The Spyderz (Blistering.com)

Many may remember Evan Seinfeld from Biohazard. He has a new project called the Spyderz and I recently talked to him about it and everything else he has going on for Blistering.com. He's always an interesting interview and he's rarely lost for words.

The Spyderz
By: Rei Nishimoto

Being a musician in today’s world is a life that many encounter but very few truly experience. Those lucky enough to get that chance experience a way of life that places them in front of audiences that is beyond most people’s wildest dreams.

For Evan Seinfeld, he lived and breathed that lifestyle for 20 years in Biohazard, the New York based hardcore/metal outfit that produced eight studio records and toured with bands like Slayer, Sepultura, Machine Head, House of Pain and Korn.

Their influential sound fused metal and hardcore aggression with rap style vocal deliveries. Songs like ‘Punishment’ and ‘Tales From the Hard Side’ became well recognized tunes within their catalog of songs.

Seinfeld was the bassist and co-lead vocalist of the group, and is often recognized for his heavily tattooed appearance and matching persona. But he talked about how the time within Biohazard was a learning experience for him, especially landing a recording contract at such an early age.

This is the same person who got his first taste of the hardcore scene by going to New York City’s legendary CBGB’s matinee shows, and later became a roadie for Carnivore.

“I was a teenager when I got my first record contract,” he said. “I was in Biohazard for 20 years since it was founded. I started Biohazard in 1987. It’s 2007…where did my life go?”

Biohazard played its last shows in 2006, but Seinfeld was slowly moving towards a different direction in life. “Five and a half years ago, I got a phone call to hook up with Tera Patrick [his wife and adult film star]. She saw me on the TV show Oz. Next thing I know, I’m in love and getting married – my world’s getting turned upside down.”

He began helping Patrick run TeraVision, her own adult film company. “It’s not like I woke up one morning and said I wanted to run a porn company. When I met her, it was like meeting Mick Jagger with no money. She was this big star. She had money but she didn’t have any business. I built TeraVision for her. It’s her company and I built it for her. We’re considered one of the top three studios in the adult business. Tera’s the number one active adult film star in the business.”

Despite making a dent in the adult film industry, he has not quit music. He appeared on the VH1 reality television series Supergroup in 2006, as the band Damnocracy’s bassist, with an all star lineup of vocalist Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), guitarists Ted Nugent and Scott Ian (Anthrax) and drummer Jason Bonham.

He recently started up a new band called the Spyderz. Unlike his metal/hip-hop hybrid style in Biohazard, he returned to a roots rock sound that surprised many when they opened for Buckcherry at a club in New York in March 2007.

They played their first show opening for Buckcherry in Long Island, New York, in front of a sold out club. They have since played numerous shows, including opening for Black Label Society in Los Angeles.

Seinfeld knew that his next band had to represent in a way that suited his personality. “Things always go back to the fundamentals,” he said, explaining how he started the Spyderz.“I love baseball. If Derek Jeter bends down low and looks the ball to his glove, he’s not going to make the error. When he tries to hot dog it, he’ll blow the series.”

“What my birth into music was KISS, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Beatles and the Doors. What I found my freedom on as a teenager was punk rock, Bad Religion, and Social Distortion."

Much like his prior bands, the players slowly fell into place and the Spyderz became a reality. He met his guitarist Dirrty (Hollow NYC) at a meet and greet. He rounded the rest of the lineup with guitarist Johnny Jetson (Tattooed Millionaires), bassist John Monte (M.O.D., Dragpipe, Mind Funk, Ministry) and drummer Lee Nelson.

Musically, the Spyderz cross roots rock music with punk influences. Songs like “Little Lover” and “Walk Away” feature an edgy riff rock sound, while “Mama Tried” has more a bluesy vibe to it.

While thematically the Spyderz hit upon some personal as well as heavier subjects like he did in Biohazard, he feels that his new band musically is the next step in his career.

“When I was in Biohazard, I had nothing. I lived in a car and I used to deal cocaine. I wasn’t good at it. I used to snort all the coke! I tried to deal drugs…weed, coke, pills…to make enough money to pay for studios where we rehearsed, so we could do something.”

“When you have money, it’s like you don’t have money. The people in the middle are the ones who’re struggling. Now, I’m at a place in my life where I don’t worry about paying the rent. If I didn’t work for the next five years, I could pay the rent and live pretty well. I don’t have to do music to please anybody else. I could do exactly what I want to do.”

The Spyderz were invited to play a few British and European summer festivals. Despite being an unknown act outside of Seinfeld’s credits, he was surprised by the feedback they received during their brief trip.

“We read a review when we played in London,” he said. “The guy said we were a better Stone Temple Pilots with balls. I’ll take that! I hadn’t thought of that!”

“I’d say take some classic rock and some first Guns N’ Roses record, and mix that with Motorhead. I said Guns N’Roses meets the Misfits is the best way I could describe it. You can hear my influences in it. I’m open about the bands I like.”

“The Spyderz is melodic. It’s soulful, earnest and it’s real. It’s every bit as hardcore as Biohazard in where it’s coming from. But it’s not about heavy metal. There are elements of metal in it. There are definitely elements of punk in it. But it’s classic rock. It’s meant to be a young man’s version of Bob Dylan, the Allman Brothers…if I were 15 or 16, I wouldn’t want to listen to something my dad listened to. Rock music is the reason I wanted to play music in the first place.”

Despite the attention on the Spyderz, Seinfeld isn’t in any rush to take the band places quite yet. “The greatest thing is that I’m enjoying the journey. I never realized that the first time around, I’m just doing it. I didn’t know I was going to do anything. I just played music. Biohazard sold four million albums without one commercial radio spin.”

“I’m not in a rush. The vehicle that I have by being the lead singer in Biohazard and having my wife be Tera Patrick…we’re invited everywhere. I’m on the list. Unlike in Biohazard, they’re trying to keep me out! We were the guys climbing in the back window. Now the door’s open.”

myspace.com/thespyderz

Bloodsimple

The new Bloodsimple CD Red Harvest was one of my favorites for 2007. I spoke to them when they were in town on the Hellyeah tour for Blistering.com. Read on.

Bloodsimple has been hard at work completing its long awaited second full length called Red Harvest. They exploded onto the metal scene in 2005 with hard-hitting sounds, attracting new fans everywhere they played.

Bloodsimple started from the ashes of New York post-metallic hardcore heroes Vision of Disorder, where frontman Tim Williams and guitarist Mike Kennedy began writing new music for a new project. They collaborated with guitarist Nick Rowe and former Medication and Skrew bassist Kyle Sanders to begin writing songs.

They played shows across the Northeast, which caught the attention of Mudvayne frontman Chad Gray. He eventually signed the band to his imprint, Bullygoat/Warner Bros. The band issued their debut, A Cruel World in 2005, with songs like “Straight Hate” and “Blood In Blood Out” becoming crowd favorites.

Red Harvest takes over where the debut left off. The music still has a lot of the heaviness they had, but the musical maturity settling into their sound. Williams talked about the making Red Harvest, battling drummer problems, and surviving the rigors of the road.

Blistering.com: It’s been a while since we last heard from Bloodsimple.

Tim Williams: We needed to take some time off, go home, chill out, and record the record locally. It was good and bad. Plus we wanted to take our time. We knew it was an important record so we wanted to make it right. We stretched it out a little bit.

Blistering.com: In between that time, you were doing Vision of Disorder as well. Is this something that will be full time as well?

TW: VOD’s a once in a while thing. I would maybe do a new VOD record, but I don’t think it will ever happen. That’s done. We’re all still good friends and when we want to do a couple of shows, we’d do it. It’s just fun.

Blistering.com: Who decided to do the concept for Red Harvest with the book?

TW: A lot of people have been asking me about this. I think it’s sort of a miscommunication. It’s not entirely a concept record. That it is not. But what we did is Mike Kennedy, the guitar player, was Googling around, as he always does, one day, and he stumbled across this really cool definition of bloodsimple that came from the novel Red Harvest. The definition we thought summed up bloodsimple in a really cool way represented the chaos and the music. Then all of a sudden, we had this song called “Red Harvest,” it wasn’t called “Red Harvest” at the time. It needed a chorus. We knew it kicked ass and it was missing something. All of a sudden, within a day, it just tied itself all in perfectly. We decided to title the record Red Harvest. We decided to use that bloodsimple definition as a promo thing. Also use the first heavy track on the record, title it Red Harvest, and from the definition, we got the chorus “killing begets more killing” and all that shit. That’s where the concept ends. It’s all ties into that. It did make the record way more interesting. We’re all excited that it’s all tied in. The novel is pretty good. A couple of us read it and it’s pretty cool.Blistering.com: So the record doesn’t get any more conceptual than that.TW: The only thing it has is the “killing begets more killing.” That’s the only thing that comes out of the book. Everybody thinks it’s a whole concept record. Nah! It’s not.

Blistering.com: You read a bit of it, and…

TW:I read the whole thing, but half the record was done by then. ¾ of the record was done, and it just so happened in a couple of days in the studios, it came to light and it fit perfectly.

Blistering.com: What do you think you did differently musically? It sounds like you’ve tightened the screws without changing a lot of it.

TW: My motto of the record going into it, I wanted to have a more organic sounding style of metal. I don’t even know if you’d want to call us metal because I don’t know if we are. But we wanted a more live organic record. We wanted a different type of heavy. We didn’t want the run-in-the-mill heavy that’s out there. We also didn’t want to rewrite the script. Who the fuck’s gonna do that? You really can’t. We wanted to do something a little left of center, but that still applied to our fanbase that we already created and maybe get a couple of new fans on the way. That was basically the rule of thumb. Also touring with so many big bands on the first record, we knew we had to step it up. To seeing those bands play and hear what they do and realize that’s why they got as far as they did. Their music is just that good. So that was inspiring as well. We were playing with all of these huge bands, so we knew we needed to step it up.

Blistering.com: The last Vision of Disorder CD, From Bliss To Devastation, redefined your sound then. Then the debut Bloodsimple CD again redefined your sound entering a new band. How tough is to keep redefining your sound this many times?

TW: It wasn’t a conscious thing. If you want to stay in the game, you’ve got to reinvent yourself. Just do what you do, but just do better. It was always going to sound like VOD, because of my voice. But using it differently, different musicians, and thinking outside of the box, you kind of reinvent yourself automatically.

Blistering.com: You had drummer changes recently. How much did that play into the writing of the music?

TW: It was frustrating but a lot of the music is written by the four of us. The first record was written like that. Chris [Hamilton, ex-drummer] put in his time, but a lot of it was written without him. This record was kind of the same, then we had Will Hunt [of Dark New Day and Evanescence] come in for two weeks. He’s the one who played on the record. We wrote with him for two weeks straight. A lot of good songs came out of that. It just went. It didn’t inhibit us too bad. It’s a pain in the ass not having a drummer. After the experience with Chris, no good or bad…he’s a great guy…we’re not gonna just take anybody. It’s got to be the right person. We don’t want to go through that again. It’s bad for everybody. When that time’s right, the guy we’re with now on tour, Bevan [Davies, Comes With The Fall, The Mercy Clinic], he’s close to making the mark. He’s an awesome guy and fucking wails. Will [Hunt] was great too, but he’s got so much shit going on. It’s hard to keep a finger on him. But Bevan is amazing. He’s real good.

Blistering.com: You’ve had a few different drummers on tour with you.

TW: Brendan [Cohen] from VOD came out and played with us. I love Brendan. If Brendan wasn’t in VOD, he would be in this band right now. He’s one of my best buds and he’s a funny dude to be on the road with. Then we had Will jam with us a bit, and we had Mike Froedge [of DoubleDrive] went to Europe with us. It’s been a rotating cast, but it’s the four of us. That’s who Bloodsimple is, until we find somebody else.

Blistering.com: You just completed the Family Values Tour this past summer.

TW: We pretty much did the whole thing. I think we missed a week and then we cancelled the last part because my mouth got all fucked up.

Blistering.com: How’s your mouth now?

TW: It’s better. I don’t have a tooth. It was in LA where I lost it. It swelled up like this far. One day away from going into the emergency room…it was bad news. It was starting to get into my throat. It was a nightmare. It was supposed to only cost $300, but then they had to put me under, because it was so bad. It cost me $1200. We’re not happy that we had to cancel the last three shows. The last time I saw in LA, I was in agony.

Blistering.com: You’ve been on countless tours with many bands over the years. What’s been the learning experience just with Bloodsimple versus Vision of Disorder?

TW: Oh my god! It’s like night and day. In VOD, we were a bunch of reckless kids. We were 20 years old, thrown into huge Ozzfest type scenerios. With a decent amount of fame when you’re that young, and the whole world thrown at you, you don’t know how to handle that. We weren’t enormous, but for 20 year old kids from Long Island, there was a lot of shit going on. It wasn’t like the way it is today where everything’s messed over. It was a lot different. We made a lot of mistakes and probably cost us our career in the end. But whatever…time goes on. In Bloodsimple, we’re a little more grown up, and a little more seasoned. Bloodsimple’s had a lot more opportunities than VOD’s ever had. Just in the genre and being put out on tours, and being exposed to so many different people and crowds. So that alone is the difference right there.

Blistering.com: You’ve toured with bands like Mudvayne, but also bands like Disturbed as well.

TW: And Alice In Chains and shit. We’ve always got good crowd reactions. We just keep going. Hellyeah’s going pretty good. I don’t know what we’re going to do next year. I know I’m going home for a little while and just rest. Whatever comes our way, if it’s worth it, we’ll do it.

Blistering.com: Have you done a video for this record yet?

TW: That’s a touchy subject. We did a video but we didn’t like the way it came out, so I don’t think anybody’s going to see it. I don’t want to get too deep into this, but the record business is in the weird state right now. Nobody’s letting go of money like they used to. It’s hard to get shit done the way you used to get it done. So we did a rush job for a song I didn’t really want to do it for. Again, the band’s not happy with the product. We’re back stepping a little bit. We’re going to get something done. Hopefully by the end of the year we’ll have something done.

Blistering.com: Considering the way the music business and the world is now, do you think being road dogs has worked in your favor?

TW: I don’t think it works as well as much as it used to. When you’re a huge band, it’s totally different. I was thinking about this last night, because when you’re an up and coming band, and you’re coming out, get a little push from your label, you go out on the road and hustle. You have CDs at your shows. Maybe you had a good night and sold 50 CDs…that’s not happening any more. Kids just don’t buy CDs. Bloodsimple’s first CD – a lot of our sales came from us hustling out here on the road, selling 50 to 75 to even 90 CDs a night. We sold a lot of records out here. It’s not like that any more. To me, it’s not the way it used to be. I don’t think you have to tour as much. The record companies aren’t letting go of as much money. The kids aren’t buying CDs. If there’s a demand for you, then it’s different. Again, I don’t know if it’s as effective as it used to be.

Blistering.com: You’re on tour now with Hellyeah. Your boy Chad [Grey] heads your label and fronts Hellyeah. You’ve toured with him both in Mudvayne and Hellyeah. Is there a difference?

TW: Chad’s a cool dude. Me and him are bros. We hang out. Hellyeah or Mudvayne, he’s just the same. All the guys in both bands are great guys. We’ve come to be good friends with that whole camp. They’ve seen Bloodsimple so much. All the Pantera crew knows who we are. Vinnie [Paul]’s real cool. They’re our bros. It’s all good. We’re lucky to have friends in high places to take us out. A lot of people don’t get to play in front of 1500 a night. So this tour’s like that. It got a little smaller since we hit Cali but everywhere, Kansas City – 1500 people. Grand Rapids, sold out. It’s been a pretty hyped tour.

Blistering.com: So what’s next?

TW: Again, we’ve been slugging it out. This will be six weeks. We did Family Values. I’m a coming and going type of guy. I’ve been doing this a long time. Maybe take a little break. There’s talk of going to the UK and Ireland in January. We’ll see where we’re at. Maybe there’s something that provokes us to come out. But you have to hold onto the money these days and make smart decisions. At least that’s what this band has to do. You can’t take every tour that comes your way. That old mentality doesn’t pay any more. So that’s the way it’s going to be.

Blistering.com: We need someone to represent New York on the scene. Glad you’re still at it.

TW: God…there’s no metal bands from New York. I live in New York City. I couldn’t think of a band to go out and play with. There’s not much there metal wise. There’s a couple. I’m not going to shit on anybody, but there ain’t many. So here we are. But we aren’t all from New York. Me, Mike [Kennedy] and Nick [Rowe] are. The other guys are from Atlanta. myspace.com/bloodsimple

Black Tide

I talked to the guys in Black Tide for Blistering.com around Halloween 2007. If you're not familiar with them, they're from Miami and their music is quite solid. Their debut is supposed to drop this spring through Interscope Records. Read on...

The members of Black Tide were originally trying to play on the Ozzfest this past summer in their local area of Miami, Florida. They were trying to play shows like most unsigned bands were trying to fulfill, but what they got was an opportunity to play the remainder of the tour.

The band members range in age from 15 to 19, with frontman Gabe Garcia being the youngest. For being as young as they are, they are gifted players and have surprised audiences on Ozzfest this past summer and now on the Avenged Sevenfold tour this fall.Fans got a taste of Black Tide’s music with advance listens to “Shockwave” and “Black Abyss,”which are posted on the band’s Myspace page. Musically, their blend of 80s hard rock structures with guitar harmonies and tasteful soloing, with a youthful modern flare makes Black Tide a band to look out for in 2008.

Bassist Zakk Sandler and Garcia spoke to Blistering.com about their forthcoming CD, Light From Above, their experiences on Ozzfest and their futures flashing before their eyes.

Blistering.com: Is it a bit surreal being this unknown bunch of kids on Ozzfest to actually doing a tour?

Zakk Sandler: It’s definitely surreal. Getting to wake up in the morning and knowing you’re about to go out on tour with some of your heroes. I don’t think there are words to describe what I’m feeling.

Blistering.com: How long have you been together?

ZS: Four years now. Our drummer (Steven Spence) that we have now has been with us a year. The rest of us have been together for four years.

Blistering.com: So did you meet in high school?

ZS: I was in high school! The rest of the band was in middle school. Actually, with the exception of the drummer, we used to be enemies. It was me versus the other two in the band! We were not all yet friends. One of their first three shows at a venue that wasn’t a backyard was with us. They had no bass player. I was like ‘I’ll do it.’ I was going to do it temporarily. Here we are four years later, going on tour with Avenged [Sevenfold].

Blistering.com: You used to be called Radio?

ZS: We knew we couldn’t keep Radio because of trademark issues. You can’t trademark radio. We needed a new name and it had to be decent.

Blistering.com: Who came up with the name Black Tide?

Gabe Garcia: It was between the band and the label. We all liked it. After throwing down a ton of names, we came up with one that we thought was it. We thought it was cool and could relate to it.

Blistering.com: You’re all relatively young in age. How do crowds view that when they see you for the first time?

GG: I don’t think it makes a difference.

ZS:It’s just a number. We’re just going at it, doing the same thing as everyone else. We’re going through the same first experiences. It’s no different.

Blistering.com: (To Gabe) when did you start playing music?

GG: I started when I was nine.

Blistering.com: Are you still in school?

GG: I’m doing online school. You can do it for just about any grade now.

Blistering.com: How did you hook up with these guys?

GG: My brother met them at school.

Blistering.com: Black Tide’s sound has a throw back to the 80s hard rock sound. Where do the influences come from?

ZS: There are all sorts of stuff on the internet. You can listen to anything. I think we’re all influenced by the whole rock genre and everything associated to it, whether it is hair metal or death metal.

Blistering.com: What bands were you influenced by that formed Black Tide’s sound?

GG: My favorite bands right now are Pantera and Megadeth...Guns N Roses, Megadeth, Pantera, as I said…Iron Maiden.

Blistering.com: So how did you get picked for Ozzfest?

ZS: Originally, our manager got us booked to do the Florida show on the Second Stage. It was something to do. Then, after he was talking to the promoters for it, they asked us to be on the Second Stage for the rest of the tour. Then, eight hours before us leaving, we got a phone call saying Jaegermeister flipped out about you guys being too young. You guys aren’t going on tour. Then a miracle…we got bumped up to the Main Stage.

Blistering.com: What was that like? First you’re on the tour, then you’re not, then you don’t know what’s going on. Then you’re playing alongside Lamb of God and Static X on the Main Stage. What was the experience like?

GG: It was weird at first, but we got used to it.ZS: You learn very quickly, and everyday you learn something new and get more efficient.

Blistering.com: You did your debut CD (Light From Above) in Chicago, is that right?

ZS: Yes.

Blistering.com: Who produced your record?

ZS: Johnny K.

Blistering.com: What do you think he brought out of your sound?

ZS: I don’t know. He gets it and he knows how to keep it so pure than what the band wants.

Blistering.com: You’re doing the Avenged Sevenfold tour. Tell me your thoughts on this.

ZS: My dreams came true for me. Every day is like ‘holy shit!’

http://www.blacktidemusic.com/

SIXX: AM

I interviewed James Michael from SIXX: AM this past fall. I think it was in October since I recall talking to him about the Malibu fires. But that's not what the interview's about. He was cool and he's done a lot of stuff besides this. This ran on Blistering.com so check it out.

For the past 20 years, Nikki Sixx has been the bassist in Motley Crue. His tall build with jet black hair and leather outfit is well recognized and idolized by many. He has redefined the term ‘rock star’ with his wild life style and outlaw style behavior, which often became controversial.

The Heroin Diaries: A Year In The Life of a Rock Star is a book where he shares with the world his personal diaries during the height of his career in 1987. He shares his personal writings about his struggles with heroin and cocaine addiction, while getting the people closest to him to also share their thoughts as well.

To coincide with the book, he composed music that works like a soundtrack to the book. He collaborated with vocalist/guitarist/producer James Michael and guitarist DJ Ashba to create songs for the record, called The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack.

While Sixx’s life has been documented throughout this record, Michael and Ashba both helped greatly with shaping the songs. Michael is a veteran songwriter, producer and musician, who previously collaborated with Sixx on various projects. His credits including Alanis Morrissette, the Scorpions, The Exies and Saliva, while Ashba has been a session guitarist and has written with such acts as Trapt, Drowning Pool and Aimee Allen.

Michael shared with Blistering.com about the making of the SIXX: AM record, and talking about the man he’s known then and now.

Blistering.com: Congratulations on finishing the SIXX:AM record.

James Michael: Thanks. We’re really excited and surprised at how well it’s been doing. When we finally sat down to do this, it came together real fast. We did the whole record in a couple of months. The writing of it, of course, took a few years, but the actual making of the record was a lot of fun and went real quick.

Blistering.com: When you originally read Nikki’s diaries, what were your initial reactions to it?

JM: You know, it was real interesting because Nikki and I have been friends for several years. I’ve seen him when he was not sober, and I’ve visited him in rehab. I’ve seen the whole process happen. But it’s still pretty shocking I’d have to say, even though we all know all of the legendary stories of the Motley days – just all of the absolute mayhem that went on. But for me, it was a different experience than what I think it would be for most readers. Because for me, it was sitting there reading these shocking and horrific things about a friend who I love dearly. It was a much more personal experience to sit there and read these things. It’s one thing when you hear about a rock star. You kind of assume that some of these things go on. So it’s not so shocking. But to be reminded…wait, this is my bro. This is my friend…if these kinds of things happened today; I would have never let it happen. It was definitely shocking, sad, exciting at times. I found myself page after page just having to remind myself that this is the same guy that I hang out with on a daily basis.

Blistering.com: How was the songwriting approached? Were they written based on the order of events?

JM:It’s interesting – in a lot of different ways. There were certainly songs on this record that the three of us got together and wrote after the diaries had been brought back out. We sat down and re-enacted certain things in the diaries. But there’s a good portion of the record that had been written over the past five or six years. In fact, I had written the song ‘Van Nuys’ and a couple of those like ‘Dead Man’s Ballet’ about four or five years ago. At that time, Nikki and I were talking about how great it would be when he does finally get the diaries done and do a soundtrack to it. So even back then, he came in and listened to a couple of those songs. ‘This is exactly how it has to sound.’ So then over the next few years, it was always in the back of our minds. So any time a song that one of us was writing, we thought it would be a cool Heroin Diaries song. We would finish it, and then it would sit there until we were ready to do the whole thing.Over the years, the songs were put together in a lot of different ways, from personal experiences of mine, which coincided with ones he’s [Nikki Sixx] had. So those songs grew with the concept of the record. Then there’s songs where we literally sat down, read through the diaries, found cool phrases and built songs around that.

Blistering.com: The book came first, is that correct?

JM: In theory, the book was written in 1986 to 1987, because that’s when the diary entries were originally made. Then from my understanding, it was a few years ago when Nikki was going through the storage and came across those diaries. That’s when the concept became clear. He went back and started reading those diary entries and thought “my god, this is intense!” It seemed like it would make a good read for people. It was real courageous thing for him to be willing to open up to the public.

Blistering.com: Do you remember how you originally met Nikki?

JM: I was signed to Beyond Records, Allan Kovac’s label [Nikki Sixx’s manager and head of 10th Street Entertainment) back in 1998 or 1999. He was also part of the Beyond world with Motley Records. So we were both label mates at the time. I was ready to release my solo record. He and I would pass each other in the halls at the label. We’d say hey to each other and one day he gave me a call and said ‘I just listened to your solo record. I think it’s great and we’re getting ready to write a Motley Crue record. I was wondering if you wanted to do some writing with me.’ That is how we first got together, and wrote two songs. Those two, plus six more songs ended up on the New Tattoo record [from Motley Crue].

Blistering.com: You’ve done some other songwriting for other artists as well, like Alanis Morrissette and Saliva?

JM: I produced a track for Alanis Morrissette. I wrote one of the singles for Saliva’s second to last record. Nikki and I co-wrote that. It’s called ‘Rest in Pieces.’ Nikki and I have done a lot of writing together for a lot of people, like Meat Loaf…all across the board. Of course, over the past two to three years, as Nikki was out doing the Motley thing again, I’ve been producing a lot of records and writing for a lot of artists. That’s my main gig, is writing and producing records for other artists.

Blistering.com: You produced the latest Scorpions album?

JM: I did. That was quite an experience.

Blistering.com: Was that a surreal experience to work with someone like them?

JM:For as young as I am, I’ve been lucky to work with a lot of these classic artists. I’ve worked with Blondie, Sammy Hagar, Meat Loaf and Scorpions…a lot of these bands that I grew up on. It’s always a thrill. It always is. You learn so much about a band you thought you already knew a lot about, in the process of making records with them. I never get over the thrill of being with iconic rock stars and being in a personal setting with them. It’s like becoming a friend.

Blistering.com: It must be surreal telling someone like Nikki that a part sucks.

JM:We have our fights.

Blistering.com: The songs on the Heroin Diaries have a real deep feel within each song. Which songs hit you harder than the others?

JM: I would say for all three of us different songs. For me, it’s the ones that I had the biggest hands in writing, like ‘Van Nuys,’ ‘Courtesy Call,’ ‘Dead Man’s Ballet,’ ‘Permission’…those were all songs I had written for another solo record that I was going to do. They certainly come from a place in my emotion that also means a lot to me. It’ll always have a place in my heart but I think what had been the most exciting for me is the collaboration between Nikki, DJ and myself, because there’s something so satisfying and rewarding about getting in a room with those two guys and writing songs, like ‘Life Is Beautiful.’ No one of us could have done that song by ourselves. It was absolutely a great collaboration and an exciting thing to do. I think a song like ‘Life Is Beautiful’ is an exciting one for me, because it’s different from the other songs. ‘Girl With Golden Eyes’ I love because I love marrying the music and the melody lines to Nikki’s narration, reading from his journal, in the song. That’s something I haven’t heard anyone do before. So it excites me because we’re breaking new ground with stuff like that. Blistering.com: You released ‘Life Is Beautiful’ as the first single. It’s almost like an inspirational tune.JM: We wanted all of the songs to be positive. I think that was one of the real challenges about this record, especially one called The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack. One would certainly imagine that it could be a miserable, complaining type of record. We wanted to give people a reason to listen to it again. It was very important to us to make each song have an element of hopefulness, inspiration or achievement. That was a big challenge for us. We constantly, during the process of writing the songs, would have to keep ourselves in check, and say ‘hey, are we starting to complain a bit too much in this song? Let’s at least give this a positive enough twist and feel like they’re growing while listening to this.’ They can apply it to their life in a positive way.

Blistering.com: If these songs are these strong, what were the songs like that did not make the record?

JM: That’s a great question. We did write almost a double album’s worth of material. Because we are always writing together anyways, we have a lot of songs to pull from. We visualized this like a movie. When we started writing for it, we actually had a movie in mind. So the songs were a lot more theatrical or pertain to one specific scene in this movie that was bubbling around in our heads. There was a dwindling down process where we’re heart broken because we had a great song but it wasn’t going to make sense in the context of the 13 songs of the actual record. There are a lot of great songs that we may at some point release as bonus tracks.

Blistering.com: You and Nikki had been writing songs together for some time. How did you meet D.J. Ashba?

JM: I think Nikki and D.J. met at Randy Castillo’s funeral, which is ironic they would meet and go onto make a record like this. Nikki and D.J. have done some studio work together on some projects. I actually met D.J. in the studio working on a project. I’ve always say that D.J. was the missing link in this whole record. It’s something Nikki and I were talking about doing for five or six years. After Nikki and D.J. partnered up, everything started happening.

Blistering.com: Are there plans on making more music under the SIXX: AM banner?

JM: There are no immediate plans but we’ve all agreed that it would be ridiculous for us to not to continue to make music together, whether it is under the SIXX: AM moniker or not. We have way too much fun doing it. We definitely have chemistry together that we’re going to pursue. What’s been interesting is trying to manage people’s expectations. We never had this kind of expectation. To sit here with the number five single right now is way beyond our expectation. It’s certainly exciting to watch it happen. We’re getting a lot of requests to tour. But it is a matter of managing people’s expectations. We accidentally came into this band. We never had the intension of being a band. I’m working non-stop producing records. D.J. and Nikki have the Motley thing going. It’s something that we are excited about and thinking about doing. If the need arose, we’d jump at the chance.

Blistering.com: What are you working on these days?

JM: Right now I’m producing a band on Warner Brothers called American Bang. I am extremely excited about this record. It’s a Southern rock band from Nashville. I’ve been developing them for about eight months and we’re now in the process of making the record and probably done in about another month.

Blistering.com: D.J.’s writing his own stuff?

JM: Yeah. He’s doing studio work. He’s a busy man.

Blistering.com: And Nikki’s off playing where in Carmen San Diego is he now…?

JM: Exactly! Nikki’s off busting his ass promoting this book and signings. That’s one thing you learn about Nikki very fast. He’s always doing ten things and doing them very well. He’s the hardest worker in the business.

Blistering.com: Tell us something about Nikki that no one would ever know about him.

JM: That’s a tough one. I would have to answer generally, with his reputation, and his past, which is a public one, and all of the decadence and the insanity, he truly is the most generous, kindest, coolest, and most laid back, trust-worthy person I know. I think that a lot of people would never assume that. Maybe that shatters the illusion of what a rock star is, but he’s just an incredibly down to earth guy.

www.myspace.com/heroindiaries

The Heroin Diaries book review

I reviewed Nikki Sixx's Heroin Diaries book for the Valley Scene Magazine. It's this rag that is distributed in the San Fernando Valley areas of Los Angeles. I also sent the same book review to Blistering.com. I didn't think a mainstream rag would actually run a review about a rockstar's drug addiction. I guess I was wrong.

The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rockstar

By Nikki Sixx with Ian Gittins

By Rei Nishimoto

It is impressive how much Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx has turned his life around since the days his demons got the worst of him. He was clinically dead from a heroin overdose and was revived by paramedics. These episodes were placed within his personal diaries back in 1987, and later were turned into this book.

For over 20 years, Sixx set a standard of what a rock star was supposed to be. He was the bassist and key songwriter in Motley Crue, an infamous Los Angeles based hard rock band that lived all of the clichés - sex, drugs, and rock n'roll. It was largely Sixx's vision on how the band was going to be and who would play each part of the band.

Sixx was the tall, jet black haired member with the distinct lines under his eyes. Fans recognized him immediately, and many wanted to be him. They were loud, raunchy, and caught the attention of the public during a time when music was still finding its identity. Plus their heavy booze and drug using reputation often boosted their appeal with their fans.

Since those days, he has attempted to clean his life up on his own. He has relapsed a couple different times over the years, and eventually underwent rehabilitation for drugs and alcohol to clean up for good. Calling this a return from the living dead is an understatement.

The Heroin Diaries is a collection of his personal writings from 1987, the infamous year when the popular bassist was at the height of his career and struggling to balance fame and his personal issues. His writings enter into his deepest parts of his depression, along with facing his battles of heroin and cocaine addiction.

Much of his writings were originally done during the height of Motley Crue's career, meaning unlimited access to feed Sixx's addictions and allowing his demons to run loose on him. This realistic look at him reliving this time period, and his friends and family's thoughts on how he functioned leaves chilling thoughts on how someone could actually survive through that.

The book as a whole takes readers through the wild times Sixx and Motley Crue lived through. His descriptions of the out-of-control behavior, as well as his personal struggles to overcome drug addictions is quite shocking, and can be tough to read at times. He even writes about hiding in his closet, from drug-induced paranoia.

Within the book, he and co-author Ian Gittins interviewed numerous people closest to the band, including his bandmates, ex-girlfriend Denise 'Vanity' Matthews, ex-managers, ex-record company executives, and his own family members.

The book goes into the wild lifestyle that the band lived through at the time. It was a life that many people idolize. The fame, the fortune, and their wild lifestyle are often envied, and becoming a subject of controversy. It is often glamorized, and things often ending sadly.
But within the lifestyle and the music, Sixx often brought up his inability to let go of his past. Throughout the diaries, he brought the subject of his father, whom he never got to know; and his mother, who never raised him full time when he was growing up. He was angry about the death of his grandmother, who helped raise him with his grandfather. These parts of the diaries expose a big part of his troubles over the years and a human side of him.

The Heroin Diaries is highly recommended to fans of Motley Crue and rock n roll music. Despite the unbelievable turn of events here, it can be a hard read, as some of the subject matter is not always glamorous. It is definitely a realistic view into a lifestyle that should be avoided at all costs.

Dillinger Escape Plan 'Ire Works'

I know that almost everyone that listens to heavy music has an opinion about Dillinger Escape Plan. Their music is much debated and no one can agree on which release truly defines them. But their latest release Ire Works is impressive and when I reviewed it for Mean Street Magazine in November, I was impressed.

NOVEMBER 2007VOL 18.05
DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN

Ire Works(Relapse)

Pushing the limits of extremities is always a challenge and Dillinger Escape Plan gladly accepts it. With Ire Works, the band may have created its most focused release yet. Taking the musical direction they began on Miss Machine, they refined their chaotic sounds and infused new ideas into it, fusing elements ranging from electronica (“Sick On Sunday”) to Mike Patton-like musical patterns (“Back Bubblegum”). Frontman Greg Puciato goes balls-out on the heavier tunes, while expanding his melodic side as well. Ire Works has brought Dillinger Escape Plan to a new musical level beyond extreme music.

Grade: A

REI NISHIMOTO

Goon Moon rocks!!! (Modern Fix - Issue 56)

I interviewed Chris Goss from Goon Moon for Issue 56 of Modern Fix Magazine. The CD is awesome and I highly recommend it for anyone who loves stripped down blues rock.

Read the story below:

Interview: Goon Moon
by Rei Nishimoto

Chris Goss is one amazing musical mind, helping shape some amazing music. He is a musician, producer and songwriter for many bands that are recognized as part of the ‘desert rock’ sound from the Joshua Tree and Palm Springs, CA areas. As a producer, Goss has worked with Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age, shaping their sound into what is well known today. As a musician, he has been the mastermind behind Masters of Reality, where he has built a cult fan base across the United States and Europe.

Now he has formed the unlikeliest of collaborations with Geordie “Twiggy Ramirez” White in a new project called Goon Moon. White is well known for his time spent as a bassist with Marilyn Manson, and is now a touring bassist with Nine Inch Nails. His drummer is Zac Hill, who is best known in Hella and Team Sleep.

Their full length CD is titled ‘Licker’s Last Leg’ and it is quite the musical trip. From the beatnik-esque ‘Apple Pie’ to up-tempoed rockers “My Machine,” each song on here has its own personality.

Goss talked about how this oddball collaboration came together, their unique musical bond, the possibilities of Goon Moon playing live, and his love of his desert surrounding.

How did Goon Moon come together?

Chris Goss: I started jamming with Twiggy (Geordie White) a little over three years ago. Just hanging out and writing together. No plans really. I’d either show up at his place or he’s show up at my place, and we’d just play. We found out that we wrote really quickly together.

Do you remember the first bit of music that came together?

The first song we wrote together never made it to any Goon Moon record yet. I remember one song in particular…Twiggy is an Oasis freak. He played me an Oasis song and said ‘let’s write a song like that.’ And we did (laughs). It sounds nothing like Oasis, but it was a chord progression or something the way the song moved. I said I could do that.

The songs on the EP “I’ve Got A Brand New Egg Laying Machine” has a lot more improvisational jams, versus the full length “Licker’s Last Leg” which has more song structures. Was that intensional?

The first EP that we did, it was more jamming. Zach Hill came in one day, and said he had an idea on how to piece some of these jams together. So Zach sat there with the engineer and edited the jams and the noise. That EP was literally put together in five hours. A couple of songs were from different sessions. We recorded some jams and Zach said, “Let’s throw them together and Suicide Squeeze will put it out.” It’s really loose and spontaneous. The whole project has been that way.

There are a lot of flavors to “Licker’s Last Leg”. ‘Apple Pie’ has a Janes Addiction or a Pink Floyd-like feel. There were also some stuff in the Masters of Reality vein as well. Was each song treated differently, due to whenever you worked on it?

‘Apple Pie’ has an old drum machine that I love to write with. That would be an example of three or four hours of work with Twiggy in a studio. I’d turn a drum beat on. He starts playing a bass line. I start throwing the keyboard down to his bass line. He did a vocal. I’d do backup vocals and the song is done. It’s literally that quickly. A lot of free association words. The lyrics too. He’ll be singing a lyric and he’ll stop at a line. I’ll look at a picture of a dog on a wall and say ‘dog!’ That becomes a lyric! We’re able to work spontaneously together, without overanalyzing. It’s not tortuous. Twiggy had a lyric book and he was going through it, pulling lines out. When we throw it down, it sounds more professional than it is.

‘The Autumn That Came Too Soon’ has a cool step beat in it. How did that come about?

That’s a goth thing (laughs). That particular song, with the way that drum machine and the guitar, the bass lines… that’s me stoned with a drum machine… and depressed probably.
You and Twiggy are from different musical areas. How did you two first meet? Very few would picture you two working together.I loved his work with Marilyn Manson. Marilyn Manson was my favorite band in the 90s. I went to a zillion Manson shows and met Twiggy. I was a real fan

of his work. I found out that he was unhappy with Manson, I said “let’s jam.”

Are there any talks about ever doing Goon Moon live?

We’d love to when he stops touring with Nine Inch Nails for a few months. He gets off the road with Nine Inch Nails, and I start a production in the studio. It’s been going on for three years non stop. I’m hoping this time, around the fall, this cycle might stop and we may be able to tour. I’d like to do some kind of combination tour, maybe of Masters of Reality, Goon Moon and maybe another band onboard where we could do three bands worth of material, so we’re our own opening band.

Could you see yourself playing this stuff live, considering songs from the EP are longer.

There are a few things on the first record I’d definitely love to get to live. Some of them we’ve only played live once, and that’s so annoying. Played live once in the studio, and never to be touched again. I know that happened a lot with the Beatles. At the late stage in the Beatles’ career, when they were more like a studio band and then never got to perform some of those songs live. It’s really a shame.

You’ve been producing a lot of bands lately. Which do you prefer, producing or playing music?

I have done an equal amount. I prefer playing. I just got done producing two years straight. I played with Goon Moon, but it was studio. The new Unkle record’s coming out, and the new Queens of the Stone Age. It’s really two years in the studio nonstop. I’m taking a break for about a month, but now I’m going into the studio with Duke Spirit.

How’s that going?

I love Duke Spirit. They’re an English band we met a little over a year ago. I didn’t think it was going to happen because the Queens of the Stone Age album went on so long. It turned out that the timing was perfect. So I’m excited about that. I’m recording them in the desert. That is the ultimate for me when I’m able to bring a band out to Joshua Tree and record there.

Is there anything you’ve yet to do, either in Masters of Reality or Goon Moon?

I’d like to do more improvisation, all of that fusion type of music. I don’t think it would fit into Masters or Goon Moon territory. But I have a trio that I’m working with. Mike Garson, David Bowie’s piano player and musical director for years; and Zac Hill from Hella. And Zac’s in about five bands too. That is more like free form, noise jazz. We probably have an album’s worth of material. I’d like to do a tour where I’d walk on stage and not know what we were going to do every night. That sounds totally exciting. Not in a Sonic Youth like noise manner either. Noise music is fun for the people making it and not for the audience, right? I heard that quote recently. But it’s music that’s still groovy. There’s something for the body and the bridge to write on. It’s not just anything banging away.

myspace.com/goonmoon

2007 Licker’s Last Leg (Ipecac)

2005 I Got A Brand New Egg Laying Machine (Suicide Squeeze)

My First Post

I've always wondered how a blog is set up...and now I've given into creating one for myself. Now I have my own blog to link and post my writing work that I've done.

As many may (or may not) by aware, I've been a freelance music journalist for quite a while now...exactly since 1993 or so. I've had a few day jobs along the way, but I've always done the writing deal regardless of where I worked.

I've written for numerous publications and it's been a way for me to help support the music scene in my own way. My work has found its way into various print zines and music magazines across the globe. It's been a passion of mine for years and I doubt I'll give it up any time soon.

I will be posting links to my published works through here, instead of the email blast I attempted to do in the past. So we'll see how this goes.