Soundwave Festival

Biography

ALEXISONFIRE INTERVIEW

We had a chat with Dallas Green about the new album, ‘Old Crows/Young Cardinals’, coming to Australia with Soundwave Festival again and what he would be doing if he wasn't a musician!
 
It has been three years between Alexisonfire albums… How did you push each other musically and creatively to get the best results possible on this one?
 
WE TOOK MORE TIME OFF IN BETWEEN RECORDS THIS TIME AROUND AND I THINK THAT REALLY ENABLED US TO CLEAR OUR HEADS AND COME UP WITH BRAND NEW IDEAS. AS WELL AS FINDING NEW RECORDS, NEW INSPIRATIONS AND NEW INFLUENCES, WE DONT REALLY NEED TO PUSH EACH OTHER. I THINK THERE IS A COMMON GROUND BETWEEN ALL OF US THAT ALWAYS WANTS TO GET THE BEST RESULT OUT OF AN ALBUM.

Tracks like ‘Heading For The Sun’, ‘Burial’ and ‘Born And Raised’ are amongst the favorites for me from the new album, are you guys finding it more challenging with every album now to come up with fresh sounding material without falling into the trap of repeating yourselves?
 
IF ITS ONE THING THAT WE ARE FULL OF, ITS WAYS NOT TO REPEAT OURSELVES. I DONT THINK WE ARE CAPABLE OF IT. IF WE WRITE SOMETHING REMOTELY SIMILAR TO AN EARLIER SONG ITS IMMEDIATELY SCRAPPED!



‘Old Crows’ was recorded in Vancouver and produced by Julius Butty who has done some amazing work with you in the past! How much time did you spend in the studio for the new album and did you approach the recording process in a different way to previous releases?
 
WE SPENT ABOUT 2 WEEKS IN VANCOUVER AND ANOTHER 2 WEEKS AT JULIUS' FARM IN HAMILTON, ONTARIO. FOR THIS RECORD WE WERE TRYING TO CAPTURE THE LIVE ASPECT OF TE BAND MORE, SO WE TRACKED BASS, DRUMS AND RHYTHM GUITARS ALL AT THE SAME TIME. WE WOULD PLAY THE SONG 8, 9 OR 10 TIMES AND THEN PICK THE ONE THAT HAD THE MOST "FEEL" TO IT. THEN WE WOULD GO BACK AND FIX ANY LITTLE MISTAKES. WE RECORDED VOCALS AFTER THAT. IT WAS AN AMAZING WAY TO MAKE A RECORD.


Looking back over the whole process now, is there anything you wish you had done differently, added or left off the various tracks?
 
NOT AT ALL. I AM 100 PERCENT PLEASED WITH THE FINISHED PRODUCT.


Mate as we are all aware now, you guys will be hitting Australia once again in February as part of the Soundwave Festival bill! When you travel half way across the globe for a tour like this, what is the one thing you most look forward to about coming to Australia?
 
THE SUN!!!!!! YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE COMING OVER AT POSSIBLY ONE OF THE WORST MONTHS AS FAR AS WEATHER IS CONCERNED IN ONTARIO. THE SNOW IN TORONTO IN FEBRUARY IS INSANE!!!!!! ALSO, THE FANS AS WELL. THEY ARE THE BEST IN AUSTRALIA.



Looking back on your last Australian visit what fond memories come to mind?
 
BEING A PART OF THE FIRST SOUNDWAVE FESTIVAL WAS GREAT. IM GLAD TO SEE ITS STILL GOING AND IT HAS SEEMED TO HAVE GOTTEN BIGGER. BUT I DID GET TO SEE FEIST PLAY IN MELBOURNE ON ONE OF THE DAYS OFF. SHE'S UNBELIEVABLE.


Besides yourselves there are some fantastic bands on the bill like Anvil, Baroness, Jane's Addiction and Anthrax to name a few, will you be putting time aside to check out any of the other bands throughout the festival and who are you looking forward to seeing the most?
 
DEFINITELY BARONESS AND ISIS. THE NEW BARONESS RECORD IS FANTASTIC! AND PARAMORE. I LOVE PARAMORE. HONESTLY. NO JOKE.


There’s no doubt that when you’re playing on the large festival bills such as Soundwave, it can be a fantastic way to expose the band to a lot of people who may have never heard you before… for those punters attending Soundwave that plan on checking out Alexisonfire… in a few words how would you describe the band live and what can the Australian audiences expect when you take to the Soundwave stage?
 
2 WORDS. CHRISTOPHER STEELE. HE IS BY FAR THE WORLDS BEST CANADIAN BASS PLAYER. HE'S LIKE JAMES BROWN ON BASS. WATCH OUT FOR HIM AUSTRALIA! HE'S COMING FOR YA!!!



Mate are you a fan of playing on the larger festival bills or would you much prefer the smaller more intimate venues, no doubt both have their advantages!
 
SMALLER VENUES BY FAR. IT FEELS MORE LIKE A SHOW. BUT BIG FESTIVALS CAN BE LOTS OF FUN.



While we’re on the subject of touring… take us back to the very first shows you guys did, what amazing / horrifying memories come to mind?
 
THE FIRST TOUR WE EVER WENT ON WAS PRETTY FUNNY. WE WERE VERY PLEASED WITH OURSELVES THAT WE HAD BOUGHT OUR OWN VAN AND TRAILER AND WERE ABOUT TO LEAVE OUR SMALL TOWN AND GO TOURING. EXCEPT 4 HOURS INTO THE FIRST DRIVE OUR VAN BROKE DOWN AND WE HAD TO BE TOWED BACK TO HOME. IT WAS PRETTY EMBARRASSING. 


Over the years you have been fortunate to share the stage with many amazing artists. Who has given you the best advice whilst on the road and what was it?
 
I DONT THINK ANYONE HAS EVER GIVEN US ADVICE. MAYBE JUST SOME NICE COMMENTS. I REMEMBER CHUCK RAGAN FROM HOT WATER MUSIC TOLD ME I HAD A LOVELY VOICE. THAT WAS A GOOD ONE.
 

What’s the craziest thing that has ever happened onstage while you were performing?
 
I HIT GEORGE IN THE FACE WITH MY GUITAR ONE TIME AND IT DEVIATED HIS SEPTUM. SO NOW HE CAN'T BREATHE CORRECTLY WHILE SLEEPS. THERE WAS LOTS OF BLOOD. I FELT BAD.



Besides downing a few beers, do you do anything specific to warm up and prepare for a show?
 
I DO VOCAL WARM UPS. IT'S VERY BORING BUT I FEEL AS IF IT HELPS. STEELE DOES PUSH UPS. THAT'S ABOUT IT.


Mate, as a freelance writer / photographer, I often find myself down in the pit snapping away and capturing some amazing and yet sometimes scary moments! Once the shows are over and you get to kick back and view a lot of the press and fan photographs that come through via Myspace, emails etc. Do you come across those shots often where you just put your head in your hands and you say “what the F**k was I thinking / doing right there”? And of those moments what one stands out most for you?
 
JUST ABOUT EVERY PHOTO IVE EVER SEEN OF MYSELF MAKES ME SAY THAT. I TEND TO MAKE THE STUPIDEST FACES WHILST SINGING.


Talk us through a typical photo shoot for you, are you a fan of doing that sort of stuff as we all know it is a necessary evil in this business!
 
WE JUST TRY TO GET THEM DONE AS QUICK AS POSSIBLE. PLAYING MY GUITAR IS THE FUN PART ABOUT BEING A MUSICIAN. HAVING MY PHOTO TAKEN AND TALKING ABOUT MYSELF ARE THE STRANGE PARTS.


Mate, we have hit the part of the interview where our readers get to find out more about the real you… What was the first concert you ever attended and how much of an impact did that have on you musically?
 
I WENT TO SEE NEIL YOUNG, PEARL JAM AND SOUNDGARDEN WHEN I WAS 12 YRS OLD. IT CHANGED MY LIFE FOREVER. 



If you woke up tomorrow and decided that you were sick of the touring, the recording etc and wanted to give it all up what do you think you would be doing?
 
I WOULD PROBABLY BE A CONSTRUCTION WORKER. I LIKE WORKING WITH MY HANDS.


What have your parents thought about the music you played?
 
MY PARENTS ARE ABSOLUTELY MY BIGGEST FANS. THEY ARE THE REASON I AM WHO I AM TODAY.


If you had the opportunity to choose the way a photo shoot was going to be conducted what would you do… What kind of backgrounds would you want to use etc?
 
I HAVE NO IDEA. SOMETHING SIMPLE I GUESS? WE AREN'T A VERY FLASHY BAND SO SIMPLE WORKS BETTER I THINK.



Growing up did you always envision yourself as someone who would be doing music as a full-time job, or were your goals different?
 
I ALWAYS HOPED THAT IT WOULD BE MY FULL TIME JOB. I WASNT REALLY GOOD AT ANYTHING ELSE. I'VE NEVER HAD ANY OTHER GOALS.



I loved reading the band’s bio and one thing that stuck out for me was the quote “Most of our success was a product of our own dumb luck”, when was the first moment you realized that this was it, this was the big league and how much do you think you have changed since then?
 
I GUESS WHEN WE SIGNED OUR FIRST RECORD DEAL. IT SEEMED LIKE WE HAD ACTUALLY TAKEN A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. I DON'T THINK IVE CHANGED MUCH, ASIDE FROM A WHOLE LOT OF TATTOOS AND A FEW WACKY HAIRCUTS.



Earlier this year after an interview on Australian radio Alexisonfire fans were upset after comments were jokingly made about the band breaking up! It didn’t take too long for the comments to be taken out of context and soon news around the world stated that the band was breaking up! Do you get annoyed with all the media hype and rumours that present themselves involving yourself and the band?
 
THAT WAS OUR PLAN! WE WANTED TO SEE HOW LONG IT WOULD TAKE FOR PEOPLE TO THINK WE HAD BROKEN UP. I REMEMBER GETTING AN EMAIL ABOUT IT WHILE I WAS AT BAND PRACTICE WRITING THE NEW RECORD AND THINKING "IF THEY ONLY KNEW" WE JUST WANTED TO PLAY A JOKE ON THE MEDIA. SORRY.



What’s the craziest rumour you’ve ever heard about yourself and or the band?
 
I WAS ONCE ASKED IN AN INTERVIEW HOW I DEALT WITH BEING GAY IN A TOURING ROCK BAND. I REPLIED WITH "I HAVE NO IDEA".



It seems outside of Alexisonfire many of you guys are involved with other projects… What else would you like to achieve musically in your career?
 
ONE DAY I WILL MAKE AN R&B RECORD. GET READY.



Lastly a question I ask of everyone that I speak with… who is the one band you never want to hear again and why?
 
SHAGGY. I WANT TO SHOOT HIM INTO SPACE.



Mate, thanks again for your time today, I look forward to seeing you guys at the Soundwave festivals… do you have any last words for our readers?
 
NO!!!!!!!!!!

Interview by Cameron Edney

BIOGRAPHY

I would like to preface this bio by saying I hate band bio sheets. They are boring, self-congratulatory, tripe, filled with all sorts of overdramatic adjectives and if I never have to read another band bio sheet again, I will die a relatively happy man.

With that said, my name is George Pettit (Lead singer) and this is a brief biography of Alexisonfire.

Alexisonfire is the product of five kids from the liberal, suburban paradise of Southern Ontario. The band started as an escape from the banalities of adolescence; basically, it was something to do on the weekend. All five of us were active in our local music scene, which consisted mostly of kid promoted shows at local union halls.

I think it is important to note, that we were hardly ambitious. Most of our success was a product of our own dumb luck. When the band started in 2001 there was no future in playing “screamo” music. No chance of getting our song on the radio. No chance of making a video or getting it played. But who cares about that stuff anyway. We were drunk on youth and invincible in our own minds. Times eventually would change in our favour.

Our first demo was the culmination of our very different influences at the time. Dallas (guitar vocals) had just left a kind of grungy alternative band. Wade (guitar vocals) and Chris (bass) had been playing together in a punk band since they were 14 and were looking for something new. I was playing bass in a metal band that I had very little interest in. Alexisonfire was a welcome change for all of us.

I like to think of our first demo as a mash up of Level-Plane Records’ era screamo and At the Drive-In/Refused era post-hardcore. It’s hard for any of us to listen to our first demo and full length, without a certain degree of humility. Imagine the art you created as a teenager, put on display for all to see when you are in your late 20’s.

It is a disturbing thought for most, but in all honesty, those recordings served their purpose. They allowed us to tour the United States and Canada. They afforded us the luxury and comradery of impoverished van touring, sleeping on people’s floors in strange and terrifying new cities and playing in dingy basements with piss soaked washrooms and hot sweaty clubs filled with alienated youth. We would eat two meals of breakfast a day, to stay within a $10 budget. Those early recordings gave us a real taste for the nomadic lifestyle. I look back on those days with extreme fondness.

When we returned from the road, we began work on our second record entitled Watch Out! It was a musically ambitious record, but when I listen to it now I still feel like we were struggling to find our niche. At this point, things were getting much bigger for us in Canada. Our music videos were getting played and we were given something called a Juno Award (kind of like a Grammy but more Canadian). We were awarded for our efforts as Best New Band.

More touring ensued. We branched out across the ocean to the United Kingdom. The shows got bigger, but there were always new places to go. We got to enjoy the sheer volume of playing in front of thousands and at the same time, playing in halls and bars with no crowd barriers. I will never forget playing to a packed house of 2000 in Vancouver, BC then driving to Olympia, WA to play in front of nine kids in a pub.

Fast forward to the summer of 2006 and a record called Crisis. It was an arrival of sorts. Years of hard touring had carved our abilities and tastes as musicians. At this point, we had been all over the US dozens of times, not to mention Japan, Europe and Australia. We wanted to return home to our jam space in the back of an insulation factory in St Catharines, ON.

Crisis was the beginning of our disconnect from the tired screamo bands of today. We weren’t interested in falling in line and damning our records to a legacy of largely forgettable hair rock. We took the best of what we liked about punk and rock and roll and applied it to the genre that gave us our start. Crisis also marked the addition of Jordan Hastings on drums. Our original drummer was killed in an avalanche while snowmobiling. (That’s a lie. the true story of why our first drummer left is long and uninteresting).

Even more touring ensued - about nine months straight. It was a rigorous stint that stressed our home relationships to near breaking point. It was a long and beautiful adventure filled with exquisite highs and dreary lows. Touring took us to new places and we got to see our crowds grow in the old places.

The tour was followed by a long and introspective hiatus from the road. Readjusting to home life took some time and this was when the majority of our fourth record, Old Crows/Young Cardinals, was written.

We recorded the instruments at Armory studios in beautiful Vancouver, BC. The vocals were recorded at our producer, Julius Butty’s (Watch Out!, Crisis) home studio in Stony Creek, ON.

Old Crows/Young Cardinals was built on the foundation of Crisis. Musically, it moves at a feverish pace. The lyrics span a wide range of topics, from metaphysical rebellion, to living as a nomad. It is the culmination of the history of our band. Personally, I feel it is our best record yet, but you get to be the judge of that.

That’s the short and skinny of it. All the names and dates may not be there but that’s about the best I can do to squeeze the last 7 & 1/2 years of my life onto two sheets of paper. The long and fat of it involves a sorted tale of conflicting personalities, brotherhood, tossed tie rods, barbarism, hospitalizations, dry Canadian wit, and a cast of sultry women.

The band's name was derived from Alexis Fire, the world's only lactating contortionist stripper.