The self-proclaimed ring leader of Bigelf was kind enough to take some time away from wearing kick ass top hats and channeling the stoned love child of John Lord and Keith Emerson to talk with me at the Philly stop on the Progressive Nation 2009 tour. If you don’t know who Bigelf are, you need to. Right now. Cheat The Gallows made my wacky year end list and will probably make it again, unless Mastodon puts out another album before December. These dudes put on a heavy fucking show for everyone and reminded all the Wold of Warcraft T-shirt wearing Dream Theater fans what progressive meant in 1975. Mike Portnoy probably relayed probably the best description of them in my interview with him: “They’re about 25 years in the past and 5 years in the future.” And they’re really really cool guys.

Below is my 30-something minute chat with Damon, a few pics from the show and by week’s end I’ll have a transcription for those of you who are deaf or who lack the proper equipment/plugins/moral constitution to listen to me act like a fanboy retard for a half hour. Enjoy!

Click here for .mp3

I recently had the opportunity to interview Mike Portnoy at the Progressive Nation 2009 tour stop in Philly. I really don’t think I need to say much else. I wanted to come up with some clever drum-related way of calling him a legend, but I don’t think I need to. If they haven’t already hit your town go see this tour. It features Scale the Summit (who I unfortunately missed), Bigelf (who will be featured on the site tomorrow), Zappa Plays Zappa, and of course Dream Theater. I have to say, it was my first DT show and I was really satisfied with the experience.

Below is the audio interview and a few pics from the experience, below THAT will be a transcription when I have a few free hours.

Click here for .mp3

After a brief hiatus, we’re back and better than ever. Here’s a strong podcast from James and me. I interviewed Cherie Lily (see below), Tayisha Busay, Andrew Strasser and Bad Brilliance at Santos Party House. Then, we covered the news in about two minutes, you get to hear some music from Tomorrow’s Outlook and we wrap it up by talking about the worst lyrics ever. Feel free to add your own to the comments.

Click here for .mp3

Songs featured:

The Trooper Believer – DJ Schmolli
WTF (You Doin in My Mouth)? – Tayisha Busay
Quack Head – Bad Brilliance
Liquid Scream – Tomorrow’s Outlook

Here’s our dimly lit and awful sounding interview with the bright and beautiful sounding Cherie Lily:

This week we interviewed Vetiver an American folk band led by singer-songwriter Andy Cabic. Vetiver is a great band for the outdoors and I’ve been listening to their latest release “Tight Knit” over and over this summer. For more information on the band (tour dates and all that) check out here and here.

Also, here’s a couple free downloads, courtesy of Sub Pop Records:

Everyday and Strictly Rule

Enjoy!

Who are your favorite musicians? Is the music you listen to similar to the music you write?

It’s hard to pick favorites, and I listen to a lot of different artists, all the time. Skeeter Davis, Slapp Happy, Michael Hurley, Fleetwood Mac, Erasmo Carlos…it’s an endless litany, my favorite music.

I’m not sure I hear obvious similarities, but perhaps there are allusions in the details, in the feeling, between the music I write and artists I admire.

Last year you recorded some covers of older folks artists (Townes Van Zandt, Michael Hurley…etc) How did you begin to admire these artists? What sort of influence have they had on you?

The way I came to know each songs we recorded on “thing of the past” is different. Some I stumbled across myself in record stores, others were passed onto me through friends. Each has made it’s own unique impact on me lyrically, melodically, in sound and feeling, both just listening to them a lot, and by learning them and recording them with my friends.

How is it different playing and composing a song on your own and playing with a full band?

Writing on my own feels private and obscure. Sharing and reworking the songs with others often lends clarity and insight, providing an opportunity for new perspectives, and adding greater emotional resonance to the songs.

What made you choose the title “Tight Knit” for your latest album?

I chose the title because I thought it fit the album and the artwork, and the pocket my band had been playing in up to and during the recording of the album.

There are lots of names that people have used to describe your music and the music of other artists you’ve work with (Psych Folk, Freak Folk, Naturalismo just to name a few). Do you like the idea that you are part of a certain movement of music or do feel limited by the categorizing?

I don’t care one way or the other. I like that people listen to my music. Categorizing things by nature limits them, tries to define perception, and I don’t find that necessarily useful, though others might.

How did your music relationship with Devendra Banhart begin?

In San Francisco years ago, on a foggy night, at his apartment, sharing songs and wine.

Where do you write your songs? Do you purposely sit down to write or do the ideas build up in your head?

Yes, all of the above. There’s no one way to go about these things. at some point sitting down to write is required and I find being in comfortable, familiar surroundings helps.

Do you have any reoccurring dreams or a particularly interesting dream to share?

I don’t often remember my dreams, so no.

What should a great song do?

It should make you want to listen to it again.

If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go and why?

I’m not sure. I’d have to think about that. Maybe Thailand. Or Patagonia. Some place with a combination of natural beauty and remoteness.

What was the last delicious thing you ate?

Collard greens from Sandra Dee’s in Sacramento.

I love the last song (“At Forest Edge”) on your latest album; what was the inspiration behind those lyrics?

The lyrics are inspired by the melody. I expanded from one line or image to peek inside a mythic vignette about disorientation and desire.

Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever seen one?

I’m not sure if I believe in ghosts or not, probably because I haven’t ever seen one.

Hello everyone!!!!!!!

Why did I use seven exclamation marks in my greeting as opposed to the typical one? Because today we’ve got a new interview with exclamation mark enthusiast Angelo Spencer!!! Angelo Spencer is a modern day one-man-band, playing guitar and drums at the same time. He is a very fun musician to see live, but if you can’t make it to his shows you can check out his music here.

Enjoy!

For those who are not familiar, can you tell us about your music?

So first of all I play as a one man band (bass drum, hi-hat, guitar and sing all at the same time), but usually people with that set up tend to play garage rock n’ roll, for some reason I don’t really fit in there, especially these days cos’ I’ve been adding a lot of African influence in there, especially from Mali, Nigeria, Touareg music…I’m trying to get rid of my indie rock influence! So I’m halfway in between right now, give me a few years and I’ll be a trance one man band!

When I saw you in New Paltz I remember you were talking about another one-man-band musician that you admired. I remember him sounding  interesting, but I forgot his name. Can you remind me and tell us all some more?

Hasil Adkins! I’ve got a song about him, probably the first rock n’ roll one man band!
Maybe I was also mentioning Abner Jay, which was a black musician who was in minstrel  shows and later started playing solo as a one man band, he had his own style, nobody plays like him, he has this powerful voice and some really intense songs…
He’s unbelievable!!! A compilation LP came out a few month ago on Mississippi records. so good!

What’s on the horizon for you artistically?

Trance!

How do you go about writing your songs? What’s the first step and what’s the last?

Most of the time I have the music and then I try to put some words on it, but for the past couple years no words came out so my new album is just gonna be instrumental! I try to keep everything really simple, usually I try to use just one or two chords.

You’ll be playing the “What The Heck” festival towards the end of July. Lots of cool people will be playing there. How did you get involved with that? What are you most looking forward to?

Well, what the heck fest is basically a get together of friends organized by Phil from Mount Eerie and Bret from D+ so we all know each other, it’s the most laid back festival ever.
I’m excited to see all of them but especially Earth and Wolves in the throne room, that’s gonna be their first time at What the heck and they’re gonna bring a new crowd which is gonna be pretty interesting!

You’re living in Olympia now, but you are originally from France. Do you miss life in France? Is that where you grew up?

I was born in France and I grew up in the Alps near Geneva. I moved to Seattle 4 years ago, stayed there for a year and then moved to Olympia.
I miss some of the food from France and Italy! for sure, but I go back to France almost once a year so I can get what I missed for a while and then I’ll be good until the next time!

How did the “Antsy Pants” project develop? Can you share a story from that experience?

Well, Leo who’s in the band Coming Soon used to live in the same town as me, a small town called Annecy. He recorded an album when he was 12 there, I gave a copy to Kimya [Dawson] on my first trip to the U.S and she loved it so much that she decided to record an album with him.
The next time she came to Annecy, Antsy Pants was recorded. that was a really fast and fun project!

As a kid what did you do for fun? What’s your favorite children’s book?

When I was younger I use to live in small village up in the mountains, I would do a lot of ski in winter and the rest of the time a lot of bike! biking in the small trails was the best thing in the world for me, especially if there was so mud!!! Me and my friends would come back home covered with mud! Our parents would sprayed us with hoses outside to clean us up!
I don’t really remember books that I liked when I was a kid but my life changed when I discovered Stephen King when I was 11 or 12!!!

If you were forced to travel to a different time and live there for a change, where would you go and why?

I’ve always wanted to go back in the early sixties around San Francisco…
But I just read a book about Alexandra David-Neel, she was a French Orientalist at the begining of the 20th century, she went all over the place, what she wrote about it is really powerful! That’s where I would want to go Tibet, Sikkim, Japan, Marocco at the beginning of the 20th century! no Tourist!

Off the top of your head, what are your top four animals? (you may include extinct ones too)

Bouquetins, Bears, goats, dogs.

A bouquetin

Lastly, a two-part question we ask everyone, a) Do you believe in ghosts, b) Do you believe in true love?

I believe in ghosts, I had a couple experiences when I was a kid, but maybe I was just a kid…
We probably all have our own definition of true love… but yes I believe in true love definitely!

Hey there! Below is an interview with Sven Woodside, the bassist for the band Voicst. Voicst are a three-piece rock group based out of Amsterdam. You can check out their music here and learn more about them here. Enjoy:

First off, for those who don’t know the band, how would you describe your music? Who are your influences and all that?

The classic dreaded question, “describe your music”! We’ve been saying pop/rock with a twist. Our influences are numerous. There are three of us in the band and all with overlapping tastes in music but also with some extremely varied choices too. Joppe (the drummer) can be woken up in the middle of the night with anything by the Melvins. Big Melvins music lover. Tjeerd
(guitar/vocals) can listen to listen to Outkast to Queens of the Stone Age….I myself (bass player) have a thing for more folky styles. Joni Mitchell’s Blue is my all time favorite record. Belgian band Millionaire was a big influence on us when their record “Outside the Simian Flock” came out. Awesome record. All three of us basically love music period.

What’s on the horizon now for Voicst?

We are currently working on writing material for our third record. We sequester ourselves off in the woods as much as possible getting ideas down paper, and in zero’s and ones. Our laptops have become our mobile recording studios. In August we’re off to South Africa to play a couple weeks of shows and everyone is very much looking forward to this. Luckily enough we can bring our extended band which consists of another guitar player, a baritone sax and a keyboard
player. They help breathe more life into the songs from our second record “A Tale Of Two Devils”. In the fall we will be releasing this record in Germany and so also taking a few excursions to play various live shows there. Starting off small.

You guys are from Amsterdam. I got to visit the city real quick last Spring. What are the best and worst parts of living in the ‘Venice of the North’?

The worst parts I guess are all the stereotypes. That’s probably the case every where though.  Here in Amsterdam we get them with the drugs and red light districts and some people think that that is all there is to offer. But no. Amsterdam has lots of culture, a beautiful watery feel to it with the canals. But cities are cities and so also have their hustle and bustle which can run you
down. The best things about living in Amsterdam are also some of the worst things. Being a ‘world renown’ city and having such ‘drug laws’ we do get a lot of great bands coming though every year. Many bands start off in Amsterdam or end up in Amsterdam at the end of tours which can led to quite interesting and passionate shows. Great inspiration. Amsterdam is also relatively small, i.e. not to sprawling like lots of big cities, so it has an almost small town vibe to it which is very nice – considering it is still a so called world class city.

You’ve played small shows in Europe, you’ve done festivals and you’ve done some tours in America. How are all these different settings different? Which is your favorite to perform in?

We have played shows ranging from 80,000 to three friends. All have their charms and all have their downsides. Huge festivals can be very impersonal on the one hand as you’re usually up on a high stage back away 20 meter’s from the first person in the crowd. But they can give back sooo much energy though when it all comes together. We played at the Pinkpop festival in 2008 here in Holland and to see 10,000 people all singing along and dancing to your songs is quite something. Small venues are usually easier – not all the time though! Getting up close you can actually look people directly in their eyes and see expressions more. It’s much more personal and usually a more intimate experience for all involved. The sound is not always the best but personally I prefer these kinds of smaller venues/shows where I can take three steps and be
playing my bass between the crowd.

What’s the most outrageous things that’s happened to the band on the road or at a show?

These kinds of things are usually unpleasantly discovered on camera’s the day after and quickly deleted from memory and never spoken of outside the confinement of the tour bus….

In your earlier years you got to open some shows for the likes of Nada Surf, The Ravonettes and Tenacious D. How was that experience? Any funny stories to share?

I think Nada Surf was one of the first ‘bigger’ bands we opened for. We actually got the spot after we played a live Dutch radio show (VPRO 3voor12.nl) and we had given them a couple home made cd demo’s. The next day they did an interview with some online magazine and only talked about our demo with the interviewer… heheh….. So I guess we stuck and were able to support them in Holland. With Tenacious D they asked the venue they were playing in three days before the show to submit four bands for them to choose from as a support act. We got picked to open for their only European show. We were very honoured. Last year we bumped into Kyle Gass at our Pinkpop show and he remembered us from way back then. Had some very funny things to say but I cannot remember them now. Any way, what goes on on the road stays on the road, right?

If Voicst were a mythological creature what would it look like and what would be its powers?

Tough one…. eh. Maybe something like a Hyrda, a three headed hydra. While one head soothes and lulls you into feeling happy with music (singing?) another can talk to you with powerful lyrics that let you understand, or perceive the world around you (in your own way), and the third rejuvenates you simply by looking at you… something like that. I guess D&D back in the 80′s is a prerequisite for this question huh…

If you could spend a romantic evening with three famous women (living or dead) who would they be and why?

Intriguing questions! Well apparently Helen of Troy had a face that could launch a thousand ships. I think that’d be interesting evening if the statement is true. Another two is too much to think about at the moment…..

You’ve got a whole string of shows this August in South Africa. How did that tour get set up? What are you looking forward to most about those shows?

Oh we are REALLY looking forward to playing in South Africa. Anywhere we’ve never been before is always such a new challenge. We can start fresh and try to win over the audience from point zero. It’s tough but lots of fun. So I guess playing shows for people who’ve maybe never heard of us before, in smaller bars, cafe’s, clubs – I think these are the really fun shows to play most times.
The tour was set up by the the lovely people from Oppikoppi and our booker here in Holland at Friendly Fire. The people form Oppikoppi had seen us play (a couple of times actually) at the Eurosonic/Noorderslag festival in Holland, I think last year. And I think we originally wanted to go last year but because we had commitments at the time in the Netherlands we couldn’t. Now we can!

How does the ideal Voicst show go?

An ideal Voicst show is full of energy and good vibes that leaves you with a feeling of ‘I want more’ and with inspiration to go and make music, or do something creative yourself. We try to bring across our enthusiasm and love of music, and the energy it gives us. Hopefully some rubs off and people leave a show stoked.

How does the band go about writing songs? Does one person come up with an entire idea, or is it more collaborative?

It varies. In most cases some one has a basic idea (usually Tjeerd) and brings it to the practice space where it will get worked out and beaten up a little before emerging on the other side as something Voicst. Some times the song is more or less finished when it arrives in the practice space and then everyone adds their own touches.

And lastly, a two-part question we like to ask every artist, A) Do you believe in true love? B) Do you believe in ghosts?

I do believe in true love, yes. And yes I believe in ghosts because my true love can see them.

Hey everyone,

We got to do a quick e-mail exchange interview with Mr. Andrew Strasser the mastermind behind “Bad Brilliance.”  In his own words, Bad B “wobbles around town looking for high society events so that he can be escorted out of them gently.”  Bad Brilliance is a rap artist who has worked with Andrew W.K and Girl Talk.  For more info you can check out his website or listen to some tracks on his myspace. You can catch him performing or wobbling through NYC, check out Santo’s Party House for possible dates.  His EP “Red Carpet To Nowhere” comes out soon on Skyscraper Music Maker.

You may not know Bad Brilliance now, but (if this interview is any indication) you will soon. Enjoy:

What inspired you to create Bad Brilliance?

Outdoing all socialites and brands by becoming both in one.

How apart from Andrew Strasser is the Bad Brilliance character? Does Bad Brilliance have his own personality? Likes or dislikes?

Andrew Strasser is far more polite, Bad Brilliance gets more women.
Bad Brilliance likes being seen, and he likes being in the spotlight.
Andrew Strasser likes eating thai food and cuddling.

What projects do you have planned in the future for Bad Brilliance?

Bad Brilliance is unrolling his Red Carpet to Nowhere.
It will be an EP and also the live show.  I am doing an Adult Swim event tomorrow where I will try it for the first time.  It is very important to have event photographers to either side of the carpet.  Anybody is allowed to walk on it and be photographed.  They will feel quite glamorous.

How did your relationship with Andrew W.K develop?

I showed him some strange images on Myspace, and he responded the next morning. I was shivering, and when we spoke on the phone I told him I wanted to meet at McDonalds.  After that it has been really cram packed with G Chat conversations.

The “strange images”

How does the ideal Bad Brilliance show progress? How is the audience? What is the overall atmosphere you are reaching towards? What should people be thinking as they leave your shows?

The ultimate Bad Brilliance show that I can think of when the budget for it rolls in will be to have a YELLOW HUMMER and a RED HUMMER on either side of the stage.  Out of each car would leap an Afghan hound in opposite colors (died fur).  When the door swings open you would notice Milfs seated in the car, fully covered with plastic surgery and with an abundance of fake fur coats strewn across their necks.

At that point you would hear the heaviest heaviest beat, the rest is for the world to find out.

Your website has a few mentions of Bad Brilliance being escorted out…can you share a story of Bad Brilliance running into security trouble?

It has happened twice.  The first time was at the launch of an Andy Warhol inspired fragrance at a high end fragrance boutique in Manhattan.  There were many older people and a few young society people, many had sour looks on their faces.   A young man in a suit grabbed me by the arm and dragged me out “excuse me you have to go”, he just repeated over and over.

The second time was at the Guggenheim for the Young Collector’s Council Annual Artist’s Ball.  I went with Sophia Lamar, and when she lost sight of me a beautiful woman held my hand – of course I followed her wherever she would take me.  At that moment two goons flanked me and escorted me out.

In a previous interview you mentioned that you prefer “rap” over “hip-hop” because it has less “integrity” and gets closer to “just the pure syrup.” I found this ‘syrup’ concept very interesting. Could you explain it a bit more? Does this quest towards the purer syrup extend outside of music? Any advice on how to reach it?

Attached are three images of Lycopene, it is what makes Tomatos and Ketchup Red.  One is a logo that I created using the Coca Cola font and the other two are the chemical extracts in a vile and in powder form.  It is an Anti Oxidant.  That is all that I can say for now.

Lycopene, the secret to the syrup?

Bad Brilliance is clearly a socialite. Who would be your top three celebrities to shmooze with for a night and why?

1. Kat Williams
2. Martin Lawrence
3. Pavarotti

I think it’s pretty self explanatory

How ambitious are your plans for Bad Brilliance? Is he a long-term project? What are your goals from this point?

Bad Brilliance will eventually become a franchise, you will be able to buy a costume and attend live events yourself.  The cost of buying into the franchise is undetermined, but a foundation will be built to run it for however long, 500 years? 800 years?  I’m sure the costume will evolve.

What artists are you listening to recently?

I am listening to dubstep remixes of female vocalists:
La Roux – In For The Kill (Skream’s Let’s Get Ravey Mix)

La Roux – ‘Bulletproof (Foamo Dubstep Remix)’

and
Adele – Hometown Glory (Chewy Chocolate Cookies Remix)

Clownstep you tubes:
here, here, here, here, and here

Where are you most comfortable?

Out of costume: Applebees/Outback Steakhouse/Cheesecake Factory
In costume: The Hamptons or Miami

Where are you least comfortable?

Out of Costume: with a girl (very shy)
In Costume: without a girl (bad b likes girls at all times)

Tell us about your song-writing process. What is your first step in writing a song and what is your main goal for the final product?

First I pick a bass drum and a hand clap, and I EQ each one and Compress it, add LFO to them until they sound just perfect, then I tap out a beat – the rest is up to chance.

My main goal for the final product is to make a Rap song that if you’d hear it on HOT 97 you’d be like “HOLY FUCK WHAT IS THIS?”

Lastly a two-part question that we try to ask every artist: Do you believe in true love? Do you believe in ghosts?

I believe that if you believe in true love, that you will also want to believe in ghosts so that you can meet your partner in the afterlife.