Vended are the latest artist to be featured a in a cover story over at Kerrang!. The group’s vocalist Griffin Taylor & drummer Simon Crahan speak on their inception, the imagery and makeup they employ, their future goals and more in the feature. As you’d expect, they are also asked about their famous fathers and the advantages that familial connection has afforded them.
The surnames of the aforementioned pair will likely sound familiar to any self-respecting modern metalhead, with Griffin being the son of Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor, while Simon‘s father is Corey‘s keg-bashing bandmate, M. Shawn “Clown” Crahan.
That association has certainly afforded Vended an immediate leg up, with their first headlining show selling out, despite a lack of musical output or prior gigging. Since then the outfit (who also feature bassist Jeremiah Pugh and guitarists Cole Espeland and Connor Grodzicki), have went on to share the stage with Slipknot at several festivals and are currently out opening for the latter and Jinjer on a European/UK run.
Early on in this newly published chat with Kerrang!, Simon spoke of the immediate interest the band experienced, something he in part attributes to the band’s decision to hone their craft before introducing themselves to the world:
“You see a lot of bands who have been practicing for a week, they’ve got two songs, they have a name but it sucks, then they play a show in front of three people. We isolated ourselves in my basement, writing and writing and writing and writing and not showing anyone our music or anything we were doing. Then two years later – boom – ‘Asylum‘ was released, we had 8,000 followers right off the bat, already verified on Instagram and people loved it more.”
When asked later about the benefits of having such close ties to Slipknot and the opportunities and level of experience that brings, Simon replied:
“Yeah, we got more help than other bands do and I’m honest about that. I’m not going to say we didn’t because that’s not fair to who our fathers are. They’ve helped us, but they have never, ever, ever, written our music, never showed us how to play, never showed us how to perform onstage, they’ve never done any of that. When people say, ‘Oh, Griffin’s dad’s probably showing him how to scream how he does,’ Griff is learning on his fucking own.”
Griffin added:
“I started learning how to scream in middle school and my dad was out in Vegas. I understand when people say, ‘Oh, they got all of their musical talent from their fathers.’ I understand where people come from with that, because of genes or just the way a voice is built or someone’s reflexes are built, but we didn’t get our parents’ musical talent. We found that on our own.”
Crahan continued:
“My dad never showed me how to play the drums. Maybe he showed me little things, but I learned that shit by myself – we all learned this shit by ourselves. To think that some people actually think our dads help us like that, I can see what they’re talking about, but we’re a bunch of fucking talented 18, 19, 20-year-olds that are trying to show the world that anyone can fucking do it. People can just fuck right off, half the time.”
Discussing opening for his dad’s band on the road, Simon offered:
“I think touring with Slipknot is perfect because Griffin and I get to see our dads – that’s amazing. We never get to see our fucking dads! It’s good for us to be around the people who really showed us what music was really about. Yeah, people are pissed off, but if you were in our position, you would take the tour, so shut the fuck up.”
You can find more from Griffin and Simon over at Kerrang!. The band’s immediate live dates include:
With Slipknot and Jinjer:
08/11 Tallinn, EST – Saku Suurhall
Vended:
08/13 Kortrijk, BEL – Alcatraz Festival
08/14 Derbyshire, UK – Bloodstock
08/15 London, UK – The Black Heart
08/17 Bournemouth, UK – The Anvil
08/19 Dinkelsbuhl, GER – Summer Breeze Festival
08/20 Eindhoven, NET – Dynamo Metalfest
08/21 Saint-Nolff, FRA – Motocultor Festival
With In Flames, Fit For An Autopsy & Orbit Culture:
09/06 Boston, MA – Big Night Live
09/07 New York, NY – Webster Hall
09/08 Sayreville, NJ – Starland Ballroom
09/09 Alton, VA – Blue Ridge Festival
09/10 Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore
09/12 Quebec, QC – Theatre Capitole
09/13 Montreal, QC – Corona Theatre
09/14 Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall
09/15 Ft. Wayne, IN – Piere’s Entertainment Center
09/16 Milwaukee, WI – The Rave
09/17 Minneapolis, MN – Skyway Theatre
09/19 Pontiac, MI – Crofoot Ballroom
09/20 Green Bay, WI – Epic Event Center
09/22 Chicago, IL – House of Blues
09/23 Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life
09/25 Birmingham, AL – Furnace Fest
09/27 Sauget, IL – Pop’s
09/28 Lawrence, KS – Granada Theater
09/29 Wichita, KS – The Cotillion
09/30 Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre
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