Ben Gillies - Silverchair
 

Darrin: Ben, welcome, and where have I caught you today?  Texas or somewhere else in the vicinity?

Ben:  Actually, I think we are in Oklahoma. We just woke up, and the venue is literally in the middle of nowhere. We got off the bus and took a look around, and there is this big tin shed we are playing in tonight. Even though we are n Oklahoma, we could be literally anywhere.

Darrin: How is the touring going so far?

Ben: Fantastic.  This tour has been really cool. We have not been to Canada as much, but here in the US it has been really good. People are kinda excited about the band again, and surprised that we are back.  I think in Canada we have always been a bit more in peoples’ conscious. Although we still had to come there to support material, it was not such a struggle there. But for here, the tour is going great. Unfortunately, I do not think we are making to Canada on this tour.

Darrin: Skipping the Commonwealth? The shame! (laughs)

Ben: (Laughs) Sorry about that. We don’t get to make those kinds of choices. 

Darrin: So, you have had 5 number 1 albums in Australia, which is a first there.. I think the perception outside of Australia was that after the Freakshow era, the band had pretty well run it’s course. What was the reason for the lack of advertising and promotion of the band especially in the States? Did the medical issues that Daniel suffered from keep the band close to home?

Ben: Yes, I think that is ultimately what it was. I think Daniel got to the point where he did not feel well enough to tour, and then in the end, was unable to perform live. It is kind of public knowledge now, that he had anorexia, and after he got through that, and after Diorama, he got Reactive Arthritis. You know, it was just one thing after another. It was just one thing after another. And it always seemed to happen when we needed to go out on tour. I guess the public perception in North America, is that the band had gone away. In actual fact, we were doing stuff.  Actually we have always been doing stuff, just unable to do any touring for it.

I think it is also because we have always musically changed. We strive to always do something different. It keeps things fresh for us. I think that has alienated a lot of people, particularly the Frogstomp purists. If you are not a grunge band, or playing guitar, bass and drums really loud and singing about how emotional you are, then they are not behind the band. I would say there was a real combination of things, that led to the perception that we had gone away for a long time. Daniel is healthy now, and we are making some of the best music of our lives. It is like we have a fresh opportunity to take a real crack at it, and out ourselves back up again. I think if we follow this album up with another quick record, I think that anything may be possible.

Darrin: Has it been tough to shake off the label of teen sensation you received with Frogstomp and Freakshow?

Ben: Yeah, definitely. A lot of people have really pigeon-holed us in that grunge genre.  I think for anyone that is aware of the band, or followed the band, we kind of lost that whole grunge thing after Freakshow really. It is kind of frustrating, and you want to prove to people or being them up to speed that we are not that band anymore, and we are not 14 year old boys anymore.

Darrin: If YOU had to pigeon-hole yourself in a genre now, what would it be?

Ben: (Laughs) I don’t know. I honestly think that we are one of those rare bands that you can’t actually put in a genre. We explore so many different fields, and there is not any one style that we stick to. We are always trying to change. I think that is half of the attraction of the band, People have remained fans, fully knowing that we do not stick to the same thing. We have such short attention spans, we are trying to amuse ourselves at the same time. There is nothing worse than having a favorite band, and awaiting the new album to come out, and it sounds exactly like the previous one. I couldn’t think of anything more boring.

Darrin: I call it all rock…

Ben: That is pretty well what we do.  If someone that has never heard of us, or heard any of the material ask us what we play, we just say “rock music”. At the end of the day, it is all rock music.

Darrin: What kind of fan reaction are you getting on the tour? Are there a ton of shouts for you to play the old stuff?  Are they being responsive to the Young Modern stuff? Seeing the lack of penetration in the US market, are there a lot of fans coming to the show, and seeing something totally opposite to what they were expecting?

Ben: No, it seems like everyone that has been coming out is seeming to have a really good time. I mean, for any band, there is always going to be a purist that comes to the show wanting to hear a particular thing off a particular record, or one of the early hits. That is all they want to hear, and are not really interested in hearing anything new. It does feel like that everyone that has come to the shows has been really cool about it. And we see it as not wanting to play a fraudulent set.  We are kind of greedy that way, and like to play songs that we enjoy playing. Our take is, that is we are up there having a good time, putting out heart and soul into it, and not just going through the motions of it all, the people are going to have that rub off on them.

Darrin: Are there any cities or shows on this US tour that you have particularly enjoyed, or have stuck out for you?

Ben: Yeah.  I remember the San Diego show was really good, LA was really cool. What was the other one? Chris? (asking bassist Chris) San Francisco was really a great show. There have been some stand out shows.  The San Fran show was a real stand out. We were in a tiny little club, with about 500 people, and we had just come off a tour in Australia with about 38 dates, and we were playing on average venues that held from 4,000 to 10,000 people each night. We are really enjoying playing in these little sweaty kinds of clubs. Everyone is in everybody’s faces and it makes a recipe for everyone to have a really good time.

Darrin: Were there any places you really wanted to get out and see this time around, seeing you are now of legal age in the US?

Ben: To be honest, even though we have been to many places, we have not really seen much of anything. It is all starting to blend into one really big gig now. One really long night on the bus. That is why I had to ask Chris where one of the really good shows was. They all start to seem like the same thing after awhile. We are still all enjoying it though.

Darrin: How did the band become involved with Van Dyke Parks?

Ben: Umm, I think it was the idea of a manager. On Diorama we were trying to come up with someone that was up to doing the string arrangements on Diorama. I think our manager asked Daniel, “What about Van Dyke Parks? He worked with the Beach Boys” and I think Daniel said something like “But, isn’t he dead?” (Laughs).  I think he actually told Van Dyke that story, and he thought it was hilarious. That is kind of how it started, by asking if he wanted to get involved in the project.  I think it came down to the music in the end.  I think he really likes Dan’s songs and liked to be involved with the band. That has continued from there, right on to Young Modern. I that is going to be a long standing relationship.

Darrin: Are you guys writing on the tour at all?  Is there material for a new album to put out quickly as you had mentioned?

Ben: I think Dan already has material. When he was writing this record, he did a lot of writing. I think he said he wrote about 50 songs maybe. And he culled that down to what he felt would fit the band. I don’t think Dan particularly likes to write on the road. Any spare time you have on the road, you just want to sit and stare at a television.  You are so busy touring, and preparing to do shows, with everything centering around that, that at the end of the day, you would prefer to kick back and relax.

Darrin: The odds of a band, getting together as 14 year olds, and still being together 15 years later is pretty well off the scale.  Are you amazed that you are still together as a band?

Ben: Yeah, definitely. If you ask anyone now that if they started a band at 14 and still be together when they are 28, I think the answer would most probably be no. I guess we are still all pretty surprised with this whole thing. That being said, there have definitely been moments where we had to think if that was the best thing, to keep the band together. I think we are at a point where we are all excited to be in the band, after Dan being sick and just not having that much luck there for so long. It is exciting to be in the band at the moment.

Darrin: You personally, if you had to hang the sticks up tomorrow, what would you do? If you could just go out and do something different? 

Ben: I would be lost. I would be completely lost. I would have no idea. I think I am more day by day at this moment and not even looking that far ahead. I honestly think if that was to happen, I would be up shit creek without any oars.

Darrin: Let me change up my question.  For yourself, when you are NOT touring, and not in the studio, what do you like to do? With your free time, that may not be musical.

Ben: I don’t know.  I hang out with friends, go surfing, traveling. I don’t know, I think when you are a musician, you love it. If I am at home, and I am bored off tour and out of the studio, I may grab a guitar or sit on the piano for a couple of hours, go have a play on my drum kit or whatever. I think on a leisure day, we all just kind of do the things that we enjoy doing. Looking back, from the beginning, there have been a few breaks, but the Silverchair beast has always been moving, so there has not been an excess of time off.

We actually formed the band when we were 12, and I remember jamming with Dan before that, and we were writing little rap tunes in primer school, when we were like, 8. We have been in bands for more than half of our lives. I guess it is kind of all we know.

Darrin: Once you get back home, what is next?

Ben: We head back on the 17^th of December I think, and we have a few weeks off for Christmas and all that, to recharge the batteries a bit. Then we have a tour in Australia next year called The Big Day Out, it is like a big touring festival with Rage Against The Machine, Arcade Fire, Bjork are playing it, which should be pretty cool. Then there is nothing booked in yet, but I reckon we will be back in Canada and the Us about next March or so.

Darrin: Ben, tanks so much for your time and I wish you and the guys the best for the rest of the tour, and as well for 2008!

Ben: Awesome, and thank you. Have a good day,  See you man!