BLACK LIGHT BURNS INTERVIEW with WES BORLAND by LENA LAMORAY

BLACK LIGHT BURNS has to be the best new band I have seen in years.  Their stage performance and musicianship is just unsurpassed.  Their cd has not left my player since it was purchased.  I just can not get enough!  Don’t be stupid and not own their cd or dismiss them just because you were not a LIMP BIZKIT fan.  I was not a LB fan, sorry Fred, but you singing GEORGE MICHAEL’S Faith made me want to explode like that dude in BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA…pure blasphemy.  Now everyone can thank MR. BORLAND for bringing some amazing music to the masses and for bringing Rock N’ Roll back (literally, he does rolls and flips).  What more can you ask for?  Thanks so much WES!

LL:  Do you have any pre-show rituals?

WES:  Basically before we go on, and after I've put on my horrible smelling stage clothes and make-up,
I hum to get my throat warmed up and find an area to pace back and forth in. I usually try to focus my adrenaline to my penis, stomach, heart, mouth, eyes, and forehead. I pretend there are spearheads
coming out of every point that I mentioned except for my mouth, which I imagine as a flaming sword. This helps me get into warrior mode so I can throw down as hard as possible on stage.

LL:  How do you decide on what song you should release next?

WES:  Myself and the record label could not  decide what we wanted so we asked some of the radio stations that pushed "Lie" really hard what they would want next, and they came back to us with "4 Walls". I don't care what the single is personally because I like all the songs.

LL:  Most front men would get a veto on the booty shorts but you can wear whatever you want.  What do you do to keep yourself in such great shape?  Can I request that you get down in your shorts on 10/30 in Providence, RI by the second song so I can photograph it? Nothing will sell a magazine like some Wes Booty!

WES:  I stay in shape by not sitting on my ass, and hardly EVER eating fast food. I pace a lot. I'm real high strung, and a workaholic. So maybe that's why. I don't know if I can strip that fast. Next summer, I'll
probably ONLY be wearing underwear on stage.

LL:  How did you manage to find such a talented live band with each member having such exquisite hair?

WES:  The auditions were successful fairly quickly. I knew that I wanted Nick Annis on guitar for sure. Nick and I then auditioned several drummers, and Marshall was probably the fourth guy we played with. He was perfect. I got goosebumps when I played with him and that's usually the only sign I need. A bass player took a bit longer to find, but Sean was by far the best fit for the band.

LL:  Do you ever get stage fright and if you do how do you overcome it?

WES:  It doesn't matter if I get it or not. It's unacceptable and must be shot out of a cannon into space.

LL:  Have you thought about getting an endorsement from a bottled water company?  Your show has to be the wettest show I have ever been to.

WES:  I bet the next one will be wetter.

LL:  Are you planning on working with Danny Lohner on the next album?

WES:  Yes, but I'll be producing the album this time around. I'm sure Danny will be greatly involved to some extent.

LL:  Do certain things inspire you to paint?

WES:  Everything inspires me to paint. I just try to highlight the things that are best Juxtaposed against each other in order to sharpen my ideas. Whether it be Black Metal, fashion models, Terrorism, Dog
Penises, Weapons, or Persian Rugs, things are better naked and exposed. My paintings are what I've found to be my favorite outlet for expressing my more esoteric and complex ideas and feelings about myself, life, and the world regardless of how intangible the concept. Everything fits in there.

LL:  What outlet do you use in the creation process of a song?

WES:  I build a song like a collage and primarily work in Pro-Tools. A song can start with anything. Any idea. It pretty much depends on what is shooting chills up my spine at the moment.

LL:  What song on Cruel Melody was the last one you wrote? 

WES:  Mesopotamia

LL:  You have a very unique guitar style and sound. Besides the new Yamaha Wes Borland model, have you added anything new to your rig?

WES:  I'm playing Orange Guitar Heads live through a VHT 6 x 12 cabinet.

LL:   Did growing up in the era of Bowie and Kiss make you want to experiment with make-up?

WES:  I didn't really grow up in their time. Kiss and Bowie were ruling the 70s. I was more concerned with action figures than music at that time. I also was into running around the back yard with a butter knife and pretending that it was a sword.

LL:  What do your fans have to look forward to in the future?

WES:  More music made better I hope. More artwork, and at some point I'd like to make a film. I'll never stop doing this. Whatever "THIS" is. I'm obsessed with getting something out of myself that I may never be able to fully expectorate. The music and art I make is a byproduct of this attempt to exorcise myself of this unknown THING. Maybe I'll get rid of it and be able to rest one day. I doubt it.

4 WALLS Walls

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