SOLACE The New Gods Of Doom (in my opinion) INTERVIEW WITH TOMMY C: I admit to be pretty much ignorant to the origins of Solace but weren't you involved in a semi-well known band before this one? S: Well Rob (the bass player) and I were in a band called GODSPEED. We Had a record deal with Atlantic, toured with BLACK SABBATH, CATHEDRAL, DIO, SUGARTOOTH, and had a video that made it to Headbangers Ball and Beavis and Butthead. So I guess we were semi-well known. Although no one still ever heard of us. Ha Ha! C: When did Solace first see the light of day? What's the current line-up? S: After Godspeed broke up I moved to L.A. for a year. Once I got back I was in a band called SLAP ROCKET for a while (we had a song on the Road Runner comp. Burn One Up), then I started Solace with Rob. We got this guy Jason from a band called Glueneck and Keith from the band Atomic Bitch Wax (the Bitch Wax band features Ed Mundell from Monster Magnet fame), only Keith is no longer with us. Our new drummer Justin used to be in a band called Smother. C: Have you only released the one demo so far? S: We did 2 demos so far and had songs out on various compilations that you'll never find, so there's no use in talkin' `bout `em. C: When will there be something new from Solace? Do you have any new songs written? Can you tell us any song titles? S: Well we have a song on a new label's comp Freebird Records, and were going to have a 7" out on Rexrotari from Germany and we'll be doing a split 12" with Celestial Season on Meteorcity very soon. So Keep your eyes out for that stuff. C: Do you plan to continue in the same musical vein that Solace is following now or do you plan to progress towards a different sound in the future? S: As for what we will do in the future, only time will tell. We don't have a set musical PLAN with the band, we just jam and see what happens so if we change our style at all it won't be a planned thing, it will just happen. But there's no need to worry, whatever we do in the future we will always be heavy. C: Who does the production on your releases and where do you record? I really liked the sound on the demo because it was clear without giving up too much rawness, which really fits your style of music. S: As for the production, we use a great studio here in New Jersey called Trax East, and the owner Eric is the best. We all do it. The whole band. We all have our say and with the help of Eric the sound is always just what we want. C: How long have you been playing in bands? What was the first band you ever played in? Did you release anything from that band? What kind of music did you play? S: Shit, I've been playing for ever!!! The first band I was in was when I was in high school. We did covers and some lame ass originals. Thank god we never put anything out. We sucked, but I did do some 7"s with some of my other early bands. Social Deacy and Freak Theatre both had 7"s . Then I went on to Godspeed. We also did a 7" before we got signed. C: What made you interested in the style of music that you play now? S: BLACK FUCKIN' SABBATH!!! C: Which bands are you listening to these days? S: I like ENTOMBED, SHEAVY, ORANGE GOBLIN, SHARD, ELECTRIC WIZARD, SHINE, DRAG PACK, MONSTER MAGNET, 60 WATT SHAMEN…tons of other heavy, doomy stuff. A lot of older 70's stuff like BUDGIE, BUFFALO, JERICHO, CAPTAIN BEYOND…I also listen to HANK WILLIAMS, JOHNNY CASH, DAVID ALLEN COE…… C: So what is it about PEZ that fascinates you so much? S: Well I collect toys. Stuff like Batman, Star Wars, Spawn, etc. My girlfriend really does the pez collecting, but I think they're cool. We have a huge shelf display of them in our living room. When people walk in it's the first thing they see and they're always like "Wow! That's cool!". C: Are you more into songs that are more like one long jam session or do you prefer the shorter , structured ones? S: I like both. We try to mix it up and have a little of both in our tunes. Sometimes I want a long trippy jam, other times I want a short blast of power! C: How do you write your music? Do you just get together and start jamming and see what happens or when you rehearse do you have the song pretty much laid out as to what you'll do with it? S: Well it's both again. Sometimes they're born from a jam, other times one of us will have a complete song written before we get to rehearsal, but even then the whole band has a say into what we're going to do with it. As far as structure and all. C: Does Solace derive influence more from the past or the present? Just wondering because I've heard Black Sabbath mentioned as an influence to your music in many reviews that I've read. S: I'd say definitely from the past. I love all that old stuff: SABBATH, TROUBLE, N.W.O.B.H.M. stuff, WITCH FINDER GENERAL, CATHEDRAL, even stuff I like now has an older style to it. But I still like some newer bands a well. C: Do you think there's anything in music that hasn't been done already or has music pretty much gone as far as it can go? S: I don't know where music is going but I don't think I like it. Electronic music to me is a cop out. I hate all the shit on the radio or MTV. I just want to hear great guitar tones and cool riffs with great vocals! C: Have you ever heard bands like Atari Teenage Riot or gabber? What do you think of this stuff? Is it the future of music? Do you care? S: Never heard of them so no, I don't care! C: What do you have available in the way of Merchandise? S: Well we're still selling our demos (both demos on one tape) for now, but once the 7" comes out, they will no longer be available. C: What's in the future for Solace? S: Well hopefully with the comp, the 7", and the split ep, we can start to build a bigger following, maybe a better label deal. We all want to hit the road and tour! So keep your eyes out for us! C: Any final words? S: Hey, thanks for the interview and your support. Stay heavy, stay true, and doomtilldeath!!! SOLACE P.O. Box 267 Island Heights, N.J. 08732 U.S.A. e-mail: SolaceTom@aol.com |