Filter interview Bonner Springs Kansas. Jonny and Richard took time to sit down with us and chat with us about a bunch of random things. There was a lot to this interview, if you want to see the whole thing head over to The Idea Magazine and watch the video.
How’s the new album going for you guys?
Richard: Awesome.
Jonny: New record is great, we are proud of it and we are playing a lot of songs off it on this tour. And the crowds seem to love it.
Listening to the new material there are undercurrents of the 90’s, but with a new energy.
Richard: That’s exactly what we wanted to do. Ever since Anthems of the Damned I have really wanted to be heavy and aggressive and scream a lot. Then with The Trouble with Angels we kind of got heavy for a second but it wasn’t the short bus. We were told to by Greg Widenberg, and this is why we signed with Windup records because he wanted the serious heavy Hey Man Nice Shot Kind of stuff. Once we got What Do You Say and another one Self Inflicted done and some other heavy ones and as soon as that was done I realized so much of the 90’s was there. The song writing was similar but the production was today.
Does the line-up change play a part in that different energy?
Jonny: We wrote this record together in the studio. It was just me him and the producer. We started from scratch in the studio and literally recorded as we went along.
Richard: Which is the Filter norm. We used drum machines. No offense and we have had a lot of drummers that we have used but we’ve got this new drummer that is amazing named Jeff Fabb and he has been out with us since April. We were like this is going to be a drum machine record just like Short Bus we’re going to break the rules and do things that other bands don’t do because they’re worried about the perception or what ever. It was a very computer generated album.
With that, does it make the adaptation to the stage any more difficult?
Richard: That’s what is amazing is that he (Jeff Fabb) is really gifted. And Phil Buckman on bass he is really gifted and put his own spin on some of the stuff, and most of it sounds awesome.
Tell me about the What Do You Say video:
Richard: The casting for that video couldn’t have been any better. The casting was like these kids and their diversity and they had some killer amazing clothes. It looked great on film. Then there were the actual members (country club type) and the kind of people you encounter. There was a lot of blonde hair you know? I was happy with it. I have some people in my family that are like that. They are all about the brand and what year your BMW is. They got lost in it somewhere. To me is was about like as long as we have a roof over our head and money in the bank then we are good. Back to the video; these kids were trying to pull off a prank and they (country club people) went crazy over it and it got violent. I get killed, the place burn down. I like the video.
There was a change in the video where it went from a prank to serious and st switched to “why not I’m going to get in trouble anyway”.
Richard: The funny thing about me is that when I was in the drinking phase of my life I thought there is no way I’m going to live past 30. Then I was starting to get to the point that I’m 34 and I’m still here. Drinking to death is going to suck. I guess I gotta straighten up. The why not, fuck it, blow something up kind of mentality. These going to be a phase in my sons life where he’s going to want fire crackers and he’s going to want to blow up the army men or want to light something on fire. I use to have a friend that would dip a tennis ball in gasoline and light up and we would play flaming hockey. It was kind of dangerous. Because I think it was in the fall and leaves started catching on fire.
With this being the last stop on the tour, what has been the most memorable experience for you?
Richard: Honestly, I think it’s been the crowds. It’s been kind of like we go out and they are like oh ya great Filter great, alright, awesome. Then we get halfway though and there are three brand new songs they are listening to and they don’t know it because I don’t say these are new until after we paled them.
Music is an emotional experience for a lot of people. Have you met fans that have told you that you changed their life?
Richard: Absolutely. There has been an amazing reaction to Filter music and people are like living on it. I mean that in the sense that someone was like if it wasn’t for your record I don’t know man, I don’t know if I could have got through this part of my life.
You hear that and you think wow. These people are sane healthy people and they have to get over something. (With this person) It was Take a Picture. This guy said he was abandoned by his father when he was three. He was like, “I just want to let you know I’m finally over my dad doing that to me. I love my new parents, but I couldn’t forgive my dad for doing that, now I’m over it. Take a Picture was the thing that bridged me over to being okay with what my dad did.” I was like wow, to have an impact on some ones life like that. It’s wild, sometimes I wish we didn’t have to play so many shows in a row, but then I think that at every show there could be someone in the audience that just really needed to be there. All these bands I love like the Rolling Stones, The Clash, U2, Skinny Puppy and Ministry that I listened to during my angry teenage years and to me it was just the only thing I really have that helps me cope. Here’s to music appreciation. Because that is where it all really started. I don’t consider myself that great of a guitar player or that great of a singer but I know that if I can give that back to society the way those bands affected me I could somehow give back to that and make a difference it’s the whole point. It wasn’t about the cars, the chicks or the Kiss make-up. I didn’t want to put on a a show I wanted to literally reach into peoples hearts and do something.
So I’m curious, with the upcoming Stone Temple Pilots tour is there any chance of rekindling of the “Army of Anyone”?
Richard: We have not talked about it, but I do have a guitar that was used to do the song Good Bye. Maybe I should bring that guitar because I happen to know some folks that might be able to paly it. And play our song Good Bye. Anything’s possible.
Anything we can get out there for you?
Richard: Our new record is amazing, buy it.
Do you have more touring plans?
Yes, we are heading out with Stone Temple Pilots then we will be heading out and not sure if it will be opening up or headlining tour through October.