(CROWD CHEERING)
(PLAYING METAL ON METAL)
# Metal on metal
# Feeling the grind
# Up gothe hammers
# A victim to find
# Metal on metal
# Heads startto bang
# Denim and leathers, chains that clang#
Come on, now!
# Keep on rockin'
# Tothis metal tonight
# Keep on pounding
# Join the heavy metal fight#
MALCOLM DOME: / rememberthe firsttime / heard Metal On Metal.
You gotta hear it. It's so heavy. It's heavier than anything you've ever heard.
When Anvil first showed up on the scene, it was like, "Fuck!
"This is cool. This is a statement."
Like, literally, these guys are going to turn the music world upside down.
Seeing them was like a challenge to us to say,
"Well, ifwe can't be better than that, then we should just go home."
# Metal on metal#
All the people back from stage!
# Metal on metal#
They're a great band, yeah. I always liked Anvil. They got my vote.
Lfyou actually had to choose one band and one album
that really started the whole ball rolling,
it would be Meta/ On Meta/ and it would be Anvil.
The minute you heard Anvil, the minute you heard the music,
the minute you saw the pictures, the minute you heard the story,
you could tell that this was the real deal.
(HEAVY METAL MUSIC PLAYING)
Anvil was one ofthose bands thatjust put on this really amazing live performance.
Lips, the singer, used to come out with this bondage harness on
and he used to come outwith this dildo and play his Flying V.
I mean, it was just complete insanity,
and that's why it was such a huge turn-on for us kids.
It was like something we'd never seen before.
(PLAYING SOLO)
They were thrash, man. They were a fast band.
And you're talking about a year before the big four,
Slayer, Metallica, Anthrax and Megadeth.
There's a certain sound that comes from that album
that has become one ofthe basic formulas for any heavy metal record made today.
We were talking about Robb Reiner, like,
he was by far the best metal drummer out there, in terms of his ability.
He was the guy. There was a "holy shit".
They were all good. There wasn't a bad guy in the band.
They were all great at what they did.
They should have made it a lot bigger. I don't really understand the reason why.
Sometimes life deals you a tough deck.
I don't know what happened. Why did they just fall offthe radar?
I really have no idea.
You have to be at the right place at the right time. That's the whole thing.
Lfyou're not at the right place at the right time, you will never do it.
I don't know ifthere was an isolation thing
because ofthe Canadian element, or whatever,
but something didn't translate all the way up to the next level.
They never really got the respect that they deserved after a while
because, as big as an influence as they had on everybody,
everybody just sort of ripped them off and then, sort of, just left them for dead.
This is where it begins. Basically, it's 7:00. I'm not sure what they're serving up today.
It's probably, I don't know.
From week to week, it slightly changes.
Every day it's a different menu but in different orders.
Let's say one week they have pizza, shepherd's pie,
and then the next week they'll have shepherd's pie, then pizza.
You know, put it out oforder, out ofthe order from the week before.
Lfthey happen to make shepherd's pie or something like that,
this week they'll make meatloaf next week on that day.
They'll rally between meatloaf and shepherd's pie
or meatballs with mashed potatoes. You know, just depends.
(PEOPLE CHATTING)
- I can't believe it. You're so cynical. - Where's the 20 bucks?
LIPS: Today is a Monday schedule, which is,
they have to put bananas in all the deliveries.
You see, there's 10 racks, 10 routes, 10 vans, 10 drivers
and I'm one ofthose 10 drivers.
For all this horrible shit that I've gotto go through,
I've got Anvil that gives me my happiness and itworks out really good,
because even though Anvil doesn't give me pay,
it gives me the joy and the pleasure that you need to getthrough life.
The way I look at it, really, is that it could never be worse than what it already is.
If it never got better, that's the way it is. You see what I'm saying?
So, the only waythat it could really... It could only get better.
It can't get worse from whatever's going to happen. There's no way.
But, on the other hand, if it did get worse, at least, this time, after all's said and done,
I can saythat all has been said and done.
Instead of, "I've left a whole bunch ofthings undone
"and I wasn't able to do that and I couldn't do this
"and I didn't do that and I should have been this way
"and I could have been thatway."
At least, this time, I'll do everything that it possibly takes to get there.
To make the success happen and feel it from internally this time.
(DRILLING)
- MAN: How's it going with the band, man? - Great, man. We're writing our new album.
(LAUGHS)
Fuck, I'd rather be on a stage than doing this, you know.
At the moment, it gives me purpose.
It's part of my psychoactive therapy sessions.
And my doctor says I'm doing well, you know.
So, that's it. But, yeah, give me another stage and another party
and I'm really happy.
(DRUMS PLAYING)
(CHEERING)
LIPS: I love to entertain. It's part... It's in my soul.
Nothing is like being in the face of yourfans.
There's a moment, and there are actual beautiful moments,
human moments, where you're actually,
you're in the same room as the people that love you.
MAN: Yeah!
Hello there, Toronto!
MAN: Yeah!
(METAL ON METAL PLAYING)
# Keep on rockin' to this metal tonight
# Keep on rockin' Keep on rockin' #
Robb, he's come over to my place so many times delivering CDs, T-shirts.
Yeah, Robb's been amazing, for sure.
They wrote a tune after him and me, CutLoose and Mad Dog.
# I'm just a mad, bad dog #
(CHUCKLING)
(BOTH HOWLING)
I've gone to probably two or three hundred shows ofAnvil.
We've been to Oshawa, Sudbury, we used to travel with them.
It's an outlet, why not? People do other bad things in life.
It's a good outlet, metal.
(ALL CHANTING)
Yeah, to my dying day, the metal for sure.
"I'd rather be a king below than a servant above.
"I'd rather be free and hate than a prisoner of love.
"Six, six, oh, six. Six."
(EXCLAIMING)
(CROWD CHEERING)
This is going to be the best birthday I've ever had.
Something like that.
(CROWD CHEERING)
REINER: The tunes that we have forthe upcoming album
are fucking, like, unbelievable.
The feels, the riffs, the grooves, the lyrics, pure, fucking magic.
(HEAVY METAL MUSIC PLAYING)
LIPS: Most people only know us for ourfirstthree albums,
Hard 'N' Heavy, Metal On Metal and Forged In Fire.
Butthere's a lot of other stuff,
like Backwaxed, Strength Of Steel, Pound For Pound,
Live Past Or Present, Worth The Weight, Plugged In Permanent,
Absolutely No Alternative, Speed Of Sound, Plenty Of Power,
Still Going Strong and Back To Basics.
Me, Lips, we put this band together about five years ago,
but we've been playing together in a band since we were 15, 16 years old.
- This is where we learnt how to play. - Yeah.
Yeah, this is a lot ofthe beginnings ofour whole friendship,
our relationship with the band and life. It all happened here.
Every day on the way home from school I hear this blasting music
coming from that window right there.
Whoever's playing to this music is playing tight. It's a drummer.
It's fucking, like, six shits coming out oftheir eyes.
Anyway, I meet this guy in my biology class and he goes,
"Hey, man, I'm going to get this guy, Robb Reiner.
"He lives over at the corner ofthe Almans'."
All I could see was this speaker that was sitting in the window
and heavy music like either Sabbath or Grand Funk or Cactus,
a lot of Cactus. The guy really liked Cactus. And I go...
(CAR HONKING)
"Who could possibly like Cactus?"
We had one that we wrote called The Lola Song
and it had nothing to do with the song by The Kinks.
The Lolas were a little frozen kind oftreat and it was called the Lola
and we liked them so much we wrote a song about them.
LIPS: We were just innocent kids. We didn't really knowwhatwe were doing.
We just started rocking out and making this music.
(PLAYING SCHOOL LOVE)
# Out in the school yard Little peaches play
# Rubbing their beaves Got a lot to say #
(APPLAUSE)
Today on Shirley,
"Sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, what's it doing to our kids?"
Now, let me read some lyrics from a song called Toe Jam by the group Anvil.
"Dig a little deeper, hip your partner, make her shout,
"back to front, side to side, tip your cap and come inside,
"down with her fishnets, up with her skirt, dig a little deeper, till you hit pay dirt."
(ALL LAUGHING)
As soon as he met Robb, Robb is a drummer,
and Steven wouldn't continue school.
He wasn't gonna... He gave up school.
Old Pancer's, home ofthe corned beefsandwich.
I think the first song we ever wrote
- was called Thumb Hang. - Thumb Hang. Yeah.
We were trying to write a song about the Spanish Inquisition.
We learnt about it in history class. They would hang people up by their thumbs
ifthey didn't take on Catholicism.
So, you know, I figured, "Hey, there's a cool subject. Thumb hang."
(HUMMING)
# Thumbs will twist
# Can you resist?
# Thumb hang #
Fuck, we should be doing that again.
- They're like brothers. - DROID: They're like brothers.
I mean, it would be...
I think it would be like splitting Siamese twins, really.
They've just always been very tight.
What, they've been around for almost 30 years now.
And it's just amazing how they're going to keep on going and going and going.
They're never going to stop.
You have to structure your life around it, I guess.
You know, we changed our wedding date for it.
Averey was born the Friday before he went away on the tour,
we kind ofgot him started.
You know, "Gotta have this baby now, he's leaving."
- MAN: What does your dad do for a living? - He's in a band.
- What's the name ofthe band? - Anvil.
- What do you think ofthem? - Pretty good.
LIPS: The band has been around so long, it's not like a band thatjust got reunited.
We're in shape, we're in playing shape, we're in writing shape.
It's not like we let it fall apart and then we're trying to rebuild it.
We've been building it all along and working at it.
I think it's probably got more potential now than it ever has.
It's been an honour and a thrill to be in this band for 10 years.
And there was moments when I wondered, "Is this the right place for me, or is this...
"Am I... Are there other opportunities for me out there?"
But those thoughts don't last long when I start thinking of,
"Yeah, I'm in Anvil."
I was a big Anvil fan for many years growing up as a teenager.
So sometimes I still can't believe, it's like, "Wow, I'm in Anvil! I can't believe it."
(LAUGHS) You know?
LIPS: Lvan metthis girl over in Europe bythe name of Tiziana.
She's actually an agent and she's been e-mailing me.
It looks like she's been a big fan ofthe band
and she's basicallytelling me that she has a passion and love for metal music
and I guess we're part ofthat. It looks like she's booked us a tour.
Wow, look atthis. Italy, Switzerland,
Austria, France, England, Belgium, Germany. 1,500 euro a fucking show, man.
Holy shit, this is going to be the biggesttour I've done in 20 years.
When I sit at home or work at Choice Children's Catering,
they don't know that my band even exists.
But if I happen to play, you know, a show someplace in Europe
and one ofthe labels goes, "Hey, man, that band Anvil
"that we heard about, you know, 20 years ago, they're playing.
"Let's go see them." That's all I need.
(SPEAKING)
LIPS: Heavy metal is a really serious culture in Europe.
This is the stronghold. That's why it will never, ever go away.
The Sweden Rock Festival, here we are.
Ready to rock, man. Rock and roll.
(LAUGHING)
(PEOPLE CHEERING)
Swedish Rock Festival presents to you Anvil!
(PEOPLE SCREAMING)
(HEAVY METAL MUSIC PLAYING)
Anvil!
LIPS: The foundation ofthe business comes down to the fans
and the people that love your band.
And, withoutthose people, you really are nowhere.
(PLAYING 666)
(CHEERING)
We're the matinee act and we kicked fucking ass.
"Hello, this is Lips from the band Anvil, and you're listening to Rock Station Kiel,
"you know it."
Okay.
And once again, please, I turn it off.
(LAUGHING)
- I'm so sorry. - MAN: Practise.
- Yeah, okay, sorry. Again. - "Hello, everybody...
Oh, you've got the same trousers on as...
No, actually, I have got the same trousers... They look similar.
Michael is like the Beethoven of lead guitar players, man.
This is where it originates from. This is where half my style comes from.
Do you remember that? I played with the women's vibrator?
- Anvil, Anvil. - I love this guy, man.
You're a good man. You're a good man.
The first time I'd seen you was across the street from where I lived,
when you played in Toronto.
- You went to a videogame place. - Okay.
It was right across the street from where I lived...
- Okay. ...and that's the first place I saw you
and you were coming on to this girl by the name ofJan Wolfman
and we've written a song called Tall And Teasin'.
She was a really, really tall chick with long black hair.
- I don't remember. - I know. You don't remember.
(BOTH LAUGHING)
- I'll see you later. - Okay.
Can you fucking believe the people we're meeting?
Mr Lips, nice to see you.
- How are you, man? - Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm fine.
So you came to see us at Super Rock?
- Yeah, absolutely. - Really, yeah?
- I was a high school student, yeah. - Oh, really?
Yeah. You've got many fans in Japan, yeah.
But ifyou have a chance to go to Japan, maybe next time, then you should do it.
- What, do it in Japan? - Yeah, ofcourse.
(SPEAKING)
It's great to see you, man. It's really great to see you. Really.
Here we are backstage trying to talk to Ted Nugent.
And... pretty interestingly...
Actually, I think that... That's Tommy Aldridge right there.
Tommy! Tommy!
(SPEAKING)
Yeah, well, that certainly is a problem. I can see it already.
(MUTTERING)
Until we become a real commodity, this is what you deal with.
(READY TO RIGHT PLAYING)
(PEOPLE SCREAMING)
# Oy, oy, oy, Moishe laid a guy
# What ever happened to my little Jewish boy?
# I send him to school to learn and read and write
# Now he comes back schtupping shiksas every night #
Would you please ask somebody who is just walking around for the way,
because you need to reach Smichov. Smichov, Prague 5.
I'll wait on the phone and please ask them,
so I can talk to him in Czech and try to help you to find a way.
(SPEAKING)
MAN 1: Is that them? MAN 2: It has to be...
MAN 1: Yeah, it has to be.
Halle-fucking-lujah, man! This is what the fuck it takes to get to fucking Prague?
We've been circling the fucking streets for two hours. Fuck.
The worst thing about it is, I have to throw all my fucking drugs away
for nothing.
There was, you know, all the dogs. What fucking dogs?
There was never going to be any fucking dogs, man.
(SPEAKING CZECH)
Sorry for being late,
but you've got a really complicated city thatwe can't read the signs.
(PEOPLE CHEERING)
(CHANTING) Anvil! Anvil! Very good!
Anvil! Anvil! Very good! Very good!
Anvil! Anvil!
- MAN: Very good! - Very good! Anvil! Anvil!
(ROARING)
See, I'm my own roadie. I ain't a rock star yet.
(SPEAKING)
(PEOPLE CHATTERING)
What's going on here, buddy?
(INDISTINCT)
That's nice.
I guess he figures if he gives me a bit ofgoulash, I'll forget about it.
(SPEAKING)
No. We're not getting fucking paid.
Where's that fucking club owner?
You are too late.
If I was too late, I wouldn't have fucking played, pal.
You're going to fucking pay me.
MAN: Most of people goes away. Most of people goes away.
- I did my full set. - Sorry.
I did my work. I want to get paid.
You should have told us you weren't paying us
before we fucking played, then we wouldn't have fucking played.
You fucking piece ofshit. You fucking pay me. I fucking worked.
LIPS: I'm going to kick your fucking face in.
MAN: Are you crazy, man? LIPS: Yeah, I am fucking crazy.
I just worked my ass off and you won't fucking pay me.
You're a motherfucker.
I'll just give you my business card.
- I'm a lawyer. - Okay, you're a lawyer.
You played in front offuck-all people here tonight. You were screwed.
You have a shit manager. Listen, let's be honest about this.
Right.
You, Anvil, should be playing in front of, I don't know, 1,000 minimum people
every night in Europe. That's my opinion.
- Yeah, you're probably right. - Given your reputation...
Given your reputation, you should be playing in front of 1,000 people every night,
and you are not.
Now you gotta ask yourself why you're not doing that.
- I've been asking myselfthat for 20 years. - Because you've got a shit manager.
I could answer that in one word, two words, three words.
- Go ahead. - We haven't got good management.
(SPEAKING)
Bye!
(TIZIANA EXCLAIMING)
We are here from... In perfect time, in perfect time!
If I miss the train I have to pay double.
(SPEAKS ITALIAN)
I was so, so, so angry.
Okay, listen. You call MasterCard, cancel your payment.
Listen, they do that.
(SPEAKING IN BROKEN ENGLISH)
For to go, for to back. For to back is, again, invalid.
For to go now, change it.
(REINER SIGHS)
The one thing that's a really good thing, man, is that we found those sleeping bags.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(TIZIANA YELLING IN ITALIAN)
It's not you! It's you that will play! You understand me?
Because the promoter ask you ifyou will play!
And you should answer, no!
- Stop! - TIZIANA: Please! Today is a very big day!
(SPEAKING)
- We're not playing tonight? - No.
What happened?
- Whatever. - I know nothing. I don't know anything.
I'm not getting in a pissing contest over this, okay?
"Lips, Lips, how come this, how come that?"
I don't fucking know! I'm just a fucking guy, man.
I just wanted to come and do a tour.
I did everything I fucking could to make this as pleasant as possible
and it's been nothing but a nightmare. The whole thing, from top to bottom.
No one listens to me when I say things. You can imagine how I feel.
(SPEAKING)
I'm doing everything right and I'm getting shit on.
He's going home. He's done with the band. Fucking, he wants to sue you civilly, and...
- For what? - I don't know.
It's so unfair to Anvil. It's so unfair to Anvil, man.
How much more can one person put their fucking love and dedication into something?
How much more can one person go?
This fucking band, man, I need it to rise, man.
Robb, I don't want to fight with you. Do you understand me?
Look at me. I don't want to fucking fight with you, man.
- Okay? - But you did.
I know and we always end up like that. What for?
Only to end up where we were the day before, everything's okay.
Okay? So let's just go play and we get on with it.
Anyway, the place is jam-fucking-packed.
(ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)
(MAN COUGHING)
It's so unprofessional, what we are going through right now.
It's fucking... It's sad.
Welcome to Romania.
(ALL CHATTERING)
Tomorrow, it's cool.
LIPS: Tiziana's told us there's going to be at least five toten thousand people there.
It's a huge, huge arena.
Even the mayor of Transylvania is supposed to show up.
ALL: Anvil!
Look at this. It's the biggest fucking gig and the littlest amp.
(TEASE ME, PLEASE ME PLAYING)
- Anvil very good. - Father and son.
I'm proud ofthis father, he is my dad.
(ANNOUNCING IN ROMANIAN)
(MAN YELLING)
(ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)
(SINGING)
ANNOUNCER: Hello, people! Behold the gods of Canadian bands,
Toronto's own Anvil!
(DRUMROLL)
(CROWD CHEERING)
(YELLING IN ROMANIAN)
- BOY: Max. Max. - Max?
(SPEAKING)
- Yes. - Why?
They never pay me. 99.9% of bands never get paid.
That's the truth. I work every day just like everybody else.
I'm a regular person, you know? Right now, I'm on vacation.
I leave my job and I come and I rock and roll.
And then I go back, and it's back to the same old bullshit.
LIPS: We worked forfive weeks, got paid nothing.
Not even one record company showed up.
- Have a good weekend? - Good, thanks.
- Okay, that's good. - How about you?
Not too bad. A bit busy.
LIPS: Sometimes things go wrong.
Things went drastically wrong.
But, at least, there was a tour for it to go wrong on.
Tiziana was nothing but help, her heart was in the right place
and when she said she was going to do it with passion and love,
that's precisely what she did. She was good to her word.
I'm grateful. I don't regret a minute of it.
By the power invested in me by the province of Ontario,
it is my honour and delight to declare you henceforth
to be husband and wife. And you may kiss your bride.
(WHOOPS)
See, guitar picks.
- Yeah. - Very neat.
(LAUGHING) All right, rock 'n' roll, baby.
(PLAYING 666)
MAN: So what's he given up overthe years in orderto do what he wants to do?
Well, making money. He gave that up.
And that was a little difficult for me to accept
because I'd like my children to go to school
and make something ofthemselves.
Typical Jewish immigrant parents.
Anyone that goes into the arts generally does not succeed.
It's a tough life and they didn't really want that for him.
But you also couldn't understand his choice. You also were not...
How could I... I mean, it was a tough life that he chose for himself.
He wasn't going to be a tailor.
He wasn't going to go into the menswear business.
Steven is not a businessman. He's an artist.
That's who he is. He didn'twantto live in mediocrity.
He'd rather live in poverty and have nothing. He wanted to prove my father wrong, I think,
and he's been searching for that validation since he's 10 years old.
Thatthis effortthat he's put forth to become a great musician
would become worth it.
REINER: Theyjust didn't understand. He deserved the same supportthat I got.
My parents were amazing. My father and mother loved the fact
that I got interested in something and I excelled at it very, very well.
They saw the progress, so they were just very supportive.
He kept saying to my dad, I believe,
"I really want to play the drums. I really love the drums, dah, dah, dah."
And it was shortly before Christmas, I believe, and there it was.
Christmas, his first set ofdrums. That's all it's been since.
Look at the blur ofthat stick, man. I'm burning.
I'm smiling here, and I usually don't smile. I was happy, man.
It was like I found something that was going to work.
Robb's father was in Auschwitz.
He was young. He was 15 years old atthattime.
He did anything and everything in the camp
to get that piece of bread or... He was a fighter.
He was, you know, virtually, "I'm going to die."
In fact, when they liberated him, he was... He said he was getting sick, right.
But that's the kind ofguy he was. He came from...
He was a fucking Hungarian Jew, man.
That's where my roots come from.
He was totally supportive, man. His trip was just fucking,
"You're happy, man, you're doing it, I'm with you."
My father was ajeweller,
and he gave these to me when I was 13 years old as a gift.
I've never had them off my neck since they were given to me.
Except the odd time I've had a few scraps with Lips
and he's ripped them off my neck and stuff. But I've always repaired it, you know.
LIPS: The reality is that we're not getting any younger.
Time doesn't move backwards, it moves forwards.
Your belly gets bigger, your face starts to sag,
your hair falls out, you run out oftime. You've got to do it now.
(CHUCKLES)
You know, 20 years, 30 years, 40 years, you're done.
You know?
We just got to get it done. I need to see...
Personally, I always say "l", but for all of us, I need to realise this while I can.
- That's it. - That's it. Just while I can.
LIPS: You know, one ofthe main reasons that I thinkthat
Anvil has never really gone anywhere is our albums have sounded like crap.
And we haven't sounded good since Chris Tsangarides
recorded us back in the early '80s.
NARRATOR: One Toronto band who lives and dies fortheir heroes
of Judas Priest, Motörhead, Iron Maiden and others, is Anvil,
who may not be the prettiest band in town, but, then again, never professed to be.
(METAL ON METAL PLAYING)
# Metal on metal It's what I crave
# The louderthe better I'll turn in my grave#
NARRATOR: One ofthe things Anvil has going forthem
that should help them gain respect in the marketplace
is that production ofthe new album was handled by Chris Tsangarides.
Chris, you've got quite a history ofdoing heavy rock bands, I understand.
Who are some ofthe other people that you've been producing?
The last thing I did was Thin Lizzie's new album, Renegade.
INTERVIEWER: Never having worked with a Canadian band before,
- how do you find the guys? - Yeah, great. Really.
Yeah, I think they have a lot of English tendencies as opposed to Canadian,
and I mean that in the nicest possible way, musically.
LIPS: Atthis point, I'll send him a demotape
and hope to hell that he is interested enough
and remembers us well enough to get involved again.
LIPS: Do you use pop or...
- Pop. - Pop?
Yes.
REINER: This is where I hang out sometimes, you know.
It'sjustthe Robbo studio music area.
This is where I hide from everybody, you know.
Nobody bothers me down here. I hang out here.
There's Anvil master tapes here, but they're buried in all this junk.
These pictures here, nobody ever sees this stuff, you know.
I like painting. I love to paint.
This is in East Germany. I forget the name ofthe town.
It's on the back ofthe picture. So I made a painting of it.
I like buildings.
There's a guy called Edward Hopper, I love the guy's art style.
I find it very appealing when
you see a scene, but there's nobody in it. I like that.
It's a very quiet place, you know.
That, right there, it's just a monument of an anvil in a park.
But look at the size ofthe people. See, I made the scale like it's big.
Right? Like the Egyptians would have, like it's like a god.
You know, "The god is there!"
Anyways, that's what I was thinking.
This picture is what I call LeftBehind.
This is what's left behind when I'm not around no more.
So, I kind ofjust thought I'd paint myselfout of it.
Okay, now I will tell you about The Grand Finale here.
This baby comes from Europe. The inspiration for this is totally German.
Lfyou touch or feel it or look at it, it actually has texture.
I thought it would be the place to put it, obviously,
because the wife definitely didn't want it in the living room.
ANSWERING MACHINE: Message one.
Hey, Lips. Hey! It's CT here, man.
I gotthe tape,
and I'd like you to give me a call. Call me here at my studio in Dover
and we'll talk further. All right, dude.
- CT! - Hey, Lips!
- How's it going, man? - (LAUGHING) Allright, dude, howare you?
I'm doing good, man, how have you been?
- Fucking A. - Fucking A.
(BOTH LAUGHING)
It's fucking good to hear your voice, man.
- And yours, too. Fuck, yeah. - Fuck!
Yeah, man, well, I listened to the tape and, well, you know,
I wantto sit down and talkto you at length aboutthis
butwe need to sit down together in the same room
and we'll gothrough this shit first but we've definitely got...
- I thinkwe've got something. - That's really, really good news, man.
Holy shit.
- We have right now 19 songs written. - TSANGARIDES: Right.
We want to put13 on this record because this album's called This is Thirteen.
- Right. - The fact that we're still here
doing it is almost... It has its own energy now.
- Thirty years. - I want to just, like, "Fuck it, man,
"let's take what we've got and let's fucking once and for all
"try to get this channelled in the right direction."
TSANGARIDES: We need to find about £12,000, £13,000 to do it.
With that minimal of investment, we've got the potential, like you rightly say,
to continue, and we own everything.
You know what, guys, ifthis sells, you know, we get so much.
If it doesn't sell, what the fuck, we've made a great record anyway,
we don't owe anything to anybody. I just have this feeling.
I don't know why, I haven't got a clue.
I just know that we should do it. It's what we all do.
Where does that leave us?
MAN: It leaves you about to record an album with CT.
He's a genius.
At this point, it looks like I'm going to have to...
We're going to have to take further steps.
It's really bad because, ofcourse, this is an expense.
We don't know whether to take initiative now or wait.
So much is riding on it.
Here I've gotthis incredible opportunity
to work with one ofthe world's greatest producers and it costs a fortune.
I have no idea where I'm going to getthat kind of money.
(MAN SPEAKING)
Why, they are stunning! Did you know that 80%...
...Raybans or Guccis, he's gonna see...
Get outta town! Where the hell did you get those glasses
and where can I get a pair for myself?
CUT LOOSE: You gotta be dedicated and you gotta want it
and ifyou're loud and enthusiastic and energetic,
you can make yourself a shit whack of money here.
Read the pitch word for word, okay? That's what's going to make you money here.
You read the pitch word for word.
The pitch is designed basically so that if a monkey could read,
he'd make 600 bucks a week.
Hello, may I please speak to Bob?
Many a times as a fan, I've been there for him
and now he's here for me but he's also here for himself.
Bob, these are gorgeous.
They're made in Italy by RL. They're called Vipers.
These are identical to the ones Keanu Reeves wore in the movie The Matrix.
Absolutely gorgeous. Made in Italy by RL, they're called the Vipers.
They say they give you a 45% better chance ofgetting laid.
"I'm not calling to cost you money. I'm calling to make you money.
"Try not to at least talk me out ofone box."
(BELL RINGING)
Come on, buddy, pull up your pants, grab your balls and let's do this.
- I'll tell you what I'll do for you. - I'll tell you what I'll do.
- I've got a guy doing a golftournament. - I've got a guy doing a golftournament.
- And he's doing a half a box and... - And he's doing a half a box and...
- Okay, okay. - Don't take okay. What?
LIPS: I've been trained my whole life to be polite
and thatjob does the exact opposite.
You've gotto go against everything that you've learnt as a kid.
MAN: So why are you doing it?
LIPS: Because I thoughtthat Lips, the character Lips,
would have no problem with doing it, but as itturns out
that guy is actually a lot more honest than a telephone salesman.
Hey, Bill, it's Steve Powers from R&J.
(PHONE LINE DRONING)
You know what? 'Cause I have one of my guys...
LIPS: I worked there fora total of probably eight hours in three visits
and I made nothing.
I remortgaged my house...
And I'm not the only one who sits in a really, really... Whoa, okay.
Really serious shit.
Ivan has missed his mortgage payments.
There may be a power ofsale on his home. Okay?
Like, I'm not the only one.
Glenn, G Five, he doesn't even have a home.
All of his stuff is sitting in a garage. Okay?
He rented a garage because he hasn't got enough money to live.
No one's getting paid.
It's just, everybody believes in Lips.
That's an incredible thing.
Like a blind dedication and I'm the only one who's got the vision.
"Lips will take us there." "I'm going to take you there, man."
I've got this... It's been a year of it, an absolute overwhelming year.
I'm gonna fucking do it!
That's what it is and that's why I'm here.
I took the fucking risk, yeah.
At what cost?
So there's cliffs I can go jump off. That's the easy way.
Well, no, you won'tjump offthe cliff 'cause I'll stop you.
- That's dedication, pal. - Seriously.
That's what's taken me 25, 30 years, man.
Of having somebody dedicated to me.
He believes in me.
"Lips will get... Lips is my buddy, man.
"He's going to take... We're going to do it together.
"We're gonna get there. We're going to fucking do it."
Since we were fucking 14 years old. And here we sit in our fucking 50s, man.
We're going to be rock stars.
It's a fucking dream, but I'm going to make it come true.
He will always have what he's done in the past,
but you've got to... If it's over, then you've got to find something else to do.
He's got a son, he's got a wife, he's got two stepdaughters, right?
I mean, he's got a mortgage, he's got this, he's got that.
And Anvil, they tour, they don't make a lot of money and, you know,
he's basically telling me, "It's got to happen or I'm done."
Oh, yeah, someone has to stay home, raising a child and work.
I've been very patient as a wife. How long is it gonna take?
How long do I have to keep "waiting"?
They've been working hard to try and make things work
and they're just not getting, I believe, personally, what they deserve. That's all.
- Merry Christmas. - Merry Christmas.
(CHATTERING)
LIPS: I've always believed that
no matter how hard it gets or how impossible,
there's always hope and there's always a way.
(LAUGHING)
And the most incredible thing has happened. My sister is actually gonna help me out.
She's decided to actually lend us the moneyto go do the album.
She knows how important it is right now in my life.
And the time thatthis all is transpiring, it'sjust an incredible, incredible thing.
That I just wish him well and I wish him success and happiness
and that's all I've ever really wanted for him.
He's my dear brother and I've always loved him.
LIPS: My sister.
(KISSING)
I got my big sister, man.
Cool.
- Family is important shit, man. - Yeah.
TSANGARIDES: If people looked inside themselves a bit more
and think, "Well, why didn't my record sell?"
Well, maybe people didn't like it, and that's the bottom line.
The songs have not been up to muster.
Okay, that's compounded by having crappy record labels,
crappy productions, no management, no anything.
Just a bunch ofguys on their own trying to do this.
Now, I mean, I defy a lot of people to get anywhere like this,
butthey stuck itthrough.
They stuck it through
and the fact that they managed to get contact with me
and I heard the stuff and thought,
"You know what, there's something here. We can do something with this."
LIPS: To getan opportunity atthis point in time in history,
I think, is nothing less than a miracle.
- TSANGARIDES: Hello, brethren. - CT vibes.
TSANGARIDES: We have HM brethren here.
(IMITATES DRUMS BEATING)
- TSANGARIDES: Yeah. - And then come in with it.
(VOLUME INCREASES)
This is a good, little, fucking, catchy tune, man.
I mean, it's straightforward metal rock. It's maybe not even, like, metal.
It could be in the pop, punk pop, how about punk pop, metal?
(BOMBS AWAYPLAYING)
# Bombs away, bombs away
# Bombs away
# Shells explode
# Flashing light, burning fires
# Turn dayto night, head on back
# Reload bay, armed again
# Bombs away
# You don'tstand a chance #
You know what, I'm doing some other stuff that I wasn't anticipating.
- TSANGARIDES: That's good. - Okay.
# Tarot cards and tea leaves
# A crystal ball
# Palm reading, candlelight
# Fortunes to tell
# Fear the unknown
# Edge ofyour seat in anticipation #
LIPS: (SHOUTING) I don't know what you want. What do you want?
You sit here all fucking day, pouting, "It's crap."
- You're causing disruption. - REINER: Let it all out.
You'll fucking listen to me, you fucking asshole.
Look, you smile. You're smiling at a fucking loser.
You're a fucking loser.
- Let it all out, man. - That's what you are.
- Let it all out. - Calm down, guys. Come and sit down.
It's destructive, it's negative energy.
- What are you doing? - I'm...
You've got everything fucking going for you. What are you doing?
And everybody tells me that. You're right. Everybody tells me that constantly.
You're right. I agree. So maybe...
So where are you going? What are you doing?
I'm going to go pursue something a little bit more satisfactory
than, I guess, what's happening with you. Sorry.
You push me away. I'm accepting your offer. I'm on to the next page.
Oy vey, why is this happening?
I'm fucking sick of it. I can't fucking deal with it.
You know? We're going to come apart at the seams.
I don't know what's going to happen.
I'm so fucking fed up, like we've got to get a drummer.
I mean, I don't know what to say. He's fired. I mean, what can I say?
That guy lives to hurt me, man,
and be jealous. I don't even know what the fuck is wrong with him.
But he's fucking, just lives to fucking hurt me.
(COMMENTARY ON TV)
I stayed dedicated to what? Stayed dedicated to fucking what?
(DOOR OPENS)
First thing I want to say is I'm sorry, okay?
Well, I would have liked to hear that...
Okay. Just look at me. Look in my eyes. I want to talk to you, Robb.
I'm sorry. Do you understand that?
I'm under a hell of a lot ofstress, okay?
If I lose my temper, if anybody knows, you know.
I'm tired of being the fall guy. Understand? I'm tired of it, that's all.
- I don't want negative energy around. - Fuck you, man, there is no...
- Yes, it is! - I'm positive.
Yes, it is, because negative energy is when you say to me,
"Oh, you do half-assed takes and settle for it."
That is a rude, underhanded, low blow
because I could say the same thing about your takes.
I would never dare because I don't feel that way.
TSANGARIDES: Sit down, sit down, let's try reasonable voices.
So, what I can see going on here is we're having a little bit of...
When something is said, it's overamplified,
and the recipient gets bent out ofshape, for whatever reason.
Call it cabin fever, call it... I don't know, it's academic now.
I'm hard to live with.
- TSANGARIDES: Fair enough. - I'm hard to live with.
(TSANGARIDES LAUGHING)
- TSANGARIDES: Fair enough. Fair enough. - You know?
- I'm emotional. No doubt about it. - TSANGARIDES: Yeah.
But that's what makes you what you are. It makes all of us what we are.
REINER: Yeah, that's cool, man, I know that's what you are, man,
but the bottom line is, why am I your fall guy constant-fucking-ly?
- When I'm there for... - Because I love you, that's why.
REINER: Because I'm there for you fucking constantly.
TSANGARIDES: Well, he does. He does, man. You want to hear what he says about you.
You're my fucking brother, man.
Who else can I fucking cry on their shoulder or fucking say shit to?
Who else? Who's the closest person I've got in the world?
- REINER: I know. I know. - Think about that.
Good.
If I can't express myself and blow up at you, what have I got? I...
You're the closest person I have.
Well...
I'm sorry, I don't know what to say. I'm sorry. I'm very sorry.
Okay, fine. I hear you, it's just been so much of it, dude.
- It's just like, I don't know what the fuck... - We're both stressed.
I ain't stressed about nothing, man.
- I get stressed... - Well, I am.
I get stressed when you start fucking blowing it out on me, dude.
Yeah, then I get stressed, but otherwise I ain't stressed.
I'm fucking going, "Let's go, boys.
"Let's show the fucking world and some ofthese assholes
- "that they're wrong." - TSANGARIDES: Exactly.
Who is the one always driving that machine? Robbo.
Lfyou look at it, in the great scheme ofthings,
it's a very, very tiny concern, really, what we're talking about,
and the reactions from everybody were just a little bit excessive.
Yeah. Totally. So... I need your support.
I need your bloody faith in what I'm gonna do
to make this record sound like the fucking dog's bollocks, and it will.
Listen, man, I'm sorry, buddy. Okay? Listen, I'm sorry.
I love you, you know that. Okay? We've got a long road ahead of us.
LIPS: I still believe thatthere's an overall feeling of something guiding us,
an aura around us that protects and keeps it going
and I don't knowwhatthat is orwhy it is or how it is.
Whether it's bonding between Robb and I from since we were kids.
I don't knowwhat it is but it's like we're there for life.
REINER: Yeah, we're family, man. We're close buddies, man.
Like any family, we have our differences and stuff,
butwe've always been able to workthrough that stuff.
- Merlin did it. - Merlin did it.
Either that or Satan was running all across the countryside
and he dropped a few stones, right?
He was high, man. He was drinking or something.
I want to touch it, man. It has healing powers, they say.
The healing powers is the stuffthat I need.
In the studio with me is Lips from Anvil along with Chris Tsangarides,
producer of This Is Thirteen, the name ofthe brand-new Anvil CD.
Welcome to California and welcome to KNAC. Lips, what label will be putting this out?
LIPS: That's a good question.
Now that is going to be the $64 question for This Is Thirteen.
I'm looking for a manager.
I'm looking for somebody who will properly represent the band
and get us out there playing in the proper places.
Get us with the proper record company that's going to put our product out there
for people to know that it's there.
Tell you what, this is going to be not only the world premiere here on KNAC. Com,
but world premiere here on the Vault. This Is Thirteen.
(THIS IS THIRTEEN PLAYING)
# Tarot card and tea leaves
# A crystal ball
# The gypsy's kiss
# The death card's call#
I really feel that This Is Thirteen is the best sounding Anvil album ever.
And everything is riding on it.
We're going to have all the record companies that we can get
listen to it and, hopefully, they'll make bids on it.
Hopefully we'll get a real, proper record contract
and, somehow, get someplace in this godforsaken crazy business.
- It's the new Anvil album. - Yeah, I'll make sure he gets it.
LIPS: Hopefully, we'll have more luck back at home.
- Hey! I'm doing okay. - What's up?
- I'm Fraser. - Hi, Robb Reiner.
- Robb, nice to meet you. Sit down, boys. - Lips.
REINER: You can make lots of money with this band.
Want to rock and make money. There's nothing wrong with that.
(LAUGHING)
Okay, listen to number 13 first.
(AMERICAN REFUGEE PLAYING)
# Searching for a place to hide
# Running from those you've defied
# Forsaking the land ofthe free#
(TURNS MUSIC OFF)
It's a bit of a challenge, to be honest.
'Cause the landscape has changed here and itjust has to...
If it's going to work here, it has to be the right fit.
We've got to be able to give you guys what you deserve and vice versa.
A major label should put this out
because it's notjustice to have something that sounds this good
to go out on anything less than that. Somebody better do this justice.
It hurts so bad because everything else was done so correctly
and that's what was wrong with Attic Records.
It was the Metal On Metal and the Forged In Fire albums.
Those were classic albums, they are classic albums
but recorded for an independent who fumbled the ball.
The history speaks for itself.
You've been around a long time and that has currency.
That says it all, doesn't it?
It's due. I really will check it out and listen to it and we'll see if it fits.
But we definitely won't get into something
we don't think we can do what you guys deserve 'cause it's been,
man, being 51 and doing this, this is a real commitment.
I mean, it's amazing. Thanks for coming by.
- Thanks for having us. - Really nice meeting you, man.
- That's terrific. Thanks a lot. - Have a great day.
HILL: All right.
He said your history is worth money.
- Yeah. That's what he said. - Yeah.
He summed it up, basically, "It doesn't matter what the fuck,
"that's what you got, guys." I don't give a fuck about anything else.
(SIGHS) This is not good.
REINER: I hate the fucking industry, you know?
Ltwill neverchange. Itwill never get better.
They're all fucking bottom-feeder, pieces offuckthat run the thing.
Organised criminals, you know.
Drug fucking runners. That's what's the business is about, right?
I hate it, man.
99.9% ofthe time, the guy never listens to your fucking tape.
And his desk is piled up like this with other entries
into the lottery of rock and roll.
He's going to look at it, he goes, "Let me see. What am I looking at?
"Okay, these guys are in their 50s."
And he's got another band that, "Here, these guys are in their 20s. Hmm."
I would like to see him make it.
I would like to see him recognised, his talent recognised by, you know...
I know his peers do recognise it. But I would like to see him
become as famous as he's been trying to become all these years.
It's over. It's been over for a long time.
And it's just too bad no one's living in the real world.
When you've been in a band for 30 years and you have 13...
They're working on their 13th album, CD, whatever,
and you can still only get 100 people into a bar at any one time, it's ajoke.
- It's ajoke. - Well, we'll see. I mean, I don't...
Like you said, it's just always a big, "What if? What if?"
And, unfortunately for them, that's what it's been like.
They've really never had a break.
Maybe back in the '80s when they were on with Bon Jovi or whatever.
But I've just been trying to be that supportive rock star wife, I guess,
and I've maybe wanted to live that dream as well.
I like the scene, I like the music.
I like the bands, always liked the bands and the music.
I just fell into that '80s scene and I liked it.
I liked the hair, I still, the hair bands, it's still me,
and nowadays you just... You keep dreaming that dream, but
I'm still dreaming, I guess, as much as what they are.
The album is a success whether it sells 10 or 10 million,
it will make no difference to me on the level ofwhether it was successful or not.
It was successful because, to me,
it sounds the best we've ever sounded and that's a success.
Voilà, Anvil CDs, man.
To mass-produce 1,000 CDs,
you're looking at basically in around a buck, a buck and a half per CD.
LIPS: There it is, man.
Wow. This Is Thirteen.
People want this.
We get e-mails and people freaking out, "Where the fuck is this album?"
So we got to get it out. It's an amazing album. I love it.
LIPS: There's no sense waiting for some pitkins from a record company.
It's pointless.
We're selling it directly to our fans,
who are the people that you did it for to begin with,
and now there's no one in between you and them.
I think it's the way to go. I think it's the way to go
that's going to be for all bands. I mean, it's not like we're unknown.
We've got a great head start because we've been around for years,
so I think, at a very minimum, we're going to do okay.
(SHOUTING)
GINNY: The band is really... It's more than just his career,
but it still is, at the end ofthe day, his job.
It defines a little bit ofthe person who he is, but it's still the person.
And even ifthe band doesn't go or become famous or whatever,
he's still the same person.
And I'm in love with the person, I'm not in love with the band.
- How was skateboarding? - Good.
Good, bad, whatever. Okay.
GINNY: Put your stuffdown, we ordered pizza, okay?
Wow.
GINNY: He's very focused on family.
Whether I complain that he's not or he's not, he really is.
I think that's one of, maybe,
a greatest criticism and maybe why he withdraws from me
is that when I criticise him, and it has to do with family,
he internalises that way too much.
And so that's...
While the band is his dream and a bit ofwho he is,
I think even he knows at the end ofthe day
that the family is what's important.
Look what you made me do. You made me cry.
(LAUGHS)
Got stuck in the tree.
- Does that count as a point? - No.
Oh, 3-0.
(HEAVY METAL MOBILE PHONE RINGTONE)
Okay, thank you very much. I'll speak to you soon.
I've got to call Robbo.
We just got a gig in Japan. I'm serious, man.
Fucking right. Okay, I'll speak to you after. Right, bye.
Next, okay.
LIPS: We've sentthe album out all overthe place
and this Japanese promoter heard it and he's invited us to play
in this massive show in Tokyo.
See, everything turns into something else.
You get on the phone, and then, all of a sudden, now we're busy.
Itfeels like an incredible force of déjà vu going on.
I feel like I've lived this moment for sure before.
Lasttime I was here, I was in my 20s. It's really hard to believe that,
fuck, a quarter of a century is gone since I was last here.
It's good to be back, but I find out from the promoter
thatwe're on at 11:35 a.m.
I came all this distance, did all... Everything that ittookto get here
and nowwhat am I worried about? Is anybody going to show up?
I've been in a situation where
I've had five people in a place that holds 2,000 and it's not a good feeling.
It really isn't.
Itwould be very disappointing ifthere's less than 500 people
because, from what I understand, it's a very, very large place.
Listen, for me, I'll play for no one. I don't give a shit.
I love to play, justto hearthe sound and create that vibe of being Anvil.
I live forthat anyway.
But it's everybody else that goes with that.
The people that have spentthe money to bring you there and everything.
My heart goes outto that aspect, too.
What if no one gets there? Shit, man, it's not a good thing.
Japan.
(SPEAKING JAPANESE)
(DRUMS REVERBERATING)
- Anvil! - Anvil!
Anvil!
- Anvil! - Anvil!
LIPS: A lot oftimes I close my eyes during the show and I think about
the place is full and everybody's freaking out
and I tryto pretend that it's all good
and I really deal with it afterwards when a promotercomes up to me and goes,
"Well, Lips, I can't pay you whatwe originally hoped to pay you."
So it would be a really sad moment, I think, to come this distance
all forfive people or something.
(CROWD CHEERING)
(PLAYING METAL ON METAL)
# Metal on metal It's what I crave
# The louderthe better I'll turn in my grave
# Metal on metal Ears startto bleed
# Cranking it up Fulfilling my need
# Metal on metal#
Getthem up!
# Metal on metal#
All the people back from the stage.
# Metal on metal
ALL: # Metal on metal!
# Metal on metal #
Come on, let me hear you!
# Metal on metal Metal on metal#
We love you, Japan!
(CROWD CHEERING)
LIPS: Ltgoes farbeyond writing a good song.
It has nothing to do with the song. It has to do with a matter of attitude,
what you're willing to settle for, who you're willing to workwith
and having a good time with my life, enjoying my life.
That's the most expensive thing in life
and the most valuable things in life, is your relationships,
the people that you know, the places you've been
and the experiences you've had.
Oh, Godzilla!
LIPS: I started outwith Robb when I was 14, 15 years old
and we said, "We're going to do ittill we're old men." We really meantthat.
We had that 15 minutes offame and then it's gone.
So that's the way I kind of look at it.
So I was lucky enough to have that moment, and I've made, basically...
It was enough of a moment that it prolonged and gave me a career that's 30 years long.
So it was a great achievement, a fantastic achievement.
Nothing to ever look down at or not to be proud of
and that's the way I really look at it.
You don't think about it. Life flies by, man. That's all I'm learning here, you know.
Before you know it, life's done. And it didn't seem that long.
That's what Robbo was learning about a lot ofthings.
The music lasts forever.
Maybe the debt does, too, but the bottom line is,
the music lasts forever and that's the art and that's the most important thing.
There's tons of bands that can sell millions of records, obviously,
but how many bands can you think of, honestly,
that have stayed together for 30 years?
You've got a couple. You've got The Rolling Stones, you've got The Who,
and you've got Anvil.