Sing It Loud

Interview With The Greedy Filth

La Puente

From Issue 1.5, May/June 2005

The Greedy Filth are a do-it-yourself thrash band from the city of La Puente who just want to sing “loud and proud.”

The Greedy Filth band of La Puente could easily have been Greed and Filth were it not for the fact that another band already had that name.

All guitarist Mike had in mind when he was thinking of potential band names was that he, “wanted a name that no one else would have.”

“It [the band name],” Mike began, “has to do with money and like, how people feel about it because everyone wants to be greedy and money is filthy.

He tried searching for the words, but finished his explanation laughing and saying, “I don’t know. We’re just stupid little kids.”

Later, after the interview outside of a Friday’s restaurant in La Puente, he sheepishly said they, “should have thought it [their responses] out a little more before we came.”

The “they” in this case, would include vocalist Jovani, 17, bassist Joey and drummer Evan, 16.

The comment that they are just stupid little kids though, is not exactly true.  Though they may not have articulated themselves during the interview, it is through the music that they are really saying something.

As a thrash band from La Puente, the Greedy Filth stick out because they are one of the few thrash bands in an area where most bands play Oi. 

“With thrash, there are a lot of changes,” explained Mike.  “It’s something that you can break a sweat to.”

And their version of thrash would be very fast with practically inaudible lyrics.  Despite the inability to hear what this band is saying on stage, listen a little closer because they actually sing about a lot of things of substance.

Song subjects include everything from pollution, to police brutality, to antiwar sentiments, to religion. Their lyrics run the gamut of thought, but they are careful to stay away from the label of being a political band.

“Police brutality is still going on,” said Mike justifying the band’s lyrics.  “I just read in a magazine about how a cop just shot a little kid.  Why would a cop put a bullet in a little kid?  I mean, did they have to shoot him?  They could have just stopped him.”

Other songs that they have written are about war and weapons.

“We have one song,” said Jovani, “it’s about the arms race, the race for weapons of mass destruction and how we pay for it.”

Mike and Jovani are usually the two who write the lyrics, or Jovani will write them by himself.  

A lot of the inspiration for Jovani’s song writing can be attributed to other bands and their music. 

Among the Greedy Filth’s list of favorite bands, are Aus Rotten and Doom along with local band Oxpeckers.

The band Greedy Filth began in August and was largely the byproduct of other, local bands the members were in.

“Music is fun to make,” said Evan of the best part of being in a band.

Added Mike, “It’s good to have something to do, to be a part of something and do something you love.”

Mike, whose brother taught him basic power chords on the guitar, for the most part, learned to play on his own.

“I was just trying to be better than my brother at something,” said Mike of why he picked up the guitar.  

Mike then taught Joey all the songs on the bass.

“I just started playing with the bass, and still do,” said Joey of when he first began playing.

Jovani, like Mike, also knows how to play the guitar and was taught by his aunt.

Evan always wanted to play the drums since the fifth grade.

“I used to listen to all these bands, and the drummers were really good.  So, I just wanted to do it,” said Evan.

There used to be a fifth member when the band first began, a female vocalist who split singing time with Jovani.  However, Mike says she would not give 100 percent in her singing, and she eventually left the band anyhow.

Greedy Filth practices one to two times each week at the home of Evan and Jovani’s parent’s house (the two are stepbrothers) where the neighbors have called the cops on them twice. The first incident resulted in the police talking to one of their parents.  The second time, Evan’s name got taken down as a warning.

Despite, cranky neighbors and not the best of luck in getting into venues yet, “this band’s going more places.  We’re just faster [than the other bands they played in] and all into the same music,” said Mike of Greedy Filth.  “All the other bands [they were in] weren’t on the same track.”

Not to mention, they are constantly brushing up on their skills with their respective instruments. 

Judging from a group consensus, Greedy Filth may be a lasting force in the music scene as well as after the members of this band make it out of school.

In any case, this band is having a lot of fun playing their music, and in the words of Evan, “just messing around.” 

Their goals as Greedy Filth are simple:

“We want to still be together,” said Jovani.

“and play in venues,” added Joey.

“We play whether a crowd likes us or not,” said Mike.

“I don’t think we’re really unique.  We play really wild and fast, I guess,” he continued.  “We’re just loud and proud.”