There are people in this world who simply have everything going for them. Whether it’s a joyful smile, a creative thought, or just simply an amazing talent…it seems as though these people are the ones who make a difference in this world. These are the people who make dreams a reality and change this life as we know it. This is a direct representation for the talented Gene Priest. It’s an everyday journey of his to make his ambitious dreams a reality. With his creativity and amazing talents, he’s already wrapped the United States as an established drummer with some amazing bands of many different genres. On the verge of the release of his debut EP “Living to Die” and taking the spotlight from behind the drum kit to being the front man of his very own Project “Gene Priest & The Cardinal Sin”…I sat down with this awe-inspiring musician of many trades to discuss just exactly how he is making the light his own.
This for me is indeed a pleasure my friend…simply because of our history together musically. For our readers, and myself included, give us the back-story on how you initially got into music. Was it at an early age?
Man it is for sure a pleasure for me as well. I guess my introduction to music was as a kid growing up, I was always surrounded by music. My grandfather was by far my biggest influence. I watched him play guitar and have the occasional practice sessions at the house and I was kind of just in awe at the fact that 3 or 4 musicians could come together and make so much music and have such a good time doing it, if not for anything else than just to hang out and have fun. For some reason I was initially attracted to the drums. I would always just kinda sit behind the drummer and watch him play and it blew my mind.
When you started playing, did you have an influence or a personal role model that inspired you to be creative musically?
I’ve never really had influences as far as when I first started playing, ya know. I never had that feeling of wow I really want to be like that guy, I just knew I enjoyed playing drums. Now looking back there are a few drummers in particular that really stick out to me as being my favorites. Phil Selway from Radiohead has always been one of my all-time favorite drummers. He is unbelievably solid. He can play super simple and really hold it down, as well as jazz it up a bit and put fills and flares in that really make you realize…This guy is amazing. I also due to recent changes in my role as a musician highly look up to Dave Grohl. I have always been a fan of his HUGE intense way of playing the drums, but then he made the front-man swap look like the easiest thing in the world. The guy is just talented on so many levels.
Did you take lessons or have any formal training as an artist?
Unless you count middle school and high school band “formal training”, which I really don’t, then I would say I’ve never had real training. I kind of just picked up drums on my own. As far as guitar, I was shown a few useful chords by my grandfather. From then on was all experimentation. Seeing what else I could learn on my own. In a lot of my music today I still find myself using strange chord formations in my music
Do you remember your first band and how it got started?
The first band that I REALLY feel was something worth doing and talking about would definitely be My Lost Cause. There were garage bands before that came around, but we never really did a lot. Just a few local shows here and there really. My Lost Cause over the course of it’s 5 year run gave me an opportunity to tour for months at a time, playing shows near daily and travel the US and Canada in one of the best ways in my opinion there is to see the world, one bar at a time.
Your history as a drummer has been a busy one. Tell us about My Lost Cause, Cold Hands, HiLites and Hot Blood…are these bands that started from your vision?
I have indeed played drums in my fair share of bands. That is in essence where my solo project stems from. My Lost Cause was the first band I ever really took seriously. We played all over the US and then finally called it quits in 2005. When My Lost Cause ended I was not really sure at that point. I went through short spurts in a few different bands such as Get Awesome and Mankind Overboard, both punk rock / experimental bands. After those bands ran their course I got word that Cold Hands needed a new drummer. I was already quite a fan of the music and very much familiar with it as well as the band members. I went to one tryout and the rest as they say is history. We still play shows on occasion but may slowly move into the way of being exclusively a recording project. HiLites began as a two-piece with myself and singer / songwriter Jacob Parkhurst. We worked together and quickly realized we had a very similar taste in music and we should get together and write sometime. We wrote tons of songs, most of which he had already begun writing as sketches. I help him finish them out and we played a few shows before he moved to Chicago for about a year. When he came back to Knoxville, it was about the time Cold Hands vocalist Henry Gibson began touring and playing in Royal Bangs, so we recruited bassist Dereke Ashe and guitarist Zach Land to come on board and fill out the HiLites sound. Finally, Hot Blood is a sludge metal band started with The Cardinal Sin drummer William Lamb on vocals and guitar and me back on the drums. We have gone through numerous band line-ups but intend on also keeping that rolling.
Being a drummer has always been what seems to be your niche as a musician. How do you feel about what’s going on in the music scene in Knoxville and where do you fit in that picture as a drummer?
I think the music scene in Knoxville is progressively getting better and better. There are so many amazing artists around right now, you would be hard-pressed to not find at least one show per week / weekend that you really want to go to. It honestly scares me to death to start playing solo in Knoxville. I feel like I have been in the local scene so long as a drummer I feel that I could be received differently as a front-man. Eventually I will work up the nerve to go for it and start booking local shows. There is for sure no shortage of amazing songwriters in town to book shows and play with.
If you could play drums for any band on any stage…what band and where?
Hands down…Radiohead. They are by far my favorite band of all-time and I think I may be a bit obsessed with them. I will go weeks without listening to any other band. I feel I could be called up anywhere at any time and be able to play any of their material no problem.
What is in the future for you as a drummer?
Where I stand now, I am open to the possibility of anything. I still very much enjoy playing the drums and still look forward to starting different / interesting endeavors in the future. Honestly, for right now I am very much into concentrating on my current project Gene Priest and The Cardinal Sin.
It’s a well-known fact that you’re not only an amazing drummer…but a talented singer/songwriter as well. What has been the inspiration in the birth of your songwriting?
Thank you so much. My songs usually come from my own self-conscious view on life and the world. It is a pretty dark place. Themes generally range from anxiety, religion, self-doubt, and loneliness. Most of the music is a little on the dark side of things, but for some reason I always find comfort in a sad depressing song. Anytime someone can hear one of my songs and say they have felt the same, and had the same emotions it makes me feel a little better, like maybe I am not the only one going through it, but hopefully through my music it will give them the same comfort of realizing we are not always alone in the way we feel. There is a brighter place out there; we all just need to find it in our own way and time.
How do you go about writing songs…do you write them initially on an acoustic guitar?
Every song I write begins on an acoustic guitar. Not a day goes by that I don’t pick it up and play, if even for only 5 minutes. I generally write a song on guitar first and then approach vocals after I feel the structure is nearly there. On occasion I have written random lyrics on a napkin or a small piece of paper and instantly in my head had an idea for a guitar part. I later will try combining the two. Sometimes it is successful, other times I think maybe the lyrics should have remained unwritten.
It seems as though you’ve made some interesting contacts in this industry…what’s up with your association with Brooklyn’s Lapdance Academy label? How did that come about?
Lapdance Academy owner Brian Grosz was introduced to me through a mutual friend about a year ago when I took a vacation to New York. I wanted to be able to hang out with locals and see things the way they did over the touristy side of the city. We hit it off immediately as far as being very same page on most things regarding music. I had mentioned to him I had been working on a solo project but was generally too shy to put it out and let anyone hear it. I let him hear some demo songs and that was the end of that. He pretty much told me if I had interest in putting out an album, he would be very interested in picking me up as an LDA artist and releasing it. I really do have him to thank for the majority of the drive I have recently found. He actually made me believe in myself and believe in what I was doing musically.
For those that don’t know…you’ve officially made your move from the back of the stage to the front. Obviously with you fronting a band…things are changing a bit for you as a musician. Tell us about the birth of Gene Priest & The Cardinal Sin and who’s in the band?
I originally started this as solely a solo project, just me and a guitar. Shortly after writing some initial songs, I felt they could really be done justice by adding different elements and sounds to them. I decided to recruit long time friends / musicians that I had worked with in the past that I felt would really understand what I wanted to do and could share the vision with me. First off as a backbone I added William Lamb, I have played in numerous bands with him over the years and honestly he is the only drummer I have ever REALLY felt comfortable playing with. His playing style is quite similar to mine, but he really does have his own feel, which can be heard throughout the record. Additionally I got long time friend Derek Jones to help with harmonies and background vocals as well as play piano and bass guitar. Finally was the addition of one of my favorite guitarists I know, Brian Woodruff. He has the ability to make a guitar do things I have never seen anyone do before. Not only does he build and mod his own guitars, but he knows how to use that in conjunction with pedals to make it so much more than a guitar and really add a layer of ambience to the sound.
Obviously things are extremely different for you with a backing band. How will you handle being in the spotlight as opposed to just being behind the drum kit?
That will definitely not be easy. I have always been very shy and self-conscious of my own music. I feel pretty lucky that not only did I want to recruit friends that I enjoyed as musicians but also they were all very supportive of my sound and REALLY wanted to see me do something with it. For that I am very thankful.
The rules kind of change when you’re a solo artist with a band…how have you dealt with that responsibility? Do you work collectively with your band to create new ideas and music?
Generally I write a sketch of a song and write the lyrics, we then get together as a group and flesh them out and make a structure. That is when the songs in my opinion really take their life. They go from being a song played only on an acoustic guitar to having so many other layers to make it more interesting. Everyone is more than encouraged to throw in ideas, write music, and do their own thing. For me the lyrics are my main outlet, playing guitar is just the vehicle that helps allow me to do that.
How involved has Lapdance Academy been involved with your recordings as a solo artist?
Brian Grosz, owner of Lapdance Academy Music has been amazing from the beginning. He believed in me and what I wanted to do, and he pushed me to do it. I can again safely say if it was not for the kind “guru” words of wisdom this man gave me, I would never have had the courage to step out and do this on my own. He has helped me along every step of the way.
I’ve heard through the grapevine that your very first EP as a solo artist is titled “Living to Die”. What’s the meaning behind the title?
That is a good question in which I have not been asked thus far in any interview I have done regarding the record. I feel that in this world for the most part, people get into a routine. Their life becomes almost pre-packaged and pre-planned. There is no room in people lives for spontaneity. I feel a lot of times people fall too comfortably with work / dinner / sleep / wash / rinse / repeat. Not that there is necessarily anything wrong with routine at all, I just feel most of us never take chances to LIVE. We are all dying faster and faster every day, I feel like most of us forget to really let go and enjoy living, instead we slowly just live to die. I am not really sure if I can explain it in the way I can in my head, but that is a pretty fair representation.
When can we plan on buying “Living to Die” and where?
That is actually a good question. Living to Die will be released as a FREE High Quality Mp3 download through www.lapdanceacademy.com. All music on the LDA roster is 100% free. Brian has a pretty incredible reason / explanation for the label being set up the way it is and when you really look at it, it’s pure genius. In Brian’s words from lapdanceacademy.com
“People are going to ignore it or find a way to get it for free if you slap a price tag on your music,” Grosz says. “I think that If you’re going to get screwed, you should at least get to pick the position and the safe-word so you can try to enjoy yourself.”
Will you be following the release of your EP with a tour of some sort?
Yeah, we are already looking at booking some shows in September or October on the East Coast. We know we are going to spend a few days in NYC and maybe hit up a few places in between. Right now we are actually hard at work writing the next release, our first FULL LENGTH. This EP is kind of only a peek at the things to come. I just hope it is well received.
Any parting words of enlightenment?
First of all thank you so very much for this opportunity. The only thing enlightening I have to say is PLEASE go to www.lapdanceacademy.com and download FREE AMAZING music from my friends in Nice New Outfit, Dogs of Winter, Galaxy of Tar, and Alex Walker. And then make sure to head back over mid / late June and download your own copy of “Living to Die”.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT GENE PRIEST AND GENE PRIEST & THE CARDINAL SIN GO TO:
http://www.myspace.com/genepriest
http://www.facebook.com/GenePriest?ref=ts
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