Modern Fix

EARTH CRISIS – interview by jonny

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Jonny: How long has the tour been and how much longer do you guys have to go?
Karl: We are out with Skinlab, In Flames and Walls of Jericho for two months this summer, and after that we’re gonna do a tour with Glassjaw.

Jonny: How has the response been, towards the tour and the new record? Do you think more so positive or negative?
Karl: We’ve never put out an album that’s been as well received by the press and fans as “slither”.

Jonny: Really?
Karl: Yeah it’s amazing; we’re on 22 commercial radio stations in the United Sates right now. We’re on a lot of radio stations in Australia and in mainland Europe. Terrorizer, Metal Hammer, Metal Mania have all given our CD rave reviews so it’s a real exciting time for us.

Jonny: What are your expectations for the new album?
Karl: We’re just gonna let it do what it does, you know? I mean we wrote it from our hearts just like we always do, to suit our own personal musical tastes and it seems like our traditional fans are very pleased with it. A lot of new people seem to like the music. There are a lot of different types of kids coming out to our shows nowadays.

Jonny: How has Victory been treating you guys? Do you have any complaints or praises?
Karl: I think everyone at Victory is working really hard to push the album. We’re on a lot of CD samplers in Europe that come with some of the metal magazines I named. Some of them are 100 thousand, 150 thousand so we’re basically being handed to all kinds of new people. We just made a video today here in Los Angeles with Speedway Films for the single “Nemesis” and that video will be here, hopefully in September.

Jonny: Is the new record targeted more towards the mainstream crowd to reach new fans or more towards the hardcore scene?
Karl: Like the previous records, it’s for anyone who likes aggressive music. Over the years we’ve toured with all kinds of different bands. You know we did the Ozzfest maybe five or six years ago with Powerman5000 and Coal Chamber, Slayer and Ozzy Osborne. We toured with the Misfits, we toured with Sepultura, and we toured with Downset. We’ve played a lot of shows with Gwar and Fear Factory… everyone from metal to new metal to hardcore and punk. There are all kinds of different people who get something out of Earth Crisis that they appreciate.

Jonny: Do you think hardcore has effected modern culture? If so, how?
Karl: No, I don’t think it has.

Jonny: What direction do you see hardcore going in the next five years?
Karl: I don’t know.

Jonny: Are you guys still a vegan straight edge band and do you still promote that lifestyle publicly through your music and everyday life?
Karl: Absolutely, and that should be obvious to anyone who reads the lyrics to the new album.

Jonny: Are you guys involved with any animal rights groups?
Karl: We just did a benefit for the Erie Animal Rights Coalition and we also helped raise funds for two legal activists who are having some problems with courts right now.

Jonny: What other interests do you guys have outside of the band.
Karl: Well, we’re into skateboarding, snowboarding and cycling… sports like that. You know when the band is over I think maybe some people in the band like Dennis, I could see him working in the music industry. I think all the rest of us will go off and do completely different things that have nothing to do with music ever again.

Jonny: Is anyone in the band married? If so, does it make it harder to be more devoted to the band?
Karl: We make it work.

Jonny: What are some of the non-musical influences in your life? Spiritually, Emotionally, etc.
Karl: My grandmother.

Jonny: What is the best piece of advice you guys have received and who is from?
Karl: Don’t trust anyone.

Jonny: Who was that from?
Karl: That’s from me. To me.

Jonny: What is the future of the band?
Karl: We’re gonna continue to tour, especially off this album. We’ve already started to write new material for the next one. So we’re gonna finish this tour up, after that we’re going out with Glassjaw. Then we’re gonna be doing a tour of Japan. We went to Europe this spring and South America last Fall.

Jonny: What are some of the things that motivate you guys to keep going?
Karl: Our friendship, our love of music, our love of composing and performing.

Jonny: What is hardcore about and how would you explain it to someone who hasn’t heard of it or doesn’t know?
Karl: Well to a lot of people hardcore means being politically correct or into D.I.Y. or left wing politics or being a scenester. To us, it’s never meant that. Hardcore quit simply is an attitude of, “we can do things for ourselves, on our own and with our friends on our terms, and we’ll stand up for each other and what we believe in.”

Jonny: Is there any last comments or things you’d like to say?
Karl: Thanks a lot for having us in your magazine, you know we really appreciate you, putting us in there and taking the time to come and do this interview and all the trouble writing out the questions… that’s really cool thanks a lot.