Lokal Loudness | Interview w/ Chairleg

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Interview w/ Chairleg

By Stoney ⋅ June 8, 2008 ⋅

For years rock and roll and horror have gone together like a sort of sick theater of the macabre. Lights, blood, antics, the whole horrific nine yards. Arthur Brown hung himself from a cross in the late sixties, Alice Cooper was beheaded for the first time in the early seventies, Blackie Lawless of Wasp would drink blood out of a skull and toss raw meat into the crowd in the eighties, and Marilyn Manson regularly drew his own blood onstage in the nineties. While rock and metal bands have always used creative means to celebrate Halloween or even Friday the 13th, no one single band has ever put as much emphasis out of celebrating “evil” dates as Augusta band Chairleg. Sure the five-man metal machine works hard to run over anything in its path each and every show but when a superstitious or decadent holiday or eve pops up, the guys in Chairleg, singer Larry Sprowls, guitarists Matt Lawhorne and Billy Hickey, bassist Ryan Griffis and drummer Mike Brower, revel in taking things to a whole other slasher/zombie brain-eating/neck biting level.

LL – OK so you guys have a new DVD coming out on Friday the 13th. This is not the first time Chairleg has been a part of an event on an “eerie” date and by looking at your MySpace page it appears that you plan on following the DVD with a new CD on Halloween. What’s up with that?

LS - Well, Matt and I are pretty big into horror so it just seemed appropriate.

ML-Yeah, starting with our first show, we have been into the Horror scene in that sense. Our first show was Nightmare on Ellis Street a little Halloween type show Nick Laws and I put on for Sector 7G a
couple years back. We also have performed at all of the Bloodfest’s since we started and of course who could forget the massacre that was our CD release on Friday the 13th in April of last year. So now we feel as though we are making a name for ourselves and that date. Plus with the horror background it’s a lot of fun to get dressed up and have the gore!!

RG - Agreed, Anyone’s who’s been witness to our shows knows we like blood. Friday the 13th just seems appropriate.

LL - Now it’s no secret that Matt is a horror movie fanatic but is he actually the biggest scary movie buff in Chairleg?

MB - I would say yes; definitely. He is the one that finds out all kinds of obscure horror stuff and gets all the horror information before most other people seem to be aware of it. Larry would be not
too far behind Matt in this area, but he just doesn’t seem to have the same obsession for it that Matt has

LS - Well, actually Matt and I are both big horror freaks, we just like different things… we both have too many collectible horror action figures around the house…

ML - Haha damn, I guess the cats out of the bag for me. Come on really though, what’s funnier than some zombies or crazy slasher monsters.

LL – Well what exactly is gonna be on this new DVD? Will it be scary enough to live up to a Friday the 13th release date?

MB - I think the DVD will be great and it would live up to a release of any date we choose to release it on. As it was implied before, Chairleg follows a trend of going that extra distance for shows that are on significant dates to the band, so we chose Friday the 13th to be the date for the DVD release.

LS - Really though the show is about the 13th, the DVD is all about the Ides show…

ML - But you want scary? Try the extras, they are going to be great, we are going to have some backstage behind the “madness”, some drunken commentary and more!!

LL – Now is it true that the first Chairleg show lasted 45 minutes yet only contained 5 songs? If so, that sure IS scary!

MB - Well, I don’t remember how long it was for sure, but that wouldn’t surprise me. Anyone who has been to one of our shows and listens to how much Larry talks would not be surprised at a 5 song show lasting 45 minutes; hell, for Larry, I would say that’s good.

LS -Yeah, I talk WAY too much lol

ML -Well yeah, it is scary. Larry does like to tell “just a few little stories here and there” haha but no honest the crowd was so intense that they just kept us going and going it was one hell of a first show!!

LL – From what I understand Chairleg was actually started as a joke. That was five years ago. That sure is one long punch line.

ML - Yeah well, like I said Larry likes to talk A LOT hahaha

LS - The name was a joke… the intent was always murderous.

MB - I agree, I think that’s a bit misinterpreted. Chairleg wasn’t started as a joke, it was named Chairleg as a joke and to prove a point. We started the band not as a joke, but because this is
something we all wanted to do, and most of us are/were friends, so Larry brought us together to form the band. My feeling is the band Chairleg is for real, and we are here to stay; whatever we may call
ourselves in 5, 10, or 20 years can be left open for discussion.

LL – Chairleg recently added a new member. Where’d you dig up (ala Dr. Frankenstein-haha) Hickey and how has the addition changed the band? Was it a requirement that he be into scary things as well?

ML- Well honest when Mercer decided he needed to leave for the “betterment of himself” we told him he couldn’t until he found a replacement. He sent us good ol’ Billy. We honestly thought…”oh shit its Nathan Explosion” (from Dethklok) He came in and showed us some of his stuff and really blew our minds. We really liked him but thought we needed to make sure we were fair and set out to do the
tryouts- after everyone tried out though, Hickey was still on the top of the list, I mean come on, have you seen him…shit I wouldn’t ever want to tell him no…he would be all like “BILLY FIGHT NOW” (in his
best or worst caveman impression)…I don’t care who you are that’s pretty damn scary right there haha. Now though having Billy in the band he has really brought a lot to the table. He has come in with the knowledge and know how to give this band a swift kick in the ass and has helped us in getting more and more material out there for the fans. Since he joined just a couple months ago we have already written 4 of our new songs to go on the next CD, that’s on top of him learning and revamping all the old songs and dealing with our goofy drunk asses haha.

MB - We really just felt that Billy was the right choice for us. Being into scary things was not a requirement for Billy; in fact, I have very little interest in horror films and all that stuff Matt and Larry
like, but they haven’t kicked me out yet.

LL – Now not too long ago you guys were actually out of action for a few months due to some medical issues. What happened to sidetrack you guys for that long?

MB - Well, that’s my fault. I have a herniated disk in my neck; one of my disks in my neck has slipped a bit sideways out of the spine and is pinching a nerve. It’s a condition that I can’t really do anything
about but live with it. When we missed so much time, I was unable to do much; I was out of work and certainly could not play drums. I spent 4 months either laying in bed or wearing a neck brace. Anyway, the doctors finally figured out what was wrong with me, and now I get 3 big epidural shots every year to control the pain. The doctors told me I probably won’t ever get to do a lot of the things I used to really enjoy doing, like playing volleyball, but I told them I’ll keep playing drums until my arm falls off; that is something I can never give up. There is a possibility that sometime in the future I may
have to have surgery on that disk just to keep it from getting worse, and I may miss some time then, but I will definitely be back.

LS - Well, Brower had some neck issues that required a skeleton transplant and it took a long time to get the nanotech approved by the government…

LL – Just for giggles, lets jump off topic a bit. If Chairleg was to pick three horror movies to sit down and watch while drinking blood and eating lady fingers, what would those three films be?

LS -I can’t speak for the other guys and certainly not Lawhorne, but my three would be Prince of Darkness, The original Dawn of the Dead, and Evil Dead 2.

ML- damn you mean I can only pick 3!!!! What the hell!! Dont you know how hard that is for a horror fiend like me?!?!?! Man ok so if I can only have 3 I have to say I’m kinda on a foreign horror kick right now and so I guess my picks would be: Zombie- by Ugo Bologna, Battle Royale by Kinji Fukasaku, and of course just a classic Dead Alive by the one and only Peter Jackson

MB - Well, because I don’t really care much for horror movies, I don’t know maybe Event Horizon, Saw (is Saw considered horror?), and Nightmare on Elm St. Actually, my favorite movies are comedies followed by action movies.

LL – That’s blood-curdling! So what other spooky festivities do you have planned for the DVD release?

LS- Well, I’m not really authorized to release any details; ROBOT LIZARDS!!!

ML- Yeah I agree with Larry, just be ready and on the look out. Could get a bit insane but the details are top secret!!

MB - I’m sure Larry will find a way to spill blood all over my drum set as usual; that may not be spooky to you, but it scares the hell outa me!

LL – Any there anything that fans need to do to prepare themselves for this Friday the 13th show? Scotch guard their cloths? Maybe bring something to sacrifice?

LS -Wear white, and get really really close to the stage… unless you can’t hang

MB - Like Hitchhikers guide to the Galaxy says, don’t forget to bring a towel!

ML- haha yeah you might need an umbrella I think I heard it might rain

RG- A parka may be required at the front door.

LL – OK, before we wrap up (ala The Mummy-haha); Who’s the tops? Freddie Krueger, Michael Myers, or Jason Voorhees

LS-No brainer. Jason Fucking Voorhees. (Brower will definitely disagree)

ML-Oh yeah come on man, no question Jason all the way!!

RG: Michael Myers, of course. Anything that makes the face of William Shatner more frightening wins outright!

MB- Freddie Krueger

LL – Well thanks for bringing the fright fest…oh yeah, and for chatting with Lokal Loudness.

LS- Anytime…

ML- our pleasure thanks for bringing the goats head haha

MB- No problem; hope to see you guys at the show!

For more information Chairleg’s Friday the 13th show at Sector 7G on June 13th visit www.myspace.com/chairleg.

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