An Honest Moment with Oli Herbert of All That Remains
by Eric “Psikotyk” Smith
Photo: Courtesy of Google
There comes a certain amount of pressure with being in a band that challenges itself with constantly growing and challenging the “norm,” and Oli Herbert of All That Remains will be the first to point that out. In an interview that went way beyond expectation, he opened up about the difficulties bands find on the road, and talked about how important musicianship is, and how if it isn’t paired up with a sense of showmanship and originality, most bands would never make it in the world’s arena.
Touring is hard. Touring relentlessly in the early days of trying to make a name for yourself is even harder. Herbert explained that you make little to no income, and are treated like performing animals in most situations. In 2004, on the War Party Tour, this was made abundantly clear. Up to that point, Herbert says, “We were used to ‘Here’s five bucks, you know, go find something to eat, then perform for me.’ But these guys were very professional; there was actual catering. I can actually say that Dave Brockie (a.k.a. Oderus Ungerus from GWAR) is the reason I’m still in the band. I was making no money at all, I was broke as hell, and I was like, ‘Man, I could go back to teaching and make a pretty good living.’ But he convinced me I’d regret it. He sat down and had some serious talks with me about that, and I stuck with the band. When I saw him last year in Denmark, he was like, ‘See? Aren’t you glad you didn’t quit?’”
But Herbert also admits that touring is the only way to really separate yourself from all the other artists out there, and that there is more to playing a live show than just playing music. It is a performance, first and foremost. “I really respect bands that go out of their way to give people their money’s worth (production-wise). The biggest challenge for most bands is being able to perform, and still play decently.
Regardless of its difficulties, Herbert prefers life on the road. But he also offers that without proper education and really understanding your role as a musician, you have no foundation to build from, either. He takes education incredibly seriously, and draws inspiration from as many sources as he can. In order to separate his writing from his contemporaries, “I don’t listen to any bands of my genre. That leads to inevitable plagiarism. I usually listen to a lot of classical when I’m in a compositional phase, jazz too. I think in feelings and imagery, and I picture those things when I’m writing.” He went on to say that bands have an obligation to both write compelling music, and to provide a performance for the crowds. “You may think it’s silly, others will think it’s cool, but, it’s about finding your own way and getting comfortable in that role.”
But even successful artists have their doubts. “When I have to go home, and it’s time to compose a new album it’s very, very stressful for me. You know, this could be it; this could be the one that, you know, this could f*ck up our whole career. Everybody will hate it . . . there’s always that uncertainty.” He went on to say that he doesn’t often listen to his own material, and would prefer to listen to other artists instead. “It’s cool to listen to the new album, and be able to sit back and judge it honestly.”
The hundreds of thousands of fans around the globe seem to think that All That Remains is doing just fine….
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