How important is Kyuss as a band?
Kyuss are one of my favourite bands of all time, they manage to achieve pure power combined with beautiful melodies (sure, not the kind you might get from pop music). They also epitomise the US desert stoner rock scene and the success of a style of music growing in a scene in a particular period of history. An amazing creation, fuelled by a strong scene and some seriously talented musicians.
Why is the Blues For The Red Sun album important to you?
Blues for the Red Sun has been, for a very long time, my favourite album of all time. It has a particular place in my heart as an album that grabbed me, shook me, and pulled me towards music I found more meaningful. It taught me that heavy music can be beautiful. Remembering I was eight when this record was released, it already had an aura around it when I discovered it.
Matt is a singer why did you bring in Chappy for this?
Have you heard the vocal range on this man? He is amazing! And it’s also one of his favourite albums. Getting Chappy to do the vox also lets Matt focus on pure riffage – a true sight to behold.
Will you be trying to do note for note replicas of the songs or re-interpretations or
what?
For me, there are many psychedelic jam parts of the album that would be silly to try to play note for note. That’s the joy of recording a jam and then never playing it the same again. But never fear, the riffs will be there! We might play with a few bits though.
Brant Bjork and the Kyuss band and Josh Homme at other times have all come in to
party at Cherry Bar. Did this make it the logical place to host this special tribute?
Cherry Bar loves Kyuss as much as we do, it was a match made in heaven.
How challenging is it to pay tribute to one of your personal favourite and one of the
most influential records of your generation?
For me, extremely challenging. I started learning it thinking it could either be an amazing experience, or one that destroyed my love of my favourite record. I’ve never been keen on playing covers, of anything, so my favourite album was an interesting place to start! It has certainly given me some interesting insights into riffs that I never realised were as complex as they are. It might take me some time to get over though! But it’s one of those experiences that really deepens your connection with an album, Kyuss and I now have a new relationship.
What can people expect from this Kyuss 20th celebration with the High Times?
A glorious celebration of the wonder of an album that has had a passionate following for 20 years. Probably lots of beer, lots of love and long hair.
