2008 Woodie Awards
We don't know if the audience likes it, but we have fun.
An Interview with Sick of it All's vocalist, Lou Koller
Stephanie Thornton
Issue date: 9/27/06 Section: Music
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ST: Why did you decide to only hit the east coast of the U.S. for this tour?
LK: We did a west coast tour earlier this year, that's why. In November and December we're going out on another European tour, so we wanted to just do a short run and have the whole month of October off.
I saw you on Monday night and I've got to say, you guys all look really good.
(laughs) Thank you.
ST: It's been 20 years, do you have any advice for staying in good health while you're on the road?
LK: It's weird. Since we're older we care more about what we eat, I guess. We used to eat a lot of junk food. Now we cut it down. We eat fast food maybe once a week. You just gotta try to stay healthy, it's common sense. I think the other thing that keeps us young and healthy is the way we perform every night.
ST: The Brave heart wall of death with the audience is fun to watch, rumor has it you originated the move. Is this Sick of it All's favorite way to motivate the crowd?
LK: It is. Some crowds are really shy. In hardcore, especially strict hardcore shows, it's not cool to dance if no one else is dancing. We brought back this thing. When I was younger, at shows kids would just do it on their own. I brought it back at shows. I'd just ask to cut the room in half, and say "Let's do this". People got psyched. They were all really excited to do it. We'd do it on festivals and different tours, and a lot of other bands started picking up on it. That's why I have to say that we originated it. So they don't rip and get the credit.
ST: The first band I saw do it was the Suicide Machines.
LK: They're really cool. They usually give us the credit for that when they do it.
ST: Which performance on the current tour have you been most impressed by?
LK: I like them all, but I really like that we got the Dead Hearts to come out with us. They're not well known around the country. I think they're a band that's been really good and they have potential to be bigger. Actually I'm really psyched about all of the band that came out with us. They're not all big name bands, but I know that they're going to be big in the next few years. We want to bring something different to the table. It's great. Every night, even the toughest nights like in New York City, our hometown, the audience was standing way to the back, and each band got up there and played their asses off as if the place was going crazy. That's what you have to do.
LK: We did a west coast tour earlier this year, that's why. In November and December we're going out on another European tour, so we wanted to just do a short run and have the whole month of October off.
I saw you on Monday night and I've got to say, you guys all look really good.
(laughs) Thank you.
ST: It's been 20 years, do you have any advice for staying in good health while you're on the road?
LK: It's weird. Since we're older we care more about what we eat, I guess. We used to eat a lot of junk food. Now we cut it down. We eat fast food maybe once a week. You just gotta try to stay healthy, it's common sense. I think the other thing that keeps us young and healthy is the way we perform every night.
ST: The Brave heart wall of death with the audience is fun to watch, rumor has it you originated the move. Is this Sick of it All's favorite way to motivate the crowd?
LK: It is. Some crowds are really shy. In hardcore, especially strict hardcore shows, it's not cool to dance if no one else is dancing. We brought back this thing. When I was younger, at shows kids would just do it on their own. I brought it back at shows. I'd just ask to cut the room in half, and say "Let's do this". People got psyched. They were all really excited to do it. We'd do it on festivals and different tours, and a lot of other bands started picking up on it. That's why I have to say that we originated it. So they don't rip and get the credit.
ST: The first band I saw do it was the Suicide Machines.
LK: They're really cool. They usually give us the credit for that when they do it.
ST: Which performance on the current tour have you been most impressed by?
LK: I like them all, but I really like that we got the Dead Hearts to come out with us. They're not well known around the country. I think they're a band that's been really good and they have potential to be bigger. Actually I'm really psyched about all of the band that came out with us. They're not all big name bands, but I know that they're going to be big in the next few years. We want to bring something different to the table. It's great. Every night, even the toughest nights like in New York City, our hometown, the audience was standing way to the back, and each band got up there and played their asses off as if the place was going crazy. That's what you have to do.
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