{"id":71919,"date":"2018-08-17T00:00:58","date_gmt":"2018-08-17T00:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=71919"},"modified":"2018-08-23T23:49:05","modified_gmt":"2018-08-23T23:49:05","slug":"news-feature-black-tusk-08-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/news-feature-black-tusk-08-18\/","title":{"rendered":"BLACK TUSK – Taking Care Of Business (August 2018) | Features \/ Interviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

BLACK TUSK – Taking Care Of Business<\/strong><\/span>
\nAnthony Morgan<\/span>
\nAugust 2018<\/span><\/p>\n

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Black Tusk (l-r): Corey Barhorst, Andrew Fidler and James May<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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\nSavannah, Georgia-based metal outfit Black Tusk began songwriting sessions in earnest for sixth full-length studio album T.C.B.T.<\/em> at the end of 2017, with further sessions taking place in early 2018. Roughly a month to a month-and-a-half was spent getting the platter together, as it were. The effort emerged in August 2018. Outside personnel helped to author compositions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe pretty much have a few people come in and help with hitting ideas off of us in the studio,\u201d shares James May, drummer of Black Tusk. \u201cSome of them we turn down, and some of them we like. When you\u2019re writing a record though, you always see the way you\u2019re writing it. It\u2019s always nice to have someone else that you respect come in and give it a listen, and maybe make some suggestions for it. For instance, the guy that we\u2019ve got playing guitar \u2013 that actually ended up joining the band \u2013 was a big help on the record, and he\u2019s been around since almost the beginning of the band. <\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point, we were pretty much like \u2018Why don\u2019t you just show it?\u2019 He\u2019s been around us enough. His insight\u2019s always pretty good and he knew how to play the tones, so we asked him to join. Also, it\u2019s made it so that the album has become a lot more. We would have album songs that we knew we couldn\u2019t play and pull off live, but now that we have him, we can actually do every song on the record if we felt like doing it, and it would actually sound like the record. That\u2019s something really cool to have.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201cbig help\u201d arrived in the form of Chris \u2018Scary\u2019 Adams, the dynamic changing from a trio to a quartet. \u201cAs much as I like being a three-piece\u2026,\u201d the sticksman begins. \u201cIt\u2019s always been kind of cooler to be this powerhouse of three people. I\u2019ve always got a lot of respect for a band that can pull it off with three members, and also be a big powerhouse of sound with just three, but it just made sense for this record to have another guitar player. Once we started writing more with him, it just meshed way too well, so that we just wanted him to stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Twelve tracks emerged from sessions to comprise the track listing, the resultant slate of cuts being named T.C.B.T<\/em> in their collective form. \u201cT.C.B.T.<\/em> is something that\u2019s from way back, maybe six or seven years ago,\u201d James divulges. \u201cIt was a play off of the Elvis and the old biker, \u2018Taking Care Of Business\u2019 thing. We just put another T on it and made it \u2018Taking Care Of Black Tusk\u2019, and we\u2019ve had that stencil all over our equipment and everything since forever. So, we just decided that this was the album to call T.C.B.T<\/em>. We were like \u2018This is a perfect name for this album,\u2019 because right now, with having to bounce back from Athon and everything, we really had to worry about taking care of this band and what we were going to do. So, the title just made sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jonathan Athon, co-founder of Black Tusk, was involved in a serious vehicular accident on November 7th, 2014, his motorcycle colliding with a SUV. Albeit placed into a medically induced coma, Jonathan\u2019s brain injuries were too significant, him passing away two days later on the 9th. He was 32. In light of these tragic circumstances, Black Tusk\u2019s future was temporarily thrown into doubt. \u201cWe thought about it for a minute with the Athon thing, that being the end, but if it would\u2019ve been any of us, we would\u2019ve wanted the band to go on,\u201d the rhythmist reasons. \u201cIt\u2019s what made sense. It\u2019s very unfortunate that it happened.<\/p>\n

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Black Tusk (l-r): Andrew Fidler, James May and Corey Barhorst<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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\u201cIf he were alive today, he would\u2019ve still been in the band, definitely, and we would\u2019ve kept chugging that way. Things happen, though. It\u2019s what we do. We like to play music and it has pretty much become our career, our lifestyle at this point, so I can\u2019t imagine not putting out records at this point. It would be weird not to. There was a brief thought maybe about not doing it, but not for very long. Also, we had three pretty big tours lined up, so we had to pretty much make a decision pretty quick on what we were going to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Having opted to forge ahead, Black Tusk employed the services of Corey Barhorst, formerly of Kylesa. \u201cCorey was kind of like what Scary was with the band \u2013 he was at our first show,\u201d James remembers. \u201cHe was always hanging out with the band, so it wasn\u2019t that weird for him to join. We knew that he could do the job; we knew that he would be able to fill in. It worked well, so we figured that if anybody was the man for the job, it was him. You never know how it\u2019s gonna go, though. We started playing, jamming with him, and ideas started coming out left and right, so we decided \u2018Why not?\u2019 It made it a lot easier to not have to audition people, and to be able to have someone that kind of was part of the family to come in and help out. It was also someone that Athon knew as well, which made it kind of easier.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although the pair knew one another well, Corey and Athon bore more individualistic traits. \u201cAthon definitely was more of the heavy, Mesa Boogie, thick sound, and Corey is definitely more of the punk metal sound,\u201d the sometimes vocalist critiques. \u201cIf you had heard them play side by side, you could definitely hear and tell the difference in the way that they write and the way that the bass sounds, but they both fit. It\u2019s always going to sound like Black Tusk, no matter what. The way Corey plays bass works in the band, even though it\u2019s not necessarily the way Athon would\u2019ve approached it. That\u2019s pretty much the difference between them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sounding like Black Tusk, no matter what, involves being \u201cenergetic, powerful,\u201d James cites. \u201cAlways with the three vocals \u2013 definitely trading vocals. We\u2019ve always had albums where there wasn\u2019t just one singer, which I think… We\u2019re not the only band that does it, but I think that it\u2019s definitely a signature sound of the band, and the way that things go with the music at this point. I know that there\u2019s parts that we run into in songs that we just know \u2018This is definitely a signature Black Tusk riff.\u2019 Every album needs to get better, and you might change up some sounds or change the way things are going with it, but our biggest thing is not to exploit the audience and just become something completely different. That\u2019s what I would say the Black Tusk sound is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Selecting whom vocals are traded with happens to be a simple process within the Black Tusk camp. \u201cPretty much at this point, it\u2019s pretty easy for us to decide,\u201d the musician reckons. \u201cWhen we write lyrics, we definitely write for everyone. If something is said a little bit faster, or it\u2019s on a higher riff or something, I\u2019ll usually choose Andrew for it. If it\u2019s like slower, sludgier, heavier, either I\u2019ll choose my voice or Corey\u2019s \u2013 or Athon\u2019s in the past. Pretty much we have always chosen the vocals as instruments, by listening to how the riffs go. That\u2019s pretty much how we decide who\u2019s gonna sing what.\u201d<\/p>\n

Generally speaking, Black Tusk\u2019s revised line-up caused T.C.B.T.<\/em> to tread down a slightly different path. \u201cI would say that it\u2019s definitely got a lot more punk, kind of hardcore metal roots to it than what we\u2019d been used to doing, and that\u2019s just the way the record ended up coming out,\u201d James reflects. \u201cWe didn\u2019t mean to necessarily do that, but with us, we just like to kind of let the album take a life of its own. It\u2019s always been the Black Tusk way. It ended up coming out very, very energetic, to say the least.\u201d<\/p>\n

In discussing T.C.B.T<\/em>, Black Tusk stated: \u2018When you listen, you will hear Black Tusk, not the old as was, but a new Black Tusk keeping tour roots and carving a new path.\u2019 Such comments suggest Black Tusk see a definite difference between T.C.B.T.<\/em> and previous records, like the beginning of a new chapter almost. \u201cI\u2019d definitely say that it sounds like a new chapter, and it should,\u201d the performer argues. \u201cWe have two new members. I think that if it sounded like the same old Black Tusk and it sounded exactly the same, then there really wouldn\u2019t be any reason to add two new members.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe could\u2019ve just had hired hands that would play what Andrew and I wanted them to play, but I think the whole reason to get any new people into the band is to have their input. Anyone that\u2019s in the band, they have to have some sort of creative input and be able to express themselves musically as much as Andrew and I, because it\u2019s music. You want them to have fun to a certain point as well as feel like they\u2019re not pigeon-holed in the corner to where it\u2019s like \u2018This is what was written previously, and what has to be.\u2019 For some bands that works, but with us, we like to get together in a room and collaborate on it together.\u201d<\/p>\n

The penning of lyrical fare was shared among several. \u201cThe way that we usually do vocal approaches is that one person will take a song and one of the other guys will take a song, and we usually kind of glam them up like after we\u2019re done playing,\u201d James describes. \u201cWe always write the music first. One of the guys will be like \u2018Well, I\u2019m feeling strongly about trying some lyrics to this,\u2019 and then they\u2019ll bring them to practice. From there, we might tweak them a little bit and find another spark. The guys that we have with us now are pretty much good enough to where there\u2019s usually not that many changes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among the several to pen lyrical fare was the drummer himself. \u201c\u2018Lab Rat\u2019, the very beginning talking thing I wrote,\u201d he lists. \u201c\u2018A Perfect View Of Absolutely Nothing\u2019, I did that. Let me see what else… It\u2019s hard to see without a song list right in front of me… \u2018Closed Eye\u2019 is one that I got the lyrics for and \u2018Orange Red Dead\u2019, I did that one. I think there\u2019s about five or six on there that I did the lyrics for.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Orange Red Dead\u2019 is pretty much about\u2026 I always like to write about apocalyptic, kind of end of the world stuff. That\u2019s basically just that type of apocalyptic, end of the world thing but with a tongue-in-cheek, humorous twist to it. \u2018Lab Rat\u2019 is pretty much about just waking up every day, feeling like you do the same thing over and over. Every morning, you get up, go to work, and do the same old stuff all the time, and the beginning of the album is kind of just a theory about the whole album as a story. It pretty much just lays down where the setting is going to be for this album. If you listen to some of the stuff, it\u2019s about judgements that come and how when this is all over, will any of it matter? Everything seems to matter now, but in the scheme of life, does it really matter? I always seem to write lyrics that are a little grim in the end, to say the least (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n

Recording sessions for T.C.B.T.<\/em> at The Garage in Savannah, Georgia. \u201cIt was great,\u201d James enthuses. \u201cWe really enjoyed it, because we\u2019ve never been able to record, come home, and work on ideas. It was the first time that we had recorded at home. Usually when you get into the studio, you\u2019re at the studio, and you\u2019re rushing to get a lot of things done. As you\u2019re still writing but in the studio, pretty much the things that you\u2019re writing about and your outside influences are gone all of a sudden. So, it was nice to be able to just still continue to come out of your comfort zone in the studio every day, and us being on less of a schedule was a nice thing. We usually always fly somewhere or drive somewhere and do it, but we had a good resource here, so we figured \u2018Why not?\u2019 and tried a different way. It was a lot more relaxing than usual; it was a different experience recording. It\u2019s always cool to do something different, because it\u2019s always going to come out different. It affects the record.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think for the first time… I\u2019m a night owl; I like to do everything at night. For the first time, I actually got to lay down my drums at night time. Usually, I have to do them during the day, and I am not a day person at all. So, it was nice to be able to work at home\u2026 Not at home, but in our city, to where I had someone who could do the drum tracks with me all night long. We could start at like ten or 11 o\u2019clock and go until five or six in the morning, if need be. That was a really, really big deal to me, to be able to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Black Tusk (l-r): James May, Corey Barhost and Andrew Fidler<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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The punk influence lends itself to the drumming department. \u201cThe drums on this one are definitely way less sludgy, and have way more of a punk-type feel to them I would say,\u201d the sticksman judges. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of stuff that just reminds me somewhat of the old school punk stuff I grew up listening to. That was what the music came out to be, and so I put the drumming to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

T.C.B.T.<\/em>\u2019s cover artwork is simplistic in approach. \u201cUsually, the covers are so intricate, but we figured that this was a different album and was going in bit of a different direction,\u201d James explains. \u201cIt ended up being way more… I don\u2019t want to say punk-influenced, but yes, punk-influenced, than the albums have been in a long time. It reminded me of some stuff that we had played earlier; way earlier, like when we started, but better obviously. We just wanted to make it seem like an old school punk record. It would be weird to have this intricate, nice artwork on an album that sounded like this. A spray-painted stencil in the old school, hardcore punk way just seemed the right way to go with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

T.C.B.T.<\/em> marks the first Black Tusk full-length to be released through Season Of Mist, the band\u2019s album contract with the label being revealed on March 14th, 2018. \u201cThey\u2019ve been treating us great,\u201d the rhythmist praises. \u201cThere\u2019ve been no problems so far. It kind of feels, like I said, like a different band. We\u2019re not a different band, but there are different members and different gears going into the band nowadays, so it was good to keep options open. We\u2019ve known Gordon (Conrad, label manager) from the days of working with Relapse, and figured it would be nice to work with him again \u2013 get some fresh ideas, and a fresh team. If we were going to do a fresh record, then it felt like we should do it with a fresh team. It\u2019s not like Relapse did us wrong in any way, shape or form; they were great guys. I have nothing bad to say about Relapse whatsoever, Relapse were great, but it was just time to move on and try something else, really.\u201d<\/p>\n

T.C.B.T.<\/em> was released on August 17th, 2018 via Season Of Mist.<\/p>\n

Interview published in August 2018. All promotional photographs by Geoff L. Johnson.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BLACK TUSK – Taking Care Of Business Anthony Morgan August 2018 Black Tusk (l-r): Corey Barhorst, Andrew Fidler and James May Savannah, Georgia-based metal outfit Black Tusk began songwriting sessions in earnest for sixth full-length studio album T.C.B.T. at the end of 2017, with further sessions taking place in early 2018. Roughly a month to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4115,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-71919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-black-tusk","category-features"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=71919"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71919\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":71935,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/71919\/revisions\/71935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=71919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=71919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=71919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}