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What was your favorite day job, and why?
Matt Wroth: Working at my t-shirt shop, Madison Trash, because I'm the boss, which means
drinking on the job, sleeping on the job and most certainly not working on the
job.
We've all heard variations on the phrase "there are two kinds of people in the world... Those who (do or think something) and those who (do or think something else)". What are the two kinds of people in the world for you?
Matt Wroth: Those who interest me and those bore the living shit out of me. It's a fine
line but I know plenty more of the latter kind of person. Too bad, because I need
to kill some time tonight.
If money/ambition/significant others/et cetera were all non-issues, where would you choose to live and why?
Matt Wroth: In the head of Ted Nugent. Why? Do you have to ask? There must be some
fucking crazy shit going down in that little world. But then again, maybe Hawaii,
just because of Baywatch Nights.
Summarize your driving ability in 25 words or less.
Matt Wroth: Better when loaded. That is, I tend to daydream whilst driving unless I have
had a cocktail or two, and then I am more focused. Warning: this is not for
everyone!
What is the function of your music in a capitalist society?
Matt Wroth: To make other people money, of course!
You've just entered a contest in which the prize is an MP3 player loaded with the complete, exhaustive recorded output of any artist you choose. You win. Who do you choose?
Matt Wroth: Jewel Kilcher. And fuck you if you would choose Sarah McLachlan.
What are you carrying on your person -- in your pockets, purse, et cetera -- right now?
Matt Wroth: In my pockets: a book of matches from the Five O'Clock Lounge in Lakewood,
Ohio. Some spare change and lots of lint. In the old wallet? Some small bills,
my new ID (just got it today. I look like a high school student in '78, one
bong hit away from graduation) and a bunch of business cards.
You're on tour, you're in an unfamiliar city, you haven't eaten in 24 hours, and due to some poor financial decisions, you have only a single unit of the local currency -- one dollar, one pound, or thereabouts. What do you eat?
Matt Wroth: Something off the dollar menu at Wendy's. That goes for tour or everyday life.
What was the last song you danced to? Who, if anyone, did you dance with?
Matt Wroth: Probably Justin Timberlake's song "Cry Me A River". That was my pre-show
pump up jam for a minute.
When did you last make a mountain out of a molehill?
Matt Wroth: Tuesday, around three in the afternoon. It was something else, I tell ya.
Apart from cheeseburgers, what is the cornerstone of any nutritious breakfast?
Matt Wroth: Last night's half-drunken forty oz. of King Cobra. If you did your job and
killed it off the night before, then a cigarette will do fine.
Have you ever seen a ghost? Or a dead body? Tell us about it.
Matt Wroth: I have seen a dead body or two but it's all relative to how many people you
have killed. But a ghost -- that's scary. No, never a ghost.
What was the last book you read and hated? Why did you hate it?
Matt Wroth: The Five People You Meet in Heaven By Mitch Albom. The reason I didn't like
it was that the late great "Mr. Perfect" Curt Henning was not among the
five. If I am going to Heaven I might as well meet some idols, and whom better than
a former Intercontinental champion, right?
Let's assume that God is a DJ. What's on his playlist right now?
Matt Wroth: Morbid Angel, Nun Slaughter, Dying Fetus, Immortal and that ZZ Top box set.
What is your favorite Meg Ryan movie?
Matt Wroth: You've Got Mail. That's a no brainer for this romantic. What a tear
jerker, eh?
What is your favorite "comfort food" when you're on tour?
Matt Wroth: The only "comfort Food" on tour is a free meal. The comfort comes from
knowing that you have enough money to make it through one more day. Plus it equals
more drinks at the bar.
What essential item are you most likely to leave at home when you're heading out on tour? What do you do about it?
Matt Wroth: Money. Um, you don't want to know the answer to that. But in a funny side
story, our merch boy, Ryan, came out with us basically penniless, so he put a tip
jar on the merchandise booth and ended up making some cash every single
night. How goofy of him.
You've just been hit in the face with a large chocolate cream pie. How do you react?
Matt Wroth: Wait?! Why would some one want to do that? God, that's so uncalled for. I
mean, I must have done something to provoke it so I guess it's a matter of
circumstance. Like, if I really treated this person badly I would laugh it off.
Otherwise I would break out some fisticuffs and a spoon.
Assuming that you must choose one, which would you rather listen to for an hour: Christian rock, mainstream country or Jessica Simpson?
Matt Wroth: Strip me of my cred because my answer is most definitely mainstream country.
Shania Twain has some song lyrics that will bring anyone to tears. Plus she's
hot.
What's the deal with those damn raccoons?
Matt Wroth: I have been asking people this for so long now. They break into my garage,
tear apart my garbage bags and they only left a thank you note twice.
Motherfuckers.
What is the most awkward moment in which you have caught a person adjusting, scratching, or otherwise handling his or her own genitals?
Matt Wroth: Last night when I masturbated in front of my bathroom mirror.
Where do you think Osama Bin Laden is hiding and what would it take to get him to come out?
Matt Wroth: He's in our bass player Tony's basement. I guess the deal is that a week
before the election Tony is planning on selling him to the Bush campaign. Four more
years (that's sarcasm).
You're sitting in a pub when an errant dart from the games area strikes you in the leg. With the dart pointing out of your body, do you pull it out, shout for help or attack the jackass who hit you?
Matt Wroth: Pull it out and then cry for help. I put a rusty nail through my middle
finger while on tour in Louisville, Kentucky this past summer. It's a weird to feel the
object in question get pulled out of your body. Then when the guys from the bar
pour everclear on the wound, a whole new pain comes into play.
What is sexy?
Matt Wroth: Our drummer Steve after a long set when he is so nice and drenched in sweat
that he leaves stains wherever he sits down. Mmmmmmmm.
Which reality iv game show could you see yourself as a winning contestant on? Explain.
Matt Wroth: America's Next Top Model. Only because I have been practicing doing the catwalk for the past few years. I almost have the end part down where you give the cameras a sexy little glance before turning around. I keep falling, though.
What is the strangest thing you've ever had for breakfast?
Matt Wroth: Dinner. Sometimes you just can't get out of bed, right?
Which non-music related product (i.e. -- no instruments, microphones, etc.) would you most like to be a celebrity spokesperson for?
Matt Wroth: The Real Doll. That's the sex toy that looks like a life-sized woman. I think
I am just ugly and sketchy looking enough that the type of people buying such
a product could relate to me. "Oh, that ugly guy with the messy beard from
Amps II Eleven has a 'Real Doll'? Here's my credit card!"
If you had an army of super-intelligent lab mice to do your bidding, what evil deeds would you have them do?
Matt Wroth: Kill each other off in the next great World War. All super intelligent lab
mice must be destroyed. Then the chimps are next. Then the rabbits. Kill 'em
all!
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From the band's bio:
Formed from underground Ohio favorites Stepsister, Southern Trespass, and Shuteye in late 2002, Amps II Eleven's Rust Belt rumble is equal parts raw rock blitz and baked, Budweiser boogie. Frontman Matt Wroth howls like a drunk at last call, recounting battles with the bottle and back alley beatdowns in a hundred proof holler. Guitarists Aaron Dowell and Attila Csapo come with diesel-fueled riffs and leads heated enough to boil water. Bassist Tony Erba's Rickenbacher growls like an underfed Rottweiler, while drummer Steve Callahan locks the groove in as tight as these boys' clenched fists.
It all comes to a head on the band's self-titled debut, a half hour of power that reaffirms the Midwest's grip on real, dirt-beneath-the-fingernails rock and roll. Curled-lip kiss offs ("2% Rippers") slap bellies with dirty funk work-ups ("Blood Runs Black") and loud blasts of pilsner punk ("Bourbon Sprawl"). It's a hangover-in-waiting, a rock and roll gutcheck that spares no liver or larynx. So dust off your denim, order another round, and let's see what you're made of, tough guy.
-- George Zahora
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