Interview with Sevendust drummer Morgan Rose

Sevendust are back with an incredible new CD entitled, Cold Day Memory. Recently, drummer Morgan Rose took some time out of his touring schedule to speak with me about the disc and what the band has planned for 2010. Clint Lowery is back with the band after a three album hiatus from Sevendust. With Lowery back Sevendust is in top shape and Cold Day Memory is a monster record that fans will absolutely enjoy. I have been a Sevendust fan from the beginning and after spinning this a few times in my player, it has quickly become one of my favorite releases from the band. Check out Cold Day Memory; you will not be disappointed.

Hey Morgan how are you doing?
Morgan: I am doing alright.

Where are you guys at today?
Morgan: We are playing in Dallas tonight.

You guys are finishing a tour with Drowning Pool correct?
Morgan: Yeah. It was Drowning Pool. But they ended up jumping off the tour last week.

Does it feel good to be back on the road again?
Morgan: Yeah but it will be better when the record is out, you know? Right now we are just trying to get our legs back under us.

Now that your brand new CD Cold Day Memory is complete how do you feel about it? Are you satisfied with the outcome?
Morgan: Yeah. We are surprised at the way it came out. Going in we had a good feel about it and working with Johnny K was a good thing. We did everything that we could do for this record and we left no stone left unturned.

You mentioned Johnny K, a very well known well respected producer. How did you get in touch with him and what was it like working with him?
Morgan: I met him in Las Vegas a year ago. He is pretty well known and he has worked with bands that we were familiar with and it just seemed like a good match. It was tough working with him in the beginning because of his pace, but now that it is done we look forward to doing another record with him.

I have already listened to the disc, but what would you say fans could expect when they pick up a copy of Cold Day Memory?
Morgan: We went back to our roots a little bit and we used a lot of the things that we have learned over the last few years writing wise. This is a real Sevendust album. The heavy stuff is really heavy, the melodic stuff is real melodic and it is kind of what our plan was back when we put the band together. I think we have accomplished what we wanted to do.

Do you have any personal favorites on the CD?
Morgan: “The End Is Coming” is one of my favorites. I also really like “Here And Now”.

Lets go back to the studio for a second. How quick are you guys in the recording studio. Can you usually knock things out in a couple of takes or does it take you a while?
Morgan: We are usually pretty quick in the studio. Most of the time is spent getting tones. We spent about nine hours getting one guitar tone the first day that we went in there. Our stuff is more meticulous to get going and to get our sound, but once that is done the rest of the process is pretty quick.

Do you think about distinguishing performances and sounds from release to release?
Morgan: No it comes pretty naturally. Johnny had a lot to do with this one. We just try a bunch of things over and over. Like I said, with this one we spent a lot of time getting the guitar tones. We started out with two amps because we were trying to match them together and we went through about sixteen different configurations and finally ended up with the first two that we tried. It is usually just trial by fire with us.

You mentioned earlier that the heavy parts are heavier. What was the reason for this?
Morgan: I think the heavier stuff got heavier because this is Clint’s first record with us in a while. I know that I might be speaking off base here, but I know that we had the conversation that nobody wanted anybody to think that Clint was softening the band by being back in it. If anything, he brought heavy stuff back into the band. I think we were not even conscious of it and some of it just got really heavy.

Do you think the band is getting more respect now as opposed to 10 or 15 years ago?
Morgan: That is a tough question. When we first started, people were saying that we were the forefathers of a trend and we did not like that, because that trend was Nu-metal and we are not a Nu-Metal band. I think that maybe we will get some more respect now, after this record, because the original lineup is back in place.

How much roadwork do you plan on doing in 2010?
Morgan: A lot. There is going to be a ton of roadwork on this one.

Are the rigors of touring taking more of a toll on you as you get older?
Morgan: Absolutely. I am hurting already.

How do you maintain that level of energy and exuberance? You sound like you’re ready to go full bore every time you sit at the drums.
Morgan: When the lights go off the switch goes on. That is just the way that it is. I am hurting real bad right now but I know that tonight when the lights go out, that switch will go on.

How long have you been on this tour so far?
Morgan: Almost six weeks.

So you have been hitting it pretty hard already?
Morgan: This tour is a little longer than we wanted for the first one out. We wanted to be able to kind of warm ourselves into this but some people thought that it was real smart to kind of put us out there doing seven shows in eight days to begin with. I think we need a little bit of a warm up before we start doing that stuff.

Do you get a bit of a break a all before you head back out again?
Morgan: Yeah we will be off for like three weeks and that will be a good thing. My girlfriend and me just moved into a place in Atlanta and I have not even been there yet. It will be nice to get the world back on the right speed for a little bit.

In a hundred years from now what will the music history books say about Sevendust?
Morgan: They came, They saw. They didn’t conquer a whole lot but they had a great time doing it.

Any closing words Morgan?
Morgan: I am just excited about the new record and about getting out there. I hope people like the record… we have been sitting on it long enough and we are dying for it to get out.