METAL PIT INTERVIEWS
Interview with DORMITORY
EFFECT. Interview by NICK. August 2008.
In my first
interview for the Metal Pit I am very lucky to have four very
talented ladies which call themselves Dormitory Effect,coming to us like a
"Fist to the Face" from non other than New York city.
Their debut cd is called 'Wealth of disease" which is longer than a demo but
not quite a full length cd,however the music is not lacking at all and when you listen to it you will know that this band is for real and can bring it with the best of them.
Without further delay,brothers and sisters I give you Dormitory Effect.....
Dormitory Effect. L to R. Gee (Drums), Merideth (Guitar), Susan (Vocals), Urith (Bass)
talented ladies which call themselves Dormitory Effect,coming to us like a
"Fist to the Face" from non other than New York city.
Their debut cd is called 'Wealth of disease" which is longer than a demo but
not quite a full length cd,however the music is not lacking at all and when you listen to it you will know that this band is for real and can bring it with the best of them.
Without further delay,brothers and sisters I give you Dormitory Effect.....
Dormitory Effect. L to R. Gee (Drums), Merideth (Guitar), Susan (Vocals), Urith (Bass)
Sue: We went through some name ideas at the band's inception, and then one day I was talking with my friend Kathleen about the phenonmenon where women who live together all start going through their cycles at the same time. She looked it up on the net and told me it was called the Dormitory Effect. I said "THAT'S IT!!"
Urith: We were talking about trying to find a unique name that would be
female-related but not too obvious. Sue and Gee were on the same track, and Gee found the scientific name for it at the same time Sue out found the
common term, which is Dormitory Effect. Great minds think alike!
Gee: The concept of it was pretty funny, and yet simple....and it works.
Meredith: Didn't we all come up w/the name? Does anyone have the email w/the other names we thought of? Where they lame? god I don't remember!
Metal Pit: I have to ask,in your bio when you list the bandmembers it says on the "Beatbox"....Meatwad?Is that some secret band member who sits under the stage doing un-Godly things during your set?
Sue: Meatwad is like the Matrix. Meatwad and the jambox can only be experienced, not so much explained.
Urith: Meatwad is the love that dare not speak its name.
Gee: Meatwad makes the money see....meatwad gets the honeys GEE ;) Although I would love for a secret band member to keep me company behind the drums once in a while...that'd be hot.
Meredith: I have not felt any ungodly things yet..so maybe Meatwad is
allergic to me..eh, wouldn't be the first time.
Metal Pit: Who does most of the lyric writing for the band?Unlike some of the bands out there,your lyrics seem to be very personal for example the song "Father" has some pretty powerful lyrical content?
Sue: All of us contribute lyrically, but Meredith wrote the lyrics to that
particular song.
Meredith: A lot of songs that I do write about is about my dad. Father song,
obviously about my dad..Who I lost at a very early age.HE lives in my dreams
and my memories..and was a wonderful man to my memory. He was a guitar player/and jazz pianist, and I'm assuming I get musical ability or whatever
u want to call itfrom him..HE passed away when I was 10, and it was very
sudden, due to a brain clost exploding. I think it effected me more when I
got older, When I was younger my friendsat the time left me and I was pretty
much all alone for awhile and all I had was my family and a 1 Good friend
that stayed with me.IT was a really fucked up part of my life, and I guess
what does not kill you makes you stronger? Since this had affected me way
later in life, I write about it a lot to release my pent up feelings.
Urith: We all contribute lyrically. We don't write about dragons or
political stuff as a rule, just personal things we've gone through and we're
sure other people can relate to.
Gee: Experiences in this thing called life gives you great ability to come
up with music and lyrics and we're all lucky enuff to have some sort of
outlet.
Metal Pit: You were all four in previous bands before this one,has that past
experience helped or hurt this band and your creative process?
Sue: I think it mostly helps because for instance, Urith and I are very
comfortable writing together as we have played together before. On the
other hand, I think we all bring some baggage with us to the table from our
other projects.
Urith: I think it's helped because it's a clean slate musically, at least
for me. I wrote quite a bit for One Step Beyond, the band Susan and I were
in prior, but it's been a long time since I had written music, and it's nice
to see how what Mer and Gee bring to the table with the songs. It's great
because even though we've been together for awhile, it's exciting to put new
songs as group regardless of who wrote it because we're each other's biggest fans.
Gee: Everything for a reason, and I have no regrets especially when it comes to my music. I am lucky enuff to say that I've had the pleasure of playing with alot of very talented people along the way so far and my Dormitory girls are NO exception. It's all about chemistry...
Meredith: Yes I was in a bunch of bands, i'm a band whore..eh, not that
way..I started being in bands at an early age, I think i was 15 in my first
band "stained eye", hahah -We were not good, we played a lot of cover
songssuch as your pearl jam, Alice in chains Seattle type stuff. I don't
even think we had a drummer at the time. I was also in a band called 3rd
stone..when I was super young,around 16 or so? But the Main bands I were in for some time were Step lively(yes a ska band) Perseverance, and Still your
enemy. Probably more but I can't remember. And I was also in a band with
urith, our bassist for a bit-Called Still your enemy. So obviously I knew
her fantastic skills =). We all, also knew each other before we joined
forces, so we were pretty comfortable when we started jamming.Gina was
immediately my beer buddy lol.
Metal Pit: Who are some of your favorite bands out there right now?
Sue: I'm just gonna mention unsigned guys since the big bands have enough publicity! Borgo Pass, Thunderbrew, Swear On Your Life, Bullistic, Sanity Is Chaos, Resolution 15 and Lewd Buddha are some of my faves!
Urith: Unsigned definitely Resolution15, Lewd Buddha and the other bands Sue mentioned (we tend to like the same local/regional bands!); for signed acts I've always been a HUGE Lamb of God fan, Meshuggah, Slayer, Machine Head, Slipknot, God Forbid, Killswitch Engage, Darkest Hour, Chimaira and I'm diggin' Divine Heresy. I still love Fear Factory though I this point I dunno what's going on with them.
Gee: Thats definitely hard to answer w/out leaving someone OUT lol,but all the ones Sue mentioned are a definite! For the popular metal bands...Lamb of God, Sevendust, Killswitch Engage have been fav's of mine. I like the Sixx AM cd ALOT too...
Meredith: Check out Striving in Greater hopes, Straight line Stitch, Point
blank, Lies beneath, Soma, Swear On Your Life, Borgo pass, bullistic,
thundrewbrew, Year of Confession, gods fallen, Black water rising, ethereal
collapse, Thc, Dividing light, in extremis, Burning the memory, dead
barbara, slow painful dose, john wilkes booth, 12 eyes, lesser being
rip..i'm sure there is a lot more.. My other fav bands/artists: Faith no
more, Killswitch engage, frank zappa, steve vai, Lamb of god, Slayer, amy
winehouse, fiona apple, Life of agony, Tantric, days of the new, guns n
roses, Sevendust, Staind, incubus, dark new day, stereo mud, sepultura(old
stuff), metallica(old stuff), pantera, alice in chains, mr bungle, between
the buried and me, 40 below summer, old incubus,and i love old funk
stuff-james brown, sly and the family stone..there's so much more i'm sure!
Metal Pit: You have opened in the past for such bands as Suicide city and In this Moment, as very strong women in the scene themselves, what did you learn from Jenn and Maria that may help you in trying to deal with some of the
stereotypes Female Metal bands have to face?
Sue: What I learned from Jenn and Maria is how important it is to kick so
much ass that it definitely raises the bar for other musicians. That's what
they do! We've also picked this up just from our own years of experience in
the trenches. Unfortunately people often stereotype females in metal as not
being very proficient with their craft. Sometimes they confuse us with
females from other genres where it maybe isn't as important to play your
instruments well. We recently followed a band with girls in it who knew
about three chords and played them BADLY. It hurts women in music
everywhere when girls who don't know what they're doing get up onstage and clear out a room. Before you ask, I'm not naming any bands by name, at
least not before I get a few shots of Soco & Lime in me...heh heh heh...
Urith: Well, as Sue said, all four of us have been doing this for a long
time, so we've learned to deal with that stuff way before Jenn and Maria hit
it big. But we definitely do respect the fact that they've proven they can
thrown down some kickass Metal and hold their own on any stage with any
musician and can still be beautiful and feminine and sexy without looking
like a ho. Obviously, they have the commercial success that may make it
easier for those who are reluctant to take female Metal musicians seriously
to give us a true listen without regard to the fact we have vaginas.
Gee: It was such an awesome experience to open for both In This Moment AND Suicide City....I was shitting myself! What is cool is that both Maria and Jenn always give it their ALL and just simply kick major ass. They portray confidence in their performances and a rediculous amount of talent. Jenn is also just a mad cool person in general and always fun to talk to and do shots with! I think the industry has become ALOT more accepting to female musicians lately, which should've happened a long ass time ago!
Unfortunately you're always gonna get someone who's gonna stereotype ya as a "chick drummer" or whatever....it is what it is.
Meredith: You do learn to basically believe in yourself and the music you
create, and don't let anyone stomp on your dreams because your too strong
for that.
Metal Pit: I have heard through the Metal grapevine that you guys kick major Ass at your live show. Is the set list made up of only originals or do you perform any cover tunes?
Sue: Funny you should ask. We started out talking about BEING a cover band, and as everyone started showing up with original songs they wanted to do, we shifted towards the idea of doing a 50/50 originals/covers thing. Our concentration for the moment has been on originals, but we have had some fun doing covering some killer songs like "Thing That Should Not Be", "Them Bones", "Looks That Kill" and others.
Urith: We do have a couple of covers that we rotate, and we're in the
process of selecting and learning more to keep it fresh. It's always good to
throw a cover in because it gives the audience something familiar to relate
to and for them to see what turns us on as musicians and fans ourselves.
Gee: What grapevine was that, cuz I like it, lol! There's a line from my
favorite movie (Prey for Rock and Roll) that goes "We took a vote while you
were gone....and we're now a cover band!" lol and that question just
reminded me of that. Originals is where it's at, I love the fact that we
create some good shit together. Covers are always something that every band should do and throw in...sort of mandatory!
Meredith: I love doing originals, but I also love the faces of people when
we start playing old metallica..it's always fun when people get excited
about that!
Metal Pit: You all seem to be very accomplished musicians at such a young age, when did you start playing and at what time did you think this was something you wanted to do as a career?
Sue: I was singing almost as soon as I could speak. My parents were pretty encouraging from early on to sing, although I'm not sure they pictured me heading in this direction! I knew I wanted to be a singer when I was about
5 yrs old and I knew I wanted to sing metal by the time I was about 15.
Urith: I was 7 when I first picked up the bass. I started out on organ when
I was I think 6, but I just wasn't into it. Then one day my family had some
music cranking and the bassline was shaking the house and I realized THAT
was what I needed to play. I didn't think of wanting to pursue it as a
career until I was about maybe 12. I figured why not give it a shot?
Gee: I started playing when I was about 8 years old and Im honestly not sure where it came from as noone in my family has musical playing backgrounds. At that young of an age, I didn't even know what a career was prolly lol but I remember when I hit my "teen years" that I was all about getting a band together and going on tour before I finished High School. Yeah, that didn't happen but I realized that music/drumming was my calling and it really is what keeps me going. (Still waiting for that tour btw...)
Meredith: I started playing music when I was in elementary school-clarinet,
then later on to piano, then finally guitar at 14-which I had to convince my
mother to let me try! I went to a music college for awhile, so I always
wanted to surround myself in some kind of music, and ofcourse everyone's
dream is to be able to do what they love for a living.
Metal Pit: Do your families support what you are doing or do you have to hear those wonderful words at holidays like....."Why dont you settle down,find a man and have a bunch of kids before you get too old",haha.
Sue: My family has always been pretty supportive with the music. They're
also pretty good about not asking relationship questions when you're not
seeing anyone. But now that I have a boyfriend, a lot of the girls
(cousins, aunts) ask pretty regularly if it looks like there's a ring coming
my way. It can be annoying but I know they mean well, so I just tell them
"You never know..."
Urith: My family has always been supportive in varying degrees. Maybe a
couple of family members wished I pursued Law or at least played other forms of music, but they respect my choice and what I've accomplished. I'm not rich and famous but they know I've done more than most, and I've always did well in school had a decent regular job to fall back on, which is usually a
family's biggest concern. I have been married for a long time now. My
husband is a musician and he understands why I do what I do. My mom and
other relatives gave up on me having kids a long time ago, but my dad held
out hope that I would have some. But I think he's finally realized that it's
not for me. Children are a goal for some people, but it's not a goal of
mine.
Gee: I've been fortunate enuff to have my family behind me 1,000 percent.
From the minute I started playing, both of my parents would take me to
lessons, rehearsals, recitals, whatever...and of course now that I'm older I
totally appreciate it ALOT more. I mean I'm SURE it was fucking annoying
listening to me practice at home....and fucking MAD expensive as well!
DRums are not cheap! (Hmmm, maybe thats why they have been happily divorced for many years...) SO I am MAD grateful to them for doing that for sure. As far as "settling down"....my Grandma is always asking me that but she also asks how my band is in the next breath , so go figure. Holidays are
for drinking and my brother has kids so thats keeping some of them busy for
now. lol
Meredith: I think my family was super duper supportive. My grandmother is
the shit. Basically when I had to take off from college to tour with
perseverance, I asked her first since she was helping me through school. she said to me, School will always be there and this seems like something you've been waiting for ..for a long time. So My mother at that point was living in
South Carolina, and she's always been supportive of my music. My
grandmother still tries to come to my shows-she's 99 now...she bops her head its the cutest thing ever! lol As far as my family trying to make me have
babies and get married. It was never forced onto me at all, Thank god. and I
was recently married and at this point, and no children as of now!
Metal Pit: Susan,I have to say your vocals are really Amazing and very powerful. Have you been singing and practicing your whole life or is this just
something that comes naturally to you?
Sue: I sang all the time from the time I was just learning to speak, just
for the fun of it. My dad always tried to get me to sing something, like he
would pretend to be scared of something so that I would sing him a song so
he'd "feel better". My mom taught me how to play the piano, and that made
me want to sing along with whatever I was playing. I didn't do any
practicing until 7th grade when I ended up with a great chorus teacher who
taught us about breathing, projection, etc. I just tracked him down
recently online. Hi Dr. Brobston!!
Gee: Sue sucks, what are you talking about.....HA! u kidding?
I LOVE MY SINGER!
Metal Pit: I have had the pleasure of chatting with Urith several times and she seems like she has a great sense of humor,so is she the prankster of the group or do you all contribute to the torture when you are out on the road?
Sue: We really don't screw with each other on the road. Otherwise, I think
we all tease each other equally.
Urith: Thank you, but I'm hardly a prankster. I'm probably the least likely
to prank anyone! We definitely tease each other though because we're some
quirky chicks and sometimes it's just too easy. And there is nothing
politically correct about us at all. I mean, when you've got an Italian, a
Black, a Jew and an Irish girl all with biting wit in the same band...I
mean, we bust on each other pretty frequently LOL...
Gee: We haven't really been on the road for long periods of time...yet....
I'm always up for some jokes and fun and stuff tho...within reason. Sarcasm
is big with all of us, so thats always cool. Drunk Urith is the best, she
don't come out much but when she does it's extra fun!
Meredith: I love drunk urith...=)
Metal Pit: When out on tour what are some of your favorite places to eat and where? Have you had a Philly cheese steak or a Primanti Brothers sandwich from Pittsburgh?
Sue: Urith and I did hit a couple of Cheesesteak stands in Philly when we were in our old band together. Other than that, we've always got our eyes
peeled for Cracker Barrel because we hear they have some sweet hookups for touring bands. Of course, that rumor has yet to be confirmed or denied by
us.
Urith: Yeah, we did the Philly Cheesesteak thing! It's always fun to eat
whatever the local dish is. Sadly, I don't remember names :( we haven't made it to Pittsburgh yet, though I have heard about Primanti's and those
huge-ass sandwiches. One day we'll get there, but I think we'd have to split
one, I don't think any of us can eat one by herself!
Gee: A what brothers? I should know them since i'm a ginny....I don't eat
cheese steak things, bleh......I fuckin love Cracker Barrel, I don't care
what anyone says!
Meredith: I love philly cheese steaks..but due to lactose intolerance, I
can't enjoy them as much as I used to. Getting old sux.I Think we all agree
that cracker barrell is the shiggy bam boo. (btw i'm answering these
questions from lack of sleep and overworkedness)
Metal Pit: Do any of you have any pets and do they travel with you?
Sue: I have a beautiful rottie named Gypsy. She is CRAZY so I wouldn't trap her in a car for hours on end. She stays home. We are a cat AND dog friendly band so I don't see us mixing our pets together on the road. What a brawl! LOL!!
Urith: I have two dogs, a HUGE Belgian Shepherd named Teddy Bear and a Corgi-Rotti mix named Cee Cee. Cee Cee gets car sick - we barely get her anywhere before she's vomiting, so taking her on the road would be torture for the poor thing (and me since I'd be cleaning it up...constantly). I'd
love to take Teddy on the road and he'd love to go, 'cos he loves to ride.
Plus he'd guard our gear - you wouldn't wanna mess with him! But Meredith is
terribly allergic to dogs, so home he has to stay. The other two have cats,
and that just wouldn't work out since my pups and cats are like peanut
butter and tabasco sauce. Not a good combination!
Gee: I so would love a band mascot, I would be so fuckin happy! My 3
kitties would be so confused tho, and as we all know cats are NOT fond of
vehicles so that just wouldnt' work lol.
Meredith: IF we did travel a lot, and did have a tour, and a tour bus, I'd
take my ahmet with me. Ahmet is my kitty and he rules and he talks when u
talk to him. You probably think i'm a lil loop dee doo right now, but ASk
gina..HE does shakey meow.
Metal Pit: What will your old fans like about the new cd and what do you think will attract new fans to the band?
Sue: Our old fans will like our CD because we stay true to who we are, but we still explore new boundaries, which is what may help to attract new fans.
Urith: I think they are going to LOVE the new stuff. We actually have been
playing 3 new songs here and there and the old fans really dig them - they
all say they're more personal and just another level as far as execution and
songwriting, which is great. So there is a progression, but obviously the
basic elements - what makes us US, will still be there. Folks don't realize
how old the songs on the EP are. Those songs came out in 2005, and Meredith was sitting on them longer than that since her old band wouldn't use them. So naturally there is going to be growth and stylistic things that will be
in the new material as a matter of course. I can say for certainty that
overall, they're heavier, so those who are hoping we'd head that way will
definitely be happy.
Gee: I'm just hoping that it's well received by everyone.....old fans, new
fans, ceiling fans...whatever!
Meredith: I think The new cd definitely explores a few different types of
genres in our music, we have worked hard on the new songs and we're hoping the public will likey.
Metal Pit: When will the new cd be finished and in stores?
Sue: I think we're a few months off from the album's completion, and then it really just depends on how long mass production takes before it hits the stores. Of course if you don't have our last one, you can still get it from
our website, dormitoryeffect.com!
Urith: Hopefully by Fall. It's looking like it'll come out, oddly enough,
mid-October, which was when our EP came out 3 years ago.
Gee: Let me get my magic 8 ball and ask it..hang on....ok apparantly "signs point to yes", whatever that means...
Meredith : 2045, look out for it! uhm, space monkeys will be roaming the
planet. I wanna see space chimp.
Metal Pit: What are the touring plans for the band this summer and are there any outdoor shows planned?
Sue: Actually we were just contacted about an early fall show which would probably be outdoors. A good friend of the band named Shannon Maginn helped put together a show in Coney Island called Operation Metal Siege. She tragically died in a car accident back in May, and everything was put on hold. However, the other promoters contacted us this week to invite us on board for the new incarnation of this show on October 4th. We're just
finalizing the details. We're not touring otherwise; we're in pre-production on the CD so we're sticking close to home.
Urith: We're definitely in writing mode, so touring is not on the plate for
the rest of the year. We are going to do shows here and there of course, but
we won't be going too far. When the new CD comes out, though, we're going to go everywhere we can and play for whoever will have us. We want to plan it well and do it right. With the cost of gas and traveling expenses in general
smart execution of any tour no matter how long or short is crucial.
Meredith: This summer-FOCUS POWER, FOCUS POWER ON RECORDING, and our new material..Basically we'll be doing that until the cd is done..and then boom..we'll be back..and you won't be able to get rid of us!
Metal Pit: There is a track on this cd I really like called "Crawler" which was recorded at CBGB'S, does that song represent what the fans will hear when they come see you play live?
Sue: I would say that song is an EXCELLENT representation of our live
sound.
Urith: Oh yeah, that's pretty much it. We purposely included it because we wanted to show that our CD was not "studio magic", we can play our
instruments very very well. We never wanted to give any doubters the
opportunity to start that, "oh, it's probably not really them" or "anyone
can sound good in the studio" crap.
Gee: It totally is a good representation of the live sound and energy.
**Moment of silence for CB"SSSSSSSS**
Meredith: It was sooo long ago, but yeah we obviously sound like that live,
cuz it's live..We have a ton of new material as well that we are playing at
Shows..
Metal Pit: The fact that you are an all female Heavy Metal band,have you encountered any stereotypes in the business such as with record companies or club owners?
Sue: We get this question a lot. I don't think the club owners have been
too much of an issue as of late, although back in the 90's it was hard to
book metal itself. Having females in the band Urith and I were in back then
actually HELPED us to get more gigs because the stereotype at the time was that women were going to bring you more mellow music. Boy, did we knock some asses in the mud! Nowadays the record companies are the only ones perpetuating certain stereotypes (like women playing music in general need to be bimbos to sell records). I really despise the fact that the first
thing that industry people ask when they hear us is "What do they look
like?" I really feel that the only thing that should EVER matter is the
music. Judge us on our merits and not by our cup sizes. I wish every band
and every artist out there had to prove themselves by their SOUND first and
foremost.
Urith: Oh sure, they expect you to suck. They're expectations are so low,
they just don't want to give us the benefit of the doubt. Then, when they
realize we don't suck, then it becomes the whole, "but they're not 'hot'"
issue. We deliberately don't oversexualize ourselves or put the focus
anywhere else but our music. We realize that maybe women who aren't as good may leapfrog over us for a deal or a gig because they look better in hot
pants, but I'm not going to lose too much sleep over people who still think
you can hear with your eyes.
Gee: The acceptance of female musicians has definetly changed in the past 5/10 years and has become easier. Being in an all-female band , people are gonna get hung up on a sort of "image" thing, it just comes with the territory and is to be expected. The music should speak for itself, and
hopefully it will...
Meredith: I think it's helped us as of late actually.
Metal Pit: What is your opinion on the huge impact women have made on this music that we all love?
Sue: Women have been influencing metal for a long time. You hear
"Barracuda" and you realize that riff is a metal riff, before the genre was
more well defined.
Urith: I think it's fantastic. When I was getting into music and rock and
Metal in particular, my heroes were primarily men, since they were so few
standout female artists. Yes, we had Heart, and Pat Benatar, Girlschool,
Phantom Blue, Doro - but they were still considered novelties and very few
played anything really heavy. Nowadays, young girls can look up to an Otep
Shamaya or Maria Brink or Cristina Scabbia or Angela Gossow or Laura Nichol etc. etc. There are so many women in the genre now. It's awesome. I think there is still room for an all-female band to step up and get major
attention; hopefully that will be us!
Gee: I think it's fucking great - yey for vagina in metal!
Meredith: I say its about time we take over everthing!
Metal Pit: Some of my early female Metal hero's were bands like "The
Runaways","Wendy O Williams","Girlschool" and "Rock Goddess".Who were some of yours and how did they influence you?
Sue: Doro Pesch was my first female METAL hero. I already loved some women with strong aggressive voices like Ann Wilson, Janis Joplin, Tina Turner, Pat Benatar & Joan Jett. But when I first heard Warlock (Doro's band) in the 80's, it changed everything for me. I really heard someone doing an incredible thing, singing these incredible vocals over metal. She was like
Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson rolled into a strong female package. Any
girls out there who aspire to being a true metal singer should get started
by going out to pick up "Warlock-Triumph & Agony"!!
Urith: That's tough because as I responded to the last question there
weren't a lot of women playing the Metal I was into. I was into the very
heavy stuff early on, like Slayer, old Metallica...I did like Doro, LOVED
Heart, Girlshool, and I thought Wendy O. had to be the ballsiest chick ever
- she did impress upon me that if you're going to do this, you've gotta be
fearless. But sadly I can't cite to any female Metal musicians as a direct
influence on me in doing what I do.
Gee: The first females I loved were the Go-go's and Joan Jett was just
simply badass! Blondie kicked ass too.....then later on I loved L7, Hole,
Veruca Salt...I could go on for hours...
Meredith: Lita ford, Jennifer Batton, Pat Benatar was the shit back in the
day..Heart of course..and of course Janis. I'm sure there is a lot more..that
I can't think of right now!
Metal Pit: What advice would any of you want to give to the younger female Metal musicians who are just starting out?
Sue: Please practice! Cultivate your craft. Don't be afraid to look to
influences outside of metal for inspiration. You never know when some great
jazz artist might set off a spark in your head. Singer-Songwriters are a
great source of lyrical influence. With gigs, don't walk in with attitude,
or some sense of entitlement. Be on time and be accommodating, as much as you can. Don't bitch about your time slot being delayed, because it happens to everyone! You have EVERYTHING to prove when you're starting out, so be professional, be friendly with everyone (even the wierdos!), share gear and be supportive with other bands. You never know who you're sharing a bill with and it would be really stupid to alienate anyone unnecessarily. Of
course if they're complete & utter assholes all night, squirt water on them
while they're playing, heh heh heh...
Urith: Yes, PLEASE practice! Be determined to be great at your instrument. If you allow yourself to get in a band or onstage and you're less than competent it's not just disgraceful, it's sad. I get annoyed at young girls
who want to get in a band to be cute and famous and have people love them
and they're crap musicians. If personal attention or having guys pant over
you is what you want, then be a model or an actress. Don't set other female
musicians back. Strive to be good or don't bother. And when you DO get good, don't be an asshole. Building good relationships is so valuable and being known as an asshole will not help you out at all. Be dedicated, be smart, be respectful and be professional. These are the things that will help you get opportunities.
Gee: Don't lose your focus and your creativity. Accept compliments and Be prepared for criticism, and accept it if it's constructive and not from some
random asshole that's jealous of you cuz you kick his ass cuz you're a chick...
Meredith: Don't let anyone put you down, or get in your way..focus on what
you want and GET IT! And always remember where you came from!
Metal Pit: Ok,last question I promise,Is the band Giants or Jets fans?
Sue: I don't follow football; just baseball. LET'S GO METS!!!!
Urith: J-E-T-S!!! I did root for the Giants in the Superbowl though, I'm a
Hatriot LOL! I'm the band's sports chick. I dig Football, basketball, hockey
though it's tough to stay in the loop with everything because I'm so busy
with music.
Gee: Oooooh dude, I'm all about the HOCKEY! GOOOOOOO DEVILS!!! But my brother is a HUGE Jets fan, so I'd have to go with that if I were forced to pick....
Meredith: God, i hate fuckin football..that is football right?
Metal Pit: Well ladies I must say it has been a pleasure getting to know you a little better and I greatly appreciate you taking the time to visit with us
today.You are all first class in my book and I predict very big things for
this band in the coming months.I wish you luck with the new cd and all that
you do.Please feel free to stop by the "Metal Pit" any time and chat a while.
Sue: Thanks Nick, it's always fun to have someone put a soapbox in front of us and let us rant and rave
Urith: No, thank you, we appreciate the Metal Pit for helping to get our
name out there.
Gee: THANK YOU PLEASE! I like your predictions there dude! Do you also predict some shots in the near future as well? ;)
For more info and to check out their music go to the
DORMITORY EFFECT WEBSITE
