You know life is good when can count Slash and the Alice In Chains among your friends.
“ I find the people who are most successful in rock and roll are the nicest guys,” observed Monster Truck bassist Jon Harvey, who is pumped to begin the Hamilton based rock band’s third tour with Alice in Chains, which comes to the Enmax Centre, Aug. 13. Monster Truck's debut full length CD “Furiosity,” has been an instant hit with modern rock radio embracing singles like “Sweet Mountain River” and “ The Lion.”
“They have been really supportive of us. This is the third time we’ve toured with them. We toured Canada with them and then they invited us to tour America with them which was a shock, but it was like sure, twist my rubber arm,” he enthused.
This tour, which begins Sunday ( Aug. 10) will last 20 days.
“They are the most down to earth guys. We always tell our buddies that hanging out with them is like hanging out with our high school buddies, so we hang out and talk about horror movies and tell jokes,” he said.
“And Mike (Inez, Alice and Chains bassist) comes out and jams with us, so that’s the centrepiece of the show. It’s always on one of our songs. He learned it and plays bass on it so all I have to do is sing, which is kind of awkward, but it’s like ‘sure Mike, anything you want,’” he enthused.
After they get home form that they hot the road for a couple of American shows with the Rival Sons and music festivals, then pack their bags for Europe with a tour of Europe with Slash and Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators in November.
“ We know Slash's singer Myles Kennedy from his other band Alter Bridge, so we told him‘get us on that tour,’ and he did,” he enthused adding they have also met Slash before and noted he's also a very down to earth guy.
They cap off a busy year by working on a new album which they plan to release early next year.
“The highlight this year is just that we can keep working and people want to see us,” he said.
“It’s been amazing. We all feel like we’ve been so blessed. Nobody gets to do as much in a year as we have,” he said.
They are working on a new CD as well.
“ We‘re four songs into it. We’ll do pre-production for it when we get back from tour with Slash and go into the studio in January,” he said adding the new material is in the same heavy rock riff based classic rock vein as their previous material.
“People hate it and I hate it when they fall in love with a band and they completely change their sound,” he said.
They have already been incorporating one of the new songs into their set.
“That's how we do it. We play the song until it is as tight as the older material. Playing a song live is better than 100 band practices,” he said.
He said they are enjoying their year.
“We’ve been travelling a lot and working a lot. It’s a nice position to be in, working a lot without being too stressed out about it. Other than our women at home, music is always first,” he said.
While they are just getting used to playing bigger stages, they are more at home in a dirty club.
“We’re just starting to get used to bigger stages. When we go to Europe on our own, that's how it is (in small clubs), but rock and roll is best in a small, sweaty club,” he said.
Tickets for the show cost $47-$67. The Pack A.D are also on the bill with Monster Truck and Alice In Chains.
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
