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?
The big one for me was hearing a cassette tape of Jimi
Hendrix's Are You Experienced? when I was 14. Before that I loved oldies and
country music, but that was the first time I was completely floored by hard
rock. More than 20 year later, I'm still trying to wrap my head around what
Jimi was doing.
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?
Commonly it's music first, and I'll kind of sing gibberish
until lyrics come. Sometimes we'll even perform news song live with improv
vocals to see if they're keepers. I used to hate sitting down and writing
lyrics because I've always wanted to come up with every part of the song in
motion, but lately I've been really enjoying it. I've gotten more into wordplay
recently because it's something you can kind of do in your head at any time, like
when you're bored at the laundry mat or DMV or something.
Who has influenced
you the most?
Hendrix, Iggy, MC5, James Brown, and Little Richard.
Where do you look for
continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?
The Jackets, the Loons, the Creepy Creeps, the Woggles, El
Vez, Kid Congo, and King Kahn all come to mind as current artists who inspire
us, especially as live performers. As far as records, I discover a lot of rock
and roll hidden gems through Ugly Things Magazine and a garage podcast called
Retrospect.
We're all a product
of our environment. Tell us about the band's hometown and how that reflects in
the music?
Lety and I are from a town in Arizona called Casa Grande. Everything in
the desert is sharp and wants to to harm you, so maybe we're like musical
cacti.
You have one chance,
what movie are you going to write the soundtrack for?
I don't know if I'd be any good at writing a film score.
Once in a while I'll Jam along to surreal movies like the Holy Mountain
or Paprika.
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?
Maybe You Really Got Me by the Kinks. That guitar sound
probably led to so many more beautifully ugly guitar sounds over the years.
Come on, share with
us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?
Like many musicians, I feel like I've lived so many scenes
from that movie. The parts where they're opening for the puppet show, or
playing at the military dance come to mind. I love the weird gigs the most. We
took a gig this summer with El Vez at a Chinese Buffett just because of the
absurdity of it. People we're so confused at their tables eating as we played
MC5 and Slade songs.
Tell us about playing
live and the live experience for you and for your fans?
I do love playing live, and I think we're more of a live
band than a studio band. It doesn't matter to me if people are into it or not,
I just enjoy dancing and playing guitar. If I can get people to join in the
party it's a plus, but sometimes it puts people off (which can be equally
fun!).
What makes a great
song?
I have no idea. Whatever it is that makes you want to listen
to it on repeat. Whenever I get really into a song, I'll just listen to it over
and over until I get it out of my system.
Tell us about the
first song you ever wrote?
All I can remember is that is was really bad, as a first
song should be.
Who today, writes
great songs? Who just kicks your ass? Why?
I think the Jackets are writing some great music right now.
Their last record mix 70's punk with 60's garage in a way I haven't heard
before.
Vinyl, CD, or
digital? What's your format of choice?
Vinyl at home and Digital in the car.
Whiskey or beer? And defend your choice
Beer if I'm in the audience, whisky if I'm playing.
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?
We live in San
Diego. If you're ever there, go to Vinyl Junkies for a
good time.
What's next for the
band?
We're heading on tour of the US this October-November and releasing
a new LP on Halloween. Other than that, we're just working on new songs and
making time to enjoy ourselves along the way.
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