by erin thursby scopes1925@msn.com
What: Nintendo Fusion Tour
When: October 14th @ Noon
Where: Plush
Emery might be characterized by some as a scremo band, but more than 90 percent of their music is wrapped in rock melody, not the hardcore screaming the genre is famed for. That might be what makes the moments when they do go all hard-core all the more interesting. When I spoke with drummer Dave Powell he mentioned that none of the band “even listens to scremo” and said that the last CD he listened to was Tommy Petty’s Wildflowers. That’s not to say that Emery’s music is tame, just that it’s melody driven and not at all emo/scremo-like.
The band was first marketed as a Christian Hardcore band, but these days the marketing has moved away from their Christian roots, perhaps in an attempt to capture a larger market. When I asked drummer Dave Powell if the band had moved further from their Christian roots or closer to them he replied: “As far as [Christian] influence is concerned I don’t really want to talk about… [Christianity] as far as music is concerned. It’s just how I want to live…We do bible study together…[but] Christian bands are a lot like other bands…It’s not like we’re perfect people or we don’t do things we shouldn’t but we have a principle that we try to live by and morals.”
Besides extensive touring in the U.S., Emery’s gone international, spending time down under with the Aussies. “We really had a good time in Australia,” Powell tells me “We do well there.” The band plans to later tour in Japan and Europe. They’re currently touting the re-release of their 2005 album The Question, due to be out this November. The re-release will include a making of for DVD, some re-records and other extras for the fans. It will be priced at about the same as the original release of the CD. A new album should be recorded early next year and will be released next spring.
Most of band members have been seriously pursuing a musical career for the past five years, but Powell, who came on board after the drummer Seth Studley left the band, was grateful for the opportunity to make music a career. Before his time with Emery, Powell played in The Bowels of Judas and he held a number of different jobs prior to making a career with Emery: “I’ve worked at Blockbuster… for Caterpillar Construction…at a movie theater and…as a stripper.”
Emery suffered a recent shake-up when bassist Joel “Chopper” Green decided to leave the band. Chopper’s leaving apparently wasn’t an ugly thing, as he left a cheery message on the band’s website saying good-bye. According to Powell, “He just wanted to pursue his own thing. He felt like it was time to move on. We’ll miss him tons.” The two guitars of Emery will become one as guitarist/vocalist Devin Shelton moves to replace Chopper on the bass. Asked if the band would look for a new member to replace Chopper, Powel said that “This tour will be the real test. If it works okay this tour we’ll stay that way [with Devin on bass]—if not we’ll find someone else.”
This tour is the Nintendo Fusion tour, featuring Emery, Hawthorne Heights, Relient K, Plain White T’s and The Sleeping. So far the band is having a good time, though the tour’s just started. “We’ve known Hawthorne Heights forever,” says Powell, “but the other bands we’re getting to know.” Go to www.nintendofusiontour.com to find out more about the tour and the band’s experience growing up with Nintendo. Guitarist Toby Morrel apparently cried the Christmas his mother bought him a Sega and she ended up taking it back to the store to trade it for a Nintendo. Other band members brag of their prowess at Mario Brothers and their mad Tetris skillz. Catch Emery and the excellent Nintendo Tour line up at Plush this Saturday.
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