Interview with Adem of 3 Inches of Blood
October 6, 2004
Interviewed by Bill Klopfer

 

Bill: How did you guys get started as a band? I heard it was something about a reunion of an old band.
Cam: Yeah, something like that. I didn’t join the band until about a year after it got going. Jamie, Sunny and Bob put together a reunion show for their old band but they couldn’t get a couple of the other guys to do it so they hired another drummer and bass player to relearn the old songs. Then, they decided to drop that and try something entirely new and totally different. They started writing metal; it wasn’t hardcore like the old band was.

Bill: So what made you guys choose 3 Inches of Blood as a band name?
Cam: That was Jamie’s dad who thought of the name. He likes to think up band names. From what I’m told most of them are bad band names. He thought of 3 Inches of Blood because Jamie’s brother had a this thing where every time he told this story it kept getting more embellished with how much blood was on the floor. So his dad thought 3 Inches of Blood would be a cool band name.

Bill: What do you like and dislike about the music coming out today?
Cam: Not enough solos. Not enough flying off the handle and rocking out. Everyone’s just satisfied with the power cords, drop tuned, 7 strings. It seems watered down now-a-days. There’s no substance or texture. A lot of the new metal that’s coming out gradually there’s a new change coming about. People are remembering what was good about metal in the old days.
Bill: I’ve noticed there are a few bands, like Iced Earth and some hardcore bands that are starting to cross over slowly to old school metal.
Cam: Totally. A lot of the hardcore bands are getting more into like a metal kind of sound with hardcore vocals. People are getting back into writing melodies and harmonizing guitars.

Bill: Explain the meaning and the significance of the title Advance and Vanquish
Cam: We didn’t want to name the album after one of the songs. We tried thinking of a title that would capture the feelings of all the songs on the record dramatically, with the battles of blood and war that we sing about that seem to fit pretty well. It was a long and arduous process.

Bill: Most of the songs are about pirates and cyborg warfare; what influenced these ideas?
Cam: Nothing in particular really; just trying to tell a good story.

Bill: Are there any songs off the album that mean a lot to you guys?
Cam: There’s no one individual song.
Bill: For instance what is the song “Deadly Sinners” about?
Cam: “Deadly Sinners” is about a heavy metal army that controls the streets and conquers in the name of metal and destroys the whole opposition. The title sort of came about after being in a music store and the guy who worked there, telling us about some amplifier and how it is great for jazz and blues, then he kind of stopped and looked at us and said, ‘What am I talking about? You guys probably play in a band called Deadly Sinners or something like that’. I loved that name, like as soon as I heard it we had to write a song called that.

Bill: Did you guys grow up listening to a lot of Iron Maiden and stuff like that?
Cam: Oh yeah, totally. My buddy used to come over when we were little kids and he would sleep over and bring all of his Iron Maiden tapes.

Bill: How was the recording process for this album? How was it working with Neil Kernon and Colin Richardson?
Cam: Once we actually got down to it, it was relatively easy. We had some member changes right before we went into the studio. We got a new drummer and bass player so we kind of delayed the recording by a month or so, so we could teach these guys the songs. By then, we couldn’t get the studio we wanted anymore so Neil Kernon who is based in Chicago, so we flew out to Chicago and recorded there. We were out there for like 3 weeks and we had a great time. He was really hands on and he wasn’t a ball buster, but he would push your limits and get the best out of you. He was great to work with and serious about what we were doing, but he knew how to kick back, relax and have a good time.
Bill: Did Colin Richardson mix it?
Cam: He mixed it. We unfortunately haven’t actually met Colin yet. The label had approached Colin about it and he was really into in it. Just looking at his credentials and all the bands he’s worked with, we were definitely pretty happy. So he mixed it over in England and send us back the songs.

Bill: How did you guys get signed to Road Runner?
Cam: When we were doing what bands do and sending out our demos to labels, we sent stuff to Road Runner before but we weren’t really talking to the right A&R guy. So, down the road after we did a couple of tours, fairly high profile tours, they took notice again and when we were in New York they asked us to come into their office and they were really interested. I don’t think they thought we were that serious at first, but then saw what we were doing tour-wise and what we had planned for recording a record they took a little more interest and things came about.

Bill: What are your biggest influences vocally?
Cam: My biggest influences would be Bruce Dickenson, Rob Halford, Dio, King Diamond; kind of all over the board metal-wise. I have a lot of metal singers that I idolize and look up to, but respect each in their own unique and different way because they all have style. I try to emulate all my favourite singers in some way.

Bill: How is the writing process for your music, especially since you have two vocalists?
Cam: Jamie and I split it right down the middle. We both write our own parts and both arrange where we’re going to sing. Then we sit down with a pen and a piece of paper and kind of map it out. We both collaborate on lyric ideas and then we just match up our lyrics and see how they fit together. It’s gotten harder over the years. We used to go in and just try fitting in words while the guys were jamming out the song, but as the songs got more complex it was harder to do that.

Bill: What do you like most about touring?
Cam: Just getting out to new places. We like going to places that perceive us well have good times, but we also like playing new places that have never heard us before and hopefully that goes well and then we can come back to this town again.

Bill: What is the coolest band you’ve ever toured with?
Cam: Probably The Darkness. That tour was all around spectacular.

Bill: I heard they sang a song with you on tour and he lost his voice or something.
Cam: In the early stage of the tour, we would song check with “Deadly Sinners” often times they would come out and watch the sound check. One night Justin from The Darkness asked, ‘What’s that sound you always do during the sound check?’ ‘It’s called Deadly Sinners.’ He said, “Oh cool. That song is going to be a hit.’ So, the entire band was flattered. Someone had an idea to ask them to sing it with us and we were going to do it the last night of the tour at Hammerstein, but he was eager to do it before hand. So he came out and did the last chorus with us and it went over really well, but the next night in Liverpool he got laryngitis and they had to bail at the last minute. We kind of feel responsible for that and we had to cancel the next couple of shows as well, but it was kind of a blessing in disguise for me because I was starting to lose my voice a little bit and having 2/3 days off really helped.

Bill: How often were you playing shows?
Cam: We did about 13 shows with The Darkness and on days off we did headlining shows. We pretty much played almost every day. We had about 4 days off and did about 25 shows.

Bill: Did you lose your voice where you couldn’t hit many notes?
Cam: Well, I kind of struggled on that tour, but the more I got used to playing consecutive shows the better I got at maintaining my voice. Justin gave me tips on how to warm up properly.
Bill: Would you like to share any tips?
Cam: Basically, it’s pretty simple. The main tip he had was not to drink hot liquids. It’s fine if you do it during the day or after the show, but when you have a few hours before show time gargle cool cold water. I had never heard that before; it was a tip an opera singer gave him. I tried it out and it definitely helped. Nothing really hard and intricate, it doesn’t take any dedication or anything.
Bill: Nothing like a lemon solution, like they used to talk about.
Cam: Well, some people suggested a throat lozenge, but I didn’t want to take anything that could dry my throat out potentially. The water definitely helps.

Bill: How is the Canadian metal scene?
Cam: Hard to say. It’s so spread out geographically. Especially out here, the next major metropolis is like 12 hours away. There are big cities that are good to play but you have to do a lot of driving in between. I don’t think there are really scenes that collaborate to form a ‘Canadian Scene’.

Bill: What is your favourite song to play live?
Cam: Off the new record, probably “Fear on the Bridge”. We’ve been rehearsing and playing that live for quite awhile. We’ve had that going for a long while before we recorded.

Bill: Well, that’s all the questions I have. Take it easy and good luck on the tour coming up.
Cam: Thanks a lot.

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