|
|
This interview was done on 12/24/99. Enjoy!
Josh Nacho: What made you decide to form a band? What first got you into
music?
Blank Theory: We had been going to shows for years, everything from Metallica
to local shows at Metro. There was definately a connection to music very
early on. Matthew and I (Nathan) had never played any sort of instrument
until we were about 20. We always loved music and both decided that we wanted careers out of it. In 1995 we began working in the idustry, I at Scratchie Records and Matthew at BMG. We hooked with an old friend who was a guitar prodigy at a
very young age and basically he began teaching us how to play. About a year
into it we hooked up with a fairly accomplished drummer (who was actually
quite ahead of our expectations). The 4 of us were very much on the same
page about what we wanted out of music. We all had a very emotional
connection to it.
J.N.: Who are some of your biggest influences?
BT: It's kind of intersting, our band is some what of a dichotemy as far as
influences are concerned. Michael Foderaro, who is our lead guitarist and
primary song-writer has grown up on Jimi Hendricks, Black Sabbath, Johnny Ca
sh, and absolutely everything in between. Our drummer Jim had a very
similar musical up-bringing but focused more on Slayer, Primus, the
Beatles, etc. Matthew (bass) and I were not very well schooled in older
music but focused on modern indie rock such as Built To Spill, Idaho, At the
Drive In, Heroic Doses. So the blend of all influences really clicked well
for us. Add to the mix Radiohead, Soundgarden, Stooges, etc.
J.N.: If you could tour with any band, past or present, who would it be and
why?
BT: I think the Stooges would have been amazing to tour with based on Iggy's
energy as a person. Not only was his stage presence unprecendented, but he
seemed to carry that energy with him everywhere else as well. As far as
modern-day bands, we really respect the Deftones. They have an amazing live
show and their music is head and shoulders above 99% of the crap out there.
J.N.: If you had to describe your music to someone who has never heard it
before, how would you describe it?
BT: We are a groove-oriented loud rock band. We've been refered to as a
power-rock, metal-alternative band, but the truth is we have a lot of really
diverse material. When we play live, we like to give audiences energy so we
play mostly our hard hitting stuff but we've recorded some really out there
shit. Most of our songs have a groove and melodies which somewhat separates
us from the death-metal label.
J.N.: What plans do you have for the future? (i.e. album releases, tours)
BT: We've done several tours through the Midwest, South, and East Coast and
we'll continue to do so. Recently, Arista Records brought us out to NYC to
play a showcase at CBGB's. They treated us very well, putting us up in a
hotel, buying our meals, parking the van, and giving us some spending money
while were there. Currently we're talking to them about a deal but some
personal changes are happening right now which has delayed things. We
expect to have a full-length out within a year.
J.N.: What do you do to get noticed? What extra steps do you take to get
kids to listen to your band, because you don't have the mainstream radio play
and Mtv coverage?
BT: That's the hardest thing. Chicago doesn't have a lot of all-ages venues.
We've played several Metro shows and that has been the best thing for us so
far because they're usually at least 18 and up. We've got a website,
stickers, t-shirts, and some other promotional material that helps but it
really takes a lot more than that. We've started going to all-ages Metro
shows (like Local H, Get Up Kids, etc.) to hand out flyers and stickers to
the kids and that's been fantastic. We've also played at some record stores
out in the suburbs which has been equally rewarding. There are some local
radio stations (Q101, WLUW and WJKL) which we've done interviews and stuff
on. Q101 has a local show on Sunday nights that we did an interview on and
that helps. Another thing we've really been focusing on is building a
regional fan base so on the week-ends we drive out to Cleveland, Toledo, St.
Louis, Champaign, Kansas City, etc. and that has been awesome. Not only for
the experience but you learn a lot, meet a bunch of cool people, hone your
live show, and hopefully get some fans.
J.N.: What do you think of the current music scene as a whole, and where do
you see it going?
BT: It's all cyclical to me. In the 80's, hair bands and more image-oriented
bands were really popular and you had your Def Leppard, Poison, Vanilla Ice,
and New Kids on the Block. Then, out of nowhere, Kurt Cobain comes in and
fucks everything up. So people finally start taking music seriously again
(I'm speaking only on a mainstream basis). Now, you have Korn, Limp Bizkit(or whatever), Kid Rock (vanilla ice), and the BackStreet Boyz. What I epect and hope to happen is that some band will come in and blow away all the musical boudaries again and start paying music the respect it deserves.
J.N.: Who are some of your favorite bands in your local scene, or just bands that deserve recognition they might not be getting?
BT: I love Chevelle. They are finally starting to get the exposure they deserve but that took several years. We saw them for the first time at Double Door over a year ago and it was totally empty. The next 3 or 4 shows we saw, empty. Now these guys rock. Finally they got signed to Squint and the machine dumps a bunch of money into them and the next time they played at Metro, it was all but sold out (and we got to play with them!). I was thinking to myself how pathetic it is that they've been playing for 4 years and nobody cared until they got a little radio airplay and some MTV attention. So many bands never get their day even though they deserve it. But you take a bunch of clowns, dress them up and put a hip-hop beat behind them, they'll sell millions.
J.N.: If the Mr. T Experience had a video on Mtv and were adored by millions of screaming girls nationwide, would you still like them and wear their shirt?
BT: If I like a band, I like them. I really don't concern myself with the whole "sell-out" thing. What people have to understand is that the "starving artist" thing is cool and all but talented people deserve to make a living from that talent. There are down sides to it such as ony being able to see them in an amphiteater but what can you do, so be it. If one were to turn on them once they got big, you have to ask yourself why you really liked them in the first place. If it's "cool" to like a band, then you might not actually like them at all.
J.N.: How do you feel the effect of skateboarding and all the "extreme" sports has played a part in the music scene, whether it be punk, rap, hardcore, ska or a combination? Do you think it has been positive, or negative?
BT: I think it's really cool that extreme sports are taking off. People love it and they're good as hell at it. I respect anybody who has a passion for what they do. It also provides a nice platform to mix music and sports. In my opinion, extreme sports are very much more of an art form then most other sports. It's very creative, much like music is supposed to be. The only problem is that as soon as corporations smell money, these events become as corrupt as could be. The bands that get chosen to play the Warped tour or whatever are chosen on an entirely politically driven motive. Most kids are neive to this but it's true. Big money involved.
J.N.: Do you believe that everyone who saw Blink 182 on Mtv and voted for their video, even owns their first CD, or will stick by them in the future when they are no longer the "trend"?
BT: No. 99% of the record buying public are strictly "trend" motivated. I could talk for days about the politics of commercial radio air-play and MTV. Kids are force-fed music, plain and simple. Thousands and thousands of dollars are paid to these radio stations to play that Lit song a million times a day. It's quite sad actually.
J.N.: Do you feel that when bands become mainstream, it helps other bands that are not well noticed to become more noticed? (i.e. Blink 182 hits Mtv, and people start buying Strung Out albums)
BT: Yeah and I think that's cool. It helps out that entire genre. Look at the emo-core movement. Emo bands tour like crazy together and once a band like Promise Ring starts selling records, all sorts of other emo bands start to get noticed. As far as I know, not many emo bands are occupying the Billlboard charts right now, but they are very successful from an independant label standpoint. The Get Up Kids have sold almost 20 thousand records in the past 4 months. A major label would drop them, but Vagrant (their label) is doing wonderfully.
J.N.: What is the key message to all of your music?
BT: We're a very emotional band. Our songs are quite serious. Some topics include religion, depression, disease, etc. We want people to pay attention to the music and the lyrics, and we want to evoke some thought and feeling. A lot of people seem to not want to accept the burden of thought which makes them very vulnerable to the corporate norm. Those are the kids that will buy a Nirvana record and only play "Teen Spirit". Later in life they'll join a frat, become a banker, get married, have kids, have a mid-life crisis and cheat on their wives, then die. Too many people have already done that.
J.N.: Would you ever play for free in front of the President of the USA if asked to?
BT: If there were people who were into it there, absolutely.
J.N.: Do you have any final thoughts you wish to add?
BT: I don't mean to lambast any other bands. The examples I've used are solely to clarify my point. Thanks!
|
|
|