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Polluteme / Polluted Ezine / Interviews / Interview w\ Malfunction Crew
Interview w\ Malfunction Crew written by: Jacob Robison I recently caught a show by Kon'shens and Bound and Gagged at The Warehouse in Clarksville, Tennessee. Here recently the crowd at The Warehouse has been really shitty; there might have been twenty-five people tops in there on that particular night. But when two people walked into the room they caught my attention right off the bat. Adam Jennings and Beau Hudson, vocalist and guitarist for the six-man band Malfunction Crew respectively, made the hour-long drive from Nashville to Clarksville to support their fellow hardcore band Bound and Gagged. If you haven't caught a show by the Crew yet, then you're missing out on some of the best heavy music on the scene right now. Vocalist Jennings, guitarists Hudson and Clay Green, bassist Wes Kemp, drummer Chris Vondrack and programmer Jesse Freeland form one of the tightest musical units around. Their intense live show coupled with some energetic moshing music is earning Malfunction Crew a reputation for being among the best heavy bands in the area. I set up an interview with Adam that was done by email. I sent him a few questions and he responded in kind, along with both of the guitarists Clay and Beau. We touched on everything from their live show to their upcoming CD to the state of the Nashville scene.  Your live show can easily be described as high energy (and that's an understatement). What inspiration do you use to fuel your onstage madness? AJ: Every time I am asked to make a comment on our stage presence, I receive weird looks when I give my answer. "Imagine that we could prove that supernatural powers or evil entities could take over or possess a group of humans!" Well I believe that they can and I spend many hours before a show meditating so that it will be certain to happen at least to me (being the frontman and all)!!!!!!!! I'm only kiddin' ya. We use the aggression in our music to inspire our stage show. We just act out how the music feels. Usually it ends in "you look possessed up there tonight man!" CG: I always think of things that have happened to me in the past, it helps to get the glazed pissed off feeling. Sometimes it helps to imagine a bunch of hooks pulling through my collar bones pulling me down. At the same time I imagine I am covered in flies, and I feed off the energy released by the crowd. BH: Our stage show is fueled by any problem in our lives or anything we've had to overcome. We have all been through hard times and experienced things that we had a hard time dealing with so we use our music as an outlet to release everything negative and positive that's going on with us. We all believe in putting everything we have into our band, so we believe that our stage shows should reflect the music. Sometimes we beat the crap out of each other on stage. I think that fits really well with certain parts of our songs. Other times we are less abrasive and don't act in violence; it just really depends on what emotion we are trying to express on that part of the song we are playing. You're currently in the studios recording a five-song demo. What songs will be included on it, and when can the fans expect to be able to get their hands on a copy? AJ: Yes we are currently producing a 5 song recording entitled CHAOS IN THE CITY OF PEACE. It's soooooooooo fucking sickening. Torn Between, The Thing That Wouldn't Die, Strangled in Public, From The Inside, and A Force To Be Reckoned With will all appear. Also we will be releasing a split with Bound and Gagged which will showcase our earlier unreleased CD. Six different members equals six different opinions; does having the six-man format in your band make writing material difficult? AJ: Having six members does not complicate things at all! That's precisely where our sound comes from. I don't see that we fit any label except innovative. A little something for everyone is what six members are good for. People who don't dig my metal side might really love Jessie's more hip-hop oriented grind, or Beau's Emo influences. Innovative. As far as heaviness we beat everyone to the punch. Expect the unexpected, and expect a heavier noise core sound in the future! CG: If you are making plans to take over the world you would like to have more than one idea to choose from. That's us. BH: Yeah sometimes it makes things difficult, especially during the writing process. Mainly because we are all different and have slightly different tastes in music from each other. Over all that helps us to have a unique sound that is not like anything you have heard. Of course we have the same influences so it still in the same genre as most heavy bands, but we aren't close-minded musically in any way. We are always trying new things and trying to find new bands to get ideas from and open us up to new things. So I guess having six members is a good thing because we never run out of ideas. How would you describe your music to someone who hasn't heard you play before? AJ: Ready? Here we go; Imagine if it were possible to lose total consciousness of the perception of right and wrong, reality and fantasy, God and Satan, or heaven and hell, and you were left with nothing but cold desolate human nature. Such as seeing is believing and if it's intangible and I can't physically feel it than it doesn't exist and you were left with only one dimension of your life with nothing to look forward to in the hereafter. Pretty grim picture isn't it? Well I don't see it as so far fetched! As far as my lyrics that is what is reflected and it is powered by my ensemble of musical unrest created by the rest of the Crew. We simply lose the threat of consequence and speak exactly what we feel (or play exactly what we feel). If you don't like it don't attend! Smother your mother with a pillow music! CG: Complete chaos. Thrust-filled driving sensation that is only calmed by a sickened emotion. If you wanna get the same effect without listening to us just go to the nearest train track, bend head down towards the train and scream like you were just stabbed. BH: I would describe our music as a combination of extreme music, such as hardcore and death metal, with melodic and slightly ambient overtones that makes us a pure reflection of real emotions people deal with. A few people that I've talked to over the last year believe that the scene in the Middle Tennessee area is on the decline. What direction do you see the scene heading and why? AJ: It definitely saddens me to say that our scene is headed towards extinction! Everyone in our scene talks too much shit. Let's just play Goddamn shows people! Don't learn the hard way like my band did about talking shit. Support every band and not just your friends! If we don't attend shows the venues don't make money, then they close down and then there is no place to showcase Nashville's talents. Then we would really have something to whine about! Get over yourselves. You know who I'm referring to! CG: In a way I see the scene melting to a nasty puddle...but if all comes into place and the bands can start getting more people to listen it can change for the better. The key is dedication of advertisement and developing a TRUE following. BH: It's really hard to tell what direction the scene going in. It seems like a lot more really good bands are playing here, such as Poison the Well, Living Sacrifice and a lot more kids are getting into that kind of stuff lately. The whole scene is changing and peoples' taste in music is changing as well. I guess I don't see the scene on the decline but I don't see it getting any better unless bands start helping each other out and promoting the scene more. What does the Nashville scene need to do to better itself in your opinion? AJ: Nashville needs to open up their eyes and realize that Creed-like songs are not as far as creativity goes. I see so many bands that would be gods up north or even out west. If you have only studied one type of music you have no reason for power or web sites in our scene (not talking about you Jacob). I'll say it first with no remorse! "This is the only local web site worth a fuck!!!!!!!!" Nashville Hard Music can suck my dick! Know what you're talking about or shut your belligerent mouths. CG: All the fans need to come to watch the music not the friends. If people would promote the show instead of the band that would happen. Radio stations need to help out a lot more than what they do. And these clubs need to maybe help do some of their own advertising instead of being dependent on bands bringing them the crowd. And there needs to be an alliance between the bands. BH: I think the Nashville scene could better it self by starting a public access underground metal show once a month that would show live footage of different bands and at the end of the show have a list of all the bands that played and their upcoming showdates. That way if someone didn't want to pay eight bucks to see a band play they've never heard before they could watch them on TV. If the viewer was impressed by the band they would probably be more likely to come out to the next show. With enough support from local radio stations, bands, and club owners I think it could really help out our scene in Nashville. Other than that just promoting the shows more. Bands who play at The Outer Limit (A club in Nashville located on Nolensville Road) sell tickets for admission ahead of time. Why do you sell your tickets for two dollars, when some of the other bands sell theirs upwards of ten dollars? AJ: That's simple! We are not in it for money. If The Outer Limit tells us tickets are two dollars but whatever we can sale them for is our profit, then our fans or anyone who doesn't want to get ripped off can get them from us for that price! We sale for the lowest possible price. Just break even and go home with integrity! CG: Adam's reply was perfect. Although it is a chance to help ourselves buy new gear and gas for out of town shows...we are interested in helping the people see us. We are the type of band that would play in a garage for free just to show people what we have created. A true artist isn't money hungry. BH: We sell our tickets usually for what we have to pay The Outer Limit mainly because we want as many people as possible to come to our shows. It's not really about making money at this point for us. Last question...Where do you see your band and music five years from now? AJ: I see my band either successful when we move up north or dead with rotted livers trying! Thanks for listening to my views and support your scene!! CG: Five years from now I see us on our third CD, on the road making a difference in people's way of thinking. This is only a touch of the beginning for us. Music will change; as it does I am sure we will too...but our opinions and beliefs will be just as strong then as now. This is just a way to break through to people and give them understanding and to share ourselves. BH: Hopefully on a tour bus playing on at least a small indie label. If that doesn't happen we'll still have our day jobs and probably still be playing around Nashville. |
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