Interviews: Terror Garden

On this new occasion, we had the opportunity to interview the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band Terror Garden from the USA. Check out the interview and follow this band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name? Was it planned, or did it just happen organically?

P: Well, the name came up. I was leaving my previous band. I wasn't happy with the direction of the music. And we were in a rehearsal studio, and I heard this band next door. The band was awful, but the drummer rocked. So I said, oh, I've got to check this out. And that's when I met Gina, and we decided to form a band. I’m trying to think of names. My name is Paul Terro,r and I was listening to Soundgarden on a drive, so Terror Garden came out of it. 

2. Why did you choose to play this genre?

M: Everybody’s subject to their opinions, but in my, for me, I think we're like a hard rock band with heavy metal moments. We kind of toe the line of those genres. Why did we pick it? I mean, it's something we kind of all grew up around and love to play. So it's in my DNA.

P: The cool thing about this band is that there are a lot of bands and every song will sound alike, kind of like a Ramones style, you know? Whereas with this, it's all over the place. You could listen to our music, and you could hear punk rock, hard rock, heavy metal, and funk. Some of the shit I sing, there's some soul in it. So it's a nice mixture of what we do. It’s just a combination of the five people together and what we come out with. And it's the love of original music.

E: Everyone gets to put their two cents into it and, somehow, we just make a dollar out of it. And we all have other projects/bands. Some of us are in cover bands, some of us are in another original act, but this is our compilation of all the hard rock things that we like to hear. So that's why we're all here together, because we like to write this type of stuff. 

3. Did you know each other before forming the band?

WILD BILL SHERMAN (bass): Gee & I were acquaintances around the scene many years ago, before Terror Garden even existed. Besides that, none of us knew each other beforehand. 

4. What is each band member's favorite band?

M: I mean, if I have to pick only one, it's going to be Metallica, but there are so many bands that I love and have influenced me.

E: Since Mike said Metallica, I'm going to say Megadeth

G: Probably the first band I saw on MTV, which was the Go-Go’s. They were a huge influence on me at a young age. The Go-Go's.

B: Rebel Son, Hank Williams III & Unknown Hinson

P: Anything Deep Purple or my other offshoot, Sex Pistols

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

G: Life!

P: Yeah, Ditto.

M: Paul has mentioned in previous interviews that a lot of his lyrics come from real experiences and opinions. We don't really write about fictional stories too much or at all, really. I can't think of one. That's just the type of songs we like to write as a band. 

6. Where was your last gig?

E: We just had All Music!

M: Yep, two weeks ago, we just had our self-titled EP release party at All Music in Plainview. It was fun and interesting. We got to play the whole EP in full, a bunch of older songs, and covers. We had a great crowd. Everybody was happy with the new merch. We did play with electronic drums, which was an adjustment for us, but we made it through. Thank you, Gee, for toughing it out.

G: It was my first time playing “Rock Band” *laughs* 

7. Where would you like to perform in the future?

P: I like big, well, whatever. But I like outside venues over inside venues. For me, I'd be happy with Jones Beach. Nice, sunset around seven or eight o'clock. The sun is just going down, and it's like 85 degrees. That’s what I'd like. Either the bandshell or the theater. I'll never forget playing the bandshell as the sun was going down. It was the most beautiful thing. One of the best shows I ever did, weather and scenery-wise. It was just beautiful. That purple and red sky in the background was phenomenal.

M: I’ll just rattle off a couple, as I just mentioned this in a previous interview: The Paramount! I think it would be really incredible if it were if it was the right situation opening up for a national headliner that fits us. Secondly, if they ever allowed metal bands at a Great South Bay Music Festival, that would be killer. I'm sure there are others, but those two are the ones that just come to mind naturally.

P: Yeah, I tried that for 30 years. That wasn't happening *laughs*

E: For me personally, I've always wanted to play at Mulcahy’s. I don't know why. You know, big bands like Symphony X play there. A whole bunch of national bands play there. You guys have played there. I haven't played there yet.

8. Which artist or band would you like to collaborate with?

M: I'm going to stick with the Metallica thing. You know, James Hetfield or just the band in general would be great. I also think Jerry Cantrell from Alice in Chains would be an awesome blend as well. The question didn't say dead or alive, so I guess it's open season.

P: Personally, Zappa would be. You’d have to be on drugs for that one, but I like him. And the scary thing was, he wasn't on drugs.

G: I’m going to go with, obviously, Halestorm. Anybody from Hailstorm or Motley Crue, when they were in their prime.

B: Rebel Son, Hank Williams III & Unknown Hinson again

E: Twilight Force, because that's the shirt I'm wearing *laughs* 

9. Is there anyone you wouldn’t want to collaborate with?

M: I'm sure there's plenty *laughs*. I'm going to just keep it simple and say any artist that would, I don't know, compromise the integrity of our vision and sound. 

P: P. Diddy! I don't want to get all oily and shit

B: I got no beef with anybody. If somebody comes up and it ain't correct, we'll fix it. 

E: If we're writing Terror Garden, then I'm going to write with Terror Garden. I don't want anybody else to influence us. It's kind of a hard question, but at the same time, if I'm going to write death metal or songs about dungeons and dragons, I'm not going to call Paul *laughs*

10. Have any of you ever experienced stage fright? Do you have any tips for beginners on overcoming it?

B: Absolutely not! I was neglected as a kid, so I like the attention.

M: Honestly, just my very first show ever. I was 18 in my own band at Gunpoint. We had our own trio. Besides practicing in the basement, I had no experience out there. I remember I threw up that morning. I was so nervous. I didn't know what to expect, and I was very nervous on stage and beforehand. But then after that first show, even the second show I ever did, honestly, I was like “oh, all right, I’ve done this already. I'm cool”. It was very short-lived for me.

P: Some people get over that very, very quickly. I got nervous when I jammed with Zakk Wylde, Ritchie Blackmore & Ron Wood (all separately). Because of their caliber, that's why I got nervous. Other than that, no.

11 Which bands have influenced you the most?

M: All right, well, I threw up Metallica there already, but the rest of the big four (Megadeth, Anthrax, Slayer), Pantera, Iced Earth, Green Day, The Offspring, Chili Peppers, Nirvana. I could go on forever, but I’ll stop there.

P: Yeah, I could go on forever too, from the Ramones to The Stones to Metallica at LaMour’s Brooklyn to Live at Woodstock '94. I've seen some great shows. So yeah, there's a lot.

B: Misfits and Charlie Daniels, man.

E: For me, guitar player-wise, I would say the band Eternity's End with the legendary Christian Munster on guitar. And I don't know, just overall guitar players, Rick Graham is one of my favorites, and of course, just a legend. But there are just way too many to choose from. Every day, my tastes are just a little bit different. So tomorrow, I might like Marty Robbins the most. And then the day after that, I will listen to Despised Icon for hours.

G: Yeah, it depends on the day, too. But drummers, I mean, Gina Shock, Tommy Lee, Stephen Adler, Chris Adler, RJ Hale, all the way to Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, and John Bonham. I can go from Lamb of God to Butcher Babies to Madonna. It's all over the place, and I love it!

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

E: This one time, we were playing at a park in Cedar Creek, and some drunk dude came up and grabbed the mic away from Paul while we were playing. And he tried to sing a song he didn't know. He just really wanted to sing.

G: That was funny, yeah. But he didn't ask us for anything, thank God.

E: No, I don't think he could form a sentence to make a question.

M: He “asked” to sing, and Paul politely told him to go fuck himself *laughs*

P: He asked for a beating, but I was in a good mood that day *laughs*

13. What do you think of your fans?

M: The ones that have been through thick and thin with us the whole time, and people we've gotten along the way, very thankful and appreciative of buying our merch, coming down to shows, sharing our posts. Always try to return the favor. If a certain member of a band sees us, it means a lot, and I'll keep that in mind to check out their band, back and forth.

E: Absolutely. We're all fans of each other. We're here for each other. Our fans are also musicians in other bands, so we make our music scene thrive by being there for each other.

P: We love you long time

B: Love them all so much. Thank you. 

14. What do you think of our site?

M: We were just looking at it recently. It seems pretty cool. It seems like a good hub to find out all things hard rock & heavy metal. I like the music release section. You got a ton of bands. They break it out into genres, and I think there's a compilation you can submit to.

E: They got merch! saw a coffee mug. I might grab one of those. They've got bands from all over on there, too.

G: It supports the scene, so thank you.

P: Exactly

15. Is there anything else you’d like to add?

M: Well, we just put out our fifth album two weeks ago. Just visit our social media and digital platforms if you want to check out the new music, old music, and anything about the band. If you dig what you hear, just follow and subscribe. Hopefully, we'll see you at a show or pick up a new CD.

P: I can't wait to start working on new music. That's the thing about an original band. You always create. Buy our CD. Thank you.

M: Thank you to Breathing the Core. We'll see you all soon! \m/