Metal/rock/industrialists Fashion Bomb will be embarking on the Nothing Can Stop Us Tour with some special guests but in the mean time lead guitarist Acid and vocalist Val took some time to give us some insight into who Fashion Bomb is from the inside out.
1. Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Fashion Bomb? How long the band has been together?
Acid- I'm Acid and I play lead guitar.
Val: I'm Val, I am the travel agent for the band, and occasionally sing the songs Acid and I write together.
2. Tell us the brief history of your band.
Val: In the beginning there was light, and the light begat music. Fashion Bomb was formed in 6 days, and on the seventh we recorded 2 albums (available on iTunes). The divine light of music echoed through the heavens, and those bands such as Marilyn Manson, American Headcharge, Godhead, and Ill Nino heard it was good, and played shows with Fashion Bomb.
Acid: We have a couple of excellent videos, too.
3. Where is the band based out of and what is your music scene like there? Are there any local bands you could recommend?
Val: Chicago. There is a lot of talent in the scene, and lots of music in general. In a city this size, you have all types of music going on all the time.
4. What type of band are you?
Acid: Fashion Bomb has rock, metal, and alternative elements with dark, gothic overtones. Picture Five Finger Death Punch fucking The Cure while A Perfect Circle plays in the background.
5. Why did you want to name the band Fashion Bomb? What does it symbolize and represent for the band?
Acid: It originally came from an old Eurythmics song. I think of a fashion bomb as being kind of like a game changer. An idea that breaks the established order, the style of the times, irrevocably. Like how filesharing permanently changed the record industry, or how the atomic bomb changed war and conflict irrevocably.
6. Who are your musical and non-musical influences?
Val: There are too many to list probably, but I would put Luciano Pavarotti, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Sir Francis Walsingham in the top ten.
Acid: Innovators. I'm big on people doing something for the first time.
7. What are your songs about? (What specific themes do they cover?)
Val: There is an old saying that music has the ability to bypass the mind and go directly to the soul. We try to write songs that have that emotional content that does that, but also challenges the mind, whether it is imparting a new way of looking at a situation, or taking a listener through a unique experience. That being said, I would say that most of the songs
travel in very dark places.
Acid: There's a lot of interesting stories in there, which I really like in music. "Veil of Megiddo," to me, is about a person who dies in some great cataclysm. As a ghost, his existence is vague and dreamlike, and he is desperately trying to break through the veil to warn everyone of something that he can't quite put his finger on. When he finally breaks through, he realizes that it's too late, it's all over, and everyone is gone.
8. Do you write your own songs? (Discuss the songwriting process in detail.)
Acid: It starts in my head, a lot of times. I have music running through my head almost all the time. I'll be out somewhere, and in my head I'm writing guitar parts, bass lines, drums. Imagining synth sounds, layering parts and seeing how they complement each other. I could be talking to you, and I'll still have a quarter of my brain set aside, just kind of churning music over and over and putting together arrangements. It's kind of hard to turn it off, actually. When I find that I've got something serious, I kind of lock myself away in my studio until I've got something to show for it.
At this point, I'll bring the song to the rehearsal spot. It's just an instrumental at this point, guitar, drums, bass, some synth maybe. Usually with a few holes in the arrangement. We kick around the ideas, see how it feels in a live setting, maybe solidify it a bit. The whole time, Val is just kind of hanging back and watching really intently. Every now and then he'll really quietly hum something into a little tape recorder. He won't let us hear it, though.
After that, Val will, like, descend down into his writing room and start writing lyrics. Nobody is allowed in there. It takes a really long time, and I don't know what he's doing in there. But when he's finally done, it's this amazing story, so I can't complain. What are you doing in there?
Val: I am plagiarizing ancient texts for lyrics. No, seriously, I need to get the music into my head space, and once it is there, and I make a connection with what emotion and mood the music is conveying, I begin to craft a story that speaks to that sense and feeling. I tend to be extremely picky about how the words interact with each other, and the feelings and connotations they convey. Words to me are power.
Acid: From there, we spend a lot of time polishing the song, tweaking and producing it, until it's ready for prime time. The details are really important.
9. What's new in the recording of your music? How does it compare, differ, and evolve from your previous releases?
Acid: I would say the music is getting more personal, and more genuine. The heavy stuff is heavier, and the moody stuff is moodier.
Val: We shun the cliches prevalent in a lot of the cookie cutter music being assembled today by bands who are only interested in being safe, or following a formula. Real fans of music can hear truth in music when it is performed by musicians with a personal and real connection to it… because they may share that connection as well.
Acid: And we are a pretty picky band. We are very particular about most of the creative aspects of what we do. But, I think we're getting pickier.
10. What are your dreams and goals?
Acid: I want to keep growing this thing. I think it's exciting to watch this band do bigger and bigger things. I want to see how far we can push it. I've got a good feeling about that.
Val: Exactly.
11. What should labels/zines/promoters know about your band? Why should they be interested in it?
Val: They should know that we are making music that means something again. Whether you agree with the message or rail against it, it has meaning. They should be interested because darkness has a voice, and in these days, it is speaking louder and louder. More and more people are speaking this language and relating to it's feeling and message.
Acid: Exactly.12. Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff?
Val: Our music is readily available on iTunes…I know it can be ordered through a bunch of stores and websites. Anywhere that carries music distributed by Sony should be able to get our records for you!
13. You guys will be heading out on tour but what else can we expect to see from you guys?
Acid: Yeah, after touring the U.S. with our friends in Lord of the Lost and Murder F.M. in March, we will be making our European debut in Finland at Trash Fest VII in October. In between tours we will be in the studio completing new music. And probably doing some more video stuff, too.
14. What is it you’d like a listener to remember the most when hearing your music for the first time?
Acid: We just want to make music that means something to you. I want to write the song you lose your virginity to. You'll remember it forever; one day you'll be ninety years old and still think back fondly. People will denigrate it and you'll jump to its defense every time, even when its unpopular, because it means that much to you. I want to write that song.
15. Any final words of wisdom?
Val: We would love to show you the talent that is being assembled for the upcoming Nothing Can Stop US Tour, with Lord of the Lost and Murder FM. So much work has been done by Mama Trash and the Trash Family to make this tour possible, and the show that we are planning is going to be very special. Come see some new amazing music, meet new talented artists, and hang out with music lovers that share a bond. Come join the family at a show near you. That is the best wisdom I can impart to anyone right now.
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