Q&A: Rival Sons Don’t Waste Time with Their Rock N’ Roll
Rock n’ roll purists will forever say, ‘they don’t make albums like they used to.’ In a lot of ways, they’re right. While the nuts and bolts of 
album making continually change as new technological advancements arise, that doesn’t mean that said nuts and bolts need to hold a band hostage for months, perhaps even years on end.
In the case of California blues-rock quartet Rival Sons, they get the nuts and bolts, but don’t get why it takes bands so damn long to make albums nowadays.
Since 2009, the band – Jay Buchanan (lead vocals, harmonica), Scott Holliday (guitar), Mike Miley (drums), and David Beste (bass) – have released four albums, all of which have taken a month or less of studio time to complete. They go in, rip through tracks, and then give the public a new album to chomp on.
The latest bit of biting rock n’ roll to be doled out by the fellas is Great Western Valkyrie. Released June 10, the album has already landed the ‘Jimmy Page-approved’ band mega critical acclaim, including a 10/10 review from Classic Rock Magazine (only third album to ever accomplish that), and the designation of Mojo Magazine’s favourite album of 2014 thus far.
From a tour stop in Berlin, Rival Sons guitarist Scott Holliday recently checked in with Riffyou.com to discuss his band’s speedy ways and how the music industry has changed.
RY: You guys are known for your breakneck pace when it comes to recording. Why do you choose to work that way?
Scott: “Capturing the immediacy is imperative, especially with rock n’ roll. You have to keep some kind of spontaneity in that music. The original rock n’ roll albums of the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, were being made in three hours. [The process] was really quick and you could hear that rawness, which seems really far removed these days. Working at that speed just works for us.”
RY: Why do you think many bands have abandoned those quick recording sessions for ones that last months upon months…if not years?
Scott: “It’s fun to be lazy and second-guess your own work. A lot of bands get their A&R people involved with regards to what should or shouldn’t be on an album. There is a lot of bullshit that surrounds those bands and that slows the process up. And I’ve done it too. I spent over a year on an album. That’s what really drove me to want to play in this band.
“[In other bands] you can demo for two months and write the album. Three months after you have a record together, and then (you go back) and write again. You’re doing the exact same shit in the hope of capturing the exact same spark and excitement for the initial material. Some bands can breakup before an album’s even made.”
RY: Has that over-thinking ruined rock n’ roll?
Scott: “I think so, yeah…it has crippled the state of rock n’ roll.”
RY: You guys obviously move at a pretty good pace, putting out four albums in five years. Are you sold on the idea of a 
new album coming out every year or so as opposed to every couple of years?
Scott: “Absolutely. I think it is cool for bands to make albums quicker. Being in a band is way cooler when you’re making an album a year. I certainly don’t want to sit on record any longer than that…I want to make music! That’s why I’m doing this. I don’t even know how bands [take so long] – it just seems so tiring and horrible.
“Back in the ‘60s the business of rock n’ roll was basically being invented and those [short] deadlines were ones musicians were having to make, if they wanted to make money. It was probably more monetarily [motivated], but ended up proving to be so much more of a creative plus for these artists. And there you go, you have the spontaneity in the music…like ‘we have to make an album today. Today is when the album needs to be done, because that’s when the label wants it, or we aren’t getting paid. If we’re not getting paid, we can’t keep doing this.’ That may have been tough, but it became beautiful and cool.”
RY: It does seem like some bands want to be complacent and tour amphitheatres for months upon months and cash in.
Scott: “We wouldn’t do that. That’s real selfish. We’re from the US and you can tour their all year and not hit every spot. We come out to Europe and do well and have tons of great fans in Canada. People are supporting us, buying our records, and showing us lots of love. We want to show it back. It’s a very symbiotic relationship we all have. I get to make records, because you buy them. We want to make it up to you by playing the live shows.”
-Adam Grant
Tour Dates:
7/2 – Ottawa, ON @ Mavericks
7/3 – Toronto, ON @ Virgin Mobile Mod Club
7/4 – Barrie, ON @ The Ranch
7/5 – Thunder Bay, ON @ Thunder Bay Blues Festival
7/8 – Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock
7/9 – Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
7/11 – Denver, CO @ Marquis Theatre
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