Hammerlock: The H.o.S. Interview
(Page 2 of 6)
Uncle Dan: Take us through how the songwriting process generally works for Hammerlock. Is it always a totally collaborative effort?
Liza Kenney: It used to be me and Travis would be sitting around and I'd hear him do a killer riff. I'd say "do it again." Then, I'd run to get the tape recorder and record what he did. I'd done that several times because he would just be sitting around playing gutar and if I'd hear something good, I'd stop him and make him do it again.
Travis Kenney: Yeah, on the last three albums I would be playing guitar around the house and Liza would say "what's that?" Then, I would work on it and we would turn it into a song. As far as lyrics, I write most of them while I'm driving, bring them home, then Liza adds her two cents and tries to let me know when something ain't really working. For this new one, it was more collaborative than with previous drummers, in terms of tempo, song length, order of verses and choruses, etc.
UD: Besides the typically great original material, Hammerlock albums also contain some cool covers. Would you care to discuss the cover material which made the new album, if any? How do you come to choose the songs you cover?
L: We usually jam out and play everything we know and love under the sun and sometimes we just say "hey, let's do this one" or "let's do that one."
T: We do Townes Van Zant's "Poncho and Lefty," Marshall Tucker's "Can't You See," and Coe's "Houston, Dallas, San Antone." We usually do songs we like and songs that we can bring something new to but still make the song recognizable.
Mikey Kingshill: The one I like the most is "Can't You See." We were jamming it in the studio when we decided to record it.
UD: How did you get hooked up with Steel Cage Records?
L: They came to the Confederacy of Scum supershow in Philly--we met there. Then, a year later, they came to the next supershow in South Carolina. I was four months pregnant and they wanted to do a CD. So, we did and then they asked for our next album which is #4, Compromise is for Cowards.
UD: On Barefoot & Pregnant, Hammerlock reverted back to a slightly rawer sound than that found on Anthems For Outlaws. Was there any particular reason for this?
L: Hell, I don't know, but I do know that when you're pregnant, your voice is different because your diaphragm is pushed up. So, I'll never sound like that again--that was a one time thing, cause I don't plan on being pregnant again; at least not for awhile. Even if I do get pregnant again, who knows if we'd record while I was?
T: Naw, that's just how it came out that time around.
UD: Your first two albums were released via the late, and much missed, Man's Ruin label. Any thoughts you'd like to share about that crew and their demise?
L: What crew--the people that worked there? I don't have much to say about them, but I will say that Frank (Kozik) has helped us tremendously through the years and was very generous with us! He's a great friend and a nice dude.
UD: I know Man's Ruin folding really hurt a lot of bands, leaving them without an outlet to release their music, for at least a little while. How much did the folding of the label impact Hammerlock?
T: We had already agreed to do records with Steel Cage, Baloney Shrapnel, and Proud To Be An Idiot Records long before the demise of Man's Ruin, so it didn't effect us too much. Having our first two releases on Man's Ruin was enough of a springboard for us that we survived it just fine. The worst part was seeing a guy (Frank) put all the money he had made into a business to try to help out bands only to see him loose countless dollars and time to the label. Then, seeing the thing go south, with Frank doing everything he could to make the label a success, to no avail. Plus, seeing all these bands act like he did something wrong and that he "owes them" when all he was trying to do was give something back. Reminds me of the saying "never do anything for anyone, because they will hate you for it."
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