THE HARD ROCK’N BI-WEEKLY MAGAZINE
#64
This Is: I, The Breather This Is: Interview with I, The Breather, On Tour: Interview with Mark Kasprzyk of Redlight King, 12 Things to Know About Being a Tour Manager, 7 Obnoxious Assholes Who Show Up At Every Concert
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12 Things to Know About TOUR MANAGING By Nick Rhodes
Mike Polans estimates he’s seen over 400 Disco Biscuits shows. But while you may be in the front of the stage dancing your ass off or unwinding from a tough week, Polans spends a lot of his time sitting backstage crunching numbers and responding to emails. Since 2006, Polans has been The Disco Biscuits’ tour manager, booking hotels and flights and dealing with a cavalcade of setbacks that are inevitable with a nationally touring act. As a tour manager, he may not book the actual venues, but his responsibilities are widespread, including having to work around guitarist Jon “The Barber” Gutwillig’s injured wrist last Spring and the epic East Coast blizzard and drummer Allen Aucoin’s illness this past New Year’s Run. Here’s a list of 12 things to know about being a tour manager for one of the hottest acts in the scene. Hopefully, the next time you catch the band at a venue on time and in one piece, you'll have a greater appreciation for Polans and his work. 1. As a tour manager, you’re responsible for advance planning and scheduling Polans is in charge of everything from making travel arrangements, including flights, buses, cars, trains, limos and taxis, to booking the hotels and making sure a crew is in place. And then he has to deal with the actual show planning. “I work together with the production manager to handle the sound, the lights, the staging, security, passes, hospitality,” he said. “Everything needs to be gone over in detail beforehand.” 2. Polans got involved with tour managing at a young age and got hooked up with The Disco Biscuits in October 2006 “I was a promoter for a little while and finally convinced a band to let me tour manage and I found my true calling,” he said. “My first six or seven years in the business, I knew I had found the perfect thing.” 3. The biggest challenges for tour managers are also the ones that can’t be anticipated “That’s pretty much the test of a good tour manager,” Polans said. “Not how you handle all your advancing when everything goes right, but the decisions you have to make when things don’t go right.” 4. The first night of The Disco Biscuit’s 2010 New Year’s Eve run proved to be the toughest challenge of all “On Saturday [Christmas], I got a call from Allen’s father who said that Allen was in the hospital,” he explained. “We formed a crisis team with the other three band members.” Polans had to find replacements on extremely short notice eventually booking The New Deal’s (Cont’d)
Darren Shearer, Lotus’ Mike Greenfield, Break Science’s Adam Deitch and the band's former drummer Sam Altman. But the hurdles kept coming. “Then on Sunday, the biggest blizzard ever hit the area,” he said. Polans had a truck picking up the lighting rig in upstate New York, which was in danger of not being able to make the scheduled delivery. On top of that, he needed to make an executive decision to send the band and crew early while trains were still running. Then, crewmembers were forced to pull out after their flights got canceled. To top it off, the truck from Pittsburgh carrying the band’s lasers was forced to make an unplanned stop in Newark, NJ that turned dangerous. “[The driver] got jacked by some thugs in Newark and had his phone stolen,” Polans said. “Luckily, he was smart enough to tell the guys that the trunk was empty so they didn't steal our equipment.” Once they got to the venue, their load-in was delayed even further and promoters thought about canceling the event. “Keep in mind, this is all for one show.” 5. Just like in professional sports, injuries can be devastating When Barber hurt his wrist messing around backstage in March 2010, Polans was scrambling to figure out how to make the show go on. “I was in the ambulance that took him to the hospital and stayed by his side for 48 hours,” Polans said. “They reset his wrist and when the painkillers wore off, I’ve never seen someone in more pain before in my life. He was turning white.” Barber decided it would be best to have the surgery and Polans booked the best hand surgeon in New York City. “Of course I get nervous every time they go out snowboarding or whitewater rafting,” he said. “We try to get them to take their skiing vacations after the tour.” 6. Being away from the band means being helpless The show that night did go on as a free event with guest guitarists scheduled to appear, but was cut short by the Boston Fire Department at set break due to clogged exits and other alleged violations. “It was devastating to not be there when the Fire Marshal came to shut down the show,” Polans said. “I don’t know if being there would have made a difference, but that show wound up blowing up in our faces and there was nothing I could do.” Though Polans is always looking ahead to avoid potential problems, things like this are sometimes unavoidable. “The one thing you can’t account for is what happens when things don’t go right.” 7. The Disco Biscuits roll deep, even abroad “Touring has become such a big part of their culture and who they are,” Polans said. “When we did the Europe tour a couple of years ago, we were a group of 20 people.” Think booking you and your friends’ hostels for a two-week backpacking trip is tough? Try 20 people for a few months. 8. A good tour manager has ice water in his veins “The biggest thing is patience and the ability to stay calm in stressful situations,” Polans said. “There’s a lot thrown at you on a day-to-day basis and a lot of people would react emotionally. You have to be the rock holding everything together.” Polans also stressed being steadfast and strong when calling the shots. “You need to be able to make firm decisions and stick with them,” he said. “There’s not really room to be second-guessing what you’re doing as a leader. 9. Tour managing is perfect for the consummate traveler “I love being in different places and experiencing different cultures,” Polans said of the perks. “I love eating at different restaurants all over the world and seeing friends all over the country all the time.” Polans also loves the feeling of satisfaction he gets watching a crowd of people go crazy at the show. “You feel the energy in the room and know that you successful pulled off this great moment in music,” he said. “That’s why I’m there – I love bringing other people’s music to fans.” (Cont’d)
10. While you’re raging at the show, Polans is usually sitting with a calculator or responding to emails But it’s not all glamorous traveling, eating exotic food and catching up with old friends. “When the band gets on stage is the first moment of the day when I can kind of breathe for a second,” he said. “This isn’t very exciting, but I do a lot of my accounting work when it’s quiet backstage because it requires a lot of intense focus and concentration.” Polans admits he tries to catch at least some of the show on a nightly basis to see how they played and how the crowd reacted, but to him, being at a Disco Biscuits concert is still work. 11. Inevitably, a tour manager becomes a jack-of-alltrades “As my relationship with the band has grown, there’s a lot more things I’m involved in like running the merchandise organization,” Polans said. His role in the decision making process has increased mightily, but there’s one misconception he wants to clear up about tour managers and that’s the fact that . . . 12. . . . the tour manager does NOT book the venues. Sure, Polans has a say, but it’s the agents and booking people who handle that aspect at the behest of the band. “I get involved in the process as it relates to the logistics and production of pulling off a particular event,” he explained. So next time the Disco Biscuits skip your favorite town, don’t take it out on him.
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On Tour: Mark Kasprzyk of Redlight King Interview by Jason McCully PI: So we just caught your set here on Uproar, you guys were absolutely amazing. You guys obviously have the big single going on that’s on all our local radio stations. Now this isn’t new to you, you’ve done your own solo thing for a while. Now that Redlight King is really starting to take off, how does it feel? RLK: It feels really good. I mean it’s one of those things where it’s a part of who I am. I’m always making music and I’ve been recording for 12 years, touring and making music. So, it’s just nice to be able to do this for a living, to be able to wake up every day playing for people who are singing your songs back to you. That’s the cats ass for me, is when songs that I’ve written really affect people. Because I’m a fan, I’m a music fan. So I know what it’s like to have my playlists, to be in my car going to work fuckin’ playing these songs. Waking up in the morning, you know, putting on tunes. So that’s it. It’s just good to be a part of people’s lives and out here with these incredible bands on Uproar right now. So things are good man, I really can’t complain, if I would people would wanna fight me. You know it’s been a long, long grind man. Like I said been doing this a long time, but things are good man. I’m really diggin’ Redlight King, digging our sound and where the band’s going. So it’s good, things are good! PI: What kind of direction are you trying to take it in? RLK: Well it’s kind of done its doing its own thing, ya know? We are going to continue to have our own original sound but I think it’s going to be a little heavier , a little harder and a little faster on the next record. A lot of this record was in the studio, and a lot of the songs I wrote were very personal songs. Things that happened in my life things that I really relate to myself, I think on the next record lyrically I think I’m going to step outside of that for a bit, and write different types of songs. PI: Now since Redlight King has taken off really, really fast, not everybody might know your entire story. Let’s talk about the name Redlight King, obviously it has something to do with the automobiles and you’re a collector right? RLK: Well, you know I really wouldn’t. PI: Maybe not a collector but you’ve had some very cool automobiles. RLK: Yeah I’ve stolen a few cars. If you mean collecting them, yeah I’ve definitely “collected” a few. I’ve got an old T-bird and I’m building a 37 Lincoln Zephyr, so I got a few neat cars. I’ve got an old 50 pan head that I ride. PI: Nice! RLK: I’m a Harley guy all the way! PI: Now how did you get into that, did you fall into it? Did you get it from your Father? RLK: My old man was a racecar driver and he dragged raced. In fact we used to drag in Reading Pennsylvania, I remember being a kid and we had like an old ram charger pickup truck that towed the racecar. He would be fuckin’ screaming down these highways, this was before you lost your license doing a hundred. Now you know they won’t let you fuckin’ drive, but back then we were towing a racecar through Pennsylvania, it was the shit! That’s a fond memory of mine of when I was a kid. PI: Now I’ve gotta ask you, kind of on that same topic, you’re from Canada right? RLK: Yeah. PI: What the hell are you doing in our area, how did you get to Reading?
(Cont’d)
RLK: Racing was much like music, once you’re in your certain town and you’ve raced everybody kind of made your name, you want to go out elsewhere. I think the old man was just doing that, I mean the tracks. There was a time 20 years ago when there was a racetrack every hundred miles, but now it’s different. We would do Lancaster, New York, Indianapolis. We would do Ohio, Reading PA, just a bunch of tracks that we used to hit. It was just homemade stuff that he built, you know street cars. He had a nine second duster, he had the original red light bandit, which was a nine ninety car, that was a barracuda. That’s where the name came from. Red light bandit, I decided that we will call ourselves Redlight King. It’s also kinda like owning your screw-ups, your fuck-ups right. It’s just like all these times I’ve hit all these barriers in my life, but I just don’t stop. It’s like saying you’re the king of red lights, kind of a street name. Kind of like a racecar. PI: You’ve got the background, the speed in your blood. I can see the relation you have with these fans screaming for you onstage, there has got to be that similar adrenalin rush right? Is it the same? RLK: Yeah, it’s great man. Especially on a tour like this, so many big bands you can get behind the big PA, you can make some noise. We don’t get to do that, it’s not like rehearsal every day. When you’re out here, you’re doing it! It’s the big day for us. There’s a similar feeling, I get an actual sense of calm. When I’m out there I feel at home, I really do. I feel like this is what I’m supposed to do, and it’s really just nice playing and having fun. That is what everyone is there to do, I’ve always had a problem if I was out there trying too hard, trying to impress somebody. All the works done before we go to the concert, it’s all pre-production, writing great songs, working the band, just getting all those parts tight. So when you’re out there, you’re just fuckin’ showing everyone what you got! That’s how it is for me. PI: Uproar’s been really, really receptive to you. Now you guys have a busy day, you’re doing press, you’re doing signings, I caught you at your settle down time. What happens the rest of the night? Are you going to go catch any of the main stagers? RLK: Sometimes I do yeah. We’re friends with the Shinedown guys. We are going out with them in Europe after this as direct support, for about three, three and a half weeks. PI: How does that come about? Is that politics from networks among tours. Is that a label thing? RLK: In this particular case I think Shinedown had fifty bands they could choose from and they chose us. They just really liked what we we’re doing, which I think it’s a real honor to go out with them. So I don’t know if that is necessarily politics, I think it’s a direct result from writing good songs and working hard. PI: That’s very cool man, how long can you see yourself doing this? RLK: Until the day I die. Yeah a long time, I’ve worked my whole life to be able to do it, so now that I’m doing it to think of doing something else is just totally bizarre! (PI) Go big or go home. (RLK) Hell yeah. PI: On this tour, you’re with some of the younger bands that are just starting to get exposed a little bit to fame. So obviously some of them act a little differently compared to some of the other guys like P.O.D that’s been around for a while. Although your band is relatively new, but you, yourself, this isn’t new to you. Do you feel like you’re already settled into your groove or is it still kind of a rush? RLK: No, it’s good, I feel like a veteran out here in a way. It’s a new band, it’s a new look, but at the end (Cont’d)
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of the day, we are pros, we put on a good show. I can feel that, I can feel the respect from the other guys in the other bands. It’s a really good feeling, I feel good. PI: Somehow the tour ends and somehow you end up on a desert island, out of all this music you know and you love.. RLK: How small is the island? <Laughs> (PI) It’s a very small desert island, the only thing you’re able to salvage is two albums (RLK) Oh fuck. (PI) Who are those two albums and why? (RLK) That’s an insane question man. (PI) It is, we we’re arguing for over an hour about this. (RLK It’s not fair! (PI) You gotta pick two man. (RLK) It’s just not fair. (PI) We asked the same question to Sonny from P.O.D, he picked Bob Marley and Bad Brains. (RLK) Someone asked me a similar question and instantly my mind went to Bob Marley because of the sanity, he is just such a calm dude. In fact that’s a very good answer; like Pantera would be a great record to have but you might actually drive yourself insane! You might not last on that island too long! Bob’s a good guy, I’d pick maybe something like cool and chill, hmm I’d pick like Robert Johnson. Just real cool blues you know, I think he recorded something like 27 songs total in his career. So I’d get all of those, very traditional, one of the earliest blues legends in our time. I look to him because what he did was so honest, pure and cool. I don’t know, I’m not sure what other kind of record. Oh, I’d pick The Police! The Police would not be bad, sending out an S.O.S! PI: That wouldn’t be a bad album. RLK: Yeah, I don’t know. That’s a shitty question. (PI) It is, it’s a tough one! (RLK) Who did you pick? (PI) Hybrid Theory by Linking Park (RLK) Yeah shit! That’s cool! (PI) It’s a great one I just keep playing over. (RLK) That’s cool that you like Linkin Park like that! (PI) I also picked Mike Ness, cheating at solitaire. (RLK) That’s dope man, some social D style! You know I just started getting into Rancid again. I didn’t get into them soon enough man, but then I was like… Fuck, these guys are so wicked! Our next record is going to have some roots, tradition in it. I’m a big fan of song writers like Dylan and Petty and Springsteen anyways. They have some real lyrics not just dropping some notes. I also like a lot of early hip-hop, when they we’re kind of leading the trend in story writing, back in the day like A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, and The Roots. Just good music! PI: Does all that come out in your writing style? RLK: Oh yeah, I like everything. I just like everything that hits me in a good spot. Whether it’s the hard-core frame of mind, don’t get me wrong man, I like straight ahead rock. I like Zeppelin and Soundgarden is putting a new record out. I like rock man, I’m a rock guy, I like playing rock but I like going deeper too to see what else people are saying out there. PI: We are definitely looking forward to following your career and thank you so much for taking the time to get Plug’d In! RLK: I appreciate it, no problem, I appreciate you man. Thanks for taking the time.
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7 Obnoxious Assholes Who Show Up At Every Concert
By: Adam Tod Brown During the summer, damn near every band that's ever sold a song on iTunes hits the road, jetting from town to town to play live shows for throngs of adoring fans. Maybe you'll go to some of these shows. When you do, these people will be there to completely ruin shit for you. #7 The Whirling Dervish- In her natural state, she is a blur of flying dreadlocks and sallow Caucasian skin. At rest, she usually takes the form of a hairy-pitted woman who inexplicably turns up at any and every type of musical event on earth. Do organic food slurping, sandal wearing hippies really listen to Lil' Wayne? Probably not. But her long strange trip has led her here, and she's going to make the most jamband-tastic time out of it that she can. While everyone around her alternates between enjoying the show and getting the fuck out of her way, this bundle of ginseng and scalp lice is dancing around like an ancient shaman trying to summon rain to save this year's harvest. And that's fine, provided you're at some sort of outdoor festival where there is ample grazing room. But when you're packed like sardines in the lower bowl of an arena, her arm waving, 360-degree spinning antics grow old really fast. To add to the misery, it's all but guaranteed that her constant flailing will be performed while chain smoking American Spirits, leaving you to spend the evening thinking less about the show and more about how to ensure you escape without a third-degree burn to the forehead. What They Think This Says About Them: "I'm a free spirit. Sometimes the music just speaks to my soul and moves me, albeit in a dorky, awkward fashion." What It Really Says About Them: "The stench of patchouli emanating from my nether regions could kill a small village." #6 The Hater- How or why the hater ended up sitting near you is never immediately clear. Maybe their significant other insisted on dragging them along to see a band they hate. Maybe they just like paying eight dollars for beer. Whatever the case, they are here now and they can't believe anybody listens to this shit. No matter how exuberant the crowd reaction, no matter how beloved the song may be, the hater is unwavering in their dedication to annoying everyone around them by hurling boos and slurs in the direction of the band on stage. Approximately three songs into the set, your ability to con-
stabbing them in the kidney. What They Think This Says About Them: "My taste in music is beyond compare. I know good music and this isn't it. You're all a bunch of idiots for listening to this stuff. Nickelback rules." What It Really Says About Them: "I'm too much of a pussy-whipped nancy boy to even consider saying no when my girlfriend asked if I wanted to go see John Mayer. Instead, I will express my disappointment in myself by way of a rampant display of fuckstickery." #5The Set List Generator- Yelling out "Freebird!" at concerts is a tradition that goes back, well, about 30 years or so. When it happens today, it's generally accepted that the perpetrator is an attention seeking lowlife that deserves a rigorous beating with a bag of herpes infected oranges. But in that person's defense, it's usually just a misguided attempt at a joke. Unless of course they are actually at a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert, in which case, there is a good chance they just lost a close relative in a tragic Tilt-a-Whirl operating accident and want to hear the song so the healing can begin. But the Set List Generator has no defense. This dickface is apparently unaware that most bands decide what they're going to play well in advance, and immediately begins shouting requests for the same song whenever the band reaches the midway point of whatever song they've decided to play. It goes without saying that the song they are requesting is the most popular song the performer has ever recorded and is probably not going to be played until the encore at the very end of the show. So, you get to listen to this fucking caterwauling all night long. What They Think This Says About Them: "I appreciate that you are a professional musician and all, but really, I think you need some guidance in how to proceed with this live show." What It Really Says About Them: "I blow my loads way too early and it makes me feel better when rock bands do the same." #4 The Camera Phone Paparazzo- Finally seeing your favorite band in person is a great experience. It's only natural that you would want to snap a photo or two to remember the night. Most venues aren't going to let you bring that $900 Canon with the 4000x zoom telephoto lens in with you. Instead, most people just rely on their camera phone, ensuring that the entire show will be forever captured in blurry as fuck 1.3 megapixel detail. Most people realize their phone isn't improving on the garbled jungle of lights and shadowy figures they get on the first try, and go back to actually enjoying the show. But the Camera Phone Paparazzo is not so easily deterred. They continue the photo shoot well into the encore and beyond. If they are next to you, your evening will be filled with strobe light effects constantly invading your peripheral vision as they check and recheck their tiny LCD. If you're directly behind them, you might as well go home. Unless you've payed retarded amounts of money for floor seats, from where you're sitting the stage is likely the same size and half as bright as whatever photographic shit stain happens to be lighting up their phone. What They Think This Says About Them: "This occasion means so much that I will carry cherished memories of it with me for all my days or until I run out of memory space and have to delete the pictures to make room for that Keyboard Cat video." What It Really Says About Them: "My life is so devoid of meaning that whenever I do anything remotely cool, I have to gather as much evidence as possible.â&#x20AC;? #3 The Bootlegger- It's a pretty safe bet that, where there is a major band playing live, there is also someone in the crowd with $65,000 worth of pocket sized recording equipment. And you know what? That's fucking great! There is no better souvenir than a high quality recording of the live show you were at. With that said, the last thing you want is to be sitting next to that person while the tape is rolling. If you think we're cranky about the shenanigans people pull at concerts, we've got nothing on The Bootlegger. That ironic "Members Only" jacket you're wearing? It's making a sound that their high end $1200 microphone keeps picking up, take it off please. Just where do you get off clapping and showing enthusiasm over an expertly executed guitar solo? If you want to express your admiration, leave a comment on the band's MySpace page. And that barely audible whisper to your friend about jumping the guy who keeps shushing you during a goddamn rock concert? Too loud, please limit any future correspondence to mental telepathy and hand signals only. Or alternately, just find him in the parking lot after the show. He'll be the guy (Contâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d)
driving the rape van with the giant antenna on the roof. What They Think This Says About Them: "I am a skilled technician who deserves the utmost respect and silence from a crowd of 20,000 people." What It Really Says About Them: "I may have flunked out of the audio recording and technology course at my local junior college, but the dream lives on." #2The Cool Parents- Unless you're checking out Hannah Montana, there is no good reason anyone under the age of 12 should be anywhere in your vicinity at a concert. (If you're reading this and you've been to a Hannah Montana concert without child accompaniment, you should just add your name to the sex offender registry now. Go ahead, we'll wait.) On the list of things you shouldn't do with kids, immersing them in a sea of drunken revelers while jet engine decibel level music blares in their face has to be near the top. But the Cool Parent is too hip for conventional rules. In a perfect world, the parents would keep a close eye on their youngster to make sure they aren't running around annoying the shit out of everyone else. But if they did that, they wouldn't be shitty parents and, in turn, wouldn't have a kid there in the first place. Instead, at some point the shitty parent gene takes hold and the kid is left to their own devices. This usually means standing on the seat in front of you or somewhere in the aisle next to you doing spastic little kid dances in an effort to siphon as much of your attention away from the show as possible. And while their parents have honed their ability to tune out their particular frequency of annoying, you and everyone else get to say goodbye to an awesome evening spent rocking. What They Think This Says About Them: "I wish my dad was cool enough to take me to rock shows when I was growing up!â&#x20AC;? What It Really Says About Them: "I will risk my child's hearing to save money on a babysitter.â&#x20AC;? #1The Chronic Alcoholic- The Chronic Alcoholic is the alpha and omega of concert nuisances, a wobblier, pukier version of every one of the assholes we've mentioned up to this point with the exception of the cool parent (although there's a good chance they'll be peeing their pants and crying like a giant toddler by the end of the night). Of course, there's nothing wrong with enjoying a few drinks at a concert. Who doesn't do that? But for the Chronic Alcoholic, drinking is the purpose for and sole focus of leaving the house that night. They carry themselves with a special kind of swagger that says, "Really, there's a concert tonight? I had no idea." You won't even know you're sitting next to this guy until right after the show starts. Up to that point, their seat is completely unoccupied because they're out in the lobby getting trashed. But at some point during that first song, they'll come stumbling and slurring their way down the aisle. Once that happens, you're in for a joyous evening of off -key singing, excessive talking and unwelcome physical contact. In addition to that, the following things are all but guaranteed to occur during your concert experience: -They will stumble into you, simultaneously spilling your beverage and theirs. -They will spill a drink on the aggressive meathead in front of them. -Your jaw will be shattered as part of the collateral damage from the ensuing fist fight. -There will be vomit.
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1402 N. 9th Street Reading, PA 19604 Www.reverbconcerts.com Friday, September 28th: EAST COAST TSUNAMI lll FESTIVAL 2012 KICK OFF PARTY Saturday, September 29th: EAST COAST TSUNAMI lll FESTIVAL 2012 – Biohazard – Cro Mags -Vision Of Disorder – One Life Crew – Dirty Rotten Imbeciles – The Casualties – Strength For A Reason – No Turning Back – The Mongoloids – Vehement – Serenade – Bottomfeeder – Choose Your Weapon -Reason To Fight – Pleasant Living – Ante Up – x Sluggernaut x Sunday, September 30th: EAST COAST TSUNAMI lll FESTIVAL 2012 – Sick Of It All – H2O – Agnostic Front – Madball – DYS – Animal Haus – Backtrack – Dysphoria – Born Low – Lifeless – Sai – Nam – Sicker Than Most – Not Till Death – Homewrecker EAST COAST TSUNAMI lll FESTIVAL 2012 – WEEKEND PASS: Saturday Sept 29 + Sunday Sept 30th Wednesday, October 3rd: Mantra and Kieran Strange + more. Thursday, October 4th: Dead Superstar – The Breathing Theory – Stingy Jack – and more Friday, October 12th: TERRIBLE THINGS + Atlantic Avenue – Call Me Crazy – Early Flight Home. Saturday, October 27th: FRIGHT FEST : TWIZTID – HED(pe) – Lil Wyte – Potluck Tuesday, November 6th: MASERATI – MAJEURE – NORTH END – YOU YOU DARK FOREST
This Is: Interview with I, The Breather Interview by Jason McCully At the end of Mayhem Fest I had the chance to sit down with Chase Kozlowski and Shawn Spann from I, The Breather. These guys have been hitting the fast track pretty hard recently and we’re super stoked to be finishing up a huge fest like Mayhem. I caught up with them right after their set and here’s what they had to say…J.M. PI: Guys, Mayhem Fest, not a bad step up for you guys. It’s been a couple years now, second album right? ITB: Yep, that’s correct! PI: What’s the plan after this thing? ITB: Just to go for it, to start working on the new album, do some touring, and then we are going to have a break. PI: Have you ever played something of this size before? ITB: Um no. Never a mainstream festival tour like this, this is insane! I mean we have played festivals of this caliber I guess, but it’s like mundane. (PI) Right, not a huge touring thing. (ITB) Yeah, not every day. PI: Very cool, so what do you think? You want to be musicians and keep on doing this? ITB: Laughs. Oh yeah, this is our life. I think this is what we were all made to do in this band. I mean it’s hard, but it takes a certain person and I feel like we have the right lineup right now to get where we need to be. PI: Now you had gotten rid of, Armand had left the band right? ITB: Correct. (PI) What’s the new guys’ name? I’m sorry (ITB) Conor . (PI) Conor, now how is Coner acclimating to the band? (ITB) Conor is doing well, I mean you’re working out those first tour kinks, as it always is. But he’s a great addition to the band in every aspect. Onstage, you know I think in every category he is a step up and has only taken us up. PI: You guys are in some good company here with As I Lay Dying and The Devil Wears Prada, how does it feel to play with those guys? ITB: They are heroes of ours. You know, growing up we listened to those bands, it’s humbling to be on tour with them. We love them, they have been bands quadruple the amount of time we have. We grew up listening to those dudes and they are all really nice to us, we all get along really well and it’s crazy! PI: Now what do you think about some of these younger guys that are playing the Sumerian stage now? You think maybe they got a chance? Because I know in each market they always pick a battle for mayhem band. You see anybody that you guys like so far? Have you been able to catch anybody’s set? ITB: Yeah there have been a couple bands, for the first three weeks of the tour we were on that stage before we switched to the other stage. You hear good bands every day, then there’s other typical bands that want to be like Slipknot or other metal bands. It’s a little bit different for us, but there might be people that like us. Every band is good, every day. I mean they were good enough to be here, they all deserve to be here. They had to do something right ya know? (Cont’d)
PI: Obviously there’s a learning curve for a festival like this, what has kind of shocked you guys anything? ITB: Hydration. Which is nice because basically unlimited water and Rockstar everywhere so that’s good. And the biggest shock in a good way is the food, catering, getting to eat that food every day! The catering is insane and everything about it, it’s the best shock that we’ve had. PI: Now you guys go on earlier during the daytime that kinda frees you up after you do your press. Who are you sticking around to watch play on the main stage? ITB: Slipknot. I’ll probably go to sleep after this, going to get my sleep first. Slipknots live show is second to none, end of story. PI: Any Slayer fans? ITB: Not really Slayer fans, I mean the live shows sick, but I was never a huge fan. But I mean, it’s hard to not want to watch them! PI: It’s like metal royalty. Speaking of metal royalty you got Motorhead. These guys were doing this before you guys were born! What do you think, have you had the chance to meet those guys? ITB: I had a chance to meet Lemmy, super nice. As all the big rock star dudes on this tour have been really nice. No real egos, just really nice guys. Legends! PI: Why do you think that is? Why are these guys settled? ITB: Yeah they are, I think maybe they had their time. Surely they have their time now, but maybe they do just want to chill and not be so wild. They all have families, you know you can’t tour forever man it’s hard. Really hard, especially hardcore touring. PI: What’s the hardest part of this for you guys? ITB: Being away from home, being away from your loved ones, is easily the hardest thing. Luckily enough I have all mine right there, all four of them. PI: That’s cool, it’s cool to see you guys are staying grounded because for your type of music and the way you guys stand for your beliefs. People do sometimes get sidetracked, and with something like this it’s a little crazy. It’s nice to see you guys are staying down. But what do you guys want people to know about you? You’re doing press now, everything has obviously picked up. But not everybody knows you. What do you want them to know about you? To bring new fans in, what do you want them to understand about you? ITB: I mean I would just say, listen to us before you judge. We are a real band, we don’t, we all have… PI: Hold on hold on, I have to touch on this. What’s a real band? ITB: A real band is a band who when you go on stage and the crowd believes you when they watch. There’s no fake, there’s no hidden agenda. We are not in it for the partying, we are not in it for, well not to say the (Cont’d)
money, I mean obviously. PI: Sure you know. ITB: We sing about real things and we are passionate about it. PI: We won’t see you guys in rehab next month or anything right? ITB: No, we like having fun but that’s not our thing. We have fun, we drink and have a good time but you know, kind of like you said we are a grounded band. We just want to write fast heavy music, music that people like, catchy music. PI: So what do you want them to know about you, that they don’t know yet? ITB: A lot of people think that, we are like a super Christian band. That has been something that’s been perceived since day one. We are a bunch of Christian dudes in a band but we still live lives like everyone else, we are all a bunch of older responsible dudes. And I feel like sometimes kids, they focus on stupid little tiny things. PI: They do, they love to label. ITB: The swearing, the drinking. I’m almost 25 years old and no disrespect. But to have a 16 year old kid that I’m living my life wrong... I’m almost 25, I’m me and I know who I am. And if I want to smoke a cigarette and drink a beer, then I’m going to smoke a cigarette and have a beer. I’m not going to go to hell for it. People just need to open up their eyes, a lot of people that do listen to us and do read our lyrics are like wow I’ve been living like this and I didn’t even realize it. So that’s a good thing to hear! PI: That’s cool because even us as press we do tend to bulk people into categories, like this is a Christian tour and this is a death tour but you guys are individuals. ITB: Right, what makes me better than anyone else because I believe something? Oh, we are a Christian band, cool. That doesn’t make me any better than the next person or any less. PI: Things have been spinning pretty quickly for you guys the past couple of years. Have you had a chance to think, how things going to be in the next couple years. What do you wanna do, what do you wanna accomplish? ITB: In the next couple years we want to move up, we want to headline! We want to be a headlining band, we don’t wanna be a support band forever. We have to pay our dues, work our way up. But I mean, in the next couple years, we want to be on top. PI: Is there a plan to put that in place? ITB: Writing a new record, aside from writing new catchy heavy music that we love, we want to work on our image. Not saying we want to go all out and wear masks, but we want to work on every aspect of this band. So if this fails in the end, we tried everything we could! PI: Development is important. It’s a bitch man. It’s a business. ITB: So true! PI: Thanks for sitting down with us and giving us the chance to get Plug’d In! ITB: Alright man, thanks so much!
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Baltimore, MD October 27th