Interview with masters of metal Anvil

[caption id="attachment_69" align="aligncenter" width="522" caption="From left to right: Glenn, Steve, me (with swollen face from wisdom tooth extraction) and Robb of Anvil. See all photos from this evening here."][/caption]

Tonight I was fortunate enough to chat with and then see in concert true masters of metal, Anvil, at the Bridge Theater in San Francisco’s Inner Richmond district. The band powered through a short, blistering set to a standing-room only crowd following a screening of Anvil: The Story of Anvil, a new documentary about the band that Rolling Stone is calling “this year’s most praised rock doc” and one Michael Moore is calling “the best documentary I’ve seen in years.” Even if you don’t care what Michael Moore has to say, I can say that this is one of the best documentaries I’ve seen since American Movie. Depsite a long and continued history that predates their heyday in 1984, Anvil never achieved the recognition and success megastars like Slash, Metallica and Anthrax say they deserved, and the film is a powerful testament to the band’s continued passion, conviction and dedication.

Before the show, I had the opportunity to pass a copy of Indie Rock 101 to the band and chat with each member individually; no backstage pass required as they were relaxing and mingling with fans in the lobby before their set. The last chapter, I explained, is called “Sticking with It,” and since I had seen the documentary on Friday night, I couldn’t think of a band that could better exemplify that content than one that’s been together for almost 30 years, just released their 13th album and been immortalized in what’s sure to become a classic documentary.

I bought a CD from drummer Robb Reiner (super-nice guy, absolutely phenomenal drummer) and asked him if he could say one thing to musicians, young and old, to inspire and motiviate them to keep going, what would it be? I’ve transcribed Robb’s response from a recording to the best of my ability, and will be posting the audio file on this page as soon as it’s available:

“You must believe in yourself to do anything. You have to have fun. Best religion in the world. That’s where it starts.
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I only knew support. [My parents always said] if that makes you happy, then we’re happy, we’ll always support you. That’s what I knew. I wish more parents were like that.
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My father was my biggest cheerleader. He was unbelievable... I took it seriously--he took it more seriously. He always encouraged me to play. Wasn’t making money, hard times--it didn’t matter. If you love this, keep doing it.
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I’m never gonna stop. My soul was always burning, this is what I do. I just do it.
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Just believe in yourself. Just stick with it. That’s my philosophy for you.”

Thanks to Robb, Steve and Glenn for their time and a killer show. Check out the movie at anvilmovie.com and the band at www.anvilmetal.com.

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Read more about “sticking with it” in Indie Rock 101, published by Focal Press and now available everywhere. Read more hyperlinked blog posts and sign up for the RSS feed and email newsletter at www.indierock101.com.