INTERVIEW: Beauty In Chaos

Please introduce us to Beauty In Chaos? Who are the core members of your project and what is your philosophy or collective approach?

For a fleeting moment, Beauty In Chaos was going to be a ‘solo’ record of mine. Thankfully it was meant to be something different and more, so much more. I feel that Michael Rozon and I have created an ever evolving and revolving collective. Something, at least to me defines and in a way, redefines musical ‘boundaries’. What I mean by that is that we have somehow managed to create an entity with BIC that allows members of The Cure, The Mission, Cheap Trick, Van Halen and Ice T to exist cohesively. As far as our approach, which seems to thankfully continue to work, is that Michael and I create the music and I have been somehow blessed with the ability to match our soundscapes with the perfect singer to create the song. Each singer has put their heart, soul and talents into where this music guides them. The melodies and lyrics are solely theirs. Whether by luck or by divine intervention, the collaborations work.

Vinyl or Digital? What is your own experience in this relation and how have your preferences influenced the way you release or consume music today?

Vinyl. Not even close. I always think of our ‘releases’ in this manner. Maybe it’s my age, but there is something special about holding that 12” plastic platter. The cover, the liner notes, the running order and the SOUND! There is simply no comparison with digital. There is something missing… the warmth, or the soul. I am fortunate that the little indie label, 33.3 Music, that releases our albums feels the same way. Personally, I enjoy thinking in this context. I toil over the running order, and always have the album’s title and cover in mind as we start our writing ‘process’. It’s no different as we are well aware of what comes next for BIC. I absolutely hate the phrase ‘consume’ associated with music: it just makes it sound even more ‘disposable’ than it is viewed today. Again, maybe an age thing, but most people have no idea what they have missed by simply clicking ‘buy’ as opposed to spending hours in a real record store. I’ll use this platform that you are providing me with to ask any listener that is gracious enough to purchase one of our albums to please listen to it uninterrupted ONCE, top to bottom. I know in the craziness of today’s world that is a big ask, but I am asking.

Michael Rozon is named as the producer for all your releases. Tell us about Mr. Rozon and your relationship.

Michael is so much more to BIC than just the producer. He is my partner in this chaos! My now wife, and also BIC alumni, Tish made the introduction after seeing an ad Michael had on a telephone pole (yeah it was that long ago!) looking for a guitarist. I joined his band, Drain The Doves. We have stayed great friends since. He is an incredible musician and producer. It was really his prodding that pushed me to start Beauty In Chaos. I sometimes wonder if he regrets that!! I was working with my old bandmates Human Drama on their album “Broken Songs For Broken People” and Michael was graciously recording my guitars in our SAINTinLA studio. I guess I was a tad frustrated musically, and I guess Michael picked up on it and said “why don’t you just do your own thing?”. It was easy to say ‘yes’, then the reality of actually doing it hit me. It was his encouragement and patience that helped start this BIC snowball. I think we were both inspired and encouraged by having Al Jourgensen (Ministry) and Robin Zander (Cheap Trick) in our little studio shortly after we began recording. We both felt we had started something special. Michael and I have such a great time in the studio. Music should always be fun. That said, he makes me better and pushes me to be even better… when I doubt I can honestly say I would not do BIC without him.

I would like to add here that I was probably harsher about my musical differences with the direction of the Human Drama album in earlier interviews. While it was the genesis of why BIC was born, I am really proud of that record and my contribution. It did make me a better guitarist and many of those ‘think more David Gilmour’ comments resonate with me in Beauty In Chaos.

Would you say that living in LA has influenced the music you create?

Other than meeting the amazingly talented artists that have become part of our BIC Family, Los Angeles is not even in the same stratosphere of influence as my hometown of New Orleans. I’ve watched LA chase every music trend in seeking ‘fame and fortune’ possible. When I was more active in the live music scene, you would see a hair metal band, seemingly overnight trade the AquaNet and leather for flannel and become ‘grunge’. Rinse and repeat, chasing every perceived trend. All bullshit, no substance.

Please tell us about your latest single with Julian Shah-Tayler and your colorful video.

I was introduced to Julian by a mutual friend, guitarist Mark Gemini Thwaite (guitarist of Peter Murphy and The Mission). Julian did four really fantastic re-mixes for us, His talent and creativity was obvious to me and we started talking about working together on a song. The music started from a bashing guitar riff that Michael and I crafted into something that was a bit different for us. Julian loved the track and turned it into the ‘ear-worm’ song that it is. Such a catchy chorus, but still with the underlying elements that run thru all BIC songs. Not that guitar solos are at all important in BIC world, but this is certainly one I am proud of! As for the video, we always strive to make each one as different from its predecessor as possible. The predecessor to “Kiss Me” was our rendition of the Concrete Blonde classic “Bloodletting”. This one has a campy B-movie horror vibe, that I actually wrote a mini script for. So for the new video, I really just wanted to go in, basically with no plan and just have fun and see what happened. We found a cool location that had multiple small sets that caught my eye and we just started filming. The look and lights really set a vibe and Julian did a fantastic job being out front of this one!

Would you say you have a musical family? If so, how so?

Honestly not at all. My older sister, Kathy (RIP) was a huge Beatle’s fan, but she was already married and out the house when I hit my early teens. It was the little TV we had in our kitchen that introduced me to music. Those great old late night music shows exposed me to Bowie, T. Rex, Slade, Kiss, NY Dolls and Alice Cooper. My world shifted away from wanting to be a football player (though I still LOVE my New Orleans Saints) to buying a cheap electric guitar. I quickly realised that girls paid way more attention to guitarists more than jocks! Thus my path was clear….

I see you’re President of Schecter Guitars. How do you find balance between your day job and your music career?

It was certainly nothing I ever thought I would be doing. I wanted to be the guy on stage in front of thousands, but I again believe things happen for a reason and I am where I am supposed to be. I do love guitars and working with great bands. It is creative but it is also a job. I do feel the pressure of keeping 50+ employees, who are family to me, employed in today’s world. I work easily 45-50 hours per week and then after work, I go straight into our studio for another 7-8 hours of Beauty In Chaos. I guess it can be tiring, but I don’t really notice it, especially when I leave the studio in the wee hours of the morning on a real ‘high’ from what we just created. Schecter has certainly allowed me to provide for my family, provide me with all the great instruments I could need… and puts me in a position to meet many of the artists that have become friends and part of the BIC family. I am indeed Blessed.

Things can be difficult for indie artists. How important is it for an artist nowadays to have a good manager, publisher or publicist?

The available technology today certainly makes it ‘easier’ to create music and decimate via social media. While I am no fan, it is unfortunately a necessary evil. It seems to be the main way people learn of new music. BIC does not have a manager or publisher… but we have used the same publicist, Shameless Promotion PR, since our 2018 premiere. I think they have done an admirable job in putting our small, basically self-financed collective in front of and in the ears of those most likely to listen and enjoy what we do.

Which artists, who are actively making music today, do you find inspiring or just recommended listening?

Again it’s probably the age thing, but I still love the music I grew up with. I, like many others are anxiously awaiting the new Cure album. I saw them five times on the recent tour and the new songs are just what I want a new Cure album to be. As far as recommendations… I always strongly suggest that every one go down the rabbit hole on artists that are featured on BIC songs. Ashton Nyte, Holy Wars, Whitney Tai, Cinthya Hussey, Kirlian Camera and more. There is certainly a reason I’ve entrusted the music Michael and I create and are so close to… to be put in their very creative hands. I do love the most recent Psychedelic Furs and Slowdive albums.

What are you planning for Beauty In Chaos in the near future / over the next year?

We are well into writing what will be our fourth studio album. Currently we have four tracks in the hands of singers, and two of them are now actual songs that I am extremely proud of. While my impatient nature would love to say we can complete it before the end of the year, with Michael working again with Ministry, our studio time will be a bit limited, so, more realistic, it will be out in the beginning months of 2024. I had toyed with the idea of how the current way of the music world is to release a string of singles. While this probably fits more with many listeners short attention span, it just doesn’t feel right to me. We experimented with this a bit by releasing “Kiss Me (Goodbye)” as a stand-alone song, but I guess I am old school (or just old!) and prefer to think in the bigger context of an album.

Listen to Behind the Veil below