Interviewee: Randy Weitzel
Year: 2009
Website: flatlinemetal.com
MySpace: myspace.com/flatlinemetal
Label: Stand And Deliver Records
Featured on: Loucifer Speaks Exclusive... So far!
Flatline's "Pave The Way" is a shockingly good album - full to the brim with in-your-face, no nonsense Metal. What more could you possibly ask for?
... Well, I managed to think of a couple of things and threw my questions in the direction of Randy Weitzel!
Lou: Hi guys, thanks for agreeing to this interview. I really appreciate it. How are things with you at the moment?
Randy Weitzel: Hey Lou, things are going pretty good right now. I'm sitting here waiting for Tim to pick me up in the van. We are heading out to Utah tonight to jump on a tour with Straight Line Stitch. Should be kick ass.
Lou: How long has the band been together and would you mind introducing yourselves to the readers of Loucifer Speaks?
Randy Weitzel: right on... FLATLINE is Hector Gonzalez as the bass player, Travis Johnson on Vox, Tim Hassemer on Drums and Paulo Guerra and I on Guitars. This line up has been together for about two years.
Lou: What's the best thing about being in Flatline?
Randy Weitzel: Well for me it's getting to play with a really tight band that loves metal. I'm pretty damn lucky.
Lou: "Pave The Way" is a fantastic album (well, you probably knew my thoughts on it from my review! haha). What has the general reaction from the fans and the press been like?
Randy Weitzel: We are on a mission to 'pave the way' back to real metal. The fans, the Coma Corps, have been nothing but loyal soldiers and we are all in this together. The reviews have been pretty fucking good so far. Hey man, Blabbermouth liked it so I can’t complain too much. The negative shit is usually from a few fruit loops on their mom's computers who need grammar lessons. Hey guys, if you don’t like the way the scene is going, stop whining, pick up a guitar and help change it!
Lou: Which track from the album is the most important to you and why?
Randy Weitzel: I think lyrically, Dying Breed is the most important. It's an important song for Metal. It ties in with the pave the way title.
Lou: I see that you're touring with Straight Line Stitch, I've recently checked them out on MySpace and they sound brilliant. How did the tour come about and where will you be playing?
Randy Weitzel: We are working with our booking agency, Thunderdome Touring and they rule. Seems like the tour packages start off with a certain line-up but bands get added or drop off, with good reason usually, but this time we got a good break and are direct support for Straight Line. We never played with these guys before but I am digging the shit out of "Taste of Ashes". That song fucking jams! "BEWARE OF THE VAMPIRE!" This should be cool.
Lou: Do you have any plans to tour the UK in the near future?
Randy Weitzel: We talk about that all the time, I'm sure we can manifest that.
Lou: Which Flatline track gets the crowd into a frenzy? The album is pretty energetic, so I can imagine quite a few tracks being popular...
Randy Weitzel: Honestly, seems like when "Dying Breed" kicks in, the pit starts. It's got kind of a slower chunk to it that will grab you all by the balls.
Lou: Which other bands have you toured with in the past?
Randy Weitzel: 36 Crazyfists, In This Moment, Walls of Jericho... and moooore. (says in announcer voice)
Lou: Which bands have influenced your sound the most?
Randy Weitzel: We've been compared to Lamb of God a lot lately, which is bad ass but honestly I think we're probably both drawing our influences from the same bands like Pantera, Slayer and Metallica. When people hear the beginning of "Blessed by Death" they're like "Wow, that sounds like Lamb of God", but that riff was actually influenced by "Blackened" from Metallica. 'The Passing' riffs are my twisted-mutant-love-child of "Battery" and "Set the World a Fire" from Megadeth. Well, that's how it started anyway. Then the guys come in and add their flavors to one of my riffs and the song takes on a life of its own and becomes FLATLINE but I still look to my roots for influence when writing. I grew up learning whammy bar tricks from a King Diamond 'Them' tape and 'Pleasures of the Flesh' from 'Exodus' and licks from 'Ride the Lightning'. I've been called a Dime clone, which actually rules and I'm totally not worthy, but honestly I put out two thrash albums before I ever heard Cowboys from hell. Yes, I'm old ok, ha ha.
Lou: What do you think, if anything, is missing from the Metal scene at the moment?
Randy Weitzel: I'd like to see more old-school pits. Go to a Testament show and you will see what I'm talking about. Cut the shit, get in the pit and get knocked on your ass.
Lou: I record a weekly podcast and I was wondering if it would be ok to feature a Flatline track on one? If so, which track?
Randy Weitzel: We released Generations Fall as our single and but dude, it's metal. Any track is cool with us!
Lou: I really like the video for "Generations Fall" (in fact, it was one of the reasons I bought the album - I just kept playing it over and over! Ha-ha!). Do you have any plans to make any other videos?
Randy Weitzel: Cool, thanks!!! We want to do another video but we are putting all our efforts towards touring right now. The album just came out in stores like Best Buy so we have to get out there and jam.
Lou: Other than "Pave The Way", do you have any other albums or EPs available? If so, how can we get our hands on them?
Randy Weitzel: I think if you Google "Flatline metal" you can find some older stuff. We released about three or four cds independently. I recommend it for die-hards.
Lou: What was the best thing to happen to Flatline in 2008?
Randy Weitzel: We got in bed with Stand and Deliver Records, did a record with Logan Mader from Machine Head, shot a video, and toured with some great bands. Nothing to fuck with! It was a great year!
Lou: ...and what was the worst thing to happen to Flatline in 2008?
Randy Weitzel: Paulo got a blue T-shirt.
Lou: What do you think 2009 has in store for you? World domination, perhaps?
Randy Weitzel: HA ha, we are trying. Hopefully we will come to your city!! Keep hitting up our Myspace and look for tour dates for 2009. www.myspace.com/flatlinemetal
Lou: Thank you for your time! Stay Metal!
Randy Weitzel: METAL!