20 QUESTIONS WITH…

Killingbird singer Christian

We told you today’s 20 Questions would be with a big, big star from a huge band. Move over David Lee Roth, it’s none other than Christian from Killingbird! Not only is Killingbird appearing at our Metal Sludge Extravaganza 9 next month, but they also appear on our Hey, Now That’s What I Call Sludge! Vol. I CD, so you know they’re down. Christian’s been a big fan and friend of the page since our early days, so show him some Sludge Luv as he finally pops his 20 Questions cherry. Here we go!

1. What are you currently up to? This would be a fine time to plug your shit.

Getting ready to play Metal Sludge Extravaganza 9 on September 18th and to record our 3rd record this fall. Also, our guitar player Skyla?s solo record is out so go grab that. We have a cool contest right now to win a guitar (http://www.killingbird.net/news.html) courtesy of Dean Guitars and Atomic Tattoos. Our cover of Vain?s ?Beat The Bullet? is on the Sludge CD which you can purchase right here. We?re working on a project with a couple charities. You can check out http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5513151650 for details, but basically it?s a private Killingbird show. All the proceeds are going to a cancer society and the humane society.

2. You do realize, of course, that the only reason we?re doing 20 Questions with you is because we?re kind of in a bind and don?t have anyone else to talk to, right?

I am aware of that? it?s not like I get many interview requests. This is the highlight of my ?career? and I?ll take it!

3. What happened to your long blonde hair? You went from looking like Josh Todd Jr. from Slamhound to looking like Josh Todd Jr. from Buckcherry. What made you decide to get all trendy and shit?

Well, unlike some people mentioned on this page (or who run this page), I realized my hair wasn?t as thick as it once was and gave in and cut it about seven years ago. As far as the Josh Todd reference, I just saw him play on Saturday and his hair was blonde?hmm, maybe I need to color mine.

4. What hard rock/heavy metal band should give it up and call it a day?

More power to ?em if they still want to get out there and play.

5. Out of all the bands Killingbird has shared the stage with, which ones were the coolest to work with, and which ones were the biggest bunch of assholes you?ve ever met?

I can?t think of any assholes. Everyone has been pretty cool. Roadhead was the coolest though, Ponch fed us and let us sleep in his house.

6. Rate the following singers on a scale of 1 to 10. 1 being someone who sounds like they gargle shards of broken glass, and 10 having a voice to truly be reckoned with.

Wednesday 13 = 7, love The Murderdolls record?his voice reminds me of Stevie Rachelle circa ?Religious Fix?, can?t go wrong there.
Phil Lewis = 8, I worship their first album. If you listen to ?Waking The Dead? the guy hasn?t lost a step at all. I think his voice sounds stronger.
Gilby Clarke = 7, I am a huge fan of his solo records. I listen to ?The Hangover? all the time?his voice is perfect for the songs. I loved Kill For Thrills too.
Josh Todd = 8, I loved Slamhound and Buckcherry?new record is cool too.
Tim Tim = 8, I was blown away when I first heard ?Second Coming??he was awesome live on that tour.
Davy Vain = 9, very unique sound and great songwriter.
Jizzy Pearl = 8, ?Spinning Wheel? still kicks my ass?and his song on the Sludge CD is my favorite track.
Roxy Dahl = 6.5, I thought he was perfect for Cherry Street. I know I?m in the minority here, but I actually liked a few songs he did on ?American Hardcore?.
Steve ?Sex? Summers = 7.5, I think he sounds even better now. I wore out 3 cassette copies of ?Leather Boyz With Electric Toyz?.
Drew Hannah = 7.5, ?Under The Influence? is killer!

7. Your former band Suicide Circus put out a CD on Perris Records. Are you embarrassed at all by that, and what was it like to work with Tom Mathers?

Nah, I?m not embarrassed. At least it got out there and we?re talking about it now! At the time I was excited to be on a ?label? with bands that featured former members of bands I liked. Where else could we have been sold as ?Faster Pussycat meets Skid Row-style band?. I love his descriptions.

Suicide Circus

8. Of the following, which do you prefer and why:

Cardinals or Blue Jays = Cardinals. They used to be from St. Louis and that is (according to our drummer Marc) the closest city to LA with a White Castle. So that answer is for him.
Perris Records or EMI = EMI, they have been awesome to us.
Leif Garrett or Shaun Cassidy = Leif Garrett, because he?s a bit of a troublemaker.
Big Bird or Oscar the Grouch = Oscar. I always liked the trash can.
Blow jobs or rim jobs = Blow jobs from Skyla, rim jobs from August
Strobe lights or fog machines = Fog machines. Um, because we have one and we don?t have any strobe lights.
All In The Family or The Jeffersons = The Jeffersons, I thought it was funnier.
The Wildhearts or The Darkness = The Wildhearts. I like Ginger?s voice better and his tour diary ruled!
Chickens or turkeys = Chickens, because Tracii Guns posts as Satanschicken on the gossip board.
C.C. Banana or C.C. DeVille = C.C. DeVille, he wrote better songs.

9. Dave Zink of Blackboard Jungle played on your recent CD. Who blew him to get him to agree to that?

Well, our bass player Gaz offered, but Dave politely declined. He?s a gentleman, but I think it was really Gaz?s crooked tooth that scared him. Dave rules and played an unbelievable solo. If you purchase our CD ?Waste Another Yesterday? you can hear it for yourself!

10. Killingbird did a cover version of Vain?s ?Beat the Bullet? for our “Hey, That?s What I Call Sludge! Vol. 1″ CD (which you can buy right here). What made you decide to do this track as opposed to ’32 Pennies’ by Warrant or ‘Wait’ by White Lion?

Well it was between that and ?Here Comes Trouble? by Trouble Tribe?so we flipped a coin. Actually we are just huge Vain fans and the songs on that record still sound so cool and not dated at all.

11. Give us a touring memory from the following cities:

Cleveland = Meeting very cool Sludge-friendly people like Billy Morris, Wendell Neeley & Cleveland Don.
Columbus = Riding in DB?s (our manager) hearse to the gig.
Detroit = Opening for Tuff at the I-Rock.
San Francisco = Playing The Pound with Faster Pussycat and Pretty Boy Floyd for the Heat Slick Records compilation CD.
Dallas = More people out on the street than in the club.
Lawrence, KS = Inviting the crowd (we are talking 7 whole people!) on stage to spit on our drummer?The sound guy even ran up from behind the board.
Oklahoma City = Marc, our drummer, snorted pool chalk at Samurai Saki House.
Los Angeles = Getting to sing back ups on ?Secrets? with Davy Vain and Blackboard Jungle. One of my best moments ever. I hope I didn?t screw it up too badly.
San Diego = The place we played had $2 PBR?s.
New York = I remember being excited because we stayed in Paramus, NJ, the home of Trixter!

12. What the hell is 2K Sounds? That sounds eerily similar to K-Tel Records! What gives?

Haha, it does sound a lot like K-Tel. 2K Sounds recently changed their name to B.I.G. Entertainment?we are the only rock band on the label and are pleased they decided to keep us around when they dumped everyone else on the roster. August was bummed because we were no longer label mates with Air Supply, I think he was hoping to tour with them.

13. The original Killingbird bassist committed suicide after being fired from the group. What the hell happened with LL, and is getting kicked out of a band like Killingbird really all that devastating?

That was a very sad time. He was the nicest guy, it just wasn?t working out with the band. I?m really bummed about what happened and think about him a lot.

14. We got word that you used to play in a band with Ponch from Roadhead. What’s the 411 on him, his DJ gig, and his obsession with Metal Sludge?

Yes! The band was Black Rose. How is that for a cool name? I played bass.

Ponch is pretty much the coolest guy ever. He always puts us up when we play in Upper Michigan. His house is a shrine to bands like Tuff, Pretty Boy Floyd, Enuff Z?Nuff?and of course KISS. He has a Friday night radio show that plays most of the bands mentioned on this page. He is doing his part to keep rock alive in Upper Michigan and Wisconsin. Can?t say enough good things about him?and his band rocks! Just don?t pass out at his house before he does?he has lots of markers.

Killingbird working the crowd into a frenzy

15. Yes or No, has Christian ever:

Killed a bird = Yes, but I feel badly about it.
Pistol-whipped a band member = No, but I have wanted to.
Jacked off in an airplane lavatory = No, but I have wanted to.
Let a chick piss in your mouth = No, but I plan on asking Stevie Rachelle about it.
Shaved your nutsack = Sure.
Gotten a Brazilian wax = I am considering it.
Ate at a Burger King and McDonald?s in the same day = Yes.
Witnessed a donkey show in Tijuana = haha, no.
Considered changing your stage name to ?Buddhist? = Great idea, there are a lot of Christians out there in bands. So yes, I guess I?m considering it now.
Touched another man?s penis = Yes, but it was an accident and it was dark.

16. How is the latest Killingbird CD doing anyway? Have sales reasonably met your expectations, do you think it will still take off, etc.? What?s your honest optimistic goal for this release?

Much better than I ever thought it would. We have scanned close to 2,000 on this record, which is about what the first record did. I?m realistic and don?t think it will ever take off. Our goal was to have it do well enough to be able to make a third record and to have a few people like it.

17. Fuck, Kill & Marry: Which of the following people would you fuck, which one would you kill, and with which one would you want to enter into holy matrimony?

Carmen Electra, Dave Navarro, Monica Lewinsky

Well, all three of them are pretty good looking. How about if I do all three things to each of them?

18. For a tax-free $100,000 dollars in unmarked bills: There is a brand-new black shiny Hummer parked under a tree, and its owner is upset that its pristine condition is marred by several white streaks of bird droppings. He wants you to lick every last speck of bird shit off the vehicle, watching over your shoulder the whole time to be sure you don?t miss a spot. In addition to the cash, he?ll even give you a big glass of water to wash it all down! Would you do it?

Sure, I?d probably do it for $10,000.

19. The Last of Christian:

Last time you did blow = This morning, but I was only using it as a laxative.
Last time blow did you in = Years and years ago.
Last rock star you shook hands with = Dennis Wolfe/The Exies.
Last time you barfed from drinking = It?s been a couple years. It was at a nice dinner party at a friend?s house and I ended up hugging a palm tree in their front yard. I have not had tequila since that night.
Last time you farted in the tub = Yesterday, but it was during a shower. I was standing in the tub so I guess it counts.
Last movie you saw in the theatre = Anchorman.
Last fast food drive through you hit = Del Taco
Last time someone asked you for your autograph = Wow, probably 9 months ago, and I think it was for a relative.
Last time you bought your own CD in a music store = October 7, 2003. I bought a copy of ?Waste Another Yesterday? on its release date. When our first CD came out in 2002, I bought about 15 copies.
Last time you saw a Metal Sludge shirt in the crowd = In June at the Whisky?I saw quite a few!

20. Time for Metal Sludge?s Word Association. We mention a name, and you give us your thoughts.

Alice Cooper = The original?it?s weird to see him in commercials.
Jack Black = Funny.
Tom Mathers = My old roommate (really).
Nikki Sixx = ?Shout At The Devil??don?t need to say anything else.
Steven Adler = Played on my favorite record of all time, ?Appetite For Destruction?. Good to see him out there playing.
Gene Simmons = Love him or hate him, he?s been able to keep KISS up and running all this time.
Donnie Vie = Great singer, great songwriter. Loved his set at the last Sludge Extravaganza.
August = A promoting machine. We met the other August (ex-Johnny Crash & 20 questions victim) at a Club Vodka show. He was cool.
Marilyn Manson = Great live shows?gotta love him for getting Tim Tim in the band.
Taime Downe = Cool voice, cool look, cool band.

Well there you have it. Let’s have a round of applause for Christian for stepping up to the plate and doing 20 Questions this week. He answered all our questions, which is really all we ever ask. Plus he dropped a Trouble Tribe reference, so he gets extra brownie points for that. There just isn’t enough public acknowledgement of Trouble Tribe these days.

Don’t forget that Killingbird’s rendition of “Beat the Bullet” can be heard on our Hey, That’s What I Call Sludge! Vol. I CD, and you can come see them live in the flesh at our Metal Sludge Extravaganza 9 on September 18th, 2004. Ask Christian for an autograph and make him feel special.

For more information on Killingbird, you can check out their Web site at www.killingbird.net

Special thanks to Lisa B. from BurningArt for some of those photos of Christian!