Winnipeg’s Uptown Magazine Interviews Strike Anywhere

by | Jun 4, 2010 | MUSIC

The following short interview is via Winnipeg’s Uptown Magazine. Barnett reps the scene here in Richmond, VA.

KEEPING IT REAL
Strike Anywhere frontman Thomas Barnett sounds off on Richmond, Va.’s
hardcore scene and making the jump to the majors. by Jared Story

Keeping it real, Richmond, Va.’s Strike Anywhere keeps its tune-length in the one- to three- minute range, but the band sure says a lot in that span.

The punk/melodic hardcore act touches on topics such as women’s rights, animal rights, racism, police brutality, economics and globalization. While SA manages to contain its message to Ramones-like lengths, the band’s energetic, knowledgeable and very forthcoming frontman Thomas Barnett isn’t so easily limited. Here’s the very condensed version of Uptown’s conversation with him.

UPTOWN: Why does Richmond produce so many great bands? In addition to Strike Anywhere, you’ve got Gwar, Avail, Lamb of God and Municipal Waste…

BARNETT: You get this sense of aristocratic conservative, kind-of-militarized, Christian pro-capitalism culture (in Richmond). It doesn’t really ask any questions of itself, the newspaper is a joke owned by the tobacco companies, there’s not a lot of critical thinking on the surface of Richmond, Va. You just get a lot of celebration and grandeur, so anybody with a soul and half a brain is going to find some flaws in this. That’s why you get all the bands, that’s why you get the protest culture, that’s why you got Gwar, Avail, Smoke or Fire, Landmines, Government Warning, Direct Control, Down to Nothing, it just goes on.

The following short interview is via Winnipeg’s Uptown Magazine. Barnett reps the scene here in Richmond, VA.

KEEPING IT REAL
Strike Anywhere frontman Thomas Barnett sounds off on Richmond, Va.’s
hardcore scene and making the jump to the majors. by Jared Story

Keeping it real, Richmond, Va.’s Strike Anywhere keeps its tune-length in the one- to three- minute range, but the band sure says a lot in that span.

The punk/melodic hardcore act touches on topics such as women’s rights, animal rights, racism, police brutality, economics and globalization. While SA manages to contain its message to Ramones-like lengths, the band’s energetic, knowledgeable and very forthcoming frontman Thomas Barnett isn’t so easily limited. Here’s the very condensed version of Uptown’s conversation with him.

UPTOWN: Why does Richmond produce so many great bands? In addition to Strike Anywhere, you’ve got Gwar, Avail, Lamb of God and Municipal Waste…

BARNETT: You get this sense of aristocratic conservative, kind-of-militarized, Christian pro-capitalism culture (in Richmond). It doesn’t really ask any questions of itself, the newspaper is a joke owned by the tobacco companies, there’s not a lot of critical thinking on the surface of Richmond, Va. You just get a lot of celebration and grandeur, so anybody with a soul and half a brain is going to find some flaws in this. That’s why you get all the bands, that’s why you get the protest culture, that’s why you got Gwar, Avail, Smoke or Fire, Landmines, Government Warning, Direct Control, Down to Nothing, it just goes on.

UPTOWN: Your most recent album, Iron Front, was released on Bridge 9 Records and not Fat Wreck Chords (the label that released SA’s Dead FM in 2006). What happened?

BARNETT: Being from Richmond and the East Coast, we had some affection for the older Fat bands and a lot of affection for the current bands on the label, but we don’t necessarily relate to all of that — how do I put this delicately? Maybe the bloated, pro-drug celebrity of it all (referring to Fat’s owner/founder Fat Mike and his alter ego, Cokie the Clown). I understand it and still have a lot of love for Mike but, for our tastes, he’s going off the deep end with his caricature. Maybe I’m not smart enough to get the full picture and I’m going to be surprised and stoked with Cokie the Clown at the end of the road but, at the moment, that in itself is the answer I’d give you why we’re on Bridge 9 and not Fat.

UPTOWN: Would you make the jump to a major label if given the opportunity, like, say, Against Me! or Rise Against?

BARNETT: There have been label reps around us in the past and it just didn’t feel like there was any promise of continuity. I don’t think there is anything particularly unique in what we do, it’s simply a genre of music, but being able to have something that speaks to people and isn’t just a disposable product or the next big thing is important to us. Honestly, it would take more effort (on a major) to deal with and make the right choices. In some ways the independent community is a platform that makes the right choices for you. You’re working in concert with people with the same values; we wouldn’t have that luxury on a major label.

At the same time, we’re working in this realm of ideals; the physics of how you do your thing isn’t based on squeezing the most money out of the scene. You’re trying to elevate consciousness because that’s true to what you’re singing about and that’s why you’re here in the first place.

STRIKE ANYWHERE
June 9, 8 p.m., Royal Albert Arms
w/Bane, Touche Amore and Lowtalker

R. Anthony Harris

R. Anthony Harris

In 2005, I created RVA Magazine, and I'm still at the helm as its publisher. From day one, it’s been about pushing the “RVA” identity, celebrating the raw creativity and grit of this city. Along the way, we’ve hosted events, published stacks of issues, and, most importantly, connected with a hell of a lot of remarkable people who make this place what it is. Catch me at @majormajor____




more in music

Sound Check! Bully! Human Worm! Boston Manor! & More!

I believe a bunch of bands from Richmond have it in ‘em to drive off into the future, and I see a few of that lot on these shows right here. I can’t wait to say, “I saw so-and-so at Bandito’s, and now they’re headlining Coachella!” Got a show coming up? New single?...

Why Shera Shi’s Debut Refuses to Fit One Genre

The first time I saw Shera Shi was after stepping back into Richmond’s music scene, following a few years away during the quarantine-era shutdown. One of the best things about catching live music in RVA is stumbling onto “new to you” bands while showing up for the...

The Bloody Beetroots Bring the Revolution to RVA

The Bloody Beetroots were never meant to fit neatly into anyone’s playlist. Born out of punk rage, electronic chaos, and the restless energy of Italian musician Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo, the project has spent nearly two decades stomping over genre lines and...

Photos | Remi Wolf Packs Out Richmond With a Wild, Joyful Riot

Last weekend in Richmond, Remi Wolf took Brown’s Island and didn’t give it back. Her sound doesn’t fit in a box — pop, funk, soul, indie — all smashed together and dragged through the dirt. Openly fluid, proudly weird, she’s built a world where you don’t ask...

Photos | Swing, Sweat, Repeat: Caravan Palace at 9:30 Club

Caravan Palace hit 9:30 Club in DC a weeks ago and blew the place open to a packed house. No speeches, no slow build — just lights up, beats heavy, and bodies moving. The French group has made a name twisting swing and electronic into something reckless and alive, and...

Topics: