When you see the movie Anvil! The Story of Anvil you’ll think, man, I so totally want to hang out with Lips. I saw the movie on Monday and I’m still thinking about it. I was able to talk to him the morning after his triumphant Los Angeles gig on the “The Anvil Experience Tour” consisting of a screening of the film followed by live performance. If you haven’t seen the flick yet, you may not be able to hear Lips’ voice in your head. Know that all the hyperbolic statements he makes (such as story of the millennium, etc.) are not tongue-in-cheek, nor are they obnoxious. They come from a place of purity and excitement. And that’s why you will love him.
Lips: Hello!
Jordan Hoffman: Lips, my brutha, it is wonderful to hear your voice. Where are you on your crazy travels right now?
Lips: I’m at [director] Sacha [Gervasi]’s house in Los Angeles.
Jordan Hoffman: Awesome, well, Happy Pesach, first of all.
Lips: You know it! We’re gonna have a heavy metal seder tonight.
Jordan Hoffman: Serious?
Lips: You know it!
Jordan Hoffman: Who will do the “Ma Nishtana?” Is that Robb? [note: Jewish tradition part of the Passover seder, led by the youngest at the table.]
Lips: No. I think that’s Scott Ian [of Anthrax]. He’s gonna be there tonight. He organized it. Yeah, we’re having brisket. I love brisket. And a little Manischewitz “can’t hoit!”
Jordan Hoffman: My mind is now officially blown, this is awesome. So, like so many others I am a recent convert to Anvil. The movie really spoke to me and I found it quite touching and remarkable. And what’s so amazing about what has happened between the shooting of the film and its release. There’s talk of a tour, a new album, a deal with VH-1...
Lips: Absolutely. Dream come true, man. It’s a miracle. This can only ever once in the history of the movie and music industry – the first time. And we’re doing something really wild right now by playing shows in the cinema after screenings. That’s gotta be new right?
Jordan Hoffman: When the footage was being shot and the day-to-day problems of the tour and the recording and your personal lives –
Lips: And there was even more! What didn’t make it into the film, on top of everything, my older brother has a degenerative, a neuron-degenerative disease, and it is some serious sh*t, and a lot of that was filmed, but it was decided not too include it, because it deflates the triumph in Japan at the end, so, man. . .
Jordan Hoffman: Wow, okay, well that adds even more to what I was going to ask – so, you were doing all this and allowing this to be shot, how cognizant were you at the time that, you know, there was that one in a million chance this film could go to festivals, win all these awards and, in the end, you’d achieve the audience you’ve always been looking for?
Lips: Always. I saw it as the biggest opportunity of my life. A state of destiny. And I became emotional as soon as I learned that Sacha wanted to make this movie – and I envisioned the result in my mind’s eye. And . . . I mean. . .Sacha was a fan – a FAN – and he’s an accomplished Hollywood screenwriter – and, you know, I knew there was a miracle going on. A miracle!
Jordan Hoffman: Did you feel a responsibility to exaggerate your personality when the cameras were rolling?
Lips: No. Only using the camera to empower – like to talk to the other stars backstage at Sweden Rock.
Jordan Hoffman: You’ve been working at Anvil for decades. And the band is good, it has always been good. You’ve always had the respect of your peers. Would your lack of commercial success have been easier if, deep down, you knew that you sucked?
Lips: No. Musicians have always been there for Anvil. James Hetfield coming to see us in empty bars. So, you have to understand, from a musician’s perspective, money and success are two very different things. It’s about inspiration. My favorite bands have sold crap. How big a band is Budgie, compared to Bon Jovi. But I listen to Budgie, what can I say? And I get more inspiration from Budgie – not that Bon Jovi isn’t great, but, you know...and Anvil always stayed true. We didn’t look for the big pot of gold. We wanted to make music our own.
Jordan Hoffman: There’s a lot of honesty in the film. There are moments when we don’t see you in the best light. Did this worry you?
Lips: Nah, let it all hang out. If I’m self conscious about anything, it is the naked picture in the poster.
Jordan Hoffman: Are you still using sex toys in your stage act?
Lips: No, that was retired. But never say never. There’s a new generation of sex toys out there.
Jordan Hoffman: You can’t read anything about this movie without a comparison to This is Spinal Tap, which I think is unfair. . .
Lips: No – it’s fair! It’s fair! It was embraced. I mean, we’ve got, you know, we’ve got a real amp that goes to 11. We know where that came from. But it’s real.
Jordan Hoffman: When you were at Stonehenge, did the topic of Spinal Tap come up that day.
Lips: No, we didn’t even have to say it. We knew it. We would laugh at the similarities. But, you know, This is Spinal Tap was made about a band on the road – so of course there are gonna’ be those moments. And, you know, the drummer’s name is Robb Reiner! Hello?!?! Let’s embrace it.
Jordan Hoffman: Are you still working at the food distributers?
Lips: No. I had to cease. That’s why I was at the telemarkers!
Jordan Hoffman: Ooh. You know, I did a stint in telemarketing. I felt your pain.
Lips: Fu*king Hell! I couldn’t do it! Awful! Awful! “Hello – I am lying to you!” Awful! I’m sorry for anyone who. . . but, in order to do what you love, you have to do things you hate. Regardless of how much money you have, that’s part of life.
Jordan Hoffman: “You can’t have your pudding if you don’t eat your meat.”
Lips: Fu*kin’ A right!!!! Well, that’s what makes this movie good. Is how relatable it is for people, even if they don’t like Metal.
Jordan Hoffman: You guys are gonna’ be on Rock Band.
Lips: Yes. “Metal on Metal” and “666.” Coming soon.
Jordan Hoffman: I will play that naked in your honor.
Lips: Sounds great, man!
Jordan Hoffman: You played a gig in LA just last night. Lots of stars, right?
Lips: Dustin Hoffman was there. And, fu*k, man. The look in his eye? Pure love, man. And I went over to him. And, fu*k, man. I went over and said, “I love you, man.” And it all just blew me away. And Dustin and I talked about . . .and I get a little emotional about this. . . about the miracle of all this . . .and the miracle all comes from Robb’s survival of the concentration camps. This is a beautiful story for the Jewish people. He survived Auschwitz and had a son and that son changed things. And Dustin was very moved by this to the point of tears. He recognized the miracle. It’s a tender area. . .understated in the film, not to be bitter, but victorious.
Jordan Hoffman: Let’s not forget – those scenes in Germany – they were rockin’ out to Anvil. There may not have been too many people in the club, but those that were there were rockin’ out.
Lips: That’s right. And our records have always been a result of our fans in Germany. No Germany – no Anvil records beyond the first . . .well, beyond the first three. It’s really a once in a millennium story when you think about it. And now there’s the movie. A movie that wasn’t done by a corporate Hollywood system, but done by a fan.
Jordan Hoffman: And maybe room for a sequel?
Lips: Yeah!
