Incite: Interview

Phone interview with Ritchie Cavalera of Incite

By Aniruddh "Andrew" Bansal

March 15th 2010, Los Angeles CA

Andrew: How's this tour been so far and what are you expecting from the rest of it?
Ritchie: Man, it's been kickass! The bands that are on this tour are really smart. They've got all three support acts on one tour bus. So it's raging every night. The shows have just been killer, great turnouts and great enthusiasm at all the shows. We've really had an unexpectedly kickass tour. We're just excited that we still have 20 shows left!

Andrew: How would you describe your music to somebody who hasn't heard of your band?
Ritchie: Like I've always said, it is like a shotgun blast to the face, dude. It's really aggressive and raw. It's just straight to the point metal songs that we really had a lot of fun writing. When you see the band live, you really get the full experience of what Incite is about. I hope that people will learn to grow a liking to the music because personally I'm a huge fan of it. I think that the more and more people listen to it, the more it will start to catch on. People can kind of make your own judgements of what you sound like, you know.

Andrew: You've been a guest performer with Max's bands [Soulfly, Cavalera Conspiracy] in the past. How does it feel to be on stage with him?
Ritchie: It's an amazing thing. Not only him as a musician, me being a huge fan, but also as my father. It is something he's letting me share with him and there's nothing else in the world I wanted to do other than music. So to be able to do that with him so many times has been unbelievable. On this tour I haven't been doing those guest appearances for him because mainly I want to focus on Incite. We get a 30-35 minute set every night and I just want to make sure I am a 100 per cent for our shows. So I haven't been singing with him on this tour, but definitely I'll do some guest spots with him along the way in the near future. Its always exciting to do that. On the Soulfly tour last year, I did the guest spot because our album was just getting ready to come out and I was just out selling merchandise. It's like my job to make money when I'm not touring with Incite. I'm also selling merchandise on this tour for Soulfly and Incite. I get to talk to fans and really meet people all day long. Its really cool and I love it.

Andrew: How much have you got to learn from him over the years?
Ritchie: Just getting to see his confidence on stage and the way he works the crowd, and the way he really presents himself, that's really been the biggest lesson I've learnt. Seeing so many of his shows and getting to tour with him and seeing so many other bands as well, its really just watching and picking the things that they do. What they do that makes the crowd respond to them, that's the biggest lesson. I've gotten to be on stage really honing my skills for Incite.

Andrew: Your debut album 'The Slaughter' released last November. Talk a little bit about how it has worked out for you guys.
Ritchie: It's just killer. It's been a lot of work to get this album out. It was fun recording it. During those twelve days it was a killer time, man. To finally have it out and people getting to hear it, it's just a trip for me. It's something I wanted my entire life and to have people responding well to it is even better. We're selling them at our shows on this tour. We are selling 20 to 30 CDs a night, so people are getting very excited about the record. I think it is just going to slowly start to catch on, as people realize what a good young band we are!

Andrew: The band was founded it 2004. Tell me about what went on from that time till 2009.
Ritchie: Well in 2004 it was a completely different line-up. The band was just beginning and I was just starting to get my feet going with the band. The members that were in it at the time just didn't have the same musical direction as me. They wanted to go more like mainstream and metalcore stuff, which I'm not a fan of. I like original timeless classic metal. So in 2006, I made a big decision about the band and got a whole new line-up for it. It's the same current line-up that I have now. That was the biggest thing for me to do because it really set Incite on the path that now is bringing the music that we have. So in the five years, it has been a lot of work. It took me time to find the right members. In a band the most important thing is having all members on the same page and really liking the same music with the same focus and dedication. So, the current situation is amazing. I think this is just the beginning of Incite, a fresh start-over for me to put the band in the right direction.

Andrew: You've toured with bands like Cavalera Conspiracy and now you are touring with Soulfly. How have their fans been treating your band in general?
Ritchie: I think everyone comes in with a weird vibe at first and its like, 'Oh this is Max's son blah blah blah'. Then they get to meet us and find out that we are just four kids trying to do the same thing as them man, bring music to the world! I think once they see that and see that we are for real, they drop all their first impressions and really just hang out. We've always had a great time on every tour we've ever done, be it with Dillinger Escape Plan, Throwdown or Bleed The Sky. It has really always been a great relationship with those people. I still talk to a lot of those fans today. So I think they always come with a weird first impression but always end up having a great time. Like I said, we're just four kids playing in a band doing what they're doing. In the end it's the same goal.

Andrew: To what extent do you think you've succeeded in making a name for your band on your own, and not just because of the connection with Max?
Ritchie: It is something that's just really made up by certain people that want to say what they will. Little do they know that prior to Max and prior to everything, he is my father. I can't choose how my destiny is taking me. It is something like I said I've loved forever. I think people just take their first impressions and it does take some time to get through all that stuff and realize that what we have here is a good young band with a lot of potential, drive and dedication towards the music. Everything we've done to this point, we've done it on our own. I think people will see that after hearing the first record. I think they'll become fans of the music as well the storyline and all that bullshit. You can't choose how your life is and whom you're brought into this world by. You just have to go with what you're given, try to be yourself and do things your way. I think in the end it will prove to people that Incite is more than just some bullshit.

Andrew: What are you planning on doing after this tour?
Ritchie: The plans are to get to Europe for the summer festivals. We're excited to finally head over to Europe and play these festivals that we've just been hearing so much about, the ones I've grown up watching for so many years. That's definitely the goal first off and then probably we'll be back to America for another tour at the end of the summer. Then I believe it'll be back to Europe in the fall, with .. praying on this one .. Motorhead! So we're definitely going to work this year and I'm excited, man. I've been waiting for this for my entire life.

Check out the band's myspace.

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