Senses Fail Interview

After many technical issues, including our recorder dying in the middle of the interview, not being able to get the interview onto a computer, and not being able to get the interview to play back correctly, this interview that Emilee conducted with Heath Saraceno of Senses Fail has finally been transcribed. The interview took place backstage at the 2006 Vans Warped Tour in Ventura, California.

BD: Bandictionary
HS: Heath Saraceno

BD: Do you have a lucky object that has to be with you when you’re onstage?
HS: I try to always be wearing two shoes. I think that's very important. Some people only wear one and I think that's really ridiculous. I understand not wearing any shoes, but I need the balance of two shoes, so I would say two shoes.

BD: If you could see one band in concert, dead or alive, which band would it be and why?
HS: That is a very good question. I would love to be able to go back in time and see Led Zeppelin play live, I'm talking like in the mid- to late-seventies. That'd be incredible.

BD: Out of all the types of publicity, which do you think is the most effective?
HS: Nowadays, definitely the Internet. If you're trying to let other people know about your band, then it's the Internet, message boards, MySpace, PureVolume... There are a lot of resources on the Internet that can really help your band get known.

BD: If you weren't in the band, what would you be doing?
HS: Before I started touring, the last thing I did was manage a video store, so hopefully I wouldn't still be managing a video store. I'd like to work in a studio. That would be a lot of fun.

BD: Which is better, seeing yourself on TV or hearing yourself on the radio?
HS: Whichever you're not expecting. If you don’t know that they're playing your song on the radio and you turn it on when you're with a bunch of your friends, it's so exciting. Have you ever seen "That Thing You Do"? The scene where they're all listening to the radio - when their song comes on the radio, it's very exciting.

BD: What was the music scene like where you were growing up?
HS: I'm from New Jersey, and a couple years ago in New Jersey, there was this big boom of all these bands starting and all these kids putting on shows. They would get a couple hundred bucks together, rent out a VFW hall or a Knights of Columbus, and just put on shows themselves. Hundreds of kids would come out and see local bands on the weekends. It used to be really great, and then all the people who owned the Elks Lodges and the VFW halls saw that kids were making money using their buildings, started charging more and more money for it, and now it's really hard to find a place to put on shows like that in New Jersey.

BD: If your house was on fire, what one thing would you save?
HS: If I had a dog, then it would be my dog. Obviously my family, but hopefully they would all be able to save themselves. So I would probably save my dog if I had one.

BD: Is there any sort of message you try to get across to the audience at shows?
HS: Not really. I don't try to get a message across, because I play guitar. There are a bunch of bands who go out and they're political, that's their thing, and they have a definitive message that they want to get across. We have different things we say through different songs. So an overall message... I don't think I can really answer that. I don't think so.

BD: What are your feelings on groupies?
HS: I have a girlfriend, so I have no feelings towards them at all.

BD: Out of all your songs, which is your favorite?
HS: It’d probably have to be one of the new ones. We just recorded a new record - it'll be out October 3rd - and I think my favorite song on the new record would probably be the title track, "Still Searching". It's really different and we've never done anything like that before.

BD: What bands would you say you're closest to?
HS: I've toured with the guys in Emanuel for a really long time. If you added up all the tours, it would probably be over a year of hanging out with them. Armor for Sleep, too, and Moneen are a big favorite of ours.

BD: Name some good and bad things about being famous.
HS: I wouldn't know! I guess it's good because people probably see you right away in a restaurant and they give you free shit all the time.
BD: Even though you don't need it.
HS: Yeah, it's so weird! All the people who can finally afford to get all this nice stuff get it for free. It makes no sense at all. They give you free cell phones, they give you free cars, all this shit. It's awesome. The worst part would probably be the constant punishment from people hounding them all the time.

BD: What goes through your mind when you're onstage?
HS: Nothing, usually, just a blank slate. I don't usually think about what I'm doing, it just happens. Sometimes I think about swimming pools.
BD: Any particular reason why?
HS: No, not really.

BD: Do you have a favorite music-related joke?
HS: Hmm... What do you call a guy who hangs out with musicians?
BD: I don't know.
HS: A drummer! That's like the only music-related joke that I know. ★

To learn more about Senses Fail, go to sensesfail.com.

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