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You can blame professional wrestling for the birth of Amps II Eleven.  It was a mutual interest in the squared circle that initially brought Southern Trespass vocalist Matt Chernus together with Stepsister’s bassist (Tony Erba) and guitarist (Aaron Dowell).  When those two bands started winding down, the three got together along with Stepsister’s other guitar player, Attila Csapo, and Shuteye drummer Steve Callahan.  It didn’t take long for this group of Cleveland all-stars to start making a name for themselves on the local scene, and now thanks to Nevada based Smogveil Records, the rest of the world will soon have a chance to find out what all the noise is about. 

UT: You had a wrestling career before you were in Amps. Tell me a little about that, and what made you decide to give it up.
MC:  Well, I always had a passion for two things. Music and wrestling. At the ripe young age of 19, I left the rusted out landscape of Ohio and moved down to Tampa, Florida to be trained by wrestling legend Dean Malenko.  Everything looked perfect. The school was closing and I was set to be the last student ever trained there. Then around month four of six I tore my meniscus, which is a tissue in your knee. I had no real choice but to have surgery if I wanted to continue my new career. So I moved home to Cleveland and had the arthroscopic knee surgery, and then shortly after that began working the Ohio and Michigan independent circuits. The reason I retired is two fold. For one, I ended up having the exact same injury occur in my other knee, and after two surgeries I wondered if it was worth it.  Then once I started doing gigs with Southern Trespass I remembered how much fun playing music was, and I just decided it was over. I had my last match in the parking lot of a Midas in Medina against Josh Prohibition, and then it was on to banging my head for less money but more beer. 

UT:  When I saw Amps early on, Tony was handling a lot of the traditional "front man" duties of between song banter and so on. Things seem a little more balanced now. Was it hard finding that happy medium where Tony could still run his mouth, while at the same time letting you step forward a little more?
MC:  Tony is a ham. Sorry to use such a generic term, but he is a naturally funny guy with an uncanny ability to think on his feet, while I need at least four beers to tell you how the chicken crossed the road. So what I did was step up the drinking to the point that Tony can relax a bit. Plus, we rarely break between songs anymore because taking breaks is a sign of weakness. Print everything I say, by the way. 

UT:  What sets Amps II Eleven apart from other bands playing similar styles of music?
MC:  The passion is one thing. We're not faking this shit. I don’t sing about car engines or banging tons of chicks because that’s not part of my life.  Singing about drinking, knives, sketchy girls and anger issues? Sure, that's what I know. Plus we are all kind of what you would call 'Lifers'. No one's waiting for a check to roll in. That being said, if one does roll in, I am sure as fuck going to cash it. 

UT: In your opinion, why has NE Ohio, which has produced a lot of good bands over the years, been ignored by the world at large while cities like Detroit, Chicago, and even Dayton have spawned more successful acts? Is it as simple as your song, "Jesus Hates Cleveland", or are there some other easily identifiable reasons?
MC:  The radar is so far off of Cleveland that it is pathetic. Disengage? How could you not sign those cats? The Sign Offs? Solo Flyer? There are so many great bands in this town that it makes my head spin. I travel to Detroit and Chicago on a regular basis and I can tell you that, while there are some exceptions, most of the bands in those cities can not hold a candle to what we have here. I will admit that Detroit is pretty damn rad, but nowhere do I see the commitment that is here in Thieveland. I have no clue why we are ignored. Maybe it will take just one break out act. That's why whenever you hear about someone getting a break everyone in town smiles because it's about damn time. 

UT:  Did you ever consider signing with any label other than Smogveil? What made them the right choice for the band?
MC:  Stepsister had put out records with Frank and Smog Veil before. They always treated the band well and right off the bat they had a lot of interest in us. When you have a label with a strong track record, small roster and a genuine love for music there is really no reason to pass it up. And not to kiss ass, but thus far they have come through with everything they said. To think there are people in Reno and Los Angeles working to promote your band while you practice in a basement in Parma is pretty satisfying. 

UT:  Describe your songwriting process for me. Do you guys write as a band, or individually? What sort of things inspire your lyrics?
MC:  Usually it's Aaron or Steve that come forth with the riffage. Then the rest of the song comes together at practice as a unit. The lyrics come last as I can never remember what I come up with at practice, so I need a recording to write along to. About one third of the record’s lyrics were done by Tony, and then the rest by me. When I write lyrics I try to think of a storyline or a theme, and then it's all rhyming words. Nothing deep, I’m afraid to say. I am a die hard fan of 70s and 80s rock so I tend to write about drinking and fighting a lot. I know enough about the former to be very good at it, too. 

UT: You guys have a two week tour set up. How hard is it at this point to do something like that?  I would imagine it's tough to give up two weeks of steady pay from your regular jobs.
MC:  Yeah, the hit in the old pocket book is a tough sell isn’t it? For me, as a store owner, its maybe not as tough. I scrambled to find some part time employees and that was tough.  Paying them will be much tougher.  But I am not giving up an hourly wage. The thing is, if we didn’t want to do this, none of us would be in the band. I would drop everything and start delivering pizzas for a living if it meant we could tour seven months out of the year. I have no delusions of grandeur. I don’t expect to be on MTV next year, but touring is something we all want to do as much as possible. As far as the booking was concerned it was getting kind of close to the wire but we pulled it off. I had my doubts about it as we started booking it just shy of a month ago but Tony and I banded together and we nailed out 16 confirmed dates. Let this be a lesson to all of you unsigned bands, you too can tour the country. All you need is high speed internet access and a bunch of friends. 

UT:  Everyone in the band has experience in the music business, so I imagine you look at things realistically. What are your goals as a band, and do you think "stardom" is possible or even desirable?
MC:  'Stardom' is totally relative. When I go to the bar and someone tells me the gig last night was good, that is enough for me. Would I like a bus and a case of beer each night? Well, fuck yeah! But still, if we get to record a bunch of records with good distribution and that brings along good tours for us, then that is enough good, sir. But I do know Aaron wants to live out his Aerosmith fantasies, so maybe I should take this all more seriously. 

UT:  Anything I didn't ask about that you want to comment on?
MC:  Um, there's so much to talk about these days. Getting Bush out of office, Ric Flair DVDs, Kid Rock recording stoner rock sounding jams. But seriously everyone, support Cleveland bands. No New York City shit. Fuck LA. And if your friend thinks the newest big thing is springing out of Freedom, PA., just tell them to buy a ticket to our next show.

Visit the Amps II Eleven website.