Brad Rice: Press

Interview with SLEAZE-METAL.com (Germany)
English Version:

Hey Brad. Although I think that your music in the US is definied as Alternativrock, I, for myself, think the way of guitarriffing sounds like classical hardrock. Maybe like Joe Perry. Quite a lot of your songstructures sounds much more sleaze than we got used to by other american akts. How do you explain that. Are you a dirty Rock'n'roller, too, or way do your roots lead to?
>>>Yes, at the end of the day I am just a dirty rock-n-roller! I started listening to The Rolling Stones when I was 7 years old and got pretty obsessed with their sound and style and that led me to all the people who they were influenced by...Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, and that is some really low down, dirty, funky, and nasty stuff. Of course, I was influenced by a lot of 60's & 70s punk, psychedelic, and hard rock stuff as well. I've got to feel the music! It has got to move me in some way, if it doesn't make my hair stand up then fuck it.

In europe your name is quite unknown. lease tell the readers something about the way and the musical lifestations you've passed.
>>>I've played quite a bit in Europe primarily with Ryan Adams band a few years ago and recently with this wonderful singer/songwriter, Tift Merritt. I first started recording with a band from North Carolina called The Accelerators back in the 80's, we had a couple records out. We were a bad-ass little rock-n-roll combo. After that I played with FINGER, you can hear a couple tracks on my website, www.bradrice.net we put out a lot of singles and a record n the States and one on a very small English label. We were very into Johnny Thunders & Neil Young, and had lots of guitar freakouts! And we played with everyone back in the day, Nirvana, Dinosaur Jr. The Lemonhead, all those "alternative" bands that passed through North Carolina. After that I went on to play with The Backsliders, a great band. At one time we were "the world's greatest honky tonk rock-n-roll band!" And then I started my association with Ryan Adams. Playing and recording with Whiskeytown and working with him on his solo stuff. That lasted for a number of years and then I wanted to move on so I started working with Tift Merritt and most recently I have recorded and been playing with Son Volt. Most of these artists would be considered part of this Americana/Alt Country thing. But to my knowledge I've never worn a cowboy hat unless I was incredibly drunk or something. I'm feel like the Earl Slick of Alt-Country. But deep down as I said I am a dirty rock-n-roller. A lot folks have told me "that's a much different than I expected" some people say in a good way and some people don't get it.



your new LP i was reminded black crowes and enuff znuff. Is there a reason why?
>>>I don't think so. I don't even know what Enuff Znuff sounds like and I don't listen to The Black Crowes.



How is it for an musician, out of your generation, possible to reproduce old stuff again and again without being pushed into the retro case. 'Cause I got to say, without a bad intention, that your songs sound quiet hippiesk. Without seeming dusty, of course.
>>>I am not trying to reproduce old stuff or intentionally trying to be retro, I just do what I do. People can call it whatever they want. Having said that I do like the dirty psychedelic and fuzzy guitar. I think hippy is trippy which of course I am.



Brad Rice-Retro or Not?
>>>Perhaps that will be my new band name or the name of the next album! "Brad Rice - retro oder not?"

Is this LP the statement of a hard blues guitarist, showing his skills and style on guitar or is the song in the front.
>>>I feel it is a combination. But it is like this...people want to hear me play guitar first, then they want to hear the songs. But the song has to come first and then I can get down on it!. Ya know, if you can pull it off then let it rip. I don't like when musicians who are primarily guitarists and put the playing in the background and say in essence "check it out I'm a songwriter" but don't do what they do best.

Sad but true, there was no booklet with the CD. Please tell me about the lyrical concetion on the LP.
>>>Well I've been through many experiences in my life and I try to sort them out when I write songs. Things like redemption, love, and of course I like to laugh...so a song like "Good Lawd, Have Mercy" which is just plain ridiculous but I like it. I think the line from the song "Karma Bed" puts it best. "I've been kissed by Love and I've been fucked by Death"



Your vocals sound like a nice mixture of billy corgan and davy vain and sublines the wild erotic of "karma bed" once again. How can the listener imagine a Brad Rice show so you recorded the album nearly on your own.
>>>I have only the best rock-n-rollers play with me because I have many talented friends! They look fabulous and can really play, I'm talking about natural born rockers! We're loud, loose, greasy, noisy, psychedelic and we get down on it! It's very sexy in that dirty rock-n-roll sense.



Are the plans for europe or are you an american artist only?
>>>someone in England who's hip to my trip is trying to get my record licensed in Europe. If you have any ideas please let me know! I want to come over and rock for my brothers and sisters in Europe!



Are there plans for a following Album and with wich musicans and producers would you like to work with?
>>>Yes, I live in Austin Texas now and will record my next record here with my world-class rock-n-roll friends. No one really comes to mind who is really famous, but I really enjoyed writing with Steve Wynn who helped me out on a couple songs.



Looking back to the work on "karma bed". Some consciousness extending means have been on board for sure. Are there any stories?
>>>I made the record in my old flat in Washington, DC. My consciousness is always expanding and has been for years! Since I recorded by myself most of the stories involve me just laughing by myself and at myself, which it is pretty weird but spiritual at the same. Live, Love, and Laugh!



What do you think about the situation in the USA for your kind of music? How does the typical Brad Rice Fan look like?
>>>The situation in the USA is terrible! Please help me! People in America don't care and are generally pretty stupid and have horrible taste in music. That is why I want to come to Europe. I even play German guitars, Duesenberg, because the situation is so bad for the rock here in the States!!!! But I will say that people who like what I do are typically very interesting and obviously have great taste! And also they are quite attractive and sexy....even the guys!



Will there be a single or a video from "karma bed"?
>>>I'm talking to friend about doing one. If you want me to do then ok!



What are your plans for 2006/2007?
>>>To make a lot of noise and have tones of fun! I have some tours lined up with Son Volt and we will also be making another record. To make a record with Tift Merritt and also do some producing for some other people. And of course to start on my next record...."Brad Rice - retro oder not?"



Something else you want to tell the sleaze-metal readers at last?
>>>Buy my record and then hopefully I can come over and we will all have a fantastic rockin' time!



Thanks for the interview and good luck for your future. See you soon!
thank you, i hope soo, too.

Autor: Psychobimbo

Flashes of slithery guitar and quicksilver riffs saturate this debut from veteran guitarslinger Brad Rice, but what stands out are the songs. Currently touring with Lost Highway artist Tift Merritt, Rice anchored Ryan Adams' best backing band from 2001 through 2003. He also played on the Whiskeytown album, Pneumonia, and both albums by honky-tonk rockers The Backsliders.
Wisely, Karma Bed is not a vanity project further showcasing Rice's piercing guitar solos, though he did play every instrument but drums. Instead, the disc's eleven tracks adhere to a pulsing, rootsy, mildly psychedelic vibe that frames Rice's original songs, including two co-written with Steve Wynn. ("Younger", the raucous cut, also appeared on the recent Wynn tribute album Man Of Mystery.)
Rice's voice shifts between an airy croon on "Stay Beautiful" and "Fall Away" to an acidic shout on "Testify" and "Younger". On guitar, Rice fire off sinewy leads, barking slide riffs, atomspheric plucking and gutbucket blues.
The last song's title, Fat $20 Blues...Slight Return" references Jimi Hendrix; Rice's playing suggests Jimi's in spirit, but manages to do so without rote imitation. Karma finally came around on Rice; he reaped an excellent album from all the great rock 'n' roll he's sown.

BRAD RICE
Karma Bed
(NuthinButLove)
Brad Rice has carved out a great reputation as a guitarslinger for hire with Ryan Adams, Tift Merritt and others, plus honorable membership in venerated Southern rock bands the Backsliders, Finger and the Accelerators. Now it's finally time for him to stand on his own, and he does so proudly on Karma Bed. Well known for his roots rock mastery, Rice adds a loving psychedelic blues touch to his songs here, giving tunes like "Fall Away" and "Testify" a unique feel that's earthy and otherworldly at the same time. Though as hot a soloist as you could wish for, Rice keeps his flashy tendencies in check, concentrating on riffs, melodies and moods. He's written a strong batch of tunes here as well, from the surreal "Stone Train Driver" and introspective "Burnin' Light" (co-written with Steve Wynn, himself no stranger to psychedelic roots rock) to the gnarly "What I Know (also penned with Wynn) and the triumphant gem of a title track. I'm glad Rice graces so many worthy artists with his six-string presence, but Karma Bed proves he's nobody's sideman. Michael Toland

Brad Rice's KARMA BED, more than most, is about attitude. We've watched Brad grow up in this area, Raleigh to Richmond, and seen him in many touring bands. While it’s great to see him on TV with other artists, damn, I'd love to see him out on his own with this cd as his backing - and if there is any musical justice, we will. Probably best known as the late-great Backsliders guitarist and touring musical foil to folks like Ryan Adams and Tift Merritt, Rice steps out on his own, including forming his own label to drop this platter of dirty, greasy, psychedelic rock noir. Forget worshipers of Americana or simple Roots rock. This cd steps way out. Fans of Love And Rockets, The Jesus And Mary Chain, or Dream Syndicate will be enthralled. In fact, Rice includes the track "Younger," from the Steve Wynn tribute album FROM A MAN OF MYSTERIES, as well as two songs written with the former Dream Syndicate leader.

While virtuosic in country, alt.country, and Keef guitar stylings, Rice’s playing on this record surprises even long-time fans with its deep sonics, heavily reverberated and vibrato-ed guitar lines. Lyrically, he has headed down a somewhat glammy yet bluesy road, but his vocal style is a close-miked, echo-laden, almost breathy type that makes for a richness unexplored in today’s pop music. A true musician, Rice handles guitar, plus bass, percussion and vocals - with the aid of drummer Zeke Hutchins. Pick this one up. It is so glammy/50s/Link Wray/and dare I say Hendrixy (backwards guitar abounds) - at moments it just about hurts. Brad walks unafraid, like Muddy 'Mississippi' Waters. Born to win.

Brad Rice's impressive resume includes guitar stints with Ryan Adams, Tift Merritt and Son Volt, yet Karma Bed, his debut, doesn't particularly sound like anything by his past employers. Not that that means there's much new here. Rice's music is roots rock at its core; his voice has a raspy quality, he sings about hard times and the songs wouldn't be out of place in a down-and-out dive. But there's more stoner drone than country twang throughout, as Rice seems to meander and space out rather than punch. He opted to play nearly all the instruments himself, and although the sound is full with guitar, bass, drums and various studio twiddles, the album lacks that intangible band energy. Rice could have benefited from a few mates telling him to cut the guitar solo on "Fall Away" or perhaps re-focus "Stay Beautiful." Sometimes it's more confident to ask for help.