Bloodsimple Interview

Although the members of Bloodsimple have impressive musical pedigrees, the band is an entity that truly stands out on their own as being one of the most aggressive bands on the scene today. Their debut "A Cruel World" has just been released and it truly is one of the finest metal albums to be put together in quite some time. Currently, the group is out in support of Mudvayne on one of the hottest hard music tickets in the country. After the group's set in Detroit, the crowd was totally annihilated by the group's entertaining live set. The crowd at the State Theater welcomed the band in a manner that most openers don't enjoy and the band's name was on the lips of hordes of crowd members when their killer show was finished. Just before the set, Erin Fox had the chance to sit down and talk with Bloodsimple vocalist Tim Williams about the group's new album and US tour.


The Gauntlet: The band just kicked off a tour in support of Mudvayne, how is everything working out so far?

Tim Williams: The shows have been fucking mint. Every show has been really, really good. Last night was probably the out of the first three, Chicago and it's been nuts. It's definitely a real deal tour, you know what I mean?

The Gauntlet: Bloodsimple is a new band and a lot of kids haven't been exposed to you as of yet. Tell me a little bit about the history of the group thus far.

Tim Williams: Yeah, Bloodsimple, we formed about two and a half years ago, me and Mike started the band. He was in a previous band with me called V.O.D., originally this was going to be a side project, then V.O.D. ended up going on a big hiatus and we ended up making this the main project. We searched around, we found Nick, who's the other guitar player and after that we got Chris and then Chris brought us to Kyle and everybody from pretty much different states.

The Gauntlet: So what exactly happened to V.O.D.?

Tim Williams: I don't know. We were in the game for a long time, we did like four records and it went really, really well. Then, the last two we had kind of left a bad taste in our mouths and we were treated like shit and we figured "You know what, let's take a break" and that break turned into a permanent hiatus and that's it.

The Gauntlet: What can kids expect to see from Bloodsimple on these dates with Mudvayne?

Tim Williams: A fuckin blitzkrieg of in-your-face, heavy, upbeat music. We don't have that long to play, which is totally cool, so we're packin' in our heaviest and most favorite songs on the record.

The Gauntlet: I'm definitely looking forward to seeing you guys play "Straight Hate".

Tim Williams: It kills, people are wigging on it. Yeah, I'm happy with that one. It came out good and, yeah the kids can definitely expect that they are going to have a good time when they see us play, you know? You do it well and it's fuckin' heavy and if that's what they want to see, that's what they'll get.

The Gauntlet: How long did it take the band to put together "A Cruel World?"

Tim Williams: It took a long time. Writing it, whatever, that took a while. But recording it or whatever, that actually took about three and a half months. We spent some time on it. We fixed everything up and in six weeks we recorded the basics and most of the vocals. Then we took a month off and went back for September, most of October. Had somebody mix it and it didn't really work out the way we wanted it to. So we had Mike Frazier remix it and he did an amazing job, so, it's been a good run.

The Gauntlet: You have been out on the road before, so this is nothing that's new to you. What are you looking forward to the most now that you're returning to touring?

Tim Williams: Just keeping my sanity. Nah, I'm just looking to get good reactions out of people. You know, I'm just looking to get out playing in front of people, which is great. I'm just looking to have a good time and play some heavy music in front of some good crowds. That's all I'm looking for.

The Gauntlet: A lot of artists seem to have a preference between the road and the studio. Which side of the fence do you come down on, personally?

Tim Williams: I like both. They're totally two different animals, the road is totally exhausting, but it's cool and it's a lot of fun. You know, the studio can be a controlled environment where your worst enemy is boredom but I like both of them. When you're in the studio, you get to see what you create and it's all these steps. Then when you mix it, it just sounds amazing and it's great to see it come into that light , then live is just fun because the kids are out in your face and everybody's chilling', so. Totally, both elements. That's why I do this, because I like both.

The Gauntlet: I guess I don't understand the guys that just do studio projects and stay home, to me that's not what it's for.

Tim Williams: It's just fun for the kids to see you play live, it's great. I'm a big fan of just being in the vibe and taking the energy in. It doesn't have to be perfect; it just has to be real. That's what the people want to see.

The Gauntlet: Have you been looking ahead to dates after this run is through?

Tim Williams: Yeah, we've got tons of things on the table. Nothing quite confirmed yet, I don't want to jinx anything, but there's some names being thrown around. We just met with our label last night and they said "You guys are going to be on the road for two years, so I hope you're ready.' It's awesome, it's going to be great, the label is really, really good, man. I was with V.O.D. for ten years; signed three different record contracts with three different labels. These guys are really making sense with what they are saying, they're being real to us, you know? They're not just blowing sunshine up our ass which is really cool and I respect that an

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Tags:  Bloodsimple  , Tim Williams, interviews

EF    April 05, 2005