IN A COUNTRY FULL OF PEOPLE
who are hungry for money, musicians and otherwise, this band has a different view that most will find quite refreshing. Nick Cudone, guitarist for Carbon Tigers, told us all about their quest to be heard, so much so that he even mentioned taking it for free. “If you love our music and it reaches you, then please take it, but share it with your friends! If you can spare some money, that’s great,” he explained. The band strives to push and exhaust themselves as artists, but in a way that is inviting for listeners of all tastes, which actually ends up setting them apart. With the recent release of their incredible album, The Wars At Home, the band found themselves pulling from all different genres. Cudone explained how it’s entirely collaborative; members Chris Wienke (vocals/guitar/ bass), Aaron Sweatt (bass/guitar/keys/vocals), Darien Williams (drums/vocals), and Nick Cudone (guitar/vocals) all brought their own elements to the record, and there isn’t one song on the album that was totally written by one person alone. Usually, they’ll have one person who brings in an idea, whether it is a couple bars of a melody or a chord progression, and then they jam on that idea. From there, everyone throws out ideas, which they try, and decide if it works, before moving on to the next part. Chris usually focuses on sketching out lyric ideas and brings them to the rest of the band, where they’ll complete a similar process. And it wasn’t just the band providing input either. Carbon Tigers worked with several different individuals on the album: Jon Alvin (producer), Mike Watts (mixer), and Ed Brooks (master). They met Jon back in October, who told the band he would take them out of their comfort zone, forcing them to work with fast and slow tempos, changing the keys of songs and figuring out their roles in the band without falling back on their tendencies on musicians. They were all excited immediately after the meeting and knew that’s whom they wanted to work with. Cudone described how sometimes he has a hard time deciding whether or not Jon was a producer or a spiritual middleman that mediated their relationship with music. Mike Watts had mixed everything they recorded before the album, as well as a bunch of albums that they love. The band already knew that he was incredibly talented and felt working with him again was a no-brainer. When they started writing The Wars At Home, it had been a long time since they’d recorded anything. In a way, it seemed like they were rediscovering who they were as a band and as individuals. They went through a long process of pre-production which yielded many different songs and a new identity. They would have conversations where they would ask, “What kind of band do we want to be like?” They created a Spotify playlist, which was shared amongst the band, where they could add any song they wanted. Someone would add a song because they liked how the song transitioned, how the vocals sounded, the way the lyrics drew them in, or maybe just to say, “This is a song I’m listening to right now and I’m stoked on it.” It became a very diverse palette of songs, where one minute you could be listening to Queens of the Stone Age, and the next minute Stevie Wonder. Cudone discovered within the recording process that they’re a band that truly embraces all music. They listen to everything and ask, “What can we take from this?” and “How does this influence us?” It’s easy to see that this wasn’t an album that they just pushed out to have music to sell, and all of the influences from the different genres really come through on the five tracks. The Wars At Home had one of the longest recording processes for the band, but in the end it worked in the band’s favor.
“It was as if we were told to jump in an ocean and if we kept swimming, we would eventually reach some sort of metaphorical destination. Well, turns out if you swim for a really time you end up really exhausted, not knowing where you are, and wanting to give up. I know this concept has been shared by other artists as well, but it’s that existing struggle during the recording process that has made us the band and individuals that we are. What we create is from how we interpret our influences and the emotional abstractions from within us… It was mostly grueling, sometimes satisfying, and in the end, humbling process. I think I speak for everyone when I say: we would do it all over again if we could,” Cudone said. Now that the album’s out, the next question was naturally when the band is going to tour, so fans around the country can hear the new songs! Right now, they are only able to do “weekend warrior gigs.” At the time being because of day jobs and financial obligations, the time isn’t right for a tour. They want to get their music out there and play everywhere, but right now they’re focused on creating a good following in the Midwest. Chicago has offered the band many opportunities and ways to reach listeners. All of which wouldn’t be possible if it weren’t for all the people that willingly offer up their time and resources to support and create a diverse and vibrant music scene. Though it is not always an easy feat, Cudone feels that they probably wouldn’t be a band anymore if they weren’t from the city. But caring about what they do and being motivated, they know they can make touring happen. They’ve definitely faced and gone through a lot of struggles, including having all of their Facebook fans being deleted, their van and gear stolen, and losing key members/friends. After having everything stolen, they had no idea how they were going to start playing music again. They were going to shows via public transit and sharing gear with all the other bands. “Luckily, there are a ton of amazing people in this world who donated money to help us get back on our feet. We continue to overcome these struggles because we truly believe in what we do. I think we all understand and have the idea instilled in our mind that this is a band. It’s vulnerable to failure. We know that the problems that come our way and the mistakes are actually opportunities. Also, we’ve been through so much at this point that anytime a problem comes our way I always remind myself, ‘We’ve been through this before, we’re fine, and where are we playing next?’” Cudone expressed. Fortunately, there have also been positive moments to keep them going. Putting out this album is certainly one of them, if not the very best moment so far. Every note, chord, word, beginning, and ending has a direct connection to the band, which they are very proud of. Being able to translate musically in the way that they have is also an achievement for them. The ultimate dream would of course be to be able to solely focus on music and not have to worry about the “little” things, like having health insurance. But even then, they’re constantly thinking about what’s next and creating something that’s better than the last. Cudone explained, “Although that may sound like a struggle, rather than ‘living the dream,’ learning how to appreciate the struggle is the dream.” INTERVIEW & STORY: Daisy Matietta
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