Coady's Big Business

May 14, 10:28 AMDetroit Metal Music ExaminerArt Michalski

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As the Seattle based sludge rock band Big Business continues to tour in preparation for their upcoming release “Mind The Drift” (out May 12th), I had a chance to talk with drummer Coady Willis before one of the band’s shows. We discussed the process of making the new record and Coady’s double duty work with the Melvins. Here is my chat with Coady from Big Business:

AM: How was the writing and recording process different for this record?
CW: Well, this was the first time we’ve done studio work with our new bassist Toshi Kasai (who joined the band in 2008) and brought a dynamic to the band that we hadn’t seen before. We also had a change of scenery in the process- we mixed the album in LA instead of Seattle, where we usually do all of our records at. I think you’ll see that with the record, the songwriting has evolved and its better and crazier than before. It’s definitely not the same record.

AM: What do you expect people to take from the new record?
CW: With the addition of Toshi, we brought in new dimensions- they are a lot more harmonies and more technically sound stuff. When we were a 2 piece, we were pretty much blasting right ahead with the music. I can see some listeners being confused at first, but then learn to appreciate it after a few listens.

AM: You have released the new album for sale at shows before the album’s release, were you afraid of leaks that might hurt sales?
CW: You always worry about leaks to a certain point, but you really cant let it bother you. It’s a futile effort to try and stop it. On this new record, we streamed the record on MySpace and sent out CD’s with audio commentary to critics. We thought it was a nice gesture, but some of the critics didn’t like the idea. We tried something different and it worked out for the most part.

AM: Big Business is selling the new record on vinyl. What do you see are the big advantages to vinyl records these days?
CW: I think most of our fans would rather buy vinyl than CD’s. It looks better, it sounds better- all that. The real fans want the live experience and their more apt to buy vinyl. We look at it as selling vinyl as a collectible down the road for the band and something that will hold up better over time.

AM: Your band is the backing band for the Melvins- how is writing different with your band versus working with the Melvins?
CW: When we write Big Business songs, it’s a more collaborative effort and its fun to write your own material. When we’re with the Melvins, Buzz Osbourne (founder of the Melvins) writes 98 percent of the material and their sound is established. But with our stuff, its great to see how a riff or a lyric can spawn off a whole new riff or song and it’s just different. Either way is fine, but to see the evolution of the album coming together is a lot of fun.

Big Business plays at Small’s in Hamtramack on Saturday, May 16th. Tickets are $13 and are available at www.smallsbardetroit.com. Additional dates and info can be found at www.bigbigbusiness.com.