36 Crazyfists on a new positivism route

Anchorage, Alaska, sounds like a pretty mystical place as we have precious little details about this American state: apart from Jewel [yeah, right] and Michelle Shocked [born in Texas] whose singing about the state capital brought her a modest [#60 in the UK, 66 Stateside] chart placing in 1988, no internationally recognized bands have emerged from there. 36 Crazyfists are working on altering such a sad condition.

Two years after ‘Bitterness The Star’, 36 Crazyfists return with a brighter record: ’A Snow Capped Romance’ is a tryst with people, places and situations… Singer Brock Lindow remarks that previous album “had more depressing subject matter,“ before adding that during all the touring they realised “we needed to write more positive material.”

‘A Snow Capped Romance’, Lindow claims, is about getting past negative stuff and focusing on the good things that have happened in your life. The title is also an encomuim to their home state, Lindow admits, because of “the love we have for Alaska; we want to always remember where we are from.”

Part of a great union that is experiencing some difficulties now…

“I don’t know where all these hatred is coming from,” Lindow offers his astonishment, “and if I had the answer I’d be a millionaire!” [Or a Nobel Peace Prize winner – Swedish affairs Ed.] “I think people are just good and bad and being brought up certain way is determined by your environment, your social background.”

“Y’know, it is strange,” he quickly adds, “because every human being, of any colour, creed and race, has the same aspirations, dreams, ambitions.”

But, don’t fret, there is not loss on huge portions of heaviness, riffage, intensity, complex arrangements… Subjects may have changed but it is still low, rumbling and headbangy but also more melodious, even more ethereal [re: ‘Song For The Fisherman’]… The echo of issues remains, in particular in songs behind titles such as ‘Bloodwork’, ‘Destroy The Map’, ‘… The Fisherman’…

Clamorous moments

The quartet is completed by Steve Holt (guitar/vox), Mick Whitney (bass) and Thomas Noonan (dms): formed back in 1994 they soon outgrew Anchorage and relocated to Portland, Oregon, although spent little time there due to their time dedicated to touring the American continent with System Of A Down, Primus, Suicidal Tendencies, Blink 182, Killswitch Engage…

Can music surpass the differences and truly be an international language?

“Music is an outlet for so many things and it can bring positivity to people’s lives if that’s what you want it to work as. Music has so many different styles to suit any mood, any sentiments, any group of people. That’s very good but I don’t like retro-throwback music that is dull. It doesn’t touch me, I find it bland and I can’t stand low musicianship… It doesn’t have anything to touch my heart, move me…”

Isn’t music’s power restricted and overpowered by the corporations?

“I don’t know what corporate objectives are but there’ll always be ways to express yourself on the market. Most of the good record companies are giving freedom to artists to do what they want and I believe that is the truest as far as Metal is concerned. Because of what it is: not a beautiful thing to be put on a cover of a teen magazine; so I don’t believe it applies to Metal, and for the rest…” he shrugs.

Temporal juncture

When the band’s previous album was nine months old - they toured it solidly since its release date - and having been allowed precious little time to write new material, they even turned down an offer on Ill Niño’s tour early in 2003 to focus on this disc.

“We wanted to get on with the next album as we planned to release it last summer. So, we decided to get back to start work on that day [the tour was starting] and we had riffs, ideas, songs… Journalistically, I write every day and have a lot of ideas for lyrical content. My writing never stops and everything is sort of ready and it is easy when it comes to it; it is when the band gets together to write music that juices starts flowing.”

Unfortunately, violence appears to have the same effect, as well.

“I’m not fan of us, US, bombing other countries, or any country bombing any other country, so I’d like to see conflicts resolved man-to-man rather than gun-to-gun. Peace seems to be very far off but with little more communication they could get closer together.”

God only knows the world needs a doze of positivism at this nihilistic times!

“36 Crazyfists are a brotherhood that is getting bonded tighter.”

One last thing: the album is a clean disc because, Lindow confesses, “Looking back on the last record, the cursing just didn’t sound right to me…”

Peace, and bless, bro.