|
| by jack marck (canopyplayer) | |
It was raining in the city of Orange and Blue. A hard rain. I pulled my bike up next to the bar where I supposed to meet my contact.
And thus began a very fun and informative evening with the members of the C-U band Relenter. The history of the band as related to me by Chris Parker (vocalist/guitarist), Rob Martz (keyboardist), and Kenny Flores (drummer), was very interesting. Through the Mirror is an album three years in the making. Initially, it was intended to be a studio project only. In fact, when Martz was approached about possibly playing for this studio project, his first reaction was to decline: "I was so busy with work (Martz works at C.V. Lloyd's), that I felt I wouldn't have time for a band...a studio project wouldn't be as time consuming though and it would be good to work with other musicians." At the recommendation of a friend living in Champaign, Kenny Flores (who was living in Danville at the time and currently resides in Covington, IN), responded to a flyer. Parker and Martz were looking for something very specific and Flores fit the bill perfectly. Eventually, Parker, Martz, and Flores (formerly of Alliance) decided to take their project to a live, performance level.
When asked about the band name, which I had quietly wondered about for some time, Martz replied "We looked in a dictionary, found a word that kind of fit and added 'er' to it. People ask us and I have to admit, there's no cool story, it doesn't mean anything. It just looked cool and sounded cool." Thus, in the summer of 2003, under their new name they began recording Through the Mirror at Martz's studio. Parker remembers the experience somewhat less than affectionately, but with a degree of humor: "We did vocals in July or August of 2003. Rob's A/C was not working very well and we couldn't have it on while we were recording so we had bags of ice in coolers and fans to try to keep the temperature down. If we could get it down to 97, we were doing really well. We only recorded in the evening and we turned the lights off to keep it as cool as possible. Rob has an atomic clock with a very accurate thermometer and it was around 100 pretty much the whole time."
The band has been together for sometime now and has played quite a respectable number of shows, including the recent Openingbands showcase, and when asked about how they approach their live show, Martz replied "We do use some backing tracks, but even those were played by one of us at one time." Parker also emphasized the musicianship present in their live performances "We don't pretend to play anything live, we can play everything [you hear] we have played everything...It's something different, Terminus Victor and i:Scintilla are similar but we're a little lighter, more electronic rock than industrial...Very similar to Depeche Mode and The Cure."
This is one band that has displayed remarkable stability and staying power. Martz mentioned how "getting to know each other and developing relationships has been a lot of fun and it's worked for a few years now...we've had a real good response." When asked about their plans for the future, Parker replied "We're working to promote out of town, especially on the Internet with sites like Myspace.com and our website. [We're] just taking it one step at a time."
|  |
| by nathan schwalm (mythox007) / joseph m. pence (notaninja) | |
1. The Finest Thread
2. Bombshell
3. I Said to Her
4. Through the Mirror
5. Homefront
6. Strange
7. Scarred
8. In the Beginning
9. So Inclined
10. Strange [Acoustic]
11. I Said to Her [acoustic]
Review #1 - Joe Pence
One thing I think that sets Relenter apart the most is how what they're doing is so set apart from so many other bands. In Through the Mirror, the band rely on a heavy emphasis on composition, taking songs to near orchestratic heights of production and instrumentation for a three-man rock band. Even in the flickering immediacy of "The Finest Thread," the album's opener, the band set off to a running start with an electro-rock pulse of heavy drumming, staccato keys, and angling guitar hooks, then broaden this, adding an overlay of choral bells and string arrangement to intesify the song's blinding pace even further. "Bombshell" complements a wash of guitars and stormy ride cymbals with synthetic bass and an overtone of atmospherics -- a song for midnight halogen streetlamps and empty sidewalks.
In the song "Scarred," the band take one keyboard phrase at the opening and permutate it, shaping and changing a motif to create these memorable passages that you carry with you. Similarly, at one point in the song "So Inclined," marcato string samples, piano, cymbals, and hi-hats are on high; guitar and synthesizer in the midtones; and drums in the lower registry. "Strange" soars with flaring synth brass and staggering guitars, but the real impactful thing about the song is the way vocals are doubled between Chris Parker and Robert Martz to sing both flat and sharp, acting as both the carrier and the signal. The album ends with acoustic reworkings of "Strange" as well as the ballad "I Said to Her," which highlight the band's desire to incorporate everything from wooden drums, violin and piano into existing songs.
Drawing from both Robert Smith as well as Rob Orzabol (I'm talking "Listen" just as much as something like "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"), Relenter is impressively produced synth-rock that, while not as menacing as, say, Tones on Tail, also resounds alongside darkwave and other elements of the goth/industrial scene. At the same time, though a bit harder than their influences, Relenter harbor an ardor for new wave pop that will continue to be relevant and popular 20 years from now.
Review #2 - Nathan Schwalm
This album contains modern day synth-influenced alternative rock with goth and darkwave elements. Imagine the vocals of Echoing Green with assorted band members from Depeche Mode in Black Celebration, early Love and Rockets, and Seventeen Seconds-era of The Cure as a group trying to mold the sounds heard here.
What surprised me throughout this recording are the mellow tracks being the most well-written and the strongest tunes on "Through the Mirror." "Strange (Acoustic)" and "I Said to Her (Acoustic)" (the bonus tracks) both contain beautiful melodic tones from the vocals with piano, cello, and violin swirling around the fuzzy acoustic versions (which I personally like more than the original versions). "In the Beginning" is a piano-based instrumental passage in the middle of a thunderstorm with heavy rain being the back-up band with a little help from the strings.
Besides the groovy ballads, there are a few gems such as: "The Finest Thread" with its Music for the Masses-era Depeche Mode with more emphasis on guitars than the drums or programming. The harmonies contained on " Homefront" are excellent with the power ballad of past pop recordings drenched with simple productions (no "over-polished" Phil Spector stuff here) without the glossy sound. A big standout track for the rockers and to put on the "repeat mode" is the synth-friendly rocker "Scarred," I only complain for louder drums on this tune.
Through the Mirror is a strong debut that deserves its credit for being melodic, keyboard friendly, and containing modern sounds without going into the trend of copying new wave music from 1981 like 500 other bands in the current state of modern rock music.
| |
| by chris earnhart (Pocket) | |
(Note: ordinarily, this would have gone up on the front page shortly after the show, but as the band of the month, Relenter, was playing, we decided to wait and put it up with the rest of the Relenter content.)
As you may or may not have heard (meaning you either did or you didn't...), Openingbands had a benefit show on March 17. I decided that as the president, only my unbiased opinion would suffice in covering what we in the business refer to as "the scoop." Well, on with the show!
The Opportunists took the stage first. They were already set up, as I had foolishly chosen to walk, and so made it to the concert late. But their two drums and two guitarists went wailing away in a flurry of punk, semi-punk, and indie songs, interrupted with the occasional social commentary. They definitely pulled at my punk heartstrings, but I think the abrasive vocals might be too much for some. High energy and two drummers, that's The Opportunists.
Next was this month's band of the month, Relenter (make sure you check out their interview and album reviews). Relenter has really fleshed out their music and made it faster, and they showed that on stage. With a keyboard, guitar, and drums, they make rock'n'roll with haunting vocals. It was a great set and showed why their latest album, Through the Mirror, is worth checking out. The highlight of their set, for me, was hearing "Bombshell" live.
JigGsaw set up quickly, and the show went on. Their mixture of power-pop and straight rock was fun, as always. They played hard and fast, and the front crowd sang along to "Holly Brown," which may have been my highlight of the night. It's one of those catchy, fun songs that you like getting stuck in your head, and it was a fun set. If you like rock with some punk influences, then head out to one of their other shows.
Fourth came The Greedy Loves, a surprise hit with many who had not heard them before, and an old great for those who had. Let me give you a tip: check out their website. It's funny. I'll say that they are a kick-ass new school rock band. But don't take my word for it, read for yourself...errm, on their website, where you can download pretty much any song they played at the show. You might notice that they are really cool.
As the crowd fluctuated, the music changed with i:scintilla's electronic, drum machine rock. These guys really get into their music. A darker sound pervades, even in the vocals of lead singer, Brittany. They compose their songs very well, with great guitars and background tracks. And, while the music is haunting at times, it builds into heavy rock. This is one of those bands where I can really feel the music, and I think it's because they do too.
And last but not least (as they say on your planet) came Terminus Victor. You know a good band when the bass makes your heart skip a beat, and it isn't because you are feeling sentimental. They played almost all new songs, which will all be on their upcoming album, Under Surveillance. The music was as good and as hard as always, and I was hoping for a headstand or kicked head, but ended up okay with a headache from rocking out (the feel good kind).
All in all, it was a great night. Thanks to everyone who came out to support local music, and thanks to all the bands who gave up their nights to help us out. I hope you had fun, because I know I did. And seeing six bands in a row makes me look forward to the upcoming Band Jam (which The Greedy Loves, i:scintilla, and Terminus Victor will be playing). See you there!
| |
| by phil prather (AnalogBoy) | |
March 4 may be hard for some people on campus to remember. Unofficial St. Patrick's Day had campus full of drunken students yelling and parading around campus town. A block away from that mayhem, there was a show at the Courtyard Café. After the show I was able to sit down with four guys from Decatur as they were loading out their equipment to ask them some questions about who they are and this band they play in called Sherlock.
Sherlock started in April 2004 when friends Derek Porter (vocals/guitar) and John Scott (vocals/bass) decided to start a band together to try something new. They had each been in bands before and wanted to try something together for a change. "It felt much more at home," Porter said, when comparing his experiences in other bands to when he and John started Sherlock. Derek and John then recruited Ted Rundquist (drums) from one of Johns old bands to complete the line-up.
"We started as a three-piece, always looking for the fourth member. We started playing shows over the summer. Then we found Chad in the fall" said John. Chad Molloy (guitar/keyboards) became the fourth member to solidify the Sherlock line-up.
Phil: How did you guys find Chad?
Derek: We found him on Myspace, so Myspace is good for something.
Phil: Ah, the wonders of Myspace. (Laughs)
Chad: It's so sad. (Group laughs)
Sherlock's' first CD is a self-released five-song EP. The CD was produced and recorded with Jerrad Wilson from Danville and was recorded for free. "We both complemented each other" Derek says, describing the making of the CD. "It was a really fun experience" he added.
Chad: My portion of it was all over-dubs.
Derek: We recorded Chad's parts about two months after we recorded every other track.
John: Something ironic; we recorded the vocals in a tiny little dorm room at ISU. Which is not much of a studio.
Derek: But it still worked out.
Ted: We recorded the rest of it in John's basement.
Sherlock's musical influences range from Cursive and the Mars Volta to pop outlets like Michael Jackson and Green Day. "Britney Spears" adds Chad, jokingly.
Derek: Vocally we're really poppy I think...
Ted: Vocally we're a lot like Taking Back Sunday.
John: I doubt it.
Derek: We do a lot of vocal swapping like that, but other than that I don't think so. Our melodies don't really remind me of Taking Back Sunday.
Chad: We have Beach Boy-like harmonies.
Derek: We actually do have a lot of Beach Boy influences. I purposely put that as a Myspace influence.
Phil: Again with the Myspace...
Chad: Myspace is for friends.
Phil: What are some of your favorite bands to play with?
Band: Give Her a Zerbert, J.A.C.K., Blame Twilight, Greenwood, the Infinity Room.
Chad: A new band that we recently played was So Long Forgotten, they're great guys.
Phil: What do you want people to think when they've left a Sherlock show?
Ted: I want them to think that we're creative and not just another band.
Derek: We're not trying to be the typical band. We're trying to really please ourselves and be as musically creative as we can, and we really hope people like that.
Chad: I want people to feel like they got their money's worth. I hate leaving a show thinking, ‘Oh, I lost that money." I hope people who come to our shows feel like they got what they paid for.
Right now Sherlock is looking to play as many shows as possible in order to get their name out there and be heard. They plan to tour for a few weeks during the summer in the Midwest and possibly the east coast. They also hope to catch record label attention with their first self-titled EP.
Record label or not, Sherlock puts on a good show and enjoy talking to all the people who come to their shows. Be sure to catch them if you get the chance. And by the way, Chad Molloy also adds "All four of us are on Myspace."
Sherlock can be reached at www.sherlockrock.com.
(Sherlock has no contract with Myspace.com and they are not working to promote the website. It just happened to come up a number of times in this interview.)
| |
| by joseph m. pence (notaninja) | |
An edited version of this interview originally appeared in The Hub's April 21st, 2005 issue. Please visit www.thehubweekly.com for more information on that publication.
---
The Austin band ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead are just as well-known for their cataclysmic, destructive onstage personalities as they are for the spiralling, melodically triumphant songs they write. Tonight, the band brings both these assets to town in support of Worlds Apart, their ambitious followup to their landmark album Source Tags & Codes. We had a chance to speak with Conrad Keely, the band's oftentimes songwriter, vocalist, guitarist, and visual artist; who gave us some insight on the band's philosophy - past, present, and future.
JP: My first question here is, could you give some of our readers the background of the band... I know you and Jason were choirboys, what denomination were you in and how long were you guys playing before you wound up on Interscope?
CK: The choirboys thing was a LIE!
[laughter]
JP: Who propogated that lie?
CK: We all did. We all thought it would be funny. We're not associated with churches. Jason's parents were both involved in churches, so there's some truth to that... but we're not choirboys.
JP: So it was just something thrown out to the press then?
CK: We used to really enjoy just any lie that we could really think of. Well, you know, 'we're all from Plano,' that was a lie. That 'the name came from some Mayan thing,' was a lie. But see I consider us as entertainers, when we lie, we're not really trying to hurt anyone, we're actually just trying to entertainment, I would like to think of our stories like Garrison Keeler's "Lake Woebegone," you know. People like to be entertained, they like to hear stories.
JP: So I guess the story gets spread and eventually becomes it's own truth?
CK: Sure, sure.
JP: How long were you guys playing before you wound up on Interscope?
CK: Well, for years, uh... I mean I started playing piano when I was twelve, and then I quickly learned guitar, Jason was playing the bands... see I was a little more methodical... see Jason would go out there and play in a band, play in a band, he must have been in ten or twelve bands by the time we started Trail of Dead. I was more, thinking and scheming what would be the band I would want to be in. It definitely took moving to Austin and having the freedom, by not really knowing anybody and not having anybody to really impress, that allowed us to do what we do.
JP: I've got some friends who are playing in Austin right now and they tell me it's like no place else in the United States.
CK: That is about the truth.
JP: I've got a question about the new album, Worlds Apart. I was reading some different press on it and they kept describing it as a concept album, I mean, what exactly is that concept about? From what I've heard, I may be completely wrong, but it sounds like it's about how we how take the world around us for granted in the modern age?
CK: That is one of the concepts -- but to me a concept album would entail that it has a narrative, and to me, this isn't a concept album because it doesn't have a narrative to it. And there is no single unifying theme: they're just like weird snips and segments. The marriage of old and new, you know, in music and musical technology. War is definitely a theme. Human conflict. I was thinking about human conflict and whether it was an innate part of our nature, and that was something that Leo Tolstoy brought up at the very end of "War & Peace." In fact, at that point the narrative of "War & Peace" basically was done, and for the last ten chapters or so he basically went on his theories on conflict and migrations of populations and about the causes of war. And so one of the things I was thinking of was whether conflict was something that was so innately human. That even when we are a highly advanced, starfaring civilization, are we're going to bring war with us, into the heavens, just because it's part of what we are, of what makes us up? I think that was really the idea behind the album art, you know.
JP: That's kind of what I gathered from the song "The Rest Will Follow" in that it seemed like it was almost this sort of spiritualism in that it's part of human nature to go against other people? I dunno, create situations that are just going to mess people up...
CK: Well, having said that, once we are aware of our nature, we can only change, you know?
JP: Mhmm. [pauses]
JP: Another question I have about most of the new album is, you have tympanis, you have strings -- when I listen to the opening of "The Rest Will Follow," I get this image of the heralds leading me into an imperial court or something. Why now? Why such a grandiose album?
CK: At this point in time? I think we've always wanted to grandiose records, even from the very beginning. This is just the first time we've actually been able to afford to do it. Definitely building our own studio helped a lot because we were able to, instead of spending money on studio time, we're spending it on collecting all these things, typamis, adding string sections, and having that all arranged.
JP: My next question is about the title track, "Worlds Apart," it just seems defiant, an outburst. I'm curious to know what was the moment, what was the news that inspired it?
CK: It was a reality show!
JP: [laughs] Which one specifically?
CK: "World's Apart." It was on the National Geographic Channel.
JP: Could you explain a little bit?
CK: What they did was take an American family, usually from the suburbs or middle America, often it was an upper middle-class family. For ten days they would have to live with in a remote part of the world, with natives from that area, either natives or nomads, and they would have to abide by their customs. And it was shocking -- It was shocking to see the attitudes that these Americans would bring into these cultures. One of my favorite quotes was this teenaged girl who lived with these nomads in Africa, said, "I hope this whole culture dies, along with their sheep!"
JP: [laughing] That's... that's horrendous!
CK: Isn't it? Isn't it a wonderful illustration of the American teen? The funny thing was it was the older people that had the hardest time coping. The children acclimated almost immediately. It was beautiful to watch these seven-year-olds, eight-year-olds, they didn't bat an eye at the change, they just went with it. But it was the teenagers that would complain about not having their privacy, not having their cellphones, they always hated it. But then by the seventh day, there was almost this spiritual kind of turn-around these people would have, and that's definitely when their attitudes started to change.
JP: You stated that the song "Smile Again" was loosely based on Brian Wilson completing his work on his "Smile" project. Are there songs of that you or the band have that are along the same lines, songs you feel like you won't be able to properly approach until, I don't know, say, late middle age?
CK: Well, definitely that song. That song was about the pain of the writing process, and thinking about Brian Wilson was encouraging to me because I was having a really tough time writing it.
JP: Kind of a different question, I wanted to know more about Neil's departure, I guess more specifically about Danny Wood from The Rise joining the group, how you guys wound up meeting him? Because it was like a one-two punch, I got into The Rise and maybe a month or a month and a half later, he was part of your band.
CK: They broke up...[laughs] Well, they didn't break up --
JP: Well, I mean because I knew there was kind of like a bit of a lull between their first album and -- what is it? The Reclamation Process.
CK: Well, those people are all over the world right now. One of them is in Southeast Asia or something. Ummm... we met Danny on tour with another band, he just kind of came along for the ride, and so, that was something we just, uh, we liked his personality even before we knew if he could play bass or not. But we've always picked our bandmates that way. It was just nice that he combined talent with the right personality type.
JP: This one kind of goes along the same lines but could you tell how the songs from the new album are incorporated into the live set? I haven't seen any shows from the new tour, what made the cut in terms of instruments and how you're performing it? I'm not sure if you're doing this in live performances, but for the record, I really dig the multiple percussionists, I think it's a thing of beauty.
CK: Yeah, yeah, we do. Umm, it's been a challenge, we haven't played all the songs right now. I'm really enjoying listened to "Best" right now, it's been fun.
JP: Guero?... I'm sorry? I'm sorry -- did you say Beck?
CK: "Best," one of the songs on the album. Nononono, not Beck. No, I've never, ever been a Beck fan. But my respect for him has really plummeted after I found out he was a Scientologist. What a weak-willed, weak-minded individual. Anyway, but, umm, as far as performing we have a keyboard player, we have an extra percussionist, and it allows us alot more a field to play.
JP: I was wondering what the chart on the back of Worlds Apart is, it's kind of an obscure question, but I was wondering what it is that has the "Impulse of Spirit," "Mercury," and "Gabriel" listed on it.
CK: Yeah, that's a diagram of Pythagoras's theorums of musical theory.
JP: Really?
CK: Yes. Oh, the circular one above is the "Chart of the Heavens" from a book called "The Secret Teachings of All Ages." And then the bottom one is Pythagoras's diagram of music theory. He had some really interesting ideas about it, he actually singlehandedly invented music theory.
JP: A long time ago, I read in an interview that the song "Heart in the Hand of the Matter" was based on the Cantonese film Fallen Angels, and based on that interview, I went and saw it. Kind of along the same reasons someone goes to see Un Chien Andelou based on "Debaser" or something like that. I was just curious if there were any other films are that you would espouse are the source or related to of any of your other songs and if so, which?
CK: Well you know the part where the woman is screaming "Don't go!" at the end of "The Best"? At the end of the record? That was based on a specific scene, the last scene of Heavenly Creatures, Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures.
JP: Oh yeah! I loved that movie.
CK: It also has a corollary in the movie Hero, where Zhang Ziyi's character is screaming for the death of her master, but I just love the sound of the wailing of a young girl, I just thought it was very eery and frightening, I had to try and duplicate it. Movies have always been a big inspiration. "Clair de Lune" was actually based off of Starship Troopers.
JP: [laughing] How did that come about?
CK: Well, it was actually about a girl but originally I didn't have any subject matter, so I wrote it about this movie I just saw and loved, but I fought with this girl, we had just broken up, and so she became the subject for the song. But it started with the idea of going to see Starship Troopers.
JP: You mention a lot your influence from The Who, Pink Floyd, Hunky Dory. I was wondering, you can tell in something like "All White," I don't know, I think "To Russia My Homeland" and "All White" are kind of like together almost...
CK: Great! I'm glad you think that, I kind of think of them as the same thing too.
JP: I was just curious, I can tell that you have your feet planted in the theatrical moments of rock opera. I guess this is a difficult question, but what do you think is the likelihood of someone taking on a rock opera these days, do you think the album narrative as a conceptual artform has ran its course?
CK: Not at all. Didn't it just happen? Beyonce Knowles just had a hip-hop opera. 'Hiphopera.' Have you heard of it? I think it was Orpheus or Carmon or something. I think it was great. People just don't realize how deep into our culture opera is. They just don't see it. They don't realize that music videos are opera. Or the Superbowl Half Time Show. I had just taken a course by Peter Greenberg, it's one of the lectures of the Teaching Company, about opera, how to understand opera, and even the history of opera, and you really realize that we've never lost it and we never will.
JP: It became subconscious in our culture I think
CK: Well, it's so old, it's one of the oldest forms of entertainment. I'm not talking about Western opera which started in the 1600's. Greek play, Greek tragedy, in fact the idea of opera as supposed by Gallileo's father, Giocommo Gallileo was to sing text this way. That was the whole motivation behind the creation of opera.
JP: This is kind of related, do you think that our methodology for judging albums has changed? I mean now you can get one track of a album in an mp3. Do you think that album rock has moved on?
CK: That depends on whoever's making the album, it has nothing to do with the record. People can download a track off this record and it can stand alone if they want it to. But for the listener to hear what the artist had in mind, they would definitely have to listen to the whole record. And we have certainly never thought of our records as a collection of tracks, we always thought of one album as one work, you know? If it comes to pass that artists stop thinking of it that way then it'll move on, but as long as there's artists who think of albums as one thought, well then there you go.
JP: I kind of worry that our culture-- our attention span --has been reduced to the point where we're not listening to things for the parts of the greater whole.
CK: Let me assure you you have nothing to worry about.
JP: I have three more questions and then I'm done, this is really for you personally, your sketches are like really amazing, I was wondering if you really have a break compared to some bands when it comes to album design because of your background as an artist? Do you think it makes it more difficult or easier?
CK: Easier to what?
JP: I mean, you guys have some sort say in the album design?
CK: No one has say but us.
JP: Does it make it easier as an artist to say, "Well this looks really good," or is it something that you have a lot of trouble with because you're a perfectionist or something like that?
CK: Umm, I don't know, I try not to be too perfectionist with it because it's really too painful, I spent two months on the album art after the record was completed, which is actually why it got held back, it had nothing to do with other releases. Well, it had something to do with other releases, but alot of it had to do with the artwork that had to be done.
JP: Yeah, I read that and the DVD were still in stages of completion.
CK: Right, all that stuff was still in the making.
JP: I got the Deluxe Edition and I had to say I was really impressed with it and everything that came with it.
CK: Oh, wow, did you read the paper?
JP: Yes! [laughs] It was a little difficult on my DVD player, I don't really have that big of a screen.
CK: [laughs] Yeah, I didn't really know what format they were going to put that in. I don't know, I guess my background was just as an artist, music was just something that came much later in my life, I've been drawing since age two. I think of music as just this soundtrack to my artwork. I was raised on the great artwork of Roger Dean and the hypnosis covers, you know that stuff.
JP: I know of people who get deeply and profoundly upset by the destruction of musical instruments, what exactly is your response to these people?
CK: Yeah, I really sorry for those people, I mean really. I don't think they realize a musical instrument is a tool, say in the same way a hammer is a tool. There's a lot of people who try to put a spiritual type of personality to an instrument, a kind of sacredness to an instrument. And I can understand that if the instrument is 400 years old, some kind of Kremona, they might definitely have a personality. But I can guarantee you these generic guitars we are using don't have much of that. The music, the instrument itself has no intrinsic value, you can't hunt an animal with a violin bow, you can't do anything with a guitar in nature other than to burn it for a fire. The only value an instrument has is the music it creates, its ability to entertain people. When we smash a guitar that guitar is doing everything it was meant to do. It's serving its purpose. So I guess the answer to your question, I understand if someone is screaming at me if they're too poor to own a guitar and they see me smashing it, and there was a time when I was too poor to own a guitar too, and I still smashed it.
JP: [laughs] One last question: a lot of attention has been on the papacy right now, if you were elected pope, what would your first papal bull, your first papal edict be?
CK: ABOLISH CATHOLICSM... can a pope do that?
JP: I think you'd have to give up the hat.
CK: [laughs, adding reluctantly] I'm sure I'd probably do something nice, I don't know. I wouldn't want hurt anybody's feelings.
JP: Thanks a whole lot for the interview and looking forward to seeing you at the Canopy on the 21st!
CK: See you then!
| |
|
|
Features
