NYS Music 20​14

Category: Interviews

  • The Nth Power Shares in the BuffaLOVE in Buffalo

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    smackdab singer Jon Marc Johnson

    If you’re hip to The Nth Power, you know that they preach the power of love and have become a musical sanctuary for that message. Drummer Nikki Glaspie took some time during their set in Buffalo and told the crowd, “The purpose is to share love with all of you and to share love with the world because there’s not enough.” When the band made their stop last Friday before their Saturday night Chill, the group and city came out to share in the compassion for one another.

    With anything love related, you have to be careful not to get in too deep, too fast. So let’s take a step back and start at the beginning, where most love stories start. The Friday night began on the earlier side for typical Buffalonians with Jamestown’s smackdab starting things just before nine. The band has been an area staple for funk for quite some time now and really knows their own strengths, playing to them specifically at shows. The group is fronted by vocalist Jon Marc Johnson whose strength and power has the ability to draw you in. The rhythm this group has is like none other in the area as they’re anchored by thick cuts from bassist Ryan Ecklund and precision stickwork from drummer Daniel Witherspoon. Their music though has so many different facets and that’s largely due to the melodies that are being crafted around everything.

    During one particular section, keyboardist Mark Cooper laid down a heavy synth section that propelled a psychedelic drift into a borderline metal tear. The group may be heavy on the funk side, but they dabble and take some exploratory jamming out into other areas right in stride. At times, the band would slide into some more jam-heavy segments that were slow and droney, conjuring up sounds that were akin to Pink Floyd and The Doors having a funky little baby.

    It was the perfect pairing for the night as the band’s sound complimented The Nth Power’s well and the crowd enjoyed the smackdab set overall. If we’re back on the topic of love though, this was simply the first date and Buffalo was already tripping over their words in anticipation for more.

    For a little taste of smackdab, check out a video of their song “First and Main” from their set. The video is brought to you by our friends at Buffalo.fm.


    As The Nth Power took the stage, Buffalo gave a warm welcoming to the group being that it was their first appearance in the Queen City. After a few bars of an intro, the band dove head first into “Spirits”, easily an early favorite with its haunting melody and fat bass line. It might’ve been early on in the relationship, but this band was not shy about bringing it early on. Percussionist Weedie Braimah played off of the rhythm from Nikki Glaspie, adding an incredible range of percussive sounds to the overall color of the song. With no setlists visible, it seemed as though this band was just going to feel its way through the set.

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    The Nth Power’s Nick Cassarino and Nate Edgar

    While the drumming from Weedie and Nikki was a powerful force in and of itself, it seemed the crowd couldn’t take their eyes off of the front of the stage where guitarist Nick Cassarino bobbed and danced as he plucked his strings and felt every note through the expressions on his face. His energy and presence alone had the crowd charged and equally feeling the same emotions that Cassarino was going through. The excitement he brought not only fueled the crowd, but the band seemingly fed off of it as well, engaging each of them deeper into the music. Love usually takes time to develop, but when you’re this passionate, you can quickly fall head over heels for what’s being created, and the crowd in Buffalo that night was all in.

    Throughout their set, you could tell that the band was communicating through a romantic language that was in the music vernacular. At one point, Nick Cassarino asked each member how they were feeling to which each responded with a strike of a key or a hit on their drum. They were feeling good and the eye contact and shared smiles were an easy indicator from the beginning. Not wanting to leave the crowd out, Cassarino also asked the crowd, “Does it feel good to you?”, to which the crowd responded with a heartfelt scream.

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    Nikki Glaspie of The Nth Power

    It was easy to get swept away in the compassionate delivery of The Nth Power’s music. Each member added so much to the music itself, but also to the overall performance. Bassist Nate Edgar was another who you could physically see was feeling the music. As he swayed along to the beat, he would not only keep up rhythmically with Nikki Glaspie’s superb drumming, but also dance around the melody and support Nick and Nigel in where they were headed throughout a song. It’s a daunting task that Nate not only handled, but challenged the other band members at times with some colorful bass runs of his own.

    When falling in love, there’s usually several factors that add up to the infatuation, and the same can be said about the band. It’s not just one member that does it, it’s their collective efforts that builds them up that high. At one point during their set, percussionist Weedie Braimah took a solo that really showcased his prowess and what he adds. The man was literally combing out a rhythm with his fingers on his djembe, pulling every possible note, yes I said note, that is possible through pure precision. A thrusting beat came barreling out of the solo with which drummer Nikki Glaspie and the rest of the band jumped on, bringing the remaining sitters to their feet. The band’s control over the mood and feel in the room was apparent as they could lift the crowd before gently laying them down. In the same way Cassarino’s axe could cut, his voice could simultaneously cull the deepest of woes with grace and pure empathy. Every part of this band fits together like a puzzle, filling in the proper gaps, while leave the right amount of space.

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    The Nth Power keyboardist Nigel Hall

    The band wrapped up the lovefest with “Soul Survivor” as an encore, unleashing blinding rhythmic speeds and a guitar solo that was dropped like a bomb on the crowd. Since they initially walked off to a chant of “ten more songs”, I guess the band wanted to pack the power of ten into one. The power of love is strong and if you don’t know that, you need to check this band out and feel it for yourself. Leaving the venue, you could tell everyone still had butterflies in their stomach as they went through a rollercoaster of emotions and were walking on clouds being simply uplifted. There’s something special about this band and it’s amazing and exciting at the same time that this is only the beginning.

    As mentioned earlier, “Spirits” was an early favorite from The Nth Power.  Watch the video of the song here from that night:


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    The Nth Power:

    After the show, The Nth Power was gracious enough to sit down with us for an interview. Here are some shots from after their set and the interview itself. We want to thank our friends at Buffalo.fm for all of the video from the night and to The Nth Power for taking the time.  Buffalo and NYS Music love you right back!

  • The Garcia Project will make you Smile, Smile, Smile

    Upstate NY band The Garcia Project has been on the move lately and wowing audiences from the East Coast to the West with their recreation of Jerry Garcia Band shows for the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s. The Garcia Project has come from playing little festivals in Upstate like The Strawberry Jam to Fiddlers Picnic and has gained a strong following in their home state. There’s just something about seeing this band live, you can’t help but close your eyes and kick off your shoes to spin barefoot in the grass wherever they are playing the sweet music of Jerry Garcia.

    The band recently spent some time on the West Coast [home to the Grateful Dead] where they celebrated Jerry’s 72nd birthday at the Jerry Garcia Birthday Celebration in Santa Cruz, C.A. where they opened for and sat in with Los Angeles Grateful Dead legends, Cubensis. While in California the band was also invited to be VIP guests of the Jerry Day celebration in San Francisco – a huge honor to any GD family member.

    This year’s Jerry Jam in Bath, N.H. was another milestone for the Garcia Project, not only were they the Friday night headliners but they had none other than JGB’s Melvin Seals sitting in on the keys for that event. The show can be heard on the Live Music Archive – https://archive.org/details/TheGarciaProject2014-07-25

    With such success this past summer the band will be looking forward into the Fall season with a main stage appearance at this year’s Wormtown Music Festival in Greenfield, M.A. Sept. 12-14, where they will be opening up for Dopapod and Max Creek. Making their way from the side stage to the main stage is an accomplishment bands strive for when first starting out and the Garcia Project has made the leap and audiences are welcoming them with open arms.

    If you haven’t seen this band yet and you are a fan of JGB or the Grateful Dead, you must get out to see them – and run, don’t walk to their next appearance. You can catch them on Sept. 20 where they will be opening for New Riders of The Purple Sage at the Autumn Equinox Festival at Page Farm in Croydon, N.H. They will return to the Capital District to play the Rustic Barn in Troy, N.Y. on Sept. 27 with special guests Knot Dead. The band will then head to Glens Falls on Oct. 24 for a special evening at the Wood Theater where they will recreate a classic JGB show for fans. This band is on the move and a must see for any Dead Head. For more show dates please visit the Garcia Project online.

    NYS Music recently had the opportunity to speak with Mik and Kat from the Garcia Project about why they were drawn to Jerry’s music and where they find their inspiration.

    What was it about Jerry’s music that drew you to it, specifically?

    Kat: I think the thing that initially drew me into his music was the affect it had on people. I kept meeting these folks that seemed to be living life with a different perspective. They were seemingly positive, carefree, and excited about life. It was like the old saying goes, when you see someone having a good time, “I’ll have whatever they are having.”  I had to look into this music and community and see what it was all about.

    Mik: I found the Jerry Garcia Band in 1988 and fell in love with the song choices that the band played and the incredible, beautiful guitar tone that Jerry had. Jerry had a way of showing emotion through his guitar playing and singing that I just never heard from anyone else. Also, the warmth of the fans at a Jerry Garcia Band show was infectious. It was a place where you could go and relax, let your hair down, talk to other like-minded folks and enjoy the music. There has not been anything else quite like those experiences.

    When were you introduced to Jerry Garcia’s music – his or the Dead’s, what circumstances surrounded it?

    Kat: Before I was a Deadhead, I met someone who mistook me for one. I had no idea what a Deadhead was and not very familiar with The Grateful Dead’s music. So, of course, this made me curious. I inquired and they brought me to a show soon after. I felt at home right away and started dancing immediately. This is not only unusual when a person doesn’t know the music, but i had not really danced in public before to any music. It was a freeing experience. I was in awe at people’s kindness, openness, and concern for each other as strangers. A very eye-opening night, seeing for the first time that society could be different from I knew it to be.

    Mik: I listened to The Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, The Rolling Stones and The Beatles throughout High School in the late eighties. In 1987, right after I graduated, I went to see The Grateful Dead with my HS friends in Rochester, NY. It was at Silver Stadium and the ride there was filled with anticipation! When we hit Rochester, I saw a sea of people dressed every kind of way, in every kind of color. We parked and walked around and talked with everyone that we could and eventually went into the show. I saw a huge speaker system with scaffolding on the end of the field and a huge american flag tarp was laid on the field (to cover the wires, etc?) They were pumping Sgt. Peppers on the pa system and everyone inside was just having a blast! I made my way up to the front of the stage, past the flying marshmallows and frisbees. I really thought to myself that “The Grateful Dead” were not a band that performed, it was much more than that….we were all part of the show. Then the band came out and opened the show rocking. I was hooked.

    Along with Jerry, who would you say are your most significant influences?

    Kat: It’s hard for me to narrow that list down to any reasonable degree. I take my inspiration from all singers with soul, past and present, from all genres of music. When I am studying a new song, I listen to every version of that song I can find. I search for every person singing it on YouTube and Archive.org.  I look for the current really good bands and singers out there and see what they’ve done with it. I always find and listen to the original version, if it’s something Jerry covered. Then, I take that inspiration and knowledge and figure out what my take on it is.

    Mik: Hmmmmm. Let me think about that.

    Why did you decide to focus on JG instead of the GD as a whole?GarciaProject-2

    Kat: The Jerry Garcia Band music always felt special.  It touches hearts, soothes souls, and eases minds. Manifesting love and good vibes together is so important. People come in weary and leave rejuvenated by gathering together and helping create the community, and the music. I feel so grateful that i got to experience these shows, the community, and the consciousness while Jerry was still around. If we can create an atmosphere and play this music so that people can still gather and hear it, and be even a little bit as happy and inspired as we were with Jerry’s band, then it’s a mission worth pursuing.

    Thanks for asking 🙂 <3

    Mik: I had been playing Grateful Dead music for years. I never really tried putting together a band that played Jerry Garcia Band stuff…It was kind of like a holy grail to me. Once we started down this path it became apparent I needed to perform this music and people needed to be a part of it as well. There are new fans that never got to see The Jerry Garcia Band and older fans who miss it as much as I do. If we all get together and make a show happen, it is an amazing experience. Currently, we are performing actual classic set lists (shows) from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s. We do the same songs and perform with the inspiration from listening to the old shows. It’s not a note for note thing, but more of a feeling and vibe.

  • Leading up to Night Lights: An Interview with Michelangelo Carubba of Turkuaz

    Anyone who lives in the Upstate region knows that summer is not something to be wished away. The short season of nice weather is always packed full of barbecues, weddings, family get-togethers, and weekends enjoying the outdoors. That being said, if there was one reason to look past the shorts and tank tops this year to hoodies and jeans, it would be Night Lights Music Festival. The festival is held in Sherman, NY (directions here) and has continued to get better with each proceeding year. The team who puts it together always does a great job, but this year they have set the bar quite high for western New York festivals with an incredible lineup that had most ready to smell the pumpkin spice back in the spring when the bands were announced.

    Michelangelo Carubba TurkuazSome of whom you will see include such acts as Snarky Puppy, Dopapod, Consider the Source, Turkuaz, The Mike Dillon Band, Jimkata, Big Mean Sound Machine, The Manhattan Project, and Aqueous. If that lineup in and of itself isn’t reason enough to come out, there are also a whole host of great up and coming local acts that you’ll want to see. Speaking of locals, one of the headliners, Turkuaz, has a tie back to the area that most don’t know about.

    Drummer Michelangelo Carubba of Turkuaz is actually a Buffalo native who grew up in the area and still has family who lives there. I was able to catch up with the man who keeps each member of the funk army marching to the same beat. Below, we talk about his hometown roots in Buffalo, his band, and Dave Brandwein’s trip to SkyNet, among other things.

    You’ve lived on both ends of New York State now and have experienced many cities on tour. What are your top three favorite places and why?
    This country is so vast and varied. I’ve toured 49 of 50 states (still waiting on that call to go to Alaska). New Orleans has always been one of my favorites. There’s something in the DNA of that town. It vibes harder than most cities. The food, the music, the people, everything. It’s great. Denver has been really good to us. The fact that you can buy herb with a credit card is pretty mind-blowing. But my favorite place is New York City. There’s nothing like it on earth. There’s everything for everyone and it’s always ready to go. It can be peaceful if you want, or it can rage harder than anywhere else. You can live at an ever-changing pace and it’s always right there with you. And I’m a native New York, East Coaster, and you just can’t get better Italian food than in New York.

    How did you end up in NYC with Turkuaz after growing up in Buffalo?
    I moved to Boston in 2006 when I was 21, after touring for 3 years in various bands. I moved there to attend Berklee College of Music. There, I met a lot of the people I still make music with today. When everyone was graduating, almost my entire crew was making the move to NY, en masse, so it was the logical next step. If you’re going to make a run for it with a band, New York is the place to do it.

    Who are some of your biggest influences and why?
    Muhammad Ali. He was the first hip hop poet. He could knock a man out like no one’s business. And he knew it. Queens of the Stone Age, musically, have been fueling me for the last ten months. I saw them at Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn, and I’ve never been rocked so hard. Great songwriting, and an aesthetic that’s dripping with sex and pain. I love them. Snarky Puppy has been inspiring me as well. I won’t try to articulate why. Go and listen.

    Tell your fans something they might not know about you or the band.
    We’re insane.How did Jaguar start and what’s the current state of that band? Will you guys eventually record an album and tour?
    Alan Evans’ PlayonBrother and Turkuaz were on the road together for six weeks. I had known Danny Mayer and Beau Sasser for a long time. Beau had always been a mentor when we lived together in Boston. I think the band was actually born out of a few rounds of whiskey shots. Musicians are always looking for outlets, or ways to say what you want to say. We all thought it would be great to play together. Jaguar hits are all improvised at this point. We all have pretty open ears, and we’re all close friends, and that translates into the music. Everyone is very busy at the moment with main projects, but Jaguar is looking to hit again in the fall in the Northeast. I’m sure an album and touring will happen at some point.

    How did Turkuaz grow to include so many musicians? Was that by design?
    Unintentionally, yes. The bands sound was created by Dave Brandwein and Taylor Shell, our guitarist and bassist. They were making demos together in the Berklee days, and someone passed a demo off to Berklee’s record label, Heavy Rotation Records. The label asked Dave and Taylor to perform at the record release show at the Berklee Performance Center for 1,000 people. The demos were so musically dense, that to recreate the sound live, they needed to call eight or nine people. And it always stayed like that. It works.

    The band has springboarded pretty quickly in terms of popularity. What do you think that is attributed to?
    A relentless touring schedule over the last two and a half years has had a lot to do with our growth. We’re very lucky. People are coming out to shows and having a blast. We are too. When you’re in front of that many people, day in and day out, all over the US, you hope that something sticks in people’s minds. Our music and vibe seem to be sticking. We also just have fun. I think people read that. I think they realize that we’re up there giving our all every night because we want others to be happy.

    How is Dave Brandwein’s hand? Has he made a full recovery from the injury?
    We sent Dave off to SkyNet and he now has a fully bionic set up from the elbow down. It’s indestructible and it’s always set to rock.

    What influences do you bring to the table outside of funk?
    This is a hard question to answer. It would be a waste to say, “well I like rock and jazz and blues, etc.” The influences I bring, to make the music that I’m playing come alive, are things like my love for boxing, stand-up comedy, faith, sex, cinema, and animals. The playing is gonna be there, I can play these tunes with a blindfold on and one arm tied up. What makes it happen, what really gets me and the band and the crowd off, is when we bring real life into the music. How ever I’m feeling, I’m putting that into the music. Life is my influence.

    What are some of your favorite things about the city of Buffalo?
    The people. They’re kind, empathetic, and real. The food. I mean, come on. I just love what Buffalo means to me. I have such a connection to the city. I was born and raised there. My father owns Carubba Collision, and anyone that’s a Bills, Sabres, Bandits, or Bisons fan recognizes that name. “The Carubba Collision of the Game” has been a great part of Buffalo sports for the last 35 years. When I think of Buffalo, I think of the times spent at the Aud, at First Niagara Center, or at the baseball field, (whatever it’s called now). Buffalo will always hold a very special place in my heart.

    Alan Evans is another big drummer from Buffalo and it seems, on social media, that he has become a friend. What experiences has he shared with you as an up and coming drummer?
    Al has become a close friend. Al is a great musician. Not just a drummer, but a guitarist, bassist, singer, and producer. We share a similar sense of humor, and a similar understanding of things. Al is a true Buffalonian, and I think I am too. I feel like we subconsciously relate to each other along that plane. He’s taught me about humility, hard work, and ambition. Al’s kind, generous, loyal, and most of all, real. There’s a lot of people on his level that are fake. Al is not fake. Al is the shit.

    Who are some of the bands you still haven’t played with, but would like to?
    Well, Snarky Puppy for sure. I’m going to kick that off the bucket list on September 13th, at Night Lights Music Festival. That’s going to be incredible. I get to play a show, walk off stage, and watch one of my favorite bands in the world play right after. You can’t ask for much more than that.

    What is up next for Turkuaz?
    Finishing up festival season now, with the exception of a few late in the year (Bear Creek Festival in November in FL). For September, we’re locking ourselves away for the month and recording our next album. We have a few shows during the month that we’re thrilled about. On the 19th we’re direct support for Bootsy Collins in Baltimore. That is a dream come true. He wrote the book on a lot of what we’re trying to do, so to get to share it with him and a huge audience, is amazing. Aside from that, we’re touring. We’re always touring. It never ends. And we love it.

    Are you a Bills and Sabres fan? What do you think about the state of both teams?
    I love all Buffalo sports, like I said earlier, but the Sabres are the closest to my heart. Growing up, a lot of the old Buffalo Sabres were around my house and at family parties. John Tucker and Paul Cyr (throwback) used to come and cut their Christmas trees down on my families land. John Tucker gave me my first Labatt Blue when I was five years old. Rob Ray taught me how to swear when I was seven. I remember watching Dominic Hasek play horrible golf, yell in his native tongue, and throw golf clubs. The Sabres organization will always be very close to me. As for the state of the team, I think the entire city, and everything and everyone involved, is on the rise. Companies are investing in Buffalo. Neighborhoods are being revitalized. Restaurants, shops, homes. Everything is coming back. I think the Sabres and the Bills are headed in the same direction. I think by 2020, Buffalo is going to have a new identity. It’s not going to be “that places where it snows”. Its going to be a Championship city where people go for music, food, and living life. I love Buffalo.

    If the lineup somehow doesn’t convince you, there’s also this little side element that not a lot of people realize, even with it being in the festival name: THE LIGHTS! Night Lights Music Festival is one part music festival and one part light display. This isn’t just stage lighting though as the Night Lights HQ sets up an enormous and truly stunning display throughout the woods. I can leave this description brief as words simply don’t do it justice. Check out the pictures from Arthur Kogutowski below and we hope to see you dancing under the lights next weekend.

    If you’re now looking for tickets to Night Lights Music Festival, you can grab them here. They’re $75 presale and include camping and parking.

  • Interview: Jason Keyser of ORIGIN Kicks off ‘All Things Dead Tour’ Fresh off of the Summer Slaughter

    In the ever-growing death metal scene, there are few frontmen that command a stage and carry a song like Jason Keyser of Origin. Jason joined Origin in 2011, but is no stranger to the role of lead vocalist. In 2004 he fronted the famed metal band Skinless, as well as local Upstate New York bands Mucopus and Detriment. He is a sight to behold on stage, being both intense and charismatic as he plays to crowds all over the world. Origin kicked off their All Things Dead tour in Clifton Park, NY at Trickshot Billiards with King Parrot, Beyond Creation, Abolishment of Flesh and locals Declension, and I got the chance to talk with him before the show.

    Jeff Ayers: So Origin just got off the Summer Slaughter tour. How did that go for the band, any good stories from that tour?

    Jason Keyser: It was probably the best thing we could have done. It was something we went back and forth about. Origin did it in 2009, and it was a bad experience for them internally and financially. I wasn’t in the band at the time, but I guess the structure of the tour was kinda garbage. They were a little apprehensive, but I was really pushing it, because I was like “We will get to play to two thousand kids a night, why wouldn’t we do it?” They begrudgingly accepted it, and it was one of the smoothest run [tours] and the most successful [Summer Slaughter]. The response was amazing for us, and there was no snags whatsoever.

    JA: What a relief then.

    JK: Yea, the cool thing about it also, was a great lineup and 90 percent of the bands all knew each other from touring together previously. So we knew [going into the tour] that no one was going to be an asshole, there would be no egos, and everyone would work together. So that makes us more comfortable, so we get more drunk, and we have better shows, and the fans have more fun.

    JA: I saw that you guys were happy with your slot on the bill too.

    JK: We were right in the middle. At first we were a little [put off] about it, thinking “We could be a little higher on the bill”….

    JA: Yea, you are Origin!

    JK: But the slot was Decrepit Birth, us, and then Goatwhore, which I think is a perfect slot.

    JA: That is almost a tour right there!

    JK: It was great for us. You know, more so than even being just a great tour, and being successful, was that every single night of the week, there would be dozens of kids coming up to us saying, “I’ve never even heard of you guys before today, but Jesus Christ! Now I know!” That is like the main thing you go for, that is long-term thinking. We had a great boost, great response. I almost died of heat stroke in Texas, and I don’t give my liver any chance to recover.

    JA: Right, because tonight you guys are kicking off The All Things Dead tour. Can you talk a little bit about this came to be, how you hooked up with this great lineup of bands from all over the world?

    JK: These are bands that were consciously sought after. I know, because it is after Summer Slaughter there were restrictions on this tour, so it is not hitting the biggest markets, which is fine by me. In my experience, when you go to smaller towns, not New York City or Los Angeles, but when you go to kinda the off the grid towns, those are where the maniacs hide out. We are playing Red Deer in Canada somewhere, and I am expecting [a show] like that to bring out all the lunatics of backwoods Canada. We played with King Parrot in Australia earlier this year, and they are like the same level of mania on stage that we think we bring. A little different style of music, but that is great, and they are just madness to the point that we were saying maybe we shouldn’t let them use our equipment, because of how crazy they get. Beyond Creation has a lot of the same tech-death metal stuff that we got, and they have been getting a lot of hype lately, people are really into them. We really hope people come out to this tour, because if not, it’s their loss.

    Photo provided
    Photo provided

    JA: That sounds amazing. When this tour wraps, Origin is a part of the 70,000 Tons of Metal cruise later this year. Have you guys ever done a metal boat cruise before?

    JK: I have not. I haven’t even done one of the local Troy music boat cruises, I haven’t even been on one. This is going to be great. The lineup is awesome, and I know people that swear by [this cruise]. They go every year and it becomes a lifestyle to them, they have post cruise depression afterwards. So I am excited. I hear stories all the time about how insane it is, because it is just 24 hours a day. Shows, drinking, there is no escape. It isn’t like a metal fest where you can just leave, you can’t! You are stuck on that boat, with us.

    JA: I actually got to talk to Rob Barrett of Cannibal Corpse recently about it as well, and he said the exact same thing. They are really excited to do it again.

    JK: Yea, those guys are on it, and Napalm Death just got announced, so going to be all awesome bands just partying i guess, I don’t know. That is like the end of this cycle, though, because after All Things Dead tour, we have another U.S. tour that has just been announced.

    JA: Will you be headlining that tour as well?

    JK: We are actually playing support on that, which is fine. Because you have to do everything. You got to do the festival run, you have to do a headliner run, and then you got to do a support run. That is the most general thing to do.

    JA: That gets you in front of the most fans, and the most diverse crowds.

    JK: Exactly. This next tour is a little different. We are hitting the road with Unearthed, Darkest Hour, Carnifex, Black Crown Initiate and I, The Breather. This is different for us, [because] it isn’t really our style. But I think that is the best part. Then after that, in November, we are going to Europe with Aborted and Exhumed, so we are real busy. So after December I’ll be able to stop and sit down for a minute. Not really though, because we are going to South America in March, and doing all sorts of other stuff. It’s good work if you can get it, and we are trying to push as hard as possible.

    JA: Speaking of pushing, your new album Omnipresent just came out, and it has been gaining real good reviews from fans and critics. Are you guys happy with the album and the response?

    JK: Absolutely. It was kinda funny the way that was released. We are on two different labels now, Nuclear Blast in U.S.A. and Agonia Records in Europe. We used to be on Nuclear Blast in the states and Europe, but the Europe label wasn’t pushing us as much as they should. Even though they share the same name they aren’t autonomous, and they are going in more of a rock direction over there. So we were looking for a new label [in Europe] and we found Agonia out of Poland. They are an up and coming label, but they are really pushing us and wanted us to be one of the front-runners on the label. We are really happy with them, and you can’t complain with the way it is [essentially] dual publicity for us. It is two labels working real hard to expose the album, and they aren’t really competing because it is two different continents.

    JA: That is a great way to look at it.

    JK: So anyway, back to the original story, the way it got released was that Agonia put out the first song, on YouTube, and it was a song that was a little out of context. The whole album is definitely best heard front to back. So they put out this one song, that is really part of a three-part thing, one song that we cut up [into three songs]. So it was this weird, kinda mellow song, and it was different than people were expecting. People lost their minds for a second, commenting “What is this? What is Origin doing?”. But it was completely out of context. Not that I cared, I like the song, it isn’t a bad song or anything, but it was perceived wrong. Then we put out a second track, and the internet breathed a sigh of relief.

    JA: So you are back in Upstate New York, lets talk a little about this kind of homecoming. What is it like to be back, seeing as you kinda cut your teeth up here, so to speak? Because this show is a treat for Origin to play this area.

    JK: Yea it’s great. I haven’t played a local show in this area with any band since maybe 2009. Things change though, I’m getting older, and everyone is, so the more I do larger tours with bands and national tours and such, the more I’m gone and the more I fall out of touch with people. So we will see, if people come out of the woodwork [to this show] and say “Hey remember ten years ago?” then I will think that’s cool. But until that point, I think no one even remembers me up here [laughs].

    *The show was attended by almost 150 people, many of which have been part of this local music scene for many years, so I can only assume that Jason was happy with seeing some old faces.

    JA: I know that you said how busy Origin is, but I also know that you, personally, like to be a part of a lot of auxiliary bands when you can. Is there anything in your wheelhouse to that effect, like another Mucopus or something?

    JK: Oh, Mucopus. I wish. Justin, the guitarist of Mucopus, currently lives in Japan, so that is gone. But me and John Longstreth [Origin’s drummer] actually have a project called CRATOR that we are working on, but we have to wait until John’s drum DVD comes out. I have actually been slacking though, I got to write a couple of things for that. But, whenever friends of mine hit me up for guest vocal spots, I throw down for those. I did guest vocals on this album for a band called Dictated from the Netherlands, which is two hot, sexy ladies shredding guitars in death metal. That is coming out on Metal Blade Records, very soon. I also helped out on my buddies Splattered Mermaid from Sweden, and stuff like that. I keep busy as much as possible, but the lulls are just as extreme as the busy times. Feast or famine.

    JA: Being out on the road so much, are there any up and coming metal bands that you might have just discovered, or you can’t stop listening to?

    JK: [laughs] I don’t know, I’m getting old, I have been listening to the same ten albums for years now. I just listen to Bolt Thrower and Brujeria all day long. But seriously, check out that Dictated album, they are really good. There is a band called Troglodyte from Kansas that do Bigfoot themed metal, and they all dress up in Bigfoot costumes, they are fantastic. Also, Tentacles, from right here in Upstate New York, if you haven’t checked them out, do it already, they are amazing.

  • Interview: Escape The Fate at Rockstar Uproar at the New York State Fair

    Escape The Fate have been making waves in rock and metal the past few years and currently are on this year’s Rockstar Energy Uproar Tour, headlining the Festival Stage in support of their latest album Ungrateful. I was honored to get the opportunity to spend a couple of minutes getting to know them. Drummer Robert Ortiz and guitarist “Thrasher” Bell were kind enough to invite me into their tour bus and gave me some insightful information on their music, the tour, and how rock and metal music is finally getting some recognition it deserves. Listen to the interview here or read it transcribed below.

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    Jay Saint G: So far, how’s the tour been going?

    Robert Ortiz: It’s been going great man every show has been crazy it has been a good time I really enjoyed it and we have played some headliners and intimate shows; just added them to fill in the dates when we haven’t been doing Uproar and those have been going great too cuz it gave us the chance to get up close to our fans, and that we haven’t done in while and it’s been good.

    Jay Saint G: I understand you’re from Upstate as well?

    Thrasher Bell: Yeah, born and raised in Albany, NY. I used to play Saratoga Winters and Valentines growing up. It’s awesome to bring this package to Syracuse this year.

    Jay Saint G: Very nice. Also, I know Maria Brink from, In This Moment, is from the same area if I’m not mistaken, so have you guys played any shows together?

    Thrasher Bell: No, we didn’t.

    Jay Saint G: Figured I’d ask. I understand the band has gone through quite some changes since Dying Is The Latest Fashion and some transitions in the band if you want to give some background on that.

    Robert Ortiz: The band has been ever-evolving this is our 10th year.A band is hard thing to keep together especially rock ‘n’ roll. We just roll with the punches, the important thing is where do we go from here, we have a lot of love for what we’ve done with each album and each member and there’s a great history and we want to continue and make more history.

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    Jay Saint G: I see you guys are under Eleven Seven Records, who have been one of the more prominent rock labels in the last decade. How long have you guys been with Eleven Seven Records?

    Both: I believe about a year and a half.

    Thrasher Bell: They’re a good rock label.

    Jay Saint G: If I may ask..you guys have been hitting radio hard with “Picture Perfect”, the latest single?

    Robert Ortiz: Yea we hit it hard too with “One For The Money” and we figured it was the right time now to release “Picture Perfect” which is more of a ballad-type song. Its a somber song, not a depression song but deals with loss and having to overcome and learn from the things you may have missed out with the loved one during the time they spent with you. This year I lost my grandfather at the middle of our tour.

    Jay Saint G: Condolences.

    Robert Ortiz: Thank you. It was a really difficult thing to deal with and playing that song really helps me deal with it. It’s what it’s all about so we are hoping that this song can get on radio stations and reach people’s ears and maybe help them through a tough time.

    Jay Saint G: Yeah I saw the video, very moving, so if you haven’t seen it, check it on Escape the Fate Vevo on YouTube.

    Thrasher Bell: Yeah check it out at escapethefate.com is a good source for all our videos and tour dates.

    etf3co

    Jay Saint G: I have to ask, have you guys played central New York?

    Thrasher Bell: Yeah, I played all over New York.

    Jay Saint G: What about the great New York State Fair at all?

    Robert Ortiz: No, this is the first time. We played Albany and Buffalo, but never Syracuse. This is my first time at the State Fair. I’m looking forward to our show, I’ve seen all the bands before so I might go around and enjoy all the sights and sounds of what’s going on today.

    Jay Saint G: I believe this is the second or third time Uproar has been to the fair, and as a native of Syracuse myself, when you’re here at the fair, you got to indulge in some of those deep-fried Oreos and wine slushies and fried Twinkies.

    Thrasher Bell: So this is where it’s at. My inner fat kid is stoked!

    Jay Saint G: Gianelli Sausage, Dinosaur BBQ, Tully’s and their tenders.

    Robert Ortiz: Ok so what’s the spot I have to hit?

    Thrasher Bell: I heard they have fried chicken and Krispy Kreme.

    Jay Saint G: Yes there’s a place called sticks and things, they have shark on stick, alligator on a stick, it’s a pretty big hit here along with Dinosaur BBQ. They’re famous here in Syracuse, Rochester, New York City, but there’s all those tiny places you gotta hit like Jim’s Fried Specialties, they’ll fry anything! I get fat just thinking about it. I think I clogged an artery just talking about it.

    Robert Ortiz: So what you’re saying is this day is going to take four or five years off my life.

    Jay Saint G: I certainly hope not.

    Robert Ortiz: I hope so cuz it will be worth it cuz it sounds amazing.

    Jay Saint G: I think the fair is the only thing that keeps central New York going, so I gotta ask, going back to music, and less food, what was some of your musical influences?

    Thrasher Bell: I was influenced by Stevie Ray Vaughn, Jimi Hendrix, Michael Jackson, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, then took off to progressive metal.

    Robert Ortiz: I was raised as a metal head. My parents were rockers. They raised me with the classics like Ozzy and Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin to Aerosmith, Guns n’ Roses and Metallica and all that awesome ’80s metal and then I fell in love with the big four of thrash metal that was all my shit. And that’s what influenced me to play metal, and then led to some of the newer bands like Thrice and Avenged Sevenfold. All that stuff that was new when I was in high school. And, now it’s almost everything. If it touches me in some way and I like it and it finds its way into everything I do. I always go back to those classic fuckin’ rock and metal bands that will always be in my heart.

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    Thrasher Bell: Yeah, anything they play on 103.5/103.9 The Edge.

    Jay Saint G: Yes, great stations. I always check it out whenever I travel to Albany I put it on The Edge. Another question, is there any music you guys are listening to right now that may be out of the ordinary?

    Thrasher Bell: Interesting one, we are listening to Jay Z right now which is classic to me.

    Robert Ortiz: To me if I haven’t heard it its new to me. I tend to dive into weird stuff that will make me think like why was this artist huge? And I just never heard them? Maybe it’s before my time or a scene I was never into, so ill go back , or if its Mexican music or fucking some pop artist or anything like that, I always dive into it, last few months its been fucking Vicente Fernández, the mariachi music. He’s the man. I’ve been jamming that, but it’s weird and I love it so I don’t care. Lately been getting into this new band that just signed with our label what are they called? They’re getting huge on the radio…what are they called?

    Thrasher Bell: Nothing More.

    Robert Ortiz: Yeah, Nothing More. That’s one I’ve been listening to.

    Jay Saint G: Yes, they just played a local festival here in Syracuse called 95x Fest. They absolutely killed it. Them and Otherwise blew all the other bands out of the water and that was my first exposure to Nothing More and they have been rapidly growing. It’s good to see that kind of music making that dominance to mainstream radio. It’s kind of refreshing to hear that.

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    Robert Ortiz: Yeah and that’s where I was coming from. We are definitely in the same vibe as them. They seem to somehow finally be breaking the mold of rock n roll radio has been the last 10 years. And I don’t think rock radio has taken a lot of chances, and they’re taking a big chance with them and it opens the doors for different bands that you know…that kids have been following for a long time. That style. That genre. Kids have been following, and that’s the direction rock has been going the last 10 years and now there’s finally one going balls to the wall with that sound and making that and growing that sound. And people may not have given that style of music that chance. In rock music they never would have given that chance back then and they are now.

    Jay Saint G: Any chance we will see Escape the Fate and Nothing More tour together in the near future?

    Thrasher Bell: I did tweet them that I was listening to their new record at the gym and they offered to do a little tour with us. So it’s a possibility.

    Jay Saint G: We will keep our fingers crossed, and will be first to release that news.

    Robert Ortiz: Honestly that tour would be awesome. We should call that the new face of rock radio

    Jay Saint G: The Revolution.

    Robert Ortiz: Yeah, the rock revolution tour

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    Jay Saint G: That would be killer. I don’t want to keep you guys too much longer. Couple more questions; Any crazy stories from the tour so far?

    Thrasher Bell: Godsmack threw an after party. It was cool to hang with those guys so they had a lot of cool stories to share.

    Jay Saint G: Yeah, them and Buckcherry are the veterans of the tour so they must have crazy stories to share.

    Robert Ortiz: Honestly nothing crazy yet. But that drum solo that Godsmack does, everyone needs to see that because it’s such a spectacle.

    Jay Saint G: You guys have been together 10 years and growing strong. Do you guys have any advice for up and coming bands that just started and how they can make it in rock n roll?

    Thrasher Bell: I would say try to find a unique voice. And stick to your guns and practice, practice, practice. You want to rehearse before your shows and play as many shows as possible. And that’s how you grow as a band.

    Robert Ortiz: I would say follow what’s in your heart. If you like it, someone else will like it.

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  • Interview: Ben Cameron Talks Governors Ball Experience and New Music

    Earlier this summer, the 4th annual Governors Ball Music Festival took over Randall’s Island in NYC for three days of music across four stages. One of the outstanding features of this year’s festival was the presentation of some emerging artists alongside the major acts. Steve Malinski had a chance to catch up with a few of those artists after their sets to talk about their experiences and their music, including Ben Cameron.

    Ben Cameron is a singer-songwriter who along with a talented band blends lyrics with a variety of harmonies, yacht rock and folk rock creating a unique sound to come out of the Nashville scene. Ben is currently recording new material and in October plans to announce a tour to support the new release. Here’s what he had to share with us.

    ben cameron
    Ben Cameron performs during day 3 of the 2014 Governors Ball Music Festival at Randall’s Island on June 8, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Taylor Hill/WireImage for Governors Ball Music Festival)

    Steve Malinski: I want to congratulate you on having an awesome set this morning at the Gotham Tent, and also on your engagement a few days ago.

    Ben Cameron: Thanks so much Steve! Oh yeah, I forgot I mentioned something about that on stage, yes indeed.

    SM: What was your experience like here at Governors Ball? It was a smaller crowd being the start of the day but everyone there was getting into your music.

    BC: Yeah, it felt like a hometown show a bit. I live in Nashville but am originally from the New England area – originally from Connecticut. So, it feels like a hometown show but of course it’s on a totally different scale and level because it’s a huge festival, you know, kind of the premier festival. So, it’s a great gift to be able to do something like this and obviously surreal because there are a lot of bands, music everywhere, people everywhere, and great food everywhere. We played the first set of the day so after everyone’s a little hung over from Jack White last night and trying to wake themselves up at nine in the morning to hike out to Randall’s Island you get a sort of diehard crew hanging out.

    SM: I do have to say it was the perfect sound to open up the last day of the festival after some pretty big sets last night from Jack White and Skrillex.

    BC: We keep it smooth – Sunday morning coming down! Exactly right.

    SM: Even though you’re from around NYC, generally speaking, your music is based out of Nashville. How has it been playing in this area, bringing your music up here and getting your name out there at a festival like this?

    BC: Well, we have a kind of smoother, classic vintage type vibe – something that has crept into the indie scene over the last few years with bands like The Head and the Heart (who played here this weekend). We’re definitely not the 3am type of band. I think the booking in terms of the timing of these daytime sets are when people kind of want to just groove around. We’re very close to Bonnarroo here in those terms – the bands they book at two in the morning are very different from the bands they book at 3PM. It’s like Sunday you hear lots of soul and groove, sort of like Al Green… hippie shit Steve, hippie shit!

    SM: You have a new album coming out this fall and will be touring to support it. What can you tell us about the album?

    BC: Well, it’s either going to be an EP or a full record, which we’re still trying to figure out. But, it’s going to be new music that’s very much driving at this idea of smooth soaring melodies with a lot of almost African type rhythms. So when you’re sitting there listening to it, it feels relaxed – a Sunday drive type of thing –  but also something where you’d want to see the show. It’s not sleepy.

    SM: So, close to along the line of what we heard this morning from your set?

    BC: Yeah, very much so. A couple of the tunes we started with will probably be on the album.

    SM: Definitely looking forward to hearing more of that – it should be good material!

    BC: I appreciate it Steve. We’ll have to come to the greater Upstate area and play some shows and get our routing through there.

    SM: Have you been at Governors Ball the whole weekend?

    BC: No, I wasn’t here yesterday, I have to admit. I didn’t support fellow Nashville band Diarrhea Planet (those guys are awesome) or Jack White – I know a couple of people in Jack’s band. I was lying low because of the engagement on Friday. I came to the festival Friday and had been yapping all day. I don’t have a deep or loud voice so I blew my voice out pretty quickly (I sound a little like Phil Collins on helium when I talk), so I took yesterday off.  But it’s been great here. Great weather. I was here least year when they got the monsoon coming through, washing everything out so I’m happy for the guys running it this year. This is karma in action that they’ve had three beautiful days.

    SM: Are there any acts for the rest of today that you’re looking to see?

    BC: You know, yes, but I have to look at the lineup again since there was a lot of work in getting ready for my set. I’m pretty psyched to look at the schedule.

    SM: One last thought for you before we go. If there was one artist you could either collaborate with or sit in a session with, who would that be?

    BC: Oooh, who’s recording now… I think right now it would have to be Graham Nash. He’s kind of the only one who seems to be making sense when he talks and I would love, love to work with him.

    SM: Ben, I’d really like to thank you for taking some time at Governors Ball to talk with .

    BC: Steve, thank you very much man.

  • Interview: Matt Hitt from Drowners at Governors Ball 2014

    Over the course of the three days of this year’s Governors Ball festival on Randall’s Island, was there to share the festival experience with our readers – the sights, the sounds, and the highlights. We also had the opportunity to chat with a few of the acts after their sets at the festival.

    One of those acts was NYC’s own, Drowners – who played early in the afternoon on the final day of Governors Ball. Blending a mix of British pop sounds with rock and punk, the band has their own take on the pop/punk genre. Steve Malinski caught up with Drowners frontman Matt Hitt to chat about the band’s music, Governors Ball experience, and what’s coming up for the band.

    Drowners is kicking off the Dr. Martens #STANDFORSOMETHING tour September 25 in Ohio with a number of shows outside of the northeast. They come back to Rough Trade in Brooklyn on October 28 to wrap up the tour.

    Steve Malinski: We’re joined backstage at Governors Ball with Matt Hitt from Drowners.

    Matt Hitt: Hello.

    SM: Congrats, you guys had a really awesome set earlier today.

    MH: Thank you very much. Cheers!

    SM: I’ll be honest and say that I haven’t heard of Drowners before this year’s Governors Ball. Especially with your new album out this year, what has your experience been like grabbing up new fans and building a following on the wave of the album?

    MH: Well, we were a band for around a year and a half before the album came out and we had a couple of singles but we were playing loads of gigs and touring a lot since the album came out. Since it’s been out, it’s oddle like, quite surprising to see how many people have bothered to learn the words or that type of thing, you know. We used to play and people would only know one song but now they seem to know most of them.

    Governors Ball 2014 10 Drowners
    Drowners at Governors Ball 2014. Matt Hitt at center.

    SM: You have a British influence that you bring into the music. Do you find that having a different sound in that regard has helped attract new fans?

    MH: I like, well we all love punk music and rock and roll – Buddy Holly and others. We aim to write good pop songs but because of our crude punk upbringings we can’t help but to make it more aggressive. But, in a live capacity that works because I see a lot of bands who don’t move around or don’t even look up when they play and we play like we’re excited to see people.

    SM: Yeah, it was great to see folks, especially the younger people there, being engaged since you so often see people on their phones at shows these days.

    MH: You gotta give them something to look at so they’re not refreshing their Instagram feed the whole time.

    SM: What was the experience like being one of the hometown acts at Governors Ball kicking off the afternoon?

    MH: It was really quite amazing. We’ve just been on tour for like three months and everyone in the band was quite excited to come back to NY. Playing here was – well, festivals always feel alien because you only normally ever play gigs that you know people have come to see you play. But at festivals it’s like a potluck. It’s like everybody bought a ticket to come see someone like Bastille or whatever. So when you see people coming up to see you and sing along with you it’s kind of invigorating . Especially being back in NY (which we were excited about anyway) was awesome.

    SM: You guys did a tour earlier this year with SKATERS, another NYC band, over in Europe. How did that go?

    MH: It was good. I think it was like the sixth time they have been there in it was our first time there. I feel like we kind of have a similar sound and we’re in the same ballpark, you know, so we had a crossover of fans. It was rewarding for both of us, like, it was our first time there getting a chance to play in front of British fans.

    SM: So are you guys hanging out for their set on Sunday?

    MH: Yeah, we’ll be seeing them Sunday. This is kind of a sick lineup and I think I’ll be coming back. Got nothin’ else to do man, it’s the weekend!

    SM: For my first festival experience I wouldn’t have asked for a better lineup.

    MH: It’s pretty good, yeah. It’s funny to compare festival etiquette or festival crowds or dressing rooms or stages or whatever it is. Here… Coachella is like Fort Knox, you can’t walk through a door without someone trying to get on your case but here it’s got a bit more… enjembemom, you know, ha.

    Matt Hitt of Drowners (left) with 's Steve Malinski at Governors Ball 2014
    Matt Hitt of Drowners (left) with ‘s Steve Malinski at Governors Ball 2014

    SM: Aside from SKATERS, is there anyone else you’re looking forward to catching while you’re here?

    MH: I want to see Jenny Lewis but I think I missed her. I’m gonna go see Julian Casablancas – I can actually hear Julian playing now. I’ve seen him like three times already. His front of house co-produced our record, so we have a mutual friend. But yeah, Julian. I want to see Vampire Weekend but I’m working Sunday night so I’m going to have to miss them, but I’ve seen them at Reading.

    SM: Before we wrap up, if there was one artist you could sit in with either in a session or on stage, who would that be?

    MH: I really would have loved to have seen The Beatles perform because they say they couldn’t even hear themselves through  a mixture of shit technology. Any video I’ve seen of them is either grainy or been on television so I’d love to be in a Beatles gig to see what it actually sounded like. I think that bands sound better now through technology. But I want to know what shit sounded like before tuning pedals.

    SM: Matt, I know you want to get out there to catch Julian’s set, so I’d like to thank you very much for your time.

    MH: Thank you for having me.

    SM: Perhaps we’ll catch up again in the future.

    MH: Cheers, and thank you very much, I appreciate it.

  • Interview: Michael Cummings of SKATERS at Governor’s Ball 2014

    Over the course of the three days of this year’s Governors Ball festival on Randall’s Island, was there to share the festival experience with our readers – the sights, the sounds, and the highlights. We also had the opportunity to chat with a few of the artists after their sets at the festival. One of those artists was NYC’s own SKATERS, who played early in the afternoon on the final day of Governors Ball.

    SKATERS has released their full length debut album Manhattan in February 2014 on top of their early 2012 Schemers EP. Singer Michael Cummings sat down with ’s Steve Malinski to talk about the festival, Manhattan, and about what’s going on in the SKATERS world.

    SKATERS is kicking off a fall tour Labor Day weekend in St. Louis with over 25 stops until they wrap it up mid October in NYC and NJ.

    Steve Malinski: We’re joined here at Governors Ball with Michael Cummings from Skaters. How’s it going?

    Michael Cummings: Good, how are you?

    SM: Really good, thanks. That was an awesome set you guys had on the Honda Stage a little while ago.

    MC: Thank You.

    Michael Cummings
    Michael Cummings of SKATERS at Governors Ball 2014

    SM: What was it like to play a big festival like this in your hometown?

    MC: This is the first one we’ve done – the first festival we’ve played in New York. We’ve only done club shows (our own shows), you know, so this was the first time for this kind of experience. It was good because I don’t think we’ve played an all age show before, so we saw a lot of kids out there which was nice to see. I mean, it was a mixed age crowd but in the city you don’t get a lot of all ages shows, you know what I mean?

    SM: Yeah definitely. So you guys have your debut album which came out in February. What Can you tell us about that and how the momentum has picked up from there?

    MC: Putting a record out is a good way for people to find out about your band in a way because they can finally listen to your music. We hadn’t had a record out for the good first year of our band, maybe a year and a half. We only had an EP out which we put online so when we finally for the record out it was like a culmination of all this time that we had spent forming this band, so finally we had a product we could push publicly. So far so good to keep promoting it. It’s been fun.

    SM: Looking back before that first year and a half, what was the beginning of SKATERS like?

    MC: We’ve only been a band for two years, meaning from day one. We kind of had a lot of obstacles at the beginning because Josh didn’t live in America when we started. He was coming back and forth so we’d play for three months and he would go back. So we just did a lot of planning, you know? We’d book a bunch of shows in advance and play then Josh would disappear for three weeks then we’d do it all again. Eventually the record deal and everything came later. It was like a homegrown kind of thing for a while.

    SM: Now that you’ve got the record deal and an album out, what’s the touring schedule like?

    MC: Yeah, we’re touring a lot, doing a bunch of US shows with a US tour coming up in the fall. After this we’re going to Europe and Australia. I really want to go to Japan but that’s not really booked…

    SM: You had a European tour earlier this year too, right?

    MC: Yeah we did a lot of touring in the UK. That’s kind of where we got our start.

    SM: And you played a bit over there with Drowners, another one of the NYC bands here at Governors Ball. What was your experience playing a tour with them?

    MC: They’re actually really close friends of ours. Matt, their singer, played guitar in our band –

    SM: Really? We spoke with him on Friday.

    MC: Yeah. He played guitar with us for about eight or nine months or something like that. So yeah, we’re really tight with them, you know? They’re our friends – he fixed our guitar strings today.

    SM: Cool, he mentioned that he would be hanging out for your set today. So have you guys been hanging out at Governors Ball throughout the weekend?

    MC:I was here yesterday but didn’t come Friday because we were playing another show. But yesterday we played a show in the morning here in the city on a rooftop and then we came here and caught The Strokes, which was fun.

    SKATERS with 's Steve Malinski (center) at GovBall 2014.
    SKATERS with ‘s Steve Malinski (center) at GovBall 2014.

    SM: Any other bands you’re looking forward to seeing?

    MC: To be honest, I’m kind of beat so I might not catch too many other bands today. It’s mostly play-press-play-press-get the hell off Randall’s Island somehow. It’s not exactly easy to get here! But yeah, otherwise I’d be catching some of the other bands. I really want to see Interpol, haven’t seen them in a long time. Saw them once in the Middle East which was maybe 2002/2003 when they were first coming up – a really small show which was crazy. We saw them there and at a stadium or small hockey rink but haven’t seen them at a festival.

    SM: On one hand you have that garage-punk sound but on the other you also have a post-punk type of sound. What kind of influences to you draw on for that mix?

    MC: Mostly like you said, a lot of post-punk bands from the late 70’s/early 80’s. A lot of what was going on in New York and London. So, a lot of Ramones, Modern Lovers, The Clash, Buzzcocks, a lot of the classic punk bands. Stiff Little Fingers,  Mission to Bhurma, bands like that, you know? Talking Heads…

    SM: I heard you do a Ramones cover out there too, right?

    MC: Yeah, because…New York!

    SM: Hah. Hey, here’s a cool idea – do a classic punk cover show or album, something like that.

    MC: Full record! That’s not a bad idea – what are we gonna call it?

    SM: Hmm. Not sure! We’ll have to think about that one. Last thought for you. If you could collaborate with, sit in on stage with, or record with another artist, who do you think that would be? Time travel is allowed.

    MC: I’m trying to think… If we had to make a record with someone I think it would be really cool to make a record with Phil Spector and if it was a musician I would say Probably have Joe Strummer produce the record. I don’t know how that could be bad. That couldn’t be bad, right?

    SM: Not at all.

    MC: If we could get Phil Spector and Joe Strummer to produce our next record…

    SM: That would be pretty sweet. Well, I know you have to get going so thanks a lot for taking a few minutes to chat with us at .

    MC: Yeah, thanks for having me.

  • Interview: Mushroomhead Talks About GWAR, Tour and More

    Over the course of almost 21 years, Mushroomhead has carved out their place as a lasting presence in the ever-changing metal scene. Hard work, relentless passion, and a dedicated fanbase has kept this band going, and they are stronger than ever. Starting out in Cleveland, Ohio, lead singer J-Mann remembers what it was like during the ’70s and ’80s in that area. “It was such an industrial town, seeing that part of it. I remember Detroit falling apart, and signs from the police saying ‘Enter at Your Own Risk’ “.  All of that led to J-Mann taking a liking to the aggressive music scene, which would in turn help shape what Mushroomhead would become. “Subversive music intrigued me, anything that challenged society, or was socially aware.” J-Mann took a break from Mushroomhead in 2005, because he was tired of the fight. “Pro-tools bands come and go, they are tourists – it’s lifers versus tourists.” He was jaded by the way the industry was shaping, but it didn’t keep him out music for long.

    *Note: Quotes from J-Mann were part of a phone interview with Managing Editor/Photo Editor, Jim Gilbert, earlier in July.

    Photo by Jim 'JT' Gilbert
    Photo by Jim ‘JT’ Gilbert

    Returning to Mushroomhead in 2013, the band released their new album, The Righteous and The Butterfly, which went to number 20 on the billboard charts. J-Mann recalls sitting next to Rev. Jesse Jackson on a radio show in Cleveland when he got the news. “Drinking beer out of a coffee cup at 6:30 in the morning, trying to awkwardly high-five and hug Rev. Jesse Jackson. Crazy. It’s all about the fans and their support.”

    With a stint on this year’s Rockstar Mayhem Festival, Mushroomhead is looking forward to a headlining tour in the fall, and then the next record, with a lot of new material already in the works, like a track featuring Randy Blythe from Lamb of God. I got to sit down with Skinny and ST1TCH at the festival when it rolled into Saratoga Springs New York at SPAC, and talk a little about the band, and the passing of Dave Brockie of GWAR, both Mushroomhead and Gwar being very close throughout their careers.

    Jeff Ayers: So, first question I gotta know. ‘Rumour Has It’. It was your idea, Skinny, to put that on the record, right? Can you talk about that?

    Skinny: Usually, when we start recording a new album, we will screw around with cover tunes, just to get tones basically. When you are setting up drums, and dialing in guitars, it’s just about having a little fun with it. That one came about because of my iPod, I had it on shuffle. Dr. F, our bass player, and myself were working on some masks, and we were using it as a background. Sure enough, that tune came on, and we started talking about Adele, I think she is an amazing singer.

    's Jeff Ayers and Mushroomhead's ST1TCH (Photo by Jim 'JT' Gilbert)
    ‘s Jeff Ayers and Mushroomhead’s ST1TCH (Photo by Jim ‘JT’ Gilbert)

    JA: Yeah, not going to lie, she is a talented artist.

    Skinny: Yeah, just incredible. So we were talking about it, and I said what if we put heavy guitars in it? You know like Metallica or something? Dr. F and I were laughing about it, and after a few more beers, we talked ourselves to go back into the studio and do it. We just knocked it out with some simple drums and guitars, just to get reactions from it, and everyone that came in had a chuckle. So we kept just throwing the whole kitchen sink at it for awhile. After a little bit, it turned into something interesting. You definitely know what tune it is, I don’t think we destroyed it too much. It’s very much in the vain of how we did Seal’s ‘Crazy’ in 2003. It was a lot of fun. It was meant to keep things lite during the writing process. Like, when you get frustrated or something, we could be like ‘Let’s screw around with the Adele tune again!”

    JA: You need that in a recording process, to keep it fun.

    Skinny: Exactly, it needs to be a good time. So when the album was ready, the label, who originally hated the song, asked us “Hey, what happened to the Adele cover?” Now they love it. It ended up morphing so many times that by the end of it they liked it. It was really for us.

    ST1TCH: Yea, we almost re-hauled it again at the end too. We turned in a few different versions and that’s why I think they ended up liking it. At first we were all a little on the fence about it, too ,because there were so many other songs that were also good.

    Skinny: We did like five or six different cover songs.

    JA: Will we have a chance of hearing any of the songs that didn’t make the cut on subsequent records?

    Skinny: Hopefully, yeah. There is a bunch of originals that didn’t make the album either, because we just ran out of time.

    JA: That is always good though, to have songs in your back pocket for the next record.

    ST1TCH: Absolutely.

    Skinny: But like I said, the Adele thing ultimately was just for us. At 20 years in, you got have some kind of fun.

    ST1TCH: 20 and a half. Mushroomhead is almost old enough to drink. Watch out!

    Photo by Jim 'JT' Gilbert
    Photo by Jim ‘JT’ Gilbert

    JA: Can you guys speak a little on how the game has changed, or how the industry has changed since your beginnings?

    Skinny: To bands at our level, like, we missed the ‘record sales’ portion of the industry by three years. Three years earlier and we might not even be here. But, I won’t change anything. For hard-working bands, that have been doing it this long, they are still just working. They punch in, go do their thing, and that’s all they are worried about. It’s funny how, you can get into cycles, like look at us, twelve years later and we are on another festival. Most people might have written us off, but that isn’t the case for the hard-working, honest efforts out there. People tend to know the difference. The rest of the industry though? I would hate to be in a baby band right now.

    JA: Is it harder to contend with the ‘baby’ bands out there now?

    Skinny: Well there is a lot of them. Oh my god, the saturation of the music industry is incredible. Sometimes, it gets tougher for a band like us. You get people saying, oh they are washed up, or they are gimmick metal. I think that you have to keep pressing on. A lot of bands don’t have that longevity; twenty years, seven albums, four labels. You know what I mean? If they do have that, they already made their millions, they are the big bands. There really isn’t a lot like Mushroomhead, and that’s why it’s always just another day at work for us. I still wake up everyday, like when I was twenty, saying ‘How do I pimp my band? What’s the next thing, how can I push it further?” I feel the exact same passion as when I started.

    JA: You have done a lot in your careers, and I am not throwing this around lightly, but you have helped re-invent the idea of heavy music. You aren’t afraid to throw samples in the music, multiple drummers, multiple singers, different instrumentation. Are there any crazy things on the horizon, or things that you have always wanted to integrate into the band you haven’t had the chance to yet?

    Skinny: We love working with other people, like guest vocalists on the records. So to see who the next guest might be, and not knowing is a cool thing. But knowing that I do want it, that next tone, that other texture, is exciting.

    JA: Musicians are very singular beings. Is it more interesting, or more challenging, being in a band where multiple musicians fill the same roles, like vocalists and drummers, seeing as I am talking to two drummers right now?

    Skinny: As long as you can sort through the bad ideas and get to the good ones, I think the more ideas the better. I’d hate to be in a room full of dudes who have no ideas, or no passion.

    ST1TCH: We spend a lot of time making sure that it makes sense, too. Not like some bands, where they might have two drummers, but they are playing the same beat. What’s the point? What I do, with water drums, is more about amplifying the show, and percussion. Not muddying it up at all. Just like with three singers, everyone has their parts, and we organize it more like a play, or a theater performance rather than a band going up there and trying to outdo each other. Msuhroomhead is a show, and we are all about entertaining people

    Skinny: [in his best Russel Crowe voice] “Are you not entertained!!” That is how I feel up there. We are not rockstars, we are entertainers.

    ST1TCH: As soon as that mask goes on, I am not me anymore. I am the character I snap into.

    Photo by Jim 'JT' Gilbert
    Photo by Jim ‘JT’ Gilbert

    JA: Mushroomhead was brought up by GWAR, can we talk a little about Dave’s [Brockie] passing. You guys were close right?

    Skinny: Yea. The whole GWAR camp gave us our first national anything. Three days after our first show, we were called up for an opening slot at the Cleveland Agora for those guys. So our second show ever was with GWAR. We got to know Dave and Brad and all those guys, and they asked us to do some support stuff the following year. Regional stuff, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania.

    ST1TCH: They were in town filming for the Jerry Springer show then

    JA: I remember that!

    Skinny: I think that was a few years later, but I don’t know. I remember Jerry introducing GWAR on stage and getting hit with a beer in the face. He was so pissed, he got in his limo and left. [laughs]. But anyway, those guys were really nice to us. We were fortunate to spend some time with Dave on Soundwave 2014 in Australia. It was like a high school reunion. They were on at two o’clock, we were on around 11:30 in the morning, so we shared the same dressing area. So we started drinking, you know, ten in the morning, GWAR and Mushroomhead. You gotta start then! I remember eating kangaroo jerky and drinking jagermeister with Dave.

    J-Mann (from phone interview): There were shuttles between all the stages, and Dave joined us for every show. He was brilliant, quick-witted, well-rounded, and that all gets disguised in a big rubber suit. He was such a wonderful guy.

    Skinny: On our day off, we all got together and went to visit Bon Scott’s grave [AC/DC]. We went to see his memorial down at the harbour in Perth, and some of us even went to the Indian Ocean together. It was so great to see Dave, and we were very fortunate to spend some of the last days with him. We have some many good memories and great footage of hanging out on stage, and personal photos as well.

    JA: It’s great to hear that you got that opportunity with him right before he died.

    Skinny: Yea, would you like to see the photo of us at Bon Scott’s memorial? It’s pretty heavy man.

    *At this point he took out his phone and showed Jim and I this haunting photo. Skinny was gracious enough to let us use it, another piece of the lasting legacy that Dave was a part of, and a testament to the bond between the two bands.

    photo (2)
    Mushroomhead and GWAR’s Dave Brockie in Australia at Bon Scott’s (AC/DC) memorial less than two weeks before Dave’s untimely death. Photo by Steve “Skinny” Felton.

    Skinny: But, anyway, he was a great guy, funny, talented as hell. He left this earth a better place. We were very fortunate to have him for the short time we did. Because, goddamn, I can listen to those records and laugh my ass off still to this day. Like, we were singing ‘Sexecutioner” out loud the other day, and everyone was taking turns, it was pretty funny.

    JA: Have you ever thought about doing a GWAR cover for a Mushroomhead record?

    ST1TCH: We were just talking about that actually.

    Skinny: Yea, because we were just singing that song recently, we started arguing about which song would be better. So you never know, whenever the time is right maybe we can do something like that. But again, God bless those guys.

    JA: So what is the next thing in store for Mushroomhead, then?

    Skinny: Touring. We are taking a few weeks off after Mayhem, then we will start getting ready for the Halloween season. That time of year is just us, we have to do that. Probably a nationwide tour, and we are also working on four cities in Russia right now.

    JA: Have you been out to Russia recently?

    ST1TCH: We were just out there in May.

    JA: Well with everything that’s going on over there, be careful.

    Skinny: Oh yeah, absolutely. But it is insane for us over there, the fans are great.

    ST1TCH: They make us feel like the Beatles.

    Skinny: That is no bullshit, they are shaking and crying to get into the shows, it is so nuts.

     

  • Interview: Korn’s Brian “Head” Welch opens up

    Back in 1993, ‘nu metal’ was barely a thing in the musical landscape. But five young guys from Bakersfield, California started a band that would become the powerhouse metal band Korn. From their debut self-titled album which gained instant success, to the slew of consistent chart topping albums for the last 20 years, they have been a lasting force in the heavy music scene.

    The members remained constant until 2005 when Brian ‘Head’ Welch decided to leave the band because, in part, to his addiction to drugs. He then found religion, cleaned up, wrote books and started new bands. In 2013 he officially rejoined Korn, bringing the guitar double team of Brian and James ‘Munky’ Shaffer back to full strength. At the recent Rockstar Mayhem Festival in Saratoga Springs, I got to sit down with Head and talk about what the road back to Korn was like, and how it feels to be back.

    Brian ‘Head’ Welch: Life is good, man. You know there is always something to do on this tour. We wake up, eat and then we are busy like crazy. I am also working on a new book, and I am way behind on it, so it takes any free second I have. There are other bands we want to see, on the small stages too. Then we have meet-and-greet, and after the show we are doing after parties. So we have like an hour to shower off, and then we meet like a hundred people every night and then it’s bedtime.

    Jeff Ayers: How are those after parties? We heard that some are thrown by other bands.

    BHW: Ours is more of a one with our fans kinda thing. We hang out, play some music, take pictures. It’s like a meet-and-greet, but you can buy drinks and hang out in a different atmosphere. There is a Q and A too.

    JA: That sounds cool.

    BHW: Yea, I don’t really like it. It’s a cool thing, but I was under the impression it was going to be the whole band there. Jonathan [Davis] has his kids out [on this tour] so he is never there. So the vibe is always, “Where’s Jonathan? Where’s Jonathan?” So I am not going to do it again, unless he signs an agreement that he is going to be there. I mean, I understand, he has his kids. But you know, I got a different impression about these after parties.

    JA: What’s the new book going to be about?

    BHW: It’s about my eight years away from Korn, and my road back to Korn. So it is about me, trying to be the normal person, trying to be dad, and getting my life together while breaking apart a few times a year. I was always wasted the whole time before, and I couldn’t run to that stuff anymore, but I wanted to. A few times. I went through a lot of stuff, and I am writing all that stuff down. It’s flowing out of me, so I think it’s meant to be.

    JA: It has to be cathartic, too, to be able to get that onto the page. I am a writer myself, and getting hardship, pain, and loss written down can be helpful and help with the healing

    BHW: Yea, you are right. But it is hard too, I mean, I’m feeling it too. I had this episode with my daughter, during the time we [Love and Death] were fighting with this label. They were stringing us along, and they had done it a few times before that, and then they were like “We are going to pass”. So I said “I’m done!” and threw my phone and broke it, but I had this episode with my daughter because she got hit by the phone on accident. It was the worst day, I felt like I might lose her. It has been hard at times, too.

    JA: In that eight year recovery, is there a defining moment? That pinnacle moment that smacked you in the face and made life clearer?

    BHW: I’d say when I finally hit the day, well I don’t know if it was a day or a time period, but when you hit a place in life where you step back and go, ‘Everything just changed right now’ whether it is a new a career or something. When I went through my bankruptcy, I hit a place where I realized ‘I just went through all of that for a reason.” I faced every fear that I had in life, I faced every emotion that was caused by my drug addiction, every bad thing that I could face, I did, and made it through. Facing those things actually cleansed me from them, so I am new man. It felt like for a time there was a curse on my life. I wrote my first book, and that was cool, but I then started a label, which failed, then I lost my house, then people were trying to sue me left and right. Then I moved to Nashville, I started a new band that wasn’t successful, and it was just like ‘C’mon man!’. But [looking back], it was all a process to make the person I wanted to be, this new man. Then I entered into peace right there, and I have been good ever since.

    JA: Can I ask what happened recently in Europe? You guys, Love and Death, were just on tour and you had to cancel dates, didn’t you get sick?

    BHW: Yea I had a kidney stone, and had surgery. I was in three different hospitals, called the paramedics twice, once in an airport, once in a hotel. Right in front of the Russian fans, it was just bad. I didn’t know what was going on, because they initially told me I didn’t have a kidney stone, but then my gall bladder started failing. Then my kidneys started hurting really bad. The doctors were just messing around, and I ended up having surgery. I had to Google translate with my surgeon. I asked, “I still feel like I am going to die, we had the surgery, what’s wrong?” Then he would Google translate back to me, it was rough.

    JA: Wow, that sounds crazy!

    BHW: Yea, remember how I told you everything got better after that certain day? Well that was challenging. But, after going through everything I had before, when I faced the kidney stone I was O.K.. Even though I was in extreme pain, I was fine inside, I knew I could get through it.

    JA: You took those eight years off from Korn, now that you are back for a little over a year, how has it been?

    BHW: 2014 has been great. 2013 was a little challenging. I came in from running the show at Love and Death. Even though it was a tiny show, it was my show, so I was making all the business decisions, saving tons of money on flights, and hotels and stuff. So I came back here, and I was all about trying to do things different, business wise. I talked with the guys, and was like “Why is this happening? You know how much money we could save, etc?” So I would let it eat me up inside. I was treating the tour manager pretty bad, and he’s been doing this for fifteen years, and he has his ways. He doesn’t work on the things that save nickels, he works on the things that save lots of money. I was sitting there worrying about the nickels, so it took me awhile to balance that. I had a conversation with him eventually where I apologized, because this was a big change for me and had to adjust. Once I got past that though, I have had a good year.

    JA: Your new record, The Paradigm Shift, is doing great. You just came out with that the end of last year, what is the plan for after Mayhem Fest?

    BHW: Well, I wish I had confirmation to tell you about this thing we are working on, but I can’t say it yet. We are looking to do a really nice tour in the fall. I thought it was just going to be a few shows to close out the year, festivals and stuff like that. But this thing came up, and I am really excited for it to come together. So big tour in the fall, and then I don’t know about next year. We haven’t really gotten that far yet. I think it would be good to take a couple of months off [from touring]. You know, do a couple of cool shows, but everybody just go away for a little bit. Give everybody a break, the fans a break, the band a break, and then start writing the next record. We will see what happens.

    JA: Do you guys write music individually and then bring it together or is the writing process a collaboration?

    BHW: The big thing with Korn, is we like to get into a room, and flesh it all out together. But we also write at home to bring ideas to those sessions. Definitely have to do that, because the famous thing we like to talk about is when we are holding our guitars and staring at our feet on the floor, and we try to do stuff and it sounds like we are beginning teenagers all over again. Looking around the room asking, “Is this cool?” [laughs]. That’s desperate, so playing on our own helps to stop that.

    JA: You guys have been playing now for a long time, and being on the road with the same guys over and over again, it can put strains on dealing with each other. Do you guys handle that pretty well as a band?

    BHW: Obviously, humans are humans. Even the people you love will get on your nerves, and it will happen out here on the road too. But you learn to just walk away, and then come back. That’s all is. There are some days, like four weeks into the tour, and you have a great night with everybody and you are on the bus just laughing. On the hard moments, you just walk away and try and go refuel by yourself. At this point, we all know how to do that really well.