Tony Housh of “Seasons After” interview!

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Welcome to Kick Acts. Tell us a little about yourself and were you can be found online.

Hi. My name is Tony Housh and I am the vocalist for the band Seasons After. You can find us at

www.seasonsafter.com

www.facebook.com/seasonsafternation

www.twitter.com/seasonsafter

 www.youtube.com/seasonsafter

www.instagram.com/seasonsafter

Who are your musical heroes and influences? Why?

I have a few heroes. One of them would be Corey Taylor. I have followed Corey since the first time that I had heard Slipknot. I was blown away at the the way this crazy dude in a mask could scream. I use to listen to Slipknot and think how is it humanly possible for a person to make that kind of brutality happen with their voice. I would study it trying to find his tricks. I would even seek out live performances in order to hear his true voice without all the production. He was just killer to me, but where he became one of my musical heroes was when I heard “Bother” on the radio by Stone Sour. Once I heard that dude sing I was completely floored. He became one of my heroes! Another one of my heroes that actually popped up on my radar around the same time was Chris Volz of Flaw. Volz was the dude that made me realize I could sing and scream and make it badass! I spent a lot of time listening to his choruses. I just loved how big they could get and the intensity that would follow in the throw downs. I actually modeled a lot of my music that I wrote at that time very specific to a Volz type style. So you can imagine how exciting it was for me 14 years later to find myself touring with Flaw. Another reason Volz is one of my heroes is because he’s actually a cool dude. Its always nice to put someone on a pedestal and leave them there for all the right reasons.

Do you have any advice for someone just getting started in the music business?

If I had any advice to give to anyone getting started in the music business it would be this. Don’t limit yourself to just one thing. Learn more than just your instrument. Learn the production side of things early. In the future you can save yourself thousands in production costs. Not to mention that you can make a living while your not out on the road while tracking for other acts. Learn the business. Its a tricky business and you need to be prepared for that. The more you educate yourself on the inner workings the better the chance you may not get screwed! And never give up. If you truly are a hardcore put your nose to the pavement musician then you will see your share of ups and downs. Be prepared to fail. Its going to happen. The important thing is to know from the beginning is that you are dedicated and this is what you do. Never quit. No matter the obstacle and there are many.

What piece of advice did you ignore that you wish you hadn’t?

Stop making that face or its gonna stay that way.

Do you have a greatest gig story or worst gig horror story you’d like to share?

Sure. I would say the most humiliating gig that I ever played was my very first. I was 17 years old and I had been searching for my first band to attempt to sing for. I grew up in a small town in Texas. Population around 3500 or so. So you can imagine that there weren’t to many rock bands around. In fact there was only one that I was aware of. So one day these band dudes come into Dairy Queen where I worked. As soon as I realized it was the band guys I quickly removed my apron so that I could personally deliver their food to them once I had prepared their burgers. So I gave them my number. Well they called me like one week later and suddenly needed a singer. Not only did they need a singer but they needed me ready in a week! A week! One week to learn 4 hours of cover tunes. Well I was so enthusiastic and excited they had called that I decided that I had better take the gig. I may not get another chance! So one week later I went and played my very first gig at place called Bostocks in Stephenville Tx. It was a nightmare. I was reading lyrics off of sheets. I was a mess! I had no idea how to even be a frontman much less sing songs that I didn’t completely know. At one point the bass player actually apologized and explained that I was new. We didn’t even finish the night. They fired us in mid set and made us load out right there in front of everyone. It was  humiliating as hell. But I didn’t lose my spirit. It actually made me very anal about live performances and it made me a much more serious musician. My band was fired by the club my very first time singing for a rock band and I wouldn’t change a thing about it.

Do you have any other hobbies other than playing music? Collect stamps? Collect hats from off the side of the road? Draw pictures of peckers or boobs? Make sock puppets? Sit in the dark and eat Cheetos?

I really don’t have any hobbys. I guess that makes me weird in some peoples eyes, but why do I need a hobby when I already live a dream? Hobbies are an escape to something you enjoy from your everyday life. Right? Right! Well I love what I do. It involves loud stuff, bright lights, computers, creativity, travel, people, and just a ton of fun in general. No escape needed or desired…yet.

What do you think about the current music scene or lack of? Care to address that?

Well I will say that I miss the days of when rock ruled the world! When rockstars had jets with their names on them and it was totally cool to trash a hotel room. That all seems to be gone with the exception of the few exceptions. It seems that pop hip hop and country have ran off with it all these days. Ive heard people say that rock/metal just kind of lost its thing with the masses but to be honest I think the masses got lost in the world of overproduced pop stars rap stars and drug store cowboys. Not that I dislike these genres but Its a shame that more people won’t go out to a rock show that comes into town for 10 bucks, but they will on the other hand fork out the big bucks for Taylor Swift (nothing against Swift). Its like people enjoy feeding the corporate bs machine (i.e. large record companies). So yes. Its a shame that we have allowed money to dictate art and what art is made readily available. Hopefully people will come to realize that there are some really great rock bands out there that are dying to entertain them. And maybe, just maybe they’ll start choosing to hit up a rock show on the weekend and skip out on the $200.00 Saturday night kum ba yah brainwashing session at the local civic center. Lets get them horns up and support those bands that you enjoy so much. They need you!

Do you think reality shows like American Idol, X factor and The Voice have helped or hurt the music industry as a whole?

I personally am not a fan of these types of shows. Just another example of the pumping of corporate crap out onto the masses. I agree there are some very talented people on these shows and thats not what this is about. This is more about this whole instant gratification everyone is a star type culture. What about the people out there on the road traveling all over the country trying to get some recognition. The ones who have honed their skills night after night after night. The ones who truly appreciate the sale of an album or the fact that you ask them to sign something. These are the warriors! These are the people who have taken the real risk! Not someone who sings in the shower in the comfort of their home and takes a week of vacation to go and try out for the voice in hopes of instant stardom. There’s no stripes earned in that. I guess Im just old school. I like to earn what I have and I respect people who aren’t looking for the easiest and safest way to attain their goals. Sometimes you just gotta go for it rather than waiting for the easy or safer route. I just don’t feel like these shows reflect that type of mentality, but hey thats just me.

What is your opinion of unauthorized music downloads?

Well it does suck for sure. Its the equivalent of me walking into Wal Mart and just taking whatever I want. For some reason its okay to steal a song though. I’m Not sure why. I guess its because you can’t actually hold it and you can steal it in the safety and the confines of your home. Its insulting actually to spend time writing a song, recording a song, and not to mention the amount of money spent (yes it does cost money). We pay for advertising to put it out just so that it can be stolen. Its the equivalent of having a contractor come to your home and paint the entire inside of your house. He has bought supplies i.e. paint and brushes and probably has an employee or two. All of whom he must pay in order to complete the service. The contractor finishes up and goes for payment and kaboom! “Sorry your not getting paid.” says the homeowner and he sends the painter on his way without payment of services. Now Im willing to bet that painter would flip out. He has to pay his guys, he has to cover the material expenses and who knows what else. The problem is that the paint is already on the wall and theres no going back. He just lost his ass. Do musicians not render a service? Do musicians not create a product? Of course they do and thats why its stealing.

Tell us something about each of your band members that we wouldn’t expect to hear.

Well…Jimmy can sing verbatim most pop songs that I roll my eyes at. Dawson is a big fan of Aquariums and fish sticks. Tim plays his drums naked while looking at pictures from National Geographic and Kyle has a thing for eating turkey sandwiches in the dark while scratching lotto tickets.

Hypothetical situation. You’re on Gilligan’s island and you get to hook up with only one of the survivors… Which one and why?

Thats easy. Mary Ann because she’s Mary Ann and someone needs to make something happen before the professor makes a move.

Do you know what a vinyl album is and have your ever purchased one? If so, what was it?

Yes. Michael Jackson Thriller

You’re marooned on an island with Justin Bieber. Do you choke him out the first night in his sleep or what?

Nope. I’ll keep him around. I’m going to need some help getting things set up for myself on the island. That means a lot of work and manual labor. Thats what I’ll have Bieber taking care of. Once he has my hut built and all of the food situation handled I”ll probably just eat him for Thanksgiving or something.

What is your opinion of Miley Cyrus?

I really have no thoughts on Miley because to be honest I just don’t care. I wouldn’t even know who she is if she hadn’t been force fed to us all.

Which would you rather hear in concert? Lip synching or real vocals?

Real vocals Check out Seasons After Vid▶ SEASONS AFTER – “LIGHTS OUT”

Who, or what, is the next big thing?

To be honest I don’t pay to much attention to THE NEXT BIG THING type stuff. I’m to busy trying to keep my little thing a float.

One artist you can’t get enough of and can’t live without is…

Phil Collins

Confession time. Share a secret about yourself.

I pick my nose at the bottom and top of every hour.

Favorite movie of all time and why.

Spaceballs. I love Mel Brooks. His Humor is so raw and stupid. I love it.

Our last question is called “Shout It Out Loud”. It’s were you get to talk about whatever you want to talk about. So go ahead and “SHOUT IT OUT LOUD”!

My shout out for this go round could be anything I guess, but today I would like to think about a subject that is near and dear to my heart. This is something that has been eating on me for quite some time. You guessed it… Subway changed their ranch and it’s just not the same! Why in the world would subway change something that is so incredibly important out for this new generic flavored ranch they have decided to switch too. I taste more like mayo than  ranch! Come on Subway. I just don’t understand. I hope that Jared reads this and takes it into consideration. That is all.