By Boardpass Member Arthur Ostrowski
Trever's interview
What is your view on the Punk scene in Canada?
(Trever) - It's great! Particularly in Eastern Canada seems to be really good. We love playing here.
What bands have you been listening to lately?
(Trever) - Most recently "The Business", just got their new CD, and played with them in Detroit. Not a lot of punk rock. Lots of crazy stuff. Everything from "Amon Tobin", Scott just bought "The Clinic" record and the Michael Shanker group today, and it's the worst album! It's just so across the board, it's hard to say." (Scott) - This is just lately of course. (Trever) - Influential bands are: The Clash, The Damned, Stiff little fingers, The jam, that kind of stuff.
How do you feel about Face to Face being a three-piece band again?
(Trever) - Scotts giving the heavy metal sign. "We're stoked. We dig it. We like it a lot. I mean it wasn't our choice, but we got put in the situation where we had to make the best of it. And it turned into something that we kind of rather preferred. We like it like this."
Do you find it harder to play live without Chad?
(Trever) - I find it a lot harder to cover my mistakes. haha. It's almost impossible!
What inspires your lyrics?
(Trever) - Uhh... that's a hard question to answer. (Scott) - Trever writes baby I love you songs, and brings them to rehearsal and we make him change all the lyrics."(Arthur) So your trying emo stuff? (Trever) - Ya, the guys are like, "you can't write about that kind of stuff" so I have to up the anti it up a little bit. I dunno, I write what I feel basically. Whatever comes to mind.
Which Face to Face song is your favorite? (lyric wise)
(Trever) - Right now "Bill of Goods." (Brad) - I totally agree. (I had to say something, haha)
Which song is hardest to play live?
(Trever) - oh gee, all of them! Anything off "Ignorance is Bliss" would be the hardest to play live. The songs are kind of complicated. (Arthur) - I guess, because we didn't hear any songs from that album. (Trever) - No we don't play that record live. It shant be played live again. We have enough other songs."
You didn't play a lot of Reactionary either. Is there a reason for that?
(Trever) - We did one from "Reactionary". Not really, there are a lot of records, it's hard to get them all in there, you know.
What inspired you to put an acoustic song on How to Ruin Everything?
(Trever) - Umm... it was something that we we're talking about while we were writing the record. I actually brought a couple of other songs before we settled on "How to Ruin Everything". That didn't fly. I actually set out to write an acoustic song for this record and when I came up with "How to Ruin Everything", I played it for the guys and they loved it. (Scott) - "That's the one!" Is what Pete and I said. (Trever) - We weren't sure if we were going to put it on the album, but we wanted to record it and hear what it would come out. And we were happy with how it came out and it ended up on the record.
What is your most embarrassing moment ever?
(Trever) - Scott?? (Scott) - When you called Carson Daly, Carter? (Trever) - Nah that wasn't too embarrassing. Like when I crapped my pants on stage, nah that never happened. When I'm sick on tour I'll hock big lugies all the time. Like when I'm shaking my head snot will fly all over the place. ( If it looks like Trever is sick, stay away from the front row because he is known to hock huge nasty lugies.)
Do you have any last words, quotes or comments for your fans?
(Trever) - "Don't be a fool, stay in school!"
Interview with Scott
What's your favorite new song on "How to Ruin Everything"?
(Scott) - I like "Woof in Sheeps Clothing." Did I say woof I meant "Wolf in Sheeps Clothing". I dig a Wombat in Sheeps clothing." (Since for some reason wolf in pronounced wombat in Canada. haha) I like that and I also like the title track."
If you weren't in Face to Face what would you be doing?
(Scott) - I'd be working in a mail room or shipping and receiving clerk. If I wasn't in Face to Face I'd be working a minimum wage job somewhere, smoking a lot of buds and playing video games with other mid 30's losers."(Pete) - How is that any different then being in Face to Face? (Scott) - It isn't! (Pete) - We don't even make minimum wage. (Scott) - Before I joined this band I was working at some shit job as a shipping and receiving clerk, and I was making only fuck minimum fucking wage. (Pete) - Before I joined the band I was telling the guys to move their cars. (Scott) - Ya he was the guy who worked at the place where we rehearsed. He would like move the cars if they got all stacked up at the back. We used just to look at this dude and throw our keys at him. Then we'd bark orders at him. Like "dude fix the PA! DUDE! FIX IT!" (Pete) - "FUCK YOU!" It sucks, deal with it. (Scott) - He didn't even tell us he was a drummer either, he was such a prick. (Pete) - I didn't like you guys. (Scott) - Ya, he hated us, and that's why we made him join the band. The more you don't like it, the more work we give you. Roger has wanted out from the beginning, and he keeps earning more tours. (Pete) - Here's me after 40 guys addition for the part, and there like "Oh great the parking lot guy." (Scott) - We got to the point where we'd auditioned the parking lot dude. (Pete) - I walk in. I don't know anything about your band. I don't know anything about Punk Rock. (Scott) - Which was probably better, cause we had these dude's that we're over punk, they we're like dying their hair green just for the audition, green dye running all over their face. They were a little too nuts. We were like "dude just relax, please its not about that. Not that much anyway. Have some fun with it."
If you could be on any TV show, what would it be and why?
(Scott) - I would be on.... survivor. I'd be on survivor because I'd be one of the first people kicked off and then I could go on all the talk shows and talk about what dicks everyone on the show are. (Arthur) And make millions. (Scott) Exactly.
How has the tour gone and are looking forward to the rest of the tour?
(Scott) - I'm enjoying it. You know the first few days, we were just a little off. We were just stretching our legs. We're lazy little pricks, and we aren't all that prepared. We didn't even know what our set was going to be until the day of the first show. It's like, "what are we playing tonight?" "Everything's fine.
Which song from How to Ruin Everything are you most proud of?
(Scott) - "Fight or Flight" is one I'm proud of. I wrote the music to that and Trever wrote the lyrics. That's how our contributions usually go. Obviously I don't put lyrics in Trever's mouth. My contributions are naturally more musical.
What would you say is your favorite venue or place in general to play?
(Scott) - I honestly don't remember. I don't have a favorite because it's hard to say. Because it's really not so much the venue that makes the gig to me, it's the response. It's the crowed thing! You could play the same venue twice and have a totally different gig. So I can't say venue specifically. It's like when you play at a place that you think "hey it's gonna be such a fucken great show" but it turns out to be a little bit of a stiff because the crowed isn't into you or whatever. I mean, you play some place and think "oh what a disaster" Roger our sound guy's like " why bother sound checking" (Arthur) They don't even care huh? (Scott) it isn't even that, it's why bother sound checking, the hall is a mess, the P.A system is a fucken wreck. But it wins up being a fucken blast. Turns out feeling great and sounding great. And if the crowed isn't into it so (Arthur) Do you think that smaller places are usually… (didn't even have to finish my question for a response) (Scott) - Oddly enough, yeah! We had a few on this tour where the in-store was more fun then the show. Cuz sometimes people bring all their weird vibes and expectations to the shows. And the in-store is more casual. I mean, anyone who comes out is you know! It may sound crappy but we just have fun.
Where do you think Face to Face is heading in the future?
(Scott) - In the grave! I'm not really so worried about it. At 11 years, 10 or 11 years running, we may be at the end of our run. You never know ( Arthur and Brad are shocked to hear this) But a band, even if you're having a great time has to sustain itself on something more then just a great time. I mean, it's hard to say. Many bands have showed up, new generations rising up and they'll be what they're into. And we just might get pushed out of the way-side. And that's cool and I totally understand it. I'm prepared for the possibilities. We can go on forever and be like the business and be in our 50's and still having a great time (Arthur) - like Bad Religion? (Scott) - yeah exactly. And if it feels good inside that's life, but to be honest, there's a built-in self destruction quaz that somehow in the back of our heads would like to put an end to this band. Honestly some people have said that we've become an embarrassment already. But we still care. We're all a little bit older but there's no less passion on commitment to the band. You never where things will go. We're living in the now, and the now feels good! (Pete) - We're living la vida loca. (Scott) - If it goes on, fine. If it ends fine, I'm alright with that.
Is it hard on your family life and you just want to settle down?
(Scott) - I'm already settled down, I'm married. Trever's married with kids. He just celebrated his 14th wedding anniversary so… (Pete) - I have no life. (Scott) Being a family man has not put an stop to that. And our families understand who we are and why we do this. Chad on the other hand, if I may throw that in, he had a tougher time with that. And that's what really came to our head with Chad. There's no hate with Chad, we love him and he's our friend and stuff, but it just came to a point where we couldn't keep working together because he had a strong pull in the other direction. And he wanted to continue working with us but the pressure on the other end was greater and eventually pulled him away. Once we finally stopped kidding ourselves of what was really going to happen, and allowed him to go his way because he had been trying to get our for a while, we just kept him involved. Not that he didn't like it, he just couldn't reconcile the situation. So it's all good. Chad's a great guy and all the years we've spent together were good.
Do you guys have any plans to leave North America because of your fear of flying?
(Scott) - Oh I'll get on a plane! We just went to England, then flew to New York. (Pete) - That's highly exaggerated. (Scott) - Well no, I fucken hate flying, but I wont not fly. No there's nothin like that. If I'm gonna die, I'll die whenever it's gonna happen. (Pete) - I'm ready to fly right now! I'll get on a plane fucken today. Sitting between these two on a bumpy flight is torture. It's not so bad anymore but that one day. (Scott) - Shut your mouth, that was a bumpy flight! (Pete) - I was scared on that one. Between Salt Lake and Denver. (Scott) - yeah the plane wasn't flying forwards, it was flying backwards. (Pete) - We had to play a radio show at noon at Salt Lake, ran to get on the bumpy flight to Denver to play another show that afternoon. We were in the very last row or the plane which is like the back or a roller-coaster, and it was just fucken throwing us all over the plane. Trever was gripping the hand-rails so hard that I figured he was gonna rip them off. (Scott) - It was like, "just crash the plane now and get it over with". (Pete) - just fucken kill me, it'd be better than this. (Scott) - Nah nothing will stop us from going anywhere we need to go.
Do you have any plans to make another video like " The First 7 Years…"
(Scott) - Well I donno. We just made a video-video for "The New Way", the new single. Actually you know what. I don't think we're going to do a "next few years" video, but more of a retrospective. We've got a ton of great footage from the past few years. It'd be way more fun.
Do you have any last words, quotes or comments for your fans?
(Scott) - "Give a hoot, read a book!" haha(so stupid)
Pete's Interview
We gotta know what's your favorite cereal?
(Pete) - Oh fucken eh! You don't even know. That's all I eat when I'm at home is fucken cereal dude! (This coming from a 125 pound drummer) I'll go "Captain Crunch" with crunch berries, I'll go " Apple Jacks". Anything that's bombarded with sugar I will fucken eat. (Arthur) - "Lucky Charms" with marshmallows? (Pete) - I'll go fucken cheap "Lucky Charms" like Wild's Lucky Charms. (Arthur) - I don't think you can get those here in Canada (Pete) - Wagman's Lucky Charms? But yeah I love cereal!
Do you have any favorite tour stories?
(Pete) - Is this your most embarrassing moment question? (Arthur) - No not really, like best moment, funniest moment. (Pete) - Oh my funniest moment, not really my favorite is when we were in Pittsburgh a couple tours ago. This girl bit me in the face. like chompped down on my chin and wouldn't let go. (Scott) - After squatting and taking a pee on the dressing room floor. (Pete) - And I'm like, "She bit me in the face", and fell backwards. And Matt Skiba from Alkaline Trio had to grab her by the hair and rip her off me. Next time we go to Pittsburgh she comes back and she's all (In a retarded voice) " Everyone says that I bit John and I don't remember bite'n" and I'm like "there's no John in our band, you bit me." She's all " why would I do that?" and I'm like " cuz you're crazy! What the hell do you mean, why? (Pete gives us a confused look) (Pete) - So she actually did one of these ( Pete gives a trailer trash slut, with a beer and cigarette impression) "I could be so good to you.." ha ha h. it was so wrong, and then she corners me in the dressing room right after the show and Trever walks in. I look over her shoulder and yell " help me she's crazy!" and he's like "Later". (Scott) - She fucken Hannibal Lectered you dude! (Pete) - Yeah she bit me so bad. I was running to one of the other bands "New Found Glory" who had just gotten their lips pierced and they had Bactine. I'm like "Dude squirt my face, I'm bleeding!". It's not really a good story. (Arthur) - Yeah it was funny. (Pete) - you were gonna tell me it sucked. For the record. I'm the drummer and drummers have no stories.
What's the significance of the number six on the cover of the new album "How to Ruin Everything"?
(Scott yells and kicks Arthur in the leg) Come'on man do your homework! Haha! (Pete) - Yeah dude! Haha. Well it's our 6th studio record. Umm we rock with the devil. (Chris from www.facetofacemusic.com) Well if you buy three of them and line them up "666". Spend your money wisely. (Pete) - I think that's pretty much it. Was it a happy accident or did we do that on purpose? (Scott) - well the numbers, there were originally other numbers and we're like " whoa just switch it to a six". (Pete) - I got a booger on my face. (Scott) - But it wasn't an accident that there are 11 candles on the cake for the 11 years were a band.
But what about the other things like the rooster and rat?
(Pete) - He (Kalynn Campbell) had done four or five cover mock-ups and we just kinda plucked ones from each one. And we were worried cuz he's an amazing artist and we didn't want to fuck with his artwork, but we're like " do you mind if you put the cake and the rat here?" and he was like " oh no problem" bla bla bla. He set it up the next day and we were like " Rad!" (Brad) - What's with the color, did you all choose it? (Pete) - I think it's all Kalynn's thing. He came up with and it was nothing like we've ever done. All faded, the little booklet looks like it's a 30 year old library book. We totally left it up to Kalynn Campbell and he came through with flying colors. It's amazing. It doesn't look like anything else and it's got a "birth-day-cake". My photo looks like a Palestinian terrorist. That's the extra bonus. We took so many pictures and after every time they put the effect on me, I looked like that.
Any last words Pete?
(Pete) - I think everybody should do what the hell they want!
(This is when Pete started to get off track, knocked over a box of fruit and started to talk about Scott's like's and dislikes)