Here are some awesome interviews that didn't make the cut for issue 3- regardless of how awesome they really are. Sorry for the outdated material- still some cool and funny stuff!
No Apologies
By: David Bednar
Photos: Cam Gardner
It is a rare event indeed that brings hardcore bands from all corners of the world together for such a short amount of time, but the music gods smiled the day that Sound and Fury was created and thus blessed international relations between musicians, fans and even us lowly journalists. After an energetic set Australian hardcore band No Apologies sat down with Invasion to discuss driving in California, holding their own against rival American hardcore bands and the mechanics of a didgeridoo.
Invasion: Hey, so you’re from Australia?
No Apologies: Yes, we’re from Sydney, Australia.
Inv: Australia’s a huge country with kind of nothing in the middle. I don’t mean to be prejudiced or anything, but how does that work as a scene?
NA: No, that’s exactly how it is. There are only five or six capital cities where you can play. There are a few more regional areas now, but it’s nothing like it is here.
Inv: Did you come out just for Sound and Fury?
NA: Yeah, basically. We’re doing a few things before and after but this is pretty much it.
Inv: What are the other things?
NA: We played Chain Reaction, and then we’re going to Mexico to play there.
Inv: How has it been here in California so far?
NA: It’s been eye opening. It’s pretty crazy over here; the roads are ridiculous.
Inv: Is the steering wheel on the other side?
NA: Yeah, but it’s not that as much as the fucking traffic.
Inv: Los Angeles for anyone is an eye-opening experience.
NA: We went to San Diego and it took us six hours from Orange County!
Inv: How do US shows hold up compared to the ones back home?
NA: We’ve toured Europe as well and I’ve seen hardcore worldwide and it’s all pretty similar. Bands play, kids mosh, you sell merch, you leave; but there are small differences. In America, one thing I have noticed, when bands play kids get serious and they get really into it. In Australia, there’s too much bullshit and holding back. Kids just go off here. Seeing Trash Talk last night was amazing and mad props to Violation.
Inv: Was that the first time you heard [Violation]?
NA: No, I have their seven-inch, but they blew me away. I kicked off my thongs and started stage diving with no shoes on.
Inv: For people who might not know much about your band, what’s going on?
NA: Well, at the moment only three of us could make it over here due to jobs. When we get home we’re going to start writing songs and working on another record. We want to play shows and tour.
Inv: How do you feel you guys stand up to American bands? What are your influences?
NA: That’s one problem I think we have in Australia; people tend to put America on a pedestal. Whereas we have some bands in Australia that could hold up to any band I’ve seen this weekend.
Inv: Who are some of those bands?
NA: There’s a band called Mind Snare from Melvin that has been together for years and they’re amazing. Miles Away from Perth, Fifty Lines, Bad Blood from Sydney are great, too. I think one thing about American bands is that they play full time so they’re obviously better as a group, whereas it’s a little harder for us. But, to answer your question how do we compare to other bands, I don’t want sound cocky, but I think we hold our own. That’s the reason I want to put out another record; I think we can do a lot better than the one we did last year. Hindsight is a good word for it.
Inv: How is it being with 6131 Records all the way in California?
NA: Well, that’s just for America. We’re with Resist Records back in Australia.
Inv: You talked about your lyrics being about survival. What about everything else involved?
NA: When I wrote the lyrics to that album, if you read them they’re all on the same line. Every single person in this world, everyone we’re looking at, every single person inside that show, everyone in that street, everyone in the next town has their own shit that they have to deal with. They can put on a fake smile and a fake front, but when they’re at home on their own, that’s what they got deal with. If someone read the lyrics to that record they might think it’s negative, but there is a positive to come out of all the bullshit that you gotta go through. Everyone knows someone who has been through depression and most of us have. You have your good days and your bad days but the survival part is that no matter how good things get or how shitty they get, you just have to deal with whatever gets thrown your way and keep going.
Inv: Tell us about the instrumental part of the record?
NA: Well, when we were working on the record, my friend from out here, Todd Jones, was staying with me and he was a big influence on me and Pete getting started. He gave us one song that he had already written called “Crushed”. He also helped write the title track to our album, “Survival”. It’s influenced very heavily by a song written in the 80s, but you’ll have to figure out for yourself what song that is [laughs]. But I love it, it’s my favorite No Apologies song, and judging from the crowd today, it’s their favorite No Apologies song, too.
Inv: We heard that a didgeridoo is on the album?
NA: Yeah, my girlfriend is part Aboriginal so we got an Aboriginal dude in. A traditional Aboriginal; no bullshit, no white kid doing it. We got permission from his family to record it, which is sometimes complicated. It’s all legit. It’s on the last track.
Inv: I actually have a didgeridoo, but I don’t think many people know what it is. Can you explain it?
NA: A didgeridoo is a hollowed out piece of timber. They blow it out, dry it, and cut a hole through it. It’s an instrument you blow through like a saxophone, except it has no holes; you just have to control it all with your mouth and vibrations. If anyone has ever seen someone do it or tries to do it themselves, it’s hard as shit. They breathe through their nose and do circular breathing.
Inv: He didn’t want to come out and play on tour?
NA: I asked his permission to play it over our PA and he was totally cool with it, but I didn’t actually ask if we could when we came over here. So today I told the PA dude to press play and he did. He gave me the thumbs up and nothing came out and I don’t want to get weird, but it’s like, that music to the Aboriginal people and their culture means a lot to them that could have been, “You didn’t ask permission, so it’s not getting played today.” I don’t know; it didn’t play. You work it out! [Laughs]
Inv: [The band] Pulling Teeth wants to know what you guys are sorry for?
NA: [laughs] Nothing! Ask Pulling Teeth, “What kind of band name is that? Are you dentists?” Tell them that, too!
Inv: Any closing words or shout outs?
NA: Thanks for the interview. Shout out to Beau Thompson, best dude in LA hardcore. Lone Wolf, Snake Eyes, Violation, IA…that’ll do.
RISE AND FALL
STORY: DAVID BEDNAR/MULLET
Photo: XVANX
INVASION: Tell us who you are?
RISE AND FALL: Bejorn from RISE AND FALL
INV: And tell us who you are?
MULLET: I’m Mullet from Guns up! You know me from lots of fun things that people like to dance and boogie down to.
Mullet: So Bejorn about tonight, what did you not do to prepare?
RAF: I didn’t put on different boxers. These ones are brand new and I wanted to save them for special occasions.
Mullet: What did you have for breakfast?
RAF: I had some cereal with milk.
Mullet: What kind?
RAF: Something American that I’d never heard of before.
Mullet: In comparison to the American Americas compared to the Belgium Unions how do you feel?
RAF: Are we comparing cereals?
Mullet: Yeah
RAF: I think our shits better. Europe stands for quality
Mullet: Whats the beef with transfat and Europe?
RAF: Whats that? I’ve never even heard of it.
Mullet: Did you vote for Bush?
RAF: If I could have, I probably would not have voted for Bush. I would vote for Barrack Obama cause that dude’s hard. I think the black man in America needs a pat on the shoulder, some support.
Mullet: If you could change one thing about America what would you change?
RAF: I would probably make sure the east coast and the west coast weren’t so far apart so the mid-west isn’t as much of an issue.
Mullet: Eh, it’s not so cool right?
RAF: It has it’s upsides and it’s downsides.
Mullet: From your experiences touring in America, what are your favorite places to eat at?
RAF: In n Out. It’s my favorite place in the world to eat.
Mullet: Great answer, what do you order at the In n Out Burger?
RAF: Well, the other night we went to an In N Out because it’s all I have thought about for the past year. I got two double doubles, animal style fries, and a seven up.
Mullet. That’s a mans man’s meal. Quick question to put you on the spot, if you could sing for any band what band would you sing for?
RAF: Black Sabbath.
Mullet: Great answer, if you could see any band reunited what band would you do a back flip for?
RAF: Guns Up!
Mullet: Touche sir! Good answer! Final question and closing, how do you feel after your set?
RAF: I feel like my head weighs a ton. It’s kinda like being high.
INVASION: Any Euro bands we should check out.
MULLET: This is actually my interview, so ignore that. Any bands you want to give shout outs to?
RAF: Into the Madness, UnionTown, and band on Collapse.
MULLET: Whats on your playlist lately?
RAF: Lots of Nas. Trapped Under Ice, lots of stuff.
INVASION: Name and what do you do?
GREG FALCHETTO: My name is Greg and I sing for the Mongoloids from New Jersey.
INV: What are some of your favorite venues that you’ve played so far?
FALCHETTO: I love the Chain Reaction; I like the stage, I like how it’s put together.
INV: Let’s talk about Time Trials—this is said to be your best stuff yet; are you guys happy with it so far?
FALCHETTO: Yeah, it’s good! We just released it on Eulogy with two new songs and a bunch of video footage and we redid the packaging and stuff and we’ve been selling it on tour for five bucks. We really want to get it out there! In August we released a split on Double or Nothing Records with Kids Like Us, too.
INV: You guys have been a band for about three years, correct?
FALCHETTO: Yeah, it was three years last August. We did a demo, then we did a split with another New Jersey band, and then we did a few other demo songs on an LP, and then we recorded the 14 song LP of Time Trials that came out on Riptide Records, and then it just came out on Eulogy with two new songs.
INV: Any new bands we should check out?
FALCHETTO: There’s a new band from New Jersey called Jerk City. I enjoy them very much; you should check them out.
INVASION: Okay, let’s start with your name and the bands that you’re in.
BOB WILSON: My name’s Bob and I’m in Let Down and Mother Of Mercy.
INV: Is this your first time out in California?
WILSON: No, Let Down actually toured out here before, it’s pretty cool.
INV: Both Philadelphia bands; is Phillie hardcore at a good place right now?
WILSON: Yeah, it’s really good right now. Us two bands, obviously, I mean, not so much Phillie, but there are a lot of good bands coming out there now.
INV: Let’s talk about the latest Mother Of Mercy album, No Eden. What were some of the goals you had for this album?
WILSON: There was a time when Let Down wasn’t really doing a lot, and me and our drummer got bored and it started because me, our drummer, and one of the guitar players and our bassist did an AFI cover band just for the hell of it; they were all really good musicians and I really wanted to be in a band with them, so we ended up doing a demo and people liked it, I guess… It’s a lot heavier.
INV: Any bands we should check out?
WILSON: War Pigs, Force Fed, Rival Mob, Violation is great, too.
INVASION: What’s your name and what do you do?
PBOY: I’m PBoy and I’m in New Lows and I’m the vocalist.
DOUG: My name’s Doug, and I play guitar for New Lows.
INV: You guys are getting talked about a lot; people are saying you’re the best new band in hardcore. What’s that like?
PBOY: Well, we’ll be working with Deathwish Records soon, which is really amazing. We don’t know if it’s going to be an EP as of yet, I mean, we have a couple songs written but the idea is to write a whole lot more.
INV: You toured with Swamp Thing, another up and coming band; how was that?
PBOY: We actually met up with Swamp Thing in Detroit; we had played some Canada dates before but yeah, it was great. It was a lot of great energy.
DOUG: There is a bit of an age difference; I think some of us are like a decade older than them, but they’re an awesome band.
INV: How has the road and band life been so far? Have you guys been fighting or getting along?
DOUG: Nothing interesting! [Laughs]
PBOY: We’re pretty used to van life, I guess. I’m almost concerned that we’re too happy sometimes… We get along so well, I mean, sometimes we finish each other’s…[pauses]
DOUG: Sentences! [Laughs]
INV: How does the new EP compare to your new demo?
DOUG: I guess it’s not as rough, but the music is pretty much the same.
PBOY: Maybe a bit heavier, though. I think at the end of the day, though, we’re really a live band. The EP was a huge step up for us, but we do love the sound of the demo.
INV: So is this your first time out here in California?
PBOY: Yes, first time out, it’s nice.
INV: But you guys are based in Boston, correct? What is that like?
PBOY: Oh, I guess wicked awesome! [Laughs]
MARK, THE DRUMMER, ENTERS.
INV: Mark, are there any other Boston bands to check out?
MARK: Rival Mob! Waste Management, Living Hell, C.O.A… if we’re going to other states, Mother Of Mercy, Convicted, Street Walkers from Oakland.
INV: What’s up next for New Lows?
MARK: Sleep!
DOUG: More touring…
PBOY: We’ll be demoing some new riffs and stuff soon, when we go home… taking a breather once we get back home.
INV: Final thoughts or closing words?
PBOY: Thanks for all the support!
MARK: Yes, thank you everybody!
THE CARRIER
STORY: DAVID BEDNAR
PHOTOS: Reid Haithcock (provided by Deathwish Records)
INVASION: Who are you and what do you do?
THE CARRIER: My Name is Anthony and I’m in The Carrier. We’ve been together about two years.
INV: You’re a Boston band right?
TC: Yeah, north of Boston. It’s been great; we love it. We just love where we’re from! [Laughs]
INV: Things have been picking up?
TC: Yeah! We have a new release coming out on Deathwish, which is awesome. We get to go on tour all the time.
INV: Is Deathwish really supportive of you?
TC: Yeah, they’re the best label on the planet.
INV: You’re a relatively new band that has grown quickly. How has it been trying to build a fan base?
TC: It’s been pretty cool. We’ve played our asses off, playing as much as possible. It seems like we’re getting good responses from people, they seem to be feeling it. It’s been pretty fun.
INV: What are some of your influences?
TC: I think we’re very drawn to American Nightmare. We always have the weirdest fucking mixes on.
INV: Where do you get your lyrical influences?
TC: The old stuff was personal experience and the newer stuff is just things that I think about, just fucked up shit. The new seven-inch is a third person view of the world ending and different scenarios and shit. I was watching this fucked up thing on the Discovery Channel about what the world is going to be like when humans are gone, and I thought, “You know, that’s really not too far from now. We’re coming to the end.” I wanted people to be able to relate to it and it didn’t seem too far out there. It’s more than a story or something to mosh to.
INV: How has it been touring nationally?
TC: Nothing beats Boston, but touring has been really fun for us. Some shows have been hits and some have been a miss, but that’s to be expected since it’s our first time touring and we’re a younger band. [Here at Sound and Fury] our set was pretty awesome. Our drummer has a broken hand and he played anyway. Our van died, so Sound and Fury is going to be our home for the next three days because we’re pretty much stranded.
INV: How has your newest release on Deathwish been perceived?
TC: Pretty good, I think.
INV: Do you think there has been some progression from your demos?
TC: Yeah, I think we’re becoming more of a unit. We’ve all been playing in bands together since we were kids, but this was the first one we decided to actually take somewhere, you know?
INV: You’re all in still college, right?
TC: Yeah. I took my last final the 16th and I left for tour the 17th. We go back to school September 1st and we get back from tour August 20th. We’ve been trying to stay on tour as much as possible. Next year we’re going to hopefully be doing a brand new record.
INV: Anything you want to add?
TC: Yeah, check out the Bonus Army. They’re the sickest band on the face of the planet. Www.myspace.com/TheBonusArmy
COLD WORLD
Interview By:DAVID BEDNAR
Photos:
INVASION: How has tour been so far?
COLD WORLD: Awesome! Best tour we ever did. [We played with] Trash Talk and Iron Age on every show. Everyone got along and nothing bad has happened. We started touring down the East Coast through Texas to here (Santa Barbara, CA).
INV: You’ve got two fests in a row, right?
CW: We did the Pressure Fest in Germany two weeks before the tour started; that was crazy. Then we’re doing This Is Hardcore.
INV: How’s the new album doing?
CW: The new is album doing well; people like it.
INV: I hear that all the images for the new album are vintage?
CW: I guess technically they’re vintage. My friend’s dad took the pictures in the 70s and we were rummaging through his house one time and found them. We thought they were super cool pictures and we decided to use them since they were all pictures from Wilkesburg. I love the pictures and his dad gave them to us for free.
INV: The song writing on this album has really progressed from Ice Grillz. Was this planned or did it just sort of happen?
CW: Yeah, we wanted to step it up. The earlier shit was stuff people were kind of into then and with this we just wanted to do something that we were into. We drew from different influences. More “song songs”, rather than hardcore songs.
INV: What were some of your influences for this album?
CW: Dinosaur Jr., and a lot of stuff outside of hardcore.
INV: So you guys are influenced by a lot of hip hop? How does that affect the band?
CW: It doesn’t. Once we finish a song we go back in and say, “Oh, this would be cool here.” Sometimes Nick [drummer] will know what he wants in advance. We try it out and sometimes it works.
INV: Nick has some mix tapes out, right?
CW: He does it in his own free time for fun. He doesn’t make any money off it; it’s really cool. It’s something he does to keep himself busy.
INV: Will this be the last tour for awhile? What’s next?
CW: Our singer, Dan, is having a kid at the end of October. It will probably cool things down for a minute, but we’re not done. We’re gonna keep playing. We’re gonna be doing a split with our friends’ band, Strength for a Reason.
INV: Any closing words?
CW: Check out Trapped Under Ice and Title Fight. Check out everyone. Everybody is doing their own thing. Don’t listen to what opinion makers say on the internet.
SWAMP THING
STORY: DAVID BEDNAR
PHOTOS: ZAC WOLF www.zacwolfphotography.com
INVASION: Who are you and what do you do?
SWAMP THING: I’m Robert, and I sing in Swamp Thing.
INV: How long have you been around?
ST: Actually being serious as a band, about two years.
INV: Richmond is known for having a really unique scene. Did you get involved by playing shows?
ST: I got involved by Down To Nothing; it’s kind of hard to miss them when you’re there. I heard them and I wanted to start a band.
INV: Is it a supportive scene?
ST: Yeah, it was awesome when I got into it, but now we have a lack of venues. There isn’t anywhere for us to play shows besides Alley Cats, where United Blood is, but we can’t play there unless we have three or four headliners.
INV: Where are some of your favorite places to play or that you have played back home?
ST: The best place to play ever in my opinion was called Nancy Reagan. It was concrete wall to wall. It was awesome, but they turned it into a bagel shop.
INV: What are some of your influences?
ST: All of us kind of pull from our own areas. Things that I have heard that really blew my head off were Unbroken, Chain of Strength, and Down To Nothing.
INV: How does it feel to be playing on a more national level now?
ST: It just blows my mind that people even listen to a band that’s called Swamp Thing. When we first started we played in a garage, never expecting to leave Richmond, or even leave the suburbs of Richmond, but I’m fucking stoked.
INV: Are you touring on just a demo or do you have another release?
ST: No, we played the hell out of the demo and then it got boring. We put out a seven-inch on 6131 Records and we’ve just been touring on that.
INV: How did you end up on 6131?
ST: We paid to put out the seven-inch ourselves because we thought, “No one’s going to put out a band called Swamp Thing - no one’s that dumb.” [Laughs] We didn’t think anyone outside of Richmond would see the name Swamp Thing and think, “I should really check out that band.” Some of our friends told us we should check out 6131 because they had seen us at This Is Hardcore [Fest] and had really dug us.
INV: How are your relationships holding up with touring so far?
ST: All of us are in a relationship except the bassist and one of the guitarists. Everyone with a girlfriend always has to sneak off and do the duty of talking to them on the phone, be all nice, whatever. Everyone else is having fun. There are new girls everywhere! [Laughs] The relationship within the band, I thought we were going to kill each other. Everyone just keeps it under their breath and deals with it. We need a lot of alone time.
INV: Have you had any problems?
ST: We’ve gotten screwed so many times so far. Our van broke and we had to replace the whole rear axle and we got stranded in this crazy town in California that even when we talked to people in California, they have no idea where it is. It was an expensive fix. We saw a guy get shot to death in Chicago. The mechanics that charged us so much to fix our van stole money that we had left in there like idiots. There was a pre-show last night and some gang tried to rob a bunch of bands.
INV: So you’re touring after Sound and Fury?
ST: Yeah, we have a bunch of dates. We go up into Canada and then back down through California, then into Mexico and back up into central California and then Southeast.
INV: Your last release was Youth is Sick; have you released anything else since then?
ST: We’ve recorded an LP with thirteen new songs. I’m so stoked on it, but I didn’t write a word for it so everyone hates me right now. It’s just music, no words yet.
INV: How has the Sound and Fury experience been?
ST: I thought kids were just gonna stare at us, so I couldn’t be happier with the response. I’m so stoked kids even listen to us. They seem like they’re into it.
INV: Any closing words?
ST: There’s this band NaySayer from Richmond. They’re New York style hardcore, tough as hell. Check them out! Thank you!
Spanish Bombs
By: David Bednar
Photos: Ama
Disclaimer: Invasion Magazine loves Spanish Bombs. What’s more, we love their music, their shows and their crazy, drunken antics. Due to our love of said drunken antics, the following interview is perhaps one of the least informative, but most entertaining conversations we’ve published to date.
Invasion: You guys have been in a bunch of other Jersey bands, right?
Spanish Bombs: Yeah.
Inv: What are some of those?
SB: Me, Dubs, and Sam have been playing since we were like twelve years old. We’ve been in A New Enemy, Robot Whales, etc.
Inv: How long have you guys been playing as Spanish Bombs?
SB: Three years. We definitely went on a hiatus, but yeah, now we’re back.
Inv: So you guys got two demos out right?
SB: We had a demo when we first came back. We played for about a year straight, put out an EP; we all kind of did our own thing. We all played in other bands and Todd started a clothing company. A couple months ago we started playing again and we put out a new demo.
Inv: How have things changed between demos?
SB: They really haven’t. It’s pretty much all the same, very dark, hating women; we had seven songs and now we have ten [laughs].
Inv: How is the clothing company going? You skate too, right? How does that correlate with hardcore?
Todd: It’s going really well. I grew up skating and listening to punk rock, so that kind of went hand in hand. I started screening tee shirts in college and I just kind of went with it.
Russ (taking the recorder from Dave): Tim, for the record what was the thing you just bought from that guy?
SB: I bought a double Vicodin probably 30 minutes ago and I’m starting to feel it.
Inv: Want to introduce yourself?
Russ: I’m Russ, I’m a part time interviewer and I play bass in Underdog.
Inv: So what’s up with the Chubbler?
SB: We bought it on Hollywood Blvd from Feizel. So if you have any kind of Marijuana needs, any pipes, or a violin; if you need a guitar bong, hit up our man Fiezel on Hollywood Blvd and he will hook you up! Or henna tattoos, vanilla whip-its, he’s got ‘em!
Inv: Were you well versed with this man?
SB: Yeah, he said he blew the pipes himself but I don’t know. Fiezel man, look him up.
Inv: So are you guys doing anything after Tijuana? Have you been there before?
SB: [laughs] Yup! We played TJ and we got fucking wasted on pills. We got to the border and all simultaneously threw up. I do wanna say that TJ was one of the coolest shows we’ve ever played. It was fucking rad. It was with this band from Mexico, Red Awakening, Lion of Judah, and it had a really cool vibe. It was in this driveway outside with just a bunch of kids coming to see some bands.
Inv: Do you guys plan on getting wild again?
SB: Yeah we just take it as it comes.
Inv: Any bands we should check out?
SB: Pregnant, Psyched to Die, and Spanish Bombs.
Inv: Any last words?
SB: Check out Death Traders. We’re all dying in 2012. Mad shout outs to Bobby Teenager. If you have a savory vagina and want it eaten by four strapping young lads from the Jersey Shore, you just come to the Spanish Bombs merch tent. Any women who need drugs, also. I’m a potential rapist. I write music for potential rapists and people who do drugs or feels like they’re an outsider.
