A Wilhelm Scream

04.06.2008 | Cam | 3 Comments

2006 saw A Wilhelm Scream impress many an Australian fan when they ventured out here with Less Than Jake, and in a month’s time the five journeyman that make up AWS will be here to do it all again!

Nick (Drums) answered the following questions while on tour with The Unseen (US)…

By Cameron Chambers

For the record, your name, what you do in A Wilhelm Scream and your drink of choice. 

My name is nick. I play drums. My favorite drink is a Rory Calhoon 

Can you please tell us a bit about the band’s formative years, how you got together etc…

It all started in a fishing town called New Bedford.  I heard some music coming from this house one block over from me. I walked over and looked in the window and I saw these guys in monster costumes playing this infections music in the vain of Late 90's grunge. I instantly became A fan of the band. As time went on I started playing shows with my band opening up for Koen (smackin' Isaiah was called koen at the time) This went on for a while,and one day I was rehearsing with one of my bands at the time, and Trev  and John came walking in and asked if I wanted to join there band.  The rest is history. 

So, you used to be called “Smackin Isaiah”… please explain.

Smackin' Isaiah is a song that Trev wrote back in the day. I really don't know what its about. He talks about Plumbers running away and there being havoc in the streets. Something about Bobby having older friends, and new Converse sneakers. I always thought it meant jerking off.

You guys were lucky enough to spend the last couple of months on the road in the US with The Unseen. How was the tour? Did you find their fans were accepting of your music and vice versa?

The tour was great. We had a lot of fun with the Unseen. They are a great group of guys. As far as there fans accepting us, I think some of there fans didn't want to like us, but I feel like we won a lot of people over. It was kinda cool watching some dude with a 2 foot mohalk standing there with his arms crossed at the beginning of the set and by the end running around in a circle pit having a good time.

As you’re currently in the midst of a month long European tour this question’s probably more applicable than ever. What are the biggest differences between touring in the States and touring outside of our home country?

I would say the biggest difference is the way they treat the bands.  They seen to care a bit more in Europe. A lot of places in the states will kinda rush you in and out. Its like play your show and get the fuck out, Don't get me wrong there not all like this, but in Europe they let you kick it as long as you want. Some places even let you sleep right at the venue.

What are the pros and cons of spending a month on tour in places as varied as Portugal  and Russia?

For me mostly Pros, I Love to travel. I would love to see every nook and cranny of this planet. Its cool to see how people live on the other side of the world. I am pretty lucky. I get to see a lot of things that most people never have a chance to. I love to try new things  and learn as much as I can. Life is short, and I want to experience everything I can before I take my final dirt nap. I guess the cons would be those long ass plane rides. I think I lose my mind a little bit more every flight. I think its all worth it in the end.  

“Career Suicide” has been out for a good six months now, did the record receive the feedback and response that you expected it to? 

Ya for the most part. I think that some people expected us to writ a more radio friendly record, but we hit them with this fast record with crazy arrangements and f-bombs all over the place.  Hence the name Career Suicide.  

A lot of band members say that they’re unhappy with certain elements of their records, is there anything that you’d differently on “Career Suicide” if you had the chance?

Not really, I worked pretty hard preparing for this recording. What's done is done.  There might be some thing that are not perfect but fuck it. I will try to step up my game on the next record. 

Your long term guitarist Chris quit A Wilhelm Scream a couple of weeks before “Career Suicide” was released. How did that affect the band at the time and did it have a negative impact on the subsequent tours that you guys undertook to support the album?

Chris leaving sucked, but luckily we have talented friends. Our buddy Nick from the band The Swellers filled in for a while and we were able to do all the tours we had lined up. Thanks Nick. You da man. 

Were you at all concerned that losing a long term member may be the end of the band?

No. We are all pretty driven people, and even though losing Chris sucked ass, Our drive would not let us give up.

What was the selection process when recruiting a new guitarist? Mike (AWS replacement guitarist) completed some tours with you before officially coming on board yeah?

Yeah I think we were just kinda feeling each other out. Mike is super talented, but you have to make sure you get along as people if you are going to spend 15 hours at a time in a van. 

Did you haze the new guy? Are there any general AWS tour hi-jinks that you’d like to share with us?

Well we are constantly fucking with each other anyway. If you say or do some thing stupid you are going to hear about it.  Mike did not really get any new guy hazing.  He slid into the mix pretty smoothly. Its hard to give mike shit any way, because he is such a nice dude.

Being that you guys spend so much time on the road do you get much of a chance to write and demo new material?

Not really we do most of our writing during breaks from touring.

In saying that, when can we expect the new A Wilhelm Scream record?

Hopefully by next summer.

Who are some bands that you’re currently into that you think people should check out?

I really like Minus The Bear, and I have always been a big fan of Quicksand

What’s been your favorite AWS tour to date?

Thats a tough one. We have had so many fun tours with a lot of great great bands. I had a really good last time we went to England with Fail-safe and All Idols Fall.  We did our share of partying and we managed to see the sights. We saw Abby rd., Big Ben, The London Eye, London Bridge, Parliament,and Some castles in Scotland. We also got to Record 4 songs at the B.B.C for B.B.C radio. That tour was a lot of fun. 

For those Australian fans who didn’t get to see you last time, what should people expect from A Wilhelm Scream live show?

Matching white tuxes, flash pots, and Dirt bikes jumping over the stage every 4 min.  Just kidding. You can expect 5 guys sweating there balls off playing there music as hard as they can. 

Anything else you’d like to add?

Thank you

For a full list of tour dates and ticketing info head to Destroy All Lines or check out the bands Myspace page.