Interviewed by Brian Rademacher
Date: September 2009

Brian Rademacher: Hey Wednesday, how’s everything going today?

Wednesday 13: Good I’m just driving around right now (but) I’m ready.

Brian Rademacher: At what age did you feel a transformation in your appearance?

Wednesday 13: It’s one of those things where I was playing with G.I. Joe’s to getting into rock music. Once I started to grow my hair out I felt it was kind of normal and I guess the biggest change came when I dyed my hair black. That is when I was sixteen back in 1993. That’s when I had people looking at me like I was kind of strange, especially where I grew up and lived. The reason was because I was getting bored with what I was doing. All my favorite bands that I was listening to all had black hair so I said; fuck it’s my time.

Brian Rademacher: Tell us about the new GUNFIRE 76 CD "Casualties & Tragedies"

Wednesday 13: Yeah it was something I was thinking about when I got off my last tour, which was the longest tour of my life. It started in the U.S (then) Japan and right into the UK. When I was on tour we were out with CHELSEA SMILES and the guitarist Todd Youth was talking about a different kind of band and he and I started co-writing some songs together. Once I got home we started sending each other demos by e-mail. We did that for a while and spent the whole summer writing the record. I recorded it here in North Carolina. It’s a lot different then the Wednesday 13 stuff; it’s definitely a rock and roll band. There is nothing metal about it which is something I went out and made sure I didn’t do. I didn’t want to use any kind of effects or any stupid stuff; it’s just a straight up rock and roll record. It’s something I wanted to do instead of doing the solo stuff. I was getting bored with it like a boy with a new tooth, so I had to change it up.

Brian Rademacher: I think you nailed it on your Myspace. You mention some influence and I feel I heard a flavor of Alice Cooper, NEW YORK DOLLS and others. I went to Amazon and checked all the sample tracks and I got two tracks from your press agents, (which were "Los Angeles" and "Rocket to Nowhere"). "Los Angeles" is a killer track with a great chorus and just a solid song.

Wednesday 13: Yeah "Los Angeles" is my favorite track and the big difference in doing this record was lyrically there was no haunted house zombie songs or graveyard horror stuff. This is basically about what I have been going through with this whole music thing at a professional level. I went on tour in 2002 and stayed on tour, that’s my job. This album is a reflection of all that kind of stuff. The "Los Angeles" song is about when I lived in Los Angeles for a month late last year and I couldn’t take it. That song is a reflection of what I saw out there and the people I met.

Brian Rademacher: Do you feel by recruiting Todd Youth (who played with DANZIG and Glenn Campbell) he brought diversity to the music?

Wednesday 13: I mean he’s just a great guitarist and we had a lot of the same influences. He brought a lot to the music but he’s not part of the band. He had other commitments, but did contribute to some of the songs on the record. I basically pieced the band together and recorded it.

Brian Rademacher: There is basically not a ballad on this record. Maybe the closet thing is "Get Me Through The Night".

Wednesday 13: "Get Me Through the Night" is definitely a ballad but since you heard the samples on Amazon I don’t feel you got to here the complete song, only a sample. You can call it a power ballad or whatever, it’s the closest thing I ever done to a ballad. It’s kind of one of those on the road songs. I’m not sure if the fans will be able to relate to it. I think it’s a song that any musician that’s been on tour and has a family and knows what it’s like being away (from them). Those nights never end and when you wake up you have a hangover so bad you want to put a bullet in your head. So basically that’s what that song is about.

Brian Rademacher: Listening on Amazon some of the songs I really like that stand out were "Something For The Suffering", "Tell You Like It Is" and "What Did You Expect" so I can’t wait to hear the whole thing. And you say "Los Angeles" is your favorite track?

Wednesday 13: Yeah when I record a record I never record anything I don’t like. I don’t do fillers because I have to get the record done. It was hard enough to pick the eleven songs I did and the way the "Los Angeles" song came out is why that is my favorite.

Brian Rademacher: I see thirteen dates on the US tour, will there be more?

Wednesday 13: Yeah everything got screwed up when we started booking the tour. We thought we were starting in Los Angeles and everything got rearranged and we are starting in North Carolina and Texas and (then) to the west coast. We will be dong the East Coast in January and February.

Brian Rademacher: Do you feel not being signed to a label is more beneficial to you?

Wednesday 13: Yes and No, for my level yes it is. Being on a label is great if you’re a priority. You can look at any label; say Roadrunner, which I was on and they had bands that were higher priority. Not to say they didn’t do anything. There are some territories like the UK (which) really pushed my record and the States really didn’t care about it. They were too worried about pushing NICKELBACK or SLIPKNOT, which they should because that stuff is going to sell. For what I’m doing, yes, being on my own works better. That is the biggest thing having someone putting money into you. When I do things I am basically putting the money out of my pocket which you have to spend money to make money and that’s the way I’m doing it for the past few years.

Brian Rademacher: Do you consider this a business or are you having fun with it?

Wednesday 13: I’m still having fun and it’s still a business. That’s one thing I never wanted to be is the bandleader that had to act as boss but over the years I got accustomed to it. I know how to handle it and every band is going to have drama in the camp, that’s really not the fun part. I wouldn’t be playing music if I didn’t have fun. There is nothing I rather do then get on stage and play every night.

Brian Rademacher: Where do you feel your biggest fan base is?

Wednesday 13: I would say the UK is my biggest audience but since I did most of my touring over the years in the US that has picked up a lot also. Germany is really good but everything is spread out so it’s good so I can hit all these places. One of my goals is to work on the Scandinavia part. I feel with this new band that area will have a great market; they seem to really embrace rock music over there.

Brian Rademacher: Do you feel there will ever be a reunion of the MURDERDOLLS?

Wednesday 13: I keep it open right now, I spoke to Joey by text over this past Christmas and we want to do a new record but I don’t know what his schedule is. We are both into doing it again. The ball is kinda in his court. You know I would talk to him online and a few days later I would see online that SLIPKNOT just booked four months. I say oh jeez. We both want to do it but we have to find the time. Hopefully when he’s ready to go I’m not out on tour.

Brian Rademacher: Will GUNFIRE 76 have new guitar picks (like you had with Wednesday 13) done by PickGuy?

Wednesday 13: Yeah he will do my picks. This band is what I’m going to be doing for the next couple years. This is not one of those bands that we do one tour, and that’s it. This is my priority; I want to get away from some of the things I have been pigeonholed with. This is why I wanted to do this band. I kept getting lumped in with all these Goth Rock and Industrial bands and that’s the bands that wanted me to tour with them. I play rock music. Don’t let the black hair and make-up fool ya. I have black hair because KISS and Alice Cooper does not because I bought a SISTERS OF MERCY record. It was kind of unfortunate because there were so many tours thrown our way and once they saw the image of the band they didn’t give us a chance, which really sucked. That’s why with this GUNFIRE record the cover which people will say, yeah that’s really original. I’ve always done stuff over the top. I made this all simply on purpose, there are no photos of me on the record I did that on purpose. Everything I did in the past was imagery (and) I wanted the music to speak for itself. I mean every bands has an image AC/DC has an image if you want to get down to it.

Brian Rademacher: So what do you do on a typical day now?

Wednesday 13: I wake up (around) noon, I check e-mail and I go to the gym two hours every day. It all depends if I have a hang over and can’t get out of bed the next day I still go to the gym with the hangover and wreak of booze. That’s not what I do every day. This is the first summer I had off touring and I don’t go back out until November, I don’t get to sit around all day and eat pizza, which will get on ya. I try to go out and exercise everyday because that is what I do on stage. I do the bad thing and watch TV too.

Brian Rademacher: Have you seen the show True Blood at all?

Wednesday 13: I watched pieces of it and I really liked it. Two of my favorite shows are East Bound and Down and the other is on FX with Dennis Leary, called Rescue Me.

Brian Rademacher: Wednesday Thanks for taking the time out to talk with us, I love what I heard of the new album and I hope to catch you on the East coast when you tour.

Wednesday 13: Cool man! Thanks a lot. See ya.

GUNFIRE 76 line-up Wednesday 13 Vocals, Roman Surman (guitar), Dave Musselman(guitar, formerly of JET BLACK STARE), Scott Whalen (bass player, also of ECONOLINE CRUSH) and Rob Hammersmith (drums, current member of ROCKETS TO RUIN).