Lamb of God
All Access Pass
2008-02-12
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For their 10th anniversary, the de facto kings of American metal, Lamb of God celebrated in a manner as extreme as their music—by going skydiving on Halloween, an experience that lead vocalist Randy Blythe described as “somewhere between an orgasm and getting your ass kicked.” Blythe’s words could very well be used to describe his band’s music as well—a ferocious, alcohol-fueled assault delivered with the shrewd calculation of a mad mathematician.
On June 21st, Lamb of God released their second DVD, Killadelphia, a live concert video taken from two performances (October 16th and 17th, 2004) at the Trocadero in Philadelphia, just about a four-hour drive up Interstate 95 from the band’s hometown of Richmond, VA. The DVD features over an hour-and-a-half of savage live concert footage, but also offers a very candid look at the band, with footage harvested from Lamb of God’s corresponding tour, and the picture it paints isn’t always a flattering one. Synthesis caught up with Blythe in late May, on his way to practice for a European festival tour with Unearth and Every Time I Die—Lamb of God’s first trip to mainland Europe—and discussed Killadelphia and the difference between being the frontman for one of the country’s foremost metal acts and being a librarian.
This summer, you’ll be coming back to the States to do the Sounds of the Underground Tour. Do you enjoy doing festival shows?
Yes and no. We did Ozzfest last year and we’ve done [the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival] and stuff. It’s a lot of fun, because there’s a lot of people and you see a lot of your friends, but at the same time, it’s really hectic and everything’s like bam, bam, bam, bam, y’know. It’s not really relaxing, it’s gotta happen, it’s gotta happen. It’s all good, y’know? It’s a lot of fun, and it’s also not so fun.
A lot of bands on the Sounds of the Underground Tour have switched off between Ozzfest and Warped Tour and not the Sounds of the Underground. Do you think there’s room for a tour like this with two other comparable, more established touring festivals going on around the same time?
Let’s hope so [laughs]. Otherwise it’s going to be a lonely show.
I got to check out the Killadelphia DVD last night…
Oh yeah? Well I haven’t gotten to check it out yet.
Oh, you haven’t seen it?
No. They don’t send me shit.
Why did you decide to choose the Philadelphia show from all the live performances?
Because Philadelphia has shown us a whole lot of love, and it’s where we first really developed our fan base, so it’s kinda like showing some love back to [the fans in Philadelphia]. Plus, the crowds are pretty crazy there, so we knew it’d be a good show. We always have great shows there.
This is the second DVD Lamb of God will put out. Do you enjoy the process of making DVDs?
Fuck no. I hate it. I hate having cameras in my face.
How long was the director [Doug Spangenberg] following you around for this one?
This time, I guess it was about a month overall, so it gets to be a pain in the ass. Hold on one second, dude. [Gets interrupted] Okay, go ahead.
Did you have to come up with creative ways of ditching him to get some privacy?
There was really no ditching him. The director’s a friend of ours. And, uh—hold on one second. [Talks to someone] I’m sorry. I’m trying to explain to my neighbor how to get to uh…[Continues giving directions] Sorry dude. There was really no ditching him [Spangenberg]. He’s a persistent little fucker, and he’s straight-edge, so when you’re drunk, you can’t really hide from people who don’t drink.
Both DVDs are really candid. Why give fans such an all-access look at the band?
Because we wanted people to see exactly what it’s like to be in a touring band. To use a euphemism, we keep it real, you know what I mean? And that’s about as real as it fucking gets. It’s not a joke. Being in a band’s not always glorious. Ugly shit happens and good shit happens. We thought, I guess, by being as honest as possible, that we would give out something a little bit different than all these other DVDs where people just make themselves out to look like rock stars, or whatever.
Do you worry about that kind of approach backfiring?
I don’t worry about anything, bro. I do whatever I want to do.
So, on Killadelphia, there’s a brawl between you and your guitar player [Willie Adler].
Yeah, you’re the first person who has brought this up. What do you want to know?
How indicative is that of what goes on with the band when you’re on the road?
If you watch the whole thing, toward the end, dude, that shit doesn’t happen all the time. That was a long built-up pressure. We’d been on the fucking road forever, with no break. We put that on the DVD to show people what that kind of stress leads to. We were drinking together 30 minutes before that—I was buying him shots—and we were drinking together afterwards, too.
So is that a fair representation of what happens on the road?
Not all bands, but it’s a fair representation of what happens with Lamb of God.
Some of your band mates were getting on you about drinking before shows. Do you put any stock into what they were saying?
No [laughs].
So you’re not planning on stopping that any time soon?
You know, really, dude, everybody parties. I’m just like, fuck it, dude. Whatever. Show whatever, you know? I don’t really care. I’m not always wasted. They picked and chose a few moments when I had a couple of beers, but sometimes they make it out to be more than what it is. It’s a fucking rock show. I’m not here to hold anyone’s hand. I’m not here to be a librarian. I’m here to get out and rock, and shit happens when you’re on the road nine months out of the year.
On June 21st, Lamb of God released their second DVD, Killadelphia, a live concert video taken from two performances (October 16th and 17th, 2004) at the Trocadero in Philadelphia, just about a four-hour drive up Interstate 95 from the band’s hometown of Richmond, VA. The DVD features over an hour-and-a-half of savage live concert footage, but also offers a very candid look at the band, with footage harvested from Lamb of God’s corresponding tour, and the picture it paints isn’t always a flattering one. Synthesis caught up with Blythe in late May, on his way to practice for a European festival tour with Unearth and Every Time I Die—Lamb of God’s first trip to mainland Europe—and discussed Killadelphia and the difference between being the frontman for one of the country’s foremost metal acts and being a librarian.
This summer, you’ll be coming back to the States to do the Sounds of the Underground Tour. Do you enjoy doing festival shows?
Yes and no. We did Ozzfest last year and we’ve done [the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival] and stuff. It’s a lot of fun, because there’s a lot of people and you see a lot of your friends, but at the same time, it’s really hectic and everything’s like bam, bam, bam, bam, y’know. It’s not really relaxing, it’s gotta happen, it’s gotta happen. It’s all good, y’know? It’s a lot of fun, and it’s also not so fun.
A lot of bands on the Sounds of the Underground Tour have switched off between Ozzfest and Warped Tour and not the Sounds of the Underground. Do you think there’s room for a tour like this with two other comparable, more established touring festivals going on around the same time?
Let’s hope so [laughs]. Otherwise it’s going to be a lonely show.
I got to check out the Killadelphia DVD last night…
Oh yeah? Well I haven’t gotten to check it out yet.
Oh, you haven’t seen it?
No. They don’t send me shit.
Why did you decide to choose the Philadelphia show from all the live performances?
Because Philadelphia has shown us a whole lot of love, and it’s where we first really developed our fan base, so it’s kinda like showing some love back to [the fans in Philadelphia]. Plus, the crowds are pretty crazy there, so we knew it’d be a good show. We always have great shows there.
This is the second DVD Lamb of God will put out. Do you enjoy the process of making DVDs?
Fuck no. I hate it. I hate having cameras in my face.
How long was the director [Doug Spangenberg] following you around for this one?
This time, I guess it was about a month overall, so it gets to be a pain in the ass. Hold on one second, dude. [Gets interrupted] Okay, go ahead.
Did you have to come up with creative ways of ditching him to get some privacy?
There was really no ditching him. The director’s a friend of ours. And, uh—hold on one second. [Talks to someone] I’m sorry. I’m trying to explain to my neighbor how to get to uh…[Continues giving directions] Sorry dude. There was really no ditching him [Spangenberg]. He’s a persistent little fucker, and he’s straight-edge, so when you’re drunk, you can’t really hide from people who don’t drink.
Both DVDs are really candid. Why give fans such an all-access look at the band?
Because we wanted people to see exactly what it’s like to be in a touring band. To use a euphemism, we keep it real, you know what I mean? And that’s about as real as it fucking gets. It’s not a joke. Being in a band’s not always glorious. Ugly shit happens and good shit happens. We thought, I guess, by being as honest as possible, that we would give out something a little bit different than all these other DVDs where people just make themselves out to look like rock stars, or whatever.
Do you worry about that kind of approach backfiring?
I don’t worry about anything, bro. I do whatever I want to do.
So, on Killadelphia, there’s a brawl between you and your guitar player [Willie Adler].
Yeah, you’re the first person who has brought this up. What do you want to know?
How indicative is that of what goes on with the band when you’re on the road?
If you watch the whole thing, toward the end, dude, that shit doesn’t happen all the time. That was a long built-up pressure. We’d been on the fucking road forever, with no break. We put that on the DVD to show people what that kind of stress leads to. We were drinking together 30 minutes before that—I was buying him shots—and we were drinking together afterwards, too.
So is that a fair representation of what happens on the road?
Not all bands, but it’s a fair representation of what happens with Lamb of God.
Some of your band mates were getting on you about drinking before shows. Do you put any stock into what they were saying?
No [laughs].
So you’re not planning on stopping that any time soon?
You know, really, dude, everybody parties. I’m just like, fuck it, dude. Whatever. Show whatever, you know? I don’t really care. I’m not always wasted. They picked and chose a few moments when I had a couple of beers, but sometimes they make it out to be more than what it is. It’s a fucking rock show. I’m not here to hold anyone’s hand. I’m not here to be a librarian. I’m here to get out and rock, and shit happens when you’re on the road nine months out of the year.
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