Category: Interviews

A few years ago i was playing through some new records by various acts and Annihilation Time was thrown in to the CD player and seemed to blow everything else away.

Ever since then we have followed their releases and grown with them and their beer bellies over 3 albums so this interview was way overdue. In May 08 AT were supposed to cruise into the UK, play some shows, blow the joint up and get back on the road to Oakland, California. Unfortunately, they were stopped at customs and turned back to France. The Old Blue Last in London was full of people gutted but c’est la vie, sometimes you are the pigeon, sometimes you are the statue. Regardless of the disappointment of not making it, Zac shared words with AT guitarist Graham and shot the shit on why and how Annihilation Time stoke the fire to keep the the good times of heavy metal and punk alive. Photo’s courtesy of Sebastian Gondek who shot the band at the Sputnik Cafe, Münster.

Who the fuck are Annihilation Time?

Graham – guitar, Wess – guitar, Noel – drums Chris – bass and Jimmy – vocals. Together we make …just some dudes.

You are from Oakland yeah? What’s the scene there like? Do you play with the likes of Drunk Horse etc?

Yeah Oakland’s cool. It a scummy shit hole town in northern california that breeds all kinds of human filth, violence, drug abuse, transexual activities, and general uglyness. Which is a sorce of insperation for music. Drunkhores is awsome. We were suposed to play with them at this roller derby thing, but a bunch of crazy drunk assholes got the whole show shut down within 5 minutes of us playing. So they never got to play.

Oakland is linked to SF by a huge bridge, does your sound bridge the gap between hardcore and metal?

No, I don’t think so. I’d say we would like to think of our selves as creep rock. Like the lewd or something..

Your previous release ‘2’ has a rip roaring sound and brings up comparisons to the good old days of hardcore and metal, how does the new record III – Tales of the Ancient Age compare?

The new one is much more brutal than the second one. I don’t know how you would describe it!

Tracks from your new album sound like you are more out of control with more sneer – were you guys more wasted when this was being written?

No, I think I was meditating on a hill side and it all came to me at once.

Lyrically you seem to cover politics, fun times and much more, write us some lyrics with 4 lines for this interview..

“Huffed my share of solvents, I know I’ll probobly die. Quick pass me that shit, Ill give it a try.”

What lyrics are your all time faves across the albums?

Germ freak for sure. It’s “pervert music”

How do guys write/record?

Jimmy writes all the lyrics. And me and wess write all the music. The other dudes throw in suggestions and other ideas.

Do you write your shit on the road?

No, on the road i’m either sleeping, drinking or playing gigs. There’s not time for much else.

You tour a lot, how has Europe treated you on the 2008 tour?

Killer! Other than the UK for not letting us in the country!

Best show on the tour?

Stockholm Sweden was fun. We got hammered and after our real gig, we went and played on this crazy boat and hung out with some awesome folks.

Best tour story?

If I told you some of the ones i’m thinking about, we would be in deep shit!

How much of an influence was the UK hardcore and punk scene to you guys?

Big time! We all freak out over the late 70’s early 80’s punk. The pistols were the first punk band I ever heard. We all love that stuff, in addition to all the old English rock bands. It’s safe to say we wouldn’t be a band without those influences.

How did you completely manage to fuck up the UK dates?

It was your asshole customs douche bags! Next time those clowns aren’t going to stop us, we’re gonna get work permits!

No one was crying but we are all pissed off with your lack of organisation you knobheads! ;)

Dude, we have always been fuckups, but we are getting our shit together a little more each year (not that im trying to say we will ever have all our shit figured out).

What did you miss out on most by completely fucking up the UK tour?

We wanted to go to Philo’s grave in Dubland and rage it up with some bro’s we have over there.

It must have cost you a packet huh?

Yeah, I think all our best shows were going to be in the UK. Not only that but we already paid for this like £500 ferry from the UK to Norway that we had to just skip out on, and then drive from France to Norway in a day and a half all because some joker says we can infect your country. We lost our asses on that one.

What would you have spent the money on?

English rock artifacts and over priced warm beer. haha!

Haha! – Your artwork reminds us of the good times of thrash and metal from the 80’s, who is responsible for your sleeves?

Sean Filley (he used to be in the band). The guy’s a bad ass artist, guitar player and all around dude.

Who were you fave skateboard graphics artists?

Vernon Johnson. All the old Powell art is killer.

You have all grown through the skate scene I believe, who skates in the band?

Me, Jimmy and Wess. I don’t skate as much anymore ever sense I shattered my hand and thought I wasn’t going to be able to play guitar again. Made me kind of paranoid.

Do you travel with a deck on board or is it too risky getting served?

We always bring at least two skate boards on tour with us.

How much is skateboarding an influence on AT?

As a kid, nothing was more important. That and surfing. It’s a big influence on our sound. I don’t know how to describe it, but some music actually has that sound in it. If you don’t skate, then you won’t understand what i’m talking about.

I heard you guys are like most British people when it comes to getting wasted, gimme your best acid or mushrooms story?

Me and Noel were in Den Hagg, Holland and on lot of really strong acid. We were just kinda walking around town tripping or what ever. Next thing I know, we walk over this military barricade without even realising what we were doing. Turns out we had walked into this restricted area of some foreign Embassy. There were all these military with machine guns and military jeeps and shit, I freaked out! We had been watching a World War II special on TV before we left the house for like 3 hours before. All of a sudden we were both convinced we were in occupied Nazi Germany, and they we going to gun us down! I was seeing like tanks and shit coming at us! We like freaked out and started running for our lives half way across the city before we pulled our heads together. It was great!

You have the chance to Annihilate 3 people in the World…

My landlord, Lars Ulrich and last but not least that scum sucking bitch Arnold Schwarzenegger!

Final words bitches…

Thus three so far shooter…

Find Annihilation Time at www.myspace.com/annihilationtime and www.annihilationtime.net

30th May 2008
Live photography by Zac

Flogging Molly have long been one of our favourite bands at Crossfire, and if you’ve ever witnessed any of the Irish-American septet’s raucous live shows, you’ll probably understand why.

The band are set to return this month with another folk-punk stormer in the shape of new album ‘Float‘ released on June 2nd. Alex Gosman recently caught up with the band’s accordion/concertina/piano player and pro skater, Matt Hensley for a chat.

Hi Matt! How are you doing, and what are you doing right now?

We’re good, thanks! We’ve just finished a five-week tour of the US and the east coast of Canada. It was great – almost every show was sold out, so it was a great response. No complaints here!

Could you give me a brief summary of what Flogging Molly have been doing since you last played the UK (at the Reading/Leeds festivals in 2006)?

Up until we went to Ireland to start on the new record, we were mainly just touring a lot. It’s a short answer, I know, but all that touring was hard work! Then we spent about three weeks in Ireland, recording ‘Float’.

You briefly left the band at the end of last year – what’s the story there?

Well, Flogging Molly have been almost constantly touring for ten years now, and that lifestyle was starting to take its toll on me. I have a ten year old son, too, and it was hard for me to be away from him for so long. Our last tour before I left was very long and intense, and I just kind of let the negativity of the situation get to me – so by the time the tour was over, I was mentally exhausted, and decided that I just couldn’t do this anymore. So I left the band, because I really just needed to spend more time with my family.

So what made you decide to rejoin the band?

After I’d left, I figured I had to find something else to do, so I opened my own pub near where I live in California…and about five months into it, I realised that I missed the band like crazy – I guess I didn’t realise what I had there until I lost it! And my son was like “I never asked you to leave, you know!” – I mean, sure, we miss each other, but he said he’d never wanted me to leave the band. So I talked to my family about rejoining the band, and then discussed it with the band. They were more than happy to have me back, and I was extremely happy to be back – and every since that day, my life has made a hell of a lot more sense!

So how does the new record sound, in comparison to Flogging Molly’s previous albums?

Well, it is a Flogging Molly record, so there are elements of our previous records that you’ll hear in the new one! But we recorded it in Ireland, which was beautiful, and made sense on many different levels – not least that Dave (King, FM singer/songwriter) was born and raised in Dublin. The recording itself was a great experience; we used this rural, remote studio – I think even the nearest supermarket was 20 minutes’ drive away – and there were no distractions at all.

Previously, we’ve recorded in LA and Chicago, and that was great too, but when you have friends in places where you don’t get to stay for very long, you always want to get together with them whenever you’re not working – or, in our case, recording an album. But the studio in Ireland was all self-contained, with a canteen and everything, so there were no distractions – all we did was plan and record the album, and we were able to really give it everything we had. It was a really purifying experience to be able to work that way, and I really think it shows through on the album!

Why did you decide to call the record ‘Float’? Any story there?

Because ‘Sink’ sounds like shit, haha! Seriously though…if you listen to the lyrics of the title track (“Don’t, no don’t sink the boat, that you built, you built to keep afloat”), it’s all about keeping it together and not losing faith in yourself. We just feel that the word ‘Float’ can have very positive connotations, and when Dave uses it in his songs, he effectively uses it as a metaphor for life – keeping your mind and body afloat, and not letting the world get you down, or ‘sink’ you. And for me, that’s a very uplifting idea, and it’s central to the spirit of the whole record.

When we last spoke to you in late 2004, you said you’d just started learning the concertina – how’s that coming along?

Great – I’ve been playing solidly ever since! I mainly play the piano/accordion with the band, but for most other stuff, like session work, the concertina is my main instrument. I played it last night at my pub!

Flogging Molly celebrated their 10th anniversary last year – you must be stoked…

It feels really good! Especially when I’ve had people telling me that we’ve lasted longer than bands like the Sex Pistols and The Clash did. I’d never thought of it like that before, but to outlast great bands like them, it feels pretty damn good!

Does being in a touring band hinder your skating activities at all (i.e. because of the risk of getting injured)?

Oh, believe me, that shit’s already happened, and the band gets pissed off at me! So I just practise with a cast on – I’ve played accordion several times whilst wearing a cast. But the truth is, I’ve learned not to fall on my right hand when I’m skating, because it’s the most important part of my body these days! So if I fall, I might break my leg or one of my ribs, but probably not my hands.

But, that said, we have such a hectic tour schedule these days, that I don’t really have time to skate whilst we’re on the road. Often, we’ll play a show, and then have to leave straight away for the next show, if it’s going to be a long drive. And then we might also have press commitments or a signing session to do before a show, something like that. So if I do have an hour or two to spare, I won’t usually skate – I’ll probably do some laundry or brush my teeth, or various other things that normal people do on a regular basis!

What are your plans for the near future?

We’re just going to tour like crazy for the foreseeable future! ‘Float’ has just entered the US charts at No. 4, and we’re the only band up there on an independent label, which is pretty cool. Next Thursday we fly to Japan for a couple of shows, then we’ll go to Australia for about a week, then we have a week off before playing the Coachella Festival. And after that, we’ll be off to Europe – we’re going to be visiting Europe about 3 or 4 times, and we’re hoping to play as many UK festivals as possible!

‘Float’ is out now on Side One Dummy, and the band will play the following UK shows in late May/early June:

31st May – London Astoria
1st June – Glasgow ABC
3rd June – Manchester University
4th June – Birmingham Academy

Check www.floggingmolly.com for more info.

2007 is looking to be the year it all kicks off for London based five piece Lights.Action! Having spent the last 12 months touring incessantly, recording their mini album and enjoying their first festival appearances, the band have had a financial shot in the arm this spring after winning backing from Slice The Pie – the website that enables artists to raise money directly from their fans to professionally record and release an album.

With the music industry in transition, and labels slashing their budgets – could this be the way forward to up and coming bands to get that vital foot in the door? Lights.Action!’s frontman Patrick Currier took some time off from working on their new album to give Dee Massey some insight into their Slice The Pie backing and the world of Lights.Action!

Hi! please can give us an introduction to who Lights. Action! are? where are you from, and how long have you been together?

Lights. Action! are a group of five incredibly determined, and possibly deranged outsiders from around the UK & US, who magnetised towards one another over the space of a few years. We had all been in different bands before and kind of knew of each other by reputation. (With the exception of Karl and Steve who I’d known for years.)

The line-up is myself (Patrick Currier) on vocals, Karl Bareham on guitar, Chris Moorhead on guitar and keys, Alex Leeder on bass, and Steve Durham on the drums.

How would you describe your sound to a Lights. Action! virgin?

Well, Lights. Action! are primarily a rock band, but our sound ranges from the epic to the much more dynamic and sublime; encompassing big riffs and lush electronic soundscapes backing catchy but heartfelt vocals.

Who are your main influences?

We are influenced by a lot of different types of music, something from every genre. Especially vocally really, as I try and draw from everything I hear and love in other people’s styles.

I would say that the most instantly obvious comparisons are with bands like The Killers, Foo Fighters, U2, but we bring in a lot of other elements like edgy Bloc Party Drums, Police style vocals, and Buckley inspired falsetto vocals. Our most recent stuff brings in a lot of more bluesy/rootsy influences. It’s basically a marriage of different styles: Something old & something new, something borrowed & something blue! It’s a real mix, but it works.

Your Mini-Album “All eyes to the morning sun” has just been released, can you tell us a little about it?

“All Eyes..” Is a sort of look back over the last year. It’s the first place where people can get a collected works of Lights. Action! that really shows where we began, and how we are changing. The title itself is all about hope and the start of a new day. It’s the first step on our journey as a band. It’s got some fan favourites as well as a few tracks which mix it up a little.

It includes your version of Imogen Heap’s song Hide & Seek – what was behind your decision to include that? Have she heard it yet?

Yeah, we decided to put that track on there because it was a big learning process for us arranging and changing that song. It really opened our minds to what we were capable of doing, with it still sounding like us. So the main reason was really to prove something to ourselves, that we were ballsy enough to take something that delicate and risky and put it on the record. A few people tried to sway us from putting it on there, but I think we were right to include it, and people seem to really respond to our version, which is great.

Has she heard it? I don’t know. I would love to know what she thinks of it, I know she is a rock fan, so I’m hoping she would appreciate the effort we put into making it different. I have a couple of close friends who are acquaintances of hers and I’m trying to get them to ‘accidentally’ get her to hear it.

With the music industry in such a hugely publicised transition, many major labels are cutting their rosters and the signing of bands is in decline. Budgets are being slashed and as a result lot’s of bands are going the DIY route and making records without the signing a ‘record deal’. Lights. Action! are no different and have become the latest band to win album funding through website SliceThePie.com – could you tell us a little about SLP and what’s it’s means for the band compared to signing a traditional record deal. How will it affect how you make, market and distribute your record?

Well, basically we had become sick of waiting for a company to jump on board for the band. We have been sort of talking to different A&R people for ages and ages now and we are not the kind of guys to sit around and wait for someone to say “go”. So we decided to take matters into our own hands and just “find” the funding from somewhere less traditional.
Ours came in the form of a website we’d heard about called Slicethepie.

The site, sort of breaks down the industry and puts it into the hands of the listeners and bands. So the listeners become A&R people, and they decide who gets financed but reviewing a band’s merit against that of others. It’s quite complex, but essentially a financing engine that finds good bands through it’s users, and gives them money to make a record.

It’s not heaps and heaps of money, but it’s enough for a resourceful band like ourselves to make a decent record. It also puts all of the decision making process in the hands of the band themselves. So, we answer to no one and we can make the record we want to make. Which is great for us, and will hopefully help us create a much better piece of art.

The flip side is, we have to run our band like businessmen as well, we do the budgets and the schedules and the sourcing of materials etc. It’s completely different to how band’s have run in the past. And you have to balance a lot more different stresses. We will have to market it ourselves, find licenses ourselves (if we choose to) and essentially be our own label. But ultimately I think it’s worth it.

You played Download and Leeds last year, how did you find playing the festivals?

Download was really amazing last year. We played in the afternoon to a pretty full tent of about 1000 people. I thought it was amazing that so many people would show up to see a fairly unknown band! And, considering that we are not a metal band, we’re a rock band, people were incredibly responsive.

I had been planning for years my first festival appearance, and it was incredible really. Leeds was great too, and it was cool that they allowed us to be on the unsigned stage when the majority of other acts were fairly local to that area.

Will you be heading out on the festival circuit again this year? What does the summer hold for you?

We will be doing some festivals this year, yes. We are confirmed for one so far, called ZooThousand. It’s got people like Mark Ronson, Dizzee Rascal & Funeral for A Friend Playing it. We’re really excited about it, mainly because it’s in some sort of massive wildlife park! We want to see the lions!

Other than that, we are touring right up into June. Then taking a break for a month to write and record our debut album. We’ll be doing this in various studios around London, and possibly even in a stately home or church as well! We’ll be doing this with acclaimed up and coming producer Richard Wilkinson. He’s a close friend of the band and really understands our ambition for this project.

You’ve been touring with Kids in Glass Houses, I was a Cub Scout and Boy Kill Boy amongst others, what’s the best and worst things about being on the road?

Well, playing live is obviously great for us, because that’s the natural environment of a rock band. It’s a chance to really connect with people on a personal level, and get responses first hand. It’s amazing to play to packed crowds, and sometimes it’s even more amazing to play to just 5-10 people, but completely convert every one of them, you know?

So yeah, obviously response is one of the best things. Getting people to actually care about the band etc. And then the next time you play there, seeing those people sing along. Those bits are great. Sometimes just the fact that you are hanging out with 4 of your close mates is a big highlight too.

The worst bits about touring are probably in not having money to eat all the time, sleeping on people’s floors, having to argue with promoters if they try and not pay you. All that stuff. I mean, crashing at random people’s houses is good in some ways because it forces you to make friends. But the problem with that is that everyone wants a band to come back to theirs and party and show them a great time, but half the time once you’ve finished a show you just want to chill out. [laughs]

What are your three essentials to take on tour?

Towel, Toothbrush & Telephone. The 3 T’s.

So why should our readers come see you guys live?

Well, firstly, we are a tight band and we rock. [laughs]

Secondly, they’ll get something that listening to a recording simply won’t give them… the dynamic part of our music which microphones can’t really capture.

Thirdly, I think that are part of a resurgence in real rock music which is about to happen, and I think that’s something to get excited about. Taking it back to honest, powerful live performance, and songs that really mean something to the band. It’s such a good time to get in at the ground level with bands like ours, because people can really take ownership of the music and get much more satisfaction out of it.

And lastly…could you give the Crossfire readers some words of wisdom?

Get a good job and work hard at it. Singing in a rock band is for mugs.

Cheers Patrick – and good luck with the album!

For more info on Lights.Action! check out www.myspace.com/lightsactionband with photos by Emma Hampson-Jones

21st May 2008

The birth of Blood Red Shoes came about nearly four years ago, after two bands, Lady Muck and Cat On Form, wound down their activities. This left an ex-member from each band, Steven Ansell and Laura-Mary Carter, looking to each other for their musical outlet.

The collaboration of the two formulated the band that is, Blood Red Shoes. We fast forward now to May 2008 and after a heady first three years of touring, writing and releasing singles, Blood Red Shoes have cumulated their music into a debut album, Box of Secrets, released on the V2 label. David Osbon delved into Laura’s world whilst the band toured throughout April and got the full scoop.

Where did you record the album, Box of Secrets? Who was the producer?

We did it in Wales at a studio called Monnow Valley…it was really out in the middle of nowhere. We co-produced it with Mike Crossey who was great, he really helped us get the sound down just how we wanted it.

How many countries are you hoping to release the album in?

Everywhere. Everywhere that will have us.

Does your record contract allow you to concentrate on future E.Ps or will we be seeing only L.Ps in the future from BRS? I remember reading that you favour singles to albums, does that still hold true?

We can do what we like really – we’re actually planning an EP for later this year already funnily enough. Should have 3 or 4 new songs on it. I don’t want to assure anyone it’ll be out when we say, because things always seem to take longer than they should when we tour so much, but we’d like to get it done as soon as possible.

Do you plan to do more promo videos to promote the new album?

Yeh we’re gonna release one more single and make a video to go along with it. The song will be This is not for you, it’ll be the last single from the album before we move onto new stuff.

Do you feel more pressure now that you are signed to a record label like V2 or has some of the pressure been taken off you now that V2 can take control of the non music making decisions?

I don’t really feel any more pressure. I feel more stressed because there’s more work to do – we don’t actually allow our label to make many decisions in reality, they mostly just press the record and get it in shops. We’ve made decisions about what singles, in what order, laura-mary did all of the artwork for everything and we plan out our touring schedule together etc….basically because the band exists on a grander scale and is known in more countries, there’s a lot more for us to do! So it is pretty tiring but I don’t really see it as pressure.

As a good number of tracks have been on older E.Ps , did you re-record those tracks for the album? In Artrocker Mag.(feb 2007) you hinted that the album would be all new tracks, what changed your mind?

That art rocker review was way off….usually they’re pretty good but that interview there were loads of misquotes. I mean we said we wanted to put as much new stuff as possible but we didn’t say it’d be exclusively new material. We would have been idiots not to put you bring me down or it’s getting boring by the sea on there. That was never the intention. We used 3 or 4 older songs then the rest were really fresh, which we always thought would be a good balance to it.

Do you both have favourite Blood Red Shoes tracks?

Yeh, we both really like This Is Not For You as our favourite song from the album…we also really like the new songs we’re just working on, unsurprisingly!

Will you be playing anything new while on your current tour that the fans haven’t heard at previous gigs? Any new songs not on the album?

On this tour we’re not playing the new songs yet – we’ve dug out some b-sides and songs we play only very rarely but we’re saving the new stuff until it’s in really good shape.

Steven, are you still sick during gigs?

Yeh but not as much. I was sick 2 nights ago in Northampton actually. All over the mic, it was disgusting.

As I know that you love to play live over anything else, do you ever fear that you may burn out without ever realising it? Is it something you have thought about?

Yeh we do! And we have to stop sometimes and just say no to shows. That’s something we’ve become very aware of recently because we’ve had a few nights where we shouldn’t have been playing – we just didn’t want to be there, and I never want to get on a stage and play and not be 100% into it, it becomes kind of a lie. So we’re trying to be smart with it now.

Best gig experience you have played so far? Carling Tent at Reading Festival?

Yeah probably…or maybe the London calling festival in Holland last year.

Still shoplifting?

Actually yes. Tho I don’t really have a reason to do so, but I got so used to it before that I can’t stop. Besides I don’t really like paying through the nose for various goods from chain shops. Who gives a shit if you steal from those people, they’re fucking everyone over in the name of profit maximization anyways.

Do you play any other instruments? Any that you would like to play?

Yeh I can play guitar and piano. I’d really like to learn cello more than anything. cello and trumpet in fact. Laura-mary also plays drums and piano….and a bit of harmonica I recently found out.

Being in a band do you find yourself more critical of other music & other bands? Do you find you music tastes broaden as you experience new countries when touring?

I’m definitely very critical of other music and other bands…I’ve always been like that tho, even when I wasn’t in a band. If you love something a lot then you end up having quite high standards – I’m obsessed with music and bands, so when I see it being done badly it really gets me, it’s like ruining the art form which has changed my life. So I get pretty over the top when I criticize, because I feel so passionately about it. I think my music taste has definitely broadened through experiences in this band – not so much from travelling to other places but more because we exist in a different world to my old bands. Mostly I was interested in underground music from UK and USA and that was the majority of what was on my radar…in this band I’m much more aware of the mainstream/”indie”/NME/mtv universe than I was before. And although the vast majority of that world is fucking tripe, I have found music that I really like that previously I probably would have written off/not bothered to hear because it was too “mainstream”.

Your first record you ever bought?

Bad by Michael Jackson

Last record you bought?

The Birthday Party live album, can’t remember what it’s called but it’s them playing live in Germany.

Drummers that sing lead vocals are a rare thing these days. The last band I saw live that had the lead sung by the drummer I think was a UK punk band called Snuff. Steven is it harder than you make it look?

Ha ha I remember snuff, I went to see them! Singing and drumming took a lot of practice, I wasn’t very good to start with. I had a head start because I was used to playing guitar and singing in my last band…drums and singing is harder but it is just a case of practice. Sounds dumb I know, but it’s true, there are no tricks to it, just practising.

The first drummer in a band that made me sit up & take notice was Stewart Copeland of The Police. Who was/is your drumming hero(s) Steven?

I don’t really know. I definitely always paid attention to drums in music, to be honest it’s pretty strange it took me this long to pick it up properly as an instrument since my early memories of music are based around singing vocal melodies, but also tapping along to songs and playing air drums…I grew up around a lot of rock music that had big drum sounds, cheesy stuff like Bryan Adams or Robert Palmer…but that big sound makes an impression when you’re 9 so the seeds were probably sewn back then. My favourite drummer is certainly Richard Davis from q and not u. Dave Grohl is an obvious one but again, he made an impression on me quite early and has definitely influenced how I play despite being essentially a pretty straight up rock drummer.

Laura are all your guitar heroes male? Or do you look up to female guitar players more than males? A healthy mix of the two? Do you think lead guitar is the most male stylised instrument that a female can play with regards to its history?

No my guitar heroes are people like Kat Bjelland from Babes in Toyland, PJ Harvey, Josh Homme, Nick Zinner from YYY’s, John Reis (speedo) from Hot Snakes…so a mixture of male and female. I don’t really look up to female guitar players more than male, but female guitarists definitely made more of an impression on me when I was younger. I think electric guitar is definitely seen as a more male instrument, there are a lot more female acoustic guitarists than electric guitarists.

Do you feel that women who have strong positions in music & play in bands are still looked upon as a rarity & can suffer from the press that like to label women in music as more a gimmick than a pioneer?

Yes and no. There are certain musicians that people take really seriously and look up to, like PJ Harvey, but she’s been established for so long that she’s overcome the “gimmick” thing. But yeah some bozos definitely don’t take women in bands seriously.

New album Box of Secrets is out now. Find them at www.bloodredshoes.co.uk or at their MySpace.

01 May 2008

You know the deal, you’re thirteen, you can count how many pubic hairs you’ve got, girls laugh at your Iron Maiden shirts, you’ve got all the Black Sabbath and “good” Slayer albums and you’ve just realised Led Zepplin are gay. Where do you go from here? Death metal.

It’s the one way music trip for all losers and anti-social misfits that will damn your life forever. The first death metal album I heard was a cassette tape bootleg of Deicide’s Legion (note- cassette- way fucking cooler than vinyl). Like all death metal new comers, I was mildly unnerved by the vocals- mainly because all I could picture was an angry cookie monster singing whilst I listened to it. But once I realised how much girls hate death metal, I was hooked. It’s the best thing ever. Deicide are one of the O.G. death metal bands, they’ve been round a long time but are constantly dogged by their lead singer’s anti-christian obsession- which to be honest, gets on your nerves after a while.

Stu Zombie got to ask Deicide’s drummer Steve Asheim some really stupid questions about how they feel about ruining so many teenage boy’s lives.

The first time I heard death metal was when my A Level Psychology teacher gave me a tape copy of “Legion“. The first time I listened to it was on the way back from working at my local fish and chip shop. Just after the intro kicked in, like the bit with all the sheep bleating, my walkman died and all the sheep in the field I was walking past started to go mental and started screaming- I shat myself and thought “Oh Shit, I’m going to hell because I’ve listened to death metal.” What’s the weirdest thing that’s happened to you whilst listening to death metal?

WELL, THIS ONE GOES BACK A FEW YEARS TO ABOUT ’86, TECHNICALLY BEFORE DEATH METAL, BUT IT WAS WHILE LISTENING TO SLAYER SO I THINK IT STILL COUNTS. WE WERE ALL STANDING AROUND OUTSIDE OUR REHEARSAL WAREHOUSE UNIT. ME, THE GUYS FROM THE BAND, AND A COUPLE OF CHICKS. WE’RE ALL DRINKING AND BULLSHITTING AND EVERYTHING IS COOL. MY BUDDY PUTS ON “HELL AWAITS” AND BY THE TIME “KILL AGAIN” COMES ON, THESE CHICKS ARE CAT-FIGHTING LIKE IT’S A MATTER OF LIFE OR DEATH. NOBODY KNOWS WHY, I THINK THE SLAYER JUST FIRED ‘EM UP SOMEHOW. THAT WAS WEIRD.

It’s pretty rare these days to find good album cover art on the more popular death metal albums, but the cover for new record is a cracker, I’d hang it over my mantelpiece. Was it a conscious decision to move away from the predictable shit Photoshop stuff that Death metal bands have been using for the past decade?

I’M NOT SURE, MAYBE. GLEN PICKED THE ARTWORK TO COINCIDE WITH HIS LYRICS. I’M NOT SURE IF HE WAS LOOKING FOR SOMEHTING OLDER LIKE THAT WAS, OR IF HE JUST STUMBLED UPON IT AND LIKED IT. EITHER WAY, IT IS DIFFERENT FROM WHAT YOU’D NORMALLY SEE ON A COVER, BUT IT WORKS.

According to the ever reliable Wikipedia, you guys have sold close to 500,000 releases. Does that give you a kick? – I mean, I’m a skateboarder and I hate at least 90% of all skaters.

FIRST OFF, WIKIPEDIA IS COOL, BUT IT’S SHIT. IT’S UNRELIABLE BECAUSE ANY JERKOFF WITH A MOTIVE AND A KEYBOARD CAN GET ON THERE AND POST ANYTHING HE WANTS. I WAS ASKED ABOUT THE GUY FROM SOME BLACK METAL BAND WHO HELPED ME WITH GUITARS ON THE NEW RECORD. I ASKED THE GUY WHERE HE HEARD THAT BECAUSE IT WAS TOTAL BULLSHIT. HE SAID WIKIPEDIA. I TOLD HIM WIKIPEDIA IS FULL OF SHIT MAN. BUT CONCERNING YOUR QUESTION, I WOULD THINK WE’VE SOLD MORE THAN THAT AND YEAH, IT DOES GIVE A KICK.

I’ve also read Deicide is used to torture suspected enemy combatants by the US Army- do you really thing Deicide is gnarly enough to torture people with? What music would you use to torture people with?

HONESTLY, NO, I DON’T THINK IT IS TORTURE. I DO THINK IT’S KIND OF FUNNY THOUGH. THAT SEEMS TO PISS SOME PEOPLE OFF, WHICH, IRONICALLY, IS ALSO KIND OF FUNNY.

Why do you guys bother making new records? Why not just play your first two albums over and over?

BECAUSE WE’RE NOT THE GREATFUL DEAD. WE CAN’T JUST KEEP GOING OUT ON THE ROAD TO SUPPORT A 15 YEAR OLD ALBUM. BESIDES, I ENJOY WRITING NEW STUFF. IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT, KEEP LISTENING TO THAT 15 YEAR OLD STUFF.

Whenever my Mum, or girls in general, hear death metal, they always say, “But you can’t hear what they’re singing.” As I’ve got older and started listening to gore bands like Dead Infection and S.C.D that make a point of not singing lyrics- so why do you think it’s important that death metal bands continue writing lyrics?

TO SHOW THAT YOU’RE NOT A BLATHERING IDIOT, AND TO TRY AND ADD SOME SUBSTANCE TO THE MUSIC. SOMETIMES YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND THE LYRICS, BUT YOU KNOW THEY’RE THERE, AND IF THEY MEAN SOMETHING TO YOU THEN THE SONG BECOMES MORE POWERFUL.

Who writes the song lyrics/titles? Cause you’ve had some pretty meek song titles recently, like “Mad at God”- that’s pretty weak, it’s like saying “Mildly annoyed at God, I really don’t like him very much, oh I wish he would leave me alone that pesky creator”. Do you ever feel like fucking off the whole anti-Christian thing?

GLEN WRITES THE LYRICS AND TITLES AND IT MIGHT SEEM LIKE THE WELL HAS RUN A BIT DRY, BUT WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY… HE MUST HAVE BEEN MAD AT GOD THAT DAY. PEOPLE CAN’T WRITE ABOUT WHAT DOESN’T INSPIRE THEM, AND AS LONG AS HE’S INSPIRED BY THE ANTI-CHRISTIAN THAN SO BE IT. MY CONCERN IS MAKING THE MUSIC HEAVY AND MEMORABLE.

How much do you agree with the following statement: “Death metal is about furiously masturbating in your room, eating sugar puffs and poking road kill with sticks” (believe it or not, this is my life, and i blame death metal)

NOT AT ALL. LIFE IS WHAT YOU MAKE IT, MAN. IF YOU WANT TO JACK OFF ON ROADKILL, THAT’S YOUR BUSINESS – KNOCK YOURSELF OUT.

The recording quality of your new album, is as expected, extremely clear and polished. Do you ever wish you could fuck the recording studio off and record your music as raw as possible without the interference of producers?

NO, UNLESS YOU’RE GOAL IS TO HAVE A RECORD THAT SOUNDS LIKE SHIT. YOU MAY CALL WHAT YOU LIKE TO HEAR”RAW”, BUT WHAT’S THE ALTERNATIVE…SOUNDING EITHER MECHANICAL AND OVERLY SAMPLED, OR THIN WITH NO BALLS, OR LIKE SHIT OR ‘RAW” AS YOU PUT IT. I’VE BEEN MAKING ALBUMS A LONG TIME NOW AND WOULD RATHER SOUND GOOD THAN NOT GOOD, IT’S THAT SIMPLE.

p.s. if you don’t want to answer any of these questions, tell us to “Fuck off”- I won’t be offended and neither will Crossfire’s readers.

I ANSWERED ALL YOUR QUESTIONS, EVEN THE STUPID ONES……NOW “FUCK OFF!”

All the best- keep it death.

The new Deicide album Till Death Do Us Part is out now on Earache Records.
Find them at www.deicide.com

Back in 2005, We Are Scientists discovered that UK fans were out there ready and waiting for them. It didn’t take long as big single ‘Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt‘ managed to get plays pretty much everywhere which led to the success of debut album ‘The Great Escape‘.

In 2008, the band are back with a brand new album ‘Brain, Thrust, Mastery‘ but they are now unfortunately without team player and former drummer Michael Tapper. Aaron Coe met singer/guitarist Keith Murray and bass player Chris Cain over a game of scrabble in a Cambridge book shop to find out more.

Aaron: You’re kind of renowned for being these rock pranksters or never take anything serious, are you ever serious?

WAS: You know, we can be serious. I’d say about 50% of the time we are serious, but we’re really more known as being rock gangster’s as opposed to pranksters.

What has been the plan since Michaels departure, have you managed to find a full time drummer yet?

Well, it had been a very long hard relationship. We haven’t really found anyone yet, we’re gonna spend some time getting the right drummer, there’s so many good drummers. We’ll do some serious shopping for a drummer.

You all met through university, implying you all have degree’s, do your family ask you when you’re going to stop this rock band business and get a real job?

No. What it is, is we would earn like 10% of what we’re earning now. And our parents would never say that as we’re providing for them, i don’t think they’d like to be taken out that lifestyle that we built for them and are now accustomed too. They’d have to get normal 9 – 5 jobs again to pay their way.

The name, where does it actually come from? Is it from when you guys were working for U-Haul?

Well, we wasn’t working for U-Haul, more that we were working together I’d say. But yeah, the guy thought we looked like scientists.

Are you going to do any ‘Brain Thrust Mastery’ seminars to coincide with the album release?

Mmmm, Not really to coincide with the album release but we may defiantly go back and head in that direction at a later date.

This is’nt your first time in Cambridge, you’ve been a few times and played a few shows around the city, have you ever had the chance to wander about and explore the city?

Not really, only in the small vicinity of around where we have been playing, the walk to a Starbucks, Costa or Nero and back to the venue to sit around all day.Cambridge seems to have a pretty good nightlife though, whats the name of that place not far from here, like a few floors, always full of kids, something tree.

The soul tree.

Yeah, that place has always got tons of kids there.

You’ve been a band now for a few years, what are some of the highlights and the lowlights in the bands history?

From touring with the Kaiser Cheifs and Arctic Monkeys, those were real highlights and good times all the way from absolute complete equipment failures on stage infront of 50,000 people.

After this acoustic tour, are you looking forward to playing with electric again and having your full setup and show back?

I’d say I’m getting really used to being an acoustic band, I’m dangerously found of playing as an acoustic band, but i think once we go inside a venue thats filled with 2000 people who want to hear an electric set we’ll get over it pretty quickly.

On your website it mentions your New Yorks handsomest bachelors who also operate a fine rock outfit, surely now…?

We’ve got interest, it really depends on when and where you catch us.

What music and films have you been listening and watching over this tour?

This tour has been exclusively devoted to Steven Segal films. We’ve got the Steven Segal collection. One film in the collection is Executive Decision, I don’t wanna ruin anything for you but it can hardly be called a Steven Segal film. He dies about 15 minutes into it, Its a Kurt Russel film. So right now we are devoted to the films of Segal, although i haven’t stayed awake through a single one yet. I’m devoted to tasting the films.

Will you be playing the Nickleback cover that was played for Jo Whiley on radio 1?

Never again. We performed that as an exorcism. As far as i know that song hasn’t been played in the world since we did so our work here is done. We sent to hell, it’ll never return.

Why don’t you like any of the Pre – With Love and Squalor material?

Cause they’re crappy turds, unfit to be put in dress and traipsed around town, is that a fair reason? I guess we feel it’s a little unpolished, early unscaled efforts at song writing. There’s only so much time in a set, if someone said to us ‘I’ll pay you a million dollars to play a 3 hour set we’d play them songs, to be honest if they said I’ll give you a 3 million dollars to play a 15 minute set and it had to be all pre – love and squalor i would do that, so its just cause the price is’nt right yet.

What would win in a fight, a lion or a tiger?

That would never happen, Lion’s and tiger’s are brothers. They’ll fight together, they’d beat anything together if they put their minds to it. They could kill a fucking rhino.

If you had to sell ‘Brain Thrust Mastery to the country with a tag line, what would you use?

Have we not developed tag line’s for this album already? We come up with one only an hour ago which is ‘Does for the mind, what red bull does for the nerves’.

Brain, Thrust, Mastery is out now on Virgin Records. Find We Are Scientists at their site or Myspace.

What good things have come out of Croydon? If you’re struggling to answer the question, it isn’t a surprise, but now there is someone who is going to change that for you – Goldielocks.

The producer/rapper is making waves with her bassy tunes and has recently brought another arrow to her bow by running a club night. Abjekt recently caught up with her to discuss Ninja Turtles, Bob The Builder and Kate Moss so read on for all the trimmings.

So let’s start off at the beginning – You’re Goldielocks, producer and rapper, what other basics can you hit us with?

Um, I cook a MEAN thai green curry.

Now, you’re from Croydon which is basically famous for being a bit of a shithole [although the Whitgift is good for rinsing your Christmas list] – are you a fan of the area?

I have a love / hate relationship with it. I hate the suburbian way of it, everyone looking the same, going to shit clubs all playing the same shit music, but I’m strangely proud and don’t want to leave.

Did growing up in a place like Croydon help you start making music because you didn’t really want to go out?

No because I just went out further afield, most people from around Croydon would think Shoreditch was some kind of farm. I started making music because no-one would give me any beats for ages!

I read that you went to music college to learn beat making and mixing, how much of a help was that? Would you have made the music you make if it weren’t for that course?

It definitely helped. I went to a couple of music colleges before Community Music, and they were shit. They made me draw sound waves and stuff, where as CM were like, here is a computer, here is Logic, make a song in an hour. When I used to play my stuff to my class they would make weird fake appreciation faces. They probably thought I was a nut job.

Would you recommend it to people who want to start learning how to get into making music?

Yes! CM is sick! Get off your ass and go learn.

Tell us a little bit about the equipment you use to make your beats.

I use a Mac G4 lappy and an iMac, Logic 8, Microkorg, MPC 500 for drums, a few plug ins and some nice Genelec speakers.

You’re a very independent artist, doing a lot of your own publicity and being quite a bit force on MySpace, is it important to do this for yourself so you’re always in creative control? Or was it just a case of having to do it?

I like to have creative control and I also am more into the fact that I am self employed and run all of my own shit. No-one else makes decisions for me, I do. I decided when and if I want to get out of bed in the morning! I have always wanted to run my own business and now it turns out my business is me. It’s hard sometimes because you don’t have anyone around to make you work but it seems to be going ok so far.

You’ve signed up to the same publishing house as the likes of The Streets and Example. Being someone who has been so independent up until that point, was this a big move for you?

No, not really because although Puregroove are a publishing company, they still let their artists retain a lot of individuality and grow naturally. They want you to be respected as an artist and be credible, not some cheesy sell out. They have helped me loads.

Does this mean that you’re going to be doing more work with artists on the Puregroove family, like you’ve done on Nip Tuck with Example?

I will always do collabos with people if they are going to show me something new or teach me something. To be honest I don’t have much time for collabos as I always have loose ends that I’m trying to tie up but every now and then it just has to be done, like with Example, we had been talking about doing it for months and then it finally happened.

You’ve got Frisco on your new track Wasteman which is out soon. How do you go about hooking up collaborations in general?

Myspace – Always! Or meeting people at gigs usually reinforces a working relationship and you get a better idea of what kind of person they are. Even if it was a number one artist if they were a prick, I wouldn’t work with them.

Is it a case of doing things with mates or do you specifically want to work with certain people and go after them?

I work with friends because it’s fun, not because anything will come out of it, although it’s a bonus if it does. I don’t go after people because I’m lazy and always start things that I never finish!

After Wasteman comes out, what do you have planned release-wise? Any surprises coming our way? Maybe you’re gonna start working with an opera singer or something?

Ummm no! I’m not on doing stupid stuff like that just to be ‘innovative’ or reach a different crowd. People can see through that bullshit. I’ve got a track I produced for Miss Odd Kidd coming out in June called Don’t Be Afraid To Sweat and after that we will see what happens with my music.

You’ve done work with very different artists, so do you approach song writing or beat making depending on if you’re working with Kate Nash or Tinchy Stryder?

No I usually just do what I want and get them to join in! I don’t want to be one of those producers who you pay 10Gs and they will make the Bob The Builder soundtrack you know? I want to be known for my sound, and obviously I adapt it depending on the artist but I like to have my foot in there.

Similarly, you’ve done some remix work [Mitchell Brothers, Example and Shy Child], do you go after people and ask to remix them, or do they come to you?

It’s usually my manager who hooks that kinda stuff up, or they just approach me on myspace.

How much fun is remixing compared to doing your own original stuff?

To be honest it’s pretty boring! Sometimes you get a good vocal but it’s quite jarring listening to the same thing over and over and building a beat around it. Its fucking great money though. You could get a month’s rent in a few hours of work.

Are they any artists you’d like to collab with or remix that you haven’t already?

Yeh, can you get The Game to call me?

There’s loads of lazy comparisons knocking around, saying you’re like Lily Allen or Uffie. Does all that piss you off?

Yes! Do they make beats? No. End of.

What’s the strangest comparison you’ve had said about you?

That I was the lost member of Girls Aloud. but I love Girls Aloud so thats ok. They’re all fit so it made me feel good.

The one thing that keeps cropping up is that you used to work in Starbucks. On a scale of one to frappe-mocha-cinnamonshit, how much did you hate that job?

I know people seem to love those stories. They make you out to be some rags to riches person when I was probably making more money when I was working there than now. It was fun putting cookies in the frappacino machines and shit. I met some great people too.

The song Social Suicide is about working there right? For those who aren’t familiar with the lyrics, give us a little insight into that song.

Yeah it’s basically a day in the life of Starbucks, those suit guys who have to have a coffee in their hand in order to get through the day, and the funny stuff that Starbucks make you do, like have a coffee passport and try to make you be the coffee master which is like the person in-store who knows most about the coffee. Amazing right?

Your lyrics tend not to stick to one sort of topic, how do you get your ideas for lyrics? Are you a sit-down-and-plan type writer or does shit just come to you and you work from there?

No I usually just go on what’s happened to me that day, or just make up some random stories and let people think it’s about me because it’s cool to be mysterious innit. So I hear anyway.

You currently put on a night at The Social in London called Hard Knock Wife, how comes you decided to start putting that on?

It was mainly to build my fanbase and help out some of the amazing acts that I am friends with that no-one ever books. I was fed up of going out and hearing this weird music that no-one knew or the same old cheesy Akon tunes.

Do you ever get worried that no-one will turn up? Or that it’ll just be a venue full of suits who go there just to get boozed?

Yeah course! I did a night once which flopped. Not Hardknock, some under 18s rave. I did it on a Sunday, the hottest one of the year aswell. No-one came and we ended up in massive debts. It fucked up because I didn’t take more control of what was going on and let other people do the work. I wanted to crawl into the floor. I just got wasted instead.

Are you happy sticking around London for this type of club night and making it a regular, popular thing or are you planning on more extensive nationwide travels?

London needs it right now and it’s good for me and my fanbase so I’m sticking here for a bit. Don’t wanna get too big for my boots. I’m also putting on a punk night soon with the rest of The Sick Kids, that should be fun.

You’re also getting into the fashion/merch side of things by linking up with The Sick Kids, do you feel that’s important to making a little money for artists with the music industry in the state that it’s in?

I think it’s in a good state! Who gives a fuck if we can’t sell records, the labels took all the money anyway! They no longer provide a service that we can’t do ourselves, so their value is not very much. If T-Shirts and gigs are the way to make money then it’s all good. Any branches I can add to my business and provide to my fanbase is good for me. I didn’t really link up with the Sick Kids, I am one of The Sick Kids! The Sick Kids existed way before GoldieLocks.

On your MySpace page, you’ve got the Ninja Turtles as an influence – so the burning question is which Turtle is your favourite and why? Or are you a Splinter or Shredder fan?

Michaelangelo was my favourite because he danced on that lit up dancefloor whilst spinning a pizza, sick! He was cool. I didn’t like Shredder.

You’ve also got Global Hypercolour down there… that’s alright until you start sweating like a bastard and then people can see how rank your pits are… do you have any advice for people still wanting to rock the GH steez?

Yeah if you find one can you send it my way I can’t seem to get one anywhere….

And, finally, Moose in the office wants to know if you could take Kate Moss in a fistfight.

Hahaha yeah man she’s a fucking crackhead anyway. I’ll just lure her into some backstreets with a crackpipe and then clothesline her. My little sister looks up to her and I really hate it. Kate moss is not cool.

Are there any people or websites you wanna big up?

You guys for asking me some cool and original questions. Safe!

Goldielocks will release Wasteman on April 14th and can be seen at Hard Knock Wife at The Social in London on a regular basis. Make sure you check her out at www.myspace.com/goldielocksmusic

The Metros hail straight from the best part of London, south of the river in Peckham, and have been making their brand of indie noise together since being together at school. Whilst still in the prime of their youth, these lads are no stranger to success and have shared stages with The View and Milburn. With The Metros heading off on the MTV Spanking New tour very soon with Pigeon Detectives and The Rascals, we thought it was time to have words with these upstarts about music, soapy bottles and pasties.

So, The Metro’s are blowing up right now, being kicked off tours, causing chaos all around the country – introduce yourselves….

I’m Charlie and I play bass. We’re from South London. Peckham and Catford way, all around there. Me and the lead guitarist Joe went to school with our drummer, who lived at the back of Jack, our other guitarist’s garden.

In a shed or something?

Pretty much man, it wasn’t a very nice house.

[Saul]I’m Saul, singer. Me and Jack have known each other a long time. Our parents went to school together. Me and Jack were in loads of shit bands when we were like 13-14. Shit punk-ska bands. We finally managed to write a decent song one day. Our drummer now used to drum in our old band and he used to use a keyboard and just play the drum sounds off of that (Imitates drums) in the front room of his mums house. That’s where is all started.

And a few months later, you are signed to a record company and the dream is on….

Yeah, it did happen pretty quickly man. It was kind of unexpected which kind of made it much better. It was a real shock. We didn’t have to work for it too much did we?

So it was handed to you on a plate?

Yeah [laughs] Drunk A&R man…

Did you go through the whole A&R experience?

No, not at all man. James who signed us. He runs our label and he lived in Catford. He puts on a night in Brixton near where I used to live, called ‘The Windmill Of Your Mind’.

Ah we know it well….

We played there once and he saw us and then he came down to a show the next week in Lewisham. He is quite an impulsive kind of guy and he just signed us and that was Christmas…a nice present for everyone.

So it’s been over a year?

Yeah man, we’ve been signed over a year now, we just haven’t fucking done anything because everyone has been at school finishing exams and stuff! The albums done now though.

It must be quite hard juggling school and the band, are you all in the same boat?

Everyone’s finished now, Freddie and Jack are the only ones who managed to stick it out the whole way and get their A levels done. I tried, but never got there. Joe also tried but never went to school, but yeah, the other two stuck it out. Freddie failed miserably, but hey, he tried.

So let’s talk music, what kind of music have you all grown up with?

Erm, Charlie’s dad is really into funk and jazz and I think it has really influenced the way I play bass.

Your sound obviously has nothing to do with Jazz though…

I don’t know, there are elements, some of our later knowns tracks..[laughs] We are influenced by punk, me and the drummer used to have 3 mohawks and hang about on Camden bridge. We were really into American punk and hardcore and stuff like that. Minor Threat and Bad Brains, stuff like that. Later on we got more into more 70’s stuff, more English stuff, like The Squeeze, The Specials, Ian Drury. We are influenced by modern indie as well, like The Libertines and stuff like that. When we started our band I just wanted to be like Pete Doherty, but then I realise that was a really shit idea.

What are you guys listening to at the moment?

I’m really into psychobilly at the moment. Mad punk stuff. Some of that shit is really good.
King Kurt, Meteors…

So, you’re from down Peckham way, now there are a few famous people from down that way, namely Del-boy and Rodders. Do you get many cheeky characters floating around your neck of the woods?

No, not really. Although, we’ve got ‘No Neck Nigel‘..he hasn’t got a neck and he films porn and when he talks to you he has to turn his entire body to look at you. His dad Charlie is so cockney! So cockney in fact that you can’t understand a word he is saying! There are a few characters man, but mainly just rude boys, the kind you just want to avoid.

What about the music scene there?

Down New Cross way man, there is a proper good scene. There is always a lot of gigs going on and they have something called Rocklands which is like a poor man’s Camden Crawl. Mates of ours who we have been playing with for years who are just starting out are really into the scene there. Proper good little scene.

You guys went out on the road with Milburn, it was a university tour wasn’t it? Did it not go to well?

Erm, well it was alright, but we kind of witnessed the death of Milburn. They’re nice blokes but their band has just kind of plummeted. They booked a uni tour, because I think they thought if they played student unions during term times, they would get packed – but that didn’t happen. I mean, it REALLY didn’t happen.

How you guys doing with touring? Are you finding it hard?

I don’t think we are built for touring, or built for big tours any way. How long have we done? 12 days with a few gaps here and there and we are fucking worse for wear [laughs] We couldn’t tour for like 3/6/9 months – fuck that. No, I don’t think we’d be too suited to that. We need to start taking some multi vitamins or something?

Are you just living on chips on the road then?

[Charlie] – I wish! I’ve got an acid problem with my stomach, too much boozing. I’m fed up of paying £5 for a shit pasty from one of those motor way service stations. It’s all you can get apart from maybe a scotch egg! The worst thing is they do those scotch egg bars now! It’s like a sausage roll but instead of sausage, it’s got egg and sausage meat instead of pastry. They are disgusting!

And that’s what you live on, on the road?

Yeah, pretty much. That’s the healthy option! [laughs]

So you can’t wait to get a chef on tour with you then?

Yeah, once you’ve got a sleeper bus, I don’t think touring is that bad.

Are there any band rituals on tour?

Not really? Slapping Joe when he falls asleep, which is pretty much all the time. Our lead guitarist is never awake really?

So are you always slapping him about when he is asleep then?

Yeah, even when he is awake to be fair [laughs]

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done to him on tour?

Nothing to bad to him, but Charlie…

[charlie] Yeah, I got the worst punishment.

[Saul] – We were all on tour in Norwich and Charlie fell asleep on his bed at the hotel and we had drunk a lot. I grabbed a bottle of beer and put a load of soap on the end of it and I put it up his arse and was waving it about and it made this noise [makes suction noise!]. Charlie then sat bolt up right and puked all over himself. Then Freddie pissed on him! That’s the worst, it was a bit severe! We are like a real family, very close! [laughs]

Is it true that you kicked The Ghost Frequencie’s arses for breaking your amp?

Beat them up? No! We threatened them! They look all cool but when I confronted them about it he was all like (puts on mousey voice) “Oh sorry, sorry, we will buy you a new one“

Does that happen a lot on tour? People borrowing your stuff?

We are quite careful about stuff like that. Their guitarist was jumping about and they had two amps stacked on top of each other and he stood on it and broke it. Bit annoying two minutes before you’re about to go on stage.

So you’re in the studio at the moment?

No no, we’ve just finished.

Who’s been working the record with you?

Baxter Jury, who sung on the late great. He has been wicked, really good to work with him. The majority of the album was done by him. We recorded in Wales and Chelsea. When we finished we did another couple of tracks with this geezer called James Cox, who did Blur, The Gorillaz and Jamie T. We’ve finished, it took a long time, but it has been worth it. We have grown with the music. Evolved. It’s all come together and become more of a master piece.

Do you enjoy being in the studio or do you prefer being out on the road?

It depends, in the studio, musically we aren’t the tightest band, or the most talented [laughs]. So it can be frustrating. We’ve all grown up with each other and we argue like brothers. So we can get at each other sometimes…like really really get at each other. I mean, I like the end process in the studio when you decide where you wants claps and stuff…its nice to hear it all coming together.
I mean, the worst thing in the world is waiting for a drum track to get laid down, so when it finally happens it’s great. To hear a whole song is pretty good.

Have you got a title for the album yet?

We’ve got a few. We aren’t really sure what to call it yet. We won’t be spilling the beans because I am too scared that you will think they are shit. [laughs]

The Metros released their debut single “Education Pt.2” on March 17th through 1965 Records.

10.03.08
Interview by Ryan Bird
Live photo by Graham Pentz

They may currently be regarded as one of alternative music’s hottest properties, but just two years ago Coheed & Cambria was dead.

Rocked by the departure of drummer Josh Eppard and bassist Mic Todd, front man Claudio Sanchez and guitarist Travis Stever found themselves on the edge of a black hole that threatened the band’s very existence. For Todd, however, it was a time that saw his very life hanging by a thread. Bogged down in a pit of depression and drug abuse, he went months without even picking up his bass – something that had been part of his every day life for nearly ten years.

Today, life in Coheed & Cambria – and indeed life for Mic Todd – couldn’t be better. The band has just finished headlining the Kerrang! Relentless Energy Drink Tour 2008, playing to over 30,000 UK fans in the process, while Todd is back in the band and firmly on the wagon. Ryan Bird finds out the story behind the near demise of one of rock’s most essential outfits.

You’ve just finished headlining the Kerrang! Relentless Energy Drink Tour 2008. How did everything go?

It was good! Ireland was really great. We’d been there once before, which is weird because we’ve been to the UK a ton of times but that was only our second time over there.

What was the response like with regards to your new material? For a lot of people that was the first time they’ll have heard those songs live.

Everyone seemed really into it. We’ll start to bring a little bit more of it into every tour over the next year, but we like to play a few songs from every album if we can. We like to keep in touch with our older material, and I think the fans like to see some of those songs too.

How was the tour for you on a personal level? As people may know, you left the band for a little while.

It’s been a really positive experience. When I left I was at a bad point in my life. I stopped playing bass and making music for a while when I left. I basically went to the place where musicians go after they die. There’s nothing worse than not having a show and not knowing what to do with yourself. After a while I realised that being in this band is what I’m supposed to be doing with my life. The timing just felt right, so we talked it out and here I am again.

So for a while you were completely inactive on a musical level?

I wasn’t playing anything at all. I was too busy sitting at home and feeling sorry for myself.

Did you always know that you’d eventually pick up the bass again, or was there a time when you genuinely thought that was it for you?

There’s was a brief couple of months, but eventually with every day I didn’t play I just felt shittier about not playing. It got to the point where I knew that one way or another, something had to change.

Did you approach the band or did they approach you when the time came to get back on the horse?

Well, we hadn’t spoken for almost nine months. Not a word. I felt like I owed them an apology as time went on. I wasn’t trying to get back into the band or anything, I just wanted to make good on what I’d done by leaving. So we met up, hung out, had a great time, and at the end of the day I said to them; ‘If you guys ever want to make music again in any capacity, just give me a call.’ They were playing with somebody else at the time, so I wasn’t trying to step on anybody’s toes. They called me twenty minutes after I’d left while I was driving home and asked me to come back.

Was it a weird feeling for you at first?

In a way it was. After not making music for such a long time it took me a little while to get back into the swing of it, but once the ball started rolling everything started to gel again.

When you rejoined the band weren’t far off recording ‘No World For Tomorrow’. Was it a headache having to leap back in and not only learn how to play again, but to have to write new music at the same time?

It had its moments! It was weird because the band had just enlisted a new drummer in Chris [Pennie], but he couldn’t play on the record due to some contractual wrangles with his old band. That’s when we got [Foo Fighters drummer] Taylor [Hawkins] in, so about a week before we went into the studio we hired out a space in L.A. and just went to work. Chris had already written the drum parts so Taylor was learning how to play them all properly, and I was still writing little bits and pieces on bass and getting to grips with it all again. The drums and bass were very much completed together, and I think that shows a little bit on the record.

What was the actual recording process like?

It was pretty mellow. We were in a different place from where we’d worked on all of our previous records. We were on a different coast and using a different producer, so it was a new experience in some ways. We actually started laying down guitars first rather than drums. We used a click track and then Taylor would play along to the guitar stripe as opposed to the guitars going over the top of the drums, so it was a very different method. We actually built [On The Brink] in the studio. Overall we had a couple of months to do it in and we were working thirteen hour days, so these were full on days, but it was a fun experience. We’ll probably try something different for the next record.

Did you find yourself suffering from cabin fever towards the end of the process? Having jumped straight back in at the deep end it would be understandable.

Nah, I wasn’t suffering from that. You could feel a vibe creeping in towards the end though. I work fast and I don’t really have that much to do. There’s only one bass part whereas guitars get tracked repeatedly built upon, so I was only really there for moral support most of the time.

How long did it take you personally to finish your parts?

I do a whole song in probably about an hour.

So you can do an entire album in a day?

Yeah, but I didn’t do them all at once. I’d usually come in and lay a track down in between guitar takes, just to give the other guys a break and make sure they didn’t burn out. Whenever they were feeling the pinch, I’d rock a bass part.

Was there a time during the recording when you felt like you really wanted to go home and step away from everything for a bit?

No, I loved it there! Everything felt really good. It was a great experience and I’m really glad that we did it. We went into the process with an open mind, and that really helped everyone get to where they needed to be. I was back in the band and glad to be making music again, and that was all that really mattered rather than how tired I was or whether I felt like going home for a few days. It was a blast. I’d do it again tomorrow.

It sounds like everything is really positive for you right now.

Being in this band is exciting again. We toured a lot for like, six years prior to my leaving, and it took its toll. I lost the love of my life, I married a girl that I hated, and all of this fucked up shit was going on around me. I was basically living in a coffin. Now it’s a totally different story. I know I belong in this band, and I know I belong on the road. I’ve tried living that other life, and that shoe just doesn’t fit. Now I just want to make music for as long as I can.

Read the live review from this tour here.

Coheed and Cambria release Feathers 17th March and the album No World For Tomorrow is out now via via Columbia Records. Find them at www.coheedandcambria.com and via their MySpace.

27.02.08

Having spent the last 3 years on the road, winning major awards, selling out massive venues and proving that the independent DIY route can work well, St. Albans 4 piece Enter Shikari have decided after 3 years that it’s time to look back and focus on the next record.

Singer Rou Reynolds talks to Zac and Keri Stanley during their February 08, 40 date tour about writing the follow up to the highly documented album ‘Take To The Skies‘, the tour and much more.

Hey Rou, where in the world are you right now?

In the middle of nowhere, driving through Nevada actually, a very vast quiet white landscape, just passed through a quaint town called ‘Susanville’ hah!

Would you call it a World Tour?

Yeah it’s our ‘“Around the World in 40 days” Tour. It’s the first time we’ve actually flown the whole way around the world, we’ve done Japan, New Zealand and Australia and are now making our way down the West coast of the US. It’s just crazy.

What has been the best country on this recent tour to visit?

Japan is always awesome, definitely one of our favourite places to hit. But we went down under for the first time to play Big Day Out festival, which was amazing. Obviously it was the middle of summer there so it was stonkin’ hot, had loads of days off, was one of the most relaxed and fun tours ever! Plus we got to see Rage Against the Machine most nights, can’t ask for much more really.

What do you miss most?

Girlfriend, Family, friends, my decks… My mums tasty egg and soldiers…

What are you listening to?

A heap of drum & bass, Sub Focus, High Contrast, Nosia and Mistabishi, a lot of chilled out stuff, Regina Spektor (my future wife by the way), Jose Gonzalez, Nitin Sawhney. and finally a healthy load of Japanese music, Mong Hang, T-AK and Makoto and our tour buddies Maximum the Hormone.

Who is the most annoying band member on this tour?

They’re all a bunch of stoner cunts!

Food wise, are you all living on burgers and chips or are you becoming to come to terms with the delicacies?

Rob, Rory and Chris have all gone sushi crazy. I can’t dig that shit, too slimy and too many tails sticking out all over the place. Japan just has crazy food. We tried to set out to try most things, you only live once and all that, Rob managed Raw Horse for fucks sake. The worst I did was a little nibble at Cow Tongue… never again. In the US i swear it’s impossible to eat healthily whilst on tour. It’s hard to find the time to sniff out the good places. We just have to pull into shitty diners whilst traveling and even the salads come soaked in fatty Caesar sauce and bacon and processed cheese and stuff. And the portions are just stupid, so much food gets wasted it’s pretty sickening.

What are the crowds like across the other side of the planet? Do people know the songs yet?

Yeah Australia/NZ was great, the average age of our crowd was like 19/20 or something so that was kind of cool to get away from the eyeliner clad teens of the US and UK. They new all the tracks even though the album has only been out a few months there, it went off.

How was the Big Day Out down under? How does it compare to Reading/Download in the UK?

The line up was a lot more eclectic, we got to see fellow brits, Dizzee Rascal, Kate Nash and the great Billy Bragg too. The festival vibe was just the same really, just a lot more people sun burnt!

Do you write new songs in the van or wait until you get home?

I’ve been putting together a few ideas on my laptop on the road, I prefer writing in my room though where i’ve got everything at my fingertips to write on.

How do you set about writing a song? (What inspires you? How do you know when to give up on a lost cause? Do you write lyrics to fit the melody or decide on a subject matter and then write the melody?)

I don’t really have a set way of writing, some times it’s lyrics before anything and I write the song to fit them but sometimes it’s completely the other way around. Generally I’m pretty quick to give up on a ‘lost cause’ hah! If I don’t get the initial buzz whilst I’m at it, then i’ll drop it straight away.

How many song ideas do you already have for the follow up to ‘Take To The Skies’?

I’ve built up quite a lot of lyrical content over the last few months, obviously there’s a lot going on with the world at the moment, so there’s a lot of inspiration. I think generally lyric wise where the first album was quite deep and metaphorical this ones gonna be a lot more outspoken, politically and socially. Music wise I’ve done a few home demo’s and we’ve still got a huge back catalogue of tunes from way back that we’d like to revamp.

Anyone in mind to produce and mix the new album with you guys?

We’ve had a few offers and stuff but we haven’t really started thinking properly about it, which is just like us, leave it to the last minute… don’t expect the album till next year.. haha!

Do you feel the second album pressure?

Not really. I’m just anxious to get back in the studio, it’s been well over a year since we recorded the first album and that was done in just two weeks so I just can’t wait to have some time to experiment in there and record without a strict time schedule.

You have recently been hanging out with the likes of Pendulum at their shows, how does the live drum and bass scene inspire your sound?

Drum & Bass is going to be one of the biggest inspirations for the album I think, we’ve always been pretty heavily into it, me and Rory especially. His brother is the DJ that we bring on tour with us occasionally, so we’ve always had it around us. Like Trance, drum and bass really has that euphoric feel, gets you totally vibing, but you don’t headwalk/stage dive to dnb or trance, there’s the problem. That’s where we come in i guess.

Do you think that you will hook up with Pendulum this year for a remix/co write?

There was talk of them producing the next album but i think they’re just too busy at the moment. But yeah there could well be some sort of remix or collaboration one day.

On your Wikipedia page it says that you requested the physical formats of “Sorry You’re Not a Winner/OK Time for Plan B” to be chart ineligible, is this true? (If so why did you do it?)

Yeah it was our first proper release, so we were just testing the water really. It was just solely for the fans, limited to 2000 CD’s and 1000 vinyl with some pretty clever artwork if I do say so myself haha. To make it chart ineligible we included some free stickers and stuff. It’s not like we were taking the ‘yeah fuck the charts, it’s bullshit‘ view, I mean i think we need a revival, especially as alternative music is becoming a lot more commercial now. Bring back Top of the Pops man, it was a british tragedy that it was full of shit every week, but it was a bigger british tragedy that it got cut, it just needed a re-vamp.

As widespread as your new sound has been documented there have also been a few whispers that really you’re not doing anything new introducing a synthesizer to a rock band. What or who first inspired you to crossover the dance and rock genres, mix them up with a message for the youth of today and throw them into a raving mosh pit? (Did you ever really believe it would take off the way it has?)

Nah, we were obviously a victim of silly media hype. They had a fucking baby over it, now it has died down a lot, i guess the baby has grown and it’s just the miserable toddler at the moment, terrible 2’s or something, they’re not so interested anymore. They’re just moving onto the next new thing, the next baby from another partner, media are just whores man. Haha how far can I take this metaphor?! I think most bands would be nervous if they had lost there original hype but if anything I think we’re glad. Playing the music we do was just a hobby, music that we all enjoyed, we thought that when we were playing the Bull and Gate to 2 people, we think that now playing the the other side of the world to 3,000.

Who have you most enjoyed sharing a stage with (headline or support) and why? (What was your favourite festival of the number you played last year?)

Our UK tour with Hundred Reasons and local mates Your Demise was awesome, just having them two bands on before us always got me so hyped up. Bringing Hundred Reasons along with us was a dream come true, they were always one of my favourite bands and listening to them just brought back memories of summer fun and japes.

You have a lot of banter and little jokes and messages during your gigs to really get the audience involved. Human pyramids, circle pits, free Johnny Sniper branded condoms you really get them feeling like they’re up on stage with you. But what makes you feel most connected with the audience?

I guess we’re just always looking for participation of every kind. I’m always looking out for the kids that do the mental stuff; climb lighting rigs, stage dive, rush the mic, do pitleaps, pyramids, flips, cartwheels and just generally dance and have a good time. It should be a bit of an adrenaline fueled workout really, for band and audience.

Last year you performed on The Dimebag stage at Download, named after the legendary Dimebag Darrell of Pantera. What’s your favourite Pantera song and thoughts?

Slaughtered, Strength beyond Strength, anything from that album really, when it had a bit more energy, before they were just off their heads all the time. They’re cover of Planet Caravan (Black Sabbath) is pretty cool and Good friends and a Bottle of Pills is pretty fun. Never been like massively into them though, Phill Anselmo’s dodgy race views put me off.

Last year you won a plethora of awards. Which one were you most shocked to win? (Which one were you most pleased about winning?)

The first one, the NME musical innovation was a big shock, Dan P Carter just strolling onto stage before ‘Return to Energiser‘, our tech didn’t know who he was and almost took him down haha! The Kerrang awards were a massive shock as well, I mean we never thought we’d get any awards ever; we’re just our scrubbers from St Albans. Winning best live band was very humbling and rewarding for the 600 shows we’ve done whilst trawling the UK.

You’re very supportive of new music coming out of St Albans and in generally just very vocal about your roots as shown at your homecoming all day festival there last year. But you’ve visited a lot of places and played a lot of shows all over the world now, so if you could choose anywhere to live in the world, money no object, where would you go and why?

New Zealand i think, we were only there for a few days, and only saw Auckland which is apparently like the least picturesque place and that was fucking beautiful.

Your song Labyrinth…is it about or inspired by the 80’s film of the same name with David Bowie? Or the Sonic the Hedgehog level?

Hey you, you’re good, hit the nail on the head, both actually! The Sega Mega drive has always been my favourite games console, and Sonic one of my favourite games, and that level is just sweet, how fucking panicky you get when he starts gasping for air and the countdown starts! Genious. And yes of course the movie is a complete classic, Bowie’s awesome.

Have you ever written a song about a computer character?

Not about a specific character, but ‘Ok time for Plan B’ had a lot of musical influences from the music of the original Goldenaxe. I reckon i’ll write a song about the end boss in that though, “Death Adder” he’s fucking Tough. You heard it here first.

If you could be any fictional character who would you be?

Banana man? bit of a geezer, and i love bananas, but apparently if you eat too many they actually properly poison you, so I’d have to keep my banana count in check.

Which of you boys is most likened to the fictional character you created Jonny Sniper and why?

Probably me cos I’m always handing out the condoms to those in need, being girlfriended ‘n all.
But the song actually has a completely different original meaning from the sordid live interpretation! Jonny Sniper is every critic of climate change and every hypocrite that goes around preaching and not practicing interventions of climate change (Al Gore). So in that case all of us are Jonny Sniper to some degree. “So this is a quest to save the world, and he’ll always be here for another day another chance to rescue…” We have the chance to do something everyday, but until are lives start being affected by it we wont change which is just sad and selfish.

How did you all feel after the tour collectively and what are you going to miss about not being able to get on with the daily schedule of touring?

Just totally and utterly drained. It’s going to be seriously weird being home for more than a few days let alone weeks and months! I think it’s gonna be pretty depressing to be honest, like the biggest come down ever, 3 years of pretty much constant touring and now we’re done, we don’t really know any different! But saying that we’ve been looking forward to it for a while now, so it’s relief as well we’ve just gotta keep our heads up. The other prominent emotion has gotta be anxiety and excitement I suppose, it’s well over a year now since we recorded the first album so we just can’t wait to get back into the studio and write. And of course this time we’ll have more than two weeks to record the album, what a luxury! Although thats probably quite dangerous, experimenting in the studio whilst recording is something we did get a chance to do on the early demos back in the day and it usually resulted in us getting bored and adding completely ridiculous unneeded bollocks into the pot.

I’m gonna miss our touring crew, we’ve built up our sound and tech squad around us since day one, we’re like brothers now, their mostly all Glaswegians though, so they’ll be back off up north you see. I’m gonna miss living in the tour bubble as well, just that whole waking up in a different city, different time zone, totally sleep deprived and just thinking what the fuck is going on… where am I? Who am I? That whole constant surrealism of the situation. I suppose for three or four years I’ve just been living through Escapism…

Anything you would like to say to your fans?

A colossal thank you to everyone that has supported us in any way so far, It’s only just begun really, we’re totally buzzing about the next album, hold tight!

You can visit Enter Shikari at www.myspace.com/entershikari and www.entershikari.com

Around the World in 40 Days Tour shots by the band

Street photo by Juan Garcia