Nick: Tell me a little bit about the history of the band. You started out as Locust Swarm, right?
Metal Dave: Well actually Bob, Jerm and Chunk were in a band called Wormdirt before that, probably around `02 or so, then that morphed into Locust Swarm. Ryan our other guitarist was in Locust Swarm too. They did a few shows and that band basically turned into Seahag in early `05 or so.
Nick: Who recorded your 2007 demo?
Metal Dave: That was done by Alan Wells. He plays bass and sings for Shitfire and operates Downtown Music, which is our home. We did the demo one afternoon at the club actually, it was pretty cool. We set up onstage, he got his thing happening soundwise, we pillaged the bar and did it.
Nick: "Ratchet Jaw" and "Count Your Dead" - the tracks on your MySpace - are they from an upcoming album?
Metal Dave: Yeah. They`re both on our debut, Our Presence Here Is In Vain, which we just received, so hit us up and we`ll work something out!
Nick: There`s a strong blues element to the music, which is typical of doom, but it`s stronger than most. Was that a conscious decision?
Metal Dave: Actually, it wasn`t; I suspect that sort of swampy element maybe creeps in due to our region; there`s no escaping this environment and I feel that it sort of lends itself to the sounds that come from here, as it has for decades.
Nick: There`s a lot of progressive dooming coming from your part of the country, any thoughts on why?
Metal Dave: Well, again, the region is sort of unique weather-wise compared to the rest of the country but we`ve all grown up listening to the same stuff everyone into heavy rock and metal has; perhaps it`s just a blend of those things. It`s a tough call for me to make as to why...
Nick: How do you guys write your music?
Metal Dave: It`s a very natural process involving the entire band; we just plug in and let stuff flow while the recorder is rolling. Occasionally we hit on something we all like! There`s no single main songwriter or anything but Bob and Jerm often come up with ideas together on their own.
Nick: What does a typical practice look like?
Metal Dave: Clouds of smoke, beers flowing and sometimes overflowing, three guys talking loudly at once, loud riffing on top of that. After an hour or so we get down to business, which is pretty much the same as the first hour! Really though I think we`re the same as most bands; if we have upcoming gigs we stick to the chosen set list and if not we`re working on new stuff.
Nick: You [just had a gig] with Deadbird, who are right up the road. How do you know those guys?
Metal Dave: We`ve all known Philip, Big Whiskey Chuck, and Reid for many years now from their various bands and the scene in general. We`re fortunate they`ve helped us as much as they have; brothers until the end!
Nick: You`ve got a show with Sourvein coming up too - tell me about that.
Metal Dave: Actually that show was on August 8 in Monroe, Louisiana, at a place called the Olive St. Bar. I later heard from Jesse of Buzzardstein that the place is now closed and this show was the last one ever. Anyway, the show ruled since we`ve worshiped Sourvein for years, and we finally got to meet and hang with T-Roy; much respect to those guys. Our buds that ran the joint also played: Black Market Ministry. Look into these guys, they fuckin` rule!
Nick: You have a shirt designed by one of the guys in SkeletonWitch - how`d that happen?
Metal Dave: Yeah, Derrick "Apocalypse" Nau did that for us. I think our guitarist Ryan got to know Derrick from the times the `Witch has played here and they communicated back and forth online; also Jerm and I played in a now-dormant band called Circle of the Black Thorn that opened for those guys so we became friends that way, too.
Nick: Tell me about your "homebase" - Downtown Music in Little Rock.
Metal Dave: Man, this place really is our home and has been from day one. The brief history is that back in `01 or so, the only places that dealt with "our" kind of heavy-ass bands were one other club and our friend Jay from Shitfire`s living room. As you might imagine, Jay`s place sort of became a cop magnet as far as shows and this other club basically quit dealing with metal bands at all. Jay, Alan and Jeff from Rwake decided to just find a space in downtown Little Rock and roll from there. Initially, it was just a used record store that had bands in the back room, but as word slowly spread the records fell by the wayside, a beer license was obtained and it just went from there. The stage got moved upfront, the bar grew, etc. They really focused on the "a club run by bands, for bands" thing and hosted countless legendary shows since its inception in March `02. Bands like The Hidden Hand, YOB, Fistula, Weedeater, Keelhaul, Kylesa, Buried At Sea, Bongzilla, Place of Skulls, Blue Cheer, Eyehategod, Crowbar, Middian, Dove, Floor, Graves At Sea. of course locals like Rwake, Copsodomy (RIP), Deadbird have all played there, most of them more than once. It`s now actually located a few doors down from the original location in a bigger space, with larger stage, bar, better sound, etc. Again, it`s our home and is by far the coolest club in town in my opinion..
Nick: What kind of reception do you get locally?
Metal Dave: Nowadays we do well but it wasn`t always that way! We can pretty much fill the joint now which is very cool. We definitely don`t take that for granted.
Nick: People come out to shows?
Metal Dave: Yeah, although like pretty much everywhere there can be nights when it`s thin. Downtown actually used to do shows any night of the week but now they pretty much just focus on the weekends unless it`s someone special. The club itself is starting to draw crowds that aren`t necessarily into or aware of the heavy music scene but that`s good for business and helps keep the joint happening for the good stuff.
Nick: I know Rwake and Shitfire are also from Little Rock, who else is around?
Metal Dave: The Witches Tit, Placid Eclipse, Sports, the Tom Sweet Band, Bloodletting Device, Fallen Empire, PowerBastard, HelenkelleR, Madman Morgan, King Don are several that spring to mind. I`m forgetting lots of cool bands. Little Rock was also home to past legends like Sickshine, Living Sacrifice, Shredded Corpse, Econochrist, Hellhawk, 4-Way Anger... Fayetteville, AR, which is three hours north, of us also has a shitload of great bands: Dirtmother, Deadbird, Vore, Queen Beast, Burned Up Bled Dry, The Sinking South, Dragon Sunday, Razor Fate, among others...
Nick: What`s the trajectory of the band? What will you be doing in the next couple of years?
Metal Dave: Probably getting too fucked up and arguing over stupid non-musical shit like every other band in the fine tradition of rock `n` roll! Actually, we hope to be getting out of town at least fairly regularly by then; we`re gonna target points East and North initially. We have some potential split records we`re contemplating with buddies of ours, looking at vinyl perhaps, and of course doing local bills with touring bands as they`ll have us.
Nick: Will you tour outside of the Arkansas area?
Metal Dave: That`s definitely a big goal, yeah, and we feel we`re ready musically but as everyone knows it`s fucking tough to put together anything beyond a few dates at a time due to the current economic situation. We`re starting small - again just a few dates at a time right now - but yeah, hopefully we can branch further. Everyone in the band besides me have family commitments, too, which adds to the challenge. That stuff`s gotta come first, obviously.
Nick: And finally, why should people check out Seahag?
Metal Dave: Because anyone who loves super-heavy, fucking ugly dirty sludge/doom would probably dig us.
