Words with Joseph Chubba Smith

Hi Joseph, what was your introduction to music ?

The Bay City Rollers song “Saturday Night” was my introduction to music. When I was 4 years old, I would pull the pots and pans and pound like crazy with wooden spoons.

How did you end up playing drums ?

My parents bought me a drum kit when I was 4 so that I would stop beating on the pots and pans. I punched a hole in the base drum so I could get inside it and roll around like a wheel, so that kit didn’t last long. When I turned 12 my parents bought me a new kit and signed me up for drum lessons. I took lessons for about about 3 years. I took piano lessons for a short time as well, but my mind was always on the drums. I have always been drawn to the beat of the drums.

Were you part of some hardcore scene ?

Well, I grew up in Heber, which was a small town about 50 miles from Salt Lake City. Gentry and I started playing together and we were pretty much the entire hardcore scene in Heber at the time. He and I would go to shows in Salt Lake City, and that it how I got connected to that scene. I got introduced to the Insight guys. They were in need of a drummer, so I started playing drums for them when I was 15. Salt Lake had an amazing underground scene at the time. We had great all-ages music venues and the best record store around (Raunch). I was lucky to have been a part of the scene at the time. It wasn’t just hardcore either. There were some great metal and punk bands as well. It was a very active and tight knit community.

So Insight. What are your greatest memories with them ?

We had some amazing local shows here in SLC. The scene at the time was amazing, and some of the shows were nuts. That was quite a treat for 16 year old me, playing to a crowd that was totally into it. One summer we played a lot of shows with Judge, and Bold that was probably a dream for any kid into the hardcore scene at the time. That summer we somehow picked up Chuck Treece to fill in on bass after our bass player flew home. He’s a really cool cat. He taught me how to tune my drums that summer. I think probably the most memorable was the next summer we toured with Chain of Strength. Al Pain and Chris flew out to SLC and set off with us in our van and we picked up the rest of their crew later on in the tour. Both bands were in one van and used one set of equipment. It was crazy. When we were in New Jersey, the engine on the Insight van went south, so we were kind of screwed. We ended up renting  renting the biggest U-Haul truck you can rent and towing the van behind it. Two people sat up front at any given time, and the rest of us were piled in the back. We had the back door up the entire way, with only a single piece of plywood across the back to keep us from falling out. We drove the entire way back from New Jersey like that. How we didn’t die, I will never know. It’s funny how your perspective changes. Even some of the crappiest moments at the time are some of my greatest memories now. I just feel really fortunate to have had those experiences.

Then Iceburn. How did you end up in this band ?

Iceburn grew out of the ashes of Insight and Brainstorm. Both bands broke up around the same time, so we joined forces and Iceburn was born. Gentry and I have always had a musical connection since we started playing music together in the early days. The cycle came back around for us.

Have you got a favorite recording ?

Hephaestus is the recording I am most proud of. I feel like it speaks most to the Iceburn spirit. Gentry and I had a lot of similar musical and philosophical interests at the time, and I think this recording speaks to them. Cache was new to the band at the time, and he quickly connected with the vision as well. Cache was so young when he joined the band (like 14 years old), so it amazes me when I think about it. The studio we recorded Hephaestus in was in the basement of a house. Cache and I were in one room and Gent was in another. Every song has some improvisational elements to it, so that aspect speaks to the mental connection we had at the time.

Did you find a home at Revelation Records ?

That is an interesting question. I’m not sure about finding a home. When I played with Insight, we toured and played shows with a lot of Revelation bands. Even though Insight wasn’t a Rev band, we had a lot of friends in that family. With Iceburn, it was a different story. When Revelation released the Iceburn stuff, it was quite different than everything else Revelation had put out up to that point. I don’t know of any other 4 song double albums that Revelation has put out. Looking back on it, I think it’s cool Jordan did it. One summer, we played a lot of shows with Into Another and Farside, which were both Rev bands. While our music was very different, we had a great time touring and playing together. I think it is cool when labels don’t stick to one type or genre of music. I love it when each band on the bill is very different. If anything, I certainly feel appreciation for what Jordan has done for Iceburn.

Is there a particular reason why you left the seat after Poetry Of Fire ?

I was going to college and had just gotten married. My mind was in a different place. We had a short tour on the West coast and I think it was personally discouraging. I needed a break. That break ended up being longer than I thought, since I became a father shortly after. Once I started having kids, I just wanted to be a family man.

What are your greatest memories with them ?

I have a lot of great memories with the band. We have always had a close personal relationship. Members have rotated in and out as life has progressed. The band definitely has a “collective” element to it. One fun memory is the time Iceburn and Farside were invited to play the CMJ festival in NYC. Farside loaded up a van in California and drove to Utah to pick us up, then both bands in one van drove together straight through to NYC to play the show, hang out for about 12 hours, then drove straight back home. It was a long trip for one show, but so much fun. One other memory that I’m fond of was the time we got booed off the stage in Denver when opening for the Offspring. We played some shows with them one summer. At our final show, the crowd wasn’t having any of us. I guess we were on to something.

What about this new record on the way ?

We have been working on some new stuff over the last year or so. Now it’s just a matter of tightening things up a little more before we head into the studio. All that I can say is it’s going to sound like Iceburn.

What are, if you have, your views on straight-edge ?

Insight was a straight-edge band, so I have that element in my roots. I don’t think much about it these days though. I admire the positive aspects of the straight-edge philosophy. I don’t have much of an opinion either way. Whatever makes people happy is fine by me.

How do you stand in this world, politically, philosophically, spiritually,...?

I was a Philosophy major in college. I guess I have always been drawn to studying different  ideologies and observing how man makes sense of the world. I read a lot of Dostoievski, Nietzsche, Sartre, Camus, and was really interested in the existential thinkers. I connect a lot with that kind of stuff. I also studied Classics, particularly the ancient Greek language, so that introduced me to Heraclitus.

Spirituality for me is centered around nature. I live in a very beautiful place. I have easy access to the mountains, desert, and canyons and I get to enjoy them on a daily basis. I run and ski in the Wasatch mountains all the time and feel a strong connection to them. Music is also something that fills my spirit. I connect on an emotional level with a very broad range of musical types. I have 3 kids who are also big nature and music lovers, so it’s the perfect spiritual trifecta.

From a political aspect, I don’t identify with any of the traditional political parties in the U.S.. I pretty much keep my views to myself. In today's world, everyone has an easy platform to spout their beliefs, and it’s a turnoff for me. Actions speak louder than words. I just hope our country becomes a more selfless, and caring place.