Rotation: Curses and Dark Places

Based out of the Detroit, MI area, Rotation is a young band with a unique yet aggressive sound that should appeal to many a music enthusiast.   Rotation has done support slots for a wide variety of big name bands, and has found themselves gaining a good deal of their own fans in the process.  Selections from their self-released album The Curse Of 1990 have been played on over 150 radio stations all across the country, and yet they remain unsigned – for now.   The future is certainly looking bright for this talented collective! Here is a recent interview we conducted with Rotation’s charismatic front man Andy to find out more about the band, their music, and their inspirations…

Introduce yourself, tell me what you do in Rotation, and how long the band has been together.
I’m Andy, vocals and keyboards for Rotation. We’ve been around going on 3 years with our current lineup. Kevin, Sonic and I have been writing together since we were kids.

Where is the band based out of and what is your music scene like there?
We’re from Detroit, Michigan – one of the scariest, darkest cities on earth. There really isn’t much of a scene here. Lots of metal bands, lots of brutal hardcore and some pop. Nobody really doing what we do.

What exactly is The Curse Of 1990 and what made you decide to call the CD that?
The Curse was started when we lived in this house on a little island called Estral Beach. Apparently someone had died there before we moved in, and some really crazy things started happening. Apparitions, voices, nightmares…it just wouldn’t stop until we moved.
I was never really a believer in the paranormal until that experience. It affected me so profoundly that I had to write a song about it. We started playing it out and people reacted so well that it was a no-brainer naming the album after the song.

Pick two other songs from the new CD and tell me what inspired you to write the lyrics?
The song ‘Rewind‘ hits home with a lot of people lyrically. It’s about turning back time to fix problems in a relationship – we’ve all wanted to do that at some point. During the writing process I was going through a really bad breakup, and I wished I could just go back and change a few things I did. Sometimes small decisions end up changing your life drastically later on. The song ‘Afraid of Me’ has some heavy lyrics too. It’s about the darker side, the side everyone has but never shows – until you’re pushed too far. The chorus is ‘Are you afraid of me? Maybe you should be.’ That says it all.

What made you guys decide to cover I Ran by A Flock Of Seagulls? Are you big fans of the band?
Weird story with this one. I was at a truck stop in Ohio somewhere and I saw a ‘Greatest Hits of the 80′s’ compilation CD. I love some of the old new wave stuff, so I picked it up. And after hearing that song again I just HAD to do it. I never want to cover songs unless we can improve on them, and I think we did a good job. The original song didn’t have a real ending or vocally involved choruses, so we spiced it up a bit. The actual band A Flock of Seagulls is pretty interesting- I recently saw an interview with the singer on VH1 and he absolutely HATES ‘I Ran’. Basically said it ruined his life! Wonder how he’d feel about our take on it. Probably don’t wanna know.

What was it like opening for Chevelle and did you get to meet and hang out with the guys at all?
Opening for Chevelle was pretty sweet- those guys are really down to earth considering how huge they are. Big props for three brothers sticking it out in a band and not killing each other! We’ve been really lucky with opening for a ton of diverse bands- everyone from Machine Head to Clutch to Mayday Parade and We The Kings. Last week we played with Sevendust, this week we’re with Hawthorne Heights. That’s one weird thing about us- we can play with all types of bands and still do good.

What could on expect from a live Rotation show?
Well, you can definitely expect me to say some off the wall stuff. I really need to shut up sometimes!! But seriously, we always strive to put on the best show possible and give our all every time. We always try to give out as much free stuff as possible – signed posters, hats, shirts, Rockstar Energy Drinks, whatever we have. Rotation is nothing without our fans and we want them to never leave empty handed.

With the band being DIY, how easy or difficult was it to get your CD played on 150 different radio stations all across the country?
It was difficult at first, no lie. Trying to run a DIY radio campaign is NOT a good idea. Literally thousands of emails back and forth with program directors and not much payoff. The real movement began when we started working with some radio promotion companies. The relationships they have are priceless and that is how we built momentum. Now we have a solid commercial and college radio team put together. Our next CD will be on the air EVERYWHERE!

How does your solo project Believe In Shapes compare to Rotation and where did you get the name from?
Believe In Shapes is a lot different from Rotation, mainly because the music is the opposite end of the spectrum. Rotation is very dark rock and roll, Believe In Shapes is pop/acoustic. I actually got the name from one of the guys in Slipknot- he wrote it on one of our drum skins when we played with them a long time ago. I always thought that was a bizarre yet perfect name for a band.

Don’t’ Forget Me is a pretty powerful song. Where did you get the ideas for the lyrics and is it written about anyone in particular?
Yeah, that song was a tough one to do. I definitely have had issues telling people how I really felt about them, I think we all do at one time or another. ‘I love you’ can be the three scariest, most horrible and amazing words one person can say to another. I wanted to just get those feelings out and put them into a song, maybe it would wake someone up and make them say how they feel. And yeah, it was totally written for someone but I can’t say who. They know who they are I’m sure.

Any strange or unusual Myspace stories you could share?
I actually met Breaking Benjamin through Myspace of all places. The bass player randomly hit me up one day saying how much he dug our sound, next thing I knew we were on their bus hanging out with them and Three Days Grace. Myspace has definitely made the world a little smaller!

What was the name of the very first song you wrote, how old were you, and what was the song about?
I believe I was 9 years old actually. Not sure what the song was called, but I remember it was about becoming famous someday. Weird, huh?

Any chance of Rotation coming over to play some shows in Los Angeles?
Oh for sure! I know I will be flying out there this August to set some things up in person with our management. I love LA, the traffic is beastly but the weather is amazing. You guys have no idea how lucky you are not to have snow 7 months a year!!!!

Any messages for peeps reading this interview now who might want to check your band(s) out?
Please listen to the lyrics. Most of the songs are written as poetry, with a lot of levels to their meaning. I hope Rotation moves you emotionally, and most of all makes you think. Just know that we truly care about each and every person who lets us into their lives- we’re all in this together!

(Interview by Kenneth Morton)

Rotation on Myspace
Believe In Shapes on Myspace

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