GODSMACK Drummer: 'Everyone Hates Us Because Of Our Tenacity'

GODSMACK's Shannon Larkin recently spoke to Rebecca Ross of the Pensacola News Journal about the first time that drums "called" to him.

"I was 10 or 11 years old, and my older sister was one of those chicks who was into RUSH. She played 'Hemispheres' over and over, and that's when the drums first called to me," he said. "Then she brought home LED ZEPPELIN 'II' and man, that was it. I knew I wanted to be a drummer."

Larkin, a former member of WRATHCHILD AMERICA and UGLY KID JOE, has been in GODSMACK for "four years and seven months" (the band formed in 1996). He believes the band owes much of its success to fans and not celebrity-makers such as MTV and Rolling Stone.
"They hate us. Everyone hates us because of our tenacity. We're like a flu virus that won't go away," he said. "MTV never showed GODSMACK any love, but the fans did. It sounds corny, but we have the best, most open-minded fans in the world. They support us in everything."

Larkin, whose mother lives in Gulf Shores, Ala., said he would describe GODSMACK as a "blue-collar hard rock band." And those constant comparisons to ALICE IN CHAINS? He doesn't get it.

"Before I was in GODSMACK, I objectively listened to the music, and I didn't hear an ALICE IN CHAINS rip-off. I could totally hear METALLICA influences, but not Sully channelling (late ALICE IN CHAINS singer) Layne Staley," he said.

But Larkin doesn't mind criticism — when it's constructive.

"Like concert reviews — I always read those, because it's helpful to know, hey, this was way too over the top, or you lost the crowd with that. It's the record reviews that can hurt, but you're always going to have those few people who don't like your work."

Read more at www.pensacolanewsjournal.com.