13 QUESTIONS WITH RIGGS OF SCUM OF THE EARTH

SCUM OF THE EARTH is the new rock outfit fronted by former ROB ZOMBIE guitarist RIGGS and ex-POWERMAN 5000 guitarist Mike Tempesta. Personally, I was thrilled when I read the first piece of news about these guys forming this band, because I knew Zombie was all but done with the music business (he's moved on to films, comic books, and other projects), and I was a fan of songs like "Dragula", "Superbeast", and of course "Scum Of The Earth", a nickname Riggs was given while on tour with Zombie. This interview was conducted MONTHS ago, while Riggs and Tempesta were still mixing their debut disc, 'Blah Blah Blah...Love Songs For The New Millenium', so the answers were kept short and sweet. Since the disc is finally being released this week, we were given the thumbs up to print it. Here goes nothing...

Steve C: In terms of a stage show, how theatrical will you be with SCUM OF THE EARTH? Will there be blood-drinking, dancing zombies, and lots of pyro, or is this going to be a more stripped-down affair?

Riggs: It depends on how many records we sell. If not many than no, if it does well then we can do something cool.

Steve C: When listening to “Murder Song”, you can't help noticing its similarity to much of Rob Zombie's solo material. How much of his music were you writing, and are those publishing royalties still showing up?

Riggs: I think “Murder Song” sounds more like a prong song than Zombie, but if you want to compare it to Zombie, than so be it. (Hmm...methinks someone took offense to that question. Maybe not)

Steve C: I've read that the blood in your guitar is REAL, and that it was shipped up in special 'Hazardous Cargo' containers from a meat packing facility in Austin, TX. Now, while using real blood is certainly commendable, it would seem that REAL blood that's been sitting around in the body of your guitar while you thrash around under hot stage lights might not be the most sanitary liquid you could consume. Did you ever drink contaminated blood, and how violently ill did you get as a result?

Riggs: I throw up probably 50 percent of the time I drink it. I was more worried about the human rib bones I put in there -- 2 of 'em I think it was -- and they were leaking some kind of bone marrow or something out. I had a friend of mine also from Austin who worked at some kind of a lab examining the green junk growing all over the inside of that guitar. He said it was harmless algae and that was good enough for me. (HUMAN rib bones? Dude...buy a pork chop and use that. See, there's these things called 'supermarkets'...oh, nevermind)

Steve C: Not that you'd necessarily remember, but during a stop in Philadelphia with Ozzfest a few years ago, while you guys were on stage, a fight broke out in the front of the stage area in which a large behemoth of a man was trounced by roughly 20 security guards (I know because I was in the photo pit watching it happen). Describe, if you would, the most outlandish confrontation/melee/brawl/mosh pit situation you ever witnessed while on tour. What city was it in, and what were the circumstances surrounding it?

Riggs: I’d say a whole crowd during the KORN/ZOMBIE tour in some town I can’t remember the name of. The crowd tore down the rails all around the arena and stomped their way down to the floor. All the security left the building I think and the crowd situated themselves just fine.


Hey, stop beating the fuck outta that dude! Oh, forget about it. He deserved it.

Steve C: The music industry isn't exactly the EASIEST business to make your mark in (especially in 2004), so what is it that compelled you to start from scratch and make another go of it with a brand new band?

Riggs: This friend of mine, Kimberly Rohwedder, called me up one day to see what I was up to. I told her Rob was making another movie and I wasn’t doing anything. She e-mailed a couple labels, called me back in a couple days with some offers, and that’s how it happened.

Steve C: Your main axe is a hollow plexiglass Fernandes 'Veritgo' model which you can fill with blood, syrup, chocolate milk, or anything for that matter. How much thought is going into actual TONE when you're calling up the folks at Fernandes. to order one of these? Is the actual sound of the guitar more of an afterthought versus having a bleeding instrument? Also, how's that thing sound once you've emptied it out? Is the sound kind of hollow (for lack of a better term)?

Riggs: That guitar sounds really good. I used it on the Zombie stuff. The less blood it has, the brighter the tone gets.


What? There's human bones in this thing??? Shit.

Steve C: The name of your band, Scum Of The Earth, is also a title of a song on Zombie's Sinister Urge disc. It was also your moniker while playing in Zombie's band. How much, if at all, is your use of the name a source of friction with you and your former boss?

Riggs: None that I know of.

Steve C: Hypothetical situation: You're walking down the street near your hometown one day, and a twenty-something year-old guy in a suit rolls up to you in his new BMW and says "Dude! I just downloaded the new SCUM OF THE EARTH disc... You guys ROCK!" What's your reaction to this guy (someone who can obviously afford to buy a CD downloading the music you worked hard to create)?

Riggs: Good so did I.

Steve C: Since you're only going to have one disc under your belt when SOTE hits the road to promote Blah... Blah... Blah... Love Songs for the New Millenium, will you only be performing songs from that disc, or will you throw in some covers/other originals to the set list?

Riggs: It depends how long we have to play. We’ll do some covers if we have to. Steve C: Judging from the artwork on the SOTE website and CD covers, one could assume that you're a horror fan. Who would be the winner in the following fights:
Jason Voorhees vs. Frankenstein ?

Riggs: Jason

Steve C: Freddy Kreuger vs. Predator?

Riggs: Predator

Steve C: Werewolf vs. Alien (dog alien from 'Alien 3')

Riggs: Alien

Steve C: Hypothetical situation #2: One day while on tour, you and Mike T. decide to take a tour of a Texas slaughterhouse. You get separated from your tour guide and accidentally wander off into a set of rotating knives. You survive the mishap, but you have been relieved of both arms....effectively preventing you from ever picking up or playing a guitar again. How is Riggs going to pay the bills after this terrible incident?

Riggs: Freak show.

Steve C: Being out on the road with a bunch of guys can get kind of lonely, so it's entirely likely that you guys have seen a few adult videos while on tour. If we were to rummage through your porno collection, what kind of videos would we find?

Riggs: I don’t know. Whatever you do, don’t bring your girlfriend.

Steve C: Other than its ability to hold liquid, what do you look for when buying a new guitar? Tone, feel, type of wood, thickness of neck?... or pointy with airbrushed tits/dragon/Celtic symbol?

Riggs: As long as it’s not shiny, I don’t care.

Well, that was brief...but I'll excuse it this time because he was mixing his CD. I've heard a few tracks from 'Blah Blah Blah...Love Songs For The New Millenium', and they're badass. The disc hits stores this coming Tuesday, October 26th, and the band will be on tour supporting it beginning that day in Los Angeles.