Post by Heather on Jan 6, 2011 9:37:43 GMT -5
Interview with Jason McCaslin and Steve Jocz of Sum 41
It’s yet another chilly evening in London town and with 2010 behind us and another year ahead it’s a dismal time of the year with nothing really to look forward to. One thing that might cheer you up is the promise of yet another Sum 41 album set for release this year. Late last year Jason McCaslin and Steve Jocz invited us backstage on the Eastpak Antidote Tour to answer some questions. (Steve was struggling from illness and so didn’t really speak to much)
So first and foremost, how has the UK and this tour been treating you?
Jason McCaslin: Ah, the tours been so far but we are only three days in so there is not really much to tell so far. We haven’t played here in years so it’s good to be back. I think the last time we were here was 2 years ago in 2008.
Even though you haven’t been here in a while, you do however do a lot of touring right?
Jason McCaslin: Yeah, we have been touring this past year quite a bit and we don’t even have an album out, when we have an album out we tour a lot. When we have an album out we usually tour about 10 months of the year.
After all these years of touring is there ever a time when you get tired of touring so much?
Jason McCaslin: No I think it’s still fun, especially when we have a new album coming out and your not just playing the same old songs. You have new stuff to play so it’s kind of exciting at the beginning. However probably near the end of the tour cycle it starts to get a little tiring and you just kind of want to go home after spending two years on the road. We are at the stage where we have a new album coming out so everything is exciting right now.
It’s been quite a gap in between albums for Sum 41, why do you feel this album has taken longer to get together?
Jason McCaslin: It didn’t really take that long to get together, it’s done and it’s been done for a while, it’s just taken a while to come out and it’s still taking a while. It’s just the label, it’s in there hands. Like I said the album is done, once we deliver the album the label they then decide what day. So it’s kind of just like they just say “oh we have a spot for you in March or February”. So we are kind of waiting for that, also three years is not too long. The last album came out in 2007 and we toured that for two years so we only really took off a little time before Deryck starting writing for an album again and then we started recording. Also I got married and Steve got married and so we did some real people stuff in the downtime. So that is kind of why it took longer this time, we wanted to live normal lives for a little bit.
Is it frustrating at all having your record finished and then waiting on the label to release it to your fans?
Jason McCaslin: Part of it was us and part of it was the label too but we started recording it and then we thought it was ready but it just wasn’t ready. So we went back and recorded some more songs and so it just took longer. So it’s not really frustrating now, it’s just one of those things. We want the album to be out but we also want the time to be right for it to come out, coming out at Christmas is not always the best thing for a band like us. It’s also a timing thing and we really wanted the timing to be right and have the label 100% behind us and not just throwing it out there for Christmas.
That makes sense, what do you think the new album will encompass that previous albums haven’t brought?
Jason McCaslin: I don’t know, this albums is kind of a heavier album and kind of intense. We have been noticing that all of our fans that are still coming to our shows really like the heavier stuff, like Chuck and Does This Look Infected? This album is more like those albums, it’s more on the heavier side and it’s melodic. I think this album is going to be really fun to tour because the songs are fast, aggressive and hard, then there are a lot of soft spots in it so for this album I think it’s going to be really fun to tour.
Can you give any indications to your fans as to when the album will drop on the shelves, and what’s the name of the album?
Jason McCaslin: The album is called Screaming Bloody Murder, that is definitely the title but there is no release date yet. We are hoping for early next year and the single should be early next year, like January. The only thing we other thing we have booked is that we are playing Australia next year February with Iron Maiden, we are playing at Soundwave and their headlining it.
Moving to a couple of questions for your alter ego’s Pain For Pleasure. What would you say if Metallica, Slayer, Megadeath and Anthrax released a joint statement that they no longer wanted to be known as “The Big Four” of thrash. Instead they wanted to include Pain For Pleasure and from now on be known as “The Big Five”.
Steve Jocz: Haha It’s about time, what took them so long?
Jason McCaslin: Hahaha, your welcome, we decline.
Steve, your accent in the whole Pain For Pleasure skit is just spot on. However did anyone ever question Pleasure’s accent as he really has an Australian twang to it?
Jason McCaslin: Yeah Dave’s accent was Scottish
Steve Jocz: I don’t know?
Jason McCaslin: Yeah his is kind of a weird one. Steve definitely had an English accent.
Steve Jocz: I can’t do it now.
Jason McCaslin: Dave’s was kind of a bunch of different things.
Are you fans of “Terrence and Phillip”?
Jason McCaslin: Terrence and Phillip?
Steve Jocz: Their the Canadian action superstars, their the Canadians on Southpark.
Jason McCaslin: Oh yeah.
Steve Jocz: Yeah, totally, their awesome. Who doesn’t like fart jokes..
It’s yet another chilly evening in London town and with 2010 behind us and another year ahead it’s a dismal time of the year with nothing really to look forward to. One thing that might cheer you up is the promise of yet another Sum 41 album set for release this year. Late last year Jason McCaslin and Steve Jocz invited us backstage on the Eastpak Antidote Tour to answer some questions. (Steve was struggling from illness and so didn’t really speak to much)
So first and foremost, how has the UK and this tour been treating you?
Jason McCaslin: Ah, the tours been so far but we are only three days in so there is not really much to tell so far. We haven’t played here in years so it’s good to be back. I think the last time we were here was 2 years ago in 2008.
Even though you haven’t been here in a while, you do however do a lot of touring right?
Jason McCaslin: Yeah, we have been touring this past year quite a bit and we don’t even have an album out, when we have an album out we tour a lot. When we have an album out we usually tour about 10 months of the year.
After all these years of touring is there ever a time when you get tired of touring so much?
Jason McCaslin: No I think it’s still fun, especially when we have a new album coming out and your not just playing the same old songs. You have new stuff to play so it’s kind of exciting at the beginning. However probably near the end of the tour cycle it starts to get a little tiring and you just kind of want to go home after spending two years on the road. We are at the stage where we have a new album coming out so everything is exciting right now.
It’s been quite a gap in between albums for Sum 41, why do you feel this album has taken longer to get together?
Jason McCaslin: It didn’t really take that long to get together, it’s done and it’s been done for a while, it’s just taken a while to come out and it’s still taking a while. It’s just the label, it’s in there hands. Like I said the album is done, once we deliver the album the label they then decide what day. So it’s kind of just like they just say “oh we have a spot for you in March or February”. So we are kind of waiting for that, also three years is not too long. The last album came out in 2007 and we toured that for two years so we only really took off a little time before Deryck starting writing for an album again and then we started recording. Also I got married and Steve got married and so we did some real people stuff in the downtime. So that is kind of why it took longer this time, we wanted to live normal lives for a little bit.
Is it frustrating at all having your record finished and then waiting on the label to release it to your fans?
Jason McCaslin: Part of it was us and part of it was the label too but we started recording it and then we thought it was ready but it just wasn’t ready. So we went back and recorded some more songs and so it just took longer. So it’s not really frustrating now, it’s just one of those things. We want the album to be out but we also want the time to be right for it to come out, coming out at Christmas is not always the best thing for a band like us. It’s also a timing thing and we really wanted the timing to be right and have the label 100% behind us and not just throwing it out there for Christmas.
That makes sense, what do you think the new album will encompass that previous albums haven’t brought?
Jason McCaslin: I don’t know, this albums is kind of a heavier album and kind of intense. We have been noticing that all of our fans that are still coming to our shows really like the heavier stuff, like Chuck and Does This Look Infected? This album is more like those albums, it’s more on the heavier side and it’s melodic. I think this album is going to be really fun to tour because the songs are fast, aggressive and hard, then there are a lot of soft spots in it so for this album I think it’s going to be really fun to tour.
Can you give any indications to your fans as to when the album will drop on the shelves, and what’s the name of the album?
Jason McCaslin: The album is called Screaming Bloody Murder, that is definitely the title but there is no release date yet. We are hoping for early next year and the single should be early next year, like January. The only thing we other thing we have booked is that we are playing Australia next year February with Iron Maiden, we are playing at Soundwave and their headlining it.
Moving to a couple of questions for your alter ego’s Pain For Pleasure. What would you say if Metallica, Slayer, Megadeath and Anthrax released a joint statement that they no longer wanted to be known as “The Big Four” of thrash. Instead they wanted to include Pain For Pleasure and from now on be known as “The Big Five”.
Steve Jocz: Haha It’s about time, what took them so long?
Jason McCaslin: Hahaha, your welcome, we decline.
Steve, your accent in the whole Pain For Pleasure skit is just spot on. However did anyone ever question Pleasure’s accent as he really has an Australian twang to it?
Jason McCaslin: Yeah Dave’s accent was Scottish
Steve Jocz: I don’t know?
Jason McCaslin: Yeah his is kind of a weird one. Steve definitely had an English accent.
Steve Jocz: I can’t do it now.
Jason McCaslin: Dave’s was kind of a bunch of different things.
Are you fans of “Terrence and Phillip”?
Jason McCaslin: Terrence and Phillip?
Steve Jocz: Their the Canadian action superstars, their the Canadians on Southpark.
Jason McCaslin: Oh yeah.
Steve Jocz: Yeah, totally, their awesome. Who doesn’t like fart jokes..