The sunlit rooftop of Red Bull Records is an oasis of calm above London’s West End. Hammer is sitting across from Caleb Shomo, the brains behind Columbus metalcore outfit Beartooth.
Instantly recognisable in a Barbie-pink bandana that’s become his trademark, the effusive frontman is brimming with positivity and gratitude when we put your questions to him, and rises to the occasion, relishing the opportunity to talk about his enduring love of AC/DC, being a David Draiman fanboy, having a sweet tooth and, yes, his extensive headwear collection.
Mint choc chip or vanilla ice cream?
Andrew’s Feeder, Facebook
“Mint chocolate chip goes real hard. You cannot sleep on it if we’re talking a scoop on a hot day. But you can do so much with vanilla. Last night I had a sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream and it was the best dessert of my life. Shout-out to sticky toffee pudding; that shit changed my entire existence. I slept real good. [Sighs] End of the day, I’m going vanilla.”
How many bandanas do you own?
Amy Wright, email
“A lot! So usually on tour, I always wear the same one onstage throughout. Then I have one back-up in that same colour. I usually carry two black ones that I’ve had for a really long time. Currently in my bag I have… [counts] six with me. You gotta be prepared. It’s become like, my cape. It’s my thing, a part of my ritual before I go onstage. It just makes me feel good. So I’ve always got to have some extra on deck.”
Hammer: Is part of your tour prep deciding what colour the bandana’s going to be?
“It goes with the album. The one I’m wearing today Oshie [Bichar, bass] got me as a gift, so this is one of my most special ones. I don’t wear it onstage. I wore this one in the Might Love Myself music video. They all mean something to me. I’ve given a few out in very special scenarios, but for the most part I keep them."
Did you get to hang out with David Draiman when you toured together?
Joe Slater, email
“We played a show with them a long time ago, early in Beartooth’s career, and I think he remembers this – I did not have a good show. When we started, I looked over to the left and David Draiman was sitting there. I get through the first chorus of the song, and I look over and he’s gone. And I remember being like… [exhales] ‘Oooh, I bombed.’
But this is why I respect him so much, because when he saw us on tour he said, ‘You’ve been training. You’ve put in the work.’ You know it’s not bullshit, you know? That, without a doubt, is one of the coolest moments of my career. So, shout-out to David Draiman. He’s one of the greatest frontmen in heavy music, ever.”
What’s the most rock’n’roll song in the world?
Eddie H, email
“Let There Be Rock by AC/DC. I mean, come on. It rules! AC/DC is one of the most rockin’ bands of all time. They’re my favourite rock’n’roll band and it’s a song specifically about rock’n’roll.”
Hammer: speaking of which… What’s the best AC/DC album to get into the band and why?
Steve T, email
“That’s such a tough question! I guess it depends on what you want to get out of it. The record that got me into the band was Back In Black. But I do think it’s worth starting earlier, in the Bon Scott era, so I would say Highway To Hell is the right answer. That record covers so much of the band; it’s still got a little bit of their earlier, very raw, wild sound, but it was right when they started to transition to a little more of a polished thing. And it’s still got Bon Scott on it, so you get the best of all worlds.”
Do you think you would you ever reunite with Attack Attack!?
Yaz, email
“In the state it was? Absolutely not. There’s a reason I left. There are certain aspects of it that I will always look fondly on, a lot of aspects that were pretty gnarly, but that shaped me into who I am today. I’ve learned to look at the good in it. It took a long time to do that. I will say, Johnny Franck, who was the guitarist and singer of Attack Attack!, is still a wonderful friend of mine who I love very much. Johnny, if you’re out there, let’s get together and see what could happen.”
Do you ever look back and think, ‘I could have saved myself a lot of time by hiring session musicians’?
Sophie Lynch, email
“Beartooth would not be what it is without me doing all of it. Honestly, I think it would make it a longer process if I had session musicians. But for me, doing it all is what’s fulfilling, getting to explore all those different sides of myself. It’s my calling. I feel like music is the language that I speak the best; better than English, better than anything.”
What’s the biggest thing people misunderstand about heavy metal?
Isobel, email
“I think to a lot of people from the outside, it just looks like it’s one note. It’s very angry, it’s loud, it’s this really violent expression of people screaming, yelling and turning their amps as loud as they can or whatever. But while for some people it is incredibly angry and violent, for some people it’s really therapeutic. It can be almost calming in a way, of hearing somebody else letting that expression out that you’re feeling. I think that’s one of the things that can be pretty misconstrued.”
What was it like duetting with Papa Roach [on Cut The Line]?
Kerry Beckett, email
“Surreal. I remember getting the call from Tom, my manager, and him saying, ‘Hey, do you want to be on a Papa Roach song?’ They’re such a sick band, and I still say they’re the benchmark of how to age properly as a live rock act. Those dudes still go so wild up there. They put in so much effort. They care so much. They’re not jaded at all. They love what they do.
Jacoby [Shaddix, frontman] just gave me control and said, ‘From here to here, this is your part. Write whatever you want.’ To have that freedom to do my thing, in tandem with such an amazing band and such a huge act, is one of the coolest things I’ll ever do in my career, for sure.”
What advice would you give a teenager starting out in the industry now?
Roisin, email
“I know that the climate has changed with social media and so many people focus on that. But I still stand by this: play live shows, as many live shows as you can. It makes you better. It gets you in front of people. It gets you used to performing. You can go viral and have that moment and maybe it lasts for however long, but you need to have the toolkit to back it up – learning what it feels like to bomb, to work through when you don’t have a voice, when you’re breaking strings, or feeling tired, but still being able to put on a great show with any variable.”
Why aren’t Beartooth headlining festivals yet?
Alice Pennington, email
“We kind of have at a small scale. I will say, though, to headline a festival, you need to be prepared. Beartooth have been around for about 10 years, call it. I think that just over the last few years we’ve started becoming a band that is starting to even get close to being able to do that. I still think we have a long way to go, and I don’t take that lightly. We have had some calls recently that are very monumental for us, but I don’t think we were ready until now… but you’ll find out over the next couple of years what it means when Beartooth headlines. It’s going to be pretty cool.”
You helped change the look and sound of metalcore. How do you feel now it’s changing again?
Emma Dee, email
“I have a hard time ever grasping Beartooth’s influence on things because I’m so involved in it. If our new album and this new era of Beartooth has any influence on metalcore, I hope that it’s just for the positive and that it’s empowering to people. Beartooth wasn’t always that way. There have been times where it’s been really healthy and there have been times where it’s been incredibly unhealthy. But as of now, I do feel like I’m using Beartooth to better myself and to better my own life, and hopefully to better the music scene.”
The Surface is out now via Red Bull. Beartooth tour the UK in October.
