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| Interview done by Burt Wolf with Shane, singer for SILVERSTEIN. Interview done February 12, 2006. |
| SILVERSTEIN HAS BEEN AROUND FOR A FEW YEARS NOW. CAN YOU TAKE US BACK TO THE BEGINING & GIVE US SOME OF THE BANDS HISTORY UP TO NOW? HOW YOU GOT TOGETHER? ANY PREVIOUS BANDS MEMBERS WERE IN BEFORE? We started as a side project 6 years ago. Over time our other bands broke up & SILVERSTEIN became the main focus. We got signed to VICTORY in 2002. WHY WAS THE NAME SILVERSTEIN CHOSEN AS THE BANDS NAME? We used it as a tribute to author Shel Silverstein. I used to sing out of his books when we first started the band & we thought it was appropriate since we are all fans of his. WHO OR WHAT HAS HAD SOME IMPACT ON YOUR LIFE & IN CREATING YOUR MUSIC? The local music scene where we lived. A few certain people who booked shows & brought Hardcore & Punk bands through our tiny Canadian towns. If it wasn't for that i don't think I would have really understood the way it all worked. HOW WOULD YOU BEST DESCRIBE THE SOUND & STYLE OF SILVERSTEIN TO SOMEONE WHO HAS YET TO HEAR YOU GUYS? We are a heavy band primarily, but also melodic & catchy. |
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| "DISCOVERING THE WATERFRONT" IS YOUR NEWEST RELEASE. HOW WELL HAS THIS CD DONE FOR YOU GUYS? WHAT HAS THE RESPONSE BEEN LIKE TO IT? Response has been amazing. People have been freaking out, both old fans & new fans. I think the direction we took was really positive & we made a stronger record than the first one. THIS IS YOUR SECOND CD PUT OUT BY VICTORY RECORDS. HOW DID YOU GET SIGNED WITH THEM? HOW HAS IT BEEN WORKING WITH THEM? |
| VICTORY is great. They are the biggest indie label there is & they really know how to get the records out there & promote them. We got signed by sending them a demo & getting my friend in GRADE to call in for us. WHAT IS SOME OF THE SUBJECT MATTER IN THE SONGS ON THIS RELEASE? WHO WRITES THE MAJORITY OF THE LYRICS IN THE BAND? It all comes from my own experiences, things that have happened to me, my friends & things I've seen go down. It's all about dealing with problems & trying to get through them. One thing I try to convey is a sense of hope. That is the central theme of the record. WHO DID THE COVER ARTWORK & CAN YOU EXPLAIN IT'S MEANING A LITTLE? Martin Wittfooth. Our good friend & amazing artist. It's meaning is depicted on the cover with a person torn between staying in a burning city, or going out into unknown water, which falls off into nowhere. It is analogous to decisions people need to make all the time in life, when they need to go to a more positive place. Whether it's a bad relationship, a job, whatever, people need to take a chance & do what is right. HOW DO YOU FEEL THE BAND HAS EVOLVED SINCE YOUR LAST RELEASE "WHEN BROKEN IS EASILY FIXED"? We were on the road for 2 years. It was very much a growing up experience. We learned how to deal with pressure & stress. We also became very close friends & better musicians. I think you hear that on the recordings if you listen to them one after another. YOU DID A VIDEO FOR "SMILE IN YOUR SLEEP". WHAT IS THIS VIDEO ABOUT & HOW WAS THE VIDEO SHOOTING EXPERIENCE IN WHOLE? The video is based on the board game Clue. We were pretty into how it turned out & it was a lot of fun to make, unlike the videos we had done before. We also just shot a new video for "Discovering The Waterfront", which should be out really soon. I READ ON YOUR WEBSITE THAT SOMEONE USED YOUR SONG "SMASHED INTO PIECES" TO AUDITION ON AMERICAN IDOL. WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION TO THIS. WHAT DID THE JUDGES THINK? WHAT DID YOU GUYS THINK? Haha, it was so funny. I actually spoke with the guy. He's a cool dude. He was trying to do something different & you have to give him credit. I'm flattered of all the songs he could pick he picked a song I wrote. It was pretty sweet...& the judges...haha...just go watch the clip, it's amazing. YOUR JUST FINISHING UP YOUR EUROPEAN TOUR? WHO WERE YOU ON TOUR WITH? WHERE DID THIS TOUR TAKE YOU? WHAT WAS THE FANS REACTION TO YOU GUYS LIVE? We did a European tour with SIMPLE PLAN. It was one of the funnest tours ever. SIMPLE PLAN are the nicest guys. It was a little different because their fans are a lot younger & more...feminine than ours...haha. But they were really into it & I cannot wait to go back to some of those countries again. WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR UPCOMING TOURS? Take Action USA, Taste Of Chaos Canada, Australian Tour, UK Tour & Warped Tour! |
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| ARE YOU INTO ANY OTHER STYLES OF MUSIC BESIDES WHAT YOU PLAY? WHO ARE SOME OF THE BANDS YOU HAVE CURRENTLY BEEN LISTENING TO? We listen to very diverse music. It's funny because at any given point, Neil will be listening to SLAYER, Paul will be listening to WOLF PARADE, Bill will be listeing to MINERAL, I'll be listeing to SAY ANYTHING & Josh will be listening to BILLY JOEL. And we all love everything. If it's good music, it's good music no matter what genre. WHAT DO THE MEMBERS OF THE BAND DO WHEN NOT DOING ANY WORK FOR THE BAND? JOBS, HOBBIES, ETC? We don't have any jobs & not any time for hobbies either. I have a record label I started called VERONA RECORDS (www.VERONARECORDS.com) & I love playing poker. Bill is really into photography, Paul does a lot of graphic/web design & Neil & Josh party like it's 1999. |
| WHAT DO YOU FEEL IS THE BEST & WORST PART ABOUT BEING IN A BAND? Best is playing music all over the world, partying with some awesome people & just living the lifestyle. The worst is being away from home so much. It's really hard. WHAT IS ONE THING PEOPLE WOULD BE SURPRISED TO FIND OUT ABOUT YOU? I'm a vegan, I played basketball in high school & I am a self proclaimed poker-a-holic! WHAT WAS THE FIRST ALBUM YOU REMEMBER BUYING? WHAT WAS THE FIRST CONCERT YOU EVER WENT TO? First album I bought on CD was NIRVANA - "NEVERMIND". Before that I had some terrible tapes of VANILLA ICE, BRYAN ADAMS, TOM COCHRANE. The first show I went to was METALLICA with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES & DANZIG. Amazing. I was 11 years old & I was so excited. IS THERE ANY NEW MATERIAL IN THE WORKS? We're jamming on some riffs, but not too much yet. WHAT CAN WE EXPECT TO SEE NEXT FROM SILVERSTEIN? Lots of touring & maybe a DVD sometime soon. WHAT WERE YOU DOING BEFORE ANSWERING THIS INTERVIEW? WHAT WILL YOU DO NOW THAT IT'S DONE? I was packing my suitcase for my trip to NYC. Now I will finish packing. THANX A LOT FOR ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS. FEEL FREE TO ADD ANYTHING ELSE TO CLOSE OUT. Nothing!!! |
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| shane@SILVERSTEINmusic.com www.SILVERSTEINmusic.com ALL GRAPHICS & PHOTOS COURTESY OF SILVERSTEIN INTERVIEWS MAIN PAGE |