Mike Steel:
You and Dave produced all RODS -albums. Which you are the most happy with production-wise?
Carl Canedy:
This question is a bit difficult to answer. I think our first album captured something. There was an
innoncence about it. In the Raw was fun since it was done live in the studio in just 18 hours. I
believe that Heavier than Thou has some very good songs and energy and is one of our best
produced.
Mike Steel:
Heavy Metal had itīs golden age back then 81 - 83. How was it to be part of that scene? I remember
you being more warmly welcomed in Britain than in your home-ground.
Carl Canedy:
We were definitively welcomed in England. The tour we did with IRON MAIDEN allowed us to meet
many fans. It was great to meet people who were into the same type of music. I remember coming
out of a club one night after a RODS gig and seeing a friend of mine who felt I should be playing in a
"better" band. He looked at me and said "the sixties are dead, what the fuck are you doing playing
this shit?" I thought, hmmmm, am I missing something here????
Mike Steel:
It seemed like music press, for example KERRANG, was very supportive for RODS during first two
albums (The Rods and Wild Dogs), but after that they turned backs on you. What caused that in
your opinion?
Carl Canedy:
This is a great question! First I think the press writes what it wants and obviously "eats its' young"
so some of it comes with the territory. I feel that Malcolm was very deceptive and interviewed us with
ulterior motives. I remember feeling very shocked when i read how our words were twisted etc. and
the pic of Joey Demaio with us inserted in a very small box made me laugh. But it was hurtful and it
was damaging to us. KERRANG was very influential and at the time we were shopping for a new
label and it hurt us. But it was, for me, a very valuable lesson and i know how it must feel to be a
victim of the "tabloids". A bit odd to see yourself in print with words next to your name that you never
said.
Mike Steel:
Let Them Eat Metal was the last album Iīve heard from you. I remember not liking it as much as
older stuff. How you view that record today?
Carl Canedy:
I felt it was sterile. A few good songs but no energy. We were probably influenced by the production
techniques i was learning and it was not the right approach for THE RODS. We released several
albums after that one. The Hollywood album with Rick Caudle singing and Heavier than Thou with
Schmolik Avigal singing.
Mike Steel:
After that came Heavier than Thou. Have you released anything since then?
Carl Canedy:
No, Heavier than Thou was our last album. Although we have unreleased tracks and songs that haven't been recorded but have been demoed
that we release as bonus tracks of future re-releases.
Mike Steel:
Was the reason for RODS breaking-up the fact you were kind of stuck between two trends? In mid-
eighties you should have played either harder stuff like Speed Metal or softer stuff like Glam or AOR.
Carl Canedy:
I believe that was one of the reasons that led to our calling it quits. I also think that we went in
different directions. I was producing more and Rock bought a restaurant and Gary had his own
things going.
Mike Steel:
Any chance for comeback?
Carl Canedy:
We've been talking about doing some recording. We've had two labels interested and we're still
looking. Schmoulik is living in my town and Rock and Gary are near. i was never up for touring with
the band again, but Ive had a change of heart. I'm playing with a local band for fun and still recording
and writing so now i'd be up for it.
Mike Steel:
Around 84 and 85 you did a lot of producing for Jon Zazulaīs MEGAFORCE RECORDS. Tell us
about those times. How you liked the speed metal bands on the label?
Carl Canedy:
The first band I was approached to produce was ANTHRAX. I heard the single they'd done and was
blown away. I remember when I recorded them some friends heard the mixes and said the band
isn't going to do anything and I said that I knew they be at least a gold act. They laughed. I felt that
all the bands where really good. Jon and Marsha had great ears.
Mike Steel:
All the works you did for MEGAFORCE RECORDS were satisfactory to me. Especially ANTHRAX
Spreading the Disease comes to mind as musically and sound-wise excellent. Many consider it
their best record. Do you remember anything special about those sessions?
Carl Canedy:
I remember a lot of things about that record. All the egos, all the back-stabbing. My suggestion to
fire the singer they had. Me finding Joey for them. Working with Joey when he couldn't follow Charlies
double bass. He'd get lost and fall off beat. The way the band felt I was taking too much time to
produce the record. How I didn't make myself known as to what I was doing for them. I tried to
shelter Joey and not let the band see his weaknesses. To help buy him time to get his "legs" under
him, and how in the end they bad mouthed me in the press and to OVERKILL, which I felt was
uncalled for. However, at the end of the day, they did say things in the press that I felt were
accurate. That I was the only one who captured the band as they were. My production ideas on
Disease in particular, I felt, helped move them to the majors. We had one discussion one day with
the band outside in the parking lot so that no one would overhear us. The gist of it was that this album
has to be produced this way so that you can make the leap to the majors. If you don't feel when all
is said and done that it worked then we never have to work together again. But right now I'm all you
have in your court. I have a book of signatures that is funny as hell when we did this album. Jon and Marsha were still starting out and had no money. I fronted the band over two
thousand dollars in per diems. Every day when I gave them money they had to sign. It got more and
more ridiculous as time went on. I have the signatures of Sigmund Freud, Albert Einstein, Bugs
Bunny etc. We were all stressed and I never really noticed what they were signing until one day I
was looking through it for a certain date and saw what was happening. I had a lot of fun and Danny
Spitz can drive in reverse faster than anyone I've ever met.
Mike Steel:
The only one which I wasnīt satisfied was POSSESSEDīs Beyond the gates, which you did for
COMBAT. I feel you didnīt quite manage to capture the rawness and brutality of the band. What
went wrong with that one?
Carl Canedy:
Many things went wrong with that album. I used an engineer who wasn't into metal. I recorded the
drums with too much ambience. I didn't let them play together live. I overdubbed them. It was a big
mistake. They were young and didn't overdub well at the time. The drummer was all over the place
with his timing but they followed him well. When I removed that element they lost the magic. I felt
that the vocals were much better than what they'd done but musically I was way off base. It was an
embarrassement and I felt badly for the band. I tried my best and just missed the mark. We did it
on there Easter vacation because Larry was still in high school. Great guys and even the mastering
got fucked so our last line let us down.
Mike Steel:
Have you had any musical activities (playing or producing) in recent years?
Carl Canedy:
I have produced many acts. YOUNG TURK (GEFFEN and VIRGIN albums) I've played on John
Hahn's solo album on LEVIATHAN, great guitarist. I've produced many indie bands: VIOLENT
PLAYGROUND (BIG CHIEF), APOLLO RA, ROXX GANG, MUSEUM OF FEAR, ST. JAMES,
DREAMING OUT LOUD plus many more and most recently GRAPHIC VIOLENCE which is an incredibly heavy trio.
http://www.carlcanedy.com
canedy@icontech.com