INTERVIEW: Chevelle

by Chad Cooper - April, 2009

Sweet Home Chicago is best known for its legendary sports teams, great food and blues music from the South Side. But the Windy City also produced a little rock band that revved up the music charts selling millions of records.

"Yeah, it's pretty cold up here right now," said Chevelle drummer Sam Loeffler. "It's 35 degrees so we are looking forward to some warmer weather."

Named after the car, Chevelle is more than just your average rock band. It began when brothers Sam and Pete Loeffler started playing together when the two entered their teen year stages. They recruited their younger brother Joe and Chevelle was born.

"We didn't plan on making a career out of it," said Sam. "One of our first times we played in front of anyone was like the town square and it was like three or four high school bands playing. Our first real gig came when I was 19 and I believe Joe was 17 and we played in a bar in Chicago. Neither of us were old enough to be there."

As all bands do, they had to come up with the name. "We kind of named it out of a joke," he said. "We needed a name back then and we grew up as a car family. Some kids grow up with football and we grew up going to car shows and the Chevelle was a landmark muscle car of the 1970s and we thought it would be funny. It wasn't one of our favorite cars but it was one way to communicate with our dad. It wasn't supposed to stick but it did."

With Sam on drums, Pete on lead guitar and vocals and Joe on bass, the group recorded a demo then was signed some three years later to a record label that was owned by a distribution company to Christian bookstores, so many thought Chevelle was a Christian rock group.

Their first album Point #1 won several GMA Dove Awards in 2000, but Loeffler said the Christian tag was a misconception. "We weren't offended by any means by gaining those awards," he said. "When you are writing your art, you don't want to give everything away too easy, or at least we don't. It was interpreted in those ways in some parts. A lot of bands write about their faith, whatever that is, and some interpreted in that way and that's how it all started."

After releasing Point #1, Chevelle found themselves without a record deal and it was two years before they landed on Epic Records. They recorded and released their first national album, Wonder What's Next, which reached No. 3 on the mainstream rock charts, No. 14 on the Billboard Top 200 and a year later had sold over a million copies.

Songs like "The Red," "Closure" and "Send the Pain Below" gained MTV exposure with videos then the band co-headlined OzzFest in 2003.

"That success was anti-climatic," said Loeffler. "It didn't come that fast. We worked on some of those things for nearly four years and those songs were specific to that time. It's important for a band to develop and change without losing the real reason why they started. That record was made up of songs that were written during some hard times for us. We were without a record deal, out of work and wanted to record but couldn't because of some contract problems, so this was a very important record to us."

After successful tours, the band returned to the studio to record This Type of Thinking (Could Do Us In) but it wasn't without drama. The album sold over 500,000 copies and the first single, "Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)," became their first No. 1 single. But youngest brother Joe was unhappy and left the band. They didn't have to look far for a replacement as they added longtime friend Dean Bernardini to the group.

"Family was all I really knew," said Loeffler who spoke of playing with his brothers. "When Joe left, it was very weird but Dean has been our friend for over 16 years so bringing him in was very natural. It's such a fun, happy band now. Joe was unhappy and didn't like to tour but now it's a very positive place to be."

A third album was recorded in 2007, "Vena Sera," and Chevelle set out to tour in support of their new record but the trailer containing all their equipment was stolen after a show in Fort Worth.
"That was a tough time," he said. "Not only was it all our touring gear, but it was very sentimental because it was everything we used to record our records with."

Chevelle then put on a nationwide search letting all their fans know their equipment had been stolen and to be on the lookout. Still, the band was shocked when their diehard fans actually began finding the equipment and sending it to them.

"It was crazy," he said. "People were buying our things on the side of the road, finding stuff in pawn shops and we actually found our trailer with stuff still in it. We were very grateful."

Without any more major drama and another successful tour under their belts, Chevelle went to Nashville to record a new album with producer Brian Virtue (Deftones, 30 Seconds to Mars), which is set to be released before July. "It's a collection of developmental songs and melodic, straight to the point rock songs."

With plenty of artists making records and the new world of the Internet with downloading tools like I-Tunes, it is tough to sell records, but that has never been a problem for Chevelle.

"I hope it's that people really get the music and identify with it, support it and want us to keep doing it."

The Chevrolet Chevelle has been described as successful and overpowering. The same can be said about the band.

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INTERVIEW: Rehab

by Chad Cooper - June, 2009

There's no particular way to describe the music of Rehab - even front man Danny "Boone" Alexander doesn't have the words for this amalgam of southern-style rock, rap, reggae and some country - all originating from the little town of Warner Robins, Georgia.

"It's really a mash-up of everything," said Alexander. "There's really no boundaries on this at all. You just do what feels good and try to make good songs."

One of their songs, which was written more than 10 years ago, has become a cultural hit. "Bartender Song (Sittin' at a Bar)" can be heard not only on rock and country radio stations around the country, but at many nightclubs and bars. It is also widely used in the cell phone ringtone community.

"It's crazy," commented Alexander, who possesses a thick southern accent. "Of course I never knew it was going to be a hit like that."

Alexander said a friend by the name of Cody Chestnutt wrote the hooks to the song and Jason Brooks did the rapping.

"Cody came in with the guitar line and hook written and asked me about it," he said. "I loved it and actually sat down and wrote the singing verses in a matter of 10 minutes. I knew the story. It was pretty simple."

For those living under a rock and don't know the song, the story described in the chorus has him sitting at a bar on the inside, waiting for a ride on the outside while lamenting the woman who stole his heart in the trailer park, so he jacked the keys to her daddy's freaking car and crashed that piece of crap and just walked away.

If the chorus doesn't ring a bell, maybe you may know the beginning when Alexander sits at a bar and speaks to a bartender telling them he broke his parole to have a good time but when he got home at 6 a.m, the door was locked and had to kick it in.

"You dabble in the wrong things long enough, you can easily tell that story," said Alexander.
"You shouldn't dabble in wrong things to get a song though," he laughed. "It's not a true story, let's say it's a typical story."

The song was originally released in 2000 off Rehab's album, Southern Discomfort, which was just he and two friends, who called themselves a rap group.

"I was going through a tough time with bankruptcy and other stuff," said Alexander. "I thought "man, I need to put a band together and try to make some money."

He grew up around music as his mom listened to disco and his dad preferred country. By the time he was in high school, Alexander loved, as most high school guys do, hip-hop.

"You know I was rapping in the hallways at school so I thought I could do it," he said.
But it took some rough times for him to get down the path of success. After being locked up in Butler, Georgia, Alexander moved to Atlanta to get away from his immediate surroundings, but still managed to find more trouble.

"Me and a friend started going to anonymous-type meetings," he described. "We met another guy there and we started a group called Rehab. It was something we all had in common at that moment."

Years later, the three split up but Alexander didn't quit. He returned in July of 2008 with a new group of bandmates including Mike Hartnett, who had worked on projects with Pink, Outkast and Fergie.

The group then re-recorded "Bartender Song" in 2006 and re-released their album, "Graffiti the World" and Universal Records scooped them up.

A video to the song was shot last year in which Hank Williams Jr. sang a chorus to the song. The video was a nominee for Wide Open Country Video of the Year at the 2009 CMT Music Awards.
"It's a wonderful feeling, especially to get a chance to win the award and just getting to go to the show," said Alexander. "We just want to go out and tour and play good music. There's not much more we want to do."

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INTERVIEW: Candlebox

by Chad Cooper - April, 2009

It became known as the "Seattle Sound" after the success of Nirvana and Pearl Jam launched a record label talent search in the Pacific Northwest that triggered a rock music revival in the early "90s. For a city mostly known for daily rain showers, Seattle helped change the face of the music industry in just a few short years, producing hit bands Soundgarden and Alice in Chains, plus lesser-known but influential acts including Mother Love Bone and Mudhoney. Of the hundreds of musicians playing in the dozens of bands that have called that city home, only one remains intact with the original players - Candlebox.

"It's really hard to explain," said guitarist Peter Klett. "It's a cliche, but I call it the golden years. When I look back on it, it's like a warm glow."

Klett explained there was something to do every night in his hometown. "It was a constant feeling of sight and discovery," he explained. "I feel fortunate to be a part of something that was so substantial, like in San Francisco in the 1960s. It's the same thing and I got to live through it. It wasn't like we moved here for it. We were all here playing music and just got lucky. The right place at the right time, but we were here long before that started. We got a bad rap about riding the wave but I've been playing music since I was 11 years old so I was ready for this."

Candlebox found success, as they all did, with their first release Candlebox in 1993. The album sold over 4 million copies, making them multi-platinum artists on their very first record. The pressure was on from day one as the group was the first success story on Maverick Records, a record company created by Madonna that also signed Alanis Morissette, Prodigy and The Deftones.

They never produced a No. 1 hit off their debut, but radio was very kind to such songs as "Change," "You," "Far Behind" and "Cover Me."

Candlebox then released their sophomore album, Lucy, which wasn't a slump as it sold 500,000 copies marking it a gold record.

Then came Happy Pills in 1998, which was probably too much too soon. The group then had major problems with the record label and decided to call it quits.

Klett then started his own band, Red Light Music, and also became the frontman, and lead singer Kevin Martin did his own thing with Kevin and the Hiwatts. There were no ill feelings towards each other. They just wanted to get away from under the umbrella of the big label.

Years later, 2006 to be exact, Rhino Records called up Kevin and asked if they wanted to do a greatest hits album. It was a no-brainer.

"It was new and exciting to play together again, to feel the energy," said Klett. "The first song we rehearsed was "Arrow,' and we finished the song with a big grin on our face so we knew then it was right."

After a short reunion tour in 2006, Candlebox headed back to the studio, this time under Silent Majority Group label.

"It didn't jive right away so we went back in the studio in 2007 and decided then we were ready to record and dropped the album in 2008 and hit the road that summer for three months."

Into the Sun was the first album in nearly 12 years, but the big question would be would their fans still dig the music and, more importantly, would radio be friendly like it was some 15 years ago?

"Radio?" he asked. "I think so. I don't see why not."

Their first single "Stand" saw minor success climbing the mainstream rock charts to No. 15.

"(The single) did pretty good on the charts and we have another song ready to be pushed, "A Kiss Before Dying,'" said Klett. "What I like about Candlebox is when you hear Kevin's voice and hear the style, you know its Candlebox. It's not, "Oh who is that?' You hear it and say, "Oh, that's Candlebox."

With radio ready to jump on board, the fans were also waiting.

"It's across the board," he said. "Our old hardcore fans are bringing their kids and a lot of people that discovered us after the split - those people are thanking us because they discovered Candlebox when we were broken up and didn't think they would ever get to see us live. It's cool as hell."

With everything clicking again, not much has changed.

"Well, we are more mature," said Klett. "We, of course, are older, but the writing and music changes. It becomes more refined. You venture into new styles. Doing different projects while broken up allowed us to explore different avenues we didn't back then due to record label expectations. We could do whatever we wanted."

Their immediate plans are to tour this summer and head back into the studio late fall or early next year.

In the meantime, you could catch Klett at a NASCAR race.

"I'm a big fan," he said. "I watched the first Daytona 500 then became a huge A.J. Foyt and Richard Petty fan. I lost track after the music career took off but after the band split, I watched Talladega and was hooked again instantly."

Klett said he follows Kasey Kahne (being a local boy from Washington), but also likes the underdogs. "As much as people hate Kyle Busch, I love him."

Official Candlebox Website
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INTERVIEW: Saliva

by Chad Cooper - June, 2009

The journey from Sun Studios to Graceland past the blues and barbecue joints on Beale Street reminds you there is no place like Memphis, where Elvis Presley and W.C. Handy still cast large shadows in this land of the musical giants. While the King may have left the auditorium, a quartet of musical princes of the city labor on as Saliva.

The band is touring in support of their fifth album on Island/Def Jam Records, "Cinco Diablo." Drummer Paul Crosby said the album is not the average Saliva record.

"Most aspects of the record are heavier than the previous ones," he noted. "It's more mature, more real. We tried not to polish it as much and stay true to ourselves from the beginning without producing "mojo' on it."

The second single, "How Could You?" is blowing up on the rock radio charts, but the ballad is not your typical Saliva song.

"That was the last song written on the album," said Crosby. "We wrote it with Bob Marlette (Seether, Shinedown). The record was done but we felt like the album needed one more song. We didn't want to be stuck in that same mold. We wanted to get outside the box a little bit and experiment and it seems like everyone is happy with it."

For Saliva, it all came together in 1995 when four friends - all playing in different bands - found themselves without a gig.

"We were all in different bands and ironically we were the better players in each group and each band broke up at the same time," said Crosby.

"Josey (Scott, lead vocalist), Wayne (Swinny, guitars) and Dave (Novotny, bass) were jamming together with another drummer, but I got a call from Josey saying they were going in another direction with a drummer and wanted to know if I wanted to join. It was literarily a perfect opportunity for all of us."

Born was Saliva, but the name didn't come about from the mouth-watering food from their hometown.

"Josey came up with it," explained Crosby. "Of course he didn't invent the word but he wanted to go for a name that was cool and a word parents thought was gross."

Speaking of gross, their national debut Every Six Seconds, produced two mega hits in "Click Click Boom" and "Your Disease," which grossed over two million in sales to make it double-platinum.

Several of those songs were used in video games and by World Wrestling Entertainment for pay-per-view themes and entrance music for a number of WWE superstars.

There was no sophomore slump as Saliva released their second album, Back Into Your System, which was certified gold selling over 500,000 units.

With five studio albums under the belts and despite having to deal with some health issues in recent years, Saliva continues to hold it together some 14 years later.

"We asked ourselves that every day," said Crosby. "When someone counts us out, we reach way down, pull it out and get after it. We are a very fortunate and very lucky band."

They were lucky enough to have record companies fighting over them after one simple phone call. When they were an unsigned band, a local disc jockey in Memphis loved their music and would play a few songs each week. When a record rep from Roadrunner Records called the station, he was put on hold and music was playing and it turned out to be a Saliva song.

"Yeah, that was pretty crazy," said Crosby. "As soon as the record guy got off hold, he wanted to know who the heck sang that song. And really that's how the record buzz started."
Being from Memphis, Saliva has to be Elvis fans, right?

"Well, some of us are and some of us aren't, but we all respect him," said Crosby. "Josey and I are big Elvis fans. Heck, my daughter, Presley Aaron, is named after him."

Hometown musicians like the guys in Saliva know that walking in Memphis means they've got some big shoes to fill. Have you heard the news? There's good rockin' tonight.

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INTERVIEW: Jo-El Sonnier

by Chad Cooper - April, 2009

Nowadays, it seems you can find a Cajun or Zydeco band on every street corner but none can rival the acknowledged King of Cajun, Jo-El Sonnier.

Born and raised in nearby Rayne, La. - the "Bullfrog Capital of the World" - the 63 year old put the accordion on the map after mastering it when it was set in his lap at the tender age of 2.

"It's just a natural fit," he said. "They started bringing me to their favorite clubs back then to listen to the music, man it was a lot of them, so I got to hear a bunch of French, swamp pop and country. I had a chance to have a taste of it all. That was very influential."

Unlike most in his genre of music, Sonnier found national success that led him to major record deals and two top 10 songs - No More One More Time and Tear Stained Letter.

Songwriters Troy Seals and Dave Kirby gave Sonnier No More One More Time as a demo, which he sat on for awhile.

"I was out in California in 1987 then signed with RCA Records and went into the studio and recorded," said Sonnier. "It was a great testimonial song. The next thing you know, I was opening for Alabama, Lee Greenwood and Charlie Daniels."

It was just a short year later when Sonnier hit it big with Tear Stained Letter, a song written and originally performed by British singer Richard Thompson.

"Richard released that song in Canada and sent it to me and I listened to it," he said. "I had to find a way to make that song commercial for country radio. Back then, country music was steel, fiddles, drums and lead guitars so it was a challenge to put the accordion up front. I brought in a few people like Kenny Greenberg for that song and he brought the licks to the table. I loved Chuck Berry so we took the ideas out of my head and Kenny and I got after it. We used everything on that record that people thought you couldn't get away with. And we did."

The song reached No. 8 on the charts and country music had never seen anything like it. "That song was a first of its kind," he said. "It was the cutting edge. I think I was a part of the gateway that opened the door for that kind of music in country."

According to music and radio trade publications, Tear Stained Letter became the No. 1 alternative country song.

Sonnier's roots go back to the days of playing radio shows early in the morning before heading off to school. He was playing in bars, clubs and lounges before the age of 10 and word spread about how good this boy could play the accordion. They then told him to go play at the radio stations.

"My father would drive to me to the radio station down in Crowley," he said. "We were sharecroppers, got up real early and would play for about 15 or 20 minutes then walk across the street and I'd have a doughnut and he would have his coffee. We shared something very special and then he'd drive me to school."

The accordion was a European invention back in the early 1800s and began appearing in popular music during the 1920s but not many can master the boxed-instrument, considered more difficult than a guitar, drums, or trumpet.

"I enjoyed playing the accordion because it made people feel good," he said. "I loved the quality of the sound. It took me to a special place when I was a boy plus I loved the Cajun flavor of the music. I saw that it brought joy and happiness to other people when I played so I wanted to take it to a higher place by bringing in some Cajun, country, blues, rock and jazz. I like it all so I play it with that kind of flavor. I guess that's why they call me the "Americana Cajun.'"

From picking cotton as a kid, playing at radio stations, going to school, and playing music at clubs, lounges, behind bars and anywhere he could find, he used his instrument as texture.
He started with a French flavor then would play Fats Domino or whatever song was on the radio.

"Music is like medicine," he said. "If you can make someone smile with a song or two, it's good. Whether you come to my show or someone else's, it will make you feel good while you are there. My mom always said music was like medicine. It can calm your nerves or crank you up."

Sonnier has played in 49 states, 18 different countries and played with over 70 superstars but he claims none were like Johnny Cash.

"Johnny opened the door for me," he said. "He gave me chance to come in with that French accordion and do some songs with him. He could have played all those instruments but he let me come in and do it."

Sonnier met the man in black in 1978 and played the accordion on the song Cajun Born on Cash's album Gone Girl. He also played harmonica on No Expectations.

"He was a purest," said Sonnier of Cash. "He cared about his fellow people that stood next to him and understood him. It's all about passion and respect. That's something that every artist should strive for."

Sonnier's music can still be heard on Sirius/XM satellite radio and clubs throughout the country but as much success - including two Grammy nominations - that Sonnier has had, he remains grounded.

"I want to thank everyone who still plays my music and even thank you for doing this interview," he said. "It's been quite a while since someone wanted to interview me. This is my job, my living and I'm grateful I can still do it. I love to perform and continue to follow my dream and provide entertainment to the fans. The sun is still shining for me. There's so much talent out there, but to see the fans still enjoy it, it makes me feel good. It's a miracle each day with so many artists out there and that's what I want my fans to remember my by - I brought the best that I could and hope they understood that."

There was one Elvis, one Willie, one Johnny - and there will only be one Jo-El.

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