Korn‘s Jonathan Davis was so excited by ORGY that he created his own record label …
If Megadeth and Sex Pistols came together to make a baby the resulting hybrid monster would be Comeback Kid. If they all shared a joint and got high, the resulting state would be Idle Threat.
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Their brand of punk meets blistering metal undertones in a cacophony of passion and rage and is so well executed, you won’t mind the odd blister on the eardrums.
Idle Threat have cited many different bands as influences but as guitarist Tommy Tenkay says, their debut album Rope Burn came from the ashes of their previous bands. “Things fell apart there and when Tom [vocalist Tom McEwen] joined, we had a lot of stuff written without lyrics or vocals and he brought a new energy to it.”
And, according to a recent interview with Tenkay, a cute butt apparently. “Yeah,” he coos, “He’s a cute arse. He’s just cute all round, the most loveable human being on the planet!” McEwen’s vocals are rip-roaringly good, cutting to the point of painful across a traditional punk edge–so how does the addition of someone perceived to be so cute manage to make such a sound within a group with anarchist tendencies? “To be quite honest, we’re all pretty laid back dudes,” Tenkay says. “The band’s just a way to take out aggression.
“We all grew up listening to all the Epitaph bands, a couple of us have heavier influences–I‘m a die-hard Pantera fan–and I think when you put that pent up aggression on the other side of a high gain amp and some drums that go way faster than any drummer should, and Tom … I’m pretty sure his vocal chords are just sandpaper.”
Syrupy sweet sandpaper, mind you. “He was always in less melodic bands, and never had the challenge of melody thrown at him. When he joined we were like, ‘Oh by the way, man, you’re gonna have to hold a note.’ And when we hit the studio he really stepped it up and gave it his all, so it came out sounding better than we ever expected.”
Those heavier influences, like Pantera, definitely seep through in Rope Burn. Tenkay has dropped the word aggression a few times now, indicating perhaps there’s been a few personal experiences of the negative kind that have resulted in the need for the presence of metal elements in the album. “There’s a couple of my songs on there, lyrics that I wrote, either [about] ex-employees, shitty work situations–I love having a whinge about that.
“Working for shitty bosses and knowing some shitty people. Others on there is just shit I saw at the pub–Pride Of Lions was written about a bunch of old blokes sitting at the pub. I know it comes out more aggressive when you put it all behind the tones, really.
“Like I said, we’re all laid back dudes but it comes out more aggressive when you play it fast and heavy.”
When you say punk to someone who doesn’t really listen to it, they go, ‘Oh cool, three chords and singing about your girlfriend. It’s like, nah, this is more technical, more than three chords to it and metal influence comes through in riffs and solos and things like that.
[TOMMY]
With half the songs already finished before McEwen’s addition to the lineup, Idle Threat have already had a chance to test their agro on live audiences. “We’ve probably played 70% of the album live before, and the others are new to people who haven’t seen us before.” Idle Threat’s particular brand of aggression has translated into like-minded audiences pretty well. “It’s punk-rock, I guess, everyone knows what they’re signing up for when they go to a show–they’re not expecting The Beach Boys or anything. I think we’re another punk band on the bill who play a little more technical.
“When you say punk to someone who doesn’t really listen to it, they go, ‘Oh cool, three chords and singing about your girlfriend. It’s like, nah, this is more technical, more than three chords to it and metal influence comes through in riffs and solos and things like that.
“I guess lyrically it’s [all] about average emotions a 20-something will feel living in a big city and struggling to get by–we all have doubts and questions, a moral compass, half the lyrics reflect that.”
And when things don’t go as Idle Threat expect, that too is when the ferociousness of punk comes into play. “We absolutely love what we do,” says Tenkay, “It’s music we want to listen to and I think that draws a sense of pride as well. It’s not like we’ve got our heads up our arses, but we’re very happy with how it came out.”
Bigger and better than they expected, working with producer Clayton Segelov at The Brain Studios helped the cause. Segelov amped things up a notch and the results are something that Tenkay cannot say more positive things about. “The first time we heard the mixes we all shat our pants collectively,” says Tenkay. “’Wait, we did this?’”
To look at photos of the band together, they’re such a bunch of happy chappies that idle is a pretty operative word, and it might be difficult to take any perceived rage from them seriously. “Nah, it all comes out on stage!
“Swing your neck round the wrong way, kind of things. That’s where it all comes out!”
Pre-order Idle Threat’s new album Rope Burn here.
