Features / One Question Interviews

Germán Picazo (The Blackjaw)

SPB: Your record is called Burn The Artisan. What do you hold against them?

Picazo: We’ve nothing against the artisans, it’s just an irony figure of speech. We have been composing, practicing and then recording the album for about 3 years so it feels like we were cherishing, crafting and taking care of …

Ryan Kennedy (Wake-bass)

SPB: You've recorded split EPs before. Which band(s) are on your wishlist for future splits?   

Ryan:

• Gadget
• Swarrrrm
• 324

Kevin (Sutekh Hexen)

SPB: Walk us through Sutekh Hexen’s setup.

[Here] is a sketch and quick video clip of the primary noise setup that I have used in Sutekh Hexen 2010-present.

This sketch represents the absolute base setup. Various distortions, delays, or reverbs are switched out depending on what we're going to do. It has been …

Jimi Hazel (24-7 Spyz - vocals)

SPB: The music industry has changed a lot over the years. What’s been the most common constant since you got started? 

Hazel: The mentality of the new guard is the same as the mentality of the old guard. The box is still the box and as long as it has four corners, …

Chris (Glare Of The Sun)

SPB: Your record Theia is over an hour long. To contrast that: what is your favorite record of around twenty minutes and what would you take from that record to Glare Of The Sun?

Chris: Twenty minutes seems tough first, but it's not, if you spent your youth with hardcore/punk or grindcore like …

Zache (Maniac – bass/vocals)

SPB: What kind of guitar/bass do you use and what do you like about it? 

Zache: I played bass and sang in Maniac and play a Fender Squier P Bass. Andrew (lead guitar) plays a black Gibson SG. 

James Alex (Beach Slang – guitar/vocals)

SPB: What is your favorite movie score/soundtrack?

Alex: It’s a deadlock between Valley Girl and Pretty In Pink. I tried to wrestle a winner, but couldn’t. I mean, The Plimsouls, The Psychedelic Furs, The Smiths, Otis Redding, Sparks, New Order, The Rave-Ups, etcetera and so on—I mean, how could I choose …

Wes Bentley (Doc Rotten)

SPB: Do you read press/reviews written about you? 

Bentley: Sometimes, for a review, I am more likely to read them because I want to see if it is a positive review. Interviews not so much because I was there and know what I said.  

Tom (Smash The Statues)

SPB: What is your favorite cover to play? Why?

Tom: Covers could be really fun to play. Back in the days we played a bunch of covers that suited us both musically and lyrically. As a political band, you want to get your message through, so it wouldn't make sense for us to play …

Ian Cory (Lamniformes)

SPB: Did you experiment much with different drum sizes, cymbals, or drum heads in the studio when making Sisyphean, or did you have a set approach when you went in? 

Cory: I experimented with the kit much less than I expected before going into the sessions. Having spent more years than I should have …

Tim Buchanan 

SPB: What do your parents think of your music?

Buchanan: My parents love what we do now. They’ve always been supportive, but I think the more abrasive music I helped make when I was younger was confusing to them, as it would’ve been for many I’m sure. Now that I make country music, or something …

Radical Fun Time

SPB: What does DIY mean to you in 2020? How has it changed since you started playing music (has it)? 

PunX Rock $@M (guitar/vocals): !Radical Fun Time! is still living the Do It Yourself lifestyle!

In this new Decade !RFT! attempts to do as much as we can ourselves! Writing our own music and …

Nate Cook (The Yawpers)

SPB: What’s the worst or harshest thing that’s happened to you in the middle of a tour? 

Cook: We were in Bern, Switzerland. I’d spent the last 6 months unable to move due to a collapsed disc in my neck. It had finally stopped crippling my movement about 2 weeks prior. We were playing …

Shanti Wintergate (Play Date)

SPB: What is the biggest different in how you approach writing a song for children as compared to writing a song for adults?

Wintergate: I would have to say the actual approach and process is pretty much the same. We set out to make authentic, thoughtful music for kids and families. So as much …

Dries (Loud Love-vocals)

SPB: Is the recently released EP reason for extensive touring or are you more focused on releasing more material soon(ish)? 

Dries: Well yes and..no :)

The aspect of bringing your music on a live stage: the aspect of connecting with your peers and audience, the sense of community and togetherness created during a live …

Ray (Drunktank)

SPB: You took time to write this second album. What are your plans for the near future (or to put it bluntly: are you planning on working a third album soon)? 

Ray: At the moment we are really happily promoting our latest release, Return of The Infamous Four. We're playing shows, festivals, doing some tours …

Lazerbeak (Shredders / Doomtree)

SPB: To you, what is the most important element in your setup to get the best live sound?

Lazerbeak: By far it's the MPC Rennaissance. I grew up making beats on the MPC 2000XL and it's really all I know as far as production is concerned. When AKAI released the Renaissance it was a …

Ben (Much Worse)

SPB: What was your first live show?

Ben: First concert: Oasis/Black Crowes at Roy Wilkins [Auditorium] when I was in 7th grade. My old man got tickets through his work or something like that.

John Erik Kaada (Kaada, Cloroform)

SPB: What is your favorite album cover of all time?

Kaada: We are currently planning the release of a new Cloroform album, and on band meetings we have discussed what to do next in terms of design and visual appearance. We dug up the album cover we made for a release of a …

David Stickney (Pound – drums)

SPB: Walk our readers through your kit and offer insight as to how you arrived at your sizes (shells and cymbals)? 

Stickney: The best way to think of my kit is actually as 2 separate kits. The main kit is a typical, traditional kit: just kick, snare and two toms. My shells are …