An Interview With Ethos
by Scott Zumberg, June 2002

Download MP3

Gonna Die Buy CD at

The Band

Christian Burke (Vocals) Kevin Stripling (Bass) Eric Mikich (Drums) Brian Comstock (Guitar) Tony Dushaj (Percussion)

Links

Ethos Auralgasms Page Ethos Official Home Page

What is the “ethos” of this band?
Not to sound pretentious, but…Literary Melodies. I like to write lyrics that mean something and pair it with a nice melody. At the end of the day, without that…you’re just another band.

Are you the main songwriter?
Yes.

So, what is it that you write about? Is it your life and experiences, what you see in the world…
I am kind of “insular minded”. My life is the only thing I feel I well know enough to write about. I’m not in a position to write about politics. I’ll save that for Bono.

So, you don’t really “Wanna Die”, do you?
Ahhh…that one is a dramatic exaggeration. Maybe on that particular day. Today is Ok, so No.

What do you think is your place in the current Detroit scene, which is owned by hard rap and garage rock? Where do you fit in?
Where do we fit in? We really don’t. The scene doesn’t really work for or against us though. It’s nice in the fact, that every band faces a struggle in drawing people out of their homes. The popularity of the Detroit scene has made people more willing to go out and listen to some great music. With that in mind, I don’t foresee any rap or fuzzy vocals in our future. Nor, do I think there will be any new bands following us and our sound. I’d be happy to be a satellite, just out there…doing our thing.
I don’t really see The White Stripes or The Strokes as Garage, though. I first got turned on to the Strokes, just because I saw they were signed to Rough Trade, the home of the Smiths! I was happy to see great music hadn’t gone away. They were still doing it.

Do you really think the White Stripes and The Strokes are “the saviors of rock and roll”?
Oh no….if they are, we’re in trouble

Personally, the closest thing to a Savior of Rock and Roll I’ve seen was chewed up and spit out by this country. The Stone Roses…
Oh yeah….I saw them play in Chicago, right after Second Coming was released. They were playing on one of those God awful radio bills of the mid nineties. Reni (the drummer) was already gone at that point, so I never got to see the band in their original form, but to hear I Wanna be Adored played by John Squire live was bliss. Sad they never backed up their threats to take over the world.

With that being said, if the big dogs of Britpop couldn’t make it here, what makes you think that Ethos will?
That is a valid point, and it is brought up a lot. I’d have to say, sheer determination. I don’t want to fail, and I won’t. Those other bands have the luxury of just packing it in and going home to England, I don’t. I won’t be denied. There is definitely a wall there. But, we’ll just keep hitting that wall, until we find a crack, and we’ll bust right through when we find that crack.

The influences of Britpop are obvious, but are they more of the new breed, or the earlier British Invasion?
We are still evolving as a band. Who knows what sound we will end up with? We never set out though, and said….”Let’s sound like Blur or Travis.” I think a major part of it is what you grew up with…..My mom played music around the house all the time. The first 6 yrs of my life, it was Paul Revere and the Raiders and Gerry and the Pacemakers. Those sounds are what you take with you.

Uh-oh. What does that say for me then, I grew up with Neil Diamond and Chicago.
(laughs)

So you would say it is the earlier stuff that influences your sound? I hear some of The Kinks, and The Jam.
Oh Yeah, for sure. Definitely them, T-Rex, The Buzzcocks…

Do you ever work any covers into your repertoire?
Yeah, we’ve done some T-Rex. We did Lesley Gore’s, You Don’t Own Me. For John Lennon’s birthday, we did a whole show of John Lennon tunes.

Tell me why Day Tripper is the greatest Beatles song ever.
It was the greatest single. Listen to that opening riff, the feedback. This was a time when there was no feedback. When John sings with that voice, it was the greatest thing ever. I like to pretend that I’m that kid in the 60s, buying the single, coming home with that. It blows my mind. It was such fantastic songwriting. Nowadays, the Beatles comparisons are endless. For any song, you can compare it to this or that. For the Beatles, there was nothing to compare it to.

In regards to your live show, I noticed the extra percussionist. Was that on the record?
Oh yes, it was very much on the record. It was different guy though. The one on the record, Warren, was a good friend, but he is gone now. Tony is a harder hitter, which will be evident on the new record.

You seem to have much more energy live than in on the record. Is that energy hard to capture in the studio?
You’d have to tell me how we come across live. The next recording session will have….I don’t want to to say a tougher presence, it will be more tangible. The first record was a pretty record. This new one, won’t be as pretty. It will be more cynical, and aggressive.

Why did you avoid all of the mellower songs on the record? All The Modern People, The Karma Suits Ya, Gonna Die…
Oh we still love those songs and play them just about every night. I love every one of my songs. Tonight, we were in a supporting role, with acts that were somewhat more musically aggressive. I just wanted to play to the audience

Have you been touring outside of Michigan much, and how have you been received?
We just played New York, and were received quite well. I had some folks come up to do interviews. They wouldn’t do that if they didn’t like what they saw. This summer, we have plans to play in Grand Rapids, Chicago, New York, and then down South some. We are cutting on our teeth on playing .to friendless audiences.

How does a rising band go about getting exposure?
It is a learning process. We are learning everyday. We just have to be determined. Go out and play our music and trust that someone will appreciate it. Darren Revell of Big Sonic Heaven has been great for us, by playing our record, and a great thing for music fans.
Is it normal for people to listen to the radio from 10PM-2AM? People want to hear decent music. They are mugged and assailed by the Corporate Music that is pushed at them all day.
I think Auralgasms.com is doing a great thing, by providing music fans with the music that the Major Corporations won’t embrace.
It will be sweeter to make it after hard work. Rather than a band that hits it big within 6 months. I will deliciously appreciate the success when it comes. It will be like being on a deserted island eating nothing, but rocks. All of a sudden, you are eating a delicious Greek Salad.

So, I take it then, that you are all for the sharing of music on the internet?
Of course. Anything to get the word out. Absolutely. If radio won’t get it out there. It is annoying to see a band like Metallica who have already made their millions, rail against bands getting their songs out. We’d like to give our songs to people. I want us to be a fan friendly band.

I imagine all rising bands say that, but do you think you’d change your view if you were on the other side?
No, I really don’t. You can be creative. I’d embrace that challenge. Make some songs and put them out there. Make some others, and hide them. Make those special.

What is on the horizon for Ethos?
The rest of the year will be spent honing our live show, getting closer as a family , and making great music. Working on the record.
It is a as-yet-untitled, 7 song EP that I feel is the best thing we’ve ever done. It should be out in September. We’ll preview some tracks here on Auralgasams.com