Interview: Chimaira

Chimaira Questions Answered By Mark (Vocals), Andy (Drums) and Chris (Programming). Interviewed by wookubus

Related Links: Official Website

PRP: Let's start with the basics, how did the band get together?
Mark: Jason Hager our guitarist got together with me about a year and a half ago. He used to be in a band called Ascension, and wanted to do something other then hardcore. He and I filed through numerous musicians to complete the "family".
PRP: Cool, cool. That kinda makes me curious, Chris Spicuzza who does electronics in the band isn't listed in the CD credits, is he the bands bitch or did he recently join?
Mark: Haha, well both sort of!! actually, he joined about a week after the CD was finished being recorded. He did a lot of work for us, promotion, website etc.. and having him in the band now is amazing to all of us. He helped our live performance out tremendously, and he is helping us develop a new sound.
PRP: Ahh, I see, hehe was curious about that.
Mark: Yeah, without him we would be lost.
PRP: Very cool.

PRP: You guys have had the chance to open for one of the heaviest groups known to man, , how was that?
Mark: Actually, that was our first show so we were of course nervous, and the club was horrible, but other then that...it was a dream come true to play with such an amazing band.
PRP: Definitely gotta be a nerve racking first gig.
Mark: Plus Today Is The Day played as well, another one of my favorites.
Andy: It was great, but not as cool as it should have been. Napalm Death, in my opinion, are probably the best death metal out there. They are so far ahead of other bands in that genre. Its too bad they had to play at a lame club with horrible sound. For being our first show, we played well despite the sound problems, and to say our first was with Napalm Death, I think that is amazing.
PRP: Very cool.

PRP: Here's one for ya haha, are you jealous that Ben got the opportunity to sing "Satan's Wizard" on the CD and you didn't?
Mark: Well, while we were in the studio, Ben and I were joking around because the rest of the band was too busy eating or sleeping, so Ben and I came up with all these mullet rocking 80's sounding tunes, and Satan's wizard was all improv during one of these slap happy moments. the solo was recorded while we were goofing around, and we just mixed it all together. so no, I am not jealous and I think it was hysterical. It was a good way to cheer everyone up after listening to such a depressing album.
PRP: Hahaha, I'll admit it threw me off guard.
Mark: Haha.

PRP: How do you guys feel about comparisons to Slipknot, specifically with the track "Painting The White To Grey"?
Mark: I get frustrated because we started writing the song before any of us even heard slipknot. We had to change the song around many times after hearing the Slipknot record. I feel painting has a Slipknot feel to it, but I do not think it is a carbon copy by any means. I am also proud that people compare us to such an amazing band. When Coal Chamber came out, EVERYONE said they were a Korn rip off, look what it did for them.
Andy: There are similarities there, but only really within the first 20 seconds. I don't want people to think we are a clone of any band, cause we aren't, but to be compared to Slipknot is a compliment to me since they are now one of my favorite bands. Also, that means anyone who likes Slipknot will probably like us as well.
PRP: True that, it's definitely got an edge of its own.

PRP: Was the inclusion of electronics with a distinct hardcore sound an idea from day one? Or something that eventually evolved?
Mark: I think a little of both for me. I have always been into noise and hardcore. We have been using 808 since our demo days, and we are using it twice as much now. Chris has put a lot of unique sounds into our previous recorded tracks, so I guess our electronic sound is still evolving.
Andy: It was something that evolved. It has totally expanded our possibilities, and filled out our sound a lot. We've also started writing songs around the electronics.
PRP: Excellent, its also one of the things that impressed me alot about your guys music.
Mark: Thank you. Wait till you hear the new stuff.
PRP: Hehe can't wait.

PRP: Ready for a semi tough question?
Mark: Sure, always.
PRP: Cleveland is known for a few bands who have some pretty heavy grudges like Mushroomhead/Slipknot and One Life Crew/Snapcase, is there a general feeling shared with them and have you guys ever had trouble with em? Or is the scene pretty tight with local groups?
Mark: I have heard both sides of these problems, and I stay away from them all. Chris is friends with Slipknot, I am starting a good friendship with Mushroomhead. I do not wish to be a part of any problems. Even when I used to hang with OLC, it did not stop me from going to a Snapcase show. So far we get along with all bands we have met and will continue to.
Andy: All the bands we know in Cleveland, we are cool with. We don't have any grudges with any band.
PRP: Cool, that's the best way I would think.
Chris: I have always pretty much avoided the Cleveland scene. Until I started playing in bands I was pretty much forced to go out and see what was happening. The Mushroomhead/Slipknot bullshit upset me. It was sad to go to a show and see Mushroomhead fans throwing shit at Slipknot. I hope that kind of shit doesn't happen in the future. About the music scene... I'm not sure how close the scene is. We have been making as many friends as possible. It seems that Cleveland bands are starting to work together in hopes to rebuild a music scene in this pathetic town.
PRP: Ahh, well that's still cool, lets get off that question now hehe.
Mark: Ha.
PRP: Haha too tough to answer. Here's one.

PRP: Do you guys find it hard incorporating the electronic elements of your music live?
Mark: Not at all. It adds a lot of emotion and chaos. Chris knows his gear and is crazy with it.

PRP: Dope indeed then, here's a deep one, do you suspect anyone in the band wears frilly panties on stage?
Mark: Umm, no but Andols (Andy) wears leopard skin silk boxers.
PRP: Hahahaha. That's a drummer for ya, always the fruit in the bunch.
Mark: No way, Andols is the smoothest, he gets all the girls.
PRP: Haha alright, then he's a lovemachine.
Mark: Yeah baby!
PRP: Haha.
Andy: Does you wanna throw down?? callin me a fruit, lol.
PRP: Hahahaha. No no, the leopard skin keep me in check, never diss a man with leopard skin.

PRP: Does anyone in the group have straightedge or hardcore ideals?
Mark: No one in Chimaira is straight edge, nor are we vegan or anything else that is considered "hardcore" today.
PRP: Word, I hear that.

PRP: When writing material do you guys jam it out? Or piece it together in layers?
Mark: We have been trying to do it all at once, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. The record was written mainly by me, Jason and Rob. Then we showed everything to Andy and Rob L, our bassist; and they threw there 2 cents worth into the song.
PRP: Ahh I see.
Mark: Too many cooks spoil the stew.
PRP: Haha indeed. Since we're on songwriting here, how about this, were you guys shooting for an extremely heavy album or was it a natural flow?
Mark: I was shooting for a very intense, very pissed, very heavy record.
PRP: Hehe you came through with that then.
Mark: Thanks!!!
Andy: We knew we were writing a "metal" album, and everything came out naturally. Songwriting has come quicker and easier for us as time goes on.
PRP: I can dig it.

PRP: Does anyone in the band like the movie Shawshank Redemption or was it sampled on the CD just for the content of the words spoken?
Mark: We all are big fans of the movie. It is one of the best movies of our time.
PRP: Agreed, it was damn good.
PRP: Would bad shit happen if someone passed the ducci to the right hand side instead of the left?
Mark: Huh?
PRP: Hahah, nevermind, was an old 80's song about passing a joint sung by 11 year old rastafarians.
Chris: Wtf? Is he talking about cheeba?
PRP: Hahaha.

PRP: Any special reason why "Empty" and "Silence" are hidden tracks?
Mark: Both tracks were recorded with our original bassist AE. I wanted the songs to be on the record, and I wanted him to be a part of the record. We did not have the funds to bring him up to re-record them so we used the demo versions. They are hidden so the CD can be sold at the price of an EP.
PRP: Ahh, clever.
Mark: It is all about bucking the system.
PRP: Word.

PRP: Another deep one here, Ever wish you had a tail?
Mark: I wish I had a tail in the sense of a mullet. Like a snake mullet. I am growing one now.
PRP: Hahaha, back in the 80's I remember them being deemed fag tags or rat tails.
Mark: Fag tags....hahahahahha.
PRP: Haha.
Chris: No, I would have to stand up to take a shit.
PRP: Hahahah. But you could wipe your ass without using your hands!
Andy: I wish I had me piece of tail, with a six of nati-lite as I relax in my trailer park.
PRP: Aww yeah.

PRP: You guys have a very dark heavy style of music that somehow seems to somewhat question spirituality lyrically, do you try to avoid day to day situations when writing lyrics?
Mark: One sec, Andy's response made me lose beverage all over my computer....hold on.
PRP: Hahaha.
Mark: Ok... our lyrics are personal to us all, but we leave them open enough for the listener to decide on what they mean. I hope they help people realize that even though things in life are hard to deal with, there is always a way of getting them out of your system in a positive way.
PRP: Well put.

PRP: Who is the girl on the back of the CD? And do you think she would dig a guy with a mullet?
Mark: If she knows what is good for her.... her name is Keri and she is a look a like of my ex-girlfriend. a lot of our lyrics deal with the pain that love causes, and it was a way for me to personally cope with it.
Andy: The girl is someone who Mark and I used to work with. I was all about her, but she wasn't down. Perhaps if I had a mullet I would have been in.
Chris: The girl on the back of the CD is definitely Bombay. Her name is Keri. If she dug dudes with ape drapes I'd be sporting one now. We have to keep Tom False away from her or its game over.
PRP: Hahahahah.

PRP: I want a serious answer from all on this one, what's the longest you've went without taking a dump?
Mark: I am afraid to "dump" in public places and at people's houses. Especially at a girls house. So yeah, life on the road sucks at times. I think I went 4 days.
PRP: hahah I've went 5 days myself, I proclaim myself a champion.
Andy: When I went to camp when I was 9 or 10 I didn't shit the whole week, cause the conditions were atrocious. Anytime I go out of town with the dudes I never shit. I'll be screwed when we are on tour for months at a time. I don't know if I could clear the colon on a tour bus toilet.
Mark: Ooh someone's got you beat.
PRP: Damn you! Haha I think its illegal to dump on a tour bus cause it usually goes right to the road.
Chris: I usually don't hold a dump too long. You could develop problems. If I'm feeling stage fright on an unusual toilet I think happy thoughts like ramskulls and Pilot.

PRP: Hehe alrighty, back to the more serious stuff, How do you feel about mp3's and the internet as a promotional tool?
Mark: I feel both are a good way to promote a new band. It certainly helped us out a lot. I feel there are a lot of negative things that go with mp3's. For example Korn's latest record, I am not going to complain that I got it months early, but if it were my band I would be pissed if people were trading it before it came out. We will make sure nothing of ours gets out early like that. I support both, hell if it made the band False so big it can help out any band.
Chris: The internet is the shit. It's all we have right now until we get out there and tour. I love all these webzines supporting bands. I visit them all the time. PRP, Wickedland, and AntiMTv are the shit. As for mp3s? I love those too. Who wants to download music files that sound like shit? As far as loosing money. We aren't making any right now. We hope whoever hears our mp3s will attend our shows and spread word about us.
Andy: The internet has its pros and cons. Its a great way for bands to spread their music to people who normally would not be able to find it. Bad news is the internet is highly unregulated, and despite what sites say about copywrite protection, its very easy to steal someone else's song. Also if a band has all their songs available for free online, and 1000's of kids download it onto their harddrive, who's gonna buy the actual CD? And more importantly, what label would want to put that CD out?
PRP: Indeed. Still though alot of people are under educated keeping mp3's out of alot of peoples hands.

PRP: If you became a rap artist would you refer to yourself as Chocolate Vanilla, or Vanilla Chocolate?
Mark: My rap name is Strawberry Fritzshake and my group is called Tom False and the Pilots.
Chris: Tom False and the Mustaches.
PRP: Hahah.
Andy: I would refer to myself as DJ Broni.
PRP: I'd have to go for M.C. Chickenmilk myself. Hahhaha.

PRP: If you guys had to cover any song, what would it be?
Mark: "Damage Inc.", or "Master Of Puppets"....we plan on doing one of the 2 for an internet only song, So Metallica can't sue us. If we do not do those, any song by the band's False, or Sen will do.
Andy: I would want to cover something really metal, like anything from "Reign In Blood". If not that, maybe some old school Anthrax or Metallica.
Chris: To be honest with you I would hope that we chose not to cover a song. So many metal bands are covering songs. It's getting fucking annoying. If we did do a cover I want it to be "Black Horn Of The Ram" by Nunslaughter.
PRP: Hehe pretty varied, looks like it'd have to be settled in a grudge match between the band.

PRP: With all the throaty growls and shit have you ever blown out your voice?
Mark: We are doing a metallica song, but it wont sound like metallica that is for sure. No, we did a show with all out war and I had strep throat, that did not effect me. I was still able to perform just fine. I have noticed that doing a shot of scotch before a set helps me get rid of the throat problems until after the show.
PRP: Haha.

PRP: Is the current EP a hint of an upcoming full length album?
Mark: We are writing songs for it now. There will be 20 songs on the record at the least. We are shooting for November to record.
PRP: Sweeeet.
Mark: Yeah baby.

PRP: Are you guys happy being independent or do you hope to one day get signed to a major label?
Mark: We love our label and the amount of work he has done for us. We do wish to be on a major, only for distro and money purposes. If we can make ECER a lot of money on this record, and get to the status of any major label band, of course we will stay with David. But, if something big were to come up sooner then all that, we would take it, because we know how much it would help ECER as much as us.
Andy: The label we have right now is great, and they are pushing us very well. At this point, only having been together for a year, you really can't ask for much more. I have big dreams though, I want to be on a big label, playing big shows traveling the world (asleep) on a tour bus.
Chris: I'm so happy with what David Duncan (ECER) has done for us. We couldn't of asked for a better independent label. He's doing all he can to aid us in reaching our dreams. Although, I hope we get signed to a major label. We would love to be on tours like Ozzfest, and travel on a bus. We also know it takes hard work to get to that point.
PRP: Very cool.

PRP: What's in the near future for you guys, any big plans?
Mark: We are playing some rather big metal fests, one with 2 of my favorite bands (Machine Head, Cannibal Corpse), as many out of town shows as possible and writing the full length. I also plan on opening a gas station called Pilot. They are a big gas station chain here in the states, and my dream has always been to own my own.
Chris: I plan on growing a big bushy mustache and marrying Britney Spears.
PRP: Hahah.
Andy: Right now we are playing a few shows, doing what we can for now. All the radio airplay is the big gimmick that will help push us now. As we get bigger and have more resources (money) to work with, we will be touring as much as possible. We are currently working on material for the full length as well.

PRP: Sweet indeed, well that's about it, any shoutouts?
Mark: First off a big shout out to you for giving us the best review I have ever seen and taking your time on us so late in the evening. Maybe one day PRP will feature us or make us band of the month (hint hint) a big holla holla to David at ECER, Bruce our merchandise guy, Amy my girl/live in photo chick, Bo from Mass, all of our fans, all the bands on ECER, Jenny Lanahan, Dwid, Tom False, Sen, Greg from Cinci, Fenamore and Smodey, A to the mutha fuckin E, the entire Chimaira familia, Jim Lamarca and Shortbuss. All of our fans and friends that have supported us, and Mandy Moore my future wife, I love you.
PRP: Hahah, awww yeah.
Andy: I would like to give a shoutout to all the cool people who enjoy the music we create, my main boy Tom False and the Louisville hillbilly rapcore scene, ribs, ramskulls, Pilot, Team Pals, Dudes With Attitudes, mullets, Honey Brown, my bride-to-be Christina Aguilera, and to you for the interview. Take care everyone!
Chris: I'd like to give shoutouts to the following: mulletsgallore.com, Pilot, ramskulls, Tommy False and the gang, Fritz and the chaps, Hacksaw, Cletus, Honkey, Lunas, electricity for which we would not be able to play without, Team Haul, Team Pals, Fritz rockin duo, niner, mustaches, and the female gender for making me unconfident and miserable and of course you.
PRP: Heheh thanks for your time.

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