by Alexandra Mrozowska
— Senior Columnist —
There can be many reasons behind releasing a compilation album in a “greatest hits” format – from filling the gap between the consecutive studio albums to introducing (or re-introducing) an act into the music market. However, from the artistic viewpoint it could be also explained as closing one chapter in the artist’s history and opening another. Helix’s Eat Sleep Rock is a bit of all. The band’s last studio album Bastard Of The Blues was released six years ago, and the time span the new compilation covers is basically all the band has done since 1990’s Back For Another Taste, their last album of their original Capitol Records record deal. But where’s the nostalgia factor in all that…? And can we expect a new studio album by the Canadian veteran rockers anytime soon…? Here’s Helix’s lead singer Brian Vollmer revealing a lot about that and more – exclusively for Hardrock Haven.
Hardrock Haven: Your new album Eat Sleep Rock has just seen the light of day – a compilation of Helix’s latter-era songs with a few unreleased or hard-to-get tracks. Why did you decide to release another compilation in spite of a few other “best of” albums already out?
Brian Vollmer: There was only one “best of” Helix album on vinyl up until now: the Icon album on Universal, which was a “best of” of the Capitol/E.M.I years. Universal bought E.M.I. a couple of years ago, which bought out Capitol a few years before that. Capitol had never released a “best of” Helix vinyl album. When I put together Eat Sleep Rock it was to be a “best of” Helix album of my favorite songs since leaving Capitol/E.M.I./Universal and the CD release through Perris was a collateral side effect of releasing the vinyl. Ironically, even though we’ve released “best of” CDs before, this is the first time Perris Records has sold out two weeks in advance of a release. So that’s a good thing.
Hardrock Haven: Impressive indeed! So, what’s prompted the choice of these particular eleven tracks that made it to the album?
Brian Vollmer: Well, I could have picked a lot of tracks – “Make ‘em Dance”, “Get Up!”, “Go Hard or Go Home” – but I wanted this to be a solid rock album, no ballads and also to have a continuity to it. For instance, I’m very proud of the songs “Tug of War” and “That Day is Gonna Come” from It’s A Business Doing Pleasure CD, but I think including those two songs would have made Eat Sleep Rock uneven. After all, the title does suggest Rock with the subtlety of a flying mallet. Those two songs don’t really fall into that category, and that’s alright too. For any band with longevity, you are going to write in different styles over the course of your career. This album is the harder edge.
Hardrock Haven: You’ve just mentioned the album’s title which is pretty straightforward indeed.
Brian Vollmer: As the inside credits for the album suggest, to be successful and competitive in the music business, you need to have a lifelong dedication. You’re in “this thing” seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. It’s not a job; it’s a passion. I didn’t choose this life – it chose me. When you hear that an artist has “suffered for their art”, they’re not talking about having cigarettes put out on your arm by Nazis (laughs). They’re talking about years of making no money, losing your family, and having to live under some of the most appalling conditions. The first six years of the band were spent in northern Canadian destinations where the rooms were either jungle hot or arctic cold. You took your own sleeping bag when you went to the gig. I quit my job at the meat packing factory to go on the road and make $40/week. Even in the 80’s we never made more than $200/week, pouring the rest back into the band. That’s dedication, and not a lot of people have that level of dedication.
Hardrock Haven: Speaking of the band’s history, in what circumstances was the album’s opener “The Story Of Helix” written?
Brian Vollmer: This song was written about the Helix experience of the last 47 years. It sounds funny, but it’s all true. I wrote it a couple of years ago while I was down in North Fort Myers, Florida, where Lynda and I spend our winters. I wanted it on the album because it marked the end of an era for the band, with Kaleb Duck leaving after 10 years. Originally I put this rap together as an introduction for our show “An Intimate Night With Helix: Acoustic Songs & Story-telling”. I’ve memorized the whole thing, which is over 7 minutes long. When we do it live, everyone in the band (plus the extra singers/musicians on stage) join in with the background effects. It takes a lot of preparation/co-ordination to pull it off live and is a testament to the years everyone’s been doing this. The idea for the rap was partly to copy a successful idea we had used in the late ‘70s and one which I’ve seen other entertainers use in various shapes and forms – that is, to actually “write” an intro to a song which required participation from other members. A lot of times when you go to a concert the words coming out of the singer’s mouth between songs are the same words they used the night before at their last gig. They are planned out by the artist to sound spontaneous, but are anything but. “The Story of Helix” is just an obvious exercise of this entertainment technique, only to a larger degree.
Hardrock Haven: What are your memories of the music scene and the business in the band’s early days? How was it compared to what we have today?
Brian Vollmer: I could talk for hours on this subject. The biggest difference between when we started and now is the death of the bar scene. This is really going to hurt music in the next couple of years as this was where many musicians learned how to entertain, play their instruments and how to sing. Also the disappearance of the major labels. As much as artists complained about the big labels, they were the bank in regards to paying for recording, videos, marketing, tours, etc. etc. Today’s music is more localized with artists selling far fewer CDs/albums. This has led to smaller quantities being released, but at the same time making these releases much more collectable to the hard core fan.
Hardrock Haven: In “The Story Of Helix”, you reminisce about the band’s formative years and your glorious era, but you also get even with what happened to the Rock scene in the ‘90s. Why do you think Grunge became so popular back then?
Brian Vollmer: Most musical trends last approximately six years and then music shifts. Right now we’re experiencing the “3rd wave” of Metal. Everything comes back into style eventually. I think towards the ‘90s Metal started to become very boring and as a result, kids were looking for something new. Along came Nirvana with very catchy songs and the rest is history. But the pendulum always swings back eventually.
Hardrock Haven: “I’m A Live Frankenstein” is actually a song off your solo album. Why did you decide to put in on the band compilation?
Brian Vollmer: We’ve had that song in the live set for years. It was Kaleb that suggested we start playing it ‘cos he liked the song so much. From around 1999 to 2008 it was me writing all the Helix stuff anyway, so what’s the difference? Obviously, other solo stuff I’ve written won’t fit into a Helix set, but that one did.
Hardrock Haven: This particular song has a late ‘90s vibe to it, which is nothing surprising given the fact it was released in 1999. What were you inspired by during making it and other tracks that made it to When Pigs Fly?
Brian Vollmer: Around that time, I was generally regarded by a lot of people as a “has been.” It was very hard for me to find people to play in the band, let alone write with me. I was also broke and trying to pay my first mortgage on Planet Helix. I was playing weekends for $100/night just to make ends meet with a bunch of guys called 7 Year Itch. I’m still friends with all these guys… I started writing with them just fooling around. It eventually turned serious and became When Pigs Fly. There’s some other good tracks on this album like “X-Ray Eyes” and “Life of the Party (But now he’s D-E-A-D)”.
Hardrock Haven: Throughout the years and stylistic changes, how do you know you’re heading in the right direction artistically?
Brian Vollmer: Satisfaction in the direction I’m taking is simply a matter of “listening to my gut.” Things either feel right to me or they don’t. I can try to explain how I came up with the idea for Eat Sleep Rock, but in the end analysis I didn’t think too much about it. One thing just led to another and that was it. Where I do put a lot of thought is that once I’ve decided to do something I have a credible game plan to get it accomplished.
Hardrock Haven: Many seasoned musicians change the message of their songs over time, getting political or socially conscious, but Helix doesn’t. What’s the secret of maintaining that rock’n’roll attitude to songwriting through the years?
Brian Vollmer: I try to make my social comments in such a way that it’s a universal feeling versus a direct political comment. That’s hard to do sometimes. I have a song right now in which I was tempted to write directly about the riots now happening in the US. I’m actually quite a political person with strong views, but I’ve learned to keep my opinions off the Internet unless I’m really passionate about the subject. In today’s climate it’s easy to give people a “hair on fire” moment.
Hardrock Haven: Another song you decided to include on Eat Sleep Rock is your polemics with what Gene Simmons infamously claimed about Rock music’s premature death back in 2014. Why did you feel so moved by what he said that you decided to weigh in not with a commentary but with a song?
Brian Vollmer: Sean Kelly and I had discussed a writer’s technique in which the writer uses a well-known public figure in the chorus of the song. The song we were referencing at the time was “Steve McQueen” by Sheryl Crow. The interview with Gene came up at the same time. Synchronicity? Perhaps. I understand Gene’s viewpoint entirely. A lot of people thought I was taking a pot shot at him, but I have a lot of respect for Gene Simmons. But I’d tell Gene to his face that when a young kid gets into music the last thing on his mind is money. It’s getting the chicks, having a party, and making and playing music. At least that’s why I got into it.
Hardrock Haven: So speaking of that whole “rock is dead” debate, what do you think of the state of the music business today?
Brian Vollmer: It’s going to take a long time for concerts and festivals to come back – if ever. We lived through the greatest times of rock and roll. The music business today is decimated as we once knew it. As for me, I have plenty to do on the way out with enough projects to last me until I’m pushing up daisies so I’m not worried.
Hardrock Haven: Last year, you also released a compilation but of a different kind. Old School featured a bunch of unreleased Helix tracks written years before. In what circumstances did you discover those tapes and why did you decide to release them?
Brian Vollmer: Lynda and I were selling Planet Helix after 28 years. In a corner closet in the basement were around 60 tapes from over the years – everything from 2” tape to cassette. I sifted through all the stuff and realized there were some very good songs there. It was a labor of love putting it all together. It also gave me a lot of confidence in Daryl [Grey]’s ability to produce the band. He did a terrific job and really added to the tracks.
Hardrock Haven: All compilations aside, when do you think we can expect a brand new Helix studio album?
Brian Vollmer: We’re hoping next year to release our first completely new studio album since 2014’s Bastard Of The Blues. We’re thinking of calling it Exploding Knees And Flying Teeth. (laughs) Just kidding!
Hardrock Haven: What are the band’s future plans, especially in the face of situation we all deal with these days?
Brian Vollmer: To live to enjoy life! Write more music, film more videos, edit my films which go back to 1976, and launch my singing website. I am one of the last people in the world to teach true Bel Canto, based on science and started by Leonardo Di Vinci himself.
Hardrock Haven: Any last words?
Brian Vollmer: Thanks for having me. Don’t be square, catch ya on the flip side, I’ll see ya ‘round. Wh-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o–osh!
Visit the band online: planethelix.com
