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It's not supposed to be this way when you're seventeen: traveling the world first class, playing in front of screaming girls who are throwing their training bras at you, hanging out with the Sex Pistols, Chili Peppers and Soundgarden and, of course, staying in hotel suites that have all the new video games and movie channels. But this is the life of Silverchair, Australia's number one rock export at the moment.
A recent show at the Troubadour in Los Angeles, California was proof positive that the kids love Silverchair and their thumpin' teenage rock. "I couldn't believe all the shrills and undergarments being hurled at us last night," says Silverchair singer Daniel Johns. "My mum was at the show last night and I was kinda embarrassed by all that stuff. You never really get used to it."
For the last year and half, Silverchair have been going out on small tours of the world -- 6 weeks at a time -- and then returning to Newcastle, Australia, back to their schools, friends, and parents' homes. Not exactly your typical rock 'n' roll scenario.
"It's weird," Johns says, staring out his hotel window down at a school below, where all the kids are running around playing. "When we go out into the world, especially places other than New York and L.A., people make such a big deal out of meeting us. But when we go home, we're just kids, you know, no one really treats us any differently from anyone else." As is our wont, RS.com decided to treat Silverchair's Daniel Johns appropriately -- with kid gloves.
RS.com: The show last night was your last for this small tour, a tour that saw you go to South America to open up for the Sex Pistols and Bad Religion, and play Madison Square Garden with the Chili Peppers.
Daniel Johns: Playing the Garden was a dream come true for us. We used to watch Led Zeppelin's video "The Song Remains The Same" two times a day [filmed in the '70s at Madison Square Garden] and to play there was mind blowing.
RS.com: Didn't the Chili Peppers have a surprise for you guys at that show?
DJ: Yeah, they sent some really pretty strippers out to the stage during our set and they danced around taking their clothes off. It was wild.
RS.com: Speaking of the Chili Peppers, didn't you just have a run-in with Dave Navarro in Malibu?
DJ: We were doing a test drive for Bikini magazine with Dave Navarro, and I drove the truck onto the beach and began doing donuts, like all my friends do in Australia. Then, all of a sudden, all these police cars and lifeguard trucks have us surrounded. I had no ID, so they arrested me, taking me down to the police station.
RS.com: Didn't they let you go after your publicist got your passport and explained the situation to the police chief?
DJ: Yeah, in fact the chief asked us if we would give some autographs for his daughter. But I was really scared before that. I mean, my mum was back at the hotel and I really didn't want to have to call her.
RS.com: So, I take it you're happy to be going home tomorrow?
DJ: Yeah, I want to get back home and just relax for a while before the new album comes out.
RS.com: The new album, "Freak Show," due out in March, is every bit as rockin' as "Frogstomp," but has a maturity that makes it even better. In fact, it's hard for me to believe that lyrics so full of angst, and insight could come from a 17-year-old boy who seems so amiable.
DJ: The lyrics on "Freak Show" were written after we came back from our second tour of the States. I saw so much out there, so many weird things, that it really affected how I saw the world and myself. That's why we call it "Freak Show."
RS.com: The album is distinctive and has breadth, with its searing violins, timpani drums, and obscure Indian instruments. Not exactly what you'd expect from a band that people were dubbing as "Soundgarden Jr."
DJ: If anything, both us and Soundgarden owe a lot to Black Sabbath. To say that we are copying or trying to mock Nirvana, Pearl Jam or Soundgarden is just wrong.
RS.com: You seem remarkably down to earth for a teenage rock star. What's the hardest thing to deal with when you're out in the "freak show."
DJ: There's a lot of crap that goes with being a rock star. I usually just stay at the hotel and play video games. I don't really like the feeling of people staring at me in public.
RS.com: So what's on tap for next year after the album comes out?
DJ: We're gonna release the album and do some touring. But we are going to try to spend most of our time at school cause we are seniors this year. We want to hang with our friends and be the kings of the hill.