it's been surreal. greig was awesome and we can't wait to do our record with him. he makes it fun and he's very knowledgeable, he's the best of both. having tim palmer mix the EP was an honor, because we are huge U2 fans and he's done so many great records.
We saw you when you were on tour with Simple Plan and Good Charlotte in Toronto and personally I see a large difference between you and the other two bands, you are harder. What difference do you see between yourselves and other bands, similar to Good Charlotte?
we seem to be a little different than everyone we tour with and we've toured with many different styles of bands. before the Good Charlotte tour, we were on tour with Snapcase! we don't know what makes us different, we're just making the music that we like. we try to blend aggressive music with melody, but it just comes out sounding like us. i think the fact that we are influenced by so many different bands makes us sound the way we do. we're also lucky that people like Good Charlotte and Snapcase are cool enough to give us a chance too.
You may recognize the name and quote from our ezine. How do you feel about all the politics, lifestyle and follower-type-poser things that are all over the types of music you are in?
that's a tough one and i'm sure you don't want a 10 page paper on it, so i'll try to be brief. i think the scene is bigger than it ever has been and at the same time it's in it's worst state. i HATE to see people who are stoked on the music and who don't know what some idiots have decided what's "cool" getting shit at shows. there is starting to be an elitest type of thing happening and it's against the whole idea and meaning of the music. i could go on forever...
How do you feel about the 'pop-punk' label put on a lot of bands similar to you?
everyone needs labels. it's no worse than, emo, hardcore, indie, post-punk, ska, etc, etc, etc.
Why did you get involved in music, and more specifically the genre of music you are in? What drew you to it?
i liked the attitude. the diy attitude. you just could do what you liked and there were no rules. it was part of a lifestyle and it still is for me.
How exactly did you break out? Has it been a long hard road, a long fun road, or a quick rise to where you are now? Or a combination of them?
i don't know if we've broken out, but it's been a long fun road. everything good takes time and we have always been willing to invest in ourselves.
What advice would you give to a band, not unlike yourselves about starting out?
be persistant, don't do it for anything other than the love, have goals and attain them.
Are there any bands on the verge of breaking out that you feel haven't received the recognition that they deserve? (Basically are there any bands that we should watch out for?)
i think there are more bands that have been around a while that don't get the credit they deserve. sensefield started the whole emo thing and they still do it the best. does anyone go to see them? rival schools are the best at aggresive indie music, and quicksand is the blueprint for all the rock music that's popular now. it's always that way. people ultimately decide what is "popular", but we need the great stuff that the masses haven't heard to create the popular stuff. i think all the new bands get the credit very quickly these days, while genius bands like snapcase and sick of it all still make the best records.
What are your tour plans for the next little while? Are you planning on going on Warped Tour again this year? Any Canadian dates coming up?
no tours! we're working on our new record, but we'll be back in the spring. i hope we're doing the warped tour, it was great this year.
Have you had any crazy experiences with things?
so many. anyone who saw pantera night knows what's up.
What Cd is in each of your cd players right now?
sensefield "tonight and forever" snapcase "end transmission" hot water music "caution" LL cool J's new stuff.
What type of equipment do each of you guys use? (On a side note, what kind of guitar or bass would you recomend to a first time buyer, not very experienced)
we use all mesa boogie amps, fender basses, gibson guitars, and tama drums. i would recomend epiphone guitars because they are inexpensive, but they are good. it's a great starter!