The Living End

"We've had more fun on this tour than any of our previous US trips," announces The Living End's lead singer and guitarist Chris Cheney, "I'm not sure why, other than that the shows have been big and fun! We did some Warped dates and also a bunch of our own headline shows - last night we sold out the House Of Blues in Hollywood and it was a cracker of a gig, definitely a highlight."

However, when it comes to the band's reception overseas, Cheney confesses that Japan is by far probably the best market for The Living End, with the Japanese kids having a tendency to go bonkers when the band's name is mentioned!

"The fan base over there is fantastic, but I have to admit that this current album seems to be getting a lot of press in the States too and, generally, the reviews have been favourable."

With the exception of the band's latest album 'State Of Emergency' being dubbed as a rip-off of Pink Floyd's 'Brick In The Wall', of course - which can hardly be considered criticism, right?

"Not really, I mean, criticism is fine," Cheney says, "Okay, let's face it, it's the one and only time I can foresee The Living End ever being compared to Pink Floyd! Everyone has an opinion and that's healthy. Personally though, I don't really see it other than the fact that it contains kids and the 'education' line!"

Speaking of the band's brand new album, Cheney champions producer Nick Launay and all the effort he put into the record. "We have a really good relationship - he understands the band and he gave us the opportunity to explore our ideas," which, as Cheney explains, is crucial for a band like The Living End that pushes itself all the way.

Cheney also confesses that the band were extremely determined to create an album with very strong songs, which meant that the drafting process was, to say the least, intense, "Oh yeah, the songs went through some pretty drastic changes before they were cemented."

The Living End are also planning to start working on a new album as soon as possible, according to the singer, after the current nation-wide tour, that is.

"There's absolutely nothing like playing to a room packed full of people who are just letting their hair down or frustrations out...whatever they may be. So we're definitely loving it having to play to the fans."

So what's been the most memorable gig The Living End have ever done then? Why, the support slot for The Rolling Stones, of course!

"That was a bit surreal...It was a very 'Stones kind of crowd but I think we went over pretty good. We did get to meet them, which is just one of those cool things we can tell our grandkids about! They were nice guys and seemed relatively normal. I mean, one of the benefits of being in this band is that we've had the opportunity to see and meet some of our heroes - AC/DC being another, by the way."

Green Day is another band, according to Cheney, who have been strong supporters of The Living End, as the vocalist explains, "We first toured with them in 1996 and we remained friends and they took us to the States for the 'Warning' tour in 2000. They've always spread the word about us and just getting to play I Fought The Law on stage in Melbourne with them earlier this year was for me one of the biggest career highlights. They have definitely helped us out big time."

Following the upcoming enormous tour, which will see the band cover regional areas as well as the capital cities, Cheney claims the band will be isolating themselves for a while in order to work on their next record.

"Actually, we want to start working on the new album as soon as possible. The next few months will be obviously spent on the road because of this tour, so there's some time yet before the writing process commences. But we are definitely itching to get some new songs happening though...How does a metal album sound?"

Nina Bertok

The Living End play at the Leisure Centre (Pt. Lincoln) on Thurs 7 September, the Westland Hotel (Whyalla) on Fri 8 September and the Shores Complex (West Beach) on Sat 9 and Sun 10 September. 'State Of Emergency' is out now through EMI.