The Riot Before Interview

So our homies in The Riot Before are wrapping up their US tour (in support of their new album, Rebellion) and Brett Adams (the lead singer) got a chance to answer a few questions from the road. ~Greg B. 

The new record is awesome, did you guys have fun in the recording process?

Thanks!  I wouldn’t necessarily describe the recording process as fun, per se.  It was two weeks in a windowless room in a part of Baltimore that didn’t really demand windows, playing parts of songs over and over and over again for like 12 hours a day.  On top of all that, I hadn’t finished writing all the lyrics for the record and I was incredibly stressed out and nervous that I’d either not finish them or finish them poorly.  Fun?  Not really.  But not bad either.  I like to think of recording as similar to an actor learning lines or a runner training for a race; it’s tedious and taxing but also rewarding and worthwhile.  The sense of accomplishment that one gets when a record is finished is definitely better than any particular fun time, and that’s what makes it worthwhile and will keep us heading back to the studio. 

How was it working with Mr. Robbins?

It was incredible.  Like I’ve said, recording is tedium, and that tedium is unavoidable, but a producer has the power to make the experience positive or insufferable, and J. definitely managed to pull off the former.  He is both confident and relaxed, which is just a perfect combination of attributes a producer can have.  We could completely trust J.’s opinion regarding each take, confidently moving forward when he thought we should, but also not getting too worked up when we needed to sit for a moment in a part and make it the best it could be.  I would love to work with him again on subsequent albums.

Anything you learned in the recording process of this record?

I think we learned that we can trust our instincts, that we can effectively adlib.  Our first few trips to the studio taught us that you really can’t over-prepare, that you need to know exactly what you’re going to do and why.  We did that for most of our songs this go around, but we also wrote a song in the studio, and that song ended up being one of our favorites.  I think that has a lot to do with how comfortable we are as a band now, that it is now possible for us to shoot accurately from the hip.  I’m explore that some more the next time we record.

So you are on tour for the new record, Rebellion, how is that going so far?

It’s great.  I love doing full U.S. tours.  I love being able to see the whole country in such a short time because the differences stand out that much more.  You get a better understanding of what is unique in each area.  Also, we’re getting to a point now where on each tour we see an increase in fans.  The crowds are slowly growing in every city and that is always great to see.  Lastly, we couldn’t be out with better bands.  Blacklist Royals, Nothington, and Heartsounds are all a pleasure to see play every night and also to hang out with.  It’s a lot of fun.

How are the crowds reacting to the new songs?

So far, so good.  We’re still at a place where all our material is new to a lot of the people we play to, but for those who have been fans for a while, they seem to be enjoying our new stuff. 

There is a song on the record, “list of things i hate” Can you list us five thing you hate on the tour so far not including the funk of Freddy’s feet?

Amazingly enough, Freddy’s feet have been incredibly tolerable on this tour.  I’m not sure if that’s because he is taking better care of himself or if I’ve finally just developed a tolerance for it, like my nose, for the sake of survival, just no longer registers that smell.  Either way, I hate:

1.     Long drives over boring highway scenery.
2.     Spending no more 18 hours at a time in incredibly fun/beautiful cities, most of that time waiting around at venues instead of seeing the sights.
3.     Eating horrible fast food that I think I’ve finally lost the ability to enjoy anymore.  Except when I’m drunk.  I still like that shit when I’m drunk.  This probably explains why alcoholism and touring are so linked together. 
4.     Meeting really great people and then most likely never seeing them again.
5.     Freddy’s face.

How about five things you have loved about the tour so far?

1.     Finding good food in new cities
2.     Being reunited with old friends/meeting new ones.
3.     Playing shows.  I’ve had more fun just playing music on this tour than I have in a long time.  Not to say that it wasn’t fun before, but it’s been especially so this time. 
4.     Watching people sing along.
5.     Freddy’s face.

Of everyone in the band who has the most funk or flies hovering around them?

Probably Freddy, but not because he smells, because everything he says is bullshit.

Any Lemmy style orgies happened yet?

You’re going to have to talk to Bryon about that.  Pretty sure there was a trampoline involved.

Is New Orleans still fucked?

The fucked up thing about New Orleans is how it robs me from sleeping.  The last two times I’ve been there I have slept a total of like 2 hours.  It’s becoming one of my favorite cities to go to, and that says something coming from someone like me who is horribly grumpy in humid weather. 

How many hot dogs has freddy sucked on this trip and been told not to do so, then the hot dog taken away from him and thrown out the window? (There’s a long back story to this one..)

I try not to pay attention to what Freddy eats because if I do, then I lose my appetite.  If I were to throw anything of Freddy’s out the window, I’d never hear the end of it.  My goal on tour is to not be an enabler to his crazy ranting and irrational rationalizations. 

Have you tried to use your dirty laundry to plug up the oil line in the Gulf?

BP asked us to help out, but the price they offered was just too low.  I’m sure it would have worked, but we can’t undersell ourselves simply to help out some stupid gulf that is apparently Mexico’s anyway. 

How many rednecks have you offended at gas stations on this trip?

Keeping in mind, we’re from VA and we’re offensive to most people.  So the real question is: how many people have you rednecks offended?  The answer: 12. 

Since kids love to do blow all the time now, has a venue tried to pay you in blow yet?

I’m pretty sure we’re not good enough for someone to sacrifice their blow on.  But I never deal with money and I’m not into drugs.  So if we ever did get paid in blow, Cory would be the guy to ask.  And I’m sure his jittery, million word response would be all the answer you need.

Does Vinnie pay your royalties in old Less Than Jake records?

Vinnie gave Freddy some Less Than Jake bobble-heads because Freddy likes bobble-heads all of a sudden.  Not really sure what that’s about.  But it definitely wasn’t royalties.  It’ll be a long time before Vinnie has to deal with paying us anything.  We’re really just more concerned with keeping him out of debtor’s prison.

Well I hope you guys are having fun and we wish we could be there with you guys and hit all the skatespots and bars along the way. Any last words?

Yes.

For info on the few remaining tour dates and to hear tracks from the new album check out The Riot Before on The Myspace.

Interview and band flicks by Greg Bethmann.