Militarie Gun Members - Last year, vocalist Ian Shelton (Regional Justice Center), guitarists Nick Cogan (Drug Church and William Acuña), bassist Max Epstein and drummer Vince Nguyen (Modern Color) the band -new Militarie Gun debut on EP My Life Is Over. Since then, RJC has released a fantastic new album and now Militarie Gun has announced two new EPs, All Roads Lead To The Gun and All Roads Lead To The Gun II, each out June 4th via Alternatives Label and out on September 10 via Convulse Records. Like the new RJC album, both EPs were recorded by Taylor Young.
In contrast to the crushing, high-violence/crushing-inspired hardcore of RJC, Militarie Gun took a more melodic approach to the genre, citing influences from Fugazi, The Jesus Lizard, Born Against, and Guided by Voices, among others. "After I recorded 'My Life Is Over,' I felt like I could do whatever I wanted," said Ian. "I feel like I can see the restrictions being lifted. I love the tension between aggressiveness, melody and weirdness."
Militarie Gun Members
The first taste of the EP is "Ma Pick Up the Phone," which introduces screeching guitars and is decidedly lighter than My Life Is Over. If you like other hardcore to soft bands like Fiddlehead and Angel Du$t, you should definitely check this out as well. Ian, who also directed the video for the song, spoke to The Fader about it, saying, "Once I got a call with bad news while I was eating mushrooms. I was easy and I definitely should have waited until I was sober. Time . Hearing that news in an altered state can make you feel like your world is literally ending and there really is no way out until your mind is back to normal. For the video I tried to recognize that is -feeling despite your best efforts Do your best to calm or numb your mind and still feel like you're going to give in to it." Watch/Listen below. Ian Shelton rose to prominence in the heavy music world as drummer and vocalist for the Regional Justice Center. In 2020, however, the songwriter embarked on a prolific new chapter by creating a new group called Militarie Gun.
Fiddlehead Militarie Gun
The RJC had to cancel a series of shows due to the ongoing pandemic, which started with Military Weapons last spring. He and RJC bassist Steph Jerkova quickly wrote the punchy "Kept Talkin", but the rest of the project's debut EP,
, has a more pronounced melodic approach, albeit through a groove-driven hardcore shot. That part is naturally bowed down to the riff, but Sheldon also moves from the foghorn howls that provide full force to more harmonic rasps.
Instinct caught up with Ian to talk about pushing his sound in a whole new direction, the project S.W.A.T. his new one with Family Self Defense frontman Patrick Kindlon, and how the modern day hardcore screamer can no doubt endure a little Sound aggression.
When it comes to your vocal presence, the Militarie Gun is nothing like the screams you bring to the regional centers of justice. Can you talk about your relationship with the voice and how you first discovered you could sing?
Best New Song Right Now: 3/18/22
Ian Shelton: I definitely have a complicated relationship with her. When I started playing in a band, my goal was to sing, but over time I ended up developing this boat - RJC was a way to break that boat. Then I wanted to do this band, where I was actually going to sing, but it never ended. I'm so nervous; i think my voice sounds terrible. But [with a military-style gun], I was like, 'Fuck it, I'll try. ’ I have this thing and I am going to scream. I love Sam McPheeters [Born Against, Wrangler Brutes]; i really like those loud singers.
Did writing last year's Melody Ian Shelton and EP Pretty Matty have any influence on how you approached Militarie Gun?
Me: That's the band I'm talking about, I want to sing there, those are the songs from that [project]. That was basically my thinking, 'Well, I'm never going to do that, so why shouldn't Matt sing? '
Are there any songs you've sung yourself over the years to strengthen your vocals?
Militarie Gun Sign To Loma Vista, Share New Song Off 'all Roads Lead To The Gun' Deluxe
Me: Really, I don't want to do anything. All at random. When I started recording a Military Gun song, it was basically a freestyle. I don't write lyrics or melodies in advance.
We're still at the point where Militarie Gun can't really play in front of an audience, but at least during practice, what's it like just being the lead vocalist?
I: It's good to be able to practice and sing in the band. You know, for the RJC, it's a test of endurance. The exercises are short. There is only until I can get punched and yelled at the same time. It's good to be able to practice and say "let's do it again"—whether I'm providing something or trying to clarify something. Now I'm trying to figure out how to sing at what level of aggression without ruining my voice while still giving it a fresh sound.
I think another big difference is being able to join a band that practices a lot. All Militarie Gun lives in Los Angeles, and the RJC can't practice right now.
All Roads Lead To The Gun: An Interview With Ian Shelton About Militarie Gun's Bulletproof New Eps
Regarding the physicality of it, is it intimidating or liberating to not have anything to do with your hands?
Me: At some point I was nervous, like, "OMG, I need to move my body!" Your job as a leader is to have fun. I was a little nervous about it, [I thought] 'maybe I'll play the guitar and sing,' it left me with something else to do. Eventually, I knew I just needed to sing. But I'm sure my nerves will always be on edge when we actually do the show.
Could it be argued that there is a gap between RJC's more political lyrics and what you sang in Militarie Gun?
Me: I didn't think about it at first; they just ended up as light song themes. For a song that makes sense for RJC, it fits in a certain niche emotionally. As I said, I never wrote lyrics for this band. I go in, and while I'm recording the demo, I just sing one line, and I think, 'Okay, that sounds good,' and I sing the next line. It takes shape, you know? If anything, it's more of a lack of intention. When I start writing an RJC record, I know what it will be about. There was an arc I wanted to achieve, lyrically. This is premeditation [RJC] versus being completely in the moment [military gun].
Mspaint Paste Into Playback Studios
Speaking of vocals and vocals, how did you know Patrick Kindlon was going to be the 80's style hardcore member of the S.W.A.T. your new? project?
Me: I know that Patrick is not [just] shouting. What is lost in modern hardcore is that everyone is at 10 in the level of aggression at all times. The hard removed all the dynamics of the vocal performance, and you hear Bad Brains, going from spasmodic to a loud "whoaaaaa". That's the hard 80's, it's all "wow" and sounds more goofy. I think Pat can handle this.
Me: The video feed has completely slowed down. I will bide my time and wait for the tour to come back because without the tour the music video budget will be cut. I just want to make music and work towards a record deal, not focus on killing myself to make free music videos.
Applewhite has deep ties to Pacific Northwest hard rock, and their current lineup includes past and present members of Punitive Damage, Blue Monday, Damages and more. Sticking with a theme here, bassist Steph Jerkova is also a member of the District Justice Center and sings on the Military Gun EP. Despite this heavy history, Applewhite entered the dreamier side of shoegaze and power-pop.
Militarie Gun Enter An Altered State On “don't Pick Up The Phone”
The band previously released two songs on a 7-inch via Painter Man Records in 2019, and released their self-titled debut album on November 17,
The title track is full of expressive flange-driven textures, with guitarist Dave Mitchell picking up some pitch bends from his Jazzmaster during the solo. The color separations in the video give it a 3D look (mind you, though without the glasses).
Last week I posted a Beginner's Guide to Touch and Go Records on Bandcamp Daily, which led me to give credits to some of my favorite records like Blonde Redhead, Jesus Lizard, Monorchid, and more. These types of intros are a lot of fun to do, but inevitably there are some bands that I miss covering (with 400 Touch and Go released, it's bound to happen). Seam is one of them, and frankly, I like it a lot.
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