Well I've been told I should write down some of the stuff I've been up too and done in the past, whilst on tour with one band or another or just with stuff I'm up too.. If one person reads it I'll be amazed.. but I will try keep it entertaining.. to start off with the easiest way to maybe get to know more of me is for me to shamelessy steal an interview I did with the Elboneshaker mafia.. so this will give you some idea of who I am, what i have done and why I do it time and time again,..
Gavin ‘gunforhire‘ Downie is a one-of-a-kind music nutter from Aotearoa. Starting off in Auckland’s northshore he turned tuning guitars into a world-wide adventure being roadie for some of the top cats out there, from Billy ‘the beard’ Gibbons to NZ’s own Opshop. Also happens to love his bobbers which is where we ran into each other and after hooking me up with a few of the numerous bands he associates with for interviews soon to be on this site, I decided to start off with our first music one on one being the gun for hire himself. So without any more delay read on and enjoy…….
THANKS FOR THE TIME MATE, SO WHEN DID YOU GET STARTED?
I first started work in Musik Market guitar store way back when I left school, the store is now called Bungalow Bills based on Khyber Pass, I still help out there when I’m not on the road. I started working full time as a touring guitar tech/roadie/stage manager approximately 7-8 years ago. A lot of this time I was also playing in my own bands as well.
HOW DID YOU GET STARTED?
I was sick of running bars, I had been running a bar called Papa Jacks Voodoo Lounge in Auckland and was just over the whole bar industry and wanted to pursue more work within the music industry full time. At the time I was just mixing bands and the odd show here or there teching, So I quit my job and just started looking round. My mates from school had formed a new band called Elemeno P, I got a few gigs with them, then it just sort of snowballed… next I was working with bands like Blindspott, The Feelers, The Bleeders – as sound guy. Cold By winter (who’s album I produced in the studio) The Mint Chicks, Neil Finn and Eagles of Death Metal. Through word of mouth round the country and the globe I had more bands approach me, so I started working more and more with Dave Dobbyn looking after his guitars on the road. Then american punk rock legends Strung Out, who eventually would take me through the states on a 3 month non stop tour called The Vans Warped Tour in ‘05. Since then I’ve worked with a lot of bands, but I’d say I work mostly locally with Opshop, Dave Dobbyn, and Elemeno P, just due to the fact they’ve been the bands playing most around the country.
WHO HAVE YOU WORKED ALONGSIDE?
Dave Dobbyn (NZ). Opshop. (NZ). The Feelers (NZ). Elemeno P (NZ). The Mint Chicks,(NZ). Autozamm,(NZ). Goodnight Nurse,(NZ). Blindspott,(NZ). Seven Worlds Collide, (Neil Finn, Ed O’Brien, Johnny Marr)-as guitar tech. Wilco,( Production Manager NZ Tour). Strung Out, (USA) ( 3 NZ Tours and The Warped Tour 05 USA). Steriogram, (NZ) (several nz tours and 3 months in the USA on tour). End of fashion,(Aus). Thirsty Merc, (Aus). Evermore,(nz & Aus). THE MISFITS,(USA). Eagles of Death Metal. (USA). Alexisonfire, (Can). Blindside, (DEN). Anika Moa, (NZ) The Topp Twins. Blindspott,(NZ). Madball, (NYC). Goldfinger, (USA). Death By Stereo, (USA). NOFX,(USA). BAD RELIGION, (USA). LAGWAGON, (USA). The Draft, (USA). The Bleeders, (NZ). Atreyu, (USA). Presidents Of The USA (USA). Shihad, (NZ). The D4. MGMT. Tim Finn (Crowded House) Don Macglashan.. Gomez
WHO HAVE BEEN YOUR INFLUENCES?
In everything I can say Joe Strummer from the Clash has always been a big influence, The Clash was one of the first bands I was ever into, and I was really luckily when I was working at a Big Day Out concert a few years just before his death, I had met him, we got to talking and I got to ask him everything I’d always wanted to know, pick his brain and even got an impromptu guitar lesson from him, I got to sit and play his #1 main guitar, I had seen in so many videos and shows, It was a special moment made doubly so when he sadly passed later that year. I also am heavily influenced by Bob Mould and Husker Du, my favorite old hardcore band from the U.S.
FAVOURED GUITARS?
I myself have a few now in my collection as follows:-
1. Gretsch 6118 Anniversary- this is a special guitar to me as I bought it with the money my dad left me when he passed away 2 years ago. Its a piece of Rockabilly Chic at its best, two tone Cadillac green from the 1957 era Cadillacs with leopard pickup surrounds and a nice Vargas Pinup girl in the corner of the body. I also did a bit of a modification and shaved and sanded the neck down and oiled the wood so its smooth and sweet and faster to play.
2. Fender jazzmaster, a guitar I’d always wanted since I saw all my face bands playing them. Robert Smith from The Cure had one and I think I got hook on that, J Mascis from Dinosaur Jr and Kevin Shields from My Bloody Valentine.
3. A Custom Shop Fernandez from the states, This was sent to me as a present from Billy Gibbons the Guitarist/vocalist for top Texas band ZZ TOP, who I’ve been good friends with for about 11 or so years now. we still exchange guitar gear, hot rod mags, biker mags, automobile clothing and whatever we both find along our travels.
4. A 57 Les Paul Junior Reissue, just a good simple basic 1 pickup 1 set of knobs guitar, this I have hot-rodded to hell, shaved and sanded the neck, overwound the pickup till its scorching, then added a custom hand made preamp from a friend in Oz, so this thing really wails.
I think this is all I have these days..
BEST MEMORIES ON TOUR?
Its hard to pick one or even two.. The warped tour in ‘05 was unreal, hanging out with my favorite bands that became my friends , like the Dropkick Murphys, No Use For A Name, amongst others riding on a nice big, fully laden tour bus. Just like in the movies, haha, playing 50 shows across america and canada through the summer, chilling with awesome peeps each day and drinking into the sunset with them. Playing in Dubai was amazing as well , touring to London and pulling together a show to 9000 people with Dave Dobbyn is another highlight. Watching my favorite bands for free from side of stage each night. Touring with AFI through Australia, or Alexisonfire and Blindspott on there Australian tour and working for Punk rock warlords The Misfits, plus many many more.
COOLEST GROUP TO PARTY WITH?
Tough…. BIlly GIbbons is always down for a crazy night when we go out, he’s always a laugh and he always get recognised. In New Zealand it’s gotta be a band like Blindspott back in the day, there were definitly some insane nights on tour. Cold By Winter always put on a good party even before the show and people went home with injuries. The Eagles Of Death Metal are another great bunch of guys to party with, they can drink. But I think a night out with Scruffy Wallace from Dropkick Murphys is a night you pay for for weeks after.. we had a monumental one in Manhattan Mid tour which lead to us getting busted throwing beer bottles out a stretch limo as we sped through New York and I was drunkenly crowd surfing over everyone packed into our limo. The next day my head felt like a black hole, the sight of beer made me queasy.. The worst but at the same time best was a night out in Richmond, Virginia, USA on a Steriogram tour, we played alongside HIM and Puddle of Mudd and this lead to that and that lead to this and then the hotel bar closed and I ended up drinking shots of tequila back at this locals house looking through his gun collection,including Spas 12 shotguns, Glocks and assault rifles, to then finally realizing I had to leave early so I made my way to the hotel. I got lost, left my glasses behind, so was blind and got woken by a policeman with a flashlight and his gun in my face on a park bench just by the ghetto, where I’d passed out after walking for hours. Luckily he saw my backstage pass realized I was lost and I got a safe police escort to my hotel to find my manager slightly awake and mostly angry to be woken by the cops, haha luckily I didn’t get patted down by the cops, cos as it ended up I had a pocket full of bullets from the guys glock as we unloaded the magazine before we accidentally shot each other waving these guns around..hahaha
AWESOME TATS, STORIES BEHIND THEM?
I haven’t had much done in recent years, but I loved the art of tattooing. Being born in Scotland I wanted a celtic tattoo then they just rolled from there. I have my black tribal kinda stuff on my arms I designed, and a cool old authentic 1940s pinup girl tattoo from a 1940s vintage design book my tattooist was sent from Honolulu. I have a friend whose also a Guitar tech in the USA and he got M*E*X*I*C*A*N*O tattooed across his knuckles, so I got his tattooist who was out for a few days on tour and working from the back lounge of the bus to tattoo K*I*W*I*C*A*N*O across mine. I also got a tattoo for my old band The Hallelujah Picacassos on my shoulder. My old friend who was part of our crew and designed our albums Martin F Emonds Initials underneath as he took his own life the week before I landed in Los Angeles and was to meet up with him. I got that done in Chicago one night after a bottle of whisky, it was a tough tour knowing one of your best friends has just killed himself days before your arrival.
WIFES THOUGHTS ON THE LIFESTYLE?
So far she loves my job, I know she doesn’t like when I’m away a lot, but in the recent years I haven’t had any long tours away, nothing over a month so its worked well. The hours are long but she’s understanding, when I’m not on tour I am home all the time so we make up for the time, although I’m usually in my workshop working on my bobber.. so she has to deal with that…haha
WHY THE GUITAR OVER OTHER INSTRUMENT?
Truth is I wanted to be a singer, and a guy in my brothers band said ‘to be a great singer you had to play an instrument so you can better understand music’. The guitar took first place as I was into punk and my heros were Joe Strummer and Bob Mould from Husker Du, I have just stuck with the guitar and now make my living and my job tuning and repairing and looking after so many other bands guitars out on the road.
PAST BANDS CURRENT BAND PLAYED FOR?
My first high school band was called Parama Violet, Our biggest claim to fame was Blondie (Debbie Harry) came to watch us play at the old Gluepot, as she had a night off before her show at the Powerstation, we only had about 12 people before she turned up, so it was handy we need the cash to pay for gas home..haha and of course she gave us all tickets for her show and said how much she loved our band.. at 16 we were over the moon. Since then I formed a punkrock Hiphop band called Colony, we got a grant from NZ on Air, got a record deal, recorded an EP, had a fight, stopped talking, and broke up.. Then I was asked to join The Hallelujah Picassos, – who were my favorite local band so I was on cloud 9. It was a dream come true and still my face memories of being in a band.. it was just the best time. Even when it was turning to shit around us. Then I was playing in metal/hard rock act Future Stupid. Then SKA band called The Managers for a few years on and off, in and out.. as well as a freeform dub electronic ensemble that jammed at our friends bar.. it was hours of unrehearsed dub epic songs..haha fun but draining.. Right Now I’m sitting in playing guitar in my brothers old High school band for there reunion show coming up at The Masonic, its all old 80s-90’s covers, just fun party stuff. Its just great to be playing and not working on guitars.
YOU’VE BEEN ALL OVER THE WORLD PLACES TO GO STORIES BEHIND YOUR TRAVELS THERE?
I love touring the USA, once you get off the beaten track and out the major cities its the most beautiful place, amazing deserts, mouton ranges, beaches and forests. I’m a sucker for Hollywood and all its fake-ness and plastic-ness, I’d love to go back to New York and spend more time there, its intense especially on Manhattan, so many people so little space. made me claustrophobic, but I wanna go back. Dubai is also an insane place, its a true Oasis in the middle of the desert. All brand new, shiny and safe feeling – zero crime! go figure. However they still cut off your hands if your caught stealing haha. I’ve spent all my time traveling with bands that are my friends so its been the best way to see places and being put up in 5 star hotels occasionally isn’t bad. But I still think I love most my tiny bunk on my tour bus on Warped Tour, riding up front with the bus driver and seeing the country as we went from state to state, learning all I could.
BANDS TO LOOK OUT FOR?
Right Now I think Snakes Of Iron are one of my fave new bands on the metal/hardcore scene. A band Like Black River Drive, that’s a band that’s gonna go somewhere I think and of course MY next band when I get enough time to form a new one and get back on stage myself.
PLUGS/SHOUT OUTS?
Well El Boneshaker of course, Kershaw and Byron are cool cats and doing great things amongst the scene bridging the music and biker and rod scene.
Bungalow Bills Music store, still the best guitar store in the land.
Peterson Tuners, (petersontuners.com) These guys have been looking after me and my gear since 04. I use 3 of there Digital Strobe Tuners. Its nice to be given your gear for free, its not cheap to do what I do for work.
Justin and the crew from Rattlers Who have been helping me along my current bike build..
And Ryan from Custom Audio Boutique (customaudioboutique.co.nz) a longtime friend and guitarist from Lugar Boa who’s always looked after me and my bands with gear and advice and helping me hotrod my own gear.
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