Socialburn

by Mark Sergi

RAD recently had a chance to speak with the members of the rapidly emerging band of Socialburn who were in the middle of their tour with Seether. Since Socialburns formation about four years ago the band has become a staple in the Florida Panhandle scene that is seemingly a breeding ground for talent. Socialburn's rhythmic assault on the auditory system comprises elements of both alternative and hard rock. The bands hit debut single off their Where You Are album, Down, has been on Billboard's top 20 modern rock chart for over 14 weeks.

The members of Socialburn include: Brandon Bittner (Drums), Chris Cobb (guitarist), Dusty Price (Bass), and Neil Alday (guitar/vocals). Below they discuss their modest beginnings as well as their journey to become a successful band. They also talk about the message board which appears on their website, and touch on many other areas.

RAD: So, how has the tour been going?
Brandon: It's been great. Neil's a little sick right now but other than that it has been awesome.
Neil: Yeah, I have been sick for a couple of days, I don’t know what I have.
RAD: Ok, well you’re from the small community of Blountstown, Florida. What was it like growing up there?
Brandon: It was pretty small. It had two stop lights. But it’s a really good place to grow up. It has its negatives and positives. I guess its negative was that everyone knew each other.
Dusty: It was alright but it was easy to get into trouble, because someone would always ‘rat’ you out if you did something you weren’t supposed to. It was kind of cliquish.
Brandon: The positives are endless. Everybody helps everybody.
RAD: How did you all meet and how did the band come about?
Brandon: About four years ago. Neil and I got together and we jammed one night. He was on an acoustic guitar and I played the drums. Then we recruited Dusty, because he was the only bass player in town plus he is a wild and crazy guy. About a year and half went by, and we made a cheap CD and passed it out. Then we recruited Chris, because we needed another guitar and he was someone that we liked. Before he was in the group he would sometimes play the guitar behind our music and we noticed that it sounded really good in there.
RAD: What are the age differences between you?
Chris: I am the oldest; then Neil; then Brandon; then Dusty; right in row.
Dusty: I was the only one, who wasn’t homecoming king. I am a loser.
RAD: Chris, what did you do while these guys were still in high school?.
Dusty: Yeah, dropout what did you do?
Chris: I was going to college, and I played baseball for a semester.
RAD: Do you all still reside in Blountstown?
Chris: I recently moved to Tallahassee, but they still live there.
RAD: What does socialburn mean or represent?
Neil: The meaning behind socialburn is that it is like a sun burn. But I don’t know it’s just the name I made up
RAD: What influences your lyric writing?
Neil: I don’t really know. The songs just come to me. They stem from personal experiences.
Brandon: It comes from the spirit world.
RAD: How did you get hooked up with John Kurzweg?
Dusty: We met him probably about a year after we hooked up with Chris.
Brandon: Well, actually it was a little bit before we hooked up with Chris. We played a construction party, where we played three songs and passed our CD out. Somebody got a hold of it and gave it to Susan Blackburn. Then she gave it to our manager’s wife who gave it to our manager. He finally listened to it, and thought that it had potential. Then we showcased for John Kurzweg and his wife. And he offered us a production deal.
RAD: Why did you sign with Elektra?
Brandon: They came and saw us, because we were showcasing for a lot of record labels at the time. Some of it stemmed from Kurzweg being involved. Actually in the early days they were interested.
Neil: Elektra actually never came and saw us. All the other labels were hungry about it, because Elektra was interested in us. They were really there from the start.
RAD: What are your plans for the remainder of 2003?
Brandon: Tour, Tour, Tour.
Chris: Right now we are set-up till about mid-April, and dates keep filling up. I don’t know beyond that, this is the first time I have done this.
RAD: Have you guys ever read the message board on your website?
Neil: (cough, cough, cough)
Chris: Uh huh
Brandon: Yeah, I have.
RAD: Well, I found a question off of there that sounded pretty interesting. At the end off your song “Pretend”, who says “The bass drum is busted”?
Brandon: That was actually done during a recording for a different song called “Utopia”. I guess it just sounded better at the end of “Pretend”. The front end of the kick drum was broken, and Dusty said, “The bass drum is busted.” It just sounded so funny the way he said it. But Kurzweg had recorded him saying that, and ever time I drummed “Utopia” on the CD that would come on and make us laugh the whole time. There are a lot of little personal things on the CD that is just us messing around on the CD.
Neil: You know I have never even hear that on the CD before.
RAD: Well, that’s pretty much it. Thank you guys for your time and I wish you the best of luck.
Dusty: Can I ask you a favor. Ah… never mind.
RAD: What is it?
Dusty: Well, I am really hungry. Do you think you could take me to Subway?
RAD: Sure, no problem.