So I got on to UnderOath’s tour bus(which was nice and very warm, might I add), and met James Smith, the rhythm guitarist since 2003. We sat down and I noticed he had been playing Halo. Actually the entire back lounge was a game room. Controls all around, tour life must offer plenty of time for gaming. A cozy space well appointed. I hit the record button and off we went.
I first asked him how it felt to watch the entire hardcore scene grow, considering he’s been a part of it for a long time.
“It’s been interesting, the scene has definitely changed a lot from when we first started playing. Bands that sounded like us were never this successful and the scene in general has had quite a bit popularity the past few years and none of us ever expected it. Screaming generally has never been accepted by anyone, so it’s pretty interesting to see that it has come to that point and we are able to be successful and take that success to where we are today.”
I asked if he and his band have ever faced any criticism for being Christian and hardcore.
He said “Oh yeah. Especially earlier on, when we first started touring. At Warped Tour, a lot of the older punk rock bands didn’t like that we were Christian and associated with the scene. We definitely received a lot of flack, but because we’re respectful people and I think we’re fairly nice people. We’ve been able to be friends with those people and earn their respect.”
I next asked what his favourite venue was.
“There’s a venue in Richmond called The National and it’s owned by people who really care a lot for the bands and they treat us all very nice. They’ve invested in a lot of nice stuff in the backstage area so for a band of our size, that doesn’t play big arenas and gets hotels every night it’s nice to go to a place where you can count on a good meal they have TVs and stuff set up so you can just relax. There’s usually a hot tub and a good amount of showers.”
I then asked what his favourite tour memory was.
James: “A year ago we were on Warped Tour and we had a day off and we went to Mt. Lake Shasta California and rented a boat that a had a slide off the back of it and just went out on the lake for a day. It was good times.”
Next, I asked him what inspires him the most.
“Movies, I guess. It’s a different artistic medium, gives you a different way of expressing yourself. If there’s a scene in a movie I might think ‘maybe we can have that kind of feel on the record’. There’s a song where we just wanted this zombie apocalypse sounding part. There’s a lot of drum parts and a stomp kind of sound and that was definitely an inspiration.”
I asked him what he’d be doing if he wasn’t a musician.
He responded “I guess I’d be working a regular job. I didn’t ever expect to be this successful but when the opportunity came along, I wanted to do it immediately.”
Helen asked if the band had changed at all since the member change.
“It’s a lot more laid back now, we’re definitely older now, too and there’s a lot more respect for each other.”
Next, I asked him about Disambiguation, The title, idea, concept.
“The O-slash symbol, which means disambiguation, which some of the guys found suiting given the lyrical and current state of the band. We all faced the challenge of the record knowing it had to be better than anything we’ve done before. Just naturally we strive to be more creative whenever we record. We challenged our selves a lot more. The recording process, everything was laid back but much more questioned to see if it was the best we could do.”
I asked who his favourite bands were when he started getting into music.
“I was a big fan of MXPX, Blackwagon, things like that which first got me interested in music. And some earlier Christian metal bands got me interested in this hardcore scene. At The Drive In, Botch, bands like that really had an affect that set this course for my musical endeavors.”
Lastly, I asked him the iPod question.
“I have some Hank Williams on my iPod…I got Huey Lewis…”
James Smith is a Christian, hardcore-making, country-listening nice, humble and enthusiastic musician.