Interviews    Starchild
by Mat Urbancich

Having generated a strong buzz early in 2003 via their three-song demo, "The Futurist," Waycross, Georgia's Starchild finally released their eight-song full-length via 12th Records this past December. 12th Records has done debuts by stalwarts such as Yob and High on Fire. No doubt Starchild can be mentioned in the same breath as those two. Starchild vocalist/guitarist Richard Bennett sat at his computer and was courteous enough to answer the questions of Hellride Music scribe, Mat Urbancich.


Hellride Music: What is it that led you to play the type of music you play? Not necessarily influences, but was there an event? Can you pinpoint the exact moment when you made up your mind or your mind was made up for you?

Richard Bennett: My dad plays guitar and was in local rock bands, so he had me listening to Van Halen and The Beatles since I was a kid. He got me started on guitar when I was about eleven or so. I can't think of one "exact moment" like you're talking about, my whole life has been centered around playing guitar in a rock band, I guess.

Hellride Music: What is it that you find special about your band? What sets you apart? What would you say to the person who's riding the fence about buying your album?

Richard Bennett: I'm very proud of the lyrical style that I've developed over the years. That's probably the most unique thing about Starchild. I don't really listen to a lot of other "stoner rock" besides Sabbath and Sleep, but we really concentrate on song arangement. Hooks and cool changes are very important to us and anyone who gets the album will notice the songs are carefully structured and catchy, while still being doomy and heavy.

Hellride Music: How did you get to this point personnel-wise? Was it always the three of you or were there others? Were you always playing this style or did it morph into what it is today? Are you the chief songwriter? Is this Rick Bennett and some other guys or is this a true, collaborative band effort? How long has the band been together?

Richard Bennett: Starchild is now almost two years old. Before this, Frank (Sikes, drummer) and I were in a band called Capital F. I was playing bass and Frank was on guitar. After three and a half years of recording and playing out, we lost our fourth drummer and couldn't find anyone else. We were about to just quit. Frank was thinking about buying this one drumset to jam on or whatever and I had been wanting to get back on guitar too, so the day after, I basically had a religious experience seeing HIGH ON FIRE one night in a club. I called him and said,"dude, why don't you play drums and I play guitar?".he said, "hmmm....ok" and that was it. We decided to go in a heavier direction with less vocals and drumming inspired by JUCIFER. Kenny (O'Bara, bass) and I had played together in bands since high school. He had taken a break from playing bass after his son was born, but was ready to get back into it by the time we asked him to join. I do usually come up the with the riffs and melody lines, but then we work together on the arrangements. We try all different beats and bass lines until we agree on what works best for the song.

Hellride Music: What are your goals and what of the future? Based on the length of time it took for 12th Records to release the album, are you happy with your relationship with them? Will they do album number two? I imagine the planning stage for it is already done considering this was recorded some time ago? Being that there has been ample time to reflect, would you change the album at all--recording techniques, song structure, song omission/inclusion?

Richard Bennett: I'm pretty happy with the recording we did. I guess some things could be done differently, but nothing worth mentioning. It took a long time for this album to come out, but it did allow for a nice "buzz" to be created before it's release. 12th is only interested in debut releases with hopes that the bands go on to bigger and better deals, and that's also my goal for us.

Hellride Music: From hearing your album, I'm sure that you guys are a force live. Have you played outside of the area/state/region much? Will there be a tour based around Emissions (from the Monolith, Youngstown, OH, May 27-30)? I realize that it's a small-scale festival and all, but is it the most important show that the band will have played up until this point?

Richard Bennett: Yeah man, Emissions will be very important to us. We haven't been able to tour much because of jobs and school, so it will be the first time a lot of people that are heavy into the scene will see us live. We did a few shows up the east coast last September and had a lot of fun meeting and playing with other bands of the genre, so I'm gonna try to book another small tour of the west coast during the summer.

Hellride Music: I noticed that you thank God and Jesus first and foremost in the inlay card. How important is religion to you? How important is religion to your music? From a lyrical standpoint, is it deliberate that the words can be interpreted as having, not preachy by any means, but spiritual leanings? I find that lyrics aside, the tone of the music itself is much more uplifting and hopeful compared to that of the genre. Does it bother you that I'm focusing one this? Does it bother you that such a lyrical direction may keep some from getting into the band?

Richard Bennett: Religion..I'm not sure about, but the meaning of life is something I'm completely obsessed with..good and evil, heaven and hell, sin and forgiveness are the things that I contemplate constantly and that to me is what life's really about. I'm also glad to be singing about things that matter to me. But the biblical themes also add to the huge, majestic feel of the music. It's spiritual, but hopefully not an automatic turnoff being it's so psychedelic at the same time.

Hellride Music: What is the scene like in Waycross, GA? Is there a scene beyond Twin Earth Records? How much do you have to do with the label? Does your commitment to music go beyond Starchild?

Richard Bennett: Our practice space doubles as an all-ages venue for local bands to play. It's a pretty small room, but this is a small town with no scene, so it's enough. We call it "Twin Earth" and I released a few local bands when I started the Twin Earth Records--the online store. I want to release something by Starchild soon, which has been my plan from the beginning, to maybe get things off the ground and finally turn it into working label.

Hellride Music: It appears that said idea is coming to fruition sooner than later, as a Twin Earth Records split with Youngstown, Ohio's Rebreather is imminent and will feature four songs from each band. In the meantime, you can and will purchase the newly-released Starchild full-length here and look for them on tour.

Purchase Starchild's self-titled debut at the Hellride Music Super Store

Download a MP3 of The Futurist

Read the Hellride Music review of Starchild's self-titled debut

Visit the Starchild website at www.starchild777.com

Copyright 2002-2003 HellrideMusic.com, LLC
Interview by Mat Urbancich 3/10/04