THE Dubber

     I think I vaguely recall an issue of The Free Times with THE Dubber on the front.  This may have been ground breaking but then again Columbia's Free Weekly has never been my music guide.  This past spring I was indeed flipping through the publication to find something to do and came across a walking tour of  Main Street.  I had recently heard about Columbia Alternacirque but missed their performance at the Riverwalk Amphitheater in West Columbia, so as one can imagine I was stoked to see fire breathers, that I did not know existed here.

     My sweetness and I happened to wonder into The Free Times physical address and there sat THE Dubber.  At first I was thinking, yeah this is The Free Times so this is going to be some of that artsy fartsy stuff they refer to as ROCK music.  But then he started playing.    I'm not sure what to classify it as, other than it rocks.  It may not be ROCK music, but he does something that all of my favorite musicians would appreciate.  It has feeling, it has a beat.  It isn't something I envision hearing at a coffee shop.  It doesn't make me want to fall to sleep.  “Orginal Rockstar Baby!”, just has this little hop.  

            Friday night, THE Dubber, along with some special friends, played Conundrum Music Hall.  It is this cool little place that looks like it belongs in West Columbia, complete with a little side patio with odds and ends chairs and hanging flower plants (it used to be a flower shop).  The inside is like a clean concert hall with seating.  The crowd consisted of mostly middle aged adults, so I decided to sit in the front row.  To make me feel a little bit more uncomfortable, it occurred to me that I was probably sitting where the lady with the SC Philharmonic should have been so she could have easy access to the stage.  She was there to play violin on stage with THE Dubber, which in itself is a cool story, that I am glad I witnessed for the first time. 

            Since I was so close to the stage, I decided to think like Sharon Osbourne.  The first dude needs to become more comfortable with himself on stage and stop chewing gum while singing.  I am definitely a new fan of Brodie Porterfield.  Along with technical difficulties, which actually made the performance more entertaining, he pulls the bearded look off quite well.  He also should have been nervous because I was awkwardly sitting front and center across the way from THE Dubber.  Actually I felt like I was at a wedding, yeah, those are the same type of chairs in a small concert hall.  Following THE Dubber was a not full blown version of Alien Carnival, which I realized about halfway through that the opinionated Bentz Kirby (bocelts on Twitter) is a part of.  Since I am speaking as if I am Sharon Osbourne on America's Got Talent, I would have to say that I really did not get the Mrs. Clause outfit his bandmate was wearing.  It took more away from the performance than what it offered.  Or maybe it is because I am not a native southerner or old enough to get it.  THE Dubber is just THE Dubber.  As Bentz Kirby says, 'he's the real deal'. 

            He is also preparing to go on tour and then head overseas.

http://www.reverbnation.com/thedubberrockstar
http://www.thedubber.com/
http://www.myspace.com/thedubberrockstar
http://twitter.com/thedubber

           

     Prior to THE Dubber taking the stage, who I will not refer to by his real name since he insists on calling me MsBrandy and I know way too many artists by nicknames alone, there was somewhat of a history lesson.  I'm going to venture out on a limb and say this could only happen a stones throw away from Sherman's bridge burning.  It dated back to the time period of the Civil War.  The song 'Michael, Row Your Boat Ashore' actually was written by slaves in Charleston. 

            THE Dubber, himself, is somewhat political.  He summarized the 3 page article in Sunday's The State entitled “The Civil War 150 Years Later: Old Battles Still Echo in S.C. Politics” in two or three sentences between songs.  I stopped reading this article about a third of the way through because it is the 'Same Ol' Situation'.  So on this 22^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, I, MsBrandyRock, have this idea that has been brewing.  And that would be a special edition of Pub Politics.  Guests would include THE Dubber, Bentz Kirby, Doug Kendall, Eric Flemming, and any other worthy local musicians with political flair.  I just have no idea how to make this happen, but if it does, I would like to request that Otis Taylor (The State) be present and write about it.  Then of course a music collaboration would follow.

            In other words, THE Dubber should have never told me to pull up a chair and told me we were going to make something happen.  I tried explaining, while wearing some pink feather earrings that one of my customers went and bought for me at a hair store on North Main, that I have ADD when it comes to music so I'm not exactly sure what something is.  He also made me feel better about my job and life in general so, that's what's up!

~Positive Mental Attitude ~MsBrandyRock

"The Global Warning" CD @ http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/global-warning/id370761429

"In the Temple of..." CD @ http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/in-the-temple-of.../id194467218

Dub Nation
P.O. Box 48245
Washington, DC 20002
USA

Devin Holiday of Dirtbag Love Affair

“Nasty Blues Based Punk Rock from the Southeast”

If memory serves me Dirtbag Love Affair found me on myspace back in the days when it was a useful site. They left a comment on my page telling me I had a good taste in music and I should check them out sometime. I don't really know anyone in Charlotte, NC but felt confident I would see them playing with Sex Slaves in the future. I had no way of knowing at the time that a local “promoter” would wind up asking me for Sex Slaves contact info and promise a guarantee in the middle of them preparing for one of those lengthy tours they are known for.

As the story goes, as it got down to business the “promoter” did not respond and the Slaves were left with a gap in their schedule. I had already given Sex Slaves Rockshowbooking's contact info in Augusta, GA, knowing they had never played there and that people would make the drive from Atlanta and that Rockshowbooking is very passionate about what he does! Anyways, I sold pieces of myself to find out the best way to book a show at New Brookland Tavern. I wound up with a local band, who wound up breaking up the night before the show and not informing anyone, Dirtbag Love Affair, and Sex Slaves. It was a dark outside, the box was out, jambalya was at the bar, and the one and only Johnny Moon was present.

What I did not know was that Devin Holiday of Dirtbag Love Affiar had every reason to be a pretentious ass and could have very easily not agreed to play a show an hour and a half or two away on what would wind up being a Sunday night, for a door deal. This is the part in the story where the music starts playing and I call upon people I know will be reading this ( i.e. Big Troy of Augusta's 95 Rock). I ask you to pick up Murderdolls' “Women and Children Last” CD and read Wednesday13's thank-yous.

My favorite memory from seeing Dirtbag Love Affair for the first time was sitting at the bar of New Brookland Tavern with Angel, the rockbox, Crystal, and Sasha, and Devin walking up to Angel and getting him to play guitar mid-song. Angel's new project Durty Rockstar can be found at www.facebook.com/durtyrnfr and www.myspace.com/durtyrnfr.

MsBrandyRock: Have you ever toured the midwest before this past spring?

Devin Holiday:  This was our first time in every city that was on our midwest schedule.  And I must shout out to Tulsa and Stillwater Oklahoma for being two amazing cities on our route!!

MsBrandyRock: Out of all the crazy setbacks on the road, which is the most memorable?

Devin Holiday: We began having trouble with our transmission with about 8 days left.  Somehow we kept motoring through.  We got home at 5 AM after a brutal drive from Kansas City.  I'm talking like 20 hours thanks to interstates being closed because of tanker trucks wrecking. Anyway we got home and left our gear in the trailer. The next day we go to unload it at our rehearsal room and our van won't come out of first gear!!   We are so thankful it got us to where we were though.

MsBrandyRock: Has anyone mailed the Dirtbag Love Affair banner back?

Devin Holiday: No we have not seen the banner.  Funny story though with that too... Our singer had a childhood friend in Austin ( shout out to Matt for housing us).  He came to the show and wound up catching the eye of the bartender at the club we played. And even after going on a date with her and having her scour the club neither Matt nor the bartender or anyone at the club could find our banner.  It was one of the more hostile clubs we played.  Even amongst bands we were the outsiders. So we have our theories that the other bands didn't give a shit if they found our banner or not.

MsBrandyRock: You were near my hometown in October. I have never heard of The Smiling Moose in Pittsburgh, PA. Should I tell me parents to check it out?

Devin Holiday: It was simply the only club open to having a band on a Monday night in Pittsburgh. And we were there so briefly we can't give it an honest review.  An ex of mine who used to live in Pittsburgh always mentioned it. So I think it's a cool watering hole for the locals mainly.

MsBrandyRock: Your next show is June 18^th at The Money in Rock Hill, SC. Any more future dates in the works or anything you want to say about that show?

Devin Holiday: The show on the 18th is a benefit for cancer research.  Everyone has been affected by cancer it seems but for us it hit very close. Davies Dirt's little sis lost her battle while only 18.
And yes we are beginning to focus on some regional shows for the end of summer.

MsBrandyRock: Where can fans who have not been to a live show purchase “Wakin Up in My Chucks”?

Devin Holiday: We are of course on iTunes and amazon, napster,  and all such digital download sites. As far as getting a physical copy come to a show, hit up CDBaby.com, or our website.

MsBrandyRock: What is up with the bubbles?

Devin Holiday: Hahaha.  That is everyone's favorite line!
We recorded our second live show ever just to get some music out to the public.  The club we were playing at had great lighting and smoke and other things. One of those things was a bubble machine that we did not know of until halfway thru the set. What you hear on CD is our exact reaction when we got showered in bubbles.

MsBrandyRock: What does an unhealthy obsession with music entail?

Devin Holiday: Ruining everything else in your life just to pursue music.  Ha
Seriously though I am known for rambling and could go on with an answer for this for an hour!
I've sacrificed, given up on, and turned down many good things in life just to pursue this dream of playing rock n roll for a living. And let's just say that wasn't always the smartest choice for me.

MsBrandyRock: What bathroom was the picture in the About Us section of the website taken in?

Devin Holiday: Mine was taken in the Trash Bar bathroom in Brooklyn NY. I think Davie Dirt's was in Wonderland in Richmond VA tho I could be wrong.  It's become a ritual for us. We take a pic of someone in the band on the toilet in ever club we play when we go on tour now.

MsBrandyRock: So I am somewhat curious, what other career choices did you flirt with in the past?

Devin Holiday: None!  I went to school for music business at James Madison University and considered something on the suit and tie side of music but couldnt do it!  I had to be on stage and create.

MsBrandyRock: Why didn't you go on tour with Wednesday13 when asked? What project was it for?

Devin Holiday: Many people don't understand my reasoning behind this and it is no disrespect to Wednesday at all!!!  But joining his band would be the same to me as being in a tribute band or cover band because I'd be playing someone else's songs. And they are great songs. I've always loved the whole mentality that Motley Crüe had where the band was a gang and not just a band. So I am very die hard about playing in a band I helped create and mold from day one  Wednesday once told me that if he hadn't met Piggy D I was next on his call list for his first album after the Murderdolls.  If I'm not mistaken though I believe he asked me about playing bass for the Fang Bang album and again later on that tour he offered the guitarist spot when he was considering a lineup change. I think I was also offered a role in Gunfire 76 but that was a hazy period.

MsBrandyRock: What is the NoDa?

Devin Holiday: NoDa is the bands neighborhood in Charlotte. It is centered on North Davidson St. It is the arts district and the coolest little tight knit community in the world!  Every member of the band lives here. Three of us live in the same building even!

MsBrandyRock: Ok so I have this bag of random questions. And yes it is actually random. Would you sell you soul to the devil?

Devin Holiday:  It all depends on what I get in return. 

Dirtbag Love Affair's Official Site can be found at http://www.dirtbagloveaffair.com/

Upcoming shows include:

Friday July 8th: The Chop Shop, Charlotte, NC

Friday August 5th: The Chop Shop, Charlotte, NC

Thursday November 3rd: Dirtbag Love Affair with Wednesday13 Tremont Music Hall/The Casbah, Charlotte, NC


Twitter: @drtbgloveaffair

ReverbNation: http://www.reverbnation.com/dirtbagloveaffair

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dirtbagloveaffair

Myspace: www.myspace.com/dirtbagloveaffair



All pictures found on Dirtbag Love Affair websites.

Doug Kendall of Downcount (Part 1)

MsBrandyRock: I am here with Doug Kendall of the band Downcount. How did you come up with the story behind the name Downcount?

Doug: That was actually Eric’s idea. He had had that name for a while.

MsBrandyRock: And Eric plays guitar in the band right?

Doug: Yes. We had actually weeded everything down to two names. One that I liked and one that Eric liked. And we flipped a coin to see which one we were going to use and I actually won the toss, so we were going to call the band something else. But then I thought about it and said look man your name is probably better from a commercial stand point. I have it written down somewhere but, I actually forgot what it is, but I might resurrect it one of these days. To me the name Downcount has a lot of things you can take from it. We are a very pro freedom band, very in your face about our passion for freedom and getting Uncle Sam out of our lives.

MsBrandyRock: So you are counting down to when Americans will actually have their freedom?

Doug: hahaha we’re counting down to the REVOLUTION! We may be down but you can never count us out!

MsBrandyRock: That could be a good slogan for a shirt or a show or something. Speaking of shirts….”collectivists I resist meaning”. What is a collectivist?

Doug: Yes, that’s one of our song lyrics. Collectivists are the people that want us all to be one kind of collective world. One kind of group think, go with the flow, and I am not that way. I believe in individuality, I believe in being yourself, being true to who you are. And I don’t believe in following any kind of group think just because some group or political party or persuasion thinks I should go this way or I am nuts. I just don’t buy into that. I am who I am and that’s what this band is about. Being yourself and standing up for what you believe in. Fight for your freedom, fight for your individuality and don’t let anyone push you or bully you into doing something you really don’t feel is true to who you are.

MsBrandyRock: And a lot of who you are comes out in the fact that you had your own political talk radio show, so you are used to talking about it. How long did that last?

Doug: I was in radio for about five years and I was on three different AM stations in the Columbia area. I had a blast with that and we were one of the top rated shows in our market and had listeners all over the world on the internet. It was wonderful, it was great, and we would have people calling in from the Netherlands. We would beat politicians like rugs, I mean, somebody here in South Carolina made a mistake…..

MsBrandyRock: Well that’s what I was going to say, how a lot of politics are in South Carolina….that you actually had local politicians calling in willing to speak to you?

Doug: Oh yeah

MsBrandyRock: And them knowing what the show was about and actually listening to it before hand?

Doug: Absolutely. I interviewed the governor a couple of times, Mark Sanford. And Jake Knotts came on the show.

MsBrandyRock: Really what was that like?

Doug: I beat him up and he wouldn’t come back on again, so that was a one time deal. Joe Wilson would never come on the show, his handlers kept on canceling on me and I finally….

MsBrandyRock: His handlers? Sounds like a circus.

Doug: Yeah pretty much. It got to the point one time that I called his office back and said look I will clear my schedule for Joe Wilson, you just tell me when he can make it and I don’t care if I have the Pope coming on. And they never got back to me, I just knew they were not going to let him come on my show.

MsBrandyRock: Give my one sentence definition of what true freedom is to you.

Doug: Not being under submission to a dominating force. That’s about as pure as it gets. When you have to go out and buy a license before you can start your own business or you have to get a permit before you can add onto your house or put a swimming pool in your backyard…………

MsBrandyRock: So your idea of true freedom does that go into the idea of Downcount’s CD title, “Soundtrack of a Revolution”?

Doug: If that’s what it takes, so be it….in some places like Florida they have neighborhood codes where you can only paint your house according to certain color schemes. Even here in the Columbia area, with the zoning in Richland County they want you to have certain vegetation and you can’t put a satellite dish where its visible from the road because someone might look at it and say oh that doesn’t look good. I mean we’re talking freedom here and if I can’t put a satellite dish on my house we don’t have freedom in America. That’s one of the things we are fighting against. If someone comes at me and they are going to use force against me either harm my person or take my will because I didn’t get my permission from them, that kind of thing, I’m prepared to fight. That’s called self defense. Fighting against the government is not terrorism. Self defense is not terrorism.

MsBrandyRock: Yeah terrorism is completely different than freedom of speech and freedom of life. You’re a voluntarist. What is that? I went to school to be a political science teacher and I have never heard that before.

Doug: A voluntarist believes that all things should be done by choice. All relationships should be voluntary. If there is force involved, if you initiate force in a relationship it’s not a voluntary relationship. It’s immoral, unacceptable, and that’s basically what the government has with us. They tell us how we can live, where we can live, where we can build, what we can eat, what we can say, what kind of jobs we can do….

MsBrandyRock: Don’t you think it could be a whole lot worse though?

Doug: It’s going to get worse, I believe before it gets better….There are a lot of people online that are realizing this and there are a lot of networks building, across this country, across the world with people who realize that things are not the way they are supposed to be. And if it comes to it we are going to fight. But I don’t ever want to see that happen.

MsBrandyRock: People call you “Chug” as a nickname. Does that come from all this political stuff?

Doug: haha no that comes from Eric. This originally started out as my solo project, but we turned it into collaboration, a partnership, a band project. I had told him when I first approached him to play guitar that I wanted to bring chug rock back. Nobody really chugs it out anymore, its all dual leads, and thrash and fast and speed. You don’t really here people just ch ch ch chugging it out, that low string just chugging on it, chugging it out. So instead of Doug he started calling me Chug.

MsBrandyRock: “Soundtrack of a Revolution” is that a full length CD or is that an EP?

Doug: Full length, 12 songs.

MsBrandyRock: What is your goal with that? Are you signed to an indie label right now or what is your ultimate goal as far as the CD goes?

Doug: Actually Eric and I are business partners. And we own the record label, Tensided Records.

MsBrandyRock: Are there other bands signed to that in Columbia, SC?

Doug: No, mainly for us, I wouldn’t be opposed to working with other bands. I’m all about the message; of course I would love to be successful. To live comfortably would be nice. Do that full time and just be able to concentrate on the creative process and spreading the message. That’s what I got into music for was the message and that’s what I got into radio for.

MsBrandyRock: Yeah people who get into bands just to be “rockstars” and want to get played on the radio; those are the ones that aren’t successful because that happens like one in a million.

Doug: Airplay is great because that is how you spread your message, so we try to promote ourselves, network and that kind of thing, so we can help get the message out to people. I’m not opposed to working with a major label, but that is not necessarily an end goal. There is a lot of crazy crap going on with the music industry right now.

MsBrandyRock: And chances are as political as your lyrics are there probably wouldn’t be a major label that wanted you.

Doug: And you know what I could care less. The contract would have to be good anyways and most of the times they are not.

http://www.downcountband.com/

***********************************************************************************

I would like to toot my own horn and say that I found the above picture I took while preparing for this interview on Downcount's website, this interview was never intended to be transcribed, but I have decided to post it since I do have it.

Jack Andrad (Uncrowned) & Random Questions

MsBrandyRock: I found out a lot of ‘things’ about Uncrowned that I did not know while doing some research. Songs have been featured on MTV’s The Real World. Do ya’ll think this helps gain fans or people just hear a song and that’s that?

Jack Andrad: I think it helps, people hear the song and look it up on line, it definitely doesn't hurt

MsBrandyRock: Like subliminal messaging?

Jack Andrad: Sure, whatever helps get the word out, ha ha

 Photo by Mikki Stacks (Sunday's Dreams) taken in Columbia, SC

MsBrandyRock: What is in the glass in the picture on Uncrowned’s website? www.uncrowned.com

Jack Andrad: Ahh yes, that would be Vodka and cranberry

(Random Question out of my bag ha ha) (Tuna) Do you believe in love? No

MsBrandyRock: One thing that caught my eye is how the band got its name. So how did the name come about?

Jack Andrad: The name came from one of Charles Bukowski's poems about a fighter, it seem to fit so we embraced it.

MsBrandyRock: I looked up definition of uncrowned and it said “having the power or influence of a monarch or other prominent figure but not the title”. I personally think that is fitting.

Jack Andrad: I actually had not heard that definition, I like it!

MsBrandyRock: What was it like traveling 70,000 miles and playing 120 shows in 2007?

Jack Andrad: Well, we're still doing it, we actually have increased the miles and the shows since. We love being on the road, if you are a serious band, you're either on the road, writing music or recording.

MsBrandyRock: Did this have an impact on becoming the 14th most requested band overall at Sirius Octane for the 1st half of 2008.

Jack Andrad: I think touring has a tremendous impact with the fans, if you put on a great live show, it doen't go un-noticed, spread the love, is what I say.

MsBrandyRock: Did ya’ll put out the EP on your own? And can fans online still purchase the EP?

Jack Andrad: We did, fans can come to shows or purchase online from our website.

(Random Question 2): (Scott) What are you plans for tonight?

I'm going to hang out and check out Morgan Rose's (Sevendust) new drum kit, he's recording next door to us.

MsBrandyRock: Is Uncrowned now officially signed to Bieler Brothers or is it some sort of distribution deal?

Jack Andrad: We are officially signed to Bieler Bros.

MsBrandyRock: Since people are asking, I feel I know why, but what is taking so long to release ‘Last Bit of Good and Evil’?

Jack Andrad: Well, being green as far as a record deal is concerned, we ran into some misunderstandings with the label, also we wanted to increase the amount of songs, and give the fans premium quality.

 Photo used with Jack's permission.

(Random Question 3): (Jack) What’s your favorite album/CD?

I think it would probably have to be The Verses by Slipknot.

MsBrandyRock: Uncrowned is defined as modern edge. How is this self titled and did you come up with it?

Jack Anrad: Modern Edge Metal is a moniker I came up with while trying to describe our sound to people, everyone always asks the dreaded question "So, what do you guys sound like?" That was my answer.

MsBrandyRock:Where ya’ll actually mentioned during The American Music Award’s broadcast on TV as being one of the 10 Hottest unsigned bands as chosen by CMJ and Dick Clark?

Jack Andrad: Indeed we were.

MsBrandyRock: Whose instrument is on display in Hard Rock Cafe’s memorabilia collection? Do you know who the only other unsigned band is/was?

Jack Andrad: One of the Gibson Les Pauls from my collection.

(Random Question 4) (Stephen) What is your shoe size? 9 1/2

MsBrandyRock: I remember the first time I drove to Atlanta after seeing ya’ll live, in the Spring of 2009, and I was so excited because I had the radio on and “Remember Your Ghost” came on. Is it a huge deal to bands from Atlanta to get radio play in Atlanta?

Jack Andrad: It really is a big deal, Atlanta is in the top 10 radio markets in the country, it's very though nowadays for a (Then Unsigned) band to get that kind of radio play.

MsBrandyRock: What do you wish would happen with regular radio?

Jack Andrad: I wish they would quit being pussies and take some chances, break new bands, introduce new music to the masses, in my opinion that is why radio came to be anyway.

MsBrandyRock: What was it like recently playing Uproar Fest with Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold, Stone Sour, Hell Yeah, Halestorm….?

Jack Andrad: That was an awesome concert, thousands of people. The part that sticks in my mind was cooking steaks and hotdogs with Vinnie Paul from Hell Yeah after the show, that dude is RAD!

(Random Question 5) (Stu) What were you in a past life?

Lol, mmmhh I don't have any clue, probably a fly on the wall of the dressing room in which the thong was invented ha ha

MsBrandyRock: If Uncrowned could pick the perfect line up for the perfect tour what three bands would they be and why?

Jack Andrad: Ohh tough question, I think we would love to play with very successful bands that we love, while maintaining sonic sense. My choices would be, Slipknot, Avenged Sevenfold and Bullet for my Valentine.


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Special thanks to Jack for making me realize no one has ever taken me on a picnic.

Crushing Juliet "Press Release"

Crushing Juliet Adds Second Guitarist, Rounds out Five Piece Lineup

We're excited to announce that Mike Lovelace Jr. is the final piece of Crushing Juliet's fresh and on target sound. 

Mike brings past experice from time spent writing and album with Egpyt Central, as well as experience on the road touring with Joan Red.  We invite fans of these previous endeavors to take a listen to Crushing Juliet. 

Sunset Records/Interscope Artist, Crushing Juliet can be found at http://www.crushingjuliet.com/ , as well as on iTunes, Reverbnation, myspace, facebook and twitter.  Please mail inquiries to media@crushingjuliet.com.

~Edited by MsBrandyRock

Piggy D (Rob Zombie) Rock on the Range 2010

I had a chance to sit down with Rob Zombie's multi-talented bass player, Piggy D at Rock on the Range in Columbus, Ohio May 23rd.  The result is amazing! 

MsBrandyRock: Have you heard of Muen Magazine?

Piggy D: I have seen the name before, yeah!

MsBrandyRock:  You’re my forth live interview I have done.

Piggy D: Wow, Wow!

MsBrandyRock: I have a message to pass along to you from Eric13 of the Sex Slaves.  He said ‘thanks for being put on the list for the Philly show’. 

Piggy D:  oh yeah yeah yeah, of course.  That’s awesome, tell them I said hi. 

MsBrandyRock:  I love those guys!

Piggy D:  Yeah they’re awesome.

MsBrandyRock:  How did you get your stage name?

Piggy D:  The first touring band I was in, in ....Texas...., I was 16 years old.  The band was called Spunk.  All the guys in the band were 8 to 10 years older than me and their slogan that was painted on the side of their kick drum said ‘Burly Pig Rock’.  Since I was the youngest guy in the band they would haze me, kinda like fraternity initiations.  When I would fall asleep in the van, they would write with permanent maker ‘the burly piglet’ on my chest, draw a pig, cut my hair, all kinds of horrible things.  And it just stuck they called me Piglet.  And it stuck through every band I was in.  And I knew a hundred Matt’s so it was just easier, ‘oh this Piglet guy’. 

MsBrandyRock:  So you decided to go with Piggy instead of Piglet? 

Piggy D: Yeah, it would insinuate that not only am I very small but I’m also very young, which I’m not anymore. 

MsBrandyRock:  Have you ever heard of the local band Noise Auction?  They played early today and one of the guys, he’s really short and he goes by Shorty. 

Piggy D: Yeah that wouldn’t make sense if he was tall. 

MsBrandyRock:  They are going on a cruise with the Genitorturers. 

Piggy D:  Oh cool! 

MsBrandyRock:  How did you cross paths with Rob Zombie?

Piggy D:  I met him as a fan years ago, when I was a kid, several times.  But I met him through some mutual friends.  His old bass player and I got to be friends and actually did some writing together for Rob, 3 years prior to me being in the band.  His bass player called me up one day; I’m actually a guitar player.  He was like ‘hey I’m gonna join Ozzy’s band, do you want to take over for me?’  And I’m like well I’m not a bass player. 

MsBrandyRock:  Blasko right? 

Piggy D:  Yeah, and he was like you can do it.  He asked if I could be there tomorrow.  I was in ....Boston.... at the time making a record.  I flew out to LA and two weeks later I did David Letterman with Rob and that was it.  That was 4 and a half years ago. 

MsBrandyRock:  I recognize his name because of the band Hydrovibe, whose guitar player; Mat Dauzat was selected a while back to go on the road with Kelly Osbourne.

Piggy D:  Oh okay.

MsBrandyRock:  Since you were a fan of Rob Zombie, did you ever think that would happen?

Piggy D:  I did actually.  It’s a much longer story than I just made it out to be.  We were talking about me playing in the band before and it didn’t work out.  I always knew I would end up doing something with him.  I have this weird thing that happens to me, with the people that I appreciate the most, it’s happened with Alice Cooper several times, I always end up doing something with them.  The longer I celebrate something in my life, the more it comes back to me.  It’s very strange. 

MsBrandyRock:  That’s kinda like me being here right now.

Piggy D:  Yeah.  So I think that you can actually will things into existence.  And this is one of those things.  So yeah, I knew it was going to happen. 

MsBrandyRock:  Do you prefer to play guitar or bass?

Piggy D:  The more time that goes by, I’m actually considering myself a bass player.  Guitar is always going to be my first instrument and I write on a guitar.  When I’m at home I play guitar.  I don’t know.  I guess I like them both equally now. 

MsBrandyRock:  With your solo work, it’s you playing the guitar right?

Piggy D:  Yeah, it’s me doing everything except the drums. 

MsBrandyRock:  Do you have plans on touring with your solo work?

Piggy D:  Not really, at some point, yeah.  Maybe on the 2^nd or 3^rd record, I’ll go out and play some shows.  I stay so busy with Rob and all the other things we have going on, that I don’t have time to do it the right way.  And I would like to do it the right way.  I don’t want to get an acoustic guitar and go play coffee houses.

MsBrandyRock:  That would be interesting though, to say that you’re playing coffee houses that would be a lot of interesting press to do it like that. 

Piggy D:  Yeah, you never know.  Paul Stanley from Kiss once said ‘if a song doesn’t sound good on an acoustic guitar, it’s a crappy song’. 

MsBrandyRock:  Do you play any other instruments?

Piggy D: I play trumpet, tuba, and a little piano.

MsBrandyRock:  One of your songs, I don’t remember the name off the top of my head, but it sounds like saxophone in the background.

Piggy D:  Yeah, that was a friend of mine, Scott Gillman, he plays saxophone on a song called ‘Chemistry’.  It’s a The Replacements, Paul Westerberg, ‘Can’t Hardly Wait’ type of song.  It’s a very ....Minneapolis.... sound and I wanted some horns on it.

MsBrandyRock:  Yeah, when I was listening to your solo work for the first time, I was thinking there is something for everyone in here.  And I wasn’t expecting that. 

Piggy D:  Thank you.

MsBrandyRock:  Ok so, you directed a 10 minute movie with three of Alice Cooper’s songs tied together.  How did you get into directing?

Piggy D:  It’s something I have kind of always done, on my own time, videos for indie artists and stuff like that.  Alice and I have a cool working relationship.  I’ll call him up and be like ‘hey I want to try this’.  And he’ll go ‘OK’.  I’ve been fortunate that he’s pretty open with everything I bring to the table.  My company did all the art and the promotional material for that record.  And we’ve done the costumes for the show and we do merchandise and everything.  We were just talking about videos and I said I could do it and I did it.   I know Alice Cooper better than I know most anything else.  So anytime I have to do anything for him, I’m like ‘I got it’; I know exactly what to do.  It’s like walking and chewing gum at the same time.  I can do it.   

MsBrandyRock:  How did Slash get involved with that?  Whose idea was that?

Piggy D:  He played on one of the songs, on the record, that we shot the video for and we called him up and we were like ‘hey do you want to be in the video?”  And he was like ‘Yeah!’. 

MsBrandyRock:  Are you looking forward to seeing him today?

Piggy D:  Yeah!

MsBrandyRock:  Have you ever seen him solo with other band members?

Piggy D:  We saw him at the Revolver Golden God Awards a few weeks ago, in LA, and he did a few songs off the new record.  I’m looking forward to seeing a whole show.

MsBrandyRock:  I heard Myles Kennedy from Alterbridge is doing the vocals today. 

Piggy D:  Oh really?

MsBrandyRock:  The video, with Alice Cooper, the ‘Vengeance is Mine’ thing.  I love it because my mother worked in personal care for old people and so many of the other people she worked with treated the older people so poorly and whenever I was listening and watching the video that is what I was thinking about.  What would all the old people, who can’t help themselves, do to all the people that were treating them like crap if they had a chance? 

Piggy D:  That’s really interesting you bring that up, because one of the difficult things about that video was getting them to agree to…

MsBrandyRock:  …allow everything to happen? 

Piggy D:  …well not just allow it but, I wanted ....Alice.... to look frail at certain parts.  I wanted him to look like he’s not capable of doing anything on his own because he’s crazy, not because he’s old but because he’s crazy.  So when he does start killing people, you’re like oh okay don’t underestimate that guy.

MsBrandyRock:  So that’s what it was meant to be, because the stories my mom told me that was the first thing I thought of…

Piggy D:  That is so funny, yeah that’s pretty cool. 

 MsBrandyRock:  not like I’m calling Alice Cooper old……

Piggy D:  Yeah, no no.  People who are handicapped in any way, mentally, physically, or whatever.  Don’t underestimate them because they may strangle you or kick your ass. 

MsBrandyRock:  You look a lot different now than when you are on stage.  How much of yourself is there when you are on stage with Rob Zombie? 

Piggy D:  It’s all me and it’s none of me.  I think every single human being has another side.  It’s the Batman thing.  I’m not calling myself Batman.  Well, actually I am calling myself Batman.  And I feel pretty cool. 

MsBrandyRock:  Maybe you will have another nickname.

Piggy D:  Yeah maybe.  You know you get to express another side of you.  You’re not gonna walk around the mall with a skunk on your arm, war paint, and all of this stuff.  You’re not going to do that to put gas in the car.  So to have that outlet, to be that guy that I think about is pretty cool.  And it saves me from walking around a mall with a skunk on my arm, whatever you know.  It’s my other side.  I’m not gonna walk around the house like that.  I’m passionate about the music, I’m very animated when I play,  I feel every beat when I play, I know every word, every note, that’s me with music.  The artistic side I get to express a little more. 

MsBrandyRock:  I listened to another project you used be involved with called Amen.  There have been a lot of people involved with that, people that I recognize.  I had never heard of it, did it help you make contacts?

Piggy D:  Amen was a punk band from ....Los Angeles.....  Amen was self-proclaimed as the ‘most dangerous band on the planet’ and it was.  An Amen show was a living car accident, for 45 minutes or however long it would last.  Going through the, I like to call it, Amen boot camp, you learn 101 things not to do, not to put in your body, not to stick up your nose, not to drink, and how to survive in probably the worst situation you could ever put yourself into.  So it was a blessing and a curse.  I’ll leave it at that. 

 Piggy D has posted this to official website.

This his since been posted on  Road Runner Records website as well.

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Press pass courtesy of Brian Cade and Muen Magazine.

Very, very special thanks to Eric13 of Sex Slaves.

Airbourne (Rock on the Range 2010)

This interview is far from earth shattering status and I am very much aware of this.  It was very rushed at this point of time in the media tent and it was also very loud.  I know people that can say this is fact because they were doing interviews with members from Airbourne at the same time.  I will be interested to see if my media tent buddy Luie from  http://www.splattertribe.tv/ even posts his.  He gave me a shout out on the site a while back so this shout out is way past due. 

MsBrandyRock: I just wanted to let you know I am representing Muen Magazine and if you haven’t heard of them, they keep up with a lot of the ‘underground’ bands and help bands network through their street team. Have you ever heard of Taddy Porter? They played the festival yesterday on a smaller stage.

Joel: Okay, cool, nah.

MsBrandyRock: They are from Oklahoma. I don’t know them but, their music, its like old rock, more so 70’s and I think that you would like their music.

Joel: I will check them out.

MsBrandyRock: How old are you, are you allowed to tell me that?

Joel: 26

MsBrandyRock: Ok it says on the site that everyone is between 19 and 23.

Joel: Yeah we haven’t updated it.

MsBrandyRock: When you got signed to Capital and that fell through do you feel like that was a blessing in disguise?

Joel: Yeah…I do….yeah its like things work out, ya know?

MsBrandyRock: All of the bigger tours you have been on, like with the Rolling Stones, did that happen before or after Capital came across Airbourne?

Joel: Before.

MsBrandyRock: What do you think about bands that do not write their own music?

Joel: Each to their own.

MsBrandyRock: Airbourne has a lot of upcoming dates in Europe and you have played a lot there in the past, being an outsider, do you think there is a difference between music fans in the United States and Europe? Do you see a difference in the crowds overseas, are they more involved?

Joel: Well, today for example, there was a circle pit, crowd surfing, same thing going on over there. People come to drink; people come to drink over there. I find it similar.

MsBrandyRock: Now you’re from a small town in Australia that I can’t pronounce, how many kids were in your school?

Joel: ahh about 500.

MsBrandyRock: Really? That’s about as small as my school in Pennsylvania. So being from that small of a town, did you ever expect to be playing shows this size?

Joel: I mean, when you start out you just want to get out there and play. You don’t think too far ahead. You don’t think oh your going to be over here on the other side of the world.

MsBrandyRock: Now, I now you just toured Canada with Motley Crue. What has been your favorite tour so far, the one that was unforgettable?

Joel: A tour we did with Motorhead and Rose Tattoo in Australia.

MsBrandyRock: When you were recording the CD you slept in the studio, why?

Joel: We like to be where the action is. We used to live together in a house.

MsBrandyRock: Were you really on welfare for three years when you were trying to make a go of the band because you would have been playing shows. How did you get away with that?

Joel: Yeah, yeah. A lot of smoke and mirrors.

MsBrandyRock: Have you ever played in the state of Pennsylvania? Have you heard of the football team the Pittsburgh Steelers?

Joel: Yes, Yeah.

MsBrandyRock: Your song, ‘Steel Town’. They need to use that song.

Joel: Yeah they gotta use that song.

MsBrandyRock: You need to make that happen. The city of Pittsburgh, that is what it was founded on.

Joel: We will have to send it over.

MsBrandyRock: Yeah, they would love it. They would probably make it their anthem.

MsBrandyRock: Ok well, I am all about the live show and this was my first time seeing ya’ll live and I was exited about that.

Joel: Aww, well thank you.

MsBrandyRock: Ok originally I was told the interview was going to be with you, then it changed, and now you are sitting here. So I did find out about the book that is coming out in October. What is up with that?

Joel: A good mate of mine Paul Miles, he is releasing a book called ‘Sex Tips from Rock Stars’. He has this big list of big name dudes. It will be a funny book.

Press Pass courtesy Brian Cade Photography at Muen Magazine.

Thanks to Luie too!

Theory of a Deadman (Rock on the Range 2010)

MsBrandyRock: Now, I was looking at the band’s website and it’s been a while since I have seen the band live and I’m actually going to miss Theory of A Deadman today because I have other interviews going on. However, I saw beside the band’s logo the definition of heaven, is there significance in that?

Dean Back: I have no idea. I think that was just the artistic guy who put the website together. I’ll have to check it out I haven’t been on our website in a long time.

MsBrandyRock: Well, I think it’s in more than one place and it’s always right beside the logo.

Dean Back: Oh really?

MsBrandyRock: It says ‘a place or state of supreme happiness, she made his life heaven on earth’. So I didn’t know if that was in reference to the band’s name.

Dean Back: I think you are looking into it further than what we did.

MsBrandyRock: Ok, ‘Bad Girlfriend’ it was a big hit. To me it seems like it has been done a lot and I’m sure you may have heard that before. So I just want you to change my mind on that.

Dean Back: Right. Well I don’t know. That song was written 3, 4 years ago, so it’s just Tyler writing about his experience with meeting his wife. I don’t think there was a pre-conceived notion of trying to write something that has already been written. Ya know, it’s something that Tyler wrote from his heart. It’s true to him.

MsBrandyRock: Are you involved with any of the song writing or music writing?

Dean Back: Every song is different. There is collaboration between the three of us. Tyler writes the lyrics. There are ideas sent back and forth via email.

MsBrandyRock: My favorite song from Theory of A Deadman is ‘Nothing Could Come Between Us’ I know that’s an older song, but the reason why I like it is because I live in South Carolina now and I heard that song on the radio and that’s why I looked the band up because it mentions South Carolina.

Dean Back: Right.

MsBrandyRock: Is it based on a true story? Is it based on someone driving back and forth to South Carolina?

Dean Back: No, I think that was more just Tyler writing a song. We are also influenced by southern rock and roll like Lynard Skynard and that kind of stuff and that was just Tyler trying to connect the idea of the south and he was using it as a literary term. But no we didn’t know anyone from South Carolina. We’ve never been to South Carolina.

MsBrandyRock: No you have.

Dean Back: Not when the song was written.

MsBrandyRock: I think you were at Headliners in Columbia, South Carolina before it closed. But like 3 years ago you were supposed to be headlining the St. Patty’s Day Festival. But it got rained out.

Dean Back: Yeah. We were there. That was gonna be the very first show of ‘Scars and Souvenirs’ tour. 2008 or 2007 I don’t know. But, it was a long time ago. 4 Points or something?

MsBrandyRock: 5 Points. And I think you were rescheduled to come back I think with Black Stone Cherry.

Dean Back: Yeah we played a club.

MsBrandyRock: Have you ever heard of the music site Tunelab?

Dean Back. No.

MsBrandyRock: Well, my friend nICK he writes CD reviews for that site and he said “ ‘Bad Girlfriend’ is a guilty pleasure”.

Dean Back: Yep.

MsBrandyRock: He also went on to say you were “modern rock titans” concerning the latest CD because he said a number of “ballads could make waves at crossover radio stations”. Was that what Theory of a Deadman was thinking about?

Dean Back: No, when you write a ballad, when Tyler gets in the mood, he is a great ballad writer and writes beautiful stuff. And I think every band’s goal is to reach as many people as possible. We are still a rock band and will always be. Rock guys have hearts too.

MsBrandyRock: Yeah, even harder bands have slower songs even like Killswitch Engage.

Dean Back: Yeah, it’s like Corey Taylor has created a different thing.

MsBrandyRock: Kinda like the 80’s.

Dean Back: Yeah absolutely. Get the girls to the shows.

MsBrandyRock: What is Theory of a Deadman’s history prior to meeting Chad Kroeger of Nickleback? Were you playing local bars?

Dean Back: No, not at all. We were writing songs, working on our song writing craft. We played in a basement. We never played live. One of the big showcases for record labels was one of our first shows ever. We had records labels fly in from New York and Los Angeles to watch us play in the basement.

MsBrandyRock: Well, I’m sure you have played in other bands before. Was it kind of weird that it happened like that?

Dean Back: I mean, ya know, yeah. As soon as Chad decided that he wanted to start his own record company, it was only going to be a Canadian record company, so we wanted an American label as well. So we had about 5 or 6 record labels come and watch us play. We quit our jobs and things happened pretty quickly. Ya know, it has still been a gradual build to get to the place we are now.

MsBrandyRock: Do you think it would have happened as fast without him hearing your music?

Dean Back: No. We definitely owe him a lot. He gave us our shot.

MsBrandyRock: The Olympics this past year were you nervous about playing that?

Dean Back: Only because it is out of our comfort zone. To be playing in front of a television crowd, they had their own production, so they had a lot of things. We play 6 nights a week and we have everything down the way we like it. But when you put in a different production company, things aren’t how you are used to. And you are relying upon people you don’t know. So it was more about what could go wrong, then actually playing in front of 2 million people at home and 60,000 people in the stadium.

MsBrandyRock: Was it like a big deal though, since it was your home country?

Dean Back: Yeah, absolutely. Very big deal, very big honor.

MsBrandyRock: Was it something you were looking at doing or did someonr contact you?

Dean Back: The Olympic Committee called us. We were like, yes, yes. Just a great honor, a lot of fun. Great memory.

MsBrandyRock: Who was your first tour with?

Dean Back: 3 Doors Down. As soon as we came out in 2002 they were awesome to us, took us over to Europe. They treated us really well.

MsBrandyRock: Who are you most looking forward to seeing play today?

Dean Back: Slash, oh yeah for sure. I grew up listening to Guns N Roses, one of my main influences to playing live music.

MsBrandyRock: Have you ever seen him before?

Dean Back: Oh yeah, I’ve seen him before. Slash’s Snakepit came through Vancover in 1995. Hung outside his tour bus waiting for him, he came out and signed some autographs for me.

MsBrandyRock: Do you know who’s playing with him today?

Dean Back: Yeah, our old drummer is actually his drummer, Brent Fitz, who drummed with us and toured with us for ‘Gasoline’

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Press Pass from Brian Cade Photography at Muen Magazine.

Special thanks to nICK.