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rOBIN bLACK Instant Classic - Glam Rock's Wake Up Call
Interviews with The Goo Goo Dolls, Simple Plan, Jesse Malin The Quireboys, The Explosion, Michael Thomas & FastBack - plus CD & Live Reviews
Teenage Casket Co.
"Superb...an abundance of attitude" 7/10 - Powerplay Magazine
Debut Album Available Now!
End of Tour Show 19th May Madam JoJos, Soho www.flagpromotions.com
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Okay, okay I'm late I know. Well not just late, very fuckin late this time round. This current issue of TrashPit 'should' have been out at the beginning of March but numerous delays and me not pulling my finger out has meant things have been set back a little. Hey don't shoot me I vowed never to set myself deadlines with this thing anyway! Not that I'm complaining, things have been going really well elsewhere in our slowly expanding empire. Not only did we have our first successful TrashPit gig back in January but we've also released the first album under TrashPit Records. The debut album from Teenage Casket Company (bass player sure looks familiar!) arrived at the beginning of April and fingers crossed more releases are to follow plus even more live gigs in the pipeline. Plans are also underway for a brand new website. Many reasons for this one
issue 7
but mainly so it's easier to stay on top of reviews and keep things up to date. We're so inundated with stuff it's hard to find space to review it all so this should help with that. Keep your eyes peeled for this in the very near future. Finally I want to give a shout out to everyone that's helped put this issue together, for all the reviews that have been sent in and for everyone that has pestered me about when it's due out. It's awesome to have Robin Black once again on the cover of the magazine and much deserved too - fuck does that new record rule or what?! Thanks also to Robby Takac and Michelle Novick for hanging in for me despite numerous time differences and missed emails - great to finally hook up. Till next time... I'll try not too leave as long till the next one okay?!
• TRASHPIT Issue 7 - Summer 2005 • Editor - ROB LANE • All Articles, Reviews & Photographs by ROB LANE unless otherwise stated. © 2005 For What It’s Worth Promotions Robin Black - Paula Wilson www.paulawilsonphoto.com • Jesse Malin & Simple Plan - courtesy of Ian Cheek Press • The Explosion - courtesy of James Sherry • Quireboys - UTM • Spike - James Wright • Seb Bach - George Chin • Keri Kelli - Jane Ushwell • David Lee Roth - Jeff Findley www.jfindley.com • Acey Slade - Sam Gower • Michael Thomas - www.michaelthomas19.com • Goo Goo Dolls - courtesy of Michelle Novick
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w e v i D Re s Robin Black Instant Classic
Collective Soul Youth
Venus Records / EMI
EL Music Group
Only someone as cocky as Robin 'Fuckin' Black would have the bottle to call an album 'Instant Classic'. The debut album from several years ago was a shot in the arm for the seemingly dead glam rock scene and proved that this music could still deliver on a large, original and most importantly exciting scale. Now Black and his band feel this new album can do that and much more - too 'fuckin' right! Add to these five glam monsters the talents of producer Bob Ezrin (Alice Cooper / KISS) and you have a dynamite combination. Classic seems to be the operative word, not only does it deliver with 'songs' but it also has a cool vintage, familiar feel throughout and could easily sit against classic Cooper and KISS yet cleverly still sounds fresh. There's the venomous spit of 'Why Don't You Love Me', 'This One's Gonna Hurt You Bad' and the glam rock rally call of 'Over You' whilst the band push their song writing skills to the max on 'Seventeen' which has one of the slickest arrangements you'll hear - who said glam rock couldn't be clever? A fantastic album that lives up to it's cocky as fuck name! 9/10
Bon Jovi 100 Million Bon Jovi Fans Can't Be Wrong
Unique is perhaps the only word to describe Collective Soul. Arriving along with bands like Everclear at the tail end of grunge they were another act to combine melodic rock with the Seattle sound. They immediately gained a huge fan base in America and each album they produce has a very similar feel but at the same time they're each totally different - that sounds mad I know! Every track they put their mark on carves it's own style and the band have never been afraid to add in anything to make the song work. On 'Youth' they've once again stretched their musical talents and put together a collection of stunning compositions. Each song is melodic, powerful and scarily catchy and the production is as usual, mind blowing and unpredictable. No longer having a grunge tag, something they shed way back on their earlier albums has allowed Collective Soul to just be a great fucking band which are hard to describe in mere words - they are a band that demand a listen to which the rewards are endless. 8/10
Crucified Barbara In Distortion We Trust GMR
Mercury I'd read the majority of the tracks on this boxset were taken from the early 'classic' albums wrong! Most are from Jovi's dull nineties period when they were desperate to find a new identity and direction. There are good songs on here - 'Edge of a Broken Heart' is a gem from the 'Slippery' sessions plus 'Radio Saved My Life Tonight' and the Sambora track 'If I Can't Have You' are also strong inclusions. These are unfortunately weighed down by jaded Springsteen rip offs 'Thief Of Hearts' and 'Last Chance Train'. As for the DVD it's laughable how a band who have piles of unseen footage in the vault have the nerve release this - the band talking about numerous sub standard songs with footage from the 'AAA' video which most fans already have! This could and should have been so good, but fifty tracks and ten bland interviews later I'm left deflated, wondering exactly what it was I loved about them in the first place! ROB WYLDE 4/10
Whilst The Donnas head off into Seventies chilled out rock territory, Swedish all girl quartet Crucified Barbara have the sleazy thrash market all sewn up and just don't try and take that crown off them! Guitar heavy and attitude aplenty, Crucified Barbara can kick it with the best out there. At times it's all a little tongue in cheek and hopefully not to be taken too seriously with song titles such as the title track, 'Motorfucker', 'I Wet Myself' and 'Rock n Roll Hangover' and even the band members have names like Mia Coldheart and Nicki Wicked! Sweden seems to specialise in sleazy beer drinking hard rock such as The Backyard Babies, Hardcore Superstar and The Hellacopters who effectively know the power to be had by delivering a no nonsense guitar riff and an in your face vocal. Crucified Barbara are well aware of this too and make good use of it on this powerful guitar wielding release. 6/10
Days Of Worth The Western Mechanism Visible Noise Charging squarely through the open door which The Lost Prophets burst through last year come their new label mates Days Of Worth. Already earning themselves praise from all corners of the rock press, Days Of Worth deliver a passionate blend of epic and soaring rock tracks. Praise is earned to the band for not really conforming to any particular style - sometimes a little alternative, other times perhaps emo (whatever that really is) and at times even a little progressive. Unfortunately, this also makes it hard to latch onto what the band are doing as there are no real solid hooks other than the obvious single choice 'Take Me Through' to grab the casual listener and this could make it hard for them to make a mark on a larger scale than the UK underground. Some cool ideas are constantly on show though which can hopefully be built upon as the band continue to build their fan base out on tour. 5/10
The Donnas Gold Medal Atlantic The magic behind The Donnas sound is that they sound and look like they've been transported direct from the 70's but still manage to sound fresh and vibrant. The fact they're four hot looking ladies who rock is one hell of an added bonus for the male rock audience too! This time around the band have hooked up with power pop legend Butch Walker to work his magic on their new collection of punk rock candy tunes. It's something of a slow burner compared to the instant explosion that was their last album 'Spend The Night' but 'Gold Medal' stands on it's own with it's personal sound and vibe. 'Don't Break Me Down' builds on an Eagles meets KISS riff and lead single 'Fall Behind Me' is perfect movie soundtrack fodder. This is classic rock and roll songwriting which screams for late nights and sweaty bars and clubs. 'It's So Hard' and the country swagger of the title track ooze sultry vocals and atmosphere which combine to produce an album that sets The Donnas apart from the trend following rock acts currently out there. 7/10
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CALLING ALL UNSIGNED / NEW BANDS TrashPit will be running a new column featuring unsigned and new bands in future issues. Send demos / CD's to the address at the front of the mag.
Enuff Z'Nuff ? Frontiers / Perris Very few bands reach double figures in the number of albums they put out in their career but Enuff Z'Nuff have returned with their 13th long player! This is without a doubt a landmark album for the band as it sees the reuniting line up of the classic EZN with core writers Donnie Vie and Chip Z'Nuff alongside drummer Vickie Foxx and Derek Frigo, just prior to his untimely death last year. It is perhaps the strongest collection of songs the band have released in sometime and combines their unique combination of huge vocal harmonies and hard rock backbone which was what set them apart from the hair band crowd of the eighties. Diverse songs styles from the appropriately titled 'Gorgeous', the hard rock stomp of 'Hang On For Life' and the absurdly titled but infectious 'Joni Woni (Likes to Ride the Pony)' work well against the contrasting balladic and beautiful 'How Are You'. Aside from a couple of far too plodding numbers such as 'Harleya' it's a rewarding album that cements the bands claim as one of America's finest hard rock bands of the past few decades. 7/10
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www.trashpit.co.uk Everclear Ten Years Gone 1994 - 2004 Capital / EMI
Emerging to popularity at the tail end of grunge music's reign, Everclear are one of the few bands to survive and manage to grow to even greater heights. Their secret comes down to balancing the angst and energy that made grunge music so successful and fresh but inject into it their own catchy as hell melodies and hooks. Everclear are just a great band whose music never really holds boundaries from hard rock through funk, acoustic rock and radio ready pop, and it's this that has allowed them to grow and now deliver such an accomplished 'Best Of'. This is as definitive as any collection spanning a decade can be and picks pieces from every era of the bands career from the early 'World of Noise' release through their essential 'Songs From An American Movie' albums and beyond - alongside a couple of bonus unreleased tracks. Main man Art Alexakis gives a great insight into the songs on the albums liner notes making this a cool time capsule of a career that hopefully has many more great songs of this quality to come. 8/10
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The Explosion Black Tape
FULC Embrace.Destroy
Virgin / Tarantula
Stunted Records
I'll be honest and say it's not very often, particularly today, that I hear a band out of the blue and I'm instantly hooked but here's an exception! Just when you think modern day punk had become far too predictable and watered down, The Explosion come along with their debut major label release and totally turn things around. I'm not going to try to name check and compare to classic 'credible' punk rock because I'd be out of my depth but all I know is that 'Black Tape' has the angst driven raw feel of great intense rock n' roll but fleshed out with just the right amount of polish from the modern day. The moment lead single 'Here I Am' burst from the speakers it reminded me of the Goo Goo Dolls in their 'Hold Me Up' era raw as fuck but sooo damn catchy and this is evident through the twelve non stop salvos of chant along, fist punching anthems which spill from this album. It seems in punk circles that it's not cool to 'sell out' and sign with a major label - fuck that, The Explosion have just used this to deliver some mighty fine rock music to the masses! 8/10
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This new EP from FULC serves as a showcase for the band's blend of heavy sensitivity. Even in the darker moments we never doubt the sincerity of the lyrics, sung with deep conviction by vocalist/guitarist Duane Walker. It's this that acts as FULC's greatest weapon. You can't move in the charts for massproduced, factory line rock so when something so full of eager angst and catchy riffs turns up, so does the volume on the CD player. FULC take the emotional sentiment from early grunge, twist it for the 21st century and become a filter for Pearl Jam and all that followed, with a refreshing originality. Unlike some, however, FULC don't just rehash everything we've heard before. There's enough new stuff on here to reward the repeated listen. The thrashier sound of 'Wasting' switches to the more melodic, yet edgy sound of 'System', a stand-out live track that hasn't lost too much in the studio recording. Hopefully, when the full-length LP appears FULC will be able to keep the same high standard they've set here. TRIS WALKER 8/10
The Ga Ga's Tonight the Midway Shines
Visit the TrashPit Website FluidSol FluidSol Atenzia
Breaking away from what you're known for in music can be a hard and often dangerous journey. Adapting your style to fit into current trends often backfires and very few artists manage to do it well and with genuine conviction. When it was mentioned that rock legend Mitch Malloy was bringing a more modern Foo Fighters-esque edge to his sound you could hear AOR purists gasp and snarl in their droves. Essentially with FluidSol it has merely allowed Malloy to present his same classic songwriting style under a new identity. For those who know him, this is essentially the best Mitch Malloy album you've heard since his debut. For everyone else it is a great sounding pop rock record which could easily deliver several hit singles in the form of the insanely hooky power pop of 'I'm On Your Radio' and soaring 'No Fear' yet it also has darker moments such as 'Be With You', 'Can't Stop' and 'I Want You'. FluidSol is yet another chapter from one of rocks most underrated performers and songwriters which only continues to solidify but also open up a new crowd to this exceptional talent. 7/10
Sanctuary For some reason The Ga Ga's have been pigeonholed as bringing 'Cock Rock' back to the UK music scene. Wherever that's come from is bizarre. Sure the band look cool and their sound is one that could maybe attract fans of commercial good time rock but there's no real direct comparisons to the LA glory days of the eighties. The Ga Ga's hold without a doubt an English rock sound through and through which falls squarely into Wildhearts and Feeder territory and one that moves from powerful riffage like 'Left of The Centre' through to the more thoughtful and anthemic 'Crash & Burn', shifting gear into several styles and levels. The sound throughout is very in your face and the riffs flow effectively from a very technically adept band with a real passion for rock music and it's something currently packing out venues throughout the country. Hopefully it can transcend to the next level and see The Ga Ga's move up to world beating status. 7/10
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The Glitterati The Glitterati
Billy Idol Devil's Playground
Atlantic
Sanctuary
A band that seem to be permanently out on tour and being honed as one of the pioneers of new British Rock, Leeds band The Glitterati have arrived with their debut album and now it's time to see if all the hype and talk is justified. Certainly opening tracks 'Betterman' and 'You Got Nothing On Me', sound cool when cranked to ten and are sure to be great dance floor fillers on the UK Rock club scene. And so they should when you've got producer Mike Clink (Guns n Roses) behind the desk! 'Betterman' in particular holds some great lead guitar from John Emsley and vocalist Paul Gautrey certainly possesses a top rock voice. For the most part the album follows a similar path with a real drunken Jet-like swagger and it's only really on closing track 'Keep Me Up All Night' that the band slow the pace and offer some more colour to the mix which the album would benefit from more of as it all becomes a little repetitive in it's delivery, struggling at times to hold the attention. Throughout there are some great ideas and spark but whether it's enough to grab the mainstream only time will tell. 6/10
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A decade's silence has done little to tame the larger than life legend that it is Billy Idol. Not only has he returned kicking and screaming from out of nowhere but he's brought with him a great comeback album perfectly timed for the current 'rock revolution'. Dropping simple Ramones style dirty riffs and lead guitar theatrics of long time songwriting partner Steve Stevens to the unmistakeable snarling vocals of the peroxide punk rocker gives you a real explosive combination. Idol doesn't waste the opportunity to throw a few curve balls either on 'Devils Playground' alongside the expected anthemic style of 'Super Overdrive' and 'Scream'. 'Sherri' is a great singalong, radio punk anthem and 'Plastic Jesus' serves up an almost Bowie like feel and it's added spice like this that has made for one of this years most unexpected and downright exciting returns for one of the industry's most charismatic
Jetboys of Babylon A Tribute to The New York Dolls
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Goo Goo Dolls Live in Buffalo Warner Bros
Imagine after months of preparation and planning to record a live album at an outdoor show in the middle of an American summer the day arrives and the heavens open and one of the cities most intense rain storms in recent years unleashes itself on you! That was the situation that faced The Goo Goo Dolls last year when they recorded this stunning CD/DVD release and it's all here for us to witness. Rather than letting the potential disaster run it's course the band soldiered on through the pounding rain and have delivered perhaps one of the most unique live records you're likely to own. Admittedly, the track list is nothing unusual, the expected solid collection of epic radio friendly anthems from 'Slide', 'Here is Gone' and the massive 'Iris' combined with a new studio version of Supertramp's 'Give a Little Bit'. But it's the way the band have presented all this to us in one highly unique time capsule which continues to cement their reputation as one of the finest bands to come from America in the last ten years. 8/10
Fast Lane Records / CD Smash The legendary New York Dolls were perhaps known more for their image and reputation rather than their music but today they are heralded as being a major influence on bands that have followed. Once again FastLane Records and CD Smash have lovingly compiled another tribute CD that brings together a varied range of musicians and artists to pay homage to a legendary act. It is very much a niche market that tribute albums attract but here it's done with a real passion and care. Dolls frontman David Johansen guest vocals with Frankenstein 3000 on 'Babylon' and elsewhere we see the likes of The Alarm, Crash Kelly and The Napoleon Blownaparts add their own contributions. The songs hold firm the drunken bar room Stones feel which the Dolls delivered in their short career and it's a style that hasn't been hard for the bands to recreate effectively on an album that is a fitting tribute to the bands legacy. 6/10
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Johnny Monaco Your Secret's Not Safe With Me Teaser EP Johnnymonaco.com The secret ingredient in the Enuff Z'Nuff music machine, Johnny Monaco, is finally getting set to release his new solo album and this teaser EP shows that it could be huge! Monaco has always had a finger on the pulse and openly been very pop orientated so now's the time to put that into practice. A quirky computerised keyboard riff injects a great feel to 'The Wrong Crowd' alongside Johnny's gravelly pop voice. Where Enuff ZNuff lean more towards old school Beatles, Monaco takes that song writing skill and throws in a modern day Weezer and Fountains Of Wayne college rock feel which could reap great rewards as this has a timeless power pop feel that would work equally as well live as it does on CD. Considering this whole EP has been written, performed and recorded by Monaco himself proves what an underrated and unexposed talent he is but that could be all set to change once this album is launched to the world. 8/10
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Plunge Hometown Hero Atenzia Earning hard rock stripes in new breed rockers SR-71, Mike Ruocco has moved from bass player to frontman for the release of his latest side project Plunge. Opener 'Running Away' scarily treads in Creed territory - all overblown anthemic American rock and far too serious. Thankfully from here the band move very much in 40ft Ringo territory which continues for most of the album - all big hooks and more cheery melodies. 'Wasted On Your Love' hides some real eighties style backing vocals and 'Part Time Girlfriend' and 'Ordinary Girl' are feel good rock stomps that scream for summer time radio play. Plunge also effectively lend their hand to Vertical Horizon style anthems the likes of 'Scared' and 'One More Time' which add some light and shade. It's never really anything new and Plunge seem to be playing a safe hand with 'Hometown Hero' but overall it's a solid, hard rock album that is worthy diving into if you get chance. 6/10
Simple Plan Still Not Getting Any
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www.trashpit.co.uk Motley Crue Red, White & Crue Mercury Records
It's amazing how perhaps five or six years ago nobody other than the glam rock fraternity gave a damn bit of interest in LA's most notorious sons Motley Crue, yet today they're being heralded as legends by the journalists of NME and Rolling Stone! The current reunion tour has been hyped up well beyond belief and every rock teenager is ditching the Limp Bizkit and Slipknot jerseys in favour of a 'Too Fast For Love' re-issue! Not that it's unwarranted, the Crue certainly pioneered the hair band generation (even though Nikki Sixx constantly shuns it) and they do have some mighty fine tunes! Regardless of how many Greatest Hits packages the band already have 'Red, White & Crue' is still an awesome overload of quality rock excess. From 'Live Wire' through 'Wild Side', 'Kickstart My Heart', 'Primal Scream', the Corabi led 'Hooligan's Holiday' and brand new song 'If I Die Tomorrow' this is certainly a worthy addition to any rock fan or younger glam converts CD collection and one that is perfectly timed for the bands return to arenas this summer. 8/10
Lava On their debut album 'No Pads, No Helmets... Just Balls' Canadian rockers Simple Plan effectively drew the line between people loving their radio punklite tunes or being despised by their scarily, almost Busted like anthems which had punk purists retching in the gutter! This time round the band have stepped things up a level and brought on board legendary producer Bob Rock to add some much needed edginess to their already infectious songwriting skills. 'Still Not Getting Any' sheds the punk pop appeal of the debut and leans more into hard rock territory which seems to fit the band much better in a similar way to which Lit did some time ago. Opening tracks 'Shut Up' and 'Welcome to My Life' pitch the bands claim as perhaps a more 'serious' outfit this time out and this continues on the pounding 'Me Against The World'. Although songs such as 'Jump' scream of being a desperate live show call to arms you have to consider the fact that Motley Crue have picked up on the bands 'throwaways' for their recent Greatest Hits collection so it seems that Simple Plan are set to grow into a mighty fine rock band - punk pop no more. 7/10
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Swirl 360 California Blur
Trivium Ascendancy
Atenzia
Roadrunner
Victims of music industry shakeups and label upheavals, brothers Kenny and Danny Scott have put all those experiences into words and music for the second release from their band Swirl 360. On initial listens the songs wash over you with little impact but suddenly the melodies become infectious and take hold - the sign of any really good album with a lifespan. Imagine a modern day Journey with slightly alternative leanings and arrangements, songs with promise and genuine feel. It's a sound that could attract the many legions of old school AOR fans but also creep onto alternative US radio and cast it's spell for future success. 'Oblivion' delivers those Journey-esque moments in mass and 'See You Around' has a great Nine Days pace that lifts the album mid way through. The sound may be a little safe for British rock audiences but anyone that gives this album chance to deliver will be rewarded big time! 7/10
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Watch out for a brand new TrashPit website to be launched in the next few months - more interviews, more reviews and much more Rock! www.trashpit.co.uk
Teenage Casket Company Dial It Up TrashPit Records
Do you like rock music to include Rock n Roll slithering with attitude, glam for added sparkle and instantly likeable tunes that make your toes wanna tap? Oh you do? Well 'Dial It Up' meets those requirements. This is the debut album from quartet Teenage Casket Company who if you were lucky enough to get your hands on a copy of the album taster demo you’ll already have had your appetite whetted thanks to top tunes 'Down On Luck', 'Bad Girl' and 'Another Part Of Me'. The seven songs that join these on the album are just as appeasing. Title track 'Dial It Up' stubbornly embeds itself in your head, whirling round there for ages: 'Cmon cmon, you really got it going on...' la la la, catchy bugger whilst powerful rockers 'Story Of My Life' and 'Hell To Pay' come out fighting too. All in all, each song is a winner and 'Dial It Up' is a great debut offering so get your copy now. PENNY GOWER 7/10
Perhaps the most intense and heavy album to hit the pages of TrashPit is the new release from Trivium. A brutal collection of intense, technical songs from a scarily young band (the oldest being 22) that has seen them explode onto the hardcore thrash scene. Surprisingly though within the headstrong train wreck of riffs and pounding drum beats is a strong sense of melody and structure. Like The Lost Prophets sped up ten times and force fed Slayer for a year it gives the songs their own identity rather than blending into one overpowering mess. 'Rain' and 'Pull Harder...' work this style to great effect and bring together a Metallica growl alongside an almost Hundred Reasons hook. The album's artwork whilst impressive seems to somewhat date the modern day sound of this powerhouse young band but this is something that is unlikely to affect the unstoppable rush that Trivium have unleashed onto the metal scene. 6/10
Wednesday 13 Transylvania 90210 Roadrunner Who would have thought that heavy as fuck tunes could be this much fun? The secret formula that worked so well for The Murderdolls has been transported into the basement morgue of frontman Wednesday 13 and been reworked and revamped for his debut solo album. It's hard to resist tracks such as 'Post Mortem Boredom', 'I Walked With A Zombie' (thrash horror rock with handclaps!!) and 'I Want You...Dead'. It's a Frankenstein hybrid of musical styles which have shaped the horror fan vocalist - imagine Tuff meets White Zombie and you come close, 'Bad Things' could easily be Tuff vocalist Stevie Rachelle had he been on a steady diet of horror films and Ministry! It's this genuine love and excitement that has allowed Wednesday 13 to infect thousands of fans the world over and bring back fun and energy to hard rock without having it be sugar coated and safe. How far this idea and style can stretch will be interesting to see but for now just grab onto this rock and roll fright machine and enjoy the ride. 7/10
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Simple Plan Rock and and a a Harder Harder place place Rock Pinch Simple Plan guitarist Jeff Stinco and he'd probably expect to wake up from a dream. Not only did he get the opportunity to tour the world on the success of his bands debut album but for their sophomore release 'Still Not Getting Any' the band teamed up with legendary hard rock producer Bob Rock who has injected a great deal of added weight to the bands already infectiously catchy songwriting talents. Not only that but Motley Crue have used one of the bands songs on their new Greatest Hits record! Stinco really does think he's dreaming but it's all reality which TrashPit recently found out. How did the writing and recording of the new album compare to your debut. Is it all brand new material or are some of the songs and ideas from some time ago? The whole recording process this time was so much more fun and the whole vibe so much better. There were ideas that came out right after the tour last year then we started writing for like three months then went into the studio. We didn't really stay in the studio that long, it was mainly the writing that took the most time. It was just awesome to work with Bob Rock - great producer, great person and he really helped us be as focussed as we could be and helped us to achieve what we intended to do in the first place which was to make a real rock, live sounding record.
How did you end up recording the album with Bob Rock? Was that through the record company or through another contact? It's a really weird thing. We were looking for producers and we had this list of five ultimate producers we wanted to work with and he was on that list for sure. He was working with a band on the same management company as us and he actually approached the company himself and asked what Simple Plan were doing! It just worked out from that. How much of a fan were you of his previous work? Are there any particular albums that he's produced that you're fond of?
Motley's 'Dr Feelgood' is just a great sounding record and has all these cool ideas. All his records though just sound bigger than life and 'more' than the band. It's almost like an enhanced version, so big and so rock which was exactly what we wanted. We wanted to avoid the whole pop punk producing style of things, there's a lot of techniques which those bands tend to use and we wanted to get away from that. Bob would also tell us all these cool stories about Motley, Aerosmith and Bon Jovi - really crazy ass stories! I guess the lifestyle we do just makes us do crazy things and the stories just add up when you've been doing it so long like those bands have. What do you think he brought to sound of the band? Did he have a lot of ideas to offer the songs? The new album is a little more anthemic, tracks like 'Me Against the World' and 'One'. Everything was already there from the band but what Bob brought was a sense of focus, really brought out everybody's strengths in the band. He amplified everybody's playing and made sure we were really on top of our game. That was his main contribution, then sonically I think he just had the idea of making this sound really, really big - Can we do more? Can we make it more intense? Can we make it more raw? On the first record we tended to really perfect everything until it was almost too much but Bob is really good at finding the best take which is usually in the first two or three. He also allowed us to try new things like string sections and piano, anything that the songs needed he was up for trying. How will this new anthemic sound translate into a live setting? Really great! The beauty of this band is that there are three really great singers and all the vocals we can reproduce live. Beyond that there are a lot of tricks you can do live, and if you're clever you can take away the parts on the record which are there more for ear candy and just focus on the more important parts. We came in with the idea that we'll do whatever it takes to make this record sound great which did mean a lot of overdubs but the songs stood up with just an acoustic guitar and voice before being translated into the new arrangement so we didn't foresee an issue on the live side. We're a live band first and foremost so we knew what was gonna be necessary to translate those songs live.
What would be your ideal tour be to promote the new album? Are you happy to play for any audience or are you focussed on a certain crowd? We're a fun band that likes to throw a party at every show and that's the idea behind Simple Plan. So if you're into really fun, rockin' music but like something maybe a little deeper than your 'I'm driving my car picking up chicks' lyrics then I think you should be listening to us. I'm not targeting any particular crowd or age group, I think if you listen to Rock Music you should be able to 'get it'. Do you or the rest of the band have time for any outside projects besides Simple Plan? All of us are very, very involved in the band and it's our main priority but I have my own record label Milagro, which means 'miracle' in Spanish, back home where I try to help out bands in Canada and the USA. It's been together almost a year now and I produced a band during my holidays but I try to focus my energies on Simple Plan. I do hear great music that hasn't been commercialised yet though so I'm hoping to help those bands break as much as possible. If someone had told you ten years ago that you'd be recording your second album with the same guy who produced Motley Crue and Metallica and you'd be touring the world to promote it - what do you think your response would have been? Dude, my mom asked me when I was a kid what my biggest dream in life would be and I said 'Mom, I want to be a Rock Star'. I can't believe it - it's amazing. That was like my big dream you know and it's just unbelievable and unreal that it's happening. Bob Rock was always my favourite producer so it's just manic. If my life ended today I think I would be completely fulfilled already! 'Still Not Getting Any' is out now on Lava Records www.simpleplan.com
It's obviously very important for you to deliver killer hooks - do you think some bands overlook the impact of a great tune in favour of attitude and image? I think it's just really hard to write a catchy tune actually! It's probably harder than writing an aggressive sounding tune. To write a good song can be really hard but we just write the music we want to write. We don't think about it too much, that's just the music we like. We like really big hooks, strong melodies and big harmonies and that's what we've always been about and gravitate to it naturally. Writing that kind of music is what we do and we don't over think it you know? If certain bands don't go there maybe they just don't like it or don't have the ability to do it I'm not too sure, it's not for me to judge. We just try our best in this band to make the best songs possible.
TRaSH.
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Recently I've found myself burnt out on acoustic bands and performers. Not that I don't appreciate it (I'd be a fool to put down the most bare bones style of presenting a song with just a voice and guitar!). I'd had my fill basically. That's what made seeing singer songwriter Jesse Malin so special - I had no preconceived notion of what to expect and wasn't expecting to be blown away but I was and more! Being able to hold a crowd for almost two hours and be as animated as any frontman held up by thousands of watts of electricity comes from paying his dues punk bands to fronting the explosive D Generation in the 90's touring with Green Day and KISS. Today he is earning praise as one of the most talented songwriters around and working with the likes of Ryan Adams. To rival his subtle songwriting the broad spoken New Yorker also seems to have a darker side too and he could probably kick your ass so lets be nice! You've visited the UK a number of times now.... I've been over to the UK probably about twenty times, festivals like Glastonbury, stuff in Scotland and Ireland. The first I came through was with Green Day when I was with D Generation in 1998 when we did five weeks out with them. I like doing the big rock shows but I really like doing the stripped down shows too when it's like how you wrote the song back in your room by yourself. I like the freedom and diversity to do both, I think it's important to show the songs in different ways, have the freedom to communicate and tell some jokes.
jesse
Your stories in between songs are for me as much a highlight as the music itself and serve up another insight into your personality. Did you pull this from any other performer you've seen in the past or is it purely an extension of you as a person feeling comfortable doing that? It's just a part of me and true stories that have happened but actually it came from the necessity of tuning when I was out supporting Ryan Adams. I didn't have a guitar tech and needed to keep the guitar in tune so it came out of that! I'm also a fan of Henry Rollins, Lenny Bruce and other spoken word artists. There are lots of songs that are heavy or sad in certain ways and it's good to have that comic relief and like what Woody Allen says 'Tragedy plus time equals Comedy'. Things that are often tragic but when you look back on them and the origins of where they come from they sometimes become kinda funny so you can laugh at yourself - it's part of surviving! Do you miss the full on rock energy of playing in a band like D-Generation or do you draw that energy from other areas of music these days?
malin
I don't know, I like what I'm doing now because I feel really free with it. There's definitely moments that happen now that have energy when something connects that reminds me of those days from back when I was in Heart Attack my old hardcore band right through to today and I think when you see the show there's elements of all of that from the beginning to the end of the set. That stuff pops up somewhere in there! Do you think D Generation were perhaps the right band at the wrong time in the mid to late nineties? It was a time when rock music kind of maybe lost it's way a little. We were doing what we were doing whilst everyone else was into Pearl Jam and Soundgarden - the so called Grunge label stuff. We'd go on tour in places outside the major cities, all dressed up in like stylized kinda outfits and people would look at us like we were freaks and throw stuff at us. At the time you could blame it on the labels and they did fuck up in some ways but we were also going through at a time when people really didn't want that sort of stuff and we were also learning as we were going. My ego was out of control at the time too and we were all just experiencing things for the first time so you make a lot of mistakes. I think the business can be pretty ruthless so there's only a few people who are fortunate to be able to continue to do music so you have to be very grateful. There are a lot of people who are working at jobs they hate but every morning I get up and I don't have to do that. So I'm grateful for that but the music business still sucks! The music is good but the business isn't! You mentioned on your last tour that it was a dream come true to open for KISS some years ago but did it open up your eyes to the big rock machine and maybe dampen the experience? Yeah, I got thrown out of the venue after opening for them in New York! I'd waited my whole life for that gig then I end up getting arrested! It was weird that they'd be like 'Don't look at us whilst we're doing our soundcheck!' but offstage they were actually really nice and very supportive. It was something I must have wished for at some time in some weird life but by the time I got there I had to keep the end of the wish but it was kinda scary. Some of the people who came out to see this band probably hadn't left the house in something like twenty years! Your recent albums have opened up opportunities to perform with another range of musicians. Has anyone surprised you, either as being a fan of your material or maybe as a performer who you wouldn't perhaps have paid much attention to? I met Pete Yorn at a music convention in Hawaii and I didn't know much of his stuff and I've since become a big fan and a friend of his which is great. A lot of things you have during your journey and there's constant stuff that happens being
in from the
out there. You kind of meet people out on road at the 'crossroads' like Ryan Adams, or you meet them playing music in a parking lot or in a dressing room and something happens. I recently met Norah Jones at someone's house at like six morning and it was great just listening to her play the piano. People who you think you wouldn't like, I met Jon Bon Jovi recently at some Christmas Fund Raiser and he was a really nice guy. I'd never really listened to his music but as a person he was cool. Outlets into music have certainly changed since the 70's and 80's because of the internet and other distractions. Do you think youngsters still have that ground level, raw enthusiasm and hunger for being in a band and working hard to be a success? I don't know, I don't really get to see it these days. I think it's maybe a little easier these days because rock and punk is more mainstream, you can go to the malls and people's moms have the spiked up hairdo and Urban Outfitters sells you the clothes, even Spongebob Squarepants has Motorhead on the soundtrack you know! When I grew up you got beat up for looking different. You had to go out and find a record store because we didn't have the internet. You had to go to that wierd part of town because you couldn't get the weird underground records going into some Mom and Pop store. When your friends went to England and you wanted some different clothes you'd give them some money for Doc Martins. You had to be dedicated at that time because there were people who wanted to beat you up because they thought you looked different. I think rock music was more dangerous at that time and more of an outlaw thing. Today you can sit and watch MTV with your mom, it isn't something you'd have to sneak out to do. What are your memories of performing with Joey Ramone? There are lots of memories. We went out on tour with The Ramones in D Generation and Joey would come on our bus because he got tired travelling in the van. We'd go into a town and play on days when The Ramones were off. We'd go to a club, book a gig then Joey would find a radio station and get on the air and say he was playing with us. We'd do a set and then we'd do a set backing Joey up and pick the songs we wanted to do! He also came out to sing with me on 'Helpless' and at a New York Christmas show when we did all these Phil Spector Christmas songs I got to back him up on guitar. I got him to do 'Questioningly' which is a song they never did live and we did an acoustic version. He was just a person who loved music and was a true great soul. It was great to meet him and find he was a great person and to become his friend. He really was a believer in rock and roll. 'The Heat' is out now on One Little Indian For more information visit www.jessemalin.com
heat TRaSH.
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rOBIN bLACK It IS Big and it IS Clever!
Arguably the most exciting thing to happen to Glam Rock in the last ten years, Canada's Robin Black & The Intergalactic Rockstars exploded seemingly from out of nowhere two years ago and made the UK their new home. Now it's time to see if lightening can strike twice as the band (now with a shorter more Alice Cooper-esque name) unleash their new album 'Instant Classic' onto a generation of music fans seemingly once again craving good time and 'good looking' rock music. Not only have they matched the excitement and attitude which everyone hoped for but they have also developed into a songwriting monster of a band thanks to the help of legendary producer Bob Ezrin. TrashPit caught up with a very proud sounding Robin 'Fucking' Black and guitarist Killer Ky back in February on the eve of the album's release. How different is the new album to how you perhaps thought it would be when you began the writing and recording process? RFB: The album sort of evolved into this big rock record, everything's anthemic and bigger and more over done than even I had hoped for, and I LOVE big and over done! I think we expected to make a great record but at the risk of sounding cocky it's even better than what we had hoped for. The five of us really grew as songwriting partners, to the point were something starts with like say Starboy has an idea, by the time that song has finished it will have five guys best ideas, thoughts and feelings in there. 'Why Don't You Love Me', might just be a bunch of lyrics that I wrote down and gave to Ky which he put together on a really powerful riff, but by the time it was finished it's not just that riff and some words I wrote, it's this thing created by five dudes. We're
beginning to develop skills as one monster! Bob Ezrin really stepped up and took it a lot further than we had even hoped. We knew this guy produced some of the biggest records of all time and some our favourites but to hear my voice, the Kid's drumming and Ky's fingers playing guitar - put together with a monster producer like this guy! You've got Pink Floyd 'The Wall', KISS 'Destroyer' and now Robin Black 'Instant Classic' - it doesn't feel out of place! KY: Man, when we started writing for this album it was a different band. So we're just real happy to have a super great band right now. Everybody's in a great mood and just looking forward to all the things that are gonna happen in the next year. The production is huge and you sort of expect it when you're working with the best of the best. So I can't say I was surprised because I was expecting as much but we definitely put a lot of work into it and we're happy with the results.
Did you go back and listen to Bob Ezrin's earlier albums or was you already well familiar with his work? KY: I don't know about all the other guys but those albums are all part of my 'discography' anyway. Even though there's the experience of the past and everyone's familiar with them I think there's a modern edge to the way everything was done. Not just the sounds but the approach, there are ways to do things now that are obviously way different to how it was done in 1972! You can be in another country and send the file in a matter of seconds so the time and internet thing has made working all over the world a lot easier. RFB: It's an interesting thing to play 'Destroyer' and then play this record, you can see how Bob has evolved and how he's a better, more talented co-writer and producer than he was back then. Technology has changed so much and we can now do things that as long as we can write it and imagine it, we can record it. There's also really cool things that I hoped would be on the record like the strings and big orchestra which are on 'Lullaby' which is an old piano ballad that Ky wrote years ago. When it was shown to me I wrote some of my most very favourite lyrics which I've ever written. I loved the song so much that I wasn't going to write anything on it unless it was as brilliant as the piano part. What was the most important thing you learnt from Bob Ezrin and do you think he took anything from you guys? RFB: Bob changed the way I looked at 'anything'! This man goes through life striving to be great at whatever he does, and he won't accept anything that 'feels good' as great, no matter how good it is he'll push it until it get's to the point were it can't get any greater. It's a very common thing as a songwriter to try and convince yourself that something you've written is brilliant. You have to learn that no matter how good it might feel, you have to work harder and if you bring more to it, be more creative and spend more time it can be even greater! I know we're a great live band but because of working with an amazing guy like Bob I looked at what a great band we were but thought 'that's not great enough, we can be better! We can sound better, we can be physically better, we can put more into it' I've just constantly learned now 'how to learn'. We all want to become better songwriters, we all want to put on an even bigger show - we want to be undeniably the greatest band of all time! And we're not ashamed to say that or set out to be that way! KY: I think he learnt from us that people can be optimistic again. He works with a lot of rich people who have these big multi national deals and lots of money and I think we brought him back to the original, maybe 'childish' and not jaded way to make a record. We don't let the outside world bother us when it comes down to the band. It's just me talking and not Bob Ezrin or the rest of the band but I can imagine if you were working with one of the top bands they might get bothered because they don't have the proper shoes or there's not enough grapes on the fuckin' rider you know what I mean? One crazy thing for me was when they flew in the guitar tech by helicopter who does the guitars for Metallica and Aerosmith the morning we arrived in Vancouver! That stuff for me is really exciting and over the top! When you're working with the big boys, that's the kind of stuff that's regular. Was there any defining moment during the recording were you thought 'Oh my God - this is great!'?
RFB: There were a lot of goose bump periods during the making of the record. I have a tendency to sit in for almost every part of the recording but often not say anything. Even though I often have opinions and we're all very good at giving them, I usually don't say anything. I just like to sit there, be in the room and feel it start to grow. Like when Ky was playing the riff to 'Why Don't You Love Me' and laid another guitar track on the top, you were able to think that 'This is a monster song and once I get a piece of it, it's gonna be really crazy!'. When I was singing the lyrics on 'Lullaby' and we hadn't heard the orchestra or the strings yet, it was just Ky's piano parts and these words that I'd kept from the original idea. By the time I was done and said 'thank you' to Ky for having let me be involved in that song I had tears in my eyes and I was blown away by how beautiful that song was. I'd sat there in this room with my headphones on, in the dark with just a candle and my feet in ice! Bob had told me to get drunk before I sang it because he loved the feeling of the song and how the lyrics had ended up but it wasn't quite there. So he told me to 'drunkenly' stick my feet in ice and sing which I did and it turned out really cool and I'm really proud of it! KY: We knew it was special when we were all together in the warehouse putting together the basic tracks and seeing how good The Kid was playing and when he started laying down the drums we realised this was serious shit! Everybody was at the top of their form. What will happen to the songs deemed not strong enough for the new album - will they see the light of day in another form? RFB: We were listening to some of the old demos the other day and there's a lot of songs we really like. Starboy pulled one out the other day which I'd forgot even existed which was called 'Alpha One' and on anyone else's record this would be the best song on there! There's about ten or twenty other songs that are pretty much complete in a quality demo stage and owned by the five of us so maybe we'll throw them together for fans to buy off of our website. I love that sort of stuff as a fan of music, I love to go back and listen to some of my favourite bands earlier demos and B-sides. What do you think will surprise fans the most with the new songs? RFB: There's a few things on here that are gonna surprise people. The biggest thing that was most important to us is that we are thrilled at being the most exciting live band out there but we now wanted to be the band that had written the greatest album and had become the greatest players and songwriters. So to us, making this record had to prove to us we weren't just this really exciting arena rock band and this record needed to truly be an Instant Classic. It took a year and a half to make this record, a year and a half of six or seven people putting all their effort into it, everything creative and everything we have. I still love 'Planet Fame' but as much as I know it's a great record and people who have it do love it, it would be eclipsed by how larger than life and big and over the top our band is. I would find myself being asked questions like 'What kind of make up I wear' or 'How does it feel to sweat that much on stage?' As much as we take a great deal of pride in being this mind blowing exciting band, it's great to talk about a record, the songs and the recording process. We're just so proud of what we've become.
TRaSH.PIT
KY: Fans that really know what we're about are just gonna see it as the next logical step. The sound is bigger but the lyrics are still about our life experiences and it's a better band so the music is better. All the songs we can play on either an acoustic guitar or piano but we're putting a show together and it's gauging how the songs come off live rather than just the sound of them. It's more of a feel than the actual sound. Will the older material go through any changes live? RFB: We've added some jams and extended parts into some of the songs but we're also fairly inclined to give people the songs the way they really are. It wouldn't make a lot of sense to me to change 'So Sick Of You' into something else. I think it's a really cool, Cheap Trick pop rock song and when we play it people like it. I also like to be able to compare what we have now and put it against the older songs and be able to see the difference. We've brought back some of the pyro and lighting effects which we've always loved doing and we're still gonna be flying all over the stage, sweating, looking pretty and shakin' our nice asses but all of us as songwriters really want to have people not only say that was the most exciting show they've ever seen but also the best show they've ever heard! That's were we're at right now. How would you like the kids of today to see the new band and album? Do you maybe see this as your 'Shout at the Devil' album? RFB: It's interesting to look out and see that girls who love bands like Good Charlotte, love our band, guys who like Velvet Revolver love our band so we know that we 'fit in' to what's on the radio right now. It's not weird at all to be a guy wearing make up right now and we've had this look, sound and presentation all our lives but you look around now and see Green Day are wearing as much make up as I am! So what we do is not out of the mainstream at all. I think this record is probably our 'Destroyer', it's gonna be a defining record for us and it's a big stand alone, classic glam rock album. My new saying is that 'In 2005 every day is Robin 'Fuckin' Black Day!!'. KY: I wouldn't say it's as 'fluffy' as 'Destroyer'. When KISS fans listen to that album they like the songwriting but prefer the harder edged sound of albums like 'Hotter Than Hell' or
'Rock & Roll Over'. It's not as crude as 'Shout At The Devil' either - that was guys who didn't have that much experience being run by a producer. We have a lot of experience so adding a guy like Bob Ezrin just added a lot more flavour but we kept the substance. Have been keeping check on what's happening in the rock world and just how has it survived without Robin Black? KY: The last band I saw live was Velvet Revolver and I really did enjoy them. I've always been a fan of Slash as a guitar player and Scott Weiland's solo stuff I was head over heels over so the combination of the two I thought was a great match. Besides that I really like The Green Day record but those guys are veterans who've been doing it for ten or twenty years you know? The brand new hip, B-List indie stuff that gets a lot of attention in Canada like Arcade Fire or Broken Social Scene I hate that shit, I think those guys should learn how to tune a guitar! I'm looking forward to the new Hellacoptors album but they're veterans too and The Jet record gets me off cause that's great production. I'm more a fan of those guys than the actual pin up people. RFB: It's weird but I've noticed that I hate music on the radio slightly less than I have in a while. Is it because the music is better or because it's more up my alley? There's still a lot of soulless shit out there which sounds like it was made in a lab by a bunch of really smart producers. The Killers record has some really catchy shit but it sounds like it has no soul whatsoever it sounds like science, like somebody has gone into a laboratory and scientifically cooked up a hit record, very soulless and very calculated. To be honest I pay less attention to popular culture. I love pop music and movies and usually I'm on top of shit but this last year and a half has been so busy, so focussed and so single minded on making this record I'm less aware of what's going on so because of that I think there's less to hate. I find it interesting that we locked ourselves away for such a long time and made this record on our own but now it's out the world isn't that far from what we're doing! The album 'Instant Classic' is available on import through EMI Canada / Venus Records www.robinblackrocks.com
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Adlers Appetite JB's, Dudley
Due to numerous band fall outs Adler's Appetite didn't play Nottingham's Rock City with Hanoi Rocks, so I'm glad I chose to go JB's. I hope the meagre crowd at Dudley realised just how lucky they were after the one and a half hour set this awesome band did! On stage were a variety of ego's from various bands, Steven Adler on drums looking younger than ever, Love Hate's Jizzy Pearl so strong on vocals, Keri Kelli the 'whore' of guitar players, who has bailed out more bands than Axl has cancelled gigs and the wonderful Robbie Crane on bass who impressed with his strong vocal influence. Who needed a support act once they stormed the stage with 'It's So Easy' and easy it was all night, hit followed hit, sliding in three tracks from their new EP with ease - great songs which fitted in well. The stools came out for an acoustic section comprising of 'I Used To Love Her' & 'Patience' and then they fired back with 'Sweet Child O Mine' which the small crowd had been so eager for. The encore comprised of 'Welcome to the Jungle' and 'Paradise City' but the highlight of the night for me was 'Sin City' outstandingly sang by Robbie and the bands fitting tribute to Bon Scott on the twenty fifth anniversary that night of his death. JANE USHWELL
Sebastian Bach JB’s, Dudley
2003 saw the reunited Skid Row minus Mr Bach convincingly tour in the UK, and it is this fact that made the inaugural solo tour for the former front man such an interesting proposition. The six foot four of rock god entered stage left wearing a magnificent pair of lace up leathers resplendent with lightening bolts on the crotch to a deafening roar of approval as the band kicked off to ‘Slave To The Grind’. Essentially this gig was all about recapturing past glories and as such the set list was a fairly predictable exercise in cherry-picking Skid Row’s greatest hits. Bach tended towards the more cock-rock elements such as ‘Here I Am’ and ‘Big Guns’, but at the same time there was a healthy dose of metal too on ‘Monkey Business’ and ‘Riot Act’. Encouragingly the new solo material such as ‘Rock’n’Roll’ went down every bit as well as the classics (though admittedly not as well as ‘18 & Life’ the applause to which went on for nearly a minute), and this will hopefully lead the man into a new creative spark away from rehashing the old songs. In keeping with just about every other band at this sorry time for rock there was a decent cover of Pantera’s ‘Walk’ which was no doubt helped on by the metal credentials of the backing band, most of whom seem to have been in Iced Earth at one time or another. Need I tell you what the encore was? Let's just say that the mosh pit was a total frenzy during that one. JAMES WRIGHT
TRaSH.
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Motley Crue
Madison Square Garden, New York
King Adora
Junktion 7, Nottingham Junktion 7 is heaving with bodies in anticipation for King Adora's arrival on stage which frontman Maxi Browne and his band mates do with mountains of controlled arrogance and cool - the only real way a trashy glam rock band can be! Launching into 'Drag', King Adora have little work to do to impress the already loyal and cult following that has gathered for this unique one off performance. It's hard to figure if vocalist Browne has got his image very right or very wrong, walking a fine line between trash rock god and dodgy Boy George meets Madonna throwback, it's a strange persona but the fans love it and give each song a heroes response. Why King Adora aren't on a much bigger level is hard to understand looking at the current crop of bands in this mould that are currently earning success. Like Rachel Stamp, perhaps they were too far ahead of the game and doing the glam rock revival stint way before other bands jumped onto the bandwagon so now have to be satisfied with a more cult underground following in today's music industry. Tracks like 'Smoulder' and 'Bionic' are still fine slabs of sleazy pop and new track 'Backstage' certainly delivers to prove the future looks promising for the band loaded with it's dirty infectious hook. Following '9 Inches of Pure Malice' the band fail to return for an encore which would have been more than appropriate and made it more of a personal and intimate fan show but it's doubtful that anyone left unsatisfied by a band with much more rock and roll spirit left inside them than many doubters may have guessed.
We flew into a cold New York, survived the crazy coach driver to get into Manhattan but knew it was going to be worth it. Our hotel was directly across the road from the Garden and in the morning the giant trucks arrived, and just kept coming! This of course was the sign that the Motley Crue circus was in town! The gig was a sell out - 20,000 excited people to see the first time they had played here in fifteen years. Opening up for themselves they blasted us with 'Shout at the Devil'. Guitarist Mick Mars caused concern by wearing a white face mask during this track - was it really Mick? But there was no mistaking the walk and riff's, it was him for sure, dismissing the rumours of his replacement, he was well and back. Vince looked good too, his voice was on top form, he must have had surgery on that too! The first half of the gig was vintage Crue - 'Music you all grew up with' announced Vince, and he was right, it could easily have been 1986 all over again! Nikki looked every bit the ultimate rock star he is, bonding with Vince, the boy's were back and looked like they were friends again. 'Home Sweet Home' brought a sentimental tear to the eye and I have never heard a crowd so together and it threw Vince and Tommy totally and all Tommy could say was 'Fuck Yeah!' Later was his turn for the spotlight and his solo didn't disappoint as he embraced the Circus theme and entertained! The effects weren't new and we've seen it all before from others, but what you hadn't seen before was the energy and enthusiasm plus the fact they didn't stop rocking the pants off us for two and a half hours! Motley Crue are back! Bigger and better than ever so get your gig boots out, shake out that vintage tour shirt and eat loads of energy snack bars cause you're gonna need it on board this Rock & Roll circus ride .....and girls beware the 'Titty Cam!' JANE USHWELL
David Lee Roth
Universal Studios, Florida 2004 was brutal, I went through a nasty divorce so decided what a better way to start 2005 than with my teenage idol, David Lee Roth - the man whose music got me through some of the toughest times of my life. The concert starts, I get chills and out pops our hero twirling the mic in between his fingers, like a cowboy gunslinger - Bad Ass! It's a little thing, but bad ass. Good news is he sang and played well. Bad News, nothing's changed. There are a ton more great openers than 'Hot For Teacher', which they've been doing for the past few years. I must admit they are great at doing it, better than Eddie and company these days and with way more energy. Guitarists Brian Young and Toshi have the 'Brown Sound' tone solid and drummer Ray Luzier is Alex Van Halen fifteen years ago - Awesome. Note to Dave though, chuck 'Eruption'. It's an insult to Brian and makes it seem like a tribute band. During the show I was second row and standing close enough to look in my teenage hero's eyes. I realise a couple of things: 1- I am standing in front of a pop
culture icon and legend. This guy is 80's rock personified and the keeper of the rock and roll flame. He is married to an idea - the idea of rock and roll. 2- This guy cannot stop smiling all night. I don't trust people who don't stop smiling, they aren't genuine. I still don't know whether that smile is from the heart or just a costume piece. Is he is holding on for that one last moment of glory (probably with VH) so he can ride off into the airbrushed sunset? Is he doing it for that last great adventure? The comeback, the respect. He lies the enigma, I looked into his eyes and felt like he's lost his way and can't find the way out. When he sang the line 'I ain't got nobody!' from 'Just A Gigolo' after midnight, I saw him, he looked like he meant it. I felt a human connection to my teenage hero for the first time ever. Now if he did that more and put it into his music, maybe he'd find the way. Dave just be yourself, we love you for you, not for who you think we want you to be. The remedy is simple, get back that old DLR attitude, lose the comedy routine and release some kick ass tunes and a full tour and you'll be back better than ever. ALEX PERDOMO
Streatfield’s inability to sing actually worked in the trio’s favour; every pair of eyes and ears in the room were focussed on them. A great start to the show which meant that Nottingham’s own Teenage Casket Co. had their work cut out for them. The quartet deliver tracks from their debut album ‘Dial It Up’ with guitarists Rob Wylde and Jamie Delerict sharing lead vocal duties throughout. TCC are a feast of 80’s rock featuring modern day pop-punk tied up nicely with catchy melodies and they turn out to be just as lively and entertaining as the opening event. London’s Johnny Panic continue the roll of top quality performances and have quite a few supporters in attendance who are here to see them dish out their socially aware songs. During the brilliant anthem that is ‘Burn Your Youth’ Solly jumps into the drum kit as drummer Jonny Shock plays on. It shouldn’t be too long before these guys are the name on every rock fan’s lips. Finally, with their backs towards the audience Trashlight Vision gear up for their assault on Junktion 7. They deliver a raw, dynamic show rocking out big time with demonic delights like the raucous ‘Allergic To You’, 'Black Apples’ and ‘Chemical Girl’. Armed with glitter Slade pepper’s the front rows before tipping some over himself. The band tear around the tiny stage as best they can as they execute ‘My Fuck U 2 U’. Towards the end of the set Acey leaps onto the bar knocking empty glass bottles onto the floor, the crowd simply watch in amusement wondering what he’ll do next. He rejoins his band mates and it is not long before the amps are pulled to the floor. Trashlight Vision are really good at what they do and seem to know what their fans want and overall, it is fair to say that all the bands on the bill made this show one to remember. PENNY GOWER
TrashLight Vision Junktion 7, Nottingham Jef Streatfield frontman of Plan A holds up A4 pages with written messages scrawled on them for the crowd to read the ex-Wildheart has lost his voice. Rather than pull the show, it's decided this evening would be transformed into ‘Plan Aid’. Bassist Nick Peckham starts the proceedings growling his way through the opening song with the aid of a lyric sheet. Johnny Panic’s Rob Solly is the first guest on lead vocals before handing over the mic to surprise guest Tom Spencer from The Yo Yos. Next is Acey Slade, the Trashlight Vision frontman and it isn’t long before the rest of TLV gatecrash the stage to belt out a chaotic final number.
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With punk rock now widely accepted as pop music it's refreshing when a band comes along that hasn't conformed with the industry handbook on how punk bands 'should' look and sound. Boston band The Explosion have done things the old fashioned way earning their success through touring and releasing records off their own back with their own money, hard work and determination. Now a major label has finally taken note and snapped the band up to release their major label debut 'Black Tape'. During a seven week long tour of the UK, TrashPit spoke to bassist Damian Genuardi about how things have changed going from indie punk kids to major label punk kings.
the explosion
You seem to have taken root in the UK - is this something you planned on or just how things have worked out with tours falling right? We were really excited about coming over here and then we just got one tour after another. We didn't even expect to get this Good Charlotte tour, we just heard we were up for it and then when they said they wanted us it just happened to work out that all the past three tours went right into each other. First it was with New Found Glory, then The Ordinary Boys and now this one. How have the crowds changed over the last few tours? There's definitely been differences you know. The Ordinary Boys fan base was very, very 'British' and a bit older, kind of the hip indie kind of crowd. Now it's a little strange coming out with Good Charlotte and there's girls queuing up outside before we even get here! It crazy but it's good for an opening band cause you know people are gonna be here! Tell us about your own record label Tarantula - do you like the hands on side of an indie label? I'm just a big record collector and a fan of buying records and checking out other labels. There's certain bands that always put out really cool albums, Rocket From The Crypt being one of them. They always had cool singles, really cool artwork. We just thought lets put out our own record and see what it's like from beginning to end. Record it in Boston, pay for it, do the artwork. At the same time Dave and Sam had their own side project and we had friends in bands and people on the road so we put those out too and gave them exposure. It's been really cool to put something material to the community that we have, and working with people we know, trust and love.
Have you been surprised to the reaction the UK has given you over the past few months. Is there anything in particular you like about the music here? I'm always been such a big fan of British music and culture since I got into punk. I always buy the British rock magazines rather than the American ones back home because it seems so much more passionate over here. I feel like the kids really get into it. Even from The Ordinary Boys through to the Good Charlotte shows where there's such a big age difference they're still going crazy and it feels really good to be welcomed and well received in a place like this. The new album has a real raw, real sound of a classic album... It's kind of like that mid western 90's kind of rock I guess. We were after loud guitars, clean vocals and we wanted to be able to hear everything but also feel it. Sometimes with a lot of the newer bands it's like twelve vocal tracks and fourteen guitars which all get compressed. I think next time we'll probably get things even closer to what we're after. What do you hope the kids of today will take from the album? I know there's a lot of bands out there but I just hope if a kids gonna download a song I'd rather they hear the whole record. Someone should get their hands on the album, look at the artwork, read the lyrics and try to relate to some of the stuff we're talking about because it's not all break up songs about a high school girlfriend. We're just trying to put into our music what we got out of bands when we were teenagers and still do today when we're just drinking and putting on a record. 'Black Tape' is out now on Virgin
www.theexplosion.net
FASTBACK Getting the call at the eleventh hour to head to the UK as lead guitarist for both Pretty Boy Floyd and Bang Tango was the ideal opportunity for Michael Thomas, along with his band mate Jamie Keane, to begin spreading the word about their exciting new project Fastback - a modern day take on classic eighties hard rock which has one foot firmly placed in the attitude and sleaze of the LA scene with the other stomping in the stylings of radio friendly power pop. TrashPit hooked up with both Michael and Jamie prior to the bands show at Nottingham Rock City. Is Fastback a priority or a sideline project whilst you do session work? MT: It's been my priority since the CD was finished. Being in the recording studio and taking the time to do that is just an incredibly long and complicated process but I look at it as phase one was the preproduction, phase two was the recording and doing the producing and now phase three is the marketing and getting it out to the people. What response have you had so far? MT: It's been so amazing! After the CD was done we were getting approached from all these people asking if we were ready to showcase because they wanted to bring in the labels but at that point there was no band in place. It's a surprise but a welcome one and it's put us under the gun. How did you and Jamie hook up? MT: Jamie and I met through friends about two or three years ago. I would go out and see the bands he was playing in about town and he would come out and do the same. When I was putting together Fastback I wanted guys who I knew and who really liked the music and wanted to be a part of it so I called up Jamie, gave him a CD and a week or two later we had it down! The album is very aggressive but very steeped in late eighties hard rock - did you feel any pressure to try and modernise the sound? MT: Our goal was to really capture the rock vibe because if you do what you do well it shows, try to be something you're not then forget about it. I wanted to capture that rock vibe of some of the harder edged raw stuff like Velvet Revolver or The Cult but throw in some real solos and tasty leads because you don't hear a lot of that. Combine that with our real hooky choruses in a way Good Charlotte have done but away from that pop punk vein. This music will never be like it was back in the day but at least try and do it how you feel in your gut and give it a new twist.
Does it seem weird to be working with people who you were perhaps a fan of when you were younger? JK: I had a couple of bands back in New York like Sweet Pain and did a lot of East Coast touring, we did stuff with Cinderella. This is actually my first time to the UK so I was real excited but also nervous because I'd never been here before so it's a whole new adventure for me. MT: I'm trying to think of the cast of characters 'cause man that's a long list! I started working with Stevie Rachelle from Tuff then Beautiful Creatures for a while and consequently started working with Joe in Bang Tango. Being out with Steven in Adler's was really bizarre but cool too. I remember learning those songs in my basement for hours and hours, then getting the call fifteen years later to go out and play those songs with Steven! To be up there on stage and rip into the opening riff of 'Welcome to the Jungle' or playing the solo to 'Sweet Child O Mine' and look behind and see Steven playing and smiling was just the weirdest thing in the world! Do you come across many younger bands flying the flag for hard rock these days? JK: The scene in LA has been dead for a couple of years and it's now just starting to pick up a bit again. It went through a phase when there was just a bunch of glam bands that put a sour taste on anything coming out of the Sunset Strip area. Now everyone's kind of in 'stealth mode', putting their own CD's out, doing marketing and kind of being more business minded rather than selling out and bragging that they sold out The Roxy! MT: A lot of the guys I'm seeing are like me who in their early twenties it was all Nirvana and Pearl Jam so what I grew up on went out of style. Now it's back around, guys in my position are picking back up on that and trying to put their best foot forward and come to the table with some fresh music. I'm just really excited to see what the next generation of stuff is gonna be and be a part of it. 'The Pain Of Beauty' is out now
www.fastback19.com
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Quireboys the the
Well oiled and back for good
From seedy bars to enormo-domes with Guns 'n' Roses, to a total split for nearly a decade, and then back to arenas with Alice Cooper, The Quireboys have had a very turbulent history. They have released as many albums since their reformation as they did first time around and are once again taking on the world with their blues influenced good-time anthems and ballads of lost love. James Wright caught up with singer Spike and bassist Nigel Mogg as the band prepare to bring their tour promoting new record ‘Well Oiled’ to Rock City… How’s the latest Quireboys tour been going then? Spike: Absolutely no complaints there. We’ve sold out every show so far and it has been great, no complaints at all. The only thing is that when Nigel came over from LA he brought flu with him and now we’ve all been real ill. We’re two crew down and our tour manager is in bed ill. Every night has still been great though. It's been good to get on and play the clubs again after some real big tours with UFO and Whitesnake.
Spike: We’ll play anywhere with a stage us. It was good to get out there with Whitesnake because we were playing to some real big crowds and they were all rockers too - a bit older though - but that’s all we play - rock’n’roll and they were loving it and buying our stuff. That’s what we couldn’t understand when it all went tits up. I was coming on every night and shouting that people get on their feet and have a good time, and their cunt of a tour manager was bollocking me for that.
How do you manage to keep your voice in check when you’re flu-ed up? Spike: I recommend drinking. Jack is great for that! Recently I’ve been on the brandy and that has really sorted me out. Definitely lubricates the pipes does drinking a lot!
What, for doing your job as a support band? Spike: Yeah. Then they started on our merch saying there was only one T-shirt and one CD to be sold. There was a bust up, they threw us off the tour and when the merch came back it was all smashed! Alice Cooper, Dogs and Thunder was a great way to get back to playing too, playing places the size that we did with GnR all them years ago. UFO were good too. It kinda happened by accident that we had the new album ready for that, then we got the offer of Whitesnake.
You’ve played all sorts of venues since the reunion arenas, theatres, clubs and seedy dives - do you have any favourites?
Nigel, you are getting a name for your photography how did that all start? Well, right at the very end of The Quireboys I was getting into that, but really right at the end. People come and ask me for photos of the band in the old days and I have got so few. Then when the band split I moved to New York and all sorts happens there, I did some modelling, did a couple of films you know, people saying “Come and play a rockstar in this film!” and the photography just kept going. Now I do a lot of work like that. The new album seems a lot more concise than ‘This Is Rock’n’Roll’, can you let us in on the writing process this time around? Spike: Griff and I just sat down and wrote some songs! There were so many songs too, so I saved a lot of them - the more mellow ones and they are the ones that are about to come out on me solo record. As long as me, Griff and Nige are in the band that’s just how things get done. We’ve had a lot of drummers, but it's always been that way. This line up is real strong and we are real proud of it. It just sort of came together, we’ve never auditioned people or that, it's always “Oh he’s free and he’s a mate - that’s it you’re in”. Do you feel the fans have accepted the songs from the last two records played live alongside the material from the first time round? Spike: Yeah. It goes down real great we’re getting some of the best reactions to the new ones. Just watch it tonight, we love playing those songs, maybe our sound is different than from the old days, but it is still all there really. People seem to really get off on us live anyway. When you split what was your reaction to the grunge scene? Spike: We didn’t split as a result of grunge, it just happened like that. I just got fed up with it all. Tour after tour, you stop being able to make your own decisions, like, you become someone else’s property. One day I just got fed up of it and walked out. I guess if we had carried on we would have just done what The Black Crowes did and just scaled it down some. We still had a record deal and everything, even with the grunge thing EMI wanted more records out of us, but we just called it a day cos we’d had enough. I never liked grunge at all. It had to happen though, the scene, especially in America had just become like endless poodle rockers Danger Danger - what was all that about? Nigel: When we split I just got on with things you know? I thought, right that’s it The Quireboys are finished - I’ll start a
new band. I hooked up with some mates and formed a band called Nancy Boy. It was about as different from Quireboys as it could be, we sounded like a cross between Gary Numan and Duran Duran. It was great, got to record a couple of records and we toured places like Australia and just built it up from the bottom. It wasn’t people coming along because I was in The Quireboys - they all hated what we were playing! How did you end up playing together again? Nigel: Well I’d gone to live in New York. I was there for five years. Got married in New York. Got divorced in New York. The Nancy Boy thing had come to a close and I was like not sure what to do with myself. So I went away and I was staying with Marlon Richards (Keith Richard’s son) and I got a call from Spike here, and he is like “We’ve got a record deal, we’ve got to put the band back together”. He’d actually gone to Sanctuary who were doing a lot of the reissue stuff at the time and persuaded them that we had got back together and played some shows. They jumped at it but it was all a lie at the time! The new record is on SPV, how did that come about? Nigel: We recorded the last one with Sanctuary and then toured it. It was all great. Sanctuary were real nice guys, they said “Great record guys, it's sold well“. So we said “Great, shall we make another then?” And they said “No.” That was it, and then “Great record guys”! So we hooked up with SPV on the Continent. What do you make of the current corporate rock scene ? Spike: What current rock scene? There are some great bands out there, Tokyo Dragons that we are touring with are great, but it's all from the grass roots now. You don’t have to be signed to make an album and that’s the way it is gonna go. Anyone can record an album these days, yeah sure being signed to a label helps with the cost of recording but after that pretty much anybody can sell a record on the internet. It was hard for us too. People forget this, but we had been going for 5 years before we got picked up. We’ve been a band for nearly 20 years with a bit of a break of course. We were just about to jack it in when we got picked up, it was so close to not happening it was unreal. It’s just great to be back on the road again now though. INTERVIEW BY JAMES WRIGHT Thanks to Bruce Murray, Peter Knorn, Spike & Nigel Mogg The latest Quireboys album 'Well Oiled' is out now on SPV For more information visit www.quireboys.com
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OO O O G GGGOOOS S D OLL L L O D ome nHero Home H w ttoown ero
Choosing to record their debut live album in their hometown of Buffalo, New York is testament to The Goo Goo Dolls pride and dedication to their hometown, a place that held them in it's heart years before the rest of the world stood up and took note of their awesome hard rock songwriting. On the day of the recording though, the city itself decided to put the bands loyalty to the test by dishing out one of the most intense rain storms it has ever seen! Undeterred the band played on through the driving rain and this has all been dramatically captured on the bands new CD / DVD. TrashPit couldn't wait to speak to bassist Robby Takac about all that happened last July 4th along with getting the full rundown on his annual music festival, the eagerly awaited new Goo Goo Dolls album and his hometown based record label Good Charamel. What has been the initial response to the new live album? It's done really, really well here in the States and it's just starting to pick up elsewhere. When we set out to do the show in Buffalo we figured this was where we where from so there'll be a lot of people but when that date finally came around, what you don't see is that the show was actually two full days and it rained every bit as hard during the other days and sets as it did during ours! It was just insane and put the band aside because I don't care who was up there because at one point it just reaches this weird epic, epic proportion. It's almost as if you ask yourself 'Is this really happening?!' I think the DVD really captures what happened over that day. During the show on the DVD do you remember what you were thinking whilst the rain poured down? Was you thinking about the performance, the reaction from the fans or if the whole live recording was going to be ruined? I just didn't want them to shut us down. In the back of my mind I was thinking we were all gonna get killed but the thing I felt for sure was that everything was gonna get shut off, be it the city council demanding it or just an act of god. When it didn't and especially after the fireworks it was just so cool, almost as if it was scripted. It was an amazing thing to have been a part of.
Instead it's all turned into a real unique time capsule.... It's such a weird thing. I mean how many times do you think 'Oh, I wish I had a camera' but that day we did - forty of them! It really turned out well, and us being the kind of band that we are and we've been to the edge, we've been together for twenty years now and I look at the pop radio world here in America which we often get put into and see that people tend to forget really quickly. We just chug along and do our own thing so I think for the rest of the musical community this DVD is a really great thing, especially for it to come out just before we're about ready to step out with something new. Had anything of this scale been done in Buffalo before? How did it compare to your Music is Art festivals which you organise? The Goo Goo Dolls gig was a little bit different mainly because we were filming it. There was an awful lot of things we had to do logistically to put that stage were it was. That was kind of the big difference. They have events in that square probably two or three times a summer and it's pretty large. My festival is a little bit different and connected to a larger festival called the Allentown Art Festival which started in the 1950's. Allentown is the neighbourhood where my recording studio is here in Buffalo. When it first started it was an incredible cutting edge event and over the years it kind of turned into a Crafts Show so when we moved into the
neighbourhood about three years ago and I saw there was gonna be two hundred thousand people wandering around my business I thought about having a concert and I couldn't figure out why no one had ever done that you know? Well it turns out there was a law written in the 70's that stated that even if you own private property you're not allowed to hold an event in the area. So I thought that was sort of bogus because it was my property and I should be able to do what I want on it. So I stomped my way into City Hall and told them I was gonna do it anyway! At first they freaked out but eventually they hooked me up with their city attorneys who were really cool but looked at me and said 'You know what? This is totally illegal and there's no way I can back this up, but it's on the books so you either gotta get it taken off the books or we gotta write you a referendum.' So that's what they did, so basically I'm the only person allowed to do anything on this weekend! But they're still fighting me, last year they tried to shut me down the morning of and tried to put an injunction against it so we ended up in City Hall for hours again fighting to make it happen. It's really grown now, the first year we had three thousand people who wandered over to see the forty two bands and artists. Then the next year we had sixty bands including the Goo Goo Dolls and thirty five thousand people through the door over the two days! We then make a record and put that out and donate the money to charity. Do you have any particular favourite live albums from other bands? When I was a kid I used to love Yes. So their live stuff was always a favourite. Of course the first KISS Alive record but from what I understand after talking to people who were involved on that apparently it's not very much a 'live' record! It's one of my favourite records with huge amounts of canned screaming in the background anyway! What's currently happening with the new Goo's album, are still writing or has recording begun? Any clues in the direction or style? I thought on 'Gutterflower' that John (Rzeznik)'s writing became a little darker whilst your tunes had much more of an up feeling which was a nice contrast. Right now, The Goo Goo Dolls are in Buffalo working on some writing. We leased a space here in town and set up a studio and we've been working away for probably about two or three months. We've been in Los Angeles now for about seven or eight years and I think we began to feel we had an
awful lot of influence from other people when it came to making records so we really needed to get out of the loop we were in. So we've ended up back home and although it's a little tough to get around here because we were 'famous' here 15 years before we were successful anywhere else we have our little circle we travel in and it's sort of become our own comfortable refuge from the business whilst we're trying to make some music. We've got about ten songs that we're pretty sure we want to use so we'll head out to Los Angeles and start recording in probably a month or so. Right now we're talking to Jack Joseph-Puig who mixed 'Dizzy Up The Girl' and our Supertramp cover of 'Give A Little Bit' which is on the new DVD, about producing because we've started to enjoy the relationship with him. And he lives not too far away from my house. The more we talk about the last few records I think we've decided we want to go a little further. Even though we felt like 'Gutterflower' was a move, it was a much more lateral move than what we were used to making as far as records go you know? Unfortunately I don't think you ever really know until you look back. I think that was part of the decision to find another producer because we'd been working with Rob Cavallo for six or seven years and it felt like we needed some sort of new burst of energy. The prospect of walking in and having someone new orchestrating the situation is kind of exciting. How did you enjoy touring with Bon Jovi, your style is a little more edgy but the bands kind of meet on middle ground which must have made for a great live package? You know, they're huge rock stars dude! As far as huge rock stars go they're pretty good guys. It was fun and we were all a little weary of stepping into that situation. We thought it was a little odd walking into that but I do have to say their fans were really great to us. It felt really good to walk out to that crowd you know, even though we had the opening band blues - drum kit falling off the front of the stage when you're trying to do a show and all that. I read the Rolling Stones were real accommodating to you guys a while back... Oh they were amazing! They were very nice, hospitable and didn't really separate their situation from the world like they very well could have. Also it was great watching a two hour soundcheck with The Stones all by myself! You'd be sat there whilst Keith and Ronnie would be jamming for like forty five minutes 'cause they just love to do it and you can tell. Can I go back a little and ask because I always wondered about the 'Ego, Opinion, Art and Commerce'
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retrospective CD? You kind of shied away from the hit singles which perhaps wasn't the most commercially sensible thing to do? You know they sometimes say you should stay away from heady ideas? I think that was a little bit of a heady idea on our part! We had one of those situations were we had to put a record out so they said let's do a Greatest Hits record and we didn't really feel we had a big enough list to do that so we talked about doing more of a career retrospective thing and then the talk got to be more of why don't we just show people what they might not know? Which is why we ran the record in reverse order and why we only visited some of the really early stuff because we didn't know how tolerant people would be of that because we've made quite a transition over the past couple of decades. I think that was the idea, to sort of walk people into our world, and myself, I think for us it was a really great moment to kind of step back and reflect on everything we did. John laughed though because we don't listen to our group as most don't but we were talking about 'Gutterflower' and he said maybe we 'do' listen to ourselves a little too much because we didn't make that step on the last record. So at the moment I'm on a steady diet of Motown! How is your record label Good Charamel doing? Have the bands had a good response? We've been doing all sorts of stuff. Last Conservative and Juliet Dagger, the two groups on the label go out and do a lot of work for our festival's offshoot foundation where they go and do programs at high schools. We send the bands in to play and we hook up a few organisations and educators to go in too. Basically we're just going in and putting on a mandatory rock show for all these kids and it's been pretty amazing, they've been catching on like wildfire here in town. They're free, the schools love to do them and we've got a couple of sponsors who pay to have them happen. Now the bands are going out on tour we've been going out to other schools across the country as well. The whole computer and global village which the internet has supplied us with has meant these kids are so savvy you
know with stuff like MySpace and all the trading sites and they've found a way of turning it into a real grass roots thing. It's led to our bands getting charted on college music journal charts. We're just really trying to make a movement here in town with the groups and make a mark. Do you still have a major input or do you have a team that you know you can trust whilst you're busy with The Goo Goo Dolls? I have someone in Los Angeles and a secretary and guy in Buffalo who deal with the bands. We haven't got a European deal yet so we're just cruising around and doing stuff on ITunes and Amazon at this point. I didn't walk into this thing thinking I was gonna throw White Stripes promotional money into it because the record label is basically me. My feeling for these groups was that I'd put the records out, I produce them and my wife and I come up with the graphics and art direction so it's a very hands on thing. I have people be it volunteers who work for me who really believe in the situation and the artists we're working with. Would you maybe have liked a similar opportunity to have been given to you when you began in a band? We always had enthusiastic folks around us and that was how we were able to do what we do. We didn't really have a sense of how to do things for the first ten years. The kids I work with now are all so much more 'on it', I know it's just the way the world is now, you've got to be on it and there's no choice with that. I was still under the impression five years into this business that you sell a million records, buy a castle and that's it! Hey man it doesn't work that way and these kids know that. I give them a thousand dollars a week and they'll go anywhere and that's basically how it works, they stay out on the road and work incredibly hard. As long as everybody's working you've got a chance. The Music Is Art Festival is held on June 11th & 12th For more information visit www.musicisart.org Check out Robby's record label at www.goodcharamel.com or visit www.googoodolls.com
this isn't shakespeare, baby!
www.teenagecasketcompany.com