Ever heard of a southern grunge band? Yeah, me neither. So let’s see if they tick differently from other grunge bands…
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
3/4 of us are from Athens, GA (Georgia). Joe, our drummer, is from Savannah, GA.
How did you meet?
Ray joined the band after our former bassist quit right before a gig. A mutual friend of ours told him that we needed a bass player for the show so he lugged his gear through downtown during a game day crowd. He showed up and blew my head off with how good he was. Joe and I met through our former guitarist from Savannah. We had talked many years before at a concert so when the time came, Joe was the obvious choice and has been beating the hell out of the drums ever since. Binnie and I were in a previous band together and created some really fun music. He’s a total shredder and adds so much to our new sound.
How long have you been playing as a band?
Lullwater started around 2008 in Athens, GA, playing college gigs and covers. We got sick of all that so we went to Seattle to record self-titled in 2011. The line up has changed throughout the early years, as do most bands, but I can honestly say that this group is Lullwater at its best.
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
From a street sign where our former drummer lived. Nothing crazy about this one!
What are your influences?
I personally take away a lot from the Seattle grunge scene. Bands like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice In Chains influenced me as a young musician and still do to this day. Lullwater has an eclectic influence, though. Ray is big into metal, Joe grew up in the jam band scene, and Binnie is a huge classic rock/blues guy.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We’ve been described as a heavy southern grunge band. I don’t necessarily get the southern vibes but being from GA, it’s bound to come out. I think what makes us unique is our attitude and writing style. In a world of gimmicks, we’ve always stayed true to our music and let it do the talking. We’re an honest, raw, hard-hitting rock band that collaborates during the writing process. Each member brings their own uniqueness to the song.
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
My lyrical content spans from emotion to emotion so I don’t think there is a specific lyrical theme throughout. Emotion like sadness, anger, frustration, longing are more prevalent in my lyrics it seems because rock music has always been therapeutic for me. It’s my creative outlet for releasing pain and anger and frustration out in our music.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
Our live show is energetic. We usually don’t play slower songs in our sets so we beat you over the head with rock music for an hour. We’ve played hundreds and hundreds of shows, not really sure actually. We’ve been touring since 2012 so we’ve played a lot.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
While on tour with Candlebox a few years ago, Kevin Martin and Dave Krusen joined us on stage for our cover of “Release” by Pearl Jam. Krusen was the original drummer from Ten so having those two legends of mine play with Lullwater was a dream come true. They did it 8 or so shows and my 12-year-old self-was losing his mind! That was definitely a highlight for me. We also played in drag one Halloween show with Flyleaf and that shit got wild.
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
Joe is in the process of getting a custom pearl kit as we speak. Binnie and I play Gibson Les Pauls and Ray plays this crazy awesome Dingwall bass.
What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
Our video of “Release” with live footage of Kevin Martin and Dave Krusen is being promoted. We also have a new record hopefully coming out this winter so stay tuned!
What are your plans for the rest of 2018 and on into 2019?
We will be touring and getting ready to release the new album.
If you could create the ultimate line up for a tour who (currently/past together) would you want to tour with?
If we opened up for Pearl Jam and the Foo fighters, I would get off that tour and die a happy man.
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