Mega Metal: Tell us a little about your band or current
project (when you formed, name, members, etc.).
Chris: The name of the band is Rockets To Ruin and we're based in Atlanta.
The members are Cleve - vocals, Mike - guitar, Rob - drums, and I play bass.
Cleve and Mike originally formed the band, and they auditioned a ton of bass player and drummers before me and Rob joined.
I met them through a mutual friend and Rob has known them for a long time, but when they first started putting the band together, he was playing with someone else so he
couldn't commit. The band has been complete since the fall of '03.
Mega Metal: How did you decide on the
band's name?
Chris: We thought about a bunch of different names, we even had a big board in our rehearsal space we would write ideas on.
I have a fascination with outer space anything to do with rockets, planets, stars, aliens and shit like
that. I wanted to call it Rockets To Mars, but they thought that sucked - lol.
I thought it would be cool to have something with that kind of vibe to it.
I'm also a huge Ramones fan; I thought it would be cool to combine Rockets to Russia and Road to Ruin. So that's how we decided on the name.
Mega Metal:
Let's talk about your current CD - where did you record it?
Chris: The new CD should be released within the next couple of weeks and will have 6 songs on it. We were hoping it would be ready by now, but nothing ever goes as planned in the music business.
It was recorded at 2 different studios. 2 tracks at Koda studio and 4 tracks at Grass Roots studio. Both are here in Atlanta.
Mega Metal: Who produced the CD?
Chris: We produced it ourselves.
Mega Metal: How long did you spend recording the new CD?
How did that compare to the last CD (If applicable)?
Chris: This is our first release. 2 of the tracks (Shadow and Waiting For You) were recorded about a year and a half ago before I joined the band, but Rob did the studio session with them.
The other 4 tracks (Revolution, Burnin', Helpless, and Because of You) were recorded over a weekend with VERY long days.
Mega Metal: Were you happy with the final product?
Chris: Yeah, we're pretty happy with it.
There are always things you want to go back and change, but overall it's turned out pretty good.
Mega Metal: After listening to it after the final mix, what went through your head?
Chris: I haven't heard the final mix yet.
I've only heard a rough mix. We're getting the final any day, and I can't wait for everyone to hear it.
Mega Metal: What are your current tour plans, if any?
Chris: No tour plans right now.
The main cities we play are Atlanta and Birmingham. We're getting ready to go to Raleigh
and want to start playing other surrounding cities soon.
Mega Metal: Describe your live performance?
Chris: It's like sex: aggressive, sweaty, loud, and the girls love to scream...ok ok...that was a little cheesy... lol.
Mega Metal: Do you have a personal favorite song to play live?
Chris: It's a tie between Helpless and
Burnin'.
Mega Metal: Have you ever had any mishaps or crazy things happen while on stage?
Chris: Nah, No crazy mishaps on stage yet.
Mega Metal: What has been the highlight of your career thus far?
Chris: With Rockets, we've done some pretty cool shows.
We've gotten to open for King's X and Josh Todd a couple of times, and
we've played with Ed Roland of Collective Soul.
Mega Metal: Who are your influences?
Chris: Nikki Sixx, Duff McKagen, Rachel Bolan, and Pete McClanahan.
Most people have no idea who Pete is, but he played for one of the most underrated bands ever called Warrior Soul, and it's a shame because he's such a great bass player.
Mega Metal: If we looked at your CD collection, what CDs would we see?
Chris: You would see stuff like Backyard Babies, Hellacopters, Crue, Faster Pussycat, LA Guns, Ramones, NY Dolls, DGeneration/Jesse Malin, Monster Magnet,
Jane's Addiction, Flickerstick, and Warrior Soul. My favorite bands are the ones that have that
glam/70's punk vibe to
them.
Mega Metal: Are there any new bands out there that you see potential in?
Chris: They aren't really new or anything, but I think that the Backyard Babies have the potential to be the next GnR if they had the right push. They are just an amazing band.
Mega Metal: What are your feelings about downloading and file sharing?
Chris: I
don't really care if someone downloads our songs. As a matter of fact, they can go to
www.rocketstoruin.com and download 2 right now.
I think bands really need to shut the fuck up and stop crying about it.
Downloading isn't hurting record sales. I think sales are down because almost everything on the radio and MTV sucks.
Labels need to stop signing cookie cutter bands where there are 20 on the radio that sound exactly the same.
How many more Emo, Pop Punk or Nu Metal bands do we really need?? I think the majority of people who download, will actually go and buy the record if the songs are good enough.
Of course there are some exceptions, but I don't think those people are affecting sales to any great extent.
Mega Metal: What does the next year hold for you and your band?
Chris: More shows and our manager is going to start shopping us soon.
Mega Metal: Do you have a website or email address our readers can contact you at?
Chris: Our official site is
www.rocketstoruin.com and they can e-mail us at
rocketstoruin@yahoo.com. We also have a page up at
www.myspace.com/rocketstoruin.
Mega Metal: Do you have a street team?
Chris: We don't have an official street team, but we have some very cool fans that help us out a lot with passing out flyers and helping to get the word out.
Mega Metal: What bands are you listening to right now?
Chris: In my car right now I have Velvet Revolver, Monster Magnet, Pure Rubbish, Pleasure Club, Warrior Soul and Crue.
Mega Metal: Describe your local music scene?
Chris: The scene here is OK.
We need more Rock clubs - we just had 1 close and 2 more are getting ready to.
Mega Metal: Any last comments?
Chris: Thanks for the opportunity to do this interview and everyone should buy our CD when it comes out.
Make sure to visit us at www.rocketstoruin.com!
|
