Into The Fire

Crowned By Fire are one pretty tight Metal outfit that have making waves within the scene for quite a while and yet they are still flying under the radar for a lot of people.Why is a bit of a mystery as this band kicks ass.With its in roots in classic metal they have progressed into their own way of doing things.Here is a interview with John from the band.

1.Give us a brief history of the band ? I know there is a lot of info on the Myspace page but can you give us a shorten version for the people that are too lazy to read !

Typical shit. Local dudes putting together the heaviest band of all time! And lotsa cheap beer…

2.The band has its roots in some classic Metal but there is a Southern/Stoner Metal thing going on too.It must be a bonus to have that range of influences !

Kinda hard to avoid these days. Where CBF meets as far as influences is the obvious Sabbath and Motorhead with an ever present intensity of Pantera from JR’s aggressive drumming and Justin’s guitar shredding. In 89’-90’ I was living in South Orange County and going to Saddleback College where I met artist Doug Rhodes who introduced me to Ruben Romano and Scott Hill who were just starting FU Manchu and my sister was going to Palm Desert High with Sons Of Kyuss and introduced me to Brant Bjork. I met up with Ruben and Scott at a Helmet/Melvins/Tad show and was totally blown away by the massive noise. My life changed, Ha! But yeah, the magic that keeps the CBF sound solid is that we’re all fans of old school rock/metal/punk and creating classic heavy shit is our ultimate vision.

3.What the early days of the band like ? Did you find it hard to find your feet or did the songwriting come easily ?

For once, -I found songwriting completely organic. I finally felt focused with my hocus-pocus.

4.A lot of bands these days are either over produced or over hyped.Is.Is this something you guys think about ?

Over produced and over hyped, -That would rule! -The robots would surely obey…
I’m down, money wouldn’t suck!

5.What was your early influences in Metal.Is there any bands you are embarrassed to admit you liked.With me it is Kiss,i still like the early albums but these days i try to keep that quiet ha ha !

As far as metal, Sabbath, Maiden and AC/DC, -Ok, Aerosmith, -I was a 70’s kid. Back in the Saddle made me wanna jump my bmx bike through a girl scout bonfire, but as far as KISS, Beth made me feel horny and sad but God Of Thunder made me want to sniff glue.

6.The guitar approach in Metal is a hard one to be original at ! Is there anything that sets the band apart from other bands ?

Well, Justin totally shreds and knows the importance of a riff. He’s the best of both testicles as far as a guitar player, but sharing a drunken bed on an olive tree farm in Florence Italy got kinda weird. Also, our bass player Dread is an amazing guitar player and songwriter. So basically as a singer I’m blessed being surrounded by amazingly smoking assholes…

7.What has been the highlights as far as live performances are concerned ?

Booze, concussions, projectile vomiting, Philthy’s nutts, Hollywood, Mojave, Body Art Expo's, getting banned from our local clubs and the typical motel room havoc…

8.What about your future shows,i read you got some big shows planned !

We’re just keeping’ ourselves busy locally for now. The permanent damage will incur once “Prone To Destroy” is released. -Europe is our primary victim!

9.I read somewhere you moved to L.A in 93.How did you finished up there and was moving there a bonus for being a Metal singer ?

Sort of, 93’-94’ was kind of magical to me in OC and LA. Playing shows with bands like The Mentors, White Zombie, Tool, DeeDee Ramone, Green Jello, HR (Bad Brains), The Weirdos, Fu Manchu etc… Shit was goin’ on. The Huntington Beach band split then Travis Johnson (The Dickies) asked me to join/form the Hollywood punk rock cover band Lame Brains which also featured members of Angry Samoans and Brujeria. My highlight with them was a show at the infamous Raji’s with The Obsessed and a DOA reunion show. Then I started a band with Jamie Mitchell (HR Human Rites guitarist) and Travis Johnson. It was a slow heavy Pink Floyd-ish sort of thing that didn’t fit in with all the lame rap rock shit ruling Hollywood at the time. Basically I never fit in and it didn’t matter what year it was. -I‘ll save it for the book… Humans will always need things to burn…

10.What about singing influences.What there any singers that really influenced you in stepping behind the mic ?

Fukkin’ A, -Ozzy, Lemmy, Lux Interior, Bon Scott, HR, Iggy Pop, Michael Gira, Scott Kelly, Jello Biaffra, Darby Crash, Jim Morrison, Eric Burdon, Danzig, Joey Ramone, Wendy O. Think I have to put Lux and Lemmy at numero uno. Lux always made me feel appropriately wrong and Lemmy's just one of the koolest fuckers on earth...

11.I also hear you have connections with Zaak Wylde ! Has he helped out the band in any way ?

Not yet beyond things like: (backstage at BLS show Milan, Italy) “Bro! You gotta go on tour with us!” -We’re still anticipating waiting, -AHEEMM! Also, Justin used to live in his guest house, help watch his kids and tour as a guitar tech for him a few years on guitar. -But his wife Barbaranne does infrequently give us some helpful advice.

12.Tell all the readers about the album "Prone To Destroy" which is due for release soon.How long have you been working on it and what can we expect from the album ?

Just to let you know this is a trick question. We recorded the album November 08’ in Florence Italy. That month in Italy is entirely a separate interview btw. Long story short, -CBF will be mixing the album close to home and releasing it soon on Molten Metal Productions UK on vinyl, cd and all the other download shit. One can expect relentless riffs, classic heaviness and a beefed up version of Blue Oyster Cult's Burnin' For You...…

13.What inspires the lyrics in the tunes ? Is there anything that is going on the world that makes you think i have to write about that !

There will always be reasons to write and relate to revenge, destruction, ritual, sex, drugs and outer space… Life is horror as far as I'm concerned...

14.What is your opinion on the way the Internet has influenced the Metal scene ? It seems anyone with a computer and a guitar can pretend to be a rock star these days !

Don’t forget photo shop skills. Damn, -wish I had some of those though. Fuck, I do it without a guitar, Ha!

15.Is it true you are a full time body piercer ? How long you been doing that ?

Yep, -Aside from the initial intrigue of random tribal nudity in National Geographic, It was a profession I got into over 15 years ago so I could pursue music and be a 24 hour rocker. I never should have sold that chopper!

16.Is there any long term plan on how long you can keep the band going or are you planning on being another Dio and singing till your 70 ?

I’d like to evolve into the Tom Waits/Nick Cave of metal...

17.To finish up now before i get too carried away.Can you tell the readers,labels,promoters and everybody else how to get into contact with the band ?

Hit us up on myspace.com/crownedbyfire or crownedbyfire@hotmail.com and soon we should have our website at crownedbyfire.net. -Had the .com till someone swooped it from us then tried to sell it back to us for 2 thousand bucks. -Beware the vultures always squatting’ in the wing. Also, our first EP "As The World Burns" is available at CD Baby and iTunes...