With Hed PE and Dope tearing up live music venues night after night on their current tour, there’s someone else on the scene who’s bringing along the carnage and mayhem with them. We got to talk to Lydia Can’t Breathe, and we learned that Kyle Bolduc (Vocals, Guitar) Dan Wilson (Guitar) Josh Runfeldt (Drums) Shawn Gorree (bass), know how to geek out with their love of films, and how to rock out, as they currently are, with two heavyweights in the new metal scene.
If we didn’t have that eventful night and watch Beetle Juice when we came up with our name, we probably would have been called “Something Great”, or “Indestructible Fetus”, “Something Else Cocky”, or maybe “Free Beer”. We had a bunch of weird names we had thought of but Lydia Can’t Breathe just fit best being based on a movie.
What was it like when you were told you were supporting Dope and Hed PE on tour, and how did it start?
We were stoked when we got the offer from our agent Daniel Hillman. He set it up with Dope’s management in July. Once we locked it in, we were eager to get on the road with Dope and Hed PE and share the stage with such seasoned musicians.
Have Dope or Hed PE been influences on your music style, and if so how surreal is it to be on tour with them?
We have definitely listened to both Dope and Hed PE before and have some influence from both band’s contribution to the scene. We own a couple of their records, and they are in a group of many bands that have inspired us to play the genres we play. It’s pretty awesome to share the stage with these bands after growing up listening to them!
Have there currently been any memorable/Spinal Tap moments on tour? If so, what are they?
We all ate a bunch of pot brownies the first night of tour and we were super sluggish and somewhat tripping. I almost left my life in Peoria, IL and one member of our crew couldn’t even talk to people he was so high. He slept 15 hours after that night!
WHOAH! For anyone who’ll be seeing you on tour for the first time, what can they expect to see from Lydia Can’t Breathe?
If you have never seen us live, you won’t know what to expect! We play multiple genres, as well as change our theme and costumes for every tour to fit a different movie, video game, or TV show characters. We aim to be unique and still keep a technical edge in our music and stage show.
You have several sponsors. Regarding their sponsorship, did you use those brands previously? What is it about those brands that assist with your sound or performance?
Some of our sponsors that have helped us along the way we endorsed well before earning a sponsorship with them. The sponsorships have helped assist us in improving our performance and really helped our band mates cut down on gear cost. Soultone cymbals helps Josh a lot by cutting down on his cost to tour because cymbals are not cheap when they break! Plus, Soultone has always been one of his favorite brands of cymbals to use prior to earning a sponsorship. Another example, SIT strings gives our guitarists strings that helps cut down on how many packs we go through in the end saving money. The strings they provide are better than what we could buy at the same price, they are better quality than the other brands we used to use. We also get cases from Crown Cases that protect all of our gear. We originally bought a few of their cases, then asked the guy if he wanted to sponsor us. All of our sponsors have helped us financially and added to the quality of our sound.
How much of an impact has acquiring sponsors been on your current touring?
Our sponsors have made it possible to pay for gas on tour, as well as have new and more reliable gear.
The band has been described as something you cannot pigeon hole genre wise. How hard is it to be diverse musically to appeal to a larger fan base?
We are very different than most bands in our genre. Sometimes it helps because we can pick a set to fit the headliner’s sound. Sometimes people are closed-minded and don’t like you playing reggae and then heavy metal in the same song. Honestly, those aren’t the people we care about, because we know enough people appreciate what we have to offer. We play music because we love all music and like the way it makes us feel. We can’t control who likes it or doesn’t.
You currently have two studio albums under your belt, At The Bottom Of The Podum Stole and, as of October 2013, Time. As a band, could you see any progression musically between the two albums?
Yes, as a band we grew tremendously in between our first and second album. We are better musicians and know how to properly structure songs and solos. In the first album we were learning that during the writing process. With the third album, it’s going to be even better as we have a few songs written that are more structured with heavier tones than Time.
“Enemies of the Night” and “Time” were made into videos. What were the choices into making them into music videos, and what track off the album would you pick to turn into a video?
We chose “Enemies of the Night” because it’s a crowd favorite and it’s about causing chaos. We thought it would be fun to make that into a video. “Time” is also a crowd favorite and the name of our latest album, so we chose that for the first single and video. We are in the works of making another video off of Time, then gearing up for the third LCB album. The next video is going to be fun, it’s still a secret, but we can promise you that it is a crowd favorite!
Enemies of the Night (Official Video)
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The music video for “Time” features a cartoon rendering of over 6,500 hand-drawn pencil and pen illustrations. Who made the decision to use that as a video, and how challenging was it to incorporate it into the final product?
As a band we love art, so we wanted to make a cartoon video. We met animator Sinel Cyril at a show and discussed our vision. He later decided he would like to do it in classic pen and ink drawings, to give it that old-school feel. We thought it was a great idea so we went with it. Then it took a year of meetings, working and planning to finally get the video to the screen. It is one of the most fun things we’ve pulled off as a band to date!
Lydia Can’t Breathe – Time (Official Video)
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On the bands website, it looks like you’ve gone for a Mortal Kombat theme, which is fun. Is it important these days for bands to have more of a fun looking image than the generic serious looking metal promo shots these days?
Yes, we are playing off the Mortal Kombat image right now. We pick different characters from movies and pop culture for every tour, so the fans get to see something different with each tour. We played off of the Anchorman characters last time. We always do a poster and change our media to fit the image of what characters we are playing. We also use sound clips from the movies and other theatrics that play off each theme.
What can we expect to see from Lydia Can’t Breathe in the future?
We are working on our third full length album right now and will keep you updated as it becomes more complete. Also, we will be on the road with new stage production and costumes for the winter season this year!
Thanks for showing support, we hope your readers find the interview interesting. We really appreciate you reaching out to us!
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by Connor Williams, RockRevolt Magazine Journalist
