DROWNING POOL
Following the release of their third album, 'Full Circle', at the end of 2007, Texas born heavy rockers Downing Pool are hitting Aussie shores with Puddle Of Mudd in June. Jen Anderson caught up with bassist Stevie Benton to find out what the band has been up to since their last visit in 2002.
What sticks out most in your mind about the band's trip to Baghdad to visit the troops? The thing that really sticks out in my mind the most are the individuals that we met during our time over there...Even though they might be stuck in a situation they don't necessarily agree with, they still have pride in what they do and their level of commitment is just overwhelming. You don't see that on CNN; it's all about death and ratings. So just to meet the guys and girls over there, just to realise they put their lives on hold and on the line for everyone else so they can listen to music, go to parties and play in a band and things like that [sticks out]. We hear so much from guys and girls in the service that our song 'Bodies' really kept them motivated and on their toes during extremely dangerous situations. To think that a stupid song about a moshpit might have actually had a positive effect and brought some guys and girls home safely to their families is far more than I thought we would ever accomplish.
Can you tell us about the 'Full Circle' title? We first started talking about the name shortly after Ryan [McCombs - vocals] joined the band. Back in the day, when we first got started, it was a family vibe and we used to have so much fun, there was never any kind of major issues. After Dave [Williams - vocals] passed we brought another guy into the band [Jason Jones] who we didn't really know very well. The whole vibe was just gone, it just became so much work that it wasn't worth going on like that anymore. So he split and Ryan joined the band and it was like good old times again. It felt like the band had come full circle. After 9/11, the song 'Bodies' stopped getting played, then five years later we were over in Baghdad and discovered the song was motivating people. The popularity of the song with the troops over there really brought the song back around, made it popular and acceptable again. For us, that was just the ultimate coming full circle, and that's when we decided to call the record that.
Do you have any good stories from Drowning Pool's time touring with Damageplan? We got to tour with them all across the US/Europe and hang out with Dimes and Vinnie just about every night, which in a way is a blessing, and in another way is a curse [laughs]. It was not a strange thing for Dimes to come storming on our bus at 10am with shots on a tray, making everyone get out of their bunks after being out all night the night before. We all miss him a lot. He was the coolest guy in rock and roll, no doubt about it.
Wednesday June 4 at The Arena, Brisbane. |
