Muen Magazine July 2009

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www.MUENMagazine.net www.Myspace.com/MUENMAG Also See: www.myspace.com/shaunasbandpage www.myspace.com/gcataline www.myspace.com/jetxx www.myspace.com/morbidmiller www.myspace.com/yvonneaddicted www.myspace.com/slavewriter6 www.myspace.com/artist5formelyknownasq www.myspace.com/407143833 www.myspace.com/bc_blonde2002 www.myspace.com/ravenwoodofmuen www.myspace.com/angeldevilsex www.myspace.com/metalmikemusicnews More..

Shauna OʼDonnell (MUEN) and Steel Panther during the interview at The Key Club.

CONTENT

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 3

Abigail Williams Pg. 6 AC/DC Pg. 49 Airrace Pg. 49 American Anti-Gravity Pg. 8 Atom Smash Pg. 63 Shauna OʼDonnell (MUEN) and Bloodsoaked Pg. 55 Rev Theory at The Gibson Showroom CD Reviews Pg. 94 Close Your Eyes Pg. 131 Dredg Pg. 31 Dynahead Pg. 102 Evans Blue Pg. 34 Exilia Pg. 91 Hemoptysis Pg. 119 Hillbilly Herald Pg. 110 Hurt Pg. 72 I Am Ghost Pg. 47 Jeff Beck Pg. 51 FluxXx Mutation (MUEN Model) Jet Black Stare Pg. 38 A night out on the town. Her visit to New York Judas Priest Pg. 12 City. Mc Sorleys Old Ale House Lazarus A. D. Pg. 43 Ledaswan Pg. 103 Lethargy Pg. 42 Luna Mortis Pg. 116 Middle Finger Mob Pg. 14 Modern Day Slave Pg. 71 Mongrel Pg. 113 Municipal Waste Pg. 57 My Evolution Pg. 80 Nonpoint Pg. 122 Papercut Massacre Pg. 86 Rev Theory Pg. 98 Shirayas Dream Pg. 67 Sick Of Sarah Pg. 17 Steel Panther Pg. 128 The Leo Project Voted “Band Of Stormzone Pg. 50 The Month” for June at 525 Power Testament Pg. 26 Tracks. Also listen in to MUEN Talk The Burn & Cry Pg. 104 every Friday at www.525PowerThe Dreaming Pg. 48 Tracks.com where Shauna OʼDonnell hosts audio interviews with top talent! Tular Pg. 22 Again, thatʼs every Friday 12 Noon Pa- We Are Fallen Pg. 8 cific / 3pm Eastern time!

Next time you fill up at the petrol station, ponder this figure - it took over 23 tons of plants to produce each and every litre of petrol you pump into your tank.

Excuse me but fuck you and your oil. Your "finding new ways to reduce greenhouse gases" and continuing to burn fossil fuel. Fuck your car companies who continue to produce nothing but shit. You should have been exploring the ideals of using new energy sources long ago, especially since the technology was there the day that the first model T was built! Should have been building an economy based on the future, instead of helping to destroy it as a result of your own "instant" wealth and greed. Fuck your wars and your downward spiral, fattening your wallets instead of your children's education, widening the roads instead of making them longer; clouding the skies instead of washing them. All this alternative technology known for years, but somehow suppressed and veiled. History grows a little more pale... eyes open in the wake of your future explanations and far fetched tales. Now hurry catch up! Is there time? No one really knows do they?? ..lol:P Just your occasional MUEN outburst... ~MUEN

Page 4 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••PIECES OF THE MUEN

EDGES OF SEVEN Canada

Myspace.com/edgesofseven

Edges Of Seven based out of Vancouver, Canada are planning live shows on the American west coast soon, so look for them in California!

With airplay on Vancouverʼs CFOX, plus numerous shows in and around Vancouver, the band started creating a buzz as early as 2006. Producing gravitating songs like “I Hide” and “Future Truth” is what continues to grab our interest. Someone said, “Imagine CHEYENNE DOLL Trent Reznor armwrestling James Hetfield, with Rob France Zombie as referee.” Truly a sound all their own!

KRISTIN ERRETT

Myspace.com/kristinerrett

If you are ever in the mood for great acoustic pop, you need to get familiar with Kristin Errett! This pianist, vocalist and songwriter from Connecticut could easily perform along side artists such as Sarah McLachlan. Songs like “If you Fall,” “Big Fish” defines it all, no question about it.

Myspace.com/thecheyennedoll

We know her as Mel, and first caught on to her a couple years ago when she recorded and posted the amazing ballad, “Blood

On My Hands.” Cheyenne Doll recently did a short tour of the U.S. just this May and June that included shows in New York City as well as on the west coast.

MAILA Germany

Myspace.com/mailaband

Female fronted, Maila touring now throughout Germany. Bold powerpop rooted deeply in western style song sung in German. One to keep your eyes and ears on in the coming year.

LAVEY

Cowley, WY

We were recently scolded by Marc Flowers of Lavey for not completing a CD review. Although we have not the CD in hand, we do remember taking interest in the computer noise generated at the Levay Myspace page and will follow up next issue. For now, take a look at this great profile shot at the mic:)

Myspace.com/laveyband

LEGION WITHIN

PIECES OF THE MUEN •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 5

SAMUEL VENTURA

myspace.com/sammyvmusic

New album "Beautiful Tragedy" is getting rave reviews. Travis McCoy of the Gym Class Hereos approves it and Alternative Press (one of the biggest music magazines in the world) is running a twopage feature on it! Be sure to check out the music and read about how you can preorder the new album and get an autographed copy for only $15!

Photo by Bianca Malise

LEGION WITHIN: One of Seattleʼs best gothic industrial with thought provoking, politically inspired tunes, recently release “Mouth Of Madness.” The previous album, “The Empty Men”, was a co-production with members of KMFDM; Jules Hodgson, Steve White and Sascha Konietzko. LW performed at Bar Sinister in Hollywood this June. With the albums consistently receiving club and radio play locally and internationally, Legion Within's distinctive sound sets them among the best in their genre. Myspace.com/legionwithin

EVIL BEAVER

SIK

Dallas, TX

Hailing from Dallas, TX, this band have precisely named themselves. Yes, Sik is right - this is tight, heavy, metal aggression smoothed over by nothing

but superb sound production. Vocals, strings, and percussion blaze at full throttle! Live dates throughout July and Aug. in Texas and Oklahoma, check their Myspace!

Myspace.com/sikband

From Los Angeles, Evil Beaver has shared the stage with Chevelle, Shellac, The White Stripes and more. Featuring only bass and drums for instruments and the ferocious female vocal of Evie Evil, the band is not short of a great punk rock sound made of their very own. All you have to do is listen to "Handz of Fate," "Cherry Master" or "Honey Pump" to come to the realization that this is not your ordinary band. Evil Beaver tours locally and internationally.

Myspace.com/evilbeaver

ABIGAIL WILLIAMS

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By Shauna OʼDonnell

ABIGAIL WILLIAMS (Candlelight Records)

TRACKS OF PURE AMERICAN BLACK METAL. TELL US ABOUT THAT.

MUEN: OH YEAH, LUCKILY, THERE HASNʼT BEEN A LOT OF IT RIGHT?

guitar. I played most of the guitar on the album as well.

MUEN: WHAT IS THE WRITING PROCESS LIKE FOR YOU Youʼd be surprised, no uh, itʼs been pretty good. The best thing GUYS? is playing live and seeing the With this album I pretty much crowdsʼ response. wrote every single song, but on MUEN: YOU WROTE THE MA- a couple of the songs I collaboJORITY OF THE SONGS rated with our keyboard player. MUEN: YOUR FULL LENGTH MUEN: ITʼS AWESOME! WHAT RIGHT? WHAT DO YOU We kind of went back and forth RELEASE THROUGH CANHAS BEEN THE RESPONSE ENJOY DOING THE MOST on a couple of songs, but for the DLELIGHT RECORDS FROM YOUR FANS? most part I wrote everything on WHEN IT COMES TO THE CALLED IN THE SHADOW OF WRITING/RECORDING the computer. I had every part A THOUSAND SUNS WAS REwritten out with the drums, bass, PROCESS? Itʼs been pretty good. I get a kick LEASED IN OCTOBER. THE guitars, keyboards and everyout of reading the bad stuff too. ALBUM PROMISES 10 Yeah, my favorite part is playing thing. The vocals are the last Ken Sorceron (Vocals, Guitar) Itʼs like symphonic, extreme metal. It has fast paced riffs and drumming with symphonic Myspace.com/Abigailwilliams sound over it. There is some piano playing, synths, shredding By: Shauna OʼDonnell guitar solos and extreme vocals.

thing I do.

MUEN: SO YOU DO A LOT OF THE PRODUCING AS WELL. I KNOW YOU HAD JAMES MURPHY DO THE PRODUCING, BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU HAD A LOT OF IT DONE PRIOR TO GOING TO JAMES.

Yeah, we actually co-produced it. I was at his house when we recorded and I tracked it myself for the most part. The main things that he did was mix and come into the room sometimes and say “Yeah that sounds good.” I produced the EP before this one by myself. It wasnʼt like he had to waste his time too much because I was already doing it. He was able to do other projects at the same time. I learned a lot from his as well.

THE MYSPACE PAGE.

We took her off the other day. She quit a while ago. She couldnʼt handle the kind of touring we were doing because we rough it. Cradle of Filth rides on a bus and they have catering and shit. To be honest, she quit right before things started getting better for us. Iʼm not entirely worried about it; we have a new keyboard player. MUEN: HOW LONG DID IT TAKE TO COMPLETE THE RECORD?

(laughing) It took a while because I was always recording it and making final touches. I was working with a drummer in Norway. The drums on most of the songs were handled by Trym Torson (Emperor) and so he did MUEN: ARE YOU INFLUthose in Norway. A lot of it was ENCED BY EUROPEAN AND me hanging out waiting for SCANDINAVIAN METAL? those tracks and there was a problem with the mail. It took Definitely, I donʼt think we have forever and we finally received too many American influences in them. The whole thing spread the music to be honest. There out took six months and that inare American bands that Iʼm cludes tracking in Norway, into, but none of it really works Florida, New Jersey, New York with our sound. I donʼt really in- City and Arizona. It was spread corporate much of it in the out and that is why it took some music. We are not as atmostime. pheric sounding as some of the European bands and I think that MUEN: HOW DO YOU FEEL is one thing that makes us THIS ALBUM DIFFERS FROM sound more American. Itʼs more OTHER BLACK METAL aggressive in some ways. RECORDS OUT THERE? AND WHAT DO YOU THINK SETS MUEN: WHO ARE SOME OF YOU APART FROM OTHER THE BANDS THAT YOU ADBANDS? MIRE THAT ARE EUROPEAN AND SCANDINAVIAN? There are not a lot of death metal bands at our level, where Emperor, Dissection and some we live in the U.S. and we tour more of the extreme black metal constantly. We are taking a difbands. That is where we took ferent approach to it. There are our influence from and kind of not too many bands that I know just ran with it until we got our of, although Iʼm learning of more own thing. Our keyboard player of them all the time, that live in is actually playing keyboards for the U.S. that have a similar Cradle of Filth right now. sound to us. I recently checked out a band that is on the same MUEN: I WAS GOING TO ASK label as us called Sothis that is YOU ABOUT THAT. IS ASHbased out of L.A. They totally LEY ELLYLLON STILL IN THE nailed that sound as well, which BAND? I NOTICED HER is cool. For the audience that we NAME WAS NOT LISTED ON have been reaching it is defi-

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 7

nitely a lot of those peoples first instance the last tour that we did, where the support bands time hearing stuff like that. were a lot different from what we were doing in terms of what MUEN: FOR THOSE WHO kind of fan base was into them. ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH So, the people that came out to THE NAME ABIGAIL WILLIAMS CAN YOU PLEASE see us were really complaining that we were playing on that TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT tour. That is why we are doing HER AND WHY YOU CHOSE IT FOR YOUR BAND NAME? this tour. We were trying to think of all the bands that are in the U.S. that are kind of at our level. Abigail Williams was pretty much the accuser at the Salem Bigger bands were not taking us out yet so we had to do our own Witch trials. She accused a lot of people of witchcraft and a lot tour. of people died. We were trying MUEN: WELL, I HOPE IT to figure out a name that was GOES REALLY WELL FOR taken from American lore. Iʼve YOU GUYS AND I HOPE YOU seen other bands, specifically SELL OUT EVERY SHOW. European bands that will take names from their history or lore. Thanks. I was trying to think of something American that we could MUEN: BESIDES WRITING, use and for some reason that names stuck out as being more RECORDING AND TOURING. wicked than the other ones. We WHAT ELSE DO YOU DO FOR FUN? just kind of went with it. MUEN: ITʼS DEFINITELY A GREAT NAME. I LOVE IT WHEN THERE IS A STORY BEHIND IT, A REALLY COOL STORY.

That is what I do for fun. I listen to metal, work on music, I guess, everything I do is for work. When you get home and you have nothing to do except drink beer with your friends and I am surprised by the number of hang out. Thatʼs cool, but I can only do that for so long. people that donʼt get it.

MUEN: SOME PEOPLE PROB- MUEN: CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR RELEASE!! I WISH ABLY THINK ITʼS A FEMALE THE VERY BEST FOR YOU SOLO ARTIST. AND IT WAS GREAT TALKING It didnʼt help that we had a girl in WITH YOU. IS THERE ANYTHING YOUʼD LIKE TO ADD the band. OR SAY? MUEN: WHAT OTHER BANDS Everybody should go buy our HAVE YOU RECENTLY CD! TOURED WITH IN JUNE? We did shows with Goatwhore, Daath, Abysmal Dawn and a band called Success Will Write Apocalypse Across the Sky. Thatʼs a mouthful. I have hung out with all these bands.

MUEN: WHAT DO YOU THINK IS MOST IMPORTANT WHEN PUTTING ON A LIVE SHOW? WHAT DO YOU FEEL THE FANS ENJOY THE MOST?

Weʼve done tours in the past, for

We Are Fallen

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very, very good at lying. So we just lied to everyone. Lying can work.” Carly explains “It was really hard By: Shauna OʼDonnell because we were so excited and we wanted to tell A press conference was everybody. It was hard to held today to introduce a new band to the masses. keep it to our immediate family.” The band plans on We Are the Fallen is a releasing two songs five piece rock band out of Los Angeles with the origi- roughly every eight weeks nal members of Evanes- for a year and a half and tour the entire time. cence and a new singer by the name of Carly Smithson. Some of you AMERICAN may know Carly from American Idol. Their debut ANTI-GRAVITY single “Bury Me Alive” ON THE NEXT proves to be a powerhouse hit that will rock the ALBUM... airwaves soon. Ben Moody states “First of all, we were really looking Update by G. Cataline hard for someone who could not just come and sing and hit the notes. We MUEN: How is the next album coming along, wanted someone who when will it be out? would actually be part of our family because we VIRGIL: Between me and wanted to do it right this Jross, we have about time. Carly just had a charisma and was friends three albums worth of material, but so far we have with my roommate. She only officially tracked two came over and we spent of them... they are about about 4 ½ hours talking finished so we move on to about music and it just was very clear.” The name the next couple tomorrow of the band encompasses night - we are kinda hanall of the fans that they dling two or three at a time have had with the previous and then on to the next. band and invites all of the fans to come in and be a You know man it's a part of something. The process it is gonna take band eluded the press for some time, but the first so long by keeping their two songs have only taken lips tightly closed and lying about two weeks so at this about what they have rate we are looking at winbeen up to. Ben said “Iʼm June 22, 2009 Los Angeles, CA

American Anti-Gravity

tronics in there, but I think it comes off a little more like later Depeche Mode or Massive Attack and a lot less like Linkin Park or insert whoever your averThe record is definitely dif- age new age electronic ferent - more mature. So heavy metal band is. far I feel like the songs are We have a much better more “band written” and drummer than we did on not just me sitting in my “Find A Cure” and our seroom writing everything. Everyone is pitching in so quencing skills have dethe changes seem a little veloped alot more. The two together changes more dramatic. Not as everything. heavy metal, but still heavier in a deep way. Last night me and Jross We still have some elec- got together and put down ter...... MUEN: How do you think it will differ, compared to the past album?

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 9

the roots of a new tune and it is a bunch of plucking on a violin with a dirty house style hip hop beat. It reminds me of Emily Wells a bit (if you haven't checked her out, please do. it is crazy shit)

Aug. 14, 15, 16

I guess what I am gonna say next will seem a little cliche, but this time around it is much more experimental and recorded song orientated. But don't get me wrong there is still a couple of live rock songs that we have been playing in our live sets for the last few THE LANDLORDS shows that will blow some Germany heads off - just not all of Somewhat like The Stooges, or perhaps The them. Cramps, or.. letʼs just appreciate them for what they are, and that is The Landlords! Check them out at Myspace.com/landlords1234

Our longtime metal favʼs from London, Biomortal will appear at Bloodstock August 16th at Catton Hall, Walton-On-Trent, Derbyshire, DE12 8LN, England. Lots more including Entomed, Tribe, Godsized! See Bloodstock.uk.com for more info!

DESTROPHY

nothing more gratifying than seeing a serious record label take interest in legitimate new talent such as Destrophy.

Other bands recently signed to Victory include Californiaʼs Chase Long Beach (Ska) formed in 2002, and Otep, with their latest album, “Smash The Destrophy signs to Victory Control Machine” due out Records! Great news esAug. 18. pecially for those of you who have known of the Myspace.com/destrophy band, and have been fans since their formation in 2003. MUEN interviewed them 3 years ago, and we have to admit there is

TIM RIPPER OWENS Tour Mexico 2009

Tim Ripper Owens (Iced Earth, Judas Priest) with friends, John Comprix of Beyond Fear/Ringworm, also Mandarina and Cohetica. New album “Play My Game” out now!

Myspace.com/timtheripperowens

FEISTY PIRANHAS

Californiaʼs Feisty Piranhas are opening for Blue Oyster Cult for the second year in a row Saturday July 18 on stage at 8PM Canyon Club 28912 Roadside Drive Agoura Hills, CA (818) 879-5016 www.canyonclub.net Doors 6PM (All Ages)

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KLIK, Floridaʼs melodic indie pop duet, and once Rolling Stone Magazineʼs “#1 Unsigned Band In America” will begin their “The Bare Bones Tour” on July 16 in New Port Richey, FL. The tour will consist of acoustic sets done at area Hot Topic stores throughout Florida. Their latest release, ʻAmerican Girlsʼ produced by Sylvia Massy is set to be released soon! Myspace.com/klik

FREE SPIRIT

of the Garage Countdown contest with their video Finland "Until the Night". It was viewed over 82 000 times Free Spirit play timeless over the internet and is melodic hard rock with a now running on The Voice sound that brings you to TV - channel that hosted the roots of nature and its the competition. mighty scenery. Their music reaches out to lisFREE SPIRIT is: teners of all ages with its Sami Alho (vocals) Vesa captivating melodies. Yli-Mäenpää (guitar) Pasi Massive choruses and Koivumäki (drums) Marko guitar sounds are the Haapamäki (guitar) Sami brand of Free Spirit. Hämäläinen (bass) Timo Alho (keyboards). The band's first full length album ʻPale Sister Of Sami Alho and Pasi Lightʼ includes 11 tracks. Koivumäki are the original Together these songs founding members, and form a journey to freethe current line-up was dom, whilst performing formed in 2006 when a strongly as singles too. group of like-minded musicians with a similar muʻPale Sister of Lightʼ is sical goal found each produced by Carpel Music other. and was released via Edel Records Finland this Myspace.com/freespiritrock past Feb. 2009. Free Spirit was the winner

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 11

M IS S DE R RI NG E R

Emerging fast, is Californiaʼs Miss Derringer! Powered by a strong shot of Rockabilly mixed with a pinch of Goth, Country and solid rock and roll, MD are gaining more attention by the minute. On tour now! Myspace.com/missderringer INTERNET TV

IN THIS MOMENTʼs “The Dream - The Ultra Violet Edition” featuring “Call Me,” the breaking bandʼs latest single and video! Maria Brink and the band pull this cover off with astounding skill, and have added a new trait to their growing legacy of keeping ambient rock lodged in the metal blender.

KILLOLA

OTEP

Livestream.com/killola

“Smash The Control Machine” In

Stores Aug. 18

Chicago’s Victory Records has signed Los Angeles recording artist OTEP! Donʼt miss them on WARPED TOUR The highly anticipated “Smash The 2009! Control Machine” will be in stores everywhere August 18. A huge victory Myspace.com/inthismoment for one of L.A.’s most up and coming rock bands of the year.

Myspace.com/otep

Look out! It will soon be Killola TV 24 hours a day with new video chats and skits on www.LiveStream.com. This is No Doubt with a shocking sense of humor, Cyndi Lauper on her ninth pot of coffee, or Wendy Williams reinvented by aliens from another galaxy who actually drink water from our cities? .. you be the judge. Catch them live @ The Knitting Factory in Hollywood, JULY 18

Myspace.com/killola

WWW.ROCKNATION.US

WWW.ROCKNATION.US

Pg. 13

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their myspace page at Myspace.com/middlefingermobband, I was really By Metal Mike Myspace.com/metalmikemusicnews wanting to know more Myspace.com/fullmetalreview about this group and Freekshow was once Some of you may remem- again only too cool to talk ber the ʻ77 punk tribute music.. so here it is! band we interviewed awhile back called Holly- MUEN: WHERE wood 77. They brought DOES HOLLYWOOD some killer flashbacks to 77 FIT INTO THE songs of old and were a solid Punk tribute band to PICTURE NOW say the least. Now The THAT YOUʼVE NOW core of this band HollyFORMED MIDDLE wood 77, featuring our FINGER MOB? good friend Freekshow, has recently set out to do something different. That FREEKSHOW : Actubeing an original music ally Middle Finger band by the name of MID- mob IS Hollywood DLE FINGER MOB. Hear77... formerly I guess. ing some brief clips on Myspace.com/middlefingermobband

We are all the same guys from Hollywood 77. What happened, is our bassist Matty D had to leave the band, so we got D.J. Cruise, but... then our drummer Juanny Rotten had to leave shortly after. It had been discussed many times about playing original music, and the revolving door of members was getting ridiculous, we have had over 20 different members in this band in 4 years!!! So we decided to pull

the plug. Fil Capone resumed playing with his band "Lamour" and is currently working on a record. The rest of us enlisted Danny "Boy" Virus on drums and moved on to form Middle Finger Mob.

MUEN: THAT IS AN INTERESTING NAME, MIDDLE FINGER MOB. SHARE WITH US THE STORY OF HOW YOU CAME TO USE THIS NAME FOR

THE BAND.

cally put the band together in an attempt to find compatible people to work with in an original project. 4 years and 20 members later... I finally found the people I can play music with. There is no change except for the fact that weʼre doing all original music now.

FREEKSHOW : Ha! The story behind our name is an interesting one, if not a long one! In short..... it has to do with the war between the French & the British (The battle Of Agincourt/ One Hundred Year War) Where the French Were cutting off the fingers of the british, in an atMUEN: HOW LONG tempt to win the war. The story goes on and like I said... It's an interesting one. Also, I thought That a band name associated with the middle finger, or the word fuck was cool too, lol. MUEN: DESCRIBE FOR US THE DIFFERENCES IN ROUTINE YOU NOW GO THROUGH WITH MIDDLE FINGER MOB AS OPPOSED TO YOUR COVER BAND HOLLYWOOD 77, OR IS THERE A DIFFERENCE OTHER THAN ORIGINAL MUSIC?

FREEKSHOW : Well, everyone in Hollywood 77 came from original bands. I basi-

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 15

HAS YOUR ORIGINAL WORK WITH MIDDLE FINGER MOB BEEN IN THE MAKING? AND HAVE YOU HAD OTHER ORIGINAL PROJECTS, OR IS THIS THE FIRST FOR YOU?

we started talking about doing original music constantly. Shawn presented me with some material he had written, and we began working on it as soon as it was clear that Hollywood 77 had run it's course. I have some material FREEKSHOW : As from previous original soon as Shawn projects that I've been Smash joined Holly- in that might be wood 77 it seems like thrown into the mix

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when we start recording again, but who knows. D.J. Cruise has some stuff he's written and Shawn's box of tricks seems never ending!

MUEN: AS MIDDLE FINGER MOB IS A NEW BAND AND BASICALLY UNDEFINED, I WAS WONDERING IF YOU COULD SHARE WITH US WHERE THE BANDʼS FOCUS LIES IN DIRECTION AND STYLE? WE HEAR THE GLAM PUNK AND ROCK SOUND, BUT WILL THIS BE A GENERAL FOCUS, OR WILL YOUR SOUND AND DIRECTION CHANGE OVERTIME?

FREEKSHOW: Who knows! We just love playing good rock nʼ roll and enjoying ourselves, I don't think anyone has thought that far ahead to be honest. Some people call it glam, some call it punk or maybe rock nʼ roll... But, our music is just an extension of ourselves, which is

packed! As for other shows booked, weʼve had a very busy schedule starting with our CD Release party May 21st. After that MUEN: AS THE we played the Key BAND IS FAIRLY NEW, I WAS WON- Club, then took off for a mini tour to New DERING IF YOU COULD TELL US A York. When we returned from New York, LITTLE ABOUT we played Club Vodka EACH MEMBER? w/ Circus Of Power, then Shawn & Danny FREEKSHOW : take off on tour with Hmmm, where do I start.... Shawn Smash Total Chaos to do the (guitar) also plays in Warped Tour. I will be traveling with them as Total Chaos with well... as the Danny "Boy" Virus merch/roadie guy. (drums) Danny has also done a stint in MUEN: NOW IS THIS Bulletboys... D.J. BAND SIGNED OR Cruise (bass) has known Shawn Smash, ARE YOU INDELenka Danger & my- PENDENTLY PROself for a few years... MOTING THE BAND and Lenka Danger is WITHIN? MY rock nʼ roll nurse!! FREEKSHOW: I started up Freekshow MUEN: SO WHAT SHOWS HAVE YOU Records as a vehicle to put out Middle FinDONE RECENTLY, AND WHAT SHOWS ger Mob and other bands that I am interDO YOU HAVE ested in, so I guess LINED UP? you would say we're FREEKSHOW : We on an "indie" label, right? We have distriplayed a warm-up show at some speed bution with CM Distro infested bar in River- for the Middle Finger Mob release so far... side back in April. As for promotions, I Surprisingly.. It was what music is..... an extension of the people who create it, right?

am handling everything in-house. We are servicing the cd to college/commercial specialty loud rock radio nationwide in june.

MUEN: TOP THIS INTERVIEW OFF WITH ANYTHING YOU MIGHT WANT TO ADD FREEK AND THANKS FOR THE TIME OUT BROTHER.

FREEKSHOW: Rock on mike, I enjoyed doin' this interview. I just wanna let your readers know to go to our myspace page @ www.myspace.com/mi ddlefingermobband ,purchase the record for only $6.00 & support this band!!! Also, like mentioned in the above question....We are servicing radio in june , so call your local station and demand that they play Middle Finger Mob

SICK OF SARAH MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 17

www.SickOfSarah.com www.Myspace.com/SickOfSarah SICK OF SARAH By Q5

Myspace.com/artist5formelyknownasq

I am proud to announce the arrival of an all female, indie rock band with a sound that crosses over all typical boundaries set in the stone of rock criticisms. Sick Of Sarah have managed to create a debut LP that I proudly grant my pick to as, indie rock, “Feel Good” album of the year! (2008 Adamant Records). This riot grrrl quartet from

Minneapolis, Minnesota brings together an array of sounds that seem to be definitive of our popular culture. A pop rock sound that has an attitude and simplicity friendly to the ears without losing the feeling of desperation and guilt; Sick Of Sarah is essentially a band that creates radio friendly songs (one after the other) on a level that surpasses most in music today. The smartass rebel in all of us will rejoice in the sing along, stick your tongue out feel

that Sick Of Sarah guides the listener on. Garnishing mention in magazines such as Spin, Marie-Claire and Venuszine; I knew upon one listen that it was time to introduce Sick Of Sarah to the readers of MUEN magazine.

cals) and Jamie Holm (bass). Sick Of Sarah also consists of Brooke Svanes (drums) and Katie Murphy (guitar, vocals). The playfulness and brat sister feel that creates music as if each song is a distinct personality in a storybook, dysfunctional family of Sick Of Sarah not only 2009, also gives our bring a knowingly, person- MUEN readers a personable feeling to their music able and very entertaining but gave me a feeling of glimpse into the heart of personably knowing them this energetic and talented while I recently talked to; band on the rise. Abisha Uhl (vocals, guitar), Jessie Farmer (guitar, voCheck out more of Sick

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ST. PAUL AND THE OWNER WAS TELLING ME ABOUT SICK OF SARAH PLAYING THERE? I FOUND IT INMUEN: HOW ARE YOU TERESTING THAT A LADIES TODAY? BAND OF YOUR CALIBER, NOT TO LONG Jamie: Can I ask what AGO WAS PLAYING A day it is? We just got back LOCAL RECORD early this morning from STORE? WHAT ARE our latest run, which was YOUR EARLY MEMOamazing, but I have no RIES OF PLAYING concept of time. It could SOME OF THESE be Tuesday. It could be SMALLER VENUES? Christmas. All I know is I'm ready to go out again! Jamie: The venue size always varies. We play big Abisha: I feel like Jamie. venues, small venues and A little out of it and want- even bathrooms when ing to go out and tour we're in the mood. The insome more. We are all timate settings are somehaving an amazing time! times the most rewarding. Experience of a lifetime! It's great to be able to Jessie: recuperating. have a more personal vibe sometimes. Sick of MUEN: HOW ARE THE Sarah, coming soon to a LIVE SHOWʼS GOING? bathroom near you... Of Sarah on the bands MySpace page at: http://www.myspace.com/s ickofsarah

Jamie: The live shows are going great! We've had some crazy amazing fans coming out so it's super fun to play. I definitely think we've stepped it up lately and like to get sweaty!

Abisha: We play every show we can get our hands on. It's about working on your craft at this point. We have a lot of work ahead of us and so basically no venue is too small for us! Plus, it's fun to eat a small venue for breakfast! hmm?

Jessie: we are having a great time rocking out all over America .. Getting all MUEN: WHEN DOING crazy with the fans.... it's THE CONSTANT TOURa good work out! ING THAT SICK OF SARAH HAS BEEN Abisha: They just keep DOING, WHAT DO YOU getting better and better. LADIES DO FOR FUN? MUEN: I RECENTLY SAW A SHOW AT ECLIPSE RECORDS IN

Abisha: Oh you don't even want to know, its pure insanity. Seriously.

Jamie: On the homestretch of our drive last night, Katie was taking pictures of herself attempting new sitting positions in the van. We have learned to use our imaginations...

Jessie: Well, usually i make up some stupid voice and make the girls laugh until they cry... recently i created an Italian guy named, Mario... he has a catch phrase, but the humor would not translate over print..

MUEN: YOU CANʼT MAKE SNOW ANGELS ALL THE TIME. (NOTE: Q5 MADE THIS COMMENT IN REFERENCE TO SICK OF SARAHʼS VIDEO FOUND THROUGH RESEARCH ON YOUTUBE: HTTP://WWW.YOUTUBE .COM/WATCH?V=_TN0K SEU3NW)

Abisha: I know it's horrible.

Jamie: Can you? I want some of what you have...

Jessie: hmmmm... no comment

MUEN: HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE SOUNDS OF SICK OF SARAH?

Abisha: Uh, fucking awesome! (smiling)

Jamie: I would describe it as indie pop rock, however, I hate having to describe it as I feel it sometimes gives people the wrong vibe. Jessie: Guilty pleasure pop rock that doesn't suck!

MUEN: COULD YOU NAME SOME OF YOUR RECENT AND PAST INFLUENCES? WHAT INFLUENCES DO YOU AS INDIVIDUAL THINK, COMES OUT THE MOST PROMINENTLY IN SICK OF SARAHʼS SOUND?

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like us. Thank you ladies! MUEN: HOW DOES THE SONGWRITING Jessie: I was their bass PROCESS WORK FOR player for a European SICK OF SARAH? tour about 9 yrs ago. Jessie: Our song writing MUEN: IS THE NEW process is pretty organic. RECORD COMPLETE? Either Abisha, Jamie, or HOW HAVE YOU myself come up with an FOUND TIME TO idea and we just jam it RECORD WITH YOUR out. Let the song form itBUSY LIVE CALENself. DAR? Abisha: We just work it Abisha: Our second full out once and idea is length should be ready in brought to the table. Like about a year... well, at pure sweetness... heh. least it better be! I like music. MUEN: THE SUCCESS THAT YOU HAVE HAD Jamie: We have a lot of SEEMS TO HAVE COME new material in the works QUICKLY AS OPPOSED but no plans to record TO OTHERS THAT anytime soon. We are fo- WORK TEN-TWENTY cusing on touring in sup- YEARS TO REACH THE port of our debut album POINT THAT YOU HAVE right now, but are always ALREADY REACHED IN writing and expect some THE MUSIC BUSINESS. new material in our upWHY DO YOU THINK coming shows. THAT IS?

MUEN: I HEARD ABISHA DO AN ACOUSTIC VERSION OF AUTOGRAPH AND I REALLY DUG IT.

Jamie: I think it is a lot of different things coming together. We are able to play, can write music people like and also have fun and invite our fans to reJessie: Joan Jett and the Abisha: Awwww, Thanks! ally get to know us by resounds. (Smiling) ally interacting with them. Abisha: I love the Cardigans, recent and past. Weezer has always been there for me. So many...

MUEN: COULD YOU TELL OUR READERS A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR RELATIONS TO GIRRRL ROCK PIONEERS, BABES IN TOYLAND?

Abisha: Jessie got me into them. They helped pave the way for bands

MUEN: Is that one of the MUEN: YOU DEFInew songs? Can you leak NITELY COME OFF AS A me any more song titles? VERY FRIENDLY AND PERSONABLE BAND. Jamie: It is one of the new songs, as for song ti- Abisha: We came totles, we don't have any- gether and developed a thing solid yet. I can say magical potion. It's not hard to make. Just a little we are working on sevlittle vinegar and roseeral new songs.

mary mixed and grinded with a hint of fairy dust that can only be found in the northern parts of Minnesota. In all seriousness I think it's the connection we share with our fans, music and all.

MUEN: HAS THE RAPIDLY GROWING STARDOM BEEN HARD TO HANDLE?

Abisha: No, That's the fun part. Traveling for 20 hours in a van is the hard part! We are having such a great time!

Jamie: It was really fun getting out to the east coast. We had people drive an entire day to see the show. That is amazing in itself and makes me want to pinch their cheeks! It really is just a reminder of why we do what we do and makes us want to work harder.

MUEN: HOW DID YOU ALL MEET?

Jessie: Through mutual friends. Abisha: EHarmony.

Jamie: I personally met the girls when my old band Hazel Strange played a show with them at 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis. Later that year they called me and asked me if I wanted to play bass when Jessie moved over to guitar.

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MUEN: COULD YOU TELL THE MUEN READERS WHERE THE NAME SICK OF SARAH CAME FROM?

Jamie: My family has been great. My dad and brother are both very musical so they are the reason I play. I have been very lucky to have that Jamie: Abisha's old room- support. I love you family! mate one day told her she was just plain sick of her Jessie: My parents are name... she was sick of happy that i am happy. 'Sarah'. There is also a They have been nothing story floating around but supportive and nurturabout an Armadillo ing the entire time, as well named Sarah eating as my brothers and sissomeone's underwear, so ters. I love them dearly. letʼs go with that one. And I may or may not have promised my father MUEN: LET US GET a corvette? PERSONAL. I IMAGINE IT MUST BE DIFFICULT MUEN: WHAT ARE YOU TO SUSTAIN A SERIPLANS FOR THE FUOUS RELATIONSHIP TURE AS FAR AS A BETWEEN ALL THE NEW ALBUM BEING TRAVELING AND RELEASED AND DOING RECORDING. ARE LIVE SHOWS IN SUPTHERE ANY RELATION- PORT OF IT? SHIPS? Jessie: When we do deAbisha: Ha,Ha. Iʼm not cide to go back into the telling! studio to record our follow

Jessie: Well, my cat gets mad at me every time I leave, but we make up when i get home. Jamie: Yeah, I have a serious relationship with Cheetos and Svedka!

MUEN: HOW DO EACH OF YOUR FAMILIES ACCEPT YOUR CHOICE OF CAREERS AND HOW INSTRUMENTAL HAVE THEY BEEN IN YOUR SUCCESS?

Abisha: They are very proud.

up record, we will tour to the ends of the earth to promote it.

BEING SPIT ON IN THE VISUAL?

Jamie: Sometimes I slow dance with Katie. I don't do that on the Album. I think our personalities really come out at the show MUEN: WHAT COULD and there is a lot of enONE COME TO EXPECT ergy behind it. OUT OF A SICK OF SARAH LIVE SHOW MUEN: SERIOUSLY, THAT THEY CANʼT GET SICK OF SARAH HAS OUT OF YOUR DEBUT OPENED UP FOR MANY CD? COMMERCIALLY SUCCESSFUL GROUPS, INAbisha: I might acciden- CLUDING EN VOGUE? tally spit on you... if you WHAT WOULD YOU are into that, I donʼt know. SAY HAS BEEN YOUR Ha. We have a good time. CROWNING ACHIEVECuriosity killed the cat, MENT AS FAR AS PLAYcome on out and have a ING LIVE, UP TO THIS good time. You know you POINT? want to. I feel like Iʼm flirting right now... hey... so, Jamie: There have been a what are you wearing? few and that show was definitely a great show to MUEN: UM… YA, play. We have several in CLOTHS. CAN WE the upcoming few months FLIRT WITH OUT ME that I am really excited to Abisha: We will release another album and more videos to come.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 21

play such as Rock on the Range in Winnipeg. It has some amazing acts on the bill!

MUEN: YOU ALL SEEM TO HAVE VERY UNIQUE PERSONALITIES THAT MESH TOGETHER, BEAUTIFULLY. DOES HAVING SO MANY UNIQUE PERSONALITIES IN THE BAND EVER CREATE FRICTION?

Jamie: I think every band who has their heart completely into a project with four of their best friends will have friction. It becomes your family and most days are really good but of course sometimes you disagree. At the end of the day no one messes with my girls!

MUEN: DO YOU HAVE ANY INTERESTING STORIES IN PARTICULAR OF BAND SQUABBLING THAT YOUʼD LIKE TO SHARE WITH THE READERS OF MUEN?

Abisha: What are you doing, trying to kill me? My band members would kill me. However, there was this one time...

will be around a long time. (Smile)

bein' such a wiener the other day" and I love you all and thank you for such Abisha: Iʼd like to think by overwhelming support! a poolside or something like that. MUEN: JAMIE? Jamie: I plead the fifth. Jamie: Just watch our (laughing) MUEN: I LIKE TO END YouTube videos. There ALL MY INTERVIEWS are plenty of good quotes MUEN: WHERE DO YOU WITH A Q5 LAST there. SEE SICK OF SARAH QUOTE, KIND OF A THREE YEARS FROM STAMP ON THE CON- MUEN: THANKS FOR NOW? VERSATION THAT WE TAKING THE TIME OUT HAD, WITHOUT THE OF YOUR BUSY Abisha: In jail. SPIT JOKES…. OR SCHEDULE TO TALK WITH THEM. COULD I WITH US. WE REALLY Jamie: Touring, touring, GET A LAST QUOTE APPRECIATE IT AND touring! FROM EACH OF YOU? LOOK FORWARD TO ABISHA? HEARING BIG THINGS MUEN: HOW ABOUT FROM SICK OF SARAH TEN YEARS FROM Abisha: I don't like IN THE NEAR FUTURE. I NOW? quotes, they make me PERSONALLY CANNOT nervous. WAIT FOR THE NEW Jamie: I see us still L.P.! recording writing and MUEN: JESSIE? touring, and maybe some Abisha: Thank You so side projects. I think we Jessie: I do apologize for much! We love you!

TULAR

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TULAR Francesca and Emanuele

Written Interview by G. Cataline

prefered TV reality shows and artistically poorer music, but we go on because we feel us as citizens of the world... step by step we are heading to the goal

Emanuele, we blended four personal passions completely different among them: Flamenco and Metal for him and Pop and Opera for me and then the result is our music.

DEBUT? OR ARE THERE OTHER ALBUMS PRIOR TO THIS ONE?

Emanuele - Borderline is for us our debut album because we have an eccenMUEN: HOW ARE tric adventure with an THINGS IN ROMA? American label but we preMUEN: WHEN DID THE Emanuele – We call our BAND FORM, AND WHAT music “Symphonic” just for fer to not talk about it! BorFrancesca - We adore it. IS IT ABOUT THE GENRE the mix between Rock and derline has been Rome is our city, and is a Symphonic orchestration, completely produced, fantastic city, but things are OF MUSIC YOU mixed and mastered in our CHOSE THAT MADE YOU but I know we are just not so good here. Unfortustudio, the Muse's studio in WANT TO PURSUE IT? Tular... I hate definitions. nately musicians are not Rome and I guess we did a YOU CALL IT SYMgratified and there aren't a MUEN: IS YOUR LATEST very good job. lot of chances if you are not PHONIC ROCK? CD OUT CALLED, "BORin a cover band. Generally MUEN: YOUR MYSPACE DERLINE," YOUR Arts in Italy are put aside to Francesca - When I met

PAGE IT SAYS THAT YOU WRITE SONGS BASED ON THE THRESHHOLD BETWEEN THE "REAL WORLD" AND "FANTASY"... COULD YOU EXPLAIN MORE ON THIS?

Francesca - The truth is that we love to talk about social things and personal experiences but we don't like to do this directly. We love to make parodies, in effect the word Gothic (as many call our music) means the Arts of hidden truth.

Emanuele - Try to listen to our songs with an open heart and you will find the real meaning.

MUEN: FRANCESCA'S VOCALS ARE QUITE OPERATIC... HAS SHE HAD FORMAL TRAINING? Francesca - Wow please another one can answer at this?

Emanuele - Yes she begun her path as a soprano singer with a great Italian teacher, Luciana Santoianni. MUEN: WHO ARE THE OTHER MEMBERS IN THE BAND? AND TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT THEM...

Emanuele - We have Michele Raspanti at the bass, that is always there with his wise suggestions, but even if is the older one is a kid inside and is a very

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 23

funny guy; David Folchitto, TODAY? the greatest metal drummer of all and a very good Francesca - We have two Videos out: “Witch”, our person that serves as a volunteer to disabled peo- first single and the second ple. Last but not least my one “Chained to You” (both brother Alessandro Iacobel- songs are contained in the CD “Borderline”). I would lis that is a bass player gone guitarist just to play say both, I mean there are together. Even if I still call parts of us, the first one him “Rookie” I'm very proud represents our Gothic side and “Chained to You” is of him. more mature (personally I prefer this one), is our love MUEN: DO YOU PLAY story with our lover: the LIVE VERY OFTEN IN music! Among tragedy and ITALY, AND DO YOU PLAN TO TOUR OUTSIDE romanticism between bitterness and glories we will OF ITALY ANY TIME always be chained to her! SOON?

Francesca - Beautiful ques- MUEN: WHAT DO YOU tion see above! LOL ^__^ LIKE MOST ABOUT LIFE IN ITALY? yeah, between festivals and concerts of benefiEmanuele - Our past and cence we play so much! our foods and Italian joy for We have some beautiful Roman fans, I mean, they life but nothing more... I are with us at every gig, but suffer talking about this, but many other fans follow us Italy is not sailing good wain northern Italy. Our future ters in last years! We hope is to go outside, beginning better for the future. with UK (we are planning a collaboration with Raven- Francesca - I'm sure... anyway is the cradle of culture, heart Music an English label) and then we'll con- the land where we were quer the United States with born Leonardo Da Vinci, Caravaggio and Cristoforo our show performances. Colombo. Another great goal is to play in Mexico where we received many many listen- MUEN: IS THERE MUCH SUPPORT FOR YOUR ing and consents. STYLE OF MUSIC THERE Emanuele - So gig organiz- IN YOUR LOCAL ers don't waste your time, AREA? Call Tular to make venues Francesca – We have a explode! large variety of fans following us and even if the main MUEN: HOW MANY VIDEOS DO YOU HAVE part follow bands as Lacuna Coil or Within TemptaOUT, AND WHICH WOULD YOU SAY BEST tions, many other are REPRESENTS THE BAND listeners of pop or extreme

metal such as Cradle Of Filth: Borderline is our name in Etruscan so you can understand that living on the line we are a trait d'union among many styles.

Emanuele – There is much support and I guess they came not only for our music, but for our show performances too. A live show of Tular is something amazing, and Francesca “Keeps the flag” as we say in Italy... sometimes we are so fascinated by her moving and singing that we risk to make mistakes playing to watch her.

MUEN: WHAT ARE YOUR MUSICAL PLANS BEFORE THE YEAR IS OVER?

A bunch of awards! Ok, seriously we want to reach the place that we deserve into the international music scene. MUEN: IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO ADD?

Yeah we are the greatest Italian rock band of all time!

MUEN: THANKS FOR THE INTERVIEW!

OUT AUGUST 2009! Myspace.com/otep

‘SEE IT THROUGH’ OUT NOW! Myspace.com/thesammustheory

TESTAMENT

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(Nuclear Blast) Eric Peterson (Guitars) Oakland, CA

Myspace.com/testamentlegions By: Shauna OʼDonnell

MUEN: NOW IT HAS BEEN ALMOST A YEAR SINCE YOU RELEASED THE FORMATION OF DAMNATION SO HOW IS THE ALBUM DOING?

Eric: Um, itʼs been received really well! It basically did what we were looking for it to do. We havenʼt had a record out for about nine years so people could just say “ah they havenʼt got it anymore” but that wasnʼt the case! We came back even stronger adding all the elements that we have had throughout our career but keeping it more modern and more towards the heavy side. Since then weʼve been pretty lucky touring live and got to join all the festivals last summer in Europe and we got to play with some of my favorite bands like Whitesnake and even did a show with Def Leppard. And played with some heavier bands like Morbid Angel

and bands like that. Then we got hooked up with a really cool American tour which is the Metal Masters Tour with Judas Priest, Heaven and Hell, Motorhead and Testament. That was through all the arena sheds through the summer and it was pretty cool. We only got to play a half an hour and we went on first which kind of sucked because people were walking in as we were playing but I think it helped the band out a lot because were playing to started the set with three to four thousand and then at the end of the set we were playing to ten to fifteen thousand a night.

After that it brought us in

to Japan and Australia where we did really good and then we started this year out going out with Judas Priest and Megadeth in Europe and just finished about a week ago. That was all arenas in Europe and when we usually go to Europe we usually play theatres or clubs that are 500 to 1000 seaters and only in London and maybe one other smaller town north. But this time we got to play about twelve to fourteen shows in the U.K. all the way up to Scotland and then down to London and all arenas which was cool. We did about seven weeks over there. Now we are getting ready to go on a U.S. tour finally headlin-

ing! We have been opening up and playing shorter sets. MUEN: HOW WAS THAT PLAYING WITH MEGADETH?

Eric: It was really cool you know. I really got a new friendship with Dave. Iʼve always known him as an acquaintance and we have hung out a couple times back in our youth and partied a little here and there but this time around I got to spend some guitar with him you know. And get a new friendship! MUEN: HEʼS A NICE GUY! YOU KNOW HE JUST WON AN AWARD TOO AT THE GOLDEN

GOD AWARDS. HE ACTUALLY WON THE GOLDEN GOD AWARD.

DOING? IS HE DOING BETTER?

Eric: Yeah I was supposed to be a presenter down there but I was already supposed to go to Germany and do this NAMM kind of thing, but then it fell through so I wasnʼt able to do the representing thing, but Chuck went down there so thatʼs cool.

MUEN: IT IS A BIG AWARD SHOW SO THATʼS COOL. SO, THIS ALBUM IS A FOLLOW UP TO THE GATHERING. WHY WAS THERE A NINE YEAR SPAN BETWEEN STUDIO ALBUMS?

Eric: Um, a lot of stuff happened you know. The main thing is Chuck Billiard, our singer, got cancer. He kicked itʼs butt pretty quick and we went through all that but I think after that he wanted a little time to figure out life and whatʼs important to him and stuff like that. So we kind of toured but it was more weekend warrior stuff. MUEN: SO HOWʼS HE

Eric: Heʼs doing great! I canʼt believe how long his hair has grown already! Within the first year it was down his back already.

MUEN: GOOD! THAT IS GREAT HE IS DOING SO WELL!

Eric: Yeah well there was that and then a health issue-wise for me. I broke my leg pretty bad and everybody knows this by now. And then just touring and different member changes and then we started to write a record and it wasnʼt vibing right with the right members and Paul was actually in the band at that time when

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 27

we were doing that and he up to this record. kind of jumped ship to Exodus. But it was just me MUEN: DID IT FEEL GOOD TO GET BACK IN THE STUDIO AND RECORD AGAIN?

Eric: Oh yeah definitely! Especially having these songs, it was a lot of fun. We actually went back to our old studio that we used to record at, Fantasy, which is like the older style studio as opposed the expensive big corporate studios. Which we havenʼt done in a while, we usually record at our own studio, but it was cool to have that vibe and to go back there to get and him writing. Our bass the drums done and then player at the time was get back to our studio. So Steve DiGiorgio and he that was cool. never came in to jam with us. It was just me and MUEN: WHAT PART OF Paul and Chuck would THE WRITING PROCESS show up once in a while DO YOU TAKE PART IN? and it just didnʼt feel right. DO YOU WRITE EVERYThe band was just kind of THING LIKE THE MUSIC defuncting at the time you AND THE LYRICS? know. So we ended up getting the original lineup Eric: Iʼm pretty much the back together. captain of the music. I pretty much oversee most MUEN: YEAH THAT WAS of the artwork for album WHAT I WAS GOING TO covers, tee shirts and stuff SAY. YOU HAVE THE like that. But most of the ORIGINAL LINEUP arrangement and writing BACK THEN? the music is like 90-95 percent of it is me. Chuck Eric: Yeah, since 2005 we handles the lyrics and he have and it started taking is more of the business off from there and it lead guy. He handles a lot of

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our business affairs. That is why we have stuck it out pretty good. We both handle things and not miss a beat on that end. MUEN: NOW, WHEN YOU ARE WRITING DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE TO KEEP THE MUSIC OF TESTAMENT HEAVY? IN OTHER WORDS, HAVE PREVIOUS MEMBERS TRIED TO TAKE IT TO A MORE MAINSTREAM LEVEL? HAVE YOU EVER HAD THAT KIND OF A CHALLENGE?

Eric: Um, well the mainstream thing happened with the original lineup. We had toured so much and you know each record came out a year later, The Legacy, The New Order, Practice, Souls of Black and The Ritual. It was like if we werenʼt recording or writing music we were on tour. So by the time The Ritual came out Alex and Louie in particular were more into blues and really into The Cult. Alex was really in to his jazz stuff and he really wanted to play a different kind of music. Now it seems so easy how to deal with that, but back then we didnʼt know how to deal with it and just said “You canʼt do that or this you know.” That is when the band started to fall apart because I wanted to write fast, double bass, crazy death metal stuff and we just kind of collided at that point. Thatʼs the outcome of Low. The

good thing about working with different people is that we have had the opportunity to jam with some of the best drummers in rock and metal from John Tempesta to Gene Hoagland. Paul Bostaph was in and out and he lended a hand. MUEN: IʼVE MET JOHN QUITE A FEW TIMES AND HE IS WITH THE CULT NOW I THINK?

a great thrash drummer, not the fast double bass drummer. All the different members brought more excitement into the band. Now that original members like Alex and Greg and Paul have come back into the band they see and appreciate how we got here and Alex loves playing heavy stuff now.

MUEN: YOU GUYS WERE ONE OF THE Eric: Yeah he is still with FIRST THRASH METAL The Cult and we had all BANDS TO EMERGE IN these drummers that THE EIGHTIES AND wanted to be heavier so it HAVE WANTED TO was perfect for me. What it KEEP IT THRASH did was add a whole new METAL AND I REALLY flavor each time we had a RESPECT THAT YOU different drummer play GUYS HAVE STAYED with the band. For me, I TRUE TO YOUR MUSIC. was excited to write because it was always with Eric: Oh yeah thanks! We someone that I did not could have dabbled more have to compromise how I with the commercial stuff wanted to write to keep and did with The Ritual. the peace. Once you have We compromised a little a new member in a band but still kept it heavy still I there is like a year long think. I love epic, crazy vibe where they are just long songs. happy to be in the band and they are excited to do MUEN: WELL, BECAUSE what you want to do and YOU HAVE STAYED play your style of music so TRUE DO YOU FEEL it was perfect for me. So THAT IS WHY YOUR that is why The Gathering FANS HAVE AS WELL? came out so killer because Iʼve got Dave Lombardo Eric: Oh definitely! It is and Iʼm going to take all hard for a band to keep those elements and mold true because a fan will get them in to Testament and a record and can get sick thatʼs why that record is so of it after a week and then successful with the way he you rediscover it a month beat the shit out of the later and you go see the drums and with my writing band live and you “oh style. That is kind of what I Yeah!” But the band is wanted to achieve on the playing the stuff everyday early days, but Louis was for the next ten years. The

way we look at it is “This is so old.” Just think if you were a fan and you had to listen to an hour of Testament everyday and go to the concert every night. It would get old too.

MUEN: YOU HAVE BEEN ALL OVER THE WORLD. SO DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE A STRONGER FAN BASE HERE OR IN EUROPE? WHERE WOULD YOU SAY YOUR STRONGEST FAN BASE WOULD BE?

Eric: I think our fan base is pretty much strong everywhere! People think maybe we are stronger in Europe, but Europe just has better festivals. Every country has a festival so that is like every state would have one here. They would have killer bands at every festival. But we donʼt have cool stuff like that in every state. But the fans here love metal just as much as they do in Europe. They just live it more there I think. They are used to doing it, they will go from festival to festival.

MUEN: WHAT IS YOUR OPINION OF THRASH AND METAL THAT IS BEING PUT OUT TODAY? WHO ARE SOME OF THE NEWER BANDS YOU ADMIRE?

Eric: Um, funny, because I have been listening to a lot of old school stuff. I like the Swedish genre of

metal. They have definitely built what they have done and are legendary in their own way. The bay area was pretty much the birth of thrash, we had our scene here. Thatʼs kind of how the Swedish scene is in Stockholm. I know there are some new bands here like Municipal Waste and there is an amazing new band from France called Gojira. They are a really good band! Mixing the heaviness with the melodic and the girl singer, I like that stuff. Nightwish is killer! I love Nightwish. There is another band that is killer called Within Temptation that has a singer named Sharon that is amazing.

dlers.

MUEN: WELL, STARTING IN MAY YOU WILL BE HITTING THE ROAD WITH REALLY GREAT BANDS THAT I LOVE UNEARTH AND LAZARUS A.D. I HAVE

TALKED TO BOTH AND JUST LOVE THEM.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 29

them the opportunity to meet us before the show, hang out and I think there is a raffle and some special stuff like a shirt. The raffle is going to be cool and not sure what will be on each. I have a new signature guitar through

Dean and it is called the Old Skull and I think we are going to be raffling one Eric: Yeah, they are the of those off. Some quality newer breed and have time with the band and MUEN: THE VIDEO FOR done pretty good for them- also sound check possibly “MORE THAN MEETS selves. Iʼm not really famil- will be part of it. It costs a THE EYE” IS ONE THAT I iar with them, but of little bit more but you donʼt LOVE. I LOVE ALL THE course Iʼve heard their have to wait around for us BATS FLYING AROUND. music. It should be good! for an hour to come out in VERY COOL VIDEO. the dark and the rain. Itʼs a MUEN: A SPECIAL VIP little more organized. Eric: Yeah, well those bats PACKAGE IS GOING TO were a little bit annoying BE OFFERED. WHAT IS MUEN: NOW YOU GUYS you know. After the scene THAT GOING TO INARE WORKING ON we were like “Cut! Bats get CLUDE FOR THE FANS SOME NEW MUSIC back in your cells.” It was THAT BUY THAT? RIGHT NOW. WHAT CAN a lot of fun.Hard to get WE EXPECT FROM THE them back to their hanNEW MATERIAL? Eric: Basically it gives

WHATʼS IT GOING TO SOUND LIKE? MORE OLD TESTAMENT OR MORE MAINSTREAM?

Eric: Um. It will be more like The Gathering. We are shooting for that formation or vibe. We will be mixing up all our elements and we will have a couple of real fast songs, a couple of songs that Chuck is singing, some more melodic and some heavy. The one thing we havenʼt done since Low will be a slower song, which people call a ballad. We have been working on this for a while and were going to put it on the last record, but we didnʼt want to rush it. The music is so killer, it reminds me of something off Lovedrive by the Scorpions. Itʼs just pretty, but itʼs heavy still too. It is a ballad that starts out really clean and then goes into the heavier sound at the end. It is killer! It does not jump all over the place. It is kind of like “Stairway to Heaven” where it takes you from beginning to end but does not sound like that song. Itʼs the ideology of it. I canʼt wait for people to hear that as it is proba-

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bly one of my favorite music pieces that I have written. For me, thatʼs the highlight, I might even get a string quartet to come in and do some strings.

Eric: I thought of it way back but with Chuck he is the singer of singers so. For this type of music heʼs probably the best of the best. Dragonlord is a whole different style of MUEN: WHEN DO YOU music. Itʼs a modern, atTHINK IT MIGHT BE mospheric, black metal READY FOR RELEASE? mixed with that thrash kind of vibe. At the shows I exEric: I would like to start pect to see Testament writing and get everything fans and thereʼs not, itʼs prepared by September, just people that I havenʼt October and November, seen from my city. Iʼm like put it together and then “Where did these people have the record released come from?” by June. Maybe it wonʼt happen, I just donʼt want MUEN: YOU TOUCHED A to compromise it by rush- BIT AGO ON YOUR ing and putting something DEAN SIGNATURE GUIout we are not completely TAR. WHY DONʼT YOU happy with and feeling. So TELL ME ABOUT IT? if it is not feeling right it could be longer. There Eric: You can check it out were some fans that sent on our MySpace page and hate mail wanting a record also on the Dean website. out and not wanting to wait Itʼs this V that I have been and then we get a letter playing for a long time and saying it was worth the I put some art on it. I didnʼt wait and sorry for the want to go too nuts with angry letter before so it is the art and take away from worth it to not compromise the guitar so I put the and put out what we think legacy skull, which is is the right thing. something that has been with Testament since the MUEN: ARE YOU STILL beginning. It plays great IN THE BAND DRAGand it is going to be at a ONLORD? reasonable price but has the quality that some Vʼs Eric: Yep! We actually donʼt have. I wanted to have a couple of shows make something that had coming up in California. the quality and looked Check it out on our Mybadass but was still affordspace. able. MUEN: YOU ALSO SING IN THAT BAND. HAVE YOU EVER CONSIDERED SINGING FOR TESTAMENT?

MUEN: I READ THAT YOU WERE SELF TAUGHT. IS THAT TRUE?

Eric: I took a little bit of lessons when I was a kid, but the teacher was the guitar player on I Love Lucy and was older and more in to jazz. He taught me the basics and some chords in seventh grade. I hadnʼt played guitar yet so I hadnʼt even discovered what I was about. What ended that relationship is I got this “Draw the Line” Aerosmith song book for Christmas in eighth grade and I brought it in there. He was reading the notes and playing it more jazzy. I got in a fight with him about it. I was like “No, it doesnʼt go like that.” He was like “Yes, it is and he was slapping my hand.” I was like “Okay, Iʼm done.” But really the rest was listening to music and trying to figure out the riffs from a turntable in the front room of our house and the speakers in my room. Whenever I needed to hear a riff again I would have to put the guitar down and go to the front and change the turntable and restart and run back to my room to try it again. So that is how I learned most. It wasnʼt as easy back then as it is now. MUEN: YOUʼRE FIRST BIG SHOW WAS WITH SLAYER.

high school. Chuck was in a band called Guilt at the time. They came to our first show that we played with a bunch of punk bands because none of the clubs knew what to do with us because of our sound and our image. We used to wear priest collars with upside down rosaries. We kind of wore a little bit of corpse paint back then too. We were pretty weird looking. My cousin Derek and I went into a shop to buy priest collars once and this guy was helping us and he said “Oh, you guys are such nice boys.” He thought we were doing some clergy thing. We were like going “Yeah, we are going to go play our satanic music tonight.” Willie was pretty impressed with us and said “Hey, we are going to play with Slayer next weekend if you guys want to open.” We only had four songs, but they were pretty long at the time. We got up there and played them. It was a lot of fun playing with Slayer; we were probably like nineteen or twenty years old.

MUEN: WELL I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INTERVIEW. I HAD A GREAT TIME TALKING WITH YOU!

Yeah, we were called Legacy before Testament. Eric: Yeah me too! Thank Willie Lange who is the you! bass player of LAAZ ROCKIT and Chuck Billy were best friends through

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dredg

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DREDG

Guitarist Mark Engles Written Interview by G. Cataline

MUEN: SO TELL US, HOW WERE THE SHOWS IN EUROPE?

Europe was great. We've been doing shows over there for 6-7 years and the following has grown. Germany has been especially wonderful to us.

MUEN: GOOD TO SEE YOU ON THE WEST COAST AND THE NEW ALBUM IS AMAZING! IN YOUR OPINION, WHAT IS DIFFERENT WITH THIS ONE COMPARED TO THE PAST ALBUMS?

I think we've really moved past the pigeon whole of 'alternative rock' with this one. There were no rules with the production and instrumentation. We built every song from the ground up instead of approaching them with a formula. Very refreshing.

MUEN: WHO ALL WAS INVOLVED IN THE PRODUCTION, AND DIDN'T THIS LATEST PROJECT ORIGINALLY START WITH INTERSCOPE, THE SAME LABEL YOU'VE BEEN SIGNED WITH FOR YEARS? WHY DID YOU LEAVE INTERSCOPE? We produced the album with Matt Radosevich. A

very talented young man who would never give us "no" for an answer. If we had an idea, he would listen and go with it. He also had more musical skill and instinct than producers in the past. We wrote for a long time, mainly because we knew we had so much in us. Once we started recording, the sessions were split in two, with a European and U.S. tour in the middle. This made for a long wait.

YOUR MUSIC IS SO DIVERSE, IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO KNOW WHAT YOUR INSPIRATIONS ARE. WHO ARE SOME ARTISTS THAT HAVE INSPIRED YOU IN THE PAST, AND WHAT MUSIC OUT THERE PRESENTLY, KEEPS YOUR INTEREST? I think as four individuals, we have various inspirations and influences

like Magnatones. Love those things.

MUEN: WHAT ARE YOU USING FOR STRINGS IN THE SONG, "BRUSHSTROKE - AN ELEPHANT IN THE DELTA WAVES"? ALSO, WHO IS DOING THE BACKING VOCALS?

Greg Ellis recorded Hammer Dulcimer on that one for us. The vocals were done by Azam Ali. They were in a group called Vas for some time and we really loved their sound.

MUEN: WHAT ARE MUEN: HOW DID YOU SOME OF THE UNIQUE COME UP WITH THE INSTRUMENTS YOU TITLE OF THE ALBUM, HAVE USED ON THIS "THE PARIAH, THE PAR- LATEST ALBUM AND ON MUEN: YOU ALSO HAVE ROT, THE DELUSION"? THE TOUR AS WELL? SOME GREAT PHOTOGRAPHY. WHO DOES IT? Gavin coined it for the first We used a lot of different AND BEING THAT song but we all thought it sounds on the record, but I HAYES AND ROULETTE encompassed the entire ARE ARTISTS AS WELL, don't know how 'unique' record. IS ANY OF THE ART ON they are. We just made THE ALBUM COVERS sure the tones we came Pariah= religious/social OR POSTERS OF YOUR up with sounded unique outcast OWN WORK? for the part and made each song stand alone. Parrot= a follower, mimWe have used various The keyboard sound on icker, one of the flock photographers throughout the 'Stamps of Origin' is one of my favorites. It's a our career. Our newest Delusion= a symptom of promo shots were done by Wurlitzer Electric Piano being human at times that has been run through a fellow San Franciscan named Merkley???. He a myriad of effects and has a very unique and recMUEN: I READ WHERE tape effects. ognizable style. YOU DON'T ACTUALLY LIKE THE NAME OF MUEN: ARE YOU GOING YOUR BAND. SO JUST TO TELL US HOW MARK MUEN: DO YOU MISS THE 90'S AT ALL? THE OUT OF CURIOSITY, GETS THAT AMAZING WHAT WOULD YOU GUITAR SOUND? OR IS ATMOSPHERE IN MUSIC AT THAT TIME? ONE CALL THE BAND IF IT THERE ANY NEW ACTHING FOR SURE IS, WERE SOMEHOW EASY CESSORIES THAT TO CHANGE? YOU'VE RECENTLY DIS- DREDG HELPS BRING IT BACK TO LIFE! ONE COVERED THAT YOU REASON I ASK IS BECAN SAY YOU LIKE? We don't like the name. CAUSE YOUR MUSIC What would I name it? No idea. Anything but ʻDredg.ʼ Over using delays and re- SORT OF REMINDS ME verbs. In the studio I used OF THE GREAT DIVERSE BANDS THAT a lot of old combo amps MUEN: BEING THAT

WERE COMING OUT AT THAT TIME…BANDS LIKE THE AFGHAN WHIGS, TRAGICALLY HIP, OR WIDESPREAD PANIC.

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Well...we have friends living in various places in the world...so there always We have 3 backdrops seems to be someone which incorporate the album art. We are limited around. We love food and drinks. Maybe the occaby budget to a minimal sional museum. production. DID ON PAST TOURS?

I just wish people bought records like it was the ʻ90s MUEN: WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO IN-BEagain. TWEEN SHOWS WHILE MUEN: WHAT SORT OF ON TOUR? AND WHERE STAGE SHOW ARE YOU HAVE BEEN SOME OF GOING WITH THIS TIME YOUR FAVORITE AROUND? ARE YOU IN- PLACES TO TOUR AND WHY? CORPORATING ALOT OF ARTWORK LIKE YOU

MUEN: WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS AFTER THE TOUR?

Sleep and see family and friends.

MUEN: IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT

TO ADD?

Thanks for the support.

MUEN: THANKS FOR THE INTERVIEW!

EVANS BLUE

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Dan Chandler (Vocals) Toronto, Canada

Myspace.com/evansblue By: Shauna OʼDonnell

MUEN: HOW ARE YOU? Iʼm doing really good.

MUEN: I FOUND THE MEANING BEHIND THE NAME EVANS BLUE TO BE QUITE INTERESTING. SHARE IT WITH US.

Obviously the name was there before I was, but it comes from a medical term. Evans Blue is the dye that they shoot into your blood to measure the plasma. I believe that is where the name originated from.

MUEN: YOU ARE RELEASING YOUR THIRD FULL LENGTH ALBUM ON JUNE 23RD. THIS ONE WILL BE SELF TITLED AND IS THE FIRST ONE THAT YOU APPEAR ON.

I started talking to them around October and shortly after that I flew up MUEN: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WITH to Toronto. It was around November that I was offiTHE BAND? cially in.

Right

MUEN: HOW DID IT COME TO BE THAT YOU JOINED THE BAND?

A friend of mine told me

that they were looking for a new singer. I went to their MySpace and sent them a message asking them how I go about getting looked at. They hit

me back with a couple of tracks; I sang on them and sent them back. They sent me the original track that I believe was just Parker with guitar and then I wrote to that one and sent it back. They liked it and it just kind of went from there. I flew out there and met the guys. I did a live audition because you want to meet the people, obviously. We immediately became friends, it was really cool. MUEN: SO YOU GUYS JUST CLICKED RIGHT OFF THE BAT THEN?

Yeah, it couldnʼt have gone any better actually.

MUEN: WERE YOU A FAN OF THE BAND PRIOR TO THE AUDITION?

Yeah I was, actually. I didnʼt know all of their stuff, but I knew the songs that they had out. Evans Blue has a pretty good name around St. Louis where Iʼm from. A lot of my friends were big fans of them so the name was always around. When the opportunity came around I wanted to jump all over it. MUEN: WERE YOU IN ANY BANDS PRIOR TO EVANS BLUE? I was in a band called Switch 30 in St. Louis. We were a local band

and I was in it for about five years. We moved out to L.A. for about a year and tried our best out there. We obviously did the musician struggling kind of situation. We all came back with some great experiences and we all grew as musicians. They are all great friends of mine still, but we kind of all went our own ways. I really got into the writing part of it and looked into writing for other artists. This opportunity came and I had to jump back on that one. MUEN: IʼM GLAD YOU DID. DOES THE BAND STILL LIVE IN CANADA?

They are still in Canada, Iʼm in St. Louis and Howard is in Houston. A lot of times we wonder about the writing situation, like how do we write? What will happen is someone will come up with an idea, whether itʼs musically, and I will write to them. We all have Pro Tools and we can manipulate songs and do what we need to do. I will send them back and it seems to come together way better than it sounds like it would. Every time Iʼm out there I sit down with them and we go through different riffs. It helps to sit down with them, but it is really smooth actually. MUEN: WELL WITH

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 35

TECHNOLOGY TODAY THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT ARE POSSIBLE, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO REHEARSAL THEN I WOULD ASSUME YOU WOULD ALL HAVE TO BE TOGETHER. Yeah, definitely.

MUEN: DO YOU THINK THERE WILL COME A TIME WHEN YOU ALL HAVE TO MOVE CLOSER TOGETHER?

going to be that everyone likes it. MUEN: WELL IʼM HAPPY THAT THE TRANSITION WENT SMOOTHLY FOR YOU GUYS. I THINK YOU GUYS ARE A GREAT BAND AND IʼM HAPPY TO SEE A NEW ALBUM COME OUT.

Thank you very much, Iʼm happy to be a part of this one.

MUEN: ARE ALL OF I donʼt think so, as of right THE SONGS ON THIS now, we have shows ALBUM NEW MATEcoming up so I will go up RIAL OR ARE SOME OF a week early and go to THEM SONGS THAT our rehearsal space and WERE WRITTEN WHEN practice non-stop. Every- KEVIN WAS STILL THE body can keep their SINGER? chops up when we are not together, but when we The songs on this album get together that is when are all new material. I we have to bear down have written the lyrics and spend as much time and melodies to every rehearsing to make sure song and they are coming we are as tight as possi- up with new guitar tracks ble. As far as living toand riffs all the time. gether, I guess itʼs Everything is pretty fresh. possible, but itʼs not really in the plan right now. MUEN: THE BAND HAS USED THE SAME PROMUEN: HOW INVOLVED DUCER FOR ALL WERE YOU IN THE THREE ALBUMS, A WRITING PROCESS OF GENTLEMAN BY THE THIS ALBUM? NAME OF TREVOR KUSTIAK. HOW DID I write the melody and the YOU LIKE WORKING lyrics and in a couple of WITH HIM? situations I write the guitar lines. Most of the time He is an awesome guy. it is a group effort where When I first met him he we all have the same seemed to be one of tastes so if one of them those guys you can bewrites something itʼs come immediate friends

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with. When you work with someone enough on a daily basis you will become friends with them. He is easy to get along with and he is open minded. He listens and gives awesome direction. He is a great producer and a great friend.

MUEN: IS THIS THE FIRST CD YOU HAVE PUT OUT PERSONALLY OR DID YOU PUT ONE OUT WITH YOUR PREVIOUS BAND? In the band prior to this one we did do a couple of EPʼs, but they never went into distribution. They were just for live shows. MUEN: HOW MANY SONGS ARE ON THIS ONE?

There are eleven songs and we may have a couple bonus tracks. We are not exactly sure how we are going to do that yet, but that is what we are talking about. MUEN: IS “SICK OF IT” THE ONLY SONG YOU WILL BE RELEASING UNTIL THE RECORD DROPS OR WILL YOU BE RELEASING MORE GRADUALLY?

We will get some more Itʼs really just all over the songs out there and get place. the fans some more stuff. MUEN: I KNOW YOU MUEN: TELL US WHAT HAVENʼT TOURED THE SONG “SICK OF WITH THE BAND YET, IT” IS ABOUT. BUT HAVE YOU DONE ANY SHOWS WITH I think the song can easily THEM? go a bunch of different directions. It can be about a No, not yet, we have a relationship between a handful of dates starting girl and a guy or a friend- on April 29th in Ohio. It ship relationship where will be my first show on you are tired of dealing stage with those guys. with peopleʼs stuff. No matter how much you MUEN: ARE YOU want to believe them and GOING TO BE HEADtrust them it just seems ING OUT SOON TO like they could easily let SUPPORT THE NEW you down or you could be RELEASE? taken advantage of. Itʼs confusing kindness for Iʼm hoping it is this sumweakness a lot of times. mer. We are hoping for June or even sooner. It MUEN: ARE YOU should be anytime, we GOING TO BE FILMING are adding dates conA VIDEO FOR IT? stantly. Hopefully, we can build up a busy schedule We are talking about that, for the summer and see but it is in the really early how it goes from there. stages for us right now. We are looking at a cou- MUEN: WHAT ARE ple ideas for it, but we re- YOUR PLANS FOR THE ally donʼt know which one RELEASE OF THE is going to happen. ALBUM?

MUEN: WHAT IS YOUR We want to have a CD reFAVORITE SONG ON lease show of some sort. THE ALBUM? We are not sure where we are going to have it. My favorite song right Thereʼs talk of having it now would have to be a here in St. Louis or song called “Bulletproof.” maybe even Houston. We What I think is happening Itʼs just because it goes definitely want to come is we are going to have a so many ways. Itʼs got a out with a bang in somecouple more songs that killer introduction and oneʼs hometown. we will put out on ITunes good, meaningful lyrics to and on the MySpace it. It has a powerful cho- MUEN: WHAT ARE YOU page in the next week. rus and itʼs up and down. LOOKING FORWARD

TO THE MOST ABOUT GOING OUT ON TOUR?

I look forward to it because obviously it will be my job. To be able to play music every night on stage as an artist is pretty much what itʼs all about really. I think itʼs going to be great. I couldnʼt ask for anything better than that. Touring, seeing different places and being able to meet our fans is what Iʼm looking forward to. MUEN: WHO ARE SOME OF THE BANDS YOU WOULD MOST LIKE TO GO ON TOUR WITH?

I know the guys have toured with a lot of bands that I like, such as Three Days Grace, Seether and Breaking Benjamin. I love Incubus, I donʼt know how that would fit, but Iʼd work it out. I love HURT and a ton of bands. I couldnʼt really complain about going out with anybody right now. MUEN: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO THESE DAYS?

I have been listening to a lot of Nonpoint lately. Iʼm a really big fan of theirs. I donʼt think they are out there as much as I think they should be, but I think they are a really good, strong band. Iʼve been listening to HURT; I think Incubus is still my all time

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 37

favorite.

MUEN: DO YOU PLAY ANY INSTRUMENTS?

I play a little bit of everything, but I would say guitar would be my instrument. It would by no means be a lead guitarist, but I can play pretty much how I write. I write on guitar. MUEN: DO YOU GUYS HAVE A WEBSITE? I think we just have the MySpace up right now.

MUEN: A LOT OF BANDS ONLY HAVE MYSPACE PAGES NOW.

Right, it seems like the only way to go right now. MUEN: DO YOU GUYS ANSWER EMAILS THAT THE FANS SEND?

YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD THAT I MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN?

Yes, we try to keep in touch with everybody. We are getting a lot of great Keep your ears out for support and I want everythis album. I think people one to know that Iʼm are going to be in for a thankful for that. good surprise. I think this album is really going to MUEN: IʼD LIKE TO do something. THANK YOU FOR THE INTERVIEW. IT WAS GREAT TALKING WITH YOU. It was great talking with you too.

MUEN: THANK YOU, BEFORE I LET YOU GO IS THERE ANYTHING

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JET BLACK STARE (Island Records) Myspace.com/jetblackstareband

Anytime, thanks for having RULE! me. Aww! Thank you. MUEN: NO PROBLEM, ARE YOU AT HOME IN MUEN: SOME OF MY FADan Swinimer(Drums) CANADA TODAY? VORITE PEOPLE ARE Vancouver, Canada FROM THERE. I am, yes. By: Shauna OʼDonnell Mine too. MUEN: I WANT YOU TO MUEN: HI DAN THANKS KNOW THAT I THINK MUEN: HOW ARE SO MUCH FOR JOINING CANADIAN BANDS THINGS GOING WITH ME TODAY.

THE BAND?

Things are actually really exciting for us right now. I would probably say that for a lot of bands, writing is one of the most exciting times and that is what we are doing right now. We have been on a little break from the road so we just decided to get things hap-

pening on some new material. So far, I canʼt say enough about the results, itʼs really exciting for us right now.

was another guy by the name of Shane Hayes who was a good friend of Rodʼs who came on board after the shopping process. That was the MUEN: HOW LONG original version of Jet HAVE YOU BEEN TOBlack Stare; it was basiGETHER NOW? cally the three of us. Then we got the deal and we Jet Black Stare is a really started bringing in people bizarre story. The band and the band was formed started with just two writ- in that way. The original ers, which was Rod our songs of Jet Black Stare singer and another Vanstarted about two years couver writer named Jeff ago now and we have Johnson. They wrote a been touring now for a litcouple of songs and were tle over a year. Itʼs a hard pretty well connected in story to say in a short pethe Vancouver scene. riod of time. Itʼs a bizarre There is a pretty big scene situation; weʼve all played here from an industry music and toured in other standpoint. One of their bands. Jet Black Stare connections was a guy was a writing project that named Chief, who is now just kind of out of nowhere our manager. He was gained a lot of attention. managing for Nickelback at the time and had just MUEN: IT HAS BEEN ALgotten into the full manMOST A YEAR SINCE agement side. His first THE RELEASE OF YOUR project was a band named DEBUT ALBUM IN THIS Hinder, which became re- LIFE. WHAT ARE SOME ally successful and so OF THE THINGS THAT Chief started to sign a few HAVE HAPPENED SINCE other bands on the man- ITS RELEASE? agement side. We were one of those bands and Yeah, itʼs probably been based on those two songs the single most exciting, we got a deal with Isbizarre and crazy year in land/Def Jam. Iʼve known my life. Once things start Rod for a long time happening, they happen in through the Vancouver a big way. Being on the inmusic scene and we have dependent side for the been good friends. He years that I was, you hear asked me to get involved stories of what itʼs like just as the shopping when something actually process was going on and finally happens. You work it was a great opportunity and work and work with for me to involve myself limited success, but peowith a good friend and ple always say that when someone I had a lot of re- things happen they hapspect for talent wise. There pen fast. It really did sur-

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 39

prise me how there really is this snowball effect that goes on. That could not be truer in our case. One month I was touring Canada with an independent band I was playing with at the time. We were playing small clubs and doing what we do. Canada is a massive country without a lot of cities in it so itʼs a lot of driving between shows. Itʼs a real grind, especially in the winter. You are driving through mountains and blizzards. I literally did that tour and I was home for a month and all of a sudden Iʼm in the studio recording Jet Black Stareʼs record, Iʼm signed to a major label and everything is catered. We were doing interviews just as we were starting to record our record. We had interview requests because there was a buzz surrounding the band right from the get go.

MUEN: WASNʼT ONE OF YOUR SONGS FEATURED AT THE SUPER BOWL?

Yeah, “Ready to Roll” our first single seems to have found a home in sports arenas everywhere. The nature of the song is such an energetic rock song that a lot of sports teams have utilized it in all sorts of applications for their sports teams. At the Super Bowl it was played just before the National Anthem to start the game. I think there are three NHL teams that use it as they skate onto the ice. Currently, Detroit Redwings are using it still as we speak in the playoffs. Of course, we are Canadians so we are really big hockey fans. It was the theme song for the WWE Summer Slams and included on the Nascar 2009 Xbox video games. NBC has used it for a couple of athlete profiles for MUEN: YOUR MUSIC the Olympics. It just seems WAS FEATURED ON THE to be the energy of the SHOW “SONS OF ANAR- song. It is kind of perfect CHY.” for sports type atmospheres. Yeah, that was very exciting for us. We have one MUEN: THAT IS KIND OF American in the band. A STEREOTYPE THAT IF That show isnʼt as easily YOU ARE FROM available up here as it is in CANADA YOU MUST the U.S. We were familiar LIKE HOCKEY. with the show because we had spent so much time in We wear that stereotype the U.S. but our American well. We are all big hockey guitar player Dave was fans up here, what can I very excited about it. We say? were all excited about it, but he has been a fan of MUEN: NOW YOU HAVE that show for quite some TWO SINGLES FROM time. THE ALBUM, THE LAT-

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back. This news piece that Rod was watching was kind of tackling it from both Yes. sides. I think Rod just had such an explosion of emoMUEN: WHAT WAS THE tion at that time. He INSPIRATION BEHIND started writing down what THE SONG “IN THIS he was feeling and LIFE?” melodies started coming into his head. That is the It was inspired by our inspiration for the song, itʼs troops. Specifically this related to that moment story was inspired by Rod when he watched the who was watching the news story that they did news. If you know Rod he about the troops and their internalizes other peopleʼs families. pain like no one Iʼve ever met. If you have had the MUEN: ITʼS A BEAUTIchance to meet Rod, he FUL SONG AND THE canʼt have just a surface, VIDEO IS SO AWESOME! small talk type of conver- I LOVE ALL OF THE OLD sation. He is so genuinely FOOTAGE, WHERE DID interested in what other YOU FIND IT? peoples lives are like and what they go through. He We have to thank our would be doing this inter- video producers for that. view right now except for We talked a lot about the the fact that he is on a kind of footage we would plane right now. If he was use and they had sugdoing the interview you gested using a lot of older would have a tough time style footage from World talking about him because War I and II. We are musihe would be asking more cians, we donʼt make questions about you than videos so we put our faith you would about him. He in our video production really has a special heart. team and they were fanHe was in the U.S, at the tastic. When you watch time and he was watching Rod sing the song I really a feature on the troops feel that you cannot misand the war. The perspec- take his passion for the tive was more on the fami- topic. The old footage had lies at home because it is a texture to it that suited obvious that the troops the song. that are fighting have a lot of courage and devotion to MUEN: ITʼS BEAUTIFUL a cause. People seem to AND I LOVE THE STAIRoverlook what the families CASE. are going through and the amount of courage and Yeah, that building is infear they go through won- credible. Itʼs been used for dering if their family mem- a ton of movie and video ber is going to make it shoots. It seems like it is

permanently under construction. That is one of the things that makes it look so different and original when you see it on screen. They do have plans to finish it and they do have plans for what itʼs going to be. Iʼm surprised that they even want to finish it because of the amount of money it generates.

MUEN: YOU HAVE TOURED WITH A LOT OF MY FAVORITE BANDS. WHICH OF THE TOURS WAS YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE AND DO YOU ENJOY LIFE ON THE ROAD?

We definitely enjoy life on the road, not to say itʼs an easy life, but itʼs exactly what we have always worked for which is to be able to make a living at it and not have to save our money for long stretches of time to be able to afford to go on the road. The biggest challenge came right off the bat because we did a really short Canadian tour. The band had not played a show before and our agents had a ton of big shows and tours booked. We told our agent to put us on the road with some really low key shows so that we can make of all of our mistakes without too many people watching. We did that and got the chemistry together and then the very first tour we did started in Texas which was as far South as you can go. Our first experience on

the road was driving straight with no stops from Vancouver to Texas. It took us 60-65 hours. We ended up getting there about four hours before our sound check. We got there and went to a hotel for a couple hours to try and get a little sleep in 1,000 degrees because it was summertime. The tour was with Saving Abel, we got there, set up and played our first show. That started a string of nine shows in nine nights with all kinds of long drives in between. That was nothing that we had experienced. We toured Canada as an independent band. You are lucky to get four shows in a week. We were like “Wow! This is what we wanted all that time.” Once you get used to it, if you have too many days off you donʼt know what to do with them. It was particularly hard for Rod, if you are singing that much, we have almost had to put a gag on him after shows. He just wants to go out, meet and talk to people for hours. As a singer, you cannot do that, especially if you are on tour.

MUEN: YOU GUYS GET A LOT OF RADIO PLAY. WOULD YOU GUYS CREDIT SOME OF THAT TO THE FANS CALLING IN AND REQUESTING SONGS?

We always talk to the music and program directors at stations when we are in certain markets. We will come in, do interviews

and do some acoustic stuff. We always love to hear the program directors talk about the people that call in for us. I know it is kind of a cliché thing to say but we really believe that we have the best fans in the world. Everywhere we go we get a comment from the program directors that tell us people donʼt just call in, they call in and they are so passionate about getting us played. I guess this is a good opportunity for me to say thanks because it means the world to us that people are cheering for us so much. I love being able to heap the praise onto the fans of Jet Black Stare because they have made a huge impact on what we have been able to accomplish so far.

off the shelves. Itʼs one of the most passionate, well written records. Brent as a singer is just incredible and they are amazing guys. We have toured with some amazing bands and theyʼve all treated us so well. Shinedown treated us fantastic and being able to see them perform on a nightly basis was really special for us. It started with us having the record in the tour vehicle and listening to it all the time. I cant stop listening to it, it is almost like an obsession.

MUEN: WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR?

We will continue writing until about mid July when we go back out on the road. This has been a really long break for us right MUEN: WHAT ARE YOU now. We are happy to be LISTENING TO THESE writing, but at the same DAYS? time we are anxious to get back on the road. Iʼm Thatʼs a good question. guessing we will be touring When Iʼm not touring and non stop for the rest of playing in bands I run a 2009 and much of 2010. studio here in Vancouver. We are hoping be the time Usually, what Iʼm listening we are done touring this to is whatever band Iʼm record will have the next working on at that morecord pretty much written. ment. Iʼm listening to them We travel with a small pro non-stop coming up with tools so that any ideas that parts and melody lines. we get we can get them That is usually taking up down. We have recorded 90% of what I listen to. demos in hotel rooms so That being said, the one we are getting good at record I cannot seem to being very efficient in that pull out of my record way. It is going to be player is the Shinedown mostly touring and writing. record. I absolutely love that record front to back. MUEN: THAT SOUNDS They are finally getting ex- GREAT, I CANʼT WAIT actly what they deserve, UNTIL YOU COME which is their CD is flying THROUGH HERE.

It wonʼt be long.

you.

MUEN: IT WAS GREAT MUEN: IʼD LIKE TO CHATTING WITH YOU THANK YOU FOR THE TOO! INTERVIEW. IT WAS AWESOME TALKING WITH YOU. BEFORE I LET YOU GO IS THERE ANYTHING I MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN? You know Shauna; I think you covered all the bases. It was great chatting with

Page 42 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009

LETHARGY

MUEN: TELL US ABOUT THE NEW ALBUM, “PURIFICATION”… WHERE United Kingdom WAS IT RECORDED, AND HOW DID YOU GET Update by G. Cataline DAVID PRATER (DREAM Lethargy were signed by THEATER, FIREHOUSE) A&R legends, Derek Oliver TO PRODUCE IT? and Dante Bonutto, to their label, Grind That Axe. On PHIL: David Prater was the 14th of October 2006, our first choice as producer but we never Lethargy ventured to thought weʼd get him from Mwnci Studios in the forests of west Wales for the US to make our first ofthree weeks to record their ficial album. We knew new album. At the produc- Derek Oliver and David Prater had worked totion helm was legendary gether on two Dream Theproducer David Prater) ater albums (Images & whose resume includes such artists as Dream The- Words, A Change of Seaater and Firehouse. Prater sons), so at least the connection was there. We got then went onto mix the album with the assistance in contact with several proof Javier Bassino in Santi- ducers, some we couldnʼt ago, Chile, South America. get for this or that reason The product of this record- and some we didnʼt agree ing session, “Purification” on with the label. Derek called us one day and said is the bands first official general release which has David Prater loved ʻRoad taken what seems like forever to get out! But Itʼs here now! Donʼt miss out on one of the best rock bands out of the UK today!

Out Of Nowhereʼ and wanted to come over to the UK to do our next album. So we were in regular contact with David from that point and he came to Wales in October 2006 and spent a month with us recording the CD in Mwnci Studios, West Wales. He later went back to mix it with Javier Bassino in in a studio in Chile that he was fond of. They finished in December 2006 and sent it back over.

MARC: David Prater made several phone calls to us in Wales and seemed as excited as us to work on this project. David was a great help and a real inspiration in the studio and took the overall sound of the record far past our expectations of how it could sound, crafting all the aspects and dynamics we desired and then some!

GAZ: This album is the first one I have ever recorded whereas the ANDY: It was great to work other boys have had quite a few experiences in a with a producer such as David. It was our first ex- recording studio. To have perience of ever working such a big producer as with a producer and it was David for this album was great as I learnt a tremena real eye-opener. Much was learned in the month dous amount about actuwe spent with Prater and ally recording an album and also how to approach will put us in good stead when constructing future drumming in many different ways as David is a songs. drummer himself.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 43

Lazarus A.D.

than that I am doing fine. RELEASED FORM THIS TIME AROUND? By Jeanne Thomas (JET) MUEN: YOUR PREVIMyspace.com/Jetxx OUSLY RECORDED CD A lot of people have the "ONSLAUGHT" HAS original and they love this MUEN: HOW ARE YOU BEEN REMIXED BY new version. The original DOING ALEX? JAMES MURPHY. HOW was actually mastered by HAS HE IMPROVED James as well though. Good good! I have a THE OVERALL QUAL- Everyone loved the origislight hangover, but other ITY OF THE CD IN ITS nal one, but when we got

the remixed back it was like 10 times better, just amazing. Itʼs extremely in your face

MUEN: ARE YOU EXCITED TO HAVE THIS RELEASED ON METAL BLADE?

Page 44 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009

Yes. Itʼs nice to have a label that supports you and stands behind you.

MUEN: I HAVE READ SOME OF THE REVIEWS ON "ONSLAUGHT" AND I HEAR EVERYTHING FROM "IT MAKES ME WANNA SQUEEZE THE CHARMIN" TO "FUCKING SICK AS FUCK" DO YOU THINK THERE IS A GOOD MARKET FOR TODAYʼS THRASH BANDS? Hahaha. That's a little ridiculous, Itʼs getting bigger... itʼs hard to say that itʼs a good market now. Metal has always been a little here and there and thrash hasn't been around for awhile. Right now there's a lot of emerging thrash bands like Warbringer and the like. So there's a lot of good stuff coming out now. Itʼs good to see a resurgence of this stuff.

WAS THERE SOME SPECIAL REASON WHY YOU LATER WENT ON TO ADD THE A.D.? It was a legal issue. There was another band out there that had the name and we had asked them if we could use it or MUEN: DO YOU DRAW buy it and their reaction ANY INSPIRATION was a letter to each of us FROM SOME OF THE saying if we use it they OLD SCHOOL THRASH will see us in court. It was BANDS? pretty bad - we just wanted a yes or a no not Definitely I would have to all that trouble. say our main influences or some of our top ones MUEN: LAZARUS A.D. would be Metallica, Testa- SOUNDS MORE BIBLIment, Slayer and PanCAL. tera.

MUEN: YOU WERE ORIGINALLY KNOWN AS JUST LAZARUS.

Photo by Shauna OʼDonnell

known eachother for a long time and we played in local bands together. We knew eachother through the local scene, so when we got together it really worked good, because we knew what we all liked and what we MUEN: IS THE NAME CHRISTIAN INSPIRED? were dealing with.

cool. And the big thing is most people still refer to us as just Lazarus so realistically the A.D. was thrown in there, but people still look at us as Lazarus ya know.

I can't say that any of us MUEN: WHAT DID are Christians really. Ha YOUR PARENTS THINK OF THE FACT THAT Definitely not! YOU ALL WANTED TO BE MUSICIANS IN A MUEN: DID YOU ALL GROW UP IN WISCON- THRASH BAND INSTEAD OF CHEESE SIN? MAKERS? DO THEY Yeah for the most part. I SUPPORT YOU? currently live in Illinois, It does, but it fits though. but its only like a half Ya know what, I have to People hear the name hour south of there, so I say that my parents actuand they think its pretty visit quite often. We have ally helped me personally

get into music. I was listening to music when I was like 2 years old. I would watch old Tom Petty videos and I would like dance around. And basically imitate him and want to be that. And as I got older Metallica turned me on to the thrash. And Iʼve been doing that ever since, so my parents were a big influence. And Dan's dad also. He supports us 100%. All of our families do. All our families are extremely cool. They all support us and fund us with some of our projects.

MUEN: SO ARE ANY OF YOU PROFESSIONALLY TRAINED IN MUSIC?

Honestly no. I did some audio engineering classes in college as an elective, but that really had nothing to do with my playing. I never was schooled in music. Dan actually took lessons. That's why heʼs so good. He would go to his lessons and spend the rest of the day playing his guitar. We don't really have the time to do that now. So that's basically it, everyone is pretty much self-taught. MUEN: HAVE YOU EVER PLAYED IN A BAND OF ANOTHER GENRE?

No, I would have to say it has always been metal.

Maybe a little Swedish death metal stuff.

MUEN: AS FAR AS THE NEW CD GOES, HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT CHOOSING WHAT SONGS GO ON IT, OR IS THAT THE PRODUCERS JOB?

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 45

MUEN: WHEN DO YOU GET A BREAK FROM TOURING?

DO YOU WANT TO DO WITH YOUR LIFE?

The same thing that I am doing now. I really don't care to make tons of money. Well I guess it would be great to buy myself a house and a car. A studio maybe? I would love one of those! Like I said, I took that class in college and I would love to be able to utilize all that in my own studio. It would be awesome. But I really don't want to be some big huge famous guy.

We get a break soon and then we tour with Bison B.C. and Woe Of Tyrants. A 3 week tour - a big one through the US. We might have August off, we don't know yet. I Actually we had already think it will be lots of tours done all the songs and on the road for quite we decided to put all of some time. Itʼs great them on the cd. promotion and you make a lot of money from the MUEN: WHO DECIDES merch on tours. We just THE SINGLES FOR got off a tour with Amon YOU, OR WHAT SONGS Amarth and SkeletonGET SENT TO RADIO? witch, and their crowd also bought our merch. MUEN: IS BEING OUT Basically everybody has ON TOUR WITH ALL a say in it. The label lis- MUEN: WHO DOES THESE BANDS LIKE A tens to it and tells us MOST OF THE WRITDREAM COME TRUE? “hey this song or that ING? song can be a single.” Oh for sure for sure. With this one we had 3 of We all do collectively. We When we were told that them on the board. We all go out and write our we were going to play ended up going with the pieces. When we get to- with Testament, my mind song we did, because it gether we bring it all to was lost. These guys was basically a straight the table and we mess a were a huge influence on up thrash song. It has all round with it, or throw it me. I was like “what is the qualities of good the hell out. We are not going on?” Playing with thrash. I think we will be afraid to criticize eathem every night and pushing another single chother. hanging out with them is soon. a bit surreal. MUEN: WELL THAT'S MUEN: SO ARE YOU GOOD YOU CAN DO MUEN: DO YOU STILL WRITING ANOTHER CD THAT WITHOUT GET STAR STRUCK? NOW? PUNCHING EACHOTHER OUT. No, not any more now. No, we are just going to People come up to me put another single out Well its been close at and say “OMG Its a and get a video done. times. But we can get to- pleasure meeting you!,” Right now we are just rid- gether and do it collecso itʼs weird, but I am not ing with what we have tively. really star struck anyand we are touring like more. I know where itʼs crazy. No means to MUEN: SO WHEN coming from ʻcause I felt record anything new right YOU'RE RICH AND that way as a kid meeting now. MORE FAMOUS, WHAT bands. Now itʼs cool

Page 46 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009

meeting people. But Iʼd Heh yeah itʼs true there's rather just sit around and no title. The no name shoot the shit. song. We don't even announce it, we just go from MUEN: SO WHO DOES one song into it. Itʼs THE ART FOR YOUR funny! You can see MERCHANDISE? everyone singing all the songs and then all of a We get to pick the artists sudden we play this one ourselves. I actually do and they are all like not some of the work myself. singing and like hey this We have a T-shirt out must be a new one. I now that has a snake on Love doing this, itʼs a it. I drew that and I have a great time and I wouldn't few more designs on the trade this for the world. table now that we will probably use. And we MUEN: HAVE YOU have some friends that EVER RUN INTO ANY do a lot of t-shirt designs. CONTROVERSY WITH If we need help, we just ANY OF YOUR MUSIC, say hey we need some OR ART, OR ANYhelp with this, and peo- THING LIKE THAT? ple send us stuff. We either use it or not. Itʼs cool Um no not necessarily. We have not, which is a MUEN: WHEN YOU ARE plus honestly. Like I said, ON STAGE, WHATʼS we are fairly new and we YOUR FAVORITE SONG don't really want anything TO PLAY? going off track.

Itʼs hard to say, because when we wrote the album everything was basically a good song. So itʼs a pleasure to come out on stage and play them all. Actually there is a new one if you come out to see us you can hear it. There's no name for it yet. I mean we been riding on the old ones for like 3 years now, so the new one is fresher and really fun to play because of that.

MUEN: I THINK YOU'RE PRETTY SAFE WITH A NAME LIKE LAZARUS A.D., LOL... WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS ON CENSORSHIP?

MUEN: SO IS THAT WHAT YOU THINK REALLY? DO YOU THINK CONTROVERSIAL LYRICS OR ART CORRUPTS THESE KIDS?

I think there are a lot of kids who know whatʼs going on out there, but I think there might be some that don't. So itʼs hard to say.

MUEN: DO YOU RUN YOUR OWN MYSPACE OR DOES SOMEONE ELSE DO IT? We and our manager both do it.

MUEN: HAVE YOU SEEN ANYONE WITH A TATTOO OF YOUR BAND YET?

Not yet. We are not that MUEN: SO MUSIC IS A intense yet. We actually BIG INFLUENCE? have a friend that I met through the band who is Oh definitely! People in getting one soon, so that general for sure. I think will be pretty cool. If anypeople listen to it and body is that into my music make it a very big part of itʼs cool with me. I don't their lives. have the band tat on me because I think it is kind MUEN: LIKE WHEN of a curse. THAT WHOLE THING ABOUT JOHNNY MUEN: IN CLOSING IS KILLING HIMSELF THERE ANYTHING OVER A PRIEST ELSE YOU WOULD SONG? LIKE TO ADD? ANYTHING YOU WANT TO Well I wouldn't say that. SAY TO YOUR FANS? That's pushing it. If someone does that, then they Listen to good music. have issues before listen- Come to the shows. ing to this music for sure. Enjoy some thrash.

MUEN: AS FAR AS As far as art on the cover PROMOTION AND ALL you have to take that into THAT, HOW VIABLE DO affect. You have to reYOU THINK THE INmember there will be alot TERNET IS? of younger people looking at that cover. Now a days Oh itʼs huge. Its a masitʼs a much younger sive network. Myspace metal crowd. To a certain is a huge networking tool extent you have to kinda for sure. Everyone is watch it. You don't want using it. A huge thing for MUEN: THIS SONG HAS to corrupt these kids right promotion and marketing NO TITLE? too early in the game. for sure.

MUEN: OK GUYS THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR TAKING THE TIME OUT TO DO THIS FOR US:) WE WILL BE KEEPING OUR EYES AND EARS ON YOU.

LIVE REVIEWS

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 47

albums. Half way through played as their final encore Beach known as I AM The their set, Steven shouts “I for the night. Throughout GHOST. Frontman, the set, the crowd interJuliano formed the donʼt care what type of Rock n' Roll Steven acted in every way possiband in 2004 leading them music you listen to ble from jumping in pace to from numerous magazine whether itʼd be punk, Brawl of covers to the music charts, grunge, reggae, hip-hop or pushing and shoving one another and screaming heavy metal... we play AM GHOST have hanDaybreak Ends Idled their hearts out. I AM rock music and we don't all the press and belong to a music scene.” GHOST put on an enterVS. taining show thatʼs hard to The crowd shouted with imagine unless youʼve agreement as the band I AM Ghost continued to rock and roll seen them in person. The

the rest of their set consisting of "Civil War and Isolation Thirst," "Our It's a night for rock n roll! Friend Lazarus Sleeps," According to the entire "Saddest Story Never musical line-up of tonight's Told," "Those We event taking place at the Leave Behind," Knitting Factory in Holly"Bone Garden," to wood, California. First up a much older tune is Los Angeles' very own off "We Are Alhard rock heavy metal ways Searching," sensation DAYBREAK (2005) EP entitled media that have been ENDS dishing out a 30 minute set list of 9-tunes to thrown at them and what "Pretty People bang your head too; mix- else can they do, but play Never Lie, Vaming old "Perfect Tragedy" the music they've created. pires Really In doing so, they played an Never Die," with a new "A Self Unwhich hour long set conseen," getting was sisting of old the crowd and new into high tunes from gear. From all their jumping up and down to the pulse of the rhythm to banging your head just to keep up with the rest of the crowd, everyone here was entertained! Concluding this night in Hollywood was another Los Angeles based act from Long By: Natalie Perez

energy is strong and fun... it brings out the inner being hidden inside of you... the one that says "let me out to live my life!"

Photos by Natalie Perez

LIVE REVIEWS

THE DREAMING Live At The Roxy By: Natalie Perez

The night is cold with a comforting warmth filling the air, and the crowd waiting inside grows impatient. Here we are at The Roxy, one of the many clubs that line the famous Sunset Strip located in Hollywood, California where all the fun and excitement occurs. Tonight is a night of specialties, because this night is the last time we will be seeing rock sensation THE DREAMING for awhile, since they will be working on new material for our listening ears to enjoy. The Dreaming combine a raw intensity of energy in their performance, displaying hypertonic matter within a 35 minute set. Playing loud and clear, their greats, such as “Dead to Me,” “Sticks and Stones,” "Bullet," "Ugly (Beautiful)," "Let it Burn," "Disconnected," "Make It Go Away," and "Send Me an Angel." Just a handful of songs that got the audience begging for more! During the set frontman Christopher Hall (formerly of Stabbing Westward) mentions “Iʼve been singing “Dead to Me,” over 7,000 times, if I have to

sing it one more time Iʼll put a bullet in my head.” The Dreaming were at their best as the crowd watched in amazement, cheering for their new beginning which will come to pass soon.

Photos by Natalie Perez

LIVE REVIEWS

AC/DC

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 49

inal members Keith Murrell (vocals), Laurie Mansworth (lead guitar) and Toby Sadler (keyboards).

Tuesday April 21, 2009 MEN Arena, Manchester, United Kingdom

Getting off to a tricky start, vocalist Keith Murral is given a dysfunctional mic before expressing discontent with the amount of water that's been spilt on stage. "There's been a huge f*ck up" he announces. However, being the well seasoned professionals that they are, the band refuse to let such minor mishaps phase them - they're getting right on with the job in hand - to maximum effect.

By Jus Forrest

Myspace.com/jusforrest

Stand-by to board a full on crazy train of simple rock 'n' roll cuts. On observing the wonderfully hilarious intro video tonight, what can we say - keep shoveling the coal boys, and that's exactly what Angus Young and Co have been doing for a number of years. Riding the highway to hell is after all what has given them tonight's grand prize - an arena packed with dedicated livewires, wearing glow in the dark horns, all set on a good old sing along to a brand rock that's as basic as steak and ale pudding.

The guys are as ready as ever tonight, throwing a party that boasts a professional and well rounded sound. Malcolm's rhythm cuts are crystal clear, and Angus Young's lead parts soar to greater heights than most, and that's all before his flirtation with the audience during a brief strip-tease and a chance fling with the giant inflatable named 'Rosie'. Shortly later see's Angus spinning on his back, like a giant skittle taking on yet another famed solo spot of crowd pleasing entertainment.

To enjoy such a night, the shrinking violets may be wise to have a few beers beforehand, in fact a notable amount of the said liquid descends from somewhere above me. However, as far

Dishing up a helping of melodic, powerful, precise and interesting material, they prove this current shaft of light is blinding - and its not about to get any dimmer. Right now they're showing Thursday June 18, 2009 this audience exactly what Islington Academy, Lonthey're made of and the don, United Kingdom growing enthusiasm confirms it's most welcome. Musically, they're driving the kind of By Jus Forrest hard bargain that tells me Myspace.com/jusforrest they should really be headliners - the time allocated here Photo: Josh Monaghan is not nearly long enough to appreciate such a technical Wounded Bird Records recently presented a re-issue master-class. The charismatic Dean Howard is hitting of 1984's 'Shaft of Light' some great chops on his SG, Airrace's only album, hence it's no surprise that a reunion complimenting original lead of sorts was is order. Origi- man Laurie Mansworth who shines from stage left at all nally featuring Jason Bonthe right moments. Simon ham on drums, son of late as a musical challenge goes, Led Zepplin drummer John, Dawson's drums are as tight AC/DC is no marathon. as a coiled spring - he does tonight he is replaced by Largely predictable, they do Simon Dawson. Sadly Jason the job exceptionally well. what it says on the well oiled has other commitments right tin, and they do it well, even now, however he is set to ap- The verdict? Most definitely if Brian Johnson's edges are pear on future dates. Exone to catch while their enbecoming tainted with rust. If Samson bass man Dave thusiasm and freshness your looking for some varied Boyce completes the rhythm keeps beaming in on venues cuts steer clear - this is much section and Dean Howard (T' and festivals up and down about one of the same, even Pau/Ian Gillan/Toby Jepson) the country. I'll be back if 'Black Ice' is a new record. has also been recruited on for more. second guitar, alongside orig-

AIRRACE

LIVE REVIEWS

STORMZONE

Thursday June 18, 2009 Islington Academy, London, UK

by Jus Forrest (http://www.myspace.com/jusforrest) All photos courtesy of/copyright to Les Linyard (www.genialhost.co.uk/linyard/concert.html

Front man John Harbinson suddenly makes an entrance via ʻThe Secret Gatewayʼ and despite a modest crowd, he's not settling for anything lightweight. Within a couple of seconds his huge stage presence has captured everyoneʼs attention. Stormzone donʼt have long tonight, so no time is wasted. Second number in, 'The Immortals' belts out making it easy to understand why some moments later, we're enclosed in an area of ferocious electrical activity.

Drummer Davey Bates is grinning like a cheshire cat, connecting with each and every one of the audience and clearly the guys are having a ball supporting Tesla. Looking distinctly like Steve Harris, vocally, Harbinson offers a flashback to Bruce Dickinson - not a bad thing at all.

Despite a short set, Stormzone provide a great warm up for this evening with their own twist on a melodic fun loving rock 'n' roll extravaganza, plus a humble offering of vintage trimmings. Closing with 'Death Dealer' you can't help liking such a pleasant bunch of guys from Belfast, and the best bit - music that fuel's the production of a never ending typhoon of pleasing soundwaves. Catch this storm if you can. Myspace.com/stormzoneuk

JEFF BECK at Carling Apollo, Manchester, UK LIVE REVIEWS

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 51

June 27, 2009

Ever the creative innovator of texture and feel, crafting of some of the most heartfelt sounds to come out of a Stratocaster, Jeff Beck provides a sparkling jazz slanted instrumental master-class tonight.

Instantly, he takes control, backed up by the excellent musicianship of Jason Rebello on keyboards, plus one hell of a slick rhythm section - enter bassist extraordinaire Tal Wilkenfeld, and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta.

The music ranges from delicate splashes to more muscular waves, before there is a brief infusion of reggae styled rhythm. Later comes some heavy guitar chops and juicy riffs, all played with a strict purpose by the axe master who is so often underrated.

In summary, itʼs a superb night of jazz rock fusion, the band clearly on top form, interacting well, and enjoying the creativity of what comes across as free-flowing progressive styled bouncy jamming. Jus Forrest myspace.com/jusforrest

Photo by: Steve Brinkman

Sweden Rocks 2009!!!

LIVE REVIEWS

know how to rock, one hundred and ten percent, but thatʼs not to say that this famed Texan trio canʼt get away with injecting some smoother grooves into the proceedings tonight.

The sharp dressed guys on stage certainly give off a rather placid feel during the first half of the set, however, “…this is what makes us as we get midhappy and getting back to- way, theyʼre takgether has been very spe- ing things up cial a notch. They rev for us..” Ronnie James Dio up those engines - sharing his thoughts and continue with about the formation of all guns blazing Heaven weʼre and Hell during this after- loving their Texan charm. noons press conference. A celebratory moment for Sweden Rock Festival the bearded duo - it hapboasts yet another year of pens to be their 40th record-breaking attenanniversary. With a set of dance with favorites – ʻGimme all your just over 35000 visitors. Lovinʼʼ, ʻSharp Dressed Armed with a ʻSweden Manʼ and the like, itʼs a Rockʼ waterproof itʼs time very fun set, constructed to from the magic touch of an welcome the weather with authentic Texas recipe. A open arms – or maybe not, highpoint has to be a but with plenty of hard rock rather groovy rendition hell itʼs certainly a case of of ʻFoxy Ladyʼ. As the pink ʻcharge forward - all umfury guitars come out for brellas blazing.ʼ ʻLegsʼ the guys indeed Now, fresh from a journey look as loud as those polto the cool shores of the ished exhaust pipe themed Baltic, MUEN presents the mic stands. finest picks from biggest and best rock festival in Europe…. “Sweden is our second biggest market after Germany,” Lemmy - on why he keeps coming back for more.

ZZ Top

The Swedes certainly

Johnny Winter

Itʼs great to see such a

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 53

legend of the blues take to the stage – and not only that, Johnny displays an underlying passion to bring his music to the fore. A rock blues explosion follows. Was this a wise decision? Absolutely. Johnny may look quite frail as he

remains seated on stage, but thankfully this is not true of the music which is increasing in strength throughout the set. Heʼs a man with the blues in his heart, singing with devotion, while his music winds itʼs way through the nighttime crowds, inducing instant smiles of joy. The audience seem quite happy to jig to the grooves and ʻRedhouseʼ is an instant hit, as is most of this fluent and expressive set. Johnny is no doubt a pioneer of the blues tradition with the audience that looks happy to follow suit.

ing InFlames make their stance on the main stage tonight and itʼs easy to wonder how much more authentic can it get.

Their heavy sound contains all the traditional ingredients evident with most modern Swedish rockers today, including all the classic flashbacks they throw in. The music poses in progressive form, borders on death metal influence, complete with some heavy riffage and searing twin leads. Their performance is extremely strong – the visuals are equally appealing. On the downside, there are far too many gaps between songs, Anders Friden filling them with lengthy stage banter and sadly interrupting the flow of the set – when clearly the music could do the talking.

Plowing through a set with earth shattering volume, and one hell of a spirited approach, thereʼs an appealing edge to In Flames. A band who have not yet reached their full potential, however theyʼre not Most definitely a hot glow- too many rungs off the ing body of energy, watch- top of the ladder and no

InFlames

LIVE REVIEWS doubt theyʼre set to keep climbing.

Heaven and Hell

edge. Sadly this may not be everyoneʼs cup of tea, a new vocalist can always be a bitter pill to swallow, however, on the plus side, Itʼs that cold right now, I Are you ready to cause feel as if Iʼve spent the heʼs an energetic front one? You better be. Excit- man. week in a freezer. At ing, enticing and damn approx eleven thirty pm, a hard few flames from hell are Receiving the warm welenough to cause way be- come much deserved by welcome. Sadly Iʼm not yond what their title Journey, the set as a nearly close enough to get suggests, Riot hail my toes warm, howfrom New York – ever I do theyʼre fiercely indecatch a pendent and unblast of heat tamed. They have as the usual frequent Heaven and outbursts of energy Hell flare up – always ready for and opener more action – as ʻMob Rulesʼ if your not getting enough already.

Riot

Theyʼre playing with tremendous intent this afternoon, mind numbing volume, their manner is upbeat and itʼs certainly welcome. Thankfully itʼs not raining right now, but even if it was, nothing is gonna dampen this lot down – not a chance! Playing with notorious intensity watching it will sure make you sweat.

whole is not life changing, but it is quite fresh and heavy while remaining melodic and uplifting. They do enough to entice an enthusiastic audience here at Sweden. Hot off the race track, they breeze through the early evening with Arnel Pineda sounds tuneful rock strangely like Steve Perry thatʼs fast and yes, he canʼt half belt enough to put it an interesting out– infact right now I do spin on their believe he rocks. His vo- wheels. cals and image give the band quite an exciting

Journey

belts out.

Supporting the recent launch of the latest album ʻThe Devil You Knowʼ – observed as a relatively safe approach for such godfathers of heavy metal, ʻBible Blackʼ is immediately thrown open to reveal a more menacing appearance, so chilly that fingers will become too cold to turn the pages. Presenting the songs in more weighted form than what can be witnessed on album, Dio demonstrates strength in voice and Iommi appears to have upped his

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 55

We've all heard of the one-man band but do they actually exist? Or just some side show attraction we've seen in movies and television programs? In this case, this is the real deal. Going off as a solos project after trying to format a full line-up but failed, this soloist proved the unbelievable. Establishing a source of death metal everyone can find enjoyable. The main creator spoke to me about how Bloodsoaked came into full effect and what plans to become of the bloody frenzy.

MUEN: THE NAME OF THE BAND BLOODSOAKED, IS INTERESTING TO SAY THE LEAST AND SOUNDS AS IF THERE IS A STORY BEHIND IT. WHERE DID THE NAME COME FROM AND WHAT IS THE STORY?

The name Bloodsoaked from when I did Bloodsoaked Promotions, a web zine sort of from about 1996 to 2004 and during that I also started Bloodsoaked Records and had 3 releases before I decided a label was not for me. So when I started forming my band in 2005 the band name of Bloodsoaked just fell into place.

MUEN: CAN YOU BRIEFLY SUMMARIZE HOW THE BAND FORMED AND WHAT YOU DO IN BLOODSOAKED?

MUEN: YOUR LYRICS ARE INFUSED WITH HEAVY DETAIL AND RAW EMOTION. WHAT IS IT THAT NORMALLY GIVES YOU INSPIRATION WHEN WRITING Bloodsoaked formed in LYRICS AND IS THERE A 2005, I looked for member CONCEPT BEHIND THE for about 6 months and MUSIC YOU CREATE? could not find anyone that wanted to do what I For such extreme music I wanted so I decided to do feel you need to have exBloodsoaked as a solo treme lyrics so my lyrics project. I do just about are the normal blood and everything in Bloodsoaked guts or anti-religion based (guitar, bass, vocals). I ones. Brutal and extreme help write the drum patlyrics just work for Death terns but have Shane Metal music. McFee do the actual proMUEN: YOUR NEW gramming. ALBUM "SADISTIC

DEEDS... GROTESQUE MEMORIES," IS COMING OUT HOW HAS THE REACTIONS BEEN THUS FAR? WHAT CAN FANS EXPECT WHEN THEY LISTEN TO YOUR MUSIC?

The feedback on the new CD has been great, getting good reviews and the media and more important the fans are really into it. Death Metal fans can expect 10 songs of pure Death Metal, nothing more, nothing less. Solid and pure Death Metal for fans of Obituary, Pestilence, Six Feet Under and Malevolent Creation.

Page 56 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 MUEN: HOW DO YOU THINK YOU WILL EFFECT THE MUSIC SCENE YOU ARE PART OF? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE GROWING POPULARITY IN IT AS WELL?

While extreme music might be getting more popular Death Metal is not. Death Metal is an underground form of music and always will be. There is a lot of nu-metal that is getting more and more popular but true Death Metal will never get to that point. MUEN: YOU HAVE A MUSIC VIDEO FOR THE SONG “ROTTING IN FILTH,” CAN YOU GIVE A BRIEF SUMMARY ON HOW IT ALL CAME TOGETHER.

I always wanted to make a video for Bloodsoaked and I am so happy with the new CD that once I had the chance I took it. It was filmed in a abandoned warehouse and the cut in scenes were from the directors independent horror movies. It was a great experience and has been one thing that has brought a lot of attention to Bloodsoaked. MUEN: MANY OF YOUR SONGS ARE SO HARD AND INTENSE THAT I AM SURE THEY TRANSLATE WELL INTO A LIVE SETTING TAKING ON A WHOLE NEW LIFE IN FRONT OF A LIVE AUDIENCE. HOW DOES IT

MAKE YOU FEEL WHEN THE EMOTION AND POWER THAT YOU ENVISIONED IN THE RECORDING STUDIO, COME TO LIFE WHILE PLAYING IN FRONT OF A CROWD?

MUEN: What is the toughest lesson you ever learned in the studio and on the stage?

They have never told me that it changed their life but I have had a good amount of fans say they love my music and think In the studio, be prepared. my CDs are great. That is a great feeling when a On stage, leave an imcomplete stranger come pression. up to you at a show and tell you that was the best Playing in front of a live MUEN: WHAT BANDS show they have seen in a crowd that is totally into WOULD YOU LIKE TO long time and then want to your music is one of the TOUR WITH AND WHO buy both CDs and all difbest feelings in the world. HAS BEEN YOUR FAHaving a great Death VORITE TO TOUR WITH ferent shirt designs, it is Metal crowd in front of you THIS FAR? ANY PARTIC- crazy! compares to nothing else. ULAR REASON? MUEN: ALL OF THAT PASSION THAT YOU MUEN: WHAT ARE THE I have only toured with UPCOMING PLANS FOR Atrocious Abnormality so PLAY WITH MUST BE BLOODSOAKED? far and we had a blast and TOUGH ON YOU PHYSICALLY. HOW DO YOU the 11 day Slaughtering At this point I just finished The South II tour. Bands I PREPARE FOR THE PHYSICAL DEMANDS an 18 day tour and I have wish I could tour OF A TOUR? a few festivals and shows with….there are just so coming up as well as many big and small and It is tour but I donʼt do doing what I can to profor different reasons. much except eat at Waffle mote the new CD, that house and try to get too fat should take me thru the MUEN: EVERY BAND on the road…LOL I am an rest of 2009. HAS ITS MUSICAL INFLUENCES. WHAT ARE old and lazy dude. MUEN: HOW HAS MYSOME OF THE OTHER MUEN: ANYTHING ELSE SPACE AND THE INTER- BANDS AND ARTISTS YOU'D LIKE TO ADD? NET IMPACTED YOUR THAT HAVE GREATLY BAND AND DO YOU INFLUENCED YOU GUYS Thank you for the interTHINK DOWNLOADING AND YOUR MUSIC? view and keeping Death HELPS OR HINDERS Metal alive! THE ARTISTS? Old School Death Metal bands like Obituary, PestiMyspace has been huge is lence, Deicide, Sepultura, helping bands of all styles Malevolent Creation and promote themselves and many. get noticed. I think downloading helps bands more MUEN: WHAT'S YOUR than hurting, I would rather REACTION WHEN/IF A FAN TOLD YOU A VERY people download my music even if illegally than MEANINGFUL STATEnot listen to it at all. If they MENT SUCH AS "YOUR MUSIC CHANGED MY like it is a good chance LIFE?" HAS THIS EVER they will buy the CD and HAPPENED TO YOU? tell other about it, it can help with work of mouth.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 57

MUNICIPAL WASTE

plans on invading the U.S. and all other parts of the By: Natalie Perez world more than we know, destroying everything that When the waste bin gets gets in their way. Vocalist full what is left to do? Dis- Tony and drummer Dave pose of it right? Well that's spoke to me about the the proper solution when it band's upcoming plans comes to these thrash and what is to become of minders known as Munici- the town trash. pal Waste from Richmond, Virginia. Unleashing a MUEN: THE NAME OF handful of various EP's THE BAND MUNICIPAL and LP's so far into their WASTE IS INTERESTmusical career that started ING TO SAY THE LEAST in 2001; Municipal Waste AND SOUNDS AS IF plans on going strong with- THERE IS A STORY BEout a care in the world on HIND IT. WHERE DID where their careers takes THE NAME COME them. With the upcoming FROM AND WHAT IS release of "Massive AgTHE STORY? gressive," their newest addition, Municipal Waste Tony: Well I guess itʼs on

the side of a dump truck and the name Municipal Waste was really big, and Ryan was riding through town in D.C. and saw the name on the side of the truck. Thought it would be a good name for a thrash band. Which I think it is and fits our band really good dirty guys. Dave: The town trash.

MUEN: Can you briefly summarize how the band formed and what you do in Municipal Waste?

Tony: I sing, we started New Yearʼs Eve 2001 so

weʼve been around for a long ass time, switched up the rhythm section.

Dave: I played drums and joined later on in 2004. MUEN: YOUR LYRICS ARE INFUSED WITH HEAVY DETAIL AND RAW EMOTION. WHAT IS IT THAT NORMALLY GIVES YOU INSPIRATION WHEN WRITING LYRICS AND IS THERE A CONCEPT BEHIND THE MUSIC YOU CREATE?

Tony: I donʼt know we try to write, the last record was a party themed

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album so the last record was about drinking and partying. So we try to create our own storylines. There are certain things we sing about like fantasy stuff relating to the 80ʼs horror themes and social issues that piss us off.

theyʼve wanted to do it well over a year now but our schedule is too intense that we hadnʼt really commit to it so we finally had a time to get to it and they have a great track record of putting on great shows like that and it should be really exciting itʼs maxed out to capacity looking forward to it.

Dave: I donʼt write the lyrics but read the lyrics, weʼre not a political band by any means, shoving Tony: Should be a rowdy down anything down peo- one, there is going to be pleʼs throats just rant on a lot of people there…. what we want. MUEN: YOU GUYS MUEN: "SADISTIC MA- WERE ON THE NO GICIAN," IS YOUR FEAR TOUR WITH NEWEST MUSIC VIDEO, LAMB OF GOD, AS I CAN YOU GIVE A BRIEF LAY DYING, GOD FORSUMMARY ON IT? BID, CHILDREN OF BODOM, WHAT WAS Tony: We did that like a THAT AND WHAT WERE year ago, here in L.A. this THE REACTIONS TO guy Jeff approached us BEING THE OPENERS with a video idea and we EVERY NIGHT OF THE didnʼt even know the guy SHOW? and he came up with a concept. A lot of our stuff Tony: It was awesome we is influenced on 80ʼs hor- hadnʼt done a 6 weeker ror. He really dug our for a while, made some band and he really friends on it. We played a wanted to create it thatʼs bunch of places weʼve why there is a lot of never been too either. cheesy acting on it. Played a parking lot of a flea market, rondo rink, Davie: I think it was his so many crazy places we idea, to do an 80ʼs metal played while on that tour. type of theme sci/fi Chicago and Canada theme. shows were awesome. Seriously the hockey areMUEN: HOW DID THIS nas playing music there FREE SHOW AT THE threw wood over the ice KNITTING FACTORY and had a rock show. COME INTO EFFECT? Dave: We would rotate Dave: Scion contacted us on/off with God Forbid

each night.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 59

MUEN: "MASSIVE AGGRESSIVE," IS THE UPCOMING ALBUM, WHAT CAN FANS EXPECT FROM THIS ALBUM IN COMPARISON TO YOUR OLDER MATERIAL? Dave: They can expect pretty much I wouldnʼt say the same thing the lyrics are well written and have a lot of energy to them. So fans shall not be disappointed.

Tony: I think downloading music helps as far as getting music out to other countries. It doesnʼt help on if you plan on playing music and making money. I never really thought Iʼd make money by playing music anyway. So it doesnʼt really bother me. But I think it helps getting your music in Thailand and other crazy places. Like South America, people there would not know who we are, we get mail from people from Mexico and all over Asia and places I wouldnʼt even expect to see. People love our band that rules it helps. It doesnʼt bother that people download music.

Tony: I think itʼs my favorite one I know I say that about every record but I really do believe because I listen to it all the time and I donʼt do that with anything. Dave: I think itʼs a great option and be able to MUEN: WHAT ARE THE check it out our band and UPCOMING PLANS if they want to go out and FOR MUNICIPAL buy the record. WASTE FOR THE REST OF 2009? Tony: Think about when you were younger when Tony: On tour, TOUR youʼd go and buy a OUR ASSES OFF! record and it would suck. Or get music by tape Dave: Weʼre going to be trading stuff like that. busy, on tour, over the next 2 years. Do another MUEN: WHAT IS THE video. TOUGHEST LESSON YOU EVER LEARNED MUEN: HOW HAS MY- IN THE STUDIO AND ON SPACE AND THE INTHE STAGE? TERNET IMPACTED YOUR BAND AND DO Tony: To not drink in the YOU THINK DOWNstudio, not this band LOADING HELPS OR though one of my first HINDERS THE bands I was really drunk ARTISTS? and I was really nervous,

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I would listen to it and clench up and hate how bad it sounded.

would be a time frame from the 80s.

MUEN: WHAT'S YOUR Dave: I guess for me to REACTION WHEN/IF A learn from the studio is to FAN TOLD YOU A VERY practice and make the MEANINGFUL STATEsongs stronger and Iʼve MENT SUCH AS "YOUR benefited from that. MUSIC CHANGED MY LIFE?" HAS THIS EVER MUEN: WHAT BANDS HAPPENED TO YOU? WOULD YOU LIKE TO TOUR WITH AND WHO Tony: Iʼd punch them in HAS BEEN YOUR FAthe face. It is amazing VORITE TO TOUR WITH and then you punch THIS FAR? them.

presenting it like that itʼs amazing.

MUEN: ALL OF THAT PASSION THAT YOU PLAY WITH MUST BE TOUGH ON YOU PHYSICALLY. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR THE PHYSICAL DEMANDS OF A TOUR?

MUEN: EVERY BAND HAS ITS MUSICAL INFLUENCES. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE OTHER BANDS AND ARTISTS THAT HAVE GREATLY INFLUENCED YOU GUYS AND YOUR MUSIC?

Tony: Itʼs hard to list, mid to late 80ʼs and then all the 80ʼs all the way around.

Dave: I donʼt think there is a main band; itʼd have to be a music category than a band. I think there

MUEN: ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO ADD?

Tony: Come see us on tour we shall be playing somewhere near anyone lives who reads this….

Dave: Itʼs exciting for us Tony: I ride bikes a lot, weʼve been playing a lot ride my ass off every day. of stuff for a very long My knees are shot though time, plan to play the new man. stuff very soon.

Tony: I have a list; Iʼd take Dave: Itʼs an amazing Dave: I drum a lot doing a Cannibal Corpse, Suffo- compliment. When youʼre lot of extra playing but cation, because I think they rule they are awesome. Iʼd like to tour with Dinosaur Jr. who else would be really cool I got a list just canʼt think of it now probably Slayer, Motorhead the no brainers of course. Dave: I have long list.

have gotten a little lazy.

MUNICIPAL WASTE frontman TONY FORESTA loves tearing up stages around the world with his bandmates, but the singer has another passion which you may not know about art.

edition purple (sold out).

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 61

Trix

24 Jul 2009 - Genzano di Roma, Italy - 05 Sep 2009 Bischofswerda, GerInit Club many - East Club 25 Jul 2009 - Lorca, 06 Sep 2009 - Brno, Spain - Lorca Fest Czech Republic Faval 26 Jul 2009 Join TONY FORESTA as Barcelona, Spain he takes you around his Catch MUNICIPAL 08 Sep 2009 - Vienna, Apollo apartment in Virginia, showing you his favourite WASTE spreading Austria - Chelsea pieces of art that he's the aggression 12 Aug 2009 - Oslo, bought and collected through Europe this Norway - Oya Festi- 09 Sep 2009 - Buover the years: dapest, Hungary val http://www.youtube.com/w Summer at the following shows: Durer Kert atch?v=AB18OJFogVw 14 Aug 2009 - Derby, MUNICIPAL WASTE are 16 Jul 2009 - SvoUK - Bloodstock Fes- 10 Sep 2009 - Belset to release their brand jsice, Czech Republic tival grade, Serbia - Living new album, MASSIVE - Obscene Festival Room AGGRESSIVE, through 28 Aug 2009 - Leeds, Earache Records on Au17 Jul 2009 - HamUK - Leeds Festival 11 Sep 2009 - Zugust 24th in Europe and burg, Germany panja, Croatia - MKC August 25th in the USA. Check out a new track Hafenklang 29 Aug 2009 - Readfrom MASSIVE AGGRES12 Sep 2009 ing, UK - Reading SIVE, 18 Jul 2009 - Lottum, Festival Helsinki, Finland titled "Wrong Answer", at Netherlands - WeisTavastia the band's official Mytock Festival 30 Aug 2009 - EindSpace page at hoven, Netherlands - 14 Sep 2009 - Zurich, http://www.myspace.com/ municipalwaste 19 Jul 2009 - Frank- Dynamo Outdoor Switzerland - Dyfurt, Germany - Elfer Festival namo MASSIVE AGGRESSIVE Club will be released in a vari31 Aug 2009 - Biele- 19 Sep 2009 - Lisbon, ety of formats, including a special edition 20 Jul 2009 - Munich, feld, Germany - AJZ Portugal - CineTeatro de Corroios fan box with the album on Germany - Feierwerk CD, a MUNICIPAL 02 Sep 2009 - Athens, WASTE logo sweatband, a 21 Jul 2009 - Kranj, Greece - An Club MASSIVE AGGRESSIVE Slovenia - Izbruhov patch and three pin Kulturni Bazen 03 Sep 2009 badges. Cologne, Germany The album is also availWerkstatt able on limited edition vinyl 23 Jul 2009 LP in black (1000 Pinarella Di Cervia, made), white, clear, red, Italy - Rockplanet 04 Sep 2009 green (only 100 of each) Club Antwerp, Belgium and ultra-limited

Pre-order your copy of MASSIVE AGGRESSIVE now in the USA at http://earache.com/uswebstore/index.php/cPath/667 _671_75 or in Europe at http://earache.com/webstore/index.php/cPath/667 _671_75

FOR ADVERTISING & PROMOTIONAL INFO EMAIL: [email protected]

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 63

ATOM SMASH Sergio Sanchez(Vocals) Miami, Florida

like “Oh Wow!” We were looking into the whole Atom Smasher, Atom Accelerator and Geneva stuff. He found Myspace.com/atomsmash- that really interesting and so did we. He ended up sendmusic ing me a text that said “Hey, what about Atom Smash?” It By: Shauna OʼDonnell has an explosive quality to it and it brings energy and MUEN: NO PROBLEM, stuff. We thought it was a HOW ARE YOU DOING? very appropriate thing and said “Letʼs do it!” Iʼm doing great, just recording some songs. MUEN: LETʼS TALK MUEN: I LOVE THE NAME OF YOUR BAND. TELL ME A LITTLE ABOUT IT, WHO CAME UP WITH THE NAME?

ABOUT YOUR MUSIC. WILL THERE BE AN ALBUM AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE SOON?

Yes, we finished the record about a year ago. Itʼs kind of Believe it or not, it was our a crazy story. We finished manager who threw the the record and thought we name out there. We had so were going to be releasing it many different names and immediately. We decided to went through so many differ- push a single and go back to ent phases developing the the way they used to release band. You wonʼt believe it, he records back in the 70ʼs and never threw one name out 80ʼs. We decided to release there, the only one he did a single, push the single and was Atom Smash. We were see how it goes. We wanted

to develop it before we brought the record out. We have been doing that since December of last year when we released the “Sacrifice” EP. The record is going to be available this fall. We havenʼt set a release date yet. We are still in the process of figuring out exactly who we are releasing with, what label we are going to go with and how we are going to manage to do that. Itʼs definitely going to be released in the fall one way or another.

priate label, take his knowledge of the industry and take the approach of how he developed indie bands with a hard rock band. Itʼs worked out really great. We went through radio, released an EP through ITunes and we have been touring as if we are on a major, but we have been doing it on our own. At the moment, if we can release it on our own with major label distribution, thatʼs great. If we are going to just go with a label, thatʼs great too. Itʼs just a matter of MUEN: ARE YOU GUYS weighing out the options SHOPPING LABELS RIGHT right now. We have a couple NOW? things in the works.

Yeah, itʼs interesting because out manager is actually the owner of Doghouse Records. They have The All American Rejects, Meg & Dia and Say Anything on that label. Originally we thought we were going to be releasing it on Doghouse, but what ended up happening is we decided to try and find a more appro-

MUEN: HAVE YOU A NAME FOR THE ALBUM YET?

Since we finished the record we have been adamant about doing it self titled. We were thinking of a Welcome to Atom Smash kind of theme. We want people to know that this is us, this is the first record and this is the

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sound. It does have that Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, and Pearl Jam kind of quality. Also, going further back, our guitarist brings that larger than life, stadium rock MUEN: DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TRACKS WILL kind of quality. He is a big classic rock fan so he brings BE ON IT? that element. I would deThere will be eleven tracks scribe it as straight ahead on it and we will have some rock and roll. B sides. We may have some MUEN: YOU HAVE A bonus tracks for later reBEAUTIFUL VOICE; DID leases. YOU HAVE ANY VOCAL TRAINING? MUEN: WHAT IS AVAILABLE RIGHT NOW FOR Thank you. No, not really, THE FANS? when I started I kind of dabbled in some guitar lessons. We have a three song EP It kind of led to a couple available called the “Sacrivocal lessons, but not really. fice” EP. It has “Sacrifice” My training comes from all of which is the track thatʼs on radio now, “Bed of Nails” and the different bands Iʼve been in that include death metal “Sunburn” on it. You can pick it up on ITunes or at our bands and really poppy bands. I just try to combine it shows. into what Iʼm doing. No training, just years of destroying MUEN: WHAT IS THE WRITING PROCESS LIKE it. (Laughing) FOR YOUR GUYS? MUEN: TELL ME ABOUT THE SONG “BIANCA”. IT I think itʼs like a lot of other WAS WRITTEN FOR A bands. I come up with the FRIEND WHO DIED OF general idea, Iʼll have the song pretty much ready, Iʼll CANCER RIGHT? pick from a batch that I have and I will give it to Z our gui- Absolutely, itʼs a song that tarist. He makes it better and means a lot to us and is cooler. He brings his quality going to be on the record. to it and takes it to the next We are obviously in a position by not releasing the level. For this particular record, we worked with Paul record. Since we were finTrust, who is an up and com- ished with the record it was ing producer. He knows how hard not to release a couple to make a big sound. We will of the tracks, at least on Mywork with him on a track and Space. We put “Bianca” on the MySpace and it seems he will take it even further. like it touches a lot of people MUEN: FOR THOSE WHO and it is definitely a meaningARE JUST NOW HEARING ful song to us. I actually didnʼt know the person, YOUR NAME, HOW Bianca that it was written for. WOULD YOU DESCRIBE I donʼt think I have actually YOUR MUSIC? ever mentioned that to anyItʼs kind of like an early 90ʼs body as far as in an interview real thing. We are thinking of self titling it until for whatever reason the idea of naming it something else comes up.

or anything. Our guitarist Z is from Austria and his guitar teachers daughter was Bianca. For years they were friends and they were close. He called me at some point when we were getting ready to record the record and mentioned that one of his best friends had passed away. First, he called me to tell me that she was diagnosed with Leukemia and literally two weeks later he called to tell me that she passed away. It was unbelievable; she was only twenty-eight or twenty-nine. It just hit me kind of hard, how fast it happened. I kind of in a way wrote the song for Z to make him feel better.

Photo by Oliver Regueiro

We had day jobs. We had to edit the MySpace, we had day jobs about a month or two ago. MUEN: OH, SO NOW YOU ARE A FULL TIME BAND.

We are full time, practically homeless musicians, yes. We love it; we wouldnʼt want it any other way right now.

MUEN: YOU WERE RUNNING A BELLY DANCING STUDIO RIGHT?

Yes, I still technically run that.

MUEN: WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR JOB DUTIES?

MUEN: NOW, ALL OF YOU Itʼs kind of like coming up HAVE DAY JOBS. with ideas for the business.

We have people that manage it. I have no other way to put it except that I critique whatʼs already happening and try to make things better. Four or five years ago I was dating a belly dancer and we decided to open up a studio where she can teach. It blew up and it was just amazing. It enabled me to make my music and chase my dream. It worked out great. It was a risk I took on one end for her and now itʼs like she is doing me the favor. MUEN: THAT IS SO COOL. I SAW YOU HAVE SOME TOUR DATES ON YOUR PAGE. DO YOU TAKE OFF ON JUNE 5TH?

We were going to take off on June 5th, but we ended up deciding to play Miami our hometown. We rarely play here. We felt like we needed to get to the Midwest and thatʼs what weʼve been doing so youʼll notice a lot of our tour dates are there. We do play the Atlanta area and the southeastern area quite a bit too. They are really receiving us well in the Midwest.

MUEN: IʼVE BEEN HEARING LATELY FROM BANDS THAT THE MIDWEST IS A GREAT PLACE TO PLAY.

They just totally get it. Iʼm sure different genres click in certain cities. Iʼm twenty-five now and I have been touring since I was fourteen, but I never went to the Midwest. This year in February we started touring with Atom Smash and it was the first time we had got out there with this band. Letʼs say we played with a band and the fans didnʼt like that band, the people in these cities are

going to let you know. They really take pride in rock and roll. They are not looking for any kind of trend, they just want to hear rock, how it was made and how it is going to continue to be made. There are a lot of great venues and radio stations also.

MUEN: IT LOOKS AS THOUGH YOU HAVE STARTED YOUR RADIO CAMPAIGN. HOW IS IT GOING?

Itʼs been remarkable really. We decided to work with a radio promotional company that does send outs. Our manager said “Hey listen, letʼs run the band as if you are on a label. Letʼs do it!” We pushed it and I donʼt think any of us thought “Sacrifice” was a single. I think it was one of those situations for whatever reason where when we got the final mixes it was the song within the first ten seconds we were like “Wow that sounds really good. I think that is going to hit people.” Itʼs not that itʼs the catchiest song; it just has this raw energy that we thought would be fun to release since we donʼt have a label or anyone cracking down on us. We released it and I think at one point we were in the top 100 for Active Rock. On radio we have been in the top 10 or top 20 of Sirius XM Octane. Itʼs been amazing; we have been on full rotation on a lot of stations across the country. As an unsigned band I am very proud to say that we have been able to do that and sit next to bands that have mansions and drive around in big tours buses while we are sleeping in WalMart parking lots in a van.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 65

MUEN: IʼVE HEARD YOUR band that wasnʼt full of a LIVE SHOW IS AMAZING. bunch of goofballs. I think itʼs a bunch of guys doing someThanks, our whole thing is thing that they are very pasgoing out there and making sionate about. They are just sure the show is as unprereally excited to be able to dictable as possible. We do so. I think out of excitewant to make sure you have ment they just kind of act absolutely no idea whatʼs out. getting ready to hit you. There are a lot of bands I MUEN: TELL ME ABOUT grew up watching and you THE ATOM SMASH BOMBnever knew what was going SHELLS. I WAS SNOOPto happen. We always try to ING THROUGH YOUR play as tight as possible, but BLOGS AND IT WAS FULL at the end of the day we try OF HOT CHICKS PICto make sure that when you TURES. go watch us, you can see us ten days straight and still feel Okay, yeah, youʼve got me like itʼs a different night. cornered. Atom Smash Bombshells started about a MUEN: WHY DO YOU year ago. Here is how the CALL YOUR TOUR VAN story goes, we finished our “TWINKY?” record and instantly started to shop it trying to get a We joke around and say all major deal. It didnʼt quite kinds of goofy reasons for work out that way and we why we call it that. We had began to realize that we this thing where for a while needed to develop the band, we would call girls pop tarts no different than a lot of the and guys twinkies. It was indie bands our manager kind of funny. For some rea- pushes. Some of these kids son Z looked at the van and are getting 200,000 plays a said “Yeah, this is Twinkie.” day. I realized we needed to This was the day we bought approach this in an indie it and I donʼt think any of us style and come up with a even questioned it. We just unique way to draw attention started calling it that. Itʼs defi- to our MySpace. How it nitely a spin off the fact that started was there was this he had just eaten his first playmate locally here in Twinkie. He is from Austria Miami, I noticed she had our and had never eaten a song on her page and I noTwinkie. I guess thatʼs why ticed that our plays went up. he called it that, but itʼs hard I thought that was really into analyze what goes on in teresting. In all honesty, I Zʼs head. It definitely gives it donʼt try to dress anything character. up. We basically decided to hit up a lot of the girls on our MUEN: I CAN TELL BY MySpace to put up our song READING YOUR PAGE on their page. We told them THAT YOU GUYS HAVE A if they did we would put them GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR up as a bombshell. It started TOO. I LOVE THAT. like that and it did really well. Something happened I think Oh thanks, I donʼt know what at the beginning of the year it is; Iʼve never been in a where we began realizing

Page 66 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 that anybody can be a bombshell. So what we do is we leave it open and if you send us photos, they look really rock and roll, it doesnʼt matter what you look like or how old you are, as long as you are a girl (we have had a few submissions from guys) we will put them up on a page. Itʼs a weekly blog that we try to update it every week. It is basically kind of a treat for all the people. Itʼs nothing revolutionary, but it has attracted quite a bit of attention. I think now it is starting to really become something where a mother of two, who loves rock and roll and just wants to have nice photos put up and be appreciated can do that.

MUEN: NOT ONLY IS YOUR MUSIC SEXY BUT YOU GUYS ARE PRETTY NICE TO LOOK AT AS WELL. IʼM SURE THAT ALSO BRINGS A LOT OF CHICKS TO YOUR PAGE.

Yeah, thanks, what can I say? We are a bunch of musicians that when you throw us in front of a camera, if you can get the right shot, you can get some good ones. Doing those photos shoots and getting into that whole world is so out of our element. If you could see the photos that were taken just before the photo that is actually up. We couldnʼt get our drummer Mark to keep his mouth closed and we couldnʼt get our bass player not to cross his legs all feminine, it was really funny.

Yeah, I would say depending on the city, that is definitely the case. If I were to say “Where are all the ladies at?” on stage, there are definitely a lot more ladies yelling then guys. We definitely have our hardcore guy fans, but we have a lot of girls that come out. MUEN: I SAW YOU HAVE PANDEMIC IN YOUR TOP. THOSE GUYS ARE AWESOME!

Yeah, Pandemic is amazing. We just recently did some dates with them and it was love at first site. We definitely have a romance with them as well as Pistol Day Parade. They are just amazing; they are everything that we are not. Everywhere that we lack on a bill, they are going to pick up.

MUEN: I HEARD FROM A FRIEND OF MINE, HEATHER, THAT YOU RECENTLY GOT A NEW TATTOO.

Yeah, she was there actually, she is the head of our street team in Detroit.

MUEN: WHAT DID YOU GET?

I got Too Old to Die Young tattooed across my collarbone. It was actually something that was on a vintage shirt that I wore in the “Sacrifice” video and in the original press photos for the band. I really liked what it said and what it meant. Iʼve always kind of felt old at heart. We MUEN: IʼM WILLING TO all got tattooed that day that BET YOU HAVE A LOT OF Heather was there. I had to CHICKS AT YOUR SHOWS. kick her out of the room I BET THE WHOLE FIRST while I was getting mine ROW IS ALL GIRLS. done because I couldnʼt

laugh or move. I had this beautiful girl tattooing me and it was so nerve-wracking that I kicked everyone out rudely. I couldnʼt move and it was such a tender spot. It was a lot of fun and itʼs all about the pain. I canʼt believe that there are people out there that are willing to tattoo us for free. We are just eating it up. MUEN: I LOVE TATTOOS ON GUYS.

I like tattoos on girls, so I guess we are seeing eye to eye here.

MUEN: THATʼS RIGHT, WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE REST OF THIS YEAR?

YOU THEY CAN GO TO MYSPACE.COM/ ATOMSMASHTV AS WELL.

Yes, we have tour blogs that we will be putting up too. We urge people to go check out Rock Posse; it is something that just started. All I can say is it is a support system of bands. Itʼs a bunch of bands that we really care about and we want people to know about. It is on the top friends of our MySpace page.

MUEN: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INTERVIEW SERGIO. IT WAS WONDERFUL TALKING WITH YOU AND I WISH THE VERY BEST FOR YOU IN YOUR CAREER.

Shauna, we totally appreciOur main goal right now is to ate it, Iʼm a huge fan of the release the next single “Kill magazine. Me.” We just did a re-mix of it and I think it sounds exMUEN: THANK YOU, BEactly how we want it. We FORE I LET YOU GO IS want to push that for a cou- THERE ANYTHING YOUʼD ple months and then release LIKE TO THROW OUT the record. We just signed THERE? on with a bigger agent, who is going to have to go unYeah, keep posted and stick named until something is with us even though we signed. We are going to be havenʼt released the record working with a bigger book- yet. We are telling everybody ing agent who can definitely to keep their eyes open and put us on tour with some big- eyes out for what we are ger bands soon. For the re- going to be doing this year. mainder of the year we Hope to see you guys at a should be on some major show and send us a mestours through all the cities in sage on MySpace, we would the U.S. That was pretty love to hear from you. much the biggest thing that has happened to us. It is definitely crazy at this point that people are so into the band with just the little bit that we have given them. MUEN: I WOULD LIKE TO BRING UP THE FACT THAT IF PEOPLE WANT TO CHECK OUT VIDEOS ON

oof Shirayas Dream

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Operatic vocals delivered on top of a mix of Classical and Goth (or Alien Pop as they like to call it) is not very common, but thanks to this German duo comprised of Anna Aliena and plain Oliver, not extinct! COULD YOU DESCRIBE THE CURRENT MUSIC CLIMATE IN BERLIN? ARE YOU PLEASED WITH IT?

solo project. When I joined him in August 2008, we decided to keep the name as we think that it fits our music perfectly.

HOW DID YOU FIRST MEET OLIVER, AND IS IT JUST THE TWO OF YOU FOR THIS PROJECT?

The band only consists of Oliver and myself. We first met in the virtual world of MySpace. At that time I Berlin offers a rich club was still the singer of my scene and plenty of ambi- ex-project Fairy's Garden. tious bands. Artists from all One day in July 2008 over the world pour into Oliver sent me a friend rethe city to be creative and quest because he liked to accomplish their goals. my voice. To be honHowever, as an underest, I had not been ground newcomer band satisfied with Fairy's you are forced to struggle Garden for quite a to get gigs. In these times while. So I asked of economic crisis most him if he wanted to club owners are afraid of work with me befinancial loss. In consecause he was quence, there is a tenlooking for a dency not to book singer. That newcomer bands for live was the best shows. Of course we are thing I had not very pleased with this done for situation... ages! WHEN DID YOU FIRST BEGIN THIS MUSIC PROJECT? ARE YOU STILL CALLING IT SHIRAYAS DREAM?

ShirayasDream is still the name of our band. In fact, Oliver had started it as a

TELL US ABOUT THE ALBUMS... WHERE AND HOW WERE THEY RECORDED, AND DID ANYONE ELSE HELP YOU ON THEM? Our albums are called

“Magic Carpet Nights“ and “Floating in Space“. “Magic Carpet Nights“ is focused on ballads, world music elements and stories about naughty girls like the Queen of the Night, the Witch or Chastity. On “Floating in Space“ we mainly present you alien pop for the dancefloor, e.g. the title song “Floating in

spheres. Thus, both albums invite our listeners to escape from reality. The majority of the songs was recorded in my cellar, but now we prefer working in a real studio. At the moment we don't collaborate with guest musicians. WHERE IS THE BEST PLACE TO ORDER?

Our MySpace page! Please contact us directly if you want to order our albums. You can also ask MUEN Magazine for my email address. DO YOU HAVE FORMAL TRAINING IN VOICE? OR MUSIC IN GENERAL?

Space“, “Nibiru“ or “Spaceman“. Many of the tracks deal with creatures from outer space and journeys to extraterrestrial

For several years I've taken voice lessons based on opera and lied. When I still lived with my parents, I also learned to play the church organ and sang in a choir. Oliver inherited his musicality from his grandfather who was a composer. Nevertheless, he taught himself to make music completely on his own. That's absolutely amazing! WHO WRITES THE LYRICS AND WHAT IS

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THE OVERALL INSPIRA- spired by certain people. TION FOR YOUR MUSIC? Oliver's instrumental arrangements are the overall inspiration for my I'm responsible for the melodies. I could not be lyrics which are either that creative without his drawn from the fantastic musical input. hidden Oliver absorbs ideas depths of by listening to a varimy brain ety of different artists. or in-

mental cooks who mix different ingredients that don't fit together at first sight. However, in the end the meal tastes delicious... or at least interesting. Music is always a matter of taste! ;-)

Alien pop is an alternative to mainstream pop which has not offered any innovative elements for a very long time. That's boring! In contrast, we combine many different styles like opera, pop, darkwave and world music. Thus, alien pop is a blending of genres. You can compare us with experi-

At the moment our live shows are concentrated on the Berlin club scene. For example, in April we had a gig at the well-known underground club K17 as a support band for Vic Anselmo. Nevertheless, we also plan to play at festivals. In October 2008 we went to the Netherlands to give a concert at the gothic festival “Nox Obscura“. Of course we would be pleased if they invited us again this year... It's our overall aim to do live shows as regularly as possible. Our next gig takes place at the Kato club in Berlin on September 18th.

WHAT TYPE OF VENUES DO YOU PLAY, AND HOW DESCRIBE WHAT OFTEN DO YOU DO LIVE ALIEN POP IS? SHOWS?

WHAT OTHER MUSIC ARTISTS ARE YOUR BIGGEST INSPIRATIONS AND WHY?

As a teenager I was addicted to Queen. I don't believe I would

have become a musician without their influence although they have not inspired me musically. From time to time people compare me with Klaus Nomi who essentially widened my musical horizon. Similar to myself, he worked on the borderline between classical and popular music, doing interesting experiments with his voice. In fact, he was the true inventor of alien pop, we merely defined the genre.

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WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE HOPES FOR YOUR MUSIC? WHAT WOULD MAKE YOU HAVE YOU DONE ANY FEEL MOST ACCOMVIDEOS, OR ARE THERE PLISHED? ANY BEING PLANNED? ling to foreign countries whereas Oliver writes great poetry.

We have not done any videos yet even though we know that they are essential nowadays. Of course we plan some videos for Besides these artists, I lis- the future, but ten to almost all kinds of they cost lots of music. In my opinion inspi- money... ration can catch you everywhere! WHEN DID YOU FIRST Oliver has a crush on ori- GET INTERental music. There are ESTED IN many traces of it on the GOTH? WHAT album “Magic Carpet ATTRACTS Nights“. One of his musical YOU TO THE role models is b.deutung GOTH from the former band GENRE? Inchtabokatables. The Oliver and I cello parts of our song “Last Day of Paradise“ are both have a melancholic certainly inspired by him. side which atWe've recently discovered tracts us to the nightmarish dreamgothic music. I first got inworld of Sopor Aeternus. terested in the genre after The imaginative instruhaving discovered Deine mentation of the “fabulous Lakaien, one of my goddess“ Anna-Varney favourite bands. Thus, I Cantodea will definitely be started attending goth para source of inspiration on ties to get to know more our third album... artists from the scene. Some years ago Oliver DO YOU HAVE OTHER used to frequent the scene INTERESTS RATHER regularly, but now he does THAN MUSIC, AND IF not consider himself as SO, WHAT ARE THEY? “goth“ any longer. Neither do I because we both tend I love painting and travel- to cross stylistic borders.

do what I can do best! We only live once and in my next life I might be reborn as an ant. Who knows...

WHAT IS THE MAINSTREAM MUSIC IN GERMANY RIGHT NOW, AND HOW WOULD YOU SAY IT DIFFERS FROM AMERICAN MAINSTREAM MUSIC?

On the one hand, German mainstream music means boring pop songs with boring melodies and boring German lyrics. On the other hand, it is strongly influenced by the American market: Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus or Kelly Clarkson are exported to Germany where they are top of the pops just like in the U.S. We also have “German Idol“ (“Deutschland sucht den Superstar“): In It is our common goal to the latest season there be able to live on our was a girl who looked and music in the future. We want our alien pop to cross sang almost exactly like borders and to reach peo- Lady GaGa! In my opinion Germany and the U.S. ple all over the world. As have plenty of things in we both love travelling, we'd like to play on differ- common... ;-) ent continents and beIS THERE ANYTHING come damn famous! ;-) ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO Well, I personally would feel most accomplished if I SAY? could sing and write songs Love in outer space saves for a living. I haven't got many talents, so I want to the human race...

MODERN DAY SLAVE

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THE HANDLEBAR? MUEN: WHAT'S IT LIKE (MUSIC WISE) IN Our CD release show GREENVILLE, SC was an amazing experiRIGHT NOW? ence. To look out and The scene in Greenville see that many MDS S.C. is not really hitting fans screaming our on much. We have tons names, and singing our of talent hiding in these songs back to us was a moving moment. Our hills. Most of our local venues make it to hard fans are just so down to to get a gig. Not every- earth. We always look one can pull 500 people forward to meeting to their shows. It seems them, and hanging out to be all about money to after the carnage. the venue owners. I guess we all gotta eat. MUEN: HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN MUEN: HOW DID THE 'MODERN DAY CD RELEASE GO AT SLAVE', ARE YOU ALL

ORIGINAL MEMBERS? MOST OF THE LYRICS? We formed in 2004 with Nick On the drums. Fontaine writes all of the Dustin was new on the lyrics. Sometimes, one bass. He never knew of us may suggest a litwhat he was getting tle something. into. I was the only guitar player in the begin- MUEN: WHY DID YOU ning. We were originally WRITE "UNEXa nasty death metal PECTED" WHAT band. We were lucky as POINT ARE YOU TRYcan be to recruit Niles in ING TO MAKE IN THIS 2007 to add that extra SONG? element to the music. We lost our singer in The song Unexpected is late 2007. Dustin's ex exactly that. Fontaine girlfriend was in cosme- had no lyrics for the tology school at the tune. The rest of us time. She sent Fontaine were dead set on using our way. Fontaine the track. We tracked walked in and lit a bon- the song behind fire under our tails. He is Fontaine's back. He rethe one that changed turned the favor by the sound of MDS. Now drinking a bottle of we don't scare off the Jager, putting on his ladies. black cat burglar gloves and ripped that song a MUEN: I HEAR A KID new ass. In all reality, ROCK/EMINEM our whole record deal SOUND IN ALOT OF was unexpected. YOUR SONGS, ARE EITHER ONE OF MUEN: HOW WERE THOSE ARTISTS A YOUR LATEST BIG INFLUENCE FOR SHOWS IN NYC AND YOU? ELSEWHERE? WHERE WILL YOU BE I've yet to hear that one. PLAYING NEXT? I've been told we sound like a wide range of NYC was exactly what bands. we are influwe needed. Alexa set us enced by all kinds of up like kings of NYC. music. I like to use my We had people shooting life situations to influpictures of us while we ence my music. were doing our photo shoot. We stayed at the MUEN: WHO WRITES London of NY. Chef

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Gordon Rhamsey from Hells kitchen cooked our chicken fingers for us. In all. We have enjoyed ourselves at about every show we've played. How could you not love living your dream?

at their breaking point. When you say we can't. Modern Day Slave will smack yer ass, & show you we already did.

MUEN: WHAT DO YOU FEEL YOU HAVE THE MOST GOING FOR MUEN: WHERE IS THE YOU RIGHT NOW AS A BEST PLACE TO GET BAND? A HOLD OF YOUR ALBUM "JUSTIFY As a band, we are probYOUR EXISTENCE"? ably the luckiest S.O.B's in the world. Our manOn line shopping is ager Alexa signed our probably the most popu- band on a whim. Talk lar way to purchase our about jumping in head record- we will be up first. We also have a soon on Itunes. We magical chemistry behave the songs for sale tween all of us. We are on MySpace/modernalways scratching each dayslave. Cds & more, others back. You don't and Earshot records will find that every day. be carrying our cd in our hometown of Greenville WHO WOULD YOU S.C. Yep we're country LIKE TO GIVE boys. THANKS TO, FOR THEIR SUPPORT IN MUEN: WHAT ARE MODERN DAY SLAVE? SOME OF THE MOST CHALLENGING I want to thank Tiffany THINGS FACING THE Howle for pushing me BAND RIGHT NOW? for all of these years. Alexa Ammon for taking The biggest challenge a chance on five redwe have had is dealing necks. Also my family with our local radio sta- and friends for showing tion. We are a signed up to every MDS show act. We own our own we do in town. Thanks label. We have a record to all of the Modern Day recorded in Edwin Mc- Slaves in this scatter Cain's personal studio. brained world. We are also selling the record nationwide. The radio boys just love kicking artist when they are

HURT

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J. Loren Wince (Vocals) Los Angeles, CA Myspace.com/hurt

Interview by Shauna OʼDonnell

MUEN: HOW HAVE YOU BEEN?

Iʼve been pretty well. Iʼm just getting my day started with a little Jameson and coffee. We are going to hit rehearsal in a couple hours.

MUEN: AWESOME! THAT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF FUN.

MUEN: IF YOU LEAVE, IT Itʼs hard to tell because I donʼt really get out much WILL BE TO GO BACK Yeah, we practice everybelieve it or not. If Iʼm at a TO VIRGINIA THEN? day. concert, itʼs usually one that Iʼm playing. Iʼll see the Yes, I love Virginia. I love MUEN: YOU GUYS ARE same three or four bands the rocks, trees and humidNOW IN LOS ANGELES and Iʼll see their sets so I ity. There are nicer folks, RIGHT? MUEN: HOW LONG HAVE nothing against the L.A. canʼt say that I have an edYOU BEEN HERE? folks, but they do have the ucated opinion on the Weʼve been practicing in whole L.A. music scene. proclivity to be a little bit Burbank, I started off in VirThere is definitely a whole Off and on for five long disingenuous. ginia and lived there for lot of music going on, alyears. quite a few years. I donʼt most every night Iʼm invited MUEN: YEAH, I HEAR think Iʼm still quite well adto somebody elseʼs concert MUEN: REALLY? WHAT YOU ARE SAYING. justed. Iʼm definitely not an WHAT DO YOU THINK OF which I subsequently canʼt L.A. guy. We kind of just foTHE MUSIC SCENE HERE make because Iʼm usually Yeah, couch surfing and cused here and set up a practicing or keeping up THOUGH? everything. base camp because we with my regimen of violin used to be on Capitol Records and thatʼs where the headquarters was. Thereʼs really not a whole lot of point in us being here now. Itʼs a simple matter of being expensive to move.

practice or whatever Iʼm is my managerʼs label so doing. Iʼm trying to keep my basically itʼs a self release. crazy mind busy. It seems as though we are doing a comparable if not MUEN: WELL ITʼS GOOD better job than Capitol TO BE BUSY; I LIKE TO Records so even the title of BE BUSY TOO. the album was pointing the finger. Iʼm not going to say It is, I tend to destroy mywhich finger I was pointing self when Iʼm not working. at Capitol Records, but we are trying to get enough alMUEN: DID YOU ATTEND bums to the stores. In the THE GOLDEN GOD first weeks I was surprised AWARDS? to find out that all the albums had sold out. ApparNo, actually I didnʼt. The ently there was some rest of the guys did. I interest in my band and I stayed in and practiced vio- was very flattered at that. I lin. Iʼm sorry I missed out know that everybody says on one act in particular that this, but in my personal I wanted to see with a new opinion we have THE best lead singer. I heard their fans in the world. I actually new album and it was fan- go on to our message tastic. boards and post and talk with them. They send me MUEN: WHICH BAND emails and things. We have WAS THAT? our little community there and I listen to what they Killswitch Engage, I really have to say. That is how we wanted to see them, but I found out about what just didnʼt have time. Iʼm stores were out of what and just not good around peo- then we re-shipped stuff. ple for long periods of time. Our fans were like “Hey, I canʼt do it. Iʼm just being looked for you in Huntsville honest. and couldnʼt find it.” We get direct feedback from our MUEN: ACTUALLY, I fans. THINK YOUʼRE A REALLY NICE GUY. MUEN: WELL, IʼM ONE OF YOUR FANS. Thank you very much. Are you? I didnʼt know that. MUEN: YOUʼRE WELCOME, YOUʼRE LATEST MUEN: YEAH, DEFIALBUM RELEASED NITELY. THROUGH AMUSEMENT CALLED GOODBYE TO So youʼre not just reading THE MACHINE IS NOW the MySpace page and the OUT. factoids.

WHILE.

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Thank you very much. We try so hard to make the best music possible. I wish a lot more bands would do that. Not every band that is successful seems to put in the effort or the time and thatʼs a damn shame. If you are going to do one thing for a living, you better be good at it.

MUEN: THATʼS VERY TRUE.

Hey, I have not forgotten what it was like. I was a stucco and stone mason when I was young. I have done so many professions and kept quitting them to do music. I have not forgotten what itʼs like to work. Now, I work harder than ever because I realize how far weʼve gotten. I am not going to forget how lucky I am. So to all those guys out there who say that I donʼt know how lucky I am, yes I do. You know what, you might have a better band than I do and I wish you the best of luck. Keep working hard to all the folks out there that are busting their butts and wishing that they get a chance. It took me six years before I got a chance at all and that was through a small off shoot label called Hybrid Records. It has been just one long battle and it seems like today musicians have to be a marketing expert, paralegal and a musician at the same time. Yes, itʼs actually doing sur- MUEN: NO, I REALLY AM Thatʼs not really fun, thank prisingly well. Amusement AND HAVE BEEN FOR A God for managers.

MUEN: SOME BANDS HAVE TO BE ALL THAT AND HAVE A DAY JOB.

Right, to tell you the truth, Iʼm broke. Iʼm really, truly flat broke. I spent all of our money on the last album just like we did for the last two albums. We could have thrown up a couple microphones and made a grungy sounding album, but thatʼs just not what we do. You have to do the best that you possibly can, otherwise you canʼt live with yourself, at least I canʼt.

MUEN: I RESPECT THAT, THIS IS YOUR FIFTH RELEASE RIGHT?

It is, a long time ago we had a self titled album which no one has and I hope you donʼt have it because I recorded it myself when I was just learning. It was horrible, the songs are alright, but I was just having a tough time learning how to do things. The second album was The Consumation and thatʼs when I quit my job. I was making a lot of money in the aerospace industry at the time. Like I said, Iʼve had a lot of jobs and I dedicated my life to it at that point. I came to a dark place in my life where most of my friends passed away within a short period of time. I said “What does all of this matter?” This endless pursuit of the almighty dollar did not make me happy. So, I took off work and did not sleep for about six months believe it or not. I worked on it

Page 74 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 and it sounded better than the self titled by a good margin. I gained a little bit of interest off that album and that is what got it started. The album was foretelling that this would be the beginning of something. I was lucky enough to get to make Volume I and then fans started latching on and supporting us. We were lucky enough to make Volume II with their support. Capitol Records stopped helping us during Volume II, in fact they told us we couldnʼt do certain things under contractual obligations and things like that. They printed 50,000 copies of Volume II that promptly sold out and they wouldnʼt print more. As a musician who truly wants his music heard, that is about the last thing that you ever want to hear. They owned the rights to the master recording and I couldnʼt reproduce my own music and they wouldnʼt. So at this point itʼs like “What are you doing to me?” I became furious and we asked to be let go. After several months of squabbling we were off and made our own album and we made it our way. We actually went so far our own way that we did something strange and recorded Goodbye to the Machine in analog. The reason we did that is because I have been promising people that this album was going to be different. Otherwise it would be named Volume III. I donʼt know if anybody knows what a pain in the butt it is to record to ana-

log, but it gives it a different kind of sound. Basically, we were shunning the new generation of music that is using a very powerful music tool called ProTools. As someone who works with these things everyday, Iʼm a proficient user of ProTools. I know how to use it well and I think it is being abused. People are copying and pasting the choruses of their songs and people are singing halfassed and then getting tuned. By tuned I mean you can be off pitch and draw a line through your voice and all of a sudden you are singing on pitch. You are going to be hearing a lot of that and I would like the listeners to be keen to that. The next time you hear a singers voice sound something like a flute where all the high tones are gone, that means that he pretty much half-assed it and somebody drew a line through his voice and made him sing the right notes. On top of that, you have drummers who play sloppily and use a device called Beat Detective where they are lined up on a quadrant and there you have youʼre picture perfect song that sounds exactly stale and blah. We didnʼt want to do that so we just laid it down pretty much exactly how it is live. I think that a lot of people appreciated that. Itʼs a huge difference in the sound, we are going to continue to do something different every time we do something, otherwise I donʼt really know what the point is. Some people donʼt

even though he is from Johannesburg, South Africa and Iʼm an American. Weʼre both not strangers to hard times and sometimes you need someone to talk to thatʼs been there. He was that for me and I think to some degree I was that to him sometimes. When I asked him for a favor he said yes, he got in his car, drove up and sang on the MUEN: DO YOU USUALLY DO ALL THE WRIT- song. That was it and I ING FOR THE ALBUMS? think he did a wonderful job. I also think his voice is really cool because I lisI had before, but on this one we did a complete col- tened to it every night on the Seether tour. We suplaboration. We wrote the record in a month with the ported them for a couple exception of two songs and months. we recorded it in a month. I MUEN: DID HE HELP was in one studio at the WRITE THE SONG OR time. I was working and had a work queue of song DID HE JUST SING? ideas from the other guys that they had been working He came in and sang. Iʼm on. I would send them song sure he could of written it, ideas and basic tracks. We but I didnʼt want to take too did a round of demos and much of the guys time. In sent them out to the person case you havenʼt noticed the guy is hot right now. Acwho was going to be our new drummer, Louie Scian- tually, I just listened to “Careless Whisper” even calepore. He got to hear them and didnʼt get much though that is a cover, the practice in. We said “Letʼs vocals are really good. see what we can get.” MUEN: NOTHING MUEN: SHAUN MORGAN AGAINST GEORGE OF SEETHER APPEARS MICHAEL, BUT I LOVE ON THE SONG “WORLD SEETHERʼS VERSION SO MUCH BETTER. AINʼT RIGHT.” like it and some do. Iʼm going to quote P.T. Barnum here “You canʼt please all the people all the time.” We certainly donʼt make pop music so that kind of gives you a little insight. We care about making music that affects people. If itʼs only five people that still matters the world to me.

Yes he does, I hounded him about that when we were on tour. If you have any Seether fans out there, Iʼve got to tell you that this guy is one of the coolest guys on Earth. I hung out with him just about every night and you wouldnʼt believe how similar we are

I like Seetherʼs version a lot better too, nothing against George Michael, bathroom stalls or anything.

MUEN: I READ A QUOTE BY YOU WHERE YOU SAID “SOME PEOPLE COULD MISUNDERSTAND SOME OF THE

SONGS.” WHAT DID YOU war. No matter which way MEAN BY THAT? you cut it, it comes down to greed on somebodyʼs side. Normally, I donʼt explain “Wars” is not about the Permyself on songs. The rea- sian Gulf conflict, it is about son I do that is not because what we have done through Iʼm an arrogant prick, which the centuries with our I possibly am. The reason greed, lust, and lack of pity. is, people will come to me I ask for a moment of siand tell me about a part of lence. Please close you their life. I hang out with the eyes for the millions of lives fans after the shows. Their that died in the wars. I experience is obviously didnʼt want our soldiers to quite different than mine, misunderstand that bebut it truly goes to their cause they have 110% of heart. If I tell them exactly my support. I busted my tail what the song was to me, it personally to make sure takes away from that a little that you guys donʼt die bebit. What I was afraid of cause I really care a lot having a misunderstanding about you. with was our current single “Wars.” I was working in MUEN: I LOVE THE OLD aeronautics and the deTYPEWRITERS ON THE fense industry and I was BACKGROUND OF YOUR busting my butt ninety MYSPACE AND WEBhours a week to try to make SITE. DO THEY HAVE the most infinitely wonder- SPECIAL MEANING? ful weapons possible so that our boys would do the Actually, what had hapmost proficient job possipened was I was working ble. I made planes that with the artist through our would blast the crap out of distributor and I told him I people. Traveling around wanted something that the world as a musician, I popped. I used an illustrasee all these people and tion like the Campbellʼs people are people. If you Soup can, so he took that donʼt think itʼs a damn to mean mod art. That is shame that people die , es- his personal typewriter that pecially people that for he took a photograph of. whatever reason are willing That wasnʼt really what I to die for what they believe was going for, but it was is right, then there is some- cool so we kept it. I stick to thing wrong with you. Our the audio and let other peobest, our brightest and our ple do the visual. For inbravest go out there and stance, our guitarist is a that also stands for other tattoo artist, heʼs a true countries. Whether or not artist. I can sketch somethey are misinformed these thing and make it look like people are idealists that go reality, but it takes me five out and they could have hours to do it. I donʼt really perhaps cured cancer, but call that art; itʼs a matter of they get killed because constant improvements. they are taking part in a

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paying bidding war prices MUEN: THE ALBUM COVER IS REALLY COOL spawned by EBay. It turns out this gentleman might TOO. have been continuing to produce the album and Itʼs a nice calming blue. I wanted an iridescent blue then charging my fans higher and higher prices on on the cover. it. So, what I did was reMUEN: IN 2003 YOUR RE- work the album myself so that no one could say it LEASED “THE CONSUMATION” AND THEN was sub-standard or anyIN 2008 YOU RELEASED thing. I tightened the sequencing a little bit and A RE-MASTERED VERSION CALLED “THE RE- took out some pops and clicks. I put in two files that CONSUMATION.” WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO RE- I had saved in case I ever needed to re-release it and MASTER AND RE-REthatʼs what I did. We reLEASE THIS ALBUM? mastered the album and What had happened was I there it is. It is available at our website. I have not got some help back in 2003, a gentleman who be- been pushing the album or lieved in my band offered to promoting it. I just want it print 1,000 copies and sell available so that the fans them in his shops. He had donʼt have to pay $120 to get it. a string of pawn and CD shops. So I said sure and MUEN: THAT MUST HAVE then he asked how much money I wanted. I told him MADE YOU SO MAD. if he was putting up the money to print them that I It did because we donʼt treat people like that. didnʼt want any money. I told him to just get them in MUEN: YOUʼLL BE OUT the stores, get them out ON THE ROAD there and thatʼs what he THROUGHOUT MAY SUPdid. Years later, Capitol owns these compositions PORTING YOUR LATEST RELEASE. WHO ARE and stuff. Dirty things are going on because he is still YOU GOING OUT WITH? selling these CDʼs, but what really broke me was, I Well, we will be doing a was talking to fans after a string of dates ourselves show and someone said he and I think it has just been got The Consumation but confirmed that we will be he had to pay $120 for it. I doing a co-headlining tour was like “What?” The guy with Sick Puppies. That is going to be really fun, they said that he thought that was wrong that I would do are a great band if you that to him. I said “I didnʼt have not heard of them I encourage you to check do that to you. I would them out. Their live show is never do that to you.” I amazing. They are also started hearing it higher very good friends of mine. and higher. People were

Page 76 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 Iʼd have to say that the lead singer was nice enough to be the only one to even give enough of a crap about me to spend my lonely birthday night with me on my bus drinking Jameson Whiskey. They are the band with the chick bass player Emma. That is probably what people notice first. Iʼve seen them play seven or eight times because we play festivals where there are ten bands there. Iʼve seen them do all kinds of crazy things. Anytime you see someone with a shirt that says Free Hugs that is a Sick Puppies thing. Those dates will be released very shortly.

Yeah, itʼs like we are coming up on year ten. Folks are just now hearing about us thanks to folks like you. Itʼs a long slow road and guess what, I hate to bust anyoneʼs bubble, but rich and famous do not go hand in hand. I am very, very poor. For instance, I have not eaten since the day before yesterday. The one thing that is wonderful about fans is that they buy you drinks, but the bad part is they donʼt buy you chicken strips. So you pretty much by necessity become an alcoholic. Itʼs not something Iʼm really proud of, I donʼt think Iʼm a habitual alcoholic, but just by nature everyday I end MUEN: I REMEMBER THE up hanging out because FIRST TIME I SAW YOU someone will buy me a PLAY. I REMEMBER drink. Calories are calories BEING BLOWN AWAY BY and Iʼll take them. It helps YOUR TALENT. me maintain my girlish figure. Thank you, Iʼm a little strange on the word talent MUEN: WHEN I SAW YOU because I really donʼt think PLAY IT WAS AT THE it comes overnight. There is HOUSE OF BLUES IN a reason why I stay in the ANAHEIM AND YOU studio overnight to play and WERE OPENING FOR play and play. Itʼs work, itʼs ARMY OF ANYONE. not all “Oooh check me out Iʼm all badass!” Thank you Oh man! I miss that band. I anyway. Iʼm sure if anyone just saw Ray Luzier, their puts their mind to it they drummer, heʼs doing Korn can do anything. That is now. He is doing great, I pretty much what I believe. miss that band, and there are rumors that they might MUEN: IF YOU HAVE THE be getting back together. DRIVE TO DO IT. THAT IS That will be greatly anticiSOMETHING I TELL pated by me because I BANDS, SOME THINK IF have to say we have toured THEY HAVENʼT MADE IT with a lot of cool bands, but AFTER A YEAR THEN that was definitely the THEY SHOULD GIVE UP. coolest band. I ended up THESE THINGS TAKE with pneumonia on the latTIME AND DEDICATION. ter part of that trip. We were doing it in a van in the

dead of winter. I basically went into shock after a show and I couldnʼt move. I was running a really high fever and the last thing that I remember was Robert DeLeo and I donʼt know if you have seen him in person, but he is a very large individual. He was picking me up and pouring codeine down my throat. He was shaking me and saying “Wake up J, youʼre going to make it, youʼre going to make it.” I was sitting there in this delirium. That is far past the line of being cool. These guys were bringing me medication and trying to shake me so I donʼt die.

MUEN: THEY ARE ALL SUCH NICE GUYS. I RUN INTO RAY LUZIER AT SHOWS EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE.

Heʼs a great guy. I talked to Richard Patrick the day before yesterday and he is out of the country at the moment. I think he is getting a little family time in, but we keep in contact every chance we get.

MUEN: YOU'RE PLAYING ROCK ON THE RANGE THIS YEAR. IS THIS YOUR FIRST TIME PLAYING THE FESTIVAL?

We have played in the region, but I donʼt believe it was called Rock on the Range. I would say technically, no. We have done many festivals in Ohio. It should be a great time. I know that it is going to be one of the greatly anticipated shows on the tour.

MUEN: TO ALL THE FANS OUT THERE, IF YOU SEE J, BRING HIM SOME CHICKEN STRIPS.

(Laughing) Thatʼs the wonderful thing about playing these festivals, they actually give you food. Itʼs usually not very good, but itʼs food. The standard thing is you usually get this really bad meat or veggie burger. Iʼm not a vegetarian, but I get the veggie burger and I highly recommend you do that too.

MUEN: HAVE YOU MADE ANY NEW VIDEOS FOR THE NEW SINGLES YET?

No, there are not a lot of outlets for videos anymore. Nobody plays them and they are expensive. Thatʼs not really a luxury we get. In the video for Ten Ton Brick, I was strongly opposed to showing my face. Some people think Iʼm handsome, some people donʼt. I donʼt think Iʼm handsome. That doesnʼt really matter to me because when I started to make these albums I didnʼt even want my name on them. I just wanted the music out there and I wanted it to mean something. Capitol Records said “You have 10,000 dollars to make a video. The video will be a live shoot done with CVS web cameras.” This is what you get for 10,000 dollars. They were like “Do you want a video or no video?” We were like “I guess we want a video.” So, there you go. We got to talking to our good friend Ryan

Smith, who is an awesome video director. He just did the last Shinedown video and he tried to do a video just at cost for the love of the band. We couldnʼt afford that because we just canʼt. It sucks because I really wanted to do a video with this guy. He is quite the artist and if you guys have funding out there and you want to make a video, you are going to need to look this guy up. Iʼm just so sorry we couldnʼt work with him.

did a behind the scene DVD, which is not to be confused with a live performance DVD. It has clips of us playing takes, us messing around at the studio, it has some of the original drafts to some of the lyrics and it also has the demos I recorded. It gives you an idea of what went into the album. I did it with the fans. They did it free of charge for the love of the band.

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and I wrote in various styles to push myself. Whatever direction I felt like going, I went that way. “Coincide” was the first rock style tune that I did, if we can call it rock style. I did that when I was fourteen. I laid that down at a recording studio because I wanted to know if I had what it took. I wanted honest feedback and I went there and the guy said “You have a great voice. Let me hook you up with Warner Bros. Records.” Iʼm talking to this guy from Warner Bros. when Iʼm fourteen. At the time I was a very good looking young man and he was like “Dude, letʼs face it youʼre a good looking guy, you can sing great and we want to sign you right now.” I was like “Okay, hereʼs my repertoire, these are the songs I wrote.” And he was like “No, no, no you wonʼt be doing your songs.” I was like “What? I think you have me mistaken with Hanson. Have a good day.” My band at the time is like “You idiot.” There is not a single member left from that arrangement. You have to do what you do for the love of it. This road is so hard and there is a reason why we work twenty hour days. What we are doing is what we are blessed to be doing. Iʼm blessed to be able to write a song and have it be heard. That really helps me with a lot of things. Itʼs a dream everyday, sometimes a bad dream, but an experience.

MUEN: YOU WILL FIND THERE ARE A LOT OF MUEN: I NOTICED A LOT PEOPLE OUT THERE OF BANDS ARE START- WHO ARE WILLING TO ING TO HIRE FILM STU- HELP FOR FREE. DENTS. I know and that really The return on making a makes me happy. I donʼt video, for instance, if we like to not be able to pay made a video that cost ten people. grand, I would have to sell seven thousand extra units MUEN: I KNOW AND I UNto pay for just that. Thereʼs DERSTAND. IT MAKES no guarantee that it would YOU FEEL GUILTY. get played or seen anywhere. That doesnʼt really They are like “Dude, I donʼt add up and you have to be mind, itʼs an honor.” Talent smart about what you do. deserves to be paid for. I You have to make your used the word talent on this moves carefully, especially guy and itʼs actually hard when you live every day work. next to the red line. MUEN: AT WHAT AGE MUEN: A LOT OF BANDS DID YOU BEGIN TO ARE MAKING LIVE WRITE MUSIC? VIDEOS AND PUTTING THEM ON YOUTUBE. I think my first composition was at age ten. I had writRight, if I had more time I ten a couple things before would make a video saga that, but they quickly ended with all of the songs. up in the garbage receptaMaybe someday we will do cle. I was a classical musithat. A lot of fans have cian so the first thing that I been crying for a live DVD did was a march for brass and we havenʼt done that and strings. It was actually yet. We do have a lot of MUEN: YOU ARE A pretty good. It was a little footage. With this album we simplistic. I kept on writing CLASSICAL VIOLINIST.

Yes I am, I actually learned to sing and play at the same time. My band kind of forced me to do it. I got in so many fist fights as a young man. I am a guy named Loren; first off, it is an Irish/Scottish name, but not very common in the United States. Some people would call me Lauren, the girlʼs name. Iʼd have my violin with me, first thing you know, big old fist fight. I was a pretty scrappy young guy. I had a little sore spot about playing rock and roll and having violin mixed in there. I practiced everyday. I wanted to be the best violinist on Earth, but Iʼm not. MUEN: YOU ARE VERY GOOD THOUGH.

Thank you that was eight to twelve hours practice every day that went into that. They said “Can you sing while you play violin?” I said “That is almost an impossibility. Let me try.” Sweating bullets Iʼm up on stage trying to pull it off and we finally worked out the first tune where I could pull it off and it was “Danse Russe.” A lot of fans went buck wild when they see that because they had never seen that before. I know there are bands like Yellowcard where you can see a violinist on the stage, but you donʼt hear it. To tell you the truth a lot of these compositions were written on a violin and thatʼs why it translates so well. I think I have now gotten a little bit better at playing while singing.

Page 78 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 MUEN: IT IS GREAT TO SEE YOU PLAY LIVE.

Thank you, my band has this elusive chemistry and Iʼm so proud of that. We are not playing some preprogrammed sequence of events. We are definitely not playing to a tape recorder which some bands do, Iʼm sorry to tell you. A lot of famous bands get up there and they have the tracks played for them. We donʼt do that. There is a certain level of spontaneity and that is the reason why people go to shows and see people play. There will be similarities between nights, but similarities are where it ends. Iʼm proud of that, I love it. No gimmicks, no tricks, we just get out there and play. It really depends on the night as to what is going to happen. Variety is the spice of life. MUEN: IʼD LIKE TO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE INTERVIEW. IT WAS SO GREAT TALKING WITH YOU.

Well, thank you for an excellent interview. Like I said the average person, when Iʼm on the phone with them are like “Howʼd you name the band?” “Where are you from?” They ask a series of questions where I could really, truly be half asleep when I answer them, but you gave me a chance to really talk about things that are important to me. You gave me the chance to tell our soldiers that I wish them well and wish them a happy return. You gave me

the chance to say a lot of things that I really wanted to say, so thanks for the great interview and I will be more than happy to talk to you anytime.

MUEN: WELL THANK YOU, IʼM A REALLY BIG FAN OF YOURS.

Well, thanks we are going to try our hardest to stay

around and keep playing music. God help us, fans help us and God Bless.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 81

MY EVOLUTION Written Interview By G. Cataline

MUEN: SO THE NEW ALBUM, 'THIS IS REAL LIFE' IS OUT! HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN IN THE MAKING, AND WHO HELPED YOU WITH THE PRODUCTION AND ENGINEERING THIS TIME AROUND?

I joined the band. From day one writing began and the process never ceased until the albumʼs release in May.

Micah – This CD took a while to make due to many factors including change of bass players, writing style, many gigs and the making of our acoustic EP Truth Be Told, which occurred while we were recording ʻThis Is Real Lifeʼ. I proJuzwick – This album has duced and engineered been in the making since the CD and did the key-

board/electronic sounds programming as well. A lot more time was put into programming and production on this CD than in the past….we felt that our music and the band in general, had evolved so much since All Eyes On Me that we really had to elevate all aspects of our CD starting with the writing, to the recording, editing, production, mixing and mastering. We were absolutely determined to

Micah

blow everyoneʼs expectations away and one of the ways we ensured being able to do that was working with legendary producer Jay Baumgardner (311, Godsmack, Papa Roach, Drowning Pool, etc.). Jay, as you would imagine, is a very busy man but he graciously made time to accommodate mixing our CD. We met him through a mutual friend and asked him to mix our CD back in November of 2008, when

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we were getting close to completion of the recording. He said then that he didnʼt have the time and we were BUMMED! We didnʼt give up on him though…after Wayne Static (Static-X) sang on our first single, “So Happy” we asked Jay if he could find time to squeeze us in to mix one song that we wanted to release the first week of 2009. This time he said yes! The experience was great and he seemed to like working with us as much as we liked working with him! Then when it was time to mix the rest of the CD, we got lucky….his schedule had an opening and we were able to fit our mix right in it! The rest is history.

me knows how exciting it is to find background info on my favorite bands/songs so I think itʼs an interesting thing for fans to experience.

Micah - Every song truly went through tons of rearranging, editing and additional production….in some cases literally up to hours before being mixed! As I said, we were very aware of really needing to bring every element to the highest level possible and we did all we could to achieve that. It also features our awesome new logo…. WOOT-WOOT!! MUEN: HOW MANY ALBUMS DO YOU HAVE TOTAL?

*M. Lopez* - We have MUEN: WHAT ELSE two. The recently reCAN YOU TELL US leased in early May "This ABOUT THE ALBUM? Is Real Life", 2007's "All Eyes On Me" and what I Burgos - It's a great rep- consider to be our first resentation of what we do demo entitled, "Getting live. Close To Something". So I stand corrected....we Juzwick - Every song has have two and a half gone through some kind CD's!!! of metamorphosis or development. We have Burgos - I'll agree with 2 dozens of rehearsal and 1/2. As you can see, we live recordings that show lean towards 2 as that the songs at different first one was us in an instages of their growth. If fant stage. you go to our Youtube page Micah – Yeah, two plus (youtube.com/myevoluour acoustic EP, ʻTruth Be tionmusic) youʼll find Toldʼ….and as they mensome live vids that show tioned, the demo ʻGetting the infant stages of these Close To Somethingʼ. songs. The super-fan in

MUEN: HOW DID YOU GET WAYNE STATIC OF STATIC-X AND DAN NELSON OF ANTHRAX TO DO GUEST VOCALS?

and I discussed him coming to LA to visit, I asked if heʼd be into singing on the new CD and maybe even live with us. He said he was into it and when he visited he joined us on Juzwick – We told them stage at the Key Club – singing Wayneʼs parts in that our favorite band ʻSo Happyʼ - and sang on names ended with an “X”…. they couldnʼt turn Solid 15 in the studio. It was great working with us down after that. him again and I canʼt wait Micah – Wayne and I met for the world to hear what an awesome singer he is through my roommate and have become friends on the new Anthrax CD in the past year or so. He coming out in October. I wish him all the success was over at our studio in the world….he deone night while I was serves it!! Tommy Vext working on Ordinary (formally of Snot and World and he was very Devine Heresy) also sang impressed with our verwith us at that Key Club sion – in particular with show on a cover of SlipBurgosʼ vocal performknotʼs ʻDualityʼ! It was an ance. We got to talking AMAZING night!! about the new Static-X CD that they were working on (Cult Of Static) and MUEN: TELL US ABOUT THE LIVE SHOWS WITH how he was excited to STATIC-X THIS PAST have Dave Mustaine (Megadeth) play a solo on MAY? it. From there it was a natural to ask if he would *M. Lopez* - They were be into singing on a song INCREDIBLE!!! The fans on our CD….and he said in the Midwest are BADASS!!! They show up he was into it. He also early ready to ROCK and sang live with us at House Of Blues-Sunset are not jaded at all. We played in front of 800 to Strip in January, where we performed ʻColdʼ and 1000 people each show ʻSo Happyʼ. Dan Nelson as the opening act, sold (Anthrax) and I have been lots of merch signed friends for over ten years everything imaginable and we were in a band to- and took many a pic with fans!!! It was too cool. It gether in NY called Unwas great being out with broken in 2000-2003. Static. Wayne and Tera Weʼve remained good friends since I moved to are great and the band and crew are the coolest LA in 2003. When Dan

of people!!!

Juzwick – The crowds were great. They were really receptive to us and we made a lot of new friends. The Static-X crew were beyond helpful and really made us feel welcome. A huge thank you goes out to Konstanze Louden, Erik Fincher, and Will Hunt ….. and of course Mr. & Mrs. Static! The Fort Wayne show was definitely a highlight for me because my mom and a bunch of friends from Cincinnati drove up to see us. It was their first time seeing My Evolution in action!

Burgos - I agree the X crew were fantastic and great to us. We were successful and for a new group that's not as Metal as Static-X, it was a tremendous accomplishment. Each city brought us new fans and a reason to buy more Sharpies.

Micah – The response we got from Static-X, their crew, the other bands, the production crews at the venues and of course the fans, was AMAZING! It really confirmed what we felt about our new music and was a great way to introduce it to the world!! MUEN; WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO DO A COVER OF "ORDINARY WORLD," WHICH WAS

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ORIGINALLY THOSE SHOWS? RECORDED BY DURAN DURAN? Juzwick – We canʼt wait to get back out on tour! *M. Lopez* - I've always We havenʼt announced loved the song and every any new dates yet but we time it would play on my will be very soon! iPod I would think that we would sound great doing Burgos - I'm just waiting this song. So I came into to collaborate with Timbarehearsal and told the land. guys let's cover "Ordinary World". I knew we could Micah – We will definitely give it the same power be touring a lot more to that we do our own songs help spread the word and while keeping Duran's make new fans and spirit and beautiful friends all over the place! melody. I didn't have to do We are a great live band much convincing to the with amazing energy and guys and it came together people need to experifairly quickly. Playing this ence an M.E. show to song live is AMAZING fully appreciate what we and it's definitely a crowd do on every level. We will pleaser!!! def try to hook up with some other great bands Juzwick – Iʼm a sucker for as we put tours together. ballads. Mike brought the People wanna see great idea to the table and I bands play together so couldnʼt say no. they can enjoy an evening of music not just Burgos - I wasn't inspired one band and we will to do it...Mike was. Duran keep that in mind and do Duran are a hugely suc- what we can to make that cessful band and that happen! song is loved by many different types of music MUEN: WHAT IS THIS lovers. So, even the hard TRUTH BE TOLD' core rockers like our ver- ACOUSTIC EP? WHEN sion because it has that WAS THAT PRODUCED ME bite to it. AND WHERE IS IT AVAILABLE? MUEN: LET'S TALK MORE TOURS... WILL Juzwick – ʻTruth Be Toldʼ YOU BE DOING MORE was released in November 2008. It can be LIVE SHOWS IN SUPPORT OF THIS ALBUM? downloaded for FREE on our website: myevoluAND ARE THERE tionmusic.com OTHER BANDS INVOLVED FOR SOME OF

Micah – We had played acoustic sets a few times live and thought there was something special about the way our songs translated to acoustic versions. We had talked about putting out some songs acoustically after hearing some acoustic rehearsal recordings and when we realized that ʻThis Is Real Lifeʼ wasnʼt going to be ready for a while, we decided to release ʻTruth Be Toldʼ to tide fans over and get them excited for the new material. So we actually released a few songs acoustically BEFORE we released them with full production. One of the unique elements of the way we perform acoustically is that I donʼt just play a shaker or tambourine, I play a Djembe, hi-hat, cymbal and other percussion on most songs. I often approach the percussion very aggressively and that combined with how the acoustic guitars are played really makes it much more high-energy than most acoustic performances. People are surprised by how aggressive it is and yet still more melodic than the full production versions because the vocals have so much more room. You really have to check it out to understand….oh and did we mention…itʼs a FREE download at www.myevo-

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lutionmusic.com!!

MUEN: I REMEMBER YOU HAD THIS AWESOME ACOUSTIC ON YOUR PLAYER ONCE, I CAN'T REMEMBER THE NAME OF THE SONG, BUT THE VOCALS WERE AMAZING! AND THAT IS WHAT FIRST ATTRACTED ME TO THE BAND. I NOTICE YOU NEVER HAVE THE SONG UP ANYMORE. WHY IS IT ALOT OF BANDS TAKE DOWN SOME OF THEIR BEST SONGS OFF MYSPACE, HAHA! IT'S FRUSTRATING TO ME:)

*M. Lopez - I understand your pain. The reason it's no longer up there is that Myspace only allows bands (unsigned bands that is) to have 10 songs up at a time. Actually, 10 songs is a new thing. It was originally 4 and then became 5 and is now 10 which is cool because we can have the entire new CD posted and not go through the headache of picking certain songs. The CD is meant to be heard in its entirety...choosing faves is the fans job!!! I think the missing acoustic song you mentioned is "Time Flies" from the "All Eyes On Me" CD. It does suck that it's no longer posted but it lives on in CD form and can be purchased on iTunes or heard on our website myevolutionmu-

UNDERGONE, AND WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES FOR THE FUBurgos - I hate it too. But TURE? everything's available.... for a price! HA HA!! Burgos - changed our look, changed our logo, MUEN: ARE YOU ALL honed in on our sound, ORIGINALLY FROM changed bass players, THIS AREA? AND IF NO, changed our promo picWHERE ARE YOU tures, changed the way FROM AND HOW LONG we record, changed reHAVE YOU BEEN IN hearsal studios, damn, THE HOLLYWOOD/L.A. what hasn't evolved? AREA? That's the beauty of our *M. Lopez* - I am from LA band's name: it's true to but the others are from life, constantly growing some other far off mysti- and changing. cal lands. Juzwick – I think the most Burgos - Born and raised obvious changes are: in Arizona and came to Mikeʼs switch from a Hollywood to find My Evo- black Ibanez Iceman to a lution. How funny that I white one, Micahʼs loss of found them... twice! rack toms, Daveʼs shorter sic.com so it's not a total downer!!!

Juzwick – Born and raised in Cincinnati but I like to claim Pittsburgh as a second home since my dadʼs side of the family is from there. Iʼve been living in Hollywood for 3 ½ years.

Micah – Born in Da Bronx, NY. Lived in Queens, NY my whole life til Nov. 3, 2003 when I moved to LA. I canʼt imagine living anywhere else….I LOVE it here like I knew I would!!

MUEN: IN YOUR WORDS, HOW HAS THE BAND EVOLVED OVER THE PAST YEARS? WHAT SORT OF CHANGES HAVE YOU

WRITE?

*M. Lopez* - Life experiences, passion for music and self-expression are my reasons for writing what I write. I always take into consideration what the others guys do best and I do my best to match my strengths with theirs to create the proper synergy.

Juzwick – I like to keep things simple and tight. I donʼt need someone to pat me on the back for playing a great bass solo. Iʼd much rather fill up the low end and leave room for everyone else.

Burgos - Bad music. It inspires me to write better music to give everyone hair, and my face in the something good to hear promo pics and onstage. and feel. I always think we can write better songs Micah – Letʼs see….I had short, spiky, bleach than most of the drivel we striped hair (bleach by hear on mainstream Mike), then black hair with radio. I can be inspired to a red stripe up the center, write a song by a simple then a faux-hawk with phrase heard in daily life. highlights, then a moIt can really be anything. hawk, then shaved it bald, then let it grow out to Micah – I feel like one of what it is now. Thatʼs a the main differences lot of change! Hope for about the music we put the future….that it doesnʼt out is that it is very balfall out!! anced (yep, Iʼm a Libra!) It is very aggressive and MUEN: WITH THE high-energy though not MUSIC OF MY EVOLU- metal and it is also very TION, WHAT IS YOUR melodic. We also try to MAIN OBJECTIVE WITH stay away from the cliché THE SONGS? WHAT negativity that is so MOSTLY INSPIRES YOU prevalent in heavy music. TO WRITE WHAT YOU

MUEN; WHAT DO YOU FEEL IS THE MOST DIFFICULT ASPECT OF BEING IN A BAND WITHOUT MAJOR LABEL SUPPORT?

a bit frustrating with how slow the growth is without the big machine behind us. As we expose our music to more people we see how many of them get it immediately and re*M. Lopez* - To this point ally love what weʼre we've done everything doing. We know that with entirely on our own. Of the exposure that having course we've had help the machine behind us from friends/business would afford us, we would contacts introducing us to be able to grow so much this person or that person more quickly. All in good but at the end of the day time! it's been our own drive and determination that MUEN: WHAT DO YOU has gotten us this far. It's LIKE MOST: PERFORMobviously difficult funding ING LIVE, OR RECORDeverything on your own ING NEW SONGS IN as well as making difficult THE STUDIO? business decisions while trying to live life but it's a Burgos - I'd actually love necessary evil to get to to meet the dingbat that the next level. If it were answers "in the studio". easy everyone would do it It's cool and all but and as cliché as that c'mon..it doesn't even sounds it's absolutely compare to rocking peotrue. That's the reason we ple live. named the new CD Juzwick – Performing live. "This Is Real Life"...beI spend the least amount cause to us the music of time in the studio so and the grueling (but sat- recording songs makes isfying) process of making me antsy…I want to get it was exactly that, Real out and rock people. Life. Micah – There is abBurgos - Yeah, the hard- solutely NOTHING that est part is having to PIY. I compares with the feeling mean, we're fucking awe- of performing music live some... we should be get- in front of an audience ting paid for this. that digs what youʼre doing! I experienced it Juzwick – No yen, pesos, first when I was 11 years or lira. old and have been addicted to that rush ever Micah – We believe in the since. It really is the music we are putting out greatest high ever!! The 100% and sometimes itʼs studio affords me some

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 85

really great creative outlets and a sense of tremendous pride and satisfaction when a recording is released but nothing compares to live!

MUEN: WHAT OTHER INTERESTS DO YOU THINK YOU'D BE MORE INVOLVED IN, IF YOU WERE NEVER A MUSICIAN? OR IN OTHER WORDS, IF THERE WAS NO MUSIC, WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING INSTEAD?

too so maybe Iʼd open a dive shop…somewhere tropical….ya man!

MUEN: WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY TO THE FANS THAT SUPPORT YOU? Burgos - Tell everyone you know about us and spread the love/music.

Juzwick - Domo arigato. See you soon!

Micah – Thanks for rockin with us! Donʼt steal our *M. Lopez* - I'd be trying music….weʼre poor to create some unknown enough as it is, so buy a thing called "Music" and CD or download from I'd surely be trying to in- iTunes or sites where we fluence people into digactually get a little someging it much like I do now. thing for our hard work!

Juzwick – I like to create and share so cooking has become a second outlet for me. Iʼm always looking for excuses to have people over for dinner. If I wasnʼt more involved in music Iʼd want to open my own restaurant.

MUEN: IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO ADD? *M. Lopez* - Yeah, 2+2=5.....

Juzwick – I love my mom.

Burgos – Peach.

Burgos - I'd continue writing. There's a novel in Micah – More hours to here somewhere, I just the day…. PLEASE!! Oh… and thanks to Greg know it. at MUEN for supporting M.E. and making this inMicah – Iʼm going over to terview possible!! Juzwickʼs for some food! If I were never a musician Iʼd probably be in the field of psychiatry or science. Iʼm fascinated by human behavior and physics….then again, I like SCUBA diving a lot

PAPERCUT MASSACRE

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(Wind-Up Records)

Joey Culver (Vocals) Jackson, MS/ Memphis, TN

Myspace.com/papercutmassacre By: Shauna OʼDonnell

MUEN: HOW ARE YOU DOING?

Iʼm doing fantastic, enjoying the sun out here in Memphis, Tennessee. Itʼs a hot and humid day. MUEN: IʼM IN CALIFORNIA AND ITʼS RAINING TODAY.

Thatʼs actually kind of weird. Iʼve been to California many times and I donʼt think Iʼve ever seen it rain.

MUEN: LETʼS TALK A LITTLE ABOUT THE BAND. HOW LONG HAVE YOU GUYS BEEN TOGETHER?

album off and on. Upon completion of the album, the studio drummer that I have been working with for two years decided he wanted to stick with the Itʼs actually a really inter- project. We found two esting story. I was signed other guitarists and the about seven years ago on rest is history. It was about Wind-Up Records in a eight months ago that I got band called Atomship. the final members put into After the album sales of the band. That is how Atomship started to fall, long we have been playwe were let go from the ing; we are basically a label and I was signed brand new band. Thatʼs back up as a solo artist in the exciting part about it. late 2006. Ever since then, Iʼve been writing for this MUEN: ABSOLUTELY,

SO YOU ARE THE ONE THAT WROTE THE ENTIRE ALBUM THEN?

my song writing abilities and the direction I wanted to go in with my song writing. At first we didnʼt know Yes, pretty much, me and which direction we wanted to go in as far as the style two different producers. of music. Iʼve done everyOne of which was Skidd Mills, he has worked with thing from metal to pop. It came down to sitting in the Saving Abel and 12 Stones. I also worked with studio and writing months on end to find what sound Bob Marlette, who is known for Saliva, Marilyn I wanted to stick with. Thatʼs why when you lisManson, Black Sabbath and all kinds of people. Iʼm ten to the whole album itʼs such an eclectic bunch of not too amazing on the guitar so I do need some songs. Some songs sound help. The label wanted to like they shouldnʼt be on the same album. really focus around me,

MUEN: I LISTENED TO THE ALBUM AND I THINK ITʼS GREAT.

Thank you so much. I spent a really long time on it so I hope people like it.

MUEN: THATʼS GOOD YOU ARE WITH WINDUP. ITʼS A GOOD LABEL.

Wind-Up Records is an amazing label. Iʼve been with them for seven years and if you listen to the album you will probably get the idea that Iʼve never been to popular with the in-crowd. For Wind-Up Records to have this much faith in me and keep me so long, is great. I have never had someone believe in me as much as Diana Meltzer. She is an amazing lady. MUEN: HOW ARE THINGS GOING WITH THE ALBUM, “IF THESE SCARS COULD TALK” SO FAR? YOU JUST RELEASED IT MAY 19TH?

Itʼs strange I have been waiting three years for the album to be released and I got a phone call from someone saying they saw my album. I didnʼt know it was out there. (Laughing) Iʼve been too concerned with getting this tour booked. MUEN: WHERE IS THE ALBUM AVAILABLE? IS IT ONLY ONLINE?

Right now it is available at

all online retailers. Apparently, the music industry is going into these drop cards. You can buy it online and most stores are going to be carrying the digital drop cards. They are like a credit card. You enter the information on the internet and you download the album. Iʼm still pushing to get physical CDʼs because at a lot of the shows that we are playing, when you try and hand people the drop cards, they think you are handing them your business card. They walk off with it, but they want a CD. I think it is definitely the future of music retailing, but at this moment I donʼt think baby bands like Papercut Massacre need to be bringing it to the mass public.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 87

guitarist. Iʼm not bad at all on that, but lead, I canʼt handle that. On a lot of these song ideas, I came to the producer with a basic three or four chord song. I was like “Here, this is what I got. This is the melody I worked up and here are some of the lyrics.” I would say “What do you think?” He would go “Okay, give me the guitar.” Thatʼs basically how it happened. MUEN: IS THERE ANY ONE SONG ON THE ALBUM THAT MEANS MORE TO YOU THAN THE OTHERS?

“Curse of the Broken Hearted” because to me, it is one of my most lyrically strong songs. A lot of songs start off with a topic and then kind of expand MUEN: HAVING AN AC- on it. At the end of the day, TUAL CD IS COOL BE- the song is not really what CAUSE YOU HAVE ALL you originally wrote it OF THE ARTWORK AND about. With “Curse of the THE LYRICS. Broken Hearted” I stayed on point with all of the First and foremost, Iʼm a lyrics from one verse to fan of music and I always the chorus to the next bought the album. Hope- verse. It all has this one fully, the lyrics are going to meaning. It is basically be in there and you get to about this bad relationship live vicariously through that I went through. It talks their thank you credits. about that one relationship and then it talks about all MUEN: DO YOU DABof the bad relationships. It BLE IN GUITAR OR DO culminates to the point YOU ACTUALLY PLAY? that more than likely Iʼm just cursed and Iʼm never I actually do a lot of supposed to be happy. acoustic stuff. If you want That is a heavy emotion me to get up and shred a Iʼm feeling today. solo, thatʼs not me. Iʼm MUEN: FOR REAL? definitely a good rhythm

Yeah, I might go back in and listen to that song. It might make me feel better. Iʼm just kidding, Iʼm not Debbie Downer. Itʼs a beautiful day in Memphis, but I have a horrible running with girls. I should stay away from girls or they should stay away from me. All you listeners, if youʼre a girl, and you see me, just run. MUEN: WHICH OF THE SONGS IS GETTING RADIO PLAY?

“Left 4 Dead” is the single. We got a phone call yesterday and it is number 40 on the Active Rock Charts. We finally broke the 40 so Iʼm really excited about that. We are leaving on June 28th for Los Angeles to shoot the video for “Left 4 Dead.” Everybody is really excited about it. Iʼve been out that way before, but the rest of the band members havenʼt really been out that way. It will be interesting because this week we will be going to North Carolina. We will go and swim in the ocean in North Carolina and then at the end of the month we are going to California and swim in that ocean. MUEN: THATʼS COOL YOUʼRE COMING HERE TO SHOOT THE VIDEO.

I heard something about Joshua tree, which I thought was a U2 album, but it turns out it is an area in the desert.

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MUEN: THERE IS A PICTURE AT THE TOP OF YOUR PAGE THAT I ASSUME IS YOU.

up using it as a promo pic. There was no thought behind it other than my stupidity. The label loves it, the radio stations love it, That is me. Iʼm glad everybody likes it; I hope they change it MUEN: WITH A MEDICAL soon. MASK ON YOUR FACE WITH THE WORDS NO MUEN: I LOVE THE SWINE IN RED ON IT. NAME OF YOUR BAND. TELL ME A LITTLE ABOUT THE PICTURE. Papercut Massacre is just one of those names that The no swine picture was came about from me actunever supposed to be part ally getting a paper cut of the band thing. The and bleeding all over the week before the photo place. shoot, I broke my toe riding a mechanical bull. I MUEN: I FIGURED THAT. went to the hospital to get I HATE PAPER CUTS. my toe checked out and I got a couple of those sur- I was actually trying to go gical masks because my through band names. The drummer and I thought label wanted to know what they were funny. The big band name I wanted to swine flu epidemic was have and I was going going on. We were in a lit- through sheets of paper tle town right outside of that I had written band Memphis, it was kind of names on and I cut my“Deliverance” scary. I self. They were asking me thought it was funny, of what I was whining about course I already look and I told them I cut myweird, and I wore the sur- self and Iʼm bleeding gical mask around town everywhere. It was the and told everyone I was deepest paper cut I had trying to avoid the swine ever had. Two hours later, flu. All the rednecks I called him up and Iʼm like thought it was really funny “Hey man, Papercut Masand so when we went to sacre, letʼs use it.” I the video shoot, I still had thought it was really origithe mask on me. I thought nal until I YouTubed the it would be a great faceband name to see if anybook photo. After the body had gotten any live photo shoot, I was like videos of us. There was a “Hey, take a picture of me kid who made a Papercut doing this.” I wanted it for Massacre something that personal use and was un- has nothing to do with the aware they were going to band. So apparently, Iʼm send it to the label. The not so original. label loved it and ended

MUEN: YOU KNOW WHATʼS WORSE THAN A PAPER CUT? I USED TO WORK IN A MEDICAL OFFICE AND WE DEALT WITH XRAYS. ONE DAY I PULLED AN XRAY OUT OF AN ENVELOPE AND IT CUT ME JUST LIKE PAPER. IT WAS HORRIBLE.

I can imagine. I was a phlebotomist before I started the music deal. I went to nursing school and I was working at a hospital being a vampire.

MUEN: WELL, PEOPLE HAVE ONE HELL OF A TIME DRAWING BLOOD OUT OF ME. I HAVE TINY VEINS.

Oh, everybody says that, they call me one stick Joe. I could get it. If I ever decide to be a hard drug user, Iʼm going to be amazing at it.

MUEN: WELL, IʼLL KEEP THAT IN MIND FOR THE NEXT TIME I NEED MY BLOOD DRAWN. YOUʼRE OUT THERE ON THE ROAD SUPPORTING YOUR RELEASE RIGHT NOW?

Yes, we actually have two days off right now and we are spending some time in Memphis. We just went down to Mississippi and played a couple of shows. We are heading to North Carolina tomorrow and after that we will be going back into Florida. We will

head back into Mississippi right before we head out for the video shoot. As soon as we are done with the video shoot we will be going into Michigan and Minneapolis. Iʼm going to be going to Honduras for a week in the middle of July to do some mission work with my church. It will be one of the most exciting summers Iʼve ever had.

MUEN: IS THERE ANY ONE PLACE YOU ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO GOING MORE THAN THE OTHERS?

I would have to say Minneapolis, Minnesota because they were the first radio station to add “Left 4 Dead.” They have been so supportive of me for the past seven years that you would think I was from Minneapolis. There are people leaving messages on the website already saying that they canʼt wait to see us in Minneapolis. Theyʼve been spinning the song for about two months now, longer than anyone else. Minneapolis is really ready to see Papercut and I canʼt wait to get back up there, it is beautiful country.

MUEN: WILL YOU BE ADDING DATES AS YOU GO?

Yeah, most definitely, right now if an outsider was to look at my tour schedule they would see that we are booked every single day

until the end of August.

MUEN: WHO ARE SOME OF THE BANDS YOU HAVE ENJOYED SHARING THE STAGE WITH?

The two best bands that I have ever shared the stage with were Sevendust and Cold. I was lucky enough to do that on the same tour. Every single night those guys were amazing. They never missed a beat and the fans were so supportive of them. Sevendust is huge fans of their own fans. It was amazing to see the relationship between them and the crowd every night. I was a fan of Cold long before I even knew I wanted to be in a band. We did a lot of one off shows and radio festivals. The coolest band I have ever met, we didnʼt share the same stage, was Slipknot. I got to watch them play and hang out on their bus. For me, that was my little rock star moment. I got to see their faces; I didnʼt know what any of them looked like.

MUEN: YEAH, THEY ARE A COOL BAND. WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOUʼVE LEARNED SO FAR IN YOUR EXPERIENCES IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?

Trust no one! No Iʼm just kidding. Keep your head on your shoulders; keep God and your family first. Thatʼs the only thing Iʼve

really learned. The first tours I went on, I kind of got wrapped up in everything. There are a lot of bad things on the road. Itʼs keeping your head focused on what you are doing, which is providing music for people, playing music for people, expressing your true emotions and true feelings. For a band who just writes songs just to sell the music, it might not be hard for them to do it everyday. I found it really hard to go out and be honest and forthcoming with all this music when I wasnʼt living what I was preaching. Keep focused on the road because youʼll get lost. You can get caught up in the whole rock star thing, getting drunk every night and hanging out with random girls. Itʼs not worth it.

MUEN: ITʼS EASY TO GET CAUGHT UP IN IT.

Oh yeah, most definitely, everything youʼve heard about the road as far as sex, drugs and rock n roll is pretty much true. It might not be quite as elaborate as they show on TV. When youʼre a small band, you are lucky if you can find food everyday, much less drugs. You are definitely exposed to a lot and for somebody from South Mississippi; like I am it was a complete culture shock for me to go to New York and Los Angeles.

MUEN: THAT IS GREAT

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 89

ADVICE. 3 DOORS FOR GATORS. DOWN IS FROM MISSISSIPPI. Thatʼs right, on a boat, looking for gators, thatʼs Yes, Iʼm actually from the us! (Laughing) The day same little town that they before I flew out to showare. case to get the record deal with Wind-up, my old guiMUEN: OH REALLY? DO tarist and I rode around in YOU GUYS KNOW EACH a boat hunting alligators. OTHER? That was our way to relax. Thatʼs what we do down Yes, we all went to school south; we go on the river, together. South Mississippi go four-wheeling and ridis not that big of an area. ing. Everybody pretty much knows everybody. We are MUEN: IT ACTUALLY all related in some way, SOUNDS NICE, IT shape or form. We went to SOUNDS RELAXING. school together or someone is dating my cousin. We ride about 20 mph Growing up I was in a slower than just about band called the Dogwood everybody else. Itʼs not Conspiracy and 3 Doors that were dumb, we just Down was a three piece. take our time. The singer played drums, there was one guitarist MUEN: THATʼS GOOD and one bass player. They BECAUSE WERE ALL were still a local band and STRESSED OUT OVER every week we traded off HERE. opening headlining spots. Iʼm trying to get on the Exactly, we take our time; I phone with them now to just never get anything see if we can arrange the done. same deal, but itʼs not working. No, thatʼs a joke, MUEN: I WOULD LIKE 3 Doors Down is not going TO THANK YOU FOR to let me headline for THE INTERVIEW TODAY them. Thatʼs not going to JOEY. IT WAS A LOT OF happen. Saving Abel, 3 FUN. IS THERE ANYDoors Down and Elvis are THING YOUʼD LIKE TO all from Mississippi. We SAY BEFORE I LET YOU have a lot of local, regional GO? guys that go out and tour. Just make sure you check MUEN: I REMEMBER out the music at PapercutWATCHING A VIDEO OF massacre.com, itʼs really 3 DOORS DOWN AND easy to remember beTHEY WERE OUT ON A cause itʼs the name of the BOAT ON THE RIVER. band plus .com. That was THEY WERE LOOKING my idea. Please go buy

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the album; Iʼd really like to make another one. It is very helpful when you actually buy the album. I donʼt care if you buy the album and burn one for a buddy. Just donʼt give it to everybody. MUEN: I RECOMMEND IT, IT IS A GREAT ALBUM. What is your favorite song?

MUEN: I LIKE “LEFT 4 DEAD.”

Everybody go buy the album and please find us on the internet. We actually respond to the messages and love hearing from the fans. We love seeing what they expect from us the next time they see us. MUEN: YOU APPRECIATE THE FEEDBACK.

Oh yeah, most definitely, I donʼt know if we are doing a good job if someone doesnʼt tell us. MUEN: HAVE FUN OUT ON THE ROAD AND BE SAFE. Yes, maam.

EXILIA

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 91

Milan (ITALY)

www.exiliaweb.com www.myspace.com/exilia

Interview with Masha Mysmane (vocals)

By: AngelDevil

Myspace.com/angeldevilsex

MUEN: LETʼS TALK ABOUT YOUR NEW ALBUM, ʻMY OWN ARMY.ʼ HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE IT?

MASHA: I would describe it as something more direct, more deep and more heavy as well!

MUEN: YOU WORKED WITH DAVE CHAVARRI AS THE PRODUCER ON THIS ALBUM. WHAT WAS HE LIKE TO WORK WITH? WHAT DID HE BRING TO IT?

MASHA: It was really special, he is a great drummer with very cool ideas and a great person full of passion for music! Basically he tried to open up more of our melodic chorus working very close with MASHA: We had different drum and vocals! proposals and AFM was the one offering us distriMUEN: HOW DID YOU bution in the USA, so we GET SIGNED BY AFM decided for them! Itʼs very RECORDS? important for our kind of music to be distributed in

the USA.

MUEN: YOU HAVE CHOSEN “ARE YOU BREATHING?" TO BECOME THE VIDEO. WHAT ABOUT MAKING

VIDEO APPEAL TO YOU?

MASHA: “Are You Breathing?” has a heavy lyric in the song, and it was quite difficult to reproduce the

Page 92 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 meaning of the lyrics into the video, but we tried to make it clear that this guy had no chance to forgive the woman after what had happened in the story.

GREATEST SATISFACTION THAT YOUʼVE EXPERIENCED?

MASHA: To see that the people were following our music, singing our songs MUEN: LOOKING BACK and that everything we did AT THE OTHER ALBUMS was just coming from our "RIGHTSIDE UP", "UN- sacrifice - that is a great LEASHED" AND "NOsatisfaction! BODY EXCLUDED"... WHAT DO YOU THINK MUEN: WOULD YOU OF THOSE 3 ALBUMS? WANT TO TELL ME MORE ABOUT THE MASHA: We love them, MEMBERS OF THE they are part of our evolu- BAND.. tion as a band and as people. We are what we are MASHA: Alien is the guitar now because we were player! He is almost a what we were in that pe- brother to me. We started riod!! together years ago and so we have a very special MUEN: WHAT DO YOU friendship!! And he is so HOPE PEOPLE GO talented and full of great AWAY WITH AFTER heavy riffs! Ale Lera is the THEY'VE LISTENED TO drummer and he is from YOUR ALBUMS OR Livorno in Italy - a place on SEEN YOU LIVE? the sea. He loves surfing and swimming and he is MASHA: We hope they will full of energy. He is a brilfollow our music and they liant drummer! Marco Vacan feel the energy we put lerio! Full of tattoos, full of into our songs. metal in his head and a real rock bass player! MUEN: FROM A PERFORMERS POINT OF MUEN: WHAT TYPE OF VIEW, WHAT HAS BEEN MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN YOUR MOST MEMOTO? WHAT'S THE LAST RABLE CONCERT AND ALBUM YOU BOUGHT? WHY? MASHA: I listen to all MASHA: Russia, Moscow music!! From Slipknot to with Rammstein. The Tori Amos, from Mozart to arena was full, almost Metallica everything that 20.000 people in front of has that special feeling inour eyes! What more can side! Everything that you ask? comes from the soul and not from the business!! ;-) MUEN: DURING THESE YEARS, WHICH IS THE MUEN: WHAT ARE YOUR

www.Myspace.com/MLazar

PLANS FOR THE REST OF THE SUMMER AND THE REST OF THE YEAR?

MASHA: We will do another tour in Europe in October, and we will release the new single in October as well. We are also preparing some acoustic shows and we will try to schedule some shows in the USA!

MUEN: IS THERE ANY-

THING ELSE THAT YOU'D LIKE TO SAY TO YOUR FANS OR SOMETHING I MISSED?

MASHA: Support the metal scene by buying original records! And thanks to all the people who are supporting EXILIA! Cheers!

CD Reviews

the shadows of the mainstream.

MOMMY S3Z NO

“HOTWATERBURNBABY”

I found more than the name, Mommy S3Z NO, to be interesting upon close inspection, listen and autopsy. Three determining facts about Mommy S3Z NO and their sophomore release, entitled “HOTWATERBURNBABY”, which will lead one to either love or hate this Minneapolis, MN band. Mommy S3Z NO has a sound reminiscent but unlike many classic punk rock bands that have staggered, puked and flipped the bird to the establishment while making their presence know in the music industry are:

Two, “HOTWATERBURNBABY” has a rare sounding guitar tone; that is out of tune but in key, with a dynamic that keeps the listening ears absolutely engrossed by every solo, chord, and note played. A deranged genius type of musical decision that resultʼs in disaster ninetynine percent of the time, but plays out like the bride of Frankenstein inside of Frankʼs arms on “HOTWATERBURNBABY”. Like a car accident ahead on the road that one cannot help but look at, songs such as “Cannibal Girl” cannot, not be listened to a second serving.

Thirdly, Mommy S3Z NO has a fascinating and sometimes utterly disgusting love for the dead. With foreign lyrical lines throughout “HOTWATERBURNBABY” (Japanese, Latino), all done sinisterly in nature yet tasteful in deOne, Mommy S3Z NO has livery. Mommy S3Z NO is a punk horror sound unlike a three-piece band with inothers of the same rare Ari is also the front man of ternational sickness. and interesting genera. his own horror rock band There is a pure sweetness Other stand out songs of by the obvious name, First in its dark humored ininterest on this dead must Jason. fancy. Mommy S3Z NO dance punk L.P. include: has a defiance in their atti- “Pass Out” and “Mongo If punk rock with a hutude that can be heard in Chuppa” which interestmorist dark twists, is what songʼs like, “Ghoulette” ingly enough has a guest you are looking to shake (my personal favorite). A vocal spot featuring, Ari your coffin to, than song that has ever lasting Lehman, who played the Mommy S3Z NO is the possibilities in itʼs rise to REAL Jason from the very band for you! popularity among the leg- first installment of the cult ends of un-dead, dead classic, “Friday The 13th”. For your own sneak peak punk lovers that creep in listen and for ordering in-

formation on Mommy S3Z NOʼs debut punk rock horror CD, “HOTWATERBURNBABY”, zombie click your way to the bandʼs MySpace at www.myspace.com/mommysezno

~Sinfully, Q5

CD Reviews

given in “Illusions”, a title worthy of the magic that Holloway creates on this real life concept album.

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www.myspace.com/theholloway. I suggest a listen and look at the bandʼs first single, “The Visitor”, available in newly released A haunting over all tone video format, for a closer lingers throughout on this look on what makes this debut that sounds nothing one of a kind concept like the stereotypical debut. album an ear catcher that The surgically precision is rapidly on the rise in that Josh Morgan (Bass., many radio charts. HOLLOWAY Programming, String "Illusions" Arrangements) and Shawn ~Sinfully, Q5 Julien (Guitars) bring to the A visual masterpiece at first highly emotional sounds of glance with haunting cover Ross Morgan, make “Illuart by renowned artist, sions” an enriched monpainter, Susan Van Sant, tage of rock dramatics, Hollowayʼs debut L.P. enti- usually not within the transtled “Illusions”, does not lation capability of a band disappoint. With melodicreating their freshman L.P. cally structured songs massaging ones heart and Written and recorded at rearranging deep dark Seaway sound Studios in thoughts on the surface Muskegon, MI. Holloway that hide within us all, Hol- never stray far apart musi- STAR OFF MACHINE loway delivers a tasteful "Burn This" cally. With arrangements progressive rock sound written and delivered with a fashioned through precise whole backdrop of draThis disc consists of 12 quality instrumentation. matic sounds, mixed and highly produced songs that mastered at Fascination fit tightly within the dimenRoss Morgan (guitars, vo- Street Studios in Orebro sions of your typical radio cals, drums) delivers Ian, Sweden, by metal rock, complete with ambibreathy vocals that bring sound Jedi, Jens Bogren ent guitar, tasteful bass rifts new life to a typically over (Opeth, Soilwork and Kata- and heavy hitting (at times saturated rock sound tonia). thrashing) drums precisely through a deeply personal on beat. What the first feel that screams, “Do or “Illusions” is a musical song "Disaster" lacks in die”. I listened; wondering transplant of hurt, pain and melody, the second, "Lost" how, Ross Morganʼs mind hope that often destroys and most of the remaining worked it out so diligently the artistsʼ that attempt to songs on this album more and patiently to incorporate create so close to the than make up for it all. "Inthe never lifeless time heart. “Illusions” is an un- side Out" is a heavy blast changes in the drumming typical album by an untypi- of both melody and hardwith the offbeat but utterly cal band. driving drum, bass and matching guitar and vocal rhythm guitar. As rhythm work. Perhaps losing his Check out Hollowayʼs pure guitars and drum dominate mind while writing and ar- expressive rock sound on most of the songs, it would ranging “Illusions” lead him the bandʼs web site at: be fitting to say that Star to the ample name of www.hollowayband.com or Off Machine has managed which we the listeners are on Hollowayʼs MySpace at: to create a solid wall of

melody and aggressive rhythm with some pretty satisfying song content. The vocals of frontman, Erik Holloway are solid on, and the backing vocal effects do the leads justice. This is pretty much just "good time" rock and roll with nothing extraordinarily unique or out of the ordinary except for maybe the song, "Almost", which does seem to venture into areas outside the beaten path. With that being said, Star Off Machine are definitely radio friendly. And every song is under 4 and a half minutes. Here's what I like, the line in the title song, "I won't believe what's in the magazines" ... now there is something I feel I have in common with this band. By the time you get around to song 11, "Bastard" things start sounding more the same than different, and the chords begin to sound similar to previous songs... Luckily "Nothing For Free" does respark some interest again with it's catchy hook and high energy assault. Bringing on the ending is "Ninth Floor" which would have done good in an earlier slot on the album if you asked me. A well written song though! Overall, this is a great production! Star Off Machine is definitely a rock band to be taken seriously.

G. Cataline

CD Reviews

TIME AND DISTANCE “Gravity”

“Gravity” is the second full album from Time And Distance and shows that they defy gravity and are actually moving upward as a band. This album proves that a band can be commercial and yet anything but common. Although they list many bands as influences and they have been compared to others they have a sound that is all their own. If the content of the music must be compared, then it would be in the genre of All American Rejects and Tokyo Hotel but with their own flavor of experiences by the band members found within the well written lyrics and music. This is best illustrated in “Living In Fiction” where much is said within the context of great lyrics wrapped in clean vocals and great harmonies.

Their music has a definite retro feel but with a decidedly 21st century sound. They go back to roots of great pop and use little programming and instead rely on pure talent and a

wide range of vocals and unadorned instrumentation for their songs to stand out. The album is well produced but not over produced so that these elements can be clearly distinguished. “Anyway We Go” and “Gravity” both show these talents particularly well with tight song structure and retro musicality with the drums and guitars. “Sell” is perhaps the best track on the CD and shows how the band has stretched to achieve a higher level of versatility and innovation. It is faster paced than some of the other tracks and yet shows each band members talents with individual highlights throughout the tune. “Gravity” is a must have for anyone that appreciates having a full CD filled with great vocals and equally talented guitars and drums represented in a mix of rock and pop that is completely enjoyable from start to finish.

fans.

PAUL TOAL (Self-Titled)

Hailing from Dublin, Ireland Paul Toal has delivered a debut self titled EP that packs all the goods and more for any purebred rock fan. There is no mistaking this for Irish folk singing but rather shows what collaborating and dedication to the talent you possess will engender. The contributors of writing, production and actual playing are all world class in their own right with Josh Freese (drums for Weezer, Guns & Roses and too many to name), Paul Bushnell (Bass for Daughtry, The Commitments and again too many to name), ~Macavity Laura Creamer (Vocals for The Black Crowes, etc) and especially Rich Mouser and Jimmy Coup who both have written, produced, and played with many of the best of rock all playing a part in this. Once all these play on one album, lead by Toal, you arrive at an EP that more than displays the talents of this rocking Irishman that is a delight to the ears of pure unadulterated rock

“Never Be The Same” and “Where You Belong” show just how rock is supposed to be played with strong clear vocals, intricate guitars, including some old school guitar soloʼs, and prominent basslines and drums that compliment and balance each other perfectly. “New World” is the track that highlights all the elements contributed from each person but truly showcases the writing and guitar playing of Toal and the amazing vocal range he is capable of without ever leaving a comfort level or clarity to his voice. The EP is tightly written, produced and, most impressively, executed by Paul Toal.

If you want to return to unadulterated rock and have a collection of songs that are a must listen to over and over then this is the artist and EP that is a must-add to your anthology of favorites.

~Macavity

CD Reviews

Machine has perfected metal for American audiences. “Toujours” is a track that highlights their headbanging thrash at its best. Another tune, “Un Destin Trace”, showcases the bands abilities with some of the best metal guitar work with a unique and distinctive use of guitar BREED MACHINE techniques and changes to “Renaissance” compliment the thrash vocals. The best track on the The French Alps have a CD is “Riviere Blanche.” hidden treasure to metal This song by far illustrates fans in the form of Breed the mix of tempos, vocal Machine and their second ranges and tight song CD “Renaissance.” Eleven structure the band is capatracks of full on metal ble of and a drum bridge music are found on this that will have every drumwell produced and well en- mer wanting to emulate gineered offering. They the tune. have taken a hint of the best of Scandinavian “Renaissance” is indeed a metal sound and put their rebirth of metal but this own distinctive writing and time from a French band instrumentation to make it that bears listening to and a CD completely sepawatching closely. The rest rated from other metal cre- of Europe seem to know ations available worldwide. about them so it will only be a short time before they They make no mistakes by have a loyal fan base in offering a CD full of metal America also. with little filler and certainly nothing that would be a ~Macavity departure from their genre. This is shown throughout the CD with thrash vocals and intricate drumming and shredding guitars to match expressive lyrics. They even throw a small political statement in with the track “Hypocrites.” The rest of the lyrics follow a variety of themes and feelings. It is their vocals and music though that stands out and shows that Breed

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ALIEN SKIN

Donʼt Open Till Doomsday

This debut offering from George Pappas, formerly of Real Life, is one that upon first listening you think you hear hints of that era gone by. Fortunately the complex simplicity of each of the ten tracks gives you pause to listen over again and listen well to realize this is nothing of the any past era but rather the future. The minimalism of the lyrics and seemingly so of the music is a façade as there is a much greater message found throughout with repeated listening of the CD. There is a multifaceted purpose to the CD with its lyrics and musical compositions that is not just “Alien Skin” deep. Much is said and left to interpretation with spare lyrics and amazing musical composition.

This album shows what a true artist can do with knowledge, experience and most of all talent in the world of alternative electronica. The silky vocals that accompany many of the tracks lure you to the

truly listen to the darkly erotic and sensual trance of lyrics and music found in “Saviour” and “For Always.” Both seem to delve elaborately, both musically and lyrically, into the love hate correlation found not only in relationships but life as well all the while seeming to be much more simplistic. A similarly seductive message can be found in “Dust To Ashes 1945” which may be the best track on the CD for the innovative and clever use of programming synths and vocals that make you once again think you are hearing about death and find you were actually seduced again by astonishingly clever constitution of soft percussion and smooth vocals. The CD provides tracks that Pappas has also left wide open to interpretation and are easily taken for the best dance music for any club in “The Spirit Is Willing” and the second half of “Burning In My Hands.” A CD that is definitely worth buying and listening to in order to prove that a first listen to any music but especially Alien Skin is not always what it appears and can often be an intellectual as well as an auricle intrigue.

~Macavity

REV THEORY

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MUEN: HEY GUYS THANKS FOR TALKING WITH ME. SO TELL ME WHAT IS ABOUT TO GO DOWN HERE TONIGHT.

Prophecy. I was lucky enough to be given a Rich Luzzi - Vocals gazillion Prophecies Matty McCloskey MUEN: YOU GUYS by Jim Rosenberg Bass, Vocals HAVE BEEN GIVING from Epiphone. We Julien Jorgensen AWAY SOME GUI- have been giving lots Guitar TARS LATELY. TELL of them away for varRikki Lixx - Guitar ious contests for a ME A LITTLE Dave Agoglia – Drums We are recording an ABOUT THE GUIwhile and thereʼs EP for “Broken TAR YOUʼVE BEEN plenty more. New York, New York Bones.” It will be GIVING AWAY. MUEN: YOU WILL Myspace.com/revthe- called the Broken Bones EP. We are Rikki Lixx: Itʼs a Les BE GIVING ONE ory going to chill things Paul Custom EX, itʼs AWAY TONIGHT TO By: Shauna OʼDonnell out, strip them down actually a Epiphone A VERY LUCKY

REV THEORY

and do them acoustic.

WINNER.

lights have been that we just played Rock Yeah, thatʼs right, you Fest in Kansas City know it. It could be and there were 40 to you, not really, itʼs al- 50,000 people there ready done. We when we played. We know who the winner were opening on the is. main stage this year and that was defiMUEN: CAN YOU nitely a highlight. BELIEVE IT HAS Rock on the Range BEEN A YEAR was great and the SINCE YOUR Avenged Sevenfold ALBUM “LIGHT IT tour was amazing. UP” RELEASED? One of our favorite tours to date was the It has? Awe man! I Avenged Sevenfold canʼt believe it, itʼs tour and we had a been a crazy year great time with those and we have been guys. Hopefully when doing a lot. Weʼve they come back out been doing a lot of on their next record touring, seeing so we will be out with many bands and them again. playing a lot of shows. Itʼs been MUEN: HOW MANY great. Itʼs a long road SINGLES ARE OFF from here; we are not THE ALBUM? even close to finishing this album cycle, So far there are three so look out for us and possibly more. when we come Its ten singles, the through your town. whole record, so get it! MUEN: WHAT HAVE BEEN SOME OF MUEN: “BROKEN THE HIGHLIGHTS BONES” HAS BEEN FROM THE PAST THE FEATURED YEAR? SONG ON THE CLEANER FOR THE Some of the highPAST MONTH

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RIGHT? THAT IS A PLAYED AT STURGREAT SHOW. IS GIS THIS YEAR. THAT OVER NOW? HOW WAS THAT SHOW? Rich Luzzi: They use We were supposed it for all of their to, we were there promo, but we just and we partied. We found out that it worked so well that had a barbeque. We were supposed to we are going to be working with them a play, but it kind of got little bit more. We will botched. be trying to do some Rich Luzzi: I had exclusive stuff with some vocal difficulthem and possibly into next season. We ties, I got very sick. are excited because We had a couple really big shows after that show is amazthat and I felt that if I ing. The story is played I would have pretty uplifting and hurt myself. Somethe song to us is a very personal song. times you have to We are happy to give bow out gracefully. it to a show that has The barbeque was sick. We had steak, so much meaning. elk meat, chicken and it was our tour MUEN: DO YOU GUYS WATCH THE manager at the times birthday so Dee SnySHOW? der from Twisted SisRich Luzzi: I actually ter came over to sing did start watching it happy birthday to him. once the song started getting used. MUEN: WHAT ARE I watched last seaSOME OF YOUR son and I saw the PRE-SHOW RITUfirst episode of this season so I like it a ALS? lot. Rock out to our faMUEN: YOU GUYS vorite music, a lot of

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stretching goes on, warming up the voices and we do a little head banging. Matty has a drink that he calls “The Mayhem.” MUEN: WELL, LETʼS HEAR ABOUT THAT.

Matty: The “Mayhem Cocktail” is Jagermeister, of course, my favorite. It also has Monster Energy drink with a Monster Hit man shot to top it off. That is the five hour energy shot of Monster power, crack in a bottle. Rich Luzzi: Letʼs just say he is about ten minutes from a heart attack the whole entire show. So itʼs really, really good. Kids: Try it at home kids. Itʼs called the highwire and Rikki Lixx has actually mastered it. MUEN: TELL ME ABOUT THE REV THEORY HUSTLE.

We have a Rev The-

ory hustle?

MUEN: YEAH, WHERE YOU SELL YOUR CDʼS AFTER THE SHOW.

Rich Luzzi: Ooooooooohhhhh! Itʼs not a dance; I thought it was like the Superbowl Shuffle, like the Rev Theory hustle. Maybe we should write a song called the Rev Theory Hussle. We all hussle, we started this band in 2002 and we hit the road on our independent EP. The only way that we could stay on the road is if we would sell CDʼs. Basically, after were done playing, we get out in the crowd and hand to hand sell CDʼs to out fans. We got signed to a major label and a lot of bands think that once that happens, you can sit back and relax. In actuality, thatʼs when you have to work harder. We still do that after every single show, we each take a box or two boxes of

CDʼs, we walk into the crowd and we hand to hand sell CDʼs. In the first year of touring we sold more than 35,000 CDʼs on the road, hand to hand. We broke every Interscope and UGA road sales record. And thatʼs the Rev Theory Hussle!

MUEN: DO YOU EVER HAVE CONTESTS AMONGST YOURSELVES TO SEE WHO CAN SELL THE MOST CDʼS?

party. Britney Spears and Jamie Foxx were there. The Maloof brothers threw a party for us at their mansion. It was with EA Sports so Phil Maloof had flat screens set up all around his house and outside by the pool. He had Xboxes previewing the new Madden, because we are on the soundtrack, so you could play video games. When Kimmel came on, they put Kimmel on all the televisions.

MUEN: WAS THAT Rich always sells the YOUR FIRST NATIONAL TV APmost hands down. PEARANCE? MUEN: YOU WERE Yes ALSO ON JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE. HOW MUEN: I WENT TO FUN WAS THAT? THE JAGERMEISIt was really nerve- TER SHOW IN ANAHEIM WITH HINDER wracking. You are AND TRAPT. YOU playing live on TV and you canʼt screw GUYS WEREN'T up. They donʼt give THERE. IʼM SORRY you a re-do. Thatʼs it, THAT I MISSED you get one shot, but SEEING YOU PLAY. it was a great experience and we had a Rich Luzzi: Thank lot of fun. We had a you for coming to see lot of fun at the after us and were sorry.

MUEN: THE VIDEO FOR “LIGHT IT UP” LITERALLY KICKS ASS! Yeah, literally.

MUEN: WHO CAME UP WITH THE CONCEPT FOR THE VIDEO?

are always moving. I have friends that actually play online at home. Itʼs kind of funny to see grown men berate twelve year olds, but itʼs pretty cool. I would get my ass kicked. Matty is probably the only one that would stand a chance on it. Those guys that wear those head sets are the real deal gamers.

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THINK PUT YOU MUEN: WHAT DO GUYS ON THE MAP YOU GUYS HAVE SO TO SPEAK? PLANNED FOR THE REST OF 2009? Rich Luzzi: I definitely have to say our We have a big Monlive show. It is a re- ster tour that we are ally great experience going to be announcwhen you come to ing next Tuesday, see us play. We are July 7th. Check out not just the band that MySpace, itʼs a huge is going to sit up tour. We are very exthere and play our cited and we are songs. We perform proud to be a part of them and give 110% it. We are going to every single night. tour our asses off for Every piece of emo- the rest of 2009 and tion, angst and anger into 2010. that we are feeling that day comes out MUEN: WHO ARE on stage. We are YOU GOING OUT proud of that. WITH ON THE MONSTER TOUR? MUEN: I WANTED TO LET EVERYONE We canʼt tell you, itʼs KNOW THAT YOU a secret. Itʼs really WILL BE APPEAR- big. ING LIVE ON NEW MUSIC INFERNO MUEN: OKAY ON JULY 9TH. WELL, IʼD LIKE TO EVERYONE THANK YOU GUYS SHOULD TUNE IN FOR TALKING WITH TO SEE THAT. PEO- ME. I HAD A LOT PLE CAN GO OF FUN. RIGHT TO YOUR WEBSITE AND Thank you for having TUNE IN FROM us. THERE RIGHT?

It was a collective effort of what we wanted to do. The director had a pretty cool vision for it. MUEN: WOULD YOU SAY THAT MUEN: WHO WERE “HELL YEAH” IS THE TWO CHICS? THE SONG THAT GETS THE CROWD A couple notches on GOING? DO YOU my bedpost! (Laugh- USUALLY OPEN UP ing) No, they are just WITH IT? friends; we have known one of the No, actually, itʼs our girls for a while. closer. We would like to open up with it and MUEN: AND THE we hope we have anVIDEO FOR “HELL other song as kick YEAH” WAS THE ass as it so we can FIRST EVER VIDEO open with it one day. TO PREMIERE ON We are opening XBOX LIVE. DO tonight with it for the YOU GUYS PLAY first time. ONLINE? MUEN: WHAT DO Rich Luzzi: No, you YOU THINK YOU know what, not on ARE MOST WELL the bus. Itʼs kind of Yes KNOWN FOR? hard because you WHAT DO YOU

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YVONNE’S WORLD DYNAHEAD

Brazil may sound like a distant place, but thatʼs only for those who arenʼt acquainted with the best of underground music in recent years. From a scene that is famous for bringing some of the most innovative acts in music, Dynahead released their debut full-length ʻAntigenʼ, an album that manages to sound intriguing and original, even in a world where everything seems to have been done before.

Formed in the dry backlands of their country, the band brings an unexpected level of intelligence and sophistication to the brutality that Brazilians are known for mastering. Their music embraces so many genres that they sound like the most natural choice to share stages with acts as dramatically heterogeneous as Ill Niño, Anathema, Omen, Angra, Steve Grimmett and Ratos de Porão.

their music in a way thatʼs confusing to those who expect sameness, but fascinating for whoʼs looking for different sounds not necessarily related to exaggeration. “Dynahead donʼt give a fuck what you think” (MetalSucks) but “for those who are into heaviness with occasional melody who are not loggerheads, there is a lot to discover.” (Stormbringer)

Mastered by the metal legend James Murphy (TestaHailed as “a new Brazil” by ment, Death), “Antigen” the French zine Progresreceived an excellent prosive Area, and occasionduction, taken care by the ally dubbed a band themselves. Written “Testosterone Dream Theand recorded in the best ater”– but “far more apindependent fashion, the proachable in their album gathered an amount songwriting” (The Metal of positive feedback by the Observer), they honed media and fans that

signed bands rarely achieve. The band is looking for labels that “dignify themselves to look at their work and give them a distribution that matches their talent.” (Music Waves), taking care in the meanwhile of their own marketing and distribution, with independent partners such as DigMetal World and Free Mind Media.

“A seducer of the great art” (Ragazzi Music), “a visceral, catchy, functional and diversified album” (NovoMetal), “direct, exuberant, and honest in their intentions” (Flight of Pegasus), “a theatrical symphony of deep emotions spawning from the soul spear headed by true musical geniuses” (Das Hard

Rock Radio) “like the work of a lifetime trying to write the best Brazilian metal album of all time” (Whiplash).

Find out more at http://www.dynahead.com. br www.myspace.com/dynahead DYNAHEAD 2009

Caio Duarte Vocals

Diogo Mafra Guitar Pablo Vilela Guitar

Diego Teixeira Bass

Rafael Dantas Drums

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LEDASWAN

San-Antonio based rock band Ledaswan produces and records their own music,

which paid off with Verse of Truth, Trash and Beauty. The bandʼs debut album won Best Album of 2007, as voted by readers of the San Antonio Current.

The band is led by Erica Gutierrez, whoʼs vocal range varies from ethereal to

haunting, which led to her Delrick Colwell on drums. winning the 2007 San Antonio Current Best SingerLedaswan came together over an urgent love for the Jesus and Mary Chain's Songwriter award. Ledaswanʻs deeply textured echoed-stoned "Psychocandy," the fracmusic is rounded out by broth- tured bass melodies of Joy Division's ers "Day Jaime and David Monzon on guitar, Jackee Flores on bass/backup vocals and

of Lords," the sinister charm of Mazzy Star's "Halah."

Opening for such artists as catch the Um-

brellas, Jim Ward, Jeremy Enigk, and Indie Rockers Lydia, catch them this summer as they tour the West Coast this July 2009.

THE BURN & CRY

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Interview with Mike Marco - Lead Vocals for The Burn & Cry Eric Eckelman / Salt Piranha / Drums Pancho Garza / Etherwulf / Guitar Kevin Mackall / Vaporworm / Bass %26 Backing Vox Mike Marco / Lead Luminous / Lead Vox

(Mike Marco also happens to be the Director for MTV2 Headbangers Ball and has worked with and interviewed everyone from Ozzy, Phil Anselmo, Testament, Lamb of God, Dimebag & Vinny, Zakk Wylde, Dave Mustaine, Metallica, Killswitch Engage, Heaven & Hell ... and many many more! He was also recently out in LA for the Revolver Golden Gods where he filmed & interviewed just about everyone there!)

MUEN: HEY MIKE, HOW ARE YOU?

The band formed as The Burn & Cry in 2004 and weʼve been going at it ever since. We have had one line-up change since then. We replaced our friend Mike on guitar with another friend of ours, Pancho Garza.

also works in our department, so weʼll hangout at work, weʼre all musicians. I was between bands at the time, they were between bands and we thought it would be a good idea to get in the studio and play some tunes one afternoon.

taking things and seeing that they are so different, such as people, you know, one guys is one way, one guy is the other way and it seems like we are so different but yet we are not that far apart.

MUEN: SO IS THIS THE MUEN: SO TELL US HOW WAY THAT YOU GUYS CAME UP WITH THE YOU CAME UP WITH Great, whatʼs going on? YOUR VERY INTEREST- BAND NAME AS WELL? ING STAGE NAMES. MUEN: WELL, LETʼS Absolutely, The Burn and Well we were all friends. I TALK ABOUT THE BURN mean, I work as a director Well, that would be my Cry is a play on words, it & CRY! friend Kevin (Vaporworm) also means fire and water, and writer for the promo again itʼs the union of opdepartment for MTV in Heʼs heavily into the AlLove to, great! New York City. My friend chemical Theory. He is all posites, you canʼ have one without the other. Itʼs like Kevin, our bass player, is about the balance and MUEN: HOW LONG HAVE also my boss. So we the balance of life type union of opposites. Itʼs YOU GUYS BEEN TOthing. started jamminʼ and getting kind of heavy for a lot of GETHER? people, even myself intogether with our friend Eric, he plays drums, who cluded, but I definitely dig MUEN: WHEN YOU MUEN: HOW DID YOU GUYS ALL ORIGINALLY HOOK UP?

WRITE LYRICS FOR THE SONGS ARE YOU WRITING THEM FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCES IN YOUR LIFE OR WHERE DO YOU DRAW YOUR INSPIRATION FROM?

Certainly personal experiences I have been through just going through life, meeting people, experiencing different things, situations that happen that really either completely flip me out in a good way or a bad way. Also the things I see that are happening around me like things that are going on in the world right now. I mean things are not the best in the world right now but then again, I always try to look at the upside of things too, you know where there is dark, there is light. You canʼt be all doom and gloom, I always try to find the sunnier side of things. MUEN: YOU GUYS HAVE A SELF TITLED ALBUM, IT CAME OUT IN 2007. WHO PRODUCED THAT?

A friend of ours, his name is Britt Myers. Heʼs a really good producer, he is a musician himself, heʼs got a studio called Great City Productions here in NYC. Heʼs not really a hard rocker metal guy, I would say heʼs a guy who knows how to take a band and really bring the best out of them. He will really be honest with you and challenge you. Heʼs a guy that we really trust and he really knocked it out for us We

were really blown away with what he did.

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this stuff and you are taken with it and believe it. Then you find it to be completely MUEN: YOU GUYS JUST untrue and you wake up RECENTLY FINISHED one day and you are lost YOUR FIRST VIDEO, and just canʼt believe all TELL US A BIT ABOUT the lies. Itʼs really about THAT AND WHAT SONG getting through that stuff. IT WAS FOR.

Sure, it was for the song Faith Molester and we did this in an old church in New Jersey and at one time it had to be a Roman Catholic Church, it looks like every bit of it. The fellow that directed the video, Anthony Cupo, his buddy is the pastor at this church, Pastor Ray, whatʼs up Pastor Ray! They do some gay marriages there, so they are very open to certain things and when we had this idea about bringing the band into the church, this performance is half narrative and the narrative is about this evil, wicked dude, the faith molester himself, kind of like, you know, pretty much leading people down a false road, whether it is religion or government or a teacher in school, or someone you trust, and they feed you all

whole congregation came down on their own as well. It was a blast and I am looking forward to doing another video real soon. Whether it is with the band or, we also have this friend who does a lot of claymation, animated type of work so maybe we wonʼt even be in the video this next time around. MUEN: THAT COULD BE VERY COOL!

Yeah it could be very cool. You know as much as we all want to be a working, touring band, we all work for MTV in NYC and itʼs a great gig but its not without its problems for being a full time band. We certainly donʼt get practice in often enough and we have a whole other record ready to go to be recorded. Iʼd MUEN: WELL I SAW THE say more than half the VIDEO AND YOU GUYS songs are done and then DID A REALLY GREAT some that are still skeleJOB. tons of songs and then songs that are kind of done Thank you very much, it and we have performed was fun as hell to do. It them live but there is was a two day shoot and something that is just not all of our friends came out quite there yet. Itʼs always to be involved and to be a work in progress for us, part of the production and itʼs never a done deal you we canʼt thank everyone know? We just keep chalenough for doing that. The lenging ourselves as per-

Page 106 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 formers and songwriters. The thing we love to do the most is play live. We want to get on some larger bills, some festivals, possibly even going to Europe because I know there is a whole other world and scene waiting for us over there.

since I was 15 years old you know. It was always something I was taken with, I was drawn to it. I mean if I couldnʼt be in Japan with Ozzy, they brought Ozzy and Japan to me. Hanging around on a Saturday night with friends, stealing a bottle of liquor from one of our parents MUEN: NOW YOU HAVE liquor cabinets or whatever HAD THE OPPORTUNITY and just hanging around YOURSELF TO MEET and getting hooked on AND INTERVIEW TONS metal. Today there is a OF BAD ASS PEOPLE, whole new generation of BEING THE DIRECTOR kids sitting around on a FOR MTV2 HEADSaturday night looking for BANGERS BALL, WHAT some shit to get hooked IS THAT LIKE? into and we are trying to bring that aspect of the Ball Itʼs the best. I mean I get back to MTV2. to talk and hang out with and come up with a creMUEN: OUT OF ALL THE ative way with the bands PEOPLE THAT YOU and artists and really get to HAVE INTERVIEWED know these guys and really AND MET, IS THERE ONE put some cool things down THAT MAYBE STANDS on paper and film them and OUT AS THE MOST MEMsee it come to life. For me ORABLE FOR YOU? if I canʼt be in a full time touring band, this is the I would have to say abnext best thing, itʼs the best solutely Dimebag Darrell. I of both worlds for me if I love Pantera so much. I canʼt be in a full time tour- also love Metallica and ing band, itʼs the next best when I met James and thing. While I am hanging those guys they were just out with some of these fucking awesome you guys, I am also talking know. But when I met about my own band. And Dime, he came into the they are interested. They room and I didnʼt know are genuinely interested. I what to expect. Somethink a lot of people out times people are different there have a misconcepin person than they are on tion about guys in metal. TV you know? When he Most of them are the most and Vinnie Paul came into genuine and nicest people the room, the room just lit around. You can have a up. These two guys were beer with them or talk so amazing and such down about sports or whatever. to earth people. They just So working with these threw their arms around artists, you know, I grew up you and they put a beer in watching Headbangers Ball your hand, give you a shot

awards show next year. The whole vibe was cool. I mean, I turn around at one moment and there is fucking Lemmy! Lemmy Kilmister is standing right next to me and Iʼm like “Whatʼs up!!!” I mean that dude is a trip! That dude has been there! He has been there and back. The cool thing about Lemmy, not only that Motorhead is an awesome band and heʼs a great front man, the whole thing, but he used to be one of Jimi Hendrixʼs roadies back in the late 60's. It was him and another guy, they used to MUEN: YOU RECENTLY carry Hendrixʼs rig and just set him up. They used to WENT TO THE REVOLVER GOLDEN GODS get him acid, fucking pot, whatever Hendrix needed, AWARDS, HOW WAS he took care of it and THAT? I AM SO GLAD Lemmy was the guy. THERE ARE METAL AWARDS NOW, ITʼS MUEN: WELL IT SOUNDS ABOUT TIME. LIKE THE AWARDS It was great in every way. I SHOW WAS PRETTY KICK ASS, TO SAY THE heard about this about a year ago at work that Re- LEAST. volver was going to do the Yeah and Iʼm really proud first ever heavy metal awards show and I told one of it. To be able to bring of my bosses, I have to be different interviews and heavy metal moments to on that. It was like the people. But I am also heavy metal Oscars. Thatʼs really the only way I proud that there is a little can describe it, I mean in- more of a light now being stead of a red carpet, there shown on the heavy metal was a black carpet, it was scene. I think metal is as nuts. And being a fan and strong as it has ever been being able to do that as my and I think the powers that job, I mean it was work but be in the corporate world that I work for are more it didnʼt feel like working you know. It was so much open to it now, I donʼt think fun to be a part of it and I you can have a band like think that more things like Lamb of God come in number two on the billboard this will happen in the fucharts and beat out the ture and Revolver is already talking about doing a fucking Jonas Brothers and not pay attention to it. 2nd annul heavy metal of crown and they were just like “Whatʼs up brother”. Dime was just the most beautiful guy and I got to interview him on two different occasions and he was just amazing and I got to also sing a song with Jose Mangin from Sirius XM Liquid Metal. I got to sing an acoustic version of Mouth For War by Pantera with Jose on guitar Vinnie Paul on bongos and I sang it, it was totally ridiculous, and it was live on the air. That was a dream come true. But yeah I mean Dime was just the best.

Metal is bubbling up again love MTV and I love workto the top. I am happy to ing there, as much as they get behind music, they redo my part. ally should get behind it more. I mean, you call MUEN: NOW I HEARD yourself music television, YOU ARE ALSO A BIG play some fucking music. TIME GOLFER.

Yes I have a big problem, I MUEN: RIGHT.. I THINK A canʼt stop playing and Iʼm LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE BEEN THINKING THAT not that good! FOR A LONG TIME. MUEN: YOU DONʼT JUST GO PLAY A ROUND OF I think they are realizing that more and more. You GOLF, YOU PLAY A ROUND OF GOLF WITH had a pretty solid brand for a long time and it was great CHUCK BILLY. in its day and MTV2 is a Yeah I have played a cou- place where we can get ple of rounds with Chuck back there for sure. Billy and he is the nicest dude and he is a lot of fun MUEN: I AM HERE IN TEXAS AND ALI SAID to hang with. He loves THAT THERE IS A golf, I mean for a huge dude, heʼs like 6'6 and 230 CHANCE THAT YOU pounds, he hits the ball re- GUYS ARE COMING DOWN HERE FOR RIDE ally well. Heʼs smooth, heʼs got finesse. Heʼs got FOR DIME SO IF YOU DO his hair tied back and the WE WILL DEFINITELY HAVE TO HOOK UP! golf hat on, the golf polo and shorts and shoes and tats all over the place and Absolutely, I think that is a everyone on the course is pretty strong possibility. I put it out there into the unilike “Whoa!”. I certainly verse to try to do a little enjoy playing golf with double header that weekChuck. I am having a good time and am happy end. Mayhem Festival on to be a part of everything Saturday and Ride For and if I can take The Burn Dime on Sunday. So weʼll and Cry along for the ride come down and weʼll hang out and have a good time. then I think one day we Rita texted me about it a will just run into each other. Itʼs strange itʼs like I couple of hours ago and is inviting us down to hang am already there but not out, have some beers and with my band. But you know I donʼt want to ever barbecue and I mean I am be like hey hereʼs my band trying to stress to the people I work for, they are invitjust because I work for MTV. I want them to like ing us down and rolling it out for us. Letʼs go down the band because they there and cover it and show truly like it, nit because I work there. I feel strongly everyone what is happenabout that. As much as I ing. It is important for peo-

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EBURNANDCRY ple to see. I hope we come down to Dallas in AuYes that is correct and our gust and have some fun! video is on there, our merchandise and our record as Iʼd like to say hello to my well. friends in The Burn & Cry before we go, Pancho, MUEN: WELL THANKS Kevin and Eric and our awesome manager Alison SO MUCH MIKE FOR Roberto for dealing with us CALLING, IT WAS GREAT TO TALK TO and all of our crap, my YOU! friend Jose Mangin from Sirius XM Liquid Metal and Thanks so much Holly and all our friends out there! hopefully we will see you in Dallas in August! MUEN: ABSOLUTELY AND THEY CAN CHECK MUEN: YOU DEFINITELY YOU GUYS OUT AT WWW.MYSPACE.COM/TH WILL!

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HERALD HILLBILLY

Thanks for sitting down and talking to MUEN We had the good fortune today about Hillbilly Herald. So, the usual questo catch up to Hillbilly tion, but where did the Herald to get a few an- name come from and swers about this unapolo- does it have any correlation to last names and getic rock band! They deliver great rock music nicknames? to their fans and have a Jimmy: The hillbilly part live show that is a site to comes from my family. Theyʼre from West Virginia be seen with their dynamic energy. We talked and Indiana and Herald is my last name. with Jimmy Herald, the lead singer of Hillbilly MUEN: Now would probably be a good time to Herald, and he gave us clarify and dispel misunsome of that honesty we derstandings about love to hear from great what “hillbilly” really is. rock bands! Can you explain that for our readers? MUEN: Hi Jimmy. Jimmy: Hillbilly to me is North Hollywood, CA

By Macavity

family, friends and being true to what you set out to do. Theyʼre the hardest working people Iʼve ever met. Itʼs not just some dude sitting on a mountain with one tooth playing the banjo. My family moved from West Virginia and Indiana and went through a lot of hard times. They worked their asses off to get to where they are today. So to me itʼs one of the most important words in my vocabulary.

the room, but the loudest guy on stage. He writes great guitar riffs and without him, this band would not be what it is today. He earned the name while he was crashing on my couch in L.A. when he first moved out there. He would just curl up like a cat and you wouldnʼt even know he was there. MUEN: How did you form the band and where did you form it to get this original and great sound?

MUEN: Speaking of nicknames, can you explain where the one like Jimmy: Begging and pleading… and believing. “Cat” came from? It took a lot to prove to Jimmy: Itʼs all about Mark. everybody how serious and how much I believed Heʼs the quietest guy in

in rock nʼ roll and wanted to get it out there. I think the shit thatʼs out there today is all bullshit. American Idol can suck a fuckin dick. Tell those fuckin idiots to get in a fuckin van in 115 degree fuckinʼ weather with no fuckinʼ food, maybe a banana if youʼre lucky to split between 8 fuckers and put on a great show in 115 degree fuckinʼ weather without any backup tracks to help you out. Thatʼs what rock nʼ roll is all about and thatʼs how we get our fuckinʼ sound. Itʼs real! It comes from our souls.

website?

sappy fuckinʼ band. We actually have things to Jimmy: I would say itʼs write about and talk about. rock nʼ roll. Itʼs real. Itʼs The lyrics are things that the best record youʼve have really happened to heard in 20 years. If you me in my life. Iʼm not like rock nʼ roll and Iʼm afraid to open up and tell talking real rock nʼ roll and the truth, even if it gets me not Kings of Leon, not in trouble. I think most fuckin Chris Dorkay or people are just trying to be whatever his name is. No- rock stars and weʼre just body gives a shit! Then trying to play rock nʼ roll youʼre gonna love us. music. Weʼre real. And if you

MUEN: How would you best describe your music and sound to someone that has not heard you live at a show or on MySpace or your

there and scream it, and scream it, and scream it. But itʼs the fans that come up to us afterwards and say thank you so fuckin much for playing real rock nʼ roll music and keeping it alive. It makes it all worth it. And with that being said, we will not stop.

MUEN: What has been the most unusual or memorable thing to happen at a show or just on tour in general so far? Jimmy: Titties and Lone Star. We looooove Texas! (laughter)

MUEN: How did you decide on the latest lineup and how does it fit to have Adam playing bass now?

Jimmy: These are the only fuckers that had any balls to do it! What do you mean how did I find the fuckinʼ lineup? They became the lineup because they put everything they had on the line. This is for real. Weʼre not in some studio or some reality TV show. Weʼre out on the fuckinʼ road kickin ass every night.

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donʼt like us we really donʼt give a fuck.

MUEN: You have a great set of influences like AC/DC and a philosophy about how the band should sound. Who decides on the final writing, recording and performance tunes and how they are presented to the public?

Jimmy: Yes. AC/DC rocks! Thatʼs what itʼs all about and itʼs real rock. If it doesnʼt feel good then we donʼt do it. Weʼre not a

MUEN: You just released your debut CD in May. How was that process of putting the MUEN: You have played music together? many shows and are in Jimmy: It was pretty simthe middle of what ple because we stuck to seems to be a never the basics. We didnʼt try to ending tour. What drives be something that we you to play live and werenʼt. We didnʼt try to where do you mostly create something. It was play? already there and it all came out in the music. Itʼs Jimmy: Yes, this tour is the truth. The lyrics that long and weʼre only 2 weeks into it. Itʼs been the you read in the CD have longest 2 weeks of my life actually happened and and Iʼve had the most fun thatʼs what sets us aside. Iʼve ever had in my life. It takes a lot to travel across MUEN: I understand that you worked with Brian the country and spread Carlstrom of Mad Dog the word of rock nʼ roll. Studios to produce this You have to stand up

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debut. Are you happy with how the music came out and do you feel you accomplished your musical goals?

Jimmy: First of all, itʼs transformer studios. We are more than happy. Of course weʼre always gonna criticize ourselves, but the reactions of the people that have heard it or are hearing it is the final say. And that speaks for itself.

from the “Full Throttle Tour.” We want to put together a live video for rock nʼ roll which is our first single. MUEN: How useful has MySpace been to the promotion of the band? Itʼs absolutely useless.

MUEN: What more should we expect to see from Hillbilly Herald for the rest of 2009 other long as Kevin ainʼt fuckinʼ than touring constantly? driving. We like to watch MUEN: How is the music movies …“Planes, Trains written for the band and Jimmy: Work work work and Automobiles” every by whom? work work. Weʼre gonna night. work our assʼ off to bring Jimmy: Itʼs mostly myself rock nʼ roll back. We beMUEN: For your loyal and Mark. lieve this current genera- fans that think they tion got robbed and weʼre know all about you, tell MUEN: Do you have a tired of sitting around us something that they video planned for one of doing nothing about it. So donʼt know about you. the tracks from the CD, whatever it takes, weʼll get or to showcase the it out there. Jimmy: Tell ʻem to come to band? Especially the the show and theyʼll learn live performances for MUEN: Do any of you all there is to know about those that cannot see relax and not play music us. you live? ever? And if so, what do you do? MUEN: Is there anything Jimmy: We have a shitI have not asked that load of footage already Jimmy: Yeah we relax. As you think our readers

would like to know about Hillbilly Herald?

Jimmy: Weʼre on our way. And if you donʼt like where weʼre going you donʼt have to fuckinʼ come! MUEN: Thanks Jimmy for talking with MUEN. We look forward to seeing you a lot more and hearing even more from you in the future.

MONGREL

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Danvers, Massachusetts Interview by: Macavity

After hearing from their multitude of fans about the CD review we did earlier we thought we would sit down and talk with Adam from Mongrel. We wanted to find out what made this band so charismatic and made them such a standout especially with their loyal fans. We found that out and more!

MUEN: INTERESTING NAME BUT SEEMS EFFECTIVE FOR THE BAND, our main bands imploded, we put our efforts into MonWHERE DID IT COME grel. Matt and I found a FROM? drummer and bassist and started playing out shortly Adam: Our original singer (Matt Rowe) who I started thereafter. That original the band with, actually pro- rhythm section was gone and replaced within a few posed the name since we months and Matt left the wanted the band to be a mix of styles and influences band to focus on other aspects of his life about 6 right from the get go, but with an aggressive edge to months into the band. There it. Mongrel just seemed like was an assortment of other the perfect name since it is bassists, drummers, and a mixed “breed” of musical another singer before Drew joined the band in early styles. When he left the band he gave his blessings 2005, Rev (bass) joined at to continue using the name the end of 2005 as did our drummer Andre with whom and itʼs been a perfect fit we recorded our full length from the get go. CD “Fear, Lies, & Propaganda”. Andre left the band MUEN: HOW DID YOU on good terms in 2007 and FORM THE BAND ORIGIwe got Ed that summer and NALLY AND NOW HOW the core four of us have HAS THE LINEUP been together ever since. CHANGED SINCE MATT We had a couple of second LEFT? guitarists for a while, but in the end we were better off Adam: Originally I was and truly meant to be a four looking to do a side project with Matt (Rowe) at the tail piece band. So thereʼs end of both our prior bands been a fair amount of changes in band members (summer of 2003) and as

Wednesday13, Trashlight Vision, The Bronx, Public Enemy, NWA, Mindless Self Indulgence, The Doors, etc, and Rev brings a litany of unique influences ranging MUEN: HOW WOULD YOU from old school Sun Records era Motown, to BEST DESCRIBE YOUR Primus, and The Residents. MUSIC AND SOUND TO THE ONE OR TWO THAT Ed is very into old school thrash and metal, and Drew HAS NOT HEARD YOU LIVE AT A SHOW OR ON enjoys some more commercial rock and metal as well. MYSPACE? over the years but Drewʼs been with us for four years now, Rev for three years, and Ed almost two years now.

Adam: Hah hah. Well Iʼm sure there are more than one or two people not familiar with us yet, but hopefully this will help to change that a bit. Our music is mainly a mix of old school hardcore punk, hard rock, and metal. Somewhere in between the Misfits/Black Flag/Fear, Guns Nʼ Roses/ Pearl Jam, and old Metallica/Anthrax/Slipknot if that makes any sense. Weʼre also influenced by and into bands like NIN, (old) Marilyn Manson, Amen, System of a Down/Scars on Broadway,

MUEN: YOU HAVE PLAYED ALMOST CONSTANTLY SINCE FORMING AND TOURED WITH SOME IMPRESSIVE BANDS SUCH AS KORN, THE MISFITS, ALL THAT REMAINS AND GWAR TO NAME A FEW. HOW DID AN UNSIGNED BAND GET TO TOUR SO EXTENSIVELY AND WITH SUCH BIG NAMES?

Adam: Weʼve definitely been very fortunate in that aspect. Itʼs definitely been a combination of luck and hard work that helps create

Page 114 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 some situations where luck can play out in that regard. Weʼve been called “the hardest working band in Boston” in Metal Edge magazine for a reason and thankfully now and then some opportunities like the shows with Korn, The Misfits, GWAR, FEAR, etc pay off.

MUEN: YOU HAVE PLAYED SHOWS ALL OVER THE STATES AND ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF WHAT SEEMS TO BE A NEVER ENDING SET OF DATES. WHAT ABOUT PLAYING LIVE DO YOU LIKE MOST AND WHERE DO YOU MOSTLY PLAY SHOWS?

Adam: We mostly play in the New England area (MA, NH, CT, RI) but we try to get out to Pennsylvania, NYC, NJ somewhat regularly at least. Weʼre definitely looking to branch out more often and to more places though when our new album comes out. As for what I like most about playing live, it would definitely be connecting with the audience, that exchange of energy when people get into what youʼre doing, hanging out with people there, and of course having that outlet for the frustration and aggravations that we all face. The other great thing about our shows is that weʼve seen a lot of friendships made among the fans, especially the ones who come out to shows regularly, itʼs been really cool and rewarding to see new friendships and that sense of community

AWARD WINNING JAY FRIGOLETTO AND RERELEASED IN LATE 2008. WHAT SOUND CHANGES MUEN: SPEAKING OF DID HE MAKE TO YOUR TOURING, WHAT HAS MUSIC AS HE HAS A BEEN THE MOST UNVERY IMPRESSIVE USUAL OR MEMORABLE CLIENT LIST THAT IS THING TO HAPPEN AT A VERY VARIED IN SHOW OR JUST ON SOUNDS? TOUR IN GENERAL SO FAR? Adam: Actually the great thing about Jay is that he Adam: Getting involuntarily didnʼt make any drastic crowd surfed the first time changes to our music, he we opened for the Misfits appreciated our vision and was definitely unexpected sound for what it is, and just and memorable. Finding out worked his studio magic to that Jerry Only really liked a help bring it out and sound new song we played at our better. When our album got most recent show with the picked up by Screaming Misfits was really cool too Ferret Wreckords and re-reas was having Lee Ving leased in 2008, we wanted from FEAR tell us he liked to make some changes to us and enjoyed having us the artwork and add a as an opener for them. bonus track (our cover of Weʼve even had Dr Chud the AMEN anthem “Coma from the Misfits and Michael America”) so we went back Graves (ex-Misfits singer) to Jay for that as well. join us on stage at different times which was really cool. For less positive stories, MUEN: HOW DID THAT thereʼs always a 10 hour ASSOCIATION WITH JAY drive taking 20 hours beCOME ABOUT? cause all the highways in Pennsylvania we need are Adam: A friend of ours had closed due to a blizzard or some live recordings that getting a flat tire in front of his band had re-mastered the funeral home from the by Jay and when we were movie Clerks and having to investigating places to go fight to get the tire off, even for mastering we got the borrowing an axe from a recommendation. Jay was nearby house to beat the very cool to work with. I was tire with and thinking weʼre there for the mastering sesnot going to make it to the sion and heʼs genuinely a venue on time. Actually that cool guy who loves music and enjoys what he does, was kind of funny looking and is obviously quite good back at it. at it. MUEN: YOUR DEBUT CD “FEARS LIES AND PROP- MUEN: SEEMS AS THOUGH YOU HAVE A AGANDA WAS MASLOT OF POTENTIAL MATERED BY GRAMMY and family develop around the shows and around the music we play.

TERIAL READY FOR A SECOND ALBUM. WHEN MIGHT WE EXPECT A SECOND ONE AND WILL YOU USE THE SAME STUDIO AND JAY?

Adam: Actually weʼre almost done recording our new full length album and a new EP. Weʼve got 20 tracks almost done in the studio and just need to finish up backing vocals and some minor odds and ends before itʼs finished. Then itʼs off to mixing and mastering for it. Weʼre using a different studio this time since this time we are putting the album out with Screaming Ferret from the get-go so weʼre recording it at the labelʼs studio where bands like Nuclear Assault and Meliah Rage have previously recorded. Mixing is going to be done by Jeff Wallace (who has worked on albums for Biohazard, Pro-Pain, End of an Era, etc) at Entrolab Studios in NJ. We havenʼt made a final decision yet as to who will be doing the mastering for the new recordings yet though.

MUEN: WITH ALL THE LIVE SHOWS AND EXPERIENCES YOU HAVE HAD, WILL THE SOUND CHANGE ON YOUR SOPHOMORE CD AND IF SO HOW?

Adam: I think weʼre a tighter band now, particularly with Ed behind the kit as heʼs a VERY solid and consistent drummer and he has a different style on drums than Andre did which has changed the feel somewhat.

I think weʼre all a bit better at what we do, weʼve taken what we do as Mongrel and expanded it and made it better Iʼd say, but it still at its core is that mix of punk, rock, and metal so itʼs not like weʼre all of a sudden going to put out some screamo-prog-metal core album or something. I think weʼre also capturing a bit more of that live energy and power in the studio this time, incorporating more of the backing vocals we do live in the studio. No, Iʼm not going to say “itʼs heavier but more melodic” or “itʼs the greatest CD you'll ever hear” or any of those clichés…but weʼve been playing a bunch of the new songs live and theyʼve certainly been going over well so I think people will like what weʼre doing on the new album.

sentially we work on arrangement aspects as a whole and Rev and Ed will write their own parts respectively. In the end I think everyoneʼs influences and style come through.

MUEN: DO YOU HAVE A VIDEO PLANNED FOR THE ONE OF THE TRACKS FROM THE CD OR TO SHOWCASE THE BAND ESPECIALLY THE LIVE PERFORMANCES ESPECIALLY SINCE YOU ARE DESCRIBED AS BEING CONSTANT MOTION IN LIVE PERFORMANCES?

Adam: We have a couple of videos that our friend Angus Van Zant put together for “Bound to Crash” and “No Gods No Masters” off of the Fear, Lies & Propaganda album but we havenʼt figured out anything MUEN: HOW IS THE definite yet for the new CD MUSIC WRITTEN FOR as far as videos. Thereʼs THE BAND AND BY definitely performance WHOM? footage available online though for people to check Adam: Typically, Iʼll write the out in the meantime though. lyrics and the basics of the I suppose we really should songs (music for the start giving it some thought verses/choruses) and bring though. LOL them into practice. Then weʼll jam on what I brought MUEN: HOW USEFUL in and decide what works HAS MYSPACE BEEN TO as is, what might need an THE PROMOTION OF THE intro, a bridge, how we want BAND? to end the song, do I need to bring it home and tweak Adam: It definitely has, itʼs something that doesnʼt quite been a great way to meet work, etc. There are some new people (such as yourexceptions, such as one of self) and to allow our music the songs on the upcoming to get out to people both loEP Drew wrote the lyrics for cally and around the world. (he also co-wrote the lyrics We sell CDʼs and shirts to with me for Attribution/Retri- fans in the UK and Gerbution on the Fear, Lies & many because of the conPropaganda album). So es- nections weʼve made on

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there so obviously itʼs working. Itʼs always a great way for us to keep in touch with the fans as we are very good about writing back to anyone who wants to drop us a line. MUEN: WHAT MORE SHOULD WE EXPECT TO SEE FROM MONGREL FOR THE REST OF 2009 OTHER THAN THE MASSACHUSETTS SHOWS?

Adam: Weʼre looking to release the new EP entitled “Revenge” sometime this Fall, with the new full length album “This Means War” to follow either in late 2009 or early 2010. I know weʼre doing at least one show with the Misfits this Fall here in MA, and weʼre certainly looking to get back out to NY, NJ, PA, CT, etc at the very least before the holiday season.

keep his chops up.

MUEN: THOSE LOYAL FANS THAT THINK THEY KNOW ALL ABOUT YOU MAY, BUT TELL US SOMETHING THAT THEY DONʼT KNOW ABOUT EACH OF YOU.

Adam: For me, itʼs probably that my “day job” is being a school psychologist/counselor.

MUEN: Is there anything I have not asked that you think our readers would like to know about Mongrel?

Adam: Well we have free ringtones and an online merch store on our page at and we can also be found on Twitter, Face Book, Reverb Nation and like I said, weʼre more than happy to talk to fans so your readers should feel free to hit us up MUEN: DO ANY OF YOU online or at a show and say EVER RELAX AND NOT hi. Also if anyone wants to PLAY MUSIC AND IF SO get our current album “Fear, WHAT DO YOU DO TO Lies & Propaganda” your JUST CHILL? local music store or Best Buy store should be able to Adam: I handle most of the get it for you. If not, you can bandʼs internet presence also get it online at any of and management/booking the links on our sites. at this point so that keeps me quite busy. To make sure I stay busy and out of Thanks Adam for taking the trouble I actually play in a time to talk with MUEN sideband as well and go to today. We look forward to see local shows when Iʼm seeing and hearing a lot not playing out. Rev also more from you in the future. has a side band and is big into horror movies and Adam: My pleasure. Thank comics, Drew is our resiYOU for the support and indent video game player and terest in what weʼre doing!! you tube junkie, and Ed just loves to play all the time and is in several side bands to keep him busy and to

LUNA MORTIS

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Very true, very true. I really band has been together for a little over two years right? love LA but Wisconsin is definitely not LA. This lineup has been together probably about three MUEN: YOU GUYS ARE By; Slavewriter6 years. Myspace.com/slavewriter6 FROM MADISON AND I THINK IT IS REALLY MUEN: YOU GUYS HAVE COOL THAT YOU ARE MUEN: HEY MARY HOW SOME PRETTY COOL ABLE TO BRING SOME ARE YOU? HISTORY HERE. YOU MORE ATTENTION TO AND BRIAN ACTUALLY Good I am glad we were fi- THE MUSIC THERE. WENT TO MUSIC nally able to get this toYes, itʼs been really good. SCHOOL TOGETHER gether! RIGHT? There havenʼt been too many metal bands to come MUEN: ME TOO! NOW Yes. We went to the same out of Wisconsin but reYOU GUYS ARE DEFIcently there have been a lot college and were studying NITELY PROOF THAT music. KICK ASS METAL BANDS more so itʼs really great! DONʼT HAVE TO COME MUEN: YOU BOTH ACTUNow with this lineup, the FROM LA RIGHT?

Interview with Mary Zimmer of Luna Mortis

ALLY HAVE YOUR MUSIC DEGREE WHICH IS PRETTY KICK ASS.

Yes we actually do, itʼs pretty crazy. And we chose to play heavy metal!

MUEN: RIGHT! AND YOU STUDIED CLASSICAL SINGING?

Yes, I am a classically trained singer. I did that for like 5 years. I just decided that I like metal better!

MUEN: HOW HARD WAS LEARNING THE CLASSI-

CAL SINGING?

BAND NAME, LUNA MORTIS, MEANING DEAD It was really tough. It is MOON IN LATIN, ITʼS A very difficult. If people KICK ASS NAME. IS think the judges on Ameri- THERE ANY PARTICUcan Idol are harsh, they LAR REASON YOU GUYS have no idea, letʼs put it CHOSE IT OR WAS IT that way! You get a thick JUST BECAUSE IT skin from doing it but it was SOUNDED BAD ASS? fun, it was good. THERE REALLY DOESNʼT NEED TO BE A REASON MUEN: ON TO SOME BECAUSE ITʼS TRUE, IT MORE HISTORY OF THE JUST SOUNDS KICK BAND, WHICH IS ALSO ASS! REALLY INTERESTING, TALKING SPECIFICALLY Yeah and you pretty much ABOUT YOUR GUITAR hit the nail on the head. PLAYER, CORY, THE Also it was on the short list YOUNGEST ONE, HE of names that werenʼt lame WAS ACTUALLY BRIANʼS and werenʼt taken. GUITAR STUDENT WHEN HE WAS YOUNGER? MUEN: SO IS THAT WHAT IT SAID ON YOUR He was, yes. There is an 8 PAPER? THE SHORT year age gap between LIST OF NAMES THAT them. Heʼs 21 and Brian is ARENʼT LAME AND 29. So when Cory Was ARENʼT TAKEN? TOO young, like 14 or so, he FUNNY. started taking guitar lessons from Brian. Eventu- Yeah basically that is how it ally we had an opening and went down. he wanted to audition. We let him audition although I MUEN: KICK ASS. NOW have to admit we were YOU GUYS WERE slightly skeptical because SIGNED TO CENTURY he was so young but he MEDIA LAST YEAR, CONblew us away, he was GRATULATIONS ON amazing. THAT. TELL US A BIT ABOUT HOW THAT MUEN: WOW SO HE WAS CAME ABOUT. YOU PLAYING GUITAR IN THE GUYS MUST HAVE BEEN BAND BEFORE HE SO EXCITED! COULD EVEN LEGALLY DRINK! We were very excited! Century Media is a terrific Yeah he just turned 21 in label and the people there January and heʼs been in are amazing, the staff is the band almost 3 years amazing, everybody there now so yeah he was the is just so great and I am rebaby and we definitely ally glad that we ended up have picked on him. with them. I donʼt think that we could have found a betMUEN: I BET! SO THE ter home. Itʼs sort of a long

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high school kind of young. I think when I moved to the dorms I was still 17. I didnʼt get much exposure, not because it was being prevented or anything, my parents were rock n roll fans. I just didnʼt have any friends that were into metal or anything and it was preMySpace you know? But when I came to college I got approached by these guys that were in a different metal band, not the one I am in now, asking me to be MUEN: I ACTUALLY HEAR THIS LOT ABOUT in this band with them beCENTURY MEDIA FROM cause they needed a singer. So these guys just OTHER BANDS AS showed me the world of WELL. I AM REALLY metal. From that day forGLAD TO HEAR THAT ward there was just no YOU GUYS ARE SO going back. Once I disHAPPY WITH THEM. covered it, I was one hunSo far so good, everything dred percent in love. I have done nothing but play is great, they have been doing a great job for us and in metal bands since. we are very happy. MUEN: WAS IT HARD TO GO FROM THE CLASSIMUEN: YOU GUYS RECAL SINGING TO LEASED YOUR DEBUT SINGING METAL? ALBUM FOR CENTURY MEDIA IN FEBRUARY OF THIS YEAR CALLED THE No not really, I think beABSENCE AND I AM TO- cause I had all the training TALLY IN LOVE WITH IT. and all of the technique it was easier for me to work THE MUSIC IS GREAT AND YOUR VOICE IS IN- with all the different stuff I CREDIBLE. YOU HAVE A had going on. VOICE THAT GOES MUEN: AND YOU PROBFROM BEAUTIFUL TO ABLY KNOW, FROM ALL WICKED JUST LIKE OF THE TRAINING YOU THAT AND I LOVE IT! HAD, A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN MOST HOW Thanks you so much. TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR VOICE. MUEN: YOU WERENʼT REALLY EXPOSED TO Oh yes, I wouldnʼt be able METAL AT ALL UNTIL to do the things I do in the AFTER HIGH SCHOOL band without it. I am really RIGHT? glad I had the classical Yeah I mean, I graduated training before, otherwise I story how it all came about but you know we were shopping a few different labels and Century Media was probably the third one that came along. They were interested and we were definitely interested. I mean we have loved a lot of the Century Media bands for years and now to be label mates with some of these people is just incredible.

Page 118 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 donʼt think I would be doing what Iʼm doing, I donʼt think I would be as good at it or be able to do it without injury. I am lucky, many people donʼt realize they need to work on technical things until after they already have a problem.

MUEN: THE NEW ALBUM HAS BEEN OUT FOR A FEW MONTHS NOW, WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK ARE YOU GUYS GETTING?

thing go that isn't absolutely the best that you are capable of. MUEN: YOU RECENTLY WENT TO THE REVOLVER GOLDEN GODS AWARDS, HOW WAS THAT EXPERIENCE?

It was amazing, it was so fun. We went with some people from the Century Media staff and there were so many metal icons in one place. You Really positive. The reactions got to see so many people, and the reviews have all been talk to so many great musireally good. Things are going cians and see some great really well and progressing performances. It was just well. amazing to be there and be a part of it. MUEN: YOU GUYS WORKED WITH JASON MUEN: WHAT ADVICE DO SUKOFF AT HIS STUDIO, YOU HAVE FOR BANDS AUDIO HAMMER PRODUC- OUT THERE STILL TRYING TIONS IN FLORIDA ON THIS TO GET SIGNED? RECORD. HE HAS WORKED WITH TONS OF Work ethic. Donʼt get discourGREAT BANDS, WHAT WAS aged. Work as hard as you IT LIKE WORKING WITH possibly can and donʼt turn HIM? down any opportunities. You have to work extremely hard. It was awesome, Jason is brilliant. He is one of those peo- MUEN: THANKS FOR THE ple that likes to have fun and INTERVIEW MARY. IT WAS is absolutely hilarious. But GREAT TO TALK TO YOU! when you go in the studio and BEST OF LUCK TO YOU actually get down to brass GUYS! tacks, he works really hard and he is really brilliant musi- Thanks Holly, I really apprecically and as a producer he is ate your support. phenomenal. He really pushes you, especially if he Myspace.com/lunamortismuknows you are good at what sic you do and he really puts his best effort into making the album sound as good as it possibly can. I have to say I really enjoyed working with him, he put me through the ringer a little bit but it was awesome. He wonʼt let any-

HEMOPT YSIS

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 119

Masaki Murashita - Vocals/Guitar Jack Fliegler - Lead Guitar Sunao Arai - Bass Travis Thune - Drums

Riding high off the release of their 5 song EP, "Who Needs A Shepherd?", Hemoptysis appear poised to conquer the Metal realm. The band continues to receive both internet and terrestrial radio airplay, garnering plenty of media attention, and have been Dubbed 'METAL ARTIST OF THE YEAR' by The Phoenix Music Awards! Even more recently, guitarist Masaki Murashita received an endorsement through Krank Amplification.

Formed under the deadly heat of the Arizona sun in 2007, Hemoptysis has perfected a unique and pure Metal sound, distilling old school Thrash, modern Death Metal, and other global influences. Guitarist/vocalist Masaki Murashita, drummer Travis Thune, bass player Sunao Arai, and lead guitarist Jack Fliegler have not just rooted themselves in the classic styles of Metal; Hemoptysis brings the future of Metal!. "Hemoptysis have what it takes to hold their own

among the elite of heavy metal. Throw Who Needs A Shepherd ? in your stereo, then kick back and watch it all burn." -TheSaltyPirate.com Pivotal Rage Lite: "These guys are brutal akin to Arch Enemy and Carcass and the chords, solos and riffs are memorable and melodic not too far removed from Megadeth. The result is a extraordinary merger of melodic death metal and Bay Area

thrash. Who Needs A Shepherd is a solid collection of furious, venomous thrash metal that will have even the most seasoned metal veterans take notice. Are you listening Nuclear Blast, Century Media and Metal Blade? Listen to Who Needs A Shepherd and Iʼm sure youʼll concur." -Ruben Mosqueda MetalBite:"Who needs a Shepherd?" is by far the truest form of the metal

spirit I have come across in many years" -JD

Extreme Underground Metal Coven: "Hemoptysis is a great example of a hybrid of modern American and European death and black metal fused with 80's era thrash...this metal entity has a bright future in the genre." -Chris Rhynard http://www.myspace.com/h emoptysismetal http://hemoptysis.metalmusicpromotions.com/

www..DarkerImageClothing.com

www.Myspace.com/DarkerImageClothing

NONPOINT Page 122 - MUEN Magazine JULY 2009

Elias (Voice) Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Myspace.com/nonpoint By: Shauna OʼDonnell

MUEN: HOW ARE YOU DOING?

Iʼm good, Iʼm happy to be home and it is actually one of the first days that Iʼve been home that it hasnʼt been raining so I have had the opportunity to see the sunny Florida sky for a little bit today.

deal. Yeah, itʼs all good. SONGS HAVE YOU MUEN: WELL, ITʼS WRITTEN FOR THE RAINING HERE MUEN: DID YOU ALBUM? TODAY SO I TOOK WANT TO TALK OVER FOR YOU. ABOUT WHO YOU So far, we have eight ARE GOING TO SIGN songs complete, but we I sent it up to you. WITH? have close to twentytwo that are still getting MUEN: THANKS! YOU Itʼs kind of up in the air worked on. Itʼs going reGUYS ARE IN THE right now. We are get- ally good. STUDIO RIGHT NOW ting offers from everyRECORDING SOME body. Everyone is MUEN: RUMOR HAS IT NEW MUSIC RIGHT? asking for music. We YOU GUYS HAVE finished up with the SOME OLD FRIENDS Yes we are, we are in Mudvayne tour and WHO HAPPEN TO BE the writing process. We went directly to Phoenix BIG NAMES IN ROCK went to Phoenix for to record some tracks. WORKING WITH YOU about a week to lay Were excited, itʼs been GUYS ON THIS NEW down a three song a very fresh feeling writ- RECORD. WHO IS demo to start playing for ing for our fans. PRODUCING THE record labels because RECORD? we are about to sign a MUEN: HOW MANY

Chad and Gregg, they are the singer and the guitar player from Mudvayne. They are starting a production company where they will start producing bands. We are kind of their first crack at it. We like their writing style so much and they have had such great success with it. We have never really, truly worked with a producer other than our last manager. On this record, we wanted to get that outside ear, especially an ear that we respect so much. They have their thumb on the pulse of whatʼs really rockin right

now. Those guys are stellar to work with in the studio.

often than we normally would.

MUEN: HOW IS IT MUEN: WELL THATʼS WORKING WITH COOL THAT THEY GREGG AND CHAD ARE HELPING YOU OUTSIDE OF TOURGUYS TO TAKE YOUR ING? MUSIC TO ANOTHER LEVEL. They are great guys to work with. We are all Absolutely, they are businessmen and I think helping us take what we that is why weʼve kept have and to quote Chad the relationship for the “Help re-invent us a little ten years that our bands and bring new light to have been friends. We the band.” He is doing have known Mudvayne just that, itʼs great. since their very first tour. They actually brought us MUEN: WHAT IS DIF- out way back in 2000. FERENT ABOUT THIS We are old friends and RECORD? WHAT ARE we like to be out there YOU DOING DIFFER- and put on a good show. ENTLY THIS TIME We like to enjoy ourAROUND? I READ selves too, but we all THAT THERE IS A LOT understand that we are MORE SOUL IN YOUR out there to put on a VOICE. good show. They appreciate the show that we We have gotten a lot of put on and we feel like comments where people we compliment ourhave really enjoyed a lot selves. Its business and of the songs that I sing every once in a while more than scream on you have some time to like “Alive and Kicking” let your hair down and and “Past it All.” We de- have a good time on the cided to play with that a road. The writing little more and to really process is a completely start playing with different ball game, we melody and vocal lines. are best friends. Not With Gregg and Chad that we arenʼt on the involved, some of the outside, but youʼre workideas are so outside of ing when you are out on what I would of thought the road. In the studio, of, but work so well for these guys are just so my voice. We are taking open minded and nurthose steps a little more turing. I would say to

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any band that is thinking of working with them, it is definitely something that you want to pursue. They are great guys to work with in the recording situation.

MUEN: THATʼS GREAT; IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU GUYS HAVE A GOOD HISTORY TOGETHER.

I have actually been bent over a bar, completely hammered off of thirteen shots of Jager and I would have I love Chad sharpied on my back from him with a big heart around it. I woke up the next morning with this huge patch of sharpie. It was a little Chad tattoo.

MUEN: THATʼS A GREAT STORY, AT LEAST IT WASNʼT A REAL TATTOO. ALTHOUGH SHARPIE IS REALLY CLOSE.

space and normally I will have a vocal line or their will be a guitar riff or a bass line. We start with one part and then everybody starts building on it. We let the nature of where itʼs going take us there and hope for the best. We hope that it will soon become one of our many song children. Everyone puts in their two cents on everyoneʼs parts. Obviously, we hold things dear, especially when you are writing or creating. You put so much heart into it and try to be as nurturing as you can to the parts and peopleʼs feelings. It is all driven and fueled by emotion, feelings and moments. You kind of want to stay in those moments and allow people to express their feelings without putting them out. You want to let those fires build because eventually they turn into amazing songs.

I would have kept it I MUEN: WHEN CAN think though. It would have been a good story. WE EXPECT TO SEE THE NEW ALBUM REMUEN: WHATʼS A DAY LEASED? OF WRITING WITH We are shooting for the NONPOINT LIKE? end of this year. We are going to be having the We wake up at the crack of noon, we figure single hit the radio deout what t-shirt we are pending on the deal and going to be wearing, we when the record label wants to release. No go into the rehearsal

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later than early of next year. February is probably going to be the very, very latest.

MUEN: ZACH BRODERICK IS THE ONLY LINE-UP CHANGE YOUʼVE MADE IN THE BAND IN OVER TEN YEARS. HOW DID IT COME TO BE THAT ZACH JOINED THE BAND?

give it a shot.” It has A SHOW WITH STEEL breathed a new breath PANTHER. ARENʼT into the band. Itʼs like a THOSE GUYS GREAT? brand new band. Those guys are funny. MUEN: SO THE NEW Itʼs good to see that rock BLOOD IN THE BAND is putting a smile back IS FEELING PRETTY on its face and that the GOOD THEN? fans are really getting back into smiling and Oh yeah, itʼs pumping rockin out. It was a fun hot and good. Zach is a show to watch, they did great guy and he has a the funniest intro. I donʼt great heart. He is a very know if you know how positive person that they got to the stage. brings another friendly They had professional attitude into the mix of parachuters, parachute the four of us. It baldown dressed like them, ances out our band. We land behind the stage have very aggressive, and then the guys came opinionated people and running on the stage like we have the very calm. they had just paraThey balance each chuted. It was the funniother out, which makes est thing I had ever for a great union. seen. The guitar player did this long kind of MUEN: YES, GREAT solo, tribute kind of, mix COMPATIBILITY, HE of songs where he was USED TO BE WITH playing the kick with one MODERN DAY ZERO foot. The wigs, the RIGHT? spandex pants, the leopard scarf, everyYes, he was actually to- thing is exactly where it wards the end of that needs to be with that still kind of working with band. They are hilarious them. He kind of put that and Iʼm glad to see so aside and decided he many people taking was going to do us full such a liking to them, its time which was a bless- fun. ing for us. I wish he MUEN: THEY ARE HIcould have done both for the sake of Modern LARIOUS AND SEXY. Day Zero, but Iʼm glad he is part of our band. No doubt

After ten years, Andy really didnʼt want to be in the music business anymore. It was sad to see him go because we had been together for so long. I guess he had his fill of this side of the business and wanted to move on. We are not ready yet to move on so our drummer Robb reached out to a couple friends in the scene and Zachʼs name came up. One of our friends from Soil and Dan from Disturbed said he was a great choice. At the end of one of our last tours, right when Andy was about to leave, we met up with him and jammed with him. He must have learned six Nonpoint songs in three days. It was amazing and he was playing them with such vigor and rhythm that it immediately felt right. We said “Hey, this MUEN: NOW YOU MUEN: WHATʼS must be a sign. Letʼs GUYS RECENTLY DID GREAT ABOUT THEM

WHEN THEY PLAY HERE IN L.A. IS THAT A LOT OF CELEBRITIES SHOW UP TO THE SHOWS AND THEY GET UP ON THE STAGE AND SING WITH THEM. YOU NEVER KNOW WHO YOU ARE GOING TO SEE. THEY PLAY EVERY SINGLE MONDAY NIGHT.

Iʼm glad that the scene is supporting them too.

MUEN: YOU HAVE THREE DATES COMING UP IN FLORIDA THIS SUMMER, IF YOU GUYS ARE IN THAT AREA I ENCOURAGE YOU TO CATCH A SHOW. ARE THERE ANY PLANS TO ADD ANY MORE DATES AT THIS TIME? OR ANY OTHER CITIES?

We are trying to not play as many shows as often as we normally do. We were out for eighteen months non-stop on this last record and we really want to focus on writing the record. We are doing one-offs and radio stations have called us to do radio shows here and there. We just did the one in Phoenix and now were doing one in Orlando at the House of Blues. Then we have one in Ft. Lauderdale

and another one in Daytona with Buckcherry. We are going to do a couple one-offs just to have some fun and to play those spots we havenʼt played in a minute with just us. As far as booking a lot more shows, Iʼd say that you are not going to really see us again until early fall just so we can get this record done and get it into the hands of people again. MUEN: YOU JUST ENDED THE MUDVAYNE TOUR. WHAT WERE SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE TOUR?

We hung out at least every other night if not every night.

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MUEN: THATʼS A GOOD “ONE” RULE.

That should be everyMUEN: DO YOU THINK oneʼs rule. Itʼs sad YOU MADE A WHOLE sometimes when you go BUNCH OF NEW to see a band and it is a FANS? disappointment when they let their personal Absolutely, it was a lives interfere with the game changer for us show. It shouldnʼt be like without a doubt. We had that. a lot of hits on the website and record sales MUEN: IʼVE SEEN A went up. A lot of the FEW LIKE THAT things that you hope to WHERE YOU WALK happen with a tour all AWAY FEELING KIND came to fruition and it OF EMBARRASSED was a blessing. FOR THEM.

MUEN: WHEN YOU GUYS ARE ON TOUR DO YOU HAVE A SET OF RULES THAT YOU The whole tour was ALL ABIDE BY? FOR amazing. To be main INSTANCE NO DRINKsupport of a band of that ING BEFORE THE magnitude is flattering SHOW, ETC. and at the same time itʼs fun because we were We donʼt like to get out with family. We had- hammered before the nʼt done a tour with show; our first concern Mudvayne for a few is the show. Thatʼs what years so it was nice to people are there to see. get that call. We got to I donʼt want people to go hit some of our favorite home going “God, he spots like Madison, Wis- was wasted. I could consin and Orlando. I barely understand a think we did 2 ½ weeks word he was saying, he in Texas, which is hard was slurring so much.” to tour because of the Throughout the show I heat and distance. It might get a little tipsy by was a perfect tour. The the end of the show. You In This Moment people can do whatever you were great people. want as long as long as Maria and all of the boys it doesnʼt affect the are such cool people. show.

Yeah, exactly, we donʼt want to put on that kind of show. Now, after the show, you will definitely hear some slurring and you might see some puking. I remember Zach having to stand on a pair of shoes that I had to run into the bus to get because it was snowing outside and he was throwing up in his boxers. So I had to literally grab my hoodie and grab a pair of shoes so he wasnʼt standing on ice and freezing to death. It was funny man, it was a good time. That night was a good time; it was like six bars that we jumped from one to the other to. MUEN: WELL, WHAT A GOOD FRIEND YOU

ARE.

Hey, Iʼll hold your hair back when youʼre puking.

MUEN: THANK YOU, I WILL MAKE NOTE OF THAT (LAUGHING) BEFORE STARTING THAT TOUR YOU HAD PARTED WAYS WITH YOUR MANAGEMENT AND LABEL. WHAT KIND OF AN IMPACT DID THAT HAVE ON THE BAND JUST BEFORE A TOUR?

You get two feelings from that, it was scary because you are kind of by yourself and there is nobody really taking care of you. At the same time, itʼs liberating, it opened our eyes to show us that we could really do this on our own. We got the Mudvayne tour through our connections and we found new management for us. Izzy at Split Media now takes care of us whoʼs an amazing manager. He has managed some of the biggest bands. To have such a hungry, young and idea filled mind leading the ship right now makes us feel like it was the right decision. The Bielerʼs were great for us for ten years, but we just got to a point

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where we felt like we wanted to move on and go in a different direction. We felt it was better that we separate and we would do our thing. It was a great relationship, but sometimes things donʼt work out the way you plan. You move on, try to stay positive and try to look forward. Thatʼs what we are doing, we are looking forward and it is a bright future for us.

MUEN: WELL SPLIT MEDIA IS PROBABLY A BETTER FIT FOR YOU.

Yeah, we love those guys there. They are a great management team. They are working on having an amazing roster. It is the attention that we get that we are most excited about. They donʼt let things fall through the cracks and their attention to detail is insane. Itʼs a great marriage. MUEN: WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES YOUʼVE HAD TO OVERCOME IN YOUR MUSIC CAREER? I would say internet sales and radio in general. Iʼd say just the business side of the in-

dustry is the hardest thing to get through and overcome. You try not to have your head in that because our job should be the other side of the job, the creating, touring and putting on a good show. Thatʼs what we like to concern ourselves with. Unfortunately, eventually you have to put your foot in the business. Its dog eat dog, thatʼs the best way to put it. Everyone is looking out for whatʼs important and you try not to sway away and let all those other business sides of the industry take you away from where youʼre heart should be and thatʼs in the music.

melting pot of the rock world with a sound that each one of us letʼs our own personal influences gauge whatʼs happening with our instrument. I think because we let each other do that, that is why we have the sound that we do. My drummer is an old metal fan. My bass player is very hardcore, but on the opposite side he loves Pink Floyd. Zach loves Pantera. I listen to Journey, Kansas, Bad Company and at the same time too, the first Korn record was really the record that made me want to do this for a living. You get influenced, but I think you try to make your own sound. I think that is what deMUEN: DO YOU CON- fines you in your music. SIDER YOURSELF A “NU-METAL” BAND? MUEN: I WISH YOU GUYS THE BEST OF I think after the first year LUCK WITH YOUR just because there were NEW RECORD COMso many new metal ING OUT. IʼD LIKE TO bands out, people THANK YOU FOR started realizing that we TALKING WITH ME had a different sound TODAY. IT WAS and that is what they GREAT TALKING WITH were considering “nuYOU. BEFORE I LET metal.” Iʼd say that we YOU GO WAS THERE are the quintessential all ANYTHING YOUʼD American band. Youʼve LIKE TO ADD? got two Puerto Ricans born in New Jersey and Our new single is probain New York. Youʼve got bly going to be called a Scottish/German from “Miracle” and it has a guest singer on it. Chad Jersey and a kid from was really digging the Chicago. We are the

track and we asked him to sing on it. He gave it a swing and it came out amazing. We believe that he will be on out newest track, which we are excited about.

MUEN: THAT IS AWESOME. CONGRATULATIONS ON THAT.

Thank you, Iʼm excited for both of us. Even if it never gets released, the fact that I had the opportunity to sing with one of my best friends is great.

MUEN: AFTER ALL THESE YEARS HUH?

Thatʼs the big dream come true, after ten years look at the circle that weʼve made. Who would have thought that we would not only be working together, but singing together? Itʼs cool, man. MUEN: WELL, I CANʼT WAIT TO HEAR IT. Coming soon!

www.myspace.com/toxxxicfluxxx

PANTHER

STEEL

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STEEL PANTHER

Michael Starr (Vocals) Satchel (Guitars) Lexxi Foxxx (Bass) Stix Zadinia (Drums) Los Angeles, CA

Myspace.com/steelpantherkicksass

By: Shauna OʼDonnell Myspace.com/shaunasbandpage Iʼm hanging out in the dressing room of L.A.ʼs very own Steel Panther tonight. This band is

known for their outrageous stage presence and huge guitar riffs. They are L.A.ʼs longest running heavy metal show on Sunset Strip and once you see them play, it is obvious why. With their betweensong banter, they have brought the fun back in music.

MUEN: FIRST OFF, WERENʼT YOU GUYS CALLED METAL SKOOL BEFORE? WHY DID YOU CHANGE YOUR NAME?

I think we have always been Steel Panther, we just didnʼt know it. We just spelled it differently.

Michael: It was weird because one day I woke up and I was watching the History channel and I switched over to Animal Planet. There was this panther and I was like “Fuck thatʼs cool. If only he was steel, it would be bitchin.” Then I realized that steel was really heavy. MUEN: HOW LONG

HAVE YOU BEEN APPEARING ON MONDAY NIGHTS AT THE KEY CLUB?

The band started in 1981 and we started to play in Los Angeles on Monday nights in late 1985. We had to quit really quick and then we came back and started playing in 1999. Whatʼs really cool is when we all got our stuff together and we decided that heavy metal was going to take over, it was cool

because no other bands are on the Strip. So, we rule the Strip. There were a bunch of other crazy bands that were harder. We said to ourselves that we would put the record out in fifteen years and none of the other guys will be around. Itʼs like regular school was hard and summer school was easy. Right now we are in summer school or like a continuation school for bad kids. MUEN: YOU WILL BE RELEASING YOUR DEBUT ALBUM ON JUNE 9TH THROUGH UNIVERSAL REPUBLIC RECORDS CALLED FEEL THE STEEL. WHY DID IT TAKE YOU 20 YEARS TO RELEASE YOUR FIRST ALBUM?

Satchel: Itʼs hard to write killer songs. For the first ten years of this band I only had one set of strings. I had to keep cleaning those strings and keep boiling them.

MUEN: YOU ALSO PERFORM IN VEGAS A COUPLE DAYS A WEEK IS THAT RIGHT? We do, twice a week, every week. MUEN: DO YOU GUYS

DO ANY TOURING?

We do what they call fly dates. What that means is, we will fly to a date and then we will do it. Then we fly back, itʼs real easy. Every now and then we do promotional tours, which are all fly dates. The fly date took away the bus, sort of how the cell phone took away the pager. There will be dozens of readers who read this and I think everybody who reads this interview should go out and get this record because this is the culmination of thirty years of song writing.

at the picture.

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 129

Michael: Hereʼs what happened.

MUEN: YOU HAD QUITE A FEW GUEST APPEARANCES ON THE ALBUM. WHO WERE THEY? WHICH SONGS DID THEY APPEAR ON?

She looked at the picture and said “These guys are so fucking hot; I donʼt even need to lis- Do you like tapes or ten to them. I want to in- CDʼs better? terview them.” MUEN: CDʼS. Satchel: Iʼll tell you exCan I cassette them on actly what she said “I your chin? Do you like want to interview that fucking guitar player be- Wendyʼs? cause he looks fucking MUEN: NO slammin.”

MUEN: I LOVE THE VIDEO FOR “DEATH TO ALL BUT METAL.” SARAH SILVERMAN MUST BE ONE OF MUEN: WE HAVE TWO YOUR MANY FANS. DOZEN READERS. Thank you. Our album is Two dozen? Thatʼs awe- like Chinese food. You some; maybe we can donʼt remember it when sell a record to one of youʼre done so you have them. This is eleven of to listen to it again. Also the fucking best (out of you get hungry right twelve) songs that we away and you want to have written over the hear it again. Plus, a years. Theyʼre good, panther is a cat and Chinothing but the best. Did nese food probably has you listen to the whole cats in it. When you listhing? What was your ten to our record you favorite track? drink so much that you get a little bloated. You MUEN: I LIKE THEM gotta drink to listen to us ALL. man because itʼs scary and people freak out. Awwww! Thatʼs bullshit. Whatʼs your favorite Lexxi: and then you song? You know what have to take your car that means? You looked down and get it washed.

Are you into fitness?

MUEN: YES

Fittin these nuts in your mouth? MUEN: NO, OKAY, WHAT WAS THE WENDYʼS ONE?

Wendyʼs nuts in your mouth. Do you know who is on our record?

MUEN: COREY FROM SLIPKNOT.

No, Corey Feldman. Corey Feldman from Slipknot (Laughing) you canʼt tell because they wear masks. Yeah, Corey Taylor and Corey Haim are on it also. Corey Taylor from Slipknot, M Shadows from Avenged Sevenfold,

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Scott Ian from Anthrax and the lead singer from The Donnas. Do you know who Kip Winger is? MUEN: YEAH

Heʼs into fitness too.

At this point someone burps very loud into the microphone and it is not me. Josh Richman, one of the longest running promoters and MCʼs in Hollywood history, enters the room. There is a knock at the door and we are told Stryker from KROQ wants to come in. The band says “Tell him to fuck off, he canʼt come in. Tell him he isnʼt coming in until our record is being played.” They are obviously kidding and he comes in. MUEN: I ACTUALLY DRANK A LOT BEFORE I CAME HERE.

Yeah you did, are you drunk? Do you guys want a drink?

MUEN: NO THANKS, YOU WILL BE PERFORMING AT THE DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL THIS YEAR. Yeah! We are so excited.

MUEN: IS THIS YOUR FIRST TIME GOING

OVER TO ENGLAND? blush. It takes about 5 hours. People forget Itʼs our first time going what it takes just to get over and itʼs our first ready to rock. It really time playing a stage in a does take time. Wrinkles parking lot. We are the arenʼt foxy so we get band that plays while them done. people are driving in. The stage will be right MUEN: YOU DONʼT next to where you buy HAVE WRINKLES. tickets so pretty much everyone will see us. Itʼs Thatʼs because we use called foot traffic and we Rotox. Itʼs new and only are literally playing all for rockers. day long. Officially we are not really on the bill, MUEN: I NEED TO GET but we are just going to SOME OF THAT. set up. You should come. Do you wanna Yeah, youʼre a rocker. go? We are taking a Itʼs cool because you boat for seven days. get to keep your expressions, but you alleviate MUEN: YOU GUYS all the lines on your ARE FRIENDS OF KAT face, its killer. VON D AND YOU HAVE A TWO PAGE SPREAD We now enter a converIN HER NEW BOOK. sation about getting Botox injected into their We do? Check out my testicles. Apparently, it tattoo from Kat. makes them smooth as silk, like if you shaved MUEN: THAT IS AMAZ- your cat. ING. HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE YOU Pros: It is easier to TO GET READY BEshave you nuts after FORE A SHOW? they are Botoxed. Lexxi: It takes me a long time. I have to tan and some tans donʼt get all the way so I have to have Satchel or Stix spray tan me. It is awesome to look tan, the girls think itʼs foxy. Then I start putting my foundation on and then

Cons: After you do this, when you sit down on the toilet, they dip into the water. J

Sound like fun? I donʼt recommend trying this at home kids. They assure me that what chics are checking out on stage is

how big their private area is.

MUEN: WHERE DO YOU GUYS SHOP?

They are custom made or from thrift stores.

This erupts into a little tiff over who does each others custom work in which, Satchel confesses he does his own. This is why he carries thimbles in his guitar case.

At this point I decided to let them go and thanked them for the wonderful interview. I have never laughed so much in all my life as I did tonight. These guys are a MUST see. Be sure to catch one of their shows if you havenʼt already. One of the great things about their show besides the talent displayed on the stage is the fact that there are celebrities that show up and sing with Michael. You never know who will show up.

CLOSE YOUR EYES

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Shane Raymond-- Vocals MUEN: IʼVE KNOWN

Brett Callaway -- Guitar and Vocals Andrew Rodriguez -Guitar Sonny Vega -- Bass

David Fidler – Drums

Abilene, Texas Myspace.com/closeyoureyesmusic

By: Shauna OʼDonnell

to get a pretty large collection of songs so that we can choose what we feel to be the best of the best for the full length album we will be recording soon! We are also in contract negotiations with a record label that we are very excited to be working with! We really feel like this label is Brett: Well, we have re- going to be a great fit for ally just been playing us in furthering our goals shows as much as pos- and desires as a band. sible and writing like mad men! We are trying MUEN: WHAT IS THE

YOU GUYS FOR A WHILE NOW AND IT HAS BEEN EXCITING TO SEE YOUR PROGRESSION AS A BAND. TELL ME A LITTLE ABOUT WHAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING WITH YOUR GUYS LATELY.

MEANING BEHIND THE NAME CLOSE YOUR EYES?

Brett: Well, I was actually reading quite a bit of apocalyptic literature and a lot from the book of Revelation. Close Your Eyes is really just a reference to the spiritual world, and how what we see is not our true reality - we have to close our eyes to the world to gain a true understanding.

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MUEN: LETʼS TALK ABOUT YOUR FULL LENGTH ALBUM. WHAT IS ITS TITLE? WHEN WAS IT RELEASED? WHERE IS IT AVAILABLE? WHO PRODUCED IT?

Brett: Haha, well we have only released a 6 song EP so far. We are going to go into the studio soon to start work on our first real full length! The 6 song EP is available on iTunes, our online store, and of course at shows! The EP was produced by Christopher Goodwin, and we will be working with him again for the full length. We really enjoy working with him, our ideas just seem to bounce back and forth, and the work flows extremely well with him!

with the hope of love. Specifically Godʼs love, and however that love is experienced. There are other messages that are very clear such as in the bridge of "Song for the Broken" where the lyrics say, “This is my worship! This is my life! To bring hope into this broken world!”

Shane: Brett and I write the lyrics. When we first started out as Close Your Eyes, I think that both of us definitely did not choose to hide our Christianity in our lyrics; however, we did not want to be labeled as a ʻChristian bandʼ. We saw how lots of kids in the music scene had such a bitter reaction to many of the people who claimed to be Christians. We didnʼt want to find MUEN: YOUR LYRICS ourselves as Close Your ARE EVIDENT THAT Eyes being associated YOU ARE CHRISwith something that we TIANS. WHO WRITES werenʼt a part of. In adTHEM AND ARE dition, I was very inexpeTHERE ANY MESrienced when it came to SAGES THAT YOU writing songs. Because ARE TRYING TO of this, and also because RELAY TO THE LISof the sound we were TENERS? trying to go for at the time, I felt somewhat Brett: Shane and I write forced to write in a certhe lyrics, with Shane tain way. Itʼs not that I writing the great major- donʼt think that I conity. There are definite veyed my emotion messages we are trying through those lyrics - itʼs to portray. One of the just at times that when I huge things that we try go back and listen to to do is just leave people those songs, and re-

member the experiences I was writing about, I think to myself, “There was a better way to say this…” It could be that all lyricists experience this form of regret, but I canʼt speak for anyone but myself. With the past few songs that we have written, I have begun to really dive deeper into the personal aspects of my faith and bring them forward lyrically. I have always been open to saying from stage that there is hope… but never really expressed where that hope could be found. Lately I have found myself in a place in life where that hope that I spoke of so much has seemed to disappear. Out of this sentiment CYE has written some of our most heartfelt songs. I want the kids who hear our music to know that we as a band are no better than anyone in the audience. I am a human being; I hurt, I cry, I laugh. I find joy in certain things in life and find great struggles in others. And that is something that all people, Christian or not, can relate to. Itʼs in these times of struggle, those dark and dreary days when my life makes no sense at all that I choose to say that even though I am hurting, that there is a to-

morrow, and that I can choose to let the struggle win, or I can hope that things will get better. I choose to hope, and I hope that my lyrics allow others to do so as well.

MUEN: ARE YOU ALWAYS WORKING ON NEW MUSIC?

Brett: For sure! Haha I am constantly writing new songs! Sometimes I am writing too fast to where we donʼt even have enough time to get through all the new stuff in practices.

Andrew: For as long as I can remember we have never stopped the flow of new music we write. We always try to top the last song we have written and make every new song twice as good, and I think that is one thing that sort of sets us apart from other up and coming bands.

MUEN: A LOT OF HARDCORE BANDS TEND TO BE POLITICAL. DO YOU SEE YOURSELVES THAT WAY?

Brett: Not particularly. We donʼt try and push our political views or really our views in general on people. We donʼt hide what we believe by any means, but at the same

time, we are not ever going to disrespect others or be intolerant of their personal beliefs.

Andrew: We don't see ourselves as much of a hardcore band anymore neither do we see us being political. We base our message on values of much more importance to ourselves personally. We try to truly express ourselves in our music which seems kind of rare nowadays.

my biggest influences have been MxPx and Stretch Arm Strong. I have been listening to them since I was probably in 6th or 7th grade. Other more recent influences for me have been With Honor, Life in Your Way, and Hillsong United of all bands! Then there is the random stuff I find creeping into our music like all the Louie Armstrong I listen to. You can hear some of the jazz chord structures in our music at different points.

MUEN: WHAT DO YOU THINK SETS YOUR BAND APART FROM MUEN: HOW WAS THE OTHERS IN YOUR SHOW WITH SWORN GENRE? ENEMY?

Brett: We are so diverse in the music that we write that I could not even nail us down into a specific genre. I would say what sets us apart from other hardcore bands is that we have very melodic elements in our music, and we get into some pretty complex chord structures. We listen to A LOT of different music, and it really shows in our writing.

Brett: The show was a lot of fun! They were such nice dudes, and we had a great crowd reaction! Kids were really into it and going crazy!

MUEN: IN REGARDS TO THE SHOWS THAT YOU HAVE PLAYED, WHICH ONES HAVE BEEN THE MOST MEMORABLE? WHAT HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST CROWD YOU HAVE PLAYED IN FRONT OF?

MUEN: WHO ARE SOME OF THE BANDS THAT HAVE BEEN Brett: The biggest crowd YOUR BIGGEST INwe have played for was FLUENCE? definitely the main stage at Cornerstone last sumBrett: For me, some of mer! There were 25,000

MUEN Magazine JULY 2009 - Page 133

people in attendance at the festival, and we played the second night of the week long festival with Flyleaf, Skillet, Family Force 5, and Disciple. Then some of the most memorable shows to us have been the small venue shows when the place is completely packed and kids are just piling on top of each other and all singing along!

we have found a very strong line up with the one we have now and the chemistry is GREAT! When we are writing we can just sit there and play, and sometimes entire songs will just flow out in minutes! MUEN: ARE YOU GUYS SHOPPING LABELS RIGHT NOW?

Brett: Well, we are a little past the shopping stage MUEN: IF YOU COULD right now, I think. We CHOOSE ONE BAND were just offered a conTO GO OUT ON TOUR tract from a label out of WITH, WHO WOULD IT California last week. BE? We're discussing the terms and deciding if we Brett: Man, that is a want to go with it or not, tough question! There and our attorney is lookare so many bands we ing it over as we speak! would love to go out with! Someone like Rise MUEN: IS THERE ANYAgainst would be awe- THING YOUʼD LIKE TO some, or even someone ADD OR SAY? like Four Year Strong I think would be really fun! Brett: Thank you! I look forward to talking to you MUEN: WHAT HAS more in the future! And BEEN THE HARDEST everybody look out for PART OF TRYING TO new music and big news MAKE IT IN THE coming very soon! MUSIC INDUSTRY FOR YOU? MUEN: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE INBrett: It has been a long TERVIEW. I WISH YOU road. Finding the right ALL THE VERY BEST line up and chemistry OF LUCK IN YOUR CAhas probably been the REER. hardest part for us as a band. Shane and I are the only original members of this band! I think

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