After their set at Rock on the
Range, I had a chance to interview the guys in the new band Operator.
Their
debut
album Soulcrusher is due out June 26th on Atlantic Records. In the
interview, I ask them about festivals, Los Angeles clubs, and their desert
island CD choices.
Singer
Johnny Strong and guitarist Paul James Phillips did most of the talking, and
here is what they had to say. Check it out:
AM:
With a festival of this size, is there an
intimidation factor that comes into play when playing with this caliber of
bands?
Operator: You really
can't go into a festival with that sort of attitude. When you work as hard as
we do, you look
at
a festival like this as a time to go for your spot. Rolling in scared to
something like this will only get you knocked out.
AM:
How has the reception been to the song
“Soulcrusher” so far?
Operator: It’s been
amazing so far, it's risen from 32 to 19 on the rock charts in a couple of
weeks. We’re pretty confident is gonna keep rising in the weeks to come.
(ed. note: “Soulcrusher” has been the fastest
rising track in rock radio the past two weeks).
AM:
Being an LA band, what are some of your
favorite places to play there?
Operator: The best ones
are the Roxy, the Whisky, and Viper
Room. Strong: But I’m
boycotting the Viper Room these days because I had some issues with the
promoter of the club over some money. I went after a couple of bouncers and
I’m not allowed back in there.
AM:
How long were you guys toiling in the LA
scene?
Operator: We been around
for a few years now, but we spent a very busy year playing every club in LA.
We’ve had some lineup changes, and our new guitarist played with us two years
ago and has been back with the group for about two weeks now.
AM:
What is the band’s promotion and touring
attack plan for 2007?
Operator: We’re gonna be
touring with
Buckcherry
and
Black
Stone Cherry a bit this summer. We plan on being on the road throughout
the rest of the year. We are really proud of the record, and we plan on
working the s--- out of this album. We don’t see ourselves coming off the road
anytime soon. If we’re on the road for five years behind our records, we’re
ready for it.
AM:
Two of your biggest influences are Pantera and
Guns 'n Roses. If you had to only take one of the band’s CDs on a desert
island, which one would it be?
Operator: (a long
pondering pause) As much as we love those bands,
we’d
have to pick our CD, Soulcrusher. It’s a CD that that get our emotions and
how we’re feeling. It’s Appetite For
Destruction times 10, times 100.
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