IE: What's up Chris? Thanks for taking the time to do this. Cruel Hand starts off a 3 week tour with Australia's The Amity Affliction out in Sacramento on October 8th but leading up to that you guys are playing a few shows on your way out to California. Where are you physically right now and what does the bulk of October hold for the band?

Chris: Physically I'm sitting shot gun on our way through Wyoming for our show in Salt Lake City, UT. Besides supporting Amity Affliction the bulk of October will be spent eating regional fast food but promising ourselves whole foods.

IE: The Amity Affliction are a pretty big band in regards to underground music although I would definitely stop short of calling them a traditional hardcore band. What can you tell us about them and how did you land this tour which seems to be a good way to branch out to new fans?

Chris: To be honest I had never heard of the band until we got the offer to support them. My cousin’s 10 year old daughter was bugging out about the tour. I'm pretty sure that says it all. I'm down for the tour regardless. No one is born hardcore. Cruel Hand builds hardcore kids. We are a lot of kids first actually because of the mixed bills we jump on. It's a great feeling when someone comes out and says you changed music for them. Maybe they were a Hot Topic kid or just a lost soul even. I get that a lot actually.

IE: Leading up to you leaving your house for about a month what kinds of things are you digging out of drawers and closets to bring with you and what kind trips to the store are you making to make sure you "got all your shit"?

Chris: I try to pack real light for these trips because I know I'll end up leaving something somewhere. This tour I decided to bring a pillow and lost it the first day. Other essentials would be my LL Bean toiletry bag complete with contact solution and case, Old Spice deodorant, baby wipes (which I forgot. My ass is chapped!) and toothbrush. I don’t bring toothpaste and shampoo because I usually just use the unsuspecting host's. Same thing with a towel. I have no idea how long that towel has been hanging there or whose nuts it's been drying off. It’s most likely soaked from the dudes before me. I'll close my eyes, grab the driest corner and just dab myself "dry". That's the only way I can go through with it. I bring one pair of pants, one pair of shorts. I can wear a shirt for a week before changing but I generally over pack because of separation anxiety and how crucial my shirts are. I bring every pair of socks and underwear because I can't be fucking with athletes foot or jock itch. Two pairs of shoes; one for daily use and one for the stage. Stage swim trunks, socks and shirt. I brought a skate board for the first time in 10 years, I'll probably lose that. All the packing is usually left to the very last minute and I end up forgetting something important or I never get to wash the clothes.

IE: This is not the first tour where Cruel Hand has gone out on tour with more of a "mall metal" or pop punk type of tour. On one hand it is a great way to push the message of Cruel Hand on new potential fans and on the other hand you must encounter many who could care less about the opening bands (which you are this time... and have been in the past). What's your take on the pluses and minuses on these types of tours?

Chris: I think most of the backlash comes from hardcore kids. "Say it ain't so!" "Why, Cruel Hand, why?" We've been doing the mixed bills almost since day one… get over it. 90% of these kids on the mixed tours are genuinely excited to see and hear whatever is up on that stage. They want something new and different and we're gonna stand out. There are always cases where our crowd comes out and murders every little girl waiting on the barricade and we do take the brunt of that I guess. The pluses are the bigger newer crowds, venue hospitality (not gonna lie, nothing like chilling on a couch in a catered back room after an overnight drive and taking a shower). Minuses are the ticket prices that a normal hardcore kid isn't going to pay. Stricter load in and set times. Merch cuts from venues. Barricades and security. 

IE: Your last album "The Negatives" has been out for about a year now. I gotta say I really liked it and felt it took some chances in regards to Cruel Hand's sound. I have read a bunch of reviews (as I'm sure you have too) on it that were less than flattering and I can understand people's desire to keep their favorite bands doing what got them to where they are. You recently were telling me something along the lines that you guys wanted to have listeners that could grow with your band. Care to explain that more?

Chris: I won't be a gimmicky one trick pony. If as we progress we lose listeners then so be it. What's left will be the loyal listeners and those who can grow with us record to record. I've tried to write those records and it's impossible. The music doesn't come out the same. “Prying Eyes” were songs of suffering, “Lock And Key” were redemption songs and songs about friends and family and their rough patches. We had a lot of fun writing “The Negatives” and doing things with the music that wasn't expected of us. We opened the record with pure punk rock fury and with a message; no more wasting time. Time to play by our own rules. We're not going to follow the trends. Cruel Hand hardcore to the max.

IE: Obviously any album in any genre of music can't always get good reviews across the board but in this case it seemed like you took a few hits from various writers with the most noticeable complaint being that you guys changed things up too much. When you think about all the time and hard work that goes into writing and recording a new album does getting a fair amount of negative reviews bother you on a personal level?

Chris: What bothers me is that a lot of people listened to that opening track and came to the conclusion that we changed our sound all together and they shut it off. I read shit online where 6 months later they put the record on cause the song was stuck in their head and now they love it (?). Maybe it was our mistake making that the lead track but we wanted to make a statement. We made our bed, and we will lie in it. I'm the one guy in the band that looks for the negative stuff online. It is frustrating to be that type of person because I do take it to heart.

IE: My next question leads to what's next. It's been over a year since that last album dropped and there have to be some new songs already in the tank. How many new ones are there already and would you say the newer ones go further into exploring what your sound is or will there be more of a return to more of the older thrashier and heavier hardcore style that was more evident on your earliest stuff? Or a mix?

Chris: The hardest step was making this "diverse" record but now the future is wide open. My idea for the next record is always changing. Sometimes I want to write a record that out does “Prying Eyes”, sometimes I want to go full retard and write a record that's full of songs like “Unhinged”. We're going to start jamming in December and see what happens. There's definitely a lot of material floating around right now though so be expecting a record mid-2016. 

EDDIE SUTTON OF LEEWAY WITH CRUEL HAND IN AMITYVILLE, NY JUNE 26, 2015

PHOTO BY: JC PHOTO MEDIA

IE: You and your band are out on the road many months out of the year and probably have seen more than most ever will in regards to different scenes within hardcore. Many of the bigger cities often get the praise, the fanfare and the publicity for being "good scenes". With that said give us like 3 scenes that you've been to a few times that you feel are underrated or underappreciated and what makes them that good in your opinion?

Chris: The Salt Lake City scene is crazy and has been forever. It's the wild west out here and anything goes. They live and die by the pit. I've seen some wild shit that ended with hugs and handshakes when you think it's about to go down haha. They have their own code out here for sure.

San Antonio has a great scene and we always have a blast playing there. They're hungry for it regardless of if we're on a mixed bill or a straight hardcore headliner. The kids always come out and show support.

Kathy and the Kave in Bucksport Maine have had an amazing thing going for years. Truly a community. When the town comes down on her for code violations everyone comes together and lends a hand with whatever needs to be done.

IE: I want to finish up here with some quick hits. Just give us the first thing that comes to mind.... City or country you still haven't played in that your dying to get to?

Chris: Alaska and Hawaii are two states I've never been too. I would love to play either.

IE: In a touring sense while you guys are out on the road who is the worst driver in Cruel Hand and give some facts to support this...

Chris: We don't let Brian Wilcox drive. Not sure why. He just skipped the rotation one day and never made it back in. A weird "don't ask don't tell situation" I guess.

IE: Most exciting thing to do in your hometown of Portland, Maine?

Chris: Exciting? Leave.

IE: Most dangerous situation Cruel Hand ever faced while out on tour?

Chris: Our old drummer got stuck up at an ATM in Panama City. Gun went off apparently but at the moment I wasn't there.

IE: The thing you have accomplished with playing music and being in a band that makes you the proudest?

Chris: I guess just the fact that I can be in a full time touring band and not (always) have to go back home to a 9-5 and take orders from some guy.

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