The heavy metal and stoner rock band Red Fang has been active since its formation in 2005, and recently released its new album Arrows . In an interview with The Wikimetal Happy Hour , vocalist and bassist Aaron Beam talked about how the members met and how he didn't mind starting a new band at the age of 33.
“The common factor was a mutual appreciation for the same musical styles, and the music world we live in is a small world. David moved to Portland in the mid-90s, so I met him around that time; I booked a gig for Brian when they were on tour, and as for John , I heard about him from mutual friends. We all liked the same music, generally, and we liked each other’s bands, so when we got to a point where neither of us was in a band for the first time in our lives, we naturally got together,” says Aaron.
Speaking about the Portland music scene – the city where the band originated – Aaron highlighted the great support from locals towards underground bands, as well as a sense of camaraderie among the musicians themselves.
“In the late 90s, people showed support for bands even if they knew, ‘Well, they’re kind of bad,’ but to the artists’ faces everyone would say, ‘You guys are amazing!’ or something like that. But I think that’s very encouraging for people to keep working on their stuff instead of thinking, ‘Screw it, I’m not good at this and I’m going to give up.’ I think that’s one of the reasons why I was 33 when I started playing in Red Fang, and that’s usually the time when a lot of people think about retiring their guitar,” he concluded.
