Interview Randy Blythe Lamb of God

Lineup: Randy Blythe - Vocals John Campbell - Bass Chris Adler - Drums Mark Duane Morton - Guitar Will Adler - Guitar

Interviewer & Photos: Erika Kristen Watt

Lamb of God / Fear Factory Children of Bodom Throwdown HOB 10/29/04

"I am never fully satisfied"

Even with a successful Epic release, Ashes of the Wake, fellow musician support n’ admiration and most importantly, a strong fan base. It’s hard to think hardcore growler, Randy Blythe of Lamb of God, may not be as content as we would be lead to believe. I appreciate the sentiment that Randy reminded me about during our interview: there are people out there just like you experiencing thoughts of frustration to disappointment to adulation. As exhausting as LOG's ear bleeding, lung collapsing sets are, I was just as exhausted listening to him reminisce over his adolescence to him meeting Tommy of the Accused! And I loved every minute of it.  Hopefully, you will too. Read on…

Erika:  Thank you very much for calling in.

Randy:  No Problem.

Erika:  I encountered you briefly after the Ozzfest show here in Chicago. I was talking with my friend Willie G., you were so mild-mannered and I couldn't believe you were the same person who was belting out these lyrics in this booming voice on stage.  Watching you guys is exhausting!  Every time I have seen you guys perform.  How do you bottle that energy and then bring it across in the studio?

Randy:  That’s a good question cause we’re really kind of perfectionists in the studio, ya know what I’m sayin’?

Erika:  Oh definitely.

Randy:  We’re pretty anal in the studio. We practice and work really hard at writing the songs in such a manner that it would convey something that would be exciting to watch live.  So when the guys record their guitars and drums n’ stuff, I think their a little more laid back than technical. Creating that raw energy.  For me though, like our producer, Machine?  We worked with him on this latest record.  He’s real…hyper.  He’s extremely hyper when he does vocals.  He makes you stand in the isolation booth, beside him and he screams at you the whole time!  Throwing coffee over and makes you hyped up!  For me, you get pretty emotionally into it.

Erika:  Going back to the guitar arrangements how did Chris [Poland of Megadeth fame] and Alex [Skolnick of Testament fame] get hooked up with you guys?

Randy:  On our last record before Ashes, As the Palaces Burn, our guitar player, Mark, was talking about bringing in some local musicians from a band that was a favorite of ours…

Erika:  What was the name of the band?

Randy:  (Proceeds to spell it out) Sliang Laos.

Erika:  Thank you!

Randy:  We’re all huge fans of theirs.  Their no more but we were gonna bring in their guitar player Ron Zimmer and Mark was like ‘I’m gonna get Ron to do a solo’ and Chris, our drummer said ‘Oh yeah, if you’re gonna do that, I’m gonna get Chris Poland!’

Erika: [Laughs] Okay…

Randy:  [Condescendingly] Sure. Whatever.  So Chris called our label guy at the time and said ‘Hey man, get a hold of Chris Poland somehow.’ Ya know, he’s not even playing metal anymore.  So we sent him some of our shit and see if he’ll do it.  He’s like, sure.  He made some phone calls and we sent a demo out to Chris.  He loved it!  And the next thing you know our drummer comes in… [Mockingly] ‘Oh yeah, Chris Poland’s gonna be on the record.’ Everybody’s like, ‘Holy shit!!!’

Erika:  Oh My God, that’s so cool!

Randy:  So, yeah, he did Palaces.  We enjoyed working with him.  We contacted him; he said absolutely he’d be into it.  And I guess through management we contacted Alex Skolnick from Testament.  Cause, ya know, you got Chris Poland, how can we make it bigger?  He plays mostly jazz now.  He doesn’t play metal either but he listened to the demos.  He was like, ‘Holy crap!’…  I think their older respected musicians in legendary thrash bands.  I think they were excited to hear a younger band doing something they respected.  You know?...

Erika:  As far as the arrangements and production, how was that handled?  Was it really just that different of a monster for Chris & Alex to be on board considering you guys are set in your ways of recording in the studio?

Randy:  What we did was we left a block open in the song title track.  We just sent the demos out.  Chris laid down his solo first I believe.  ‘Fuck dude, shred it!’ Willie, n’ Mark picked their spots and Alex Skolnick did his at his studio, I believe in California somewhere.  Sent it back to us.  Done.  So there’s that.  Then, we were tracking the drums in Jersey and Skolnick lives in New York.  He came to the studio.  He said ‘I don’t wanna step on Chris’ toes so I’ll pick a different spot.’ We were in this tiny control room with like, 8 dudes, sittin’ in there like, ‘Oh my God, it’s Alex Skolnick'. He picked a spot, shredded it.  Mark n’ Willie worked around that.  It was really an organic process.  It worked out really well.

Erika:  That’s wonderful. So is Ashes everything you wanted it to be, you think?

Randy:  I am never fully satisfied.  I don’t think any of us are.  We are extremely pleased with this record.  I know it’s the musician thing to say, that this is the best one yet but I definitely think especially production wise, this one is…  It’s a lot thicker. There’s some clarity to the bass.  [In a quite voice, almost in amazement] I’m pretty stoked on my vocals.  It’s not everything I wanted it to be.  I don’t think I’ll ever make something that’s “perfect” in my mind.

Erika:  Lyrically speaking, what is your inspiration?

Randy:  Just our fucked up world in society, ya know.  [Laughter] 

Erika:  We'll talk about how you view that fucked up world later. 
      
Randy:  Yea.  The world is in a bad spot right now.

Erika:  Do you have any influences that are not metal or hardcore that you implement in your lyrics or arrangements?

Randy:  Absolutely.  I mean I grow up listening to mostly old school punk rock.  I didn't grow up listening to metal and that sort of attitude.  I listened to a lot of 70's reggae.

Erika:  Which ones are your favorites?

Randy:  My favorite is Prince Far I.  He was assassinated for political reasons, actually, in Jamaica in '82 I believe.  He had a really deep smoky voice.  He was really conscious of a lot of things to say about the system.  That stuff is really cool… Lynyrd Skynyrd, ya know.  We are southerners so…

Erika:  Yes, I know.  Say for instance someone told you they wanted to get into a punk music, what 5 records would you put on a CD/tape recording for them?

Randy:  Like in the hardcore genre?

Erika:  Yeah.

Randy:  Number 1.  Bad Brains, "I Against I".

Erika:  Yes!!!  [I bow to the phone]

Randy:  Like the first 4-year collection.  Sex Pistols, Never Mind the Bollocks… songs about fucking.  [Hearty laughter]  What else.  Oh God.  [Long pause]  Shit.  There's so many to choose from.  Um, I would say the Accused, Martha Splatterhead's Maddest Stories Ever Told.

Erika:  Hey, speaking of which, we had an earlier interview with Johnny [Pettibone] from Himsa and I understand you listen to them.

Randy:  Himsa or the Accused?

Erika:  Himsa.  Johnny wanted us to ask you to talk about your experience with Tommy from the Accused.

Randy: [Laughs] Oh yeah.  We were in Seattle two days ago…  When I was a kid I was really into skateboarding, me and my brother [Marc] were.  That kinda helped me get into a lot of the music.  The last few times I was in Seattle, I had talked to a couple of those guys on the phone and they've never been able to make it out to the shows.  I was like standing in the club two days ago and my merch person, Angie, she goes 'Um, Randy, there's this guy Tommy from the Accused here to see you.' [His voice elevates with excitement]  I'm like 'Holy Fuck!!!' I like completely freaked out that he was there!  Got 'em in the bus.  I just sat there!  Like, ya know, I don't get really star struck easily but I was like… in awe!  Know what I mean?  'Holy crap, it's you!' Cause like me & my brother just completely freaked out over them when we were younger. 

I still listen to them today.  I tried not to make a total idiot of myself but I was like 'Oh my God!' I called my kid brother.  I'm like, 'You'll never guess who I'm talking to.'  He's like 'Who?!?'  I'm like, 'TOMMY from the ACCUSED!'  He's like, 'Bullshit!'  [Erika laughs hysterically]  I'm like, no, talk to him!  He brought me a bag of a bunch of shirts some DVD's, some horror movies.  Some unreleased tune n' stuff that's coming out.  He made a comp that says 'Thank you Lamb of God, Tom from the Accused.' I like giving those guys props in the press all the time. I was like super excited man.  I sat there and had beer with them ya know!

Erika:  That's sooo cool!  Johnny was amazed how someone like you, in your position in the music industry, can even be humbled.

Randy:  Yeah dude.  I mean I was more excited to meet him than I was to meet Ozzy, ya know.  Much respect to you Ozzy but…  I mean, cause it's like, I don't know.  He [Tommy] just warped my brain as a little kid!  The whole band did.  I hurt myself severely listening to their music again and again and again.  It was totally exciting for me.

Erika:  Thank you for sharing that.

Randy:  Yo, everybody, there's new stuff that's coming out so check out www.splatterrock.com, to hear some of their stuff.

Erika:  I'll definitely put that out there.  So, who turned you on to the Accused, Sex Pistols, and all that stuff?

Randy:  The Sex Pistols… this kid Jason, from Virginia Beach, when I was like in the 7th grade, we went to this summer camp for "gifted & talented students".  Which really means troublemakers who were kinda smart!  [Laughter]  He gave me a tape of Never Mind the Bullocks and I played that for my brother & we were just started getting into skate boarding n' stuff.  Through different people, skate boarding [community], my brother got the Thrasher's Skate Rock Vol. 3 tape and the Accused, Septic Death, all that cross over stuff on it.  We were really into it, ya know.  It was good times.  I got into the stuff when I was a young person.

Erika:  Do you also listen to H.I.M.?

Randy: To who?  Oh, H.I.M. 

Erika: Yea.

Randy:  I do actually.  I like Razorblade Romance a lot.  I just got, at the Relapse tour in Philly, the foreign pressing of Love Metal?

Erika:  Oh cool.

Randy:  I haven't really had the chance to listen to it much cause all our stereos on the bus are fucked up.  Why do you ask?

Erika:  Well, ya know, I think it's kinda weird.  Nobody can really tell me how they got turned on to H.I.M. They exclaim about the music but nobody can really pen point as to where they first time they heard it or what moved them to want to buy the album. I was starting to think it was Finnish conspiracy!

Randy:  I'll tell you exactly how I heard of H.I.M.!  We were out with Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall.  Howard from Killswitch Engage is a huge H.I.M. freak!  It was the Headbanger's Ball Tour.  People were asking what were we listening to and Howard would always say he was listening to a lot of the band H.I.M. and a bunch of them got the Heartagram tattoo on 'em that tour.  So, I'm like by the end of the tour.  I heard him talk about it so much 'Ah, fine, fuck it.' I like ya know it's good stuff.  Some people might be like 'Oh that's wimp rock' but I don't care.  It's good music to me.

Erika: Have you ever seen them live?

Randy:  No.  My friends in Eighteen Visions toured with them and I was suppose to go to the show but I couldn't make it.  I can't remember why.

Erika: Did you say that Barry White was an influence as a vocalist?

Randy: [Laughs] I usually say that jokingly but uh.  I love Barry White.  If I could ever transform my 6 foot 2 skinny white self into a 300 lb black man, who has a voice like that, I would for a few minutes.  I would.  [Laughter]  He's smooth!

Erika: Well, I was thinking, you're a bass-baritone singer, how in the world do you keep your chops up?

Randy:  Um, I just scream a lot.  It's like the more you use it the stronger it gets.  I went to a woman in NY, a wonderful woman named Melissa Cross, a vocal coach.  Not for her to change my vocals but she's one of the few vocal coaches in the country that understands how, people like me, sing.  She taught me some exercises just to preserve my voice as it were.

Erika:  Cool.  Did you say her last name was Cross?

Randy:  Cross.  Like the thing they nailed Jesus up on?

Erika:  Got ya!  In your opinion, which band would you like to see blow-up next?
 
Randy:  What band would I like to see blow-up next?

Erika: Yeah

Randy:  Um, can I list a couple?

Erika:  Please.

Randy:  I'd like to see Himsa do it.  For one thing I think they deserve it.  I've been friends with them for a while.  There's a band called A Life Once Lost that just got signed to Ferret.  I'd love to see them do it.  A band from West Virginia called Byzantine on Prosthetic Records, our old label.  I think all these bands deserve a good shot.  I highly encourage anyone to pick up & listen to them.

Erika:  Do you have a mantra?

Randy:  My mantra?  Gimme another beer.

Erika:  What does the "D" stand for in your name?

Randy:  Dangerous.

Erika:  I'll go with that.  Any tour stories that you would like to share since you've been on this stint with Fear Factory, Children of Bodom, etc…?

Randy: Children of Bodom are wonderful dudes from Finland.  Their sound guy Hooch is a maniac.  We kidnapped a few of them one night and this guy was completely out of control!  He's, like, screaming [In a Finnish accent, at the top of his lungs] 'By the end of the night everyone on the bus will be naked!!!' [Uproarious laughter]  Look, we're all dudes, that's NOT gonna happen! [Back in character]  "In Finland, we do not have helicopters.  I will show you the Finnish Helicopter." We were at a gas station, he just drops his pants, and he started swinging his dick in a circle!

Erika:  [Laughs] I love it!

Randy:  They're lunatics.  They like to party really hard but everybody is like really cool.  We've been friends with Throwdown for a while now.  Regrettably, they blew an axle leaving Portland last night so they're not making the show tonight.

Erika:  Oh no.

Randy:  Yeah, but the Fear Factory guys & the Bodom guys, it's been really nice to hang out with them.  Everyone's getting along really while.  There's no bullshit-like politics or power trips like that.  It's been cool.

Erika:  It's all about the music.

Randy:  And good times.

Erika:  I know that you guys as a band don't take any political platforms but is it okay to ask you a few questions?

Randy:  Alright.

Erika:  On the Ozzfest stage, you had a couple of rants about Bush.  Do you remember what you were trying to convey?

Randy:  Basically, our drummer put it best, if you have a truck & you put a political bumper sticker on it, that is your vehicle and your expressing your opinions through putting that sticker on your vehicle.  You know what I mean?!?

Erika:  Yes.

Randy:  The band is our vehicle to express our views.  The main thing I wanted to convey to the audience through that is to think for yourself and to educate yourself often & don't trust everything the media says.  The other thing is just from a personal viewpoint, I think Bush is a dangerous person that should be voted out of office.

Erika:  What do you think Kerry has to offer?

Randy:  I think Kerry [sighs] ya know, it's one of those lesser of two evils things, ya know.  I mean Kerry; I don't think it's what Kerry doesn't offer that makes me vote for him.  I think he's a little more cautious in evaluating situations.  He's not some dogmatic like Bush is!  Bush made a wrong decision.  He's gonna stick by it because he's already made that decision.  Kerry served in combat and I know that questions raised about his combat record, which I think is ludicrous.  

Erika:  I agree.

Randy:  Whether or not it was a mild burse he got or whatever [getting fired-up] he stood over there in the jungle while people are fucking shooting at him!  While Bush is cruising around Texas in an airplane.  Ya know?

Erika:  Exactly.

Randy:  Who knows what a combat sim is.  He served with distinction.  I think he came back from Vietnam, did some protests…  I think he would be more cautious in evaluating the necessity of military force.  And I think Bush is not.  I think he's a bit of an egomaniac and I think he wants to finish his daddy's war and I think he has corporate interests in mind.  More so than the welfare of  the American public.

Erika:  Were you at the Republican Convention? 

Randy:  I was and it freaked me the fuck out!

Erika:  Why?  What was your experience in it?

Randy:  I went down to do a live television broadcast with Fuse.  It was directly across the street from the convention.  There's a huge glass window, you can see all the people walking around.  The Sony people delivered me to the station but they walked you in.  I'd never seen more police in my life.  I didn't know that many police existed.  Cops on horses.  Cops on foot.  Cops on mopeds.  Cops on motorcycles.  Cops in cars.  Cops everywhere.  It was insane!  I was surprised I didn't see cops skate boarding down the street…  It was fucked up.  There were snipers on the roof!

Erika:  God.

Randy:  Jesus fucking Christ man, ya know I'm hoping one of em doesn't sneeze or something!  So, I went there to do this kind of silly show and generally, kinda, bashed Bush.  [Laughs]  Cause I kinda feel like it, ya know.  Then I left and there's just people with guns everywhere!!!  I'm like, fuck man [nervous laughter].  They're just standing in the street!  It freaked me out really bad.  After that show I was really freaked out, ya know. 

Erika:  If you wanted to spread some propaganda, what would you spew to the masses?

Randy:  Oh…send me money.  [Laughter]  No, no.  I'm not a really big propagandist.  I just tell people, once again, think for yourself.  And for fuck sake don't watch Fox News!  [Laughter]

Erika:  Any predictions about the elections?

Randy:  Well, apparently there already having problems in Florida with the polling n' shit.  Things are fucked up already.  You'd think they would've had four years to fix it!  They would've done so.  I feel pretty uneasy.  My old man told me he thought the Democrats would carry the state of Virginia.  And I'm like, you're crazy.  You know, cause historically it's a Republican State.  But he's pretty confident they can carry the state.  If you asked me a week ago, I have this very uneasy feeling that Bush is gonna win maybe that's just me being a pessimist.  Now I don't know.  We all voted via absentee ballot.  I've done all I can.  I encourage people go out & vote if you're of age and convince your friends who are too lazy to vote to vote.  Don't know right now.  I'm not sure what's gonna happen.  I'm really hoping Bush doesn't get re-elected though.

Erika:  Same here.

Randy:  I have a problem with our electoral system.  I think the popular vote should determine the out come of an election.  Call me crazy but if one person gets more votes than the other… isn't that how it works?!?

Erika:  I thought.

Randy:  We're a republic not a democracy.  People don't even realize that so that's the way we set it up so that's the way it is.

Erika:  In closing, what would you like future hardcore audiences to say about your band?

Randy:  That if you came and saw us at a show, man, know that we gave it 110% every night and we were an honest band.  No bullshit.  Just lay it on the table.

We'd like to thank Randy for sharing his opinions with us and to Jensen at Adrenaline for setting the interview up.

Looking for pix from the Chicago show? Click here!

Click here for 2006 interview with John Campbell & Mark Morton

&

Here for 2007 interview with Randy