by Tim Nydell

 

Blower: I actually mowed lawns for about ten years.  (laughs)

Cody: I had summer jobs - working for my dad.  But right when we started off I wasn't doing much, just doing school.

Mike:  I basically embezzled money from restaurants.  (laughs)  That was my profession.  I was a bartender.

Mark: I was a projectionist at a theater, the greatest job ever.  And I also worked in a recording studio for a little while. 

 

Mark: Just songs off of the album.

Cody: We only have thirty minutes.

 

Mark: Start with "How Long", "Homecoming Queen", "Bliss", "Room 21", "Lips Of An Angel", and "Get Stoned". 

 

Why those songs?
Cody:  I don't know, I think the show has to have dynamics to it... they get a good crowd response.  The strongest songs. 

 

Mark: Good question.

Cody: Well, if you go up there and you look like you're having fun... you're actually working and not just standing up there being all fucking lame... the thing about us is that we actually want to be up there, when we're up there we're having a good time - we want everyone else to have a good time as well.  I think that really plays a big role.

Mark: I'll be the one with the big smile on my face all night.  (laughs)

 

Cody: Yes.

 

Mike: It's our biggest market.  We've sold twice as many albums up there as we have in our own town. 

 

Mike: Both.

 

Cody: That's a very good question.  I'm sure the video part will be released as soon as the single is released which should be within the next four weeks.  The video is going to be us behind the scenes, back here partying and also live footage from the show... the live DVD will be an extension to that video.

 

Cody:  We all have different ones.  Mine's a toss up between "Lips Of An Angel" and "Room 21".  Just because "Room 21" is that rock song - about having a good time, having a one night stand... the guy gets laid and doesn't really care to get her name... it's all good. 

Blower:  Mine's "How Long", it's that highway tune that you can't crank up loud enough.

Mike: Mine's "By The Way".  I just like the melodies and lyrics.  And "Shoulda", that's another one of my favorites.

Mark:  I have a new favorite one all the time, depending on where I'm at in my life.  Right now probably "Bliss".  Just the lyrics, I've been single for a long time and I just found out that my last girlfriend is pregnant - it's crazy.  Yea, the lyrics of that... 'I don't wanna know it's over'.  That's my favorite right now, and I relate to it pretty well.

 

Mike: I don't want to be compared to anyone.  I want people to see that we're our own band - we have influences from other bands like Aerosmith and Motley Crue. 

Cody:  One comparison, I'm just going to go ahead and throw it out, I'm really fucking tired of the Nickelback comparison.  Because if you come out and watch our live show or really listen to the album we're nothing fucking like them.  I love the guys, I think they're an amazing band, but we are nothing like them. 

Mike:  That seems to be the one we get all the time.  A Nickelback clone band, and obviously the dipshit who's saying that hasn't listened to our CD or watched us live, because I don't see it at all. 

 

Cody: I am, I don't know about anyone else.

Mike: First comes our fans, our music, then partying. 

 

Cody:  Fuck dude... booze, chicks. 

Mike:  The perfect party starts with liquor and ends with me getting laid.  (laughs)

 

Cody:  Great rock 'n roll that's a lot of fun.  We want to be known eventually as the biggest rock band in the world.  Just a straight up rock 'n roll fun band.

Blower:  The guys who people want to hang out with.

Cody:  And we also want people to know that we actually give a shit about the fans that are buying our albums and come out to the shows to support us.  We're the only band on this tour that takes the time to go out and sign - yes, we do get a smaller amount of time out of respect to the other bands, but we always do it any time we get a chance.  Just to be able to go out and say thank you - that's another thing I'd like to be known for. 

Mike:  'Cause we wouldn't be doing this shit if people weren't buying the albums.  They're number one priority. 

 

Mike:  Every single day.  Just the fact that we're here and still gaining fans - our album sales are going up.  Beating Justin Timberlake this week.

 

Cody:  It's almost platinum, if there weren't seven new albums coming out this week... we'd be close to making the top ten on Billboard.  It keeps getting bigger and bigger every single week. 

Mike:  Again we have to give props going out to the fans.  'Cause we're not buying the album.

 

Cody:  Well, like I said... as a band we're not going to be satisfied until we are known as the biggest band in the world, or at least the biggest band of this time period.  I don't know about everyone else, but that's how far I want to take this thing.  I want to make sure this is a career for us and not just a band that puts out one album and one single then goes home and calls it quits.  We want to keep doing this. 

Mike:  I want rap to stop being glorified.  That's the dominant music of today?  90% of it is garbage - what was that awful fucking song that we heard today?  Oh, "Chicken Noodle Soup"... what the fuck is that?!  We were in the strip club and that song comes on - the main line in the song was chicken noodle soup.

Blower: They ran out of shit to talk about.

 

Mike:  Of course.  Because it's being force fed by the industry.

Mark:  It's like a show we just played - afterwards we were signing... after a rock show they started playing rap all night long.

Cody:  Back to the accomplishment question - kind of like what we're talking about being force fed - our album has been out for a fucking year now and it's just now starting to pick up so people are actually listening to the music and learning to like it themselves so it hasn't been force fed to them.  Sure, now it's on the radio but only because we have fans and so many people that support us.  So I think that's a very big accomplishment. 

 

Cody: Drink our faces off and beat the shit out of this guy (pointing at Blower). 

Mike: Watch the Playboy channel a lot.

Mark: Last night was the funniest thing ever.

Mike: Yea, we had a brawl last night.  I think I kicked him in the face (talking about Blower again) - and then he punched me in the nuts three or four times.

Mark:  It was fucking awesome.  I damn near pissed myself.