Five Finger Death Punch

Mike catches up with FFDP drummer Jeremy Spencer talks about meeting singer Ivan Moody and the recent pull out from a tour with Chimaira and All That Remains

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Paul Filipowicz

Legendary Wisconsin Bluesman Paul Filipowicz talks about influences, Mongolia and his new album Chickenwire

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Factory 81

Fiery conviction.  Justified rebellion.  Protest with soul.  These concepts amply describe the sounds of Factory 81.  Best described as a refined hybrid of Slipknot and Rage Against The Machine, Factory 81 combines violently convicted philosophies with blood curdling screams and aching melodies.  The four-piece band out of Detroit, Michigan was recently asked to contribute a track of their choice to the compilation “Take A Bite Outta Rhyme: A Rock Tribute To Rap.”  The cover they chose to perform?  Cypress Hill’s “Insane In the Membrane”.  Why?  Andy Cyrulnik, drummer of Factory 81, believes Cypress Hill closely resembles the sound of his own group.  That and he’s a long time fan.

On Factory 81’s full-length debut CD entitled “Mankind”, vocalist Nate Wallace states in the insert, “Not all the lyrics are submitted.  I decided to leave it open for interpretation”.  The inside cover contains a fantastic combination of thought provoking poetry, essays and lyrics of action.  The words written under the track “Peace Officer” tell a personal story of injustice and police brutality.  The story concludes, “This song is dedicated to all police & all the power tripping pigs.  How can I be free?  Slap the cuffs on me, I’m just a freak”.  Another powerful track entitled “Rotten Strawberries” has an accompanying tale of a man that died as he rescues a girl about to be hit by a speeding car.  “Hating himself as he thought others did, he did all within his simple mind & power to earn their love or at least a smile.  He died never knowing either one.”  Through passionate words such as these, Factory 81 encourages fans to question their experiences, realize their beliefs and remain aware.

Their profound words alone make Factory 81 a band deserving of high recognition and merit.  What lies behind this furious and intriguing band?  Bill Schultz, guitarist of the band, recently took some time out from the hectic touring schedule to answer a few questions about the band. 

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Four Twenty

420 is not a band with a story of California glitz and glamour. 420 is not a band recounting brutal management dramas or record label feuds. 420 is not about image. According to vocalist Mike Kerry, 420 is about limitless musical boundaries, finding truth in life, and following a dream out of the Midwest into the great beyond.

Formed in early 1998, Mike Kerry, Tom Parrott, John Pond and Mike “Bunj” Bunjan have been causing quite a stir in their hometown of Rockford, Illinois.  In 1999, the group won the Rockford Area Music Industry’s Critic’s Choice for “Composer of the Year” for their debut EP “In Four Twenty”. Another RAMI followed the same year for the song “Hands or Time”. Although the band is fairly new to the music scene, Mike and Tom Parrott have been expressing their passion for innovation for over a decade.  “The thing about the members of the band”, Mike explains, “is that we all either own businesses or have huge responsibilities to them. We want to succeed, but we have lives too.”  This has kept 420 fairly localized for 3 years.

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Fear Factory

When a friend told me last month that she heard of some band called “Fear Factory” playing the House Of Blues in Chicago, I thought to myself, “That sounds odd.  A metal band playing the House of Blues?”  Then, when I heard that Fear Factory was to be one of the only non-Country bands to headline the Wisconsin Dane County Junior Fair since I was in Middle School, I became intrigued.  I called my publisher almost the same day requesting to do a piece on the popular hard core, leather-wearing band performing in such unusual venues. 

Fear Factory’s fourth LP entitled “Digimortal” is a blend of cyber-metal screams describing in detail the unification of man and machine.  Burton C. Bell sings of an apocalyptic vision in which cloning and memory implants hold the potential of sustaining human life forever, while guitarist Dino Cazares, bassist Christian Olde Wolbers and drummer Raymond Herrera fuel the raging and powerful nightmare.  This latest project exemplifies a progressive effort for the band that originated back in 1992. 

Some facts about the fearless foursome—ten years on the road, four LPs and an EP, a gold record for their third LP “Obsolete”, a black T-shirt, long-haired appearance reminiscent of early Sepultura or Slayer and live shows that are said to radiate phenomenal energy and emotion.  Success of such a band is no small feat, especially given the growing popularity of generically formatted Slipknot/Limp Bizkit imitations.

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Finger Eleven

A band known for their ingenuity in songwriting, and amazingly energetic/enigmatic live shows, Finger Eleven are five seasoned rockers who continually seek new tour opportunities to share their music. Their third album, “Finger Eleven,” is a product of Johnny K (Disturbed), foosball, beer, and cigarettes. If you were lucky enough to get the limited edition DVD that came with their rare DVD/CD combo, you can peek into their world.

The DVD portrays aspects of the band rarely seen: The long hours in a studio away from home, and the hard work involved in creating and producing a record from the ground up. You can see first hand how much work went into this project. FE has been feverishly touring since 1995 throughout their homeland of Canada and the United States. If you have not seen this band live, you are missing one excellent and superbly energetic live show.

In the beginning, when the original members of FE were in high school, they were music nerds who decided to form a band for their high school’s Christmas talent show. They prepared three cover songs and rocked their school. Scott Anderson, vocalist, explains what happened, “After the Christmas show no one told us to stop playing, and we kept coming up with ideas and creating new songs.” After that show, they continued as a cover band called Rainbow Butt Monkeys for about six months because it was the only way to get gigs in their hometown of Burlington, Ontario.

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Fluid Oz.

There is something downright slippery about the Rockford band, Fluid Oz.  Something this sharp shouldn’t bounce so hard. These restless roustabouts dance around the stage like disco maniacs but lay down a heavy groove that smashes the competition.  Their romp, stomp and release shoots past standard labels to combine punk, funk, jazz and jump for a free for all monster mojo that sets fire to the volcano and cooks up a killer beat delivered with an iron fist. Out with a CD that showcases their dual talents for electrifying showmanship and original songwriting, Fluid Oz.‘s Show Boatin’ Muthas is an accurate depiction of their earth shaking, roof rattling, booty shaking live shows. The current eight man line-up reaches deep into the pockets of James Brown, Sly Stone and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, to come up with their own unique brand of sass and pizzazz. Think of the Beastie Boys with a brass section or P-Funk married to Oingo Boingo.

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