The press materials I got say Voice of Addiction is a “politically-charged band that is sending a message…” and that your goal is to “make audiences open their eyes to the injustices around them.” What specific injustices are you trying to shed light on with your music? By politically charged, do you mean that you want political leaders to address certain issues, or are you part of a movement to start anew in a way that would address said issues in a better/different way?

Politically charged actually was first used as a descriptor in a review of our latest album “Re-evolution.” I usually use this in conjunction with socially conscious. What I interpret this as is not only seeing the forest or the trees, but both. We try to look at what is going on in our backyard, but also in our country and around the planet. We don’t believe that people are that much different whether next door to us or on the other side of the globe. People all have the same basic needs; it is just the wants that differ. Everyday I see people walking literally through their lives with blinders on. And the ruling corporations like it this way. What V.O.A. tries to do is put things into discussion that normally aren’t given much notice. I wouldn’t say we want political leaders to address anything. It has nothing to do with gods or masters. Countries are just arbitrary lines someone put on a certain piece of property. These mean nothing in the greater sense of humankind. Too often we don’t lookout for our neighbor. I do believe in the general goodness inside of people. By this I mean that without any interference, influence, or indoctrination we are inherently pre-disposed to good inside one another. But the problem here lies in the fact that this all starts when we are still in the womb. And this is what leads to addictions. We do not officially label or brand ourselves into any movement. But we work with people all the time that are also forward thinking to try and help the local scenes, communities, and try and give the youth something tangible to hold on to. A big thing I try to keep doing with my lyrics, is leave them open to interpretation. I don’t want to tell anybody what to think. They must constantly ask why. And question everything to form their own ideals. To create independent thought. To become a better influence on their community and citizen of earth.

Ian, you’ve said that everyone is addicted to something-drugs, alcohol, money, etc. Why focus on addiction? Has that played a pivotal role in your band? How does addiction converge with your band’s political ideals?

The reason I focus on addiction is because it’s universal, like you quoted, “everyone is addicted to something.” This might sound odd to some people so let me explain. When most people think of addiction they tend to lean toward drugs and alcohol. These are most definitely addictions, don’t get me wrong, but they are not the only ones. We have sex, cigarettes, money, religion, power, greed, oil, caffeine, TV, fast food, etc. If we are truly honest with ourselves I think we will all find at the very least one addiction. I know I definitely have multiple. But don’t get me wrong. I am a big believer that everything and anything is perfect healthy if done in moderation. This is something I actually live by. But the important thing is to know yourself, and your limitations. Addiction has many varying degrees. And if it’s a bad one you should just abstain from it, because it may not be able to be controlled in moderation. So this being said, I think addiction and our political ideals are one and the same. We are from Chicago, so we know all to well the political corruption that comes from being addicted to money and greed. An even scarier addiction is power, added to this recipe. This has centralized wealth far greater then ever in history. And destroyed a great deal of the middle class as the separation between the rulers and the ruled become much greater. In the United States we have been left with a one-party political system, the property party, in which we are given the illusion of choice with the two barely varying factions. The same corporations that influence these parties own our media. Which is why it is so easy to be lost in the crowd with mainstream since everyone is saying the same thing. Which brings me to the reason we support independent media, where we can actually still speak our minds, and I thank you for the opportunity.

Let’s talk about your sound. While listening to your latest album, I heard a good blend of ska, rock, and metal. Specifically, “The Walls” and “Grease The Wheel” have a Sublime quality with alternating reggae and rock patterns. “Martyr” was surprising in that there was a guitar section that sounded like a re-done version of the riff from Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs”. Other times, there is a driving sound that is reminiscent of some Deep Purple songs. Do these have an influence on you? Which other artists/bands do you draw upon, either musically or lyrically?

We like to draw on our life experiences, and use this to fuel our writing process. All of us are classically trained musicians. So why be in a punk outfit you ask? It is because of the energy it offers, that has stuck with us since our youth. It has been a great vehicle for everything that we believe in. All the bands you mentioned above are definitely influences of ours. With our collective musical backgrounds, it has been essential to learn and perform many different styles of music throughout the years. When a lot of people come across V.O.A. they have the stereotypical punk band idea in their head. But once you listen for a while there are many different genres going on. Punk and rock are just the most prevalent. Some other bands that are big influences on us are: Operation Ivy, Dead Milkmen, Pixies, Against Me! New Model Army, Queens of the Stone Age. A band should be a living organism, and just like life, it should naturally evolve. V.O.A. has for sure evolved throughout the years. And we plan to keep the progression going. We already have all the tracks for the 5th release “Reduce, Reuse, Resist” written. And we are working on recording them with Scott Fritz of ‘Stranded on a Planet Productions.” With our hectic touring schedule recording sessions are sporadic, so we are looking at a late winter/early fall 2010 release date.

How does being a DIY band shape the kind of music you produce? Do you feel that if you were to let someone else control any aspect of your sound or business model (booking, rate of album recording), the band would loose its edge? Have there been instances where you had to decline these sorts of offers in order to stay true to your vision?

DIY is just a way to get things done without sitting around waiting for someone to tell you what to do. We receive help all the time from people, and we also help out a lot of people as well. We currently are running two punk nights in the Chicago area. At both The Mutiny and at Doug’s Rockhouse the last weekend of every month. We book these DIY and get most of our touring gigs the same way, someone else is doing something similar in their town. It is a great underground network of people that keep the scene and community alive. To be honest that is what I live for. We aren’t waiting to get signed, for someone to put out our record or book us a tour. We are taking matters into our own hands and creating our own future. I can only hope that we inspire people to start their own bands. We have also had offers and such from people that we had to turn down because they conflicted with our beliefs or compromised our control of the band. Not that we are against labels, agents or anything. But it has to be a mutually beneficial relationship. All too often it isn’t and almost never is the artist the beneficiary.

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