FIVE QUESTIONS WITH BLAKE PRINCE OF TEETH
With Teeth's AN UNHOLY NIGHT Holiday Bash Around The Corner (And Selling Fast), Blake Prince of Teeth Answers Five Questions for Fannablog
Written by Ben Rispin
Teeth perform at Corktown Pub in Hamilton on December 21st for AN UNHOLY NIGHT. Joining them will Be Spaced, Scorching Tomb, Fight On Sight, and Last Retch.
LISTEN TO TEETH
12/03/2024 - Blake Prince and I have known each other for years. At one point, we really didn't like each other. A couple summers ago, we made up and really didn't remember why we were at it in the first place. Maybe a couple of meat heads just flexing, we agreed it was a waste of time.
In the months and now years since, we've grown close. Blake had to over come some addiction challenges and this is a topic near and dear to my heart. We started working labour jobs together and we got to know each other all over again, in a better part of our lives. He's now one of my closest confidents and friends.
Even more than his crushing live show, which admittedly, I've been jealous of many times in my life, what impresses me the most about Blake is his commitment to being a good father.
With his son in mind; he puts it all on the line every night. Blake knows that if he is still going to chase his passions, he has to make every moment count and this devotion to his son is apparent in everything he does.
With his band Teeth, this notion has never been more reinforced. The sound is huge. The players are professional, and the live show is crushing.
Do not miss this force of nature live on December 21st at Corktown Pub In Hamilton. Tickets available below.
TEETH BIO (Taken from New Damage Records)
The aural onslaught is as immediate as it is impactful, shocking in its viciousness and volatility; just seconds into A Biblical Worship of Violence, the unrelenting debut EP from TEETH, the listener is engulfed in undiluted aggression with the heart-stopping urgency of an air raid siren.
“We knew what this band needed to sound like before we’d even played a note,” says guitarist Chris LeMasters, who, along with longtime comrade and collaborator Blake Prince on vocals, birthed TEETH back in 2019. “This wasn’t about writing a single or getting on the fucking radio – just pure violence, through and through.”
Over the years, he’d amassed an arsenal of riffs that were simply too fierce for any of his existing projects, so he and Prince went up to the attic studio in his Fort Erie, ON, home and got to work with no pretentions or delusions of grandeur. “It had to be emotional, but purely visceral – like a direct sonic replication of some of the things we were struggling through at the time.” Adds Prince: “It was just effortless from the start.”
Read The Rest of TEETH'S Bio On NEW DAMAGE RECORDS.
FIVE QUESTIONS WITH BLAKE PRINCE OF TEETH
WHEN AND WHERE DID YOUR LOVE OF MUSIC FORM?
My love for music was shaped by my parents, who were the fucking best. Growing up, I remember going on long road trips and Aerosmith, Guns N’ Roses, Mötley Crüe were always playing. I used to sit in the backseat, drumming away on a book with pens. They definitely sparked my passion, and I’ll always credit my parents for that. I miss them. They’re dead.
WHAT WAS THE FIRST CONCERT YOU WENT TO?
1995 Green Day Insomniac Tour at Maple Leaf Gardens. They used to sell merch right on the floor in the arena and my Mom convinced the security guard that she just wanted to take me down there just to get a shirt and we ended up watching the rest of the show from the floor. It was the best.
WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST “BIG SHOW”? OR YOUR FIRST SHOW EVER?
When I think about my first big show, New Breed Fest at The Underground in Hamilton comes to mind. At the time, I was yelling in a band called Straight Reads the Line, and we were pretty new—probably our fourth or fifth show ever.
We were on after this all-female crust punk band called PantyChrist. It was their drummer Patty’s birthday or something, so there was chocolate cake being passed around the venue. Somehow, some of that cake made its way onto the stage during our set—not in a “get the fuck off the stage” way, but as an “act of love.”
We were still new to the scene, so we didn’t think people would really vibe with us. Plus, we had a later slot, so we were kind of tripping about how it’d go. But the place was absolutely packed, and people went the fuck off for us.
We played the “second stage,” which was just this riser at the back of the venue. At some point during the set, I climbed it, turned my back to the crowd, and thought, ‘Fuck, they better catch me.’ I trust-fell, and they did, it was sick.
If you know The Underground, you’ll remember they used to have doll parts and all kinds of weird shit hanging from the ceiling. So as I was crowd-surfing, kicking my legs up, these doll parts were flying around. Chocolate cake was getting tossed, and it was lit. It was one of those moments that showed me how passionate and supportive the Hamilton music scene can be. It really solidified that this was where we belonged.
That felt “BIG”
WHAT WAS YOUR WORST SHOW OR FUNNIEST SHOW MEMORY?
We played Mazzfest in 20?? in Saskatchewan. The whole day was just a blur of drinking. We had a late slot, and by the time I got on stage, I was more fucked up than I’ve ever been in my life.
I was wearing Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart tights—full spandex—and a hot pink Hitman shirt to match. I don’t remember a single thing about our set, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t good. Like, if there’s footage, it’s probably best left unseen.
The next day. Our driver slammed into the back of a transport truck. And all I could think was, If I had died right there, they’d have found my body still in those Bret Hart tights. Honestly, though? That’s probably how I’d want to go out—not in a car accident, of course, but absolutely draped in wrestling attire.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOUR BAND?
There’s a lot of US tours and festivals in the works. And we’re gearing up to release our first full-length album in 2025.
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