Scott: How were you contacted about doing the Family Values tour?
Tripp: Phone.
Tony: Messenger pigeon. We had been in discussions with the family values people for quite some time. Actually, while we were still on the Extreme Steel tour. We had been talking to them and at the end of the tour we got the word we would be on the tour.
Scott: Is there a song on the new album that is the "Push-It" of the old album?
Tony: For me it would be "This is Not". That's the song.
Tripp: Yeah, that would be it, but there isn't really a song like that on the new album because this album is totally different. I view this as a whole new album. Heavier and more guitar-riff oriented and different industrial grooves to it.
Scott: Could you describe the recording process?
Tony: The process was a little different from the old album. On the old album we rented equipment and rented a space in a more traditional way. On the new album we did it with Pro-Tools. Doing it at the rehearsal space it was just a lot more relaxed. We would just hang out and try new stuff. It was really cool. Most everything was written when we went into the studio.
Scott: How do you get to the point of making one song harder than another. Like the energy of "This is Not" or "Push-It"?
Tony: It isn't a conscious decision you know. It is just like, "This sounds cool harder, lets play it like that." It is just something that comes out. You don't know how it will end up.
Tripp: It depends on what you have been listening to and what you have been playing. That's what comes out.
Scott: How did you prep for the tour?
Tony: There was an actual day of rehearsal the day before the tour. Everyone came in and did their set. In addition to that, we came into town a few days early just to rehearse ourselves. Before that we rehearsed a little bit on our own before that in our hometown. Except for Tripp who lives in New Jersey. So we rehearsed without him.
Scott: Where were you and what was going on for you when the events of September 11th happened?
Tripp: I was at home in New Jersey
Tony: Ken and I were in Dallas. The band was supposed to fly out from Dallas to England the Day after September 11th. So Ken and I were stuck in Dallas for like five days. We eventually found a bus to take us home.
Tripp: So in a morbid way it was fortunate for us that it happened the day it did so we were grounded, but in the states. We weren't grounded in Europe like some bands. Pantera had flown there a day earlier, so they were stuck in Ireland for a couple of days.. So we had to cancel our tour.
Scott: What effects did you see in the music industry from the events?
Tripp: All tours aren't doing that great. All entertainment isn't doing too hot. Everything is suffering. A little bit for safety reasons. People don't want to go out. People don't want to spend money. Luckily this tour hasn't suffered very much. There are still sold-out shows. This seems to be the only tour that is doing well. I think Britney Spears or someone canceled her tour. Janet Jackson I think. Someone like that. Hopefully we will tour after this. We might not. We might take a little time off. It has effected a lot of aspects. If it is feasible to tour we will. If we are going to lose money, we can't tour.
Tony: Really, it is up to the fans if we tour.
Tripp: This tour was already so planned before, that we just went with it. It's kind of scary right now with the war going on.
Scott: Did you get a chance to see anyone else's set last night(first night of the tour)?
Tony: I really didn't get a chance to check anyone else out.
Tripp: What were you doing? What the hell? I went to check out the bands.
Tony: I was hanging out with you.
Tripp: Linkin Park, I didn't get to see them yet. Staind was great. All of the bands we have seen before. They aren't strangers to us, albeit (but) Spike 1000. We don't really know those guys. It's going to be a good tour. We know each other really well.
Scott: What are some memorable places to play shows?
Tripp: Clevland, Atlanta, and New Orleans stick out. They are the worst cities to play. Every place to play is great except for those cities. Great people, nice people out there, but the vibe is weird. It is a good show, but it just isn't as out of had and the crowds just aren't into it as much. They are into it, just not as much. Little Rock, AR to Texas to New York to L.A. Las Vegas is an incredible place. Chicago is always out of hand. Not to bad mouth those cities, but if you are from those cities, come on. You need to move.
Scott: What do you do on a break from touring?
Tony: Fall off motorcycles. I'm a stunt man. Jump out of trucks and hang out with my friends.
Tripp: I play with my dolls.
Scott: What do you to keep yourselves occupied on tour?
Tripp: Porno. New and exciting restaurants
Tony: video games. Sharing stories with people - and bodily fluids.
Scott: How do you repeat the energy of your album live?
Tony: Candy
Tripp: Each band does something different. We are pretty mellow. We just hag out before the show. We will have some different CD's on like Metallica or Kiss. Different things psyc us up in different ways.
Scott: What was the first concert you ever saw?
Tripp: Kiss, It was so loud it took me almost the whole song to figure out what was going on.
Tony: Iron Maiden, it was cool. I was 13 and stupid. It was great.
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