Paul: Hello! Which member of Aiden are you and what do you do in the band?
Jake: Jake W and I play Guitar
Paul: Before I start the reader-submitted questions which will make up the bulk of the interview, can you please give me a brief run-down of how Aiden started and how you came to be
the band we all know now.
Jake: JakeW, jakeD, and Angel started the band in 2003. jakeW sang and played guitar and Angel played bass and JakeD played drums. We recorded a little
demo and handed them out, let’s just say I hope no one ever hears it. But
then Will started to jam with us playing bass and angel started playing guitar. soon after he joined the band we stole nick from another local band and there you go.
Paul: You have just released a new album which had your best first week sales yet – did you expect to chart as high as you did, both in the UK and the US?
Jake: No of course not, we didn’t expect it at all. We were blown away and very
happy. Unbelievable.
Paul: You’ve stated your appreciation for bands such as AFI and The Misfits but in a recent interview claimed you were sick of being asked about them and compared to them by interviewers. So, if there was any one band you would want to be compared to or asked about, who you haven’t been, who would it be and why?
Jake: We are not sick of talking about those bands at all. We were saying we don’t like it when people say we are trying to be those bands. ‘Cause we respect the hell out of those bands we just dont want to be those bands.
Paul: In another magazine interview you claimed Camden was a home from home – what is it about the place that makes you feel so comfortable?
Jake: Nick and Will love to shop. The rest of us are like ah whatever about it
haha. We like walking around people watching. Crazy people there.
Paul: With such a young fanbase, do you feel older interviews where you spoke very openly about drug abuse and various japes you found yourselves in when you were younger may adversely affect your fans and actually encourage them to partake in illegal substances?
Wil: It’s called educating. How the hell would that encourage people to partake in illegal substances?
Paul: And on to the reader submitted q’s! Why did you ditch the makeup and faux-goth punk sound? Credibility or artistry?
Jake: We wrote what came out. We didn’t ditch the makeup all together we just don’t wear as much as we used to. The sound changed naturally, it wasn’t on
purpose or anything. At least it means less make-up remover haha…
Paul: Why did you name your band after a character from The Ring? Are you in
fact the only people in the world who thought that flick was actually good?
Jake: Hahaha we just like the name. It had nothing to do with the movie. We just heard the name and there you go.
Paul: Victory Records are often heavily criticised, and were recently the subject of a lengthy article posted online, for failing to adequately supply bands with their royalties. Does this worry you at all?
Jake: Not at all. We just want to play music and travel the world.
Paul: How much of your early success do you contribute to your use of myspace? Replying to all messages and comments etc and building something of a rapport/relationship with your fans?
Jake: Myspace is a wonderful tool, it has helped out so many bands and continues to. We have always been about responding to our fans and meeting our fans at shows. Myspace is def an important tool.
Paul: Does the critiscm by a bunch of kids on a message board hurt, or are you quite content making money and living the dream?
Jake: Kids on the internet talking trash is just that. They are jealous or Something… who knows. There will always be people that do that. You can’t let it get to you. They have nothing better to do. If they took the energy they spent on trashing people on the internet and put it towards something productive like starting a band or buisness they would probably do well. If they know so much about music and what’s cool, why don’t they do that? Can’t let it get you down. Everyone has critics.
Paul: Why doesnt wiL spell his name properly?
Jake: It is spelled Will people just started spelling it with one L and no one ever changed it so… it’s Will. There. I changed it haha.
Paul: Do you enjoy pissing security off at gigs?
Jake: Hahaha of course. We just like them to earn there money. It’s fun and usually they love it as well.
Paul: Did the 4 people who got on stage at Leeds Festival get their backstage passes?
Jake: They got 10 pounds as they were promised. 🙂
Paul: Who would win in a fight over three rounds between a bear and a giant squid? The rules are: Round 1 would be in the water, round 2 in a forest and round 3 on the MIR station in space.
Jake: Bear. And who really asks something like that. Wow. Do you live in Camden? haha