By COURTNEY GUTTENBERG
Staff Writer
The Albany music scene has been great for hardcore bands and has given many people with a dream a chance to succeed in the genre of their choosing.
Formed in 2010 in Albany, Concrete has played many different venues over the past five years and has toured across the country. Made up of members Lenny Fletcher (vocals), Jon Dorn (lead guitar), Dave Tribley (bass), Ryan Centurioni (drums), and Dom Centurioni (guitar), the band has released five different music videos, a demo, a split on Irish Voodoo Records and an album on Innerstrength Records.
I was able to correspond with Lenny and Jon about their favorite things about the Albany scene, their experiences as a band, and Concrete’s future.
Q: How did the members meet?
DORN: Lenny and I were in different bands and had been for a long time. We wanted to play the kind of hardcore we liked to listen to and we would want to hear. We’ve been through some member changes but we have a solid lineup now.
Q: What made you want to start a band?
DORN: There is nothing like performing, especially the kind of music we play. There is an energy that you can’t get with anything else. Lenny and I were on the same page about what we wanted to do and how we wanted to do it and we just clicked.
Q: What made you want to play your specific genre/music in general?
DORN: Personally for me, it was a genre I always connected with. I was a pissed off kid and the energy wasn’t the same thing that I got from listening to anything else, including metal. There was a rawness to it and I wanted to be part of that energy. As far as what made me want to play music, I’ve always loved music of all genres—except country. I played piano when I was younger, did the school band, but taught myself to play guitar doing blues and folk, and there was no going back from there.
FLETCHER: At the time we started this band, there was a serious lack of modern hardcore bands in Albany. I was extremely focused and driven, I had always wanted to be in a hardcore band yet never had the opportunity prior to this. I started out in 2002 in a heavy metalcore band then from there was in an extreme metal band, so for me I wanted to do something I hadn’t been able to do before.
Q: What is your current focus?
DORN: We are finishing up writing for our new EP and talking with labels about release options. This is by far the most interesting release we’ll have put out and I’m proud of the way it sounds already. We have actually been staying away from a ton of shows because we were getting a little oversaturated, but what we have booked now will all be special events and are very special shows. We usually do some longer tours in the summer, so we are preparing for that early. I’m sure our calendar will fill up pretty quickly once we get the new album out and make ourselves available again. We just love playing shows. It’s the reason we do this. Without that, what is the point?
Q: What is your writing process like?
DORN: I hum riff ideas into my phone and try to figure out how to play them when I get to a guitar. Then I either send them to Lenny to see what he thinks or show everyone at practice. From there it evolves and everyone throws in input and the riffs change and songs take shape. Then we usually make recordings and figure out what we like and don’t like and change the song from there. Other times, Lenny just sends me songs and tells me to listen to them for inspiration.
Q: Favorite song to play live?
DORN: That’s a tough one. Whichever one gets the biggest reaction that night. It varies but we try to spread the bigger songs out to keep the energy up. The songs are all fun to play but it seems like every city has their favorites. I guess overall, “Bitter Thoughts,” which was actually the first song I wrote for this band. We always end with it and I don’t know if it is because the song is good or because it is the last chance for the night but people seem to go nuts—so that is definitely near the top of my list.
FLETCHER: My favorite to play is “On Thin Ice.” It’s a very abrasive song and has an extremely fulfilling ending that puts everyone’s energy on that next level.
Q: Favorite song you’ve written?
DORN: The new ones that we are going to record, which is a good sign. Sometimes you’re worried about how they’ll come off or if they’re good or if you really like the songs—I just love the new songs and can’t stop listening to them. They’re fun to play, they’re interesting to listen to and they’re heavy. Older songs, I would probably say “On Thin Ice” because the riffs and strum patterns are fun. It has a lot of differentiation in the song too. We actually wrote that one 10 minutes before going into the studio, so sometimes inspiration strikes.
FLETCHER: These new songs are darker and have more elements to them than ever before. A lot of thrash and Slayer inspiration going into this. So these new songs are by far my favorite to write.
Q: What is the biggest goal you want to accomplish with the band?
DORN: I just want to keep playing new places and touring more countries that we haven’t been to. I want to play bigger and better shows. Hardcore isn’t a genre you make a living from and I don’t expect or want to be famous, but I do want to be remembered. I just want to be proud of what we’ve done.
FLETCHER: I’ve never been about increasing our notoriety. Personally, I’ve always been in love with smaller and more intimate shows than festivals or big concert type shows, yet I really want to get our music to as many kids as possible. I want to travel every bit of this rock I can before I kick the bucket. I love seeing new faces, meeting new people, and making friends in this scene.
Q: Biggest goal you’ve accomplished already?
DORN: Well, I think we’ve reached people and made an impact. Seeing our records being sold all over the world and people getting Concrete and Concrete-related tattoos is mind-blowing and humbling. We’ve gone to places where we didn’t think anyone had even ever heard of us and the venue packs up and goes crazy and there are kids singing the words. We’re not playing stadiums and we don’t have to. I think that is the coolest thing in the world. Side note: we would totally play a stadium.
FLETCHER: Even with setbacks and life hitting hard we have managed to stay in the game and keep moving forward, you have to love it to keep going and we love this. We’ve been steadily touring and have a full length and a split on wax, I feel good about that.
Q: Favorite thing about the Albany scene?
DORN: For me, it is the talent that is in the scene. There are some incredible musicians playing all different genres and it is very cool to be a part of that and to see so many great bands that I might not have ever even known about.
FLETCHER: Albany has a drive that can’t be matched, we keep the fire burning no matter what. Recently a newer wave of kids has crashed into the scene and they remind me of me and all my friends in 2001 and that makes me happy. They’re so excited about the music, I’m proud to be a part of that.
Q: Favorite venue you’ve ever played at?
DORN: Again, a tough one. We’ve played some very large shows for very large crowds but I think I’m gonna have to go with either The Workshop in Ceres, CA or this little place in Charleston, SC—I can’t remember the name but it was also an art gallery. It isn’t so much the venue as the people that make the show. When people pack it out and kill each other while you play and then hang out with you and talk to you afterwards—that becomes my favorite show and venue.
FLETCHER: We played a wild venue in Chicago called Jurassic Park that looked like a hood version of a Tim Burton claymation movie. Not sure what venue is my favorite, but this one I’ll never forget.
Q: Favorite local venue?
DORN: Bogies was our home. A lot of great shows and memories from that place. The Fuze Box used to be the QE2 and that is where I started going to shows when I was younger so that has a soft spot in my heart. Trick shots is cool and [Upstate Concert Hall] has let us play some massive shows but they each have their strong points and drawbacks. Honestly, we just like to play and will play wherever. We played in a basement in Albany once. That show was crazy until the cops shut it down.
FLETCHER: We used to have a venue called The New Age Cabaret and the owner was a certified crook but I loved to play there, it held a lot of great shows and I made a million memories in that place. Yet Bogies was my all time favorite, it was just the ideal place to home hardcore shows. Overall, that was the spot. I miss it.
Q: If you could sum up your band experience / band in one word, what would it be?
DORN: Release—as in this is my biggest release and relief in life. Without it, I’m not sure how I would function.
FLETCHER: Euphoric—no feeling like playing music with this kind of energy and looking at a room full of kids that feel the same way and sing your words back to you.
Q: If the world was ending and your band had to be remembered for one thing, what would it be?
FLETCHER: I can’t say what it would be remembered for, but what I hope it would be remembered for is playing for the love of it and nothing more than the love. Hard-working and humble. But we will probably be remembered for our Kenny Powers merch.
Q: What part of the Albany scene has helped you the most as a band?
DORN: I think the variety of musicians. We’ve gone through a few but what made the last record and what is making this current record so cool is the diversity that is going into it. Everybody brings their own ideas to the table and you get some really cool stuff that way.
FLETCHER: The love and support from the younger crowd has been my personal driving force, and friends like Born Low and Brick by Brick to keep motivating me to go further and be better.
Make sure to follow Concrete on their multiple social networking platforms. They can be found on Twitter and Instagram at @concretehc and on Facebook at facebook.com/concretehc. Their music can be streamed on Bandcamp.
They will be playing the Stigmata record release show at the Fuze Box on Dec. 12, the Snowed In Fest in Plattsburgh, NY in February 2016, and will be touring the United States from July 8 to July 30, 2016.
Their split with Hammerfist is available on iTunes, Amazon, Interpunk, RevHQ and from Irish Voodoo Records. Both “Deadlock” and the split are available for digital download, on vinyl, or on CD.
Be sure to look for their new album, which will be released in early 2016.
