A Sunday Conversation with Dali's Lama

Riff mad, fuzz-crazed stoner madness from the inner desert of California, Dali's Lama have been plying their trade amongst the sand, stone, and scorpions and releasing blistering rock like their last album, Full On Dunes. After melting our eardrums with their riffing, we asked the quarted of Zack Huskey (guitars/vocals), Erica Huskey (bass), Jeff Howe (drums), and Joe Dillon (guitar) to squeeze next to each other as tightly as the could and join us on the red leather Ripple interview couch. Here's what they had to say.

When I was a kid, growing up in a house with Cat Stevens, Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkle, the first time I ever hear Kiss’s “Detroit Rock City,” it was a moment of musical epiphany. It was just so vicious, aggressive and mean. It changed the way I looked at music, what it could sound like, how it could make me feel? What have been your musical epiphany moments?


Zach: “I have three.
1. My first show at 11 years old was the Plasmatics.
2. In my Junior High School years, one night I snuck downstairs and turned on a tv program called Night Flight. I watched Neil Young and Crazy Horse’s movie Rust Never Sleeps. The guitar sound was huge.
3. Seeing the movie The Kids Are Alright, and wearing out the vinyl of the Who’s Live at Leeds. Now that’s Rock n’ Roll!

Erica: “To this day, it’s still The Who. Every time we watch a Who video/dvd (even one I’ve seen a hundred times) it inspires me to play. The music, the energy, the fun they had. Amazing.”

Jeff: “I can’t give one experience as an epiphany moment. But I can say that every once in a while I listen to something new and interesting I get that chill that runs up my spine. I think to myself “this f-ing rocks, I wanna rock like this.”


Talk to us about the song-writing process for you. What comes first, the idea? A riff? The lyrics? How does it all fall into place?

Zach: Most of the time it’s the riff that comes first. When I come up with a riff, I record it as soon as I can, usually on an old 70’s tape deck I have (or if we’re out in the middle of the desert, on the voice memo on Erica’s cell phone). Then I decide what part of the song it is going to be - the main riff/theme or should it be the chorus? Very rarely does it turn out to be the verse. Sometimes before I come up with a riff I have an idea about what I want to write a song about, and sometimes just a title.

Often times songs with great riffs have stupid lyrics or a song with great lyrics has no riff at all. It was Pete Townshend and Neil Young that showed me a great song can have both - a huge memorable riff with intelligent lyrics to go along with it. Here are some examples I think are songs with a great riff and good lyrics.

1. Neil Young and Crazy Horse - “Like a Hurricane”
2. The Who - “Won’t Get Fooled Again”
3. Black Sabbath - “War Pigs”
4. Rolling Stones - “Satisfaction”

For me the trick in writing songs for Dali’s Llama is to keep the music really heavy and yet have at least semi-intelligent lyrics with a riff and melody that are memorable.”


Where do you look for continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?
Zach: “Mostly in everyday life - people watching, nature, animals, seasons, desert, mountains, etc. I also get a lot of my ideas from science and other nonfiction books. I’m a librarian and I read a lot.”


Genre’s are so misleading and such a way to pigeonhole bands. Without resorting to labels, how would you describe your music?

Zach: “I would like to think it is: Catchy, riff oriented, halfway intelligent, heavy rock n’ roll.”

Erica: “I think the songs that Zach writes for Dali’s Llama are heavy, with groovy riffs and thought provoking lyrics, but also very fun. We are serious about our music/band because we work hard at it, but we try not to take ourselves too seriously. I think that often comes out in the songs and in our videos. Playing music should be fun. If it’s not why do it.”

Jeff: “I would say our music is power driven based on life experience, social/political/environmental issues with a bit of humor thrown in. A little bit of everything coming from a little bit of everywhere.”


What is you musical intention? What are you trying to express or get your audience to feel?

Zach: “ I try to write songs that make people go “Wow, I really dig that!” Sometimes it’s also to get them think about an issue I’m concerned about, or maybe think or feel about a certain topic in a different way.”


The business of music is a brutal place. Changes in technology have made it easier than ever for bands to get their music out, but harder than ever to make a living? What are your plans to move the band forward? How do you stay motivated in this brutal business?

“I have to concentrate on the creative side of it to stay focused and keep moving forward. I pretty much leave the “business side” to Erica. As far as plans to move the band forward - well the next cd is already written. We’re slowly working more and more of the new songs into our set. We’ll go in and record it later this year. We are also looking to do some touring this summer. Staying motivated comes from simply enjoying what you’re doing, and once in a while having someone (whether it’s a reviewer or a fan) let us know they dig our music.”



Describe to us the ideal (realistic) record label and how you’d work with them, and they with you.

“Having your own label is great because you have only yourself to answer to, and creatively it’s ALL our concept. The downside is you have to do everything yourself (marketing, promotions, production, funding, etc).

We would love to work with a record label, because we could focus more on the creative side and less on the business side. We would just need a label that would allow us to maintain creative control. We’re not opposed to outside input, but we would want the final approval. Our “image” is kind of a no image, we’re just ourselves and that’s how we like it.

It would also be nice to have a really good distributor and a great booker to take some of the workload off, and help us make a little more money.”



Do you have a particular sound in your head that you try to bring out? Or is the creation process random and spontaneous? Or both, or neither?

Zach: “I want our sound to be heavy and accessible, yet original and not necessarily fit exactly within one genre. My creation process usually comes quickly and I’ll write a song within a few days. Once in a while I’ll work weeks on a song, but I think the best songs just sort of come to me quickly and kind of write themselves. Then later I go back and try to make the song a little better or tighter. Occasionally I’ll even make a minor change after I hear how the song sounds with the whole band, what works and what doesn’t.”

Jeff: “I do hear a sound in my head but I am always trying to break that barrier. It’s a process of growing as a musician. It can be very easy to stick with the one sound but to be able to change and grow is what it’s about.”


Where do you see you and your music going in ten years?

Zach: “That’s hard to say. I’ve written seven Dali’s Llama cds, three solo folk/Americana cds, and two experimental raunchy blues/rock cds (with a side project called Primordial Blues). In ten years I’ll just be writing what ever I feel like writing at the time.”


What makes a great song? Who living today writes great songs?

Zach: “To me a great song has a great riff, a chorus that’s memorable and lyrics that make you think and feel some kind of emotion. My favorite songwriters that are still alive and still putting out good songs are: Tom Petty, The Damned, Pete Townsend, Bad Religion, Neil Young, Wayne Kramer, Mudhoney, J. Mascis, Bob Dylan, Boris, Clutch and Tom Waits.”


Tell us about the first song you ever wrote?

Zach: “I don’t remember the name of the first song I wrote. I was about 14 years old and I remember I was listening to a lot of 60’s garage band compilations so it had that Sonics or Standells vibe. I was trying to figure out how to sing back then, so I’m sure it was very “talky”.”


Any Spinal Tap moments to share?

Zach: “Years ago, this guy we knew wanted us to play a generator party way out in the desert at what was supposed to be an old Hell’s Angels hangout. So we drove and drove, following this guy way out in the absolute middle of nowhere. We loaded in and set up inside this old abandoned stone house with all of the doors and windows gone, so it was really cold. The place was packed and everyone was looking forward to seeing us play, and to drink, etc. We started playing and things were getting really rowdy and we’re like “who are all these people”. (This was up in the high desert not the low desert where we are from). Then some kid lit an old mattress on fire. So now we’re stuck in this smoke filled stone house with a huge fire in the corner and people are dancing and going wild. We’re trying to figure a way to get out of there without hurting anyone’s feelings. So what happens? Erica broke her low E bass string. We’re like “We’re really sorry folks, can’t play without a low E bass string”. Someone in the crowd said they just live a few miles away and could go get one from their house. We said thanks, but that Erica only uses these special strings. So we packed up our stuff real quick and go out of there. Do you know how hard it is to bust a low E bass string. Anyways, we got lucky that night.”

Jeff: “Not in this band. But in a previous band I had a singer just disappear from the face of the earth. Have not heard from him since the last show we played. I think he is in Europe somewhere now.”



Vinyl, CD, or digital? What’s your format of choice?

Zach: “Vinyl, CDs and standard tapes. I still like to browse through the bins at a record store, look at the cover artwork, etc. The whole package is part of the creative expression. We do sell our songs digitally because it is the way the music industry is going, but we still like to release cds with all of the songs and artwork together.”

Erica: “CDs. Digital is cool environmentally though, because there is no packaging and you can get it instantly.”

Jeff: “Vinyl is always a great format for music but unfortunately not very easy to get around with. CD’s are cool, but I have to say my iPod is always stocked with my favorites and some new tunes is the best. “



What’s the best record store in your town?

Zach: “The Record Alley in Palm Desert.”

Jeff: “iTunes. When I am feeling up to it, driving out to Amoeba in Hollywood.”



****Please Note: Joe’s answer to every question is “Devo and Mahogany Rush”.




http://www. myspace. com/dalisllama