TCB Rock

Live and in the studio, Boyd still thwacks his animal-skin hand drum, its muted patter embroidering nearly every track of Make Yourself. On the whole, though, Incubus jettisoned the didgeridoo, djembe and other rehearsal-space-style experimentation in favor of no-fuss rock & roll. ”We have all these outtakes and piss-takes of freeform drum ‘n’ bass and wild stuff,“ Boyd gushes. ”Even if they don‘t make it on the album, we still have to indulge that part of ourselves.“

Given Incubus’ current no-frills direction, it‘s curious that the band’s latest addition is turntablist DJ Kilmore, a serious vinyl shredder from battle crew Jedi Knights. ”We didn‘t want to go with that tired scratching-on-top-of-rock thing anymore,“ Boyd says. ”DJs are integral to our sound, but Kilmore blends organically with us -- he’s a genuine fifth member. We‘ve always written around the DJ parts, creating space for breakbeats, and it just didn’t feel right to go on as a four-piece after we let DJ Life go.“

It‘s not Incubus’ style to dwell on unpleasantness, but Life‘s ouster was a long time coming, cemented after he sabotaged a show in Germany -- this after Incubus had opened to 5,000 screaming Parisians the night before and felt, after years of struggle, like they were finally on to something. ”In the middle of a song, he turns up his crossfader so there was pure distortion,“ Boyd recalls in disbelief. ”We all looked back at him, and he was just standing there with his arms folded, like ’Fuck you.‘ He was obviously unhappy with us, but there was still turmoil after we asked him to leave. You know, any time you fire someone it’s their ego at stake. I wish him well, though, because I think he‘s a talented kid.“

Kilmore is no limelight hog. Whether he lays Boyd’s voice down on wax and samples it later, kicks out some funky breaks, or just bobs in and out of the fray with his bag of FX, this wheels-o‘-steel helmer slays ’em with subtlety. ”He‘s so creative and loving,“ Boyd says with affection. ”Plus, we were blown away when he played for us. It was the middle of the S.C.I.E.N.C.E. tour, and we were all, ’Can you learn 16 songs in two days?‘ and he was like, ’Sure.‘“

Fresh as they are, Incubus aren’t doing brain surgery. Such instantly gratifying, people-pleasin‘ rawk has to get old quick -- not for us so much as them. How do they manage to unleash the same batch of hackle-raising anthems night after night without losing their power?

”I’d have to say the best way is by getting enough sleep,“ Boyd says, laughing. ”We like going to bed early or staying in to draw and read. When we‘re healthy, it’s never boring.“