Interview with Andy Dowling

Photo by Aaron Sammut

In my mind not much compares to seeing a metal band live. I believe it’s the only way to truly appreciate the music. What makes it unique is the bands generally feel the same way. They put everything into their shows no matter what the size of the crowd.

And what is always particularly impressive is that so many of these bands come from Australia. Yes local acts are responsible for some of my favourite nights ever.

One of these nights happened last year at the Metal United tour. LORD (one of the best live bands I’ve seen) were the headliners and they were as awesome as ever. To top it off after they performed I got to meet their bassist Andy Dowling.

We hit it off immediately and have been exchanging messages ever since. With him being in LORD and hosting two podcasts I thought he would be a great person to interview. Luckily he agreed and this is the result.

With his interests being music, basketball and interviewing interesting people we have a lot in common. So much so that I am already looking towards part 2 in the not too distant future. For now though enjoy this and shout Andy a beer if you have time.

What drew you to the bass guitar?

I actually started out on Trumpet when I was a kid and while the music wasn’t exactly my thing, I really enjoyed playing music with other people and participating in combined school orchestras amongst other things. When I eventually discovered heavier, guitar driven music, I picked up the guitar and became absolutely obsessed with it. I had grand plans to play in a band, become famous, do the rock star thing, etc. You know, the usual stereotypical things that a lot of young kids think about when they start to play guitar.

Unfortunately getting into a band or finding other people to form a band was really tough. Either no bands were looking for guitar players or I couldn’t find anyone to start a new one myself. What I did see however was that there were HEAPS of bands who needed bass players. No one wanted to play bass! It was then that I realised that I wanted to play music with other people more than solely playing guitar. I jumped ship, picked up a bass guitar from a friend and then began to work out how I could contribute with a different instrument. It wasn’t long before I started playing in a number of bands and getting on stage. It’s a bit of a common theme with many bass players with many of us being frustrated guitarists!

Who influenced you musically?

There were certainly many bands that I obsessed over when I was a kid. They dictated my tastes in music including the type of music that I wanted to play. There are the obvious bands like Metallica, Megadeth, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest as well as a stack of Century Media bands from the late 90s such as Iced Earth, Jag Panzer and Nevermore. I wouldn’t say that any one band or musician has influenced me but rather collectively over a period of time has helped me gravitate toward like-minded people, playing the music that we play these days.

What albums do you feel everyone should own? 

This is a really difficult question to answer. I don’t think there is any album that everyone should own. Music is such a subjective thing and there are a number of external factors which dictate whether someone enjoys a song or album, such as their age, where they lived, their friends, milestone events and much more. My all-time favourite albums are not just about the music but everything else that I have attached to them when I discovered them. These include, but not limited to, Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime, Metallica’s …and Justice for All, Dokken’s Back for the Attack, Judas Priest’s Preist…live!, Iced Earth’s The Dark Saga, John Farnham’s Age of Reason and the list goes on. While they are albums that have shaped me, I don’t expect everyone to enjoy them.

How do you think metal is going locally in 2019?

I think there are more Australian metal bands than ever that are getting not only worldwide recognition but are releasing all-time/historic albums. We are really fortunate to be able to see these bands play and be a part of their journeys as they continue to grow and dominate on the global stage.

When it comes to live music in Australia, we have the same challenges as many parts of the world when it comes to how people entertain themselves and market choices on whether to go out to a live show or one of the other countless options that people have these days. Despite some challenges, I think it’s really healthy and the optimistic people either working in the industry or are supporting it would no doubt agree. It’s a really exciting time.

How is your music collection going?

I’ve certainly made some big decisions in recent years when it comes to my music collection. For 20+ years I have been obsessed with collecting music and have travelled all over the world wading through dingy, dark music stores finding rare gems and unexpected surprises. It’s been a real obsession and I have so many fond memories from hunting in all sorts of weird and wonderful places.

More recently however I made the decision to part ways with a large portion of my collection where I have opened up eBay and Discogs online stores. It’s been great for me as I have been able to declutter and pass on great music to people who will love it as much as I have.

While I don’t have a lot of my collection anymore, I still have some prized possessions and I look forward to recommencing my global hunts many years down the track after I have achieved a number of other goals I’ve set myself. The chase is often better than the catch!

I read that you include basketball cards when you send away CDs records, etc how did this come about?

Long before I got into heavy music I was completely swept up in the world of basketball. I played it as a kid, I went to NBL games, watched delayed broadcasts of the NBA and collected cards. LOTS of them. Years later I came across my collection of cards and found boxes of doubles which were serving no purpose so I decided that I would include a card with every order that I send out to someone. Just for a bit of fun.

The reactions are great. For a lot of people the card is a real nostalgia kick for those who also grew up during a similar time to me. I even try to match the NBA card to the closest NBA city if someone from the US orders something from me. A little extreme, but it amuses me!

Being a fan of Dungeon what was it like to join LORD?

It was quite surreal at the time and I was really thrown into the deep end. I went from playing with a number of local Brisbane bands doing the odd gig to joining one of Australia’s best known bands in it’s genre, playing all over the country and internationally. I was 20 at the time and had to learn really quickly.

I must have done alright as I’m still in the band now 15 odd years later! These days I don’t often reflect back on it all as the band has become a large part of my life. When I do get the chance to think about it all, I’m flooded with a lot of great memories and I’m really happy with what has happened since. I would never have thought that I would be doing what I am now back when I was trying to play guitar in my bedroom as a kid.

LORD have been going for some time now, what has kept your longevity?

As wanky as it sounds, the music has got to be one of the main factors. If people didn’t enjoy the songs then we would not have lasted as long as we have. It’s not the only factor however as I think we have taken a very long term approach, setting goals, and planning ahead so that there is always something to strive for. We have a fairly patient outlook, knowing that we do not need to be in the spotlight 24/7 and can take breaks along the way to ensure that the overall band as well as us individually are able to balance life and keep things sustainable. We’re pretty realistic with what we want and are super proud of what we have achieved. That certainly makes everything far more enjoyable.

LORD will release the brand-new album Fallen Idols in August, how do you feel about this?

I can only speak on my own behalf, but I honestly believe that Fallen Idols will be the album that defines LORD in years to come. Many of our friends who have supported us over the years will fondly reflect on albums such as Ascendence, Set in Stone or Digital Lies, however I do think that this album has the potential to knock the others out of the park and become a real favourite. It has all of the elements of what has made LORD successful to date and I would be very surprised to discover that any of our inner circle would not enjoy the album.

Of course I am talking the album up WAY too much but I am really excited for the music and how it will be received. It reminds me of everything that I love about the band and I am confident that many other people will feel the same way.

What was the recording process for the new album?

We’re really fortunate to have Tim in our band who records and produces our music. He has his own studio (SLS Studios) where we do pretty much everything in-house. This is a huge advantage for us and allows us to take as much time as needed to create music. Tim would definitely be the best person to speak to when it comes to the recording process but we spent quite an extended time collating ideas that went through numerous drafts/demos/revisions before we had full demos ready for tracking/recording. The recording process itself was spread out over a number of months where Tim painstakingly picked apart, scrutinized and pushed these songs to be the best they possibly can be. He’s done an incredible job.

How many new songs do you think will make it into the live set?

At the time of doing this interview, we are half way through our first Australian tour for the new album and we already have 3 songs from the new album in the set. The crowd is really enjoying them and we’re having a blast getting used to new material on stage. I can see some of these songs being permanent fixtures in our sets for many years to come. Over the coming months I can see us including/testing out another 3 to 4 more songs to include. We’ll see how that all pans out.

Lord Tim’s banter with the crowd is always a highlight of a live show, do you ever worry that political correctness will influence the way he interacts with the fans?

I don’t think Tim has ever been politically incorrect on stage or to a level which would be of any concern. I’m all about being compassionate and taking consideration of others, however the name of the game is intent. Words are powerful but the intent behind them is what defines their true impact. There’s a time and a place for everything and I don’t believe that we need to be overly sensitive to all words

Playing live seems to come naturally to LORD, why do you think this is?,

We have always said that we take our music seriously, but not ourselves. We love to get on stage and play for people and we’re fortunate to play music which is high energy and allows us to be somewhat theatrical in what we do.

As much as it’s about the art, we know that we are ultimately performers and need to entertain the people who decide to spend money to come and see us play. That awareness has ensured that we always know why we get out there to play and makes it really enjoyable for us.

What are your favourite songs to play live?

The enjoyable factor really comes down to the crowd and how they interact with us. A song that feels really awkward to play in the rehearsal room can completely surprise us live when a crowd is getting into it. It can also happen the other way where we think a song is going to go over really well live but ends up completely flopping. We can never pick it! For me personally, I love playing songs where there is a bit of crowd participating. Footsteps in the Sand, Tarranno Del Mar and I’ve got to say, one of our new songs Kill or be Killed is going over really well live. I could see that song being a real fixture long term in our set. It’s been really fun to play it!

LORD records obscure covers, what’s the process in deciding these songs?

There is no rhyme or reason when it comes to cover songs and what we decide to record. In most cases it’s either one of us or all of us together listening to a song on the radio, Spotify, at a show, at home etc and then thinking “this would be fun to cover!” and it sort of goes from there. In fact, the other day Mark, Tim and I were driving through Sydney together and we were listening to a classic metal album from the 80s and spoke about how one song in particular would be a lot of fun to play live. Time will tell if anything comes from it!

The other cool thing about the covers that we do is that collectively we have really broad tastes in music. We primarily love our metal and hard rock, however we can appreciate a great song no matter the genre. Our covers have come from bands and artists that quite a few musical styles. I think that’s what makes them fun and why people enjoy them so much.

You also host 2 podcasts what got you into this?

I remember getting into podcasts years ago through a friend and was amazed at how much I was enjoying something as simple as ‘a bunch of people talking’. After a while I thought that maybe I could do one myself and I was keen to improve not only my conversational skills but to also get out of my comfort zone and speak to lots of different people, not only in music but in a wide range or industries with lots of unexpected people. This was how The Andy Social Podcast came to be and now close to 190 episodes later, I have been fortunate to speak with Psychologists, Paleontologists, Astrophysicists, Mathematicians, Musicians, TV Personalities, Sporting Legends and more.

For those that are unaware what’s the difference between The Andy Social & Self Starter Podcasts?

The Andy Social Podcast is a long form conversations podcast with very few rules. I speak to anyone who I find interesting and try to dig deeper below the mundane/usual questions that many people expect from an interview. I also try to find people that may not normally get to do interviews and speak about what they do, especially in a more casual environment. This results in some really exciting conversations where guests talk about things that they have never discussed before.

When it comes to Self Starter, I launched this a couple of years later and this was to scratch an itch that I had (and still have) around the world of self employment. I have been fascinated in the concept of being self employed and people who create their own businesses. Living down the south coast of New South Wales, you often find very tired, old and repetitive myths around lack of opportunity, lack of jobs, automation destroying employment etc. With the internet alone but also unlocking individual potential, I knew that there are more opportunities than ever before. I decided to launch a podcast that focused on Small Business, Self Employment and Freelancing where I interviewed people who are out there taking the plunge to create their own desirable lifestyle. The reaction has been fantastic and I received a finalist nomination for ‘Host of the Year’ for the 2018 Australian Podcast Awards. I’m in the midst of Season 2 of the podcast at the moment and while it is completely different to Andy Social, it’s a hell of a lot of fun.

What are some of your favourite podcasts you have done?

Andy Social definitely has some of the coolest conversations I have ever had. People like NBL Hall of Famer Leroy Loggins (episode 96), Astrophysicist Dr Tamara Davis (episode 104), Vinny Appice of Dio and Black Sabbath (episode 59), Ladybeard (episode 165) and TV legend Tony Barber (episode 63). The list goes on - There are so many!

Who from the metal world would you like to get onto your podcast?

A lot of the metal world are well versed when it comes to interviews so it’s always a bit harder to get a good podcast with people who normally look at an interview as “going through the motions”. There are heaps of inspirational figures in the metal world that I would love to talk to, but I would need to be able to get them away from the noise and have them dedicate at least an hour to have a really good chat. Not always easy! I recently had a chat with David Ellefson about an unrelated project and is someone who I would absolutely love to talk to at length down the track.  Other people would be iconic people from my teenage years in the music world such as Biff Byford, Chris DeGarmo, Jon Schaffer, Klaus Meine and more. I could go on forever! While he isn’t metal, John Farnham is my moby dick of podcast guests. It may never happen, but that would be the ultimate guest that a wide range of people, including many metal fans, would absolutely enjoy.

Has the stereotypes associated with metal ever affected your podcasts?

Maybe not as much as people may expect. I have definitely had the odd challenge convincing people to carve out some time to chat to me but more often than not people are really receptive to it all. I think the old stereotypes around metal and metal fans/musicians has been changing dramatically over the years. Many rock/metal fans of the 70s and 80s are getting older now so the acceptance of the genre and its lifestyle elements are far more accepted these days.

There are many examples of metal fans, musicians and industry people who are entrepreneurial in spirit, open minded and willing to branch out to challenge themselves personally and to make a wider impact in the community.

How do you balance everything you do?

With great difficulty! I think the best approach is to plan ahead, be intentional and disciplined in whatever you are doing. It’s amazing what can be done in small 15 minute windows through the day. I always plan my day out the day before, write short/prioritized lists and time block non-negotiable periods in my day to get things done. I’m far from perfect at it but it’s been extremely helpful for and I know that I can do even more if I keep working on my discipline!

What are your plans for the future?

For the immediate future, our new album “Fallen Idols” comes out on the 1^st of August and we are putting a lot of time into promoting that ensuring that as many metal fans get to hear the album as possible. It’s been almost 6 years since the last studio album and a lot has changed in the market, so we are really putting a lot into this as we are confident that this album could be seen as one of our best in the years to come. Pre-orders have been going great and people who have been picking up early copies of the album at our shows have been giving us some amazing feedback.

So far so good and the first pressing of our album, which includes a number of bonus tracks, is set to sell out before release date. Amazing!

Long term we have international touring, video clips, more releases and I also have more podcast projects, networks and many other fun and exciting ideas to sink my teeth into. Lots to come!

To keep up with Andy go to:

https://andydowling.net