Interview With Immune Guitarist/Vocalist Rob Shulze
March 18th, 2009 by Stephanie Stevens
IMMUNE may be based out of California but their singer/guitarist Rob Shulze came from my stomping ground in the East Coast specifically from Rhode Island. He has made waves with his band on the west coast with some dark melody driven guitar profound rock music. I’ve watched for years the progress of the band and now with a 3 song EP produced by Sylvia Massy and the talks of more to come in 2009 I thought it was time to sit Mr. Rob down and get the goods on his way of he became a full fledged musician and label talk and the IMMUNE phone number.
THE BAND CALLS LOS ANGELES HOME; BUT YOUR ALL FROM VERY DIFFERENT PLACES. HOW DID YOU ALL FIND EACH OTHER AND HOW LONG WERE YOU BANDLESS ONCE YOU GOT TO THE WEST COAST?
I (Rob) moved to LA with IMMUNE in July 2004. We had a different lineup then, obviously…I’m the only one left from that relocation.
In chronological order:
We added Johnny Skaare on drums in late 2004 after the departure of our previous drummer. Johnny and I have been friends since we were kids growing up together in the Seattle area. He initially agreed to help us out temporarily, but it worked out so well that he’s onboard for the duration now.
Joao Brandi (lead guitar) came onboard in mid 2006. He had responded to our posting on Craigslist; we got off to a rocky start (he is Brazilian, and his native language is Portuguese, so there was a bit of a language barrier at first – he even gave his name as “Percy Plant” at first, for some bizarre reason). But it quickly became apparent that he was a shredding guitarist and a great guy. He is a master of several instruments, particularly guitar and piano.
Drew Worsley (bass/backing vocals) joined up after we fired our bassist last April. Ironically, we had met Drew while he was working at a venue we were playing. It ended up being the same venue where the bassist Drew replaced played his last show with us!
ROB FROM READING YOUR BIO IT SEEMS THAT YOU HAVE A DIFFICULT PAST. WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO RESORT TO BEING A MUSICIAN AND WHAT WAS THE DEFYING MOMENT THAT BROUGHT YOU TO THAT DECISION?
I’m not sure I “resorted” to being a musician; I got my first guitar on the last day of 8th grade. My Mom admitted that she figured I’d play for 6 months or so, then just drop it. But I had a great first teacher, and it stuck! My “defining moment” took place at Berklee College of Music (I got halfway to my degree and dropped out – typical. I’ll finish, someday). Every student has to take a class called Ear Training. At the end of the semester, you go in one at a time to take the final. When it was my turn, the professor (who I’m still in touch with) sat me down and informed me that in all his years of teaching, he had never had a student accomplish what I had – I had not made a single mistake in class during the entire semester. He told me that I had been given a “gift”, and that it was up to me to make something of it. That was very inspiring.
IN YOUR SONGS HOW DOES YOUR SONG LYRICS DEPICT YOU AS A PERSON?
I don’t worry about how I might be depicting myself – I’m not always singing about myself, even if the song is written in first person. But, it would be understandable to be viewed as dark…intense…thought-provoking…unique…powerful. I’d like to think those adjectives describe me as a person!
YOU WORKED WITH SYLVIA MASSY. WORKING WITH A PRODUCER OF THIS STATURE WHAT DOES THAT DO TO A BANDS PERFORMANCE LEVEL? WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST THING YOU LEARNT FROM THIS EXPERIENCE?
Working with a producer like Sylvia was incredibly important and valuable. It teaches you how to work in the studio as a professional band…she taught us what goes into making a top notch recording, and what we have to do to make sure it is as great as it can be, and should be. The biggest lesson we learned is that a song is never truly finished until it has been properly recorded. And even then, it may change again. It never truly reaches the finish line until it appears on an album which is mass released. And you might still tweak things live after that happens!
HOW DOES THE BAND IMMUNE STAND OUT IN AN OVERPOPULATED CITY OF BANDS?
By working harder and smarter than everyone else whenever possible. We’ve been lucky enough to find some incredibly talented and wise mentors and friends, particularly Sylvia, along with Bryan Carlstrom (engineer/producer best known for his work with Dave Jerden on records by Alice in Chains and Offspring) and Rob Figarola from Restless Management. They help us understand what we need to do musically and on the promotional and business side of things to succeed, and we have a great work ethic within the band, so it works out well.
YOU HAVE ALL WORKED VERY INTERESTING JOBS. WHAT HAS BEEN THE WORST JOB YOU EVER HAD TO DO TO MAKE ENDS MEET FOR THIS BAND?
Oh, man. That’s a loaded question. Johnny did some time at Burger King. I spent some time working in a factory. I’m sure Drew and Joao have had some nightmarish jobs, as well.
HAVE YOU HAD ANY INTEREST IN LABELS? WHAT DOES A BAND AT YOUR LEVEL LOOK FOR IN A LABEL? WHAT WOULD BE YOUR DREAM LABEL?
We have had some inquiries from labels. We’re in an interesting spot – we play the kind of music which requires radio promotion and support. However, those costs a LOT of money, and the only labels that have it are major labels, along with a few of the larger Indies. And those labels tend to be the pickiest and the hardest to sign with. Our dream label? Hard to say. The one which understands who we are and would be the best at helping us get where we want to be.
IF YOU COULD WORK WITH ANY ARTISTS ON A SONG TOGETHER WHO WOULD IT BE WITH AND WHY?
I’d enjoy working with the guys from Avenged Sevenfold. I’m sure each of us would have a different answer…maybe Slash…Jimmy Page…Jerry Cantrell.
WHATS THE DEAL WITH THE PHONE NUMBER YOU HAVE UP ON YOUR MYSPACE? AND HOW MUCH DOES YOUR FANS INFLEUNCE YOUR MUSIC AND THE PUSH TO KEEP DOING THIS EVERY DAY?
Ah yes, our phone number! That’s something Rob Figarola taught us about. It’s through a company called Saynow. They assigned us a number, and ANYONE can call, leave a message, or listen to our messages and announcements. We can leave messages which go out to all of the fans who subscribe…they can range from show announcements to fun, random things. It’s a really cool, innovative way to reach out to fans and stay in touch with them in a personal way. We’re at (818)748-9080, by the way!
THE VIDEO FOR I’D RATHER DIE LOOKS REALLY PROFESSIONAL WHO DIRECTED IT AND DO YOU FEEL VIDEOS IN THIS DAY N AGE ARE NEEDED TO PROMOTE YOUR BAND?
That was directed by Stefan Glidden, a very talented director and close friend of ours. He invested a ton of his own time and energy, and it came out GREAT! We’re on YouTube, either on Blank TV or on our own channel, ImmuneCA. A video these days serves a different purpose than it used to back in the glory days of MTV. Now, it can be much more low fi or “unofficial”, and people love being able to upload, embed, and watch clips anywhere, anytime. YouTube is a monster, and has replaced MTV as the place people go to watch music videos.
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