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Birthday: 7/8/80
Hometown: Davenport Iowa
Marital Status: Single
Instruments played: Guitars, vocals, bass, drums/drum programs, the occasional
keyboard pad
Been playing music since: 1992
Self taught or lessons?: Both, self taught for new stuff, lessons for old stuff
Musical influences: Anthrax, Children of Bodom, Cradle of Filth, Bruce Dickinson,
Dimmu Borgir, Dream Theater, Helloween, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Metallica,
Motorhead, NIN, Opeth, Pantera, Queensryche, Rammstein, Sack Trick, Skunkworks,
Thin Lizzy, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Warren Zevon
Add me as a friend on myspace: grahamferguson
Add me as a friend on youtube.com: gram440a
“How To Break It” – Graham Ferguson
You might recognize the name from my interview page, or perhaps from an Anthrax concert, or from the Anthrax website. Graham
Ferguson is the guitarist that won Anthrax’s “Killer Demo Contest.” Now hold on, did I call him a guitarist? I should say multi-
instrumentalist. For his debut release, “How To Break It,” Ferguson can be found playing all of the instruments himself, and he does
a magnificent job of it, too.
Songs like “The Bulging Gates Of Madness,” “Ignition,” “While Others Talk Tall,” and many others remind me of the good ol’ days of
metal music. So many of these songs have that traditional metal sound that’s clearly influenced by the masters; Iron Maiden, Judas
Priest, Black Sabbath, etc. Ferguson is an extremely prolific writer, too. He packs this CD with 21 songs that will have you playing air
guitar and trying to sing along.
Ferguson taps the style of the great masters here, but he also adapts that sound to things that are slightly more progressive as well.
For example, “Like A Dog” has a little funk flair that gives it a Red Hot Chili Peppers feel; “Wicked Woman” gives a slight nod toward
the Queensryche style; and “The Big Question” cries out with a Dream Theater-type of ferocity. Ferguson shows an appreciation for
the new talent of today, but his roots firmly lie ready to flower in the beds of metal’s glory days.
Anthrax Contest Winner No One Night Stand
by Scott "Dr. Music" Itter
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When Graham Ferguson was writing the songs for his "This World Insane" CD, he never once thought it would land him on stage
with thrash metal pioneers Anthrax – but it did. On Friday, January 13th at Chicago's House of Blues, the Davenport, Iowa native
was trading sweat and guitar licks with the band as he ripped through a cover of the Kiss classic, "Parasite." It was a songwriting
contest they had billed as the "Anthrax Killer Demo Contest," and it was Ferguson's song "This World Insane" that secured his place
on stage. Along with the onstage thrill, the contest winner was also rewarded with a new guitar and an endorsement from the folks at
Washburn. Anyone who knows Graham Ferguson though, would know that he lives and breathes his music. He also writes it, plays it
(ALL of it), produces it, engineers it – hell, he might even bake cookies with it. So, to find him achieving something of this magnitude
does not sound unlikely. I recently had an opportunity to talk with Ferguson about his music, his experience of being on stage with
Anthrax, and where he might find himself in the not too distant future.
First of all, what was it like to be on a stage with Anthrax, one of the first metal bands of their kind?
"Playing with Anthrax was amazing. I've listened to them for as long as I've played music, so it was a real honor to get a little pat on
the head from them. It was like doing an inning with your favorite baseball team or something."
Well, you have one helluva swing, my friend. I understand you have a small studio in your home where you write and record all of
your material. I also understand that you not only write all of it; you play every instrument, you sing every song, and you also take on
the producing and engineering duties. These are extensive responsibilities that you've burdened yourself with. Why not just play the
instrument you're most comfortable with, and find other fellow musicians and producers to do the rest?
"I could never afford to pay anyone to do it for me! I've always written my own stuff. I want to use my guitar in every way I can think
of, and writing songs is one of them. I originally wanted to be a drummer, but I couldn't afford a set, and my family was really against
it. I taught myself some, but ended up with a guitar as a compromise. I stayed interested in drums, studied them on my own, and
later played in a few bands. My interest in singing and bass came from Iron Maiden and Dream Theater, and from the fact that I
didn't have to buy a larynx. Interest in producing my own stuff came from the digital home studio revolution of the 90's, and 'A Year
and a Half in the Life of Metallica.'," referring to the in-studio documentary film that shows the band recording their now legendary,
self-titled "black album." "Doing it all myself came out of necessity really. I can never get anyone to stay in a band for more than a
few weeks before their girlfriends talk them out of it."
What instrument are you most comfortable playing?
"Guitar; particularly the Ibanez RG. I also really like Les Pauls, but I can't afford Gibsons. I buy Epiphones and gut them."
Your talents are too numerous to mention in just one small article such as this. Your skill playing drums comes shining through in
your music, as does your guitar prowess and singing talent. Tell me, what kind of formal training have you had, if any?
"Five years of guitar lessons with Mark Zaputil, high school choir and theory, six months of drum lessons, and a few piano and
trumpet lessons. After I left high school I went to Music Tech in Minneapolis and graduated after a year and a half as a guitar major. I
also had drums, keys, and vocals for non-majors. When I was there, they asked me to be an assistant teacher for the Rock
Technique class I was in, but some of my classmates didn't care for that, so I didn't. I did guitar lessons with Tim Bellman over a
summer break in there somewhere too."
(Editor Note: Mark (ZAP) Zaputil has been the President and sole proprietor of ZAP, LTD. since 1990, and Tim Bellman are both
accomplished instructors out of the Davenport, Iowa area)
You bill yourself as "The Cadaver Dogs" on your CD's, which might lead one to believe that there are other band members involved.
What made you choose a band name like The Cadaver Dogs over something a little more independent sounding, like The Graham
Ferguson Project or something of that nature?
"The Cadaver Dogs came from the hope that I would have a full band, and not really be the Graham Ferguson solo project. I was
working with specific musicians at the time, and we did play that way for a while. I've always liked cool metal names better than
regular human names. I certainly don't want the responsibility of having a band named after me! However, it's looking more and
more like it's just going to happen that way, so I've actually decided to drop The Cadaver Dogs and just go by Graham Ferguson. I
think this is a good time to announce the switch since I have everyone's attention from the Anthrax adventure. Sometimes decisions
like these just make themselves, and you just have to go with it. For now you can still download all my stuff at www.thecadaverdogs.
com, but I'm setting up www.grahamferguson.com this weekend, watch for it."
(Editor Note: This interview took place on Monday, February 6th)
Has there been interest from any record labels yet?
"Not yet, although Sanctuary sent me a very kind letter of rejection. 'We really like your demo, but we're not signing any new bands
because no one buys CDs anymore,' he said, paraphrasing the letter. "It made me laugh, but it was very considerate of them." I was
surprised, no one else wrote back at all.
Did you get a chance to drop off one of your CD's to anybody in the Anthrax camp?
"I chickened out at the time, didn't want to ruin the moment. Later Scott Ian e-mailed me and said I could mail him some, which I did."
What would you say if he got back to you, after listening to your music, and wanted to record one of your songs?
"It would be an honor, as long as I get some kind of credit (and money) for it."
Let's play some word association, shall we? What springs to mind when I say:
Success?
"Success is doing something you love to do, and doing the best you can at it."
Fame?
"Side effect"
Grammys?
"Milli Vanilli"
Yeah, none of us can forget that, but we're all trying!
Heavy Metal?
"Bruce Dickinson"
Anthrax?
"One of the greatest ever, and totally underrated"
Britney Spears?
"Who cares?"
Singer?
"James LaBrie"
Bassist?
"Craig Weiman. We used to play together, then he went to Boston to study at Berklee, and is now a professional musician in that
area. The best bass player I've ever heard, period."
(Editor Note: You can visit Craig Weiman's website online at: www.craigweiman.com)
Drummer?
"Lars Ulrich," Ferguson says with no hesitation. "He was the main reason I decided to get into music. I wanted to be a drummer like
Lars Ulrich."
Guitarist?
"Me," he says with a small, uneasy laugh. It is obvious at this point that this humble, soft spoken rocker is confident but not cocky.
Work?
"My favorite thing in the world"
Quitting?
"Never"
Sure, Graham Ferguson got the opportunity of a lifetime to play onstage with Anthrax. But Ferguson's talents, and his utmost belief
in his talents, are the things that will take this young man to even greater heights. His confidence in his playing, his admiration of his
influences, and his subtle demeanor are all key elements for those who want to benefit from the music world. If Graham Ferguson
keeps writing, and playing, and producing, and engineering, and doing all of the things he loves to do, there is bound to be a
payday on the horizon. It's my guess that the wait won't be too long, and affording those Gibsons that he's been eyeballing will soon
become a reality. And as far as affording a band, my advice is to just buy an extra Les Paul and do it yourself.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
There’s an attitude in the art world that an artist’s work is only as interesting as the artist itself, an attitude I hold myself, and I’m
sure, dear reader, an attitude you hold as well. This attitude, however, has seeped into our subconscious through the superficial
celebration of the rockstar, as we have come to know it after years of exposure to images of Jim Morrison, Sid Vicious, Roger
Plant, James Hetfield, John Lennon and the like who have been thumb-tacked to millions of adolescent bedroom walls. And it has
done so without further explanation or investigation in such a way that we all agree, but only on the surface. One may chalk this
up to short attention spans, the desire to talk the talk without the ability to walk that darn walk, or musical ignorance (how dare I!),
but whatever the reason may be, the imagination of the artist has been shadowed by the presentation of the superstar. The image
should say enough most assume, but cover those Madden twins with tattoos and they still sing songs that are anything but
dangerous or “edgy,” I believe the industry term to be. Write about, talk about, worship the punk DIY and Tim Armstrong will still
put out a record on Universal and shoot million dollar videos that will play on TRL. When it comes to discussing music, the image
shouldn't be a part of the conversation, unless I’m mistaken and we aren’t talking about music here. Only the really good music will
offer itself entirely to the listener without the aid of a face to go with the name, and it will be just busting with personality.
Even though we all, musicians or not, try to promote an image that is inconsistent with who we really are, it’s refreshing to find
those (musicians AND regular people, ha) who are honest enough to explore and share that exploration in finding their true voice
with an audience instead of 'this is who I am and this is exactly what I am about.' One will be quick to note that those with the
largest vocabulary and least amount of limitations will speak the most eloquently and have the deeper personality to rummage
through.
With all that said, may I present to you Legalize Cannibalism, the second full-length, self-produced, self-released record from the
Cadaver Dogs, an unlikely and unbelievably talented one-man band from Davenport, Iowa. A one-man band who recently shared
the stage with Anthrax in honor of his winning their national songwriting competition to find those unknown wunderkind who are out
there among us yet remain off the radar because the poster isn’t the goal, the expression and exploration are. And may I say
good God!, what fantastic musicianship can come from those who seek out rather than sell out.
Graham Ferguson (guitar, bass, vocals, drum-programming) describes the Cadaver Dogs as a swift kick in the nuts, fusing humor,
cynicism, optimism, various metal styles (from Iron Maiden / Megadeth camp to the alterna-camps of Alice in Chains and Nine Inch
Nails, with EVERYTHING in between), and some wicked chops. A swift kick it may be, but one that feels as if delivered from many
people stretching over many decades of truly interesting musical personalities, and some killer, killer guitar playing.
Snarling dogs, machine-gun drumming, chainsaw guitar licks, sprinting basslines, a vibrato-laced voice wailing about
rebirth…dueling guitars, oh my. And that’s only the first two minutes. “You keep my streetlights burnin’ all night / You keep my city
glowing all night / Give me a reason and I’ll pull the plug on you for sure / Take what I don’t need leave what I don’t want for you
and yours / We’ve made the game you’re born to play so study up and obey the rules / My body doesn’t make itself, it appears
you have someone to do / You’ll wear the uniform, I’ll watch your children starve and die / You’re all working late tonight, feed my
electric life / The world is my apartment and I’ll decorate it the way I like / 2000 story furniture pollutes the air for free tonight”
exclaims “Electric Life” between guitar solos that would make any guitar player, with a right mind, blush and go home to practice.
By this time during your listen, remind yourself that this is the work of one guy, note for note, hit by programmed hit, all genuine
Graham Ferguson, a name I’m sure will be hard forgotten after this record eats you alive.
Legalize Cannabilism is the manifestation of an incredibly kick-ass band phantasized by a lone musician with a lot to say in several
different voices. The louder of these voices being the tastiest, naturally. The tune “Kill the Machine” is not only one of the most
well-arranged pieces of instrumental music one could come across, but it is also an excellent demonstration that sometimes the
best voice is one’s speechless voice. In fact, the strongest moments on this record are the less predictable ones, such as the
pogo-ed melody on “One Does Not Agree,” the delicate arppeggiated break in “Reborn,” the country interlude on “Kill the
Machine,” the solos (and title) of “Never Gonna Ever Be Enough” and time after time the crazy drum programming. Honestly, dear
reader, you haven’t heard a man use a drum machine quite like this before, no sir, or ma’am. One-of-a-kind, that’s for sure.
Explore your talent; share it with those who care to listen. Challenge your ability to express your imagination in different voices and
above all, put your back into it. The best of the best do this and the Cadaver Dogs have done this with Legalize Cannibalism. I
hope for and predict huge things from Graham Ferguson, so listen up folks, there’s much to be learned from him, and he is very
willing to share.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
(Thanks for all the kind words Forrest! Anyone interested in my ACTUAL lyrics should go to LYRICS page, he did miss
a few. -Graham)