Type 3 Media: I recently got to see you guys perform at the Dysfunctional Family BBQ in Herkimer, New York.

Billy Howerdel: Cool. That was a great show for us. It was a good reaction from a big crowd.

T3M: What was different about working on the Ashes Divide material vs. A Perfect Circle?

BH: The vocal part is a big difference... writing lyrics... taking center stage for this. It's all just like starting over again. It's going back trying to figure things out while playing little shows trying to get the word out. As far as getting people to the shows, we have a lot of work to do spreading the word and traveling around.

T3M: What direction were you trying to take with Ashes Divide?

BH: It was a lot of things inside me that I couldn't do with A Perfect Circle. And some things that I could.

T3M: It looks like your band is gelling pretty well, and you looked comfortable in that center stage spot. How big of an adjustment has that been for you?

BH: I think it was a bigger adjustment with the guitars... really trying to figure out how to play and sing at the same time, and trying to do it where it's second nature and not having to think about it. I set it up so we had like two months rehearsal to try and figure it out. I think everyday it gets a little bit more comfortable for me. That's the everyday experience from being on the road. It's really fun. I think the band sounds really good, and every day it grows. I wanted to stay pretty close to the record for right now with the songs we play. We're also doing a cover song that's just kind of growing every day.

T3M: How is the band handling life on the road together?

BH: Really good. My friend asked me that too. Those guys didn't know each other either... just personality-wise. It's fun. All of us like to be here, and everything is turning out really good so far.

T3M: How is your voice holding up?

BH: Good, no problems so far, knock on wood. There have been no issues; no one is getting sick around me.

T3M: It must help that it's a spring/summer tour.

BH: Yes, absolutely. I talk to Maynard quite a bit and sometimes ask about how he handles certain things, and he'll give me advice on what to do, or what not to do, so I don't destroy my voice.

T3M: Have you had a chance to hear his Puscifer project.

BH: I have. I really like what he's doing with it. I think that was something inside of him that he wanted to get out, and he went in a direction that many people did not expect.

T3M: I hear a lot of British influence in your singing style.

BH: I think that the way we express ourselves comes from those things that influence us. I used to listen to a lot of new wave or darker post punk bands like Echo and the Bunnymen, Souxie and the Banshees, and the Cure. When you grow up in England you don't speak French.

T3M: You'll be joining the Projekt Revolution tour soon; what are you looking forward to most about it?

BH: That's going to be great. I'm really looking forward to that. I've done a lot of summer tours. The whole traveling circus vibe is kind of cool. We are going to be in a really good spot, opening the main stage. We're all really looking forward to that. With this tour, we're doing a lot of our own shows in smaller markets. Typically a tour will start and you want to go out and get major markets first. Have that show and some hype that trickles down into the smaller cities. We're kind of going the opposite way, starting in smaller markets, like in Pennsylvania or South Carolina. The reason for that is during Projekt Revolution we're going to be doing those major markets later. So right now it's this thing that is very intimate small shows. It's cool. It's a different experience.

T3M: You mentioned that a lot of what you're doing now is getting the word out about ASHES dIVIDE. How did you react to the fairly strong debut of your new album?

BH: I honestly haven't paid a whole lot of attention to what the record is doing. I really wanted to focus on the live stuff. I think that's going to be the thing that holds it together. I'm really proud of this record a lot. I'll take whatever we can get.

T3M: It was good talk to you.

BH: Thank you very much for spreading the word.

| 06.16.2008 | Interview by J. Pierson |