisons so quickly but on the other hand I think JD Fortune really does a good job, because we toured with them at the beginning of the year we did that whole ‘A Day On The Green’ thing with them and he did a good job, he did a really good job but people will immediately compare him with Michael so it’s hard and him and Andrew were the main songwriters and it was just a fuckin’ mess…

But in the end you go back to your band
I go back to my band because I like my band

I like your band too
Thanks

Thanks Suze, pleasure talking to you and I’ll catch you at one of the shows soon
Thanks Troy, yes please come and say hi, thank you darlin’

Catch The Baby Animals on tour in Rocktober and at the Sydney Blues & Roots Festival http://www.sydneybluesfestival.com.au/

 
 

Crashdiet

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 21:02:17 +1000

“It's going to be awesome coming down there and seeing how many of you guys turn up and we will have 2 great nights and see you at the bar after the show!...”

A leading force in the Swedish "sleaze rock" scene of the 2000’s and now slowly conquering the world, Crashdiet in October will be heading to Australia for the first time. Their last album Generation Wild delivered a collection of songs that in my opinion if released in 1989 would be spoken about today in the same breath as Skid Row’s debut album or the likes of Motley Crue’s Dr Feelgood. It’s just that damn good...and how about that video clip for the title track itself!

Having just played some of the biggest rock and metal festivals in Europe such as Sweden Rock Festival and Wacken in Germany, you can be sure Crashdiet will be delivering one hell of a show when they hit Australia. Trust me, I saw them personally at Sweden Rock this year.

I chatted with Crashdiet drummer Eric Young yesterday about the bands upcoming tour and progress on the follow up album to Generation Wild.

Hey Eric thanks for taking the time to do this interview. So you are finally headed out to Australia, it must be pretty exciting to be travelling so far from home and playing some shows on the other side of the world?
Yes it is definitely. We have hit South America a couple of times now so we are starting to get used to flying long distances to go and play some shows. We're really looking forward to coming to Australia.

So what have you heard about the rock scene down here in Australia?
I haven't heard a lot at all actually. Of course I know of bands like AC/DC and Airborne, but thats pretty much all I know about the Australian rock scene. I have a friend that is from Melbourne and he said there is a good rock scene going on, but it's a long time since I spoke to him.

And how about the level of interest in Australia for Crashdiet, what are your expectations of your fan base down under?
Well I've only heard 'rumours' and I guess it's the same thing as South America for example we had heard about people really liking us there and the only thing you can really use as a guide are things like Facebook and people chatting on our sites and stuff like that and so far we have had a lot of people commenting and chatting about our upcoming Australian shows. It sounds like we have a good following down there so hopefully it should be 2 good shows! It looks like there are people down there who have heard of us at least.

Well thats definitely true! Some fans are even so keen that I know for a fact there were about 6 or 7 of us who travelled to see you at Sweden Rock Festival this year and then found out a few weeks later that you were coming to Australia for some shows, so I guess the bonus is we will see you 3 times in 2011 haha!
Well, that's very cool!

What are you looking forward to most about being in Australia?
Well you have some beautiful beaches down there in Australia and I am trying to get to see if I can get some surfing done whilst I am there. Our promoter has put together a list of things to do and we will decide what to do, based on what we have time to do of course! I'm going to try to do as much as I can down there and will also try and have a traditional Australian BBQ, which has to be done!

You have had a very busy year of touring….how do you guys handle life on the road as a band, anything you do to keep yourselves sane if boredom strikes haha?
It usually never gets too boring actually, that's the life we always look forward to. When we do an album we usually can't wait to get back out on the road. If by chance there is ever a dull moment in the tour bus, which there hardly ever is, as we always have a great time together, we will just watch some movies or whatever. Mostly when we travel between shows its during the night when we sleep and then the next day we roll into a new town and do it all again. So there's ever really any dull moments, it's either sleep or have fun!

I personally had the opportunity to see you guys at Sweden Rock festival this year, a show with pyro and chainsaws and motorbikes, obviously you can’t bring that out here and do it at a club type show, but what can we expect from your set?
We will probably do some research and find out what Crashdiet stuff you guys like best down under and go from there. When we usually do shows like this and flying long distances to special places where people like us a bit more, we do a longer set and as many songs as we can, but not too many so people don't get bored haha! We will try and do as much as we can at those shows, obviously we can't do pyro or anything like that, so we will do as much as we can, but I am promising the Australian fans they won't be disappointed!

I know you have been collecting a lot of footage from your recent festival experiences for a DVD release, how is that coming along?
I will say it come out in the beginning of next year. We have a lot of footage and it's supposed to be based on the first tour with Simon and obviously we have shows coming up in Australia and USA in November and there's a tour with Wednesday 13 and Michael Monroe, so it would be a shame to finish off the DVD before any of that happens. So I think we will collect more footage from those tours and work to get it out in the beginning of next year I would say.

Given you have been so busy touring this year, I was surprised to read the other day that you guys have started on your follow up to Generation Wild. Being your 2nd album now with Simon, it must be a good feeling going into an album with a settled lineup?
Yes definitely. Martin and I have started writing material a couple of months to go. The other day we had a session where we wrote a song and recorded a demo and it feels good as you said. The first time around with Simon during Generation Wild we were a bit unsure at the beginning how this all works, but that's like any relations in the beginning. But this time around it's going to be a lot easier, the arrows are pointing towards the same goal and we have an interesting and fun time in the studio ahead. I think it's going to be a great album.

In my opinion if it was released in 1989, Generation Wild would have had the same impact as the likes of albums from Skid Row and Motley Crue. What are you guys planning musically as far as the 4th record goes?
Well it's going to be similar. The Crashdiet fans are going to recognise the Crashdiet sound, definitely. You always get worried when you start writing material for a new album and wonder how much do you struggle to stay true to your regular sound. You have your guidelines to work with, so it always comes out sounding like a Crashdiet song, even if we try not to you know haha!

I know you wrote around 50 tracks for Generation Wild, are any of those ideas and songs ones you might head back to?
We might head back, but the main goal is to write new tracks. We've written around 20 new songs already and it's always fun to work on writing new material. Those other songs we didn't put on Generation Wild for a reason, for instance we had ballads back then and we couldn't use them as there was no more room for ballads. In that sense we might bring out some of the older songs, but in general we are concentrating on writing new songs and taking it from there.

For the single Generation Wild, you made a video so awesome, that MTV even banned the edited version, but who watches MTV these days anyway! Did you ever consider releasing a 2nd video from the album?
We had some plans and unfortunately our record label wasn't too interested in doing that. We came to a decision whether we should do one ourselves and invest in it, or whatever. We were supposed to do one, but it just didn't happen. Next time we are going to try and do that side of things a bit more structured. If you ask me, I would like to do at least 2 or 3 videos per album.

Touring the world as you have been doing a bit of recently…have you got a picture of the types of people that seem to dig the music of Crashdiet? For example here in Australia there seems to be a definite element of young rock fans getting into the band and the whole sleaze rock movement…
Definitely, our main audience I would say is between 15 and 20. It's always been like that for us, I think we have music that is perfect for the teenage kids that want to rebel against their parents who control them. I guess Crashdiet music gives them the fuel to do that. I remember when I was that age it's a really cool period and really uncertain and you need something and I guess for Crashdiet fans, we provide that.

Sitting over here in Australia, it seems that there is just an endless supply of awesome metal and rock bands that come from Sweden and that these bands must rule the radio etc over there. However having been over to Sweden myself, I know this isn’t the case….how would you describe the level of popularity and recognition Crashdiet gets in your home country?
I would say musicians definitely know who we are. Its often Hardcore Superstar who are carrying the flag for sleaze music over here. I guess we tend to have one foot in the underground, which is what we wanted to do all along. Not to go too mainstream and I think we have succeeded with that and still people know who we are here. When we do shows over here, lots of people do turn up and it's moving steadily upwards. The Swedes are a tougher crowd to please I would say as they don't take lightly on stuff like changing singers 3 times and stuff like that. So it's tough over here in that sense, but we are definitely a well recognised band here.

So any last messages for the Aussie fans in the lead up to your shows in October?
It's going to be awesome coming down there and seeing how many of you guys turn up and we will have 2 great nights and see you at the bar after the show!

Well definitely, I personally will be at both Melbourne and Sydney shows, so at the bar it shall be! Thanks for your time and see you here in October!
Definitely, definitely, thanks for having me!

* Be sure to catch Crashdiet at either of their Australian shows in October in Sydney on Thursday October 20th and in Melbourne on October 22nd.

Check out below when May The Rock Be With You’s very own photographer, Lens Of Rock captured Crashdiet at Sweden Rock Festival, 2011.

Kasabian

Mon, 22 Aug 2011 07:29:02 +1000

“We love it (Australia) and it is a place we feel like we are just turning the corner. We have introduced ourselves and given a little handshake, now we are ready to have a few beers and get the party started you know.....”

Kasabian. Is the band that formed in 1999 in Leicester, England, now the biggest rock band in the UK right now? Well, we will leave that to the likes of NME, Q and Mojo Magazines to argue out, but one thing is certain, the bands fourth album Velociraptor due out on September 19th, seems destined to capitalise on the momentum their 2009 release West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum started. With lead single Switchblade Smiles and new single Days Are Forgotten already creating considerable excitement for the new album, be prepared to hear lot’s more of Kasabian here in Australia.

On October 5th, the band will be playing an exclusive gig in Australia as part of the Debit MasterCard Priceless Music Series at Peninsula, Melbourne Docklands. This will be the band’s only Australian performance. Tickets to the exclusive gig to be held at Peninsula, Melbourne Docklands, will be extremely limited and will go on sale on 25 August at 9.00am AEST. Tickets can be purchased at www.mastercard.com.au/music with a Debit MasterCard only.

But fear not, it seems that in 2012 the band will return for a more extensive tour covering other parts of Australia. On a rare days break in London from the bands hectic European festival tour, May The Rock Be With You chatted to bassist Chris Edwards and delved deep into the bands upcoming album, Velociraptor.

Hey Chris, thanks for taking the time to chat. I see you are in the midst of a tour, where in the world is Kasabian right now as we speak?
Yes we are out on tour, actually we are in London at the minute before we go to Austria tomorrow.

New album Velociraptor is due out next month. A couple of tracks have already surfaced being Switchblade Smile and Days Are Forgotten, I am assuming you have been playing a few new tracks live already…how has the crowd reaction been so far?
Obviously the albums not out yet and stuff so we've been doing festivals over the summer, mainly in Europe. As we've been going along we've been introducing more new songs, the first one was Switchblade Smiles and then we put Velociraptor in there, then because it's just been released to radio, we introduced Days Are Forgotten into the set as well. So you know, by the time we get around to later in the year, they're all getting introduced slowly one by one.

I have seen the video for the making of the Days Are Forgotten video clip which obviously we need to wait to see the final version, but I have to ask, who came up with the idea for those instruments?
Basically we just wanted the instruments to be as thin as possible as we still needed to play something. Then what's going to happen is the instruments are all going to be replaced by soundwaves and stuff like that, on the naked camera it just looks like we are playing wire guitars, but when all the effects and stuff is put on top, when we are playing a chord the soundwave will come off it and the guitar will wobble with the soundwave and stuff like that.

It’s good to see you all survived the explosions as well haha!
Haha yeah we stuck around for one of them, but we had already been playing for like 10 hours into the night, so we didn't see the wall exploding, but we stuck around for the Marshall exploding!

Ok, so back to talking about the new album, after the huge success of your last album West Ryder, with what kind of attitude did you go into the writing and recording sessions for the new one?
It was a positive one you know. The West Ryder album opened up a lot of doors creatively and also a lot of doors in the industry as well. A lot more people kind of stood up and took notice of Kasabian, so this album was written with the pretense of carrying on with that basically. You know, West Ryder opened the door and this album we are just walking straight through it. We've been accepted into a different league now we think, especially in the UK. The Kasabian name kind of precedes the music. You could go to anywhere in the world and ask someone do you know Coldplay and they will be like "yeah I know Coldplay", then you will be like, ok name 5 songs and they can't name 5 songs. That's kind of the power of Coldplay before people even know them, nowadays Kasabian is getting a bit like that, people are talking about it before they've even heard it. That's what I think the West Ryder album did, a lot of people went out and bought it and with this album a lot of people are saying I can't wait for the Kasabian album, the name is proceeding the music which is making us better in a way.

Would you say the new album is incredibly different musically to what Kasabian fans would be familiar?
Not really, I think the album is a lot more "user friendly" if you like. A lot more people are going to like this album, I hate to say it, but it's going to act like more of a commercial album. The songs aren't more commercial, but I think they are more accessible to what a lot more people will like. We've got a fanbase of Kasabian fans who love what we do and we have not strayed away from that but I think we are going to drag a lot more people in with the new songs because some of them are so beautiful, some of them euphoric, there's good radio tunes, there's good live tunes, so there's a really good mix of tunes that will bring a lot more fans in you know.

What of the origins of the new songs, did any actually originate from the sessions for West Ryder?
There's definitely one of them La Fée Verte which we've had in the bank for like two years. We were going to put that on West Ryder but it didn't kind of fit, so we revisited that and re-recorded it and mixed it up a bit with the structures and stuff. So that one has definitely been around for a while, but I can't think of any other ones.

When did you actually start the recording process, was that something you spent a significant amount of time on? Where did you record the album?
Well we took about 6 months out. I did all my bass parts, some of them at Serge's house as demo tracks, then when we came around to recording the bass properly we listened to the demo tracks and they were fine, so there was no point re-recording that. So I basically did my bass tracks in a day. Drum tracks were done in two days, we did some strings in a day. So the actual recording process was very quick, but the actual start to finish with Serge writing it and getting all the recording and stuff done, it was probably maybe 4 or 5 months. So it was quick for an album you know.

As far as the process of writing and recording for the new album, was there any significant changes to the processes you have employed on past releases?
Yes its pretty much exactly the same as the West Ryder album. Serge would come along with a demo, whether it just be a guitar and a voice or whether it comes with sample drumbeats on, or some strings and then we kind of listen to it and throw ideas at it and Serge being the composer of the track and writer of the the track will kind of say yes or no and whether it will stick. We all just throw ideas at it once he has written the initial track. It's pretty much how we did West Ryder and the Velociraptor album.

Lyrically, were there any key themes or major influences on this album in particular?
I'm not sure really, but Serge explained it in an interview the other day that he just kind of wakes up with these ideas in his head and he gets it down and writes it down. I actually asked him the other day, because I was curious. I said Serge how many times do you write lyrics down for songs and then throw them out and then put the proper ones down and he said hundreds. Some of the lyrics will come instantly and they will be perfect or other songs he will spend a hell of a lot of time working on them. I know that he reads a lot, kind of strange poetry books about the Earl Of Sandwich and really weird kinds of people you know. I think he's into reading about those really erratic and crazy kinds of people and gets inspiration from them.

I have read a few references from Serge about how heavy this new album is, how representative then are Switchblade Smile and Days Are Forgotten of the songs throughout the album and is it musically or lyrically heavy?
No I don't think it's that heavy musically, we've got Switchblade Smiles which is a heavy tune, there's Velociraptor which is a 2 minute 40 punk song and I think he's more taking about the lyrics being emotionally heavy, rather than massive guitars and big drumbeats. He's more taking about lyrics. I mean if you listen to the lyrics of Days Are Forgotten, they are really heavy you know, it's in your face kind of thing.

What inspired the album title (Velociraptor, named after a breed of dinosaur)?
Well Tom actually came up with it about a year ago and we were messing around and talking and he said if I had a band I would call it The Velociraptors. Then he turned around and said that would be a cool name for an album. You know it was all in our head for a few years and when it came around to writing and recording for the album, it kind of stuck. We named a song Velociraptor and the lyrics from that were inspired by the name of the album and it just kind of stuck. It's just a bad ass word and it's quite mean you know.

You are headed out to Australia in October for an exclusive one off performance, for those of us without a Debit Mastercard, can we expect another series of performances on the horizon?
Definitely, if we can come out next year and get on some festivals and stuff, then definitely. Australia is somewhere we have been 3 times now and Serge and Tom went over to do some promo and interviews and it's always a place that seems like its got a buzz about it for us. So the more times we can come back, the better for us. We love the place, apart from getting there haha! We always have a great time and you Australians are very similar to the British in your mentality, so we believe if we keep going over there and playing for the fans you will take us into your hearts like the people of England you know. So yeah, we are definitely coming over next year to do a tour and stuff.

How aware are you of your fanbase here in Australia, obviously over here is somewhere that still has a lot of growth potential?
You know, there's always room for expansion, but we did a tour last time playing at some really nice venues with 3,000, 4,000 capacity and we were selling them out. It was just like wow, can we do this and talking to the promoter over there and he was saying next time you come back we will be doing this and this. For us to go over there and play to that amount of fans so far away from home is incredible, but there's still a lot of room for us to be even bigger over there. There's still a lot of work to be done and places to play, so we will keep coming back. We love it and it is a place we feel like we are just turning the corner. We have introduced ourselves and given a little handshake, now we are ready to have a few beers and get the party started you know.

The first few times you have been out here, you have played the Big Day Out Festival haven’t you, which has obviously been a good way to introduce the band to Australian audiences?
Yes, the first time we played we were on one of the smaller stages at kind of 2pm in the afternoon. Then we went to the main stage and played the hottest time of the day and it was like 44 degrees and it was mental. Hopefully we can come back and get a better slot after we have promoted ourselves a bit better!

What else does the rest of 2011 hold, no doubt lots of touring on the back of the new album?
Yes just kind of touring. Next month is album release month for us. We are off to Austria tomorrow, then some more festivals in Europe, then we come to Australia, we've got a gig in New York and then off for a 3 to 4 week tour around Europe and then also a 3 week arena tour of England. Then we've got Christmas off and out to Japan in January. So it's a busy, busy time, it's just going to be touring non stop.

Well Chris, thanks for your time doing this interview, look forward to catching you out here in Australia in October and all the best with the release of the new album!
Thank you, cheers mate!

Tower City

Sat, 20 Aug 2011 15:45:47 +1000

“Thanks for making us feel special at this moment in time. This is why we are doing this. We hope we don’t disappoint! And, we truly appreciate you more than you know.....”

Tower City, the American trio who formed in 1988 and best known for their album ‘A Little Bit Of Fire’ which has a cult following amongst AOR loving fans worldwide, largely Europe. The album, recorded back in 1992 and which features some of the best AOR songwriting you are ever likely to hear, sadly looked destined to never be heard, until MTM Records released the album in 1996 which gained the band a cult following worldwide. With the songs on that album having been written and recorded years before, by 1996, the band had since become known by the name Colorvine, which delivered a more progressive and alternative form of melodic rock that gained them a strong following within the USA.

Now here we are in 2011 and the music of Tower City will be heard in a way it never has before....a selection of their “greatest hits” have been re-mastered and are soon to be released under the title of The Ones That Matter, along with four new tracks that have been recorded in the last 7 years.

With the prospect of an interview just too hard for us at May The Rock Be With You to refuse, we tracked down brothers Heath and Larry Saltis who share the amazing story of Tower City, a story that hopefully for the bands fans worldwide has a few more chapters to be finished yet!

Thanks for taking the time to answer these questions and chat about Tower City, Colorvine and importantly, your new release 'The Ones That Matter'. Firstly, I have to ask, what was the catalyst for going back to the archives of the fore mentioned bands and re-releasing & re-mastering some of these songs, as well as recording 4 new songs for 'The Ones That Matter'?
We have never been inactive as musicians. Our music may not have been represented as we felt it should have the first time around. We went back and looked at a lot of the tracks, picked some of our favorites, eliminated some that involved outside entities, and revamped a collection that we could be proud of presenting to those listeners that still cared. The new tracks are representative of our growth together after the Tower City days.

What has kept you guys busy in the last decade or so, have you been heavily involved in music?
We all have our own lives, living them in our own ways, but the history of our music careers together has kept our bond. This collaboration has reminded us what our true strengths really are. If you love to write and play, it never leaves you. To have the bond that we had/have is a true blessing, and it always comes back to fruition. Tim is a Berkley College Graduate/composer/session player-extraordinaire, Heath is active in other projects such as his new collaboration, Halo for Adam, and Larry is always the Producer/sounding board for upcoming talent. Tower City and Colorvine will always be our base though.

Going through the process of choosing songs for 'The Ones That Matter', obviously you would have reflected on these songs that were written/recorded some 15 to 20 years ago. What are your general thoughts now looking back?
Heath started the whole process. There was skepticism at first, but it has brought us together with great memories that haven’t surfaced in a long time. Time passes, people change, but the music remains. This has been a truly nostalgic experience. We have dealt with a lot over the years, shared a lot of heartache, laughter, and matured in the process. We’ve also dealt with big players in the industry, and it’s nice to be doing this on our own terms.

What was the process you undertook of choosing the songs to feature on the new album as there's obviously over 40 songs from the history of Tower City and Colorvine to choose from!
We focused on Tower City tracks first seeing as how that is where our larger audience base is in Europe. AOR has a true and loyal following there. We needed to revisit this process and represent ourselves personally due to the fact that the second Tower City album was not done well and was a bit out of our control. The 4 newer songs are rare Colorvine-oriented and unreleased tracks that fit the song collection well, and were recorded in the last 7 or so years. We will release a Colorvine compilation soon.

On your new release there are going to be four new songs featured, how would you describe where your songwriting is at in 2011?
A writer has to evolve. We love the AOR community, and handpicked these four songs to complement the Tower City songs. They are melodic, American Rock, with solid vocals and groove. Hopefully they will be enjoyed as an addition to the 12 songs.

Has the process of writing and recording new material re-ignited any fires to release maybe an album worth of new material under either the Tower City or Colorvine banner(s)?
Nothing is off the table….where there’s a will there’s a way. We are going to see how this release does. If there is still an audience that demands material, writing comes naturally.

Not taking away from 'The Ones That Matter', but I am sure this will create interest in the original Tower City and Colorvine releases, are these something that you may also eventually re-release as well?
Good question, but I think we are focused on this new release. We love “A Little Bit of Fire”; it was released under MTM records. We licensed the original material in Europe and own all the masters. Colorvine is still somewhat of an enigma to a lot of the world. We would love to release that material in a full blown compilation assortment. Maybe even the first record in its entirety as well, and then we could release the “Green Record” in a compilation format. Those tracks have never been heard.

So let's delve into a little bit of the history of Tower City. Despite in the late 80's/early 90's you guys having been signed to major labels, what 2 or 3 times?, that AOR/melodic rock classic 'A Little Bit Of Fire' didn't see the light of day until 1996 when released on Swedish label MTM Music. Why did it take so long for this album to finally get released?
We were caught in the crossfire of Los Angeles Rock Politics and Grunge crossfire. When the Seattle scene hit we were somewhat caught in the middle. We were signed to major recording contracts but never got to actually professionally record the songs we were signed with. In fact, “A Little Bit of Fire”, the entire record, was completely recorded in our apartment. There was too fickle of an environment in the industry at that time. One thing leads to another and someone has to lose. We look back and wish we could have embraced our AOR brethren better. We just didn’t understand the European market in 1996. We were actually very focused on Colorvine, a different project, and the Europeans were eating up Tower City. Oops, bad timing! We won’t make the same mistake twice. That’s why we are so thankful for the support the AOR crowd has given us!

For me personally, the 'A Little Bit Fire' album is littered with virtually everything that I love about music. In a songwriting sense, what were you guys influenced by at the time when those songs were written?
We grew up influenced by everything from Duran Duran, Boston, AC/DC, Jazz, Bee Gees, Synth Pop, Def Leppard, and Funk. Those songs came from the heart at a very specific time and influential moment in rock history. We do feel the songs were differentiated by our songwriting skill, but, the sound of the production fit right in the big bands at the time. Our good friend and partner Scott Sanders who is featured and credited on “The Ones That Matter” had a lot to do with the sound and recording of that record. He is the one that re-mastered the recordings as well. He is very influential in the sound effects industry and the fourth member, behind the scenes member, of Tower City.

Listening to the sound/production of the songs on 'A Little Bit Of Fire', stylistically, they are obviously very reminiscent of what was happening at the time in the late 80's, with the big production etc. Whilst you guys ended up self producing the songs, was there any big name producer involvement in the earlier stages when you were involved with major labels?
We were tied to various producers yes. We wound up firing them all. They all seemed to forget that the reason they were working with us was because of who we were and how good the band was at performing live. How we were classified as songwriters was the main reason the record companies were interested in the band the first place. So, when you end up working with people who forget all those things you end up with a one-sided relationship. And, we always felt that the songwriting process went hand-in-hand with the production process. It was meant to be a team effort and not someone else’s creation. That is why Scott Sanders, our fourth member behind the scenes, had the biggest impact on the Tower City recording process. He is influential in the L.A. film scene currently, a devoted friend and partner, and very much a part of the current album as he did all the re-mastering work for “The Ones That Matter”. I think all our past experiences add to the reason why we are putting this release together. It represents freshness over manipulation.

To clarify, at least for me personally haha...whilst both Tower City releases came out in 1996 and 1998 respectively, when were these songs actually recorded?
They were recorded in 1992. We affectionately and deservingly detail our studio at the time as “In House Studios”, meaning our apartment or basement. Some recordings were produced on holidays to our hometown in Ohio, but mostly in our L.A. apartment. Not bad, eh?

You were based in L.A for around 5 years over during what would have been the glory days of hard rock, were you guys active on the live circuit during this time and what were some of your more vivid memories, good or bad of being in L.A during that time?
The record companies signed us from private showcases, which were common at the time. However, our desire was to play live on the circuit, which never happened in L.A. because we were forbidden contractually to perform anywhere on the Sunset Strip for fear that some other band would try and copy our songwriting chemistry. And, that was especially disappointing seeing as how the reason we got signed in the first place was because we were better ‘live’ than how our demos sounded. When we moved back to Ohio, we played regionally and toured around the Midwest like crazy. That was great. The L.A. scene is always nutty as you can imagine. Back then, we were out there for one reason; to play live and get signed. We have always been songwriter-focused musicians, but, we packed a big punch when we were performing. Not only did we sound better than the recordings – we kicked some serious butt and came across ‘heavier’ in a live setting than anyone could have imagined. If you came to a Tower City or Colorvine show, you definitely got your money’s worth. Too bad the scene in LA never got to see it.

In Tower City, we see predominantly the melodic rock/AOR side of your songwriting, whilst Colorvine takes on more of an alternative and at times, funk sound. What was the musical upbringing and influences of you guys, as you certainly covered a wide variety of styles under both bands?
As above, we have all been musicians since birth. When you have music in the home from the 70’s on, there are influences from every genre. Heath was raised on piano and took over drums. Tim is a funk bassist that is classically trained and can rock. Larry was a classically trained guitarist at 13 yrs. old, but, rock took him over in the 80’s. We have been friends feeding off each other from various influences for years. Most importantly, we like good music regardless of the genre.

As mentioned, Colorvine took on more of an alternative rock style. Given the timing of when these songs were recorded, was this just the natural progression of where you guys were at in terms of your songwriting?
Possibly. Heath actually took over the physical position of drummer instead of keyboards and the programming and hiring drummers at the time. We were ready for a change and it did happen naturally. It was raw and aggressive. Something clicked that we didn’t know was in us. The “Colorvine Black” album is our first independent release and a true benchmark for our careers as musicians. It rattled our Tower City fans and established a large following regionally at home. It even made the Grammy nomination list in 1996. We must have hired the right promoter I guess! Lol!

The interest in melodic rock/AOR in the last year or 2 is as healthy as I can certainly remember it being for quite a number of years. What are your thoughts on some of the new music coming out in that arena in the last few years...that is if you have listened to any of it? How do you think the 'A Little Bit Of Fire' album compares to some of the stuff being released in 2011?
Comparatively, “A Little Bit of Fire” musically stands on the merits of its songwriting alone. We think what has changed is the electronic recording capabilities that didn’t exist at the time, such as Pro-tools or Logic which we can record on now and send files back-and-forth across the internet. We don’t have a lot of direct access to a ton of AOR acts per say, but we respect any artist that puts out music for the subjective opinion of any audience. Like we said before, we are song guys, and that means “if you write good music our ears are open”. On the other hand, if it’s not that good, we’re not here to criticize. We’re musicians, not critics.

Here you are doing an interview with an Australian based website and I know from things like Facebook etc, there are certainly other countries far and wide where your music has extended. What is your response to the interest in your music that still exists here in 2011 and the corners of the globe it has reached over the years?
God bless all those that have had an open ear after all these years. We hope you are ready to hear some more, including some you haven’t before! We said it once, and we’ll say it again…TIME PASSES, PEOPLE CHANGE, but THE MUSIC REMAINS!!! We have worked very hard on this new compilation and our new website to access our fans - www.towercity-colorvine.com - and we hope you are all as excited as we are. Hopefully we will be able sometime to share a rare moment live with you all in the future. Thank you very much. Check our band page out on Facebook for updates as well:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Tower-City-Colorvine-Rock-Band/170595206315279

Thanks for your time, anything else you wanted to share or say that might have been missed, here's your chance….
Thanks for making us feel special at this moment in time. This is why we are doing this. We hope we don’t disappoint! And, we truly appreciate you more than you know.

Anberlin

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 08:27:05 +1000

“We always have the best time, the shows are amazing, the people are amazing so it's just an important market for us. For anywhere else in the world, Australia is like our home away from home.......”

It’s just one of those special relationships, Anberlin and Australia that is. Whilst Anberlin guitarist Christian McAlhaney tries to explain it in our interview below, the special bond between Anberlin and Australian audiences just continues to grow stronger with each visit. With tour number 7 coming up, it’s a fact that is certainly not lost on the highly appreciative band, who will be presenting a special set of shows, never delivered before to Anberlin fans anywhere in the world. Titled “An Evening With Anberlin”, the shows promise to be an absolute must for any Australian Anberlin fan. Having toured here less than 6 months ago on the Soundwave Festival, you can rest assured that these Anberlin shows will be like nothing you have ever seen before.

Whilst retaining a certain element of suprise, Christian McAlhaney chats about what fans can expect from these shows, as well as the bands close bond with Australia...

Hey Christian, thanks for taking the time to chat today, so where do we find you at the moment, I imagine you are deep in rehearsal for your upcoming Aussie shows?
Yes that's right, I'm in St Petersburg Florida right now and we have just wrapped up our final day of rehearsal and we are leaving tomorrow for a show in Winnipeg on Saturday.

You really can’t stay away from this place can you, your 2nd visit in 6 months, I have to ask whether you guys in the band have any real explanation for the very strong affiliation between Anberlin and Australia?
I think from day 1 when Anberlin first went to Australia it was an amazing experience, the reception was so awesome that ever since then it’s only ever gotten better each time we go back. We always have the best time, the shows are amazing, the people are amazing so it's just an important market for us. For anywhere else in the world, Australia is like our home away from home.

So how was your experience on Soundwave earlier in the year. I know you grew listening to Iron Maiden, it must have been great to see them about 7 times in a row?
I loved it, it was awesome! I grew up a huge metal head and the reason I picked up the guitar was to learn Iron Maiden and Slayer songs, so I was just like floored. There were just so many great bands on that lineup, I mean there is every year, but this one was just an awesome experience.

Ok, so coming up very, very soon Anberlin fans in Australia are going to be treated with “An Evening With Anberlin”…firstly, how did the idea for this tour arise in the first place?
We were planning this tour and just talking about doing a normal tour like we do over there with multiple opening bands and it just wasn't really panning out in the way we wanted it too. Also, we had already done that a tonne and as I said Australia is just so dear to our hearts and I think we just wanted to try something new and special and fresh for our Australian fans.

Without giving too much away as we want to retain an element of surprise, what format will the shows take, I have read things such as unplugged, storytelling, question & answer, cover songs, b-sides?
Yes there's definitely going to be a lot of songs we have never played live at least since I have been in the band and then a good number of songs we have never played live before from other records. Acoustic session, yes, q&a, yes and all that kind of stuff, that's the plan!

Is this the first time you have done such a show?
Yeah, this will be the first time and we've been rehearsing for it and it's been pretty intense. We will probably play for about 2 hours which is about an hour longer than we usually play.

How much of a reflective experience has it been for you guys rehearsing a bunch of those older songs that you don’t get the chance to play?
It's great, at the same time I love every song we've done and ever written, but some of these songs we've been playing at every show, on every tour so you kind of get a little bored playing the same set, you know what I mean. So it's definitely refreshing to throw in some stuff we've never played before, it's fun..

Just on the unplugged component of the show, is that something you guys have done much of in the past, is it a format you are comfortable performing and really stripping those songs back to their bare bones so to speak?
You know, the band has acoustic songs, but this is going to be really different as a lot of times when we do an acoustic song it's going to be Joey and I and two guitars. But this time we are adding a bunch of percussion, everyones going to be playing different things. There will be a few songs that we've never really played before and a few songs that aren't acoustic songs that we will be doing acoustically.

As far as cover songs go that may appear in the set, are they likely to be representative of the various musical influences of the band, I know in the past you have done versions of Radiohead’s Creep and Mother from Danzig, which are a couple of more prominent ones. You haven’t thrown in any Iron Maiden or Slayer have you haha?
Haha if it was up to Joey and I, that would definitely be the case. When we are taking breaks in rehearsal he'll get on the drums and I will start playing Metallica riffs and we will jam for a while. We aren't really going to be playing many covers, we are however going to be playing one we have never done before, specific for Australia. I don't want to give that one away! But other than that song, we aren't doing many covers, we just want to give fans a lot of Anberlin songs they've never heard us play live before.

I see via Twitter and Facebook you have given fans the opportunity to suggest songs for the setlist, did that throw up some interesting suggestions?
People have virtually suggested every song that Anberlin has ever written haha! There has certainly been some funny ones for us that people have requested and there's no way we would ever play some of these songs, it's kind of comical.

Have these shows in Australia generated a reaction from fans elsewhere in the world demanding the same kind of tour haha?
Oh yeah, we've definitely heard it, particularly our USA fans. Kids have been like, "are you kidding me, why don't you ever do that in the states, or oh my gosh why don't you come to the Philippines and do that. We will see how this goes, I would live to do it again if it turns out to be a fun experience, for sure.

I did notice that this time round your shows are spaced out a little, was that a deliberate move to give you guys a chance to actually sit back and enjoy Australia for a change, rather than playing show after show with little break?
Yes it's definitely a little bit of that and also giving ourselves some rest, particularly vocal rest for Stephen. We don't ever play for 2 hours and the longest we normally play is usually 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, so 2 hours is going to be pretty straining on his vocals so we wanted to give everyone some break time to rest and also enjoy our time here like you said.

Your last album, Dark Is A Way, Light Is A Place has been out for the best part of a year now, have you started thinking about working on the follow up? Where to for the next album?
Oh yeah, there's been a lot of songs already written. There's probably only a few finished with vocals at this point. After Australia we are really only doing another tour for around a month and then we are taking the rest of the year off to focus on writing and hopefully head into the studio around February and that will give us a good amount of time to really hash some things out. We've definitely talked a lot about the vibe and what kind of songs we want on the new record. All aspects of the record have been talked about, who we are going to do it with, where we want to record, how much money we want to spend on it as the music industry changes, so does recording. Definitely the overall consensus of the band is we want to make sure the next album has some really great heavier songs and tried and true Anberlin heavy rock songs!

The band has released 2 albums now on a major label, how has that whole transition and experience been for you so far?
It's been great! I was in a band before Anberlin that was on a major label and that was really a nightmare. It was a horror story and I was actually pretty anti Anberlin signing to a major, but this has been the polar opposite of my last experience of being on a major. Universal has been great, it's an amazing company with a lot of great people who have busted ass for us and we hope to keep working with them.

Stephen for example has a side project Anchor & Braille and has also worked with some other bands producing and writing etc, do you personally have any other projects that you are involved with when you might have a bit of downtime from Anberlin?
I think everybody in the band has some kind of side project. Nathan, our drummer has a side project with Tim from Underoath, Joey is about to release his own record that he has recorded all the instruments himself and sang on it and I think it's coming out on ITunes. Myself, I have a side band with our touring member Vince, we were trying to do a band before Anberlin and we have a bunch of songs that we just need to go into the studio and record and maybe release an EP or an album or whatever. For everyone, Anberlin always comes first, these things are just when we have downtime and are pretty far from anything Anberlin sounds like. Even so, it's always been said if anyone heard any songs that we write for the side projects, it's fair game for Anberlin.

Any last messages for your Aussie Anberlin fans…..
We are just pumped to be coming back, it's been fun putting together the set and seeing it take shape and getting all the requests from the fans, we are just really excited about this tour.

Well Christian, I know there's plenty of excited people over here that can't wait to check it out. I really appreciate your time and hope you have an awesome tour out here!
Thankyou very much!

Catch Anberlin on their upcoming Australian tour:
Perth - Friday 26th August, Capitol
(Oztix) 
Adelaide -Saturday 27th August, Thebarton Theatre
(Venuetix)

Melbourne - Monday 29th August, Palace Theatre
(Ticketek) 
Sydney - Thursday 1st September, Enmore Theatre
(Ticketek) 
Brisbane - Friday 2nd September, Hi Fi
(Tickets from Venue)

Monster Magnet

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:33:34 +1000

“I didn't think it was going to go past 6 months! Back then I was just doing it as a labour of love, I loved it. I never expected anyone to understand the mutant ramblings of a person that just loves psychedelic and hard rock music......”

For the second time in 2011, Monster Magnet will be hitting Australian shores. This time however it’s something a bit more special as the band will be playing their Dopes To Infinity album in it’s entirety, in addition of course to some other classic songs.

As to why Dopes was chosen as the album, let Dave himself explain that: “When I wrote “Dopes” in 1995 I envisioned a hard-rock, tripped-out journey exploring the many sounds and styles of the “great psychedelic era of 1968-1974″. I carefully sequenced the album to take the listener on a “roller-coaster ride” of engaging words and music. I sang songs of love, hate, lust, joy and desperation in a style I hoped would fire the listener’s imagination, bringing the everyday emotions that we all share to mythical heights. Thankfully, the fans and critics told me I succeeded. Now I’d like to bring that experience to the stage. “Dopes To Infinity”: Live! In it’s entirety. A complete trip from beginning to end. I can’t wait!” –Dave Wyndorf. 27/5/11 
Now with that context in mind read on for our interview with Dave Wyndorf himself!

Hey Dave, thanks for taking the time to chat. So where do we find you today, are you guys out on tour, or you enjoying a bit of a break?
I just got back from Europe a few weeks ago and we are just about to be going into rehearsal for the Dopes thing and then we will be out again in 3 weeks.

So you are heading out to Australia for the second time this year, it seems you can’t stay away at the moment haha! How did you find the experience earlier in the year playing at Soundwave Festival?
It was awesome, you know it was like a crazy circus. You get on a plane every day and with 70 bands on the bill, you're on a plane with all these bands and you get these crazy ridiculous Spinal Tap moments every three seconds. It'll be like "hey you're sitting on my chair" and it's Rob Zombie telling the guy from Queens Of The Stone Age that he's sitting in his chair, it's really funny. All the hotels are just filled up with rock bands and girls, it was awesome!

Do you have any particular favourite things you like about being in Australia?
Everything I've experienced in Australia I have liked. To me Australia is like an exotic place. I come from New Jersey in the suburbs and stuff and the biggest animal we have here is a deer. You've got giant fruit bats and possums and frogs and poisonous spiders so from just that stand point alone I'm going crazy. The people down there are really cool, there's like a big heritage of rock n roll, it goes back to the 50's and 60's with garage like bands and just all kinds of heavy rock. I love it, it's just so different from where I live.

This time around you are going to be playing your classic Dopes To Infinity album in it’s entirety, obvious question, what was it that made Dopes to Infinity stand out as the album to play in it’s entirety?
Australia is the first country we will be playing it. The reason why I chose that one is I like the idea of playing full works, the whole album. I really like that idea for a lot of reasons and I want to be able to do that in the future. I figured if I was going to pick one to start with I would pick one in the middle, not our biggest selling record and not our lowest selling record. It was something that was critically acclaimed and been around way long enough to assume some kind of vintage status, so I picked Dopes. If that goes well, I will just keep trying till they fail.

And why was Australia deemed worthy to hear this album played live, was it more a timing thing?
Yeah it was a timing thing, but I tell you man I just put it out to promoters in Australia and Europe at the same time. It’s not something I would approach America with for more than just a couple more shows, but Australia I remember we did great with Dopes there so I said we have to try them. I wasn't sure given we had just played there, but I thought we would give it a shot anyway and sure enough they said yes, so I said c'mon let's go.

Now as far as playing the album, have you started rehearsals as yet, is it going to be something that you will play in the order of the actual CD itself?
Actually, we have, we've had 3 or 4 rehearsals and I would like to do the thing in sequence. You know it was sequenced that way for a reason and when you advertise something like this I think people would expect to see it sequenced, I know I would. When we started playing it, it sounds great, there's a variety of music. It's really, really heavy, then it's total like 60's garage rock. I'm totally psyched. You know something, if people don't like it, I'll know, I'll know immediately, then I'll go to plan B!

What of the stage show that you will bring, is this likely to maybe feature anything special?
It's definitely going to be Dope centric in the visuals with the lights and slideshow there will be images selected for that kind of thing. It's going to be way more psychedelic than it usually is, if that's possible. I'd like the vibe to be Dope centric.

Thinking about it myself, have you guys given any thought to recording these Dopes shows for the prospect of a Monster Magnet live record?
Absolutely, it won't probably happen in Australia but it will definitely happen in Europe when we have time for a bit more preparation. I think definitely if it sounds as good as I hope it's going to sound and it's sounding good already, then we definitely have to record this live. Its like Dopes Infinity, but CRAZY Dopes To Infinity, I extended some parts, it's way more psychedelic, there's some Floyd stuff and it just sounds really cool.

Reflecting some 15 years on from when that album was first released, what are your thoughts on the songs now here in 2011?
Well that was the last record I wrote without thinking anything about the music business. I always like variety of different musical styles, I love guitar music, I love 60s garage music, early 70's punk and all that stuff. This record I remember saying I want to write a pretty psychedelic album but even the heavy stuff is going to be pretty. There's not going to be any rrrrrahhhhh, I wanted it to be like a trippy album you could listen to without wanting to tell that guy to shut up singing! I remember thinking if I did it well, everyone will love every song. I found out very quickly after the record came out my record company was like, "what is this, it's kind of hard for us to sell this record, it's all over the place”. So it's fun to practice it as I remember just smiling all the way through. Interestingly enough, the next record I wrote which was Powertrip, that was written all bitter faced, I was like fuck you guys, what do I have to do put tits on this record to sell it, and it did sell!

Can you remember how the album was received back in the day, and how that influenced what you then did with the follow up album, Powertrip?
I remember at the end of Dopes going it's pretty, it's nice but I sang it too wimpy, the next ones got to be more emotional. Somehow I've got to find a way to get more emotion out of these songs and I said to myself theres got to be more beefy rock on the next record. That combined with the record company coming back and saying hey the records great but it didn't sell and I got mad. So I said what do I have to write, a record about tits and fucking and that's exactly what I did!

How about your songwriting process and the way you go about writing songs, would you say this has changed significantly over the 15 years since Dopes?
You know I wish I could say it really changed a lot haha, but I am so in love with the same kind of music when I started writing Monster Magnet songs. So I'm not writing crazily different music, but definitely the formality of writing has changed. I don't spend as much time writing as I used to and I leave a lot of stuff in my head and just bring it to the band. In the old days I think I did a whole version of Dopes on my four track at home. Now I would just come to them with a couple of parts in my head and teach them.

Your last album Mastermind has been out for a while now, how do you feel this one was received by the Monster Magnet fans?
It did everything I wanted it too, it made a bunch of Monster Magnet people really, really happy. I'm totally used to the idea now as we move laterally through the music business. I think we moved from point a to point b once in our career, we've only done one traditional thing and that was a hit record, everything else has been really crazy movement. So our albums really seem to take off years after they come out.

What of the longevity of Monster Magnet, there have obviously been times when the status of the band may have been questioned, did you ever think the band would still be going strong some 20 years on?
Hell no, I didn't think it was going to go past 6 months! Back then I was just doing it as a labour of love, I loved it. I never expected anyone to understand the mutant ramblings of a person that just loves psychedelic and hard rock music. I'm still amazed that people are getting into it. If I was going to say I'm going to make a band that's going to go far, this would not be the band.

Have you noticed a change over the years of the demographic of fans you have coming to your show?
It has changed, when I first started it was really, really hardcore indie people and then it kind of spread out into a metal thing and a MTV thing which is basically a fringe of people that come in and out depending on if it's a hit or not. Then it started to mutate into a really nice cross section of people, all of them are musical, they know all the words to the songs, they reference the parts, they know my references for rock bands and stuff. I tour a lot and I look at every bands crowd, it's funny I don't watch the bands I watch the crowd, and our crowd is really cool. I'm a lucky guy to have them!

Catch Monster Magnet on their ‘Dopes To Infinity’ Australian tour:
Perth - Sunday September 11- Capitol  MOSHTIX - www.moshtix.com.au - Ph: 1300 438 849 78 RECORDS - 914 Hay St, Perth - Ph: 08 9322 6384  Adelaide - Tuesday September 13 - HQ Complex TICKETMASTER - www.ticketmaster.com.au - Ph: 136 100 KRYPTON DISCS - 34 Jetty Rd, Glenelg - Ph: 08 8295 3044  Sydney - Wednesday September 14 - Metro Theatre TICKETEK - www.ticketek.com.au - Ph 132 849 UTOPIA - Basement, 511 Kent St, Sydney - Ph: 02 9571 6662  Melbourne - Friday September 16 - Palace Theatre TICKETMASTER - www.ticketmaster.com.au - Ph: 136 100 Polyester Records - 387 Brunswick St, Fitzroy - Ph: 03 9419 5137  Brisbane - Saturday September 17- The Hi Fi THE HI FI Brisbane - www.thehifi.com.au - Ph: 1300 843 443 Kill The Music – Level 1, 161-163 Elizabeth St, Brisbane – Ph: 07 3012 7751

We The Kings

Tue, 16 Aug 2011 08:39:45 +1000

“One of the songs on the record called Say You Like Me, I actually wrote about a girl in Queensland who literally won me over. Like every girl there is so incredible, their accents are amazing, they're so beautiful and so much fun to hang out with.....”

Delivering a much needed dose of sunny summer vibes during what has been a long cold winter here in Australia, We The Kings have just released their brand new album Sunshine State Of Mind, full of good times and infectious summer anthems such as first single Friday Is Forever. In a few weeks, We The Kings will be returning to our shores for the second time this year where they will be playing shows with fellow popsters, You Met At Six.

Fresh from battle on the paintball fields and with the smell of BBQ in the air, we chatted with vocalist Travis Clark about the new album, what he loves about Aussie girls and of course what he is most looking forward to about the upcoming Aussie shows.

You can also check out our recent interview with You Me At Six right here, and also here’s all the information you need for the tour.....

Hey Travis, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You! So where do we find you right now, you are in the midst of a tour right now aren’t you? How is that going…
We are. We actually just got done with the craziest thing we have done out on tour. We had this paintball company pay us to come out and play paintball with all their equipment and stuff. So we played band versus crew and against other bands. I have welts all up and down my body, it's crazy.

So that's going to be fun then I'd you have a show tonight?
This was actually our day off today, we just sparked up the grill and cooking some hot dogs and hamburgers and doing a bit of drinking outside the hotel.

So you have just released your new album, Sunshine State Of Mind which I don’t think has quite hit stores yet here in Australia….here’s your opportunity to tell us why should we buy it!
I think it's just an all round great record. It's a perfect follow to the hit single we had with Check Yes Juliet, a lot of the songs are perfect this time of year songs. It's now summer over here in the USA right now and a lot of the lyrical content will remind you of summer or get you excited for the summer that's coming up. I think this is definitely the best work we have ever done, the lyrics are more intimate, the music is a little more fun, I guess. I'm really excited about it, I love that we are able to put out three records and especially now that Australia has had so much support coming our way, it's really incredible to have a totally different part of the world loving our record. I've heard nothing but good stuff so far from all the people over there who have bought the record. I'm so happy and proud of this band and can't wait to get back over there.

The title is Sunshine State Of Mind, is there any significance behind the album title and the fact you have released bang in the middle of summer over there in the USA?
Yes definitely. We come from Florida which is considered the sunshine state and I know Australia has a sunshine state too right. Well one of the songs on the record called Say You Like Me, I actually wrote about a girl in Queensland who literally won me over. Like every girl there is so incredible, their accents are amazing, they're so beautiful and so much fun to hang out with. I wrote a bunch of songs about my experience when we came over there for Soundwave Festival and we just thought it was so cool that sunshine state Queensland was where I met this girl and where we are from in Florida, so that's why we named our record that.

Compared to your last album, Smile Kid, how would you describe this new album in a musical sense?
On this record what we really tried to achieve was to have a record you could play all the way through without having to skip a track, almost as though it was a movie. When you are watching a movie for the first time, you don't skip a scene or you will miss the point, so I thought this would be a really good record for us to make a full record so someone can sit down and take in the entire thing abs listen to what was being said.

How did the song writing evolve on this album, was that anything significantly different to your past releases?
This is the same exact style we have written songs before. I usually lock myself in a room, wherever that may be and I'll sit there with an acoustic guitar and write and write and write and eventually I will come out with a song. Then I will bring it to the rest of the boys and we will work it out together and try make it into a full We The Kings song. We feel like that process works, so until it's broken, we are not going to fix it.

You released a video for Friday Is Forever which looked like a bunch of fun to make, do you have any funny stories to tell from it’s recording?
Haha yeah that was amazing actually! We had a police escort following us around L.A the entire time. We tried to get some of the nicer parts of Hollywood and some of the trashier parts which is all this homeless people. When the police escort would enter those areas all the homeless people would start sprinting away because they thought they were being arrested. There was stuff we didn't put into the clip as the cops didn't want to bring negative attention to some of the parts of L.A. It was just really funny to see them pick up all their stuff and scrambling to get away from the cops! It was such a fun video to make, there was no real plot or anything to it, it was just a fun video to shoot.

What are the musical influences in the band, do they vary greatly?
Yes I think so a lot. I grew up in Blink 182, Jimmy Eat World and Green Day. My mum taught me every single song she ever new when I was growing up as she used to be a singer songwriter. I have this wild crazy list of bands and artists I am so amazed by, but the other guys have a bit more of a specific view of what they listen to. Our drummer listens to stuff that is a little more drum based and loves the harder stuff such as hardcore music. Our guitarist is really into southern rock and classic rock bands and our bassist is into bands like The Pixies or Flaming Lips and Pink Floyd, so it's really cool to see us all coming from different musical backgrounds and playing the music that we do. We all love what we do and love the music so it's cool to hear each song and how it's influenced in a certain way.

You guys headed to Tel Aviv recently…how did that opportunity arise?
That was unreal, we went over there to film a music video with this crazy technology. It was actually cheaper for us to fly all the way to Israel than fly the director and producer to the States and film it. We kind of looked at it like a vacation and we didn't think we would have any fans in Israel. When we arrived at the airport there was about 50 kids with signs, screaming, balloons, candy and I felt like I was one of the Jonas Brothers walking off a plane haha! It was so amazing to see we had fans that far, they all came to the video shoot and were part of that. Tel Aviv is a beautiful place and we honestly didn't think it would be like that, it was such a great time.

So you are headed out to Australia soon for some co-headlining shows with You Me At Six…have you guys played much together before?
They've been like our tour brothers ever since we've been fully touring. They were one of the first bands we went on tour with, it was Warped Tour, they took us on tour in the UK where they are huge, they are starting to get recognised here in the USA so we took them on tour here. We have talked for the longest time about doing a co- headlining world tour, what better place to start than Australia which is honestly one of my favourite places in the entire world.

You were out here in Australia for Soundwave 2011 and a few sideshows, what were some of the highlights from this tour?
It was amazing, some of those bands we were playing with! When people would ask who are you out on tour with and we would say oh, nobody that you might know, Iron Maiden, Slash etc and they would be freaking out about the bands we were playing with. It was such an amazing tour and I think the perfect one for us to be introduced into Australia. We really had an opportunity to meet lots of fans and other bands and we got a few days off in each city so we also got to do sideshows which were incredible, we did the whole touristy thing and hung out at beaches and partied etc.

What are you expecting this time around, given you were here earlier this year and have just released the new album?
Our label was saying to us that it might be a little different as Check Yes Juliet was such a huge single and people know who you are, so it will be different how many people might be coming to the shows and how crazy it will be. Thats what I look forward to as I love meeting fans and if they are crazier now, I am even more excited!

Well that’s our time, hope you guys have a great tour out here in Australia and look forward to catching one of the shows!
Thankyou man, I really appreciate it

Catch We The Kings and You Me At Six on their Australian tour:
Saturday August 27, The Tivoli, Brisbane, QLD Sunday August 28, UNSW Roundhouse, Sydney, NSW Tuesday August 30, The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, VIC  Wednesday August 31, The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, VIC  Thursday September 1, Fowlers Live, Adelaide, SA
www.soundwavetouring.com

Outloud

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 07:37:20 +1000

“if you’re into ROCK, then you’ll find something to like with our latest album. From arena rock, to riff-laden metal, to modern-ish rock, to power ballads, to AOR / melodic rock, it’s all there, all encompassed by the style and sound that is OUTLOUD....”

Forming in 2008, Outloud blasted onto the melodic rock scene with their debut album We’ll Rock You To Hell And Back, a collection of driving anthemic rock songs. With both Bob Katsionis (guitar and keys) and Mark Cross (drums) members of Greek melodic metal band Firewind, 2010 proved to be a defining moment for Outloud. With Firewind guitarist Gus G being otherwise committed with Ozzy Osbourne, 2010 saw Firewind taking a year off and in addition to that, drummer Mark Cross parted ways with Firewind. The upshot of all that, Love Catastrophe, the brand new album from Outloud, just released on AOR Heaven.

We interviewed the bands USA based lead singer Chandler Mogel who gives a great insight into the bands new album.

Hey Chandler, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. First up, for our readers who may not yet be familiar with Outloud, here's a chance to describe what they will find musically on your new album 'Love Catastrophe'?
No problem, my pleasure Scott! I’m glad we have great supporters of great music in the Land Down Under. Well, I will start by saying this: with Outloud, we made sure that if you’re into ROCK, then you’ll find something to like with our latest album. From arena rock, to riff-laden metal, to modern-ish rock, to power ballads, to AOR / melodic rock – it’s all there, all encompassed by the style and sound that is OUTLOUD.

Personally, compared to your first album, to my ears the overall the songs on 'Love Catastrophe' seem to have taken on a more melodic rock/AOR style and have perhaps less of a metal influence. Is this just my own ears, or was this one of the definite changes between the 2 albums?
Nope, not just your ears, but it wasn’t really planned that way, what WAS planned was more time & focus on the songs themselves, thus resulting in what we believe a more mature record than the last!

It's been nearly 2 years since you released your debut album and I noticed you have changed labels from Frontiers to AOR Heaven for this one. Was the intention to always record a follow up album and what led to the change of labels?
We just planned on keeping going. But the label change came from the fact that by the time we had everything complete and ready for review from Frontiers, they weren’t able to release the album earlier than December, this was too late for us. We had been in contact with AOR Heaven since the time of the first record and they offered us a good spot for a summer release, so we took it! We’re mates with your buds in White Widdow now.

Having had the benefit of going through the process and recording the first album, what were some of the key changes in the recording process this time around during the new album?
We played in other keys besides “E” and “A”…….LOL! Nope it was pretty much the same, most of the record was done in Athens and I did some extra tracking over here in New Jersey, but we pretty much kept the same formula, cause why change something too much that was successful previously right?

How long did you spend recording the album, were you personally based in Greece during the recording?
Yeah, I went over there for a month in 2010, we did some festival shows, then spent roughly two weeks recording the vocals at Bob’s studio. The funny thing was that he was moving when I was there, so we did half at his old house and half at his new one! Worked out fine.

How much did the songwriting process change for this new collection of songs?
Well, as I mentioned earlier, the songs were more focused on this time and as a result a deeper, more thought-out album, as opposed to the “spontaneity” of the first album. Both approaches can work actually. But this - it’s overall a more mature record from a band who has been united on the stage from playing live, this had a large bearing on the outcome I believe.

In terms of lyrically, what were some of the key themes that may have influenced this album?
Well, it depends on what song you pick. There are about six songs on the record that deal with “love” (i.e. heartbreak, obsession, messed-up relationships, and one about breaking free from all that – Love Catastrophe) but there are a couple of special tunes that deal with some topics that aren’t too common in this genre of music. Clean Hands is about the fact that the less bad things you do, the more you can accomplish in life. Live Again is a viewpoint on the state of the world today, and the fact that we’re all spiritual beings (not just flesh or animals like we are led to believe).

As a band, I imagine you have obviously now grown together into a cohesive unit over the last couple of years. Was that something that took a fair while to get settled and build that chemistry, given the fact you are based in the USA, the other guys in Greece, having a change of bass player, as well as collectively speaking you guys having involvement in other bands etc?
That all definitely plays a part and could be considered a crutch to any developing band. We probably would have played more live shows were we all based in the same area, and when Bob or Mark are on tour, we obviously aren’t able to do much. But we don’t let that stop us, we keep going and do as much as we can when we can.

Waiting For Your Love was selected as the first single and video from the album, what led to this song being chosen as the first single and are there plans for a follow up single and video?
Well, it was the obvious choice when we entered the Bon Jovi contest (to open for them in Greece) early this year. This song served as our entry. (We didn’t get to open for Bon Jovi but opened for Twisted Sister instead. :) Since people were beginning to get familiar with the song in Greece, we decided to do the video and make it the single come the summer. And yes – we have the second video for the album almost ready, we’ll announce what that is shortly.

On the ballad Someday, a female vocalist is featured, is there any story behind the vocalist who features on this song?
Her name is Deana Dee, she is a good friend of mine who I had the pleasure of performing with on a few gigs in NYC. She’s Ann Wilson in the premier Heart tribute band in the US, and she’s recorded with Geoff Tate and Terry Brock, among others. I wanted something different on the ballad and thought she’d be a perfect fit for the song, so I gave her a call and we recorded her in New Jersey.

What is the hard rock scene like in Greece at the moment, are Outloud in the definite minority, or is there a thriving little scene of bands?
There aren’t too many melodic rock bands in Greece, a lot of heavier bands actually. Lots of good ones though, people in Greece take their music very seriously and you really have to bring it over there, as anywhere in Europe – rock is very much alive.

You recently supported Twisted Sister in Greece which I am sure was an awesome show, how did you guys find that experience? It must have been great to get out and play some of the new songs!
Yeah it was. We had a great time and made many new friends and fans. And I’ve gotta say – Twisted was amazing, they lit the place on fire, it was like I was in 1985! They really tore it up and Dee is just awesome live. It was also good to see AJ Pero (Twisted’s drummer) again, who I played with briefly in his other band Cities about four years ago.

So what is in store for Outloud for the rest of 2011, are there any touring plans on the horizon?
We’re currently getting the new album on all the major digital stores (like Itunes) and our new website just went up finally! (www.outloud-rock.com). Then we’re going to release another video and some new tunes as well, and hopefully before the end of the year we’ll do some more shows around November / December. We’ve started writing for the third album. Keep an eye on the official site for updates!

Thanks to everyone reading and listening and thank you Scott! May the rock be with you all.

Check out our review of Love Catastrophe right here....

Michael Paynter

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 10:58:33 +1000

“I think people are really concerned about knowing who you are as an artist and seeing and hearing a continuity between what I am saying in my songs and representing myself as a person....”

Michael Paynter, Melbourne singer, songwriter, multi instrumentalist and the man I have seen silence a room on many occasions with the mere sound of his voice and a performance conveyed with an emotion and honesty rarely seen these days, at least here in Australia anyway! With his latest single How Sweet It Is all over radio, that album release that has eluded him for the best part of 4 years is coming soon, very soon. With multiple radio hits, stadium tours with acts as diverse as The Script, John Farnham and Miley Cyrus, songs featured in major TV shows and so much more, you would think it would have come sooner, but proving the determination and integrity of the person that he is, Paynter views this as a journey that has but made him stronger.

If you live in Melbourne, then you will have the opportunity to catch Paynter this coming Friday 12 August at the Pier Live in Frankston, supported by many bands, including the awesome Spitfire Rain, or the following night, Saturday August 13th at the Village Green, Mulgrave.

Read on to find out more about what it is that makes Michael Paynter the unique performer that he is....

Coming off the Miley Cyrus stadium tour, I suspect you will be looking forward to the couple of more intimate shows coming up this weekend in Melbourne!
Yes, I am actually extremely looking forward to that. I get to go back a little to I guess where I started playing. In this job I get to do so many different things. As your shows change from 20,000 people to 300, I'm just looking forward to stripping the set back and having a lot more crowd interaction. I think when people come to those shows they come away feeling like they know you a bit better, which you don't get in the stadiums.

What can we expect from the setlist, are you intending to throw in a few more new songs?
There's a whole bunch if stuff I want to do with the set. There's a few surprises here and there, a couple of favourites that people have been asking me to play for a while, so I an very much looking forward to it.

Going back to what you said earlier. I have seen you about 5 or 6 times now, never met you, yet feel like I know you. Is that interaction with the crowd and the honesty and openess that you convey during your shows one of the key things you hope someone attending your show walks away thinking, feeling?
Yes I think that's the single most important thing when I am playing live. I think that people don't really care so much if your band is great, or if your voice is 100%, I think people are really concerned about knowing who you are as an artist and seeing and hearing a continuity between what I am saying in my songs and representing myself as a person. I think when people are in the room with you, they can really pick out fakeness very easily. It's a good chance for me to be really true and hopefully people enjoy it as much as I do.

Your latest single is How Sweet It Is and I very rarely listen to the radio, yet whenever I do, it seems it has always been on, even in my local fruit shop the last 4 weeks!
Well I am popular with the oranges haha!

Are you planning on releasing a video for that song as well?
We have a whole bunch of that stuff that is just taking a little while for the cogs to get in motion. But it is definitely happening very soon!

I am sure you have been asked this question a thousand times over the last few years, but I suspect we are now nearing closer to a concrete answer. What of the Michael Paynther album, what is the status of that, when are we likely to see this come out?
It's done and finished and it's completely finished and mastered. There's a couple of singles to get away first, but that's all just around the corner. I'm very much looking forward to that moment as well, it's going to be awesome.

A few years back you recorded an albums worth of material that was never officially released, what of those songs, are they going to be basically left on the EP releases etc and the new album is to be made up of new songs?
You never know mate what we are going to do with some of that old stuff. There's definitely going to be a bunch of new stuff on the album, but then there's a whole bunch of stuff that I have recorded over the last 8 years that we are going to put together into a good package. So there's definitely going to be a lot of songs people haven't heard before.

Throughout this journey over the last 3 or 4 years, what have been some of your key learning experiences…obviously exercising patience is well and truly one of them!
I think you hit a nail on the head with patience. One of the things this business teaches you is that it never goes the way you expect it to, whether that be a good thing or a bad thing. It takes a lot longer and a lot more money than you may think, unless you are going to go on a TV show! I think the biggest thing I've learned is when I feel something in my gut and I know, that I know, that I know it, that is always the way that you go. Whether it be writing a song or choosing a video treatment, any of that kind of stuff, it's that feeling in your gut, that's the thing that you need to follow. As soon as you start listening to a whole bunch of people that want to tell you something different, that's when stuff starts to go wrong. So I think it's been a lesson in confidence and definitely patience!

So I guess for you personally, the album coming out now is not then necessarily such a bad thing, I guess it would definitely represent who Michael Paynther is as a songwriter and performer in 2011.
Yeah yeah and I got to make my debut album twice haha! I'm very glad that the album that's going to come out, I know that I am very, very much ready now. I’m not so sure I would have been ready when the first one would have been released in 2008, so I am grateful for the opportunity to get things right before it happened.

Did you largely self produce the forthcoming album?
Well some work was done with Gary Clark in L.A, but basically everything else was done and produced in my studio here, so it's all mixed here as well and mastered here in Melbourne. I've been trying to take all the stuff I have learnt touring the world working with people and doing it here in Melbourne, which not many people are doing.

The beauty of a lyric is people have the liberty of their own interpretation and meaning, for me personally I take away a positive message from your songs. Is this one of the intended messages you try and convey as a songwriter, or do you not try and convey a message as such?
You know, I very rarely go into a songwriting session and creating a topic and then writing to it, unless I am writing for someone else for their stuff which is a large part of my career as well. When I am writing for Michael Paynter, it always comes from a very real place. So I am either feeling a certain emotion, or really strongly about an issue that I want to put into the music. Sometimes I will be in the studio and pull up some beats and start producing up a little track and write to that. But even doing that, I try and listen to what the music is telling me. Every time I go into writing a song, even without melody or lyrics, the music will always tell you what it wants to say. I think the worst songs are when you try and force a topic into a song which is not saying that. Like if you tried to put Sunday Bloody Sunday over TickTok, it's not going to feel as true. So I guess that's what I try to do and I guess for the most part it tends to be pretty organic.

When you commence to write a song, do you have a general process that you follow, eg. does it always start from a musical idea you have, or does it start from a lyrical or lyrical theme idea you might have?
Yes for me it almost always starts with a melody, sometimes it might be a certain lyric or very rarely I might get a topic, but usually for me it's the music which tells me what it wants to say.

You have written with an amazing array of songwriters from around the world over the last few years, in what ways do you think you have evolved as a songwriter during this time?
Well I think I have taken a lot on about what makes a good song. The people I have written with are professionals and the best in the world at what they do. So it's one thing to feel a strong emotion and have that spill over into your music, but it's another thing to create that without having to feel the strong emotion first. So that work ethic about writing songs, which when you get that right, they kind of work in tandem with each other and they're not mutually exclusive. Coming from a dude that sat in his room and wrote a song when he felt like it, to kind of write a song for an album and find a connection point in myself, that's been a growth point. I just think over time I've tried to listen harder when I'm writing a song.

You mentioned earlier that you write a lot for other artists, how do you find that experience, especially if you are forced to write about a specific lyrical theme, which is not necessarily what you would do for your own material?
I love it, it's one of my favourite things to do. I think it took me a while to make sure that I wasn't putting Michael Paynter onto the artists I was working with. Obviously they are coming to me because I have a certain set of skills that they want on their tunes, but they don't want a Michael Paynter tune, they want a them tune. So it definitely took a while for me to take a step back and make sure I was listening to what the artists want and what they want from this song and how I get it out of them. So yes, it's lots of fun!

Now this music may be a bit difficult for you to answer, but we will see how we go. Do you think you have a good handle on the type of person that listens to your music?
Well, I think it's frustratingly broad I think. If I had a boxed in demographic it would be much easier to milk them for all they are worth publicity wise. Obviously I just did the Miley Cyrus tour so it's appealing to 10 year olds and then I did the John Farnham tour which is 50 to 60 year olds. In my heart of hearts I kind of think good music transcends demographics and style and fads. One thing I always cling to as an artist that I heard Bono say once was that U2 were never the coolest band, but they were always the best. So you know, I am not always interested in trying to write songs that are cool, whilst although that's a good thing, it's not my main focus. My main focus is to write the best songs I can and be the best artist I can. If that goes hand in hand with writing cool songs, then that's a good thing.

Now to just explain my reason for that question, I grew up on a diet of 80’s rock and generally listen to the heavier side of rock and there’s certainly others I know that come from a similar musical background who really dig your stuff. I know you are well aware of who Butch Walker is, so that’s I guess the angle where I come in.
Yes definitely well aware of Butch Walker and one of my favourite singers is Lou Gramm, so there you go, 80’s rock 101.

Well there you go, there's another question answered, concerning who your favourite singers are!

I have witnessed for myself your abilities on guitar and keyboard and obviously singer, but there is also a drummer in you as well isn’t there. What instrument came first?
I started playing piano when I was 4, my mum made me do it! Then when I got to Grade 6 and realised that wasn't cool anymore, I picked up the guitar and started playing Nirvana tunes. Then I didn't really look back, I've always had piano as a second instrument but I am probably most proficient in the guitar. I am not a virtuoso of any instrument, drums included, I think I know enough about my instruments to say what I want to say with my songs and I know enough to communicate an emotion. I'm not going to be able to do a solo guitar or piano instrumental album, but for me as an artist, there's nothing I hear in my head that I can't, with some time, get out on my instrument. I think I just got to a point with my instruments where I wasn't limited by that and then flew by the seat of my pants for the rest of it. As for drums, I like to play the drums and I'll never call myself a drummer, I consider myself a musician who plays the drums.

Who are some of your biggest influences from a guitar playing point of view?
The guitarists I listen to the most would be Irwin Thomas (Jack Jones), he's probably been the biggest influence on my playing. Then probably equal to that is Robben Ford.

Who's coming out here in a few months...
I know, I already have tickets and am looking forward to that!

Then to a lesser extent there's also Andy Summers and Mark Knopfler as well. I like the way how expressive they are with their instruments. Probably even people like Jonny Lang more recently, who just know how to rip a pop/blues tune which is quite inspiring.

So what is on the horizon as far as the remainder of 2011 is concerned….new album and I assume a bunch of shows?
There's a whole bunch of tours that we can't really announce yet, but we are planning to get to every state and every capital and finally take the album to people. There’s also a bunch of supports coming up, so stay tuned to social media I guess and you will find out before too long.

Well I really appreciate your time mate and look forward to seeing you Friday night at Frankston which is what show I will be attending!
Thanks mate, see you there!

Calling All Cars

Tue, 9 Aug 2011 09:16:28 +1000

“This time we knew what to expect and were way more prepared, things like experimenting with tones and sounds and we just had way more fun with it....”

For Melbourne’s Calling All Cars, the second half of 2011 is destined to be an action packed number of months. New album Dancing With A Dead Man was just released last Friday (August 5th) and the three piece are about to embark on what they do best, one month of touring all over Australia. We chatted with lead vocalist and guitarist Haydn Ing.

Thanks for chatting Haydn so Friday marks the official release of Dancing With A Dead Man, what has the response been like so far to the first single Reptile and the album stream over at Faster Louder?
Yes we've seen some reviews and stuff come in now and they seem to be positive at this stage, which is a good sign I guess!

And specifically first single ‘Reptile’ given that was a little heavier than maybe what some people may have been expecting you to come out with as a first single?
It's definitely the heaviest song on the album, we kind of thought screw it, we will release it and see what happens. I think it was a good way to come back with a punch.

When did you start writing the songs that appear on the new album, was this a specific writing process, or have you had a few ideas lying around since the debut album?
It was pretty much after we released Hold, Hold, Fire. As the first album was released, we toured with AC/DC and then straight onto Grinspoon. Then we had like a month off before we headed out onto that album tour and we thought let's not get bogged down in the 2nd album syndrome, so we booked a rehearsal space, locked ourselves in there and wrote as many songs as we can. By the time we headed into pre-production, we had like 40 songs which I think the best ones pretty much picked themselves, then we went from there.

You have released Dancing With A Dead Man around a year after your last album, was that a conscious decision to do so and capitalise on the inroads you made with the first album?
Even before we released the first album, we always had a game plan which was to release the first album and then get another one out as soon as possible. These days, attention spans are just getting shorter and shorter and with all the music over the internet these days we just wanted to get it out there as soon as we could.

Having had the benefit of recording your first album, what were some of the biggest changes in the process this time around?
On the first album we recorded over about a year, just recording bits and pieces here and there because we were touring so much. I think back then we had never recorded an album before so it was a massive learning process. This time we knew what to expect and were way more prepared, things like experimenting with tones and sounds and we just had way more fun with it.

Being a band that tours relentlessly, how did you find the recording process this time around, were you itching to just get back out and play some shows?
No not really, I think it actually helps. Because we had been touring so much we have grown as musicians, as everyone does I guess. We felt like more of a band than ever before and touring the same songs now for so long, we were keen to record some new stuff and stop getting bored with the older material.

Working with Tom Larkin again on this album, how would you describe this working relationship now, he must certainly know how to get the best out of you guys?
Yes definitely it was great. The last time it was more about learning how things are done. This time we were way more prepared and it was better for everyone. We got along a lot better and we were all still friends at the end of the process haha!

Were there any key influences in a lyrical or musical sense that shaped the songs on this album?
No, not anything really specifically. We basically just went in there and said let's see what comes out really. We didn't go in there saying let's make it sound like this or that. When we were recording we said lets make it as big and bad as we can! I think someone brought up at one point, there's 3 guitar parts happening here, are we sure we want to do that? We just said if it sounds good, then let's leave it and when it comes to playing live, we will just deal with it.

Speaking of songwriting, what is the process in the band, is that something that all three of you are heavily involved?
Usually I will come up with the initial riff ideas and then take it to the band and then it will either stay the same or morph into something completely different. So we each have a huge input into writing and we are good at hearing each other out and trying new ideas and seeing if it works or doesn't. Lyrically it's definitely left with me and I guess I just write about what ever issues I am dealing with at the time. Even some of the stories like Dancing With A Dead Man I took a different angle and made a story and thought I would try something different.

Did you spend a significant amount of time in the studio recording?
We recorded most of the album at Tom’s studio so we had the luxury of coming and going as we please and being able to hang out at the studio drinking coffee and talking shit. We didn't spend a ridiculous amount of time in there, but it wasn't exactly a quick process either.

Video clip for the first single Reptile is certainly pretty cool, did you guys come up with the concept for the video and where was it actually filmed?
We came up with the idea of a reptile kind of thing, capturing something and all that kind of stuff. We had this idea and took it to the director and said this is what we are thinking and he goes "that idea is going to cost way too much". So he scaled it back and came to us with the idea that ended up being the video. We recorded it near Ballarat I am pretty sure. We drove out in that direction and into nothingness haha. It was a pretty gruelling day, but it turned out really well.

You have a run of nearly 20 shows coming up soon and obviously you must be super keen to get out and play a bunch of the new songs. How have you found these songs to play in rehearsal and fitting in amongst the older songs?
It seems to be really good. We actually booked out a few weeks of rehearsal time a little while back to make sure we gave ourselves enough time to sort everything, but it was like the second rehearsal and we had everything down so we thought we don't really need to rehearse that much. So we ended up cancelling a whole bunch of rehearsal and it all fell into place.

Capital cities, regional centres and pretty much every where in between, do you have a town/city that sticks out so far as far as one of your most memorable places to play?
There's been quite a few shows when you look at the tour dates and think I don't know how that's going to work, but often they turn out to be some of the best shows we've ever played. Quite often when you get to towns that don't have a lot of bands, but when they do, they go absolutely mental and everyone in the town comes to the show.

You have Boy In A Box and Redcoats supporting, did you pick your support acts yourself?
Yes definitely, we've heard a heap of their stuff on Triple J recently and they've both been getting heaps of airplay so we thought we would throw out the idea of supporting us and both bands said yes which was cool.

You have supported some of stadium rocks biggest bands such as AC/DC, Green Day, Queens Of The Stone Age, how have you found those experiences, playing stadium type shows and the crowds?
Those experiences have been amazing and we've learnt heaps from them. We had always heard that the AC/DC crowd can be like the toughest, but we were actually really well received and everyone seemed to be really nice. We didn’t seem to get any real full on haters, so we were lucky!

Do you have a favourite type of venue to play….stadiums, larger clubs, or small intimate club shows?
At the end of the day you get the best of both worlds really. Not many bands get to play on stadium tours, which was amazing for us. Then we also get to come back and play those really small intimate shows were you get to have more of a personal connection with the crowd.

I know this question might be a little premature, but have you got conquering overseas in your sights as yet?
At this stage it's been concentrate on Australia and do as well as we can here. There's definitely talk of heading overseas at some point, but we will just take it baby steps to begin with.

So after you finish this run of dates in mid September, what lies ahead for the rest of 2011?
I am sure there will be lots more touring haha! We have stuff we are talking about, so I guess just keep an eye out.

Dancing With A Dead Man National Tour with Boy In A Box & Redcoats

Thursday 11 August – KAY STREET – Traralgon
Friday 12 August – REPUBLIC BAR – Hobart
Saturday 13 August – FOWLER’S LIVE – Adelaide
Thursday 18 August – BEACH HOTEL – Byron Bay
Friday 19 August – TEMPO HOTEL – Brisbane
Saturday 20 August – COOLANGATTA HOTEL – Gold Coast
Wednesday 24 August – THE LOFT – Warrnambool
Thursday 25 August – KAROVA LOUNGE – Ballarat
Friday 26 August – CORNER HOTEL – Melbourne
Saturday 27 August – FERNTREE GULLY HOTEL – Ferntree Gully
Thursday 1 September – TRANSIT BAR – Canberra
Friday 2 September – OXFORD ART FACTORY – Sydney
Saturday 3 September – WAVES – Wollongong
Thursday 8 September – PRINCE OF WALES – Bunbury
Friday 9 September – STUDIO 146 – Albany
Saturday 10 September – AMPLIFIER – Perth
Sunday 11 September – INDI BAR – Scarborough

Relient K

Wed, 3 Aug 2011 16:29:40 +1000

“I feel like Australians that dig our music are pretty awesome people haha! We love coming over and playing and we're surprised people dig us so far from home, but the demand is there for us to keep coming back and we hope that doesn't change...”

Relient K may need introducing to some here in Australia, but for those who saw the band supporting Paramore on their last tour of Australia, I am sure no introduction is needed to the band, their live show and witty pop rock songs. Coming back for their third Australian visit for Soundwave Revolution, Relient K may have a suprise or two in store with their setlist, having just released their first covers EP K Is Karoake, but then again, covers are no strangers amongst a Relient K setlist.

We chatted with lead vocalist Matt Thiessen..

Hey Matt, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You! So tell me about your new EP, “K Is for Karaoke”, what led to the inspiration to release a covers EP?
Well there's been a bunch of bands we grew up listening to that have released covers albums and we have always thought it would be a cool idea for us. I guess it felt like the right time as we are just about to start recording another full length record of new songs, so we thought to pass the time and put out some new recordings we would do some cover songs.

There’s an interesting mix of artists that you have covered, how do you find the experience of interpreting the different styles of artists and songs that you have?
We basically went through a list of songs we have played live over the last 10 years, then just choosing random songs we thought would be good ideas. Some of the songs we chose based on perhaps some of our fans having not heard before, such as "this might be a cool Tom Petty song to introduce our fans to, or this might be a cool They Might Be Giants one” to hear for maybe the first time.

Now I also believe there is a full length covers album coming out from you? What songs have you got lined up for that one?
Yes actually, we just got a phone call from our producer Mark this evening and wer’e going to start mixing the final 8 songs. There will be 15 songs in total and we hope to have it out in October I think. There's a few fun 80's ones like You're The Inspiration by Chicago and Africa by Toto, we also did some cool ones like a Nada Surf song and a Third Eye Blind song which was like a deeper track from their self titled album which I really like.

So would you say the songs you are featuring on these covers albums broadly represent the musical influences in the band?
Well partially, but then there's also a bit of sarcasm in the choosing of the songs as well. The Justin Bieber song for example, we are not aspiring to sound like that, but that's our take on it.

So has there been any work yet commenced on writing songs for your next originals album so to speak?
I would definitely say a little bit of work, but not enough has materialised for us to discuss where we are going to end up. I am just dreaming it up at the moment and having fun picking up on the possibilities of what we can do.

It’s been a couple of years now since you released Forget and Not Slow Down, no doubt having had a chance to reflect on the writing and recording of that album, have you already identified any specific things you are looking to change up in the process for the next album?
You're right, yes there are some things. I am open to trying co-writing with some people to see what they would do with our band. Stylistically I feel at this point being our 7th full length record we can kind of change and do whatever we want. So, I might try and do a few things we have never done before stylistically.

When writing songs for Relient K, where do you draw inspiration from in a lyrical sense?
Well Tom Petty and Paul Simon know how to tell a story and John Mayer also really knows how to put a phrase into a song. I always try and poetically put things down with my own signature, but I am also trying to change that signature as well and grow as a poet.

Ok, so here is a brief moment to explain what your involvement with the label Mono vs Stereo is all about…
Well our three key artists include, Deas Vail and they're just a brilliant band, we have a new album coming out for them. Then Farewell Flight, we just released Out For Blood, then there's a really rad folk artist called Denison Witmer. My guitar player Matt and I have really been fans of his for a long time growing up with his music so it's great to have him on our roster. I think we are going to try and grow our label the same way we grew our band and try and build a reputation of always being consistent and try and grow the fan base that way. Hopefully little magical things will happen to our bands and they'll have successful careers.

So in September you are headed out to Australia, for Soundwave Revolution. You have had a couple of tours here in Australia before, once headlining a Christian youth event and the other supporting Paramore, both contrasting types of tours! How did you find your time(s) here?
I feel like Australians that dig our music are pretty awesome people haha! We love coming over and playing and we're surprised people dig us so far from home, but the demand is there for us to keep coming back and we hope that doesn't change.

You are going to be out here for a over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being back in Australia?
I don't know, I am kind of flying by the seat of the pants kind of guy when on tour. I kind of just like to let whatever happens, happen. There are a lot of bands on this tour, so it will be fun to explore Australia and meet lots of Australian people with different bands and see how all that mixes up.

What is it that you think attracts fans to Relient K?
I really don't know why anybody likes our band I guess haha, our personality translates into the music and then into the live performance. We don't quit, we keep going, that's a good thing I guess. We've been working hard for 11 years just touring and making sure we get to places like Australia which is kind of awesome.

You are certainly no stranger to the larger festival type shows, having played Vans Warped now about 3 times for example. How do you find playing these larger festivals, because your music would be generally more suited to more intimate club type shows wouldn’t it?
I guess we prefer the intimacy of a club show for sure, the sweat and the rock n roll, that's where the uptempo rock is best served in a club like that. But then there are so many pros about being in a festival setting like the one we are about to be in, so I just choose not to complain about any of it!

Relient K has been active for over 13 years now, a pretty impressive feat, what’s been the most rewarding aspect or thing over this time?
Well for starters, the relationships I've gotten to have with the people I get to work with. It's kind of like a family operation, we started from a very small town trying to do what we could do and it grew into something. Then we got to take it around the world. So I guess the people that came together to make it all happen is the best fruit of all labour for sure.

Catch Relient K at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

The Word Alive

Tue, 2 Aug 2011 07:43:03 +1000

“We bring a lot of energy and a lot of that is my job to try and pump up the crowd and get them involved! So long as Australia is down to moving around, I think we are going to get along just great!...”

Like many bands on the Soundwave Revolution lineup, The Word Alive find themselves in the enviable position of getting their first opportunity of touring Australia. Having last year released their debut album Deceiver, the band has found themselves touring relentlessely and capitalising upon their stature as one of heavy music’s rising talents.

Chatting to vocalist Telle, we confirmed loud and clear his own thoughts from watching Parkway Drive footage that Australian crowds certainly know how to move to heavy music, so I think it’s safe to say The Word Alive is going to deliver one hell of a show at Soundwave Revolution. Read on for our chat...

Hey Telle, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You! You guys are out on the Vans Warped tour right now aren’t you, how is the going so far?
It's been amazing, this summer has been really beneficial for our band and it's been a great showcase to show the improvement our band has made live to really come into our own, so I am excited about it.

So in September you are headed out to Australia, for Soundwave Revolution. You guys obviously must be excited to be coming out here!
I'm definitely beyond excited, I'm wanting to see what it's all about over there. I've seen a lot of Parkway Drive videos and the crowd seems to know how to move around to some heavy music, so I'm waiting to see what these shows are all about.

You are going to be out here for a over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being in Australia?
The one thing is trying your guys sushi, I want to see how it compares to here in the States. I am a huge sushi fan. In general just being a tourist and seeing your country that I have dreamt about going to since I can pretty much ever remember of knowing of Australia.

Have you had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
I've seen quite a bit of the lineup, we have some of our friends from the Warped tour and other tours we have been on. I know Van Halen, Alice Cooper, Story Of The Year, The Used, Thursday.

Being your first time out here, do you have much of an idea of how well known The Word Alive is here in Australia?
I know anytime we have ever posted anything on our social networking sites, I've always seen comments from people like “come to Australia, come to Australia”. Over the past few years, some of the same faces keep recurring, so I've chatted to some of those as I like to keep in contact with fans as much as I can. I know they've been supporting our band and telling all their friends for the past few years, so I am hoping we will have a strong fan base, but I guess we will find out soon enough!

What can your fans expect from your set at Soundwave Revolution, how would you describe The Word Alive live experience?
I feel we are a band that has a lot to offer something for the people who like to stand in the back and admire people who can actually play their instruments and play them well, I feel we have that technical ability in our band. I feel we are really solid live as far as comparing to our CD goes. Then for everyone else who like to move around, we bring a lot of energy and a lot of that is my job to try and pump up the crowd and get them involved! So long as Australia is down to moving around, I think we are going to get along just great!

Well I don't think there will be any problems with that! from Australian crowds
That’s great to hear!

So given what you just said about it being your job to pump up the crowd, how do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to a bigger stage, compared to playing the smaller more intimate venues?
Some of the time I think at festival shows, people generally come with the mindset that they are going to move and have a good time. Whilst club shows people can also have that same mindset, being a much smaller environment, people can often be forced into it. I feel sometimes it’s a little better if you have a sold out show and 500 to 1,000 kids and every time 10 people move, then 100 people move, I feel that gets people into things a lot quicker. At festival shows you have got people wanting to stir up dirt, people wanting to crowd surf and come over barriers and be seen a lot more by the bands as it's in the daytime. I guess also festival shows are rare during the year, it's something kids look forward to each year. So I anticipate that same mindset when we come, with people being really excited about a lot of bands.

Do you guys have any interesting tour “rituals” or things you guys as a band do to keep yourselves sane haha!
We all get along really great in the band. In our bus we watch movies, play video games, we like a lot of the same things. I think a lot of the guys in the band are really funny which also really helps. We will bring guitars on the bus and make up songs about each other and stuff like that. So I think we try and keep ourselves entertained one way or another.

You recently released your debut full length album ‘Deciever’ and I see you are already starting work on your follow up album. Firstly, for those that may be new to the band, what can you tell us about your album Deciever?
Well we released it in August last summer. This year we have had some great opportunities for tours, we had our first headline tour of the States and did really well with that, especially coming into almost a year since it's been released now. As we've started travelling the world a little more, fans have started not only discovering our band, but really paying attention to the songs and what we are about. So I feel even in the last 6 months or so, compared to the last few years, we are starting to have some truly diehard fans who understand what we are about, understand what our music means to them and I feel we have a lot of our fan base who really have an in depth connection with the band. Now we are at the point where people have listened to our CD consistently for over a year now and know every song inside out. When you go and see a band for the first time, chances are you are not going to be jumping around and going crazy, it's likely you will watch the band and see what they are about. I feel like now we have had a lot of the same kids see us 3,5,7,8 times since the CD came out, so now it's getting to the point where they can be jumping around and singing along and just enjoy themselves, so we are seeing that stage now at a lot of our shows.

When are you planning to start work ork on new album?
We have booked studio time for February and March of next year. So pretty much between now and then we are going to be constantly writing. We have about 7 demo ideas and about 2 full songs done right now. We are not going to set a number, we will just keep writing, whether we get to 15 songs or 20 songs, we are going to write until the day before we get into the studio. We’re going to pick the best 12 or 13 songs and we are going to make sure we have the best sophomore album we can make.

From an earlier answer, it sounds like you have no major problems coming up with songs about each other haha, but do you write new material on road?
Yes that's pretty much it, all of the songs we write out on the road or the bus. We have these little practice amps so Zack and Tony can jam really easily. We have recording software on one of our computers and some recording equipment, so we can record, not quality for release to the public demos, but a good enough quality that we can understand and critique them and build them into strong songs. Actually, the guys have been writing earlier tonight, and once Zack and I are done with interviews for you guys, we have an 11 hour drive so it's probably going to be back writing music.

Is that because you guys tour so much and it’s really only when you have time, or do you find it a more inspiring environment?
I think it's a mixture of things. Part of it is because we do tour a lot and we are gone a lot. That kind of leads to the thing when we are home, we don't necessarily want to be cooped up in a studio all the time. I live in California, the band is from Arizona, our drummer lives in Oregon, so we are kind of spread out so this is the majority of the time we spend together. All of our mindset is on music, it's not like hey, I have a family dinner to go to coming up this week etc. It's like when we are on the road, music is 100% our life, that's eat, sleep and breathe and everything we do. I think it's easier to get in a groove for us now that we have been a steady touring band for the last few years. So we have just grown accustomed to at first that we had to write in the road, now we kind of like it!

How would you describe the musical direction of the new material, compared to what you delivered on Deceiver?
I think we want to be a band that progresses from album to album. We definitely want to try a lot of new things, we have improved individually as musicians and myself as a vocalist. So naturally there will be things we couldn't have done before. We have a good mindset of what our fans like and expect from us, so we are not going to deviate too far from that at any given time, but we are not going to write the same songs 12 or 13 times. We are a band that likes every song to sound different on our albums. So we are going to try that again and create an even stronger catalogue of songs that showcase what we are best at doing.

So what’s in store for the rest of 2011 after you finish up with Soundwave?
Well to fully complete our year we fly to Europe after Soundwave for the Never Say Die festival with Suicide Silence and Emmure. Then we come home for a little break, then we go on the Fearless Friends tour in US, and a bit of Canada, then we will be writing until we head into the studio in around February 2012!

Catch The Word Alive at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

Electric Mary

Mon, 1 Aug 2011 10:06:33 +1000

“BETTER THAN THE RECORD. MANIC. VERY LOUD AND EXTREMELY BRASH....”

The Aussie classic rock behemoth that is Electric Mary have just released their latest studio offering titled Long Time Coming. For those of you that have not seen Electric Mary do what they do best and that’s play live...the DVD that also comes part of the Long Time Coming release will complete the puzzle for you. Recorded at Sydney’s Gaelic Theatre, the DVD captures the Electric Mary live energy that has seen them in demand worldwide, supporting the very bands that form part of the Electric Mary DNA, Deep Purple, Glenn Hughes, Judas Priest, Whitesnake, Alice Cooper....

Via the bands Facebook, this is what they had to say about the forthcoming EP, Long Time Coming - "we recorded we scrapped .. we started again we stopped .. we lost a friend .. we moved forward .. we recorded again .. again we stopped .. we found an old believer we worked and worked .. we moved bases .. we got sick we stopped .. we started again .. we ran at a million miles an hour .. we lost a love .. we got angry .. we lost the plot .. we were in with a chance but they said no .. we had no cash .. we did some shows .. we kept believing...THE RECORD IS FINISHED."

An EP launch is taking place this coming Saturday, August 6th in Melbourne. Then Electric Mary will be hitting Sydney to show how ROCK is done on Sunday 14th August.

Now find out more with our chat with Electric Mary frontman, RUSTY, the man who is so rock ‘n’ roll he even types as LOUDLY as he sings!

You have just released your new EP and live DVD which you have titled Long Time Coming. The journey to get this latest bunch of songs onto CD certainly wasn’t an easy one. Did the EP title pretty much choose itself?
THAT HAS BEEN THE WORKING TITLE FOR A WHILE AND WHEN WE WERE LOOKING, BECAUSE WE HAD LIVED WITH IT FOR SO LONG WE JUST STAYED WITH IT.

I have run through the EP a few times now and whilst it’s distinctly Electric Mary, there seems to be a few subtle changes to the song structures/style here and there. Is this the way the songs naturally evolved this time around?
THERE IS A LOT MORE BAND ON THIS E.P. PETE SPENT A LOT OF THE TIME IN THE STUDIO WITH ME. ALEX HAS RIFFS ALL OVER THE PLACE AND VENOM HELPED ARRANGE SOME OF THE SONGS.

Were there any specific sources of influence, in both a musical or lyrical sense for these new 6 songs?
AFTER 7 YEARS IT'S STILL ALL ABOUT THE RIFFS THE DRUMS AND THE MELODY. THE LYRICAL LANDSCAPE CHANGED FROM DAY TO DAY. THERE ARE OBSERVATIONS OF OBSERVATIONS.

When recording in the studio, are you a band that mostly records in a “live” sense as a full band, as opposed to each band member individually recording their parts?
WE ALWAYS RECORD TOGETHER UNTIL WE ARE SOLD ON A TAKE. VERY FEW OVERDUBS. THOUGH MORE THAN MOST THIS TIME AROUND. THERE ARE MORE GUITARS ON THIS ONE BY DESIGN.

Being a band with such an emphasis on your live performance, collectively as a band, do you guys struggle with the whole studio recording process, or is it something you get totally engrossed and involved in, beyond just the playing/singing of your parts?
THE STUDIO IS THE BIGGEST CANVAS IN THE WORLD. YOU CAN THROW PAINT ALL OVER IT, YOU CAN BRUSH STROKE ANY WAY YOU WANT. YOU CAN SPRAY IT AND THEN YOU GET YOUR SCISSORS OUT AND DELIVER THE PIECES YOU WANT.

How much has the song writing process changed from the beginning with your first release Four Hands High, to where you are now?
HMMM, WELL I WROTE EVERYTHING IN THE BEGINNING AS IT WAS MY BAND, NOW IT'S OUR BAND. I'M STILL THE BIGGEST SOOK SO I TRY AND GET MY WAY AS MUCH AS I CAN.

When it comes to Electric Mary, for me personally, the defining sound is the thunderous guitar riffs. Can you share how these are generally written? Are these riffs generally the starting point for a song?
THE RIFF IS ALWAYS THE STARTING POINT. WE WANT TO BE EXCITED, WE WANT THAT FEELING WE FELT WHEN WE WERE 16 EACH AND EVERYTIME.

MELODIES CHANGE FROM DAY TO DAY, THERE HAVE BEEN TIMES WHERE WE HAVE RECORDED SONGS AND WHEN I PLAY THE BAND THE FINAL SONG THEY LOOK AT ME AND SAY WTF. I DON'T REMEMBER ANY OF THAT HAHAH.

O.I.C OFF LONG TIME COMING HAS HAD THREE CHORUSES.

Maybe it’s just an insatiable appetite for new Electric Mary music, but I have to ask are we likely to see another EP release by the end of 2011?
I WOULD SAY THERE WILL BE ONE IN MARCH 2012.

For those who haven’t yet witnessed Electric Mary live, either because they have been sleeping under a rock or are too tight to buy your new DVD release…how would you describe Electric Mary as a live band?
BETTER THAN THE RECORD. MANIC. VERY LOUD AND EXTREMELY BRASH.

Over the years, I have certainly noticed a shift in the demographic of Electric Mary fans. In you own experience both in Australia and internationally, do you feel you have a good handle on who the music of Electric Mary appeals?
YEAH I LOVE THE NEXT GENERATION OF ROCK 'N' ROLL FOOT SOLDIERS. THEY AIN’T AFRAID OF THE PAST OR THE FUTURE. THEY COME WITH THEIR PARENTS, THEY COME WITH THEIR FRIENDS AND THEY LIVE IN THE MOMENT. WE TRY AND DELIVER EVERY NIGHT, THEN THE HOPE IS THEY SPREAD THE ELECTRIC LUV

Coming up in a few months you are heading back to France on your longest expedition yet, with 20+ shows in both France and Spain. What is it about France and their love for Mary, or is it the other way around?
OUR VERY FIRST SHOW IN FRANCE WAS 2009 SUPPORTING WHITESNAKE IT WAS A MAGIC MOMENT, SOMETHING THAT I HAD BEEN WAITING FOR AND BELIEVING WE COULD DO FOR A LONG LONG TIME.

WE WERE INTRODUCED TO FRANCIS ZEGUT THE KING OF FRENCH ROCK RADIO. AFTER THE WHITESNAKE SHOW WE PLAYED AT THE BACK OF A CAFE, THERE WERE 25 PEOPLE THERE AND FRANCIS INTRODUCED US. FOR TEN MINUTES HE SPOKE, THE CROWD LISTENED INTENTLY AND I KNEW THIS WAS THE REAL DEAL. WE THEN DELIVERED WHAT I CONSIDER ONE OF OUR BEST SHOWS, WITH A SHITTY P.A, THREE RED LIGHTS AND A HOLE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STAGE. WE PUNCHED A HOLE IN ROCK 'N' ROLL THAT NIGHT.

The origins of Electric Mary largely started about 8 years ago as an unplugged entity and has now evolved into an international stadium rock behemoth, can you answer the following:
a) What has given you the most satisfaction - BEING ABLE TO TRAVEL ACROSS AUSTRALIA AND THEN IN TURN THE WORLD PLAYING OUR MUSIC TO PEOPLE WHO GENUINELY BELIEVE IN THE ROCK 'N' ROLL WE DO.

b) What has been the biggest lesson(s) learnt - YOU GOTTA BELIEVE 120%. THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT HELP INVEST STRUGGLE WITH YOU, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY IT IS DOWN TO THE BAND AND WHAT THEY DO. IT IS A CONSTANT STRUGGLE OF ENJOYMENT AND PAIN.

c) Is there one show that sticks out as being the most memorable – HELLFEST WAS A MAGIC MOMENT. ALL EYES ON ME WAS WRITTEN ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE, WE DROVE TEN HOURS OVERNIGHT. WE DIDNT SHOWER, WE HAD LITTLE SLEEP, WE WERE HUNGRY, BUT AS SOON AS WE STEPPED ON THAT STAGE, WE WERE ELECTRIC MARY.

Sabaton

Fri, 29 Jul 2011 12:46:09 +1000

“We had the chance to play on the actual battlefield in Poland where we sung the song 40:1, exactly 70 years on the hour of the battle. That was really magical, there was about 10,000 people that came to see the performance...”

Swedish epic power metal superstars Sabaton are soon set to release the first ever live album, World War Live: Battle Of The Baltic Sea in August via Nuclear Blast. Recorded during the magic night aboard the Sabaton Cruise 2010, differen’t versions of the release will also include additional live songs on a bonus CD, as well as a DVD recording the band did at their first Rockstad: Falun festival in 2008.

Having toured heavily in the time after their last studio release, Coat Of Arms, the band recently played one of their pinnacle shows, supporting Iron Maiden in Stockholm in front of 60,000 people. With further relentless touring ahead in 2011, the band is set to enter the studio thereafter to start work on the next studio album.

We chatted to Pär Sundström about the upcoming live release as well as an insight into the live Sabaton experience!

Hello Par, thanks for taking the time to do this interview with Australia!
This is cool as I think it's the first interview I have ever done with Australia. Unfortunately we have never been to Australia and nobody from Australia has ever really shown strong interest in the band before.

Well then, I can actually say that I have seen Sabaton perform before in Stockholm in 2008 at Klubben when you played with the band H.E.A.T.
Oh you were there, well the world is interesting and small sometimes haha!

We are here to talk about your upcoming CD release – World War Live, Battle Of The Baltic Sea, firstly can you tell me about the actual performance that features as the main CD release….it was on an actual cruise wasn’t it, the Sabaton cruise!
Yes it was in December last year. Actually, when we were planning the tour last year, we knew we needed to get from Sweden to Finland some how. That tour was in the winter in December and taking the northern parts in December is risky for tour buses and trucks, because of all the snow up there. So the only option was to go on the ferry. So instead of just travelling as normal passengers, we got the idea we will book out the whole boat and invite our fans to watch us play on the boat. So they came and the boat was absolutely fully packed and it was a magical night. It was recorded, as was the whole tour. We figured out after a little while that we had the equipment with us to record every show, so we did. We didn't have any plans until after the tour was done where we got the idea that maybe we should do a live album.

So was that the standout show from that tour?
It was a special show as there was no setlist, there was just improvisation, so yeah this show was a little bit different. On the boat you obviously can't build our normal stage set with flame throwers. So there's absolutely nothing on the boat other than the 6 people in the band and 2,000 head bangers. There is basically very little lighting as well, that night was all about the music and the intensity between the crowd and the band.

Is what made it onto the CD the full show, or did you leave some songs out?
No, no it’s not as we couldn't fit the whole show onto a CD. There are some songs cut out and there was also a high sea and storm during the show, so sometimes it was a little hard for our drummer to sit still. The rest of us and even the crowd were falling at some points as well. You can hear at some points in the recording the bass drum rolling away haha!

You also have a bonus DVD can you explain a little where this took place?
That show was the start or our own festival. At the time, that was basically meant to be the release party for our album Art Of War. It however became something else and now our festival has became this 3 day event with people from over 20 countries coming and we now book many international bands. This show on the DVD was just the start of that festival and captures the energy of a Sabaton show. We recorded that show then with the intention of releasing a DVD soon after, but we didn't have the means back then to release a DVD. So we had that footage lying around and felt it was a shame as for us it was a very special show. So we wanted to release it and now was the right time along with the live CD. We have 5 studio albums and it's now good to have out a live DVD and CD.

I have to ask, the opening of the live CD is your intro ‘The March To War’, which you have used as your intro for a few years now, is it still a pretty magical feeling when this Intro is playing and you see the crowd getting more and more excited for Sabaton to storm the stage?
Yeah it is. Actually we have 2 intros. Normally we also play The Final Countdown by Europe, the whole song. We know that intro is 4 minutes, so that's 4 minutes before The March intro goes, so we can do those last things like go to the bathroom, warmup, check tuning or whatever. The crowd gets happy when they hear The Final Countdown as most people do, even though they might say they don't haha! Then our intro kicks in, which we have had for about 3 years now. I think it's a good idea to have the same intro as it's a relaxing feeling for us that nothing has changed, we know what to do and how we should react. Also the crowd recognises it and knows the show is about to start for real. You still have when KISS is going on stage "Alright Stockholm, you wanted the best...." you hear that and know that now it's time to raise your fist and scream! So I like that feeling, we all do, that's why want to stay with that same introduction.

You have had the opportunity to play with some of the worlds biggest metal bands such as Iron Maiden in front of 60,000 people and Scorpions, then you also have memorable gigs in the bands history such as in Poland…do you have a special performance that is your favourite?
Lately it was very cool to play with Iron Maiden, it was a massive crowd and we had a big crowd to see us. In Sweden, Sabaton is very popular, even though Iron Maiden is a lot bigger band, we still can pull our fans through the gate. So we had a fantastic time at that show. I also have to say when we had the chance to play on the actual battlefield in Poland where we sung the song 40:1, exactly 70 years on the hour of the battle. That was really magical, there was about 10,000 people that came to see the performance and the Chief of Cabinet for the President came. That was very special.

Have you commenced work yet on a new studio album?
We have a little bit. We always work in new songs when we have a bit of time, but we have been on tour quite intensively since we released the last album. At the moment ww have about 2 weeks home so we are working now. When we are home from America in late October, we will be working hard on the new album and the plan is to release it in May. We already have a lot of ideas, but concerning the topics and lyrical themes we have nothing decided yet. The only thing is we want to take it in a little different direction than we have before.

You recently released re-issues of your albums with bonus tracks and other cool stuff, how have fans responded to this? It’s been a big year for them!
That was all part of a big agreement when we signed to Nuclear Blast. We wanted to make all the old albums available world wide, but that couldn't be with the old record label. So we had to buy the rights to our old music, so if you sign the wrong deals when you start, that's how you end up! That was pretty costly to buy back the rights, then we got it licensed to Nuclear Blast who got it out around the world. I hope in a few years this turns out to be a good thing.

You have a busy year ahead of touring for the rest of the year. You are heading back to the USA again, this time playing shows with Evergrey, how do the Americans respond to Sabaton?
I think they respond perfect. We have done a few festival gigs in the past and then earlier this year we did the tour with Accept. That was a great package, Sabaton and Accept, the music fits perfectly. We could easily tell from those shows the crowd liked Sabaton. We just need to test it on a wider audience and see how it works, but I have a good vibe about America. I think it's going to work out just fine. We just need to push it like we pushed Europe. We have done a couple of hundred concerts around Europe and played in every country you can imagine there. Then next we have to do the same thing in Australia!

I guess the unfortunate thing for us in Australia is that we are so far away, but there certainly isn't a shortage of people who love metal music! Hopefully one day...
Well there were actually plans already and dates booked for Australia. When we announced the World War Tour, I wanted to play everywhere. We had gigs booked in Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Africa, that was the plan. Unfortunately some of the promoters withdrew and made the whole thing impossible. It wasn't the Australian promoter who withdrew, it was just impossible if we didn't have the other shows. We were to play a show in Tunisia but that became unstable with riots and stuff and the promoter didn't want us to go at that time.

Well thanks Par for your time and hope you enjoyed your first ever Australian interview. It’s been great chatting, hopefully I will either see Sabaton again, either here in Australia one day, if not at Rockstad Falun or a Sabaton Cruise!
Thank you, I hope to see you one day soon!

Bowling For Soup

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 09:41:12 +1000

“It's funny, songs and albums are like your children, you have certain ones that are your favourites on certain days and you have to make sure to buy them the same sized Christmas presents, you know. This album (Fishin’ For Woos) though for me is one of the ones I am most proud of...”

Bowling For Soup (or BFS for those already acquainted) are one of the biggest names on the pop punk circuit, having been doing their thang for 17 years, with 11 studio albums, worldwide radio hits such as 1985 and Girls All The Bad Guys Want and repeated appearances on the main stages of some of rocks biggest festivals such as Download in the UK and Vans Warped in the USA. Their new album Fishin’ For Woos is a return to the old school BFS from the days of A Hangover You Don’t Deserve and Drunk Enough To Dance. Not to say that their past couple of releases in Sorry For Partyin’ and The Great Burrito Extortion Case were necessarily new school however, because they were BFS through and through. Whilst on the subject of the 2009 release Sorry For Partyin’, some of you may not even realise this salacious collection of power pop delights was even released, but that’s a story for BFS frontman Jaret Reddick to explain further into this interview..

When it comes to BFS frontman Jaret Reddick, there are few equals when it comes to his ability to infuse so many pop culture references, hooks, melodies and smiles into a song. New album, Fishin’ For Woos is simply one of the greatest things BFS have released. Having a rare quiet moment at home in Texas, we chatted to Jaret pretty much about anything any BFS fan would want to know about. If I was a BFS fan (which I most absolutely am!), I would want to read every word of this interview as it’s “freakin’ awesome”, if I may quote Jaret himself!

Hey Jaret, thanks for offering your time up for this interview! You have certainly been racking up the frequent flyer miles in the last month or so, playing at Download Festival and also a tour of Asia in association with the American Navy…firstly, how was your 3rd appearance at Download?
Download was great, that festival is always amazing for us and it's interesting because when we do festival shows in the USA, we are really considered more of a pop band. So you will see us on the bill with Pink or sometimes Justin Bieber and the craziest kind of pop acts. But then when we play festivals in Germany or England, we are considered more of a rock band and play the same stage as Slayer or Slipknot or H.I.M. So it's always an interesting exercise for us to see how accepted we are and obviously the UK has just been amazing to us. We had an awesome trip over there, we just went in and did an acoustic set one day, then a full band show the next day. I got to see the few bands I made a point to go see.

Who were the main ones of those bands?
Well there would be two. We had done an event with Dee Snider from Twisted Sister about two years ago for Tommy Lee's television show he was doing called Battleground Earth. We did the last concert for that show and Dee Snider was going to be there, so we played We're Not Gonna Take It and he sang. We found out that he and his family were fans of BFS and we have stayed in touch, so when I found out we were going to be at Download Festival with him this year, he made sure we were really well taken care of and we got to watch Twisted Sister from side of stage. Then the next day, he and his wife and daughter came and watched us from side of stage, on the main stage. So that's pretty cool!

The artist that I sought out and really wanted to see was Frank Turner. I'm a huge Frank Turner fan and have become somewhat obsessed with him. So I got a chance to see him acoustic and the full show. But the only downfall was that he played kind of late, so I had been drinking a lot, so from what I remember, it was great!

Frank Turner is someone I have wanted to check out but haven't yet.
You being a Butch Walker fan, he has a bit of a Butch Walker thing about him, sometimes vocally he really reminds me of him. But it has that traditional English feel to it, with that punk rocker singer/songwriter/country thing. He's just amazing man and he is definitely my favourite thing to listen to right now, outside of all of my go to bands.

So how was the experience with the Navy in Asia, I was following that on your Twttier/Facebook?
We went to Asia with the US Navy and we got to do Japan, Thailand and Singapore and Guam and we had an amazing trip, met a lot of people and made a lot of people smile. The travel was pretty brutal, some shows took two or three days just to get there. You are sort of on the navy schedule, some days we would show up and you are not going to a regular airport. Essentially it was a small office that you would wait in. Sometimes that wait would be 4 or 5 hours, then when you get on that flight, sometimes that would be a 6, 8, 10 hour flight, only to get where you are going, get on a bus, go to a hotel, come back to the airport the next day and do it all again. It's funny to describe it, because it almost sounds like I am complaining and that was my theme for the whole thing where I would be like "I'm totally not complaining, I am just making an observation, but this kind of sucks". But in no way does it suck in comparison to the people we were over here to entertain and what they are putting themselves through. So it doesn't make any sense for us to complain too much. The good thing is when you are on those American bases, it's very easy to find the comforts of home, so we had plenty of Miller Lite to keep us busy and entertained haha! I got back a week ago and I am still fighting the jet lag. Going there is fine, but coming back for us is like a 2 week process of recovery.

Now you had a special guest out on tour with you, Mr Belding from Saved By The Bell, how did he enjoy hanging with BFS?
Mr Belding was good man haha! He is a really, really good guy and super nice. It was interesting, the Navy had never done one of these touring shows and brought an MC along, so it was definitely a lot of trial and error to get the balance of what the night was going to be like. But he just jumped right in and took the horse by the reins and just went for it. By the time we were done, he was coming out with all the bands and doing something different. He came out and did a Journey song with us and didn't even know the words. He's a really good guy! It's interesting for me as I think I just missed the whole Saved By The Bell thing. Not sure if it's age or whether I had moved onto different things by then, other than Saturday Morning TV, but obviously I was aware of what it was. BFS actually did a cover of the Saved By The Bell theme for a Saturday morning cartoon album, that never actually came out and we recorded the song like 6 or 7 years ago, but I think it's coming out soon actually. The Safetysuit guys were also there with us and an artist from Nashville called Natalie Stovall and her band who pretty much ended up being our hang buddies, they pretty much ended up in our party room every night.

Fishin’ For Woos your new album has been out for a few months now, first up, here is a chance in your own words to describe how awesome this CD is?
I am actually really proud of this one. It's funny, songs and albums are like your children, you have certain ones that are your favourites on certain days and you have to make sure to buy them the same sized Christmas presents, you know. This album though for me is one of the ones I am most proud of. Sorry For Partyin’ was the album we thought would be the one to take us to that next level and be the one that makes Bowling For Soup more than just the band who had a hit a few years ago and would give us the longevity that we think we will have. Obviously things didn't happen that way, we split with Jive 4 weeks after it came out and no song ever went to radio and there was never any real push or anything. There's no bitterness, but we had to come off the road and make a decision, "are we going to go and fight and do this thing, or are we going to go back ourselves into a corner and lick our wounds and act like we didn't know what to do”. We've always been self supporting and self sufficient and self motivating, so I locked myself away in my little home studio and wrote the record in three weeks. The guys literally got acoustic demos of the songs three days before we went into the studio and we hashed out what everyone was going to do with one hour of pre-production and recorded scratch tracks to use as a guide that same day. We then started recording that next day and finished it in three weeks. At that point we didn't really know whether we were going to put it out on our own or shop it too other labels or what the plan would be. It just became evident that the thing for us to do was to put it out ourselves and that's what we did. So far it's been a great success and I couldn't be more proud of it.

As for how awesome it is, it's freakin' awesome, that's the answer!

Given what you said about Fishin’ For Woos being written and recorded in pretty quick time, was this in part the reason for the album having that classic BFS sound of your earlier releases?
Well it definitely forced us not to over think anything. I definitely knew going in I wanted to reel a few things back in, even writing it, make it more of a Drunk Enough To Dance Type album. Obviously everything is going to have those bells and whistles that we know how to do now because of technology and experience and things like that as we know how to make things sound good and give them a bit of a spin to make them more interesting. We definitely didn't get bogged on a lot of things, like on Sorry For Partyin’ we would work for 6 hours on a Moog part that you probably don't even realise is there because it's a texture type thing. This time I wanted it to sound like guitar, bass and drums and I wanted everything else to be an after thought. So that was definitely because of the time factor and also money. We didn't have unlimited funds, so if we had of needed extra time in the studio we would of been cutting songs because we just didn't have the money to throw at it.

So when you are doing things on your own, planning becomes a big factor and that includes video, promotion, hiring a publicist and all of those things. It's like, well if we are paying for this then obviously we want to make it count, but also know exactly what we are doing going in so the little number wheel isn't just spinning and $$$ adding up. The last 2 records we made with Jive, we pretty much had whatever money we wanted to spend, especially The Great Burrito Extortion Case, we were coming off such a huge hit, we were like "fuck it, we are going to travel around the country recording this thing". We had a blast and I wouldn't have done it any other way, but now we are like, we're going to record a Christmas record in 5 months and we are going to do it in 5 days!

Without giving away the recipe to your secret herbs and spices, what are the key ingredients that you try and ensure are thrown in when writing a BFS song?
Well, whether I am writing a song for BFS or for somebody else, it’s just a matter of putting in that "thing" that I do. I guess I sort of have my own "thing" haha! It just seems to happen really naturally, whether I am writing a serious song, or a funny song, or for a pop person, or a cartoon for someone on television, I always try to sprinkle my own little "thing" in there, but again, it sort of just happens naturally. For me I guess songwriting wise, I just had to adopt the idea that there aren't any rules. Especially when you are writing pop songs, a lot of writers will be like, "well you have to do this, and this is the structure and the chorus has to come in witting 45 seconds of the song starting", or whatever. Then you hear a song on the radio that doesn't have the chorus kick in until the end of the song, which shows you don't need to have insane guidelines, you just need to write great songs.

BFS is never short of cool song titles and obviously every songwriter is different...when you write, does the song title come first or last?
Well now, it definitely happens after the fact. But back in the day, up through to Let's Do It For Johnny, the song titles didn't have anything to do with the songs themselves. We got to a point where we said, if we are going to market this at all, the title has to at least have something to do with the song. So now pretty much I just do the thing where I take the song title from the chorus and that's what it becomes. But then I get jealous because we were talking about Frank Turner earlier and all his song titles are just amazing and all somewhat reflective of what's happening in the song, but also another way of getting something personal out there about what he is talking about, so I am super jealous I am not able to do that anymore, because I pretty much set precedence on this is how I am going to title my songs now. But yeah man, lyrically I normally go in there with a concept, or a line that I am going to build the song around, then I usually work backwards from there.

One thing that completes the BFS experience is the visual aspect present in your music videos and from the new album you already have S-S-S Saturday and Turbulence, the latter being a video you personally produced via your production company, Built By Ninjas. How did you find that experience?
It's one of those deals where I try to have my hand in everything that is BFS, whether it's photographs or whatever, but it's always been more of a behind the scenes steering the boat kind of thing. When it comes to videos I ensure that what comes out on television is what we envisioned and how we get there. When my partner Heath and I started Built By Ninjas, obviously one of the goals was to eventually do a BFS video, so it was nice to do that only a year or so after we started. It's really cool to be both in front of, and behind the camera and to be responsible for rounding things. I mean finding an airplane is not easy you know! In attempting to get that airplane, we found it only 4 days before we actually shot the video, you know that got a little bit stressful. At the same time, I don't think I have ever been more proud of anything as I am of that Turbulence video as I just love that song so much and the fact that visually I had this idea of what I wanted it to look like and I actually got to go in there and actually make it happen. That's definitely a proud moment and one of the best videos we have ever made! We used no actors, we did it all ourselves and shot it with one camera.

You have released Fishin’ For Woos independently, how widely in an International sense is the album likely to be distributed, eg. Australia?
Well the idea is to get it everywhere! It's a little confusing to me why it's not out in Australia yet. I don't understand exactly how the while distribution thing works. Japan for example we had to go and make a whole separate deal, and it's coming out in a package along with our Greatest Hits all in the one bundle. Then it's obviously out in the UK and out in the US and everywhere digitally. But is out even out digitally yet in Australia at all?

Well I checked last week and didn't see anything on iTunes, but you would think given we live in the future, it would have already hit here!
Haha, yeah that's exactly right! It's definitely puzzling for me, I don't really understand it. For some reason things in Australia and Japan go hand in hand, so I sort of hope when it gets on the iTunes radar over that general part of the world, that it will come out in Australia. I know there already is a lot of Asian countries where it's already out and on radio and doing really well, so one can only hope!

Now you have that control, can we maybe one day expect to see the re-release of your very first few albums?
Yes, in fact, our first 2, being the Self Titled and Cell Mates and then our fourth, Tell Me When To Whoa, we will be re-releasing later this year. It's funny, when I go back and listen to that first album, I think gosh there almost should be a disclaimer going "this was 1994, we had no idea what we were doing" but it's like, F it, we will get it out there.

So tell us about your side project number 1, People On Vacation (POV)...
Well as Bowling For Soup winds down in the USA I will be able to concentrate a bit more on POV. We are hoping to have a long EP out around the end of November, with a full length album hoping to be out by next summer with all new material. We have a tonne of songs, we have around 15 songs that are written, recorded, done, all we have to do is put drums on them. Then we have 6 or 8 other songs we have written already that we just didn't record, so one of the things POV is not lacking is material or definitely excitement and drive. It's just a matter of both of us finding the time from our other bands and stuff that keeps us busy. We are doing some shows, we just played this weekend in Dallas and trying to play a few shows in September and more in November and December. So you will definitely start to see more stuff like posts and music in the coming months.

Whilst you have certainly recorded and written with many others, how have you found actually performing and having another separate entity in POV, outside of BFS?
It's a lot of fun and it's interesting. One of the things about BFS is on stage, a lot of what we do seems rehearsed, because we are so quick. But anybody who knows our band knows it's not, because you could come see us four times in a row and you'll never see the same show. We don't use a setlist, we don't rehearse jokes, everything is all spontaneous and stuff. So it's interesting to have that where I can almost feel one of the other guys setting me up to say something ridiculous or I almost know how they will react to something I am going to say. Again, just from being on stage together for 17 years, that's what happens when the whole banter thing is part of your show.

With Ryan, we have an amazing chemistry on stage, but it's an interesting thing for me because we are not a funny band, but you never know what is going to come out of my mouth, so there can be some interesting comedy from time to time. Ryan is a really funny guy too, but he is a different kind of funny. So it's pretty fun to be just thrown out there with somebody else and it's like ok, let's make a show out of this and you never know what he is going to say. He is one of those who will ask the audience "are you all having a good time tonight". I don't ever ask the audience that because I assume if they are there, then they are having a good time! So whenever he asks that question, I still haven't figured out what I am supposed to say after that haha. Maybe we will figure that out at some point. I will say also that it is fun to play different songs and to deliver a different side of me as a writer and musician. In the next few months we will both be playing piano on stage and obviously we are switching around with guitars. I am not always singing lead vocals, so it's a fun exploration.

Vans Warped & Download, to your own club shows, all the way to your acoustic gigs and playing for the navy in Asia, is that knowledge of your fellow BFS band members the reason why you can seemingly so effortlessly adapt to any type of show?
Our managers say this and it's something we have been saying forever, you can literally throw BFS into any situation and we will figure out how to make it work. I mean a cub scout meeting to an old folks home, we will figure something out. I think it's evidenced from what you just said and we have done that. We have gone from a metal festival in Germany to an acoustic show in a record store in Tokyo where they can't understand what we are saying, but they know every song, through to back in the States playing at Idaho Falls playing to a few hundred people. So it's just a matter of going out there and playing your best show every night and figuring out who your audience is for that day and we are really, really good at doing that.

What’s the story with Jarinus, side project 2 with Linus Of Hollywood, are we going to be hearing any music soon?
Linus Of Hollywood is a guy who was in a band called Size 14 and is someone who I reached out to on the Internet to write some songs with. We instantly hit it off and found these amazing, weird similarities in our lives and musical careers and such and pretty much came to be the best of friends. Within two times of getting together we had started Crappy Records and wrote a bunch of songs for BFS for the last 2 records and stated writing songs for other artists as well. Originally our band was going to be called Mountain Of Poo and originally the Jarinus thing was sort of like the Bradgelina kind of thing and sort of a joke, but then we said lets just call our band Jarinus. The band was fictional until we were recording Sorry For Partyin’ and we started coming up with all these ideas for songs and they pretty much just write themselves. All of the Jarinus songs we write in like 15 minutes. So we have three songs recorded and about 6 to 8 ideas there, it's just a matter of putting it all together. With this one we are actually going to do a Jarinus "Kickstarter" in the next few months where everyone can be a part of the process and we will have some really, really cool packages just to be able to get the album and video made and all that and get people involved through the whole process. You know, Linus is super busy in the studio, as am I, we are together a lot working on different stuff and I've got my stuff on the side, he has his stuff, BFS is my main thing and his main thing is his studio work, so I don't see us a touring band. But definitely as one of those bands where we will have a plethora of material and boy, it's pretty insane!

So is the material headed towards your respective loves for hard rock and metal?
We definitely have that element. The first 2 songs we recorded have that, there's metal screams and some pretty ripping guitar solos. The idea behind the album itself is to explore a bunch of different genres. It didn't really set out to be an over the top comedy thing, but for some reason it's shaping up that way!

Over the years, how much have you noticed a change in your fan base?
It's sort of ever changing. A large part of our fan base that we see, as in at our shows, its almost like we picked them up along the way and they have stayed with us. We definitely have an amazing loyalty from our fans. You know we started out in the bars and we were absolutely a bar band in every way. We were a beer drinking, beer spilling band, then once we got on Jive and we went into Girl All The Bad Guys Want, it became more of a mixed crowd. Then with 1985, our crowd got really, really young because Radio Disney jumped all over that song. It got to the point during the whole 1985 era, we really had to watch ourselves as far as stage banter and topically because you would look out and there would be 7 year old kids all over the place. Which was interesting because we hadn't changed anything about ourselves it was just radio had jumped on that song. But since then it's really levelled out, we still have the beer drinkers that come, we definitely still have some youngsters, but mostly youngsters these days their parents are fans as well. One of the cool things about our band is that it's just amazing to me how many letters and emails I get from parents or kids that are like "I had absolutely nothing in common with my son until we found your band and now we are going to concerts all the time and have a relationship we never had", it's just all the time, for some reason we appeal to all age groups and when families find us, they latch on! Even in other countries for us, our audience has got younger again with 16 to 18 yo kids and then there's the beer drinkers at the back of the room. We seen to be ageless as far as our appeal goes and I think that's a good thing!

When you think back to the punk/pop bands that have come and gone, or changed their stripes in the time BFS has been in existence…BFS in comparison have pretty much stayed on the same course, has this been a conscious decision?
You know a lot of bands do change, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. Luckily a lot of our peers that have changed have got even better, you can't really argue the success of Green Day for example and their evolution into one of the biggest bands in the world. You know they're still freakin’ great, but their first major label album was called Dookie, now they're a politically driven band, but they are still making amazing music. But other bands in our genre have definitely evolved into other things.

For us it was a conscious decision. Bad Religion for example, when you go buy a Bad Religion album it sounds like Bad Religion, that's what you want it to sound like. Same for NoFX and a lot of the things we grew up listening to. I think also for us if we were to evolve into anything half serious, how could we take ourselves seriously! We are always going to be doing fart jokes and what not. So in answer to your question, I think we have a lot of teenage fans that may have been fans of ours when they were 12 or 13 who went onto other stuff and now they are finding the new album and they are 18 to 20 years old and they are like "you can always count on you guys, I've had a bad day and I listen to you guys and you put a smile on my face and it's so great to be listening to you again". So I think it's good as you know what you are going to get. Let's face it, you pretty much knew what the new BFS album was going to sound like before you got it, but you were surprised at a few songs, but as for the overall vibe, you knew exactly what it was going to be. We definitely pride ourselves on that and we have no intentions of reinventing ourselves at any point!

In This Moment

Tue, 26 Jul 2011 07:52:48 +1000

“I think people see the picture of the band and make a snap judgement, which I would too if I had never heard of us and saw a picture of us, I would definitely be rushing to make judgement on what we would be sounding like, or be quick to dismiss us. We are going to surprise a lot of people I think with the energetic show, the music and the overall heaviness of the show.....”

Attention Soundwave Revolution attendees, if there is one band in particular that you shouldn’t judge by your visual senses, rather than your aural senses, it’s definitely the Los Angeles based metal band In This Moment. Led by lead singer Maria Brink, recently featured in Inked Magazine as one of the hottest tattooed women of rock and previously being crowned the “Hottest Chick in Metal” by Revolver Magazine in 2010, the band deliver an at times brutal fusion of metal and hard rock. With their last album A Star Crossed Wasteland seeing the band going a long way to establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the metal world, Australia, be warned, we are next in the bands quest for world domination.

In the midst of a 100 degree+ day in Memphis, Tennessee, the bands founding member (along with Brink), guitarist Chris Howorth dialled in to chat about the upcoming Soundwave Revolution shows and starting the process for album number 4.

Hey Chris, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You? You guys are out on tour right now aren’t you, what city do we find you today?
We are in Memphis, Tennessee today and it's so hot. It's not even sunny out, it's really overcast, but super humid and like 100 degrees.

How is the All Stars Tour going so far…that’s a pretty big line up of bands!
It's really good man, it's a different kind of tour for us. We stick out a lot on this bill of bands and we find we are playing to a bunch of people that have never heard of us before, which is always a good thing. We are getting new fans and people see getting turned onto us.

So in September you are headed out to Australia, for Soundwave Revolution. You guys were lined up to play at Soundwave Festival in 2009, but pulled out to support Mudvayne in the USA instead, you must be excited to finally be coming!
We are so excited. When we first put up our Myspace page back in 2005 and put music up, we had people from Australia we were talking to that were into the band. When we were on the 2009 Soundwave lineup we had a lot of fan mail from people excited we were coming and we were so excited to be coming and it was a real bummer we didn't get to come. We are beyond excited to be coming this time.

You are going to be out here for a over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being in Australia?
We are all big nature people and here in America what you see a lot of on Discovery Channel and things like that and the country side, the people as well. We are just really excited for everything about it, we've never been there but been to a lot of other places in the world and it's crazy that now we are finally coming. We don't even really know what to expect. Maria is really excited to hold a koala, so we will be doing that and go see as much as we can.

Have you had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
Yes definitely! When we found out Van Halen was the headliner, we were so excited, we were all cheering and called each other right away. We couldn't believe it. I love Machine Head and there's so many different kinds of music it's going to be awesome. It's such a great opportunity and we are so grateful. There's no better way really to come over and introduce the band in this way at Soundwave. We can't wait for it!

Being your first time out here, what are you expecting from your Aussie fans, you mentioned earlier how you were aware via social media that there is certainly some interest in the band?
Yes we have always had people write to us from Australia since we started, I don't know how big it is, but it seems like anytime we are doing anything we are always getting a 'What about Australia' comment on our Facebook page. I know there's been some fans I have been talking to from the beginning that are like 'I can't believe you guys are finally coming. It's going to be pretty exciting to see how many people really know about us. We are excited to see the reaction and how it goes. It's a great place for music and we just can't wait to get started over there.

What can your fans expect from your set at Soundwave Revolution, how would you describe the In this Moment live experience?
We try to go off as much as we can and put a lot of energy into the show, whilst still trying to make sure we play everything really good so it sounds as close to the record as we can. It's still something I don't think people are expecting to see. I think people see the picture of the band and make a snap judgement, which I would too if I had never heard of us and saw a picture of us, I would definitely be rushing to make judgement on what we would be sounding like, or be quick to dismiss us. We are going to surprise a lot of people I think with the energetic show, the music and the overall heaviness of the show.

In your time thus far, you have played some pretty large festivals, such as Ozzfest...how do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to a bigger stage, compared to playing the smaller more intimate venues?
Each type has it's place. Smaller shows are great for intimacy and it's a great vibe when it's an awesome club show. But then for a big festival like Mayhem Fest, Ozzfest, Download or Soundwave it's such a huge energy rush to be out in front of that many people, especially if you are getting a good reaction, it's hard to compare to that.

Through your experience playing at these larger festivals, have you had your opportunity to either see or meet one of your all time most influential artists or the like?
It's happened so many times for us because whenever you are playing a big festival, like Download of whatever, you have Iron Maiden playing or Slayer and all those kinds of bands. We actually did a tour with Ozzy Osbourne in the States and he has been such a huge, huge influence on me and a hero. Also Megadeth, we toured with them and I got to hang out with Dave Mustaine and spend some time with him, which was also huge for me. The music business has been just one big crazy moment after another honestly, where you are bumping into people left and right that you have idolised your whole life.

Do you guys have any interesting tour “rituals” or things you do as a band to keep yourselves amused or sane, depending which way you look at it haha!
I guess everybody has their little things, for us it's always somebody's getting picked on, in the crew or in the band, there's constant ripping on each other. We listen to a lot of music before we go onstage, we get pumped up in the front lounge listening to bands like Van Halen or whatever. It's like a big family, there's always jokes going on or something like that.

A Star Crossed Wasteland has been out now for about a year, reflecting on the process of writing and recording that album, do you think you will largely follow the same process, or have you got some things you want to change up?
We are definitely going to change some stuff up. We are still doing the same thing where everyone is getting their ideas together on their own, but this time we are going to focus on getting together as a group in the same room and work on ideas. We haven't done that since the first album where we sat and wrote in a room together and playing and jamming and stuff like that. I think it's going to open up a lot of doors for us and it's going to be a lot more interesting sounding this time around.

Have you actually started the writing process for the album as yet?
Yeah, we are in the process man. The last month and a half we were off and working in music. Everyones got some ideas and we've been jamming. Every time we are not doing anything, we are working on the new album.

You have used Kevin Churko to produce your last 2 albums, is it too early to say whether you will be using him again?
No it's definitely locked down already and we will be going into the studio with Kevin on January 1st and start working on the album. He's got things in his mind how we are going to try things a little differently. We don't just want to do the same thing over and over and expect a different result. We are making some changes and adjustments so we get a different result this time.

I have read that collectively the band consider your last album to have captured/defined the In This Moment sound, how would you describe the musical direction with the new material, has this evolved also?
We are never going to lose sight of who we are, it's always going to have what people expect from us, but we are not going to put the same album out over and over and over. Maria has a lot of ideas for things she wants to be a little different and us playing the songs together in the same room will add a different vibe. I really can't tell you what it's going to be yet, but it will still be In This Moment, we're not going to take a left turn or anything like that.

Catch In This Moment at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

Every Time I Die

Fri, 22 Jul 2011 11:15:07 +1000

“I love The Damned Things because I get to sing a lot more which I love doing, but then playing shows with Every Time I Die is unparalleled, the energy there, you can't ask for a better interaction with crowds than we get when we play club shows....”

Every Time I Die frontman Keith Buckley is certainly going to be a busy man on the upcoming Soundwave Revolution tour. Aside from performing with the band he has been fronting for over 13 years, he will also be singing with The Damned Things the rock project featuring members of Anthrax, Fall Out Boy and fellow Every Time I Die bassist Josh Newton. Chatting to us during a break in recording the brand new Every Time I Die album, Keith updates us where the band is at with the new album as well as sharing an insight into the contrast between performing with Every Time I Die and The Damned Things. Read on....

Hey Keith, thanks for taking the time to chat. So first things first, you guys have started working on a new album, how is the writing/recording going so far?
It's awesome. It's different definitely because we are all going through everything at the same time, where normally it's very compartmentalised. One guitarist will do all their stuff, then another guitarist will do their stuff, but this time we are all sitting around in the same room and vibing off each other, so it's going well.

Obviously easier than said than done to get you guys in the same room given the touring committments for The Damned Things...
Yes! All the lyrics for this record have been written on the tour bus with The Damned Things. It's completely different than sitting in my house writing in the winter! Normally we write in the winter, but this time it was summertime and I was in a different country with a different band, so it was definitely in a completely different headspace.

With yourself and Josh obviously having been busy with The Damned Things, had the other guys been working on bits and pieces?
That's kind of how it all came together. They were writing in Buffalo and sending things through to me via the Internet. I would get the songs and put vocals to them, but I had no way of sending it back to them so they are hearing 16 songs for the first time.

How far advanced are you guys so far, how many songs have you recorded?
Well, you know we've done the very basic framework for almost all the songs, we have maybe two or three left. Then we will go over and layer it and get some of the dirt out.

I have noticed that there has been some secrecy surrounding the producer you have been working with for this album, has that persons identity any closer to being revealed?
Yes there is a veil of secrecy surrounding it and for some reason I have been instructed not to say.

Where are you recording at the moment, it’s in California right?
Yes we are, so there you go, there’s a clue, you can narrow it down, we are in California haha!

Reflecting on your previous album New Junk Aesthetic which was your first on new label Epitaph, how better placed do you think the band is heading into the new album, than say on past releases?
We are definitely in the best position we have been in because it's the first time we have recorded without Ratboy. This material is something we wrote with a whole new level of enthusiasm and recorded with a much higher level of professionalism, it's changed the game. Ryan is far more technical, more inventive and an overall better drummer.

Have there been any key influences, either in a musical or lyrical sense that have influenced the album so far?
I think this time time around, mentally I have been in a different spot. Since the last record, I got married, The Damned Things started, I toured and there's a whole lot of new things on the plate. Whereas with the old stuff, the last record and the record before that, I could go back and look at it and say I am revisiting an old idea, lets see if I can say it a bit differently. This time we came in with 17 songs and there are still things I didn't even touch on.

How would you compare the material for the new album to your past releases?
It is something different. You know, when you change drummers it affects the rhythm section. I don't even know if it's comparable, I just know that it feels better and it feels fun.

I just wanted to also ask a couple of questions about your involvement with The Damned Things….I guess firstly, how have you found the contrast and experience between the two bands?
I found it very difficult for a while too balance the two. It was like getting you scrotum caught in the zipper, it threw everything off and you couldn't get past it and everything was all screwed up and then finally you cleared that point before everything finally melded together a little bit smoother. There was a time when we first started where I couldn't get the schedules worked out at all. Everything was all happening, everything was all bunched up like the scrotum and we just couldn't get past it. Now I've cleared the scrotal area and everything seems to be falling into place. It is busy with one tour after another, but it's started to work out. The Damned Things are on break whilst Every Time I Die records, but we meet up again when both bands do Soundwave.

After 12 or so years with Every Time I Die and now having the experience with The Damned Things, how has it made you view Every Time I Die ?
It's moonlighting, but I don't know which one is the mistress haha! You appreciate them both for different reasons. I love The Damned Things because I get to sing a lot more which I love doing, but then playing shows with Every Time I Die is unparalleled, the energy there, you can't ask for a better interaction with crowds than we get when we play club shows. They both have something that draws me to them, but every time I get on stage with Every Time I Die, all bets are off.

You are headed out to Australia in September for Soundwave Revolution. You have been out to Australia before with Every Time I Die, how have you found the reaction in Australia to the band?
The people in Australia are some of the most extreme people I have ever come across, pretty much at any festival. I'll use the guys in Parkway Drive as an example of a very small demographic, but those guys are insane, they are like hardwired to completely get everything out of life at all moments. They're either surfing or skydiving or cliff jumping, everything they do at any moment, it has to be extreme. I find that pretty much par for the course with pretty much anyone in Australia, everything is always on the right side of the gauge, 100% all the time. It's awesome to play shows over there.

So both The Damned Things and Every Time I Die are performing at Soundwave, have you had that experience of playing with both bands on the same festival?
No I've never done that before. I don't know who has, there's no way I will be the first at Soundwave, but I am curious to find out, because I want to know who else has talked themselves into a corner like I have!

For you personally, how do you find playing in two very different kind of bands and the contrasting crowd that each one brings?
It's almost like The Damned Things are a more graduated version of what I am used to. People that go to shows now are just so young. Every Time I Die doesn't really appeal to the 15 year old girl crowd, which I don't want the band to, none of us do. But you play a Warped Tour and you are playing in front of that demographic some of the time because people migrate between stages and whatever. I think we are pretty well locked into the 18 to 30 year old male category, that's what we are shooting for and I think we've got that. When I see like 15 year old girls freak out over people in bands, it just blows my mind because it was never like that until kids were given so much power via the internet. When you play at Warped tour, you are not a multi-platinum selling pop band, so to see these little girls and kids freak out over a hardcore band, it's just wild to me. It's funny because now that I am with Scott Ian in The Damned Things it's like older people are freaking out, 40 year olds freaking out over Scott Ian, which is insane.

You are going to be out here for over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being back in Australia?
It's gods country haha! I'm an aethiest, I don't mean that literally, it's just beautiful. I just love being out there and exploring the beaches and stuff. There will be some time for sightseeing whilst we are out there and it's perfect weather and it will be cold where I live at that time of year, so I get to catch some sun.

Have you had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
Yeah obviously Van Halen, Danzig I've never seen before. Four Year Strong, we are good friends with those dudes who always put on a good show. Also Panic At The Disco, I like that band a lot, the whole vibe around that band is really cool and I like the look of that band a lot, I know they have some great production and stage presence. I'm definitely going to see as much as I can.

How do you find the festival experience, taking your music to the bigger stages combined with the festival type environment, in comparison to the smaller club shows which you mentioned earlier as having lot’s of energy?
I love playing festivals because as a fan of music it gives me the chance to see acts that I will probably never get to see and to say we are playing a festival with Van Halen is incredible. Personally playing though, I would rather play an intimate club setting.

Thanks for your time Keith, hope the recording goes great and see you out here in September!
Awesome, thanks so much!

Catch Every Time I Die at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

This Providence

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 15:01:16 +1000

“It's the best situation for us to come over and meet the fans and new people who have never heard of our band. Soundwave have so far been amazing at taking care of us, I’ve never been part of a Festival that has been so organised. So we are extremely thankful and couldn't ask for more really...”

For pop rock band This Providence, whilst their albums may be reasonably well spaced apart, they at least can’t be accused of not seeking perfection in the writing and their craft of delivering pop rock goodness. With their 2009 release, Who Are You Now going some way to establish the band, chatting with bass player David Blaise it’s clear that the band certainly realise the importance of their yet to be recorded follow up album in further establishing the band worldwide.

Heading to our shores in September for Soundwave Revolution, it’s now time for the band to start conquering Australia. Check out our interview with David Blaise below.

Hey David, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You? So where do you find you today?
I am in Los Angeles, California sitting in the sun, having coffee, so it's pretty good!

First things first, I have to ask how do you describe This Providence, both the band and the music…
This Providence is just a pop rock band, we take a lot of influence from Oasis and Jimmy Eat World. We are an honest pop rock band, we have our fun dancy songs, but we try and keep our lyrics with meaning and integrity.

So in September you are headed out for your first trip to Australia, for Soundwave Revolution. What has the response been like so far to the news from both the band and your Aussie fans?
We have always wanted to go to Australia, our singer was from there originally and it almost felt like our second home you know. On Twitter we constantly get people asking us to come over there, but it's not really a realistic thing, so for us to come over as part of the Soundwave Revolution is just amazing. It's the best situation for us to come over and meet the fans and new people who have never heard of our band. Soundwave have so far been amazing at taking care of us, I’ve never been part of a Festival that has been so organised. So we are extremely thankful and couldn't ask for more really.

You are going to be out here for a over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being in Australia?
It's always been one of those places I have really wanted to go to. It's just amazing, the atmosphere looks insane and the beaches, I live in Los Angeles and we have beaches, but they are nasty haha. So I am not sure if we have too much time, but I would love to go and explore in general. Not necessarily the touristy stuff, but landscapes. From what I know it's very relaxed and I think that's awesome as in America it can kind of be crazy sometimes. It's just going to fun to head to another country to kind of take a vacation, but we are also playing shows, it's probably the best situation I could have asked for.

Have you had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
I know Van Halen are playing and when I saw that, that's like one band I have to see every night, that's just going to be unreal. There’s a bunch of bands from our label Fuled By Ramen that are going to be playing, so it's a cool thing we are not going to be alone over there, with our label mates as we know all those guys already.

Being your first time out here, what have you heard about what you can expect from Soundwave and the Aussie This Providence fans?
We obviously can't tell how many are down there and what the response is going to be exactly, but we get enough people Tweeting us telling us we need to come to Australia. Actually our drummers brother lives out there and he actually heard some other people, without them knowing he was related to someone in the band, talking about the band. So that was kind of a surreal experience...so it made us believe enough that we should be going to Australia and playing as there's some kind of request for it, I'm not sure how much exactly, but its got our attention and were coming to play.

What can your fans expect from your set at Soundwave Revolution, how would you describe the This Providence live experience?
It's a fun rock show, it's a lot of energy and I think what's different about us to some other pop rock bands is we don't use tracks. Everything you see on stage is what's coming out, it's definitely an honest and real performance. I hope that we win over a lot of people as an actual rock band, with no gimmicks, what you see is what you get.

Your singer Dan Young is Australian born, has he mentioned anything specifically at this point about coming back to Australia to play at Soundwave Revolution?
Yes, he is a very proud Australian and he has family out here and he has his cousin doing merch for us. He's excited, he has never played a show over there so he doesn't know what to expect either but I am glad we have a little bit of a guide in Dan to show us around. He also said to watch out for spiders and snakes, of which I am terrified of both, so I am looking forward to coming across a funnel web spider or a huntsman spider, I've been busy YouTubing haha!

How do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to a bigger stage, compared to playing the smaller more intimate venues, particularly given when a festival such as Soundwave Revolution is largely dominated by a lot of heavier top bands?
I think I favour festival shows sometimes over club shows as it's just a bunch of bands playing in a field and you get to meet as many people as you want. If you are out there all day, you are going to meet as many people as you can. As far as fan interaction it's great. I think we hold our own too, I'm not too worried about the heavier lineup. We did the Warped tour and that was a heavier lineup and I think we have enough rock songs and a good enough performance live that we can turn heads and maybe surprise some people that we are not just a pop band.

I am sure that the whole recording and writing process for Who Are You Now was a massive learning experience for the band….were there any key learnings you are wanting to maybe capitalise on with the follow up?
The writing process is definitely a little different this time. We've actually been writing with other people and producers, Dan was just in Chicago writing with the singer of The Academy Is, so we've been trying to get new perspectives on writing and I think that's a way of growth as a songwriter, just seeing how other people write in different ways and kicking old habits. So that's something we haven't done before and I think it's working to get those different perspectives on writing and lyrics and making this record as strong as we can make it. Kind of putting our pride aside and not just saying, I don't want to hear anyone else's opinion on the record.

So it’s been over 2 years since the last album was released, has this been largely taken up with touring, or has there been some downtime as well?
We've had a year off to work on the new album and we are still working on it. We have about 30 songs, but we still want to keep writing as this record is going to define us and this is one of the big shots we’re going to have, so we have to make it perfect, at least what we think us perfect.

I have a clothing line I've been working on and now that I haven't been touring I've been able to work on it a little more. It's been awesome, it's http://makebelieveclothingco.com/. Everyone has been doing stuff, our drummer has been doing photography and Dan has been writing with other bands helping them write songs. So yes we've got other things going on, but the focus is always This Providence. We are finally getting back on track and hopefully we will be in the studio by the end of the year. It's definitely been a process, but we just want it to be perfect and we'll take as long as it takes. That's been the hard thing for the fans as a lot of bands can come out with an album in 6 months, but for us in order to make an album we are very proud of, it's going to take a little more time.

Catch This Providence at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

The Used

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 13:35:44 +1000

“I can't wait to hear once everyone is done with their parts completely and the whole thing is mixed, because mixing makes or breaks things for me, so I am really hopeful. But as of now, it's the best thing we've ever done by far, without a doubt..”

It’s been a few years now since The Used released arguably their best album to date in Artwork. For fans of the The Used, you will be pleased to hear that the band is well advanced in recording the follow up album, with the bands bass player, Jepha Howard stating during our interview appearing below, that “as of now, it's the best thing we've ever done by far, without a doubt”. Heading to Australia in September for Soundwave Revolution, there is probably also a damn good chance that Australia will get to hear some of these new songs.

We caught up with Jepha to chat about the bands upcoming Australian visit and importantly, how the recording has been going so far for the bands new album.

Hey Jepha, thanks for taking the time to chat. So first things first, you guys have been busy working on a new album, how is recording going so far?
We've been swamped man, it's been a very great time though.

How far advanced are you guys so far, how many songs have you recorded?
Well vocals are nearly almost done, we are very close to being almost finished completely. I would say before next month it will be completely finished.

Do you have a likely release date in mind yet?
I would hate to say, but January, we are going to wait until the beginning of next year.

So leading into this album you got out of our label and also have new management...has this been a liberating experience of sorts to have such change, especially during the recording process where you are your own bosses so to speak?
You know what, we are actually a pretty lucky band. We have always had our freedom. The only problem we had with our label was people putting their two cents in that didn't really know too much. You know what I'm saying, I said that as nice as possible! So it's nice not to have those people that are making it harder for us to get our record out and harder for us to do things. It's nice now that we have full control of everything, all the stuff we never thought of having control of. It's very interesting!

Has a decision been made yet if you are going to release this album independently, or are you still considering the label path?
So far we are doing it on our own, but we might be getting some help from a company, but we would still be doing it on our own. It's going to be more of us, than a record company.

Well I guess the question everyone asks these days is what is a record label exactly in 2011?
Yes exactly, nobody knows!

How would you describe the songwriting on this album, compared to your past releases, has there been any significant change in the way you go about this?
It started out very normal, where we wrote a bunch of songs, about 60. We wrote and wrote and wrote and then we scrapped it all, which is kind of cool as it just wasn't right. The songs were good, but it just wasn't the right way we wanted to go. So we scrapped it all and went back into the studio and Bert really took charge on this record. We rewrote those songs using Bert as the conductor, which is a whole new way for us. So it kind of lines up for the vocals to work better if that makes sense?

Musically, what can we expect to hear on the new album?
This is by far the best record we have ever done. I know it's one of those things, every time a band comes with a new record you almost have to say the record is great. No doubt in my mind, this record as of now, as of not being finished is my favourite thing we have ever done. Vocally, musically, its more interesting. The last record I love, Artwork I really loved, for me it was equally as good as our first record, that's how I felt. So for this record to be better than those and I am only saying it based on the unfinished basis. I can't wait to hear once everyone is done with their parts completely and the whole thing is mixed, because mixing makes or breaks things for me, so I am really hopeful. But as of now, it's the best thing we've ever done by far, without a doubt..

I think I read that you were using John Feldman as producer, who produced your first 3 albums, how is it to be back working with John?
Here's the thing, we've recorded with John for the first 3 records. He and I, our personalities don't really clash, but we have never gotten along super well. We've always respected each other and liked each other, but we've never really gotten each others personality. But this record around I have actually understood more than I ever have, by far.

Where have you been recording the album?
We've actually been back in his old studio which is kind of nice to be back in the same area. It's nice to be there and it's back in the same area and to be relaxed. Usually there's been some kind of
tension from something, but this time it's an all the way round relaxed environment. Johns relaxed, we're relaxed, the records just smoothly going through, which is why I think that it's turning out so well.

I know Bert has had some surgery over the last few years for some throat and voice problems, how is he going with that, has the break from regular touring this year been good for that?
You know, Bert is a very lucky person. He breaks things and hurts himself a lot, but he is ok with it, he gets back up and is not afraid.

Whilst you may have been pretty busy recording, you have racked up some frequent flyer miles with trips to Belgium, South Africa and soon to be Australia…that must be good to break up the recording process?
Were every excited about it, especially as we've never been to South Africa before. Its great, we've taken a lot of breaks on this record. We've travelled and played different shows like once a month or once every two months. It's been a nice refresher you know. You leave, you play the shows and you feel good, because touring feels good. It feels good to play shows for people, it feels good to have a crowd of your own fans who want to see you play. It also helps the recording I have to say, going to see all the people and how they react, getting that vibe and then going back to the studio with that energy and with that vibe in mind as opposed to just sitting and waiting and trying to come up with ideas. It's a great way to come up with the record I must say.

You are headed out to Australia in September for Soundwave Revolution. With Top 20 albums, sold out tours, highly committed fans, Australia sure seems to be a great country for you guys…
We love Australia man, it's always the best shows and the crowds great!

Without wanting to compare your fan bases around the world necessarily, but do your Australian fans seem to be the most committed and excitable?
Oh, definitely, by far!

You are going to be out here for over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being back in Australia?
People are really nice everywhere you and that's a refreshing thing. Living in Los Angeles, I love it, but there’s not the nicest people everywhere.

Have you had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
Really excited about Every Time I Die and the side project, The Damned Things which will be cool man. Also very excited about Hole!

How do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to the bigger stages combined with the festival type environment, compared to playing the smaller venues?
You know it's different. Headline shows are always good because people are coming to see you and you know it's going to be a good show. You know what's going to happen. Festival shows are kind of insane as you don't know what's going to happen. You are using rental gear most of the time so the gear isn't yours. Which normally would be a bad thing, but given it's one of these kind of shows, it makes it exciting. You don't know how the crowd is going to react as they aren't there just for you, they are there for everybody. You have to actual fight your way through it, so it makes it that little bit more exciting!

What can your fans expect from your set at Soundwave Revolution, do you think you will be playing any newer songs?
There's talk of it and I really hope so. I think the record will be done by then, so we will be far enough rehearsing the record that it will be ok to play them. I think it will be a good thing. If we are going to play a new song that nobody has ever heard, we might as well do it in Australia. We have enough fans there and such great people there that it would be nice to just go for it and give them something brand new.

Catch The Used at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

VersaEmerge

Sat, 16 Jul 2011 16:19:13 +1000

“I'm kind of a maniac on stage and I don't know what I am ever going to do. It's really based on feeling, we are all based on feeling, so every show is always different. It's always a good time and it's always energetic.”

VersaEmerge - the name originating from the terms "vice versa", meaning opposite, and "emerge" meaning to rise up. Having opted to go down the road of relentless touring before releasing their debut album was certainly an inspired choice by the band, with Fixed At Zero released in 2010 gaining the band a huge following worldwide. In the midst of recording their new album, the band will be taking a small break to visit Australia for the first time, where their energetic liveshow is bound to increase the bands following even more.

VersaEmergre singer Sierra called in to chat about the bands upcoming Australian visit.

Hey Sierra, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You? So where do you find you now, are you at home now after a bunch of shows in Europe?
We are back home and yes we did have about a month in Europe for a bunch of festivals and one off dates. So now we are home, but right now in New York.

First things first, I have to ask how do you describe Versaemerge, both the band and the music…
Well I would describe it as something a little left of centre you know. We get mixed up and compared to a lot of other bands. But I don’t think that's the case and everyone's opinion is different, so I aways say to people, listen to it yourself and make up your own mind about whatever it is you think we are.

So in September you are headed out for your first trip to Australia, for Soundwave Revolution. What was your reaction when you found out you were coming here?
Well we've heard about it a bunch and a lot of our other friends have done it. We have mentioned it lots, but we didn't really have any idea how to get on it, usually that's the manager or labels job. Then randomly it came up and found out it was going through and we are so so so stoked to get on it!

You are going to be out here for a over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being in Australia?
Australia has such a reputation of such a beautiful, happy go lucky, surfer, beach place with tons of weird animals that you never see in the States. So I guess the most typical thing you probably always hear is that I am really excited to see kangaroos. I really really really am though! Also the beaches and people and just to get the ambience of a whole different world, kind of.

It's good to hear you didn't say that you are NOT looking forward to our dangerous animals, that seems to be the common answer haha!
Really, haha, there must be a lot of lame'os! You know what, I am convinced they do those dangerous animal shows so you won't trap them. You know they have shows and they totally make like all these places sound terrible, but it's a one in a million chance! Watch it happen to me when I go there haha...

Being your first time out here, what have you heard about what you can expect from Soundwave and the Aussie VersaMerge fans?
I literally had no idea, until I started getting bombarded with literally hundreds of tweets every day about coming to Australia. I was like, where did this all come from, I didn't even know Australia had heard of us. We were getting so, so many Tweets and that’s why I started getting so excited when I found we were playing Soundwave and being able to announce it and hear the feedback and see people are excited.

What can your ‘vultures’ expect from your set at Soundwave Revolution, how would you describe the VersaMerge live experience?
I would have to say it’s completely energetic. I feel like I always have to surprise people, I don't know why, but I just have to. I'm kind of a maniac on stage and I don't know what I am ever going to do. It's really based on feeling, we are all based on feeling, so every show is always different. It's always a good time and it's always energetic.

In your time thus far, you have played some larger festivals and now soon to be Soundwave...how do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to a bigger stage, compared to playing the smaller more intimate venues?
It's definitely different. You know we have done Warped a few times and we have done Europe and those types of festivals and you never know what you are going to get. One day we might have absolutely nobody watching us, maybe 20 people, then the next day it might be like over 3,000. Its just like you don't know what you're going to get, but I love that!

Through your experience playing at these larger festivals, have you had your opportunity to either see or meet one of your all time most influential artists or the like?
Yeah actually at Download we played the same stage with a lot of bands I really love. Such as Trash Talk which was really cool as they played a few bands after us. Also at Download, Twisted Sister played, not that I am a huge massive fan or anything. It was really weird, there was this girl backstage and she came up to me and said "I love your band and your set was amazing". Everybody over there has accents and I realised she was American and asked what is she doing over here and she said that her Dad was playing in one of the other bands and I'm like "who's your Dad" and she was like "Dee Snider".

In the bands early days, you guys certainly seemed to build up your fanbase via some relentless touring with the likes of Boys Like Girls, Taking Back Sunday, We The Kings, was that a bit of an old school mentality that you had with regards to touring as a means for spreading the word, rather than releasing an album and then touring?
It actually was. It was either go into the studio and write a record in this amount of time, but we weren't ready and we knew we weren't ready because we were so young and we were so new and we needed the experience to get our shit together as a live band and just grow together. I am so glad we did that because when we finally went in to write, we were on a different page in our brains and kind of knew what we wanted to go after and we had grown up a little bit. If we had of pumped out a record and rushed it and did it pretty fast without really knowing what we were doing, it definitely wouldn't have come out the same.

Do you guys have any interesting tour “rituals” or things you guys as a band do to keep yourselves same haha!
I wouldn't say the things we do keep us more sane or anything, I think they make us more weird! We develop all these weird games and inside jokes. What we really like to do, especially Blake and I, we make characters. We have tons of these really fucked up characters we will constantly bring out in conversation and randomly do and we are convinced one day we will be doing a comedy skit and make a show out of it!

Your first album, Fixed At Zero has been out for over a year now, have you started working on the follow up album yet?
We have started a lot of the writing and we have a bunch of the demos done already. It's crazy, for us at least too think it's LP 2 time. As the demos keep coming and we keep writing and more ideas keep flowing out, we are starting to get a feel of what the second record is going to be like. It's exciting and I can't wait for everybody to hear it as it's going to be a little different.

Whilst you had released a couple of EP’s, I am sure that the whole recording and writing process for Fixed At Zero was a massive learning experience for the band….what are some of the key learnings you are wanting to maybe capitalise on with the follow up?
I think in general, if there’s anything we want to do differently, or that we learned on the first record, is just the way we go about writing songs. We used to have a pretty formulated way we went about it and now we are throwing that away and trying new things and stepping out of our comfort zones and personal boxes and being a little more sloppy as we were really organised all the time. Now we are taking this sloppiness and trying something new and it's actually pretty cool!

Catch VersaEmerge at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

Zebrahead

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 17:37:22 +1000

“Can I just say four words...Fist Fight, Pregnant and Drunk. There we go, there's my four words, I am sticking with that Scott!”

For around 15 years Zebrahead have been delivering their rap flavoured punk pop to the masses worldwide and with new album Get Nice due out anytime soon, they show no signs of slowing down just yet. Here for the first time ever in Australia for Soundwave Revolution in September, you can be sure that Zebrahead will bring the good times and lots of beer when they hit the stage.

We chatted with the bands frontman, Ali Tabatabaee about their upcoming visit and what we can expect from their new album, Get Nice.

Hey Ali, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You, so where do we find you today?
Well I am sitting at home on my couch in Pasadena, California watching Jeopardy and pretty much chilling out!

So after 15 years, you guys are finally making your way to Australia…what took you so long?
Well you know what it is, we kept bribing the wrong people to come over there and I guess finally we got the right guys!

Have you had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
Oh yeah, I'm really excited dude, I've never seen Van Halen and I've got a chubby right now thinking about it!

So you didn't get to see the Gary Cherone version, Van Halen III haha?
Haha I skipped that one, I think I was hungover or something.

You are going to be out here for a over a week, what are you looking forward to most about being in Australia?
You know, I've never been there, so I don't know what to expect to be honest with you. I'm sure there is going to be some drinking. You see, the thing is I have this really good friend that lives in Brisbane and I am assuming he is going to show me around when I am there, I am hoping. But I'm kind of excited to have him come and show me what local people do and enjoy that, you know what I mean?

Are you aware of how big your contingent of Aussie Zebrahead fans is?
We get like posts on our Facebook page a lot, but it's hard because we are so removed and haven't been there before. You never know like how on the money that is. I really don't know what to expect, when we come over there I think we are going to have to win over a lot of people, just because we have never been there. The one good thing about our fans is that they are die hard fans and they really come out and support us, so hopefully there will be a few there to get us going!

On the flip side, how would you describe the Zebrahead live experience, for the purposes of those not familiar with the band and might be thinking of checking you out at Soundwave?
Can I just say four words...Fist Fight, Pregnant and Drunk. There we go, there's my four words, I am sticking with that Scott!

Do you know if you guys are playing any of your own headline shows?
I think we are just doing the festival at this point, but we would love to come back and do some headline shows eventually.

You guys have toured other countries a fair bit…what’s usually the first couple of things you guys have on your list of things to check out, drink or try?
Well we always have to try the local beer. But we are kind of dorks dude, usually wherever we are, we will go find the cheapest bikes we can find and then we will get up early and go for a ride around town, either somewhere to eat or just check out the local sights and people. I think that's the coolest thing for me and the rest of the guys in the band is getting to travel. All my friends back home have office jobs and don't get around that much, so I really appreciate getting to go to new places as I think about all my friends at home who are stuck in an office or whatever. We try to make the most of it, we try and have fun and see what's going on and meet new people.

Is there a country that you haven’t yet played that is high on your list...
You know we've never been to South America, that's another country we've really wanted to do but that hasn't happened. Hopefully one day we will make that happen, but we are just stoked to be coming to Australia.

How do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to a bigger stage?
It's just different. I think the festivals are really cool as you get to see a lot of the bands you are a really big fan of. You get to meet some musicians that you have been listening to and you get to make friends you otherwise wouldn't get to make. Festivals, there's so much stuff you get to do, of course you play, but then you get to watch other bands and just hang out. The club shows are cool too as you are closer to the crowd and the energy is a little bit different too.

With the club shows at least you know the bands are there to see you...
Exactly, exactly, a lot of the time at festivals you have to win the crowd over which is a whole different feel when you play.

At these larger festivals, or out on tour with the likes of one of my all time favourites Bowling For Soup, have you guys ever been the victim of any memorable on-stage pranks?
Let me think...it's always different with different bands, but for some reason there is always excessive drinking on the last night of the tour. The other bands usually try and get you really fucked up before you play and then when you play, random shit happens like there's a lot of nudity from other bands coming out. Sometimes they will take your instruments so you can't play anymore. Once when we played with the Bloodhound Gang, one of the dudes came out and pulled a road case, tied to his nut sack. That was kind of interesting, I've never seen that happen before!

So very soon, you guys have your new album “Get Nice” coming out…how did the whole process for this album compare to your past releases…easier, harder, more beer consumed?
Huh, we always try and drink beer during recording! The thing is Scott, this album was the first time we have actually recorded in our own studio. It was a lot more relaxed and it wasn't like we've only got a month to go in there and knock out these songs. We were there whenever we wanted to be there, for as long as we wanted to be there. It was a really cool experience, it was more like just hanging out with your friends and writing. You know, if you liked something you recorded it, if not, you just moved on. The pressure of time wasn't really there, it was more chill and more organic I guess. It wasn't something we had to do, we wanted to be there for as long as we wanted to be there.

So if your covers album Panty Raid was dedicated to all the female rock star love interests your drummer has had….what inspired your new album Get Nice or who is that dedicated to?
Well we were writing for a long period of time and the song Get Nice, we were working on that song when the earthquake hit Japan. We have a lot of friends and fans over there and at that point, we restructured that song in a way where we thought, what could we do to possibly help people in Japan. Musically we thought if we could write a song you could relate to and if you are going through a hard time and look past that and try and focus on moving on with your life and using that bad experience and grow from it. So that song Get Nice, we rewrote the lyrics and ultimately that song is about anybody going through a hard time, trying to learn from the experience and moving on and not let it defeat you. I think that's a universal thing people can relate to. After that happened, the album got a whole different feel to it when we were working on other songs. Some of the songs have more of a positive feel, that was one of the major inspirations for us while we were working on this album and I think it motivated us a lot.

You have so far released a couple of videoclips for Get Nice and Ricky Bobby…how have these songs gone down with the fans? Are these a pretty good indication of what we can expect with the rest of the album?
There's kind of a wide range between those 2 songs. Ricky Bobby is more of an aggressive song and Get Nice is a bit poppier and a positive song. I think the album in general has a very wide range with the feel of each song. I think it's representative, but then there's songs that aren't like either. It's kind of hard to explain. I think I'm word vomiting right now.... I guess you just have to listen to it. You tell me Scott when you hear it about what you think....

I will do! So I see also that you once again haven’t disappointed in the song title department with Nudist Priest and Truck Stops and Tail Lights, which tell me is that a big power ballad haha?
Haha, I hope not! The way we write our songs is we just give them random names when we are working on them. We don't even know what that song is going to be about really, it's just like an idea and the song may not have anything to do with the title. Some of the songs the titles stayed because we couldn't come up with a new one, because everyone would still call it Nudist Priest. So we were like fuck it, let's just call it Nudist Priest because we are going out on tour now and it would be like, what is that song we are going to play? I don't think there's any power ballads on this album, maybe we will do an all power ballad album next time!

Zebrahead has been doing it’s thing now for 15 years, with close to the same lineup…what’s been the secret to this longevity do you think?
When you have been playing music with these people for so long it's like a family. They're like my brothers and it's like any family, we fight sometimes, but at the end of the day we always know we are brothers and we will call each other a couple of days later and be like dude, you're being a dick, or say I was being s dick or whatever. We kind of make it work and it's like any relationship, you have to put effort into it and luckily I happen to be around a bunch of relatively normal guys! I think that has a lot to do with it you know.

Ok well that’s a wind up Ali, have a blast at Soundwave, make sure you drink lots of beer and have a good time in Australia!
Thanks Scott, I appreciate the interview!

Catch Zebrahead at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

Edguy

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 17:13:26 +1000

“I remember one girl that was singing on the album didn't want to sing it as they were bad words, so she denied to sing the bad stuff haha!”

Age Of The Joker, the new album from German metal masters Edguy due out on August 26th is sure to be one of the most talked about metal releases in 2011, as most Edguy albums seem to be these days. Since their last album Tinnitus Sanctus was released 3 years ago, Edguy has toured the world and Tobias Sammet has released another Avantasia album, a double album no less. On Age Of The Joker, the band have increased the trademark Edguy “epicness”, with every song taking a differen’t twist and turn.

Edguy guitarist Dirk Sauer called in for a most enjoyable chat as we delve into the depths of the bands new album, Age Of The Joker.

Hey Dirk, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You, it’s been about 3 years since the last Edguy release, obviously you guys have been busy touring the world in that time and Tobi has been busy with Avantasia as well. When did you first kick off the writing and recording for Age Of The Joker?
Well we started in late summer last year after some festivals and touring so we started working on it then and had half of the songs finished. Then Tobi started on the Avantasia tour in December I think it was and when he came back, we continued again. Actually it all went pretty smooth this time which meant we could enter the rehearsal studio early, 1st of April I think we started recording. The recording itself didn't really take that long either as we were well prepared and the turn out was pretty good I guess.

So after 9 studio albums now, would you say you guys have got your studio processes now settled?
I think that it's never easy to do an album, but what we tried to do on this album and our last few was to get a live sound that we have when playing, onto the record somehow. I think especially in the late 90's, early 90's bands generally tried to record albums a bit clinically. When you tour a lot, you get this rock n roll feeling, these days everyone's recording with pro tools, which we do as well, but albums can be so perfect these days and too much editing and drum samples and all that stuff which makes it a little bit dead in my opinion. I think a record has to sound human. We did a natural drum recording this time with no sample drums or any of that stuff, we also recorded rhythm guitars at the same time to get a live feeling. This helped to let the album have a little air to breathe and makes it special in my opinion. Especially these days when everything sounds so technical and many productions sound so compressed and limited and pumped up to be loud. It's a bit weird, if you listen to older records they are just good without the opportunity to use all that technical stuff. They just recorded records and made good music, which should be the aim of any record in my opinion.

I have been listening to the album all day and I absolutely love it, one of the noticeable things for me was the musical variety within the songs and from song to song, was this something you guys really focussed on with this album?
No not really, we did that on the last record as well. It's been always like a challenge where you don't want to stay on the same path all the time and try to create some new elements or arrangements or use different instruments in the music, but it still has to have the typical Edguy trademark. That's what we did pretty good on the album I guess. It’s always a matter of identity I would say. I don't know, a lot of people complain we don't make the music like we did 10 or 12 years ago, but of course you want to do something new to make it interesting for yourself and the band. It wouldn't make sense to repeat the same because then people would complain that these guys always do the same album. So it's always a challenge to do something new, but on the new one, the whole band is happy with the turnout.

Just like you said, we added some new things, take for example Rock Of Cashel which is very Irish influenced, but it's typical Edguy and that's what counts. I think especially with the last few records we found our own identity and it's not like "ahhh they sound like this band or that band”. You can hear that it's Edguy and it doesn't sound like Iron Maiden or Helloween or whatever. Of course those bands are our roots and these are the bands we grew up with and was the music we loved, and we still do. I think especially in recent albums we have found our own identity and it sounds like Edguy.

Additionally, every song seems to have a real “epicness” to it…
Yes that's right and it's not something that you can really plan, it just turns out that way. I think Behind The Gates To Midnight World is an epic track. We don't sit down and say, ok we are going to do 3 epic tracks, 2 double bass tracks, 1 ballad and 4 mid tempo songs.

Were there any key lyrical themes that Tobi focussed on with this album?
No there isn't any concept or anything. This is about what he is collecting during his life and stuff.
But I am pretty sure he didn't meet Robin Hood (refering to the opening track Robin Hood) haha...but he has obviously watched the movies.

On the bonus disc, you have a couple of tracks in particular that I wanted to ask about – Aleister Crowley Memorial Boogie and the Slade cover, Cum On Feel The Noize…can you explain the choice of the Slade cover especially?
Actually we did that song on the last album recording session but we didn't finish it really as we lost the time to finish it, but we said lets keep what we have got as we might use it one day. This time we were looking for some cool tracks for the bonus CD and this was one of them. We found the song and re-checked and wondered how we didn't use it the last album. We are not really a band who records songs we don't release, usually we never do it. But this one we said this time we are going to use it. It's always hard, I think we have recorded 14 songs now which is way too much for a record. But on the other hand, like I said before we are not the band that will say lets save these 4 songs until whenever. Nuclear Blast didn't want to do an EP, so we said ok, let's do like a package. In total I think it's now something like 17 songs. I think the album is good value for the money, it's hard to sell CDs these days and as a band you have to make up your mind about how you can make your album attractive so people will buy it and I think we made the right choice. I pretty much love albums when I buy them that have something special on them or it has great artwork or a booklet, that's what I like and that's what we like so we try to give value for money to the people.

I have to say at this stage my favourite track is Fire On The Downline with it’s massive chorus and real melodic hard rock vibe...how was this song to record?
I was actually thinking myself that this song is going to be my favourite live track. I think this song is the perfect live song. I love the riffing, the chorus is awesome, it would be a cool mid tempo song for, I don't know, people jumping and singing along with the band and all that kind of stuff. Also my girlfriend loves that song a lot and she's not really a metal head so that's a good sign! But theres no real story to tell about the recording. For us it's like the same procedure as every three years. Of course you are curious because you don't know how it will turn out. But the basic thing is the same, you go there and try out ideas and like I said earlier, this time everything went really smooth.

Listening to the track Two Out Of Seven, I had to rewind the outro because I thought I was hearing things haha….”what the fuck suck my cock, I’m only a 7 outta 12, when I wank at the bank, I’m 10 outta 10 my friend” haha, who came up with that idea?
Haha, actually, the first time I heard that was after the choir session. I think they came up with that ending spontaneously. I remember one girl that was singing on the album didn't want to sing it as they were bad words, so she denied to sing the bad stuff haha!

The album is titled Age Of The Joker, I personally am always intrigued by learning the stories behind album titles, so is there anything you can share about choosing Age Of The Joker…
Actually the title came up after we had already started work on the artwork. That was a funny story actually. We didn't really have a clue how the new album should look so we looked around on the Internet and the fact we had this joker thing on Mandrake and some older stuff and t-shirts and things, it lead us to thinking maybe we should do something with the joker theme again. So we checked the Internet for some cool joker pictures and we found a painter in the USA who was doing play cards and they were done pretty good, so we went to his website and he had some really cool drawings. So we said, hey let's just ask the guy if he would be interested in doing something for us. We thought that the art he does is really cool, so he might have done albums and stuff before. So we got in touch with him and it turns out he was a 65yo guy in the USA who had never done artwork for an album before. Actually from the first communication he was so cool. He did a few sketches to start with and we've been blown away through the process how it eventually came out as it's so cool!

What are you playing as far as guitars go these days Dirk, any endorsements you would like to give some advertising time too haha?
Well actually theres nothing really special that we are both using. Both of us use Gibson guitars, I am a Flying V man and that's been my main instrument for 10 years I guess, because I like the shape, feel and sound. Amp wise, we use different things in the studio, but live it's basically Marshall setups. There's no real need for tonnes of equipment or effects and you can have a pretty good sound with an easy setup. That's what's cool for me as we've been touring a lot and you see so many bands with shitloads of equipment and nobody really cares.

Was there anything really specifically in the recording process that you changed up as far as guitars are concerned for the new album?
One thing that was really interesting this time was the lap steel guitar on Pandoras Box which was something new and we thought about how we could do that part of the song and we thought of a lap steel, but nobody owned one. So we borrowed one and Jens had 2 or 3 days for rehearsing which is not much time as that guitar is a completely different cup of tea in comparison to normal playing. But it turned out pretty cool and I think that was one of the big challenge things on the new album.

You have toured Australia quite a few times now, what have been some of your favourite memories of playing in Australia? Hopefully we will see you again next year perhaps?
The last tour was special as we had the chance to be there on New Years Eve. I've had a lot of New Years Eve’s in my life and they are usually the same, you hang out with friends and drink lots of beer and it's cold and dark and winter. But this time it was special as we left Germany in the deepest winter and then we arrived in perfect weather. It was so nice to hang out in the Sydney Harbour, it was packed with people and we had horrible jet lag, but we couldn't miss New Years Eve. The rest of the shows were awesome, Perth was a really nice place to be and touring Australia is always special in my opinion.

Hopefully we will see you here again soon.
Yes I sure hope so!

I see you have a show playing with the Scorpions in Germany this weekend, who you also went on tour with last year. It must be a pretty amazing show when the Scorpions and Edguy play together?
Yes it's awesome. It was an honour to be asked to be special guests on their farewell tour of Germany. They are such nice people and have achieved so much, but they are still cool and very down to earth. It's am honour to open up for them and I hope they extend this farewell tour for a few more years as they are still kicking ass in my opinion. They are the same age as my Dad haha and it's still cool to watch and learn from them. You get a chance to talk to them a lot and hang out backstage and they tell a lot of stories from the early years and its a very cool experience and also funny.

We were hoping they will hit Australia on their farewell tour, but haven’t heard anything concrete about that yet.
Well I am sure they will. Maybe we can join them if they do it haha!

Do you have any last words, before we wrap up this interview?
Thanks for all the support over the years and I hope you like the new album. If you do, just buy it. I hope we can be back soon for some shows, and if we do, show up and party with us!

Jeff Martin - Whole Lotta Love, Led Zeppelin Celebration

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 11:58:19 +1000

Now into it’s 9th year, this year the annual Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin Celebration will arguably see it’s biggest performance, with an impressive lineup of performers and shows in nearly every capital city. Under the direction of the shows mastermind Joseph Calderazzo, those attending can expect to hear well over 2 hours of Led Zeppelin classics performed in ways never heard before, with particular focus on the Led Zeppelin IV album, which is celebrating it’s 40th anniversary this year.

May The Rock Be With You chatted to one of the featured vocalists, Jeff Martin (The Tea Party, 777) about his involvement in the performances and how Led Zeppelin has influenced him as a performer and through his music career.

About The 9th Annual Whole Lotta Love, Led Zeppelin Celebration
In 2011 and in celebration of the 40th anniversary year of Led Zeppelin’s seminal album Led Zeppelin IV, the show boasts a spectacular line-up of guest vocalists including international rock legend and The Tea Party front-man Jeff Martin, Steve Balbi (Noiseworks), Simon Meli (Sway/The Widowbirds/Oohlala), Zkye (*not performing in Perth) and Natasha Stuart.

Joining this stellar line up to deliver over 2 ½ hours of Zeppelin magic will be an exceptional powerhouse 9 piece band, including Strings, under the creative direction of Joseph Calderazzo, to sensationally recreate over 20 of the finest songs ever recorded, including; Black Dog, Rock and Roll, Immigrant Song, Battle of Evermore, Kashmir and the timeless Stairway To Heaven.

With an epoch defining fusion of musical genres, Led Zeppelin influenced generations of musicians and legions of fans and went on to become one of the biggest bands in the world, producing 9 studio albums, 3 live albums and selling a staggering 200+ million worldwide, yet toured Australia only once in 1972. Rolling Stone described Led Zeppelin as “unquestionably one of the most enduring bands in rock history”.

About Jeff Martin
Jeff Martin was raised in Windsor, Ontario and started playing the guitar at age 8. He formed his first band at age 11 and decided, then and there, that this is what he wanted to do with his life. In high school he was challenged by an older student to learn a blues-inspired Led Zeppelin song which inspired his father, a blues fan, who turned him on to the blues standards. Jeff caught on quickly and could frequently be found jamming with professional bands from the Windsor Detroit area while still in his teens.

During his teens he was also given a copy of The Beatles’ Sergeant Pepper’s album and his imagination was captured by the instrumentation of Within You Without You. Jeff developed a fascination with eastern tunings and instruments, a preoccupation he later indulged with great success as a member of the seminal Canadian band The Tea Party, and now currently The Armada with Wayne P Sheehy.

"I'm very much looking forward to being a part of the upcoming ' Whole Lotta Love Led Zeppelin Celebration' concerts. Jimmy Page once told me I was the sorcerer's apprentice. I look forward to doing him justice. Love is the law, love under will. "
Jeff Martin 777

Hey Jeff, thanks for chatting to May The Rock Be With You. So just quickly, you are in Canada right now aren’t you, in the midst of playing some shows with The Tea Party, how does it feel to be back playing as The Tea Party again?
Yes we have three shows under our belts now and it's been fantastic. It's been a great feeling playing with the boys again. Over here, as you can imagine it's big news, so it's been good.

Are there any plans to maybe bring The Tea Party back to Australia at some point?
I've been talking to the boys about it and we are all very busy individually with what we have to do and I'm still very committed to my band 777 and Jeff has his thing and Stuart has his thing. It's definitely something we are very fond of and to be playing the music we made and being back on stage, it's very powerful. So yes it is definitely something I would love to bring back over to Australia.

So you now call Australia home, where you have lived for a few years, how have you settled into the Australian way of life?
Absolutely, you know it's home. It always was home for me ever since I first landed there in 93/94 with The Tea Party and it was overwhelming. The lifestyle I am very suited to and I have a beautiful home outside of Byron Bay...it's kind of hard to live in Canada isn't it!

So we are here to chat about the upcoming Whole Lotta Love, Led Zeppelin Celebration. How did you personally get involved in this?
The producers of the show have been wanting me to do it now for about the last four years. But it was always my schedule that meant it couldn't be realised. But now there came a time where I had an opportunity to do it and commit to it properly. You know, there's not that many degrees of separation between what I've done writing with The Tea Party or 777 to Led Zeppelin. For me I will be quite comfortable and quite excited to be playing with some great musicians and making a lot of people happy.

Whilst it’s termed a celebration I guess some people could call this a tribute, cover band etc...do you also see it as a celebration to describe the show and what it aims to achieve?
Yes definitely, it's cream of the crop musicians getting together and celebrating what I consider to be the greatest band ever in rock n roll. It's going to be done with a great amount of care and respect.

Had you worked with any of the fellow band members previously?
Yes it will be the first time for me. Darren Evans one of the percussionists is a very dear friend of mine from Byron Bay, we have known each other for quite some time. But other than that, no.

Have you had much exposure to the setlist as yet and what’s being included?
I got to choose the songs, I had first choice haha, so that was cool. I think probably except for the one acoustic song, the rock songs I have picked are more darker and mysterious.

Has much license been given to you in terms of putting your own stamp and personality into the songs?
Yes absolutely. Obviously myself and Robert Plant are very different singers, so my vocal approach to these songs will be different. The guitar work will remain the same.

So you will also be playing guitar as part of your performance...
Oh, yes!

As far as singing Led Zeppelin songs, as you no doubt have done so many times, do you have any personal Led Zep favorites?
Well I got into Led Zeppelin because of the guitar playing, Jimmys guitar playing was always very dangerous. The compositions and the layering that he did and then trying to do that live and the way that he played live, he was always on the edge. That's something that I have always respected. I think I have picked the songs that I wanted to play more for the guitar playing, than vocals.

Can you remember the first time you heard Led Zeppelin, what was your reaction or memories of that?
I would of been going into my first year of high school and I had been playing guitar since I was about 7 or 8 years old. So I went into my first year of high school with a reputation that proceeded me, I was kind of known as being the young guitar slinger. I was very much into new wave music at that time like the Psychedelic Furs and all that stuff, but my Dad turned me onto the blues at a very young age. Even though it wasn't cool to be listening to blues, I loved it and that's where I first became the closet blues guitarist. If you wanted to get girls at the dance, you don't go in there saying say I am a blues man, you are listening to The Cure and all that stuff. One of these stoner rocker guitar players that was a couple of years older than me in high school, came up to me with a dare, challenge, throw down whatever you want to call it. He had a cassette tape, which was the solo from Led Zeppelin’s Heartbreaker, he basically said something to the effect of “if you are such a good guitar player, then learn this”. So I took it home with me and put it into the cassette player and started listening to it and my first impression was, well this is just blues, but it's heavier and sloppier, this guitar solo, but it's quiet fast, but for me it was very easy as it was all blues. I still remember, listening to it in the basement of our house and my father coming home from work and I hear his boots, but I didn't get a chance to turn the stereo off quick enough because I was learning the song and my father comes down the stairs, doesn't say a word to me, goes to the cassette deck, rips out the cassette and throws it on the ground, then puts in BB King and goes, “that's the blues boy, you play that”.

Correct me if I am wrong, but back in the mid 90’s did The Tea Party support Page and Plant?
Yes that's correct and that was when my friendship with Mr Page began as well.

Did you ever play/perform together either on that tour, or otherwise?
Well we have never performed together, but obviously I have spent time at Jimmy’s house and we have played together. At that time he was interested in the demos I was doing for Transmission, so there was a lot of interaction you know. As you know, he said that “I was the sorcerers apprentice”.

Last year I think it was, you were also involved in a similar production but for The Beatles. How do you find being involved in these productions and the appreciation it gives you for the songs of these iconic bands?
It depends you know, it gives me an insight into how the other musicians are interpreting the music because its likely to be very different too how I would do it or have done it in the past. As I said earlier, I find that these productions are done with a great amount of care and respect. It’s an expensive ticket and people are coming to see the best. So I just appreciate the involvement.

What is it about Led Zeppelin that you personally think has stood the test of time?
I think the music is timeless because of the integrity. I think it's timeless as well due to Jimmy Pages production of the band, it doesn't sound dated. I think also it's timeless because it is still music that is a little bit dangerous. It's dangerous in the sense it doesn't have to go over the top in a Marilyn Manson kind of way, you know what I mean, it's just real.

You can catch Whole Lotta Love at the following dates and venues:
Thursday 15 September – Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Book at Ticketek.com.au or 132 849

Saturday 17 September – Palais Theatre, Melbourne
Book at Ticketmaster.com.au or 136 100

Thursday 22 September – Concert Hall, QPAC, Brisbane
Book at qpac.com.au or 136 246

Saturday 24 September – Burswood Theatre, Perth
Book at Ticketek.com.au or 132 849

Tickets On Sale NOW

S.O.S

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 17:11:09 +1000

“It's like, well that's the kind of music we play and that's what we sound like. It was really for us, we wanted to do this together for ourselves and figured there is bound to be some people out there who would be interested in it”

S.O.S - the hardcore group that features names fans of hardcore would well and truly know. Scott Vogel, lead singer from Terror, Chris Beattie, bass player for Hatebreed, Matt Henderson former guitarist of Agnostic Front and Madball, Nick Jett drummer from Terror and guitarist Sam Trapkin from Trapped Under Ice....an impressive lineup indeed, and the good news is they have just released an EP titled I Owe You Nothing. An EP that is hardcore, as simple as that...

We had the opportunity to chat with guitarist Matt Henderson about how he got involved in S.O.S after 5 years away from music whilst focussing on family commitments.

Hey Matt, thanks for chatting today. Ok, so first things first….how did you personally get involved with S.O.S?
Well I got involved by actually just being a fan of Terror and being friends with Scott (Vogel, lead singer of Terror and S.O.S). Scott started looking at doing something and was wanting to get together with other guys who he felt would have fun doing it as well. He kind of had something going with Chris from Hatebreed and I ran into him at a show and he mentioned it and I thought "shit, why don't I hop in on that" and that's what happened.

Did you take much convincing to be involved, because you have been out of music for a bit prior to then haven't you? What prompted the absence?
No it didn't take any convincing at all because I thought it was the perfect opportunity to get back into it again. It was clear that the other guys have very strong commitments to their active bands and that was going to have to be a priority for them, as is my family life for me. So I knew there wouldn't be much pressure on my side from the guys wanting to do extensive touring or anything with a long time commitment.

So your absence from music for the last 5 or 6 years has been due to family commitments?
Yeah, that's pretty much been it. I have two young sons and a third on the way and that's what I do!

So now that you have been involved in recording new material with S.O.S, has this reignited any fires within, or has it got it out of your system for now, so to speak?
I wouldn't say it has got it out of my system as such, but it definitely scratched an itch I have had for a while! I am happy with the outcome of the record, so I feel pretty content at the moment. Never say never obviously, but I don't see any near plans to be doing something again.

Given the history of the band members involved, what was one of I guess the key collective motivations in forming S.O.S? Did you feel that S.O.S could fill a void in the hardcore scene of sorts?
I can speak for myself, and I think I am pretty in touch with what the other guys are thinking too, it was basically a fresh approach and a real straight, stripped down hardcore and an opportunity to play with some other guys. We have all known each other for quite a few years now from just being in the scene for as long as we have been and we have a lot of respect for each other as well. That kind of what it is for me and I am sure the other guys would say as well and that's the community approach and thinking the same way and attitude of doing what we want to do.

How did you guys work together in the formative stages, is that something that took a while to get that understanding, or was it pretty immediate?
Well the long process was actually the logistics of getting us all in the same room together, but once that happened I was really surprised how quick we were able to put songs together. It's not like we are doing anything groundbreaking or completely original or different from other bands we have been involved in, but still five guys coming together for the first time, it happened really quick, very easy and I was happy with that.

As far as the songwriting goes for the songs on the EP, was that something that you all had some involvement in?
There was a brief period of sending individual demos back and forth to each other over email. Then Scott, Nick and I got together for a weekend in California and we were able to bang some stuff together and share it with the other guys. We had also been familiar with some of their own personal demo stuff that we also tried to work out. The next step was then getting into studio with all 5 of us and we all kind of knew what had been done up until that point, got into that room and ironed it out together. It was only a couple of sessions really to put those songs in place. It was pretty much top to bottom equal contributions.

How long did the actual process take, in terms of from start to finished product?
It was close to about two years. Terror tours a lot, as does Hatebreed and Trapped Under Ice, those guys are all on the road a bit. So that was probably the biggest challenge, getting those guys off touring at the same time.

Have you paid much attention to the reaction to the EP from the fans?
Sure, some of the stuff that's acceptable to me, yeah I check it out. The label puts up a Facebook Page and I am on Facebook, so I have got some postings on my own page from people who like the EP. I've seen some reviews and other postings and this always cracks me up, some people take it so seriously and think we take it so seriously and get really worked up with comments like "it's the same old shit, why did these guys get together to play in a band that makes hardcore music that sounds just like the other bands they are in”. It's like, well that's the kind of music we play and that's what we sound like. It was really for us, we wanted to do this together for ourselves and figured there is bound to be some people out there who would be interested in it. Obviously the guys who run the labels, Good Fight and Reaper, showed some interest in it. That's it man, you know. If people like it, they like it, if they don't, well that's not really that important to us.

Do you personally have any favourite tracks from the E.P, or some suggestions for what you think defines what S.O.S is all about?
I think the cool thing is there is some variations of the hardcore style throughout the EP I think. My favourite I think which really hit the nail on the head are the first two tracks being that intro which kind of has that later hardcore groove and bounce to it and I think it's fair of me to say, has a Madball vibe. You have the best of all worlds in those first two songs, which in total are less than 3 minutes in length!

The EP has been released by Good Fight Music, was this association one that previously existed, or did you have to shop around to actually get this music released?
You know it wasn't difficult at all and I think to Good Fight’s credit they haven't approached this as any real money making endeavour either. The fact is those labels are run by guys who love hardcore the same way we do and they were just excited by the project and the outcome. So that's why they jumped on board and thanks to them, we were able to afford the studio time that we did use and get the album released.

Do you have plans to release an album worth of material at some point?
Never say never, but there’s absolutely no talk at the moment of doing anything. Logistically if something were to happen again, it probably wouldn't be for quite some time. Based on the fact that I know we are all happy with the way it turned out, the possibility exists, it's just something nobody is taking about right now.

Are the songs that appear on the album, what you wrote, or do you have a few leftovers lying around ?
Yeah pretty much. There are a few riffs we threw around that didn't make it, but that was the bulk of it. There were no additional songs that were recorded that we left off the EP.

I think you have already indicated that it’s unlikely S.O.S will be a touring proposition, but have you at least played one show yet?
No we haven't played a show yet. We have had some offers, to hop in on the decent sized hardcore festivals here in the US, but I think if the right opportunity came up I would love to play a show, but once again, it's all about the logistics.

Just lastly Matt, did you ever get to Australia with your previous bands Madball or Agnostic Front?
No I never made it out there. I know Madball has been out there a couple of times after I left the band, but Australia is one country I just didn't get a chance to visit.

You Me At Six

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:53:26 +1000

“I think we’re just a really honest band, I mean we’re all still pretty young so our audience is still a bit younger or the same age as us so I think we have this really tight knit fan base and good ride with our fans, as being the same age as them we can all grow and mature together.”

UK band You Me At Six may only be young with most of the band just hitting 21 but with two albums down (Take Off Your Colours in 2008 and Hold Me Down in 2010) and a third on the way they are proving that they are here to make a place for themselves. They’ve just released an EP with a Hip Hop star that has proved to be their most successful charting position to date in the UK. Is this what we can expect from this new forthcoming album?

Touring Australia previously on the Soundwave festival and on their own, they’re headed back again this August with We The Kings to rock us once again. We had the chance to talk to guitarist Chris Miller about the new album, touring and their involvement in the 2012 London Olympics…

To start it off Chris, I believe you’ve been recording earlier this year, but when can we expect a new album?
It’s still all under wraps at the moment, we’re still finishing off the mastering and getting it all ready and put together for release so we’ll hopefully have a release date very soon but you’ll just have to wait a little bit longer I’m afraid.

This year? Next year? Just a little bit of an inkling?
Um… this year.

Has the process of recording this one been any different to your previous two releases?
Yeah, the last one we recorded at the same place as we did the first one in the UK, so for this one went over to Los Angeles for two months with a new producer called Garth Richardson, who’s worked on people like Rage Against the Machine and people like that so it was all really, really exciting. And we basically got to spend two months in LA just having a good time and knuckling down on the record, so it’s been completely different but a good different.

You’ve released the Rescue Me EP that features Hip Hop artist Chiddy, how did this come about?
That was just like an experiment we has put us by our label, we went to see Chiddy Bang at a show and we thought he was really great and he liked our stuff as well, so we thought it’d be really interesting to both contribute together into one song and see what we could come up with and it just started like a fun experiment really and when it was done we kind of turned around and said look this is really good, so we thought screw it, let’s just let everyone hear it and just put it out between albums to see what the response was.

Is this an insight into what kind of sound we can expect on the new album?
No, nothing like that ha ha

Just a little bonus?
Yeah just a little experiment that we had some fun with, the new album is along our same theme but just be a bit more mature and a bit heavier in some places and things like that.

You’re heading back Down Under in August, what can fans in Australia expect this time around?
Well hopefully its better than the last time we came, we’re bringing our friends We The Kings with us to co headline and it should be a really good time, we’re going to pull out all the stops and try and do the best live show that we can.

Have you got one memory of Australia that you can share with us?
Yeah, probably, and I guess a lot of people would say this, but when we were on Soundwave and had the chance to go to the Koala park and see all the Kangaroos and stuff like that and that was a really, really great time and it was just awesome to experience something like that in your country, we all love it there and it’s probably our favourite place to go in the world apart from the UK. It’s just a really great time.

How do fans in Australia compare to those around the world?
I find people in Australia really receptive to new bands and always a really positive response and obviously with you guys being so far away from the UK, you don’t often get bands like us coming over but we’re always trying to fight to come back as much as we can because we love it there. The kids are really great, super responsive and I think just eager for new music which is what we love, as part of being in a band any way so it’s great.

And being on a festival, people are inclined to check out a band they’ve never heard before.
Yeah I mean that’s what kind of broke us in Australia so it was really good.

Congratulations on your ‘Best British Band’ award at the 2011 Kerrang awards. What does an accolade like this mean to you?
It was absolutely overwhelming, we had no idea whatsoever that was going to happen because we were up against some really big bands, people like Bullet For My Valentine who have won it a couple of years in a row before, and huge bands like Bring Me The Horizon here who have just blown up everywhere around the world. So we really, really didn’t think we were going to stand a chance of winning and then when they read our name out it was just unbelievable and everybody just went crazy. So we’re still very shocked to this day but it’s a really great thing to have and a really great thing to look back on in the future.

Who are some of your biggest influences both as a band and as a guitarist yourself?
As a guitarist, my family’s got a big blues background, people like your classics like Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and stuff like that, so as a guitarist it would probably be blues players along those lines and as well as some more modern stuff like Mike Einziger From Incubus, things like that.

As a band, we all grew up listening to punk records and CD’s and things like that, a lot of the bands like that, like Starting Line, High End Ground, New Found Glory. We’ve got a whole range of influences as a band, I think it all culminates into our style which is great.

What are you currently playing guitar wise out on tour at the moment?
I’ve been playing a company called Frist Act recently, who are a company based in New York and they build custom guitars for artists and things, but the stuff they actually sell in the shops is quite cheap beginners gear and they have a custom shop that they build for artists, so I’ve been playing one of their guitars recently. I also play a lot of old Ibanez guitars for the 80’s like the Japan made stuff so those are a long the same lines they’re great guitars.

In the three years since your debut release, how do you feel you’ve grown as a band?
We’ve definitely all gelled together better and matured as people cause when we started we were all like 15 or 16 so we started really, really young and we’ve all had to grow up really fast when you’re doing a job like this, but we’re all 20, 21 and 22 so we’re definitely a better team than we were in the beginning and we’ve all matured as people and grown together so its been a really cool experience.

Talk us through the concept of Future Flame and your role in it…
Its basically to do with the Olympics in London next year and it’s a program funded by Coca Cola and they’re basically doing this program called Future Flames which is to enable people in the UK that maybe wouldn’t have the chance or deserve the chance to be able to carry the Olympic torch, you know at every Olympics they run around with the torch and light it before the ceremony and things like that so its basically just giving younger people a chance and a voice to be appreciated for some of stuff that they’ve done that they wouldn’t normally be able to, so for a band like us that’s a young band, we thought it’d be a really great chance for us to get involved as kind of the younger population of the UK. So it’s just a really, really positive and hopefully it will move forward really well.

Now you mentioned before when you were out here on Soundwave you got to play with some pretty big bands, who were you blown away by the most?
We did some side shows with Paramore, and people like that and it was crazy to see bands like that on the other side of the world just absolutely blowing up and doing really well. We did Soundwave directly before our friends a UK band named Gallows and they’re really great to watch every day as they’re like the hard core punk bands so it was great to see them just go absolutely crazy and work the crowd.

In a world where every band is interchangeable in an industry of clones and sound a likes, how do You Me At Six stand out, and what is it that people should be aware of to pick you over the millions of other bands out there?
I think we’re just a really honest band, I mean we’re all still pretty young so our audience is still a bit younger or the same age as us so I think we have this really tight knit fan base and good ride with our fans, as being the same age as them we can all grow and mature together, which is something a lot bands have which is really nice to see from where we first started to now, we’re growing up with our fans which is really cool. As well, our sound, although we do sound similar to some bands but it’s impossible these days to sound completely different unless you’re kind of like a prog band. I just think we’ve got a really honest sound and we try not to do the same trick twice. Even on our albums, even though the whole sound could be depicted the same, if you go back and look at some of our songs compared to the others we always try and vary it up a bit as we have our heavier numbers or our slower numbers or our poppier numbers and I think it all just culminates into our sound and I think that’s really accessible for kids these days which is great.

Lastly, do you have a message for your Australian fans for this upcoming tour?
Yeah, we just all can’t wait to come out and hope to see as many of you there as possible and we’ll be sure to put on an amazing show when we see everyone there.

Appreciate your time, see you in August!
Yeah great see you then.

Catch You Me At Six on their Australian tour with We The Kings
Saturday August 27, The Tivoli, Brisbane, QLD Sunday August 28, UNSW Roundhouse, Sydney, NSW Tuesday August 30, The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, VIC  Wednesday August 31, The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, VIC  Thursday September 1, Fowlers Live, Adelaide, SA
www.soundwavetouring.com

Alex Band

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 09:58:23 +1000

“There's that fear of people not caring anymore since I was stuck in that label mess for years and the fear of failing. But neither were really fears I let come true to life. After all I went through to get to this point, failing isn't an option and I'm working my ass off to show the world who I am all over again!”

You may not know who Alex Band is, but if we were to play you a song called Wherever You Will Go by The Calling then you’d know. As the singer and creative force behind the band Alex put his mature vocals and song writing to use to produce some great rock songs in the early 2000’s. After two albums, The Calling pardon the pun, called it a day and Alex has now stepped out as a solo artist releasing his debut effort We’ve All Been There after many years of battles to remain the artist that he wanted to be. He won and the album is something you should definitely check out.

We asked Alex if he wanted to feature on the site and he was more than happy to answer some questions for us about where he’s been, what he’s been up to and what the future holds for him…

Before the release of your debut album, it was 5 years since the last Calling album and many especially those of us here in Australia thought you had disappeared, just what happened with The Calling that saw you come out the other end as a solo artist?
Sadly, a lot of people thought I disappeared during that time, but as you now know, I didn't. As the singer/songwriter of The Calling, I pretty much hired band members to play shows with me and did all of the rest of the work myself. So after the second Calling album, I decided to go "solo" since I was basically doing that already, just under a "band" name.

And in fact you’ve actually been a busy boy in those 5 years, for those that may not know, give us a quick run down on some of the projects you worked on in this time.
Obviously, I worked long and hard on getting a solo album created and in the way I envisioned it. While I was still signed to a major label they wanted me to become an urban artist and wanted me to work with artists like Akon. My heart was never in it, so I kept fighting for what I believed in and wanted to create. After many battles, I was able to buy my album from the major label I left and created a record label of my own, AMB Records. I put every last dollar I have into doing this because I knew on my own I would make this happen and I wasn't going to give up. In between all of this, I guest starred on CSI NY where I got to play some of my new songs which was really awesome (and no I wasn't the killer). I got the time to train and get my helicopters pilot license!

In this time you formed your own label AMB Records and released your EP online in 2008, what was the idea behind creating your own label?
Creating my own label gave me the artistic freedom to make the music I believed in and get it out to my fans without waiting years and years like the major labels were doing to me. I know the music I write and I believe in it, no one else was seeming to do that so I had to find a way to continue my career and that meant doing it on my own. It was scary to create my own label and start this venture with only a handful of knowledge, but I'm making it happen!

Were you at any time scared stepping out solo and basically having to reintroduce yourself to the world?
Absolutely, it's definitely a scary thing to do. There's that fear of people not caring anymore since I was stuck in that label mess for years and the fear of failing. But neither were really fears I let come true to life. After all I went through to get to this point, failing isn't an option and I'm working my ass off to show the world who I am all over again!

When you began recording your solo album were these songs you’d had for some time or did you write these specifically for the album?
At that time, I did write specifically for this album. It encompasses my life from start to finish and is really all about the ups and downs, frustrations, and good times in life. Now years later, I of course, have 100's of songs that I wrote while sitting around that may very well end up on my next album.

You’ve publicly talked about what happened with Geffen records and you can talk about it here if you want to give us a brief insight, but when that was all happening, was there ever a time that you thought you should give up and your album would never see the light of day?
Yeah sure. There was never a time where I was going to give up, but there was definitely a time where I felt like my album was never going to be heard by anyone. So the fact that it's been released here in America for just about a year, and is getting released all over the world slowly, is a huge accomplishment and somewhat surreal at times.

Now that it has finally been released, what was it that inspired the song and album title We’ve All Been There?
That song, which later became album title, was one of the first songs I wrote for the album. Seeing that I wasn't alone going through all the turmoils and hard times in life, that others go through tough times too, was where the song came from. I was almost writing it as my own therapy to get out the things I was feeling.

The first single from the album Tonight is as good as if not better than everything being played out there on the radio these days, how did this song come together?
I had actually just seen the movie Underworld and was really inspired to write a vampire love story type song. So that's where it came from and I'd always envisioned a vampire-esque video and I stuck with that. It may be a bit cliche now that Twilight is such a big thing, but I had waited 5 years for this and followed what I wanted!

You’ve been in the music business now for 10+ years, how have you personally seen it change over this time for better or worse?
This business is always changing and while there are negatives to the changes there are positives too. Right now, the business is almost in an in between and while we are all waiting for the big change the world of stealing music sucks and makes any career in music beyond difficult. There is really no such thing as record sales anymore and we artists are all having to come up with new inventive ways to market our music and make a living of some sort to be able to make more music in the future. It's interesting to see all of these changes and I for one, have actually created an entire bracelet line with a company called Zorbitz. My line, Black Star Bracelets, mixes bracelets with music. Every bracelet in the line represents a song off of my album and comes with a download of that song and tons more! It's never really been done before and is a really cool thing.

I know it was a long time ago, but I saw you perform in Sydney back in 2002, do you have any memories from Australia you can share with us?
Wow! That was 9 years ago that I was there! One of the things that stood out most for me was the overwhelming amount of kindness I got from everywhere. It was a great feeling. It's such a beautiful country, especially Sydney, which was a perfect combo of Los Angeles and San Francisco...my dream place! I remember, I wanted to try driving while I was there, and I couldn't master it and got kicked out of the drivers seat within minutes. That was pretty funny!

You’ve been out touring off the back of the new album, how has the new material been coming across live? Do you still throw in the old hits?
My fans have been loving the new songs live and I'm having a blast performing them. Without You is one of my favorite songs to play from this album and I of course play The Calling hits too!

Do you have any International touring plans in the pipeline?
At the moment, I'm working on plans to numerous countries around the world and am waiting for the 100% solid yes before I share it with the world and get everyone excited, including myself!

Is there one thing you look back on in your career so far and think ‘I should’ve done that differently?’
No, honestly, I learn from everything I do and don't do. I don't have regrets, everything has brought me to this place in my life and I'm grateful for it all. The good and the bad!

With half of 2011 gone, what does the rest of the year have in store for Alex Band?
That's hard to say! I have so much in the works, but I'd like to say that the rest of this year has more releases in other countries and touring. I am so excited to play shows everywhere and see all of my fans again!! It's been a long time coming.

Holy Grail

Sat, 9 Jul 2011 16:31:56 +1000

“I think a lot of notes, a lot of shredding and a whirlwind of hair everywhere. Enough high notes to get you ready for the rest of the festival and a bunch of energy and onstage jackassery!”

Taking their influence from the traditional and classic heavy metal sound, Holy Grail and their debut album Crisis In Utopia has propelled the band to the head of the pack of the new wave of heavy metal bands. Blistering guitar solos, crushing riffs and general guitar shreddery, piercing vocals and songs filled with hooks and melody, that’s what you get with Holy Grail.

Heading to Australia for the first time, the band promise a lot of notes, a lot of shredding and a whirlwind of hair everywhere and enough high notes to get you ready for the rest of the festival and a bunch of energy and onstage jackassery!

Just like their twin axe attack, we scored a bonus when we got to chat to both the bands vocalist James Paul Luna and guitarist Eli Santana...

Hey guys, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You! So how are things going right now, I see you have a big few months of tour dates lined up, but are you on a bit of a break right now?
Luna - We have a bit of a break right now, it's kind of the longest break we have had for a while, around a month and a half, then we go out for our longest tour yet which is close too 2 months.

So in September you are headed out for your first trip to Australia, for Soundwave Revolution. When did you first hear that you guys were heading to Australia?
Eli - Officially it was a couple of months ago and then recently we saw who we were playing with and that got us really, really excited.

So you have obviously had a chance to check out the rest of the Soundwave Revolution lineup, any bands you are personally looking forward to checking out or playing with?
Luna - It's an awesome lineup, with bands such as Alice Cooper, Van Halen, Gojira, Danzig...
Eli - Then you have Machine Head, Unearth, I wanna see The Damned Things, I am really interested to see Keith from Everytime I Die and Scott Ian and see how that works on stage. So I am pumped about all the bands pretty much.

Being your first time out here, what have you heard about what you can expect from Soundwave and the Aussie Holy Grail fans?
Luna - I'm not sure what we can expect Holy Grail fans wise, but I have heard the festival is totally awesome. I don't know, how many festivals do you guys have down there?, because I have heard Soundwave is one of the best, or the best.

Well I think the big thing is that Soundwave is definitely the major and best festival as far as the metal and rock scene goes and that's why it does have that reputation because everyone is so pumped up for it.
Luna - That's cool to hear man, we are excited!
Eli - I am afraid of some of the deadly animals down there because I watch a lot of the nature shows, but I hope I am ok haha!

Ok, so on the flipside, what can fans expect from your set at Soundwave Revolution, how would you describe the Holy Grail live experience?
Luna - I think a lot of notes, a lot of shredding and a whirlwind of hair everywhere.
Eli - Enough high notes to get you ready for the rest of the festival that day and a bunch of energy and onstage jackassery!

So is your video clip for My Last Attack a good representation haha?
Eli - Pretty much, it's kind of exactly like that haha!

That looked like a fun film clip to have made...
Luna - Yeah that was totally fun. It was like our secret show we did for our album release and we video taped it and turned it into our video.

In your time thus far, you have played some of the most iconic rock and metal festivals worldwide such as Download, Wacken, Loud Park and now soon to be Soundwave...how do you find the whole festival experience, taking your music to a bigger stage, compared to playing the smaller more intimate venues?
Eli - With the festivals we have done it's weird because the sound is always different but it feels awesome because you have so much stage to run around on and do jumps and knee slides and all kinds of stuff! It's awesome, I think Holy Grail was built for the bigger stages. That's why we are excited with our recent festival run and to get down to Australia which will be really cool.

For you is that where the music of Holy Grail is destined to be, the big stages?
Eli - I think so, it has the raw energy for a smaller club, but it translates really well onto a bigger stage.

Do you guys have any idea if you are going to be playing your own sideshows?
Luna - I don't know the exact details, but I know on all our days off we are going to be doing sideshows.

Obviously you guys are going to be pretty damn busy when you are out here and you won't have any time to bump into any of those dangerous animals!
Luna - Haha that's true! I guess all the dangerous animals then will be people!

You guys certainly seem to have built up a reputation for a band that tours relentlessly, is that a bit of an old school mentality that you guys have as a band with regards to touring as a means for spreading the word?
Luna - Well I think you need to do everything today, in this day and age there is no other way around it.
Eli - I guess it's also a case of us not knowing any different. It was really only recently that we realised we had done a lot of touring, we just thought that's what every band was doing.

What did you set out to achieve with putting Holy Grail together, such as did you think Holy Grail could fill a void of some kind?
Luna - We just wanted to make really rad metal, that's how it came about.

So onto your album “Crisis In Utopia”, can you give us an insight into the album title and inspiration for the album cover etc??
Luna - There is a bit of a theme, it's like post apocalyptic, end of the world concepts which influenced the cover art and title track. But within the record itself, lyrical themes kind of vary. It goes from Norse mythology to songs about defeat and depression and suicide and songs about taking down your oppressors and taking down tyrants.

What was the songwriting process you undertook for the album, is that something that the whole band contributes to?
Luna - On the album in particular, it will either be a riff from Eli, sometimes he will have a full song. I kind of write stuff that is more chords and progressions with vocal melodies over it. Then I send it to Eli and he rearranges it and adds lots more notes and makes it real shreddy and riffs that are real awesome. Then it comes back to me and fleshes out further from there. It comes from either end, but basically we write the lyrics after the music.

Speaking of guitars and given we have Eli here, Eli, who are your main guitar influences?
Eli - Well it first started with Kirk Hammet from Metallica, then I had a guitar teacher who showed me Yngwie and then it all changed and I wanted to be a shredder. I was really into Marty Friedman and Paul Gilbert and Dimebag for his style. Recently, I have really been into Richie Kotzen. Then I also like the riff writers like Chuck Schuldiner from Death and Dave Mustaine who writes these really memorable riffs. Like the band Tourniquet who not a lot of people know about but they write these really amazing metal riffs that I would like to do. Really memorable riffs that you hear one time and they get stuck in your head as much as a vocal.

Eli has spoken a little bit about his own musical influences, what about the rest within the band, do they differ greatly?
Luna - Eli definitely has a lot of his own stuff, but there's definitely a lot of ground we cross. It's cool, because each guy brings something different that the rest of us may not listen to.

Whilst there are some crushing riffs and blistering guitar solos on the album, most of the songs feature some pretty hefty hooks and melodies as well. Are these some of the key ingredients that you guys must have in your songs?
Luna - Yes definitely, that's one of the biggest things for us is to have big hooks and melodies. It's kind of one of the key drivers for why we got into this in the first place. Old school metal that we love so much that has a lot of hooks and melody, but it's still so heavy with some killer solos.
Eli - Even some of the Death metal I was into, bands like Morbid Angel, Cannibal Corpse, Death and Carcass, even though they were all growling and stuff, they all had great hooks and catchy songwriting. So that was just natural for us to do.

How did you find the process of recording Crisis In Utopia, was that a painful or painless process haha?
Luna - Haha, it was more painful because it was a start, stop process all through out where we had a few tours in the middle of it. It became a strain to come home to find that parts were misplaced because we were gone and we didn't have someone to tell them what part was right. Eli even had to retrack the guitars two or three times in some of the songs.
Eli - Now that was painful!

Did you find having the shows in between the process may have helped a little bit in the sense of the band getting stronger so to speak?
Luna - Yes it did help as it gave us a bit of time to step away and come back to the songs with fresh ears but I think the big part of it was people some of the people that were hired and outsourced such as engineers ended up accidentally deleting files and sessions and computers would crash and that's what ended up screwing us over I think.

How have you found the reaction from metal fans around the world to the album?
Luna - Yes they're totally digging it and they are turning up to the shows singing all the lyrics and sometimes even do a better job than what I do haha! It's pretty amazing!
Eli - All the fans that come out and even if I wasn't in a band they are people I would hang out with as they are just laid back metal heads. It's cool to meet people from all over the world who are just like us.

I think you will find Australia is no different, we have a big metal community down here and thanks to a festival like Soundwave we now get an opportunity to see a lot of bands we otherwise wouldn't!
Luna - That's what we've heard and we definitely really excited to be coming!
Eli -Yes we can't wait!

Catch Unearth at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup

Forbidden

Sat, 9 Jul 2011 13:34:44 +1000

“A lot of great bands didn't get the recognition they deserved. We could be thrown into that category, but we should be thankful for the recognition we did get! It at least got us to the point today where we can do what we are now doing!”

One of the pioneers of thrash metal, Forbidden, are hitting Australia for the very first time in a few weeks and you can be guaranteed they will be hitting Australia hard! Having recently released their long awaited 5th album Omega Wave after a ten or so year hiatus, Forbidden will be playing 6 shows here in Australia.

We chatted with one of the founding members, guitarist Craig Locicero about their upcoming Australian tour and new album Omega Wave.

Hey Craig, thanks for taking the time to chat with May The Rock Be With You. How are things going right now, you have been pretty busy out on tour and that doesn’t end in the next month or 2..
Yes first when the album came out we had the US tour with Revocation, then we broke off and did some headlining dates, then we did 70,000 Tonnes Of Metal, then we took a little break and got ready to do a couple of different festivals in Norway and Germany. Then the next round of stuff coming up we have a local show here, the only one for the year and that's next weekend. Then we have one show in Finland, then Australia, then we go back to the UK again for Bloodstock, then Czechoslovakia, then in the works for another US tour and then another European tour after that! So that's a lot of shows haha!

So first things first, in a few weeks you are headed to Australia for the very first time for a bunch of shows, one of which is headlining the “High Voltage Festival” in Melbourne. A few years ago, I guess touring Australia with Forbidden is probably one of the last things you would of expected to be doing in 2011?
It's something I always wanted to do, but 3 or 4 years ago I didn't even expect to do anything with Forbidden, 4 years ago more directly. I was more than happy not to be reliving the past and moving forward and it didn't bother me, and it still wouldn't have bothered me, but I think the time was right for us to come back. Essentially it started with a few reunion shows and everyone telling us to record another record and I resisted, resisted and resisted. Somewhere along the line of getting the right guys in the band and having a full lineup, the temptation and inspiration started to hit me and it finally came in the summer of 2008 when I started to write the new record.

So how did the Australian tour come about and what are your expectations of your tour here, have you been conscious of a strong Forbidden fan base down here?
Well, there's a guy Francis Smyth who works with the band COG who has been a friend of mine for a long, long time. He has said for years, Australia is Twisted into Form, the continent. He said a lot of these people love Forbidden Evil, but if you ever get to Australia, it's Twisted into Form, that is their album. I found that interesting, but there's something about that album that hit people the right way and the amount of people who write in. We have always been a cult band, so I expect to have more of that kind if enthusiasm when we get there and more specifically geared towards Twisted. Which is funny, but it's all good to me and they also really seem to love Omega Wave and are really, really into that. I never know what to really expect and I try not to make myself think a certain thing will happen.

So is the setlist going to be geared more to what you have heard about the Australian fans as you mentioned above?
Probably not, because it seems so far crowds have been happy and the setlist we have been playing lately is really, really strong. You know, it's like about a third of each record, not including Green and Distortion at the present time as those albums are not readily available. You are really only making a couple of people happy when you are playing those songs! That's a shame as there's some good songs there, but to take 5 to 10 minutes out of your set to do it, when you could make everyone happy by playing songs off Forbidden Evil, Twisted into Form and Omega Wave, we never walk away with people disappointed. I think it's a very strong grouping of songs. I think we might grab a few more from Twisted to throw in the set though.

What personally kept you occupied in the years that followed Forbidden’s demise, you were pretty busy weren’t you?
Oh yeah, I never stopped. Once the band broke up I decided I wanted to go in a different direction and find whatever my voice was in there, because I had been playing metal for so long and towards the end I think that Green was a strong record and it was an angry record, but I think it was lacking in real inspiration because we didn't really know where we were and where we were sitting in all this stuff. I felt like it wasn't necessarily going through the motions, but I wasn't being true to myself. Really for Distortion, there were points where it was like what are we doing here? There was so much questioning going on, so I needed to get out of that. So I stated ManMadeGod which was very experimental at first and I didn't care and I wasn't trying to get a record deal, I just wanted to experiment and look into other kinds of music. You know, head a bit more into my rock background. Once we found a great singer, we got a record deal, which was 2002, which was a really, really big one with American. That album unfortunately, before it ever really got to go anywhere, because it got a lot of really great reviews and radio play, but our singer wasn't really a people person and was forcing me to make a decision. Do I want to keep doing this and continue fighting with him?, or do I just want to fold it up? So I folded it up and then started Spiralarms and kind of took the same approach of not trying to make anything happen and just make music for ourselves. Ironically, we extremely close to getting a record deal that would work in this day and age and then doing the Forbidden thing at the same time and recording in between it all. So I've still got lots going on, then there's also Demonica as well with Hank Shermann from Mercyful Fate, which is a metal thing with really great Hank style riffs.

So how difficult was it in the last few years to get a lineup confirmed, write, record and then release Omega Wave and then plan to tour the world? Were there times when you thought it wouldn’t actually all come together?
One thing I don't lack is a leap of faith in the band and in myself, which is how you have to operate in this business. I mean we didn't sign a record deal until the last song was written, but that was by choice. We had a few on the table and obviously Nuclear Blast is the right label for this band. We knew that, but didn't really tell them that haha! It will never be like this again as the timing was in some ways perfect. Everything finished at the right time, the window was exactly where I wanted it to be in terms of getting the album done. At the same time, putting it out at the end of last year is not the most ideal time for a band that's been away for that long. Luckily the label really believes in the band and loves the record. We have a video that's yet to come out, we just finished a few weeks ago. We have three or so cover songs we want to put on as b-sides to singles so there is a lot of life left in this album yet. It's kind of only just hit the small side of the scope. If we can survive each other and given how we know each other, we will be just fine.

How has the lineup settled in, has that been a pretty seamless process, or has it had some ups and downs?
Well any band will have it's ups and downs, but it's been mostly ups. Certain days everyone is going to go through their shit, but that's like any band. It's definitely a band that obviously is not generating massive amounts of revenue to keep everyone pacified. You better do it because you love it and luckily we do!

What has been the response to your new album, Omega Wave, from the fans?
So far it's been positive, very positive! I think at first it might have been a little but like "it's not like Forbidden Evil, or its not like..." but for the most part and even more so as time goes along, people are realising how strong a record it is. It just keeps growing in that respect and once the new video comes out and it hits YouTube and all that, I think you will see a pretty big upswing of people looking into the album and taking it seriously. It seems like the only people who don't like the record are the ones who don't listen to it! Everyone who does seems to love it. It's certainly not a record with any throwaway songs, in my opinion theres nothing overtly weak on this album.

Can you give a bit of an insight into the songwriting process for the album. As you had only just really put together a lineup as such around that time…
It always starts with my riffs and that's how it usually translates. But in this case, thus was a different writing process because I needed something to focus on as subject matter for the album. You know Russ and I had talked about it and said we are just going to jump full fledged into topics of conspiracies and paranoia and look at the whole Barrack Obama thing and his hypnosis over the world and going to take that and run with it. Then the riffs followed after that. The first 2 songs written were Adapt or Die and Hopenosis and that was right off the bat before we even had Steve Smyth around, so that was the direction right there. But Steve did contribute a lot when he got in there and Russ always has his contributions towards arrangements and when it comes to lyrics he and I write everything together and all the melodies and that stuff. We spent a lot of time at my house putting that together. Nobody knew exactly what it was going to sound like. It's weird saying that, but nobody knew except for me! I was the point guy for everybody, I knew what Steve was doing, I knew what Russ was doing and I had a good grip on what it was all going to be and everybody else was like, I hope this really works.

Now you also co-produced the album Craig, how did you find that experience?
Yes I did, well I have co produced all of them but this was the first time I got my name listed. Actually, Forbidden Evil I didn't, I did my tracks and bounced, because I was a kid, I was 18. So I've always been involved with that, but I know a lot more about production and getting performances now. Tim, who is my singer in Spiralarms, we've been producing our stuff for five years and learning the ropes of how to record and he has become a really good engineer as well as a producer. So it was a pretty seamless transition for us, everybody else was new to it and hadn't worked in the studio as much as Tim and I had. Steve probably had the second most recording experience given his days with Nevermore and Testament.

So at this point, is there any intention to release a follow up to Omega Wave?
Well depending on what day you catch me I will have a different answer. I would say it's more than likely, but for me personally I just have to be inspired and I hope everyone at the end of this thing can stand each other enough to give it another shot and write a great record. I think that the next one could even be better with the knowledge and touring we have done. We've done over 100 shows in the last year and we've got a heck of a lot more ahead.

With the extensive touring you have recently done and about too...how much have you observed the demographic of people who turn up at a Forbidden gig in 2011? Is there a distinct younger generation into the band?
Yes big time! If you have an all ages show, you are going to see a tonne of kids and they know every word. They've discovered the band through the Internet or their parents or however it might be, but they are really passionate about it and it blows my mind. Every time I see them out there singing the songs I think wow, something translated. That's a really rewarding feeling for all of us.

You originated in the Bay Area during the halcyon days of thrash in the 80's and coming up next week there is the Bay Area Thrash Fest, which you are headlining, what kind of scene exists in the bay area for Thrash these days?
Well there's no comparison to the 80's, there's no comparison to everything when it was new. The first time it came around, it will never be that again. The scope of what we were writing about back then was pretty much good, evil, bad, the devil, or a particular war, it wasn't the same bunch of influences you have now. Now there's so much more subject matter and people are a lot less naive, yet they're a lot less experienced in great music as a background. All they have is newer stuff these days. If you go back to our era, they don't have all the stuff that influenced us such as Black Flag, Saxon or whatever, it's just a whole different era. Missing The Beatles in their life, stuff like that. This stuff made us what we are, the stuff that we listened to and the experiences we had. Now if you try and emulate it, you are missing a piece of the puzzle. It's not their fault, it's just a product of their influences.

All these years, how does it feel to hear of bands and who cite the band as being such a big influence and recognition in media of releases such as Forbidden Evil and it's standing in the thrash genre?
Well sometimes it's good to be old haha!! Luckily I started when I was 15 doing this stuff so I am younger than most. But if you are around long enough, eventually people are going up recognise what you did, if it mattered to people along the way. A lot of great bands didn't get the recognition they deserved. We could be thrown into that category, but we should be thankful for the recognition we did get! It at least got us to the point today where we can do what we are now doing!
 
Catch Forbidden in Australia at the following shows...
SAT 30TH JULY- THE PRAGUE, MELBOURNE
SUN 31ST JULY- THE ROSEMOUNT HOTEL, PERTH
WED 3RD AUGUST- ENIGMA BAR, ADELAIDE a
THURS 4TH AUGUST- JUBILEE HOTEL, BRISBANE
FRI 5TH AUGUST- THE BALD FACED STAGG, SYDNEY
SAT 6TH AUGUST- THE CORNER HOTEL, MELBOURNE- HIGH VOLTAGE FESTIVAL

Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin Celebration

Fri, 8 Jul 2011 16:33:28 +1000

Now into it’s 9th year, this year the annual Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin Celebration will arguably see it’s biggest performance, with an impressive lineup of performers and shows in nearly every capital city. Under the direction of the shows mastermind Joseph Calderazzo, those attending can expect to hear well over 2 hours of Led Zeppelin classics performed in ways never heard before, with particular focus on the Led Zeppelin IV album, which is celebrating it’s 40th anniversary this year.

May The Rock Be With You chatted to one of the featured vocalists, Simon Meli about his involvement in the performances and how Led Zeppelin has influenced him as a performer and through his music career.

About The 9th Annual Whole Lotta Love, Led Zeppelin Celebration
In 2011 and in celebration of the 40th anniversary year of Led Zeppelin’s seminal album Led Zeppelin IV, the show boasts a spectacular line-up of guest vocalists including international rock legend and The Tea Party front-man Jeff Martin, Steve Balbi (Noiseworks), Simon Meli (Sway/The Widowbirds/Oohlala), Zkye (*not performing in Perth) and Natasha Stuart.

Joining this stellar line up to deliver over 2 ½ hours of Zeppelin magic will be an exceptional powerhouse 9 piece band, including Strings, under the creative direction of Joseph Calderazzo, to sensationally recreate over 20 of the finest songs ever recorded, including; Black Dog, Rock and Roll, Immigrant Song, Battle of Evermore, Kashmir and the timeless Stairway To Heaven.

With an epoch defining fusion of musical genres, Led Zeppelin influenced generations of musicians and legions of fans and went on to become one of the biggest bands in the world, producing 9 studio albums, 3 live albums and selling a staggering 200+ million worldwide, yet toured Australia only once in 1972. Rolling Stone described Led Zeppelin as “unquestionably one of the most enduring bands in rock history”.

About Simon Meli
Born 1977 and bred in the West of Sydney’s outer regions, Simon Meli began his musical affair in infancy. His Maltese Grandmother initiated things, teaching him organ and singing about her kitchen, but it was before Simon could speak, his father (fuelled by motorcars) handed Simon an unused gearshift from an LJ Torana, Simon thought straight away to use this as a make-shift microphone.

Whilst his unschooled voice and technique is one to his own... Simon has developed a unique and soulful voice in the Sydney and Australian market, ever willing to take abroad. To listen to Simon’s voice can be tonally compared to Robert Plant, Lou Gramm and a voice that could bend all the black keys on a piano. Heavily inspired by Frankie Miller, Joe Cocker and Paul Rodgers of Free, Simon hopes to carry the same soulful torch.

Sharing stages with National & International greats is not an uncommon occurrence in Simon’s career. Highlighted by the Greatest of International artists... Paul Weller (UK, The Jam, The Style Council) – Bon Jovi and Swamp Legend, Tony Joe White (US). Not to mention the local touring and sharing stages with Australian greats such as Jimmy Barnes, The Backsliders, Kevin Bennett, and many more.

Hey Simon, thanks for chatting to May The Rock Be With You about the upcoming Whole Lotta Love, Led Zeppelin Celebration. How did you personally get involved in this?
Well I've been working with Joseph Calderazzo for a few years now, the musical director and guitarist. He scouted me down from playing around the traps and invited me to be a part of this a couple of years ago. Now in it's enormity, he again asked me to be a part of it and I am over over the moon because it's been a great growth that it's been through.

So this as a concept is now into it's 9th year, how many years have you personally been involved?
Yes it is, Joseph has been building this on a steady sort of pattern. It's only really been the last two years, this year being the second that he has taken it to the theatres and around the country. So being a part of this it's going to be great taking it to the major cities again.

I guess this could be loosely be called many a thing such as tribute, cover, celebration, etc...how would you personally describe the show and what it aims to achieve?
I definitely see it as a celebration, in the way that I've been brought up in this stuff and it would be any kids dream to be able to sing to that quality and those selection of songs from Zep. For me not only is it a chance to celebrate this music, but it gives me a fucking chance to sing some classic songs. There's heaps of people out there that have the same sort of passion for what is one of the most untouchable bands to have come into the music realm.

Had you worked with the likes of Jeff Martin, Steve Balbi previously, or any of of your other fellow band members?
Jeff Martin, no I haven't and I was really impressed when I heard that he was part of the lineup this year. So I haven't worked with him, however I will be working with him on some side projects in the next month or so. Steve Balbi is like one of my long term friends and I suppose mentors and soul brothers. He is working on my record for me at the moment so yeah I've worked with him many times, he is a dear guy.

With shows a few months away yet, coming up in September, how much rehearsing have you put into it so far?
At this point, as in of today, nothing! But the rehearsal process is normally one or two days for the singers and maybe a day prior just for locking in coordination between strings and band. But they have done it before obviously and the songs are played with such love that people don't forget their parts, they look forward to playing them again the next year.

For hardcore Led Zeppelin fans attending, or thinking of doing so, whilst you are focussing a lot on the bands seminal Led Zeppelin IV album, how much do you also delve into the back catalogue?
Well it does in parts and there are a couple of surprises I suppose that they keep up their sleeve for the show. I won't say there's a great deal, but when they do, do them, they are done with an interpretation that hasn't been seen before. It may consist of say three vocals and an acoustic guitar and a full on percussion ensemble. Joseph likes to keep a couple of those numbers up his sleeve as little tokens of gratitude for the people that come to the show.

How much license has been given to you and the other vocalists and the band in terms of putting your own stamp and personality into the songs?
Well, we can't obviously help being who we are and when you listen to the tracks in rehearsal mode, your ears kind of mould to a certain tune that makes you think or breathe like they did. So there will be an element of each person out there that will resemble Robert Plant or if you are a guitarist or what have you. The vocalists in particular on this years lineup are really soulful people and they have certain characteristics that stop it from being merely a carbon copy.

As far as singing the songs in Whole Lotta Love goes, do you have any personal Led Zep favourites?
Well the last couple of years I have had to sing a mixed bag, based upon compromising between what other artists were on the bill and their various capabilities. But of all the songs, it's really bloody hard to try and pick some favourites. There is obviously the epics like Kashmir which Steve does a brilliant rendition of that's a show stopper rendition. I think for me a really cool one would be The Rain Song which might be something people didn't expect me to say, but The Rain Song is a beautiful piece of music.

Based on your previous involvement, what comments do you have on the crowd demographic. Have you noticed that it’s a vast array of ages and demographics, backgrounds etc?
I did certainly get a sense of a lot of youth there. I suppose the great thing nowadays with Led Zeppelin is you can check things on the Internet which has given the younger kids a fantastic opportunity to be inspired by great performances and great playing and an essence that then will put them in touch with their parents or their peers.

So tell me, the shows mastermind so to speak and creator, Joseph Calderazzo, is he a walking, talking Led Zeppelin encyclopaedia?
Haha, yes he is. He is well, well researched and he lives and breathes the part like we all do I suppose, but I guess he puts on the captains cap. He controls the direction of things so we all have a great time, but he definitely knows every part inside out, whether it be a violin from the Kashmir section or the strings in some other track, so yes he knows everything inside out.

Where every guitar player at some point attempts to play Stairway To Heaven and emulate Jimmy Page, as a vocalist, how have you found the experience of singing Led Zeppelin ala Robert Plant material?
To be honest I think it's done wonders for my character and who I am as a vocalist as I have a similar range and height. So being a little pigeon chested singer haha, it has helped when you have got say 10 shows to do, it keeps your head screwed on that's for sure. When it's something in your range and you are comfortable with, it just sets you up for the next night. So it's been a great vocal mentor as such.

Can you remember the first time you heard a Led Zeppelin song??
Hmmm, let me see. Well it was probably on the back of listening to Ike and Tina Turner and British soul, like Rod Stewart and The Faces, so the British seed had been planted. So it was all Dads record collection that he kept forcing down my throat and saying "how did you like that", "ok now listen to this" and it went from there.

Having learnt these songs, has that given you a whole new appreciation for the band and the songs and their back catalogue?
Yes especially the b-sides and the things that are really deep down in the Led Zeppelin catalogue. The more unusual stuff has given me a great appreciation to the musicianship and writing side of things.

Personally, who are some of your more influential vocalists?
Vocals, well not a lot of really later day vocalists. I wouldn't go past saying Frankie Miller is one of my biggest influences as is Otis Redding and Chris Robinson, as well as Rod The Mod. Then obviously Robert Plant. So that's the bag of tricks right there!

Can you give some background into your band The Widowbirds, is that what you referred to before when you said Steve Balbi was helping?
Yes that's correct, he is mixing our debut record at the moment. I am actually in the middle of tracking the last song for him to then mix.

So we can expect that sometime this year then?
Well the entire album will be released more in the new year, but there will be a single or 2 drop this year.

You are also working in another production too aren’t you?
Yes I am Storylines it’s called, which us more of a singer songwriter type production as in we perform songs from some great songwriters of the past as well.

You can catch Whole Lotta Love at the following dates and venues:

Thursday 15 September – Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Book at Ticketek.com.au or 132 849

Saturday 17 September – Palais Theatre, Melbourne
Book at Ticketmaster.com.au or 136 100

Thursday 22 September – Concert Hall, QPAC, Brisbane
Book at qpac.com.au or 136 246

Saturday 24 September – Burswood Theatre, Perth
Book at Ticketek.com.au or 132 849

Tickets On Sale NOW

Unearth

Fri, 8 Jul 2011 09:03:44 +1000

“We just try to make it look like it’s going to come crashing down at any minute you know, its out of control, just mosh mayhem off stage and you’ll see us having a good time and hopefully that translates to the people viewing it.”

Unearth have just unleashed their new album of pure Metal, their fifth studio album and their first in three years entitled Darkness In The Light and it’s heavy! They’re also heading back Down Under as part of the spectacular Soundwave Revolution festival tour in September and October. We had the chance to talk to guitarist Buz McGrath about the new album, their prospective new drummer, their appearance at Soundwave Revolution and about his love of twitter.

Buz…

Firstly congratulations on the new album, it’s so heavy! I love it.
That’s great thank you.
 Explain to me where the title ‘Darkness in the light’ came from…
You know it probably just came from one of the lyrics that was rattled in Mr Trevor Phipps’ head, I guess it could mean different things to a different person, like for me personally it’s like with my life when everything seems good and bright there’s always something looming in the background that kind of fucks up your whole plan. So that’s kinda what the meaning is that I get from it.

How did the songs come together for this new record?
Well basically just Ken and I throwing together riffs, Ken did a lot of demoing of songs and then I would go over to Ken’s house and show him a riff and a new programmed drum beat for it cause we didn’t have a drummer at the time of writing it which was a new experience. So we just built the songs up that way and pretty soon they started coming together just like a puzzle does and the next thing you know we had a record and when we recorded the drums for it we told Justin Foley that ‘look, these drum beats were written by us so they may not be the best drum beats’ but he really put his stink on it and added a nice touch the record.
 There are some killer riffs and solos on this album, what’s your method of creating the perfect guitar part?
You know sometimes you accidentally stumble upon it, for me, to be in a room with an amp and just riffing out whatever comes in your head. It may not even be riffs, just noting around and next thing you know you stumble upon a pattern that you think that sounds tasty, let’s refine that and see where it goes.

What is it that sets the new album apart from previous efforts?
Well I think for one, the drums definitely have more flavour than any of our other albums and just the song writing is the best that we’ve been able to do. So it’s on a nice level there and I think the songs are just way catchy and they stick in your brain meat for a long time. Like when I was just rehearsing and stuff I was thinking man I just can’t get this song out of my head, like it haunts me.
 One word I saw used to describe it was ‘honest’ would you consider that be a fair assessment?
Honest? Yeah I guess so. I mean how is an album honest? I guess it’s honest to our sound, we didn’t try and change anything or try to do anything that we didn’t want to do to make the album sound a certain way I guess. But yeah I guess that’s a fair adjective in this case to describe it, most of it anyways.

You worked with Adam Dutkiewicz from Killswitch Engage as producer on the album once again, did he bring anything different to the table this time compared to the previous albums he’s worked on?
Um, you know, vocally he may have but as far as guitar wise, we have a formula that has been working for us with him and we just stick to that, I called him the Dr Dre of metal, he comes in and he’s got that, you know he makes things happen, he takes the songs and he has no emotional attachment to anything so its good to have him come in and say ‘This doesn’t work’ and ‘This is going to be great’ and ‘We’ve got this all done.’ So he’s the sixth member of Unearth, or the fifth member in this particular albums case.
 You’ve toured Australia a few times, how do the metal crowds here in OZ differ to those around the world?
People wear flip flops and they’re more attractive people, metal fans around the world are pretty ugly folk but I think Australia just has some handsome men and beautiful women down there so I guess that’s one of the things that immediately noticeable, and people are just in party mode, they come out and its all over the top and they rage, it’s awesome.

You’re of course heading back down here to Australia for the Soundwave Revolution shows in September / October, what can people expect from your show this time around?
We just try to make it look like it’s going to come crashing down at any minute you know, its out of control, just mosh mayhem off stage and you’ll see us having a good time and hopefully that translates to the people viewing it.

You’re in some amazing company on the tour, anyone in particular you’re pumped to see?
Obviously Van Halen which I’ve never seen before that’s going to be interesting, but other than that, a lot of friends bands are playing, like Whitechapel, The Acacia Strain, Times of Grace, Every Time I Die, just to name a few of the bands we’ve grown up with over the years and just get to hang out with and play some shows together.

So basically it’s one big party for a few weeks?
Yeah.  Drummer wise, at the moment you’re out with Justin Foley, will he be coming to Australia with you?
No he’s going to stop short there, he’s doing the Mayhem festival tour of the States and he’s doing the Europe run with us and then from there he goes home and we go to Australia and guy by the name of Nick Pierce from Seattle Washington area is coming in to start playing, he may be our new guy its still kind of the try out mode right now just to feel him out but I think he’s a rad drummer, got tonnes of skills, he’s hungry, he’s an animal, that’s kind of what we’re looking for. I mean we played a couple of shows with him already; he did great so it’s looking good.

Is he from any other bands or just a new guy?
Not really any notable bands, he played with a band called The Faceless briefly and he played on kind of a local band and that was it, he’s kind of under the radar right now.
 As a guitarist, who would you sight as some of your biggest influences?
Definitely, In Flames, you know that really influenced the sound of my riffing, Yngwie Malmsteen is something that I chase after, the sounds that he makes with the guitar maybe not so much his over the top persona but his guitar playing touches me in weird places.

The scalloped frets always freaked me out, I could never understand that…
Yeah I think it kinda makes it harder to play, it just keeps bending it out of tune but hey it’s cool

Speaking of harder to play, you play an 8 string for a while.
On the last record yeah there was a couple of songs with the 8 string, that was a lot of fun

Is it hard to play?
No not really, I picked it up and sat on the couch for an hour with it and thought this thing is a lot of fun, it’s like playing a snowboard, it’s awesome. I haven’t broken it out for a while, I break it out every once and a while, it’s a fun guitar to play low, slow death metal on you know.

So what’s the string set up? It’s a low B but what’s the one below that?
It’s a G, well it’s F# but I took mine and tuned it up to G. So it’s like G, I don’t know, whatever else comes after that ha ha
 What are your thoughts on the metal scene these days?
You know, a lot of people still keep paying attention to genre labels, like it’s Metalcore or it’s Deathcore, it’s like whatever, people being divided over it. I think its all metal and even if it’s a kind of metal that you’re not into, I think people should support all things heavy. I used to hate on all these bands that were coming up with these silly haircuts and doing just a weird style, but you’d hear they were heavy and you’d be alright, they’re playing heavy, they’re making heavy go forward, so I back it. Even if the song isn’t that great, as long as it’s heavy.

Unearth has been a band now for 13 years and this is your fifth album, looking back over this time, has there been a stand out moment over your career that you can share with us?
I think for me, the fact that we’re still here doing it, we were at a photo shoot a while ago when everything was starting to start up I was looking around like, ‘wow, we’re here doing this somehow’ and that was to me, this happened a few weeks ago and I was proud that we were still here and people still care enough to wanna be here to play for people. But as far as an event goes, or a show, I remember playing Ozzfest ‘04 that was a really big thing and touring with Slayer was definitely a milestone for sure.

Now the album has just been released, what’s the reaction been like?
It’s been great, it’s overwhelming. I can’t believe how many people have contacted us about how they feel about the record. On one hand I’m nervous because it’s like, well I’m not nervous but it’s like this thing seems to be going pretty well, but on the other hand I’m like maybe I’m just over reacting, maybe it’s just because people were this excited last time but I just didn’t because there wasn’t so many social media outlets that we have. Like with people posting on the facebook and twitter and I didn’t really pay attention to that last record, so I don’t know if people are as psyched for this one or more excited. I’m thinking they’re more excited, from all the reviews I’ve been getting and friends calling me and this and that. It’s an exciting time.

You talk about social media and a few years ago it was nowhere as big as it is now, how much of a difference has that made on the band?
I mean, its such a great tool, just to get to people and you can respond to people easily especially through Twitter, you don’t have to write a long explanation. You know, someone hits you up and you’ve got time, you can respond to fans. It’s a direct link between bands and the fans that want to know what’s going on and then you have a buddy that may be in another band that has 20,000 followers or his buddy’s band or however many and they retweet to that and messages can just get sent definitely a cool and beneficial to all.

I follow you on Twitter and it’s just cool to see what you get up to.
Yep, I follow like a lot of other dudes I know in bands and friends but people that you don’t get to see all the time, maybe once a year you cross paths, and you just check in on what they’re doing like ‘oh cool, Jamie is in Romania playing a show’ and he posts a pic and it looks really cool.

Then you can follow Charlie Sheen and don’t care what he does a month later.
Ha ha yeah everyone was on his nuts for two seconds and then he just disappeared, its hilarious.
 Lastly, do you have a message for your fans out there?
Just have a good time, all the time.

Thanks Buz, see you at soundwave in September.
Sick, thanks man.

Catch Unearth at Soundwave Revolution
Brisbane - Saturday 24th September at RNA Showgrounds
Sydney - Sunday 25th September at Old Kings Oval, Parramatta
Melbourne - Friday 30th September at Tabcorp Park, Melton
Adelaide - Saturday 1st October at Showgrounds
Perth - Monday 3rd October at Arena, Joondalup