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| Photo cred: Angela Owens |
So, Jacob Hellas...
Jacob Hellas: Jacob Hellas and I play in Mil-Spec. I play drums.You guys have been playing festivals all over North America recently. What's one thing that Not Dead Yet is really good at?
JH: Okay. Not Dead Yet is good at doing mixed bill type line ups, and bringing in bands that Toronto doesn't normally get to see. Unfortunately, just because of the fact that we're in Canada, it's a real annoying thing for American or International bands to come north of the border. There's all sorts of problems, and if you've had any sort of challenges you can't come. There really aren't that many markets to make a tour worthwhile. I mean you have Montreal, Toronto...Maybe Ottawa?
JH: Maybe Ottawa, and then like, Vancouver. There's a couple different places, like Edmonton, but it's so much driving. So I guess to go back to your question, the best thing about Not Dead Yet is it brings bands here that just wouldn't come otherwise. Which sucks, cuz that's the only time that bands will come, really. Tomorrow, for example, Unified Right is playing. The last time they played here was 2013, and it was in Welland. It was part of a tour that Fury and Unified Right were doing. They played a bunch of dates on that tour. But that doesn't really happen anymore, because every city has its fest. It's good that they come, but it sucks that they don't come any other time.True. What's one fest idea that you think Not Dead Yet should steal from another fest?
JH: Oh man. One thing... I understand there's two different types of festivals. One, you're in a big room all day. Kind of like the This is Hardcore model, which I'm not saying is good. But I do think that maybe less is more when it comes to festivals. I think that America's Hardcore does it really well, in that there's two days, two matinees, two evening shows, and there's no overlap.No driving around?
JH: Yeah, no driving around, it's all across the street from each other. It's really convenient. So maybe steal that, like, less is more. I know he's scaled it back a little bit. And you've noticed with this show, the shows are cheaper, but yeah. Less is more is an idea they could steal from America's Hardcore for example.Sick man, thanks. So what does it feel like to play with bands such as No Warning and Fucked Up, that are legendary?
JH: Yeah, so the No Warning thing was really cool. We played twice with them and it's really surreal. I think Fucked Up was more surreal for me than No Warning was, even though I really like No Warning. Fucked Up is one of the very first actual hardcore bands from here I ever got into. I was into metal as a kid, and into punk as a kid, and into metalcore as a kid. Then when The Chemistry of Common Life came out, MTV Canada was playing songs from it. I saw that and was like "this is insane", and I've been a huge fan ever since. I'm the person in the band to be asking about this, I think, because I collect all the records, like all the 7" 45s. I've spent way too much money on all those.Yeah, there's so much of that stuff.
JH: Yeah, I have a big collection. I'll show you it. But yeah. It's crazy to be playing multiple dates with them. And it's not even No Warning and Fucked up, it's just in general the idea of having opportunities to play with people that you look up to, or meet people that you look up to, and see them on an even playing field, as your peers, is really, really cool.Yeah, that is cool. Have you picked up anything from them?
JH: Yeah, there's like a friendly rivalry that comes from playing with any other band. If they play before you, you try your best to outplay them. There's a little bit of competition. I think watching other bands, especially being in this band playing shows, made me a better drummer. I've never drummed in a live band before, even though I was playing drums as a kid. I think watching Fiddlehead in Boston made me a better drummer. Definitely watching Jonah in Fucked Up over that tour will make me a better drummer. Hopefully we learn a little bit about professionalism from them. I think we can pick up some stuff, and how to demand respect when we deserve it. Because when you're given opportunities at like a small, sort of DIY level, you've got to demand respect when you deserve it. So I think we'll learn some stuff from them.That's sick dude. So you guys got an interlude on your EP from Fantasy Camp. Where did that idea come from, and how did it come together?
JH: So we're all into different types of music. I know Fantasy Camp does hip-hop, but the interlude is very ethereal, electronic type of stuff. Very chill. I do electronic side projects and stuff like that. Originally, I had the idea to put something in one of the songs. When we were recording, at the studio called Candle -- a bunch of bands record there, mainly like indie bands and shoegaze bands record there, Fucked Up even did a lot of their new album there -- and the guy who owns it has a collection of analog synthesizers there. So I was fooling around with them and stuff, but it just got to be a bit of a time-crunch. Also, the guys were like, "it would make more sense and be better for us to have a collab," like a feature. It brings more attention to it and also brings somebody else in the fold.
Yeah, somebody else's ideas.
JH: Yeah, right? So I'm gonna do more electronic stuff later on, but yeah, so...Would you ever do hip-hop?
JH: I mean like in Mil-Spec. So for example, we're using drum machines on our next thing. So yeah, they asked Fantasy Camp. They decided to go with him because they know he does beats and stuff. We don't know him at all. Like we're friends now I guess, we don't really talk much. We like his music a lot. We bump Fantasy Camp and Wicca Phase, and like Lil Peep in the car all the time. He was just a logical person to ask. We paid him, he sent us some stuff, we went back and forth, gave him some suggestions, he changed it and sent it back. So yeah, it was cool. I think it makes that second side more cohesive and puts the songs together.Yeah man, I feel you. I like it a lot actually, I think it's pretty cool. Who do you think in your band is most likely to moonlight as a Soundcloud rapper?
JH: So Dan, or Xan Darrah as we like to call him when we're joking around, he's done that kind of stuff before. We all sort of have side projects, can I use this time to plug some stuff?For sure man go nuts.
JH: LaForge, he does creative writing. Andrew does a lot of visual art. He's also in Demolition, whenever they get back together. Dan has a lot of solo stuff that he does under different monikers. So Blue Moon is sort of like country stuff -- Dan's the guitar player by the way -- he's done some Soundcloud-esque style rap stuff, with my buddy Scott. They've done a couple songs that are out on Soundcloud now. They're okay. I think to in order be good at that, you have to really be in it. All the people that are big, like even Fantasy Camp included, does that stuff over and over and over again, and Dan and Scott have done like one or two songs. I'd be curious to hear what their tenth song sounds like, because I like this one, but I think should just keep doing it. Even though it's a side project, you've gotta be like fully in it, I think. I do like electronic stuff, metal stuff. I've been fooling around, I haven't released anything, but I've been doing some techno stuff, like very rhythmic dance music. We're gonna put some of that, I think, on the next Mil-Spec thing. We've talked about doing a Mil-Spec EP that's all like acid house, and just releasing it as Mil-Spec. Maybe doing a show where it's just that and we don't even really play.Just kind of sit there and vibe?
JH: Yeah, just kind of sit there and vibe, and like DJ it. It'd be kind of cool.Yeah. So what's next for 2018 and beyond?
JH: So we've been writing a lot of songs. We're going to be on a compilation that Advanced Perspective is putting out. I don't know what it's called yet, and I don't know if I can say the other bands on it, but it's going to be us and some of the other Advanced Perspective bands. We're all doing original songs just for that. We also have written a bunch of other songs for like our next EP, we're gonna do like a 12" EP. Hopefully we'll record it early in the new year. We're all pretty busy, until we're playing FYA in Florida in January. Until then we're pretty busy, maybe we'll do it like in February. We recorded our last EP in February of 2018, so I think recording the next EP a year later...That makes sense.
JH: Yeah, like February or March, so we'll get it out around the same time again, summer 2019. We've talked about going to Europe. It's been offered to us. We've talked about doing Japan. We wanna do everything. We wanna play everywhere. Again, I keep talking about doing that little acid house side project. We wanna do a single. We were talking about covering a Tragically Hip song, releasing it as a single, and donating all the proceeds to Gord Downie's charity.I would fuck with that heavy bro, I love the Tragically Hip.
JH: It's like one of their faster songs too.Which song?
JH: "Heaven is a Better Place Today"Oh sick. So last question; what are your thoughts on the Axe to Grind Podcast, cuz they've shown you a lot of love.
JH: Yeah, totally! Bob's a great guy. By the time this comes out it will definitely be announced, but on December 8th we're playing Jersey Shore. He's booking us with Fiddlehead and a couple other bands. The lineup is really stacked, I just can't remember all the other bands. So Bob's a really great guy. The podcast is a little bit of a divisive topic within the band. We do love it, but you know... Matt and I are both Patreon subscribers, and I listen to most of the episodes that come out, like almost all of them. Like I said to you earlier today, I enjoy listening to podcasts at work, cuz it's a good way to pass the time. Axe to Grind is interesting, I like their banter. I don't know if I would get along with all of them in person, but I like when different opinions are on the board, and I think it's good that there is a hardcore podcast.Yeah man.
JH: The format is cool. The episodes are a little long (laughs) but I think some people like that. I would like to hear more interviews done, more special guests all the time.Did you listen to the one with the dude from Burn?
JH: I didn't listen to it yet, the last one I listened to was the one with the dude from Candy. I haven't listened to it in a couple weeks.The one with the guy from Burn is more of an interview, it's a little while back. You would like it.
JH: Was it with Chaka from Burn? That would have been insane. No, but Axe to Grind is good. Shout out to Bob, for sure. I like him a lot. We text memes back and forth sometimes. Yeah. Any other questions?Nah man, that's it!
JH: Yeah so, I enjoyed that, thoroughly.Yeah me too dude, good catching up!
