CARLA HARVEY Says She Was 'Kind Of Squeezed Out' Of BUTCHER BABIES

In a new interview with Matt Wake of AL.com, former BUTCHER BABIES vocalist Carla Harvey spoke about her split with the band nearly a year and a half ago after a decade-and-a-half run. She said: "I couldn't do a tour [in the fall of 2023] because I had a serious eye injury and they went and did a tour without me. Then it was, like, 'Well, we'll just do the band by ourselves.' When you have put your heart and soul into something for so long and you do get kind of squeezed out of it, there's a moment when you're, like, 'I can either lay down and not do anything else, or I'm not gonna let someone else tell me when I'm fucking done doing what I do.'"

Harvey credited her now-husband, ANTHRAX and PANTERA drummer Charlie Benante, with inspiring her to launch a new project called THE VIOLENT HOUR. "He was, like, 'No, get out of bed. Fuck that. We're gonna write an album," Carla explained. "Charlie's excitement about it was really instrumental in my excitement. He would be playing guitar riffs in the morning with our morning coffee."

Back in October 2024, Harvey, who also works as a grief counselor and an end-of-life specialist, told "The Ward Bond Show" about her exit from BUTCHER BABIES: "It's quite interesting because [prior to BUTCHER BABIES] I had come to a point living in L.A., you get opportunities and they're snatched away from you. You make money, then you lose your money. And I was so tired of the entertainment business. And I was, like, 'I don't wanna do this anymore. I don't wanna play music anymore. I don't wanna act anymore. It's too much. Nothing is ever gonna happen with it.' So that's when I went to mortuary school and I was committed to only working in funeral service from then on out. Well, after a couple years of working, I got my dream job at a very big mortuary in L.A. And at the same time, I got an opportunity to start my band and go on tour for the first time in my life. So I had to make a choice in that moment. I've committed myself to this death-care career. Do I drop it all, everything that I've worked so hard for in school, and go on tour with this band and just see what happens one final time, or do I just stick on my path? And I chose music in that moment, and that was 2009 that I really committed back to music, and 2012 we went on our — we were touring non-stop, so there was no way I could work in funeral service anymore. Well, it ended up being the best thing that ever happened to me because our career just exploded, and so I got the best of both worlds. I had gotten my education. I had gotten a taste of working in death care, and then I could still live out my dream, and I am so grateful for that. The last 15 years of my life have been spent on stage, entertaining people in a capacity that I never dreamed I would have, especially after so much disappointment in my early years in L.A. So I got to do that. I got to be a rock star. I got to do all the things. And then 15 years later, my mind kind of changed again. [Laughs]"

Elaborating on her decision to leave BUTCHER BABIES and return to the death-care industry, Carla said: "So there's so much that goes into being in a band, especially as you get older and your life changes, you have relationships, you have a partner. I have a stepdaughter, and the idea, all of a sudden, of being on the road 10, 12 months out of the year became just a lot to handle. And in a band there's five people, and half of those people may feel like they want to be on the road constantly all the time and then some people are, like, 'Maybe it's halftime.' So it doesn't always work out for the greater good of everybody."

She continued: "My dad said something to me once years ago, when we had started the band, and he meant it in jest. He said, 'I saw you singing on the Internet. Don't quit your day job.' And at the time I was, like, 'That's the nastiest thing you could say.' But I'm glad I never quit my day job. In fact, all the while, the last 15 years, while I've been on tour, I've been getting more education and getting more certification so that I could continue on because I always had that need to still be in death care in some aspect. I founded my grief coaching company so that I could still be of service to people who need me in that capacity. It was very important to me. And then [in 2023], I was on this major summer tour. We were playing sheds, the outdoor amphitheaters and it was wonderful and every day you're up on stage singing your heart out, but, man, I saw this post about [innovative solidified remains company] Parting Stone looking for a partner success manager. And I thought, 'Man, I wanna apply for this. I wanna see what happens if I can take this job.'"

Harvey added: "There's just so many moments in life where you really have to assess what's best for you. Life changes. And also another thing about the entertainment industry and the music industry, it's not the same as it was for musicians 20 years ago, 10 years ago. My husband's in a legacy band. They never have to worry about having a real job — ever. But bands my size? You're not breaking the bank. You're not really earning a livable wage unless you're on the road 12 months out of the year. You can't support yourself. So I've always had other jobs, whether I'm painting pictures for people or doing my grief coaching on the side. That's a day job that I've been able to maintain throughout my career with music. It was a necessity as well as a passion, because otherwise I'd be couch surfing somewhere. [Laughs] I have nothing. So it's really hard to live passionately and just follow your dreams without something to fall back on or something to assist you. And I tell this to a lot of people, and some people are, like, 'No, man. I don't want a backup plan. This is the only thing I'm ever gonna do.'

"I always thought about, 'Okay, this is awesome right now. What about when I'm 60? What am I gonna do then?'" Carla said. "Because my mom is 72 and she's working all the time still. She loves working. We're not 70-year-olds that are gonna be sitting on a couch or 60-year-olds that aren't gonna be out doing something. Life is different. We're still gonna be working. We have to do something, and I'd rather have that be a career rather than a job that I'm forced to have to sustain myself in the [later] years."

THE VIOLENT HOUR's self-titled debut EP was released in July via Megaforce Records. Carla wrote all lyrics and handled all the vocals on "The Violent Hour", while Benante wrote the music and played all instruments on the EP. The track "Sick Ones" features a guitar solo from MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist John 5, and PANTERA guitarist and BLACK LABEL SOCIETY frontman Zakk Wylde makes a cameo on the track "Hell Or Hollywood".

Joining Harvey in THE VIOLENT HOUR's touring lineup are Kiana De León on lead guitar, Allie Kay on rhythm guitar, Jewell Steele on bass and Sasha De León on drums.

Kiana and Sasha previously played together in the PANTERA tribute band FAR BEYOND HOSTILE and the covers project VIXEN VENDETTA.

THE VIOLENT HOUR is currently touring the U.S. as direct support for STEEL PANTHER.

Photo credit: Lynn Yati