Whether you like ‘em or not, one thing you can’t claim about up-and-coming punk band Cauterize is that they’re manufactured. There’s no mastermind or evil genius in the picture. In fact, the band’s founding members (Jesse Smith, Mark Worobec and Jason Bone) have been pals since their early days back in kindergarten. Guitarist Josh Slater jumped on the train in high school, completing the Cauterize line-up. Well, actually, a band by the name of Toe was complete once Slater joined – Cauterize had yet to be conceived, but the ball had started rolling.
Toe released two albums on their own before heading for the gates of major-label-dom. But, before they took another step forward in the rock world, they decided to change things up a bit. They started with their name.
“None of us really liked Toe [as a name],” Smith admits. “But [Cauterize] means something to us. It was off one of our early CDs… the title was ‘The Woman I Cauterize,’ and it was a play on words, ‘caught her eyes’ and ‘cauterize.’ Like a beginning and an end type thing.”
Anyway, call them what you will, but one thing is certain: Oshawa’s latest offering in the pop-punk-rock tradition is poised and ready to enter the mainstream. Since signing with Wind-Up Records (which falls under the Sony Music umbrella) a few months back, Cauterize have already slotted album number one, So Far From Real, for an August 19 release. In addition, they recently finished wrapping up their brand new video for “Something Beautiful,” which is also the first video the guys have ever made.
“It was weird to have all those people there and be the center of attention for like, two days straight,” Smith says of the process. “I was in the rain the whole time, so every time we were done shooting, I’d have four people putting towels on me, rubbing me down, fixing my makeup and hair.
“It was tiring because we did it over the nights, like 6 p.m ‘til 6 in the morning, so we were just totally backwards,” he continues. “And we couldn’t sleep during the day, it was impossible. There was actually construction going on in our hotel. Everyone was stressing us to sleep during the day, but we get home from the first day [of filming], and I’m, like, is this a joke? ‘Cause there’s a jackhammer going all morning.”
Well, things are only going to get louder for the guys from here on in: next up on the Cauterize agenda, the band will be heading out on the road with Evanescence and Cold as part of the Nintendo Fusion tour, which kicks off on August 4 in California’s Universal City.
“I’m not nervous yet,” Smith claims. “We probably will be when we walk into the first stadium. They’re bigger shows than we’ve ever played before, but we’re looking forward to it. It’s what I love to do most – play in front of a crowd.”
