SECOND SCENE - ISSUE 9

SECOND SCENE ISSUE 9

NEW CANDYS

THE BLACK WATCH THE PULL OF AUTUMN THE MYSTERY PLAN PETE SPYNDA HXXS LAST TOURIST 300mics DIRTY WALT STONY SUGARSKULL THE REDLINES WIN HARMS GEZA X WAVY TREES ALPINE DECLINE KINGA SYREK DRAGON WELDING THE LEGENDARY HUCKLEBUCKS GRAVE FLOWERS BONGO BAND FERNANDO RUIBAL MATT SPAHR EWAN CAMERON PIETER ZANDVLIET JEANNE ADKINS

THE JAZZ BUTCHER THE CHEMISTRY SET RUSS TOLMAN

Welcome to the nineth issue of the

SECOND SCENE Bob McCutcheon, The Vault Studio, Dave Pursh, Glenn Sebastian, Print Tech, Anthony “Rocky” Lamonde, Rick Radvansky, Judy Rosenfeld, Eric Wisiewski, The Electric Crush, Ricky Maymi, Shauna McLarnon, Shameless Promotions PR, Gregg & Barbara Kostelich, Get Hip, Steven Boone, Nether Street, Dancing With Architecture, Attic Records, Jerry’s Records, The Government Center, Pytr Baum, Robert Vickers & Proxy Media.

Front Cover Photo: Jancy Buffington

Writers and contributors: Dug Moore, Dave Franklin, Simon Phillips, Karla Doolittle, Dave Pursh, Dylan Mascellino, Pytr Baum, Todd Thomas & Tom Sobilo

Editor-in Chief: Tim Thomas

Contact: secondscenemagazine@gmail.com

The Knockout Artist – Cathal Coughlan Whilst it is very easy to hear parallels with the likes of everyone from The Divine Comedy to Richard Hawley to Scott Walker and The Go-Betweens in his music, none of them seems to bring all of the pieces of the perfect sonic jigsaw together quite as expertly as Cathal Coughlan. And The Knockout Artist is another example of just why it is good to have him back making new music.

Here, the music is infectious in a way that pop doesn’t get close to and which rock couldn’t possibly understand. The beat alone will have even the most ardent wallflower shuffling their feet, and the way that the music spirals around this core sound is both deft and delicious.

But it is as a lyricist that he really excels, able to poke and prod at society and its denizens, cut to the lofty heights and shameful lows of politics with exact precision, and get to the heart of the human experience through poignancy and poetry. Taken from his sixth studio album, Song of Co-Aklan, this latest sonic adventure sees him team up with all manner of players and bandmates from his Fatima Mansions and Microdisney days, as well as such luminaries as The Auteur’s Luke Haines and Scritti Politti’s Rhodri Marsden.

The album may be his first new music in a decade, but The Knockout Artist proves that he has not lost his touch for writing killer songs and why he is such a highly regarded artist in the first place.

Dave Franklin

The Imajinary Friends The 2017 LP released by 300 mics pulls the listener into a psychedelic wormhole where time and space are suspended. Bass and drum grooves propel the songs while wild electronics spill out of the speakers engulfing the listener. Your feet will not touch the ground until the last note fades out. The band features Ricky Maymi, Tim Digulla, and Travis Threkel and vocal contributions from Moogy, Stephen Lawrie, and Marleen Nilson. I recommend this album to anyone who is a fan of CAN, Hawkwind, and Flying Saucer Attack. Todd Thomas

THE MYSTERY PLAN What has The Mystery Plan been up to during the pandemic and quarantine?

The last year has been hard on all of us. We have not been able to perform or even rehearse in 12 months. But I have been writing a lot, probably 12-14 new songs. We’ve recorded a few already and will be included in our new record coming out this summer.

What can we expect from The Mystery Plan in 2021?

Our new record, You Also Have Eyes, hits the streets in July and features songs I’ve written and produced with John Fryer(BBN, This Mortal Coil, Cocteau Twins, Love & Rockets...etc.), Ian Masters (Pale Saints, Spoonfed Hybrid, ESP Summer), Peter Anderson (the Ocean Blue), Micah Gaugh (the Veldt), plus a brand-new song with Big Supreme taking vocal duties.

We shoot the video for the single in early May, and if things keep going well, back performing shows late summer/autumn.

How has The Mystery Plan evolved since you first formed the group?

The Mystery Plan has changed a lot since we first started a decade ago. Back then, the band was basically myself and Paul Jensen. I would write a song, and Paul would work on it some, then we would bring other musicians in like Neil Allen, Kathleen Johnson, Jay Cooper(Vonfunkhauser), John Fenn Steila (Heart of a Ghost), John Fryer(Black Needle Noise, This Mortal Coil, Cocteau Twins, Love & Rockets), and Royce Guin. We finally settled in with this current line-up, and started writing together. That’s when Zsa Zsa was recorded. Rob Tavaglione at Catalyst Recording in Charlotte took us in, and we made a record. He’s with us on our new record as well.

How would you characterize yourself as a songwriter?

The way I write is pretty unconventional. I’m not classically trained in the instruments I play, so I rely on my emotions to guide me. I usually sit down in the studio and try to conceptualize the way I’m feeling, then figure out how to make music to express that. Amy is very good at picking up on where I’m going, which helps. Otis has an amazing gift of counter-melody, and along with Jeff’s grooves, take songs to places I couldn’t have taken them alone. Sprinkle in Patty’s voice and flute notes around, now my simple little songs have depth and personality. Writing and performing in the same room as these people bring me great joy.

Tell us about your Saturday Night Mixtape presents show. What genres of music do you play, and where can we find them online?

Tell us about your Saturday Night Mixtape presents show. What genres of music do you play, and where can we find the online online?

Every week I host a program called Saturday Night Mixtape. The genres vary, but usually, you’ll hear dream pop, shoegaze, astro-funk, post-punk, trip-hop, ‘60s girl groups, deep sexy house, folknova, afro-beat, bossa nova, dub reggae, jazz, downtempo, and everything in-between. I’ll also throw a 10mmOmega Recordings artist or two in there every week.

Saturdays 9 pm est. jukebox101.com.

N A M L O T S RUS

STORIES OF THE TRUE WEST

By Tom Sobilo

P

icking up their name from an old magazine, compiling true stories of the old West, True West was one of the era-defining 80s American psychedelic guitar bands. Hailing from Davis, California, they gained a reputation as a blistering live act due to the guitar axis of Richard McGrath and Russ Tolman.

Tolman, currently based in Long Beach, California, was born and raised in Northern California and became True West’s main songwriter and responsible for keeping the band’s legacy alive. Self-proclaimed “Country cousins of the Paisley Underground” True West were not part of the original scene but had ties to the Dream Syndicate with Tolman, Gavin Blair, Steve Wynn, Kendra Smith, and Steve Suchil all playing

in Davis` first “New Wave” band, the Suspects, in 1979.

According to Tolman, they released only one single in their short existence but proved to be “ground zero in many ways” according to Tolman.

Steve Wynn was briefly a member of the Long Riders before they officially became the Long Ryders and helped True West in Los Angeles, “a cruel place for bands. In fact, we needed local support. Vice versa, I set up gigs for the Dream Syndicate and Three O’Clock in Berkeley and Davis.”

The band started in 1982 and broke up in the summer of 1985, constantly touring “with maximum one month off,” says Tolman.

How did it go wrong?

In 1983 they were supposed to be signed by EMI America and recorded demos with Tom Verlaine of Television, who was enamored with the twin guitar approach of McGrath / Tolman similar to Television’s own sound provided by Richard Lloyd and Tom Verlaine. After this deal fell through, they toured Europe and were welcomed in particular in England, where they were on the covers of all the English music weeklies in April 1985 and supposed to be “the next big thing” waiting to be signed by a major label, such as Island UK or Chrysalis Records. Alas, planned TV appearances on “The Old Grey Whistle Test” and other shows were nixed due to missing work permits.

On returning home to California, they were invited by REM to join them for the West Coast leg of the “Fables of the Reconstruction” tour. Why did it all end for Tolman? “The other band members hated me. So we parted ways, paying me off out of my contract.” So, they called it a day, released one more album (“Hand of Fate”) without Tolman before Gavin Blair and Richard McGrath continued recording as Foolkillers.

Serving as guitarist/main songwriter in True West, Tolman left the lead vocals up to Gavin Blair. “I didn’t have the confidence of singing back then, and Gavin was/is a great singer.”

He went to LA Graduate School, finished his degree, and teamed up with his old friend Steve Wynn, CEO of the Dream Syndicate. “Steve started Down There Records and had a distribution deal with Enigma Records/Restless Records, who hit gold with Hair Metal Bands such as Poison. He wanted me to run the label while he took care of A&R.” Thus, paving the way for acts such as Green on Red, the Romans, Divine Weeks, Top Jimmy & the Rhythm Pigs, The Doctors Children, a.o.

Moreover, he got his solo career up and running: “When I recorded my debut solo album in Davis, Steve Wynn came up by Greyhound bus with a bottle of Jack Daniels and coached me during the recording sessions as I was afraid to sing.” “Galveston mud” he originally wrote for True West. Heavily influenced by the Jesus & the Mary Chain’s “Psychocandy” album, he came up with a masterpiece showing many diverse musical influences and styles: Talking Blues, Westcoast type of ballads, and psychedelic guitar

rockers showing the artistic range he would trace later in his career.

“The engineer was slightly ahead of me in terms of engineering, set up the equipment, and we created a big ball of noise,” laughs Tolman. Using the help of former Suspects bassist Steve Suchil, Chris Bauer on slide guitar, and former True West and Thin White Rope drummer Frank French (later in Cake), the album got raving reviews after being released on the UK label Zippo Records and one year later Down There Records in the USA and firmly established Tolman as a solo artist.

Apart from that, he found time to indulge in a cover band project called “Personally I Prefer Mr. Hyde” who did a couple of gigs in LA: “As I recall, the line-up was myself, Steve Wynn, Chris Cacavas, Jon Klages, Dave Provost, and Dennis Duck. Three guitars, just like a southern rock band. We were searching for a name, and Steve called me from The Music Machine, which was a club in West LA, and I could tell he’d had a cocktail or two, and he suggested that name, and we knew it was a winner.”

“Down in earthquake town,” released in 1988, was an even more ambitious effort and recorded cheaply for 300 bucks a day at Westbeach Recorders in Hollywood with Brett Gurewitz of Bad Religion. “Yeah, Bad Religion’s Brian Wilson,” laughs Tolman. Veteran bassist Dave Provost (Textones, Droogs, Dream Syndicate, Gene Clark) played bass. “Dave was slightly older than us and already had an impressive CV. Mind you, he had guitar lessons by Carol Kaye (famous Wrecking Crew bassist). Plus, he is a funny guy, so he fit in perfectly.” Taking the detour via Europe, Tolman’s career took off in Europe, where his subsequent albums were released in the UK (Demon/ Zippo), France (New Rose) as well as Germany (Blue Rose) apart from various US labels over the years.

Musically the Westcoast has left a lasting impact on Tolman’s relaxed style, oozing the Desert and palm trees. Getting “Happy trails” by Quicksilver Messenger Service as a present in 7th grade, he was deeply impressed with the dual guitar approach of John Cippolina and Gary Duncan. Asked about his favorite guitarists, he names Richard McGrath (True West), Cippolina / Duncan (Quicksilver Messenger Service), Richard Lloyd / Tom Verlaine (Television) as well as Jon Klages (Richard Lloyd Band, Individuals).

“In fact, the label (Innerstate Records) I had with Pat Thomas distributed a Richard Lloyd album, “The cover doesn’t matter.” I met him at a show in Chicago, and when True West played Halden, Norway, we played Richard Lloyd songs as he was living in Sweden at the time.” Showing their eclectic and good taste in music True West covered Pink Floyd (Lucifer Sam) for their debut single, the Stooges (1969), Iggy Pop (Lust for life), Elvis Presley (Suspicious minds), Yardbirds (Happenings Ten Years Time Ago), Creedence Clearwater Revival (Have You Ever Seen The Rain) as well as Screamin’ Jay Hawkins (I Put A Spell On You) primarily live.

Jeffrey Briggs

Young. “I also like standards in the Gershwin vein, e.g., Bacharach & David, and Country folks such as Hank Williams. He wrote great tunes.”

What is his advice to aspiring songwriters? “Listen to a lot of music. Learn song structure by listening to great songs. Try to figure out what makes great songs great - how they build and tease, then release. Then, when you are writing, write from the heart. Write about what you are feeling. Look for the universals and how to say something that everyone feels but in a new way. So, it’s a combination of craft and inspiration. But no level of craftsmanship is going to write a great song without some real feeling behind it. “ Tolman’s singing style is characterized by his baritone voice. “I like lower parts and songs that are in my range, and they are comfortable for me.” So, he can be filed next to Iggy Pop, but he also likes Fred Neil, crooners such as Bing Crosby, English singer/songwriter Richard Hawley (“he has a beautiful voice”), and Country folks, such as Waylon Jennings.”

Tolman took a 19 years recording break after “New Quadrophonic Highway” was released in 2000. “New Quadrophonic Highway” was recorded in Tolman’s bedroom in San Francisco’s Haight district. “Yeah, I wanted to do something different. I got a 16-track machine, and with weird bleeps and noises added

by Dale Duncan (Map of Wyoming, Flying Color), I came up with something Gram Parsons envisioned as “Cosmic American Music.” (laughs). Sales didn’t match his previous albums, but Tolman couldn’t care

Kim Tolman

Asked about the nine solo albums he put out, Tolman claims “City lights” from 1998 to be his favorite album “as his voice sounded nice.” My personal favorite is his debut album “Totem Poles and Glory Holes,” a rocking and raw album.

Songwriting comes easy to him, and writing songs with a verse, bridge, and a catchy chorus is a must for him. His most famous song is “Hollywood Holiday,” a short story in a Film Noir setting. How did he write it?

“I was at a college radio seminar in LA and driving back to Davis when I heard a radio DJ mumbling the words Hollywood and holiday, and inspiration struck me… didn’t work on it too long!” Does he have to work hard on writing a song? Inspiration is needed, but sometimes he needs to concentrate on writing songs, especially while finishing a projected album. Asked about True West classics such as “And then the rain,” he mentions that Richard McGrath came up with the catchy riff, whereas he wrote the lyrics. For him, it is easier to write a third-person story song than personal/ heartbreak songs.

What are his favorite songwriters? “I love Fred Neil.

He has the best songs ever written, plus he can go low with his voice and then even higher than me.”

Quite fitting, Tolman recorded a bunch of Fred Neil songs, including “Everybody’s talkin’” (made famous

by Harry Nilsson and also recorded by Phil Gammage of Certain General a.o.), and the traditional “You don’t miss your water.” Moreover, he likes singersongwriters mixing electric/acoustic songs such as Neil

less. “Oh, I got married, and my priorities changed. I got a good job and bought a house”.

In 2019 he returned to music, releasing his last album, “Goodbye El Dorado,” and his perspective changed once again. “There was no need to prove myself and make it anymore.” Sounds as if he found his peace.

His music was always hard to pigeonhole. I think of him as a classic American singer-songwriter, soaking up all kinds of influences. “I am a hillbilly, white trash,” he laughs. Indeed, his humor shines through many of his lyrics, e.g., on “Bob’s House of Failure,” where all members of his band are namechecked for their deficiencies.

Due to growing interest in reissuing the old True West albums, Tolman’s former business partner and jack of all trades Pat Thomas shopped the True West material around reissue labels, but none of them were interested enough to invest money. Thus, the band fundraised the reissue project, including the two

albums “Hollywood Holiday” and “Drifters plus “Hand of Fate,” which hasn’t been reissued on CD yet with guest appearances of Chuck Prophet (Green on Red) and Matt Piucci (Rain Parade). Adding three bonus tracks, demos, vinyl only, and live tracks, you have a real bonanza for avid True West fans worldwide, expected for release in October 2021, just in time for the 40th anniversary in 2022.

Asked about future plans, he informs us that he is halfway through recording a new solo album, his tenth. With Jim Huie (ex-True West drummer) and Chris von Sneidern on backing vocals and Russ playing all other instruments, I bet it’s going to be top.

Moreover, Tolman continues to host his “Gimme Country” radio show on the internet radio (gimmecountry.com) ever since he worked as a DJ in the late 70s when he played Easy Listening and local news before he went to UC of Davis and became a DJ at KDVS, later joining a “long haired country station, KOKE.FM, in Austin who played free form country.” For four years, he played Bluegrass and weird novelty records until he became the program director. Then he joined True West.

Having gone full circle, I ask him about True West’s lasting legacy and his solo career. “Who knows? That’s not for me to say.”

Preorder the 3 CD-Box (only 500 copies, folks!) via truewestmusic.com Further info: russtolmanmusic.com/

All Photos courtesy of Russ Tolman

LAST TOURIST From the dark beating heart of Leeds, England

e l b a T r e n r o C The W

ith the Spring season upon us, I’d like to talk about a beer style that was traditionally brewed in the winter to be consumed during Spring holiday celebrations but is now pretty much brewed all year long. I’m talking about “Bock” beer.

Beer historians have a variety of theories as to where Bock beers originated, but for all intents and purposes for this article, Bock beers date back to the 14th Century Germany, specifically to the town of Einbeck. Most Bocks are brewed stronger than typical lagers and have a somewhat sweet, malty flavor.

The Bavarian monks used to brew Bocks as a nutrition source during fasting due to their robust

character (liquid bread!).

Traditional Bocks are usually copper in color with an ABV of around 6.5%. The hop bitterness is hidden by the malty flavors and rich caramel overtones.

Aside from the traditional recipe, Bocks can be brewed a few different ways as well; Maibock (“May.”) Bock, a lighter, more hopped version), Doppelbock (“Double” Bock, stronger and maltier), Weiznbock (“Wheat” Bock, using wheat and sometimes brewed as an Ale) & Eisbock (“Ice” Bock, where the beer is frozen, and then the ice is removed, stronger and higher ABV). My personal favorite is the Doppelbock, with its toasty dark fruit flavors.

A funny side note. Legend has it that the name “Bock” came from the bastardization of the name of the town “Einbeck.” Bavarians pronounced it “Ein-Bock” due to their accents, which translates to “billy goat.” The goat has

become somewhat of a mascot that is associated with Bock beers. Go out and grab yourself a bottle of Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock, and you’ll find a little plastic goat trinket tied around the neck of the bottle!

Bock beers are worth seeking out if you’re looking for something a little less bitter with a big malt flavor.

They pair well with any type of food and are great for drinking on a breezy Spring evening next to a campfire. Cheers!

Currently drinking; Penn Brewery’s Penn Pilsner, Old Thunder Brewing Company’s Permanent Visitor IPA, Brew Gentlemen’s Albatross IPA, The Leaning Cask Brewing Company’s Marsh Malamute Stout & Fat Head’s Sunshine Daydream Session IPA.

Dave Pursh

Second Scene talks with John Wellby What has been the most significant influence on Last Tourist?

Tell us how Last Tourist has coped as a group during the pandemic and quarantine?

Bowie and Ian McCulloch for the delivery, Suicide, and OMD for the atmosphere, and the Jesus and Mary Chain and Slowdive for the power. We take an interest in the whole artistry of the project, including the visuals, like in Factory or Creation days.

Well, we’ve probably excelled through it, as it’s given us more of a chance to get noticed in a way.

Because while other bands have backed off, we can still write and record on our equipment. Luckily there’s two producers/engineers in the band that have been able to use this situation to an advantage where we can write and record, and then send parts to the other members for them to record and mix and produce, and then send off to a producer and a masterer. And we can then push it socially on the website and on social media.

How would you describe your sound?

Like a shoegaze darkwave sound... atmospheric... with a feeling of empty spaces and angst, paranoia, I suppose... what do you think?

What can we expect from Last Tourist in 2021?

How is the group dynamic when it comes to songwriting? Is it a group effort or individual writing?

It’s me [John] and Adam bouncing ideas backwards and forwards, and then we play it back to the band, and then they’ll play the parts and add their flair to it.

And then we’ll elaborate on it as a group.

Interview: Tim Thomas

A single “Cave In The Hills” released 7 May, which is co-produced with John Pennington (Strawberry Studios North) and mastered by Simon Scott (Slowdive). An album to come, and we’ll be gigging hopefully by the end of the year. We hope to push out some merchandise and records. We’re going to be putting out a lot of vinyl [laughs].

Photo: Daniel Johnson

I’ll hopefully get that into the studio at some point so that we can finish it off. I tend to write most of the songs in The Othyrs, but then let James record 90% of the music on the tracks. Alice then adds her amazing voice. It’s sort of like letting your children go, but then your children catch them. Alice also sings some of the backing vocals on every Wolfhounds album we’ve released since 2014.

The way the Wolfhounds write has changed. I’ve started singing more songs (which is something Dave has encouraged), so it’s a big change for me. If Dave has written a song, then I’ll play about with ideas for parts on various instruments, and Dave does the same on my songs. We like to play songs for a long time before we record them. Having a little home studio set-up helps that a lot. We can try out ideas before going into the studios to record the drums and the bulk of the backing tracks. Both Dave and I can then swap ideas for other parts once the drums are recorded. It’s a nice way to work, but nothing beats just getting together and playing, especially in the writing phase. Songs can easily get turned upside down once you present them to other people. That’s where the magic is.

What can we expect from your second solo album that will be released in May? For the new Dragon Welding album, it’s deliberately music that a band would find hard to play. There is little point, or enjoyment, in making a Wolfhounds album on my own, so once I write a song, I can pretty much tell where it should sit. This one is all guitar-based instrumental music and was conceived as a ‘staycation’ album way before the pandemic started. I was listening to the demos on my phone on a beach in Crete in 2019 and thought it would be a nice idea to try and recreate that relaxed feeling of laying in the sun, doing nothing with your brain switched off, at home. Little did I realize that within a few months, we would all have no choice in the matter. The photographs on the cover are a mix of photographs from Florida, taken by long-term Wolfhounds partner in crime Andy Royston, projected onto a guitar I am building. The images work well with the music, and it’s exactly what I wanted.

DRAGON WELDING Instrumental, instrumentation, and manipulation! Andy Golding from the post-rock group The Wolfhounds, under the moniker Dragon Welding, releases his second solo album.

Tell us about Dragon Welding. Is Dragon Welding just a solo outlet for yourself, or do you collaborate with others?

The first album (Dragon Welding – released on A Turntable Friend Records in 2019) had a couple of backing vocals from my children (James and Alice), but the new album is all me. I tend to spend a lot of time playing about with Garageband on my iPhone and iPad, and I have a large pool of ideas that I’m working on at any one time. I realized that if I didn’t draw a line in the sand and finish some tracks off that they would probably stay as ideas for the rest of my life. So, I took the plunge, got eleven songs together, sent them to the label, and they liked the idea.

The new album was recorded in much the same way, but there are fewer loops. On ‘Scorched Sea,’ ‘Liquid,’ and ‘Paralevolution,’ I wanted to record some spontaneous guitars, so I just played over the tracks without really knowing what I was doing. I did a bit of editing, but they are all mostly live, and one take. So, I was sort of collaborating with myself. There were a few that I had lyrics for, but I decided to make it all instrumental as the tracks seem to flow as an album.

How does Dragon Welding stack up against your previous work?

(The Wolfhounds) The Wolfhounds writing process has changed over time. When we were younger, we would tend to chuck ideas into the middle and kick them around until something vaguely cohesive emerged.

Dave would sit there with his notebook and then eventually come forward and sing over the top. Pretty much everything was written like that up until ‘Blown Away.’ After the initial split in 1990, I took some time out from music for a while, but then started writing songs and singing when I was about 30, which is something that I had really done before. I also started getting into sampling and digital recording, but whereas everyone else went on to be successful, I just sort of found myself locked in an attic trying to work out how it all worked. There were a few bits that sound ok when I listen back, but it’s mostly just a bit ordinary. I was very frustrated by my lack of understanding how it all worked, so I picked up my battered old banjo and started writing songs. I formed a band with my brothers (Trad Arr) and Paul Warwick (who now plays violin in The Wolfhounds), and we had a great time for a few years recording songs for our own amusement in Paul’s cellar. I finally mastered and released most of it on Bandcamp during lockdown. It’s a whole part of my life that is waiting to be discovered. Pretty much anything went after a while.

There is also a continuation of that music in The Othyrs. We recorded a studio album in 2019 that will come out this year, but on the Bandcamp page, there is also an Othyrs album I recorded with James and Alice. We had started it a few years back, but again, lockdown gave us time to finally finish it off. We’ve recorded most of a new third album during Lockdown, and it’s sounding good.

I sent it to Dimple Discs when I first heard the Eileen Gogan album.

That’s a nice-sounding record and not something I would usually listen to, but it has a really light atmospheric sound, not dissimilar to what I was trying to achieve. It’s the first Dragon Welding release on vinyl which is also very exciting.

What do you have planned next?

I was asked to make a video for ‘Owl in The Parlour’ by Cathal Coughlan. I’ve made a few Wolfhounds videos over the years and a few for The Othyrs and Trad Arr, but it was the first one I have made a video for a song I wasn’t part of. Cathal seemed to like it, and I’m quite pleased with it, so I’d like to make a few more for other people. I am in no way a ‘filmmaker.’ It’s all iPads and iPhones for me, and I think I would get drummed out of the video makers guild within minutes.

Musically, I’ve already finished off a third Dragon Welding album which will hopefully get released. The second Othyrs album is done, and the third is nearing completion. Wolfhounds are scheduled to headline the Preston Pop Fest in August alongside The Bluebells, The Jazz Butcher, The Close Lobsters, and a whole bunch of other nice people. There will also be a Dragon Welding set of some description as well.

Wolfhounds are working on some further dates for later in the year to somewhat belatedly launch ‘Electric Music,’ but more on that to come.

Finally, I hope that when we can eventually get back in the same room that a new Wolfhounds album will burst out. I’ve got a lot of songs ready to be battered into submission, and I’ve built up a new sonic arsenal over Lockdown that is waiting to be unleashed on the world.

facebook.com/dragonweldingmusic

PETE SPYNDA

Pete Synda is another style of a promoter. He strives to build the community through creative and adventurous gatherings. Pittsburgh is a better place due to his endeavors.

You were in various bands over the years, but now you’ve turned your interests to other pursuits?

Well, I was in a lot of bands back in the early to mid-2000s. But I haven’t played much since those times. My main projects include Pandemic Dance Party (pandemicpgh.com) and Pittonkatonk Festival. Pandemic started in 2005 as an alternative dance party/global music dance night at the Brillobox. It grew from a monthly DJ night to a production company for promoting events for artists whose music I was spinning. That led to hosting the PIttonkatonk Festival.

Artists or albums to check out? I would say anything on Sahel Sounds, Analog Africa, Pharaway Sounds, Finders Keepers, and of course Mississippi Records. The music I’m into right now is Mamman Sani, Mdou Moctar, Los Mirlos, Uji, and El Buho.

Are you currently working on any music projects? If not, do you have any plans for the future?

Right before Covid hit, I decided to take a break from my monthly DJ night to focus on producing live events. Covid, of course, put all of that on pause. I’m hoping in the future I can return to smaller, more intimate shows for artists from Latin America, Africa, and Eastern Europe. Producing these events, I feel, served as an entry point for new and underground artists who would then go on to performances with larger cultural institutions. But with the ever-increasing visa fees (in addition to COVID), it’s become more difficult for artists to travel to the states. I hope that the new administration will make it easier for artists to travel (fingers crossed). But yeah, I plan to return to producing Pandemic Presents and Pittonkatonk.

Tell us about the events you organize, Weather Permitting, Pandemic Dance Party, and Pittonkatonk.

Pandemic is a global punk rock dance party Weather Permitting was an outdoor concert that was geared towards providing a fun evening for adults but also had activities for kids. Not like dancing mascots, but squirt guns, flower planting, hula hooping, dancing, and more.

Out of both of those grew Pittonkatonk. It’s a free music festival in the sense that it’s a day of music both local and international, plus it’s a potluck. It was established as a reaction to expensive music festivals. That’s the punk rock part of me talking. Pittonkatonk started (2012) as a party for a punk rock brass band playing Serbian wedding music, What Cheer? Brigade in a friend’s garage for a hundred people. In 2014 it moved to Schenley Park for the first official Pittonkatonk. The goal was to mimic the Honk Festivals (Boston, Providence, NYC) by creating a free community event featuring mobile activist brass bands. From there, we decided to diversify the festival from just brass bands and to include performers from all over, including local jazz bands, samba groups, and from there, connecting the event to social justice and environmental justice. In 2015 we started an education program with UPrep High School in the Hill District and Sto Rox Marching Band. Then in 2017, we began bringing in more international bands to collaborate with the kids and perform at the festival. In 2019 we were able to bring in artists Dzambo Agusevi Orchestra from Macedonia and Los Mirlos from Peru. Pittonkatonk served as an anchoring gig for both of these artists’ tours. That’s where it gets exciting for me—creating something that can provide opportunities for artists.

I can keep rambling on about that. But it’s probably STFU. What else have you been involved in as a musician and promoter?

As a promoter, I’ve been doing work in Carrick with the production company Hear Corp running educational programming and cultural programming in their non-profit and event space, 25 Carrick Ave Project.

Also, during the pandemic, I’ve been producing a live stream show called Alone/Together/Pittsburgh with Patrick Jordan of barebones productions and Dave Mansueto from Bossjock Studios. It’s been a way to stay connected and creative during these dark days.

Ff - Ffeeling

Hour Of The Time Majesty Twelve

White Hills - No Game To Play

The Imajinary Friends

Terminal Lovers - Flight out

The Hellenes - I Love You All The Animals

300mics Exploring sound and art with great success. The West coast label run by Michael Giordano is more about “feel” and “friendship” than anything else. And GREAT music!

What inspired you to start 300mics?

My friends. A lot are musicians creating far-out, challenging, interesting music & sounds that needed an outlet.

I love records. I enjoy working creatively with people I know, taking their music and art, managing the production of the release, helping to tell their story, and getting it distributed. I have done other record-making projects before 300mics. I had a singles label with a bandmate in the early ‘90s called Echonet - all Bay Area freak bands. So I was familiar with the process.

Tell us about the records you’ve released so far?

Mostly, head music. A mix of eclectic synth freakout to krautrock to heavy guitar rock to psych-pop deliciousness to post-punk garage vibes to 60s/70s Power Pop. Each LP is unique from the others. Some of the musicians/bands are well known and established, some are just getting started, and some are on hiatus, and others are a fond memory.

Check them out on our 300mics Bandcamp page. We have seven releases.

The label’s name, 300mics, was inspired by an experience an infamous LSD collector had on 300mcg of Orange Sunshine the day Jimi Hendrix died.

What do you look for when considering a new group or solo act?

Are we friends?!?! Hahaha. But mostly, do I ‘feel’ it? Do I love it? Does it strike a chord with me? Is it unique? Is it well-played musicianship? And although it doesn’t really matter to me... will other people want to hear this?

What year did you release your first record?

Ff - Ffeeling. 2013. It was a bizarre synthy weird collaboration between Dave W of White Hills and Antronhy Oh (aka Tony the Interpretive Dancer) of Bivouac, Julian Cope/Black Sheep, and The Attraktors. They’re both close friends of mine, and after hearing it, I asked if I could press it up. They agreed, and 300mics were dropped....hahaha if you will.

Is 300mics a vinyl-only label?

Mostly, yes. I licensed the Imajinary Friends LP from the European label, Sound Effect, and they did vinyl and CDs. Our newly released LP, You Asked For A Hard Candy

by Marzipan, has a limited LP variant that comes with a cassette (50) of live performances by the band.

Is 300mics genre-specific, or is the label open to all styles?

All the releases have a psychotropic aspect to them.

Rather, otherworldly, I would say. I’m open to listening to submissions, but I like to keep it within the ‘family...or friends of the family.’

What does 300mics have planned for 2021 and beyond?

Marzipan will be the only release for 2021. As for ‘22, we have something brewing with possibility from 2 different friendly factions. Keep a lookout.

Marzipan - You Asked For A Hard Candy

facebook.com/300mics

problems, addiction, and early demise. I also wanted to raise awareness about Mental Health. Before Edie died, she warned people about the danger of drugs. She wanted to be free.

She tried so hard to overcome the addiction and start a new, healthy life, but unfortunately, she couldn’t escape her past. I was honored to have the soundtrack for “Too Late” produced by Robert Margouleff, a Grammy awardwinning producer and co-producer of “Ciao! Manhattan”, who with his wonderful team, including Gio Bertuccelli and Aaron “Zeus” Zepeda, did an outstanding job!

KINGA SYREK

Kinga Syrek is an artist from Krakow, Poland.

She works in many different mediums such as painting, drawing, graphics, traditional photography, and new media art. She has finally released her debut animated short film on the life of Edie Sedgwick. Kinga Syrek talks with the Second Scene.

What is your first memory of Edie Sedgwick?

It all started with Andy Warhol. My mom is an art teacher, and when I was in primary school, she used to buy a book series about famous artists. One book was about Andy Warhol. I have always liked to draw and paint. Sometimes I liked to redraw his art: Mickey Mouse, Coca-Cola bottles, and other pop art pieces. At that time, I knew Andy only as a painter. When I was a high school student, I discovered Warhol as a filmmaker. It was in 2013. I became very fascinated with him and started doing research - that’s how I discovered Edie Sedgwick. The first time I saw her was in the photograph by Burt Glinn. It is probably the most famous one of Andy, Edie, and Chuck Wein.

How did the fascination with Edie begin?

I really was drawn to her after watching the interview from the Merv Griffin Show, where she answered all of the questions for Andy, who refused to speak for himself. Her charisma, posture, intelligence, presence, and voice made me want to learn more about her. Then I discovered that her beautiful smile covered the huge pain that she carried inside her soul.

become a part of us. Through my performance art projects in which I am called Mazda Isphahan (Instagram: @mazda_isphahan), I am giving Edie a second life. My aim is to keep her memory alive and continue her legacy, which she couldn’t do herself due to her early death. I am just making her dreams come true.

What is your background in the arts? Where did you study?

My entire life has been dedicated to the arts and culture. First, I attended an art high school, and then I continued my education at the Intermedia Department at the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, Poland. Now, I am working on my Ph.D. program at the same academy.

Tell us about the short-animated film that you produced, “Too Short,” about the tragic life of Edie Sedgwick.

In 2017, I had to decide what would be the theme of my bachelor’s thesis at the Academy of Fine Arts; it was right after I returned from California, where I had visited Edie Sedgwick’s family house and her grave. I wanted to do something that I would enjoy, so naturally, I chose Edie’s life to be the subject of my animated film.

Making an animated film alone is challenging and time-consuming.

We decided with my professor that for a bachelor’s thesis, I would create a teaser for the film and the entire film for my master’s degree project. It was a perfect time for a film release because this year is the 50th anniversary of Edie Sedgwick’s death. The film focuses on the complicated relationship between Edie and her abusive father because I think it was a key factor in her life’s

What went into making this film?

It took three years to complete the film. I did all the visual aspects by myself. The film was almost entirely animated on the 13” MacBook with no budget at all! Finishing “Too Late” was possible, not only because I was so determined but also because I was fortunate to have very supportive people around me. I want to thank my animation teachers: my professor Krzysztof Kiwerski and Marcin Pazera, with whom I could consult about ideas and methods. They were always there for me when I needed help. And of course, Thank You to Wayne Stewart, who is my press spokesman in the US! I was concerned about the soundtrack. The animation was finished, but the film was practically silent. My friend Stanisław Saługa recorded music for the Silver Factory Scene, and then I came up with the idea of asking Robert Margouleff if he would help. Robert has been a member of my Facebook group called “Conversations with Edie Sedgwick” - a family-like place for the Edie fans. Many of the people involved actually knew her and worked with her. I felt so honored when Robert said that he would be interested in producing a soundtrack. With no budget for the film, I started a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the co-workers. The campaign was successful and “Too Late” was finished on time!

By creating this short film, have you found new facets of Edie Sedgwick that went unnoticed before?

In 2019 I visited the US, where I could conduct a great amount of solid research for the film, with a help of my family and my wonderful friend and an associate producer of “Too Late” - Wayne Stewart. Besides walking in the footsteps of Edie Sedgwick in New York and Boston, we visited The Film-makers Coop. for a private screening of rare films, in which Edie Sedgwick appears: “Poem Posters” by Charles Henri Ford and “Color Me Shameless”

by George Kuchar. Then, in Pittsburgh I spent several days in the

archives of the Andy Warhol Museum researching all-things Edie! It was a wonderful experience. You know, to be able to go through Edie Sedgwick’s sketchbooks, in which she drew (mostly animals and humans) while she lived with her grandmother in New York. At the beginning of 2020, I traveled to New York again to continue my research. I went through some interviews with Donald Lyons, Edie Sedgwick’s friend. He told a story about the painting which Edie Sedgwick was painting for him while living at the Chelsea Hotel. She was a perfectionist, so she kept improving it and improving it. She couldn’t decide when it was finished. It was a reproduction of a Renaissance Pallaiollo’s painting of a woman.

Unfortunately, the painting was lost in the famous apartment fire at the Chelsea Hotel.

What are your expectations for 2021 and beyond?

My film has been already selected for several film festivals, including the Oscar-qualifying 61st Kraków Film Festival, where will have its premiere. My biggest wish is the END of the Covid-19 pandemic and being able to travel to the cinemas where the film will be enjoyed.

The face-to-face contact with the audience is the most important thing for a filmmaker.

What is it about Edie Sedgwick that inspires you?

She is almost like a mythological figure. She is an enigma. She had that unique quality and aura around her. She was timeless. All of these aspects inspired me, plus her smile could light up the room! I really wish I could have met her in person.

You channel Edie Sedgwick’s style wonderfully through your modeling. Do you feel her spirit with you?

Thank you! Well, as long as we remember a person, they are not really gone. Their thoughts, their feelings, their memories, they

Interview: Tim Thomas

Photo: Maciej Syrek

Photos: Rosie Soko

kingasyrek.com

rosiesoko.com

THE JAZZ BUTCHER

An evening with THE JAZZ BUTCHER. PAT FISH speaks with the Second Scene.

A few pints required.

Interview: Tim Thomas Photo: Philippe Dufour

Was there a defining moment in your life that set you on course to becoming a songwriter/musician?

I couldn’t know it at the time, of course, but it probably happened when I was about three or four years old, at my grandparents’ house in Strawberry Hill, a well-heeled suburb of west London. Into these comfortable surroundings, my grandma had introduced a number of singles by the Ventures and their UK counterparts, the Shadows. The sound of the electric guitar drove me mental, and I remember hurtling up and down the corridor of my grandparents’ bungalow to the sounds of “Walk Don’t Run.” This will sound mad but, even as a crazed toddler, the irony of the song’s title vis-a-vis my response was not lost on me.

Arcadian footnote: across the road from my grandparent’s bungalow lay Radnor Gardens, a small and lovely park on the banks of the Thames, where my mother would take me for a walk and, on good days, an ice cream. I recall sitting at the riverbank and gazing across at the island in the river before us.

When I asked my mother about it, her brow darkened.

“Ooh, you don’t want to go over there,” she said in a menacing tone of voice. It was Eel Pie Island, and it was 1962.

What has influenced you as a songwriter?

I grew up in the sixties, so I was exposed to a tidal wave of fantastic music, pretty much as it happened.

The TV and radio introduced me to Otis, Aretha, and all the great soul artists, to the Beatles, the Stones, the Who, the Kinks, the Boxtops, Syd Barrett’s Pink Floyd, Brian Wilson’s teenage symphonies to God…I can remember exactly where I was standing when I first heard some of those records.

In the seventies, I discovered Syd Barrett, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, John Cale, Lou Reed, and Bob Dylan. The early solo records by Eno fascinated me because, with his self-avowed non-musician status, he showed how a record could be assembled rather than just banged out in a couple of takes. I was into his process and methodology long before I tried to write a song, but when I did, he was always with me, especially in the recording studio.

In 1976 a couple of sensational performances by the Patti Smith group left an indelible mark. They re-ignited the excitement of rock and roll after all those awful years of prog rock. I felt a thrill akin to that which I’d felt back in my grandma’s bungalow.

A year or two later, I was captivated by the songs of Peter Perrett and the Only Ones. They touched me and made me laugh (sometimes bitterly) at the same time. Perrett became a major guiding light and remains so today.

“London Calling” by The Clash was some kind of liberation. For me, it spelled the end of “genres.”

Everything that was cool was up for grabs if you could but handle it.

my guitar playing improved, and on our third album, I came to a point where I sort of stopped messing about and dared to write “proper” songs.

I’ve loved reggae music since the mid-seventies; all the Wailers, Toots, Culture, Augustus Pablo, the Congos. I don’t play reggae music, for that strikes me as pointless and disrespectful, but it’s taught me a good deal about songwriting.

The older one gets, the more music one hears and understands, the longer the list of influences grows.

Davy Graham, John Martyn, Kevin Coyne, Slapp Happy, Peter Laughner, Dan Treacy of the TVPs, Can, Tinariwen, Nina Simone, Laura Nyro, Chuck D. The list goes on. I’ve been lucky enough to hang out or work with some seriously cool writers who have surely influenced my songs: Alex Chilton, Phil Parfitt, Pete Kember, Will Carruthers, Nikki Sudden, Dave Kusworth, Pete Astor, the Walkabouts, Downy Mildew, the Black Watch, Markus Maria Jansen, Thomas Truax, Paul Wallfisch…and that’s without mentioning the thirty or so geniuses who have played with me in my band, all of whom, inevitably, have had a huge influence on the way that my songs have ended up sounding on stage or on record.

Yeah, I’m a sponge. Show me a half-awake songwriter who isn’t.

How did the Jazz Butcher come about?

In 1981 was playing in a fairly typical post-punk group based in Oxford, playing tenor sax and shouting. I wasn’t much good at either, but the band were doing all right. We were called the Sonic Tonix. We were all on the dole, though, and eventually, things all got a bit too much. I had a weekend where, after a gig in Cambridge, I became stranded, alone, in somebody else’s flat for a few days with no entertainment other than Joe Jackson’s “Jumping Jive” album, the twelveinch of Joy Division’s “Atmosphere” and some LSD. I walked around the Botanical Gardens, thought about Syd Barrett, and became gripped by this idea of “walking away.” (Wonder where that came from!)

By the end of the year, the group had dissolved, and I had retreated to my parent’s house in rural Northamptonshire. All that “walking away” stuff had come true, and in the middle of winter, to boot. I knew nobody in the area and had no money. Alone with my tape recorder and a nylon string guitar, I started to experiment with writing simple tunes. There was nothing else to do. I didn’t really know how to play guitar or write songs, but I kept ongoing. The results I sent to three or four pals, one of whom, Dave Barker, was in the process of setting up Glass Records.

He heard something he liked through all the tape hiss and invited me to do some “proper” recording. I

Things really started to click for me as a writer in about 1990 with Cult of the Basement. There’s an air of impenetrability about that record, which, I think, gives it some substance, some character. It’s mental, but not in an ironic or selfconscious way. It just is what it is.

asked the lead guitarist from the old band to help out.

That was Max Eider.

By August 1982, we found ourselves in a studio in Clapham Junction, South London, recording our first LP. We had, of course, no idea what we were doing.

How have you changed as a songwriter over the years?

So tempting just to put a one-word answer: enormously.

When I started writing tunes, it was a bit like a DJ making a record. I was just stealing the bits of favorite old records that I could actually play, stringing them together and then shouting mad shit over the top.

I never expected anyone but a few mates to hear it and largely refused to take anything seriously. Big dumb rave-ups in the style of the Velvets trying to play Memphis. That’s what I was after, at least.

A couple of the songs hint at what was really going on in my mind, the “walking away” thing. It’s there in Girls Who Keep Goldfish and in Partytime (a song which sadly even today seems to induce a collective irony bypass in the audience.) You won’t believe me, but it’s there in Love Kittens as well. The narrator in Grey Flannelette saws his leg off and appears to find it funny.

Even today, the occasional big dumb rave-up will emerge, but I like to think that, for the most part, my songs have become more serious, more responsible. That’s an odd word to use, perhaps, but I think that if you’re going to carry on making music for its own sake into middle age and beyond, then there is a certain obligation on you to try and make stuff that is worth having, stuff that will withstand more than one listening if there’s anybody still listening at all.

Nothing can replace the experience of performing in front of a live audience. You’ve done a few living room performances. Very Intimate, and they did a world of good for those watching. What effect did doing them have on you?

I’m really glad that people have been enjoying these living room shows. I have had the most heartwarming response from them. Doing them is a strange experience: in one respect, it’s very comfortable to sit on my usual chair and strum the guitar as though just practicing of an afternoon, but in another, it’s weird because the response from the audience is purely digital, of course, and I don’t personally get to see it during the “show,” so it’s very hard to know if what I’m doing is really adequate. There are moments where I feel quite deluded, but for the most part, I’m relaxed and just focused on playing nicely.

When the camera goes off, I find myself suddenly as shattered and emotional as if I’d just come hyperventilating off the stage after a fifteen-minute version of Racheland with a full electric band.

Honestly, I’m borderline hysterical for about ten minutes, and then I have a smoke and start putting the furniture back in order.

I didn’t really expect to make another record again.

I fully intend to do more.

Fate and Dave Barker took a hand, however, and only two years later, I found myself in a sort of garage rock band with Max, our old friend Owen Jones and, oddly, the bassist from Bauhaus. My listening widened,

You’ve done several collaborations over the years, including David J, Spacemen 3, The Blue Aeroplanes, and more. Which ones stand out the most, and what can you tell the readers about these experiences?

I recall the first time that I worked with David, playing flute on the song Justine on his LP Crocodile Tears & The Velvet Cosh. It was autumn, dark by the time I left my day job and caught a bus ten miles through the rain to Wellingborough and Beck Studios. Of course, I was both nervous and eager to impress. I remember how producer/engineer Derek Tompkins gently guided my rambling playing, introducing a motif around which the rest of the solo could hang. He was brilliant.

In the summer of, I think, 1986 David took it into his head to record a version of the old show tune The Party’s Over. We went to a local studio together with a plan that we should drink a lot of vodka and then I should play the glockenspiel. This we duly tried to do.

A few days later, David phoned me up to say that we had to try again. His reason? “Not drunk enough!”

We undertook not one but two more sessions before David decided that a suitable level of inebriation had been achieved and captured on magnetic tape.

I played flute on Spacemen 3’s album Recurring as well. I made a major mistake by turning up for the session unshaven. By the time that Sonic was finally satisfied with the take, the flute, and the stubble had rubbed my chin raw.

Of all your recorded work, which ones do you consider your best/favorite work?

It’s rather embarrassing: I’ve made so many records now that I have about five favourites. I really like Cult of the Basement and Condition Blue, both of which we recorded at Howard Turner’s lovely little Raven studio. I really like Waiting for the Love Bus and 2012’s Last of the Gentleman Adventurers, both of which were recorded with the wonderful Richard Formby at his studio in Leeds. The first one that I really liked was 1985’s Sex and Travel, which we recorded in five days with John Rivers at Woodbine in Leamington Spa. If you pushed me really hard to name just one favourite, I might well go for Condition Blue. But I might well be wrong.

What are you currently working on?

Would you believe it? I’m working on yet another album. The German label, Tapete, got in touch and arranged for me to record for them with a producer whom I have been badgering to work with me for about ten years. If it wasn’t for this pesky coronavirus, we’d probably already have it in the can by now. As it is, we’re waiting on the restrictions to lift before we can get down to work.

I have many fond memories of the Blue Aeroplanes.

There was a time at the end of the eighties when all of their musicians and all of ours were good pals.

Surely, though, my most comical recollection comes from a few years later when I was drafted in as an emergency guitarist for a one-off weekend in Lisbon: two nights at the same club. I practiced diligently and couldn’t wait for the first soundcheck to see how my parts would fit in with the band.

That first soundcheck was largely characterized by the rhythm section, plastered after some media event with free Jack Daniels, randomly bursting into Led Zeppelin’s Kashmir for a few bars and then falling over. This enraged their frontman to the point where he rather ill-advisedly launched a bodily assault upon the outraged drummer.

From this inauspicious start, things really started to career out of control. There was no smoke to be found in this rather up-market nightclub, so everybody just ended up getting horribly drunk. I watched, astonished, as the band burst asunder before me.

It finished up after the second show with scenes of betrayal, outrage, and deeply comical violence running deep into the night. As we climbed aboard the aeroplane home the next morning, I recall thinking: “I’ll bet this somehow ends up being my fault.”

But I knew it wasn’t.

Photo: Lito Vales

the black watch

That’s an impossible question for me to answer, Tim. You really would have to ask someone else. I think the songs on the first LP (St. Valentine) are as valid, qua songs, as any on this latest thing. I think we’ve grown as recording artists, sure. But songwriting’s something I’ve done pretty sedulously since I was eleven years old, so, um, dunno!

I can’t wait for the indie world to hear the new one— all thirty-seven of you.

Second Scene talks with John Andrew Fredrick about longevity, creativity, and the new black watch release, the white EP. You have Nineteen albums recorded. Your last album, ‘Fromthing Somethat,’ was voted album of the year (2020) by The Big Takeover. Where do you go next?

Are you feeling the pressure to top your latest work?

Well, Tim, we’ve only just almost finished tracking it--at least, I’m done with all my parts, and we’re entering the mixing stage--and I confess I’m quite nervous on account of the twentieth (we’re thinking of calling it Here and There) is incredibly ambitious, such a stretch and very much beyond anything we’ve done thus far.

Mostly on account of we have Emmy-award-winning (and The Sugarplastic head guy) string arranger Ben Eshbach writing parts for a small orchestra for it. So far, it sounds like a record that’s meant to make a very big statement--which, of course, could easily backfire. I often joke seriously (note the oxymoron) that every LP we try to make The White Album over in our own image--and, of course, fail. This time, we’ve unwittingly somehow tried to make Sgt. Pepper’s!

Both Fromthing Somethat and Brilliant Failures (the one that came out earlier in 2020) were named albums of the year, by the way. Obviously, we’re very proud of that and utterly humbled by it as well. As well as chuffed beyond. If we top what we’ve done, that’ll be cause for even more anxiety. Haha. Honestly now.

John, are you the sole songwriter? Do you collaborate with others?

I used to write a bit with J’Anna Jacoby when she was in the band for ten years or so. But mostly, I just encouraged her to write her own stuff and indeed, “Seven Rollercoasters” is my favorite TBW song!

Steven Schayer was credited with some songwriting credits, but that was mostly because I wanted him to have some royalties. He contributed one song on The End of When. And one for Led Zeppelin Five that he hated that we scrapped--because he hated it. I didn’t want to spend more of the budget on songs that someone who wrote them might hate. Steve had very exacting standards. The rest of us loved the other song he wrote: who knows why he rejected it. I wasn’t going to force the issue, however. Now you’ve asked, I don’t think I’m capable of collaborating with others. The stuff I write is very much manicured and neatly arranged well before we go in to record.

How have you grown as a songwriter since the beginning of the black watch? Also, do you feel like you lost anything as a songwriter over the same period?

What have been your influences over the years?

Naturally, The Beatles, as they are by far my favorite band. Many bands on Creation and Flying Nun and 4AD--anyone “in the know” should be able to spot that, which is fine. Early on, we really tried hard to mask the fact that we liked The Cure too much. I still like The Cure too much. And New Order. One criticwag called us “The California Cure”--hahaha. Good one, that. I started the band after seeing The Lucy Show play to ten people in Santa Barbara, and The Jazz Butcher was a serious influence as well. Surely I wore out the grooves on Fishcoteque and Big Planet,

Photo: Augusta Quirk

Photo: Steve Keros

You formed the black watch back in 1987, and you are the only original member remaining. How do you explain your longevity? What drives your creativity?

I just hear melodies. They just come along. And a poetic-lyrical phrase here and there. And I enjoy writing them down, finessing them, massaging them, as it were. It’s what I do--along with writing fiction and occasionally publishing a poem now and then. I keep meaning to stop and just concentrate on writing a couple more novels. I really do, especially when the word “prolific” is leveled at me like an accusation.

Sometimes, not always. I’m not particularly touchy; I don’t think. The amount of rejection I’ve subjected my fiction in particular to... I mean, heaps of it. It’s so hard, so ruthless. Even worse than the record biz. I reckon I keep going as a result of my obviously quixotic attempts to make records as good as The Beatles--my ever heroes--made. And who can do that? What cheek! No one will ever! Really, though, I just keep testing out, so to speak, what I can come up with. Having great taste in music (as I do, if I may say so myself), I try to make something every everloving time that someone with equally great taste will really enjoy. Not that I think about anyone but myself when I write and record; that would be selling-out, I think--to try to write something commercial or vogue or whatyou-will. I never say never, but we will never do that.

Never.

Scary Planet. Yet I spent a year or so a couple of years ago almost exclusively listening to classical, this station here in LA called KUSC. Lots of melodies come to me from listening to classical stuff; you know, suggestions of motifs and that. In that year, there were some times that I broke out Revolver again and Magical Mystery Tour. It sounds quite pretentious-even though it’s true--but I am greatly influenced by my addiction to reading people like T. S. Eliot, Gerard Manly Hopkins, Shelley, Sylvia Plath, Li-Young Lee, Ted Hughes, Wordsworth. I like quite a bit of stuff you’d never think of, hearing us, e.g., The Birthday Party, Captain Beefheart, Joni Mitchell, Clan of Xymox, Sly and the Family Stone.

Thirty-five years in the music business, what have been the high points and low points? How have these experiences changed you?

The high points have mostly had to do with moments of creating things with my bandmates. The low points all have had to do with a) underfunded (and sometimes dictatorial) labels; b) live shows and

touring. We’ve had some positively disastrous tours.

Just a shambles. But all bands have had those save the studio-only bands. One just has to laugh as one looks back at them. And cry as well. Laugh whilst crying. Laugh-crying, to coin a phrase. I would say that I haven’t changed much as a result--I’m still the ridiculously ambitious artist I was when I started. And if someone offered us a tour, well, despite my better judgment, I’d probably say, “Hey, let’s go!”

Tell us about your new release, the white EP. I wrote perhaps 32 songs over the past year. I bought an Epiphone 12 string electric (like my heroine Miki from Lush) and just wrote a mess of impressionistic songs, then had Ben Eshbach from The Sugarplastic write chamber orchestra arrangements for 6 of the ten we recorded with Scott Campbell. Then, as a reaction against that (ever our motif), I went in with Rob Campanella from The Brian Jonestown Massacre and did four songs very, very not-orchestral, very raw, and raging guitars with open tunings.

The purport of most of them, the four on The White EP, has to do with my sorrow over the state of the world. “Off You Go!” being the most staggeringly astonished at how the world’s gone: you know, with EVERYONE being forced, somehow, to be political. I’ve been apolitical for forever--no more!

I voted against Reagan--and that didn’t work, so I quit. I hate how identity politics have divided us. I hate most music--especially what comes out of my hometown, Los Angeles. Most of it’s a bunch of boy/ girl combos who would just as soon be actors. I have always held with Marlon Brando who said, “An actor is a guy--you ain’t talkin’ about him, he ain’t listening!”

Try living in LA sometime! It’s ridiculous. The song There and Here kind of imagines how callously people treat suicides. I’ve had a few friends commit it, and I really am with Wittgenstein, who said (I know this sounds pretentious): “Whereof we cannot speak, thereof we must not speak.” We’re all so alienated from each other. What a downer of a thought! I really am a very jolly/love to kid around with people and flatter them and make them feel good about themselves, but in the LA music community, I am known as the full curmudgeon. I don’t mind, though; it’s part of my charm, I reckon. Hahaha

johnandrewfredrick.com

Interview Tim Thomas

Photo: Chris Coulter

The London Psych group The Chemistry Set formed in 1987. They helped pioneer the late 1980’s UK neo-psychedelic boom. Even counting the legendary British DJ John Peel as a fan. The band split in the mid-’90s remaining silent until they reappeared in 2008.

The Chemistry Set has just released its latest single, “Paint Me A Dream.” Dave Maclean answers a few questions for the Second Scene.

The usual Chemistry Set chaos ensued, which saw the LP unreleased and Polydor refusing to release a third single because it was too weird!

What was the decision to reform the group?

I kept getting phone calls and emails from people saying, “why don’t you get a retrospective released and that it was about time that The Chemistry Set got some credit.” We had offers to release our unreleased “Sounds Like Painting” album from labels. So I took the master tapes into the studio, but they had almost disintegrated. That would have been that, but I contacted Paul, and both of us had ideas for new songs and thought, “why live in the past, let’s make some new music,” and that is the best thing we have ever done. We have now been together for 13 years, and most people that dig us now never knew us the first time around.

The group has had released three new EPs/ CDs: Alchemy # 101, This Day Will Never Happen Again, and Chemistry is Just Numbers. What can you tell us about these releases?

What were the influences on The Chemistry Set in the beginning?

In the beginning, it was Tomorrow, Kaleidoscope, Syd Barrett, Robyn Hitchcock, The Prunes, The Elevators, Love and Moby Grape The group took a long hiatus. Why? What did you get up to during this time?

In 1991, we played at the prestigious CMJ music festival in New York, where we had lots of label interest (Warner Bros, Sire), but nothing happened. We were a bit fed up after that The three of us continued into “The Set,” and we were signed by Polydor records. We released two singles and then entered the studio to record an LP with Roger Bechirian (who had worked with The Flaming Groovies, Dave Edmunds, Nick Lowe, The Undertones, The Jam, Squeeze, and Elvis Costello).

The A&R man wanted us to sound like Blur meets The Small Faces, but we were having none of that.

It’s actually 4 EP’s/LP’s plus about eight singles and compilation appearances (see attached discography). The first one, “Alchemy,” was in 2008, and it was the first time me and Paul had been in the studio for years and were like kids in a toy shop. All of the angst and pain from the past was gone, and we were so happy it was just the 2 of us. We used vintage gear like Farfisa’s, Mellotron’s, and Vintage Guitars but recorded them onto pro-tools, so a nice mix of old and new. From that time onwards we have produced all our own stuff. “Chemistry is Just Numbers” was an album of remixes, which was really cool. We put together a touring band that played festivals in Europe, and we blended psychedelia with big bass and beats. Really interesting, “The Endless More & More” was our last album, and we got the best reaction of our entire career. We got radio play on BBC Radio and 4-star reviews in magazines like Mojo, Q Magazine, Classic Rock, Record Collector, and Shindig and a lovely review in the English newspaper “The Sunday Times.” All of that as a pair of old gits! Proved we still had something vital to offer The Chemistry Set released their first album, a cassette of bedroom demos. What was the decision to do so?

We wanted to get that 1960’s lo-fi sound, and in the late ‘80s, there weren’t many bands doing that. The release certainly sounded out of place and time, and from that got a lot of interest from fanzines across the globe, which kick-started our career.

felt like a great choice for a cover. For the intro, the band crafted a Bee Gees-inspired fivepart Gregorian chant to achieve the desired ethereal vibe, while a bit of Red Krayola-style free-form-freak-out later in the song adds a new twist to Mark Fry’s obscure classic. The full glory of psychedelia was further augmented with a collection of interesting instruments, including a Persian setar, acoustic cigar box guitar, strangely tuned 12 string acoustic, vintage keyboards, various ethnic percussive instruments, and even a half-full whiskey bottle hit with a knife! Both songs are influenced by the immortal collective spirits of Arthur Lee and Love, Syd Barrett, Jimi Hendrix, Tomorrow, The Electric Prunes, and Ennio Morricone.

What does the group have planned for the future?

Tell us about the latest release, Paint Me A Dream/The Witch.

‘Paint Me A Dream’ is about the power of visions.

It begins lyrically, with a group of mystics who become hypnotized as they sing together while playing dulcimers and lyres. This, in turn, evolves into mystical visions and a request to the divine eye to “paint them a dream” (travel from the grey to the Technicolor). As the painted dream multiplies and embraces them further, they meet Orpheus, the lyre-playing Greek musician, poet, and prophet, traveling further in time and space to encounter translucent orbs, stratospheric emanations, and transcendental oscillations. Yes, it’s a trip.

We were meant to do some festivals last year, including one with The Bevis Frond, that got rain checked due to Covid. So be nice to do some festivals. The main concentration is the next album that we want to release by the end of the year.

Musically, the song employs layered multiple rhythm guitars to create a wall of sound, using the differing tones of a 1963 Fender Esquire with custom pick-ups (as Syd Barrett once wielded) and a Gretsch with TV Jones pick-ups. Riffs were put through vintage fuzz, tremolo, and ‘60s tape delays, offering different textures and dynamics.

After the first guitar solo, a bow of appreciation is given to the band HP Lovecraft, with harmonies in a style similar to a part of their live version of ‘The Drifter’ while also finishing with ‘The Drifter’ riff in a different key to the original.

Because it’s so similar to the style in which The Chemistry Set writes their own songs, ‘The Witch’

thechemistryset.bandcamp.com

THE PULL OF AUTUMN

The Second Scene talks with Daniel Darrow about The Pull Of Autumn and his plans to follow up the critically acclaimed release Small Colors and his passion for synthesizers.

Your latest release, Small Colors, is garnering great reviews. What do you have planned for a follow-up?

The Pull Of Autumn has been a project of trying to present a group of songs that fit into the ultimate oneness in the music. I approached the entire project as a way to bring together like-minded people. The project has been a great experience! As for what’s next, I’m working on an all-instrumental album IGORS DAY OFF. Bruce and I from Johannas House, James Rao from Orange Cake Mix, and Gary Bromley from Dif Juz. It’s pretty much a 360 from The Pull Of Autumn music. The new project is really rhythm-oriented with a lot of jazz influence and even eastern music at times.

There is also some very textured synth music, with the classical music influence being even stronger than before. In a way, at times, it reminds me of soundtrack music. I think music is at its very best when it unfolds slowly after repeated listening. That happens all the time for me with classical music. Not so much for rock music.

Let’s go back a few years. How did The Pull Of Autumn form?

Luke skyscraper James was in a great band in the last seventies called Fashion. They were signed to I.R.S. Records an arm of A&M records. They were discovered by Miles Copland, brother of The Police

drummer Stuart Copeland. My later partner and I saw them once in a stadium in Boston, warming up The Police and even better at the small legendary R.A.T. club in Boston. Their music was so electric and had no boundaries in experimental dub excursions that they would turn into great mind-bending post-punk music.

I ended up many years later in a band, Johannas House of Glamour. We were on a label Cest la Mort Records, that gained a reputation as amazing as 4AD. Rough Trade records funded our first album, Cargo our second, and our third was on Bruce MacLeod’s label R.B.M. That allowed us to perform in Europe and the chance to meet musicians I really loved. Fast forward some 30 years, or so I get a message from Luke saying I like your work. We began a friendship that quickly developed into sharing stems. As each album progressed, other friends had an interest in being included in the project. Apolonia from Sesurfer contacted me after hearing a song called Laurasong (a song about my wife’s passing) and sent me a beautiful track about someday meeting my wife again. She said I wrote this song for you. I remember how absolutely moved I was hearing it the first time.

A lot of the tracks came to me that way. A really magical and important experience was felt by each artist I collaborated with.

What’s the group dynamic as far as songwriting?

Getting the tracks together was a fun and challenging experience. A lot of the tracks came to me basically as ideas. Every tune had a strong foundation for me to build on. There is no question that a lot of the musicians on board had different methods of recording. Some on computers, some on lo-fi tape four-track. On some tunes with Luke, I’d create a soundscape, and he’d interpret it into the story he wanted to tell. On other tunes, I’d try to interpret the music as an open book, like a canvas. I tried very hard to blend sound in a way that fits each different track.

The track order was also very important to me. Trying to weave the tracks into the best order for the ear to experience.

Where do you pull from for inspiration when writing?

I find the best way to work is to go into the studio regardless of my creative flow. It’s hard to explain how the music comes. I’d say for me, and it’s as natural as the day-to-day living experience. This winter has been particularly dark and cold, and with COVID in the picture, the landscape can seem rather barren at times. Music and art have always been the driving factor for me personally. I listen to TONS of music.

Classical, jazz, ambient, and electronic. Other great artists can inform me on some level. Take the music of Scott Walker as an example. From sixties pop icon to creative classical post-rock and beyond. How could you not be inspired? I’m a synth geek as well. That continues to open doors.

Who are you currently listening to?

I listen to so much music in so many different genres, so I’ll try to go through some of my favorites. Scott Walker’s full catalog of music is a great starting point.

From his early sixties, music to his genius albums Tilt and Drift. His talent as a great classical arranger is really worth mentioning. His string arrangements on the drift brought strings done to a primal level. Bowie worshiped Scott Walker. It’s easy to see why. The period of 1991-1996 saw a movement in Europe of outsider post-rock bands. I feel a lot of this much sadly fell under the radar. Disco Inferno, Hood, Epic45, Bark Psychosis, Seefeel. All these bands merged a path forward in music. When Johannas House of Glamour played in the U.K., it was fantastic to meet these great musicians. A lot of these guys have played on my Pull of Autumn albums. A great honor to work with these artists. Moving over to a more acoustic sound Adrienne Lenker’s new album songs. She is an amazing artist and one of the best songwriters today. Vashti Bunyan, Jessica Pratt, Shanon Lay, Marisa Nadler all making fantastic acoustic-based music. Moving on to electronic music, I’d start with Tim Hecker and Ben Frost. There are so many different areas in electronic music of sound taken apart to glitch music that takes the smallest elements in sound. The merger of classical/electronic music is of special interest to me. The best electronic music and also classical music is currently coming out of Iceland and Norway. Anna Thorvaldsdottir, a Ph.D. in composition and Grammy nominations, is today’s most forward-thinking instrumental sound and design composer. I really like music that slowly opens up with repeated listening. This, to me, always indicates depth in the music. This happens a lot for me in classical and electronic music. Vasks strings quartets have a human influence on my electronic music/classical arrangements. Of course, early 4AD had a human impact on me. Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance, and This Mortal Coil of country had a huge impact.

I approached The Pull Of Autumn in a similar way.

Various artists from differing genres all playing music together. A lot of fun and a great example! Note: HUGE impact, not human.

Why are you a hard synth guy as opposed to virtual?

I’m a hard synth guy completely. Virtually there is a lot of great sound packages available at a decent price. I can see why people record this way. I’m lucky enough to use hard synths in the studio. I use a lot of effects pedal as well. The particle is a granular device that spits out a fragment of sound. Currently, my main setup contains several heavy-hitter digital synths.

The modal argon 8 is a wave sequencing synth that allows me to combine eight layers of waves. Studio Logic Sledge is an Italian-made synth ( with a German Waldorf engine ) that is a great keyboard. Waldorfs blo-feld string synth is also a key player in the studio. I use a 32 track Tascam to record, that gives me a lot of room to combine different tracks. My great friend and lifelong band member Bruce MacLeod has the final listen doing the final master. Bruce is a great friend and entire master at sound design, product, as well as a great artist.

Besides my Waldorfs, I use a Korg Wavestate. That keyboard is great for gorgeous pads—a Roland GIA I use for solo violin sections. I have a Korg Minilouge that I tend to use for its sequencer. For a dirty analog sound, I use a Behringer wasp module. A classic synth used by Fashion, Devo, and others. Behringer has, of course, corrected all the bugs, and it is a really great synth. Luke skyscraper James actually sent me the Behringer module last Christmas. I also have a sequential pro-1 analog module. I’m just now really getting into the module building asphalt of electronic music. When I’m in a creative mood in the studio, I’ve started to get a real feeling of what different synths will work to bring the sounds in my mind into a reality. I’m blessed in having the tools to create just about every mood in sound possible. There’s a real difference between staring at a computer screen or actually having the keyboard in front of you. Tweaking sound in the studio, to me, is really a hands-on experience.

When it all connects, it’s a really fantastic experience.

I was a guitarist only in Johannas House of Glamour.

After my partner passed, I had to find a way to create music alone. I’m glad that electronic music has given me a path forward as an artist.

facebook.com/ThePullOfAutumn

P

ieter Zandvliet is a Dutch artist, and if he is awake, he is probably drawing: he has a tattoo on his arm which reminds him constantly, “ Maybe I should draw.”

The tattoo obviously helps; his output is large.

A lot of his drawings are in b/w, and they often represent famous figures. But he works with color as well, he did a lot of murals, and shoe firm Mascolori has used his designs for shoes. Besides that, he is a musician and has been performing with the Boetlek Underground Collective. And he put out several books now of his own, and he has been illustrating work from other people. There is a documentary about him on the way, too (called Maybe I Should Draw). Second Scene asked him some questions.

Hey Pieter, what about the tattoo? How long have you had it? Did you really need it?

I have that tattoo since 2016. No, I don’t need it, maybe to remind me in a boring situation what I got to do, drawing. Two other tattoos on my arms are Dickey Mouse {Mickey with a penis head} and a cunt with legs, just because it can.

Your collection of drawings from famous people is massive. Are these all people who have influenced you, or do you just like their faces? Why do you draw them?

I love to draw faces on my way. I look once at a photo, and then I go for it. Famous or not, I just draw faces. You can check on my website [ pieterzandvlied.com] for who I forgot to draw.

How is the documentary coming along?

Two cineasts from Argentina, Flor Scarano and Cecilia Garizoain, made a docufilm about me. You can ask them why. It comes out this year.

Pieter Zandvliet

Originally from Ravenswood, West Virginia, Jeanne Adkins moved to Pittsburgh in 1997 to study at the Art Insitute.

Influences. Diane Arbus, David LaChapelle, and Art Wolfe.

“I received my first camera as a gift from my mom at age seven. I used a purple Vivitar with attachable flashbulbs to do candid shots of the family and family portraits.”

Her numerous work, includes the Pittsburgh City Paper, Popular Hot Rodding, MRR, weddings, actor’s portfolios, album inlays, and commercial photography for clients like GNC, Pittsburgh Brewing, Pizza Outlet, Giant Eagle.

JEANNE ADKINS

Instagram@jeanne.a_photography

NEW CANDYS

New Candys take a step forward as a group in its evolution and challenge their creative boundaries on the latest album Vyvyd.

Interview: Tim Thomas

Photo: Jancy Buffington

How has the New Candys been holding up under the pandemic and quarantine?

Since we couldn’t practice and see each other, we worked on everything related to the release of our new album.

With your new album Vyvyd just about to be released. How does this record compare to your previous records?

It’s definitely a step forward in our personal evolution, this time we shuffled the cards more than in the past, we wanted to introduce new electronic sounds, it felt natural to do so, after three records where the instruments we used were pretty much two guitars, bass, drums and vocals (plus a sitar sometimes). This time we rethink every frequency, for example, some bass lines are enhanced or substituted with a synth,

or we avoided a rhythm guitar and used an electronic drone instead. We used loops and drum machines too. We can already say that our next record will be an evolution of this one.

We don’t see each other going back to how we sounded in the first records.

How has the new lineup affected the songwriting process and overall sound of the group?

I’ve always been the one bringing vocal melodies and song ideas. Between late 2017 until mid-2018, the band lineup was changing often, and it wasn’t easy to practice new songs, so I’ve recorded some demos by myself. When Andrea and Alex finally joined Dario and me, we approached the band in the easiest way possible. At the time, we had our third record, “Bleeding Magenta,” to tour, so we had to play it similar to how it was recorded, that was the starting point, and it helped everybody find their

own space. Then when the time to work on new songs came, I brought my demos to the table, and we started to work on some new songs, too, jamming around them. That’s when each member’s personal musical sensibility and the sound was evident and started to influence the songwriting. We had a good time because there was excitement to play together and we were coming after great and happy tour experiences.

your heart/soul or whatever you wanna call the spirit of a person, with its dark and bright sides.

Our influences come from visual inputs, most of the time, cinema or surreal/experimental movies.

Sometimes it’s like we are composing their imaginary soundtracks.

I read that Vyvyd was recorded over a long period of time? Is this how the group usually works when it comes to recording? Or is it normal a quicker process?

Very important. The visual imagery helps us expand our message, and sometimes it’s a boomerang; along the writing process, what you create visually comes back to you and can influence the music too.

Our first three records were all recorded in a short defined period of time, but for ‘Vyvyd,’ it was different because, in the last three years, we toured a lot around. Every time we were coming back from a tour, we were working on new songs and then recording them. After our last tour in Southeast Europe (January 2020), we started to finalize the recording of the album. Then coronavirus happened, so we had to take another break and finish everything in June 2020.

Andrea (New Candys guitarist) runs a recording studio, and that helped a lot because we were able to record every time we needed it. Furthermore, having a small recording studio for us to use whenever we wanted allowed us to work more on the production compared to the previous records.

How important are the visual aspects of the group?

What influences the songwriting? Do the influences expand beyond music to literature, art, and cinema?

What can we expect from the New Candys in 2021?

Hopefully, the group will be able to hit the road very soon.

Describing the songwriting process is always a bit difficult because melodies come to you in a magic way most of the time, out of nowhere.

Probably the musical influences play a major role in the arrangement of a song, but the core melodies are more subtle, they come from the subconscious, they’re probably influenced by

We just hope to get some reality back! We have a European tour planned in December, fingers crossed. We’re living in the matrix, but we want to take the blue pill if it’ll ever be possible again.

Good vibes, good vibes! newcandys.com

inform what exactly got made or the sounds used. It was a really inspiring and informative experience.

Is the preference for all analog sounds, or do you sometimes work with digital instruments?

the same effect on the creator, but it definitely does, so in some ways, it was like, “wow, this is really heavy,” and there were these urges to water it down but that felt a disservice to ourselves. Then May 2020 happened. George Floyd and Minneapolis. We weren’t writing about these events, but we’ve always angled our music to make sure we are being aware of the climate and situations. I went out to protests, and Jeannie ran me for medical supplies.

HXXS

HXXS: Winning the West with Jeannie Colleene and Gavin Neves You have a new album out called How the West Was Won. How did that come about, and how is it different from Year of the Witch and MKDRONE? Initially it came about as a reaction to our former label situation. We got done with that tour for Year Of The Witch, and we were feeling so betrayed by the label experience.

Our trust felt betrayed, and we just felt like so much of us had been stolen and repurposed. We love Year Of The Witch, and we love what we did(we even have a version we recorded entirely live with the int ention to release it as we originally wanted to), but it was watered down from our initial vision.

We had to compromise a lot that didn’t feel fair to our listeners and to ourselves. I guess that’s the universal label experience, though. So yeah we ended that tour wanting to write more and already had a handful of songs and when we got home we were like “we’re just gonna write to write, and we’re not gonna stop. We’re not gonna show the label, so we don’t have to deal with intervention, and we’re gonna write on this experience.” Song after song came together. Then March 2020 hit, and the songs started to take on a whole other meaning. It was overwhelming. It was speaking to the moment in a different way and that just doubled down on us that we’re not going to compromise any of what we are writing and present it as is, no matter how harsh and difficult to swallow it may be. People seem to think that making something heavy and noisy doesn’t have

Interview: Dug Moore Photos: Annie Nelson

The music was being informed by direct experience from the year. MKDRONE was different as it was a concentrated effort with an initial concept and vision. Year Of The Witch was different because it had a distinct purpose and then was kind of melded with indie/commercial marketability to make the label money off a debut act. How The West Was Won was made in reaction to that and the events unfolding in real-time. Everything was just a reaction. Everything was a direct response. Undiluted, uncompromised and pushed to its absolute limit. We wanted to be as authentic and creative as possible for it without thinking about what would sell.

Bands like Big Black and many early Wax Trax Records music remind me of the spirit of what you’re doing. Were there any bands similar to these that were an influence?

It’s preference. We are very much a live band. Using instruments that are prone to mistakes or failure that can be used musically is our bag. We started making music at the height of the Laptops’ popularity in music and just had an immediate rebellion and aversion to making music that way. Plus, there was the practicality of like sure one piece of equipment could fail, but we could still perform. If anything happened to a laptop, it felt like we would be screwed. It also lent itself into the spirit of making something live where anything was possible. And screwing up/making a mistake is musical. It just fit our spirit more. On making our 3rd LP tho there are certain things we are coming around on. Thanks to Best Coast’s Bob Bruno, we now know that you can sync and control EZdrummer in logic with a drum machine. Still kind of apprehensive about it, but it has made for some very interesting experiments. When it comes to digital, we usually just stick to samplers—hardware samplers, but samplers nonetheless.

You are based in Portland, but after the lockdown subsidies, will you live in the van and touring again? Are there any plans in the works?

We are actually based in Kansas City, MO, now. This confusion happens a lot, though. We used to live in Portland but had to leave as it got way too expensive for us to be there and focus on music at the same time. Yes, after lockdown subsides and it’s safe to go out and play shows, we will most definitely be hitting the road, both cuz we’re broke as hell and miss it wholeheartedly. The biggest bummer with How The West Was Won was not being able to play any of it in a live setting/to a crowd. We have several projects planned this year, including our 3rd full-length effort that is very much a live record among other projects. How The West Was Won will also be seeing a vinyl release and hopefully in time for shows to happen again.

Their new album “CHANNELER” will be released in July 2021

That’s a huge compliment. We’ve always been influenced

by Wax Trax artists and everything going on around then, The Jesus Lizard, Sonic Youth (Kim Gordon mainly), The Birthday Party, Swans. Also, Contemporaries and more recent acts like Liars, The Knife, and a lot of Three.

One.G artists. The Blood Brothers, Holy Molar, Some Girls, etc. Our energy and focus have always been on the live environment and what we bring to that, and all of these artists have impacted what that means for us.

I heard that Year of the Witch was written in your van. How did this impact the creative process for you?

Yeah! We were constantly on tour and just cutting our teeth as a band. Touring is such an inspiring experience, and we usually walked away from touring, NEEDING to write. So the idea was to just write and record while on the road and let the experience inform it. It really impacted the process in a very positive way because it was like, “we can do anything, we can be anywhere and make something if we want to,” conditions permitting. And usually, whatever was the current setting, albeit a parking lot or a laundromat, etc., would

wearehxxs.bandcamp.com

STONY SUGARSKULL The Berlin-based singer-songwriter Stony Sugarskull transcends borders with varied styles that included Punk, Psych, and Krautrock, including healing sound frequencies within the music. With a newly released single, “Veronica,” and a full-length album PRiNCESS set for release this year, Stony Sugarskull has a busy year ahead.

Interview: Tim Thomas

Your latest single, Veronica, what can you tell us about the inspiration behind writing and recording the song?

I wrote the song on the day my grandma Veronica died. The lyrics tell about the feelings and the perceptions I had. I went for a walk to a nearby chapel in the countryside on 31 December, and her face appeared smiling, in pastel colors in front of me. It was an exceptional day because even though it was high wintertime, the sun was shining very bright. I’m celebrating in this song my beautiful, lovely relationship with Veronica, my grandma. However, the song also has a broader meaning. Michele Brigante Senseverino described it very poignantly: “Veronica,” the last song of that record, full of passions that bite you in the throat, which is “Lioness,” is a wide-open window on the intimate

Photos: Martyn Goodacre

courtyard of our memories, on those images, those people, those events that manage to touch the deepest chords of our soul. [...] Stony Sugarskull, with her vocal harmonies, with the reflective textures of this song, allows us to escape from everyday life, to find ourselves in another place and time, New York, Berlin or elsewhere, it doesn’t matter - wherever there is a story to tell, a treasure to keep, a person to embrace again.” (Paranoid Park Blog Italy). Veronica was then recorded in Berlin at Impression Recordings, where I’ve embedded the song under certain healing frequencies for the listener. We’ve just released the music video for it by Gil de Ray with footage from me touring/ traveling the US, UK, and my home in Berlin.

Where did the journey begin for you? What set you on this path to becoming a songwriter and performer?

I started playing music when I was little with instruments such as the accordion, the zither, or the guitar. I wanted to study music later on, but as my main instrument was the zither and not the piano, I couldn’t enroll. I picked up making music years later again after I had finished my Ph.D. thesis. Regarding the path to becoming a songwriter and performer, I never really planned this journey. Certain external aspects/influences turned me into a songwriter/performer. Last but not least, my road trips in the South of the US, my accident on a German autobahn, and most importantly, my 5-year long studies on sound

science/frequencies within the scope of my Ph.D. You released your debut album LiONESS in 2020 and now with a new album PRiNCESS in 2021.

What can we expect from you and this new album?

Princess is planned as a sequel to Lioness, which I see as a collection of beautiful moments in the middle of the pandemic tragedy or change of events. In Lioness, my intention was to mirror musically the breakdown of our system and a synthesis between ecology/back-to-nature trend and the technological advances. Apart from that, it will be embedded in certain sound frequencies. I’m aiming at a mix of styles (with the intention to find something new) and rather unusual instruments, e.g., the accordion or the zither will gain prominence. Furthermore, I’m intending to collaborate with more local Berlin musicians than before. Franz Bargmann, who also plays with Michael Rother from Neu! and ex-Camera, is not only an amazing, inspirational guitarist but also a beautiful and honest human being. I’m very blessed we’ve met and been

playing together for a while now. There is more to read on the new album here in the Go-Fund-Me project Princess ( https://www.gofundme.com/f/ stonysugarskull-princess), and we will keep you regularly updated on the creative production process on our social media channels.

What has influenced you throughout your life, not just as a musician but as a person?

In a nutshell: philosophical theories on fractals, ecology, nature, sound science. Hardships (or life lessons). God. People I’ve met, my travels, my upbringing in the countryside, my beautiful parents, ex-boyfriends (lol). Truth.

Thank you so much, Tim, for sending these questions. I appreciate a lot for having me.

Sending love and good vibes.

stonysugarskull.com

Fernando Ruibal “I am Galician, from a small town called Pontevedra. It can be said that I am from the rain.“

“Everything.

Absolutely everything that enters my eyes is likely to influence me.”

Philip Parfitt on Fernando Ruibal When did you first meet Fernando Ruibal?

It was about ten years ago, if I remember well. He sent me a portrait he’d made of me, and I was knocked out by it.

He’s a very talented artist What attracted you to his work?

We’ll his style is pure, classic, and modern all at the same time. I thought that he has his own thing going on, and it really appeals to me. If my home were big enough, I’d have plenty of his work plastered all over the house. In fact, I might have him paint Murals in his style How does Fernando Ruibal’s Artwork compliment your Mental Home Recordings?

That’s a little more difficult to answer. Over the years we’ve known each other, we exchanged a fair bit. Then one day, I just thought about a concept for the cover, and while I was working on the recording, I thought I’d ask Fernando if he’d like to do something. It grew from there, really, and we shared a lot of common ground in music and poetry, film, literature, etc. I felt him very easy and agreeable to work with, so it was a natural extension of his work. I wanted to make something that incorporated a lot of material, memories, influences that appear in the texts and music on the album, so we talked a lot about that. There’s a lot of references in the Artwork that come from my world, but the style is most definitely him, and that was very important he does it in his way. I mean, that was the reason for asking him in the first place. He’s a great artist, as I said earlier, but I had a vision of what I was trying to achieve with the look of it, and he was very happy to work with that. It was to all intents a kind of collaboration, except he did all the work.

Photo: Amy Pittsburgh

The Redlines

I learned that meth heads can not be trusted.

I learned that my early 20s were better spent fucking off than going to school.

I learned that I had a lot to learn.

Photo: Noah Seese

The Redlines hail from North of Pittsburgh, led by songwriter Brian Seese. The group channels personal and past experiences to create their own brand of classic rock & roll.

Brian, what did you learn from your “short but impressionable stint in Las Vegas?”

I learned that working in a music store was as cool as I thought it’d be.

I learned that working in a music store during the graveyard shift on the famous Las Vegas Strip could also be dangerous.

I learned that honesty is best.

I learned that it is better to tell a girl you’re not interested rather than sleep with her and then avoid her.

I learned that you could take one dollar and turn it into a quarter and a steamroller.

I learned that what cost me $40 in Pittsburgh only cost me $25 in Vegas I learned that love triangles could get complicated.

I learned that some people feel they are stuck but are just talking themselves into being stuck.

I learned that 99cent breakfast after midnight is amazing.

I learned that I could write decent songs.

I learned that 99cent margaritas are also amazing.

I learned that I could also sing them.

I learned that cliff diving is great fun.

I learned that girls could make you do anything.

I learned that it’s easy to be deceived.

I learned that some people could be incredible hypocrites.

I learned that if you are in line to see a band with your underage friends and the show turns to over 21, don’t get out of line because the singer might OD on heroin one year later.

What has influenced your songwriting? And how has it progressed over the years?

It’s not just music that influences songwriting, though that’s a huge part of it. Life, in general, is the biggest influence, relationships, school, work, religion, insecurity, something stupid but fun, gotta remember to not be so serious all the time. Finding a picture in a drawer can be an influence; stepping out into the first 60 degree days after winter can be an influence, an imaginary bar fight can be an influence.

Influence and inspiration can come from anywhere. You just have to know how to identify it and word it into something that works for you.

We are still learning that.

The Redlines is formed around strong songwriting.

What is the songwriting process? Is it a group effort or individual?

It varies from song to song, but usually, Brian or Jason brings either a riff or a basic song structure to practice, and then the whole group plays around with it until it starts forming into something cohesive. For example, Jason played the riff for “Down to the River” at practice one day.

Tony and Mark started jamming on it to get the feel, and by the end of the night, there was enough there that Brian had some lyrics by the next practice. It gets molded over the next few practices until we feel like we really have something solid.

Tell us about your recording output. (Two albums, two Eps, and seven singles.)

We’ve always felt strongly about making sure that we had high-quality recordings available, whether for sale, for promotion, or just for posterity. Most of our early stuff was recorded at Ampreon Recorder in Youngstown, OH, by Pete Drivere. Most recently, we’ve recorded a little more locally with Jake Hanner (from the band Donora) at his home studio just down the road from us in Gibsonia, PA. We’ve experimented a lot with the packaging, formats, and distribution as the landscape for recorded music has changed drastically in the decade since we’ve started playing together. We started in 2014 with

a 10-song full-length album on CD and then followed that year or so later with a new EP that was either 5-songs digitally or 4-song as a free CD at our shows. We eventually combined that EP with five new songs to create our latest full-length, “Bones Under the Morning Sun,” released in January 2021. In between, we released the “Paradise Vegas, Vol. 1” EP in 2019 on CD and 10” Vinyl in order to break into the vinyl market. To continue the vinyl trend, we released “Belly Full of Hurt” as a 7” single backed by a cover of Lake of Fire by The Meat Puppets. That came out right when the Covid restrictions and lockdown happened, so we decided to try to release a new single every month in 2020 in order to stay visible with our fans when we weren’t able to play shows. We started releasing singles from the Bones album as well as a few cover songs recorded in our own home studio. The constant in this has been releasing everything digitally on all streaming platforms and just making sure our music is as accessible as possible. Some of our distribution and promotional efforts have worked, and some haven’t, but we’ve been fortunate to be in a position to try new things to keep pace with the changing trends.

What can we expect from The Redlines in 2021?

Covid and the restrictions that come with it are the wildcards, but we’re looking to finalize with some of the regional outdoor music festivals this summer as well as some indoor shows in the fall (fingers crossed). We’ll also be making our way beyond the Pittsburgh region more and focus on touring to whatever extent we can. In between shows, we’re already in preproduction of a new four-song EP with plans to shop it around to labels and producers. We’ve been extremely fortunate that during this pandemic, we’ve been able to thrive as a band, so we’re hoping to hit the ground running as we all come out of this on the other side. www.theredlines.us

H.P. Lovecraft: Dark Adventure Radio Theatre Interview: Pytr Baum Most people here will think of the band more than the writer when they hear H. P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft (1890-1937) was an American writer of horror and fantasy/SF stories. He invented Cosmic Horror. If you came across references, in books or movies, to Miskatonic University, Arkham, Cthulhu, or Necronomicon, you are in Lovecraft territory.

He died relatively unknown; he published mainly in pulp magazines, but his popularity grew massively in the last half century. Many writers have elaborated on his “Mythos,” and Lovecraftian themes and names show up in movies, comics, and TV productions. There even is an H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society.

This Historical Society, HPLHS, has issued many books about Lovecraft. They made some film adaptations, put out collections of Lovecraft inspired short films, and produced a series of Lovecraft adaptations in Old Time Radio style Dark Adventure Radio Theatre series. It is this series of audio dramas that is the cream of the crop in Lovecraftiana. It is faithful and respectful to the source material, presenting it in a unique, intelligent, and highly entertaining fashion.

Some of the episodes even surpass the original stories.

Second Scene’s Pytr Baum is a big fan, and he asked some questions about DART to HPLHS founder Sean Branney.

The DART series is amazing. How did that evolve? Who came up with the brilliant idea of rewriting Lovecraft in OTR style?

SB: Shortly after we completed work on our silent film adaptation of The Call of Cthulhu, we began work on our first Dark Adventure episode. When we made The Call of Cthulhu, we had no idea whether fans would take to this retro approach to such beloved material. It turned out that they did respond favorably to it. We found with a silent film that in removing practical sound (i.e., voices, sound effects), it engaged a little more of the viewer’s imagination than a traditional film might. One of the underlying ideas with The Call of Cthulhu was to imagine what might have happened if, instead of being an obscure Rhode Island writer, the

Lovecraft of 1926 had been a famous writer. Would Hollywood producers have come knocking on his door begging him to adapt his works for the cinema? So with the movie done, we continued to play with the idea. What might it have been like if HPL’s works had been broadcast in the style of the early radio dramas? And would a radio drama work similarly to engage viewers’ imaginations by providing them with audio but making them picture the story in their heads. There was only one way to know for sure.

Fortunately, it turns out that the approach seems to work quite well. We’re currently in pre-production on the 25th and 26th episodes of Dark Adventure Radio Theatre.

The series subtly addresses some difficult topics that make Lovecraft problematic as a writer for many: racism in The White Tree and sexism in Masks of Nyarlathotep, and general xenophobia in several episodes. It must be challenging to deal with such heavy topics in such a lighthearted way. Do you guys discuss these things thoroughly, or is it as “en passant” as it seems?

SB: Our goal with the series has always been to keep the elements which we think made the stories great in the first place and then to improve them where we can. We didn’t simply want to ignore the racism and sexism that appears in many of the stories - so we decided to tackle it headon. In a story like Herbert West, we actually increased the racism. In letting characters complain about lots of ethnic groups, we were able to use humor to point out how absurd the prevalent racism of the day seems through a modern lens. In many of the other stories, it requires a lighter touch to acknowledge these views which were present in HPL’s works but find a way to make them suitable for a modern audience. With The White Tree, we tried to go one step further and write an original story in a Lovecraftian vein but to incorporate characters and themes which HPL himself would have never used.

Another amazing feature of DART is that it incorporates several elements foreign to Lovecraft: there is romance and adventure and action and comedy in the episodes, usually lacking in the original stories. But it works very well. Are the people who write the material professional radio writers?

It is evident that the voice actors and musicians are all professionals, so it would not surprise me if the writers are all pros as well. What other work do they do?

SB: Are you kidding? Of course, the writers are pros! I laugh as all of the episodes have been written by my colleague Andrew Leman and me. We both have extensive experience as writers and as performers. We’ve worked on all kinds of projects in the entertainment business.

Fortunately, as the HPLHS has grown and become more successful, we’ve been able to focus on work for HPLHS projects only these days. But you’re right that balancing adventure, action, and comedy is a tricky blend. There have been some Lovecraft adaptations by other folks that find their humor in making fun of the source material and pushing it to ridiculous, comedic levels. We generally try and keep our humor small, subtle, and inside the world of the story.

Lovecraft wrote horror stories, but the most terrifying thing in the DART series is the commercials. Was it intentional to make them scarier than the stories themselves?

SB: We do have a lot of fun with the advertisements.

Sadly, in the early days of mass-market advertising, there were a great many products advertised which, if used properly, would kill you. So we began with our own brand of cigarettes (Fleurs de Lys) and promoted their healthful qualities in our early ads. We’ve moved on to include many other products from the era which are either patently dangerous, based on dubious science, or are just plain silly. You’d be amazed how much of our ad copy is lifted verbatim from old advertising.

The DART series has many episodes. Most based on Lovecraft stories, some based on E. A. Poe, there are some original stories by other people, and some episodes are based on games, right? What other episodes can we expect

in the near future? Are you going to do more stories by other horror writers? I would be looking forward to a DART episode based on WHH’s House on the Borderland or Arthur Machen’s The Great God Pan. Can you say anything about future plans?

SB: So far, we’ve adapted a large number of HPL stories, one Poe tale, two adventures from the Call of Cthulhu® role-playing game, and one original tale. We have used up most of the major Lovecraft stories at this point, so we are looking at other sources. We have a pretty interesting slate of stories currently in pre-production. We haven’t yet announced them, but I can tell you that this year listeners will likely hear a pretty traditional DART adaptation of a story they may know, and they’ll hear something entirely new.

At the moment, we basically have four wells to draw from: Lovecraft stories that we haven’t yet adapted, stories by other authors in the public domain, adaptations of gaming properties (like Masks of Nyarlathotep), and original tales.

I anticipate we’ll keep mixing it up, but those are our most likely sources.

Can you tell us about future plan?

SB: We have a treatment for an early Hollywood sort of “noir” story that might have a whiff of Chandler to it and a desert island story that might remind some of Stevenson. We also have a Legrasse story that’s a companion to The White Tree. We have some adaptations of some of our early LARP games. There’s been a lot of enthusiasm for us to do future adaptations of Chaosium’s campaigns too. Right now, we have about a dozen possible shows on our list, but we have to get through producing this year’s stuff first. We’ve got more than 400 pages of scripts written up.

Thanks for the interview and good luck. I am looking forward to hearing more DART. The Dark Adventure Radio Theatre series is available through the H. P. Lovecraft Historical Society. DART is available as a download mp3 or as CDs with special props. More info at www.hplhs.org

StompBox Holiday

GEZA X Legendary producer/ songwriter Geza X talks about his new label, StompBox Holiday, Sorry It’s Over, and a new Rodney on the ROCK album.

Interview & Photos: Dug Moore

Second Scene heard that you have a new record label going and that you’ve been busy with it.

I got a label started called Geza X Records after trying a number of times over the years. We’ve signed about ten acts right now, but the most recent one is a band called StompBox Holiday. They’re just a really delicious sounding Americana act of Spencer Thornton and Vanilla Neulan and some backing musicians. I’ve known Vanilla for a long time, and that’s how I first heard the music. I met Spencer, who is the lead singer-songwriter, and my gosh, they just have a terrific thing going. It’s Americana in the semitraditional kind of way, but their sound is just all modern, like an alternative-rock modern kind of influence. They’ve taken the Americana genre and given it a fantastic plot twist.

There have been several others, and our main act right now that is doing really well is called Sorry It’s Over, and they’ve done about 200,000 streams on Spotify. We are taking them to commercial alternative radio as well as college radio stations, and we’re getting a great response from them. So they are on the front lines, and we have eight other acts we are developing. Robbie Quine is another act, and he’s popular with the Rodney on the ROCK show and is doing really well, so I am really excited about that too.

Is this all digital?

Mostly digital, but in some cases, we are going to do collectible vinyl. I have a vinyl company I work with called No Matrix Records, and they do a lot of the classic reissues of mostly punk rock stuff from the seventies. Now we’ve decided to do a new Rodney on the ROCK album. After 25 or 30 years, we are finally doing a third album, and we’re gonna put that out on vinyl, and we are aiming to have it out in September or October.

How did the idea come about to do another Rodney on the ROCK record, Volume 4, after all these years?

Well, of course, Rodney Bingenheimer is legendary and had a famous show in Los Angeles for ages. It was the party show; all the punkers would listen to it on Saturday night when it was party time. But he’s doing something similar on SiriusXM now, and God bless him; he’s still playing indie and garage bands, and a lot of young bands too. The Linda Lindas get a lot of play. They are an all-girl band, teenagers, and they are brilliant. They’re a good example of the stuff Rodney is playing. There is another band called BeeBe Gallini, stuff like that. It’s all indie, DIY produced from all over the US, but there are some international bands too. It’s all indie, self-produced music, just like he’s always done. Posh Boy Records did the first two Rodney compilations, and they are a very well-known indie label, and they have a lot of classic stuff in their catalog. Posh Boy tends to put out a lot of material that no one knows much about. The label has one foot in classical music where they put out newer classical artists and the other foot in European pop where he does a lot of digital releases from Italy and France and so on. But Posh Boy’s best-known work is the catalog of classic punk rock, most of which Robbie Fields produced, and some of which I produced. Posh Boy tapped me on the shoulder and suggested I put together a Rodney on the ROCK Volume 4.

Does that get complicated with all the different bands?

Oh, for sure. It is a real challenge to do a compilation like this because there are so many people involved and opinions and everything. So I talked to Rodney, and he was dead set against a new record because he thought it was gonna be a lot of trouble. At first, we were just gonna raid Posh Boy’s catalog, and you would have just heard songs he played on the radio back in the day. But Rodney decided to give the new bands on his show a chance because a lot of them were really cool. So I started getting more familiar with his new show, and quite honestly, his show is just as good as ever. Rodney is a master DJ; he has the best taste in garage rock. We would compare wish lists for the album, and we’ve got it down to 20 songs, and I’m about to contact the bands and narrow it down a bit, but we’re well on the way to completing it now.

I heard that you have a music documentary in the works, and I know from personal experience how it can be off and on at times. Can you give us the name of the documentary and tell us what it is about? When do you expect to complete it?

It’s called Inside Punk and will be released by an indie distributor called Reality Entertainment that is owned by an old friend of mine that started a distribution company.

He finished one series about heavy metal called Inside Metal, and he wanted to do one on Punk, so he asked me to do it. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to put it together because, for one thing, some of the punks are very recalcitrant about interviews. Luckily I chose Don Bolles (Germs, 45 Grave, Celebrity Skin) as my co-host, and between us, we have a good reputation on the street with the punk bands. Most everyone agreed to speak with us.

We eventually did about 40 really good interviews. Still, they are really long because we wanted to also have an archive of people’s stories that would go beyond the documentary for posterity. We have a ton of stories, old punk rock yarns that we are weaving into a movie. It has taken a long time, but we are at the point now where we are narrowing it down and have an outline. I can’t give a real estimated time of completion, but I’d love to have it done by the end of 2021. But there is so much information from these four-hour interviews. The transcripts can be as thick as a book. Having said that, it is coming along, and there are a ton of anecdotes from the early days of LA punk that will blow people’s minds, and it’s told from the point of view of people that lived it. People are going to be in for a tasty treat, and I hope it is on the film festival circuit by next year.

gezax.com

Alpine Decline

Interview: Tim Thomas

Photos: Shannon Lintner

Alpine Decline left the States in 2010 to explore the Chinese underground music scene. Returning in 2016. This guitar and drums duo of Jonathon and Pauline creates vibrant psych, shoegaze, and noise rock. Here is what they had to say.

towards there.

JZ: Incredibly knowledgeable and super talented musicians, but because of the way all the music from the west just suddenly became available [to the curious] with the internet showing up in the early 2000s, they are totally un-beholden to our kind of dogmatic view of the history and evolution of music.

What did you discover in China as far as music, and what influence did it have on the group’s writing and direction?

PZ: And everything was always changing so fast! D22 was gone after our first year, and then we basically lived at the new club the owners opened for experimental music, which was called XP—

JZ: We didn’t really think there would be a music scene there, and definitely no interest in a couple of foreigners playing music. We moved to the very eastern outskirts of Beijing, and frankly, it was every bit the clash of construction and destruction we expected. I think you can hear us embrace the chaos on the albums we made during those years - Night of the Long Knives, Go Big Shadow City, INK, and particularly Life’s a Gasp.

JZ: —and then in a year that was gone! [laughs] PZ: But yeah, just like everything in China: a day is a year. Things change so fast. In the years we lived there, incredible scenes started popping up in cities other than Beijing, which was kind of new.

JZ: It’s even changed quite a bit in the few years since we left— PZ: —even just in the past year since COVID!

PZ: But we were totally wrong about the music scene. It’s incredible! We fell in with the bands gathering around the The group returned to Los Angeles in 2016. Why did you decide to Zoomin’ Nights shows at the [now legendary club] D22 and return? became very close friends with Yang Haisong, who is kind of the godfather of independent rock in China, and started sharing a JZ: It was really a rising crescendo of chaos in our lives! [laughs] But practice space with his band PK14— seriously, it kind of was! Our benefactor was taken down in a CCP anti-corruption campaign, and we lost our visas and place to live.

JZ: —literally just an unfinished room in an underground parking PZ: We were literally about to go on tour for Life’s a Gasp, so our garage— record label there let us become ‘employees’ to get new visas, but it was seriously problematic. Our son lost access to Chinese schools, PZ: —and yeah, we were just kind of blown away by this very and we couldn’t afford to send him to an international school. small group of people who had become passionate about music, which isn’t something the society is really geared

JZ: So we basically moved out of our apartment and into the tour bus, and then we were on tour for about six weeks, which itself was kind of a rising crescendo of chaos. [more laughs] Then we got on the plane, and suddenly we were back in warm green California, breathing clean air and staring at the blue sky.

What did you bring back with you as far as experiences?

PZ: It was just completely life-changing. On the surface level, we had so many incredible adventures and became friends with some of the most wonderful people we’ve ever met.

JZ: Yeah, it really fucked us up! [laughs] We came back feeling like star travelers stuck on a primitive planet, with all of our adaptations and hardware totally useless here, weighed down by the local gravity, caught up in the local warfare.

What influence do you pull from when songwriting? Music, cinema, literature?

JZ: When I was in my 20s, I didn’t really have any clue about developing my own personal writing process, so I dredged a lot from literature. But when Pauline and I started Alpine Decline, we were super conscious of like, if we’re going to keep making music [after ten years playing in bands together], it needs to mean something more. We talked about it all the time. We took like nine

months totally away from playing music and literally hid up in the Sierra Nevada mountains. And when we came back, we had kind of sussed out a method of taking our personal experiences, siphoning out the core elements, and then reconstructing it into something a bit more fantastic and a bit more universal. Which drove us to seek out more meaningful personal experiences, which I guess eventually drove us to the east fifth ring of Beijing.

PZ: Now we can just enjoy reading and listening to music or watching movies without worrying about it seeping into our thing.

SS: What’s next for Alpine Decline?

JZ: We just released our 10th album in 10 years, For the Betterment of Well People, and can’t wait to play these songs live in the impending post-COVID world with the six-piece band we built up for the recording. Hopefully, lots of shows here in the US and a tour in China, and maybe something just for fun in the UK. And then make our next Alpine Decline album, of course!

PZ: For fun, while in quarantine, we made up an imaginary band called Today’s Kids and programmed an entire album on the Waldorf Blofeld synth called Where’s Waldorf? We’ve released a couple of modular synth albums in the past [INK, Action Moves Away from the Center], but this stuff is super different — basically fucked up pop. It’d be fun to get that out there.

alpinedecline.com

NEOSTEM - GERMINATION

In this ridiculous age of never-ending selfies and eternal adolescence, certain men rise to answer the call. They cut out the wannabe bullshit and keep it right the fuck on. Neostem is walking this walk--and they are walking it hard. Their latest offering, “Germination, “is a sludge punk joyride around the shadiest dive bars in all of Pittsburgh ... places where you don’t eat the food and NEVER leave your drink unattended. The album starts with the raunchy anthemic gut-punch, “Mudhole, “ which is a less than flattering commentary of singer Ryan Unrue’s hometown of Munhall... one listen, and this song has its hooks in ya.. an instant scuzz classic....try not to sing along to his groaning croaks about that godforsaken river rat wasteland. Next, they put the crosshairs firmly on the dirtbags with “First String Scumbag “...the ever-present fuzz and distortion lending itself to the tale --and the bill for the bullet gleefully sent to the family ...Next up is the playful “Mirthless “... fun little jaywalking rawk ditty... “Porcelain Skin “kicks things into high gear with the band firing on all cylinders...another goddamned classic.... try not to sing along... the rhythm section of Matt Sedlak -bass- and Rob Marsili -drums- are in top form to the last raw note. Things get a bit whimsical with “Scabby Child, “and trust me, that is a good thang... “Rinse and Repeat “throws a little pop-punk at ya, albeit with tortured growls dropped in-- cuz that’s the way these boys roll. “Creep of the week “slaps the taste out yo mouth ...and by the end, you feel burned. “A Moment’s Notice “starts out fun and groovy, then Beelzebub shows up wanting your soul... and knowing Neostem, they probably signed on the dotted line for a case of Miller. “Shady Lame “is a doom rocker dedicated to all the trash that should have been taken out but instead was let in. The album ends with manic “Syndrama K “furious guitar and bass crunching over the desperate pounding of the skins .... fade to black.....So do yourself a favor, chill your favorite adult beverage. Draw the curtains and dive into their dispirited world. It’s gonna get dark, but the best things happen when no one is looking.

You’re Welcome. Sean Murphy

PHONE CALL WITH A FRIEND

F

MATT SPAHR

ishbone is probably one of the greatest bands in U.S. history. They’ve been together since 1979 and are pioneers in combining punk, ska, and reggae as well as other genres, giving them a unique style of energy and fun with a truly eclectic vibe.

This pandemic has been long, sometimes hard, and boring, so it was great to chat with my pal, Walter Kibby II, aka Dirty Walt, about music and life in general.

Walt helps bring the funk to Fishbone with his vocals and, perhaps, more importantly, a world-class trumpet player. He started singing and playing trumpet as a child sitting with his grandmother and father as two of his biggest influences.

Going to church in Columbus, Ohio, he was surrounded by the gospel music circuit that his grandmother was a part of.

His father, who was in the Army, had a bugle that he used to teach him how to play ‘Taps.’ Though it isn’t the bugle his father played, he does have one on display in his home.

It was nice to reminisce about his childhood as well as things like the pandemic. At the time of our conversation, half the band was vaccinated, and the others were in the process.

We talked about bookings starting and gigs coming back

and that everyone is ready to get out there and play again.

Another thing some fans may not know about Dirty Walt is his love of roller skating, something else he’s been doing since he was a kid in Ohio. Living in L.A. for several years, the hobby has never left, and he could be found spinning around World on Wheels as wells through various L.A. neighborhoods. World on Wheels was a well-known skating rink in the 80s. It had closed down in 2013, but with the help of Nipsey Hussle, it reopened in 2017. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic with an uncertain future, it has, however, been closed again.

Our conversation continued as we talked about families, music, and just life in general. Before we said our goodbyes, I had to know what his favorite Fishbone record is. His reply, “In my world, there is no such thing as a favorite album. But, if a song brings me back a treasure trove of dope, then that’s my favorite!” Karla Doolittle

econd Scene caught up with Zach of Wavy Trees and got the straight story on their new recordings.

I saw you play at Harvard & Stone and Jimmy Bitter’s The Factory in DTLA. Y’all were on fire!

Were those the last live shows you played preCovid? Yeah, I remember when we were playing, people were talking about Covid, and I didn’t really realize how severe it was, and suddenly everything was shut down.

I love the name Wavy Trees; just hearing it makes me smile and makes me think of happy things

make a great game for the band.

Can you talk about the band and how it came to be?

We are each from the four corners of the USA. I’m from Miami, Jack on drums is from Philly, Brian, the bass player is from Orcas Island near Seattle, and Jason on guitar is a Southern California boy. I had been recording at NRG Studios (Jay Baumgardner’s place) for a bit and met Brian first, and met at a party house we called the Trap House in North Hollywood. I had always wanted to have Brian and Jason in a band cause I thought it would be a phenomenal duo.

The Cosmic World of

WAVY TREES

Interview: Dug Moore

that are normal yet not normal. How did you come up with the name?

I was making a record at David Grohl’s studio at 606, and the band I was in at the time fell apart, so I bought a one-way ticket to Seattle and decided to hitchhike back to LA. I ended up in the Redwood Forest, hanging out on this farm with all these hippies, and we were hiking to this place called Strawberry Rock. It was way off in the woods towards the ocean. So we get to the top of this rock, and we had taken some kind of psychedelics, and all the trees are waving! I was like, “Yo, do all of you see those wavy trees?

And everyone said, “Whoa yeah, man!” At that moment I realized, we were all Wavy Trees because we were all connected, and we were all just one with the trees. It was like a sunshine daydream type of thing, and I thought it would

Main Photo: Kay Dargen

I met Jack, and we started jamming together since we both listened to a lot of the same music like Fidlar and White Reaper. I’d go to his house, and we would drink tequila and jam, and we wrote a lot of the first Wavy Trees songs that way.

So anyway, I was recording at NRG, and the bass player was a no-show, so I called Brian. He was in the middle of buying life insurance, and I just said, hey man, come on down to record, and he bailed on the life insurance and came over. Later Brian recommended Jason. I had known Jason all along, so it was like I was on an undercover mission to get both of them in the band. The first time we all jammed together was on my birthday in 2019, which was pretty rad. It was meant to be!

To me, Wavy Trees feels like garage rock meets psychedelia, with some of the fun-loving vibes of the 80s Sunset strip and a dash of early Sub Pop sounds. What are the key influences on your songwriting and sound?

We call it Wavy Rock because it’s just a mix of everything. Truthfully, everybody in the band listens to everything, but I grew up on a lot of Jimmy Buffet, Garth Brooks, and the Ramones. But if we had to identify the main influences, it would be a pinch of Nirvana, a dose of Tom Petty, and a shot of Smashing Pumpkins. And then, if those three all had a baby together, it would be Wavy Trees. But Jimmy Buffet is in there for sure (laughs). I know it sounds funny, but he is one of my favorite artists for sure.

passed on at a young age, as well as several close friends that I played music with. I don’t want it to be like a “pie in the sky, they are watching over me” kind of thing, but they’re just right there with me, connecting through that channel. My mother was incredibly spiritually, so she is a big part of that, but so are the other people that I knew. I’m not saying that other people can’t grasp this, but I think it is easier to understand if you have had a lot of people that were close to you pass away. I don’t want these people to just die and be forgotten because they’ve really inspired me throughout my life, and they continue to do so. Because of this, I really love songwriting; it’s a lot of fun.

What is a bigger influence on Wavy Trees, Van Halen, or mushrooms? I would definitely say mushrooms.

You have been recording lately.

Is it a single or a series of singles that will later be an al-bum?

We are gonna release singles all year, and it is gonna culminate in a new album, and we will release a new single each month or so. But the end goal is that it will be a full album of material.

We worked with producers Jay Baumgarder and Daniel Pampuri, and the single “I Wanna Go Out” has been released along with a video directed by Ron Geffen. We shot it at Jason’s house and had buckets of fun. Originally the song was called “I Don’t Wanna Go Out,” but when the pandemic hit, we were recording it, so I thought we gotta change it to “I Wanna Go Out” (laughs). And you know what? The other lyrics worked even better after we changed it. It’s almost like it was always meant to be that way. It’s like a cosmic thing; the story of the band is really cosmic.

How do you come up with new material?

Typically I bring the song ideas to the table. I hike about 7 miles a day (11 k), and I just get these ideas while I’m hiking, and I bring a skeleton of an idea to the band, and we build on it. The other half of it is we will just be in a room together and get in a good state of mind and just start jamming. It literally comes out of us, and since I write all of the lyrics, I say the dead speak through me. I’m like a channel. Not with just the lyrics, but with the music as well. We are all just channels of the other side. I think also another reason we work well together is because we are all so open-minded. Of course, a lot of the process is just seeing what’s going on in the world and putting it into song.

When you say the dead speak through you, are these people that you knew, people you never met, or a mixture of both?

It is my mother, my uncle, and unfortunately, a lot of my family has

Pictures from Harvard & Stone by Dug Moore facebook.com/wavytreesband

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EWAN CAMERON

Ewan Cameron (Australia, 1962) is a rock & roll artist: he paints, writes poems, songs, and short stories, plays music, and does outrageous theatrical performances (Carnival of Hellucinations). He runs a gallery, the Doghouse Gallery in Amsterdam (Netherlands). Second Scene is happy to show some new work by him. Enjoy. Pytr Baum

For more information, visit www.hellucinations.info

Grave Flowers Bongo Band talks Ty Seagall, jamming and Black Licorice

S

econd Scene catches up with band members Gabe and Olaf over drinks

Second Scene: We all have a different path in life, whether it’s with music or anything else.

Gabe: Yeah, Permanent Records has a label, and they reissue old albums. They’ve put out albums from local bands, like our first album, and even bands from back in the day when they were Chicago based. They also do the Brown Acid Series with RidingEasy Records. Lance Barresi curates the songs. He’s the digger. He finds the rare records to reissue and put on compilations.

Gabe: Olaf, is that your nickname? I don’t even want to know why.

Second Scene: It had to do with the night of mayhem with Doug Cox of Tramp for the Lord and me and Olaf making a reference that if you play guitar good enough, people will look at you like Black Licorice. They will never be able to get enough. Me and Doug Cox started calling him that.

Second Scene: With your psychedelic garage sound, that was a great match.

Gabe: Yeah, I grew up with like sort of like proto-metal records and heavy bands. I really liked that stuff. Like, if Rush did drugs! I heard that Rush is a bunch of nice guys, but maybe they are being

Gabe: Olaf is like that, actually.

Olaf: Right. There’s some sounds or images that just draw you in.

Gabe: You have to accept that. I feel like this record was us, naturally. Influences were there, but I think that we all just sort of let go when we were recording. We were literally like improvising in the studio.

Second Scene: You did it in three days, and from the tracks I’ve heard, it seems to capture this really raw energy. It’s tight, yet you avoided being too overproduced.

Gabe: There wasn’t even time to overproduce it. With Ty being there with us, he was in the booth mixing as we were going, adding his personal touch. It’s like he was jamming with us, with the board.

It was very in the moment. Basically, it’s a live record. I don’t think we really did more than one or two takes for any song. It was all back to back to tape. We didn’t even touch the digital thing at all.

We did it to a two-inch tape. I feel like we sort of cut that record like a 50s band. I don’t know like we didn’t have a lot of studio time.

Olaf: Like the Beatles did write some early stuff in a week. We just

Grave Flowers Bongo Band

Second Scene: He’s like black licorice to my ears.

You have a new single and album Strength For Spring out on John Dwyer’s label, Castle Face Records. How did that come about?

Interview: Dug Moore

Gabe: We had all had been practicing these songs and made a demo with a friend of mine named Orville Neeley. We were getting songs together for an album that we’d wanted to make and were already in touch with Ty Seagall about possibly doing a record. We recorded the demos in November of 2019, sent the demos to Ty, and he liked it, so Ty produced and recorded it in three days at Station House Studios in Echo Park with Mark Rains engineering. A friend from Hooveriii recommended sending it to John Dwyer. John heard it, and he was into it and wanted to talk about putting it out on Castle Face Records.

discreet about it. I’ve only just heard like a little stories, for example, when they toured with Kiss. I guess Kiss was a party band, and Rush just chilled in the hotel rooms. I don’t think they’re known for being drug-taking, booze-drinking hound doggies.

Second Scene: Maybe that’s the cover. They just pretend they’re going to go and play Dungeons and Dragons in their rooms. Maybe they made Ace Frehley look like a boy scout!

Gabe: Right? Yeah, that would be cool if they could keep it discreet, but you know, when people do drugs, it’s hard to be discreet.

Second Scene: So I’ve heard.

Gabe: (Laughs) I know from experience.

Second Scene: Ty Seagall is about a bit of a legend in this town. It seems to have worked out kind of magically.

Gabe: That was a jam that’s just a-rockin’ track I love called “Down Man.” My buddy introduced me to this song years ago, and I’ve just been obsessed with it ever since. I think the only time we’ve ever

Second Scene: And you have some videos out too.

Second Scene: I had a good time watching you guys at various shows like Jimmy Bitter’s Factory in Los Angeles and Permanent Record’s Roadhouse. Permanent Records put out a previous record of yours too.

Second Scene: Fantastic, and Olaf, aka Black Licorice, is here.

Second Scene: You have a cover by Brainbox on the new release.

How did a cover show up on the rec-ord?

has to come out.

Gabe: Taylor Leach directed the video for “Smile” and “Down Man” and some other unreleased tracks. He provides a lot of support with that sort of thing.

Gabe: Hey, how ya been?

Gabe: Yeah, I’ve known him for a while, and every time we ran into each other, we’d like to talk about music, as we share a lot of common interests. I really love his production, especially with acoustic guitar and drums. In a production aspect, that was something that the record needed to be accentuated with, and he was like the guy to do it.

That came through common musical interests, such as the band Love. Love is a big influence that we both really get down with.

Arthur Lee was brilliant

Waylon’s son, and a ton of other really great country people.

Second Scene: I gotta be honest, the new music was a slow burn, but now I am hooked. As Olaf would say, it’s like black licorice. You have this psychedelic garage thing with a reinterpreted, new LA kind of wave. Olaf rips it over solid acoustic rhythms with the tight bass and drums, some kind of eight-note rolls, or whatever the hell you’re doing. For someone in your generation, what propelled you to go in that direction?

played that song was in the studio. We didn’t even plan it. It was just something on my like checklist of songs that I thought would be cool to cover.

Second Scene: Mark Rains is amazing as well. He’s worked with Tanya Tucker, among a lot of other great artists. Are you or some of the other band members big fans of country and Americana, or is that just kind of how the cookie crumbled?

Gabe: I think most of us are into country music.

Olaf: Mark got a Grammy. He’s worked with Shooter Jennings,

Gabe: We try to emulate the stuff we listen to, which is older records that we dig. We enjoy great instrumentation. We consciously tried to make something that didn’t sound like anything else. There was a lot of room to improvise on these songs to make it uniquely us. It felt necessary to have an instrumental quality about these songs. We tried to make the verse, chorus, verse, bridge, and chorus thing feel different.

Olaf: I think it didn’t matter when you grew up. What you hear as a child can really influence you. But my parents got weird and didn’t let me watch TV. So I was on a weird trip, and that influenced how I look at things. I’ve always done my own thing, whether it’s cool or not. And whether people think it’s cool right now or not, I don’t give a shit. It’s what I do because these are sounds I hear inside, and it

had to get it together, and that’s it, man.

Gabe: We didn’t have a lot of studio time because it was selffunded.

Second Scene: I love the lead when Olaf plays live and loved it on Smile and Down Man. The first time I ever saw you play live, you were playing pedal steel in a different band. Did you play pedal steel on any other songs on the album?

Olaf: I play the first half of a song called “Inner Bongolia” on pedal steel, but that’s the only track I play it on. Gabe breaks out a horn on one song.

Gabe: I played a tenor saxophone on “Sleepy Eyes.”

Second Scene: Is everyone in the band from California?

Gabe: Owen, the drummer, is from Sonoma up near Olaf’s neck of the woods.

Second Scene: I always thought Owen was from Canada; somebody told me that.

Gabe: Maybe he should be in Rush. He is such a super nice guy. I can’t imagine the band without him.

Second Scene: How did the bass player get involved?

Gabe: Andy and I have been playing music together since we were teenagers. He’s just my pal, and he played bass on our first record, Flower Pot. Owen, and Vaughn on guitar and vocals, we have known each other forever. So if it works, don’t fix it, right? Just roll with it.

Grave Flowers Bongo Band: Olaf Selland, Andy Caly, Gabe Flores, Owen Barret, Vaughn Daniel graveflowersbongoband.bandcamp.com

O

ne year and forty-seven days. It had been one year and forty-seven days since my last live show. And I was jonesin’. Hard. I needed sketchy sandwiches, hard liquor, and eardrum rupturing sound, stat.

So when Ted suggested that we do the following interview at his upcoming show at the Sub Alpine, I jumped at the opportunity. I first saw the Legendary Hucklebucks at Steeltown Shakedown ‘19, immediately becoming a fan. My fellow photographers out there can vouch for how enjoyably annoying it is, messing up a shot from getting too into the music. Their genre-blending style and tight execution make for an amazing live show, and in my personal opinion, perfect driving tunes. These guys smack, and when I inevitably get a speeding ticket, it will be their fault.

After their set at the Alpine, over deviled eggs and Yeungling, I sat down with the guys. I’d like to tell you I kept my journalistic integrity. That what you’re about to read isn’t an amalgamation of the muddled memories and Garage Band recordings, of some inebriated tool with a throat tattoo and a man bun. And that while that tool may have been heavily lubricated, he kept a sense of professionalism at all times. My long-suffering crew can be the judge of that. What I can say is this - I had a great f@$&ing time.

Alright, guys, walk me through it. How did all of this get started?

Ted Bundy: Well, me and Brian were in a band together called Social Outcasts. This 1988, ‘89. And we played together for a long time. In 2001, we started listening to a lot of different things. Back in the day, I was a hardcore kid, and Brian came from metal. He liked Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, all stuff I liked, but I was more of a Cro-Mags, Agnostic Front, Minor Threat, kind of guy. But anyway, we all played in bands together, and we were all looking for something different. So we started listening to a lot of older weird stuff. Like Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, all of this stuff that was like the anti of what we had been listening to.

And we really fell in love with it, got to the point where we’d go to rehearsals for our regular group, and start playing Johnny Cash songs. And it slowly took over from there.

David, we’ve known for a long time, he used to be in this band called Sinister. He’s always been an amazing guitar player. And after bumping into him at Giant Eagle, we were able to convince him to come play with us.

Johnny Devil was in a band called Those Poor Devils, and when they broke up, Johnny was a lonely man trying to find his own way. He had a big dick and didn’t know where to stick it.

Johnny Devil: And you said, “Stick it here!”

TB: Stick it to me, mother fucker! Yeah, but no, hahaha.

Johnny was available at the time, and we thought we could use another guitar player - two guitars are better than one.

As for Unka’ Piddles, we’ve been friends since high school; we’re talking thirty-five-plus years. He was in different bands growing up too, but we all kinda played in the same circles.

To be honest, Piddles turned me onto a lot of different music. Jack of Fire, he got me into Cash, Merle, all of that Outlaw Country stuff. I would have never known of any of that if it wasn’t for him. He turned me onto all of it.

When we started playing this stuff, we played it at places like here, with the crowd tonight. A punk rock crowd, a hardcore crowd, and they went bananas! And that turned a lot of people onto some of the weird stuff that we were listening to. And there’s all those subgenres that jump off of it in this weird melting pot. Like, listen to what Mickey and the Snake Oil Boys are doing (imagine badass tunes playing) they’re playing their own thing. They’re rootsabilly, that new grass style, that stuff that’s really great and country, and rootsy. And a lot of people don’t know it’s out there. They know Kenny Chesney and the super popular country guys, and that’s not necessarily the best country out there.

So, I know you guys have been back playing for a while now. When did you first comeback? Any nerves going out in all this?

JD: I would say I was the most anxious. And there were a couple shows that I didn’t feel comfortable playing. They still went out and got it done. Did a lot of car shows.

TB: Did a ton of car shows. I think we were the most active band, out of most of the bands in the city. We did take a couple months off, but then summer hit, people wanted to go out. Those outdoor shows were fun because you could do that. And people weren’t worried about being confined.

We did very well last year. Got out to Altoona, people extremely respectful; this was around May when things were ramping out here. But in Bedford, the numbers were really low. And we’re just smart; we wash our hands, try and keep our distance. We were very lucky last year. Why? I don’t know? I’m glad people dig what we do. I don’t think we’re anything special. But thank you for thinking we are, and having this interview and doing this.

JD: There’s more questions, I think?

Yeah, that’s not the send-off there. I’m not letting you go yet.

Let’s talk about the atmosphere here for a bit. So my favorite song from you guys is 3 Sheets. A really high energy, good time, drinking song. How do you come up with a track like that, that’s able to completely control and capture the energy of a room?

LEGENDARY HUCKLEBUCKS

David L: The riff is completely influenced by Jack of Fire. A lot of slide guitar with open tuning. Then I came in and did some stuff in standard tuning. And Brian put in a heavy blues beat behind it, and we were just foolin’ around. And I was like, “Man, that’s the song, it’s great.” It’s really that simple.

The motivation behind it; most of our songs are really fast. I thought it’d be cool to slow it down a little bit, do something a little bluesy. Like a good grinding bluesy tune.

JD: That was a song that we all added our own flavor to.

Got to put our own spin on things.

I know guys go around a little bit. So I’m gonna put you on the spot; favorite city to play in?

Hucklebucks practically in unison: Cleveland.

JD: Well, Pittsburgh 15 years ago, Cleveland now. With Pittsburgh, a lot of people just don’t come out. And we’re losing venues.

DL: Cleveland’s a rock n’ roll town. The venues are great, the people are great. And as far as rock goes, Cleveland’s fucking serious. Pittsburgh is too, but not quite on the scale that Cleveland’s at.

Is there anything special you guys put on a rider? (provided you’re playing a show that gives you one) TB: I’ll tell you right fuckin now, from now on, it’ll be deviled eggs from the Sub Alpine! And Melort, this weird Chicago drink, made from wormwood.

And pickled sausages.

DL: Those pickled sausages were good!

JD: We do a lot of damage to our bodies.

What’s the rest of 2021 look like?

JD: I wasn’t a part of it, but they got in on the SOS project.

And I think we’ve got almost a dozen shows booked.

Summertime we do a lot of car shows, and a lot of traveling for those shows.

TB: We’re booking out! Unfortunately, Dave’s and I’s schedules are pretty hectic. Working a lot, and not quite sure what’s gonna happen yet. But I wanna play every show we’re offered. I don’t wanna turn anything down. Love it, big or small. I just love to perform. Shit, I hope you got a cool interview. Don’t make us look fat. God, please don’t make me look fat. I got a face for radio Johnny! Goddamnit! The camera adds ten pounds.

What’d you think words are gonna do?!

And with that, I finished my beer, yelled at my crew to put down the deviled eggs, and set off for home. Live music fix achieved, with a hefty hangover already creeping on. Just as life should be.

Interview & Photos: Dylan Mascellino facebook.com/legendaryhucklebucks

Win Harms winharms.com

JOE NORMAL & THE ANYTOWN’RS WE ARE THE NORMAL We Are The Normal is the latest single by Joe Normal & The Anytown’rs following on from Stuck In A Job and Anytown and in the same vein of Blue-collar roots rock. They want to make the new normal the sort of normal we actually want to live in. Joe Normal is from Elizabeth Town, New Jersey, and is also in Dramarama, and the band The Anytwner’rs also features members of The Zeros and Fiona Apple’s band. He is currently based in California, and this single is out on New Jersey Phonograph.

The A-side We Are The Normal is a pop-rock anthem for our times as we all try to get back whatever normal might be, and we won’t need a Warm Leatherette to be Normal either. Instead, this insistent catchy power-pop sing-along will hopefully help as we try to get back to whatever we considered Normal before the pandemic while often sounding a bit like the Psychedelic Furs.

U SAy takes aim at some of the blinkered partisan power-mad politicians and talking heads stirring up hatred and division rather than love and unity across the USA. This motors along trying to convince us our lives will be saved by the power of Rock & Roll! Let’s hope so and let Joe Normal rock your world and save your soul as we get to a new world that isn’t run by hatred and fear. Simon Phillips Find out more at www.JOENORMALUSA.com www. facebook.com/JOENORMALUSA

LAST DAYS OF APRIL EVEN THE GOOD DAYS ARE BAD (Tapete Records)

Stockholm’s Last Days Of April, lead by songwriter Karl Larsson, release their 10th long-player this spring.

These eight new Larsson-penned songs shimmer with heartache and cathartic release. Recorded straight to analog, bringing warmth and rich textures to this release. “Let it bring whatever feelings it brings,” Larsson says of EVEN THE GOOD DAYS ARE BAD, dispensing a bit of helpful advice: “It sounds best played loud.”

SUPERDRONE lp5 Southhampton, England’s Superdrone, returns with their fifth album, and it’s a trippy affair and, dare I say, slightly mellower than their previous releases. Looping beats dominate.

Songs shine like shards of broken glass reflecting in the moonlight—an ethereal soundtrack to a heavenly explosion. Tune in and let yourself go.

SLAMDINISTAS LITTLE TROUBLE MAKER (LIVE) (Die Laughing Records) The southern California group Slamdinistas do a scorching, in-your-face live version of “Little Trouble Maker” by Ian McLagan (The Faces.) This bump and grind groove with its crunching guitars will have you up shakin’ your ass in no time. This is Slamdinistas’ first release on Die Laughing Records. Let’s hope there is a full-length album in the future.

THE PURRS WE THOUGHT THERE’D BE MORE PEOPLE THERE

I’ve owed The Purrs a review since 2012 when they sent me a cd copy of the bands then current 7” single Rotting On The Vine/ You, The Medicine And Me that simply refused to play in every cd player I tried it in, so I was very happy that the bands’ current Live album played perfectly well. They have been slowly building a following now for nearly 20 years in the Pacific North West.

This release really ought to be on a Maxell XLII tape with a xeroxed cover rather than as a shiny cd or Vinyl.

The album opens with the slow-burning intro of Get Me Through It, like the band is hoping the soundman gets everything sounding tip-top before the vocals come in. Then the guitar gets turned up enough to be heard as they beg and plead and hope to be given something to help them Get Me through it as the distortion pedal gets hit like an electric shock treatment reminiscent of the slower bits of Spacemen 3.

Sex Symbols Have Tragic Endings is a great song title that should make you want to hear it. The song itself is a slowly unfolding miasma of trouble and premature musical and lyrical ejaculations with vocals that recall a demotic Richard Ashcroft on downers searching for a way out.

The Intro to Don’t Talk About Tomorrow instructs everyone to get a drink for this song of being drunk and not caring about tomorrow, that, like most of the first half of this set, is a slow-burning fuse of a song that reminds me in places of Galaxie 500. You really should either have an Anchor Steam or Fat Tire in your hand while listening to this; while Jima tells us why he needs to keep on drinking no matter where he is, just give the man another drink.

Rainbow Afternoon is almost a gentle folk song to start with as the guitars slowly come in on this song of love, lust, and more alcohol being drunk in a bar in the middle of the afternoon, ah for the days when I could go and sit in a bar in the afternoon this feels nostalgic in the middle of the current lockdown. While waiting for the guitars to kick off and take us off into the stratosphere.

I’m Leaving Today seems a bit pained a song for the outsiders who go out and play rather than talk to anyone else. This is musically restrained and vocally pained.

Loose Talk is the fastest thing on the album so far like the speed has just kicked in, and they want to sound like Echo & The Bunnymen all of a sudden, or just more blatantly, you might need to visit Villiers Terrace before listening to this tune. This is the tune on the tape I would have lined up for sample listening back when I sold bootleg tapes to convince the unsuspecting or knowing to buy the tape.

Taste Of Monday continues the more uplifted part of the set. I guess a few more people have shown up. A crowd is building. The addition of I take it Liz Herrin’s backing vocals to counterpoint Jima’s vocals give it more of a Slowdive swirling pit of distain for everything that Tastes Of Monday babbling away as everything’s hit. They soar, and everyone in the room is finally paying attention.

Much Too Much is sort of Certain General fused with Echo & The Bunnymen nicely dark and slightly fried that keeps the momentum building in the set.

Fear Of Flying is taut unafraid, and heading for the inner and outer psyche mind-meld time. I’m not certain if this is a cover of the Bowery Electric song, but this sounds great.

American As Apple Pie is soaring into your brain guitar rides and twin vocals, making a far better case for Apple Pie than any recent film has, love the psychedelic guitar break down bit in what now sounds like it has become a smoke-filled room with more energy floating around.

I Really Don’t Need This Now is the end of the night should I have one more drink, hit, snort, pill, etc. psyche garage rocker, as the audience finally look like they are ready to be dancing and jumping around while the lyrics tell us all the things, they don’t really need now so you can get good and angry with them in the pit.

Disconnected is the slow, mellow chill out that acid has finally hit, to begin with, 8 minute plus epic building monster of drugs and despair, as they harsh your vibe and put a downer on the trip you thought you were going on this is a very down trip that’s worth taking for the ending that seems to have echoes of John Cale’s Even Cowgirls Gets The Blues.

Late Night Disturbance, yeah, they are fighting next door again, and upstairs has on banging classical concertos again. In this case,

they have a Power cut that leads to rioting and violence, and murder, as is the American way with Power Cuts. Why couldn’t they just light a candle and hug each other? Rather than the scene that unfolds in this song of reportage and insistent drums and furious guitar line.

The last song of the set is also the shortest like the soundman has signaled they only have 2 minutes, and so they give us Cracked Head that sounds like a brawl of a Psyche punk-pop song to hopefully leave the audience wanting more before the headline act come on.

Find Out More at https://www.facebook.com/ThePurrs http://www. thepurrs.com https://thepurrs.bandcamp.com

DUDERAMA NEW VIEWS This Melbourne-based duo Duderama forge a classic lo-fi hypnotic groove on this entirely instrumental release, New Views. This album is full of sonic soundscapes and catchy hooks. Who needs vocals?

Not Duderama. Nor will you. This is the duos eighth self-produced release. Start here and work your way back. Enjoy the journey. duderama1.bandcamp.com

MARK PARANORMAL DYSNEYLAND

(Eternal Soundtrack) A Dark and menacing release from the Brisbane, Australian group. This lo-fi and brilliant album shows a soul laid bare on tracks “My Journalist,” “For You.” The raw acoustic guitars, violins, and rambling drums shape these dark noir songs. A different kind of heartbreak songs from the outback. Indulged your dark side. eternalsoundcheck.bandcamp.com/album/marksparanormal-dysneyland