Interview: Scott from Crossing Rubicon

I recently had the chance to throw a few questions at Scotty Anarchy, lead vocalist from Crossing Rubicon…

First of all, many congratulations to yourself and Jeanne on your recent marriage, and without lapsing into full on “Hello” magazine mode ,what do two rockers do for music at their wedding ? Did you go with some classic Tony Bennett style lounge singer, or get in a totally inappropriate wedding band like the one at the end of ‘ The Hangover’?

“There was only one band who could play our wedding, Connecticut’s greatest rock/party band, The Patrons! They gave us Bruno Mars and Michael Jackson, to Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden. They got me to come up and jam with them on an Alice In Chains song, had a mosh pit, and did a reworking of our wedding song (‘Mirrors’ by Justin Timberlake) and made it like an 80’s rock ballad. Combine that with the fact that our wedding had a Batman/Star Wars theme in one of the nicest wedding venues in Connecticut, and you got a Jeanne and Scott wedding [laughs]”

Sound awesome! Now, back on track… You’ve just released a stunning video for “Unhinged” from your debut album “No Less Than Everything”. The video will strike a chord with many, mainly due to music being the reason that the main character finally, and literally, takes off his mask. What was the thinking behind the video ?

“The concept was a combination between director Paul Horton of Paul Horton Visuals and myself. In the same vein of our last video, ‘Perfection In Life’, we wanted to comment on, and bring attention to, something we find important. We are one nation under medication, along with a society of apathy, with so much placebo that passion and human interaction have taken a back seat to tweeting, television, and Instagram. We also wanted to comment on how this is affecting family life, especially with children dealing with depression, Autism, or any other mental health issues. We wanted to say that there is passion and creativity in this world, and that passion can be found in local music scenes. Get your face out of your cell phone, put your devil horns up, and go to a show. My father introduced me to The Who and Black Sabbath, and he goes to almost every local show with my mom. At those shows is my local scene, my other family. The kid in the video takes his mask off because he is not afraid of life anymore, because he feels part of something, and he gets empowered by it.”

The song is a fucking belter and I love the shimmering guitar intro before Jeanne lets rip a glorious growl. I feel that her vocals help make the song really stand out.Was it always the intention to get Jeanne to make her mark on the song this way ?

“I love Jeanne’s voice, and I feel that up until now, people have only heard the tip of the iceberg. Jeanne was a huge inspiration to me in finishing the album in a time where I lost a lot of inspiration. It meant the world to me to have her leave her mark”

It seems to be a bone of contention amongst some keyboard warriors that you guys are not actually Jeanne’s previous band All That Remains. Is social media as much of a hindrance as it is a necessary marketing tool?

“We never wanted the word to get out about her being from ATR like it did, but somebody read a post and reported on it, and shit got a little out of control. You’re not your fucking khakis, and Jeanne is not ATR, and neither is Crossing Rubicon. The negative comments are mostly from closed-minded metal core fans that have hated every ATR album but ‘Fall Of Ideals’ , and nothing makes them happy anyway. Phil has posted about the record, and has been supportive to it, which i think silenced a lot of it, which was cool. We want to release the record, tour, and build up a following because of the music and the performance. If people follow Crossing Rubicon because they respect Jeanne’s talent and passion, thats awesome, but if your looking for a low budget ATR meet & greet, I have a different opinion. Any time you get some success there is going to be negative backlash from people who do nothing with their lives. Instead of doing something about it, they choose to hate. It sucks to be them.”

The album is a great mix of classic 80’s and 90’s inspired rock, along with a more modern sound. For instance, I’ve heard echoes of everyone from Scorpions and Queensrÿche, through to Alice In Chains and Avenged Sevenfold. Was it a deliberate ploy to fuck with pigeonholer’s minds ?

“We just want to be pigeonholed as the band that writes the best Crossing Rubicon music ever [laughs]. Rubicon is a family of 5 people who love music, and have hundreds of different inspirations. When we write, we follow our hearts where inspiration leads us, and we are the metal band that can play with Killswitch Engaged one week, and Brett Michaels the next, and both are a great fit. I’m a big Queen fan. Try to pigeonhole one of their albums! I like an album that’s diverse and epic in scope, that’s not afraid to take chances. So much about the music industry is so genre specific, and I don’t think that is a good thing. We don’t follow formulas, we write songs. This album is written for people who want to put it on, and appreciate going for a ride from one track to the next. We refuse to be boring. [laughs]

Absolutely! You have a very theatrical voice. For instance, “Do We Not Bleed” evokes great imagery, especially during the spoken word sections, If I remember my school days correctly, is that line not from ‘The Merchant Of Venice’ ?

“Well played, Dave!! I do have a theatre background. I love acting… almost as much as performing music… almost. I love theatrical metal performance, and pulling the audience in, and feeling that empathy. You’re correct on ‘The Merchant of Venice’. in that song I take on three roles of people being bullied and discriminated, and I make comparisons to the Shakespeare play. I do that in ‘Cut Deep’ as well with ‘Julius Caesar’. His plays are timeless, and I like to bring the messages into modern context.”

“Cut Deep” is a favourite of mine. It has a killer groove to it. Perhaps a tip of the hat to the ultimate grunge band, Alice In Chains ?

“Alice In Chains is one of the greatest, and Brandi (Crossing Rubicon’s drummer) and I do a lot with 5th harmonies because of their influence, but this song is on the album for one major reason… It’s my dad’s favourite [laughs]! First time my dad heard this song, he raved at how much it reminded him of classic Sabbath… Sabbath meets AIC. My dad was kind of bummed ‘Cut Deep’ did not make it on our EP ‘In Pains Of Sleep’, so when it came time for picking 12 of the 30 songs for the album, I fought for this one. How do I disappoint the guy who got me into music in general, bought me my first guitar, paid for all my lessons, and goes to all of my shows? You don’t. That one was for you, Dad!”

I believe that a couple of my other favourite tracks on the album “Bittersweet Day”, and “The Fallen”, are very personal to you? Dealing with the aftermath of your throat cancer diagnosis ?

“Those are the two most personal songs of mine. ‘Bittersweet Day’ I wrote in jail after my last and final arrest due to drugs or alcohol. It was a song of self realization that I needed to take control of my life. I knew I was going to go through hell, but it was time I stopped coasting and started living. The song is about embracing pain to appreciate glory. ‘The Fallen’ is a tough one for me. I wrote this song over the period of 2 months. I started writing this song when I made the decision to leave my career of 17 years so I could record ‘No Less Than Everything’. After leaving my job, my best friend quit Crossing Rubicon, my wife left me, and I got the cancer diagnosis. My life had fallen apart. I was lost, and actually did not know where I was going to get the strength to get focused again. I then heard that a fan of ours, Joey Schidler, had passed away from leukaemia at just 14 years old! His family told us how much he loved our music. Before he passed, I had done a radio spot shouting out to him. It meant everything to me knowing we meant so much to somebody, that we gave him strength. Hey, Gene Simmons… Rock is not dead! Three days later, Jeanne asked me out. She was the one other person, next to my family and band, that knew what music meant to me. I still get shaken up every time I sing this song live.”

Wow. I can only imagine. You mentioned Gene Simmons, part of the most corporate band ever! The modern music business has, to an extent, regressed into more of a cottage industry, with bands having more control over the business side. One of the more pleasing aspects at smaller gigs is watching a band come off stage, towel down, then head to the merch table to press the flesh. Can a smaller band still make a living out of music?

“Yes… by working with other smaller bands with heart who work hard as well. To change a system, create an new system that makes the old system obsolete. Personally, I hope to work with smaller bands so they can do this.”

You are signed with Pavement Entertainment. How vital has it been that Soil bassist Tim King is head of A&R there ?

“I had a very poor opinion of people in the industry until Tim came along. He is a breath of fresh air. Everywhere you go, you see artists working with suits in a country club called ‘the industry’ We get to fight the good fight with a fellow musician. Tim will send me an email just to tell me he can’t get Unhinged out of his mind. You don’t get that in other places. I know, I’ve been there. There is still heart in this industry, and Tim is proof of that.”

Now that the honeymoon is over, what are the immediate plans for Crossing Rubicon ?

“This Summer, we are doing a US tour in June, and hitting a couple festival shows as well. Jeanne and I were in Hawaii, talking about how we couldn’t wait to get back on stage again.”

Well, thanks again for your time, Scott. Congratulations, and good luck for the future, in all you do.

Interview: Dave Stott

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