Features / One Question Interviews

Tristan Shone (Author & Punisher)

SPB: You are well known for building your own instruments in Drone Machines, and they have been part of your music since the beginning. How has your process for creating or modifying these instruments changed through the years?  

Shone: In the beginning of A&P, I was in art school and my machines were …

Dennis Jagard (Ten Foot Pole-vocals/rhythm guitar/songwriter)

SPB: What was the most striking or memorable moment of your first practice when you reunited?

Jagard: It sounds silly, but my strongest memory is of us all pulling our cars up to the rehearsal area and seeing baby seats in nearly every car. We were no longer punk rock kids, we …

Chris Murphy (Seven Crows)

SPB: Coming from the band’s perspective, how does it feel in 2020 to release a new record (as compared to releasing a record under different circumstances with live shows etc)?

Murphy: 2020 has been a challenge from all perspectives but I’m trying to make the best of it.

My music background is in …

Mike Novak (Holler House – drums)

SPB: You released the split earlier this year. How different is it to release new music but not play live shows (do you expect the new songs to feel fresh when live music resumes)?

Novak: Yes, we did release a split earlier this year. It was an odd roll-out of an album... …

Tired of Everything

SPB: Who is your favorite 1970s artist? 

Will: Yes

Matt: The Cure

Dylan: The Doors

Eli: Motörhead

Markus (Van Dammes)

SPB: Do you listen to any Christmas or holiday music?

Markus: Christmas time particularly is very important to us because Santa Claus comes from our home country Finland. Then we usually listen only to Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight) by Ramones, except sometimes, when we listen to Weezer's Christmas EP or Joulusydän …

Eric Quach (Thisquietarmy)

SPB: In recording your new record, did any particular piece of gear (or combination) stand out for how it captured or delivered the final tone that you were seeking for the album?

Quach: Not anything in particular per se. Though to further elaborate that answer, here are some photos of our setup at Méduse Audio's …

Matt Bernard (Coach’s Son)

SPB: What is your favorite record store, locally or one that you’ve found while on tour?    

Bernard: By far our favorite record store is Princeton Record Exchange (PREX) in Princeton, New Jersey. We have been going there since we were kids. They are a small store located off the main drag of downtown Princeton, …

Big Chungus

SPB: Wet Cassettes released your latest so we think you may be biased. Anyway, rank your preference of music media formats for listening: cd, vinyl, cassette, digital, (other?)

Big Chungus: As a former subterranean creature, I, like so many of you human Americans, prefer things that taste good versus what's good for me. And yeah, I …

Nick Hertzberg (Wet Cassettes-owner)

SPB: What band has the best logo of all time?

Hertzberg: This is a tough one. First of all, as someone who grew up a metal-head, my mind goes THERE first. Most "ordinary bands" change fonts and imagery and don't have a logo that sticks with them during their tenure, right? But, when I …

Chase D. Spruiell (Big Loser)

SPB: What is the largest crowd you’ve played to (back when people did that)? Did you approach the set differently than a “normal” show?

Spruiell:

1. One time I was opening up for this famous K-Pop singer in San Francisco. I can’t remember her name, but she was playing a sold-out show …

Laura Larson (Scrunchies)

SPB: What is the highest number of bands you’ve been in at one time?

Larson:

Tony (Barren Womb)

SPB: Were there any amps, cabs or anything else that stood out in the studio when you recorded Lizard Lounge?

Tony: There was nothing very unusual about the amp setup for the Lizard Lounge recording sessions, in fact it was very similar to the setup we’ve been running live for years. I split my signal …

Jake Robertson (Alien Nosejob)

SPB: What was the inspiration to start Alien Nosejob?

Robertson: I listen to a lot of different types of music, but often bands are restricted to one style. I love hanging out with friends at the pub and band practice and all that, but I also have a fondness for locking myself in a …

John Payne (Heart & Lung-bass/vocals)

SPB:I hear you work closely with Karamu House. Tell us a bit about how you got involved and what it means to you, personally.

Payne: Karamu House is the oldest Black theater in the country, and virtually no one in Cleveland has ever heard of it! I most definitely hadn’t until I …

Kaelan Mikla

SPB: What piece of equipment is most essential or definitive or “the Kaelan Mikla sound”?

Kaelan Mikla: We feel like all our instruments and vocals are equally important as they all combine to create the Kælan Mikla sound, but the MF DRIVE by MOOG bass effect is one of our favorites. It has a brutal and …

Chris (Hey Colossus – guitar)

SPB: You’ve dubbed your backline “The Pirate Ship.” Care to tell us why? (And how you put it together?) 

Chris: The simple answer is: "Have you seen it?".

When we played Glastonbury we had to set all our gear up behind the stage on ramps so the crew could put it …

Jason (Chain Cult – bass)

SPB: What type of bass do you play and how did you choose it?

Jason: I have a simple fender jazz bass. Somebody, broke [into] my car and stole my previous one in an unfortunate event and I didnt have any money to buy a new one. So my friend Ilias from Lifewreck …

Larry Livermore (Lookout Records founder)

SPB: What studios played a role in defining “the Lookout sound” of the label’s early years?

Livermore: All the early Lookout releases were recorded in one of two studios. The first was Dangerous Rhythm, in Oakland, CA, run by Kevin Army and Matt Wallace (by the time we began working with Kevin in …

Todd Allen (Squarecrow)

SPB: What amps do you use, and how did you decide on that setup?

Allen: I upgraded from some random half stack with a Boss Metal Zone pedal to a Fender Deville 4x10 combo amp because I was playing in a rockabilly punk band at the time (2009). It makes noise, goes “crunch” when I …