"A Word" With Lee Barratt from Gallows !!!

Gallows are a straight up hardcore punk band from Watford, England. The band has been all over the international scene, since the release of their album "Orchestra Of Wolves".

They performed at Warped Tour 2007, Download Festival, Taste Of Chaos 2007, and the Reading Festival (where Frontman Frank Carter got tattooed live on stage by New Found Glory guitarist Chad Gilbert) and those are just a few to name.

Winning awards from Kerrang and NME, the band's follow up to "Orchestra Of Wolves" is an anticipated release by fans all over the world.

The band also contributed a song to the Kerrang! "Maiden Heaven: A Tribute to Iron Maiden" compilation, covering the song "Wrathchid".

Their song "In The Belly Of The Shark" is also featured on "Guitar Hero III: Legends Of Rock"

The guys, are gearing up to release their upcoming album due May 2009, and have been playing some shows in England. I got the chance to have "a word" with Lee Barratt the band's pounding drummer and ask him about what pisses him off about today's music scene, their new album, their recent shows in East End, who would he like to shoot with a 9mm, and more.

Here's how it went:

TMR: First of all, hows it going ?

Lee: Pretty good thank you!



TMR: Hows everything coming along with the new album ?

Lee: Well everything is tracked now apart from the vocals. We had finished all the instruments by the end of October but Frank had been having problems with his voice and was told by the doctor to rest for a few weeks before he started to track again. We've begun recording gang vocals this week which has been a lot of fun. Everything's sounding phenomenal, we're all really proud of this record and it's been a huge effort from everyone to get it sounding exactly the way we hoped.



TMR: You guys had a couple of shows on the East End of London, how where the shows ?

Lee: They were great apart from the fact near enough the whole band and 50% of the crowd got sick afterwards. There must be some kind of East End plague going around right now! It was just a lot of fun to play a couple of really small shows again and showcase some new songs that a lot of people wouldn't have heard.



TMR: What new material did you guys play at the shows ?

Lee: We played about 7 new songs but the only titles we can give away are the ones from our Myspace blog... London Is The Reason, Misery & I Dread The Night will all be on the new album. We also played an instrumental track that's probably the heaviest thing we've ever written.



TMR: Any guests popping up on the new album ?

Lee: There will be a few friends of ours coming down to record some gang vocals like the guys in Cancer Bats but we aren't going to be collaborating with any rap stars or someone ridiculous like Patrick Stump that's for sure!



TMR: What metal bands are you fans of ?

Lee: Out of the current crop of metal bands I'm a big fan of Meshuggah, Gojira, Unearth, Misery Signals & August Burns Red



TMR: Who are some of your all time favorites ?

Lee: My all time favourite band is definitely Metallica. They were the band who got me in to heavy music in the first place and I still listen to them every day. There are a lot of classic bands like Pantera, Slayer, Testament who get regular rotation on my iPod. The new Testament album blew me away!



TMR: What pisses you off the most about today's music scene ?

Lee: I think it's just the same thing that's been pissing us off since we started! There are too many bands happy to regurgitate the same old cliched shit but when you see the amount of kids who lap it up, you sort of understand why. There's still a huge lack of originality in heavy music and of the bands that do try something original, it just sounds fucking horrible. For example, have you heard that band Brokencyde? That shit is atrocious! I just think too many people are force fed stuff that they believe to be "cool" and will go to shows just to show off their new hair cut or band shirt. It's been like that for a while now and bands like Gallows have to end it.



TMR: Is there any upcoming bands that you think are worth checking out ?

Lee: I wouldn't really call them upcoming as they've been around for 3 releases already but I fucking love Trap Them! There's also a band called Early Graves who I've been listening to a lot and our friends in She Rides are definitely worth a listen to. From here in the UK we have some very good heavier bands coming through like Throats, Blackhole & Sylosis.



TMR: Do you guys plan on going your separate ways down the line ?

Lee: I'm sure there will come a time when we do go our separate ways but hopefully that is still a long way off. We haven't really thought past making this record and then touring the hell out of it. At the end of the day, we all still just want to go out there and play live to as many people as we can.



TMR: If you got the chance to line up a group of today's musicians and blast em in the head with a 9mm, who would it be ?

Lee: Haha! I think it would have to be an orchestra of musicians rather then a group, there are quite a few. I won't name names though, they know the music they play is fucking shit so should probably shoot themselves.



TMR: Is there a place you guys still didn't perform at, and would like to ?

Lee: We've been lucky enough to play a lot of places in our still relatively short career but there are a couple of countries we haven't played yet in Europe like Spain and Russia. Russia would be a daunting experience I think but definitely something I want to do. Out of all places, I want to play in South America more than anything. I've read stories about how insane the fans are over there and playing in somewhere like Brazil or Argentina would be an incredible experience.



TMR: Whats the craziest encounter for you on tour ?

Lee: I think just meeting a bunch of Japanese fans on our first night in Osaka was totally crazy. We stepped out of our hotel and literally was mobbed by a group of Japanese Gallows fans who'd been waiting with posters, cd's and shirts for us to sign. It was so surreal as it was at a time when we'd only just really made a name for ourselves in the UK so to go to Japan and have that kind of adoration was a nice feeling.



TMR: What are you guys all about ?


Lee: Doing what the fuck we want and playing music for ourselves. It's always been the same with Gallows. We've always maintained that we're still the same band now as what we were 3 years ago but right now we're lucky enough to have some financial support to do things on a bigger scale and at more comfort.



TMR: What advice do you have for a young musician trying to make it in today's scene ?

Lee: Learn your instrument, play for the music and not for yourself! If you're in a band then record a good sounding demo and shop it around. Play live as much as you can to build a reputation and don't rely on fucking Myspace!



TMR: Would you like to add anything ?

Lee: The new album will be out in May 2009 so when it hits, please check it out and come see us at a show!


I'd like to thank Lee for taking the time to answer my questions !

Make sure to keep an eye out for the band's upcoming release coming your way May 09 !

Stay updated with everything "Gallows" by visiting their:
Official Website
Myspace
Youtube


Coming Up: "A Word" with Adrian Erlandsson from At The Gates, Nemhain and Ex- Cradle Of Filth.


Here's the video for "Staring At The Rude Bois" Feat Lethal Bizzle






And also a personal favorite, the video for "Abandon Ship"