Bryon Stroud
CM: Do you find it relatively
easy to sway from the more
industrial, locked-in stylings
of, say, Fear Factory, vs. the
more laid-back, groove-heavy
style of City of Fire? How
much of that has to do with
the drummer you’re perform-
ing with, and how do you
typically go about forming a
good connection with him or
her?
BS: The City of Fire groove-
heavy style is what I feel I do
best. A lot of the COF songs
were written a long time ago in
a band we had called Caustic
Thought. I grew up playing with
Bob [Wagner], the drummer
of COF, in that band. When I
joined Fear Factory, it was a
whole new world for me. I spent
a lot of time with [drummer]
Raymond Herrera; I stayed at
his house, we played video
games, had BBQs, and we re-
hearsed a lot, just the two of us.
Eventually we got really tight as
friends and bandmates, and I
can say exactly the same thing
about Gene Hoglan when he
joined Strapping Young Lad.
He lived on my couch for the
first eight months he was in the
band and we spent so much
time together. It really helped
in forming our bond as friends
and a sick rhythm section.
CM: Is there anything technical
you’ve been working on lately,
or that you’d like to start work-
ing on in order to further your
playing?
BS: There is so much for me to
learn, it’s kind of overwhelming.
I am a self-taught player – never
had a real lesson in my life. I’ve
always been fortunate to have
surrounded myself with great
players, which challenges me
to be better on my own. I think
it’s time to get this upright bass
project going. I see some late-
night online woodshedding
sessions coming my way…
Andrew King is the
Editor-in-Chief of
Canadian Musician.
56 CANADIAN MUSICIAN