CMW 2007: Attack In Black

Hometown: Welland, ON
Official Website: http://myspace.com/attackinblack
Members:
Daniel Tavis Romano (guitar/vocals)
Ian Andrew Romano (drums)
Spencer Arthur Burton (guitar/vocals)
Ian Daniel Kehoe (bass)

So, you're about to play the big industry event that is Canadian Music Week. What's the most shameless thing you've ever done to promote your band?
Daniel Tavis Romano: I don't know. I don't really do that at all. I'm bad at that. I always forget to say things when we play and stuff.

What's the hardest part about being an up-and-coming band?
Dealing with fluctuating shows. Some shows will be really good, depending on who you're playing with. It's hard to get used to that, because the next time might not be so good or it might be better.

Does that happen often being from the southern Ontario scene, where you're always lumped in with punk bands who don't necessarily sound anything like you?
It's OK, because I find people kind of accept us for what we're doing anyway. Somehow, we still get put on bills with other bands despite the fact that we don't sound alike, but it works out anyway. I always expect [some indifference] but it doesn't really ever happen.

Describe your best and worst gigs ever.
The best were recently. It's kind of tied. Well, no, it was definitely in Hamilton, at The Underground. We played with Hostage Life. There were a lot of people there and there wasn't really any other indication of why they'd be there, other than to see us, so it was kind of a big shocker. People were singing and it was really cool, like a weird reality where people were actually paying attention. I always just assume that nobody likes our band.

The worst would be when we toured with Alexisonfire. I believe it was in Winnipeg. There were some... I believe you could call them crusty punks who were obviously there just to cause shit. When we were playing, they were just yelling, "Alexisonfire!" and being ridiculous, so me and our bass player started spitting at them while we were playing. One of them punched a girl in the head during our second last song, so we had to just stop the song because we were like, "This is fucked, we're outta here."

How important is it for your band members to "circulate and flirt" with the audience before or after the show?
I don't know if it's a matter of importance. It's fun to do, I can't deny that. We tend to do it. Hopefully we know some people in the places we play now, because we've gone across the country a couple times. It's more like a friendly visit rather than a flirt.

Do you use the "I'm in a band" card with certain female members of the audience?
[laughs] No, I'm pretty modest when it comes to stuff like that. Personally, I rarely talk to anyone, just because I get a little nervous when I'm around people. I can't see anyone else in the band using that line.

Have you ever stolen from someone else's rider? If so, who was it and what did you take?
We used to take peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from Alexisonfire's rider, but I'm pretty sure they knew about it. I don't think we've ever stolen anything.

Have you done anything new or interesting this week?
We got a piano in our jam space yesterday. We went and picked it up and it was the scariest thing we've ever had to do. It was so heavy, we had to load it on the back of a pickup truck. It's like this old '40s upright piano. It was something. Me and my brother have these big friends and fathers who came and helped us, but originally we were going to do it with just the three of us, but that would have been a bad idea, being the poor saps that we are.

Attack In Black play the Horseshoe Tavern on Thursday, March 8 @ 9:30 p.m. as part of the annual Chart/Horseshoe/Canadian Music Week showcase.