BRETT SCALLIONS of FUEL: Spiking The Fountain Of Youth
An interview by Sarah Kidd.
They were the band that provided some of the biggest songs of the 90’s, anthems that were blasted from car stereo’s on the summer streets and sung along to with bravado during Friday nights at the local bar.
Formed by Carl Bell and Jeff Abercrombie in 1994, Fuel’s debut album Sunburn released in 1998 took the music world by storm. Tracks such as ‘Shimmer’, ‘Bittersweet’ and of course ‘Sunburn’ itself were unforgettable thanks in part to the songwriting of Bell and the distinctive rock vocals of lead singer Brett Scallions. With just the right mix of alternative/hard rock and a healthy dash of grunge splashed in for good measure, Fuel soon earned their stripes. As the years ticked by the band certainly went through more than a few line-up changes; however the music itself remains as solid as it always has.
Last here in the year 2000, it has been seventeen years since Fuel graced an Auckland venue with their sweet sounds and now finally the wait is over. Playing not only all their hits from albums such as Something Like Human and Natural Selection, Fuel are promising to play the entire Sunburn album in full in celebration of its impending twentieth anniversary next year!
I caught up with vocalist Brett Scallions to discuss the upcoming tour and how he sees the music of Fuel this many years down the track;
Twenty years on from when Sunburn was released how do you feel that the music still holds up?
“You know it’s pretty amazing, it’s super rad you know that these songs still have an impact on people and are still being listened to! They are standing the test of time, so good things! Man you can’t ask for more than that.
We were just flying by the seat of our pants when we were making those records too, we were just trying to be creative and make the best recordings we could; we weren’t thinking about trying to make it to where our songs would stand the test of time and things like that – we were just trying to make great music, so kudos to that!”
Anniversary tours of pivotal albums have become wildly popular, in your opinion what has led to this? Is it due to the nostalgia people often feel for the ‘soundtracks’ of their formative years?
“I think that music completely comes around every twenty years that’s just how it turns [laughs] you look at history with music though and music tends to have a circulation of twenty years and here we are at the twenty year mark and people are really going back to the music that we did. There are other bands too that are still there, it’s just a matter of the circulation of music and the circulation of time”
Well it’s a massive compliment that you guys are actually kicking off this tour down here in Australasia.
“You know we have been searching for the right time to go to Australia/New Zealand for years now and we happened to get lucky with the 20th Anniversary of the Sunburn album. We just were able to get everything together at the same time and it fit perfect so luckily we’re being able to get down there and do it again! Like I said we’ve been trying to get down there for years now and I’m just glad that it’s finally to the point where we’re able to get it together.”
Yeah because you have only played New Zealand once before haven’t you?
“I don’t know if we’ve ever played New Zealand at all! I know I’ve been there a couple of times to do press and stuff like that but I don’t remember if we ever actually played a show or not!”
Yes… yes you did and I have photo evidence to prove it as I was there [laughs]
“Oh! So we did do a show there!”
It was an amazing performance and you were all very generous with your fans after the show…
“I was saying earlier that somebody was asking me if I’d played New Zealand before and I was like I don’t think so [laughs] but now I know I have! Thank you!”
[laughs] Yes you have!
“Awesome!”
Now, you left the band in 2006 and you returned in 2010, what compelled you to come back?
“You know I was bouncing from thing to thing and I was having a great time being creative with other people, but there was a time when I was playing with Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger of The Doors and both guys were winding down and they were touring less. My manager he was like ‘You know what you should do this Fuel thing again too, get the Fuel thing back together and stuff and then we can do some shows with that and we can also play with Ray & Robby a little bit’ and I was like ‘You know what that sounds like fun’ so I just kinda started; I did a few shows just on a whim just to kinda mess around a little bit and it kinda took off so we just kept going [laughs] so next thing I knew I made a record! Next thing I knew we were booking people for world tours and there it is!”
To be perfectly honest you have a very distinctive voice and it is very much the voice of Fuel; without you it didn’t really feel like Fuel – so you made a lot of fans happy when you returned.
“Thank you.”
Do you find that having that break has reinvigorated you?
“Absolutely! You know that was the main thing in the beginning of why I left Fuel, I just needed something different; I needed a change in life, I wasn’t happy and I’ve always been the type of person that if you’re not happy in what you’re doing than it’s time to do something else. So I had to get away you know, after being away from it for a few years and to go back into it and put those shoes on again was … it felt so much better to me you know and it was much more relaxing. It relieved any type of stress or anxiety that I may have had before; it’s nice to step away from things from time to time.”
You’re basically playing with a very new line up of band members; so will we see a slightly different treatment on some of these classic songs, like some personal touches coming through from the band itself?
“Yeah the band that I play with are incredibly talented guys, they’re all monster players and for me to plant them down and say ‘play it exactly like the record’ would be a disservice to them because they’re so talented! So I tell these guys ‘you know like there are key elements of the songs, there are parts of these songs that were recorded for a reason, use those but in between them have fun and do whatever you want to do as long as you don’t butcher the song!’
You know – play, be yourself, put your attitude to it; one thing about when you play a song, you put your personality into it, if you are capable of playing it the way you want to play so that’s basically what I tell the guys to do, have fun, bring in the important parts, let the embellishments happen and please be yourself in between all of that.”
Most definitely – those are very wise words. Looking at your debut album which you will be playing in full on this tour; for you personally what has always been the standout track from Sunburn?
“I think the song ‘Sunburn’ itself was the stand out track for me, you know like I always enjoyed that song, I think it’s well written and well performed; you know we just kinda nailed it!”
Obviously you will be playing the album in its entirety but you will also be throwing in some of your other hits as well – I’ve always loved ‘Hemorrhage’. Can you tell me what the backstory was to that song?
“Oh, the song is basically – in a nutshell – living with or without you know [laughs] and that’s extremely in a nutshell! There’s the process of how do I get along, how do I continue on and how do I continue on without what I need. You know I tried to be metaphorical here and be somewhat vague too. One thing I love about music – and I’ve always said this – is being able to interpret and decipher the music for yourself, give your own interpretation and incorporate it into your life the way you see fit.
That song was actually bigger here in the States than ‘Shimmer’ was, [laughs] it was one of the top ten songs of the decade last year here in the States. We were kinda surprised that ‘Shimmer’ was so huge for us in Australia and then we released Something Like Human and released ‘Hemorrhage’ in Australia and it didn’t have the impact that we were expecting so … you know who knows though, we’ll come in and we’ll play the tour down there, we’ll play the songs and I’m sure there will be tons of fans that will love that song now”
Funnily enough I saw an interview with you the other day that made me laugh because you said “prepare to see a middle aged man running around on stage going nuts” [laughs] is that how you see yourself now?
[laughs] “That’s what it is now! I’m not going to hide it; I’m not going to deny it! But you know what? I’ve got more energy than any other forty-five year old has got!” [laughs]
Actually to tell you the truth – I have seen guys like yourself and older absolutely tear up the stage night after night. It’s like you have all drunk from the fountain of youth!
“Rock n roll keeps you young. It totally does, it keeps you young. I’ve known lots of people who are from back home and stuff who are my age and younger who look way older than me, and they are doctors and lawyers and accountants and sell insurance and things like that but they look way older than me! I go home and I’m like I look amazing compared to them [laughs] they are all grey hair and wrinkly and fat and here I am with rock n roll like ‘Hey what’s happening!’ you know? So Rock n Roll keeps you young it’s true …
The fountain of youth has alcohol in it” [mutual laughter]
So before we go – any message for your New Zealand fans?
“We’re looking forward to seeing you guys! I’ve got three days off in Auckland so I am going to have some fun while I am there for sure!”
Oh awesome!
“Yeah looking forward to being there again and seeing the beautiful countryside and the people and just enjoying ourselves in your beautiful country!”
Fuel are hitting New Zealand as part of the of the “The Sunburn 20thCelebration Tour” this Wednesday (13th December 2017), to play Auckland’s Studio. Tickets are still available from https://metropolistouring.com/fuel but get in quick as they are selling fast!
Image Credit: Feature Image courtesy of Jena Ardell / Fuel