After setting the alternative scene alight with their debut album ‘Disgusting’ Beartooth finally set the record straight proving their not a one and done band. The release of ‘Aggressive’ this year has opened the door to much bigger ventures; a main stage slot at Download Festival (only a week after the album was released), a recorded home town show and a few award nominations.
This tour they’re playing bigger venues therefore with more people. They have their hands on some bigger and bolder lighting and the opportunity to add some little extras. We sat down with guitarist Kamron Bradbury to talk about that main stage appearance at Download, being punched in the face from a failed crowd surfing attempt and one of the craziest things to happen at a house show.
After having such a whirlwind few years after the release of ‘disgusting’ how has the reception been to the new album on this tour?
Kamron: It’s been great, were playing a lot of new songs which is cool with me because I’ve been ready to play some news songs after playing (the old tracks) them for two and a half years, but the crowd reception has been incredible, people know all the words. The go crazy for those songs, especially like ‘Hated’ and ‘Fair Weather Friend’ and ‘Sick Of Me’, the reception to those songs has been insane.
Is there anything you did differently in the studio with this album?
Kamron: Caleb writes everything so he’s the only one down there, the only thing he did different was, because he writes and records everything in his basement in his house, is he took it to David Bendeth to get it mixed and he also co-wrote one song with him, that’s the only change really.
Would you want to have more input in the songs writing process?
Kamron: I cannot write a better song that Caleb so, everything he writes I love.
The new album deals with a lot of different topics, how important is it to be honest with the lyrics?
Kamron: People definitely latch onto lyrics, I latch onto lyrics with bands. There’s so much to say about honest music, you can tell if it’s honest or not or if somebody is just faking it. I think our songs are incredibly honest and Caleb talks a lot about personal struggle and some dark shit. So yeah people relate to that and I really think that’s awesome.
The last time you were here you played main stage at Download Festival, how was that experience? Because we’ve been every year since 2013 and there’s a lot of people at the stage all the time.
Kamron: It was crazy, it’s defiantly one of the crazier moments of my life. Just walking out and not being able to see the end of the crowd in any direction is like a very nerve wracking feeling but at the same time it’s just like a ‘holy shit’ moment.
BM: I bet you spent the whole time just trying to see where the crowd ended.
Kamron: Just playing, not even moving around, just looking.
I don’t know if you know anything about the live album on Deezer from you Download Festival Paris appearance?
Kamron: No I didn’t, but that’s a nice thing to have, and look back a few months later or a few years later and see if I played everything right. I love watching live stuff, I usually go home and watch a bunch of live videos from any tour we do, we just did a show in Columbus that we had a film crew come out and do a whole thing.
Do you like to watch stuff to see what you did differently or to watch the crowd or?
Kamron: I think we’re doing a live DVD, a little documentary.
Do you prefer playing open air festivals or small club shows?
Kamron: The festival shows, the barrier is really far away so you feel a little disconnected but there’s 30-40 thousand people watching you. Then the no barrier shows you are face to face to people and you can feel their energy and it gets you way more hyped, there’s good things about both. Then the club shows like this venue, we get to come in and play as many songs as we want, have like a light show and make it our show.
You’ve done a few house shows before. Has anything gone really wrong like being punched in the face?
Kamron: We did a whole house show tour actually, and yeah I’ve been punched in the face. It was a small club though. I stage dove and landed really close to the pit and I just see a fist come over my face and punch me straight in the mouth. I fell down in the pit and I couldn’t get out so I started hitting people in the face with my guitar to get out. And then one of our house shows, the opening band they were called Church Tounge, a local band from that area. Their guitarist lit himself on fire and kept playing and I was like “what is happening?” that was probably one of the craziest things that’s ever happened at our shows.
Apart from you said earlier Download Festival was one of the craziest shows, is there anything else that sticks out as being one of the best shows you’ve played?
Kamron: The Columbus show which is our home town show, we played right before we came on this tour. It was just really cool because we put a lot of money into the show. So we had the CO2 cannon and pyro and a film crew and my whole family was there so I was like “mom look at me, look what I’m doing. I’m not a shit head!” that will be one of the most memorable shows for me.
Photo Credit: Erin Moore / Forte Photography UK
