Dimitris Soursos made a trip to Oregon and talked with RED FANG’s bassist/vocalist, Aaron Beam. Below you can read what he told us:
Rockoverdose: Welcome to Rock Overdose!
Rockoverdose: First of all, I'd like to congratulate you for being a quality live act. Your show here in Athens was really energetic, the club was packed and the crowd seemed to really dig your music. Did you expect such a welcome, given the poor attendance last time you were here?
Aaron: We try not to ever build up our own expectations, but we heard from Marios, the promoter, earlier that day that many people had bought tickets already. Based on that information, and on how energetic the crowd was last time we played An Club, we had a feeling it was going to be a great night. And it was truly great!
Rockoverdose: You're in the midst of a European tour. Is that going well? Also, you played the prestigious Roadburn festival. Was that something you were looking forward to and did it live up to your expectations? Apart from playing, did you find the time to catch any other bands? If so, which were the ones you think stood out?
Aaron: The tour is going very, very well! We have sold out nearly all the shows! For our first headlining tour of Europe, we could not be happier. And as always, European hospitality trumps that of the US. Plus, we are travelling with our new friends Black Tusk, who are great to hang out with as well as a killer band. Roadburn is something we have wanted to play for several years, so we were pretty excited. We met Walter when we played at 013 in Tilburg on the tour supporting MASTODON. After meeting him and seeing his enthusiasm for the event and also how organized and attentive to detail he is, I knew it was going to be amazing, and it was. We stepped on stage, did not do any kind of line check or monitor check, and just started playing. It sounded almost perfect from the very first note! The only other bands I got to see were a little bit of ULVER, some VOIVOD, and a lady called Chelsea Wolf. It was all cool. It is hard to pick shows that stand out, because most have had something great happen. In Paris, it was so hot, I had to take off my shirt and pants (which I NEVER do), which inspired a boy in the audience to take of
Rockoverdose: Red Fang has won notoriety for making really cool videos. Did you plan all along they'd have that “funny” element, or is it because “Prehistoric Dog” gained you attention, you decided “Yeah, let's make all our videos like this”? Who's responsible for the concept behind them?
Aaron: We never really planned anything about the videos. All three were written, directed, edited, mostly shot, etc., by our friend Whitey McConnaughy. We trust him, and obviously it has paid off for us. He has very much to do with our success, so we don't want to start mucking around too much with that. If he has an idea that isn't funny, that would be fine with us, that is just the style that he happens to use for our videos, because it best reflects our personalities, which is the ultimate goal.
Rockoverdose: Is Tecate really that good a beer?
Aaron: On a hot summer day with a lime, it is delicious. Not so good for the winter, though.
Rockoverdose: Was that a real air guitar contest on the “Hank Is Dead” video?
Aaron: Absolutely! That is how we got so many people to show up. We offered real cash prizes of $1000, $300, and $200, I think. Some of the contestants were real US Air Guitar Championship winners.
Rockoverdose: How often do you get 5000$ checks from Relapse?
Aaron: Every 18 months.
Rockoverdose: People dub you a “stoner” rock band, but I think your music goes way beyond that. I definitely hear some MELVINS and some MASTODON in there, then again I might be wrong. How would you describe your music to someone that has never heard of you and what are some of your major influences?
Aaron: Heavy rock with a 70s influence, I guess. There is definitely some Pacific NW grunge, as well. MELVINS are definitely an influence. We love MASTODON, but I don't think they are really an influence on our songwriting. SOUNDGARDEN, NIRVANA, TAD, QUEENS OF THE STONE
Rockoverdose: “Murder The Mountains” came out last year. How was it received and what's it like being in a bigger label now that you're on Relapse?
Aaron: We have been pretty surprised by how well it was received, given that we were kind of nobodies when it came out. We ended up on some really big tours, and the album sales far exceeded our expectations. Relapse is fantastic! Sargenthouse was great, but they didn't have quite the resources that Relapse has. But nobody else would put out our first record, so we owe a lot to Sargenthouse. The other thing that is really great about Relapse is they have a Portland office, we can actually hang out with the dudes who run the label.
Rockoverdose: Have you written any new music? If that's the case are there plans for a new record or is it too soon?
Aaron: Yes, we have! Nothing completed yet, but we have kernels for probably 6 or 7 new songs, and hope to spend some time during this next break writing more. But we keep getting show offers! At some point we have to put the kibosh on touring and focus on writing because we have never been able to write on the road. Our vague plan is to start recording demos in September, and do some real recording in the Winter.
Rockoverdose: What's your opinion on today's heavy rock/metal scene? Do you think it's a good era for heavy music?
Aaron: It is a great time! There is a ton of support for a wide variety of heavy styles and a lot of innovation going on as a result. I am sure it will wane, just like it always does, but I am enjoying it for now.
Rockoverdose: Thank you a lot for you time!
Aaron: Thank you!
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