Audiotopsy is the result of bands that
have been cut apart and pieced back together, almost
Frankenstein-like with monstrous riffs that commands attention.
Skrape lead singer Billy Keeton joined forces with Mudvayne and
Hellyeah guitarist Greg Tribett, bass player Perry Stern and Mudvayne
drummer Matthew McDonough. The Supergroup exploded on the scene in
October with their Napalm Records debut album “Natural Causes,”
and are on tour supporting Drowning Pool; they will be playing Feb.
12 at the Diesel Lounge in Chesterfield, MI.
Author Marisa Williams: Reviews
of your debut release “Natural Causes” say that this is a
different sound than some of your previous musical endeavors. What
musical techniques did you stay away from on this album, and what are
some musical techniques that you experimented with on this album?
Greg Tribett, guitar player for
Audiotopsy: The musical techniques I stayed away from on this
album was more of the technical aspects of song writing. I
introduced my style of playing, which is a more easy flowing way to
write good hard rock songs.
Marisa Williams: Your little
brother, Derrik “Tripp” Tribett, plays bass for the band Dope.
How did you both get started in music? Did you come from a musical
family, and did you push each other musically growing up together and
throughout both of your successful careers?
Greg Tribett: We both come from
a musical family. My dad's side is kind of the more musical side,
where Derrik got his start. He's a natural like me. I learned and
taught myself. We both had really good ears for music. I believe I
really got interested when I was 12 or 13, but I actually started
playing when I was five-years-old, so it did start early for me.
Marisa Williams: Do you play
any other instruments?
Greg Tribett: I can play bass,
drums, piano, and I have experimented with cello. I played cello on
a Mudvayne song back in the day. It's a very cool instrument, very
hard to play.
Marisa Williams: What was your
first concert that you attended, and how did that compare to the
first concert that you played?
Greg Tribett: First concert was
AC/DC touring the “Back in Black” record. It stood out, as it
was so fucking loud. The first concert I ever played actually was a
cover band, at a public swimming pool. I think it was called swim
and dip, rockin' dip, or something like that. It was funny.
Marisa Williams: What was the
first album you purchased?
Greg Tribett: I'm going to have
to say one of the first KISS records, “Destroyer” probably.
Marisa Williams: How do you go
about writing music? What comes first for you: drums, guitars,
vocals or something else? Has the process of writing changed for you
over the years at all?
Greg Tribett: Well, when I go
to write music, the songs usually start with humming. I hum in my
head, and I transpire that onto the guitar. I envision what the
drums sound like playing, like seeing someone else writing music. I
tell the drummer what I envision, figure out what the chorus means,
and take it from there.
Marisa Williams: Can you walk
us through a track on your latest album that stands out to you from
the standpoint of the creative process?
Greg Tribett: I can do that
with “The Calling.” The chorus, vocally and musically, we were
having a really tough time coming up with a chorus. We sat there for
an hour working on it, and we ran out of beer. We made a beer run,
and the song was playing on a loop. I heard a melody in my head,
sang it in my head, then sang it to Billy. Everyone was happy.
“Yes! We got a chorus!” Sometimes, that's how it happens; you
have to walk away for a minute.
Marisa Williams: What is your
favorite musical technique?
Greg Tribett: I would really
love to play the banjo. I like the techniques in blue grass, all the
finger picking, plucking all that stuff, as well Spanish guitar. I
would love to take the time to learn flamenco, but I would rather
just listen to it and eat tacos.
Marisa Williams: What is
something people might not expect with your latest project, and do
you have any other side projects?
Greg Tribett: I'll start with
the second part first: no other projects. The first answer is I
don't think people were expecting Billy to be singing instead of
playing guitar; he also plays really good guitar.
Marisa Williams: What is the
scariest thing about being on the road?
Greg Tribett: Traveling in bad
weather, whether it be snow or storms, it can be a nightmare. If
it's 2 in the morning, laying in the bunk during a blizzard or
tornado warnings, that gets pretty scary.
Marisa Williams: Best or worst
tour moment?
Greg Tribett: On one of the
first Mudvayne records, we toured with Ozzy and Rob Zombie. That was
the big tour that we got. All of the Ozzfest shows, being on the
main stage with Iron Maiden and Black Sabbath, meeting Zakk Wylde,
who is one of my idols besides Randy Rhodes.
Marisa Williams:
I remember first meeting Zakk when I toured on Ozzfest in 2002,
which was the year after you played the tour in 2001 and just before
you toured with Iron Maiden and Black Sabbath on the main stage in
2005. He was a really a great guy though, as were all of the guys
from Black Label Society.
Greg Tribett:
Zakk is a great guy; he's like a little kid, really hyper.
Marisa Williams: What's your
favorite way to travel and why?
Greg Tribett: Definitely by
bus. I used to be really scared of flying. I'm over it now, as I've
had to fly so much, but I definitely prefer a tour bus over getting
on a plane.
Marisa Williams: What's your
favorite place to travel to, and is there anywhere you have not been
to that you would like to go to?
Greg Tribett: Favorite places
are Australia and Japan. The place I haven't been and really want to
go to is Alaska.
Marisa Williams: What's your
biggest musical fantasy?
Greg Tribett: I would
definitely say one is to jam with Led Zeppelin.
Marisa Williams: I have three
personality questions that I ask everyone. They might sound like
hogwash, but I promise, there is a psychological basis to the answers
;-) First, if you were an unicorn, and you could be any color but
white, what color would you be and would you have any special powers?
Greg Tribett: I would be black
with a red unicorn horn, and my special powers would be to fly.
Marisa Williams: Rather ironic,
given that you said you didn't like to fly on a plane. This next
question does not have to be traditional flavor, but if you were
yogurt, what flavor would you be, and how would you be served?
Greg Tribett: I'd be peanut
butter, almond chocolate with strawberries, served on top of a big
flap jack.
Marisa Williams: That reminds
me of going to the Netherlands, where they heap everything on top of
a waffle, but that sounds so good. This next question, describe
yourself as either a dog, a cat or a cartoon.
Greg Tribett: I would describe
myself as a dog, a very muscular pit bull kind of a dog, a little
gruffy, pure black.
Marisa Williams: Do you collect
anything?
Greg Tribett: Not specifically,
though I do like guitars. I have a lot of them, so I guess I would
say guitars.
Marisa Williams: What's your
biggest guilty pleasure?
Greg Tribett: Hot wings.
That's my guilty pleasure. I'm trying to get off of them, but I
happen to be hot wing connoisseur. I look for them in every city
I've been in, hot wings with Coors Lite.
Marisa Williams: Do you have
any hidden talents or special skills?
Greg Tribett: I'm a bass
fisherman. Pretty damn good at it, maybe after my music career, I
could become a professional bass angler.
Marisa Williams: I used to be
the sports writer down in Key West, and I got to cover a lot of
nautical sports. I must say, there is a lot more that goes into
fishing than what meets the eye, especially if you're talking ocean
fishing.
Greg Tribett:
I'm down in Orlando right now, actually Clermont.
Marisa Williams:
I was just there last week! I was covering the Lakeridge Winery,
which does free daily tours and tastings if you're into wine, and we
also covered the Revolution Off Road, which has the vehicles that go
on the land and in the water. I do travel writing, too. Anyways,
getting back to it, for you, what's the most important thing
to remember?
Greg Tribett: Most important
thing is stop taking life for granted, live it day by day to it's
fullest. You just never know.
Marisa Williams: What has been
your most influential moment?
Greg Tribett: Honestly,
starting this new band has been very influential to me. I had the
chance to write an entire record, so there's only one cook in the
kitchen, not three. For me, it's my song writing, my music period.
Marisa Williams: If you were
not doing music, what would you be doing?
Greg Tribett: I'd have to be
doing some kind of art, something creative. I'm not a guy to sit
around on the couch and watch TV. I gotta be creative. There's too
many juices flowing, have to be creative.
Marisa Williams: What are three
things you must have with you when you are on the road?
Greg Tribett: One is my phone,
two is toiletry bag, three would have to be my music. I listen to a
ton of different stuff, so honestly, I'm not a real metal fan, as I
listen to everything from Jazz to Radiohead kind of music, orchestra,
and blue grass, like I said.
Marisa Williams:
Someone once told me that if you really want to make it in the music
industry, you really need to be able to appreciate all types of
music.
Greg Tribett:
I think that makes you a real musician, when you can
appreciate what you're doing, because you're definitely not the best.
There's so many different styles of music, down to people playing
buckets for drums on the side of the street, and I just look at that
in awe. I appreciate music and everyone who does that kind of thing.
Music makes the world go round, period. Without it, I don't know
what life would be like. It's in the air, the birds, the trees, it's
all there.
Marisa Williams: Very true. Do
you have any advice for musicians starting out?
Greg Tribett: I would say be as
good as you can at your craft and be original. Get in a garage with
a band, play your music, experience it. Don't sit in your bedroom on
your computer and just throw it up on the internet. There's no
interaction with people. Do whatever for a few years before you
think about doing anything on a professional level.
Marisa Williams: Anything we
did not mention that you want to make sure to include? Closing
thoughts? Additional comments?
Greg Tribett: I would like to
include the current tour with Drowning Pool, give everyone a heads up
on that. Are you going to be coming out to the show?
Marisa Williams:
I would certainly like to, as I'm super excited to see you guys
playing with Drowning Pool. As I mentioned, when I toured on Ozzfest
in 2002, that unfortunately was the year that Dave Williams of
Drowning Pool was found dead. My last name is Williams, and I was at
the hotel when they found his body, so that really hit home hard for
me. It also gave me a new perspective on things, being a journalist.
I'll tell you what, when those helicopters were landing within 20
minutes of his body being discovered, it really sickened me, and I
vowed I would try to not be that type of journalist. I definitely
would like to make it out to the show on Friday though. Any other
things to add in before I let you go?
Greg Tribett: Our
record's out, came out Oct. 2nd, literally only out for
four months now. Hopefully, you'll hear another single soon, don't
know which song yet, still working on it. People should keep up with
our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates, as those are the
three main accounts that we use.
The author of more than 100 books,
Marisa Williams earned her Master's in Writing from the Johns Hopkins
University and is the publisher of Thorisaz Views. For more on
Marisa, visit www.lulu.com/spotlight/thorisaz
and www.twitter.com/booksnbling.
Valleys debut album “Experiment One:
Asylum” will be released on Feb. 12th, and it is worth a
listen. The concept album explores multiple personality disorder
through the main character, who is called Asylum, and aims to show
listeners that it is possible to overcome. While the concept is more
interesting than most concept albums, it's the musicality of the
album that will grasp you by the throat.
Sucking you in with melody and audio
concepts, there is a softness that lures in listeners, then slams
them up against the wall in hard hitting riffs. Just when you want
to slap a label on the band, the whole sound of the album changes.
There's digital sounding concepts that relax you into a comfortable
state, making you wonder if a different album had been put on, but
then the rock returns with a force.
Each track stands alone differently,
but as a whole, the album does feel like multiple personalities. The
vocals even change, some sounding as if it's going to launch into a
hair ballad, or borderline emo, followed by distinct growling of
hardcore, then softening to rock singing, before growing more angry
like punk rock. In that sense, this album borders on many genres,
both vocally and musically.
This is an album that hard core metal
heads would appreciate, but it has a softer side that would appeal to
many audience members. The fact that there is a concept behind the
album, one that can literally and figuratively be heard when taking
in the album as a whole, speaks volumes in and of itself. This is
not one of those cryptic albums where you kind of get what they're
trying to do, but an album that really does take in the many facets
of sounds and musical techniques to show a well rounded sound
enveloping a concept that touches the lives of many people, echoing
musically how it is in life.
Multiple personalities are shown, as
each song seems to take on a different personality. Whether it's
relaxing back, tranquil, with an almost Spanish finger picking
technique on the guitar, or being slammed full force with machine gun
drumming, you can hear and feel the changes within the album.
Guitars take on meandering playful riffs, but then the drums speed
up, and the vocals begin to growl.
The Valleys have an almost
Cathedral-like storytelling quality, where the story concept can be
felt within the song by the instruments and the vocals. This is a
very cleverly done album, and does not play like a debut full-length
album. “Experiment One: Asylum” sounds more like a crowning
achievement from a band that has been around for years, so if this is
the beginning, one can only wait to see what's next from Valleys.
Valleys were formed in 2013, and though
they released the “Reborn” EP in 2014, “Experiment One: Asylum”
is their first full length album. Valleys were the official winners
of the 2015 Headbang for the Highway Battle of the Bands for the
Summer Slaughter Tour, endorsed by Coldcock Whiskey. Jayson Mitchell
and Mikey Clement share vocals duties, R.J. Riggle and Brandon
Scurlark double team the guitars, while Brandon Clement plays bass,
and Robert Meikle pounds the drums.
