Chiodos

Chiodos are a band you can't take lightly. They serve to remind the listener that post-hardcore isn't just alive and well, but flourishing and expanding every day. With elements that make the hardcore kids weep with mosh-pit wet dreams coupled with melodic sensibilities, Chiodos show just how to combine all the aspects of the genre into a sonic-aesthetic ball. We spoke with lead singer Craig Owens about the band's fourth release, 'Devil', its meaning, D.R.U.G.S and whole lot more. 

How have the Devil's Dance shows been, I heard Buffalo sold out pretty quick.

Dude it was a-ma-zing! It was so crazy! Sold out! It was one of those shows where you can't hear yourself think 'cos the crowd are singing so loud. It was one of those shows where you don't give a shit. You don't give a shit what you look like because you're so sweaty and disgusting and everyone else is too.

It's a pretty big fucking tour. How are you feeling to jump back into these Chiodos shows?

It actually feels like a massive blessing. I was pretty nervous to come on this tour as we just released new music and when you do you don't know how many of your fans understand a change if there is one. You're not sure how many will grow with you and stand behind you on it. As a fan of music, I have expectations with my favourite artists that comes from the nostalgia of their song and you have to take the time to appreciate them and their changes. So I was pretty nervous to come out and do it. But it's been incredible. Ticket sales have been picking up a bunch and everyone's excited.

So what does all this mean for Destroy, Rebuild Until God Shows (D.R.U.G.S)?

It's a really difficult situation for me to put it bluntly. People say D.R.U.G.S and Chiodos can't coexist. I think that's wrong. I just wanna make music with my friends. The hard part is that in drugs, I'm the only one signed. 'I' got signed then picked the awesome guys to play with me. And I had the option of moving forward with different people but that feels wrong without them. As much as it just started out with me and John Feldman doing it, those guys formed our identity and I wouldn't want to do it without 'em. I wouldn't be opposed to get together and play some music with them but some conversations would have to happen. The Chiodos guys are my best friends from high school. So I would love to go and do more drugs stuff bit I HAVE to have the other guys.  

That's very noble of you. Moving onto the album, 'Devil'; let's pretend I don't know Chiodos at all. Now tell me why I should go and listen to 'Devil' and why I'll enjoy it.

I'm not a good salesmen but I can't tell exactly whether or not you'll love it or hate. But if you're into raw, honest and passionate rock'n'roll that's what this is. Everything on there we did ourselves. From the French horns to the champagne bottle breaking, the tap dancing, the harp; all of it we did ourselves. It's honest and it's us, and I think that's a step forward for rock'n'roll. Chiodos is just an honest band. We have the heavy rock, borderline hardcore stuff to the pop-rock stuff.

That's interesting that you actually got the bottle and broke it. A lot of bands tend to just sample it off the internet.  

Yes, we broke it! Everything from the doors opening and closing on 'Duct Tape' and all the word singing and voices like the creepy 'la la las' and the laughing is all me. We didn't want any electronics stuff in the music. We wanted the raw rock sound and we got it and you can feel it on the album.

I definitely agree with that and I loved the whole album but how are you finding the response from the general public to it?

I think everyone loves it to an extent. Let's address the negativity first and I think the only people hating and outright disliking it are the hardcore kids. And you know what? You can't please hardcore kids. That's why they're hardcore kids! They're angry and it's in their nature to get angry. Even if we wrote an entire hardcore record they wouldn't like it. Even though they are loud on our Facebook comments, for the rest of the world, the response has been incredible. People are saying it's an evolution in Chiodos and I agree, and a lot of our fans have grown up now, they're not teens anymore, and the fact they listen to us now after that long means they've had a natural growth in their music taste. I remember my evolution in my tastes in my music. It was Green Day, Slipknot and Weezer then went into some weird indie folk singing. So the fact they still like us and we're connecting is great. It's gonna take a minute for our fans to re-connect and get back into the swing of us. So that why we're on this tour.

What made you want to call it 'Devil'; a name with so many negative connotations to it?

It does have a lot of negative connotations and that's something I was as worried about initially. I thought it might have been too negative. But it defined what I've experienced the last few years. I'm a recent recovering addict and it's the change I went through. Not sleeping around, being faithful, being the person I want to be and that's what this record is about. It's chasing who you are and I've spent the best part of ten years doing that and I've finally done that. I'm just going to keep work towards it, I'll never obtain it but I'm going to double my experiences in doing so. You've gotta find a way to overcome these things.

So it's not the red dude who sits in hell and hurts people, it's your own personal devil that's steering you wrong.

Yeah, that's exactly it. It's the things that stop you from achieving what you want and being who you want to be. You wake up and you wanna be a better person but there are things that lead you astray like greed and selfishness. You go to bed either closer to the person you want to be because you tried hard or farther away because you gave into my version of devil.

What does the artwork represent and what does it mean in the context of the album's meaning?

It embodies all I'm saying on this record. There's this storm that happens and this person had to climb the ladder and it's about being vulnerable yet still yourself. Holding up that balloon that represents you and you're still being who you are. Those problems don't go away but [you] learn to deal with them. It's all about living in the storm.

When do you think Chiodos can come back to Australia and bring all this meaning and passion down under?!

We are talking about booking a tour right now. We like literally annoy our management about it. The dates are being sorted but it will be before the end if the year. We were actually talking about it right before you called. I miss Australia so much!

That's amazing. I've been waiting to see you guys for a long time now. If you could just bring that exact tour you have in America with Emarosa and all that, down here, that would sell out in a under a minute I guarantee you.

That would be amazing! They are all amazing bands and I back them all, so hard. To go down under with them would be incredible, I'll see what I can do. We wanted a tour that represented what we were about, which is really guys playing real instruments not just samples.

That's about all we have time for Craig. Thank you so much. Have a great tour.

Thanks so much, Matty.

Read our 95/100 review of 'Devil' here .