For most of us, a trip to the Hi-Fi results in a cup of coffee and maybe a sandwich, but last year, members of the local, hard rock band The Buzzhorn went to the Bay View café and were served up the offer of a lifetime. It came from John Rubeli, a representative from Atlantic Records, who caught the band's October 2000 show at The Globe and later asked the four musicians to lunch, where -- before the cook could yell "order up!" -- he offered them a tasty record deal with his lucrative label.
"We felt comfortable with him (Rubeli) right away," says bassist Todd Joseph. "He really understood what our music was about and what the lyrics were about, so we signed with him."
Sizzling with emotional and sexual energy, The Buzzhorn melts hard rock's past, present and future into one blistering sound. The band has an Alice-in-Chains-meets-Soundgarden flavor (with many signature ingredients) and are about to nab national attention with their new album, "Disconnected."
After two self-released albums, the band will release their first album on Atlantic Records, produced by P.O.D. and Motorhead producer Howard Benson. Their first single, "Ordinary," has already received major radio play.
Since the band was signed to Atlantic, everything has changed dramatically for drummer Rob Bueno, guitarist Bert Zweber, vocalist Ryan Muller and Joseph. "We were those kids in the crowd wanting to be 'up there' and so we worked 14 years to get there," says Joseph. "It's been great. I don't have a complaint in the world."
Once the album is in stores, the band will start touring, headlining smaller venues and opening for heavies like Our Lady Peace and possibly P.O.D., Filter and Kid Rock. "We can't wait to hit the road and hopefully never come home," says Joseph, half seriously and half jokingly. "But we love Milwaukee. It's so genuine."
OMC: The Buzzhorn has been described as "classic American metal?' Are you comfortable with this label?
Todd Joseph: I'm okay with that, but really, we're just a hard rock band. We go from light acoustic to full-blown heavy.
OMC: OK, I'll get the classic band interview question out of the way: Who were your influences?
TJ: Ozzy, Alice in Chains, The Doors... Individual players don't really influence me, rather bands and songs. Some people go through therapy, but the bands that bring their pain and experiences to their songs are the ones that really influence me.
OMC: Does everyone in the band still live in Milwaukee? Do you think you'll move?
TJ: We all live within three miles of each other. I live on the South Side, and Ryan, Bert and Rob live in Bay View. This won't change. We're used to blue collar people. We like it here.
OMC: Where did you go to High School?
TJ: I went to The High School of the Arts at West Division where I studied jazz.
OMC: So how was the Summerfest gig?
TJ: It was amazing. The past two years we opened (at Summerfest) for Monster Magnet and Def Tones, so our own show was a long time coming. It was a great show and there's nothing like hearing your songs at 50,000 watts.
OMC: Did you have a lot of friends and family in the audience?
TJ: Oh yeah. They're my biggest supporters.
OMC: Do you have a girlfriend?
TJ: Yeah.
OMC: Is it difficult being on the road with a significant other?
TJ: It's not so bad yet. It's only hard if you don't trust yourself and if the other person isn't secure. But if you can trust each other and you're secure, it's all right.
OMC: Since we're getting personal here, all of The Buzzhorn's songs come from real places. Which songs came from your life?
TJ: "Out of my hands" and "Waste of a man." Actually a couple of us were going through similar things in relationships so we sat down together and wrote about what we were going through and what our significant others were going through.
OMC: Is that pretty common, that the whole band will sit down together and write stuff?
TJ: Absolutely. Everybody in the band writes on their own, and then we'll sit down together and swap words or do chord changes ... It doesn't matter if someone's written a complete song or a guitar riff, we still work on it together until it's comfortable.
OMC: What is your favorite line from one of your songs?
TJ: In the song "Ordinary" Ryan wrote this line "...cleans up right with your suit and tie but your money is no good around here" and I really like that line because it talks about being genuine. It's about being real, and not putting on a fake face for the sake of looking good. That's really important to us.
OMC: How was the recording process? How long did it take?
TJ: We went out to LA and did 2-1/2 weeks of pre-production. We started tracking, but then September 11th hit and that delayed things. We ended up in LA for a total of four months.
OMC: Did this frustrate you?
TJ: Yeah, we were all pretty frustrated, and then I sat outside and wrote a guitar riff. I showed it to the guys and Ryan put words to it, and together we wrote "Disconnected" and "Carry Me Home." You can see where our heads were ..."Disconnected" is more of an in-your-face blow to the industry and "Carry Me Home" is saying "let's get the hell out of here."
OMC: So two songs that are on the album were written in the middle of recording?
TJ: This is what happened: We went out to LA with over 30 songs, but when we sat down with Howard, it was immediately slashed to 11 or 12 songs. Howard said, "This is your job now (writing). That's all you do. When you're burned out, you write some more." And then he left for a few days, and by the time he came back, we had seven more songs. We later cut it down to 12, but both "Disconnected" and "Carry Me Home" stayed.
OMC: Considering how much you were writing immediately following September 11th, were any of these songs inspired by the event?
{INSERT_RELATED}TJ: No, we wanted to completely stay away from that.
OMC: Are you happy with the album?
TJ: Yes. Totally... We really hope people will sit down and listen to the whole thing from start to finish -- not just the songs on the radio -- and look at the artwork. There's a whole story in there.
The Buzzhorn will perform and sign CDs at Best Buy (76th and Greenfield) on Tues., Aug. 6. They will throw a record release party at The Rave on Fri., Aug. 9. Purchase a CD and get into The Rave show for free. For more information, go to www.buzzhorn.com
Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.
Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.
