The Massacre was heavily missed by many last year so organisation for this one started as far back as the beginning of August to make sure it was going to happen. With no room for a mini ramp at Vauxhall’s Hidden Club, Matthew Bromley’s idea to have a skate sticker exhibition caught on amongst 12 of London’s best skate art illustrators and the Toxic Wasters exhibition took its place. We did miss the ramp though, so next year we will try our hardest to get it back into the mix for you.
Highlights for this explosive night are rife. Cornish 4-piece Crowns made some new drinking buddies by serving up cold pints of Clash inspired, seafaring punk rock. Tomb Crew got stuck into Front Magazine‘s room by dropping the beats on the earlybirds whilst Illaman MC had more words that a dictionary to spill across Rack N Ruin‘s set too. 3 hours of grime, dubstep and bass reigned supreme before Cerebral Ballzy took to the stage in the Vans room. The results were no surprise.
This was the most chaotic show we have ever seen at any Crossfire night. From the off, a sea of bodies collided as the hardcore was sprayed into the crowd. Surgeons, zombies, military officers, pirates, even bananas, were smashing into each other forming one of the biggest bundles ever seen thanks to the dance music podiums that were used as launch pads! This legendary set was ended with a piñata smashing of the highest order and a set of absolute bangers by Stereo:Type who mashed up every classic in the book. The Vans room was covered in beers, stickers and sweets and ended up destroyed.
The Last Resort DJs dropped 90’s rock classics across 2 rooms and had the place rolling alongside a fierce stoner rock set from James Sherry, whilst Talita Two Shoes and Pheobe Winter freaked everyone out with their Child’s Play and dropped a great selection of metal! It’s always fantastic to see the DJs and bands dress up for this occassion. Pheobe’s and Talita won it for the girls and Enter Shikari‘s Rou Reynolds was a serious contender for the boys prize. Shikari have spent the last 2 weeks on tour around the UK but still had the energy to jump on the decks with us for 90 mins. Rout and SGT Rolfy had the place jumping before handing over the decks to High Rankin & Tigerlight who were dressed for Ultraviolence and continued the frenzy with bass driven beats mixed with a ton of wob!
Overall, not many people were ejected on the night. We are listening to all of your feedback on our facebook page and twitter so keep them coming and share your pics on there with us this week.
Thanks so much if you came down to make this night the huge success that this year’s Crossfire Halloween Massacre in association with Vans turned out to be, and also for dressing up in some of the best costumes we have ever seen! Big ups to all at Vans and Front Magazine, all at Hidden Club and Found series, Chloe Leeks, James Sherry, Paul Parker for his incredible artwork and all of the illustrators involved in Toxic Wasters exhibition, all the DJs and bands mentioned above, everyone at Division PR, Sophie Kostrowski, Scott Kell, Tom Halliday, the lovely guys at WE Audio, Kerrang, Rocksound, Clash, Metro, NME, Time Out, The Londonist, TNT, Sidewalk Mag, XFM, Gallows, We Are The Ocean, Hawk Eyes and all of the other bands out there who retweeted our shit and anyone we forgot. See you in 2012!
Enjoy the gallery photos below thanks to the long hours put in by Tom Halliday and Scott Kells. If you use these images, please credit them.
Watch the full video from the night courtesy of Sophie Kostrowski and Matthew Bromley:
Watch a clip of Cerebral Ballzy exploding in the Vans room. Caught on iphone from above.
TOM HALLIDAY’S PHOTOGRAPHY:
Enter Shikari blow up the Front room
Sweet Dreams played party nightmares!
Our photographer Tom Halliday is a Misfit!
High Rankin dropped bombs!Cerebral Ballsout played
SCOTT KELLS PHOTOGRAPHY:
Crowns brought dead sailors up from Cornwall!
Tigerlight in the house!
Next 3 pics shot by James Sherry.
Final photo by Tom Halliday.
“It was a great night had by all with some amazing outfits, a truly hilscarious event!” – Sgt Rolfy (Enter Shikari)
This year’s Crossfire Halloween Massacre would not be complete without the mash up skills of our good friend STEREO:TYPE who has been beavering away in the studio this month to bring you this year’s fuck-off mixtape. So, get ready to download almost an hour of total madness as a taster of what’s to come in the Vans room at the Massacre on the 28th October.
Nine Inch Nails, mashed up with Skrillex, Guns and Roses, Plan B, Michael Jackson, Slipknot, Chase and Status, Pendulum, Nero, Rage Against the Machine, The Prodigy, Noisia, Daft Punk- it’s all stuffed into here to form a party classic! Just dive into this and download it for free today on us.
If you are loving this, show your appreciation and LIKE the Stereo:Type Facebook page so you can keep in touch with more of this goodness.
Filthy punk rock from the 70’s has a place that has been glued permanently in British history. It’s an area where many classic bands have laid foundations within our culture, spawning a plethora of music genres that still use the Punk term lightly. Thesedays, you are lucky to find a British Punk band that carries traditions and does it well. I’m talking about the raw, dirty punk rock that only the likes of the Pistols, Cockney Rejects and Sham 69 would be able to huck out; the sneering, fuck you stuff that gets us all up in the morning.
Welcome to the world of London punk band Burned Out Motors. A band who claim they “formed during a music therapy class within the confines of South London’s Wandsworth Prison.” I guess then, that the attitude that stems from their debut single ‘Bastard’ may well have been derived from picking up the soap a few times too many. Who knows, but they certainly bring sunshine and a little pain to my ears this morning on first listen.
Disposable but charming punk bands like this lot make the world go round and will eat that pansy boy, emo boy band shit out of newspaper covered in salt & vinegar on a daily basis. With that in mind, listen to these boozing, glue-sniffing, drinking, solvent abuse bragging, geezers who love kicking the shit out of cunts at their facebook page. There’s no fancy video, no wanky blog, nothing but this page out there right now, get stuck in.
Rack n Ruin has been knocking out bangers for a couple of years now and with a string of hits under his belt including Soundclash, Righteous, Territory and more, he’s guaranteed to blast the speakers each and every time. As we gear up for the Crossfire Halloween Massacre, we had a quick chat with him to show you what to expect come the 28th.
You’ve been on the scene for a little while now and have mixed up sounds from Soundclash with Jessie Ware to Territory – do you just make tunes as you go along and see how they turn out? Or do you set out to make certain styles before you get going?
It depends really. Some days I have an idea in my idea and will stick to that but some days it’s just experimentation. If I’m working with a vocalist, we’ll generally get the vibe going together and then go from there.
You’ve done remixes for the likes of I Blame Coco and Nas/Damian Marley – how did they come about and do you approach them any differently from your own original beats?
Island Records approached me after hearing Soundclash and asked me to do some remixes, this then led to the work with Coco etc. I approach remixes in lots of ways, but usually I listen to the original and think of a way to make it more interesting and more suited to the dancefloor. It is different to making original tunes unless you start an original with a prominent sample.
There are loads of talented MCs out there, who have been the best you’ve worked with and are there any you still want to jump on one of your tracks?
P-Money is very talented and a fast writer. Old skool jungle dons like Navigator and Slarta John are also amazing. I’m very lucky to have worked with such sick MCs. I’d really like to work with some MCs from the States next.
How did you hook up with Black Butter Records and how good a fit are they for your tunes?
My manager runs the label and we’ve been there from the start of the label so it nice and my sound has progessed along with the label. I really like their output so it’s all good!
What are your top three tunes playing out at the moment?
Bax by Mosca, Signal by me and P-Money and everything by Hostage!
It’s the Crossfire Halloween Massacre you’re playing at, so who would be the last person you’d want to see trick or treating you when you open the door?
Evil clowns freak me out so probably one of them!
And money’s no object – what would you dress up as for the Ultimate Halloween outfit?
That’s a hard one. Always loved the Jason films so probably him, a bloody hockey mask!
Get on Rack N Ruin’s latest release below and find him of Facebook.
If you look down under right now and have a peep at the Australian indie scene, you are sure to find some unique acts that are bubbling away under the radar that have potential to cement their music into British culture.
Whilst listening to the likes of Tame Impala and Metals this year, we came across some talent from Sydney who will soon have the world at his fingertips. A songwriter whose debut EP Hello Anxiety came packed with such high pedigree, that we had to delve further than usual to find out what makes this 5 track offering so addictive.
Welcome to a world of greatness that should hopefully reach UK shores in 2012. Welcome to the musical splendour of Guineafowl.
Welcome to Crossfire. What can you tell us about your debut EP ‘Hello Anxiety’ and what was the most Anxious moment recording it?
Thanks for having me. The most anxious moment was being in an actual studio. Prior to recording the EP I had really only been recording at my house, which for the most part was home to zero microphones and next to no instruments. So recording in a studio with hundreds of mics and a massive mixing desk made me extremely anxious.
Does this debut release title generally reveal to the world that you are generally a ‘man wreck’ (!!!) or could this be a way of actually relieving the stress of being a musician?
I think the title has two implications. The first would be that to release one’s first artistic offering is an extremely nerve wracking procedure and therefore I have anxiety as a result of saying ‘hello’. The other one is that being in an artistic world will bring me personally more anxiety. Both are true, I am a man wreck.
What is your process for creating these songs and what’s your studio set up?
My process tends to change from song to song but I always write and record at the same time. My current studio set up is very advanced, a computer AND a microphone, but I am starting to acquire more instruments. I have being buying some second hand synths lately and they are allowing me to make some interesting and messed up sounds.
Are there any hidden noises or instruments that came to be included on this EP by accident? Any sounds you will only know of and not us out here listening in?
Actually there are quite a few. I lived in a pretty noisy house, so all the demo recordings used on the EP have back ground noises like buses, traffic and the sound of furniture being moved around coming from the antique store downstairs. The most blatant accidental noise can be heard on ‘Botanist’, my cat meows really loudly and then some keys fall off my coffee table. You can hear both really clearly in the opening few seconds of the song.
Who are the artists that have inspired you to pick up an instrument and to being an artist yourself?
My family. I come from a family of painters and so perusing art was something that if I were inclined that way to peruse. Picking up an instrument happened because I have always had a fascination with them and I have had a go at playing a range of them with varying degrees of success.
Who are your contemporaries in the music scene out in Australia and who do you currently rate?
Australia has a fantastic music scene; at the moment I am particularly enjoying music by another Sydney artist named Jack Ladder. He has assembled an amazing band and is playing some very dark, moody music. It’s excellent.
How difficult was it to try and master speaking backwards on this latest video you have released?
It was really difficult. I had to practice four to five times a week with the director of the clip leading up to the shoot, and recited lines on my own every day. We pretty much had to create a whole new language to get it right.
If you had to collaborate with on a track, who would you choose?
David Bowie immediately comes to mind. I just think he is one of the best writers of all time. His ability to push himself and his music is uncanny, and I would think that he could do the same for me.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received from a fellow musician?
Tim Rogers, lead singer of seminal Australian band You Am I, once called me good looking, I guess that counts as advice.
And the worst?
I have yet to be given bad advice, but as soon as I am, I will let you know.
Who would be the top five acts on your ‘Fantasy Festival’ bill?
The Cure, David Bowie, Talking Heads, Radiohead and Blink 182 (too much full on music needs to be broken up a little with some pop punk).
Who would you throw egg rolls at, at the same festival if you had to pick a band that sucked the most in your opinion?
In all honesty, even if I absolutely despised a band, like hated their songs and their playing and their outfits, I still would not throw something at them. I would just deflate their tyres before they left the show.
Did you grow up riding a skateboard at all?
I used to skate a lot when I was younger. I wanted to get back into it recently actually and I took this deck that I had saved for when I was about thirteen, into a pro shop to get trucks on it. The pro took one look at it and said, “You should not skate this, it is a classic”. I was a late 90’s World Industries Flame boy deck with two very alluring devil girls on it. It is a wicked, wicked deck, but will forever remain on my wall.
Which pro skaters are singing Guineafowl on their travels right now?
I doubt any are singing me yet, but I once listened to EP mixes whilst playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater, does that count?!
Any stupid skateboard related stories?
I was once trying to jump some stairs outside a shopping centre in Sydney, when I slipped and the board went right through a glass door into the centre. I casually walked inside, picked up the board, bowed to several confused old ladies and then bolted.
If you had to pick a fight with 2 dangerous animals what would they be and how would you finish them off in a battle?
I would fight a Lion and a Rhino. They would so not be able to work together and eventually turn on each other, especially when I tell the Rhino what the Lion said about his wife. Thus leaving me to claim victory.
Lastly, when will you be playing here in the UK so we can chuck egg rolls at you?
SOON!! I am planning to bring my band over at the end of the year.
Don’t miss Guineafowl’s debut EP ‘Hello Anxiety’ that is out now on Dew Process Records Get a free download here.
Hevy Festival is back and with a line-up that boasts a plethora of great bands, it’s definitely the place to be this weekend. With so many amazing bands playing over the three days, it can be hard to decide which should be the ones to check out and that’s where our preview steps in to help.
Our intrepid writers Ryan and Winey G have picked the acts they are most excited to see and, as the videos alongside each pick shows, you’re not going to be disappointed by any of them. If the success of last year’s festival is anything to go by, the 2011 version is going to be a ton of fun. So get reading and get ready for some carnage!
Winegums’ picks:
Touché Amoré (Rocksound + Macbeth stage, Sunday)
Having recently released what is undeniably one of the finest albums of the year, Touché Amoré will be bringing their frenetic live stylings to Hevy so get ready to get involved and scream your heart out. The intensity is definitely going to reach fever pitch for TA, just one of many so-called buzz bands included on the line-up this weekend. Something tells us that most of these acts are going to deliver in a big way.
The Bronx (Rocksound + Macbeth stage, Sunday)
The Bronx are just a standardly brilliant live prospect. Broken limbs and a crowd-bound frontman are not unheard of. But let’s not forget the tunes! Oh what a delectable treat of riffs, barked out melodies and general raucous punk fun we’re in for as vocalist Matt Caughtran will no doubt bound around like a giant baby with a huge grin on his face.
Ceremony (Rocksound + Macbeth stage, Sunday)
Hardcore punk with a sense of swagger that you just couldn’t fake, Ceremony are one of the most exciting prospects of the weekend (there are a lot of those this weekend, huh?). Inciting mile-long queues outside teensy venues last time they were in the UK, these guys are going to grab a very eager crowd by the neck and shake them to their very core.
Dillinger Escape Plan (Jägermeister Main Stage, Saturday)
Why does it feel like all of the bands at Hevy this year are going to be attempting to outdo each other in the “we’re crazy-ass motherfucking musicians” stakes? Well, many will no doubt try and some will succeed. But Dillinger really have nothing to prove on this side of things having already performed such legendary feats as shitting in plastic bags on stage and throwing it into the audience. Perhaps this time it’ll be purely about the music. Which is of course awesome. But we kind of hope the theatrics feature too.
OFF! (Rocksound + Macbeth stage, Saturday)
Vocalist Keith Morris was in Black Flag. You probably don’t need to know much more than that in order to be persuaded to catch these guys live. West coast hardcore that packs a punch. Hard, fast and loud.
La Dispute (Etnies + Front stage, Sunday)
With the most deliciously unsettling vocals and the ability to create atmospheres of eeriness and full on ripping emotional heartache from one moment to the next, La Dispute are already contenders to At The Drive-In’s post-hardcore throne at this point. It’s safe to say that if they’re going to live up to the, albeit underground, hype then they’re going to have to deliver something special at Hevy. We have faith they’ll do just that.
Basement (Etnies + Front Magazine Stage, Friday)
Part of Hevy fest’s Friday taster if you will, which will see a pared down line-up get the party started on the smaller stages as the masses begin to arrive for the weekend. Basement’s brand of emotionally driven melodic punk rock is just the ticket to get your weekend started so make sure you get to the field early to soak it all up.
Ryan de Freitas’ picks:
The Ghost of a Thousand (Jägermeister Main Stage, Saturday)
The fact that this is The Ghost of a Thousand playing a festival should be reason enough to see them on the main stage at Hevy this year. Adding that this is the band’s last ever gig before splitting up and it makes this a completely unmissable set. There will be walls and pits throughout the set as the band have promised to go out with an almighty bang.
Make Do and Mend (Rocksound + Macbeth stage, Saturday)
Off the back of their debut LP ‘End Measured Mile’ and acclaimed split with fellow Hevy stagemates ‘Touché Amoré’, this melodic hardcore outfit are not to be missed on the second stage. With a proven track record of laying waste to almost every venue they play, this is not a band that you want to regret not seeing the next day.
Funeral for a Friend (Jägermeister Main Stage, Sunday)
True pioneers in the UK Post-Hardcore scene, Funeral for a Friend have made an overdue return to form with new album Welcome Home Armageddon and their slot at Hevy will be one of their biggest UK sets since the release, with hopes of timeless classics mixed in with the intrigue of seeing the new material live for the first time. FFAF have created a real buzz about their appearance at Hevy and no doubt will live up to the hype.
While She Sleeps (Rocksound + Macbeth Stage, Sunday)
These Sheffield lads are one of the most talked-about bands in the UK at the moment. They will bring a perfect balance of passion and rage when they play their set on the second stage on Sunday. Having recently won over thousands as main supports to Silverstein earlier in the year and with 2010 album ‘The North Stands for Nothing’ rightfully earning them the respect of their peers and critics, this is a band that you’ll want to see (especially since it means you’ll have seen them before they were one of the biggest bands in the UK, which they certainly look on course to become).
Four Year Strong (Jägermeister Main Stage, Sunday)
There is no other way to say it other than: THIS BAND MUST BE SEEN LIVE. This years festival closers are sure to provide one of (if not the) highlights of the weekend with their trademark anthemic sing-along choruses and relentless, brutal breakdowns that will translate perfectly into the atmosphere of the festival. With the set sure to include hits from debut ‘Rise or Die Trying’ as well as current release ‘Enemy of the World’ these bearded warriors are set to tear the metaphorical roof off the place.
We arrived at the festival sweating as we lurched past the usual Sonisphere sniffer dogs and managed to get there just in time for the opening track of CEREBRAL BALLZY who didn’t let us down. Hardcore made by skaters has always had an edge. The likes of JFA, Minor Threat, Bad Brains and Suicidal Tendencies have paved the way for this new breed and they are taking their version on 80’s skate core to the hilt. Look out for their album this month as it’s a short, sharp shock of excitement that you need in your life.
Photo right: Johnny Chow of Cavalera Conspiracy – thanks for the beers Texan!
ANTHRAX’s sense of humour and penchant for experimentation have always set them apart from the rest of the gang, but unfortunately Joey Belladonna’s Noo Yoik bonhomie struggles to compensate for the cold winds that play havoc with their sound. Sepultura guitarist Andreas Kisser does a fine job of filling in for an absent Scott Ian, but ultimately the crowd seem more interested in keeping warm. Dark clouds gathering overhead herald the arrival of MEGADETH, who open with a suitably brooding ‘Trust’. Dave Mustaine (a.k.a. The Sulking Lion) doesn’t have much to say for himself today (as usual – Z-Ed) , but dispenses new song ‘Public Enemy No. 1’ in fine style, and the appearance of Vic Rattlehead for ‘Peace Sells…’ is a welcome surprise. (If the Big Four of metal was compared to British football, then this band are Tottenham Hotspur! Z-Ed)
You can rely on SLAYER to grab a festival by the scruff of its neck and kick the shit out of it, and today they don’t disappoint, They rip through the likes of ‘Disciple’, ‘Hate Worldwide’ and – of course- ‘Raining Blood’ with their trademark brutal speed and precision, although the most disturbing aspect of their set is the grin that Tom Araya sports as he roars through ‘Dead Skin Mask’.
Whilst Slayer’s happiness filled the main stage field, many other people who have good taste in music were witnessing the raging musical assault of BLACK BREATH. Their brash, thrash and hardcore hybrid steamrolled the tent and left everyone open mouthed. Heavy Breathing is the name of their album, do it.
METALLICA, of course, have been headlining festivals for the best part of two decades, but these old dogs can still create a sense of occasion; kicking off with a furious ‘Hit The Lights’. Most of the old favourite are present and correct, as is – unfortunately – a tedious mid-set instrumental, but the highlight is saved for the encore; with members of their Big Four brethren joining them for a stage-swamping romp through Diamond Head’s ‘Am I Evil?’. Lars Ulrich looks like he’s about to explode with joy, and we leave feeling pretty damn satisfied too.
We manage to sneak into the Bohemia tent for a quick blast of KILLING JOKE, and although it’s really our feet that are killing us, the band still get us dancing and hollering with a suitably visceral ‘Wardance’. Jaz Coleman is as much a demonic preacher as a vocalist, and long may he remain so.
SATURDAY
For those feeling a bit sore from the night before (including us), RICHARD CHEESE & LOUNGE AGAINST THE MACHINE are a welcome proposition, inducing a wide sea of grins in the crowd as they reinterpret various rock and metal classics in a smooth lounge style. ARCHITECTS are on rabid form, inciting a tsunami of crowd surfers within minutes of hitting the stage, but it is GALLOWS that prove the pick of the early bunch. No longer the underdogs of old, they’ve mutated into a raucous rock n’ roll behemoth that eats stages of this size for breakfast; and although thew news of Frank Carter’s imminent departure from the ranks is sad indeed, you can’t deny that he’s bowing out on top.
BAD RELIGION fare less well; the rain ensuring that the SoCal veterens play to a somewhat depleted crowd on the Apollo stage. The handful of recent tracks suggest that Greg Graffin’s crew aren’t content to rest on their laurels just yet, but in a festival setting, the likes of ‘Suffer’ and ‘Generator’ would have been more welcome. (Shame they also ended the set with Graffin forgetting the words! Z-Ed)
Over now to the smaller stages for some impressive new blood. REVOKER offer up some fierce but streamlined thrash/groove anthems that prove more substantial than most of the fare coming from their South Wales musical brethren. Leeds’ PULLED APART BY HORSES, meanwhile, are gloriously unhinged; vocalist Tom Hudson almost screeching himself hoarse over a cauldron of thunderous riffs and scattergun rhythms. Watch out for these two.
WEEZER prove to be one of the highlights of the weekend; unleashing a wonderfully melodic set that does not feature a single bad song. Rivers Cuomo is in a playful mood, hopping down onto the barrier for a bizarre but entertaining cover of Wheatus’ ‘Teenage Dirtbag’, and by the time they close with ‘Buddy Holly’, they have the crowd in the palm of their collective hand. Oh, and bonus points for banishing the rain as well.
BIFFY CLYRO don’t need the underdog sympathy vote any more; they’ve got more than enough quality songs to fill a headline slot. Urged on by a crowd much smaller than Metallica’s, but just as loyal, they conjure up one of the weekend’s loudest sing-alongs; and the bizarre chess-set stage set-up just adds to the sense of occasion.
SUNDAY
11am on a Sunday is a tall order for most festival goers, but VOLBEAT’s mix of heavy riff action and Social Distortion-esque rock n’ roll swagger are well worth an early start. PARKWAY DRIVE whip up an impressively-sized pit for this time of day, with their frenzied metalcore attack, and guitarist Luke Kilpatrick deserves kudos for soldiering on despite having recently broken his leg. The rubber dinghy crowd-surfing competition during ‘Deliver Me’ makes for a quite a spectacle.
Never was a band more appropriately named than MASTODON – the rumble of Troy Sanders’ bass can be heard a mile off. Their monolithic riffs crash and surge around us, and whether it’s the more progressive ‘Crack The Skye’ material or a bludgeoning ‘I Am Ahab’, they’re never less than mesmerising.
MOTORHEAD are low on surprises, but high on thrills. The couple of recent songs played tonight sound just like the old stuff, but that matters little when every song is the very essence of outlaw music – no wonder bikers love them so. Oh, and the fire-breathing girls that join the band onstage for ‘Killed By Death’ are a nice bonus.
We nip into the Bohemia tent just in time to see CANCER BATS damn near blow the roof off. The Canadian quartet are getting leaner, meaner and more enthusiastic with time, and with seemingly no end of riffs or energy in the tank, their forthcoming album should be a corker. The tent is rammed, and rightly so. Back on the Apollo stage, LIMP BIZKIT are pretty entertaining despite being musically shit. Fred Durst’s clunky rapping and clichéd posturing is almost painful to witness, but it has to be said that ‘Rollin’ is something of a guilty pleasure.
And so to SLIPKNOT, on the closing night of their first major tour since the death of bassist Paul Grey. Vocalist Corey Taylor is clearly overwhelmed by the crowd’s support, declaring tonight “a celebration”, and although this is pretty much the same show that we witnessed at the Download Festival in 2009, the likes of ‘The Heretic Anthem’ and a vicious ‘People = Shit’ sound as feral as ever.
Fugazi and the Wu Tang Clan are two iconic groups, both defining the sound of a scene and making everyone sit up and take notice of their music and their message. So what happens when you mix the two together? Well, thanks to Doomtree‘s Cecil Otter and fellow Minneapolis musician Swiss Andy, of The Swiss Army and The Millionth Word fame, we now know.
Sleep Rules Everything Around Me mysteriously appeared on Soundcloud and within half a day, the track had garnered 20,000 listens, with over 100,000 in a week. It has been one of the most talked about topics in music of late and we caught up with the two brainchildren behind the project to discuss the process of making the music, how long it took and even preferred fighting styles.
Ladies and Gentlemen, enter the Chamber of the Wugazi!
The big question first – how did you come up with the idea of putting Fugazi and Wu Tang together? Are you both big fans of both acts so know their catalogue extensively?
Cecil: Andy had been kicking around the idea for a few years before he brought it up to me. We had both been huge fans of each group since we were young, so it was easy to fall in love with the idea of WUGAZI.
Andy: Yeah, that is pretty much all that was in my headphones during the 90s.
Cecil: A one point in his life, Andy sold his guitar amp just so he could go see a Fugazi show. I sold my tickets to that same Fugazi show and bought an ice cream cone and shared it with my friend. I later broke into that show, caused a scene and got screamed at by Guy from Fugazi. He kept telling everyone that he saw me eating ice cream outside with my friend…over and over…I didn’t enjoy that at all, but the ice cream was good.
Andy: Asshole.
Did you decide on the tracks you wanted to use first or did you just play it by ear and see which Wu track fit with which Fugazi?
Cecil: We would listen through every Fugazi album and take notes on where the drum breaks, bass loops and guitar loops were. After that I would put them into Protools accordingly, find a close enough tempo to fallow the song, chop everything onto a grid and start cranking away at a song structure.”
Andy: I had a few Fugazi tracks I really wanted to use, but they were just too fast or slow for us to fit under an acapella.
Cecil: We let the samples loop in the background and begin to play Wu Tang acapellas over the song until we found the perfect match. When we found that, we would place it in the session and begin to cut, paste and stretch each verse to fit the track…then we get detailed.
Andy: We would try to use more than one song in each track. Using them more as samples for producing, than just putting one thing on top of the other.
Were there any tracks that you tried to mash together that just sounded horrible?
Cecil: Oh yeah, that’s why we put a full year into this. We have a handful of half done songs that just wouldn’t marry each other or we didn’t have a clean enough acapella to work with. The hardest thing about making the album (well, one of them) was the limited Wu Tang acapellas that we had access to. There are so many Wu Tang songs that we would have loved to do, we probably would have been able to call it Wugazi: 36 Songs if we had all the acapellas!
You’ve got 13 Chambers dropping in July, is there anything you can tell us about it other than it houses the track Sleep Rules Everything Around Me?
Cecil: Well, it will have 12 more songs and they will all be different and they will all have drums and bass and guitar and vocals, never forget the vocals!
Also, Sleep… hit 20,000 plays in 12 hours, did you think it was going to be as huge as that in such a short space of time?
Cecil: Not at all. We we’re very excited about the tracks because our friends loved them so much. We had no idea that the two groups would work together so well. We made S.R.E.A.M. the first night into the project. We lost our shit when we stretched the vocals in and took the first listen. After that night, Wugazi was pretty much a reason to get together with a friend and lose ourselves in the moment. I don’t think either of us had any idea that so many others would like it as much as we do, but then again…it’s Wu Tang and Fugazi, who doesn’t like them?!
Andy: When Paddy Costello almost started crying, I knew we were doing something right. But never thought this would spread like it has.
Would you like to see the two bands work together, maybe do a one-off live show where Ian MacKaye battles Ghostface? Or have Guy Picciotto go hard against Method Man?
Andy: All those guys are such great musicians. Even after Fugazi, Guy produced that amazing Blonde Redhead record and Joe put out that album with John Frusciante. Putting Ian in a room with RZA, I wouldn’t even know where to start…
Cecil: Without a doubt. That would be one of the happiest days of my life.
If you had a sword style, which you would have to train in the mountains of Tibet to perfect, what would it be called?
Punk rock in the late 70’s was said to have come from the UK. The Sex Pistols claimed the tag at that time and propelled the image of bored, rebellious youth as we know it. Looking back to the roots of this anarchic disposition it’s easy to pick up on the fact that their influences and many other household names we know today from the punk genre such as Iggy Pop and The Ramones to name just two, took their inspiration from the garage rock scene that spread through the suburbs of American youth culture in the early 1960’s.
Back then rehearsal rooms and studios were not a luxury like in today’s cities, so setting up your gear in the family garage, shouting the odds through a microphone and making as much noise as possible was the order. That spark, that uprising brought Garage Rock (also known as Garage Punk) into the underground, ignited by a network of bands taking their pre-rehearsed tracks into local venues and releasing 7″ records to reach others in different areas and quite literally exploded as the sound of teenage rebellion.
This sonic throwback of the surf rock scene spawned one of the best bands of all time from Tacoma, Washington called The Sonics and knowing that they were in town for the Meltdown Festival curated by The Kinks frontman Ray Davies, Alex Penge hooked up with Rob Lind (saxophone and vocals) and Larry Parypa (lead guitar and vocals) before the show at the Mint Hotel in London to find out more about the band who are said to have kick started the ‘punk’ movement.
Welcome to London. Are you looking forward to your upcoming show at Meltdown with Wire?
Rob: Very much so, yes. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
Have you met Wire before? Have you played any gigs with them in the past?
Rob: No, we’re aware of Wire’s great reputation, but we have not heard of them.
Larry: …which is why when we went in there (for the sound check) and adjusted all our amps for them. So it wouldn’t sound like crap!
Tell me more about the Washington garage rock scene where it all started off. Apart from The Wailers (your manager, Buck Ormsby’s band), were there any other bands that fell under the radar?
Rob: The Pacific Northwest which that area is called was a real a hotbed for rock and roll bands. There were lots of good bands. Lots of good people came out of there.
Larry: Like Jimi Hendrix?
Rob: Well The Ventures did have a great reputation and a lot of worldwide hit records when we were young guys starting out. We liked their music. There was another band called The Frantics.
Larry: Uhh ho, gee!
Rob: They were killers. They were real good. But they didn’t really get much notice outside the local area.
You were famous for your pioneering recording techniques and arguably influenced a generation of garage rock revivalists. Did you at the time think that this technique was going to catch on and influence a lot of people?
Larry: There was no choice. We didn’t have any choice at the time. There was only two-track recording available. Mono sound on the first record. We didn’t have four-track until the later albums.
So it all started off just trying to get the record out in the first place?
Larry: Well it’s a standard, you know. We played live essentially. It wasn’t like each person had their own track and if they made a mistake they could redo their bits. We just went in there and usually did the band all at once. Then the vocals would top it off later.
Rob: It was a two-step recording process. Step one would be to roll the tape. Step two would be to play.
Rob: Those recorders were in a variety of different recording facilities. We’d go in the studio and whatever was in there we’d use.
Larry: I think (the recording) of ‘The Witch’ was in a radio studio where they cut the ads and somehow gave us the room to record. It wasn’t in the real recording studio I remember?
Rob: “Go in here boys and knock yourselves out!”
Were there any other cover songs that you were thinking of covering for the ‘Here Are The Sonics’ album that eventually never made the cut?
Rob: No, I don’t think so. ‘Leave My Kitten Alone’ (by Little Willie John) wasn’t on that album but we liked that song a lot. We don’t play that song anymore. Half a dozen songs that we played regularly on those albums we don’t even play now. We also have a new record with four original songs and we’re playing those in our sets now.
What was it like sharing stages with bands such as The Beach Boys and The Shangri-Las?
Larry: It would be interesting if you asked The Shangri-Las what they thought it was like sharing the stage with us. We really screwed them over. They were doing their own tour and we were doing our own tour. Somehow an agreement was made that we were going to back them up in their songs. I don’t know why, but we didn’t learn their songs and it didn’t turn out too well! They still remember that.
Rob: We probably appeared with The Beach Boys more than any of the other big acts. We got to know them pretty well and saw them a lot when they came to the Northwest.
Larry: I think The Kinks was my favourite act to play with. I was most impressed with them.
Rob: I’d have to agree with that too.
Larry: I remember they were wearing a lot of black, they had a sinister sound and they were moving. Those guys were really something!
Rob: Back then the state of popular music in the States was really anaemic. We were up in the Northwest playing hard. I remember one day I was in my car driving down the street, I didn’t know who The Kinks were as they weren’t famous at the time and someone on the radio said, “…here’s a new record from England”. [Rob reinacts the opening of ‘You Really Got Me’]. I heard that and almost ran off the road! We all got on the phone together, “…did you hear what those guys from England are doing?! Holy cow!” After that we learnt a bunch of their songs. We loved them.
So, was it an honour meeting Ray (Davies)?
Rob: It was. We did a short tour with them when they came to the Northwest and met them at the Spokane Coliseum back in the dressing rooms. I want to choose my words carefully here. There were a numbers of large acts (and we played with most of them at one time or another) that were good in the studio but when they played live they couldn’t hold their end up like they could in the studio. The Kinks were probably even better live than they were in the studio. That’s why we liked them so much. They were great. We thought that “those English guys are just like us”!
Over the years there have been many covers of your song ‘Strychnine’ ranging from the likes of The Flaming Lips to The Cramps to The Fall. Which cover would you say is your favourite?
Rob: To be honest, I have not heard many. Actually the best version of ‘Strychnine’, the absolute best version of ‘Strychnine’ that’s out there is by this band called The Sonics! (laughs)
How was the recording process for your new EP ‘8’? Are there any plans for any more future releases? An album release maybe?
Larry: All we have to do is get together and work them out in one recording, we just haven’t done it yet and haven’t tendered to business really. We used that particular studio (Sound House studio, Seattle) and recording engineer (Jack Endino, who worked with Nirvana, Mudhoney and Soundgarden) for the EP because we wanted something that was unprocessed, by going in and getting that one-take type of song. We didn’t want to overdo it. In fact, we play the new songs differently now to how we recorded them. We wrote the songs, went in to record at the studio and now play the songs live a little differently.
Rob: The live performances have definitely adapted those new songs from the studio. We are definitely planning on making a new full length album. We’ve been on the road almost constantly during the month of June. We’ve spent three weeks in France and Belgium and then ran back across the States to Long Beach, California for the Ink & Iron Show, which was a really big show. Then we had two days to wash clothes and come back to London.
Larry: Then we come over here and the weather’s exactly the same as it is in Seattle!
Rob: If you want to know what the weather’s like in Tacoma and Seattle, it’s just like this!
Are there any tours or festival appearances planned for the future?
Rob: We actually had a tour set up this past April in Japan, starting in Tokyo, but they had that unfortunate disaster over there and the tour got pushed back. What we’re understanding now from the Japanese promoters is that we’ll be back over there for late Winter or early Spring time. We’re sad about that as we have a big fan base in Japan and are all looking forward to going over there.
Finally, what music are you guys listening to at the moment? Do you like any current British music?
Rob: I like all different kinds of music. There are bands that we play together with at these shows that we’ve never met before and become friends with. One I can name in particular is The Detroit Cobras. They’re great guys and girls and we had a great time working with them! I worked out a t-shirt swap with the bass player, so I’ve got a Detroit Cobras t-shirt and he’s running around Detroit with a Sonics t-shirt. We know The Fuzztones quite well and have performed with them in the past.
We’ve become friends with a number of different groups. In my case, most particularly The Hives from Sweden. We’re pretty good friends with them. I exchange emails with one of the guys. When we played Stockholm a year ago they surprised the crowd and came out and did the encore with us. Pelle (Almqvist) sang ‘The Witch’. Rock musicians aren’t supposed to say they like anything apart from rock music but I love Cajun music. I also love listening to Bluegrass.
When we were here the time before last, one of the groups that opened for us was The Horrors. As a matter of fact, I think they’re even more popular now than they were a couple of years ago. They had a big record out I understand? Nice lads.
Larry: Yeah, nice guys. Pete Doherty was supposed to make an appearance also. But he shunned us off! Everyone expected that though!
Yep, it’s that time of the year again! (Although it seems to have come along a little earlier this year). Sonisphere 2011 is upon us, and is currently doing the rounds in mainland Europe with blistering performances from the likes of Judas Priest and Mastodon. This year, however, it’s the UK’s turn to witness the Big Four of thrash – Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax – together on these shores for the first time in history, and it’s arguably this which has made Sonisphere one of the most eagerly anticipated festivals of 2011.
Crossfire will be in attendance, so watch out for our review of the festival afterwards. In the meantime, here’s a list of bands that we’re looking forward to; from the huge Apollo Stage big guns to the up and coming talent that will be gracing the smaller stage. There’s something for everyone here, so get involved!
Slayer (Apollo Stage, Friday)
Arguably the most respected of the Big Four (as well as the only one to still boast all four original members), Slayer celebrate their 30th anniversary this year, but 2009’s ‘World Painted Blood’ album is proof enough that these thrash veterans haven’t mellowed with age. If there was a nuclear holocaust tomorrow, they’d probably still be rocking out amongst the cockroaches, but for now, the smart money’s on them inciting the craziest pits at Sonisphere.
Mastodon (Apollo Stage, Sunday)
What we can we say about this lot? Well, all you need to do is watch thier spankling brand new video here and decide for yourself if this is not one of the raddest bands that will play this festival. Get in there.
Motorhead (Apollo Stage, Sunday)
Some people (mainly fools) complain that Motorhead’s songs all sound the same – and whilst it’s true that Lemmy and co. have never given much thought to musical evolution, neither would you if you could play filthy, gut-level rock n’ roll as well as the ‘Head do. Nearly 40 years in the game, and they’re still delivering the musical equivalent of a gigantic one-finger salute. Expect to hear the classics (‘Bomber’, ‘Ace Of Spades’, ‘Overkill’, etc.) plus maybe a track or two from their surprisingly good recent album, ‘The World Is Yours’.
Gallows (Saturn Stage, Saturday)
The beauty of a Gallows show is that you never know exactly what you’re going to get. With a suitably livewire stage presence, a penchant for audience participation, and rumours of new songs nearing completion, theirs is not going to be the most predictable of sets. That said, the likes of ‘London Is The Reason’ and ‘Abandon Ship’ are arguably the finest marriage of hardcore fury and rock n’ roll awagger that you’ll hear all weekend.
Revoker (Red Bull Bedroom Jam, Saturday)
Coming across rather like a evil hybrid of Stone Temple Pilots, Machine Head and early 90’s Metallica, these upstarts are cut from a more abrasive cloth than the majority of their South Wales musical brethren. It’s still early days for Revoker, but they have determination and vigour on their side, and are sure to give it 100% at Sonisphere.
Cancer Bats (Bohemia Stage, Sunday)
Brace yourselves for this lot, because they’re gonna hit the festival like a sonic wrecking-ball of a band. The Canadian hardcore quartet seem to be getting better (and heavier) with time, and with the indefatigable presence of Liam Cormier on vocals (seriously, this man has no ‘off’ button), they could well be the Bohemia stage’s crowning glory.
Cerebral Ballzy (Red Bull Bedroom Jam, Friday)
Long week at work/school? Well, remove your brain, pop it in its spongebag, and then get yourself down the front for Cerebral Ballzy; five guys from Brooklyn who deal in short, sharp bursts of wonderfully sloppy hardcore punk, and who aren’t afraid to revel in their own idiocy. Full video interview coming from them very soon from their date at Camden Crawl, watch this space.
Turbowolf (Bohemia Stage, Sunday)
There’s something slightly unhinged about Turbowolf. Maybe it’s the way that vocalist Chris prowls the stage, seemingly more hungry for the audience’s blood than their approval. Maybe it’s the way ‘Bite Me Like A Dog’ kicks its way into your subconscious in a mass of skewed electronics and thunderous riff action. Or maybe it’s the band’s ability to whip a room into a writhing, slamming, sweaty mass of bodies wherever they go. Either way…go see.
Young Legionnaire (Red Bull Bedroom Jam, Friday)
The brainchild of former yourcodenameis:milo singer/guitarist Paul Mullen and Bloc Party bassist Gordon Moakes, you might not expect them to be the most hard-rocking of bands, but you’d be wrong. Debut album ‘Crisis Works’ is a mix of scratchy post-hardcore guitars and bowel-loosening grooves, with Mullen roaring himself hoarse over the top of it all. Essential stuff.
The Massacre was heavily missed by many last year so organisation for this one started as far back as the beginning of August to make sure it was going to happen. With no room for a mini ramp at Vauxhall’s Hidden Club, Matthew Bromley’s idea to have a skate sticker exhibition caught on amongst 12 of London’s best skate art illustrators and the Toxic Wasters exhibition took its place. We did miss the ramp though, so next year we will try our hardest to get it back into the mix for you.
