Johnny Rzeznik discusses the Dolls’ new album, coming to St. John’s, and Screech

By Ryan Belbin

“Now, I go down to George Street and I go, ‘I wanna get Screeched in’? There’s no way you can find a codfish in any bar!”

Johnny Rzeznik may have been skeptical about some of the cultural practices of downtown St. John’s, but the Goo Goo Dolls’ frontman was also eager. “I’m in. I’ll do the shot of rum and I’ll kiss the fish, and then I’ll be on my way. I’m into that—I’ve never been an honorary anything!”

The American alternative band, whose commercial stardom was propelled in the mid 90s by chart-topping singles such as “Iris,” “Black Balloon,” and “Here Is Gone,” are coming to Newfoundland for the first time this February, playing in St. John’s on Feb. 7 and 8, and Grand Falls-Windsor on Feb. 9.

Switching from talking about his group’s music to asking about the weather on the Avalon Peninsula, Rzeznik’s disarming charisma could be part of the reason why the Goo Goo Dolls have enjoyed a long career.

After their ninth studio album entitled Something For The Rest Of Us came out last August, the Dolls’ first official show following the release was supposed to be in Mount Pearl in September. That show was cancelled due to Hurricane Earl.

“I’m glad we actually got a chance to make up the date—I felt kinda bummed about that, ’cause we were all looking forward to going,” Rzeznik said.

“We’re getting [in Newfoundland] a day early, so we’ll rent a car and drive around, see what’s going on, ’cause I hear it’s really beautiful.”

Rzeznik and bassist Robby Takac have been performing together since 1986. Drummer Mike Malinin joined the Goo Goo Dolls in 1995, the year they released the album A Boy Named Goo and, with it, their first major hit, “Name.” This album refined their earlier, angst-ridden punk sound; it is radio-friendly rock that defines them today.

Something For The Rest Of Us was originally scheduled to be released early last year, but the band felt that the recording was inadequate and returned to the studio in January 2010, rewriting lines and going for new sounds to give the album a “handmade feel.” Rzeznik believes this had a huge bearing on the record’s quality.

“Sometimes, when you get into the studio and you’re in there with a producer every single day for 12 weeks, you can lose perspective of what’s going on, and you get so deep into the minutia that you don’t have time to really get the big picture,” he said.

“So, when we stepped away for a few weeks and listened, the big picture became obvious and it was like, ‘No, we fell short.’”

“We went back in, and we kind of tore down the production of it, and replayed some parts, and got different sounds for things. Basically [we] made it better—until it felt right. It’s just tighter; the bolts are tight on it.”

Recognized for his ability to speak to a wide audience with his lyrics, Rzeznik was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. For the songs on Something For The Rest Of Us, he tried to make the lyrics even more universal.

“The ‘rest of us’ are the people that get up every day and go to work every day and do the best they can for their families, and basically get crapped on. You do the working and paying and living and dying and the fighting in the wars, and then you wind up gaining the least,” he explained.

“I have friends who worked their entire adult lives and ended up losing their homes and losing their jobs, their families are falling apart, they don’t know how they’re gonna make things happen. It hit me really hard, when you know people who have a cousin in Afghanistan, and they just lost their job, and they’re about to lose their home—I wanted to explore the emotional underpinnings of that whole thing, and how these people were feeling.”

“I just wanted to say something for them. I do think there are a huge number of everyday people whose voices never get to be heard.”

Finding that voice isn’t particularly difficult for the songwriter. Despite years of international success, Rzeznik has avoided becoming jaded, a quality that he believes accounts for the continual transcendence of his songs.

“I don’t live a rockstar life, and I stay very close to my family and my friends from Buffalo. I make sure I get back there and I keep those friendships up because it’s extremely grounding,” he said.

“I think the fact too that, we’ve been doing this for so long, all that shine and bullshit has kind of worn off. I went through that whole period where I was dating actresses and living in Hollywood and all that—and it’s bullshit.”

After more than 100 shows in 2010, the Goo Goo Dolls will continue across Canada, finishing in Vancouver on March 2. Rzeznik already has plans for how he’s going to spend the break, and most of them are pretty down to earth.

“I’m moving out of Los Angeles. I’m moving back to New York. I’m going to move into my new place in a couple of weeks, and I need a few weeks with my girlfriend—buying a couch, those kinds of things.”

The band also has plans to perform at a few festivals in Europe this summer, and Rzeznik hopes to begin writing new songs again soon. Before that, however, the band has an obligation to fulfil on George Street.

“I’m gonna Google it right now to make sure you’re not doing a practical joke—like, I walk into a bar and go, ‘Hey, I wanna be Screeched in!’ and then five guys beat me up. It’s definitely on my list though—number one.”

Thinking about it for a moment, he added with a laugh, “Well, it might be the last stop on my list!”