Scott Crouse: There are a lot of bands that are excellent musically. Musicianship is at an-all time high. When we started people weren’t pushing their playing too much. Some of these younger bands playing-wise could blow us away. But there tends to be a lack of lyrical content and there is a big push on the fashion. When we started people were against fashion. There are now more metal bands speaking out on political issues than there are hardcore bands. Hardcore bands seem concerned with how they look. There’s been a bit of a 180 over the years.
Where do you think To The Death stands in terms of your past releases?
It feels like a best-of Earth Crisis record with new material. Any person that has followed us can listen to songs on To The Death and say this sounds like it could be on Gomorrah’s Season Ends or this sounds like it could be on Destroy the Machines. We had the benefits of looking back on our past releases and seeing what worked and what missed the mark. We decided to look at our past. We had nine records, and so it’s like a best-of with new songs.
How did Earth Crisis end up on Century Media?
We talked to them numerous times in the past and strongly considered them before. For whatever reason in the past we didn’t go with them. We took a look at Victory Records and didn’t see how we would fit in there anymore. They tend to be geared to a younger audience. Century Media put in an offer and it seemed to really fit this time. Sound wise, it also fit. Overall, it’s a better home for us now.
Your shows are known for their physical intensity, both among the band and the fans. Now that you are older will you be able to recreate the same kind of shows you were known for in the mid ‘90s?
I’d like to think yes. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t take its toll a little quicker. We just did a month last May and I noticed myself getting sore a lot quicker and not healing as fast. We are still as energetic as we were, and there has been a mix of older people and a whole new generation that has heard of the band. This record will hopefully be the Earth Crisis record for this younger generation. It’s definitely as tough to be as energetic in your mid 30s as you were when you were 18, but we are trying.
When you do take to the road how are you able to stick to your vegan lifestyle and avoid the garbage most bands subsist on?
When we first started out it was tough. I remember going out on the first tour and if I wasn’t malnourished I was close to it. When I was younger I was just concerned with putting food in my body that didn’t contain meat or dairy products. Now we tend to be more selective. A lot of the bigger chains offer some vegan option on the menu, so it’s not as hard as it used to be. We do whatever we can to avoid McDonalds or Burger King but places like California Pizza Kitchen or Panera have vegan options. So it’s a lot easier when we first started doing it.
Were there ever concerns that a reunion might disappoint?
We were very concerned when we were putting this together. Playing shows is one thing but doing a record is another thing. If we weren’t going to have the same intensity we wouldn’t have done it. It took us a little while to realize that the new album was holding up against our older stuff. We wouldn’t have put it out if it hurt the band ‘s reputation. In a lot of ways this is the heaviest record we’ve done.
