JOHN OLTMANNS - BAD ANTICS

Name: John Oltmanns

Band: Bad Antics

Duties: Bass/ Back up vocals

My first interactions with Bad Antics were when I had the chance to play with them in Las Cruces at The Trainyard on January 3, 2012 and in El Paso at Lips on January 8, 2012. I knew nothing about the band except that when I asked what the details of the show were it was something akin to that I was going to play with a “high energy skate punk band”. Genres typically consist of some sort of close-minded generalization so right off the bat I wasn’t going to assume that the dudes in the band wore Thrasher mag shirts, liked bands like JFA, and were all skaters themselves. Regardless of what genre they were classified as, when I first saw them they blew me away. The blistering solos, fast paced movements that came to a sudden halt, the classic rock vibe that intertwined punk/hardcore, the vocalist engaging the audience…I loved it all.  If I can describe the band in one word it would definitely be “energy”. If you’re able to catch these guys expect to see some hair flying and a good amount of head banging. Earlier this year, Bad Antics came back into town before embarking on their tour with Negative Approach and I asked the bassist, John, if he’d be willing to do an interview. Here it is.

Goofy

What’s the last prank you remember pulling on someone?

I honestly can’t remember. Whatever it was, it probably wasn’t too elaborate or good.

You’re a pretty tall guy. How tall are you?

6’ 2”

Are you any good at basketball?

Not too great. I’ve been asked that a lot.

Favorite sports team?

LA Kings

Favorite skater?

I really don’t know who I would want to put as my favorite skater so either Andrew Reynolds or Bob Burnquist.

Have you ever broken any bones? If so, how many?

Yea, I have broken my left wrist twice, both times from skateboarding. One of the times was when I was about 16 or 17, my friends and I weren’t old enough to sign permission slips to get into the skate park, so when the dude in the front wasn’t looking we snuck past and into the park. Within 10 minutes of skating the bowl I fell in the corner and broke my left wrist for the second time. Still fucks with me from time to time when playing.

Soup or salad?

Baked potato soup and chicken salads are pretty equal in my book.

Technology is _________.

The future.

Personal

When you’re in a bad mood, what are some things that instantly brighten up your day?

Usually listening to some music or playing an instrument and smoking weed.

Besides playing in Bad Antics, what else does your day typically consist of?

Usually working, I work at two pizza places, Two Saucy Broads and Pizza Hut. Pizza Hut sucks but I can usually get away with just smoking weed and listening to music. Other than that I’m usually playing music in some way, hanging out with friends or my girlfriend, having some beers, or if I’m not too lazy I might skate.

Have any of your childhood dreams come true?

Funny/ sadly enough I always thought it would be rad to be a pizza guy and now I have two jobs doing that very thing.

How would you describe your town – Fullerton, CA?

Average city in Orange County. There are a few cool things here and some cool people but it’s also full of a lot of yuppie and trendy shops and bro douche bags. Take the good with the bad I guess.

The Adolescents were also from Fullerton. Did they influence you in any way when you were growing up?

They were definitely a huge influence on the band even starting. That was probably the band we were trying to emulate the most growing up because they were the most relatable band and we loved their sound. Rikk’s octave riffs are amazing.

NorCal vs SoCal – which scene do you prefer?

The bay area has a rad scene. Some of the best shows we have ever played were up there. We have had great shows and times here at home too so that’s hard for me to be subjective.

What would you like to personally see more of in the scene in your hometown?

Just better turn outs to shows and better treatment of bands playing places that are making a lot of money off them and not paying.

Have you ever had a bad trip while playing a show?

Not that I can think of. I have taken acid while playing a show. That was pretty wild.

On “On My Way” you have a pretty blazing bass solo midway through the song.  Hell, on “Boredom” there’s a pretty tasty riff that’s kind of solo-ish. Who are some bassists that have heavy influenced your style of playing?

Geezer Butler and John Paul Jones were two bassists that blew my mind when learning the stuff they did. It made a huge impact on how I play and I get a lot of my style from them. Also players like Stanley Clark and Jaco Pastorios are who made me venture into learning more than just pentatonic riffs and more technical stuff.

I’m taking a stab at it, but I’m also guessing that you play guitar?

I can play guitar but I started on bass. I can jam on it but I’m not a very prolific guitarist.

Bad Antics

How did Bad Antics get its name?

When we were 15 or 16 we just kept google searching band names we thought would be cool and eventually one of the few that weren’t taken was Bad Antics. We thought it fit us and it stuck.

How and when did the band begin?

The band began in Januray 2005 with Zack, Jenn Agnew, Tony and myself in my garage under a few random names before we stuck with Bad Antics. Zack and I have known each other since 1st grade and he pretty much got me started and taught me to play an instrument, so we always kinda jammed. When we met Jenn and she said she was down to play drums we went from there to add Tony, our current singer, on second guitar, but since he didn’t have a guitar or amp we all decided he should sing. Then Jenn said we should add Red on 2nd guitar around 2006 which eventually turned into her leaving the band and Red jumping on drums late 2007/ early 2008 and that is our current lineup.

What are some bands that you guys are normally compared to?

We have heard a weird mix of a lot of different bands. We have heard that the vocals sound like Suicidal Tendencies, Government Warning and Cro Mags and that we have songs that are exactly like a Bane song (which is ridiculous since not a single one of us listens to or likes that band).

Which do you prefer more, recording or playing live?

I like playing live a lot more than recording. I always feel like recording is more tense in the way you have to play the song perfectly one set way. When we play live, we all know what to do and what we can do, so we always play a song a little differently each time. Maybe it’s a different drum part on a song or a different guitar solo but it will always come back to the song.

As far as the songwriting process goes, would you say that your songs are in a constant state of being worked on or is it more of a straightforward process?

The songs are always being worked on. Until it’s recorded all of us are always playing stuff a little differently, jamming things out. Playing the song live really helps with figuring out how you want it to sound.

A little while back, Bad Antics had a string of dates with what was supposed to be OFF! & Negative Approach that just ended up with Negative Approach. How did that go?

It was awesome, best time and shows we have gotten to do with one of our favorite bands. They were all awesome dudes. We got to play right before them each night which was rad and it was a great opportunity for us to get to play in front of their fans at some awesome venues.

What are the pros/cons between supporting other well-known bands versus setting up your own tours?

The pros are great exposure, free beers and food backstage, playing bigger venues and having guaranteed pay. Cons are that not everyone wants to hang around for the band opening for the band they wanna see so it’s generally always more packed after you play but they were still some of the best shows we have gotten to do. Doing your own tours have a lot more hassle and stress involved as opposed to some booking agent already worked everything out for you.

What do you guys typically like to do when you guys have some downtime/ a day off on tour? 

Mostly, we just use it to drive to the next show but on the rare occasion we have a day off or time we hit up breweries, try and skate somewhere or hang out with our friends in the area.

What has been the weirdest gig that you guys have ever played?

We once played at a biker club house in Houston.  That was pretty wild.

You guys are on Burger Records. Who are some of your favorite Burger artists?

Our favorites are our good friends Audacity , White Night, and Culture Kids. If you haven’t heard of those bands yet you should definitely check them out!

Are there any current plans for touring / writing in the works for new material?

Right now we are working on our plan to make it over to Europe by next year and have a good batch of new songs that we are either going to be doing a 7” EP or another full length. We also just recorded a track for a comp coming out on FYBS records in Sacramento, CA.

That wraps it up for me. Any last commentary you would like to include?

Take care man. Hopefully we make it back out to your neck of the woods again soon and thanks for letting me waste peoples time with my thoughts.

end.

There you have it. Put on your dad’s Sabbath shirt, whip out your board, grow out your hair, and check out Bad Antics.

http://badantics.bandcamp.com/

See y’all soon.

Chris.