Into the Mind of Cave In's Steve Brodsky: The Exploding In Sound Interview

Steve Brodsky is known and adored by many as singer/guitarist for the legendary alt/metal band Cave In. As dynamic as Cave In are, Brodsky, a self proclaimed "recording junkie" has always found other avenues for his vast creative output through solo albums and several other bands. With Cave In on hiatus, he found time to front many different projects, all with great musical results. After four years however, Cave In are back together and just as mighty as ever before. With an upcoming string of East Coast tour dates only a week away, Steve was gracious enough to sit down and talk about Cave In's triumphant return, his solo work, the all-too-shortly lived Pet Genius and The Octave Museum, influences, the future, and so much more [photo courtesy of Linda Wildemann]...



EIS: First off, how does it feel to be back with Cave In? What brought the reunion to fruition?

SB: Feels good. Considering our 15 year investment, it's pretty cool that we can still get in a room with each other and enjoy the results. For a while, living in different parts of the country/world made it difficult for the band to do anything. But now with all of us taking residence in the Boston area, it's much easier for Cave In to get together, to function, to be creative and have fun with it all.

EIS: Did you have to go back and study any Cave In tracks that had slipped your memory?

SB: I made a "homework" CD of all the songs we considered relearning. Passed em' out at practice and everyone laughed. Rightfully so, some of this stuff is probably etched permanently into our brains, which renders the act of referencing recordings somewhat of an unnecessary step. That being said, relearning songs like "Inflatable Dream" and "Luminance" took a bit more effort than the rest, simply because it's been so long since we played them. For me, it's all about the "skin" that I used to wear, and slipping back into it before finding those familiar notes and movements.

EIS: With Planets of Old and Perfect Pitch Black there is a great mixture of the two distinct styles the band has become known for. What are the live shows like since reuniting? Is there a happy balance between the ultra aggressive and the more spacey material?

SB: I'd rather not spoil the surprise, but it's fair to say our current set is all over the map. Having survived a total of 3 test-drives (aka "shows") without being changed, I guess that in itself makes for a happy balance.

EIS: How long did the writing process take for Planets of Old? Did everything come naturally back together after being apart for so long?

SB: We spent about 6 months writing 4 songs. Mind you, these days we're not going to the rehearsal space multiple times a week like we used to do. Leisurely pacing ourselves works out well in the sense that no one's rushing to produce a "product". In turn, the recording of the EP took only 2 nights to complete, from tracking to mixing. I like hearing the urgent effects this produces - you don't give yourself enough time to sweat the little things.



EIS: Can we expect a new full length album from Cave In? Are you still planning on releasing the reunion show on DVD?

SB: Not sure. We have new songs, but there hasn't been a clear-cut "format" we've decided to use for them. The DVD is completed and it will come with a CD version of "Planets Of Old" released on Hydra Head early next year.

EIS: During the beginning of the decade you released two solo albums while still active with Cave In. What inspired those records? How was the reaction?

SB: I've been a recording junkie since I was 13 years old, playing in various bands with J.R. and obsessively recording our rehearsals on a boombox. The excess of this hobby only grew when my dad helped me figure out how to use a 4-track machine. Naturally, boxes of tapes began to overflow and I just figured it was time to do something. You can probably hear the inspirations of Sebadoh, Guided By Voices, Eric's Trip, Elliott Smith... home recording is the occasional pastime of many friends of mine which equally, if not more, inspires me also. Any sort of interest my solo records gained for me was always beyond my own expectations, simply because it was somewhat difficult picturing a life for these songs outside of their little storage spaces.

EIS: When you guys announced the hiatus, you emerged soon after with your first new band, The Octave Museum. Were those songs you had already been working on? What made you decide to play with a full band as opposed to releasing more solo material? What influenced the psychedelic pop sound?

SB: "The Voice Electric" had been kicking around for a couple years, beginning as a solo recording that came out on a Chrome Peeler Records compilation called "You've Got Your Orders". The song "Red-Headed Butterflies" started as a demo on what was the very first Pro Tools rig that Kurt Ballou sold me. At the time, I found that I couldn't complete finished versions of songs that I was truly happy with, so that's when I got the idea of forming another band. And I was pretty into Dungen, and Kevin Shurtlef generously turned both me and Johnny Northrup onto "S.F. Sorrow" by The Pretty Things, which in part explains why The Octave Museum sounded the way it did.

EIS: Shortly after releasing the album and a large European tour you decided to disband, and immediately resurfaced with Pet Genius. The line-up was identical to Octave Museum aside from switching drummers to JR, but the sound went in a grungier direction. Were these songs ever intended for Octave Museum? What brought about the decision to start Pet Genius?

EIS: It wasn't a large European tour we did - just about a week's worth of shows in the UK. Shortly afterward I went through some personal life drama, which kicked up a storm of break-up's, fall-out's, a job loss... kind of a messy time in general. Anyway, Pet Genius was supposed to be another solo record but I asked J.R. if he'd like to be involved. After the situation with him not playing with Cave In for a period of time, I found myself missing our creative bond together. And we pulled the first Pet Genius record together in just a couple weeks. For having a such a full plate at the time, I gotta hand it to J.R. for doing a fantastic job. As a band, Pet Genius never quite had the momentum of The Octave Museum. But overall there were some really fun shows and good hangout's. In hindsight, I sometimes miss the element of terror at having to cover all sonic guitar-space in a 3-piece band.

EIS: Did you get a general reaction to the projects? Did fans expect something heavy from you with the other guys working on Clouds and Zozobra?

SB: There will always be those people who can't help but compare because they're dissatisfied by what they hear. And it's fine - they'll just move on to the next thing. I find myself doing the very same thing sometimes. In defense of this, what can you do but just ham it up and hope someone hears your efforts for what they really are? Maybe that's why The Octave Museum played our last shows dressed in costume. I wore a ridiculously large pink afro wig, including a pink afro pick, Buddy Holly bottle-cap glasses and layers of pink robes. Johnny donned a sort of samurai-terrorist jogger garb complete with a headband, a homemade T-shirt and running trunks. Kevin unbuttoned his jeans and respectfully played himself. The final few shows in particular were a blast, simply because we didn't care who we were or where we had come from.

EIS: I’ve always admired your lyrics for both Octave Museum and Pet Genius. What influences your writing? The name of this very site is actually taken from a line in your song “Red Headed Butterflies”.

SB: That's cool. It took me a second but I get the reference now... and my attorney will contacting you shortly, hah hah. Anyway, I've always had an affinity for the Kurt Cobain approach of piecemeal writing - simple melodies with short-attention-spanned lines creating something more complex than what you hear upon the first few listens. More simply put, it's just another form of poetry. Aging has me wanting to stray from this method in favor of something else... perhaps greater clarity? I don't quite know myself but there's always more records to be made in the future, so time will tell. Continued love for Willie Nelson, Jawbreaker, Daniel Johnston and Wu-Tang always helps, too.

EIS: Do you have any plans to work on anymore material with Octave Museum or Pet Genius in the future?

SB: Pet Genius just put the finishing touches on a 6-song EP that was recorded a couple of years ago. One of these songs, "Video Stills", went on a recent Hydra Head cassette sampler. But as of this writing, there's nothing fresh in the works. I stay in touch with Johnny and Kevin so there's always a chance, though.

EIS: Just in case your musical output wasn’t scattered under enough names, you decided to release your most recent solo record under Stove Bredsky. Black Ribbon Award is a bit of a departure from the previous two solo albums, with slower, noisier, and more droning atmosphere. I read these songs were originally written in the late 90s, did they come before your first solo album? What made you decide to release them last year?

SB: Not sure what I was trying to accomplish with a pseudonym like that... in the end I just set myself up for confusion. It's like, first he's Steve, then it's Stephen, and now... Stove? Who the hell is this guy? Actually, the name originated from a joke that Aaron Turner came up with by reversing the first vowels in a person's first and last names to come up with a new nickname. "Stove" kind of stuck with some of my friends and I guess I tried running with it. "The Black Ribbon Award" has only a few songs that were written in the 90's - "Trout", "Orange Sunshine Medicine", and "Fall Days". The rest was fairly current for the time, and writing for the aforementioned 3 songs predate anything that appeared on my first solo record, "Expose Your Overdubs", by a couple of years.

EIS: You toured in support of the album with Zozobra, Kayo Dot, and Pelican; all infinitely heavier than your solo records. Do you find it at all difficult playing a stripped down show with such heavy bands?

SB: My way of dealing with this is simply turning up as loud as I can get away with. On the Pelican tour, Trevor was kind enough to let me use his amp stack so that helped things. The silver lining here is that it's made me rethink what it means to play solo. You don't necessarily have to be soft, you don't always have to be quiet... I'd rather go chameleon-style into these situations, prepared to show whatever colors necessary in order to blend in with the show.

EIS: Touring for your solo projects you are often listed with Cave In in parenthesis following your band. Do you think that creates expectations for your sound?

SB: Naturally, yes. It's not something I'm looking to escape from, either. "Cave In" will always be bigger than "Steve Brodsky". I guess you can't fault a promoter for using this if he thinks more people might come to your show. But aside from that, I'm proud of playing in this band, I'm proud of many things I've done with this band, so why wouldn't I want to be associated with it? I'll happily play Cave In songs at my solo shows - or at least a few that I manage not to butcher without the other 3 guys on stage.

EIS: How would you compare touring/recording with Cave In to your other projects?

SB: Cave In has 15 years of experience under our belts. There can be a number of situations, tours, recordings, jokes, pranks, etc. that get referenced at any given moment when we're together. In this way, we're like brothers. It's unfair to compare Cave In with any other bands/projects I've been involved with. If anything, I always find it healthy to step outside of one's comfort zone and expand upon your musicality by getting into the mindset of another person, another collective of individuals, to see where it leads you.

EIS: Are you still working on music with The Holey Moleys? Can we expect an album/shows from the group?

SB: The Holey Moleys started a recording last summer. I was using Audrey's (Audrey Ryan, also in the Holey Moleys) laptop to work on mixes when it crashed and unfortunately, we lost almost all our work. The only plus side to this is that once I remixed the basic tracking from the original 4-track tapes, I found these mixes to be of better quality than before. Now if we can just pin down a day or two to re-record vocals.... hopefully before Christmas.

EIS: Ever consider Cave In versions of any of your solo material? I must say tracks like “Dead Battery,” “Spacegirl Saturn,” “Prepare for Landing” or “Man on the Mountain” would sound terrific with a Cave In treatment. [While they certainly are already incredible songs]

SB: This is something that the band has rarely, if ever, talked about doing. In truth, I believe there's a much stronger connection with our music pieces that are created collectively. That being said, I'm not opposed to it. On the flipside to this question, doing a version "PG" by Clouds would be a blast, and Zozobra's "Invisible Wolves" was always one of my favorites to play live.

EIS: The Cave In reunion show was held at Great Scott’s, an extremely small venue in Allston. With the demand for the show being enormous, what made you decide to play there? Do you have a favorite place to play in Boston?

SB: We just wanted to play a show and didn't really think much else. It wasn't until the show sold out in less than 20 minutes that we got to thinking maybe we'd screwed up by not choosing a larger venue. That being said, Great Scott is a fantastic place to both play and to see bands play. There's great live sound you can also experience from the back of the room comfortably without wearing earplugs, which is somewhat of a rarity in Boston. The Middle East is another longtime favorite of ours and we're really looking forward to playing there on 11/22.

EIS: You submitted a great contribution to the Seaweed tribute album Hours and Hours. How did you get involved with that project? Was Seaweed a big influence on you?

SB: Thanks. Craig from Engineer contacted Hydra Head to see if I'd be interested. I've been fairly obsessed with the "Four" album in particular for a number of years. Picked it up during my phase of mindlessly buying Sub Pop records in the mid 90's. Saw them play in Boston on the very first day I moved into the city 12 years ago.

EIS: What does 2010 have in the cards for you?

SB: 09' was kind of quiet for me and I'll be making up for that in 2010. It's the beginning of my 30's so I have to do what I can before the receding hair line really starts to appear and all my gear gets too heavy for me to bother leaving the house with it.

EIS: If Cave In reuniting is a quiet year, I know I can't wait the busy one! Thank you so much for the interview, looking forward to all that new music. Cave In are playing several shows around the east coast this month, for dates click HERE. The band will also be releasing Planets of Old on CD/DVD January 26th through Hydra Head. The DVD portion will contain all 13 tracks from the band's entire reunion show this summer.