Three Albums, Three Nights, One Legacy: The Used Rewind the Clock

‘I get up there and every night, at least once I’m going, this is amazing. I can’t believe we’re still here. I know we all are soaking it up now more than ever. I don’t know if that is being a little more mature or whatever, but we all are very aware that we are super fortunate to be doing what we’re doing and we love it.’

Dan Whitesides is the long-standing drummer of America’s The Used and he is pumped for the bands upcoming and rather unique tour of Australia next month which features twenty one shows across the country in a month. While that is ambitious certainly, the uniqueness is that each night they play one of their first three albums in full. In each city. Yep, each city gets at least three shows, and three different albums played in full. Phew!

‘I’m a little scared. It’s just a long time, but what happened was we’re going to do three shows in four different places, so that would be twelve. Then they were doing so well that they just started adding more and they even wanted to add more and we’re like, we better not, you know what I mean? We’re going to kill ourselves! We’re all super excited to get over there and we all love Australia, so I mean the worst part about going to Australia for a month is not being near my family for a month. But other than that, we’re so excited and my wife’s actually coming out for a week or so anyway, so it’ll be fun.’

While a three nighter is newbie, the band have attempted grandiosity before only a few years ago.

‘We did a fifteen-year anniversary tour and we did the first two albums. Why not add an album and do three nights? From what I’ve heard, nobody’s ever done that before and it’s working out for us. I don’t know why it was just those first three. Obviously, they’re the more popular albums, so I get that, we all just agreed on it.’

Twenty years into a career and the success of a band who still releases new music often yet can conjure sweet nostalgic moments is not lost on Whitesides.

‘I’m grateful because you never know if you’re going to do this and people are going to show up. We’re purposely doing, I wouldn’t say small venues, but smaller venues because it is for three nights and it is a lot to ask for people and for us. It also makes it better next time we come around that we’re going to play everything and be in a bigger place. We’re a timeless band and I’ve always known that The Used have been timeless sounding. It’s because of the words that Bert writes, and the music isn’t – usually someone thinks of a heavy band and they think of Knocked Loose or guitars just have to be chugga chugga – we’re a heavy band without doing that. Then we’re also a really mellow band, we have piano and we have acoustics. So, I’m grateful and I think that we’re fortunate to be in this band and have the songs that we have.’

Dan didn’t play on the first two albums, the self-titled debut and follow up In Love And Death, however he made his presence felt pounding the skins on third opus Lies For The Liars.

‘I was super scared. Long story short, I was asked to be in the band. I came out to LA, I was practicing all the first two albums and going up to the studio was nerve wracking, I wanted to quit because it wasn’t what I was used to. I wasn’t used to Hollywood, big time producer, it was just too much all at once. Then we’re rehearsing for Taste of Chaos in 2007 and I had half a rehearsal with Bert McCracken (vocalist) before our first show. He didn’t even sing, he just came in, watched us play and then left. I knew Bert, I know that he was in probably in a bad place and I don’t think everybody at the time agreed on what was going on. He had a lot of drummer friends, still does, that maybe he wanted to give the job too. Anyway, we played our first show and Bert and I hugged and cried afterwards and I was accepted into the family immediately after that!’

The drummer has previously cited Alkaline Trio and Weezer as influences and currently digs Knocked Loose and Turnstile. ‘It’s rock and roll and man, it’s got amazing riffs, amazing drum beats. It’s great for music!’ However, the man is still very much a fan of The Used.

‘What I want to do is, and I’ve told everybody whether it happens or not, but I want to do songs from every album, at least one. Obviously, you play the bangers, you play the hits from every album, but at least the singles from ‘Vulnerable’ we play. ‘I Come Alive’, that would be great. We haven’t played that song in so long and play some stuff off ‘Heartwork’. So, I think that would be fun for fans as well.’

That’s a tour for next year hopefully for The Used fans, however this brings us back to this tour of Australia of the palpable excitement from Whitesides.

‘I never really get nervous before I play and this has been a little nerve wracking. I just don’t want to mess up. Even though I’ve been practicing my brains out and we’ve played these songs so many times, I just get up there and every night I’m up there at least once I’m going, this is amazing. I can’t believe we’re still here!’

Interview By Iain McCallum

Catch The Used on the following dates, tickets from Destroy All Lines…