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Interview
Deutsche VersionInterview mit 3 (Three) (19.03.2006)
HH: We are a bavarian onlinemag. Do you know Bavaria or especially Munich? Did you ever drink a bavarian beer?
Joey: Honestly, I'm not too familiar with Bavaria. The pictures I've seen are beautiful, and I've got a thing for castles so I'm sure I'll dig it when we get there. Probably had some bavarian beer at some point, but I'm not sure. I look forward to trying some.
HH: Okay, that's it for the fun part. Please introduce yourselves, for the people who don't know you and your band. Perhaps you can speak a little bit of the history of the band.
Joey: Hey everybody, we are the hybrid rock group known as 3. Our vision is to capture the frenetic energy and musical intricacies of the band, and counter balance them with strong, simple melodic layers, and lyrical depth with multiple levels of meaning. There are five very unique personalities in this collective and everyone brings thier own sensibilities to the music.
Joey Eppard - lead vocals / acoustic and electric guitar / producer:
Joey is a song writer at heart. Having grown up in a musical family, he's been writing music since age 3. Over time he developed his own approach to playing guitar without the use of a pick. He has also toured doing original material in three very different markets, Rock/Alternative, Funk/Jam, and Folk and these experiences culminate in the music of 3. Some of his biggest influences include: John Lennon/the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Primus, Stevie Wonder, Ani Difranco, Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello, Pink Floyd, The Police...
The Gartdrumm - Drums/backing vocals:
The Gartdrumm is a very animated drummer and personality. He's known for his over the top live performance style and wild facial expressions. Some of his main influences include Led Zeppelin and Mahavishnu Orchestra.
Billy Riker - electric guitar / orange hat:
The wild card of the group, Billy is unpredictable, innovative and master of his own brand of lawyerly logic. He has a photographic musical memory, and worships everything from King Diamond to the theme song for "The Price Is Right". He brings most of the metal and prog influences to the project having been a dedicated fan of acts like Metallica, Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Rush, Devo, Genisis, Voivod, Yes and many others...
Joe Stote - percussion and keyboards:
Joe is a musical Jack of all trades. He brings enough gear to every show to be a one man band. In addition to his fluency in percussion and keyboards he plays a mean guitar and has a solid sense of production style. He is also a very unique hybrid of artistic integrity and business sense. Some of his main influences include: 70's Funk, Early Punk Rock, New Wave, Talking Heads, The Grateful Dead, The Pixies and Janes Addiction.
Daniel Grimsland - bass / backing vocals
Daniel is a very smart bass player. He knows how to make every note powerful and has great sonic instincts. Some of his most influencial artists include Tony Levin, the Beatles, Paul Mcartney, Bob Haloigan and Radiohead.
3 began in Woodstock in the mid 90's. As teenagers, we turned quite a few heads when we began performing. We developed a small amount of notoriety for being so young and playing relatively progressive music, which led to our first deal. However, after a corporate merger left us side lined at Universal Records, the first incarnation of 3 dissolved. Lead singer and songwriter, Joey Eppard began assembling a new band, forging ahead with the project. Several years and two full length albums later, Joey had finally put together his dream line up including members of the seminal NY prog rock outfit "Peacebomb". With the new team in place we took matters into our own hands, setting up a studio and recording Wake Pig, our self produced MetalBlade Records debut.
HH: You have a new album out - Wake Pig. Are you satisfied and what do you want to achieve with it?
Joey: We are very happy with the record, especially because we produced and recorded the whole thing ourselves in our own studio. We want to bring a deeper level of signifigance to pop culture, drawing diverse peoples together, celebrating unity in diversity.
HH: "Wake Pig" - sounds a little bit like "War Pigs" of Black Sabbath, is there any connection?
Joey: Just a coincidence really. The meaning of "Wake Pig" is two fold.
The metaphor: Wake Pig is a wake up call to humanity to remember that we are all connected, that we all seek the truth in the end, despite our differences of perspective. It is a cry to remember that we have been given a choice to decide the fate of our world.
The inside joke: In the earlier days, during the making of Summer Camp Nightmare, we all lived in a house together. Between paying gigs we would paint houses to make ends meet. In the wee hours of the morning our drummer, Chris (the Gartdrumm), would come down stairs and knock on each of our doors and yell: WAKE PIG!!!
HH: Can you describe your style of music for somebody who doesn't know your CDs.
Joey: We consider ourselves to be hybrids. We do what we love and it just happens to be a different combination of influences and abilities than many other bands. We end up in the progressive category mostly because it is a broad genre within which we can play intricate, melodic, musically and compositionally ambitious songs. We are not merely a collection of varied influences but rather the unified result of unprejudiced inspirations.
Part of the vision for this project was to allow each band member to express their personality on their instrument. Our sound is very rhythmic. We have two drummers, one on kit and one on a large percussion set up. Joey also basically plays drums on his acoustic guitar. Billy covers a lot of ground on electric guitar between driving distortion and more subtle ambient textures. Daniel, the bassist is the glue that holds it all together. Part of what makes this band unique is that we all have very strong and very different personalities and we encourage them to shine through the music. The mixing of hard rock and flamencoesque sensibilities is one of the most unique aspects of 3. Also the combination of lyrics, melody and musicianship we offer is not exactly what you'd call common place.
HH: What is the motor that drives you? What gives you the energy to writ such passionate music?
Joey: I survive by creating. I process emotions and the events of my life through musical expression. It keeps me psychologically healthy. I'm driven by a deep inner vision, a constant melodic flame that seeks materialization on a physical level. This world is imperfect and difficult to contend with, but the harder and longer I strive, the closer the end result is to the music of my mind.
HH: I like especially the song "Dogs of War" - it's so bittersweet - its melody and lyrics - can you tell us something about it.
Joey: Dogs of War is loosely based on the Iraq debacle. It reflects the challenges of sharing limited resources on our planet ("breathe in a vacuum of air, seek to accumulate your share")and also the confusion and misinformation that has divided the American public in so many ways ("I get the feeling you don't know who to believe anymore, the rabbit who runs or the dogs of war").
HH: Who write the songs and the lyrics in your band?
Joey: That would be me, Joey Eppard. Although I create most of the basic chord progressions and melodies each member writes their own part to the song, lending their own unique voice to the collective.
HH: Why is your band called "3" - does it have a special meaning?
Joey: It does. Our name is a reference to the construct of our reality as having predominantly 3 aspects. For example, we live in a 3 dimensional universe on the 3rd planet from the sun, experiencing time as past, present and future in a form that consists of body, mind and spirit.
HH: Are there plans for touring - especially in Europe or Germany?
Joey: We are currently touring areas of the US, we'll be heading to Japan in March, and we really hope to reach Europe this summer. Consequently, I performed a solo acoustic set in a 1200 year old castle in Heidelberg this past summer, and also sat in with George Clinton, Fred Wesley, and Gary Shider among other notables. It was a fantastic gig. I have yet to make it over there with 3 though. European touring is very important to us.
HH: A few weeks ago I wrote a review about the last Coheed and Cambria CDs - do you know the band? Are there connections because the sound is a little bit similar - or is it just coincidence?
Joey: Coheed rehearsed in my living room every Saturday for about a year before they hit the road in support of 2nd Stage. They even opened for 3 under the name Leader 1 before they rose to popularity. Their producers are the very same producers who recorded the first 3 record. One of their producers, Chris Bittner, was the original bass player in 3, and Coheed's drummer is my brother, Josh Eppard, who was also the original drummer in 3. As you can see, our bands are fairly closely related on many levels and no one will deny that we have influenced each other over the years.
HH: Who are your idols? Do you have special bands which took influence on your music? Name your five favourite CDs.
Joey: Some of our main influences include: Led Zeppelin. King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Yes, The Police, Stelly Dan, Peacebomb, The Minuteneb, Primus, P-Funk, Sly And The Family Stone, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Ojos De Brujo, Radiohead, Nirvana, John Lennon/The Beatles, Djoni Mitchell, Elvis Costello, Suzanne Vega, Lyle Lovette, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Ben Folds, Elliot Smith Aan Aai Difranco.
Led Zeppelin - III
Ani Difranco - Out Of Range
Stevie Wonder - Innervisions
Radiohead - Ok Computer
Elvis Costello - The Other Side Of Summer
HH: Thanks for your time - some last words?
Joey: We need to play in your area. Our live show is a huge part of what this band is about. Its something that must be witnessed to be fully understood.
Be well, Joey Eppard / 3
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