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............................................................................... Episode Title: It's not a trend. It's a lifestyle. Synopsis: Wonder Woman Takes Back Sunday Cast: TBS, TBM & Wonderdog ............................................................................... Welcome back to VanCity. Eddie: Thanks. The last time you were here, you were put into quite the predicament... Eddie: [nods his head] mmm... With The Used canceling and you having to play your entire repertoire. Eddie: That was kind of fun. Was it a little intimidating that night? Eddie: Yeah it was. You had to play for so long. Eddie: Well, we never played like that before and we got thrown into a headlining spot but we were impressed that a lot of kids came out anyway. Have you noticed any differences between the Canadian and American mentality vis-à-vis the music? Eddie: I think a lot of the kids are the same. They're all there for the right reasons so I don't choose which is better or which is different. To me, it's just all the same. It's all fun. Who parties harder? Eddie: Well, umm ha! Kansas City! Isn't that where you guys rode the mechanical bull? Fred: Yeah! Yeah! Taking Back Sunday has survived when a lot of other bands would have given up. To what do you attribute that to? Eddie: Umm... I don't know. I've been in a lot of bands for a long, long, long time and I've walked away from a lot of them and I kinda learned from that, being older than them, that it's just not worth walking away that easily. You should actually sit down and look at everything that's going on and fix things. So, I made a decision when I started this band that if anyone walks away or if anyone doesn't want to do this anymore, then that's fine. As long as I'm still happy and I want to do it and whoever's with me still wants to do it, then we'll keep the band alive. So that's our situation. Is there a sense of relief now that you're back and going strong? Eddie: Yeah. A whole lot. Fred: This has been the funnest tour that we... Eddie: Have ever done, I think, that I've ever done. Fred: Yeah me too. The five of us have been getting along really well and it's been more than a month and we have another month and a half to go but time has been flying by and the shows have been amazing. There have been so many people coming out to see all the bands. Moneen and Saves the Day are all super cool people; we've all just hung out everyday. It's awesome. Eddie: There's been other tours where the other bands have been awesome but you never really spend a lot of time with them. So this tour, everybody has been friends and hanging out. Would you continue your career elsewhere? Eddie: Nah. I think this is it. This is it. I think when this is over and hopefully it's a long time from now, I'll just continue on to something else. So you'll ride it out to the end? Eddie: Yeah, I mean, that's not such a negative thing. It's just that I've been doing it for so long that I don't think I would have it in me again to start another band when this band has been what I've been trying for all my life to be a part of. Fred: Yeah, being the new guy definitely was a shock for me at first, to get into a band that plays for this many kids. I have always been in bands and I wasn't... Eddie: Our old bands used to play together years ago. Fred: That's how I got into this band. Me and Ed... Eddie: We've been friends for like nine... Fred: Yeah, for nine years and me and Matt both feel super lucky being thrown into the mix and every night... I forget what the original question was... [everyone bursts out laughing] Eddie: Would you keep playing? Fred: Oh yeah. I just appreciate doing this every single day and playing as hard as we can. Eddie: The dog is making us all soft. [He looks down at Wonderdog who has affectionately placed her head on his lap] I'm all mushy right now. You're killing me with this dog! I guess the expression that nothing worth keeping is easy to get, really applies to you guys then? Eddie: Yeah definitely. It hasn't been easy. What are some of the accomplishments that you are most proud of? Eddie: Probably having twenty thousand kids at the Asbury Warped Tour chanting our name for an encore as we closed the show. That was pretty awesome. Fred: Also we got to play on TV. Eddie: Yeah! Kimmel. Eddie: Yeah, Kimmel. They said we were the second band or something like that to have that many people... No, you were the first. He said you were the first band to fill it up that much. Eddie: Really? That was amazing to see kids on rooftops watching us because they couldn't get in. To hear that there were kids that had been sitting there since eight in the morning. It was just like wow! They never showed the kids on rooftops, you couldn't get a sense of it. Fred: It was amazing and also to get to that level... to have so many people see that performance. I mean, we were all calling our moms and grand moms and were like, "turn on your TV, we're on!" It was just a sense of accomplishment. Are you all happy with the new lineup? [to Fred] Have you settled in? Fred: I'm loving it. I'm having a great time and we've been writing new songs together. I love all the new songs and I think everyone is pretty psyched to go and do the new record... Eddie: Yeah. Fred: ...and we'll start to record this winter. I was reading in your journal that you opted to go into a van for a couple weeks. Eddie: We were in the van at the beginning of this tour for seven days. Fred: Yeah it was... Was it to gel? Fred: Yeah actually, we wanted to be in each other's faces for twenty-four hours a day. Well, I had never been on tour with these guys... Eddie: We toured in a windstar minivan across the country twice and in a van millions of times. Just being in the bus with new guys is a whole new thing and you're afraid that you won't be able to grow close with that person. I realized that in a van, there is always more closeness than when you are on a bus so we had to tour for a couple of days. It was cooler that way. So at the end of the seven days, you were REALLY close and tired of being in each other's faces? Fred: Yeah, we were dying to get out of the van! Eddie: We were like, "Whose dumb idea was that? I'll never do that again." I did most of the driving and Fred did some too. Because you spent so much time together, whose personal habits annoyed you the most? Eddie: Mark Why? Eddie: I call him 'big body' because he's just big. This giant muscle that just walks through everybody and knocks everyone over. Nah! Everyone has a little thing about them that's annoying. You guys have become one of Victory's biggest success stories. Does that put a lot of pressure on you for the sophomore CD? Fred: Yeah. Eddie: Me it does! We didn't expect this album to be like this at all. We thought that we'd be sitting in the van right now behind some small bar, happy that we'd sold a couple hundred records or whatever and the fact that it blew up like this was like wow! Now, it's like 'okay, we have to write another record'. Fred: Now we have something to live up to and with the new lineup it's that much more of a challenge because it has to be the best thing we've ever put out. We're spending a lot of hours working on it, on the lyrics and working all the songs out. We'll write a song and keep checking it over to see if there's any way to make it better. Are you looking at going with the same format or do you think you'll go with a change in sound especially with the new members coming in. Eddie: There will probably be a huge difference in sound. Fred: We're trying to make it a natural progression. Eddie: But it's still going to be the same Taking Back Sunday songs because when we wrote music, it wasn't because we wrote it because 'it's got to be this way'. We wrote songs because they were cool songs. That's how it is with us. We're not sitting there going 'alright, this song is going to be like this'. It's just like 'hey dude, I got a riff.' That's it. Are you looking at staying with the same producer? Eddie: I don't know. Fred: I thought he did a good job on Tell All Your Friends and the new Thursday but we're looking at all of our options. Eddie: It's one of these things that we can't decide on yet. You have never come across as a band that takes their celebrity status for granted. Are you all as humble as you appear or are you all just a bunch of egomaniacs? Eddie: No! Never! That's the one thing that I'm TOTALLY against. The minute I see a little bit of ego, I bring it right back down because there's no reason to be that way. We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the kids. I think a lot of bands tend to forget that and we won't forget that. Fred: Yeah. We try to every night get outside and talk to people. Even if you're tired and want to lay down on the bus, we're still like 'come on, we've got to go talk to people.' Eddie: Yup Fred: I really like doing that. Eddie: I always, as soon as I'm done playing, come change my shirt, you know, powder up and go hit the show and watch it from the outside. With the way music is headed right now, what do you think will be the next big musical trend? Eddie: Well, I hate that whole musical trend thing though. Don't you? Fred: I would love it if all the bands that we're friends with get big. Eddie: Yeah. Fred: I mean, a lot of the bands are getting bigger so I could see that happening and that would be the greatest to have the company of other bands that we like. Such as? Fred: Like Thursday Eddie: Thrice, Vendetta Red, Recover. We're friends with them and they have a new album coming out. It would be a cool musical trend. Fred: Yeah. Eddie: You know what? The grunge scene didn't last that long and neither did the ska scene or the whole rockabilly thing but I've seen 80's metal bands last up until the early 90's and I'm kinda hoping this music...We're still going to be playing whether people care or not! We're still going to be playing shows so I'm saying that I kinda hope we're the next head band. Come out with the big hair wigs on! Eddie: You gotta have the two stripes design. MTV friend or mostly foe? Eddie: We're neutral on that. Fred: I don't watch MTV. Eddie I don't either. I grew up on Canadian Much Music more that I did MTV. You can name a million bands from MTV but MTV is mostly shows and not music. That's why a lot of Canadian bands influenced me. It was because of Much Music. I always felt that Much Music did the whole open window thing first and then TRL came along and snatched that away. But there's nothing wrong with MTV. I mean, MTV2 is cool. I just wish they played more music; the shows are getting boring. Alright, reach in to the velvet bag of doom and whatever you grab, you have to answer. Fred: Oh oh! Eddie: The worst birthday present I ever received was. OH! Fred: Heh Heh! Eddie: Can I be honest? Of course! Eddie: Okay, so my mom doesn't speak English that well and I wanted these Spiderman underwear from JCPenney's and my mom bought me... she bought me a pair of Hulk underwear which was very cool and she bought me Wonder Woman underwear... Fred: Oh my god! Eddie: ...and I threw a shit fit and I have a very old-school, stern, Spanish mom and she was like, "you wear that!" I actually had to wear them! Fred: Oh man! Eddie: Then the next day my brother found out that I had on Wonder Woman underwear because I felt bad that I almost made my mom cry so I was like, "Alright mom, I'll wear them. I'm sorry." Well, my brother found out that I was wearing them and he knew that the junior high that we lived next to let out at two o'clock. So my brother pants me, throws me outside and locks the front door. So, that's the worst birthday present I ever got in my life. It's kinda like in a Christmas Story where he comes out in the bunny suit. Fred: Oh yeah! Eddie: You brought back all these memories, Trauma! I need more Gatorade. Okay, your turn Fred. Fred: Which celebrity would you be nervous around? Eddie: Oh I know! I know a celebrity I would be nervous around! Fred: What? Who? Eddie: James Earl Jones 'cause he's got the Darth Vader voice man! Luke, I am your father! Eddie: [in his best James Earl Jones voice] Good Job Eddie. [Fred grabs another question] Eddie: What! I want to read it to you. [to Fred] The cartoon character I would have sex with. Oh my god! Hey! I could answer this one too! Wonder Woman! [Everyone erupts in laughter] Fred: [Points to Eddie] Wonder Woman! Eddie: No, no! Bad memories, bad memories! I'm going to end up running down the street screaming and you're going to find me somewhere like... Hey! It's your questions buddy. Fred: I can see going a night with all three Powerpuff Eddie: Powerpuff girls? I was going to say Smurfette's hot! I thought you would go with G-Force girls or something like that. Eddie: Nah. Smurfette man. You're going to have no choice but to answer this question because if you don't, I'll put the caption up and I know exactly what I'll use... Eddie: No, no, no. Wait, wait, wait. Can we do one more? [pointing towards the questions bag.] Yeah sure. Eddie: This is how it should have been the whole interview. Five dollars or really bad sex? [Eddie hesitates] Okay, really bad sex. How about you Fred? Fred: I'd take the five dollars. I'd rather stay away from bad sex. Alright Fred, take another but be gutsy this time. Fred: I just don't see a lot of movies. I'll be like 'what's the one with the guy and the movies with the blonde?' [Fred's question] The sheep will follow... who are your sheep? Eddie: Oh Oh! Fred: I actually have a daughter and I'm having a son in a month so... Eddie: Those are your sheep? Follow me, worship me... Fred: As far as the scene goes, I consider myself part of the crowd but those two kids man; they had better learn to listen! [bursts out laughing] Eddie: We always talk about when his daughter or my kids, whenever I have any, are like fifteen or sixteen and they are at the show, how his daughter's never going to be able to talk to boys because every band's going to be an uncle. She's going to hate it and be all [puts on a high pitched girly voice] 'I hate punk rock! I hate my dad!' Fred: My kids will know all the bands and they will keep an eye on my daughter. Eddie: [In the same girly voice] 'Guys won't talk to me dad!' So unless you want the Wonder Woman caption, give me a caption for this interview 'cause I'm just going to go with Wonder Woman. It's just right there. Eddie: Fred, you come up with a title. Fred: I don't mind Wonder Woman. Eddie: Okay then, Wonder Woman is fine. Go with that one. Movie moment that has had the most impact on my life is... Eddie: I went through a really, really bad breakup. It's was just horrible! I lost like forty pounds, sat in my room, friends were banging on my door saying, "You need to leave, you need to get out!" And then I saw High Fidelity and... Fred: With John Cusack Eddie: Yeah, with John Cusack. That movie made me feel better about the whole thing. But the one moment was actually the part where he's talking about the top five girlfriends... number five with a bullet. Fred: Yeah, we just actually recently named one of our new songs 'Number Five With a Bullet' and it's in reference to what he's talking about in that movie. Eddie: But I'm not going to go with that, I'm going to go with the movie Beautiful Girls. There's this part where Michael Rapaport is telling his friend... his friend walks into the room and he's got all these pictures of these models cut out and hanging all over the wall and he's like, "Dude, you're a loser, Why don't you go out and meet girls?" He's like, "Why do I have to go out and meet girls when I'm surrounded by beautiful women?" He gives the whole speech about how a beautiful girl can make you do crazy things. He gives this whole speech, which is actually a sample and the beginning of 'Great Romances' the original version that's on our demo. So that part changed my life about the whole courtship thing. It's a great saying. I could recite it all but I don't want to bore you right now. Smokey the Bandit says: Only you can put out forest fires. What do you say? Eddie: What's something we would say... [to Fred] You first my friend. Fred: I have to think about this. Eddie: You had to pick the two smartest guys in the band of course! Fred: Ah....err...We can play guitar!?! Eddie: We're the older ones that are kind of... [As if on cue, Adam enters the bus] Fred: Adam! Just who I was looking for! Eddie: Smokey the Bandit says: Only you can put out forest fires. What would you say? Fred: What would be our slogan? Adam: [without hesitation] Back up ho! Eddie: No! No! Go to sleep ho! Go to sleep ho! Adam: I have no idea. [whispers to Wonderdog] You are the cutest thing in the world! Eddie: What would I say? What would you say? You know what I would say? Eddie: What? I would say turn off your damn radio and start listening to music! Eddie: There you go. Fred: Yeah. Adam: How about...We will fuck you the fuck up! Eddie: Oh my god! Are you allowed to say that? Sure, you can say whatever you want. We're not about censorship. Eddie: Okay. We will fuck you up! Adam: How about...It's okay if you don't like us 'cause we like us! Eddie: Hey! I've got a good one. It's not gay if it's on the road. Wonder Woman...NO! Fred: I like that one. Adam: Which one? Fred: The on the road one. Eddie: You know what I would say? Turn off the computer and pick up a book. That's another good one. Adam: [yells from the bunk area where he is getting dressed] Or if you post on the message board one more time, I'm going to fuck you up!!! Eddie: [contorts his face] Wow! Someone's angry tonight! Adam: No. I'm just joking. Why should the world give a damn about Taking Back Sunday? Eddie: Because we're very honest and we're telling people how it is and we're obviously a real band full of real human beings who have gone through so many ridiculous changes and so much drama in our lives. Just like regular people do. So people can see us as being as normal as everybody else. What would you say Freddie? Fred: I was going to say... Eddie: [interjects] Children are sheep. Someday they'll read that and say 'I'm a sheep!' Eddie: That's bad baaad! Fred: [To Fred] I like what you said. Eddie: At the end of interviews, I always like to have a last say too. Go right ahead. Eddie: Punk rock and hard-core music or whatever you want to call it, has been a part of my life since I was twelve years old, and for me it was a lifestyle and not a trend. It wasn't something that you go into a store and get into because your friends are buying it. It was something that I grew up with on the streets and going to shows and it was a part of the politics and the whole lifestyle. So I hope kids embrace it the same way I did as a kid, me being a part of it for as many years as I have. It's not a trend. It's a lifestyle. That's it. That's so right. Eddie: It's a way of life and I hope kids are educated the way I was, and learn to treat it so it's not a trend.