Another unexpected gem from my time writing for Australian Hysteria Magazine. I didn’t know letlive. from a bar of soap until I was on the line with Jason Butler, who ended up being on the loveliest and kindest dudes I had interviewed up to that point. This is just a quick chat, but I’ve been a huge fan of the band ever since. It was a lasting impression!
– DJY, January 2015
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After five years of line-up changes and general turmoil in-between albums, letlive kicked back into action last year with a killer new album, Fake History. Things have been going gangbusters for the quintet from there, with the band signing to iconic punk label Epitaph and planning a re-release for Fake History with three new tracks. Australian Hysteria got the opportunity to speak to the band’s founder and leader, Jason Butler, to talk shop on the album, as well as the band’s live antics and a potential trip down under.
Australian Hysteria: Hi Jason, thanks for chatting to Australian Hysteria Magazine! Whereabouts are you?
Jason Butler: I’m actually on Venice Boulevard, making my way down to Santa Monica, California. We’re home free for about a month – we’ve got our release shows, which will only take about three days, and that’s it! I’m actually on my way to a birthday party with my girlfriend.
Sounds good! This article might be the first time our readers may have heard of letlive. How would you describe your band’s music to someone who’s never heard it before?
Something that you’ve wanted to hear for a long time. [Laughs] That’s pretty good, right?
Let’s talk Fake History. It’s your first album in five years – what do you think took so long to get this record together?
I believe it was the components of the band itself. It was willingness – what letlive was, it was a continuation on from a punk rock band I formed in high school. We cut a few albums, and – as you do when you’re young – you do what you want and you play what you want. You put out albums to be a part of something. During that time, though, we generated a different idea of letlive and what it was meant to be. So in those five years between, we were just putting the pieces back together. I’m actually the only remaining member from the original lineup. Truly, though, the beginning of letlive as you and most will know it is definitely with the five gentlemen we have now. We came to the realisation that in order to put something out in an overly-saturated culture that will hold water, you’ve got to really mean whatever it is you’re about to put out. So one day, it fell into place and we recorded it.
Epitaph have planned a re-release for the record. Do you feel at this point that it will help in exposing you to a new audience?
Absolutely. We have to illuminate and acknowledge Epitaph – it’s a milestone for us; it’s a milestone for anyone in punk rock. Of course there will be people that are dedicated to the label, and will want to check out anything Epitaph-related. Also, they’ve done so much as a label independently that they’re marked to be so authentic and natural. All these things are things that we really appreciate so early on in our career. We’re all working together.
There’s a very potent mix of both the heavier side of the music and the melodic side. Do you feel that having a diverse sound assists you in being able to play with a lot of different bands?
Y’know, I would love for that to be true. We appreciate and propagate all kinds of music that people don’t immediately assume to associate with our band. We really hope that it shines through and opens up doors – not just for us, but for other acts as well. No matter how you take it, it’s just music – you’re trying to be creative; you’re trying to latch on to something that was so primitive at one point, based on human instinct. It’s just music. I hope it’s transparent enough for people to see that’s how we feel about it. I’d love to tour with Bruno Mars – maybe if B.o.B. wants to take us out, I’ll do a hip-hop tour!
On the YouTube video for “Casino Columbus,” one of the highest-rated comments talks about what you did at a show – you threw a trash can over your head, started your own mosh pit and tried to climb the roof of a tent. Is any/all of that true? If so, when did it happen?
[Laughs] From what I’m told, it’s all true. It’s all a blur to me, but I’ve seen video! That was South by Southwest. We were playing a showcase, and I chased my microphone into a trash can. I thought I’d go for a fashion statement and wear the trash can as a top hat. I found myself outside of the tent at one point, and then climbed up the tent and found a hole and came back in. It was sort of like the tent was birthing me – it was kinda beautiful! [Laughs]
It sounds like there’s quite a bit of energy going on at these shows. How important are letlive’s live performances to you?
I think the letlive live show is just as important as the way we’re presented on record. It’s definitely different. With the album, we just tried to show as much raw energy and emotion – as trite as that may sound – as we could. It’s the exact same thing with the live show. We want people to understand that letlive is more than the five individuals on that stage. letlive is simply a vessel of some sort, and it’s much more vast than we can fully articulate at this point in time. When we can, we’ll let you know what it is; but right now, we just want people to feel something. It’s a shared energy. Even if they don’t know or don’t like what’s going on, all the energy – negative and positive – is feeding into what’s going on that stage.
Finally, when are we going to see letlive on Australian shores?
As soon as possible, man! We’ve been discussing this with our manager. I’ve heard it’s beautiful, and you guys are some of the nicest motherfuckers I’ve ever met. We did that tour with Break Even, and God-damn! You guys are just nice and cool. Not to mention my boy Jona, from Prom Queen and Bring Me The Horizon. He’s one of my favourite dudes to ever exist. As a country, if you’re all like that? I’m all about it, man. Let’s go!
David James Young 