Livin Outside the Law. An interview with The Rods -Carl Canedy
Carl Canedy is an accomplished producer and original drummer of The Rods, a hard rock trio that toured with many renowned metal bands in the early 80s. The Rods are thrilled to be releasing their first project together in over 20 years, entitled Vengeance, which features a boatload of old school style metal tunes and a cameo vocal courtesy of the late, great Ronnie James Dio. In this interview we discuss Carls production style, his view on the metal scene in Europe vs. The USA and the magic of sharing time in the studio with one of metals legendary vocalists.
TL: Hey Carl! Where are ya and how are ya?
CC: Im at home, and actually my daughter caught a bug of some sort, with laryngitis and bronchitis or something, so she went to the doctor and now it appears I have come down with it and feel less than stellar right now.
TL: Awww, that sucks! Ill ignore your little sniffles, dont worry. So, what events led up to the decision to produce & release Vengeance at this point in your respective careers?
CC: It was a case of- we wound up doing a couple of dates-David had done his Third Wish album and was still playing, we were all still playing, and we were all still writing. So we said lets get together and do a couple shows, so thats what we did. Even at the first rehearsal, we were really just like we had never stopped playing. I laughingly say it was magical, ya know? Surprisingly, things hadnt changed. We were still just as crazy and energetic as we were. My concern, of course, was I didnt want to come back and be a lounge version of what we were. Id rather just leave it alone and start another project.
TL: How long had it been between gigs?
CC: Twenty years!
TL: Take us through your creative process; I see that you and Dave write all of the songs. How do you decide who sings which one? Your bass player, Gary, sings lead too correct? 
CC: Well, I did sing 2 or 3 of the songs on this album, but as time went on, I just decided that David was really the voice of The Rods, and Gary, but mostly David. I just thought Dave should just sing the songs, he works really hard to capture the feel of the way I play, so its the same thing, except I like his voice better in terms of that. So, last year, an edgier voice, thats what we needed for the songs. Everythings pretty democratic in The Rods. Creatively, thats why it always worked, we all got along well. Nothing was too autocratic.
TL: What were some of the musical challenges you faced as a 3-piece band?
CC: Sometimes having an extra guitar player can be great. Its difficult to play and sing well. When you have a lead singer, its really easy to riff out when you have a singer singing over that stuff, but when youre playing it yourself its a little bit tougher sometimes. Other than that, we love being in a trio. We dont really see it as a limitation. I think we know what works for the band in terms of songwriting.
TL: On the new record, there is a song entitled The Code which features guest vocals by Ronnie James Dio. Its a fantastic song! Tell us how that came about.
CC: Well, thank you for that. Its by far a huge career highlight for me; writing a song that Ronnie James Dio sang. Its just so great! Ronnie and David had been talking about it for quite awhile. It was as simple as that. It just was a great experience when he came in. With The Code, I had sung the song, and he was listening to that as a reference, and said can I change this little piece here? Of course he had carte blanche on it. He is so helpful and so respectful; such an amazing experience for me as a producer. He was so nice, all professional, all business. He did a great job. Its like David had told me, Ronnie in the studio, he doesnt do multiple takes on things, and he didnt. The only reason he sang a couple of lines over was because he wanted to try a total different approach on it. Ive worked with some great singers and Ive never seen that level of execution before.
TL: Had Ronnie been diagnosed (with cancer) at the time of that recording?
CC: No he hadnt. Obviously thats tough for me. Ronnie and David were very close.
(Ed note: Ronnie and frontman David Feinstein are cousins)
TL: One of the reasons I ask is in retrospect- the howling wind fade out at the end of the tune is kind of ironic isnt it? Its spine chilling to hear the way that the song ends.
CC: Exactly. Ya know its funny because thats the way I had written the song with the wind bringing it in and the wind taking it out. It was the same thing that happened with Metal Will Never Die. I came into rehearsal and David said, I have this riff. I freaked out and said, We gotta put this down right now! We went into the studio and set up the drum machine for a click track and then he played the 2 rhythm tracks. I said, You gotta put a solo on it. First take solo, and the computer crashed right at the end of the solo! I said, thats a great solo! We gotta keep this! So what you hear on Metal Will Never Die is what we did THAT day. Just set a tempo, played the parts (those were the guitar parts), left the sound we got, and the solo we kept because it was just 
like, WOW this was meant to be! That was pretty magical. Again, I almost hate to use the term, butit was pretty amazing that the song came down that way and called Metal Will Never Die with Ronnie singing it; same thing with The Code. Think whatever you wanna think; it just turned out that way. Its bittersweet for us. It was never meant to be anything that was exploiting Ronnies death in any way. It was meant as a gift from Ronnie. The Code and the lyrics, it was such a great experience. It was like time travel; took us back the earlier days.
TL: Well, its a great tune like I said. It gave me goose bumps when I heard it. Tell us how you broke into producing; was it by choice or just a fluke that led to a greater passion?
CC: Ive always been into producing. I started playing guitar at the same time as drums. I always had a knack for arranging. In the studio, David would always ask my opinion when it came to do solos, and it just built from there. Ive been producing a prog band from Miami, called Blunken. I just finished an album with them. They are really heavy. The music has so many silly influences. Being from Miami, where theres nothing heavy, they incorporated salsa and latin music into their sound really well, as well as some Jamaican influences, its such a cool vibe! You should check them out.
TL: Obviously with the introduction of pro-tools and other technology, the recording industry has changed dramatically over the last decade. How have you adapted your personal production style to this?
CC: In some ways, thats an interesting question, because of hours Ive wasted completely. In fact, Im sitting in my room right now, with my old drum kit that I used to record; set-up, miked and ready to go! And the last two songs on the album that we recorded, Let it Ripp and Ride Free or Die those two songs we had done a click track for; we had been playing them live. I came home from rehearsal, thats about an hour and forty minutes away and I came home with the click tracks, did my drum tracks, uploaded them to our bass player Garys server, and the guys took the songs, Gary has a studio and David has a studio, and they recorded some tracks, and the next time I heard the songs they were finished!
TL: AhhhhMAGICAL! Like you said before! (laughter)
CC: Yeah, its just amazing in terms of that. Pre- production is always key. I love new technology, but I love going back to the basics. When you use technology you can do a lot of editing and arranging, but there is something to be said for an old school approach too.
TL: Why do you think metal is has held its appeal more in Europe than in the US?
CC: Im not the be all, end all on the subject, but in Europe theres not this fickle thing like there is in America. In America a lot is dictated by radio, magazines and television. A lot of times it happens where, you love a certain style, then media tells you it has become pass, and you move on. The artists 
get kind of discarded. But in Europe the fans arent like that. If they like you, kind of like how country fans are down here, if they like you theyre gonna stick with you through your career. Theyre dedicated. In Europe they love music and they love women! The real answer is I have no clue! (laughter)
TL: In 2009 you played the Binghampton Area Metal Fest, benefiting kids with cancer, is that still an annual festival?
CC: Yes, its called BAM! We played it again this year, near Syracuse. Its a great event. Hopefully we can do it again next year.
TL: You did some production work for TT Quick- Whatever happened to them?
CC: Mark (Tornillo) is actually singing with Accept now. They had great musicians in that band! They had a cult following but they never really broke the way they should have. Im just so glad that Mark wound up with Accept because this new albums huge. Its kicking ass, people love it. Thats great for Accept and its great for Mark!
TL: The month of June is filled with dates in the UK, what does the rest of the summer and the immediate future hold for the Rods?
CC: Well, I hope some club dates and some touring and some festivals, and hopefully another album!
TL: Very cool! Well best of luck to you and the band and thank you for taking the time to chat with us, especially with that cold, go have some chicken soup and feel better soon!
CC: Yep, and thanks so much for the support!
Photo Credits:
Individual shots credit: Dana Merkur
Full drum kit close credit: Jakester
One with Bright lights: Jrg Ftwctprecords
We would like to thank Chipster Entertainment for setting up the interview with Carl. For more information on The Rods and their upcoming tour, please go to: http://www.myspace.com/therodsofficialsite
