Aristocracy Interview #595 With American Heavy Rockers Cortez
Line Up:
Matt Harrington: Vocals
Scott O´Dowd: Guitar
Alasdair Swan: Guitar
Jay Furlo: Bass
Kyle Rasmussen: Drums
(Drums on this album performed by Alexei Rodriguez)
We are talking again about our newsroom, where in a little while, we will have interview 595 of Aristocracy in all its emotions. This time, we talked to a band that combines the modern and the classic in a very personal and organic way. Of course, given what the band built before we met them, it shows that they do not need to be extravagant, but they do show in a very elegant way, engaging atmospheres and a very intense sound arrogance. Doing so allows the band to see their past without guilt, but showing a modernity that is also not forced, it is done in a natural way and full of direct and precise attitudes that will lead to a work determined to make an impact and show a new story but always being heavy because it is their brand and their destiny to do so. With this in mind and in our ears, Aristocracy talks to the Americans from Cortez and they show us their fourth full album entitled Thieves And Charlatans.
A1: Talk about the composition work on ‘Thieves And Charlatans’?
Alasdair Swan: There wasn’t any real difference to how we wrote with this album over others except for the first 2 songs. During the lockdown, we weren’t able to rehearse for several months and over this time Scott wrote the music for what would become “Levels” and I wrote most of the music for “Gimme Danger”. The difference was that we both made rough demos of the music and sent those out to the other guys so that we’d have something to work off when we were able to rehearse again. After we started rehearsing it was the same approach as always where Scott or I would bring a riff or idea to the band and we’d jam it. If we all feel there’s something there we keep working on it, adding other parts and finalizing the structure over weeks and months until it’s musically complete. During this early stage, Matt will often come up with vocal melodies, but he leaves finalizing the lyrics until the music is finished. The only other outlier in this batch of songs is “Stove Up”, the core music for which was written by the former Cortez guitarist Tony D’Agostino. Unfortunately, Tony died in 2018 and we thought it would be a fitting tribute to take a song idea of his from when he was in the band and finish it.
A2: How does the band mix a rootsy and modern sound?
Scott O´Dowd: We’ve always been influenced by older hard rock and metal bands, (Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Deep Purple, Motörhead, etc.) plus lots of NWOBHM (Diamond Head, Angel Witch, Witchfinder General). Add some 70s punk (Damned) and 80s hardcore (Black Flag, Adolescents), plus 90s Stoner Rock (Kyuss, Monster Magnet, etc.) and Scandinavian Rock (Hellacopters, Turbonegro) and you have the start of some of our influences. We’ve also always sort of blurred the line between Heavy Rock and Metal. We aim to combine our influences into our own thing and try not to sound too much like any of them. We eschew retro production in favor of a more modern sound overall.
A3: Why do you say this album is an anomaly?
Alasdair Swan: Normally,we write songs a few at a time in between gigging,but these songs were all written in one big block when the world went on pause during the pandemic.That gave us the freedom to really focus on the songs and refine them over a couple of years.Because we were not playing any gigs we didn’t have the distraction of having to rehearse our other songs and I think the end result is slightly more complex arrangements and parts than previously.
Matt Harrington: Aside from this one being mostly written over the course of the COVID lockdown in the US, it’s the first one where we didn’t play a single song live before we recorded it. That’s not to say that anything would have changed musically in a song if we had, but I think sometimes that audience feedback can inform the broader musical approach in some ways. Beyond that, we weren’t able to play together for a long while before we got back at it and I think everyone came back into the room with a ton of fresh ideas that really allowed us to expand on our sound.
A4: Did any literature or film inspire the band on this album?
Matt Harrington: Lyrically, I was definitely influenced and inspired by what I was reading, watching, re-reading / re-watching, observing, and playing at the time. For books: I am a Revolutionary: Fred Hampton Speaks, America: The Farewell Tour, Empire of Illusion, Contrary Notions: The Michael Parenti Reader, Imperialism the Highest Stage of Capitalism, Dune, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Oryx and Crake.
For graphic novels: DMZ, Maus, Palestine, Saga, Monstress, and Punk Rock Jesus.
For video / film / TV: Parenti’s “Yellow Lecture,” Black Mirror, The Expanse, Cidade de Deus, Judas and the Black Messiah, Children of Men, Idiocracy, and American Psycho.
For games: Cyberpunk 2077. Certainly everything that had transpired over the course of the COVID lockdown up to the day of recording was an influence as well.
A5: How is Cortez different from your previous bands?
Alasdair Swan: I think the biggest difference between Cortez and previous bands I have been in is that all band members are on the same page regarding what we want out of the band and what our expectations are. When I was younger, there was definitely the goal of trying to make a living off music, but in Cortez we all have separate careers and lives so we can focus purely on the music. I think it also reduces potential stresses and areas of contention; we’re all writing and playing the music we are because that’s what we love to do. And we’re all committed to putting in the time and effort required to gig, write, record, and release albums to that end.
Matt Harrington: Speaking personally, I’ve never been in a band with this sort of longevity or such a strong idea of who we are and what we do. We’re a close knit band of brothers, and it’s been the most consistently healthy band I’ve been in from a relationship, mental, and emotional standpoint. As a vocalist, I’ve always had the mindset that voice is an instrument and what, I do should serve the song. Cortez generally approaches songwriting in the same way, without involving egos, and we all have the same mindset of playing and writing for the song first and foremost. Songwriting is truly creative for us as a group, because there’s no conflict and it’s a collaborative environment all around.
Scott O’Dowd: Cortez is different mostly due to the fact that every band is like its own living organism. They all have their own uniqueness.
A6: How did the invites to Craig Riggs and Jim Healey come about?
Scott O’Dowd: Craig and Jim are both friends of ours, as well as former band mates of mine in different projects. They are both amazing and unique vocalists, who we thought would lend a different quality to some of the back up vocals.
Matt Harrington: When we started the recording process, I knew I wanted some different vocal textures on parts, and Craig and Jim are two of my favorite singers so I was stoked to have them. Jim had worked with us during the recording process for Sell the Future, but unfortunately the song he was on didn’t make the final album. We wanted to make sure we got him on at least one of the new tracks for this one. Craig was actually in Cortez for a bit before I joined, and one of the songs he sings on was partly written by a former member of Cortez, Tony D’Agostino, who has unfortunately passed on. Craig had been in the band with Tony, and it just felt right to have him sing on it. It was really a stroke of luck for us that their schedules both worked, and all credit due to Scott for making it happen.
A7: Why did Alexei Rodriguez play on this album and not Kyle Rasmussen?
Scott O’Dowd: It usually takes a while for albums to be released once they have been finished. ‘Thieves And Charlatans’ was recorded in late summer of 2022 when Alexei was our drummer. Kyle didn’t officially join the band until May of this year, so that’s why he doesn’t appear on it.
A8: How did the band arrive at Ripple Music?
Scott O’Dowd: Todd (who owns Ripple Music) had been a fan of our earlier albums. When we were looking for a record label to release our album ‘The Depths Below’ in 2015 or so, we approached Ripple to see if they might be interested. At that time, they weren’t able to make it work. Todd asked us to participate in the ‘Second Coming Of Heavy’ split series in 2018, and we have been with Ripple ever since.
A9: What’s the idea behind the album’s artwork?
Alasdair Swan: We worked with Titukh, who is a tattoo artist in Salem and was recommended to us by Ryan and Matthew Murray from Black Veil Studios in Salem, MA. We gave him the theme of corruption (e.g .politicians lying and stealing), basically creepy, shadowy monsters posing as humans. He absolutely nailed what we were after. We all love the final image of the monsters hiding behind human masks, it got the brief spot on.
A10: Any reason that the band felt selfish about recording this album?
Scott O’Dowd: To be honest, we are always selfish when it comes to writing and recording. We are first and foremost concerned with making music that we enjoy. This time I feel that we were more selfish than usual, due to this record being written during the pandemic. We did whatever felt right to us in the moment. We wrote one of the catchiest songs we have ever written, ‘Gimme Danger’ and also one of the longest in ‘Levels’.
A11: Who mixed and mastered this album?
Alasdair Swan: Benny Grotto recorded the album and mixed it. This is the third album we have done with him and working with him is great. He has a knack for bringing out the best performances in us and nailing the sound perfectly. We’ve developed a relationship over the years where we’re able to really focus on our performances safe in the knowledge that Benny is on the same page with what we’re trying to achieve and is instrumental in realizing that vision. The mastering was done by Alan Douches at West West Side Music.
A12: This album speaks both of the past and the future. How is this done?
Matt Harrington: So,musically speaking, I think we try to do that with every release. We are definitely the sum of our collective and individual influences from the decades that preceded us up to now, but we also have an evolving musical language that is very much ours as a band, and we always try to push each other to take that and move it forward in a way that sounds like us but brings in new and interesting elements. Lyrically, I think the themes are rooted in elements that have affected people for centuries, but speak to what is happening now and where I think things are headed.
A13: Is the album conceptual?
Matt Harrington: I’m not so sure, I intended to make it conceptual when we started writing, but it’s fair to say that maybe we arrived there anyway. It definitely has cohesive thematic elements across all of the lyrics and songs that are pointed or direct, and perhaps less allegorical or open ended than previous albums.
A14: Thieves and Charlatans continue to exist in our world and I believe they will always exist. Which ones are the most problematic?
Matt Harrington: For me, the most problematic are the ones who pretend to be on the side of the people and a just world. They say all the right things, but their actions very rarely match their words. In the US, we are fooled and goaded into culture wars by media and politicians as a method of distracting us from class war and what our government is actually doing on the global stage and at home. Even if the “lesser evil” were to back up their words with matching actions at home, they still fund and advocate for endless war, genocide, arms sales to regimes they prop up or install, global climate change, and the theft of resources around the world. They pretend this is for the good of the people at home and abroad, but it’s very clearly not. They wield fear and uncertainty as a weapon. They lie, they cheat, they steal, they make promises they have no intention to fulfill, and perhaps most importantly, they inspire false hope that they are not just an ally to the people, but a benevolent savior. To me, this is more dangerous than the people who show me and tell me that they are evil, because they enable and work with that evil, distract from the ongoing class war, and co-opt revolutionary thought and action to funnel it back to a powerless position. They don’t want to change the status quo, because it benefits them.
A15: Does the band feel differences between the albums ‘Sell The Future’ and ‘Thieves And Charlatans’?
Alasdair Swan: I think the main difference for me is that our songs are that bit longer on the new one. While both albums are 8 songs, ‘Thieves and Charlatans’ is almost 10 minutes longer. It’s so long in fact that one of the songs won’t be on the vinyl because there’s not enough room. I think that is due in part to being isolated from playing gigs while we wrote the album, so we spent more time tweaking song arrangements, adding parts here and there, which led to longer songs.
A16: It’s not that we don’t like it, but why add complexity to the band?
Scott O’Dowd: As a band, we’ve always had songs with complex arrangements or twists that may not be evident right away. The key is to make things flow naturally, so that the complex elements don’t necessarily stand out. Ultimately a song has to make sense.
