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An interview with the Goo Goo Dolls
« on: Aug 9th, 2010, 11:01am » |
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An interview with the Goo Goo Dolls
The Goo Goo Dolls will be performing in KC on August 19
By Lindsey Goff
Sunday, August 8, 2010
The Goo Goo Dolls will be playing in Kansas City at the Independence Events Center on August 19. We interviewed John Rzeznik, lead singer of the band, and talked to him a little bit about his tour, his upcoming album and how long it takes him to do his hair in the morning. Goo goo for the Goo Goo Dolls? We're giving away a set of backstage passes to one lucky fan here at KC Free Press.
Hello
John Rzeznik: Hey, how are you doing Lindsey?
Good! How are you doing?
I’m doing pretty good. Well, I’m kind of having an asthma attack because of the down comforter on my bed.
That’s a bummer, I’m sorry. So, the Goo Goo Dolls have been on tour for about a month now. How’s the tour been so far? Any good stories? Any crazed fans?
There’s always crazy fans. They like to yell and scream and jump up and down. They hold up signs and it’s really fun. It’s really fun having that back and forth with the audience, you know? They make my whole day.
Alright, so your new album Something for the Rest of Us is coming out at the end of this month, tell us about this new CD. What inspired it, and how does it differ from your last couple albums?
Well, I think what separates the new CD from the previous ones is that we had a big hand in the production of this album. So, a lot of the sounds on the album are more what I was actually hearing in my head. I think this album deals with more outside, trying to be more topical, sort of addressing the emotional impact, kind of, of the times we’re living in. It’s probably not as autobiographical as the other material, which I don’t really like to make really blatant statements about anything, I just really wanted to approach what’s going on in the world from the angle of how is it affecting people emotionally? How is it affecting their security and their families, and those kind of topics?
How do you feel the band has changed from the very first single you came out with “Name” to the current single, “Home”?
Well, name was one of those songs, we’d always written ballads on all of our albums, even the ones that had, just you know, just straight-up three chords thrashy punk type songs and Name really sort of blindsided us. We didn’t think that song was going to be the hit. It’s just whenever I write a record, I like to balance it out with some rock, some ballads, a few other types of songs and that song blew up so fast and really blindsided us. It type cast us for a really long time.
Do you ever write with the intention of a song becoming a hit?
No, you can’t do that. It’s impossible. I know people who do do that, and they end up with big hits, but I don’t do that. I just want it to unfold in front of me, and then put it out there and what happens, happens. I’ve had hits, and I have not had hits. It’s really nice having a hit. It feels good, it feels like you’ve accomplished something. But, to sit down with any intention other than “I’m just going to write the best song I can”, I believe pollutes the process. It makes it disingenuous.
When did you first realize that the Goo Goo Dolls were starting to become a big deal?
I realized that we were finally do well when the record company wanted us to come to New York, and they put us in a hotel other than the Howard Johnson, and when I got to my room there was a bottle of wine and a key lime pie, and a little note “from your friends at Warner Brothers”, and I was like, okay, the game is changing.
I’ve read that The Goo Goo Dolls really blew up after the release of the song “Iris”. Is it true that you wrote the song in five minutes?
No, I wrote it, probably in all, in an hour or an hour and a half. But, I went and saw the film that I was writing the song for, and I was like, okay, I have the subject matter in front of me, I have to write this song from the perspective from this man in this film. Now, if I were him, what would I be thinking and feeling about this great love that was so distant, that I would have to give up everything? The guy in the film, he’s immortal, and he’s willing to give that up just to feel something again. Like, even in his own immortality, he was disillusioned and displaced, and felt distance, and just wanted to feel emotion again, no matter how much it hurt.
Did you really like the film “City of Angels”?
I liked the movie “Wings of Desire”, which that movie was based on.
How do you measure your own success? How do you know you’ve made it big enough?
I think that I measure my own success in if I sit down and listen to my own album and go “Oh yeah, I like that, that’s good. You did good,” then I feel successful. But, once I put the album out there, I mean, obviously I want to promote the album, I want people to hear it, but I can’t make their minds up for them. I can’t hinge my identity on selling millions of records or whatever, because I will ultimately lose.
Out of all the songs you’ve written, which is your favorite?
That’s like asking a mother which of her kids is her favorite. She knows, but she’s not saying.
So, you know, but you’re not saying?
I’m not saying.
Tell me a random fact about yourself. Like, what’s your favorite food to eat? Or, how long does it take you to do your hair before going out?
Well, generally I wear a baseball cap, unless I gotta do a show. Then, I don’t know, five minutes maybe? Ten if I’m feeling extra fancy that day. My favorite thing to eat? Well, pizza of course. It’s the ultimate comfort food. But, I’m getting older, so I don’t get to eat as much of it as I wish I could. Well, I went to school to be a plumber. That was kind of interesting, it’s pretty random.
How did that change? How did you go from going to school to be a plumber to becoming a rock star?
Well, I got a job being a plumber’s apprentice, which in Buffalo, New York, means you’re gonna go outside in November and dig ditches. I did that for a little while, and then I was like, you know what, I think I better go to college. So, I went to college for a couple years, and the band sort of got a record deal while I was in college. We were, like, awesome man, you know? So, I wound up screwing college and going on tour. Just hopped in a van and started touring the country with ten people. I think it worked out okay.
Is there anything else you want your Kansas City fans know?
Yeah, the tour. We’re working with a group called USA Harvest. What we’re doing, is we’re asking that everybody bring a can of food or something non-perishable to help your neighbors out. Because right now is a pretty hard time for a lot of people, and they need the help. We’re doing this at every show. And what’s neat about it is that the USA Harvest volunteers are from your area, and the food stays in your town. In a lot of instances, it’s distributed directly to the shelters that night. Over the past ten years, it’s been 10 million meals, which is 5 million cans of food. It’s been great, and the easiest thing about it is that I just have to ask people to do it and it’s like, the people that like our band and come to see us, they’re incredibly generous, you know. Besides, you’ll enjoy the show more if you bring some food. I guarantee it.
Great, well thank you for your time, and we look forward to seeing you on August 19th here in Kansas City.
http://www.kcfreepress.com/news/2010/aug/08/interview-goo-goo-dolls/
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