Unwritten Law - an Interview with Rob Brewer

by Nikki Neil

Since their formation in the early ‘90’s the members of Unwritten Law have weathered their share of industry challenges. These encounters along with personal and spiritual conflicts have not only strengthened the bond between Scott Russo (vocals), Steve Morris (guitar), Rob Brewer (guitar), Pat Kim (bass), and Wade Youman (drums) but have enhanced their overall creative and musical output.

Unwritten Law’s experiences on the road and in the studio has resulted in a compelling chemistry that is evident in the band’s live performances and in their latest release Elva (Interscope). The album’s infectious blend of hard-edged power pop and hardcore punk has further escalated the San Diego based unit’s popularity. By taking their sound to new heights, Elva is set to make Unwritten Law a household name.

I hear you are in town for the ESPN Action Sports & Music Awards?

Yeah, we are at the Universal Amphitheater rehearsing for it right now.

Is it like most awards shows where you only get to play one song?

Yeah, we are going to play “Up All Night.”

Is Unwritten Law up for an award as well?

Not that I know of.

The band’s last album came out in ’98. It’s 2002 and you just released Elva. Why did it take so long to release a follow up?

It was just a matter of getting [the album] the way we wanted it to be. We finished recording it but there were things that we didn’t like that we had to go back and fix, so it took a lot more time than we expected. But, I like everyone to think that we were waiting for the boy bands to go away first.

I’ll buy that since “Seein’ Red” has made it on to TRL.

(Laughs)

What other song off the album would you like to make a video for?

I don’t know. What do you think the next single should be?

I really like “Mean Girl.” After I hear that song it’s stuck in my head all day long.

You’re the second person that has told me that today.

Elva is a lot more adventurous than the last album, what changed?

I think it has to do with the fact that the older you get the more diverse the music you listen to becomes. We just play music that we like. We didn’t intentionally change our sound, but that is just the way it came out. We didn’t go in with the intentions of writing the songs a certain way. We played what we like and that is how it came out.

I like the paintings on the outside of the CD sleeve. They are very dark. Who came up with the concept?

They are a series of (five) finger oil paints. We met a guy named Mark Baldwin in San Diego, and he painted them. We really liked them. He’s a good artist, and we’re really happy with the way [the paintings] came out.

So did Mark paint the pictures specifically for the cover of Elva?

Yeah.

In the band’s latest promo picture you all have black electrical tape over your eyes. Are you trying to send out a particular message?

(Laughs). No. People are always asking us about that. We did a big photo shoot and we did a variety of things with different looks and that just happened to be one of the better press photos. People tend to notice it because it stands out. But there was no intentional meaning behind it.

Did anyone lose any eyebrows or eyelashes in the process?

(Laughs) No. Do you remember that episode of Jackass where he takes all the hair off his body?

Oh yeah.

That was the funniest thing I have ever seen. He waxed his entire body and then he did his eyebrows last. He’s completely bald, except for his eyebrows. It was so funny.

It looked painful.

R: It looked horribly painful, but it was funny.

Before I forget, I wanted to tell you that I really enjoyed the show you guys put on at The Palace last month.

Thanks a lot. [That show] was a lot of fun.

Judging by the chemistry the band exhibited on stage it seems like you all get along fairly well.

We try.

Does the band spend a lot of time rehearsing?

Sometimes. We really only have the time to do it when we are at home. But, when we’ve been touring for a long time, sometimes, we just want to stay home and relax.

Fans all have their favorite song that they want to hear at a live show. What is your favorite song to perform on stage?

It’s hard to narrow it down to just one. I have so many. We have songs that we’ve played consistently that we haven’t played in the last few years, but they are our favorites. It’s fun to play those songs because we get such a good response from the crowd. But, then again, I like playing songs off the new album because they are fresh. It’s more exciting because I’ve only played them a few times. So, I have to say that I enjoying playing a lot of them live, as opposed to just one.

I heard that you had to cancel the show at St Andrew’s Hall in Detroit. What happened?

The floor almost collapsed while the first band was on stage. The place has three levels – a basement, the main floor, and an upstairs level. It’s an old building, and a lot of bands have played there over the years. A lot of people started jumping up and down all at once and it caused the floor supports underneath to break and the floor started to sag. We had to get everyone out of the building. We rescheduled the show. The important thing is that no one was hurt. It could have been really bad because there was another show going on in the basement. Several hundred people were down there, so you can imagine how disastrous it would have been if a thousand people fell through the floor on top of those other people.

That would have been a nightmare.

Yeah. We are just glad that someone caught it before it happened. We are going back to make up that show.

Unwritten Law has spent a lot of time on the road. Have you had any bad experiences?

Not lately. It’s been pretty smooth. The last couple of tours have been really good. No crazy stories to report. The St. Andrew’s show was probably the strangest occurrence on the whole tour.

What was your most memorable live show?

As far as favorites…that is a tough question to answer, but we have seen some weird stuff on the road. One night we were at a club in Mississippi – this was about 1995 – and the Circle Jerks were playing. Chuck Berry walked in from the street, had a drink at the bar, and then got up on stage and played “Roll Over Beethoven” with the Circle Jerks.

Now that’s cool. I used to listen to the Johnny B Goode album when I was about four years old.

It was pretty weird because the club was filled with these leather-clad punkers with mohawks and they were all watching Chuck Berry play with the Circle Jerks. It just doesn’t seem like something you’d see everyday, especially back in 1995. That was probably the weirdest thing I have seen on the road.

Is there one band that you would just like to get up on stage and jam with?

There’s probably a million. I can’t think of just one at the moment.

Have you run into any good unsigned or indie artist on the road?

There’s been a lot, but I can’t think of any names off the top of my head. There is an unsigned band called Death On Wednesday, which a friend of ours is in, and they are a good band. They just put out their first album and if you haven’t heard them you should check them out.

Is there one thing that you can’t tour without?

Playstation 2. Right now we are all into “Tiger Woods 2002”. I just got the new “Sean Palmer Snowboard” game. I can’t wait to check it out.

What about “Grand Theft Auto III”?

That game is so awesome. There’s a new one out, I forgot what it is called, where you go around and cause riots. You run around and loot stores and cause riots. It’s similar to Grand Theft Auto but without the cars. That game is next on my list to get.

State of Emergency?

Yeah, that’s it.

Any big plans for the summer?

We’ll be going to Europe this summer. We’re still putting together things as we go.

You’ve been playing music for at least ten years now. Has this experience changed you in any way?

I’ve learned a lot. I don’t really know if it has changed my personality, but the longer you do anything the better you get at it. You learn a lot. We’ve had a chance to learn a lot of things in the last few years… studio wise, song wise, band wise, people wise. We have learned a lot, and we’re more enlightened on the way things are.

Are you still having fun?

Absolutely. If we weren’t I don’t think we’d be here.

If you could accomplish one thing while in Unwritten Law what would it be?

I probably already have expectation wise. There are so many things that I want to accomplish. I guess I just want to use the band as a means to do positive things for other people, or for music, or for other bands. I’m learning a lot by doing this and going through all this stuff and, hopefully, maybe one day I can help other people do the same.

What do you want Unwritten Law to be remembered for?

I’d like us to be remembered as a good, high-energy, good time, live band. If our music was meaningful to anybody at any point in their life we have fulfilled our goal.

For more on Unwritten Law visit www.unwrittenlaw.com