Empire Extreme got to sit down and talk to singer/songwriter/keyboardist Richard T Bear aka T Bear.

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Ron

Ron has keen eye for new talent, a love for the underground, and a tremendous passion for music of any genera. You’ll probably bump into him at a horror convention or some seedy club checking out the next need-to-know band.

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Empire Extreme got to talk to Blues Rock Guitarist Lance Lopez whose latest Album “Trouble is Good” is out now. Check out the interview and check out Lance at https://www.lancelopez.net/music

About Author

Ron

Ron has keen eye for new talent, a love for the underground, and a tremendous passion for music of any genera. You’ll probably bump into him at a horror convention or some seedy club checking out the next need-to-know band.

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​Earlier this year Japan’s Crystal Lake announces that their vocalist is stepping down and that an open audition would be held for one participant to win a spot in the band. Since leaving The Last Ten Seconds of Life, John ‘The Butcher’ Robert Centorrino was toying around with the thoughts of doing band life again until this opportunity came into his life. John recorded a video and entered the contest. John having been picked to audition for the band, would have to perform through a series of live shows with the band in Japan. I was fortunate to speak to John about his musical journey towards becoming Crystal Lake’s newest vocalist and performing with the band on Knotfest and on a large-scale Japanese tour. Also while discovering where his perseverance and self-motivation came from to go through such a journey. 

GA: Lets look back over the last year. Crystal Lake’s vocalist Ryo Kinoshita steps down, and the band is faced with looking for a replacement. How did you get involved with the band?

JC: I can’t remember if I came across it (the news) on Instagram or someone sent it to me, and they were like, “yo, Crystal Lake lost their singer.” People just telling me to look at this, and because I was such a fan of the band, one of the first things that pops into my head is: I could do that.  I could definitely DO that. I initially kind of didn’t try, even though I felt confident. I didn’t know if I wanted to tour anymore. I just went through this entire experience. I’m really learning how to love my life and myself, and I’m finding myself appreciating the things that are around me. Then one morning I woke up, and started scrolling the gram as many do, and I forget his name but a Gary something, kind of an abrasive dude but he is really cool to talk to.  He said something like; If you are fucking good at something, do it. What the fuck are you doing just sitting around? Most people aren’t good at anything. If you are good at something and people want you to do it, and like what you do, go ahead and do it. I just remember watching that and it made me feel like,’ yea what the fuck am I doing? Alright I’m going to do this.’ Then I was like; alright here we go, foot to the floor type shit. 

GA: The band held a contest for participants to audition for the vacant vocalist position, what was that period like for you? 

JC: Yes, they had an open audition on their website setup, where they had all the stipulations and rules, they wanted you to follow for your audition. The things they were looking for in a singer. I kind of had a half and half of what they were looking for, and me being the New York guy that I am saw a couple things that they wanted that I didn’t have. So, I figured if they liked my voice none of this is going to matter. This isn’t high school; this is a band. For instance, I can’t speak Japanese, but I will go learn Japanese. If they like my voice, they are going to take me. So even though I didn’t know anything Japanese other than how to say konnichiwa at the time. I don’t care, I don’t know Japanese; I will learn Japanese and show these guys how much I want to be a part of their band. I just entered the competition. I went to Austin Coope from Prison Lives, and he helped me do the first video. We did it really raw. I sang it through maybe twice; and he kept the first take and that was the first audition they got.  We didn’t do a lot of editing to the video either, because we wanted it to be super raw and super live, so that they could judge the character of the voice. A couple day later I got an email from them, and I was like, hell yea let’s fucking go!Then the panic started. 

GA: Having been well seasoned in traveling from your former touring bands and seen a lot of the world, what was your first impression of Japan when you first arrived for the contest? 

JC: I couldn’t believe how clean everything was. I stepped out of the airport into the subway, and I was like the floor wasn’t black. The yellow lines are still bright yellow. Everything looked brand new, but it wasn’t. I was also very impressed with the level of organization. In New York, when you go to get on the train for instance, no one stands in a single filed line. People just crowd the door and get on. In Japan, the first thing I noticed was everyone was standing in lines outside of the train. They were standing in these specific marked areas. People would stick to one side when using an escalator and use the open side for people to be able to walk past if someone was in a rush, which is not a thing in America, you would get stuck on that escalator, or like twenty people will bumrush to get in front of you to board a train. That kind of behavior isn’t a thing over here. The first things I noticed were: the organization, how on point everybody is, how courteous everyone is, and how clean everything was. Even, the white floor in the airport was white, there wasn’t even any shoe marks on the floor. They are like a very thoughtful society over there. 

GA: During the contest, you looked and performed like the professional you are. In what ways did you prepare to be onstage with the band? What were some of your favorite parts of that process? 

JC: Back then I didn’t have a set up at my house (I do now), so practicing was super frustrating and annoying because I like to play live. So, you don’t have all the MO of the adrenaline and the crowd flipping out. I started singing a full set every single day to prepare. I would put on a set of headphones in my bathroom, and scream into an unplugged microphone to get the general feeling. I would do it in my bathtub naked so I could just sweat out into the tub and not my clothes; then just turn on the shower. Every single day I would sing the entire set. Even if I didn’t sing, I would still do my warmups. I put a lot more thought into the preparation and care of everything I do.  I guess what I did was, I did all the tour stuff off of tour, at home to get myself as prepared as possible. I have been listening to Crystal Lake songs… when I say repeat, I mean on repeat. I haven’t listened to any other music in a while. Very rarely now do I get a chance to put on someone else’s band and take a moment to listen to something, because I am constantly learning new songs. The band changes the set up almost every other show, so we are always adding in new music, and trying to do something different. So, I’m taking the OCD of tour and implementing it into my daily life. 

GA: In what ways was this different from any of the bands you worked with in the past? Was there a language barrier or having to work out things with the band prior to performing? 

JC: For language we have a slight barrier. It was a little more when I first showed up compared to now. They not only stepped up their language game as well as myself, but we have also gotten used to the words each of us say. We understand what we are all talking about now. Crystal Lake records every performance we do. If we are in the studio or on stage, there is a camera rolling. At the end of that session, everyone sits to watch the video. Everyone will dissect the video and nitpick parts of the performance. Some people will find that frustrating, but me being the ocd guy that I am, and always wanting to put on my best, I am always striving to get better. They are super professional, and on point with noticing everything that is going on. They want to make sure every set is just as good if not better than the last. They are not about back tracking their performances. There is a lot of preparation in the live set. In America, a lot of bands have this improvised take on their set where they will randomly stop and take a break and the band kind of waits. We all know every single point of when we are going to talk, what we are going to say. We know where everyone is on stage throughout the set. I know when YD is going to jump off stage, so we are never in each other’s way. 

GA: It’s not like a show, but more of a production. 

JC: Yes, that’s a great way of putting it. It’s more like a play and less like a random rock show. Everything you see on stage is preconceived; some stuff is still random. We assume that the crowd is going to be giving a lot of reactions, so we want to give them as big as a reaction during our planning. That way it feels natural when we go out there, but for the most part we know what each other is going to do. 

GA: Jumping ahead, you are announced as the new vocalist of Crystal Lake, I think by this point everyone in the metal community has been following your journey and rooting for you along the way, what are your first thoughts now that you have the gig? 

JC: My first thought when I got the gig was, I wanted to look at all the things I used to do in Last 10 and I dissected those moments in this way. What was I doing in Last 10 that was a little extra that I don’t really have to do here? What was I compensating for, doing those extra things? How can I gain more fans on my side or accept me? I didn’t always feel like a super fan favorite when I was in Last 10. I always felt like someone always had something to say about anything I was trying to do. I tried to get rid of all of that, in the sense that I want to take your ammunition, not that I don’t want to be me. I want to give you excuses to talk shit, not that I want to give you reasons. I dissected myself as a musician and looked at where I could trim the fat. I feel like I didn’t have to do too much of that.

To be honest, (Crystal Lake) they are pushing to have me go crazier and be more of an animal. To be more of a psycho on stage. In my other bands I was told: ‘maybe don’t be so crazy, don’t do something like that, people might not like it.’ Crystal Lake is like hey if that looks cool then do it. Crystal Lake’s image is to be out of their minds. Their stage presence is wild.  They don’t want you to be reserved, they want you to let go. I got to come out of my shell more and more being around those guys. I loved being in my other band. I have no disrespect forthose guys, I still love all those dudes. The new members are my friends, I only don’t talk to one person. I still really respect that band, it’s just a different MO being in a metalcore band as opposed to being in a deathcore band. Deathcore is a little more aggressive and like stern face. While Metalcore is a little more party. I love deathcore, but I am a metalcore kid at heart. 

GA: After the announcement of you getting the vocalist position, Crystal Lake got you started off quite quickly with a trial by fire playing Knotfest and following that up with a tour of big shows throughout Japan. What was it like to perform for such large foreign crowds overseas? 

JC: There is so much to say that performing over in Japan and their crowd and just playing in the East. Knotfest was twenty-some thousand people, something insane like that. When the band stops and is just talking the crowd is dead silent. People aren’t on their phones, no one is scrolling social media, it’s weird and I’m still getting used to it. In America, when people talk it’s kind of a good thing, and when the crowd gets quiet, it’s like oh shit something is wrong. Over here though everyone gets super quiet. I’ve played bigger shows before but never stadium shows, and when they do yell, your bones shake, it’s a lot of people. Those aspects were really different but super fun. When you watch thousands of people jump up and down with you, the adrenaline is unreal. These shows have crazy energetic fans, they are open to having fun, which has made it super fun for me. 

GA: How are you adjusting to the Japanese lifestyle? Any plans to relocate to Japan or have the band transplant to America in the future? 

JC: I don’t know about moving but I am adjusting very well. I like it out here, and I have learned a lot of Japanese as well. I can read the language, but I am still working on reading Kanji, which is the super complicated symbols that are shared with China. I love the food; the food here is so delicious. Asian food is some of my favorite to eat. I live at the Asian restaurants, you can guarantee I’m coming back to the venue with won ton soup, pho, or ramen. I’m really in my glory when it comes to the food. I have noticed that eating American food, that if I eat on military base where everything is coming from America my stomach hates it. I also love how everyone is super courteous, and polite. Everything is clean, and that things are relatively cheap except for the train. The hardest thing must be when the sun comes up, by about 3:15 am the sun is rising. The sky is blue, and the streetlights are still on, and the sun is coming up, it’s nuts. So, if you wake up at 4 am it’s bright as fuck out. You think it must be 7 am, then look at your phone and see 4:30 am and it’s like what the fuck. The world is awake, and it’s insane. That must be the hardest part for me.  

GA: You just announced that Crystal Lake is dropping a new music on June 23^rd ‘Denial // Rebirth.’ What was it like working YD and crew on new material? 

JC: It’s awesome! It’s like working with myself, we are all on the same page with the ideas we have. They are all very open to discussing every little bit. It has been rare for me to be in a bandand pitching an idea and be like let’s try it. As opposed to you tell someone, and their first reaction is nah I don’t like it, but in CL I can be like I have an idea, and I’ll tell them about it, and they tell me to show them. They want to hear what it would sound like. Sometimes they will be like that’s good, but I don’t know if I like that for this part here, and other times they are like that’s great, I love it. Writing with them has been very smooth, stress free and a lot of fun, because we are all on the same page. We also record a lot of our own stuff so (when presented to the group) we know what we are going to do, and when we are going to do it. That process has helped quite a bit. Also, Denial// Rebirth is two songs, Denial is a short intro song which feeds into the longer Rebirth. 

GA: What can listeners expect from the Butcher era of Crystal Lake? Any new tricks in the bag we haven’t seen on previous recordings? 

JC: More clean singing, and more of the highs that I used to do in My Bitter End. I brought back more of my metal screams. It’s less focus on gutturals and more on aggressive catchiness, while being epic as fuck. I’m singing like me over Crystal Lake, its not as thuggish as per say when I was with Last 10, it’s a bit more calculated. The lyrics have more meaning this time around. Denial//Rebirth is about me denying how angry I was as a human and realizing that I need to get over this and around it. When you act like a piece of shit, you deserve all the bad shit that happens to you. There’s a line in the song,’ I deserve pain, I deserve nothing. I deserve the blame on me. ‘It’s about when you are being an asshole, you deserve for asshole things to go down. If you can turn that around, you will have good things happen to you. I accepted the fact that the universe has more power in it than what I give it credit for. If you open yourself up to the fact that there is more power beyond your physical realm, and you understand that it has peace and power for you; you talk to it and live for it, things happen. I literally asked the universe for this. I was watching all the celebrities at home, and they are constantly, ‘I thank God, I thank God.’ But none of these people are religious. They aren’t talking about God; they are talking about the universe. I was like listen to me: I want this, I need this, I need you to help me do this with me. Let’s fucking do this. It gave me such peace and energy, and it allowed me to feel like I could get on top of it and make it a reality. The new era of me in Crystal Lake is me using my anger as a positive weapon. I’m not angry needlessly. I’m like George Carlin. I’m angry because I’m fucking disappointed in how we act as humans. I see so much more potential in us as a species than what we give ourselves credit for. We treat each other like absolute shit. So, I am trying to tap into that part of my personality now, but not in such a malicious way. I don’t look for a reason to be pissed off anymore, I let it come find me. 

GA: What is something you’d want Crystal Lake fans to know about you? 

JC: I don’t know… maybe that I am not trying to replace Ryo, and not trying to be Ryo, and I don’t say that in any way of disrespect. I have so much respect for that dude, not only as a performer but as a vocalist and as a person. I want people to understand that when they hear Crystal Lake; This is not me trying to put on someone else’s shoes, I came to the game with my own set of cleats. I’m going to play the game, the way I play the game. I’m here to be me, that is why I am in the band. 

GA: What do you look forward to with your future in Crystal Lake? Any shows or goals you all are trying to achieve? 

JC: We want to win a Grammy. We are constantly thinking about that, we want to win a Grammy. Our aim is to write music that makes everyone say, oh shit this is the best band ever. We are looking forward to writing more catchy songs, writing more heavy riffs, playing as awesome as possible, making as many people happy as we possibly can with what we are doing, and we want it all. Give us the gold. That’s what you can expect. 

GA: What’s next for you? I seen that My Bitter End is reforming for a show, what brought that to light?

JC: Unfortunately, what happened was, our original guitarist Stretch passed away. It was really shot for all of us. Some of us were closer to him than others in the band, Stretch was our family. There have been tons of members in MBE, but we are a team. We are a family. All the members talk to one and other. We all hang out, we all are friends, there is not this separation of generations of the band. When we play a show, the whole band is there regardless of if the members are playing or not. When Stretch died, it was terrible for the original guys. It’s been a couple of years since we played, let’s do a reunion. Let’s have a reunion for Stretch. We hit up Mike Ranne, who is kind of the main organizer of MBE. He’s basically the boss. He’s a very good boss and welcomes all our opinions. He got everyone together to do this for Stretch. We are all so excited for this show that we have been talking about possibly writing new material. It is an idea we have been toying around with, maybe we will, maybe we won’t. 

GA: Anything else you’d like to say? 

JC: I’m so excited that everyone is so hyped on what we are doing with Crystal Lake. I can’t wait for these new songs to come out. I am confident people are going to go crazy over it. CL is going to keep writing, besides these two songs there is a handful of other ones we are playing with and working on. Expect new music from us. We are pushing to get back on tour full time. 

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George Archibald

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