Barn Burner Guitarist Nick Ball — Your iPod Is Showing
Since Barn Burner are a Canadian stoner/doom metal group that sound like a '90s disc unearthed in a musty wooden crate at a Man's Ruin estate sale, we figured their guitarist Nick Ball's iPod would be filled with songs by Kyuss, Corrosion of Conformity, Cathedral, Sleep and pretty much any other band you'd listen to while smoking weed through a Coca-Cola can. However, that hardly encapsulates the bulk of his taste in music -- much to the chagrin of his bandmates.
"I have a hard time in the van, taking all kinds of s--- and being made fun of for the music I like," Ball told Noisecreep. "It makes everyone in my band cringe at the thought of me taking over the music duties on a s---ty drive, often making everyone want to go to sleep until it's over."
While his iPod random shuffle list starts off in fine fashion with Black Sabbath, it quickly goes downhill with Journey. There's a stab at redemption with the mighty Fu Manchu and Priestess, making 75 percent of the first four tracks palatable for narrow-minded heshers. Then the whole thing goes belly-up, looking like what might be left in the rubble of a college dorm explosion, minus the condoms and stale snack foods.
There's some jock-itch classic rock (Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Tom Petty), some pop-punk (Rancid, NOFX, Jawbreaker), indie rock (Hot Water Music, Hold Steady) and even some hip-hop (Ol' Dirty Bastard).
"This is a pretty darn accurate account of the span of awesome/cheesy s--- I listen to," Ball said. "I love at least one kind of band from most genres. I primarily come from a punk/hardcore background -- with some '90s emo in there -- which seems to follow me wherever I go, plaguing my existence."
While Ball is proud of his iPod list, he admits that many of his selections are guilty pleasures since "[guitarist and vocalist] Kevin [Keegan] always makes me feel so f---ing guilty for liking such 's---ty music.'"
Actually, he said he's surprised that his list didn't contain even more music he'd have to adamantly defend to most of his band's fans. "Something from the 'Best of Hall and Oates' could easily have showed up on that random list," he said. "I'm a huge fan of Daryl Hall and John Oates, and I am ridiculed for it on a daily basis. I bet many people would feel silly about having Journey, Elton John and Elvis Costello spewing out from the same speakers that would normally be set ablaze with Mastodon, At the Gates and Sabbath -- all while crushing road brews and punching the ceiling of the van. F--- off. Sometimes I like listening to pussy music, even if everyone else in my band wants their s--- hard and fast all the time. I cannot handle 7 AM grindcore sessions. However, Propagandhi remains my favorite band, and they f---in' rip. So there."
Barn Burner guitarist Nick Ball, your iPod is showing:
Black Sabbath -- 'A National Acrobat'
Journey -- 'Faithfully'
Fu Manchu -- 'Hell on Wheels'
Priestess -- 'No Real Pain'
Jealous Sound -- 'Anxious Arms'
NOFX -- 'Linoleum'
Hot Water Music -- 'Not for Anyone'
Propagandhi -- 'Nailing Descartes to the Wall'
Ol' Dirty Bastard -- 'Baby C'mon'
Elton John -- 'The B---- Is Back'
Jawbreaker -- 'New York Is Burning'
Tom Petty -- 'Saving Grace'
Mastodon -- 'Siberian Divide'
Against Me! -- 'Pints of Guinness Make You Strong'
Rancid -- 'Olympia PA'
Hold Steady -- 'Stay Positive'
Bruce Springsteen -- 'My Hometown'
Elvis Costello -- 'Watching the Detectives'
At the Gates -- 'Blinded by Fear'
Pink Floyd -- 'Time'