Bucking The Trend

Prior to releasing their self-titled debut LP (which contains cocaine-inspired anthem Lit Up) in 1999, Josh Todd, frontman for Los Angeles quintet Buckcherry revelled in drug-fuelled excess. Now, new disc Confessions dissects the seven deadly sins. It's suggested that the heavily-tattooed vocalist (who also dabbles in acting), despite having been sober for more than a decade, surely has so much personal experience to draw on in this area that he wouldn't need to do much homework.

Not quite the case, it seems. “I don't think it's just me,” he explains. “The seven sins are so interesting, because they're timeless and I think everybody struggles with them in their lifetime, at some point, if not during their whole lifetime. That's why I thought it was so fun. So many people have tackled the sins with cinema and music, I just thought how great it would be to do it Buckcherry style. I did a lot of reading, lot of writing and re-writing. “It was definitely a personal record for me, like most Buckcherry records. But this one I had to dig deep for, revisit a lot of things in my past. I've struggled with moderation my whole life, so that's why it was such a fun subject to tackle. I did a lot of research when I was writing the lyrics. It was aggravating at some points, but overall I feel we got a fantastic product. We always make honest records.”

It's likely this brutal honesty which has meant that the band, despite a few gold and platinum records on the wall and the occasional crossover hit has remained more of a cult proposition than a household name. Rarely critical darlings, or consistent worldwide chart-toppers, they nonetheless continue to command a loyal following. “All the reviews (for the new album) have been overwhelmingly good, which is weird for us,” Todd says. “We've had a long career under the radar. I don't put too much stock in that (reviews). It's more about what your fans think, what the people think.

“People just don't know what to do with us. We're just playing rock'n'roll, you know? From the moment we started this thing, Buckcherry's never been a part of the mainstream of music. So it doesn't really matter; we just continue to do what we do. We've created our sound, our own little niche, and that's all that matters. We built our whole career on our live show, and we do a lot of touring. I think our fans appreciate us and that's why people like Buckcherry. That's why we've always had an audience to go to.”

Their Australian audience has waited a long time for a return visit, too. They've been absent from our shores since their debut, but will perform as part of the Stone Music Festival. This lengthy gap means fans Down Under have been missing out on the debauchery that typically accompanies live airings of Hollywood starlet-inspired Crazy Bitch (from 2006's 15). Todd admits the track still stirs up a crowd like no other song in their arsenal. “One time we did a free show in Kansas City for some charity event, it was crazy packed. There was this girl up against the front barrier, and I guess it was her boyfriend or something who lifted up her skirt and started fucking her from behind during Crazy Bitch. At another show we had two girls go down on each other during Crazy Bitch. There's always lots of titties, of course. One time we did a New Year's show and somebody was fucking on top of our merchandise boxes during that song. There's always a lot of fucking.”

Buckcherry will be playing the following dates:

Thursday 18 April - The Espy, Melbourne VIC
Friday 19 April - The Standard, Sydney NSW
Saturday 20 April - Stone Music Festival, ANZ Stadium NSW