Halifax - 06.22.04

[Catie Callaghan]

I recently called up Mike from Halifax and asked him a few questions about their current tour promoting A Writer's Reference. It so happens they were in their van on the way to West Virgina and if nothing else was learned of the experience, it was the evils of the necessity of cellphones.

AP.net: The majority of you guys aren’t original members of the band, is there any sort of seniority hierarchy ?

Mike: It’s funny that you say that because if anything the people who control most of it or do the most, I don’t know, with leadership skills are the new guys. It’s more like everyone’s equal.

AP.net: Is there any animosity or jealousy from the ex-members because of the new attention that you guys have been receiving?

Mike: I think so, I don’t know for sure. I know that one of the ex-members isn’t in a band and he’s really, really bitter. He threatened to do stuff to me. And the other two are brothers and one of them went away to college and doesn’t care and the other one just joined another band, so…Pretty much one, but I know all three are a, I don’t know, they were not the most mature people in the world.

AP.net: Are the songs on A Writer’s Reference about a particular person?

Mike: Each and everyone of those songs is about a specific person, yeah.

AP.net: So it’s not about one person through out the whole thing.

Mike: It’s basically about that summer or the months leading up to the last summer and all the people that I got really, really mad at and made my life a living hell. I wanted to let them know how I felt.

AP.net: What did you guys think about playing such a large festival, so far away from home as Skate And Surf?

Mike: Good. Awesome, it was such a good experience. Between meeting new bands and stuff like that, playing along side bands we really like to a crowd that was actually there to see us was amazing. The only time we had played in Jersey before that was with the Early November at Club Crome and we gained a lot of fans there we thought and it was just an awesome experience. It was really cool. I’d like to do it again.

AP.net: Do you think it was good practice for the current tour, especially with Hellfest and Warped Tour being included on it?

Mike: Yeah, pretty much. I mean, we’ve been doing a lot of things other than Skate and Surf , we’ve been doing a lot of little tours and little shows and stuff like that here and there with some bigger bands. It’s gotten us knowing what we should hopefully expect and kinda preparing us to be more mature on tour and stuff like that.

AP.net: What's been the best part of the tour so far?

Mike: Aside from our amazing van, I don't know if you know, we have a short bus. It's like one of those dial-a-rides. It's the most comfortable thing I have ever been in, in my entire life. Like right now, we're driving to West Virginia and I'm laying down on a bed. Other than that, I'd have to say meeting Jenoah, I think they were awesome guys and I had a really good time.

AP.net: What was the worst part?

Mike: The worst part? Sometimes I'm like very…When I'm gross and dirty I hate it. So when we don't get to showers that's always the worst part for me.

AP.net: Isn't it like days before you get to take a shower sometimes?

Mike: At the most it'll be like one day. We'll play a show and we'll either just drive to go to the next show or we'll stop at a rest stop and sleep in the van cause we don't have a place to stay. If that happens it kinda sucks but if we stay at someone's house or a motel we're pretty good to go.

AP.net: Who's been your favorite band to tour with so far?

Mike: It would probably be either, Jenoah or The Hire. Both those bands are the coolest dudes in the world. Halifax has a kind of different sense of humor and we can be kinda weird sometimes and both those bands caught on to that so we appreciate that.

AP.net: Who are you guys listening to right now?

Mike: This tour we met a band in Atlanta, GA called Cartel and we got their CD, seriously, so much. It's really good. We listen to Fall Out Boy's acoustic ep a lot, new Killswitch Engage, lots of rap. That's pretty much it. Plus, a lot of old stuff like The Beatles and stuff like that.

AP.net: Now that you guys have been touring for a significant amount of time, do you think you can handle making a living out of it?

Mike: Not yet, we're trying to. Everyone quit their day-jobs so we could tour full time. And we make enough money to eat and survive. So we're not even signed to a label; it's really hard because there is really no one pushing us besides ourselves.

AP.net: Say you guys got all the money in the world for doing this, do you think you could handle just being on the road all the time?

Mike: Oh, fuck yeah. Excuse my language. This is the most amazing job in the world. It's an amazing thing to do even if money wasn't an issue. If there was no such thing as money and I had to choose something to do, I would choose being in a band. Waking up in a new city everyday and playing in front of different people is the coolest thing.

AP.net: In a life or death situation, where you could only chose one, would you rather have fame or fortune and why?

Mike: I'd probably pick fortune because I'm not exactly the kind of person that would want to be famous. I wouldn't want a lot of people to know who I was. I wouldn't want to be noticed anywhere. But as far as fortune goes, you could have fortune in a bunch of different ways: You can have fortune in love, and fortune in money- success is measured in all different ways. Fortune for me would just be like being happy and having everyone that means a lot to me around me at all times.

AP.net: Is there anything else you want to add?

Mike: I don't know if it's a very good thing to put in but Cingular sucks and this cellphone. This interview would be a lot easier if it wasn't such a shitty service…
I just want to say thank you to everyone that's been going to our shows. For a band that's on no label and the kids going to the shows have been really supportive and we really appreciate that.

For more info on Halifax check out their website at halifaxrock.com (http://www.halifaxrock.com)

[Jeremy]

Mike I miss applebees :cry:

And they are called The Higher not The Hire.

[dumbutt]

I went to see Halifax at the Continental in nyc, and took some pictures on my digital camera. At home I showed my sister who was a big fashion freak, and she zoomed in on Mike's jeans which were Seven jeans. And those jeans cost a fucking fortune, and she was telling me they probably weren't struggling that hard as a band.

Anyway, just a stupid side story that came up once money was mention.

[Greg Thimmes]

I Think halifax are the nicest bunch of guys I have met in along time. I met them a few months back at the grange in wilmington de. They Freakin Rocked the joint.

[DenverHarbor22]

I love these guys. They are soo good live and I am really looking forward to seeing them get signed and putting out a full length.

[nizzlefoshizzle]

yeah the show at the grange in delaware was awesome, too bad they had to take up time getting used to other bands equipment and had to cut a song from the setlist

[WILLxMATIC]

This band is probably one of the worst bands to garner any sort of buzz in a long time. Halifax have no redeemable qualities, including appreciation. Where is No Milk Records in this interview? He chooses to say that they are not signed to a label, but what about all the work NMR has done to promote their current (terrible) record. Doesn't that warrant a mention?

As far as the music goes, there isn't much to say. A copy of a copy of a copy of a copy is nowhere near as sharp as the original. I wish we could leave this era of rock where the 'garage band' is celebrated. It has helped to break a bunch of bands devoid of talent who don't pay attention to song structure, creativity and artistic vision. I would argue that bands like Halifax have killed that aesthetic with their lack of talent combined with their stupid look: pseudo-mohawks, designer jeans, eyeliner, etc. As far as I'm concerned they're the anti-garage band.

How many more of these bands does their have to be before people realize that it's fucking corny? Put this Halifax bullshit, this chugga chugga breakdown metal, these lame Strokes/Vines/Jet bands and every other shiftless/warrantless/pointless trend in a time capsule tomorrow and be done with it. Open it up in twenty years and laugh at it like you do those 80's New Wave compilation commercials. (Which I might add was a better trend than any of those previously mentioned.)

I'm an angry man, but I'm sure nobody who has a problem with my replies can't beat me. Thus, I'm uber-confident.

[thentheresme]

And they are called The Higher not The Hire.

Yea that's what I was thinking too. MMMM They're listening to Killswitch Engage. Awesome. Halifax rocks.

[Seans9]

This band is probably one of the worst bands to garner any sort of buzz in a long time. Halifax have no redeemable qualities, including appreciation. Where is No Milk Records in this interview? He chooses to say that they are not signed to a label, but what about all the work NMR has done to promote their current (terrible) record. Doesn't that warrant a mention?

As far as the music goes, there isn't much to say. A copy of a copy of a copy of a copy is nowhere near as sharp as the original. I wish we could leave this era of rock where the 'garage band' is celebrated. It has helped to break a bunch of bands devoid of talent who don't pay attention to song structure, creativity and artistic vision. I would argue that bands like Halifax have killed that aesthetic with their lack of talent combined with their stupid look: pseudo-mohawks, designer jeans, eyeliner, etc. As far as I'm concerned they're the anti-garage band.

How many more of these bands does their have to be before people realize that it's fucking corny? Put this Halifax bullshit, this chugga chugga breakdown metal, these lame Strokes/Vines/Jet bands and every other shiftless/warrantless/pointless trend in a time capsule tomorrow and be done with it. Open it up in twenty years and laugh at it like you do those 80's New Wave compilation commercials. (Which I might add was a better trend than any of those previously mentioned.)

I'm an angry man, but I'm sure nobody who has a problem with my replies can't beat me. Thus, I'm uber-confident.

you say "can't beat me" like its a competition. no one cares dude. seriously.

[Mankfish]

This band is probably one of the worst bands to garner any sort of buzz in a long time. Halifax have no redeemable qualities, including appreciation. Where is No Milk Records in this interview? He chooses to say that they are not signed to a label, but what about all the work NMR has done to promote their current (terrible) record. Doesn't that warrant a mention?

As far as the music goes, there isn't much to say. A copy of a copy of a copy of a copy is nowhere near as sharp as the original. I wish we could leave this era of rock where the 'garage band' is celebrated. It has helped to break a bunch of bands devoid of talent who don't pay attention to song structure, creativity and artistic vision. I would argue that bands like Halifax have killed that aesthetic with their lack of talent combined with their stupid look: pseudo-mohawks, designer jeans, eyeliner, etc. As far as I'm concerned they're the anti-garage band.

How many more of these bands does their have to be before people realize that it's fucking corny? Put this Halifax bullshit, this chugga chugga breakdown metal, these lame Strokes/Vines/Jet bands and every other shiftless/warrantless/pointless trend in a time capsule tomorrow and be done with it. Open it up in twenty years and laugh at it like you do those 80's New Wave compilation commercials. (Which I might add was a better trend than any of those previously mentioned.)

I'm an angry man, but I'm sure nobody who has a problem with my replies can't beat me. Thus, I'm uber-confident.

I have no problem with what band's people like (cliff richard and queen aside) but I agree that they are deffinatly not the most original or exciting band to hit planet earth. There's worse out there and there's also better out there, but hey I like FFTL and im sure alot of cool kids would have a few words to say about that.

[handsdown29]

This band is probably one of the worst bands to garner any sort of buzz in a long time. Halifax have no redeemable qualities, including appreciation. Where is No Milk Records in this interview? He chooses to say that they are not signed to a label, but what about all the work NMR has done to promote their current (terrible) record. Doesn't that warrant a mention?

As far as the music goes, there isn't much to say. A copy of a copy of a copy of a copy is nowhere near as sharp as the original. I wish we could leave this era of rock where the 'garage band' is celebrated. It has helped to break a bunch of bands devoid of talent who don't pay attention to song structure, creativity and artistic vision. I would argue that bands like Halifax have killed that aesthetic with their lack of talent combined with their stupid look: pseudo-mohawks, designer jeans, eyeliner, etc. As far as I'm concerned they're the anti-garage band.

How many more of these bands does their have to be before people realize that it's fucking corny? Put this Halifax bullshit, this chugga chugga breakdown metal, these lame Strokes/Vines/Jet bands and every other shiftless/warrantless/pointless trend in a time capsule tomorrow and be done with it. Open it up in twenty years and laugh at it like you do those 80's New Wave compilation commercials. (Which I might add was a better trend than any of those previously mentioned.)

I'm an angry man, but I'm sure nobody who has a problem with my replies can't beat me. Thus, I'm uber-confident.

Well, you know what they say, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

You're right. Plus, for a band that isn't even signed to label, Halifax sure think they're rockstars. And as for that part about "not wanting to be famous"... riiiiight. Ok. I've seen some things that would suggest differently. But I won't worry. As soon as this whole "screamo" trend thing dies (one more month, maybe) they'll be out of luck.