Will The Thrill Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

We're Will The Thrill, from St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America.  We play all original music that is influenced by 80's Heavy Metal and a few other things.  I'm Will and sing lead vox and play lead guitar.  Mojoe Murphy plays bass and backing vox, and Tony Pepper plays drums, keyboards and backing vox.  We like to play exciting shows with a party atmosphere.

2.So far you have released 2 albums, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?

I grew up listening to 80's Metal bands.  So both albums sound a lot like they came from 1984. But there is a little Power Metal, Punk, Rockabilly, Blues, and Thrash as well.  I try to listen to newer Metal sometimes, but I'm a child of the 80's!  Our first album is called "Thanks For The Support" and the new CD is called "Sorry To Disappoint Ya".  Both albums sound similar but the new one takes more chances with different styles.  On "Sociopath" I play a terrible-sounding Fender Stratocaster with strings that are 5 years old and covered in rust, and I played the whole song standing right in front of my amplifier!  And on "Little Miss Treater" I play an 80-year-old National resonator guitar as well as a bluesy slide solo on my electric.  But for most of both albums I recorded an Ibanez Jem through a Peavey 5150 or Peavey 6505.

3.Your music is very different from what is played nowadays and while there are plenty of bands that play more 80's style metal these days your style is different in the way that it goes back more to the radio oriented version of the style, what was the decision behind bringing this musical style back?

I've lived for 80's Metal since I was 4 years old.  It was almost the only thing I listened to growing up.  The music feels good, the rock stars looked like gods on stage, and the women in their videos were beautiful and loved the guys in the band.  There were lights, explosions, and 15,000 screaming fans.  But underneath it all, the music spoke to me.  It said, "Don't take crap from people, you're not alone, and if you stay true to yourself things will be okay."  Heavy Metal taught me to be strong when everyone else was trying to make me feel bad.  It is very important for troubled people to feel like someone out there understands them, and what they're going through.

4.On the fb page you show a dislike towards emo, screamo and brutal deathcore, are you against all modern forms of extreme and hard music?

I was a teacher for 10 years and some kids told me about bands like Waking The Cadaver, Between The Buried And Me, and Whitechapel.  I listened to the bands and their music didn't do anything for me.  I think those bands are made up of people who grew up in the suburbs, with nice houses, parents who rarely argued, food, clothes, money when needed, and a lot of love and encouragement.  They don't have any real problems to be angry about, so they create a fake rage because they're bored.  Nothing about them sounded good to me.

That being said, I'm not against extreme or hard music.  I don't hate people for listening to it; I don't hate bands for playing it.  If the anger in this music is what you feel inside, then it's okay to express that.  But many of these bands concentrate only on the negative.  Sometimes the world is ugly, frustrating, cruel, and sad.  But we must remember that the world is also a beautiful place, funny, and full of hope.  It's okay to listen to Cryptopsy if you want, but after that try to listen to something fun like David Lee Roth, or take a walk outside to get some sun and fresh air.  Don't perpetuate your misery!

5.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

Sometimes I talk about being pissed off at people who screwed me over.  Other times I write about something great.  I wrote "She's An Animal" after I saw Doro Pesch sing.  She is all Metal and wonderful!  Some songs are about letting go of relationships that aren't good for you anymore or dealing with death in your family.  But then there's a song on my first album called "Grind It Till Ya Find It" and it makes jokes about having sex in a car!

6.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Will the thrill'?

I'm Will, and my nickname is "The Thrill".  It suits the band because we're exciting, fun, and unpredictable.

7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Our band is a party just waiting to explode!  We give people thrills at our shows.  We make them scream, yell, get rid of their anger and feel good afterwards.  Our best show was our CD Release party at "Just Bill's Place" here in St. Louis two months ago.  All our friends came to see us, and it felt great to finally let everybody hear our new music.  We also played a show at "300 State" in Alton, Illinois where nobody knew who we were.  The room was almost empty when we started, and it was full when we were done.  We won them over!

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

We want to play shows in some of the neighboring cities during the Fall and Winter.  When Spring and Summer come, we want to play at Rock festivals all over the United States.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of hard rock and metal?

People who like Rock and Metal love our music.  We make the exact music that we want and we don't care what's popular or trendy.  They like our music because it is honest, based on real experience, full of personality and finely crafted.  Other people who are not fans of Hard Rock or Metal still enjoy my music because it's fun to listen to and a lot of hard work goes into it.  I don't care if my songs are in someone's playlist right after Britney Spears or John Coltrane, I just want to give them something fun to listen to.  And Heavy Metal is how I do it!

10.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

I want to do what is right for my band musically, financially, and emotionally.  If a record label wants to help us, then we'll work hard to make it worth their while so the relationship is mutually beneficial.  If a label jerks us around, then we'll do it ourselves.  Our goal is create, record, and perform music for as many people as possible so we can rock their lives and make the world a better place.  We would also like to get paid to do it!

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

When I was a kid, I listed to Judas Priest every day for two years.  That's my band!  I've seen them play 8 times.  Before that I listened to Guns 'n' Roses every day for six months.  Earlier, I liked Pat Benatar, Scorpions, Ratt, Rainbow, Motley Crue, and Dokken. 

My favorite new band is Sonata Arctica.  I've seen them 5 times and I'm going again in October. I also like Children of Bodom, Amon Amarth, and Labyrinth.  Other bands I listen to are The Clash, Reverend Horton Heat, Black Flag, Riot, UFO, Saxon, Saga, Dire Straits, Hank Williams Sr., Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Cyndi Lauper, Adam Ant, and even old school rap like Whodini and Egyptian Lover!

12.What are some of your non musical interests?

I love Wrestling--College, International, and even American Pro-Wrestling like the WWE.  I wrestled in college and it helped make me a strong person with a good work ethic.  I also grew up on video games--Pac Man, Zork, System Shock I and II, WarCraft, StarCraft, all the way to Assassin's Creed.  I don't have a lot of time to play anymore because I'm working on music, but they're fun.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Cheers to you out there if you've read all of this!  Thanks to Undergroundmusickzine for listening to our CD, our friends at Against Magazine, and to JTW Music for producing both our albums with expert attention to detail.  You can find our music at our websitehttp://www.willthrillrocks.com/, CdBaby, Amazon, iTunes, and pretty much everywhere.  Hope you all check it out!