Things are moving fast for Los Angeles’ Billy Boy On Poison. Well, relatively speaking. With most of the members’ ages lying within a few years of 20, being signed to Keifer Sutherland’s label and generating buzz all the while are pretty hefty accomplishments. What started as the brainchild of charismatic frontman Davis LeDuke has transitioned into a collaborative rock act featuring growling riff work from Ryan Wallengren and Greg West. Comparisons to The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, and The Hives have often been thrown around, but Billy Boy On Poison’s goal is to sound a bit more like their classic rock idols from decades past.
While
Billy Boy On Poison’s debut record
Drama Junkie Queen was released this past July on
Keifer Sutherland’s record label
Ironworks, the quartet (plus unofficial bass player Jacob Pillot) are still scoping out possible tours. It’s a matter of finding a good fit audience-wise, which is often harder than it seems for a band that doesn’t always click with their own age group. Guitarists
West and
Wallengren recently chatted with
Ultimate-Guitar about the whirlwind past few years.
UG: Greg, you joined the band a few years after the other members. I understand that you chose Billy Boy On Poison over the Berklee College of Music. What prompted that decision?
Greg: I was going to go there, but I would rather play in a good band and write music and perform live. That’s what I want to do. Why go to school when I can do that?
How long were you there?
Greg: I actually had not gone there. I got a guitar scholarship and had the option of starting that fall.
Did you attend the Musicians Institute?
Greg: Yeah, I went there.
What was your experience like there? Would you recommend it to other players?
Greg: Sort of. I think it’s overpriced. The teachers are really good, but it’s truly not going to get you anywhere as far as getting gigs. You’re really not going to get much further than you are when you start there. You think you’ll get gigs when you leave, and that’s not how it works. I was already playing in bands when I started there and while I was there. A lot are good players before they ever go there. That’s kind of how I feel about it.
"When we’re writing songs, we’re not thinking of the Arctic Monkeys or The Strokes. We’re thinking of the Rolling Stones."
Greg: A lot of the songs were written before I joined. Basically the first album was done before I joined. With the second album that we’re ready to record, there are a lot of songs that we’ve done as a band. I’d say it’s about 50/50. There were about 10 songs written before I arrived, and I think we have another 10 songs or maybe even more since I’ve been in the band. It’s very collaborative. We just piece them together. I kind of like to think it’s sort of how Mick Jagger and Keith Richards work. He would come up with parts and they’d piece them together. That’s kind of how it works.
Ryan: I was in the band along with Davis and another player and producers, and we were writing all these songs. Then our old guitarist left and we got Greg. That made them a lot more fun.
Talk about your influences. You broach genres like garage rock in one moment and then glam rock in the next. “Happy Valentine’s Day” almost has a Doors’ vibe to it.
Ryan: That’s funny you say that! I remember the first time I heard that riff. I thought that, too!
So would you consider yourselves individuals whose favorite bands hearken back to the 60’s or 70’s?
Greg: My dad was born in 1955, and he was there. That was his generation and that’s what I grew up on. The first songs I remember hearing were like “Drive My Car.” Then after awhile I would listen to Led Zeppelin and grew from there.
Some people have compared your sound to bands like The Hives, The Strokes, and Arctic Monkeys. Do you understand those comparisons? Or would you rather be compared with classic rock bands?
Ryan: I don’t know why people have to do that. I know that’s what they compare us to and they’ll say stuff like that. When we’re writing these songs and melodies, we’re not thinking of the Arctic Monkeys or The Strokes. We’re thinking of the Rolling Stones. I like The Strokes and I think they’re cool, but I never really thought of us like them.
Do you get insulted when people even bring that topic up?
Greg: A little bit. Not really. There are a lot of good bands out there like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, the Brian Jonestown Massacre, or Queens of the Stone Age. If someone said we sounded like one of them, I’d be very happy with that, too!
It’s interesting that you bring up a band like Brian Jonestown Massacre. Obviously there are certain similarities, particularly with the rhythm and Davis’ use of a tambourine during the stage show. What is it about that band that speaks to you?
Greg: Just the fact that it’s so raw and so simple. It’s all based on the melody. There are so many songs that are literally three chords sometimes, but the melody is so important with every song.
Do you find that some of your musical peers overdo it by showing off their technical ability?
Greg: All the time.
Ryan: Not most people, but I think there is a small section of rock and roll. There are some bands that are screaming with a weird emo style, and then there’s a really heavy dropped C. It just seems like that’s what a lot of people are trying to do right now.
You’re a fairly young group. What are your ages?
Greg: I’m 21.
Ryan: 19 in a couple months.
You discussed the prevalence of screamo or emo-based bands. Given that there’s a pretty big audience for those genres in your age group, is it harder to convert audiences?
Ryan: I think any band has some sort of target audience. You’ll never reach everybody. When we opened for Stone Temple Pilots a few times, pretty much every time we played we got a really good reception. They’re from the grunge era, but they were influenced by Led Zeppelin. So we connected with the people that saw them. But if we play in a festival with all screamo and metal bands, it’s probably not the best audience for us. It’s fine.
"There are so many songs that are literally three chords sometimes, but the melody is so important with every song."
Greg: I have a shitload of guitars. I play a Gretsch Roundup. I have a nice Telecaster. There’s a 1956 reissue goldtop. Then I switch off amps. There’s a 1964 Silvertone 1485, which is like a 6x10 instead of like 4x10.
Would you consider yourselves vintage collectors?
Greg: I wouldn’t call myself a vintage collector at this point!
But at this point is it fair to say that you gravitate toward those instruments?
Greg: Yeah, I definitely do.
Ryan: Totally.
When you next go into the studio, do you plan on trying out an assortment of new equipment or stick with what has worked in the past?
Ryan: We had these really old Gibson amps. There were these little small things. They are so small, but they just sound good. That’s what we used for the first whole album and what we’ll probably be on the second album. The last recording we did I used this 1960’s Vox that was like a 50 watt.
Was it the job of your producers to suggest new ideas in terms of equipment? Or did you take a hands-on role?
Ryan: Yeah. We would be in the booth and strum chords, and they would turn the knobs and look for the best sound. It was always mutual, and we had to agree on what worked.
Being signed to Keifer Sutherland’s label Ironworks is a fairly novel thing to happen to a band. Did he discover you initially at a showcase?
Ryan: His partner Jude Cole came to one of our shows. He saw us and loved us, and they invited us out to Ironworks. We all met. We all looked at each other and we signed!
Considering how young you are, does it shock you that something like that would occur so early on?
Ryan: It’s really, really exciting. I feel very lucky.
What is the Los Angeles music scene like these days? Back in the 1980’s, that was “the spot” to be at if you were an up-and-coming band. Would you encourage other bands to head to L.A.?
Ryan: Tell them not to come to L.A.! It’s literally all DJs and really shitty indie bands. I always considered indie to be independent and that you were on your own. Now, indie is something different.
Greg: In L.A., there are a lot of different clique-y scenes depending on where you are. For me, in Silver Lake, I know some bands that play different rock stuff over there that I really like. A lot of them are people that aren’t trying to make it all. They really don’t care. A lot of them are older. Then there are lots of bands on the strip that are trying to make it. I don’t know. I don’t care to go and see any of those bands. These days, it goes into pop rock, which is cool. It’s not my scene. L.A. is really vast. I don’t recommend it for bands trying to make it.
How long did you play on the L.A. scene before getting discovered?
Ryan: Like two-and-a-half years. We played a lot.
People have been giving a lot of credit to Davis for being the brainchild behind the band. Are there any egos involved?
Ryan: There are no egos, really. I think it’s really cool. There are not any egos involved. We’re all just normal people. There’s no “lead singer.” There is no douchebag in the band.
"I think any band has some sort of target audience. You’ll never reach everybody."
Ryan: And riffs as well! Those two are important. We’re always trying to write powerful riffs. Jimmy Page is kind of the god of that. If I could write a riff like Jimmy Page, I would be a pretty happy person!
Would you say that Jimmy Page is your ultimate guitar god?
Ryan: There’s Hendrix, Jeff Beck, and George Harrison. There are a lot. Jimmy Page…I don’t want to say someone is my favorite guitar player. I will say my favorite band is The Beatles. Other than that, I don’t pick favorites. I definitely have a top 10.
You’ve had a few different lineups over the years. Is it safe to say that your current lineup is in it for the long run?
Ryan: I don’t think there is a revolving door with the guitarists. Greg is only the second one. But yeah, we’ve had like four or five bass players. We have a sound in our heads that we want the bass to sound like. It’s kind of hard getting that sound, that growly sort of tone.
Who is your current bass player?
Ryan: Jacob Pillot.
Is he considered an official member?
Ryan: I don’t know we can say that. He is currently on tour with us. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.
Do you have a tour lined up in the coming months?
Ryan: We don’t have one yet. We could be on a tour with The Cult right now, but we opted not to do that. We didn’t they would have the right audience for us. Not that I don’t like their music, I just don’t think that would be the best audience for us.
Greg: It was kind of like the Stone Temple Pilots. It was a great couple of dates, but being on tour with someone is different.
Interview by Amy Kelly
Ultimate-Guitar.Com © 2009
