Spotlight: Good Charlotte - Strong Music & Strong Beliefs

A young, fiercely melodic and gritty band has come out of nowhere to be heard, and recently seen, in a promotional capacity by Australian audiences. Good Charlotte come from Maryland, USA, and announced themselves earlier this year with an anthemic, feisty single “Little Things”. Twin brothers at 21-years-old, Joel (lead singer) and Benji (guitarist) hadn’t learnt the musical artform until just four years ago. They have quickly stamped their mark in their backwaters and, based on a troubled upbringing, have written songs about surviving their teens. The band is in the midst of performing shows on the “Warped” Tour in America, and look destined for bigger things on the punk-rock scene. On a recent promotional tour of Australia to promote their debut album “Good Charlotte”, I had the opportunity to speak to Benji about the making and progress of Good Charlotte. 

Q.            Tell us about the band’s background, particularly in that you didn’t pick up any musical instruments until four years ago? 

A.            We all went to high school together. Joel and I went to our first live concert together when we were fifteen. It was a show by The Beastie Boys. We were totally blown away, and started going to all the shows we could go to. That is, all the punk rock shows that came to (Washington) D.C. We’d get our friends (the rest of the band) to come also. After seeing them, we thought that we had to start a band. We’d be that psyched up at the shows. I soon got a guitar and started to play. That’s basically how we started. We were also trying to win our father’s approval that way. When he ended up leaving the family, it set us in motion to follow this path. 

Q.            What have you grown up listening to? 

A.            We grew up listening to stuff like Rancid, Green Day, social Distortion, Oasis, The Clash, The Cure, The Smiths – all different stuff. But The Beastie Boys were a constant. All those bands are influences on us however. 

Q.            Your drummer Aaron recently left the band. Who has replaced him? 

A.            We’ve got a couple of friends coming in. We haven’t really decided yet on whom will fill the spot permanently. We definitely want to take a step up, not a step down, so we’ll be very careful on who we choose to play drums. It will work out because we’ve got a lot of friends who can do it. 

Q.            Was there a lot of competition for your signatures to a record label, and what has it meant to your lifestyle? 

A.            We just kept playing a lot of live shows all over the place and started making some noise in the areas near where we lived. Then one thing led to another. A bunch of labels came looking at us and we decided to go with Epic. We’ve been really happy so far. They basically offered us everything we wanted. It’s been really like a dream come true. I’ve got a place to live, the things that I need and my life is good right now. 

Q.            On the CD sleeve notes, there is a strong indication that you’re very religious. Each band member makes a special point of thanking God. Are you looking to inspire young people into doing the right things in life? 

A.            I think that we’re just looking to inspire young people to really not be afraid to believe what they want to believe. To do their own thing is important. We’re in a world where many people sit around telling others what to believe and what not. Everyone needs to do his or her own thing. We make it a point to thank God because we’re the most blessed people in the world. I believe that comes from God. I want to let others know that I’m proud of my beliefs. We’re not a Christian band. However, many are afraid to say what they want to say. 

Q.            Being a twin brother to Joel must make songwriting easy; being able to bounce ideas off one another… 

A.            It comes pretty natural because we are twins. We’re really lucky in that we just write. Our rule is that we never try to control it. We’ll never write a song because it’s a certain style. We’ve probably got about five albums full of music ready at the moment. 

Q.            You’ve gone through difficult family and school issues. Has music given you the outlet to communicate effectively and set you on the right path? Now being favourites on MTV and the live circuit, what do you say to other young bands? 

A.            Firstly, we want people to hear our lyrics, to enjoy the songs and we generally want to connect with them. If you can’t hear a good riff, you can’t really connect to the songs. We’re just getting out there. Young people in bands need to do their own thing and not listen to those who may discourage them by saying it’s too hard to make it in music. Just go for it and play as many shows as you can. Your live show is your career. If you want a career, you have to tour. And if you want to tour, you have to have a good live show. Kids don’t like seeing boring bands. 

Q.            There are some fine tracks to think about on the album. Already “Little Things” has made an impression in Australia. What are your likely follow-up singles? 

A.            “Motivation Proclamation” will be the next single out soon, and then we’ll release “Festival Song”. That’s one of our favourite tracks – very anthemic. 

Q.            You’ve been compared to the Gallagher brothers of Oasis in having a blue collar background and creating your own opportunities. What are your thoughts on this? 

A.            That’s a huge compliment. I love Oasis. I’d take any comparisons in the music side. I just hope that they can sort out their differences. 

Q.            What have you been listening to lately? 

A.            I’ve been listening to some Willie Nelson music from the 1950s. It’s good stuff. 

Q.            Tell us about your role in the upcoming film “Not A Teen Movie”? 

A.            It makes fun of all the teen movies. We’re the band at the prom. We do a few songs. The film is released in the States in October. 

Q.            You’ve been selected to play at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame event in August… 

A.            We’re really looking forward to that. We’re honoured to have been asked to play. 

Q.            You’ve been touring with Lit, Eve 6, MxPx, and Blink 182, to name a few terrific bands. How has that been? 

A.            We did three months right across the States earlier this year. It was amazing. MxPx has been a favourite of mine for a long time, so it was a great experience for the band. It’s been especially great for our fan base, and that tour has probably been the best thing we’ve ever done so far. 

Q.            What are your ambitions? 

A.            We’re just taking everything as it comes. We don’t have too many expectations – just to keep touring. We want to tour, tour, and tour. We want to be good to our fans and keep writing lots more songs. 

Q.            When will we see you back in Australia for a concert tour? 

A.            Hopefully in September. We’ll keep working through until then. We have the Warped Tour until the first week of August before doing our own shows after that.