Interviews: Shred Yr Face 2: Matt Caughthran, The Bronx

Rock Sound talks to The Bronx frontman ahead of the Shred Yr Face 2 tour.

Posted Thursday, 29 January 2009 in

Shred Yr Face 2: Matt Caughthran, The Bronx Shred Yr Face 2 looms large on the horizon and Rock Sound recently grabbed five minutes with coverstar Matt Caughthran of The Bronx to talk about what it means to be punk rock in 2009.

At what point do you stop being punk? Johnny Rotten is a property developer who advertises butter. What do you make of that?
''I think that’s fucking great, that’s fucking hilarious dude! I don’t know him personally, but it’s like the boundaries have been completely rewritten and you really use your brain. It’s not just about dying your hair and getting tattoos, it’s not about that; it’s about being smarter than everybody else. There are just so many different ways to be original and be punk and to do things differently. I think that with a lot of the music scene, everything’s kinda being rewritten right now. The rules have all been thrown out of the window, and it’s time for things to reinvent themselves.''

Yeah, but he’s a property developer; that’s anti-anarchism…
''Yeah man, is buying houses punk rock? I can never say anything bad about that guy, it’s not my place to say. He’s done enough and he’s led a life that’s been a little bit stranger than everyone else’s, so yeah, I say more power to him.''

Who were punk rock heroes when growing up?
''Keith Morris has always been a huge inspiration, Henry Rollins, John Doe from X… It’s a little bit different, but Thurston Moore was a big influence on me, I was such a huge Sonic Youth fan growing up, and they kinda opened my eyes up to a different side of things, something that wasn’t so straight-ahead as far hardcore.''

You mentioned Henry Rollins; do you think The Bronx is more of a Black Flag band than, say, Minor Threat?
''I think there’s definitely an East Coast punk and a West Coast punk, and I think that The Bronx definitely involves more of the West Coast spirit, where it’s a little bit more style-oriented, there’s a little more art involved, and a bit more of a West Coast attitude. Yeah, we’re definitely more Black Flag than Minor Threat.''

The Bronx will be joined on tour by Fucked Up and Rolo Tomassi on the following Shred Yr Face 2 tourdates:

FEBRUARY
26 - LEEDS Cockpit
27 - GLASGOW Garage
28 - MANCHESTER Club Academy
MARCH
02 - CARDIFF Clwb Ifor Bach
03 - NOTTINGHAM Rescue Rooms
04 - LONDON Electric Ballroom
05 - BRIGHTON Concorde
06 - BIRMINGHAM Academy

For more on Shred Yr Face pick up the latest issue of the magazine.