1- One of your first bands had the faggotry meter going of the richter scale straight away for me with the name, Love Is Red, haha. Judging by the kids that like that band here in Australia i would not be down. But tell me the deal and what that band meant to you.
That band matured me is so many ways as a musician, and a person. We started that band in my basement when I was 16 years old. It took us a few years and a few member changes to fully develop our sound, but in the last year or two of that band we actually were reasonably successful by hardcore standards (booking agent, headlining shows, good turn-outs, video on MTV, etc). I think we confused a lot of people with our name sounding like some pussy indie band but our music being heavier and aggressive. We weren't a youth crew band that was putting out 7" vinyl EP's, nor were we a metal band that kept it "brutal as fuck". We had a hybrid sound to our music, so our audience was always mixed and diverse. It seemed like towards the end a few more younger kids were getting into us, and many of them even after the band broke up. I'm not so sure why that was; I'm more sure of the fact that we worked ridiculously hard to be taken seriously as a hardcore band coming from the southeastern part of the United States (a region definitely not known for producing many hardcore bands) and it was frustrating for us at the time to see bands getting record deals after only being around for 2 months and not evening touring, after we had spent years touring on a demo CD and 2 shirt designs. I think ultimately we were all just burnt out on sacrificing all our time, money, and efforts into a project that couldn't sustain our needs as individuals, and as a band. I cringe at most of the music that was written in that band when I listen to it, but at the same time I'm proud to have accomplished what I did in that band at such an early age.
2- You moved from "the depth south Alabama" (said in hick accent) to the best place in America (in my brief time there i made that decision) How great was the day you moved to HB? and why is HB the best place in that crazy country of yours?
I had nothing left for me in Alabama. So in the spring of 2005, I packed up all my shit and moved to Orange County, California with no real intentions other than just starting fresh. I didn't immediately live in Huntington Beach; at first I was in Buena Park, which is the northern-most part of Orange County. Luckily after a year of living there I scored an amazing place with great roommates right near the beach. To me, Huntington Beach is the best place I could live. Everything I could need or want is super close and attainable.....beach, good waves to surf, the majority of my friends, healthy and delicious food options, affordable living, endless entertainment, perfect weather...you get the idea. It's infinitely different than where I grew up, but definitely fits my style of living much better.
3- You played in Betrayed for quite a period of time, and got to tour the world with that band, but were never really credited as being a member. How did you feel about that? Where you cool with it cause those were Todd's songs and you were just happy to be playing and touring like the secong guitarist in Green Day?haha or did it annoy you?
Todd was kind enough to let me hop in the band really without knowing me. Given that the line-up was made up of guys who played in some of my favorite hardcore bands, I was thrilled to be a part of the project. From the beginning, Todd made it clear that he was going to handle all the music writing, and that it was a band that he and Aram wanted to do as friends. I welcomed the idea of me not having to do anything except learning the songs, show up at the shows, and have fun. It was the easiest gig in the world, and I was fortunate enough to travel and see places that I'd never get to venture to without being a part of a band like that. I've been asked a lot about what's up with me not receiving much credit with my affiliation with Betrayed; it's something that doesn't really matter to me. Like I said, I knew from the get-go that it was Todd and Aram's band, and I just helped (hopefully) bring some sound and energy to the live show. I had fun and consider it a privilege to have shared my time with 4 guys who I not only have a great deal of respect for as musicians, but as people. I don't need a text acknowledgment on a record to know my own worth. I know the part I played and that's all that matters.
4- Lone Wolf, no shit, one of my favourie current bands along with TUI, IA, etc. Whats up with the record? Is it ever coming out? And will you ever tour? Maybe with different members so that its an actual possibility? Or are Mark and Martin Lone Wolf through and through?
Lone Wolf started as just a project band. Bo Thomson approached me between watching episodes of LOST, saying we should do a heavy band. I was totally down for the idea and began putting together some songs. After most of the songs (the ones appearing on our EP) were written, we solidified our lineup by adding Mark and Nick. Martin later hopped on board too. It sucks that Lone Wolf is and probably will remain a band that moves at an ultra sluggish pace. Due to Mark and Martin staying on the road with their bands and staying busy just with life in general, it makes it nearly impossible to practice, much less play shows. I make up for it in the meantime by never ceasing at writing riff after riff and song after song. I think I have enough demo songs written right now for almost 2 LP's. Now the goal is just to find the time to fine-tune those songs and get them tracked in the studio. I suppose first we should be concerned with getting our 7"/EP released. The EP, entitled "Hallucinogenic Fate", will be out in a matter of weeks on Words of War records. It will be a 7" and digital download-only release. The songs crush hard as hell, and are just a glimpse into the sonic demolition that's ahead. We're hopefully gonna do a week-long tour in January with our Canadian buddies in Modern Crimes (A Perfect Murder members).
5- Lastly, i have to talk about our day trip to "Florida" (San Diego) that day. What was meant to be a 2 hour max drive took 6 hours plus. Was that the worst day of your life? and if you had a knife would you of buried into my stomach?
Goddamn, that day was awful. It took us 4 fucking hours to navigate through a stretch of highway that should have taken us 20 minutes! By the time we arrived, I only had time to order and eat a burrito (which was might delicious, but couldn't cover up the overwhelming taste of FAILURE) and then drag your ass off the wave pool, just to turn around and get stuck in another 4 hours of traffic. And THEN drive to Santa Barbara after the show, which was another 2 hours or so. I seriously hated you for talking me into allowing us to go to San Diego, even though it made no sense to go that far out of the way. And then you had the fucking nerve to do your "vocal warm ups" sitting in the car next to me. Even if I had a knife on me, I wouldn't stab you in fear that you might actually make noises even MORE annoying than the ones you were already creating. I think the only good thing your warm-ups produce for you is the ability to call people "faggots" from the stage during your set. I thought it was cool to see Paint It Black moshing and singing along to the No Apologies set at Sound & Fury though.
No comments:
Post a Comment