When I was a kid,
growing up in a house with Cat Stevens, Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkel,
the first time I ever heard 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 listened to music. I've had a few minor epiphany's since
then, when you come across a band that just brings something new and
revolutionary to your ears.
What have been your
musical epiphany moments?
There have been a few big ones and although there has been
many small pivotal musical moments in my life, and there still are, these are
the really big ones.
The first time I heard Kiss ALIVE!
The first time I saw the "Mob Rules" scene in
Heavy Metal.
The first time I heard "Run to the Hills".
When I saw Saxon open for Maiden in '83. They floored me.
There are so many more but now my brain scanning my past and
that's not always fun :)
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?
Riff comes first. I have song titles collected on my phone
so I usually find one that fits the feel of the riff. 98% of the time I write
the vocal melodies and lyrics after the song is completely arranged. I sit at
the recorder and write and perform vocals line by line. Many times I say I'll
re record the vocals later but I rarely do. Most of the vocal tracks on the
albums were recorded right as they were being written.
Who has influenced
you the most?
Tony Iommi
Robert Fripp
David Bowie
Their diversity, work ethic and sheer output is what
inspires me.
Where do you look for
continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?
Mostly the past but I also see the enthusiasm of the younger
bands and it gets me all amped up. I'm still inspired by discovery. New music
and old from all kinds of styles. I just wish I could fit all of the influence
into one band.
We're all a product
of our environment. Tell us about the band's hometown and how that reflects in
the music?
I live an hour west of Seattle
in a small town with a strong musical community. I've always looked beyond Seattle but held on to
musical relationships I've made in the area I live. Some of my favorite music
is made here by people with a true love for it.
Where'd the band name
come from?
The original drummer had a bass drum that always sounded
really good. When he stopped using it he left it out in an open garage and it
gathered moss so we started calling the drum the moss generator. When we were
doing demos for the first album and we didn't have a band name yet, in the
studio we couldn't get a good bass drum sound and I said I wish we had the moss
generator and that is where the name came from. I took off one S in the
spelling for some weird reason.
You have one chance,
what movie are you going to write the soundtrack for?
Planet of Doom ;)
You now write for a
music publication (The Ripple Effect?).
You're going to write a 1,000 word essay on one song. Which would it be
and why?
Killing Yourself to Live by Black Sabbath.
It has all of the power and the beauty that music should
have. As a heavy rock song, the greatest one ever written in my opinion, it
possesses qualities that conjure many emotions that are rarely touched on by
any other rock band of that or any era. The "beauty" part of it is
the stand out quality. I've played this song many times on stage and I have to
tell you that performing it takes me somewhere that no other song ever has.
Come on, share with
us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?
I've been asked this before and I can never come up with
stuff that's amusing, only really shitty stuff that sounds kinda funny but it's
not at all. Like....getting dropped off at the wrong airport in Italy in the
middle of the night, missing your plane and having to spend $3000 to get home
to start another tour the next day. Funny but not funny.
Tell us about playing
live and the live experience for you and for your fans?
I really try to bring fans into the experience. That is why
I like small stages that aren't very high. Connecting is absolutely key to any
performance. Over the years we have figured out that a high energy Live set is
the best way to keep the electricity in the room and the audience right where
we want them. Sharing a bottle of Jager with them doesn't hurt either
What makes a great
song?
If I knew, I would write one.
Tell us about the
first song you ever wrote?
The first song I ever wrote was called Tomorrow's World in
1983. I think it only had three chords and no vocal melodies. I had lyrics but
I never put them to the music. The first song that I put lyrics to the music
was called Island of the Phoenix
in 1984. That song sounded like The Eagle Has Landed by Saxon.
What piece of your
music are particularly proud of?
Although the Mos Generator album "The Late Great Planet
Earth" is separated into 12 movements, I consider it one 45 minute piece of music. That is by far
my proudest musical moment.
Who today, writes
great songs? Who just kicks your ass? Why?
My favorite modern band his Motorpsycho. They are phenomenal
musicians and incorporate many styles of music into their core sound. Very
inspirational. We have played with them a few times and it's always a true
honor.
Vinyl, CD, or
digital? What's your format of choice?
I've been collecting vinyl for most of my life but I am not
opposed to all of those formats. Each one of them serves a purpose.
Whiskey or beer? And defend your choice
Anybody that really knows me knows the answer is
Jagermeister. Jager is like an opiate, the right amount puts me in a great
headspace for playing guitar. I don't dwell on my mistakes on stage when the
Jager is flowing just right :)
We, at the Ripple
Effect, are constantly looking for new music. What's your home town, and when
we get there, what's the best record store to lose ourselves in?
I live in Port Orchard Washington and there are no record stores
here. I get most of my records at Goodwill.
What's next for the
band?
We have a new album coming out in May. We will be touring
the United States in April and May with Fu Manchu, then we play Hellfest in
France in June, and in September / October we tour Canada then head down into
the states for some touring around Descendants of Crom and Doomed & Stoned
festivals. We are also in talks about some work in the states in August but
nothing is confirmed.
Any final comments or
thoughts you'd like to share with our readers, the waveriders?
Play it loud!
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