Guilty Conscience interview.

Guilty Conscience - Negative Attention
Guilty Conscience is a great, new(er) hardcore band out of South Florida. Here’s a short conversation I had with front man, promoter to the stars, and consummate word smith John McHale.
1. Introduce yourself: name, band, position, etc. All that stuff.
My name is John. I do vocals in Guilty Conscience. I’m really only in this band to come up with new ways to be a thorn in Garrett’s side.
2. How did Guilty Conscience come together? What are some of the members former bands, when did you put the band together, any funny stories?
Dre and Garrett started the band in late 2012. Then Kyle Writt, Ian Dolan, and myself were brought into the fold. First show March 2013. Ian was crazy busy, then Doug Posner jumped in. Andre used to be in Clean Cut. Garrett was in Low Cool.  Both of them were in Said & Done. Kyle was the drummer for Losin’ It. I once lost my shoe during a set. I don’t know.
3. Tell me about the writing and recording of the Negative Attention EP.
Well, we hated the demo. It wasn’t even supposed to be the demo. We jumped the gun and released our practice recording. Instantly realized how much we don’t like it. So we took our time writing the “Negative Attention” EP. Music was done for a minute, but I took a long time to write the lyrics. This fool, Andre, did everything shy of holding a gun to my head to finish the lyrics. We sat on the dock of an abandoned mansion in Islamorada while the sun was going down. Sharks and blue fish swimming under my feet. I nailed them out and he helped me wrap them to the music. I’m a real motherfucker for ambiance and shit. You see. Next recording, we’re going to write it on top of the empire state building.
4. You guys have a very traditional, but tight sound. Is that sort of back to basics type of sound something you feel strongly about? It reminds me a lot of Hands Tied, which is awesome.  Do you think it’s something lacking in the current world of hardcore?
We’re pretty much all into everything under the umbrella of hardcore and punk. We just really wanted to do a band that was reminiscent of that ‘97 revival era. That Hands Tied EP is great. Definitely were one of the bands we had in mind when starting Guilty Conscience up. Don’t think it’s lacking, just certain styles more popular right now. The newer hardcore bands on the come-up have been killing it.
5. Is there a prevailing message/theme that goes along with the band? Something you think is important, something you’d like to be remembered for?
Probably that I’m a complete derelict.
6. To my knowledge, you’d never really done a band (aside from Street Judge, who I never saw). What is it about Guilty Conscience that made you want to do it?
I sang for a band called Temper years ago. Are we broken up? Or only present when no one is paying attention. Hmm? The idea of being in a band with Andre and Garrett was enough to count me in. Didn’t think Kyle was going to stay past the first practice. Kyle and Doug hold Guilty Conscience down musically.
7. Also, Street Judge. What’s up with that?
“My life has taken another turn again. The days move along with regularity over and over, one day indistinguishable from the next. A long continuous chain. Then suddenly, there is a change.”
8. In my eyes, you were basically the go to guy for Miami shows. How’s things down there since the Talent Farm and Churchill’s shut their doors/came under new management? Are there other, equally-great venues? Are you still booking a lot?            Things are cool. Everyone is feeling the loss of the Talent Farm. As far as all ages venues go, nothing will be able to replace it. Kevin let me do whatever the fuck I wanted in there. It worked out great for the both of us. Everyone else did the rest. By showing up or starting bands. I’m still stoked about what was cultivated out of that small room out in the Everglades.
Churchill’s is still kicking. The new management has been pretty accommodating so far. They’re doing a great job with the place. Obviously, things are going to be different now. But fuck it. Everyone fears change. When the fuck did that get us anywhere? It’s like, hey at least we still have a fucking place to go for music. At least it’s not someone’s endgame in some gentrification process by turning it into a corporate drug store or swank yuppie restaurant. There’s still things happening there. Fucking crazy to think we thought we almost lost both places at the same time.
O’Malley’s, Propaganda, & Space Mountain (RIP) have also been great places to play other than Churchill’s since the demise of The Talent Farm. But yeah, still booking. Trying to stay on top of it.
9. What are some of your favorite memories of the Talent Farm and/or Churchill’s?             Man, everything. There were some shit moments. Some beyond stressful moments.  I’ve been doing hardcore shows for 12 years at this point. For almost five years, I did pretty much everything exclusively at The Talent Farm. It’s all a blur, but everyone who was around can agree, those were some of the best times. Everyone hanging. Countless wild shows. I even lived in one of the back rooms for an extended amount of time. I hate that I’m drawing a blank on this question. Every moment there was a favorite memory.
Churchill’s was my “go to” spot before, during, and after The Talent Farm. If I didn’t still have Churchill’s I’d really have no place to be. Shout out to Shawn Perkins chucking the stuffed Marlin off the bar-room wall. Nicky riding his motorcycle through the bar. I don’t know. Same as mentioned before, almost every memory there is a favorite.
10. You tell some of the wildest stories/make some of the funniest observations on Facebook. I think you’ve got a book in you, man. What do you think?             Ha ha, thanks. A lot of people tell me to write a book. It took me like 4 months (I’m being generous to myself here) to finish lyrics for “Negative Attention.” We could expect the book to be out sometime between the next eight to twenty years.
I wanted to write a book titled “Break-dancing for War Veterans.” I have no clue how to explain what my interests and life is like to people on the outside of it. It’s like explaining break-dancing to old war veterans.
That was the concept I was running with, but I’ll probably just stick to humorously scathing Facebook posts.
11. Closing comments, etc.?             More shit to come from Guilty Conscience & Eighty-Sixed Records. Shout out to South Florida Hardcore. All the bands and friends from the rest of the state too. When the hell you moving down here?!? M.I.A.M.I. - Mikey Is A Major Issue. Oh yeah can I add “Thank you for the interview, Mikey” at the end?