Music critics probably didn't know what to say when they heard the title track of Papa Roach's major-label debut, Infest. The song, which is literally the band's manifesto, professes that Papa Roach will infest the airwaves. Those critics who dismissed the song's bravado as a futile bid for credibility were wrong.In the seven months since the album's release, more than 3 million copies of Infest have crossed retail counters. And it's hard to tune into MTV without also tuning into the band's video for "Last Resort." A video for "Broken Home" is already in rotation.That's not bad for four working-class guys from Vacaville, Calif.Bassist Tobin Esperance said the band owes a great debt to its fans. He said Papa Roach wouldn't be where it is today - triple platinum - without fan support."I think the fans really connect with us because we're just really down to earth," Esperance said. "The music and the lyrics, we're not talking about things that people don't know about. They're not that far away from us. We talk about real-life situations and stuff that happens to everyone, everywhere in the whole world. I think people connect with that."Papa Roach will play at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Travel and Transportation Building at the State Fairgrounds in Oklahoma City. Linkin Park and (Hed) P.E. will open the show.Papa Roach has been around since 1993, when Esperance was 13 years old. In those days, Papa Roach played at pizza joints and coffee houses. And in those days, Esperance wasn't Papa Roach's bassist. He merely tagged along with Papa Roach to every gig. Esperance said he hung around the band members so much, they gave him the nickname "Roadie.""They liked to call me the roadie," Esperance said, laughing. "I really just kind of hung out and drank all their beer. They just liked to call me the roadie to make it sound like I helped them out with their equipment. I didn't really."Esperance was 16 when he was finally recruited to replace the band's first bassist, Will James. When he came aboard, Papa Roach was playing throughout California, even driving seven hours to Los Angeles.Esperance said he was initially attracted to Papa Roach's funk-punk hybrid, a style reminiscent of old-school Red Hot Chili Peppers. But as the band members aged, their music matured. Esperance said it's hard for him now to lump the band's sound into a single category. He said each band member brings something new to the mix. And musical diversity is important to Papa Roach. That's one reason the band added a dub reggae-inspired hidden track, "Tightrope," at the end of Infest, Esperance said."We put it on there because it kind of showed that we're not trying to just have every song sound the same," he said. "That was us experimenting really for the first time in a studio situation. That song at the end used to actually be an old punk-rock song, kind of like a hard-driving rock song we had on one of our old, independent releases."While critics like to categorize Papa Roach as rap-rock or even nu metal, Esperance said he thinks the band will stick around even if those popular genres fade away. Esperance said Papa Roach is working on the followup to Infest, and so far, the songs are showing greater variety. But even if Papa Roach's sound changes on the next album, one thing will remain constant: Members of Papa Roach will always have respect for their fans."We treat people the way we expect to be treated," Esperance said."As long as you're doing what you can and you're making some kind of effort to keep a relationship with your fan base, then they'll be loyal to you. That's what we want. We want to secure a loyal, dedicated fan base - not just hop in, hop out. We don't want to be known as that "Last Resort" band. That's the last thing we want. I feel like we have more to offer than just being the fad of the moment."hello there & you too
