"A rock & roll daydream come true" - this quote has been used to describe the shimmering success of American band Fuel. Right now, Pennsylvania's rock legends Fuel are fresh from releasing the third single Bad Day, off of their second album. Their debut release Sunburn blew away the rock charts, sold over a million copies and spawned the Top 40 mainstream hit, Shimmer, as well as Sunburn, Bittersweet and Jesus Or A Gun. In 2000, two years after the debut, Fuel fired out a follow-up titled Something Like Human. Shortly after the release, they embarked on a global promo and concert tour, igniting stages around the world and captivating audiences with their amazing live shows.
With such a successful recording career and fanbase, you'll expect Fuel to have heads bigger than their paychecks, wouldn't you? Think again! Lead vocalist Brett Scallions says, "I think I'm still the same person. I don't think I have an "ego", or anything like that. I still feel like the humble person I was raised to be., Between the four of us, we were taught to be thankful and to give that thanks back and be appreciative of it as well." No wonder they've been called "the earnest rock band".
With thoughtful songlines like "don't fall away and leave love bleeding in my hands" (Hemorrhage (In My Hands)) and "struggling from your voice inside my head, but now everything's trying to drag me down" (Jesus Or A Gun), lyrical sensation and axeman Carl Bell reveals the recipe for his poetic words and crunching guitar riffs, "I definitely start with the guitar first, or at least a vocal melody, and put a guitar with it. The marriage between the guitar chords and the vocal melody is the most important. At the same time, I'll try to get a catch phrase or working title or something in my mind to explore later on." On the lyrical content of Sunburn, he says "Sunburn for me was a documentation of where I was in my life at that time. We were trying to break as a rock band, I was questioning the whole rock music as a career choice thing; that was where Sunburn was at." As for the transistion from Sunburn to Something Like Human, Brett says, "The first album had a lot of songs that had been with us for years. Songs dealing with struggling, trying to reach goals, becoming one with yourself and the frustration of relationships. But I think lyrically, our second album isn't as frustrated or as depressing because we've had a good two and a half years. We've grown as a band and we've become more stable in our lives."
In a world where cookie-cutter sheep people roam aimlessly and individuality is unappreciated, Fuel proves that being different is hip. "I want to be the freak of the bunch, I grew up in this very small, conservative town in Tennessee, where everyone became doctors and lawyers and insurance agents and stuff like that. So here's me with my bleached hair and freaky suits...I'll be the outcast. It's a sweet revenge," Brett laughs.
Written by Christelle Tan 2001
Tuesday 9th October 2001 [9.10.01]
Production of RockStarCowgirl - with reference to Rolling Stone publication 2000.
