Article published May 31, 2007
Godsmack's Erna leaves dark past, emerges a survivor
By ROD LOCKWOOD
BLADE STAFF WRITER
Sully Erna was a scary guy growing up.
He was hyperactive, short-tempered, and always on the cusp of a fight. That's when he wasn't actually in a fight. He drank too much, drugged too much, and busted things up just for kicks. A product of rugged Lawrence, Mass., a working- class suburb of Boston, he was one misadventure away from murder.
Here is an excerpt from his book, The Paths We Choose (Bartleby, 277 pages, $21.95):
"As he got within feet of me, he raised the knife above his head in a stabbing position, only seconds away from plunging it into me. I pulled the shotgun up, pumped it once to load the chamber, and pointed it directly into his face. I remember feeling nothing for this person at that point."
Erna was 16 and on the verge of killing someone.
He was the stereotypical drummer: violent and wild.Sully Erna, the lead singer of the hard rock band Godsmack, which will be in Toledo tonight at the SeaGate Convention Centre, is a different guy. Much different. He's in his late 30s, drug and alcohol free, passing on his hard-earned wisdom to troubled youth, doing his best to be a good father to his 5-year-old daughter, and staying away from situations in which his only option is to punch someone out.
His is a cautionary tale, but he's not looking for sympathy and he doesn't look back with sadness. As recounted in The Paths We Choose, a refreshingly honest memoir in which Erna holds nothing back, even details that make him look bad, his story ultimately is that of a survivor.
"I don't regret a thing, and looking back - all the crazy girlfriends, all the fights - I wouldn't do anything different," he said in a phone interview. "I still have my moments but I don't feel like punching anyone in the face anymore."
His band is almost entirely Erna's creation. After kicking around for years drumming in heavy metal, hair metal, and hard rock bands with limited success, Erna decided in the mid-'90s to start his own group with one catch: he would be lead singer. He had never fronted a band before, but was confident he could make the transition, and after dealing with friends and others making fun of his voice, he worked hard enough to turn it into a legitimate instrument, sounding a bit like Metallica's James Hetfield.
As with most things, Erna makes no apologies for his vocal chops.
"I was born with this voice, I'm an alto, and I can't sound like Judas Priest even if I want to," he said.
Godsmack played gigs wherever and whenever, building an audience that has helped them sell millions of CDs and earn a Grammy nomination for best rock instrumental performance. The band - rounded out by Shannon Larkin on drums, Robbie Merrill on bass, and Tony Rombola on guitar - has released six discs, including last year's "IV." Their sound is classic hard rock with Erna front and center handling the vocals, writing lyrics, and playing guitar and harmonica.
Erna, who practices the Wiccan religion, said the current tour ends in early fall, just in time for him to be off and take his daughter, Skylar, to her first year of kindergarten. He also will continue working with his public service organization Community Alliance for Teen Safety, which spreads the word that there are alternatives to drug abuse, violence, and other dangerous behavior.
As for that incident with the shotgun: he pulled the trigger, but the gun wasn't loaded, something for which he is eternally grateful. As he writes:
"Sometimes these memories seem like scenes from a movie that I know really well and have watched a thousand times. I could have spent the rest of my life in prison if that gun had been loaded and it scares... me to know that I was ready to throw my life away over a bad temper and a lot of pride I wasn't willing to suck up."
All tickets for tonight's 8 p.m. concert are $39.50, from the SeaGate Convention Centre box office, 401 Jefferson St., or by calling 419-474-1333.
Contact Rod Lockwood at:
rlockwood @theblade.com
or 419-724-6159.
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