When I first received the "Forbidden Meat" cd I really didn't know what to make of the band. I had some questions, so I started to write e-mail and soon that turned into a complete interview. SME is current on the Warped Tour, so I am very glad Josh took the time to answer my questions.
Where did the name come from?
Josh - Would you believe that there is absolutely no meaning what so ever? I know that's hard to swallow but you're just gonna have to trust me. It's just a dumb name that made me laugh and for better or worse it stuck.
How & When did the band meet?
Josh - I was living in San Diego with an old band and after it ended I moved back home to Georgia and immediately started up SME with Kevin (drummer) After going through about 4 bass players in less than a year we finally got the lineup set with the somewhat recent addition of John (bassist).
Describe the SME sound.
Rock N Roll with multiple personalities. We get put the in pop punk category a lot but I feel that we break that mold with our newest CD "Forbidden Meat."
Tell us about "shameless self promotion"?
SSP as we like to call it in the "Industry" was a glorified demo tape. We recorded that 2 months after we formed the band and we had no bassist. I played all the bass tracks myself. We were just gonna record a 5 song demo tape then it was a 8 song demo tape and a few weeks before we went in to record we were gonna record 13 songs and put it out on CD. We put out 500 copies with money we got from both of us working at a gas station. After it came out it quickly sold out and Fremont CA label Orange Peal Records re-released the CD with new artwork.
How is the new album different?
Josh - The last CD was thrown together in a day and a half of recording - We spent way more time on this and not to mention we actually had a bass player who definitely added to our sound. This CD is just better than the last one on so many levels. Musically and Lyrically.
How long have you been together?
Josh - 2 years on the dot.
Can you describe the song writing process?
Josh - I come up with the songs and then show the guys and we just build from my foundation. Actually for the 1st time in SME, John our newest member actually brought 3 of the songs to the table. It's a nice change to have another song writer in the band.
What is it like working with Orange Peal Records?
Josh - Great. They get done what they need to get done. Just how we operate. No bullshit just results. I love OP. They have helped us reach the level we're at now.
Tell us about your appearance on Farmclub.
Josh - It was overwhelming to say the least. We had been a band for less than a year and we were walking around with Destinys Child, 3 doors down, Mxpx, Matt Pinfield and all these other rock stars. We were so out of place it wasn't even funny.
What was the first US tour like?
Josh - A joke. We did 6 shows in CA as our 1st tour. What were we thinking? We're from GA and we did our 1st tour in CA. It wasn't too bad for a 1st tour I guess. No one knew who we were and the people at the shows could careless about us. It toughened us up because we went threw a lot of shit. Every tour gets better and better.
Can you describe the biggest show of the tour?
Josh - So far I would have to say our Warped Tour date in WA. We played the volcom stage and had the biggest crowd for that side stage. There were so many SME fans up there I couldn't believe it. We've never played up there so I was surprised to see so many people singing our words. Warped Tour is perfect for us because it makes it easier to reach the kids who know of us that can't go to the dive club on the bad side of town on a Tuesday night or whatever the situation is sometimes on tour.
Why did Travis leave?
Josh - He didn't like us and we didn't like him. It was just a nightmare.
How did you meet John?
Josh - We toured with his old band one summer and they gave him the boot right when Travis was leaving so it worked out perfect.
Tell us about the Warped tour.
Josh - Well like I said before - Our 1st date on Warped in WA was amazing. We are doing the rest of our dates in a few weeks. I love warped tour. In '99 I went to the warped tour in Atlanta and was handing out flyers for our 1st show. In '00 warped tour we got to play the last date of the tour in El Paso TX and this year we're doing 7 dates. I can't believe we're able to be apart of this.
Tell us about the "Rebellyache" tour.
Josh - This is very strange. It's sponsored by Slim Jim so they have tons of money to do everything and anything. We are treated VERY well on this tour. I love it plus we get all the slim jims we want for free.
Your Label is from Frement, CA, what is the Fremont scene like?
Josh - I couldn't really tell you about the scene - We live in GA so we don't go to many shows in Fremont but every time we play there the kids go off. It's one of my favorite places to play.
What is the future of the SME?
Josh - I wish I knew. I'd say lots of good juicy drama so we can make our "behind the music" really interesting.
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