Taproot – Interview [2002]

The wave of hard rock bands is a tough one to see through right now, when more and more generic rip-offs flood the market. Taproot is one of the few bands that could get lost in the shuffle, but their unique edge and craftiness should be something that gives them longevity over their heavy-hitting brothers. Their history began in Michigan, then this year they were presented to a national audience at the Ozzfest gathering. They’ve since toured with some of the biggest names in heavy music, including Papa Roach, the Deftones, and Hed(pe). Taproot’s path has been forged by some great musicians, but it’s getting crowded with a lot of nonsense these days. Fortunately for them, they have the drive and creativity to succeed. When we spoke to guitarist Mike DeWolf, he was confident in their abilities and promise as a staple in the future of the heavy music scene. Aside from the Midwestern snowstorms that have temporarily slowed their journey to stardom, Taproot is basically ready to take off.

So you made it through the snow?

The last couple of days have been really shitty. We had to fly last night after we turned around yesterday. We have to fly again tomorrow. It wouldn’t be such a problem if we weren’t all against flying.

Are you still out with the Deftones and Incubus?

Actually, today is the last official date. Incubus isn’t here though, so it’s just us and the Deftones. Tomorrow we have one more show to do, another one-off radio show deal with the Deftones, and then we get to go home for a month.

I was able to catch your set at the show in Tampa. The crowd really seemed to enjoy you guys. Has that been the case all over with this tour?

Almost every night we walk away feeling pretty good about our set. It’s been a great tour all the way through. I think the whole lineup has been great for kids. Tons of kids have been telling us having the three of us out together is the coolest thing they’ve ever seen.

Have you been able to do any headlining between Ozzfest and all the other opening slots?

None yet. We first went out with Papa Roach in April, then we did Ozzfest for a couple of months. After that we did another stint with Papa Roach and Hed(pe) and then we started this a couple of months ago. After this we get about a month off, then we go out with Linkin Park.

Have you done anything with them before?

We just did a radio show with them, like a one-off gig. They’re pretty cool guys.

Was Ozzfest the biggest stage you’d ever been on when you started there?

Yeah, that was pretty big. Just to come out and see all the kids waiting for us. It was very fun and cool to see.

Were you ever overwhelmed at all?

No. We took it for the opportunity it was. We were hitting big cities almost every day. We were able to reach a really big audience pretty early after the album came out. It was a gift really, and we used it the best we could.

What did you think of the diversity of the bill? Was it what an Ozzfest should be?

I think all of us had been to at least one Ozzfest since its start. It was cool, but everyone stayed split up. All the second stage bands would hang out with each other and have our own little party. The main stage was the same way, but there were just a lot more younger people playing the second stage. We made a lot of really cool friends on that tour, people we’d like to tour with in the future.

The new album is great. It has elements of a lot of different sounds but doesn’t present itself as generic in any way.

Thanks a lot. We didn’t want to be generic.

It gets done too much now. Have you done another video yet?

Our first single, “Again & Again”, made it to MTV2 and MTVX, but didn’t get to MTV. I think we would like to be there, but it seems like everything you see on there has made some sacrifice, whether it’s pride, creativity, whatever. Our next video will probably follow along the same lines as the first one, with a bunch of live stuff with maybe some of us acting a little.

Cool. Now do you think your sound will outlast some of the stuff that’s out now?

I think we have this idea of what we want to do and it seems like we’ll be hanging around with it. We don’t know where we’re going after this, but we know it’s going to be cool. Maybe more experimental, but we don’t really know. All we know is we’re going to expand on what we started and hopefully people will like it.

So are you looking to record next year?

Yeah, we’re hoping to get into a studio by the summer, so we can put something out by the end of the year.

Right on. Do you feel like mentioning the whole Fred Durst thing?

Well, he went on Howard Stern after the message got out and said he liked us as a band, but thought we could’ve done more under his wing. He hasn’t talked to us, but at least he made himself look good, which is what we’ve come to expect. He said we need people in the industry to help us out, and we found them, without him. It’s all done now. We laugh about it, and I’m sure he does too.

Cool. At least he’s not trying to take credit for you.

Exactly. Shit happens, it just happened to us, that’s all. We’re a better band for it now.

I agree. Anything you’d like to add?

We just want to thank all of our fans who have come to the shows, emailed us, and told us how important we are. It does make an impact on us. We love to hear from our people, and it’s only going to get better with time. So thanks, hopefully we’ll see everyone soon!

+ rick hinkson