For years, Monster Truck practically lived in arenas. The support band of choice for heavyweights including Deep Purple, Nickelback, ZZ Top and Alice In Chains. Their hearty yet soulful take on classic heaviness resonated powerfully – at a time when bands of their ilk hadn’t proliferated in the way they have since. It was a long way from the DIY world that bred them.
“Whatever we’re doing struck a real chord with a lot of different older musicians that are successful,” says guitarist Jeremy Widerman. “They all picked us. They listened to it, and they were like, ‘fuck yeah’.”
You suspect it also had something to do with Monster Truck as people. Down-to-earth Canadians with chops full of AC/DC, Deep Purple and Grand Funk Railroad, they exude the working-class ethic of their roots in Hamilton – atown in Ontario known for its steel industry, with punk rock in its veins. They’re not hard to get on with; Alice In Chains liked them so much they routinely invited them to play golf, and (in bassist Mike Inez’s case) wanted to play a song with them every night.
Now, armed with new album Warriors, they’re back in British clubs as headliners – with Those Damn Crows in the opening spot. The hottest thing to come out of the Welsh valleys since Tom Jones, the Crows have also beefed up their game as arena openers. They’ve even headlined a castle or two in their motherland.
“We’ve been spoiled a bit, in these larger venues,” says singer Shane Greenhall, a strapping, stocky guy with a megawatt smile and arms full of ink. “But really it doesn’t
