Interviews

Billy Talent

Interview with Ben Kowalewicz on Jan 4, 2007 by Archive Bot

Billy Talent is not a young band. They have been playing together as a four-piece for a mind-boggling fourteen years. These Canadian natives recently landed the opening slot on one of the hottest tours of the fall/winter, the Rise Against/Thursday/Circa Survive tour. I was able to see the band perform at Chicago’s massive Congress Theatre and was impressed by their high energy and spot-on set. The band is on the road supporting their second release for Atlantic records (Billy Talent II) which sees them approaching songs in a more mature manner. I spoke with lead singer Ben Kowalewicz after their set and asked him about the direction of the band, the impact of the Internet on music, and the politics that inspired some of his lyrics.
 
By: Ian Lashbrook
 
 
You wanna go ahead and introduce yourself?
 
Benjamin Kowalewicz: I am Ben from the rock band Billy Talent.
 
So you guys are opening up a pretty big bill here; how's the tour been?
 
B: Yeah! It's been fantastic, it's been really good. We've done a lot of Warped Tour dates at a lot of these places, so it's great to see a lot of people from Warped Tour coming out and supporting us. I think we're gonna be coming back in March and April to do our own headlining tour, so it's great to say hello to new people and old people.
 
It seems like you guys took a long time between records, which is a little strange for a band just coming off their debut...
 
B: It wasn't that long. It was long in America. Ya know, we traveled; we were in Europe a lot and Canada and things work really well for us there and we really took about nine months writing and recording, I guess, from the time we finished touring our last record, so it wasn't terribly long. But I guess in America it's been a while. I mean, we're firm believers in the fact that a good food takes a long time to cook; it's our craft and it's our music and it's our heart and our soul and that takes a little longer. Just because some bands get immediate gratification off of a single and then their labels force them and pressure them to write a new record so that they can generate more revenue for them and then that smash-hit single is never on the second record and they get dropped. So, it's like...our career is too valuable to us.
 
How's the response been to the new material?
 
B: It's been great! It's been fantastic. We've been to Europe a lot, we've gone to Europe four or five times, the UK and stuff, and we're doin' a big tour across Canada with Rise Against and Anti-Flag and a band called Moneen is goin' with us. That happens in January. And it's just been pretty much non-stop for the past eight months with our touring and stuff.
 
I've read a few interviews and record reviews where you guys seem to have gotten quite an interesting response in terms of the direction of the new record. The thing I keep reading is that it's not as angry and there's a lot less screaming and all that...was that something you guys thought about going in or did that just kind of come out naturally?
 
B: It comes out naturally. I mean if you sit down and try to write something and try to create something and are like, “well this song is gonna be angry,” then it's gonna sound forced. There are some days where we're feelin' happy and poppy and there were other days where we feelin a little bit darker, a little more melancholy…and Ian's [D’Sa, guitarist] songwriting abilities musically dictated it. There is this beautiful balance of mid-tempo and different rhythms and different things we never really examined…and then the screaming, which we've talked about, which is completely bullshit. I've just discovered that you can use a voice in different ways and still be successful. Angry and angst are two different things. Just because it's not apparent doesn't mean we've stopped.
 
Did you guys feel any pressure going into the studio to write a follow-up at all?
 
B: I think so. I mean, at the end of the day, we're human beings and I guess somewhere lurking in the dark chambers of the back of your mind there's a little bit of “uh-oh.” I mean, we've been together for fourteen years and we've always just supported each other and try to push each other to do the best that we can do within our own boundaries. We hope that if we can be contented by it, then the people who enjoy what we do can be contented by it as well. I mean there's always a chance that you could get dropped by your record label but that never deters us because we'll still create music, regardless of what person or medium is releasing it.
 
What's the writing process like for you guys?
 
B: Ian's the main songwriter and then we all kinda chip away and add our two cents and then the lyrics come last.
 
Are you generally the purveyor of the lyrics?
 
B: Yeah, but Ian's been a lot of help on this record. He and I definitely have a pretty good thing goin' on between the two of us, bouncin' ideas off of each other. I bring him some crazy ideas sometimes.
 
I was curious about the first track on the new record, “Devil in a Midnight Mass.” Listening to it, you catch a lot of political and religious themes to it; what's the story behind that song?
 
B: A priest in Boston, umm...long story short, molested about 150 kids over thirty years. He was defrocked by the church, ended up going to prison, and then he was killed while serving his sentence. I read that story and was kind of like, “ohh.” That betrayal of trust between man and child really kind of moved me in a way and abuse is something that is very close to my heart and I heard that story and like, “fuck, that bastard.” I mean, he had kids who were young and looked to him for strength and security and to abuse that and to also hold the veil of religion...anyway, the story got me looking into research and it seems that this is a pretty common theme in stories and we need to strengthen the laws in our country, and I'm sure your country as well, to try and protect the kids and make sure these kinds of predators get the treatment that they deserve.
 
The sound that I notice, between both records, is that you guys seem to have this angular, pop-rock sound. Is there anything that you can point to…?
 
B: We're Police fans. Bands like At the Drive In, stuff like that. Refused...but we're still suckers for good old pop music. What makes good songs is melody. If you go back to, like, Roy Orbison and Bruce Springsteen, their songs are so impactful because of melodies. Ian and I really love Sting...we all love Sting.
 
What are biggest similarities and/or differences that you notice touring across Canada and then the US?
 
B: I don't know if there's actually a difference because I think, nowadays, the world is so connected in the global age of computer communication. The kid in Chicago has the same fashion and the same look as the kid in Berlin because of media and television. I mean, I don't know...I think kids are all pretty much the same; kids are kids, people like to have fun goin' to rock shows. We've noticed that in America there seems to be an interesting undertone to a lot of people and we've met some amazing amazing people on this tour and it's nice knowing that. I mean your country talks so much about its politics and it's almost commonplace to bash Bush...I've done it myself. But at the end of the day, people make up a country, so you get to meet some really cool and amazing people.
 
Do you think that interconnectedness, with things like Myspace and Purevolume, do you think that takes away at all from the individuality of every show or your individual experiences with fans?
 
B: I don't think so. I mean for us it's great, I mean, we get the opportunity to meet a whole bunch of kids that never would have heard of us before because of these mediums. We have lots of kids come up and say, “yeah, we checked you out on Myspace for the first time and we came to your show.” And now we have a fan and that's amazing. I mean, shows are shows, I mean I don't care...like tonight, a lot of the crowd didn't know who we are and I'd say about 90% of the shows are like that. But now, a lot of these people know who we are and regardless of whether they like it or not, at least now they know and they have the ability to make their own choice.
 
How does being signed to a major label in the states affect you guys as a band? Is that strange? Are there different ways you go about things?
 
B: [laughs] No, I mean...every record label...I'd say a large majority of independent labels are all distributed through major labels, they just use indie labels to credify them and then someone's next record is released on a major label. I'm not a fan of people who don't do their job, whether that’s working at Hellcat or working at Atlantic; if you do your job and you do a good job, then that's great. I know a lot of independent labels that are fantastic like Hellcat, Epitaph, Fat Records, you know, things like that. With Atlantic...I don't think it's as big a deal as it was ten years ago to be on a major label. I think that a lot of bands nowadays are, in some form, as you say, interconnected with some form or subsidiary of a major label. I just want people at our label to work real hard.
 
Well what's next for you guys? You said you're gonna do a headlining tour...
 
B: Yes! We're gonna do a headlining tour of Canada and then Europe and then we'll do a headlining tour here in March or April.
 
Do you know who's coming through with you guys...
 
B: I'm not sure, to be honest with you. There have been rumors of The Bronx, which would be fuckin' fantastic, but I don't know if that's 100% there or not but I know we expressed interest in taking them out because they're great. Besides that, I don't know...I know we're doing Canada with Rise Against and Anti-Flag and Moneen and then we're goin' across to Europe with a band called Alexisonfire...and the rest, I don't quite know...I love The Bronx!
 
Yeah, I've seen them twice here...
 
B: Ohh yeah.
 
Are all four of you original members for the last fourteen years?
 
B: Yup.
 
That's intense.
 
B: Crazy, huh?
 
Yeah, I didn't know it was all original for the whole time...
 
B: Yeah, it's crazy.
 
That's a rarity...
 
B: Nowadays it is, yeah. Most bands, ya know, lose members and change and this or do that and with us, this is what we've wanted to do, so it's so weird...it's really weird.
 
What do you see in the future for you guys?
 
B: I don't know dude...for us, we just like playin' music. I know we're really excited about this record and we worked really hard on it so we're happy to be touring. And I'm really excited for the next record because we have some things that we're gonna be trying out. And, you know, just enjoying ourselves and having fun and, I said it onstage tonight, things are so fucked up and life is way too short and people take the wrong things too seriously, so we're just really happy and fortunate to be able to be here and be able to play and make fans and hang out with some cool bands and be cool, man.
 
Yeah, that speech from you while you were onstage was the best part of the set for me cause there are very few bands out there that can actually make that sound heartfelt and you guys did it...
 
B: Well, because we mean it.
 
And that comes across.
 
B: That's good because we need to start takin' care of each other instead of dismantling each other.