Sex + Subversion x Style = SPiT LiKE THiS. We caught up with Lord Zion for a chat.
R13:Starting pretty broadly, can you give me a brief description of what Spit Like This is all about.
LZ: In its most basic form, SPiT LiKE THiS is a rock band, pure and simple. But it’s a band borne out of frustration. I was in bands before but they didn’t quite hit the nail on the head for me. They weren’t exactly what I felt a rock band should be about. Then I met Vikki, who played bass, and she felt the same way. We have progressed and mutated over the years, discovering what we are in the progress and the general conclusion is that we’re a Glam Punk Rock band. We have an equation that best describes us. Sex + Subversion x Style = SPiT LiKE THiS. It’s what we live by and what we write about.
R13:What's going on with Spit Like This right now?
LZ:Back in July ’09 we signed a deal with GMR Music Group, a Swedish record label. They re-released our debut album “We Won’t Hurt You (But We Won’t Go Away)” on 2nd November in the UK. It has a great bonus track of our Rocky Horror cover “Sweet Transvestite”, plus a music video currently not available elsewhere. We just found out that the European releases will start on 23rd January 2010 in Scandinavia and February 12th in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. We just completed our third triumphant appearance at the Hard Rock Hell festival and have been asked to play the Hard Rock Hell Road Trip in Ibiza June 2010. That is going to be too much fun! There is something large looming on the horizon but, until it is 100%, I can’t mention it!
R13:How do you see things developing over the next few years?
LZ:We need to be thrust onto the world stage. At the moment, we are a pretty well-known band in the UK. But the UK has only the 7th biggest rock market, so we need to get out there, play other countries and let them experience us. Obviously, having our album released throughout Europe is one major leap forward to us. If the other development I mentioned goes ahead, that will be very significant for us. The plan is to record a follow-up album in 2010 to capitalise on the momentum we are experiencing right now. We are talking to several big-name producers about this and are half way through writing the material. It’s very exciting!
R13:What has been your biggest achievement to date?
LZ:I think finding two labels to release the same album within 12 months of each other is a pretty huge achievement! Any band that gets one record deal is lucky so, to do what we have done is quite extraordinary. It wasn’t a good fit with the first label so we moved on. GMR is perfect for us. Sweden is an important market and they are at the heart of it. Our 3rd consecutive Hard Rock Hell appearance is also massive to us.
R13:How did this year's Hard Rock Hell compare to your previous experiences?
LZ:Easily the best. The first one was unexpected. No-one knew what the festival was going to be like and, being the first band on the main stage at that first festival, we were like guinea pigs! But it all worked out OK. The second was a surprise, but we had to work hard to encourage people to get up early to see us (our stage time was noon on the Saturday). But we knew more what to expect and it was probably our most relaxed appearance. The one we have just done was quite a high pressure one. For a start, I was very aware that it was our 3rd time there so a lot of the people will be experiencing deja vu! I don’t want us to outstay our welcome at Hard Rock Hell so really felt that we had to prove WHY we were there a 3rd time. On top of that, we were back on the main stage, following WASP, Queensryche, New Yorks Dolls etc. Them’s big boots to fill but, once our intro CD started, we were on fire. We held our own against the big boys, proved our point and were one of the highlights of the festival (apparently)!
R13:What have been your best bits both on and off stage at HRH 3?
LZ:On stage, for me, was this year during Sweet Transvestite. It’s the time in the set where I can relax a bit and start playing with the audience. Being so well oiled at 2am, they were totally into joining in the fun. Following that is a small sing-along which went down well. There are videos of parts of our show on our website, as it happens. I don’t remember too much from offstage.. Hmm, I actually really enjoy doing interviews etc, so chilling in the media room talking about SLT was good. Hanging out with the rock stars is cool. Best bit though was probably just as we were leaving when I spotted some huge swords and a battle hammer just lying on the ground outside an abandoned chalet. They were mine! They now live in the back garden
R13:Finally, can you tell me something random about Spit Like This that not many people know?
LZ:We’re your new favourite band, you just don’t know it yet… Um, do you know that me and Vikki started and run the clothing company www.smellyourmum.com? Or does everyone know that by now?! We started it around the same time as the band to fund our share in it and, 11 million hits later, it’s still going strong! Every T-shirt is designed by me and hand-printed by Vikki (who has RSI as a result), so all purchases are also a genuine bit of rock n roll history!!
Please check out our website www.spitlikethis.com and follow the links to befriend us on your favourite social network site AND go to www.smellyourmum.com and buy something! Keep us in rock.