If there's anything metalheads desperately need in these trying times, it's a good shot of rock n' roll. Don't know where to look? Then go for Indiana's Bulletwolf. They couldn't have put it better by describing themselves as "alcohol for your ears." Take Motorhead hooks, Black Sabbath guitar-play, inebriated riffs, and mix these with enough adrenalin to power a lighthouse--what you get is Bulletwolf. Named after a comic book character frontman Jeremy "Worm" Drehrer created in his college days (we're still waiting for the movie), Bulletwolf have been tearing people new earholes for a couple of years now. Without further ado, here's the whole goddamn band on bare chests, songwriting, and action figures. They WILL make you (rock) hard.
Hello Bulletwolf. Don't you have your logo emblazoned on some chick's boobs? Mind telling us who the lucky gal is?
| Bands have to take it upon themselves to get out there and let people know that the downloaded songs you got aren't faceless. |
Worm: Getting sticker crazy at shows is pretty fun. We never asked or told her we were doing anything with that picture, so we think it best to leave her anonymous. And that way, you can pretend she is anyone. We'd like to think that it is Elvira's sister. so we are the lucky ones on that deal, should probably make full size posters of it.
The band is Don E, CC DeWolf, "chris," and Worm. Just who the hell are you guys in real life? I mean, tell me about the dudes behind the stage names. Do they have a lot of facial hair? How do they make up after fighting? They drink a lot?
Worm: There haven't been any fights really. If something ever came up, being good friends would help us transcend any bullshit. And we never really thought of them as stage names. Just some random shit to put up around our inside jokes, allow me to explain...
Don E, our drummer, is Don E. Curtis, Jr. in real life. It kind of explains itself. Plus he used to roof and one of the foremen said it like it had an umlaut over the 'o' and an 'e' at the end making it all draaawwn out, like Dooowwne. Funny shit. His name was "Hobe" but it sounded like everyone called him "Ho." CC DeWolf is TJ Hunt on guitar. He's a big Poison fan, so jokingly, CC DeVille changed to this. He used to play in a pretty legitimate Poison tribute band called Posin' "chris" is our other gitarist Chris Morrison. It's just fun to "talk" in "quotes" sometimes. Worm, that's me, Jeremy N. Dreher on bass and vocals. People started calling me "worm" around 2000 when the movies "The Stoned Age" and "Friday" got watched by me and some friends over and over again. It just stuck. I hated it for a while then got used to it. A lot of people I know don't even know my real name. And I got a beard supreme. It could win a competition. We take to drinking pretty well. Our songs will speak for themselves on that.
"Bulletwolf." I must admit the name has got a ring to it. Can you trace its origins?
Worm: Bulletwolf was initially a comic book/video game character that I was gonna do a project on in college. He's kind of a werewolf mutant with a He-man like body, gnarly wolf head and a massive cannon on his chest. He got that way in a huge explosion at a factory that was making animals into mutant weapons for the government. He would kick all kinds of ass in hand-to-hand combat and collect bullets, missiles and other things to shoot out of his chest while fighting for the better of all mankind against genetic mutation and government corruption and manipulation. I talked and talked about it for about two years to anyone that would listen but couldn't draw (had a back-story, villains, soundtrack and all kinds of shit in mind too, also had Deidrich Bader, the character ‘Lawrence' from the movie "Office Space," in mind for the voice) so it never got off the ground and I have yet to take it anywhere else. But he sounded fucking cool! My old band had a song with that name on it and it sort-of became a second nickname for me for a while. Years later and here we were, a new band looking for a name, then my bro Jay asked "Why aren't you just calling it Bulletwolf?" So there it was. And it is way better than "Canada Must Die" or "Axes High." By the way, my sister's cat is named Ladyfang, after Bulletwolf's arch nemesis. She is also his ex-wife and later on in the story you find out that they have a kid together who eventually follows in his father's footsteps after initially being a bad guy alongside his mum. Here is where I'd start rambling on and on so I'll just stop on that.
What hash were you smoking when you decided to re-christen yourselves CC DeWolf and uh, "chris"?
Worm: No hash, just a lot of drinks. Wish we could say that we still do, but we used too. Given the fact that we don't really even smoke out, it is kind of weird for people to label us stoner rock, or stoner metal, whatever one wants to call it. Now, that is not bad thing since we obviously sound for the style and rock out on it a lot, just goes to show that you can like a style for any reason you like. The "label" of beer rock would probably work best. But a genre tag don't mean shit.
You think Bulletwolf has what it takes to give Airbourne and a lot of other rock n' rollers a run for their money?
TJ: You mean at arm wrestling? I don't know how big they are. Their tunes are rock solid though!
"chris": Who are they?
Worm: Sorta AC/DC influence but real modern and awesome. Way more Brian Johnson than Bon Scott. If it were the other way around, watch the fuck out. Very much a "drink-up" band. We could hang with that; I'll let you listen to mine.
Don E: Different styles, but we could rock with that. We'll open for anybody.
TJ: And we know how to put a good set on with the party going, so, yeah, we can hang.
Of course we all know Bulletwolf has a new album out. It goes by the name "Double Shots of Rock n' Roll." I'm not gonna ask specific questions about it because you can never adequately put music into words. So just sell the damn thing to our readers in three to five sentences. You think this is a good idea?
"chris": "Double Shots of Rock and Roll" (via Abyss Records 2003), pretty fucking great title, right?!?! "Demolanolin" is our four-song demo from summer 2007, which is still available.
Worm: Everybody needs a party soundtrack so here you go. You should play this in-between Deep Purple's "In Rock" and Kyuss' "Welcome to Sky Valley."
Don E: It's like alcohol for your ears.
Want to delve a bit into your previous recordings while you're at it?
Worm: "Demolanolin" was recorded in one day at Basement Rage Studio with Bob Fouts (of The Gates of Slumber: if you don't know about them already, do yourself a BIG favor and find out!!), whom we also did our full length with. None of the demo material was re-recorded for the full length though. We wanted too, but talked ourselves out of it. Kind of a crazy idea since it had some rad shit that remain live staples, but we were so psyched about the new stuff that we really focused on that instead of re-visiting the past. We seemed to catch something special that day, so why fuck with it? Being a brand new band and just making it happen as you go along doesn't come around that often. Not bad for a band that had only practiced four times. Those songs almost made it on the full length, unchanged, tacked on at the end. But the album sounded great as a whole so they were left off. So, we'll keep pressing the demo as long as it is needed.
You mind going behind the scenes? Like the writing process, the stuff that happened in the studio, where did you get the money to pay for everything, dirty secrets you'd rather not let your fans know?
Worm: money to record comes from playing shows. That is the only way to do it. You want to record? Get your ass out there and play. You want merch? get your ass out there and play. You want money for yourself? Ain't gonna happen, so get used to it. We've still paid for a lot of shit from our own pockets but the more you play, hopefully, the more the band will take care of itself and that is what you shoot for. For example, the demo needed to be repressed, band money paid for it. It didn't the first time because that came from our pockets, but not having to pay for it the next time is pretty cool. Without Dan and Abyss Records, the full length would not have been pressed for some time. We were broke after recording, so lucky for us, Dan came into play and it got out a LOT faster than we would have been able to make it happen ourselves.
As far as what happened in the studio? Drinking and smoking, hahahaha! Overall, make a BAD ASS record that you are proud of. And use a LOT of amps to get cool sounds or try whatever you want to get what you need. Never ever forget about trial and error. Also, you have to put yourself in a position to get criticized. I think we did that pretty well. You know, "do that over," "try it this way," or "here, YOU play that lick." It all worked out pretty good and Bob is a bro from way back so it was great to work with him. He had killer ideas and it really shows.
Our writing process is probably like any other, somebody comes up with something at home or on the spot and you work through it as a band. A lot of times I'll come to practice with what I think is a full song. Sometimes it changes, sometimes it doesn't, you just have to be able to work it out together and make that song into what it wants to be.
Which songs on the album are closest to your heart? And don't say ‘all of them' because you'll ruin this question.
"chris": I like "Usetoo." And you can't fuck with "Sleizard." My eyes roll back in my head whenever we play it.
Don E: "Fuckfight' is the heaviest and most fun to play. The long ass notes in the intro let you think that you can get lost but it's all kept together.
Worm: I have to go ahead and ruin this question since I live all the lyrics, ALL OF THEM. Ever been a dollar short at the liquor store, or not known what the fuck happened last night, or tried to find a reason why weed just fucks with you too much? Me too, and it's all in there.
If I wanted a copy, where can I buy one? And what if I live far away like Asia? Yes, I am from Asia.
Worm: www.officialabyssrecords.com, you can also google it and find a dozen or so distro sites or visit our myspace and paypal it. You could have it ordered and on it's way in five minutes and if you are old fashioned like us, buy it at a show. That is also possible with all our merch.
The band is from Indiana. What makes Indiana different from the rest of the USA? How many interesting bands are in your scene?
Worm: Indiana is hicks, hayseeds, and sports fans right? NOPE! The thing that makes Indiana great is that everyone else seems to count Indiana out. Most national acts skip over but a lot of independent touring bands come through. So what comes out of (and through here) is real, heartfelt music no matter where you look. And bands work together here. You don't find fights, bullshit, and rivalries. The places to play here really make it too. House shows AND bar shows always end up killer. The major drawback is that a place is either all ages or 21 and up. No 18 and up shows were 21+ can drink. That sucks on a lot of levels. Older dudes can't see what the kids want and the kids can't see the bands that the older dudes have known about forever. Of course house shows "might" be a little different on that matter but you didn't hear that from me. Plus, Indiana isn't that far away from getting out of it and traveling. You just have to be willing to take the hit on monies. Interesting bands? You'd find Indiana to kick ass all over the place! Apostle of Solitude, Christ Beheaded, The Cocaine Wolves, Demiricous, Denogginizer, Devil to Pay, Devils of Belgrade, The Dockers, The Gates of Slumber, Junker, King Deuce, Maravich, Phantom Witch, Rowco, Stand and Deliver, Summon the Destroyer, Tunguska, WTF?!?!, Whiskeytits, Worldeater, Youwilldie... There's so much good shit in this town.
How long has Bulletwolf been playing gigs? Ever had bad experiences? How about the really good ones where you went offstage and thought all the sweat you poured out was worth it?
Worm: We've been playing live for almost two years now. Past experience with bands is forever though, at least ten years for each of us. We got too drunk in Terre Haute one night so that show didn't turn out too well. Broken bass string on first note, bass drum kept moving around, arrangement on a couple songs got wacky, but after a few songs, we turned it around. The night after that was just the opposite, played a completely tight set with no technical difficulties and despite almost losing my voice the night before we walked off the stage head held pretty fucking high.
Any funny stories from your live performances? Promise, our readers will love it.
Don E: "chris" and Worm were in a band a few years ago, playing chicago one particular night and this dude kept getting his hot girlfriend's titties out and fingerbanged her right in front of the stage. That was fun. One of the bands that night also had a midget drummer. Hopefully, the hits keep coming.
When did you first pick up a musical instrument? Got any encouragement from your parents?
Worm: It started with a whole lot of pre-teen picking up of instruments. We would've made a pretty kick ass elementary school dance band with pints hidden in our backpacks and shit.
Can you chart what you went through to learn how to write songs and compose music? Who were your first references and inspiration?
Worm: We don't know how to be able to say what it takes to write and compose. Keep doing what makes the songs sound best to you and that is the best you can keep working with.
Don E: References and inspiration? Then here goes a cliché answer for you: EVERYTHING!! Literally.
"chris": If we each took time and put our stuff down, the list would be REALY long.
As a total band, we gather influence from Sleep, Cathedral, Black Sabbath, Motorhead, ZZ Top, Thin Lizzy, Van Halen, Electric Wizard, Creedence Clearwater... I just put on a Genesis album and right before that was Municipal Waste. Make some sense out of that. Good stuff is good stuff.
How long did it take for you to understand the ins and outs of the music business? You know, all the small details independent artists must know in order to release their music?
"chris": I'm still learning. and hopefully will always be.
TJ: Trial and error. You do it your way. If it's not right, you keep on keeping on.
I was watching a bio of Stone Cold Steve Austin wile preparing this interview and sifting through my notes on you guys. Your music definitely has the swagger and attitude to reach a wider audience, and this is not cheap flattery man. Would you consider it a major career break if one of your songs ends up on a wrestling soundtrack? Are any of you even fans of wrestling?
Don E: I'd love it. Set us up live at a match!
Worm: I don't see how that could be a bad thing. I'd love something like-minded to grab hold of our material. Whether it's beer, racing, wrestling, there are lots of things that come to mind on that. Hulk Hogan is still my hero and I will NEVER let go of the pic I took of him fighting Kamala when I was about eight.
TJ: Even though a hundred million people would hear it, I'd consider it more major exposure, not a major break. There's really no such thing as a major break anymore. A major break for us would be a free van.
What piece of merchandise-aside from t-shirts-do you dream of having for the band? Like a pinball machine or an action figure, you know. That's KISS, how about Bulletwolf?
Don E: Figurines of all of us!
"chris": I want mine to have interchangeable hats and glasses. A pre-loaded iPod with only Bulletwolf songs would be cool too, and you cannot erase anything from it.
Worm: I'd love to see the Bulletwolf character become a comic book or video game. And action figure, HELL YES! I'll pre-order fifty of them.
TJ: Branded malt liquor and whiskey would be good too. We already have shot and pint glasses, so that is a good start.
Does any member of the band own a badass motorcycle or at least a hot car? What vehicle do you use to reach your gigs?
"chris": Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 with Vance & Hines long shots and ape hangars.
Worm: Does a hot car need a muffler and shocks? If it does than I have one.
TJ: We've had and abused vans before. I am sure we'll go through a couple more.
Don E: Hell yeah, we will! Trailers work well for the time being, but they can be a hassle to park.
We've reached the bitter end here Bulletwolf, thanks for the ride. With the economy going downhill, is there anything you're still looking forward to this 2009?
TJ: Promote the fuck out of the new album.
Don E: Playing, playing, playing. We are gonna play bad-ass shows.
Worm: With the way things have gotten, a band will have to get around more and more to more and more people MORE than anyone thought they'd have too. Bands have to take it upon themselves to get out there and let people know that the downloaded songs you got aren't faceless. It's for people that love what they do and want you to experience it firsthand. I think people are still going to want that.
"chris": GO COLTS!!
--Miguel Blardony
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