Moonshine Bandits have been kicking ass on the Billboard Charts with their new album “Blacked Out” landing at number 13 on the Country Billboard Charts! Hell yea! Chad Thomas Carsten conducted this interview with Bird on his Birthday of all days! Much respect to Bird! Don’t miss Moonshine Bandits on tour all month of August with Jelly Roll and Crucifix!
Bird: Hey Chad, how you doing!?
Chad Thomas Carsten: Great! It’s beautiful outside! How’s it going?
Bird: Doing alright, buddy. Doing alright. Happy Birthday!
CTC: Thank you sir! What was life like in Mississippi and what made you decide on music for a career?
Bird: I grew up in Northeast, Mississippi. My dad was a preacher and my mom was lead in the choir. I’ve always had music in me, it was always a part of my life, because of being on stage in church, singing gospel songs. I never thought about music really as a career until moving to California. Back in the day, we used to freestyle rap with everyone at the parties in highschool and clown some fools and you would get clowned back. It was funny! Next thing I know we make a 4 song demo and it became a huge hit in our hometown and it inspired us to make the full length record, “Soggy Crackers Soaked in Beer“. It’s just crazy, from the very first time we made our first songs,we always had support. People were like “This is great, we don’t know what the hell it is, but we like it!”. And we’re like “We don’t know what the hell it is either, but let’s keep doing it!”.
CTC: That’s rad tho! Showing your Country roots and your love of Hip-Hop to form your own sound! Epic!
Bird: We had a beat from our producer in Burn County. He had sent us the beat and we’re doing our rap thing and the song ended up becoming “The Movement”. We’re all in Big Tex’s garage and we’re listening to it and our buddy from high school was drinking with us and we’re trying our raps and all of a sudden our high school friend starts singing Johnny cash over it! We’re like, “what fuck is this shit?!” and loved it. He was the one who inspired our sound and we’ve never gave him the full credit he deserves, because we never think about it. But that’s was the moment we’re the light bulb turned out and we said “this is amazing, we like it and want to make more of it!”.
CTC: Let’s swan dive right into “Blacked Out”! What was the most challenging moment you faced when recording Blacked Out!?
Bird: I honestly wish we had more time to record, I think that was the most challenging is having very limited time to meet the deadline. It was such a unique, amazing experience. It was the most organic we’ve become when recording a record. We locked ourselves away in a studio in Salem, Oregon. It was with our production team Burn County and they brought in their guitar player Mark, who has recorded with us in the past. We locked ourselves away for five days and detached ourselves away from the world. We didn’t check our phones or emails or anything of that nature, we just focused on making music! It’s something that we always wanted to do and I regret not having more time, because it was such a great experience! We only had seven or eight-day window to make the deadline. *Laughs*
When the album dropped on Friday, July 17th, they set up an in-store signing at the Wal-Mart in Ceres. It’s between our home town and Modesto, California. Good one for location wise. Over 300
plus people showed up. It was hot as shit out that day! It was scheduled for 5-7 p.m. and the line was wrapped around the store. The Wal-Mart folks were amazing! Despite being worried about the line continuing to grow. Folks at Wal-Mart said “what are we going to do with you, we’re only scheduled till 7”?! Our response: “we don’t care about finishing on time, we’re here to meet every person that came out to support us,the people who bought the record. We’re staying here till it’s all done and people stop showing up”. It was an opportunity for us to shake their hands and look into their eyes and say thank you. Meeting their kids was great too. It’s crazy to see little guys and girls, wearing our clothes and patches and being so supportive of our music. Them knowing our songs and singing our songs back to us. That’s how we’re able to keep doing this music, is the next generation supporting too! it’s just crazy to see. But it’s really cool to be able to meet them and being to talk to them and hug them.
CTC: Especially when they really connect to your music on a personal level and your music saves their lives.
Bird: Absolutely man! There have been a lot of those stories, it’s hard man, you want to start crying. It’s hard to believe that your music is so powerful, that it can really help them, in whatever the situation they’re involved in. A friend dying in a crash or losing someone in the military or losing a loved one from cancer. I can’t believe I’m making music like that, I’m not trying too, it just comes out and it hits home for them.
CTC: What would be the main inspiration for the title “Blacked Out”? I mean, it can’t just be about becoming blacked out drunk from partying.
Bird: *Laughs* Obviously, it kinda has a little to do with that. But it’s also how Johnny Cash wore all black. It’s like a sign of rebellion and Johnny being his own person and doing what he wanted to do. And not really having a set parameter, like having to stay in between two lanes/two lines, instead we’re going against that standard. That’s kinda like how blacked out is for us. Being fucking hammered could be an inspiration.
CTC: I like that Johnny Cash reference, that’s pretty cool!
Bird: He’s the man in black! He wore it all the time. He’s important!
CTC: For the song “American Banned”, have you guys been banned from a lot of venues? If so, is it because of crazed fans?!
Bird: Yea! We’ve been banned either from fans doing crazy shit, some of the Shiners, or Chucky Baby (the guy that does our merchandise), when he comes and fucking runs on stage every now and again, or basically it’s a large showcase and they get worried. Some people are like “Meh that’s a little too crazy for us”. But I mean if your going to hire a band, do your research. We’ve had issue with Toby Keith’s bars, we’ve even been banned from Easy Riders in Sturgis. We were scheduled to play three shows in Sturgis. We had a VIP section that was above the stage and a fan kept saying he was going to jump on stage and Tex said “Well get your ass down here on stage”. The guy jumped off a 14 feet balcony to got one stage and sang a few songs with us. It was pretty crazy. Easy Riders didn’t like that and told us, “we’ll pay you to not to play the third show”. So we went over to Full Throttle Saloon. I saw my boy goat that works at Full Throttle and we talked to Jesse James and Michael Ballard (manager and owner of Full Throttle Saloon, the worlds biggest biker bar) and set up a new show. The same day we got banned from a venue in Sturgis, we ended up still headlining in Sturgis, thanks to Full Throttle. Young MC opened for us.
CTC: Wow! All because a fan jumped on stage?
Bird: Yep and our music is a little crazy, but you’re in Sturgis, what do you expect?! You gotta go crazy!
CTC: Despite the current controversy surrounding the rebel flag and it being pulled from stores, and even the Dukes Of Hazzard TV show ended up being removed from channels and the internet, you guys still included the song “Lasso” within “Blacked Out”. It’s on the rebel flag anthem tip. I respect the fact you guys stood up for freedom of speech and kept the song from being removed.
Bird: There was an opportunity to remove the song, but we didn’t take it! It is what it is, dude. It’s fucking America! You have the right to believe what you want to believe. I’m don’t get pissed at all when people wave the gay rights flag in front of me, more power to them! It’s their right! It’s their freedom of speech. I grew up in Mississippi, so this shit hits home. I don’t like to speak on it a lot, because I don’t really want to get involved with politics. I’m here to make music. It’s not hate man, it’s heritage. We have a lot of mixed raced friends that work for us. There is no racial part about it, it’s my heritage. At some point the country is going to have to wake up and say “Enough’s enough”, because that’s just one more freedom/liberty that the government will be able to take away from us. It’s going to move us more into a type of country that I /no one will be able to recognize. I hope they can turn it around. That nutball that shot up the Church, what an awful son of a bitch that guy is. That guy is a piece of shit, I hope he gets the death penalty.
CTC: Couldn’t agree more! Let’s discuss the track “I Earned It”. I know it definitely relates to the people who are stuck working the 9-5 everyday for a living.
Bird: I can personally relate to this song. I grew up under construction and roofing. Very hard job! A lot of physical labor and long hours. My dad owns a construction business and he still does it. I think the song is very cool. It’s cool for several facts. For one, Big Tex tackled something that he didn’t know if he was going to be comfortable enough to do. That was the spoken word aspect, it took a completely different style. When you’ve spent your whole entire career writing that beat and writing that wave of a track from rapping, to actually trying to speak, it was a different thing. He didn’t want to rap. Tex nailed it! He did a really good job with it. It’s definitely a blue-collar anthem. It’s a song like this, “fuck yea dude, I’m part of this country, I’m part of this town, I’m part of this society, I work my ass off during the week and I’m going party during the weekend”. A lot of the blue-collar people are really going to enjoy this one!
CTC: Oh yea! It’s great when you have a song fans can super relate to!
Bird: Oh yea man! We’re very blessed to be able to touch the lives of fans. I think it’s because we went this grass-roots path our whole career. We’ve had opportunities to go with the majors, but at the time we just thought it wasn’t right. And I’m glad we didn’t go those routes. It kept us in the trenches and kept us more in touch with our fans and the Shiners. Connecting with people when touring across the country is a great feeling! And connecting with people we’ve toured with is great too!
CTC: The track”Lady Luck” Is really catchy! Is there anything from your own personal life that may have inspired that song?
Bird: It’s symbolic for the tattoo culture. It’s good fortune to have a “Lady Luck” tattoo. It’s usually a gal with a horseshoe turned up. Tattoos are a really big part of our own culture with the shiner ladies. It’s a really bad ass song for them. It was great that we had a chance to work with Crucifix on this. He fucking nailed it, dude!
CTC: What’s the story on how Moonshine Bandits and Crucifix first met?
Bird: Basically, we were introduced to him by some friends in the south. We knew he had done this song “Splinter” with Bubba Sparxxx and that he had directed the video too. At the time he had worked with Average Joe Entertainment. We kinda knew who he was, but we were just getting newly signed to the label when Crucifix was leaving and wasn’t able to meet him at that time. Few years later we finally wound up doing the song together and became good friends.
CTC: It’s amazing being able to see/hear about artists connecting and becoming friends!
Bird: He’s a very talented individual!
CTC: What about “She’s Crazy”, have you had any stalker chicks??
Bird: I’ve had three ex fiances *Laughs* I had a stalker once, but I think she found someone now, good for her. This song tho is about getting a little whiskey in her and she goes nuts! The whiskey loosens her up and she’s able to party. I’ve always had girls that love to party like that and are always dancing. I like a gal that will sit down and have a beer with you or take a shot with you.
CTC: Haha right on! Any girl like that is a win in a my book too! Can you break down the track “Pass Me The Ammo”?
Bird: “Pass Me The Ammo” is a throwback to the World War II Era and maybe a bit before that era. There was this motto,“Praise The Lord and Pass The Ammunition”. It’s the greatest generation this country has ever seen and I honestly believe that! It was the golden age for our country! My Grandfather was in World War II and jumped out on D-Day and survived the 82nd Airborne division! He did eleven or twelve combat jumps. For me, it’s a really great song for him, but it wasn’t really written specifically about him. It’s written for all the soldier boys and girls that kick ass for us! I can’t express enough how patriotic we are! If it wasn’t for them doing what they do overseas, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do in the states. You might not agree with the United States getting involved with other countries affairs, but our boys and girls don’t have a say when they’re called to duty, they go to war. We’re behind all the troops one hundred percent! We dropped a video this past 4th and we highlighted all the bad asses in different branches of the military with this song playing! Check the video, it’s very powerful! I would do a tour for the troops in a heartbeat! At some point the doors will open and we’ll be able to go over seas and I can’t wait to get over there and shake their hands, talk to them and uplift their spirits!!!
CTC: What artists would you say you’ve learned from the most?
Bird: We learned from guys like Kottonmouth Kings, Rehab, Twiztid, Insane Clown Posse and Tech N9ne. We grew up with that culture of Strange Music, Psychopathic Records, Subnoize, those artists, they get it and actually care. They really helped guide us! I’m old in this game and I love to share knowledge with kids when I’m on tour, not saying I’m quitting, but someday we’ll have to pass the torch too! New kids with talent, learning true knowledge, keeps real music alive!
CTC: Dream Collabo, Dead or Alive
Bird: I would love to do a song with Tupac and Johnny Cash together, as in Moonshine Bandits with Tupac and Johnny Cash on the same song. RIP I think doing a song with Kid Rock would be bad ass!Working with ICP would be a great collabo. Those guys are so great!
CTC: What’s the future of Moonshine Bandits
Bird: Keep doing what we’re doing! Keep growing and keep getting better and better! If you don’t aspire to have really good goals, then why bother with music? We want to get as much out of music as possible and give as much back as we can to the fans! That’s very important to us, to not only receive, but to give. It’s part of who we are. I’m so excited for the present and the future! We’ve put in the work for so long and the struggle is real, it never has been fake. I really believe we have a good foothold and I think that we learned from really good people in the business. We have a bright future ahead of us. Salute to the troops!
Interviewer: Chad Thomas Carsten
Interview Date:07/31/15
No comments yet
You must be logged in to post a comment.