On March 20th, Into Eternity played at B.B. Kings in New York City with Beyond the Embrace and Amorphis. The boys had been on the road for nearly a month straight and almost every member is sick or on the verge of it. Still, they managed to put on a powerful, energized performance, pumping up the fans who came to see them and drawing the unsuspecting into the fold. After their set, and turn at the merchandise table, Rob Doherty joined us upstairs at Lucille’s restaurant for a chat and a beer, for us, strictly orange juice for him (given health situation).


2005 Touring:
AMBR: So who is the healthiest person in the band right now?
ROB: The healthiest person in the band right now is Troy (Bleich - bass player).
AMBR: I’ve been looking at your tour schedule on the site, and there’s like 33 or 35 or more shows in a row with only a few days off, how the hell do you do that and keep up the energy?
ROB: It’s not the playing that gets you, it’s the traveling and the driving and not sleeping properly. We’ve had probably five or six hotel rooms on the whole trip so far and we saved it to the end. The first week and a half to two weeks of the tour we stayed in the van.
AMBR: You sleep in the van?
ROB: Yea, we drive 'til we get exhausted then pull over at a rest stop and put the chairs back and sleep. It’s a pretty nice van. It’s got captains chairs and we just tilt the chairs back and we’ve got a bed in the back so it fits two comfortably and the rest of us just sort of …one guy will just sprawl across the seat and the front two seats go back.
AMBR: So do you have a lottery, who gets the bed?
ROB: (laughs) Yea, we just draw straws.
AMBR: Not a lot of partying right?
ROB: Honestly, there’s been no partying on this tour. There’s been no time. We finish the show, pack up, maybe have a couple of beers at the venue and hit the road. That’s it.
DAVE: And it ain’t gonna stop anytime soon! I looked at your schedule, you have like two months off this year. That’s it, right?
ROB: Yea it’s busy, it’s crazy. It’s gonna be like the band’s busiest year yet.
DAVE: Yea, their great tours, but look hard with little break.
ROB: Yea, the first two are really hard. This one’s really hard and the next one’s gonna be really hard.
AMBR: The next one’s with Hate Eternal?
ROB: Yea, and the one after that is with Stratovarious in September. We’re actually driving to ProgPower to hang out and watch than…
DAVE: Oh, you’re going to be at ProgPower?
ROB: Yea, yea!
AMBR: That’s great you’re going to be there even if you’re not playing.
ROB: Yea, we’re driving down there, so we’re going to watch Strato at ProgPower when we’re down there and then we’re going to pick up on the tour and take off from there.
DAVE: Well this thing with the Strato tour, that’s key, that will introduce you to another audience.
ROB: Yea it’s gonna open things up. I think there’ll be bigger venues, I hear there’s possibly, like 2000 seaters and we were talking to the promoter in Montreal and he was talking about the tour and he said right now, I think, there was 500 presales, so he says it’s going to be huge.
AMBR: What do you think the market is like for metal in Canada?
ROB: The east coast is killer. Toronto is pretty good, and Montreal has a really great scene. Where we are, in the midwest is pretty decent too. We have a really good local band following. People come out and support the metal shows. Anyone that comes through the east or the west or where ever, the people come out.
AMBR: Are there any other bands that you can relate to; that are in your genre and might be breaking out?
ROB: There’s a couple of bands from out west like Three Inches of Blood. They’re on Road Runner and they’re doing extremely well for themselves. And also Strapping Young Lads and bands like that.
AMBR: Yea, we saw them in New Jersey.
ROB: Yea, if we can get out a playing and touring like these guys are, then we’re going to be pretty happy.
 

2004 Touring:
AMBR: I just can’t believe how much you’ve been able to tour for this album. It came out when in 2004?
ROB: February, I think it came out. It took a lot longer to actually get the tours happening then we expected. We wanted to be out on the road touring a lot sooner. People were writing us and saying, “Where the hell are you guys? Why don’t you get out to the stage?” But we ended up going to Europe a few times and worked the album out over there, playing some festivals in the summer, we did Rock Hard Festival in Gelsenkirchen, Germany (see side photo).  It was beautiful. When we walked on stage at the Rock Hard and it was my first time in Europe and, I mean, literally when we walked on the fans just went nuts and everyone was screaming and the hair just stood up on your arms. They’re right into the metal. The first thing we saw when we came in was Destruction. It’s the middle of the day and they’re were really ripping it up and there was a whole smoke show and lights and it was like two in the afternoon and we were like, “Yea, we’re here! This is great!” And God’s of Metal, we played with Judas Priests, which was like a dream come true, it was kind weird too, because, my first concert ever was Twisted Sister when I was 14-years-old, with Iron Maiden on the World Slavery Tour, so we were coming back to our hotel from the God’s of Metal and who was on the bus but Twisted Sister! It was awesome! So 20 years later, I’m a musician, not just a fan, well, still a fan! but I’m not a kid. So it was amazing. They were totally cool really nice guys.
DAVE: So are you guys writing as your touring?
ROB: Oh yea, we’re working the new album. We have about 7 songs in the works now, very progressive, very heavy, and with still lots of melody but with death vocals.
 

New Vocalist:
AMBR: We just heard Stu (Block - vocalist, see side photo) for the first time tonight, and were very impressed.
ROB: Awesome!
AMBR: He definitely has a very different style than you had before. Different than Chris (Krall) and then Dean (Sternberg).
ROB: Yea Dean filled in for the European tour and helped us out.
AMBR: But you knew he wasn’t going to be a solid part?
ROB: We kind of left it up to him. We were open to him coming back and stuff but he couldn’t make it out for this tour and stuff and so we decided we better find someone that is going to tour and get working on the new album.
AMBR: So, how did you find Stu?
ROB: Actually when we were touring in Europe, Tim (Roth) and I were talking about maybe getting some other guys to come out, just because we didn’t feel… it was nothing against Dean, he did a great job, but we didn’t feel, he was maybe the piece of the puzzle we were looking for, so we decided, maybe we better audition a few other guys and Tim had been talking to Stu all along and we heard some of his stuff and he came out to Regina (Canada) for the audition. We had originally asked Dean to come on the tour at this stage and he couldn’t do it and we thought well we’d get an addition on the go, and Stu, he came down.
DAVE: Well, he’s got a cool stage presence, great vocals with real good range.
AMBR: When I saw him, I thought he had a leonine approach. He stalked the stage and practically attacked the audience.
ROB: Yea, that’s what we wanted.
AMBR: What a great rapport and out of no where he hits those high pitched vocals. That I totally didn’t expect. It’s a sound that Into Eternity didn’t have before. How does that work with you guys?
ROB: It’s excellent because he brings like a Rob Halford style. That is kind of something that’s new. And that’s something that we want to do, to branch out and have some fresh ideas and give the new albums some fresh input. He’s going to do it for sure.
AMBR: Well, I spoke to him early to give him my compliments and he said “You’re too kind, we’re all hurting and I didn’t feel I was at my best.” and I said “But this is the first time I’ve ever heard you, and I was impressed with that added FORCE you gave to Into Eternity that I had not heard before.” Then I went to the ladies room after the set, and there were four women in there and three were saying, “Oh my God, that’s the best thing I’ve ever heard!” and one said, “But what was with that 80’s vocalist?” and the others were like, “Oh, shut up! He was so fucking awesome!” So I guess that’s what you’ll get, a lesser percentage that won’t like his style and then you get the others who think it’s awesome.
ROB: Yea, you can’t please everyone, we find that, so we just say as long as we’re happy with him and everyone’s clicking and everyone want to tour and write and be 100% involved with the band, then that’s where it happens.
 

Video/DVD Plans:
DAVE: You have all this recorded stuff with the festivals and ProgPower, any idea of doing a DVD?
ROB: Yea, actually, I’ve been bringing the video camera out on the road and we’ve taken a bunch of footage. We’re definitely thinking about it and we’re keeping everything we do and we’re going to compile all the best.
DAVE: That would be awesome!
ROB: We had a video we shot for “Spiraling into Depression” and we did have it all ready to go and it was ready to be released and with the line up changes and everything that happened we watched the video and we weren’t really 100% sold on the whole theme and everything. We tried to make a few changes but it never came out the way we wanted it. With the line-up changes and the ex-members in the video, we thought that maybe we’re just better not releasing it right now and maybe do another one down the road.
DAVE: Well, now DVDs are really becoming the thing.
ROB Yea it seems to be the thing with everyone putting out cd’s with a DVD or something like that or bonus DVD’s or something.
AMBR: Yea, you throw that video clip on the cd and that’s what everyone wants. You know about the downloading problem, but if you throw that extra DVD on and the extra photos and stuff it makes people want to buy the original. I don’t think downloading is that much of a problem, it makes people learn to love something than they want to buy everything.
ROB: Yea, we were just talking about that, we talked about a lot of that stuff with the band, obviously, driving for 18 hours at a time. We had a good conversation about that and, you know, we don’t find that downloading is really a problem for our band, especially a band of our status because if people like it and they listen to it, they’re going to buy the album.
DAVE: Damn straight, you gotta have the real deal.
ROB: So if we can get it out on the internet and people listen to it and they like the music, as a fan, you want to have the lyrics, you want to have the cover and all that.
AMBR: Absolutely, you can go find the lyrics on the web, and their not exactly right; you can go download the music and it’s not exactly right, but if you love the band, you go out and get it, and if they’ve got those DVD clips, the videos, you’re definitely going for it.

 

Latest CD:
AMBR: So, do you think you’ve seen some progress since the release of Buried in Oblivion, especially with all the touring you’ve been doing? Are you starting to see some progress in record sales?
ROB: Yea, we’re starting to sell some albums and the label’s really pushing us trying to get us out there.
AMBR: You’d be fucking great with Frank Sinatra. ( as a blast of Frank Sinatra from the restaurant’s sound system interrupts him. After much laughter he continues.)
ROB: We’re pretty happy with what Buried in Oblivion has done. Obviously we want to try and sell some more albums and for the next album we really want to turn it up and double what we’ve done now. We know that’s gonna mean a lot more hard work and getting out there and meeting people and just trying to get people involved in the band and in the music.
AMBR: So what do you think is your hardest market to crack right now?
ROB: That’s hard to say. We definitely think we can play with anyone. We can play with a death metal package. We can play with a prog metal package. We can mix it up and do both so I don’t know it’s hard to say. It would be nice to, without trying to sound like you wanna sell out, it would be nice to get some radio play so people could actually hear a lot more of the album, and there’s tunes on Buried in Oblivion that can get it. And we are getting satellite play, but it would be nice to get some rotation.
 

BeyondEarCandy shirt, Their Day Jobs, and Wrap-up:
DAVE: You’re probably tied, or maybe the number one band we’ve had the longest in heavy rotation on our internet radio station and it’s been amazing the feedback. People really get turned on to you.
ROB: Thanks a lot, that really helps out.
DAVE: We want you know, we’re using you as the model for our shirt on the website. It was really cool that you wore that for ProgPower Europe.
AMBR: We had friends send us photos they took. They were saying, “Hey, we saw you’re fuckin' shirt, man!”
ROB: Yea, it was great you gave me that, because I was out of clean shirts. I was like, “Great I have a clean shirt to wear!” (laughter)
DAVE: In today’s market you gotta be a band that can tour, you earned some new fans tonight.
AMBR: Yea at the end everyone’s going, “That’s it? We want more.”
DAVE: With the issues with the prior band members not being able to tour, it’s good you made the needed line-up changes so the band could get out there and keep touring.
ROB: Yea, because we didn’t want to be a band that was just making studio albums. I started playing guitar and writing music because I wanted to get out on the road and actually play the guitar, not just sit home.
AMBR: Which brings me to the question, you can’t possibly have, like, another job?
ROB: Yea, actually we all work day jobs.
AMBR: What do you guys do?
ROB: Well, I run a recording studio at home and Tim runs a cab company and Troy actually works two jobs, our bass player, he’s works at a bar and also a pawn shop.
AMBR: Well, I don’t know how the hell you do it and tour like you do?
ROB: We sort of set it up that way so we could leave when we had to tour. We could make enough money to pay two months worth of bills and hit the road in between.
AMBR: Yea, you don’t want to come back and find all your shit on the lawn. (laughter)
ROB: Yea, but our girlfriends and friends and everyone have been real supportive. If we need someone to watch the house for us or something they say, “Yea go for it.”
AMBR: Like feed your cat.
ROB: (laughs) Oh, yea, I’ve got a cat. You gotta have a cat. But my cat gives me shit when I get home. I’ve got a Persian Siamese cross that’s really outspoken.
(Suddenly the live entertainment at Lucille’s’ kicks in.)
ROB: Oh yea, here we go.
AMBR: Guess we’re done now! Thanks for everything.
DAVE: We hope you get well and we’ll see you in Atlanta!

Despite our best wishes, the band’s various ailments worsened over the next few days and Rob and Stu eventually sought treatment at a hospital in Springfield, Virginia. The decision was made to go home recover. But after a few weeks of rest, Into Eternity has hit the road again, playing dates in their home town of Regina, as well as a number of other Canadian dates including Calgary and Edmonton.  They will be touring throughout 2005, be sure to check them out!!!

More Into Eternity concert photos at B.B. King's, click here!

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Hear all the Into Eternity CD's on BeyondEarCandy radio!

Find out more about the band on their official web site

Thanks to Heather Smith of Century Media for arranging the interview!

Thanks Rob for the interview, we'll see you at ProgPower USA!