Hot Water Music; Road Tested.

The best things about great bands, is when the bands are made up of great people. After driving around the block in rush hour traffic, fixing a flimsy stage, and then having to deal with a scatterbrained waitress. Chuck Ragan and I finally got to sit down, have some dinner, and talk about what makes one of the hardest working bands around tick. From talking about songs on the radio to being in an online videogame, somewhere along the way, this interview didn’t seem like an interview, but more like just sitting around with an old friend talking about whatever. And upon finishing our dinner, I truly felt like I had made a great new friend.

Interview conducted in person by Doran Dalton, pictures provided by Doran Dalton.

Band: Hot Water Music
Name Chuck Ragan

Bettawreckonize: Hey man, thanks for taking the time to do this.

Chuck Ragan: Nah, thank you for your time my friend.

BW: How’s this current tour going?

CR: It’s good. It’s really cool. It’s been a while since we’ve done our own tour. We’ve been doing a lot of support tours lately, which has been a lot of fun and been really great to play with bands that we really admire and look up to. And it’s always awesome to go out an play for a bunch of people who have no idea who you are, and don’t care, you know? That’s definitely just more fuel to the fire when we get out on the road. It’s definitely the most fun to play our own shows, because people want to be there and they participate. And I think that we always try our best to just put out everything that we have, in every show, whether there’s five people or five thousand people. But there definitely is a difference when we’re out playing our own shows, and the more energy we get from the crowds the more we’re able to throw out ourselves. But this tour has been a lot of fun you know, and all the bands are super cool. The Lawrence Arms who have been around for years are an amazing band and great friends of ours, they’re doing great. These Arms Are Snakes, are phenomenal guys and a great band. A Static Lullaby, who’s a fairly young band and are doing pretty good. It’s a fun bill, a good bill, we’re all having a good time. It’s the last leg though, it’s almost over.

BW: When I first heard of this tour I kept imagining you guys and the Lawrence Arms having contests every night to see who can drink who under the table. Has there been any of those kinds of shenanigans going on?

CR: Umm, yeah pretty much every night. (laughs) But, I’ve actually been off the sauce for a little while so I haven’t really been participating, but there definitely has been some, haha, some serious swilling on the tour.

BW: You guys, a little while back, had to cancel your tour to Japan. Did that have anything to do with the SARS outbreak that was going on out there? Cause, it was right around that time.

CR: No. (laughs) No, actually not at all. What basically happened there was, we were going out with Snapcase, at the time, and one of their members, one of the members of their band had problems with their passport or something. So, like, last minute they had to cancel the tour. And everything that we had heard, like, we were playing places that were like 500-600 person venues, or higher. And all the pre-sales were like 15 people, 20 people, and like, basically we just realized that we were going to lose a LOT of money if we went. It just ended up being, and it was a total last minute thing. It was like, “Oh great. Snapcase is out of it.” It would’ve been like a total toss up.

BW: Would anything like that, I mean, something as serious as SARS, would something like that ever deter you guys from touring anywhere?

CR: Umm…I mean, there’s definitely…you’d definitely have it on your mind sure. But, if something’s going to happen to us, it’s going to happen to us. I mean that’s inevitable. But we take enough risks as it is. We just take everything day by day and just deal with whatever we’re facing that day. We’re just trying to keep it moving ya know. I mean, I’m sure it definitely would be on the mind, something that big. But it probably wouldn’t stop us.

BW: I think that Hot Water Music has always been a more intimate type of band, by that I mean, like you guys have usually played smaller venues, places where you’re able to really interact with the crowd, and the crowd can interact back.

CR: Yeah, definitely.

BW: So, is it more fulfilling playing basement shows or smaller places, or bigger venues?

CR: You know, the longer I’m in a band, or, I should say THIS band, the more I’ve realized that it truly does not matter. The size of the venue, the size of the crowd. It really doesn’t matter because we’ve had some of our best shows playing in front of five people just as well as playing in front of 40 or 50 thousand people at festivals. And it really doesn’t matter, it all just comes down to the energy and whether it clicks or not between us and the crowd. We are definitely a band that, I mean we don’t care about the stereotypical separation of ‘we are the band, you are the crowd, or we are here and you are there’. Like for us, it should be one constant movement, hence the cycle of energy that you get at shows. Like the band will throw out everything that they have and the crowd will give some of that energy back, and the more that the crowd gives back the more band throws out. And it just continues, and that can happen in a basement or a stadium. And it’s also our mind frame as well, you just never know. I mean, one of the best shows of this tour as far as just ‘fun’ was in a small place, Port Jervis, New York. We’d never played there before and we just showed up, and not a lot of people showed up and it was just one of those shows where we were just like, ‘oh boy, this is going to be a rough one’ and it turned out to be an absolute blast. And as with many of the shows on this tour. We’ve been playing a lot of smaller markets and places that we’ve just never hit before, especially recently when we’ve been playing the support tours and playing mostly in bigger cities and so we just thought, why not, let’s go to some cities that we’ve never been before, some offbeat towns.

BW: So, for a band like you, who is on the road constantly, hitting up smaller places or just places you’ve never been before. Does that help you guys as well, I mean, as far as keeping it fresh and breaking some of the monotony of touring? What are some of the other things that you do to keep it from getting boring, if it ever does get boring?

CR: Yeah, I mean it definitely does. I mean, tour can definitely get monotonous at times. Shows, never get old, I mean that’s why we’re there, that’s why we keep doing it. And it’s the people that come to the shows, and the people that believe in us; our friends, our families, which is everyone who cares about this band. Those are the people that help us keep up our momentum. I mean, you know. We never really stopped touring since day one. I mean, we take breaks here and there, but for the most part we don’t stop. And we couldn’t keep up that momentum if it wasn’t for all the diehards and our crazy friends who support us along the way. But, I don’t know? You always learn new things, find new ways to keep it fresh and interesting and new.

BW: Do you have any favorite songs that you like to play all the time, and never want to change?

CR: You know, it always changes. We’re coming up on 100 songs or so and we’re adding more. And we’re playing like 13, anywhere from 13 to 18 songs a night and so it’s always gonna be different. It’s hard to say, but there definitely songs that we’ll play for a while and then eventually those songs will fall out, and then we’ll add in something else and recycle some of our older songs.

BW: Are there any songs that you won’t play live, or don’t want to play?

CR: (laughs) Oh yeah, definitely, a WHOLE lot of them. But we won’t go into that. But they’re all special in their own way, I mean, they all mean something and they all came from somewhere. So, it’s really hard to have any favorites.

BW: Do you ever think about moving to any of the places that you guys visit? I mean being able to see so many places, do you ever think, “wow, this place would be really cool to live”?

CR: Well, I moved to LA about a year ago. (laughs) Which is ironic kind of I guess. Because I moved there for a woman that I am in love with, which is just crazy because it made me realize that love can make you do the craziest things, like move to your least favorite city in the world.

BW: The last time you guys came through here, you and I were sitting at the bar having a few drinks and talking. And I asked you, because in my mind and in my opinion you guys are a much better band than some of these others bands that you’ve had to play before, or that you’ve been on support tours for, so I just like, “Why?” Why are you guys opening for them, they should totally be opening for you instead. And you told me, “One day at time, one day at a time.” Is that still something that you think, I mean, do you think that some bands don’t deserve to be where they’re at?

CR: Yeah, I mean, yeah, I definitely believe that some bands don’t belong where they are right now. And I say that in a sense that, I know a lot of just phenomenal musicians, and a lot of phenomenal bands who are just so under rated and they’re some of the most phenomenal bands and musicians in the world to me, and they just don’t get the credit that they deserve. And at the same time I see a lot of bands and musicians who are just young and green and they’re just rehatching a lot of styles and things that have been done just over and over and over again. And they’re just not doing anything really truly original and groundbreaking. Yet, that’s the style or that’s the flavor of the month, do you know what I’m saying? And it’s crazy to me, cause I think more along those lines, the older that I get. You know what I mean, and we play with just hundreds of bands a year.

BW: So, do you think newer bands, and I’m talking about more of the mainstream here, like the popular….I call it, “mall punk”.

CR: Haha, that’s good, I’m gonna use that one.

BW: Ha, yeah go for it, it’s all yours. But, I think, to me they don’t really have anything to say, and it’s more about getting with girls and hooking up and maybe because I’m getting older too, but to me they’re just boy bands in punk rock uniforms and they’re getting rolled off of assembly lines. Do you know what I mean?

CR: Yeah, totally, I couldn’t agree with you more. To me, when people describe bands now as being “punk rock” bands nowadays, it just carries no weight at all with me. But the same way, rock and roll bands, I mean, I call us a rock and roll band, but nowadays that’s about as vague of a statement as you can get. It’s just hard to pinpoint anything because…..I don’t know, I’m just babbling.

BW: Nah, it’s okay, we should stop so we can eat really quick and then we’ll pick it up again.

CR: Nah, let it go…..Oh, the other day I heard something….what was it? Somebody’s mom or something? Shit, what was it? I don’t know but it was horrible.

BW: Yeah, I think I heard that one too. Crap, now you got me thinking about it…

BW/CR: laughing

CR: …Billy’s mom…or, NO, Stacy’s mom!?

BW: I think so…yeah, that’s it.

CR: Dam! I sat there, and I was like packing my bags and everybody had left the room and I was sitting there and whoever was the last one out had left the t.v. on and it was on MTV. And that thing came on, and….it’s amazing to me that somebody cared enough to actually record that and (laughing) put money, time and money into that. But the sad thing is, is that THAT is what’s selling. You know? You can take another band who has just more passion and energy and art and actually has something intelligent or witty or influential to say, and turn around and they’ll be playing a garage for five people, while someone else is making thousands and thousands of dollars singing about Stacy’s mom. (laughs) That’s nuts.

BW: Along that same line, there are bands like Thursday and Thrice, who are out there working hard, and write songs that are influential, intelligent, or have a message, and they’re at least intelligent enough to not have to write a silly song like something about Stacey’s mom. Do you think that bands like Thursday and Thrice, that they’re overtaking maybe even your band, as far as creativity or a fresh sound? Or do you ever think that you’re falling behind any of those bands like that?

CR: I don’t ever really look at it that way. Those bands, especially the ones that you just mentioned; Thursday, Thrice, Coheed and Cambria, those guys are tour right now. I wish nothing but the absolute best for those bands. They’re phenomenal musicians, I think they totally believe in what they’re doing 100 percent, more so than a lot of the bands who are out there nowadays that are getting any recognition. I would much rather being hearing that in mainstream more than most everything that happening now. I don’t even really listen to the radio and that’s why, ya know. It’s like there’s not much on it that I can even relate to. And it’s not worth it to me, it’s a waste of time. Unless it’s some oldie goldies or some Motown you know. I can hang with that. But I don’t ever think of being passed by or missing a window or anything. I just, I don’t know man. Years ago, I mean, long time ago. I accomplished more in this band than I ever dreamed. So, now this is just a blessing, it’s a gift man. I mean, I’m traveling around playing music with my best friends, seeing more of the world than I’ve ever dreamt I would see. I can’t complain. You know the people that come out and see us, from day one, or even new people. Bless their hearts, we don’t take it for granted one bit. When I see friends of ours….I’ve seen bands, that we’ve taken on tour that have opened up for us, and they’ve just exploded and took off, and I think it’s awesome, I think it’s amazing. And I just can’t see it any other way. If I know that they’re doing what they believe in, and doing it for the right reasons, and they’re still having fun doing what they’re doing, more power to them man, I wish them nothing but the best. I mean, we’re gonna keep doing what we do and have fun and if people still dig it as long as it’s fun for us, as long as we’re still having fun doing it, then there’s no reason for us to stop.

BW: Are there any bands that you think have changed their sound a little bit. Like, here’s my example, I used to really like this band H2O, and I think that they’ve just digressed in their sound, because they’re making more poppier music, and getting on tours with more pop bands that are more popular. And it just seems like to me that they’re changing their sound to be more popular, rather than changing their sound to evolve as a band. That’s just my opinion, but do you have any thoughts about that?

CR: Well, I’ve never been into H2O, but I know that a lot of bands definitely do that. A lot of bands will get to a point….and again, the older I get the more we tour and the more bands we meet and play with, the more I see it. Bands will always do one of two things. The older they get they’ll either; stick with what they know and keep driving and keep doing what they do and just keep trying to write better songs and make better records, ya know. OR, they’ll stop and they’ll say, ‘I wanna be bigger, or I want our shows to be bigger, I want this to happen, I want, I want, ya know. So maybe we should start playing what is big now’, and they’ll conform. They’ll change their sound, they’ll change their image, they’ll change their outlook, they’ll change everything. For a piece of whatever the hell they’re looking for, whether it be more money or fame or whatever. But that’s just see, that’s the reality of the music business. But there’s definitely a line between musicians in that way. Some bands just do it to do it. And others do it, and expect something back.

BW: You guys signed to Epitaph Records in what? 2000, I think?

CR: Was it? (laughs) Yeah, I think so.

BW: I think it was. How did that come about?

CR: Well, we’d been demoing some stuff. And we’ve always been a band who, we’ve just always really….what we care about the most is keeping our freedom, and not be cornered, just to be able to do what we want to do, when we want to do it. Which is why we’ve worked with so many labels. We’re just always recording in different places, over the years we’ve met so many awesome people who do really creative things with labels, and with art, with photography. And it’s just and honor to just know those people, but it’s even more of a privilege to work with those people. And we want to work with as many people as we can, I mean that’s progress. That’s success to us, to be able to go, ‘Awesome, we are lucky to get to work with all these amazing artists and people, so let’s work with as many people as we can.’ So, originally we were looking for a label who was willing to work with the band as hard as we work, cause we don’t stop. We constantly tour, and we definitely worked with some labels where it was just hard. Labels that just didn’t keep records in print, and we’re always constantly going on tour, and we’re like, ‘Okay, leaving on tour in a month, we need some records.’ And they didn’t come. And so, it’s like, okay you’re our label, we’re both losing out here. All we’re asking for is distribution, all we’re asking for is some records. Cause, this is what we’re doing, this is why we tour, spread our music, share it. Whether people like it or not, at least we have it to get it out, to spread around. But, we demoed some stuff, sent some stuff out like just passed it to friends or whatever. And then somebody heard it at Epitaph, and then Brett (Guerwitz) got a hold of it, and Brett ended up coming out on Warped Tour the first time we did it. He just flew out, met us, and just hung out for the day, told us he was interested. Which was amazing to us, because all of us grew up on Bad Religion. We were just like “Uhhh…ahaha, here’s Mr. Brett sitting in our RV.” We’re all eating chips and salsa and like peanut butter and jelly. And he just basically laid it out, told us what he did, told us what the label did, told us his goals. Basically just told us that he was into working with us, but also laid it out to us like, ‘Don’t decide, come out to LA, I want to introduce you to everyone who works at this label, I want to have you at my house, we’ll have dinner. I want you to see what happens here. Before you decide, whether you say yes, whether you say no.’ Which was amazing because no one has ever done that with us. So we all went out there and man, we were there for like a few hours and it wasn’t even a question. We just met all these people who worked at this label and it just clicked. We were looking around and we like, man, everyone who works at this label has either been in bands or worked with bands, so they know what that side of the life is. They’re not just out to make a buck, they care about their bands, and they’re just a hard working independent punk rock label who just happens to do better and have more pull and impact than majors. So after that it wasn’t even really a question. A while ago, we were up in Europe and a kid came up to me who traveled about 15 hours by train and by busses and ferries and came up to me and said that he made it to the show because he found a record in Greece. And I was just speechless, and I kept thinking, ‘that’s why we signed to Epitaph.’ That right there.

BW: I’ve been reading a lot of different music sites and messageboards and stuff, and just through reading, it seems like a lot of the kids these days have like this bad idea about some of the bigger indie labels or they just don’t like labels like Epitaph or Fat, for whatever reason. And it just seems like when a band that they like signs to a label like Epitaph or Fat, the kids’ reaction is really negative and they start saying stuff like, ‘Oh that band is going to be really shitty now.’ Have you guys receive some of that negativity after signing with Epitaph? And how did that make you feel?

CR: (Laughs) Tell you what, we’ve gotten negative feedback since day one. I mean we were playing shows in front of like 10 people. And then we’d go play a certain place, and we’d get hate mail for it. Umm, when we did a record on Doghouse Records, tons of hate mail. “How could you leave No Idea!?” We’re like, ‘No, we didn’t leave No Idea he’s right down the street.’ I mean, we still work with him now ya know. But this was years ago, this was in…..whenever the hell that record came out. 96 or 97 or something like that. Hate mail. For doing a record on Doghouse! I was like, where ya coming from man. I mean, think about it from our end. And I’ve always said that if someone has something to say, first of all, they don’t know us, and they probably aren’t even obviously willing to be friends with us, if they’re so quick to judge or to talk. But I’ve always said, come live with me for like a week. Eat what I eat, sleep where I sleep, walk around in my shoes for a little while, and then feel free to talk all you want and see where you want to go from there. You know what I mean? I mean, I think that’s inevitable I think people will always talk no matter what. There’s always gotta be gossip right? There’s always gotta be something to complain about or bitch about.

BW: Before, when we were talking about how you work with all these different labels and people, but you’ve always kept the same artwork by the same person. Is that something that you’ll continue to do? To have that same person do the artwork for you CDs?

CR: Yeah. I mean, I hope, I really hope so. We’ve been really lucky. Scott Sinclair, who does all of our artwork, he’s been just an awesome friend from before day one. We all knew each other while he was in art school down in Ringling in Sarasota Florida. And we all just played in different bands and just knew each other, we always knew him as a great artist. We did our very first tour with Scott’s other band, Vent. And back then he offered art work, and the first thing that he actually did was our logo that we still carry now, our Hot Water Music logo. And he actually hated it, but we were like, ‘Wow, this is perfect.’ And he was like, ‘Nah, nah, let me draw something else.’ But we were like, ‘This is awesome. No. Leave it.’ And it just stuck. But yeah, Scott, we just can’t ever express enough gratitude towards him, and it’s just amazing how it worked out the way it did. Not only is he a great friend but he’s an absolutely great artist and we’re lucky, we’re really lucky. And I just want to continue communicating with him and anytime we record I want to send him stuff. Anytime we record, or we write stuff, we send him music, we send him lyrics, and his paintings are his interpretation of the music.

BW: What is your song writing process?

CR: It’s so different all the time. I mean, first off, the music always comes first. But, we all write individually as well as together, so sometimes Chris and I will be writing individually and we’ll write a part vocals in mind, or actually write the vocals with it, and then bring it to the group. Or, because the music will come first, we’ll just add the vocals later. And it’s just kind of, whoever’s feeling it at the time will sorta just jump in there.

BW: Do you ever write a song or write lyrics and think, ‘This song would sound awesome if Chris sang this one.’ Or do you ever write a song with the intention of letting Chris sing it, even though they’re your words?

CR: Umm, no. Usually, whoever’s singing it, wrote it. And a lot of times, Chris and I will sit down and just pass a pad back and forth and listen to the music that we wrote, then either record it or play it and pass the pad back and forth and just kind of feed off of each other. But I mean, it’s just, it’s different every time.

BW: There’s so many different elements that I find in your music, like I guess the best way I know how to describe it is to call them layers. And there’s so many different layers, does that come from any influences that you guys have or is it just something happens in the your song writing process? I mean, like, I can listen to a song three different times and hear something new that I didn’t pick up before each time.

CR: That’s awesome! That’s just the best compliment that we can get. I mean, we’re influenced by just so much and from so many places and people. It’s hard to say where we actually get it. Because we listen to….you name it, and you’ll find it, pretty much any genre of music, you’ll find it in our collections. And plus there really isn’t one non-contributor in the band which is the most special thing about it to me. All four of us always have something to say, or something to contribute, it’s like, ‘we should do that or we should do this.’ It’s just always coming from everyone. And it just stacks up, usually the problem is trying not to over do it. I think we kinda over did it on “Flight” (Flight and a Crash) because I mean, it was the first time we really….cause when we did “No Division”, that was like our first “real” studio album. And then when we did “Flight and a Crash”, it was just like, ‘I wanna play piano on this, I wanna do lap steel on this and I wanna do this and blah, blah, blah.’ And you know, like layer, layer, layer, layer…and there is definitely a line where you can over do something you know.

BW: You’ve never really used your music, at least I don’t think, as a vehicle to spread a political message or anything like that. Is there any reason why you don’t spread your personal politics through the music that you write?

CR: Well, for one, because….I’m far from right a lot of times, you know? And who am I to say what I believe, is the right thing to believe? Or the right way to go? Because I feel like I’m always searching, and I always want to be searching. I believe that…wait, no, no, I don’t know? I believe that the second that I stop searching and the second I stop moving forward and keeping my eyes forward, I’ll become stagnant and I’ll think I’ll stop growing spiritually, emotionally, mentally. But I mean, there is definitely personal politics that we bring into the music because it affects us, it affects all of us, every day. But, but…there’s a hell of a lot more to life than politics. And I mean, I don’t disagree, I know a lot of bands who are extremely political and super political, and I support them, and it’s good for them and it works for them. But for us we’ve just, we’ve been more so of a band that….I don’t want us to limit ourselves that way. I want anybody and everybody who cares to get involved, to get involved. And if we’re saying something that they can understand that they can get into, and relate to. Awesome! If it touches them, that’s phenomenal I couldn’t ask for much more. I would much rather have someone decide for themselves, just take what they can take out of a song or a story that we write and figure themselves out, rather than just agreeing with what I say. You know what I’m saying? You know where I’m coming from? I don’t want to be a preacher, I don’t want to point any fingers. But I mean, I definitely have done it, even in some of our songs before, sometimes in a subtle way, and sometimes in a total upfront way, but I don’t want to be that way. I want people to just find their own inspirations, find their own influences, and move from there.

BW: Has there ever been a theme or an underlying message in your music, and if so, how has that changed in the span of your career in Hot Water Music?

CR: Well, it’s never really changed at all. And if there would be any message, it would be, understanding. Understanding yourself, or finding power within yourself. The power in yourself to overcome the obstacles that face you throughout your life. I mean, just the way I do and everyone. You think about how, the way we wake up, and what we experience from the moment we’re awake to moment that we lay down. We change. There’s constantly change around us, within us, within our society, within the world, and if there would be any message it would just be finding that understanding, finding power, inspiration, and just waking up to life, within yourself and embracing it and sharing it with your friends and family, your loved ones around you. And also I guess, most of all, having hope that no matter how bad it can get, there’s always something better in the world. No matter how rough your life can get, there is always something better, just right outside your door or right behind you or right next to you and having the strength to find it.

BW: What do you guys have planned, as far as recording for the next album? Is it going to stay on Epitaph, and do you plan on working with Brian McTernan again?

CR: Yeah. That’s the plan. Just doing it all the same again. We’re writing right now, we’ve been writing a lot on the road and it’s going pretty good. We’ve been having a lot of fun with it, and coming up with some good songs.

BW: That little piece that you were messing around with during sound check, is that something new that you’ve been working on?

CR: Oh, yeah, yeah. We wrote that…uhhh, the day before yesterday. I think it’s gonna be a good one, I don’t know we’ll see.

BW: I really dug the acoustic versions of the two Alkaline Trio songs that you guys did for the split on Jade Tree (Records). Have you guys ever thought about maybe doing some Hot Water Music songs acoustically, recording them and releasing something like that?

CR: Oh yeah. I mean, well. Have you ever heard Rumbleseat?

BW: I haven’t heard any of the songs.

CR: No? Chris and I, long time ago, we started a band, just the two of us, called Rumbleseat. And it was just acoustic stuff.

(At this point, I ran out of tape, so I had to find extra tape on the other side)

BW: Okay, shit, sorry about that. I didn’t think we’d been talking for that long.

CR: No kidding huh. It’s cool though. Shit, now I don’t remember what the hell we were even talking about.

BW: Ummm….you were telling me about Rumbleseat.

CR: Oh yeah, well there’s four, seven inches out, off of No Idea. And I’m trying, I’ve been trying to get the CD out because I have recorded probably 22, 23 songs. So, the record’s gonna have the 4 seven inches plus a few other songs.

BW: And it’s just you and Chris?

CR: Yeah, and my ex-wife Samantha, and a couple of others. Like, a bunch of people always play, but for the most part, it’s the three of us.

BW: I don’t know if you know about this game on the internet called, “The Emo Game”…

CR: Oh yeah.

BW: What do you think about it?

CR: It’s ridiculous! But, I was pretty happy with my character. (laughs)

BW: Did it feel strange to be immortalized in a video game?

CR: Are you kidding me!? Yeah, it was really ridiculous.

BW: Okay, so if, in real life, the Get Up Kids had been kidnapped, would you go rescue them, and if so, who would you take with you?

CR: (laughs) It depends on whether it was a joke or not. What else, c’mon….

BW: Uhhh….okay. Finish this sentence: “You can’t really trust anyone who doesn’t like _____” You fill in the blank.

CR: Whoa. (laughs) Umm…

BW: My answer is always, “The Pixies”.

CR: Oh yeah? Okay, that’s a good one, ummm…I’m gonna say, “The Pete”, from Bouncing Souls. (laughs)

BW: (laughing) That’s funny. Oh, I gotta tell you this. My little brother, the last time when you guys came through here…..or no, it was that time when we met you guys when you played with Thrice. Anyway, I don’t know if you’ve heard this before, or if anyone’s said anything to you. But, he was like, “Dude, the drummer for Hot Water Music looks like that guy ‘Meat’, on Porky’s.”

(Chucks busts up laughing)

CR: Haha….we’ve heard that before man, we have. That’s funny….Oh man, that’s good.

BW: Okay, well, I think I’ll this now, it’s probably a little too long already. Anything you wanna plug or any parting comments you want to make?

CR: Oh man, I would just really love, once again, to just thank all the people who care to come out to our shows and continue supporting us. And who care to read this. I mean just people who are there for us. Because, truly, if it wasn’t for those people, we wouldn’t be able to keep up the momentum that we keep. We don’t take it for granted and to us, it’s the most special thing that we could ask for. Thank you, truly.

BW: Thanks a lot for doing the interview and for all your time.

CR: Thank you man. I appreciate it. I know that this has been in the works for a while and I’m glad that we finally got to sit down and do it. And THIS is how I like to do it. It was a good interview. So yeah, thank you.