Five Questions with Nick Shelton (Eliza Battle)

Eliza Battle has already made big waves in Vegas, despite only being together for a short time. They’ve shared the stage with the likes of Single Mothers Radar Vs Wolf and Chain And The Gang and in just a few days, they’ll play to their biggest audience yet on the mainstage of Punk Rock Bowling. So before they rock out with Refused, we decided it was time to sit frontman Nick Shelton down for five questions.

Hi Nick! Let’s start with your background. You moved here from Chicago a few years ago, so I don’t know much about your musical history prior to Eliza Battle. How did you become interested in playing the guitar? Can you talk a little bit about the first band you were in?

For sure. I played piano for my entire childhood, but after realizing that I practiced all year just to be able to play other people’s music at a recital, I changed to guitar. I only had interest in writing from the get-go, and to this day, struggle to play cover songs.

My first band that gigged was called Tarnish. We played around the Chicago suburbs, and had a handful of shows in the city.  I thought we were doing sort of a Quicksand/Helmet/Deftones kinda thing, but apparently the rest of the band (and the crowds) thought we were a nu metal band. We met with a handful of major labels, but nothing came out of it.

I played around Chicago in a few different indie rock and hardcore bands, most notably The Pullman Strike.  A lot of the songs Eliza Battle plays were written during that band’s brief existence.  After all our gear was stolen on tour in Detroit, I hung up the guitar. 5 years later, it seemed like the right thing to do again in a new city.

How did Eliza Battle come together and how did you settle on that name? I remember you saying Chris Bitonti was originally set to play guitar but had to fill in on bass, but now you have Sal Giordano (TheCore., No Red Alice) playing bass at Punk Rock  Bowling. How did Sal get involved with the band, and is he going to be an official member of EB or is this a one-off gig?

I met Chris Bitonti at Punk Rock Bowling 3 years ago, and we kept in touch. [Nashville-based indie rock band] Radar Vs Wolf was coming to town last November, playing at the Beauty Bar, and asked Chris to help set up a show. He called me and asked if I wanted to get a project together to open for them, and it just felt right.  He played with Chris Berg in Save the Hero, and he was looking for a new project. We kinda lucked out.

We are really influenced by Southern Gothic lore. My songs come from the viewpoint of someone who grew up on Cormac McCarthy books and Alkaline Trio, Lucero and Whiskeytown records. I know I wanted sort of a dark Southern inspired name.  The Eliza Battle was a steamboat that burned and sank in the Tombigbee River in Alabama, and the locals claim she returns as a flaming ghost ship.

I love the name and the imagery that comes with it, but to be honest, I wish we researched it better. There was a metalcore band in Vegas called The Eliza Battle at some point before I lived here. That has led to a little confusion, but they haven’t been active for some time, and the PRB exposure has helped.

Chris was always supposed to play guitar in this band, and he did play all the leads on the 7″.  We just really had a hard time finding a bass player. Everyone knows Sal Giordano, and after we played with his solo project No Red Alice at their tour kick off show with Mercy Music, we thought it would be cool to play with him in the band. We definitely consider him an official member of EB, and are happy to have him on board.

You have a few months of playing in Vegas under your belt, and a few years on top of that attending shows here so I’ve gotta ask – how does the Vegas punk scene compare to the one in Chicago? What sticks out as something we have that Chicago doesn’t? Do you prefer playing 21+ or all ages?

Pros and Cons in both cities for sure.

Chicago is huge and has put out so many successful bands. That Chicago Alk3/Larry Arms/Smoking Popes/Cheap Trick influence is deep in my veins and will always be a part of whatever music I am playing.  I have great friends in The Sky We Scrape, Gunner’s Daughter and Quiet Car doing awesome things there, and I hope to link up with shows somewhere in the middle some time.

The biggest difference between the two is that in Chicago, everyone you know is in a band. The local openers are always different on touring acts, and there are way more places to play 18+ or all ages shows. Compared to Chicago, there are only a handful of places to play here, but there is also way less competition. There are less bands and the scene is smaller. but tighter-knit and more supportive of each other. We feel like water raises all boats, when local bands are successful it shines a light on what we all are doing and increased exposure is a benefit to everyone.

Because it is a smaller community, a lot of times we work against ourselves by scheduling multiple local punk shows on the same night. I think we need to work together to go to each other’s shows and not compete against each other.  Vegas is a hard drawing town.  We should be working together to get kids interested in local music. That’s why PunksInVegas is such a massive resource for all of us.

I’m kinda old now. I love playing all ages shows for sure, but the songs I write come from a decade of working in dive bars and casino graveshifts.  I might be able to better connect with a crowd that understand what I am singing about. I don’t have a good answer for this. How about an all ages show with a bar?

This is your first time playing Punk Rock Bowling, but I know you’ve attended in the past. Do you have a favorite set or memory from a past PRB? What do you like about PRB and who are you most looking forward to seeing this year?

Well meeting Chris is the high point.  Without that moment, there would be no Eliza Battle.

Musically, that Laura Jane Grace surprise set a couple years ago was aces. Tim Barry playing on the floor at Beauty Bar for sure. Seeing Hot Water Music right after Exister came out was a lot of fun as well.

This year, my heart might explode at that Frank Turner/Laura Jane Grace club show. I’m gonna have to remember I’m singing the next day, so I don’t blow my voice out singing along with those two.  I’ve never seen Refused, but The Shape of Punk to Come changed a lot of things for me, and I cant wait.

Notably though, this year has a ton of great local bands lined-up too, on the main stage there is Sounds of Threat and Battle Born, plus Mercy Music, Franks and Deans, Anti-Vision and False Cause are all playing club shows. It is really meaningful that the Sterns make a point to provide exposure to the deep rooted punk community throughout the region for local and emerging acts and we’re so grateful for the opportunity.

You just announced the debut 7” for Eliza Battle. Can you give us some info on it? Who did you record with, when is it coming out and are your self-releasing or do you have a label in mind? Who played what on the release? Do you have some touring planned to support it?

Yeah! It has 2 songs. The single is “Cheers to That.” “Ain’t Ready Yet” is on the b-side. I think between the 2 songs it shows a lot of what it is that we do. We hope people dig it.

This is actually the first release by Open Town records, which is a label that Bitonti and I started.  We don’t have a ton of plans for it yet, but hope to have the opportunity to work with other rad regional bands soon.

I played all rhythm guitars and keys, and sang. Bitonti played bass and lead guitar. Chris Berg played drums.  Local singer Tina Dawn provided backing vocals. She was last seen in Vegas performing as the green fairy in Absinthe.  She is a huge vocal talent, and just got back from a 6 month traveling singing gig to join us on stage at Punk Rock Bowling.

We do have some regional touring planned. We are currently booking California and Arizona dates for August. Our record release show will be at Vinyl at Hard Rock Casino on Wednesday Aug 19 with Alex and His Meal Ticket and Lawn Mower Death Riders. Tickets will be available for that online soon.

Thanks Nick! You can still buy tickets to see Eliza Battle live at the Punk Rock Bowling website. If you want more Eliza Battle, you can pre-order their 7” on their website.

Eliza Battle photo by Emily Matview