An unknown garage band from Cornwall, England, has drummed up support from one of the biggest rockers on the planet in their fight against a local anti-noise ordinance.
Heavy metal band Black Leaves of Envy have been practicing in the same garage for the last two years. But it recently received a letter from the Cornwall Council saying its noise level was too high and the band would be fined unless they turned it down.
So the four teenagers who front Black Leaves of Envy stopped practicing and called in the big guns. They reached out to Dave Grohl, the former drummer of the band Nirvana and current frontman of the band Foo Fighters, asking for help.
Grohl surprised everyone by coming to their aid.
The musician posted an open letter to the Cornwall Council on Twitter this week, saying, “For the sake of your local band Black Leaves of Envy, and for the generations of young musicians that they may eventually inspire, I ask that you reconsider the restrictions put upon the volume of their private rehearsal space.”
“For musicians that lack the resources to rehearse in professional facilities, a garage or basement is the only place they have to develop their talent and passion,” Grohl wrote to his band’s 2.35 million Twitter followers. “I believe that is crucial that children have a place to explore their creativity and establish a sense of self through song.”
By allowing Black Leaves of Envy to rehearse in a private space, the council “will be sending a message not only that Cornwall is a home for music and the arts, but a place that encourages children to follow their dreams,” Grohl wrote.
Floored by the letter, Black Leaves of Envy posted on its Facebook page, “We are extremely happy and humbled by the response we have had from Dave Grohl, and we are all so appreciative of the kind words from you all.” Capitalizing on the attention, members posted a YouTube video of one of their songs.
The band consists of Adam Jones and Cerys Plenty, both 17, and Dylan Plenty and Lewis Cunningham, both 15. The foursome practice in the Plenty family garage.
Grohl believes the crux of the issue is that the Cornwall Council has placed a noise-level limit on the band of 30 to 40 decibels, which he said is unreasonable and “approximately the level of a dishwasher at 15 meters distance.”
But the Cornwall Council responded that despite “a number of complaints” they have placed no such noise-level restrictions on the band’s rehearsals.
“We are certainly not trying to stop the band from praticising and have not told the band to stop playing,” the council in a statement posted Thursday to Twitter. “However, the current sound levels are too high and we have offered to work with the band to look at ways of reducing the noise levels and have suggested they consider installing sound proofing in the garage to address the problem or possibly compromise by looking at playing only at certain times.”
The council said it has spoken to the owner of the property and was arranging to visit them to try and identify a solution. In the meantime, the Foo Fighters have posted some soundproofing suggestions, including filling the block walls with sand and covering the ceiling and floor with drywall or rubber mats.
