Interview: Backfire!
It’s been a great crazy ride! We did everything we dreamed about and much more.
Maastricht hardcore icons Backfire! are calling it quits after many years and their album The Last Confession, which has just been released will be their last. Gavin Brown caught up with Backfire! guitarist Wyb Brouwer to hear all about the end of the band and discuss both the highs and lows of the bands career in a very honest interview.
E&D: Hi, How has your final release The Last Confession been received since it came out and it feel like you’re going out on out on a high with this record?
Wyb: Hi! No, not really. It’s more of a goodbye and a final release. I am happy with how it came out and with the artwork.
E&D: How does it feel to be ending the band after over three decades in the game?
Wyb: Right now, really good. It’s been a great crazy ride! We did everything we dreamed about and much more. I am done with the music and the new breed of HC kids and their horrible mosh metal and crowdkill misery. I hate it with a passion. I have not heard a new good European band in 15 years.
E&D: What led you to the decision to call it a day after all these years?
Wyb: Age, health, and reason — we go out the front door. No shows in little venues with 30 people.
E&D: What have been your proudest moments with Backfire! over the years?
Wyb: I would say, all the mails, DMs and letters I’ve got from people that say Backfire! helped them in hard times, even saved their lives when they got bullied or was in heavy addiction. And of course, all the huge tours and festivals.
E&D: Backfire! have also weathered tragic circumstances over the years, did that make you stronger as band?
Wyb: No, I made us cancel about 50 shows, and our singer had to stop. I struggle every day. I fucked up my life pretty bad, and I am paying the bill every day now. You get used to how shitty you feel.
E&D: Who are the biggest influences on your music and your outlook as a band?
Wyb: In the beginning, OLC, Warzone, Slapshot, etc., and after a while we had our own sound and we never tried to sound like other bands. Most Dutch bands are bad copies of Hatebreed and Terror.
E&D: Can you tell us the details about the final live shows that Backfire! will play?
Wyb: We have 3 goodbye shows and some German show, but we had to cancel 7 already because of my health. Two band members left because of some bullshit about Kickback. I’ve been really good to them — equal pay, helping their other bands, hooking them up with the right people, signing them on MAD — and the first thing that happened was they didn’t agree, and then they let me and the rest fall. Not even a phone call, just a text and a lot of crying. Ungrateful fake friends.
E&D: What have been some your favourite shows that Backfire! have played over the years?
Wyb: Pitfest, Hellfest, RC and the smaller packed club shows.
E&D: How did you first become involved with the hardcore scene in Holland?
Wyb: Right Direction from Maastricht got me into the scene and took me with them on the road. They opened the doors for us.
E&D: How much of an influence is your home city of Maastricht on your music?
Wyb: I love this city, and I don’t know anybody who doesn’t. I was born and raised here and the last CD is full of pictures of this great town.
E&D: What is the Dutch hardcore scene like at the moment and what bands are killing it right now?
Wyb: I don’t like any Dutch HC bands after 2006. End It is pretty good.
E&D: What are the quintessential Dutch hardcore records for you?
Wyb: The first Right Direction album. I never really liked any Dutch bands. Some cool guys, but music wise not for me.
E&D: How did Backfire! start as a band in the first place?
Wyb: Richard asked me to start a band, we asked Pat and Frank to join us. One demo tape and we got signed by Lost And Found Records, and the rest is history.
E&D: Who are your favourite ever European hardcore bands?
Wyb: Kickback, that’s it.
E&D: How much of an influence is New York Hardcore on the music that Backfire! make?
Wyb: 100%! These bands were our main influences.
E&D: You brought out the live album, Live at CBGBs, what are your memories of playing at the legendary club and of the NYhC scene at that time?
Wyb: Really proud of that, but I don’t remember much: I was high of drugs and wodka. I loved the city and met some great, great people. Girls mostly.
E&D: Where else have you loved playing in the US and around the world?
Wyb: Connecticut. All over Europe, of course.
E&D:How was the experience of touring with Warzone back in the day and what are your main memories of doing that?
Wyb: 6 weeks of hell in the winter in a cold nightline and I loved every second. What a band to do your first tour with.
E&D: You’ve also played with the likes of Biohazard and Madball, how was it playing with these hardcore legends?
Wyb: They became friends; the tours were crazy. Those Madball and Biohazard tours… one day, I’ll write a book about them. This was the wildest time of our lives.
E&D: Who else have you loved sharing the stage with over the years?
Wyb: Ignite, Suicidal, Terror, Breakdown, DV8, Hatebreed, the list is endless.
E&D: How was the experience of having Freddy Madball and Billy Graziadei guest on your album Change The Game?
Wyb: We recorded it in Brooklyn and we stayed in their houses; so that was a done deal. Really proud of that.
E&D: You worked with Mike Dijan and Math Henderson on that album as well, how was that experience?
Wyb: 2 of the best guys I know in New York. Professionals and friends.
E&D: Will the members of Backfire! Still be doing any musical projects in the future?
Wyb: No!
E&D: What is your final message to all the Backfire! fans out there?
Wyb: Thank you for endless support. We all did it for you and because of you!
