Members of Bright Young Things, Love Language form Metal Band “Grohg”

October, 26, 2011 , by David

Former members of Bright Young Things Will Goodyear and Mark Connor have teamed up with BJ Burton and Stu McLamb of the Love Language to form a metal band called Grohg. Goodyear plays drums and sings lead vocals with Connor on bass and Burton and McLamb on guitars. For Goodyear the pop sensibilities collected during his time with Bright Young Things have proved influential as he revisits a genre close to his heart. Before Bright Young Things, Goodyear was also drummer and vocalist in the hardcore band Between the Buried and Me.

Last week I sat down with Will Goodyear and Mark Connor to talk about what's going with Grohg, working with BJ and Stu and the sound they are going for. Sunday night at King's with Whatever Brains and Left Outlet at 10pm.

David: So is this a return to roots for you?

Will: I think that’s a good way to put it. The first non-commercial music I got into was metal and coincided with getting into skateboarding and some other things that really changed my life. It put me on a certain trajectory I guess. Some of the first metal bands I listened to were ones that were popular at the time like Pantera and Sepultura and even Megadeath and Metallica which sort of packaged this really heavy, brutal music in a pop format, like a verse, chorus, bridge, that kind of thing.

When I got into playing it myself, most of those bands were not that way at all. I mean it was heavy and it was a lot of fun and a lot of good energy. So there’s return to that energy for sure. I’ve definitely missed playing this type of music, being able to hit the drums super hard and just have a really energetic experience live.

The music is very much like some of that early stuff I liked so much. The writing process is more of pop mentality. Probably just gathered from stuff I’ve been playing for the past seven or eight years, having not really touched metal. It has all been in the rock vein. It’s sort of a blend of those two things I guess now that I say that out loud. It’s the really heavy stuff from Between the Buried and Me meets something super radio kind of like the Bright Young Things. It’s somewhere in the middle.

Mark: Yes. Not necessarily sonically, I don’t think.

Will: No.

Mark: But I mean like the format of writing the songs, like he mentioned the verse, chorus, bridge kind of thing. That sensibility of song structure and also the thing that Will does where a lot of these songs – it’s funny because I was charting it out yesterday for Stu and BJ. He was writing just count sheets out. There wasn’t a four on the page and most of them are that way. So, most of these measures aren’t four measures. There’s something that Will does in writing these songs that keeps the feel to a listener very head-bobby and things like that. So it would feel like a four [count] feel, feel like a pop feel even though it’s like really heavy, kind of brutal music.

David: Will, you don’t seem like an angry guy. Is it hard to write that kind of music without anger?

Will: No, it’s coming very easy. I’m just as angry as a lot of people. I’m choosing to write about topics that I’m pretty passionate about so there’s a lot of aggression there. Another thing I really like about heavy music is that it’s a lot of these subjects that are taboo and other forms of music are completely – I mean there’s no rule that’s in it so I can write about something that might rub people the wrong way.

It’s just anything goes lyrically. I don’t think you have to write angry music to play metal by any means. I don’t think you have to write angry lyrics but it does kind of help. I’m not finding that difficult at all, to come up with topics that I’m passionate about and finding the voice. The actual way to sing that fits the music has been on process but I think we’ve dialed it in with help from these guys.

It’s actually a ton of fun.

I don’t feel angry doing it. I just feel like I’m having a good time.

David: How does that vetting process work where you’re trying to kind of feel out the other musician?

Will: It has been really interesting because basically out of all of us, I’m the only one that has done the metal thing at all but I don’t know. Basically Mark and I, we have played together consistently since we met so that was kind of a given. I want Mark to play bass as long as he was willing and that wasn’t a problem and then finding guitar players.

There are some metal guys I could have gone to and that would have been a sure thing but becoming better friends with Stu and then BJ and seeing them play live with The Love Language, that kind of guitar playing in the way they communicate is really exactly what I was kind of looking for. Then taking what they do, what they’re comfortable doing and then throwing them in the mix with this heavy, heavy music which is – I keep talking about how the structure is easy to follow. It’s really not easy to follow when you’re playing it.

As a listener, it’s easy to listen to.

Mark: Yes, it makes sense initially as a listener. A lot of metal is so technical that it’s off-putting to a casual listener. Metal fans are metal fans but maybe not everybody else would get it.

Will: For those guys, the rehearsals have been really interesting. The learning curve is extremely steep. Even my self – BJ wasn’t there but the other three of us were in the room. We started playing and it was all right. It’s like dusting off cobwebs for me and then them trying to find out where to fit in and what sound to produce.

Mark: That was something that I was really excited that Stu and BJ were involved because of that search for the sonic quality of the band. That was important to me that we got guys who really understood what we were trying to describe – more what Will was trying to describe but to produce the sound that I hear and that I felt was correct because it’s not completely a metal sound. It’s loud and it is big and ballsy guitar sounds but it’s not like there’s a – you’ll hear it when you hear it I guess. I just have to explain.

David: So it sounds to me like one of the things that you were really honest about calling it “metal” and I haven’t heard too much of that in a long time. The only bands that I take seriously that call themselves “metal” don’t take themselves very seriously. You seem like you’re talking about it in from a very serious, artistic perspective.

Will: Oh, yes.

I’m not sure if it has or not. It’s a tough question. I know for me I went through a phase where I was totally over it and didn’t want anything to do with it. I didn’t listen to it and certainly I didn’t play it but it’s – I think once you’re exposed to it it’s just something I can’t really get away from. Maybe it’s because I was so into it so young and I always come back to it.

As far as how Raleigh or wherever else is going to accept this, I’m not exactly sure. I’m totally confident calling it metal because that’s what it is but I think it is going to fit on several different bills. This one, it’s not a metal bill that we’re playing at King’s. It’s Whatever Brains & Left Outlet. It’s a heavier bill but it’s not metal by any means. I think we’ll fit right in. I could be wrong but I think the attitude that we kind of present is maybe more like a rock and roll band. We’re not spitting blood and stuff.

We’re not spitting blood and stuff.

We’re just going to have a good time on stage and not really play a character necessarily. So some of the stereotypes that come with metal, I don’t think we’ll really bring those to the table. Maybe I’m getting off-topic here. I think it’s definitely cool for me to say out loud and proud, “Yes, I’m starting a metal band.”

David: Do you think there’s something exciting about kind of going into a harder music, just a more intense music from a crowd perspective after the pop band?

Will: I definitely do. It’s not going to come immediately but there’s a definite – well, I don’t know. I saw War on Drugs last night and absolutely loved it. It was amazing.

But I was a passive audience member. I was there and I was really – I don’t know. I was interactive in the sense that I was digging it and just smiling and swaying back, whatever you do; but there’s really immediate gratification at some of the heavier shows I’ve been a part of where there’s tons of energy from the stage and then there’s tons of energy from the audience right back at you. It’s a really honest, fast give-and-take. It’s not always what you want as a musician or as an audience member but every now and again, it’s really fun. So I’m definitely looking forward to that exchange of energy, that seriously quick, immediate gratification. I made that sound and that person reacted to it.

David: From a content perspective, is any of it about Raleigh? I have to ask.

Will: I mean at this point lyrically no but aside from that’s where I live and that’s my culture.

What I’m writing about is Raleigh based in that sense but I mean it’s no direct references at this point. I would like to. That’s a good idea. I’m so proud to be a part of the Triangle music thing right now and the art thing, the whole package. It’s an exciting place for me to be and I think Mark would agree.

There’s so much good shit. There’s so much good music and it’s kind of rare. There are not a whole lot of places in America at least where that’s happening. So I don’t know if it will be lyrically present but there’s definitely going to be some serious Triangle pride going on in the band. I would like for our identity to involve some sort of reference to Raleigh or homage to Raleigh or the Triangle and not necessarily Raleigh.

Even though this music is way different, Mark and I have a good chemistry. BJ and Stu obviously have a really good chemistry. So it’s a brand new band and we’re all kind of figuring out how to play this stuff.

David: Do you have anything else you want to talk about?

Will: Most of the questions I’m getting are, “What is the sound like?”

Mark: Yes, that’s funny. We tell people it’s metal and they’re like, “Well, what type of metal?”

We’re at this point where there’s so much music available to the listeners that everything has to have a word attached to it so people know what to expect but I don’t know what any of those words mean.

Will: The music is all over the place. I mean that’s writing music. It’s a mix of all the things I like to listen to. I would say it has got a good bit of doom metal, sludgy doom metal.

There’s singing in key but there’s a lot of screaming too.

David: Do you have any guest growlers ?

Will: Not yet but you know I will be. I will be having them, yes.

Of course. Yes. Right now, it’s just me doing vocals. I love to encourage Stu to do it. We’ll see how that goes.

David: Is it hard?

Will: It’s not anymore. It’s just intimidating at first. You feel silly …

Mark: That’s what I was going to say there’s this point where it’s silly. I would think a point where it’s silly and then a point where you’re like, “This is it and I found it.”

Will: Yes, it’s the first rehearsal where I did sing with these guys. I’m like, “Oh boy, here we go.” Don’t judge me here for a minute. I’m just trying to figure out. I mean it’s different than singing in that you go from zero energy to 100 percent energy like that and it has got to sound good. That has definitely been something I’ve had to become comfortable with.

I’ve done a lot of demoing at home just yelling at my computer, trying to get it to sound to where I think it sounds cool. I’m using a vocal processor tune, a pedal with some effects on it so it’s – I don’t know. A lot of the stuff I hear with screaming, the screaming is really on top and it’s really abrasive and in your face.

I would like for this to blend more with the music. I would like it to be a layer of the music a little more. So the effects on the voice and stuff I think sort of put it in the same – I keep saying sonic but that’s a good word to use. It puts it in the same sonic realm as like the guitars and the other things. Yes, it has definitely got some screaming. It has got some singing but it’s still pretty aggressive singing.

David: Is it hard being the rhythm and singing on top of that?

Will: Yes, it’s not easy. I’ve been singing with pretty much every band I played with.

I’ve sang backup vocals too and so I’ve gotten really used to singing and playing but it’s difficult. It is more difficult with this because there’s more energy involved in the singing.

Mark: With more drumming too, really.

Will: Yes, there’s a lot more drumming and the singing is a rhythmic necessity. It’s not like I can sing lazily all over the place.

It doesn’t have to be right on beat but it has got to be the same. It has got to be consistent. I don’t know. It’s like playing drums with five limbs sort of.

David: So you’re at a point where you can do that for 45 minutes?

Will: I’m busting a sweat. That’s for sure.

Mark: It’s incredible to watch. I don’t want to embarrass you [Editor's Note: Talking to Will] but the people around here paid $5 or $10 just to watch Will play drums for three – as long as I’ve known him, three years or something like that. That’s completely ridiculous because of how talented he is and how good he is with drums and to be able to do the same thing and watch him play more drums and harder and more amazing and sing.

There are moments in a rehearsal where he’s working out a seven-beat drum fill because the measure is seven beats long and there’s no slouch in the room. It’s Stu, BJ and myself. We were just looking like, “Jesus Christ, what the fuck is going on?” and then he sings over it when he does the passage. So it’s a really, really incredible thing to see.

Will: It’s really fun for me. It’s really challenging and really fun.

David: Do you ever have to use Mark for timing?

Will: I totally do. I mean I think he and I have kind of – it’s an unspoken sort of thing where we – I know I do. When we’re playing, I’ll rely on you quite a bit for rhythm.

Mark: Yes, that’s the most fun thing about having developed this relationship is that we’ve done a lot of other bands – the thing about unspoken just on stage, we have this freedom to play outside of what would be a written part. You know what I mean? So free to improvise a little bit and know that the other one is going to be solid right there with us because we’re listening and we’re used to each other. It’s really, really cool for me.

Will: Yes, the rhythmic kind of backbone of this band is really solid as a result of that experience. I mean it’s weird. I think that’s a good point to bring up is Mark and I have a really good chemistry already. Even though this music is way different, Mark and I have a good chemistry. BJ and Stu obviously have a really good chemistry. So it’s a brand new band and we’re all kind of figuring out how to play this stuff.

It’s them two and us two are learning each other but it’s not four people trying to figure out four people. It’s two groups of two and it’s coming together really fast. It’s really exciting to see it happen and to see everybody pumped after every rehearsal.

See Grohg Sunday night at King's with Whatever Brains and Left Outlet at 10pm.

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