Kill Your Scene

Campaign are a punk rock band hailing from Atlanta, GA and are the kind of people that like thier pants denim, t-shirts and metal black, punk with beer and houses on boats. Actually, these guys should come to Australia, they’ll fit right in. Well, I recently caught up with the boys so you can get to know them better…

For people that don’t know you guys, introduce yourselves.

Josh: CAMPAIGN is Russ, York, Alan, and me.
York: We are CAMPAIGN. We are from the south. We like loud music, beers, and the devil.

 

What’s happening with Campaign right now?

Josh: We just released a 2 song 7-inch called One Night Weekend. We have another EP we just finished recording called The Black Album. We are also getting ready to record some songs for a split with Subwaste which will be out this October.
York:Lots of stuff at the moment. Mapping out some US tours, working on a European tour for early next year, we just released a 7inch called “One Night Weekend” and also have a new EP about to drop. On top of that we are also working on songs for a split that will be a special Fest 11 release with this rad band called Subwaste on Warbird Records.

 

How long have you guys been playing and how did you meet?

York: We all known each other since we were teens from other bands and now we are old. As a band we have been together about 3 years.
Josh: We have all been friends and have played in other bands together for 10 years or so. We tried to form Campaign in late 2008 but it didn’t really come together until our paths all crossed at a Dying Fetus show in 2009. We released our first EP in April of 2009, and played our first show that June.

 

Why the nameCampaign , what does it mean?

Josh: A Campaign is defined as an operation or series of operations energetically pursued to accomplish a purpose. I think this name fits the band well.
York: The name CAMPAIGN came together for two reasons. 1. Our bands always had 3 names in the title and we wanted a change and 2. We were compelled when we first started to write raw, honest, no bullshit music. No gimmicks, no trends, just solid songs. For some reason CAMPAIGN seemed to fit our almost militant vibe with caring about making something real. Now a days we are much more laid back.

 

Who writes the tunes, what do you guys mainly sing about?

Josh: York writes the majority of the music and I write the majority of the vocals and lyrics but we all piece everything together as a band. Everyone in the band brings a lot to the table and it makes writing the songs a lot more fun. As far as topics we sing about, York and I are both insomniacs and a lot of our songs can be traced back to that.
York: We usually start with a basic song structure or chorus and verse and then arrange it as a band at practice. Me and Josh then hammer out lyrics and vocals. We try real hard to avoid the typical whiny sob stories. The lyrics are usually more introspective and convey stories, bad times, drunk times, and fleeting thoughts of losing your shit. Sometimes you even do lose your shit. A lot of things are written in regards to the after after hours in Atlanta.

 

I hear you have a 7″ split coming up with Subwaste. any other new release coming out soon?

York: Yes, we have a brand new EP that is coming out real soon called “The Black Album”. We are in the final stages of working out some details but you will be able to find it with our other releases at http://www.itlikestoparty.com/. The Subwaste split will be hitting the streets in October right before Fest 11.

 

What video clips of yours should check out?

Russ: Live at the Fest 10 – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F56X8wh4f3g&feature=youtu.be
Live in Brooklyn, NY 2011 summer tour – http://www.youtube.com/user/prefontainecruz/videos?query=campaign
York: That depends. If you want to see the raddest video ever I suggest you watch this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoZgSqLvwX8
After you are done with that go hit up our youtube page www.youtube.com/wearethecampaign for live videos, studio footage, acoustic tracks, and also some little things here and there we have thrown together ourselves.

 

Who is you’re fav band you’ve shared the stage with over the past couple of years?

Josh: Swingin’ Utters, Young And In The Way, Off With Their Heads.
Russ: There are a ton of great bands we’ve played with. The dudes in The Marine Electric are always a blast to party with and they play super passionate music from the soul. They also run an amazing venue in Brooklyn called Suburbia…check that shit out if you live in NYC
York: For me that would either be Young And In The Way which are this rad black metal band from North Carolina or The Hidden Spots who are from Chattanooga, Tennessee. Shout outs to Southpaw Light.

 

Got just one good story you can share from previous shows?

York: I have lots of good ones but one of my favorites was our infamous bar brawl with this dick head in Atlanta. This guy was being a total creep at our show. He obviously was not there for the music or bands and was walking around the whole night harassing girls. To the point where I even had one or two girls I did not even know ask me what the guy’s deal was and if we knew him. We are playing our last song of the night and in the final few seconds that is just music Josh (our singer) jumps off the stage into the crowd. At first we all thought he was just doing that because it was a great show but then I noticed commotion coming from the crowd.

The creep had made several passes at Josh’s wife during the show which she dealt with very kindly knowing he was just some drunk asshole. When she finally told him to get lost he pulled his fist back like he was going to hit her. That is when Josh jumped into the crowd.

The best thing is that this guy had pissed off so many people at the club that night including management and bartenders that once shit hit the fan it was like an explosion. He was literally chased out of the club and down the street with an angry mob behind him. After he was run off everyone enjoyed the rest of the evening and were thankful Josh got the party started.

This story would be better if you knew that Josh is one of the most non-violent people I have ever met. He totally Axl Rose’d this scumbag.

… What about an embarrassing one?

York: The most embarrassing show was our first show ever where I got so drunk I could not tune my guitar, sing, or play the songs right. I now pace myself a little better.

Russ: I almost killed half of the band the last time we drove through DC. We were cresting the hill on the highway next to the pentagon…I was staring at it and when I turned my head forward again traffic had come to a complete stop and I had like 30 feet to stop the Centaurus. All of the tools we kept in the cubby hole over the back seat as well as a few guitars flew through the van and almost decapitated half the dudes…

 

Which bands have influenced your sound?

Josh: The Misfits and Motorhead
York: My personal influences are older punk bands we grew up on like Black Flag, Descendants, and The Misfits but then throw in some more raw rock oriented bands like The Bronx and stir it with some punk/shoegaze stuff like Ringo Deathstarr. I also get riff inspiration from black metal, hardcore, and metal bands. However, at the core of our band those punk classics are what we always come back to and are all on the same page about.

 

Give us your top 10 albums of all time.

Josh:
Dead Kennedys – Plastic Surgery Disasters
Germs – GI
Bob Dylan – Blood on The Tracks
Minor Threat – Discography
Wilco – Being There

Russ:
Hot Water Music – No Division
Face to Face – Face to Face
Avail – Dixie
Iron Maiden – The Number of the Beast
Zombies – Odessey & Oracle

York:
The Misfits – Walk Among Us
The Misfits – The Static Age
The Misfits – Earth A.D.
The Misfits – Legacy Of Brutality
The Misfits – 12 Hits From Hell
The Misfits – Collection I
The Misfits – Collection II
The Murder City Devils – In Name And Blood
Cursed – I
My Bloody Valentine – Loveless

 

Got any shout outs you want to give?

Josh: I want to give a shout out to my old man.
York: Shout outs to whoever is gonna make me a cheese steak when I visit your town. You don’t even know how much it is going to mean to me.
Russ: No.

 

Links:
www.ITLIKESTOPARTY.com
www.facebook.com/wearethecampaign
www.twitter.com/thiscampaign