Scum of the Earth Interview

For a man who has played guitar on records that have sold in enumerations exceeding five million copies, Riggs has in no way lost his hunger for creating art that is both visually and sonically impacting. In the past, the aggressive, highly theatrical guitarist has held tenure with such notable acts as Skrew, Prong and most significantly, the illustrious horror movie producer Rob Zombie's solo band. Hand-picked by Zombie as the guitarist for his solo act upon dissolving the popular trash-metal outfit White Zombie, Riggs is known for issuing highly menacing mechanical riffs with plenty of brash attitude and a definite bone-chilling authority. These days, the guitarist fronts his own band of roguish gypsies, Scum Of The Earth. We were fortunate enough to catch up with the dreadlocked rocker midway through the band's tour in support of their debut album for Eclipse Records, "Blah Blah Blah Love Songs For The New Millennium.


Sponsored by Jagermeister and featuring supporting act Dead By Wednesday, the tour offered fans an intimate look at a performer that most have only seen or will see in an arena setting. Riggs commented about the tour, "It's going. It has its ups and downs. We'll cruise across the tops of the States here. I think we go to Maine. Then we go down to Florida." The frontman grins widely as a roadie arrives with a liter of Jager, only to find that this bottle is a partial container from behind the bar, complete with a regulating pouring spout. Obviously, a previously opened bottle of Jager is not acceptable, so Riggs coolly instructs the tour manager to get a fresh bottle and sits the bottle of bar Jager aside. Fans are heading in for the concert, passing alongside Riggs' quite respectable touring bus as the tour manager leaves to retrieve the licorice-flavored juice that will lubricate the gritty pipes of the slightly demonic-looking singer.


This current road jaunt is but a warm-up for a string of higher-profile dates which the group will be undertaking as they hit the road with Disturbed in February on a larger Jager tour. Darren Cowan, a staff writer for The Gauntlet was in attendance and asked the tattooed player a little bit about the thick brownish-black liquor that so prominently supports touring bands.


The Gauntlet: So do you get any free Jagermeister?

Riggs: Yeah, they gave us the Jagermeister machine.


The Gauntlet: What's that?

Riggs: You put three bottles of Jager in it, press a button, then it sprays where ever you aim.


(Riggs reveals the Jagermeister machine, an elaborate piece of machinery that looks a little like an air compressor. The bottles of Jager are put into the top and Jag is sprayed out a hose. He explains the machine and explains how it works, but at the moment the bottles are all empty.)


The Gauntlet: So when's the new supply of Jag coming?

Riggs: We'll get a bottle tonight.


The Gauntlet: You'll probably have that gone in ten minutes, right?

Riggs: Usually.


The Gauntlet: How long does it take for you guys to top off a Jagermeister bottle?

Riggs: I pour it out to people in the crowd.

The Gauntlet: During any certain songs?

Riggs: No, we fill these Jagermeister shot glasses up and give them out to everybody. It doesn't take long (to empty one bottle).


Although "Blah Blah Blah" should be considered as mandatory listening for those who enjoyed Riggs' previous outfits, Scum Of The Earth is a band that are wholly in their element in a live setting. Fans can expect an interesting, highly entertaining visual appeal when the performance is coming from a character that has spent plenty of time sharing the stage with monsters, robots and most of all, zombies. When asked by Cowan about the spirit of a SOTE event, the riff proliferator replied with a mischievous smirk.


The Gauntlet: Do people get pretty rowdy at your shows?

Riggs: Yeah.


The Gauntlet: Are there any funny road stories you can comment on?

Riggs: People getting stabbed, punched, and mutilated; it's not that funny.


The Gauntlet: It all depends on which viewpoint you have (laughing).

Riggs: That's true. Sometimes they're mellow, sometimes they're insane.


The Gauntlet: Are there any songs that are getting people to go off, hurt people, send people to the hospital, just do really bad things?

Riggs: They hear the theme to "Deliverance" when we open and they just go off. They hear the (Riggs imitates the "Deliverance banjoes) and they just start punching each other and going crazy.


As the proper, sealed bottle of Jagermeister finally arrives, Riggs begins to loosen up a bit. Even as the band have much touring ahead of them, Riggs comments to Cowan, "Yeah, we have some stuff from the last record that was too offensive or rotten because Eclipse Records wouldn't do the edited version, the clean version. It was just too horrifying to put on there." Although he proclaims the band to be "Stripper Rock," Riggs music is certainly capable of frightening timid listeners. Once the band hits the stage inside the Temple Club, the imposing frontman emerges from a thick fog and points toward a stained glass window made to look like an image of Jesus Christ, taunting both the crowd and the message the multi-colored image represents. One of the most unique aspects of a live performance by Scum Of The Earth is watching the guitarist drink blood from his guitar. The instrument, made of clear plastic is replenished with crimson goo by a crew member after the frontman pours a large amount of the substance into his mouth and spits it into the crowd in a massive spray. Take that, Gene Simmons.



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Tags:  Scum of the Earth, SOTE , Riggs - Vocals and Guitars, interviews

EF    November 16, 2005