Take Aim Zine

Adam McIlwee of Tigers Jaw

2011-12-21T21:08:00.000-08:00

I stand with Adam McIlwee in the kitchen of My Parents House, the former Spraynard residence and host to West Chester's best basement shows. The Tigers Jaw singer/guitarist takes a long pause to contemplate who his favourite character from 'The Office' is, while I nervously glance over at a hissing vat of pasta on the stove. Adam decides on intern turned failed CEO Ryan and the water starts to boil over. As we both rush over to turn the stove down, Tom May from The Menzingers and Corey Ciresi of Lee Corey Oswald enter the room. Insert 'How many band members from Scranton does it take to make spaghetti?' quip here. "Trying to steal my interview?" Adam jokes. Pat Graham of Spraynard walks in, apologizing for leaving the water on unattended and forgetting about it. Mystery solved and the interview can continue.

Take Aim Zine.: You're doing a few new solo songs tonight, what made you decide to pursue that?

Adam McIlwee: [Tigers Jaw] wanted to tour with Lee Corey Oswald, but the rest of the band couldn't do the tour, so they asked me if I'd just do it on my own and I said yes.

T.A.Z.: Did you already have songs?

A.M.: No. Well, I had some in mind and this put some pressure on me to finish them and have new stuff.

T.A.Z.: Are you recording your solo work?

A.M.: I already did. I have CDs with three songs.

T.A.Z.: I heard you're also doing a zine. Does that go along with the album?

A.M.: Well, I don't have that with me...

Pat: Ha, the way you said that sounded so sad!

A.M.: I mean, I don't have it ready for this tour. I wouldn't have been able to get it printed. It's unrelated [to the album], but it's all from me, so I guess there's something similar about everything.

T.A.Z.: Writing for one, I obviously love zines. Have you ever made one before?

A.M.: For school and stuff.

T.A.Z.: You made zines for projects? That's so cool!

A.M.: Yeah, for English class.

T.A.Z.: Tigers Jaw are working on a new album, how far into that are you guys?

A.M.: Not very. I know Ben has a song, I have one we've practiced a bit. We don't have that many songs finished and we've agreed to do a lot of other stuff, so it's going slowly.

Corey: Am I allowed to watch your interview?

T.A.Z.: Yes! You can participate if you want.

A.M.: I have to text my Mom, she sent me like four texts in a row.

Corey: I'll answer a question while he does that! Pretend I'm Adam though.

Pat: What's your favourite restaurant?

Corey: That's a good question. I'll go with Buona Pizza in downtown Scranton.

A.M.: I wouldn't say it like that... I don't get pizza there, only cheesesteaks. And hoagies.

[Note to foreign readers- A hoagie is what everyone outside of the PA/NJ/NY area calls a 'submarine sandwich.' Either way, both names are silly and they're delicious, so no arguments about it.]

T.A.Z.: Are Tigers Jaw playing Bamboozle again this year?

A.M.: *laughing* I don't think so. They haven't asked us yet and they would have by now.

T.A.Z.: I remember you saying the only other band you wanted to see that night was Das Racist and they were on at the same time as you guys.

A.M.: Yes! I was so bummed!

T.A.Z.: Did you ever get to see or talk to them?

A.M.: Nop,e, never did. I mean, I got to see a lot of other great bands, but I was looking forward to their set.

T.A.Z.: You do interviews on your blog with web comic artists and cartoonists, what are some of your favourite comics or graphic novels?

A.M.: Matt Seneca's 'Affected'... Anything by Jack Kirby. Batman.

T.A.Z.: You mention Kreayshawn on your blog a lot too.

A.M.: She's my inspiration! All the songs I'm doing tonight are because of her and her friends. I sample her in them.

T.A.Z.: Her friends? Like that other girl who just walks around and says two things in 'Gucci Gucci'?

A.M.: They just kicked her out! They're called 'The White Girl Mob' and Kreayshawn and V-Nasty kicked Li'l Debbie out!

T.A.Z.: *laughing* Her name is Li'l Debbie? I did not know that.

[note to foreign readers- Little Debbie is an American brand of pre-packaged desserts, so this is about as funny as a rapper with the nickname Tim Tam.]

A.M.: And V-Nasty just released an album with Gucci Mane.

T.A.Z.: Have you seen the fish taco parody of 'Gucci Gucci'? It's like the story of my life.

A.M.: No, I haven't. I'll have to look that up.

T.A.Z.: The girl in it looks exactly like her. So, do Tigers Jaw have any overseas tours planned for 2012?

A.M.: We want to do a million things, like go back to the U.K. and eventually get to California.

T.A.Z.: Australia?

A.M.: Oh yeah! Australia and Japan are my top two.

At this point, I asked a question about movies that somehow veered into everyone in the kitchen nerding out about MTV's 'True Life.' Fun fact: Corey almost had his own episode about being in a long-distance relationship.

T.A.Z.: What was your favourite piece of news in 2011?

A.M.: That Li'l Debbie got kicked out of Kreayshawn's crew. *laughs*

T.A.Z.: You should contact her and do an album together!

A.M.: I actually tried to get in touch with her on Twitter.

T.A.Z.: We'll send her this interview and make it happen!

A.M.: Yes!

So, if any of you out there personally know Li'l Debbie, get this to her ASAP. If you don't know her, Twitter link the crap out of this article to her. If you live in the US, be sure to make it out to Tigers Jaw's upcoming tour with Captain We're Sinking! and (on the second half of the tour) Balance & Composure. If you don't live in the US, buy Tigers Jaw's self titled album!

The Static Jacks interview

2011-11-09T13:23:00.000-08:00

Right before Halloween, I had a chat over the phone with The Static Jacks' guitarist, Henry Kaye before he played a sold-out show at Johnny Brendas opening for The Wombats. The New Jersey band recently released their debut album, If You're Young on Fearless Records; for a taste of their music, check out the new video for "Into the Sun" above!

Take Aim Zine: How was CMJ?

Henry Kaye: It was good, though pretty brief because we had to leave right away to start the tour we're on now with The Wombats. We played two shows, both went really well.

T.A.Z.: One was with We Are Scientists, right?

H.K.: Yeah, that was a really good one! It was a party for our management company, all these incredible bands. Quite the show to end on before starting this tour.

T.A.Z.: I know it's only a day in, but how is the tour going?

H.K.: Incredible! Last night we played in D.C. at the 9:30 Club. It's a pretty funny story, it was an early show, our start time was at 5:30, so the morning we left Jersey for D.C. we had van trouble and couldn't leave until the afternoon. After flooring it down to the show, we pulled up to the venue at 5:32, two minutes into our set, ran onstage and immediately started playing. The place was already packed with loads of people, we played a great show and everyone loved it. It was a crazy, whirlwind day. An interesting start, but so far, so good!

T.A.Z.: Oh phew, glad you guys made it! So, you guys are signed to Fearless and have a very different sound than other bands on the label.

H.K.: Oh, definitely.

T.A.Z.: What was the reaction when people found out you signed with them?

H.K.: I think Fearless fans don't mind. So far they seem to be into it, because we pull from early punk influences that a lot of these kids seem to like... We've gotten a number of new, younger fans at shows that treat us really well, give us candy bars and stuff. *laughs*

T.A.Z.: Had you heard of Fearless or were familiar with any of their bands before you signed to them?

H.K.: I never really listened to any of their current bands, but I love their earlier bands like At the Drive In. That had an impact on me. Oh, and Eve 6, who I really liked when I was younger.

T.A.Z.: Fearless is pretty famous for their 'Pop Goes...' series, would you ever do a cover for one of those in the future?

H.K.: Oh wow, I never really thought about that... It would be fun, but we never talked about it.

T.A.Z.: One of The Static Jacks' t-shirt designs is a play on The Misfits skull logo, are you big Misfits fans?

H.K.: They're one of our favourites, especially since they're from New Jersey as well. Ian, our singer, his voice always gets compared to Glenn Danzig's vocals and it's the greatest compliment ever.

T.A.Z.: Heck yeah, New Jersey! Is that how all of you met, in high school there?

H.K.: Myself, Nick (our drummer), and Ian are from Westfield, New Jersey. We started playing music together when we were 14, Freshman year of high school... Then after we graduated high school, we brought on Mike, our bass player who grew up a town over from us. So we're all from the same county in New Jersey.

T.A.Z.: Did you come to Philly a lot or were you more the New York type?

H.K.: We got our start playing in New York, but we went to Philly plenty of times. We're at Johnny Brendas now, we've also played World Cafe Live a few times. New York City is closer to us, but Philly is still only an hour and a half away.

T.A.Z.: You said on your Twitter that you're a big fan of Halloween, what are some of your favourite scary movies?

H.K.: It's not a movie, but I just downloaded all the Simpsons 'Treehouse of Horror' episodes.

T.A.Z.: Oh man, those are the best!

H.K: Yeah! I just like all those cartoon Halloween specials from the 90s. And the 'Boy Meets World' Halloween episode, you know, where it's a 'Scream' parody.

T.A.Z.: Yes! The one kid's name is Kenny and he gets killed with a pencil through the head!

H.K.: "They killed Kenny!"

T.A.Z.: The best line in the whole episode is where Corey points at the mark the pencil left behind and says, "We'll always remember he was this tall!"

H.K.: Classic television.

T.A.Z.: In one of your music videos, it shows you busking on the street, do you do that a lot?

H.K.: It's been a while, but there was a year or year and a half period where we would busk at Union Square in New York on a regular basis, like a few times a week. We just thought it was a really good way to get the word out and have people exposed to our in a different way from usual.

T.A.Z.: It is a pretty unique way of being heard.

H.K.: It's a great community and we got good responses. We did it when we were down at SXSW and in Montreal, we try to do it as much as we can.

T.A.Z.: I read a while back that The Static Jacks did a Daytrotter session, but I can't find it. Did they have to scrap it? What happened with that?

H.K.: *laughing* What happened was we got there to do it and unfortunately, after three hours of set-up and whatever, the engineer spilled coffee all over the mixing board, ruining all the tracking and everything we'd worked on.

T.A.Z.: Oh no!

H.K.: I can say though, that on Halloween we're doing another one in Austin, where they set up a new studio. So we're going back to do another one that will hopefully not have any problems and that will be online shortly.

T.A.Z.: Are you doing a show that night too?

H.K.: Sadly, no. We tried to get a Halloween show.... We're playing VooDoo Fest in New Orleans, so we're going to celebrate that weekend.

T.A.Z.: Are you working on any new material?

H.K.: Right after we made the album, we recorded an EP together, so it was around the same time of the creation of If You're Young.... I'm not even sure what the plan is for putting that out, but I imagine it'll be in a number of months and that'll be our follow-up. We're already prepared and one step ahead.

T.A.Z.: Another thing I saw on your Twitter is that you guys went to Marvel Comics headquarters. I'm super jealous! How'd you manage to get in there?

H.K.: Their website director, the editor for Marvel.com, he got our CD somehow and Tweeted about it as a thank you. We just got to talking and our publicist put us in touch, so we got to go to the headquarters and hang out for the day. Ian and I went over and did a short interview with them, got to meet the staff, and got a lot of free comics. It was one of the best days of my life.

T.A.Z.: Who's your favourite Marvel character or what's your favourite series?

H.K.: I have to say I like Spiderman best. There's one volume called 'Spiderman Blue' by Tim Sale, that's the best. And the early stuff with Gwen Stacy that Stan Lee wrote. So, I'm excited about the new movie coming out.

T.A.Z.: Oh yeah, because she's in it. Have you seen the preview for 'The Avengers?'

H.K.: Yes I have, they showed it to us when we were at the headquarters that day, before they prepared the world for that.

T.A.Z.: Wow, before anyone else! Well, that's about all the questions I have for today, thanks for talking with me and have a great show!

H.K.: Thanks, take care!

Back from the Morgue - Mad Sin in Australia

2011-11-02T02:33:00.000-07:00

This week Mad Sin kicks off their long awaited Australian tour with their first show in Brisbane on Thursday night featuring Casino Rumbles, Mouthguard and The Vampers. The German psychobilly legends are playing six shows across Australia which are sure to be wild and with a possibility of pyrotechnics. I spoke to singer Koefte de Ville about 'Burn and Rise', Psychobilly and Adam Ant.

Angie Hurlock

Released in 2010, 'Burn and Rise' is the eleventh album from Germany's Mad Sin. With an aim to return to more of a rockabilly sound with this latest album, the songs 'Nine Lives' and 'Sex, Love, Blood'n'Death' firmly cement the rockabilly roots of Mad Sin. “We started working on it [Burn and Rise] and it was our plan to get back to our roots which are more rockabilly and early punk stuff. The album we did before we went a little too far with the sound and it was too fast.” During the writing of the album, Mad Sin suffered the loss friends which affected the album making it very autobiographical and influencing the title. “A lot of shit happened to us, a lot of people died, shit happened in our private lives when we were in the process of writing the songs. We didn't want to do a dark album with depressive sort of stuff. We thought the people that we lost wouldn't want that, they would want us to have a big fucking party. So we came up with the idea of calling 'Burn and Rise', burn the old shit and rise up again”.

Despite most songs on the album being written in English, there are a handful of songs in Koefte's native tongue, German. Mostly Mad Sin songs are in English to reach a larger audience however, with the emotive nature of 'Burn and Rise', Koefte found the words for some songs felt more organic in German. “There is one song, 'Für Immer' which is really a love song. I split up with my girlfriend when all that shit was happening and I wrote the song in German because it came from my heart, it came naturally. Geisterfahrer, I always wanted to do that song because we just love that title. Geisterfahrer, which is the word for the guys that drive on the wrong side of the road, its kinda a metaphoric song and it kinda had to be in German. I think on the next album there will be some more songs in German, because people enjoy it here”.

This year marks the 25^th anniversary of Mad Sin and their influence on modern psychobilly, but the scene was almost non existent in the early 80s when Koefte first became interested in the rockabilly scene. “ I started when psychobilly wasn't even there, as a rockabilly teddy boy. That was like 1981 and in Germany there were no psychobilly bands. I was listening to a lot of old rockabilly stuff, I was eleven years old when I started and I had no money. From there on it kinda evolved, it was like Psychobilly was the new thing with rockabilly an old style and there was new rockabilly, those cat kinda bands which were a little more soft. But then the Meteors came with their very first album. We started to be at first very rockabilly and psychobilly came later. We changed our clothes from traditional teddy boy gear to jeans and boots and stud belts and stuff like this and we had the flat tops, you know stuff like that. Berlin was a big underground scene at the time, a lot of street fights between the gangs, but everyone was into music”. On the 20 years of Sin album Mad Sin cover Adam Ant's 1985 hit, “Vive Le Rock”. Despite Koefte finding Adam Ant a little too mainstream during the 80's, it was a song they had wanted to cover for a while. “I always liked some [Adam Ant] songs, I like when he was still with the Ants, 'Stand and Deliver' and 'Goody two shoes', the early stuff that was more new wave punk. But the 'Vive Le Rock' album we always liked because it had that certain rockabilly influence. You know more of the songs sounded a mix between old rockabilly and T. Rex or something like that. We just covered it and it turned out great. We just did it and we never released it really, it was just for us and somehow it never seemed to fit on anything. But we thought with the 20 years thing we could put it on there because it had never been released”.

This November hails the first time that Mad Sin have come to Australia and they're looking forward to putting on some great shows to some wild audiences. “It's kinda surreal for us to go to Australia. We started here in Berlin and now we've evolved and seen half of the world, but we never expected Australia so that's a very big thing for us in a way for making it with the music. Also we like a lot of Australian people we've met here in Europe, America and Japan and we're friends with The Fireballs and Zombie Ghost Train. They [Zombie Ghost Train] are good friends of ours, we've known them a long time. When they first came over here I tried to get them a record deal when they only had the demo tape going on and it kinda worked out. So you know all those people we've met from Australia are really cool, so we're really looking forward to partying after the shows. We will have some days off and we definitely want to see the beach and all that and also the nature there”. Australian audiences can also expect an amazing live show from Mad Sin with each show different to the last. “What we give is what we feel and what we are. Unfortunately I think we cannot do our fire show cos we have some things going on where we set fire to the bass at certain parts of the show, but I don't think we are allowed to do this in the venues over there as far as I know. We're going to try to do it. But anyway its going to be very wild and spontaneous and different. We're not one of those bands where the audience expects the same things at each show. So you better come to all the shows. If you want to see the whole picture you have to come to all the shows”.

Mad Sin are doing six dates on this Australian tour heading down the east coast and even making it to Perth, so make sure get a long to at least one to experience and celebrate the legendary psychobilly of Mad Sin. “I just want to say after 25 years we are ready to go over and if you're into this type of music, we hope to see you there and I would appreciate to see you there. Offer us some drinks after the show, if we're not too tired, we're going to be there and will party with you guys”.

Spraynard at LAVA Space

2011-10-14T07:54:00.000-07:00

Alas, none of my photos turned out well due to me being short and pinned up against some amps the whole set. So, the very cool Mary Jane Jacobs allowed me to use her pictures from the show, please visit her tumblr blog for more fantastic shots.

I've talked with a number of bands for Take Aim and various other publications, but I only recently realized I've never interviewed a Pennsylvania band and sought to correct it by having a chat with one of my local favourites, Spraynard from West Chester. Two weeks ago, they played a show with fellow PA group Algernon Cadwallader at LAVA Space, a radical non-profit community building that supports charities like Project SAFE (which the concert benefited) and protests such as the Occupy Wall Street Movement. Spraynard gave a short, high-energy show where they were almost engulfed by the crowd who pushed forward to passionately sing along. Despite the excitement, everyone respected the venue and gave cheers for random nostalgia when the band asked whether people remembered the '90s sitcom Hangin' with Mr Cooper.

Known for being a great band comprised of even greater dudes, Spraynard started out with friends who turned into fans and now they befriend most of their fans. "Our main goal is to meet as many people as we can," explains Pat. I talked with the two Pats (Pat Graham, the singer/guitarist and Pat Ware, the drummer also known as Dos) at the end of the night while bassist Mark Dickinson finished loading out. Harris from opening band Sundials was jokingly brought over to be "Mark" until the real one came back. They all pondered my decidedly difficult opening question about their favourite Pokémon (Dos said Snorlax, Pat claimed Ditto and Harris admitted "Pikachu is the only one I know"), followed by the even tougher task of describing what it was like to be hand picked by Kid Dynamite to support them at their recent reunion show.

Pat- "Kid Dynamite is like THE perfect band, that's the safe thing to say. We all met because we liked Kid Dynamite in high school, so to play that show and hear that Dan Yemin likes our band is indescribable."

Dos- "He [Dan Yemin] came up to me and talked about Spraynard for ten minutes and I just thought, 'What are you doing? Your band is all I care about, don't talk to me about my band."

Pat- "I think that show will be the most important one we ever play."

The real Mark finally joins in, laughing as we recall what Harris had answered on his behalf ("I play as Pikachu in 'Super Smash Brothers,' so that works," he says). We exchange more Dan Yemin stories (I saw him in Trader Joes once, that's all I had to contribute) and talk about the First Unitarian Church, home to the infamous Jimmy. "Just playing there was huge..." Pat smiles, "It's our old stomping grounds." Playing FU Church is a big deal, especially for local bands, but Spraynard prefer places like LAVA Space.

Pat- "I love it here... It has so much cool information."

Mark- "Yeah, there's an educational part to it too."

Dos- "A lot of times at shows now, you forget about what we're actually here for. We're not just here to jump around and drink... You gotta be doing something productive."

My first Spraynard gig was several years ago in a mutual friend's garage next to a small chicken coop, a quintessentially Pennsylvania type of show. For Spraynard, it's the bigger shows they find unusual.

Mark- "Any situation we manage to get stuck in is always very humorous to us..."

Dos- "Because we're best friends, no matter what the circumstance or how weird it is, we'd all rather be playing in a basement with friends in front of us."

Pat- "We're all on the same page all the time, which is rare for a lot of bands. Or for a lot of people in general. We don't mind playing bigger shows with a lot of people, it's a cool experience, but we're more comfortable at shows like this. At the end of the day, we just try to be real, to not get ahead of ourselves and forget that we're kids having fun playing shitty pop-punk songs."

One such big festival Spraynard have coming up is the Fest in Gainesville, Florida. The guys agree it's sure to be a good time where they can see a lot of bands they've toured with before in one place, but it's also bound to be a Bro Fest with lots of drinking. Not big on partying (Pat and Mark don't drink, Dos only has the occasional beer), Spraynard are all about having a good time by simply enjoying the company of friends and maybe a copy of 'Mallrats.' The only dangerous incident on tour they can think of was a few days earlier when Mark had to go to the ER because he drank too much soda.

Dos- "One of our first shows, there was a huge fight that broke out and we all ran and went 'AAAAH!' *laughs* We don't have any interest in fighting."

Pat- "You always hear about bands that are like, 'Oh, we jumped off this cliff and went into a dumpster and got food!' We're like, 'We sat in our van, hung out, and talked about movies.'"

At this point, we start discussing our friend Ed, who I know from high school and they currently live with. They insist I include a story where their smoke alarm went off for no reason in the middle of the night and Ed punched it repeatedly, yelling "I was snoozing so hard!" Classic Ed. It's always funny to see how many people you know are inter-connected in the Philadelphia/Philly suburb communities, especially now that Pennsylvania bands like The Wonder Years, Title Fight, and many others are becoming known around the world. Is the Pennsylvania scene going to be the 2010s equivalent of the influence New Jersey's scene had on music in the 2000s?

Mark- "It piggybacks off itself, if you have a bunch of bands, one of them will start a label and eventually that will inspire other bands... Philly and the surrounding area has been swelling for a while."

Pat- "It also helps that Philly is a hub for a lot of places. Scranton had an exodus here... So, you got The Menzingers. Then the Tigers Jaw kids. People just want to be in a city and with all their friends."

Dos- "The coolest part of the PA scene is all the bands are friends. The Menzingers are totally going to be famous, but us and Algernon are never going to be that, we'll be underground. Please mark us down as saying that The Menzingers will be in a movie."

Pat- *laughing* "A World War Two movie!"

Dos- "We didn't grow up here [in Philly], but all our friends moved here... We used to be a bit bitter towards the city, but it's more about the people.The actual town [of West Chester] kind of sucks... but our friends, those 30 or 40 kids we know are what make it special."

Pat- "The atmosphere is unmatched. Philly has so many kids..."

Mark- "Tonight there were four or five shows going on [in Philly], it makes you feel small."

Other than their current tour and The Fest, Spraynard have a lot of plans for the rest of the year and 2012.

Dos- "In January to August, we're going to try to do a month in Europe and the UK. We have a few other festivals, the Stay Sweet Fest in Richmond, which we were just confirmed for. A few on the East Coast, maybe West Coast, we're going to see how far we can go. Any time we're not on tour, we're bummed out and wish we were on tour."

Mark- "We wanna be Black Flag really bad. *laughs* Long hair Henry Rollins era Black Flag."

The Casualties are coming to Australia... finally!

2011-10-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

Forming on the streets of the Lower East side of New York around 1990, The Casualties have since become a synonymous with punk. Their brand of fast, angry, hardcore punk often attracts kids in their formative punk years and The Casualties become staple listening for many young punks. ‘It feels great and very odd at times. I never thought when I joined this band that I would be influencing so many younger punks to pick up an instrument and start whaling away”. After the shows were intially postponed, The Casualties are heading to Australia for the first time and kicking off the tour in Melbourne on the 10^th November.

I recently got the chance to speak to Marc ‘Meggers’ about The Casualties and the upcoming Australian tour.

Angie Hurlock

On The Casualties longevity:

We still love what we do and thank our lucky stars that we are able to do what we love and make a living off it. With that said, we just get by. Nobody is getting rich off this band. If we stop touring we will not be able to pay rent. So many people live pay check to pay check, same thing for us. We live from tour to tour. Sorry, derailed there for a minute. Is it still easy? Sometimes it is. When we are on stage doing our thing, giving it our all, it is the greatest feeling. But then at certain points when I’m in the RV on an all day drive breathing Rick’s farts and Jorge’s foot odor, I miss home, my girlfriend and my bed. We all do, but would I trade it for a 9-5 job? No way. This is what we do. We live it and we love it, it’s all we know.

On Festivals:

We played a festival years ago in Berlin with Cocksparrer. So amazing. We just played a fest with Cobra in Japan. I never thought I’d get the chance to see them, nevertheless play together. Shared the stage a few times with The Damned, Exploited and GBH. We have been so lucky to share the stage with so many great bands, too many to mention them all. And even stranger, to become friends with a lot of our childhood heroes.

On the Australian Tour:

We have been wanting to come over for years, but it has never seemed to pan out. I’m excited to play and see another part of the world. We have been to so many places over the years it’s awesome when we hit some uncharted territory for us. [Australian audiences] should expect high energy, high volume, fun, united shows. Lots of slam dancing and a lot of beer flying about. And the day after expect a headache, ringing in your ears and some bumps and bruises.

On the future:

After Australia we are headed to South East Asia which I cannot wait for. Again it’s more new territory for the band. Then finally take a break from our tour and start writing new songs for a new record.

Final words:

We are coming, finally. Can’t wait to play for you lot and hope we all have a great time. Thanks for being patient.

Make sure you check out The Casualties on one of their upcoming dates!

10th NOVEMBER | MELBOURNE | THE EAST BRUNSWICK CLUB
w/ THE WORST & NO IDEA
Tickets on sale via www.eastbrunswickclub.com and at the box office. (p. 9388 9794)

11th NOVEMBER | SYDNEY | THE MANNING BAR
w/ TOPNOVIL & THE RUMJACKS
Tickets on sale from www.manningbar.com. p. 1300 862 545, www.moshtix.com.au, 1300 GET TIX (438 849), on your mobile www.moshtix.mobi and other moshtix outlets.

13th NOVEMBER | BRISBANE | THE HIFI BAR
w/ THE SCAM & LEOPARD STREET DROOGS
Tickets from www.thehifi.com.au. p. 1300-THEHIFI (8434434), Rocking Horse Records, Butter Beats, Sunflower Pacific Fair, Disasterpiece, Mosh Pit Music, Kill The Music, Gooble Warming, Rockaway Records.

Bizoo Regional Tour!

2011-09-26T23:48:00.000-07:00

Bizoo's Best of Retrospective Zine continues its launch throughout Queensland over the next couple of months before taking on the rest of the country next year.
Not only is the zine getting launched, but free workshops are being held in many regional Queensland towns.

Check out the dates below and head along!

- 8 Oct: Bizoo Book Brisbane Launch + Zine Fair + Bands @ 4ZZZfm Car park (Zine Fair 10:30am-2:30pm, Bands 3pm – 6pm)

- 20 Oct: Rockhampton - Song writing and Community workshop @ Walter Reid Centre (6-9pm)

- 22 Oct: Rockhampton – Zine Workshop @ The Regional Library (10am-1pm)

- 24 Oct: Mackay – Zine Fair @ Crossroad Arts (3:30pm-5pm)

- 27 Oct: Palm Island - Zine workshop (invite only)

- 28 Oct: Townsville - Zine workshop (invite only)

- 29 Oct: Cairns - Zine workshop @ Crate59 (10:30-1pm), Music Workshop @ MOFO 3:30-5:30pm + Gig

- 5 Nov: Townsville –Michelle and Natasha’s opening (6pm-9pm) Gig w/ (9pm-10pm) @ Artspaced/Dance North

- 6 Nov: Townsville - Zine workshop & BBQ @ Artspaced/Dance North (12 – 3pm)

- 7 Nov: Mackay – Zine meet up and Gocco printing @ Crossroad Arts (3:30-5pm)

- 8 Nov: Rockhampton – A venue and Bizoo presents a music networking night w/screening of ‘A Piss in the Ocean’ @ Walter Reid Centre (6-9pm)

- 11 Nov: Longreach – Music Workshop @ Youth Club (4-7pm)

- 12 Nov: Longreach – Zine Workshop @ Youth Club 12:30-3pm)

- 13 Nov: Blackall – Music/Zine workshops & BBQ @ Blackall Memorial Hall (12-5pm)

- 16 Nov: Roma – Zine workshop @ Community Hall (4-7pm)

- 17 Nov: Roma – Music workshop @ Community Hall (4-7pm)

- 19 Nov: Dalby – Zine Workshop @ Dalby Regional Gallery (10am-2pm)

Book review: 'Damned' by Chuck Palahniuk

2011-09-12T16:58:00.000-07:00

I will always remember how I spent my last day of high school reading 'Haunted' instead of signing yearbooks and saying cheesy goodbyes to people I didn't really know or like anyway. It was my first foray into a Chuck Palahniuk novel and I soon realized this was a foolish choice for someone unaccustomed to his shocking, transgressive style of writing. When I reached the infamously disgusting chapter 'Guts' (rumored to have caused dozens of audience members to faint over the course of his book promotion tour), I screamed and threw the book across my Homeroom. As if this didn't get enough stares, seconds later I eagerly ran to pick it up and immediately continued reading, morbidly fascinated and still queasy. Thus is the addictive lure of Palahniuk gross-out scenes.

After consuming his entire body of work, I now know the rest of his novels are not as graphic, though dark veins of violence and sex acts still pop up throughout them all. For any 'Palahniuk virgins' out there, I can safely say that his latest novel, 'Damned' is an ideal place to start. When I giddily ripped open my package containing an advance copy of 'Damned' (set to go on sale October 18th), a 'letter' from heroine Madison Spencer fell out. On her pink and purple pre-teen stationary, Madison declares Palahniuk a "...Mr. Whorey McWhoreski so-called writer.... Judy Blume, he is not." Could it be that the main character is for once not a terrible person with major psychotic issues that you love to hate and instead a sassy chick-lit referencing chubby thirteen-year-old girl you can actually relate to? I'm sure some Palahniuk readers might initially be turned off by this casting, but I was excited to see how this rare functional character would handle the struggles of a Palahniuk imagined Hell.

Yes, Hell. I forgot to mention our fabulous Madison is dead and condemned because of a supposed marijuana overdose at thirteen. Like a smarter version of Georgia Nicholson, Madison (full name Madison Desert Flower Rosa Parks Coyote Trickster Spencer, thanks to her ridiculous celebrity parents) decides to make the best of her eternal time in the nether world and meet new friends, preferably becoming BFFs with Satan himself. "Are you there, Satan? It's me, Madison.... Honestly, I give up on giving up. I'm just not cut out to be some hopeless, disillusioned wretch with no aspirations for the rest of eternity, sprawled catatonic in my own feces on a stone cold floor."

Between viewings of 'The English Patient,' Hell's torturous film of choice, Madison thinks of her own favourite movie, 'The Breakfast Club' and notices the people surrounding her in perdition resemble the '80s detention room crew. Shallow Babette with obviously fake designer clothes, know-it-all geek Leonard and Patterson the high school football player are among the first citizens of Hell she encounters. Madison deems herself the Ally Sheedy character and the comparison is rounded out by Archer, a blue mohawked punk who springs the gang from their cages with the safety pin that pierces his cheek .

Hell has done it's job breaking billions of it's inhabitants, but our heroes see potential in the land of fire and decide to search for something rather than wasting away in a cell. While crossing terrain made of glass, scabs, and cockroaches, Madison can't help but reflect back on her short bittersweet life on Earth. Raised by famous parents who act like Edina from 'Ab Fab' and go through scores of adopted children faster than Madonna, it's no wonder Madison feels Hell is an improvement. Palahniuk clearly had a lot of fun researching obscure mythology, because most of Leonard's input is namedropping multitudes of ancient demons, demigods, and other deities banished to the Underworld that enjoy chowing down on the humans out of boredom. Several celebrities, artists, and historical figures make cameo appearances as well, since nearly everyone important is put on the down escalator after they die. Madison especially enjoys this perk and keeps an eye out for River Phoenix. "One can't help but picture the lackluster VIP Lounge in Heaven, a kind of nonalcoholic ice-cream social starring Harriet Beecher Stowe and Mahatma Gandhi. Hardly anyone's idea of a 'with-it' social register."

After much difficulty, the Hellfast Club make it to a town where they're allowed to contribute to infernal society. Unfortunately, the only career choices are porn ("You see, Hell is responsible for about 85 percent of the Internet's total smut content.") or conducting pointless phone surveys designed to interrupt the living from enjoying their dinners. Madison becomes a star telemarketer, convincing several of her dying clients to sin it up in their remaining time on Earth so they can join her downstairs once the big day comes. Alternating between memories of her flesh life and spirit life, we slowly learn more about Madison, growing ever fond of her. I can't say I blame the dying folks she recruited, I'd want a friend like Madison to show me the ropes.

The way Palahniuk structures the strict rules of damnation, nearly everyone ends up there even if they were the kindest humanity had to offer. Pee in a pool as a child or curse more than 700 times in your life and Heaven's gates close. "According to Babette, 98.3 percent of lawyers end up in Hell. That's in contrast to the 23 percent of farmers who are eternally damned... Perhaps a trace number of politicians ascend into Heaven, but statistically speaking, 100 percent of them are cast into the fiery pit. As are essentially 100 percent of journalists and redheads." Well, I'm an auburn blogger, so if that counts, guess I'll see you in Hell, Palahniuk. The twists at the end are a tad more predictable and less sociopathic than those in his other books, but overall, 'Damned' is a wonderful novel. It's the only heartwarming story about Hell you'll ever read, an odd sentiment that in itself makes it well worth a try.

Bizoo: The Best, The Worst and The Trash That Never Made It!

2011-07-20T05:08:00.000-07:00

Between the years 2001 and 2006 in the small, inland city of Toowoomba, Bizoo Street Zine operated and published a free music and arts street press. By encompassing all genres and printing everything that was ever submitted, Bizoo helped unite a youth community, put on all ages gigs and inspired kids like myself to get involved. Five years after the last issue was released and with having had no final issue, the Bizoo crew has formed to produce Bizoo: The Best, The Worst and the Trash That Never Made It, a book containing articles that ran in Bizoo, interviews with those involved and a recount of the events, venues, bands and people that made the Toowoomba scene what it was. I caught up with Bizoo founder Dr Jerm, to reminisce about Bizoo times and get the low down on what this Best Of is all about.

- Angie Hurlock

Back in 2001 Bizoo or Bizo as it was called at the time formed out of a love for music and a lack of live music happening in Toowoomba. When Frenzal Rhomb and Day of Contempt were heading to town and there were no posters or press for the show, Dr Jerm knew that things had to happen. “Being someone like myself, who doesn’t like to complain about anything I started my own thing. I didn’t know how to do it; I didn’t have any skills needed to do something like this. I just rounded up as many cool people as possible and we just did it. We had no idea what we were creating and it sort of grew from that, lots of young bands and opportunities to promote regional shows and events and it grew and turned into something national with national bands and international bands and became a massive platform for a lot of people. It became their first opportunity to write something or create anything. That’s something that I feel most proud about is that it was an opportunity for anyone to express their view and I feel really proud that we printed everything we ever received. We became the magazine or the zine for the voiceless”. In 2006, Bizoo put on a festival in Toowoomba to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the zine. Despite being a great day, with fantastic bands, Bizoo lost a lot of money and the end was in sight. “With the festival we put on to celebrate the best of Bizoo we lost $30 000 if not more which was obviously a big kick. But we also did 25 issues and we never really had goals or intentions of doing anything and I guess over time they organically formed and we sort of achieved them. We were promoting local bands, bands were coming to town and I guess there was nothing else we could really do. In some ways it felt like it got too big for what we were doing. We didn’t know how to get marketing or advertising, none of that mattered to us. And it wasn’t something I enjoyed doing anymore”.

When issue 25 was published in 2006, it was not a final issue, but it did become so with no more issues of Bizoo being made. The Best of Bizoo not only acts as a document of the events which happened in Toowoomba during a particular time, but finalising the end of Bizoo. “I guess we are aiming to highlight what we achieved. Highlighting everything that happened, what everyone wrote, drew or whatever it may be. Highlighting the fact that a group of young kids that had no idea what they were doing, created the community that formed. It’s like the analogy, you can find 10 million books on the rise of punk in the U.K or the U.S, but in Australia you’d probably get maybe 2 books. The music of Toowoomba between 2001 and 2006 would have got lost and I’m really excited about documenting a part of that history. It’s not necessarily super comprehensive, but it also engages what else was happening in the area. What really excites me is the opportunity of telling our story to other regional towns and showing that young people can actually do something and create a community of like minded people and build something”. A sense of community more than anything is what was achieved with Bizoo, but from starting out as kids not knowing how to put together a street press, skills were honed and many of the Bizoo crew have gone on to continue with youth orientated and journalistic ventures. For Dr Jerm, it awakened a side of him that he was not aware of initially. “I guess I like promoting gigs, it may not be via a publication, it could be putting on gigs to showcase to other people things they’re not aware of. But I think Bizoo also provided that platform for, a lot of contributors. Jim Campbell works for the Toowoomba Chronicle and Gede Parma has released two books and won awards. I guess we have assisted some people along the way and some bands as well that are now growing to be large scale bands. I think getting down to it, we were assisting a beautiful community in a small town was really cool and I’m really proud of that. It’s never been anything that I wanted to be thanked for”.

Along with the articles that ran in the actual Bizoo issues, the book will contain the stories of what was happening in the Toowoomba scene at the time including ongoing exchanges between Bizoo and a local band. “ That argument went on for three or four issues, this band was even writing these satirical fairytales about Bizoo and why it was bad and making posters and stuff like that and. There were arguments that were ongoing and really funny. But I think what grew from it were the memories that were run on no money, it didn’t matter what type of show, punk gig, acoustic gig or rock gig, everyone came. It didn’t matter if you were into punk rock or metal or whatever, everyone was there. It’s great to look back and see these photos and seeing two or three hundred kids going crazy in these little halls or on The Shack verandah. There are lots and lots of crazy stories that came from Bizoo and we’re highlighting most of them, if not all of the good ones, all the ones that can be printed at least. I think its funny looking over this stuff because we did it as a really collaborative process and made sure that everyone who wanted to be involved in that process. Going through all those articles I can’t believe we printed all that stuff because some of it was pretty risky to print. I think there could be a little bit of a backlash but that’s half the fun”.

After five years it can become hard to motivate people, but Dr Jerm has been overwhelmed by the overall response to the launching of the book. “I think the Bizoo crew that were involved with it in the later years are totally on board. We’re going to launch it in July 2011, exactly a decade since we launched the first issue. The first issue was June/July 2001 so a lot of the crew that started it off no longer has any interest in being involved on any level. I think it’s going to open a lot of people’s eyes, but there has been a pretty good response, like when we actually updated the website after 5 years of nothing on there, people came out of the woodworks and it was really exciting”. Amongst these people who came out in support of the publication of the book was Russell Southwood from the National Hotel in Toowoomba. “Russell surfaced and wrote this massive story and we’ve done an interview with him for the book. He was such a crucial member of the community that assisted us because there was no one putting original live music on at the time and I dare say they advertised in every issue that we released. I remember fond memories of interviewing every band that played there because there were no bands in town so we had to interview the 3 bands that played that night and maybe even Saturday and Friday night”.

Since the end of Bizoo in 2006 and with many people crucial in the scene moving away, the dynamics of the youth community in Toowoomba has changed, but the city remains close to the hearts of those involved. “I moved out of Toowoomba nearly three years ago now and I still am an ambassador of Toowoomba in many ways. If I’m anywhere I make sure to mention I’m from Toowoomba originally and if there are opportunities for things to be brought to town and shown there I make sure I lock them in. Cooky who was running Bon Amici’s for a long time was putting a lot of shows on, now he’s doing stuff at the spotted cow and Arthur terrace and the new noise crew were always bringing stuff to town”. The scene may have changed in Toowoomba, but it is far from being merely a distant memory. “I think it [Toowoomba’s youth scene] comes in waves like any scene or community. Things there seem pretty healthy right now. They’ve got the Summer Riot festival which replaced Eidecan, which seems like its pretty successful and the zine shop. ‘Smells like Zines’ is the only zine shop in Queensland. There’s the postbox zine publication that comes out and is very similar to what Bizoo was doing in the early days”.

The launching of the Best Of begins in Toowoomba on the 23^rd July and will be launched nationwide in the months following. “We’re going to make the launch a little exclusive event happening in Toowoomba, where Toowoomba is actually going to get the book a month before the rest of the state. It would be great for Toowoomba to receive something so exclusive and something they can feel proud of. Some people probably won’t be, because it’s not all positive and there’s some stupid shit in there”. What Bizoo has always been about is reaching youth in regional areas where a local music or arts culture in non-existent and this will play an integral role in the launching of the book as well. “With Brisbane for example we may be doing ten different launches in because Brisbane is so huge. We want to go to the ‘burbs where the young kids are bored out of their minds. We want to go out to the ‘burbs and engage with those communities”.

The launch of the Best Of will also bring with it a regional tour of workshops to encourage and inspire youth create their own arts community. “With these workshops that we want to do, we want to tell the Bizoo story. We want to have Bizoo crew on the road that were there and did the work. We want to do grassroots workshops that provide the skills to maybe put on an art show, a gig, make a little street press or put a blog online. Ideally what we’re hoping to do if we get enough funds is that we could actually go into these small towns, motivate these communities and even provide a bit of financial support to get things up and running which would be amazing to see. Its not just something we want to do in Queensland, we want to do this nationally”.

After the launch of Best Of and the following regional tours, Dr Jerm intends on providing more opportunities for the arts community to stay alive. “After this we are starting up something new and exciting which I’ve been doing for the last five years after Bizoo, I guess by researching avenues and a new model of publishing and working as a collective where people see how it operates from the outside and inside. Ideally it would be nice to start paying people and that, people are frowned upon in the arts sometimes when people start making money and people say you’re a ‘sellout’ and stuff like that but you know a piece of art won’t pay the rent or buy a carton of beer. So it would be great to start paying people”. With the release of the Bizoo: Best of, Worst of and the Trash that didn’t make it; it is sure to inspire people to get involved and become a part of the community either for the first time or reignite a passion they once had. “Inspiring people would actually quantify success. What this Best of is all about is not about selling anything or reaching any numbers. If we inspire or motivate someone to put a show on or something like that, it would definitely make my day”.

Hannibal Buress interview

2011-07-14T02:12:00.000-07:00

Hannibal Buress reads aloud from an article written about his act in a college newspaper, skewering it mercilessly. Granted, the author mentioned how much Buress was being paid for the gig and other journalistic faux pas, but I can’t help but worry what Hannibal thinks of the interview I conducted with him only an hour before. Buress displays a clever showmanship mixing energetic wit and a storyteller’s delivery, interspersing his classic bits with new material ranging from Odd Future concerts to passport photos. He admits to the packed audience that his show that night was taking a darker turn than usual, adding with a smile, “but I kind of like it.” Buress brings up how ridiculous it is when he’s asked about the recent Tracy Morgan scandal. I cringe, knowing all too well I brought up that very topic during our chat. Fortunately, he tells the audience the same thing he said to me (see interview below) and I am spared a Jack Donaghy-esque quip from the former '30 Rock' writer.

Here is my conversation with Hannibal Buress on the second night of his three day stop in Philly at Helium Comedy Club. Yes, that's The BeeGees and Fall Out Boy playing in the background. I apologize, we had no control of the piped in music and thought it was pretty weird too.

Hannibal Buress interview by TakeAimZine

Candy Town

2011-06-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Imagine a group of clowns leading you away, to some far, far away place that everyone has been to but has never gone back to. They’re a traveling show, and you’re not so much their audience as you are their subject. They sweetly swoon you into fantasies of running away with them. Their band is called Candy Town.

After sitting down to an interview with Sean Guinan, front man of Candy Town, I attempted to explore the mastermind behind the group and see what makes it tick. The interview was deep, meandering, and incredibly all-comprehensive, so for purposes of not flooding the entire page, I’m going to paraphrase and condense this information.

First, some history: Candy Town began not so much as a musical project, but as an aesthetic in Guinan’s films. The central matter in them is the dichotomy between fantasy and reality. Guinan represented elements of his inner-person and imagination as clown figures. By whitening their faces, clowns remove specific details that make them an individual, and thus, make themselves a representation of some sort of aspect of the human condition and everything they do, a metaphor. They are humans abstracted and placed into a heightened reality where things can become incredibly unpredictable and exciting.

Guinan always wanted to create a band called Candy Town and in fact, began a TV series with the same name. This show played upon the idea of a place called Candy Town, where we all grew up with characters from fairy tales and elements of fantasy, but it is also a place left behind by adults who have moved on past such things. It is a place where we’d like to indulge in, yet are constantly pulled back by the forces of adulthood.

As time went on, prospects of starting such a band with this theme became more and more realized. Musically, Guinan was raised on a somewhat less than typical musical background. He grew up listening to 20’s and 30’s Jazz. At the time, Guinan wasn’t really conscious of rock and roll and what was popular on the radio. As time went on, he did become more familiar with and enjoyed rock groups such as the Rolling Stones and The Velvet Underground, yet his pop culture continued to revolve around figures such as Louie Armstrong and Charlie Chaplin. Ultimately, Guinan wasn’t interested in mimicking music from this period, as much as he was interested in borrowing elements and aesthetics.

What really influenced Guinan the most was a group he simply ran into one day at a festival called Maestro Subgum & The Whole. He was just in high school at the time and never saw the likes of them before. The band was dressed very eclectically, with a raspy front man and operatic female backup singers. There were no guitars, just an electric bass, keyboard, and horn section. They seemed to have this infectious air of intrigue about them. It was as if they were a traveling band of Gypsies and Guinan, dazed by a romantic sense of escapism, wanted to travel away with them. This is what he wanted to capture, that enticing feeling of leaving everything behind to follow a circus that has offered a passage into a world once inhabited only by your juvenile mind.

And so, Guinan took the bull by the horns and with a strong will, made Candy Town his project. He long admired the brilliant works of artists such as Orson Welles, Woody Allen, Charlie Chaplin, and David Lynch, who completely controlled their projects, no matter how many were involved, in order to ensure that their vision was realized. Powerful works of art never came from committees, but of the solitary artist, like a philosopher, who delves deep into the self, trying to understand what makes them tick. Made up entirely of complete strangers on a new page without previous baggage, Guinan made sure everyone knew he would be directing Candy Town.

While not a band mimicking music from the 20’s and 30’s, Guinan wanted to utilize the iconography from this era. While first impressions may give way to this era being sweet and nostalgic, the truth was it was downright bold, sexy, and musically, very daring and edgy. This was not some dreamy marking strategy, as much as a spirited platform for what would become in itself, a bold musical project.

And so, the band dons vintage-style clothing from this era, yet wears face paint like mimes. Two female backup singers are scantily clad and the band as a whole use elements to further suggest something more motley, much like their music, borrowing from many directions, from rock to ragtime. Guinan’s aim was to wed the visuals with the sound into something more daring; learning from his disappointment from groups like Marilyn Manson, Kiss, and The Dresden Dolls, who all struck up something new and exciting with their imagery, but failed to deliver the same through their music.

The band tosses away common preconceptions of reality and norms, delving into the surreal through their performance; they truly take the audience for a ride. Rather than spare the lines that divide childish from mature, Candy Town pulls your wits from the stasis of a comfortable routine life into a challenge to live a life of an unknown tomorrow. To manifest your childhood’s greatest expectations of your own self, making a bold effort to become the person you thought you would. It’s the exciting prospect that anything really is possible, so long as you’re not afraid.

In the end, what is reality? What makes the surreal anything unreal? We’re all just dreams and vapor. Humanity often feels the test of truth is time, but time doesn’t bear anything when reality is really our conception. As Orson Welles said in F Is For Fake, “Our songs will all be silenced, but what of it? Go on singing.” No matter how we reconcile our outer-lives with our inner-lives, Candy Town wants to take you to a place you probably haven’t been to in a long time. You can’t run away with them, but you can always run away with your own wildest dreams.

"If Lady Gaga is meant to be the new punk then I don’t think very much of it"

2011-06-17T17:11:00.000-07:00

Forming during the peak of punk in the late 1970’s, Crass brought a new concept to punk, one that did not just speak of shaking up society, but in fact acted in a subversive manner and in doing so Crass became the pioneers of anarcho-punk. I was fortunate enough to sit down with Crass singer, Steve Ignorant ahead of his first Australian show on the Last Supper tour.

By: Angie Hurlock

You're about to embark on an Australian tour where you will be playing Crass songs for the last time, what is the significance of this?

Because there’s been so many bands before like Jimmy Pursey and all this kind of thing, they say it’s the last tour and they come back and do it again or they say it’s the last tour and it goes on for 10 years. And I just wanted people to know that I really mean it that this will be the last time I will be playing crass songs live on stage. It doesn’t mean I’m going to stop performing. I’m just not going to do Crass songs live and I just wanted everyone to know and I’ve made this promise and I’m going to stick to it. The last ever time I play Crass songs will be on November 19^th this year. That’s going to be weird, but I know that the week after that I’m going to get a bloody invite to do a fucking festival that’s going to pay me thousands of dollars or something and I won’t be able to do it, but that’s the commitment I’ve made.

What are you hoping Australian audiences takes away from these shows?

I’m really hoping that it’s a celebration of those great songs. My dream would be that some young punk is in the audience and they get inspired to start their own band and it becomes as good and does as good as Crass did. That would be the perfect thing.

Obviously lyrically Crass were influenced by current affairs and politics, but what were your musical influences?

That was all different. I mean, people ask me why the sound of Crass was so different and first you had me and I came up through ska music, Motown, David Bowie and all this kind of stuff and they’re my influences and of course punk. Then you have Penny Rimbaud and his influences were Elvis Presley, classical and avant garde jazz. Then you had people like Pete the bass payer, he came up through Frank Zappa and folk music and stuff. So, you had all these different influences and none of us were musicians and so that’s why it was such a cranky sound. And that’s why (at this point Steve is distracted by laughter coming from drummer Spike T Smith) and that’s why it’s so hard for him (pointing at Spike) to do the drumming. (Spike comes over to introduce himself, “I always love that story… not musicians). We weren’t musicians and the way we used to do a song would be I would write something and I’d say to Pete it goes like this (mimics music). We’d try to make the music more of an atmosphere than something you could sing along too

Crass are considered the pioneers of the anarcho-punk movement. When you started out did you ever imagine that you would have such impact on an entire genre of music?

No, because we were just doing it. We didn’t have any idea. We knew the Sex Pistols didn’t mean it when they said, ‘I am an anarchist’. And we thought, ‘well right, we’ll try to people what anarchism could be and should be. And then we got into hot water because the proper anarchists didn’t like us you know. I’ve never read any anarchist literature, I started to read a book by Malatesta I got four pages into it, I got so bored that I put the bloody thing down and read the paper instead. No, we didn’t have any idea, I think what we did was to make ideas like anarchism and pacifism and self sufficiency, I think what we did really was not influence people, but inspired them to start thinking for themselves and then they’d go out and start bands for themselves, I think that’s where it’s successful.

Do see music as a perfect vehicle for expressing political ideas and creating social awareness?

I don’t know if it’s the perfect way, I think it’s a way of doing it. I’ve seen black and white films from the sixties that wouldn’t make sense to maybe an 18 year old person now. But really moved me and made me think. I’m very much a book person, so I think that’s the perfect way to sort of do it, because I’ve been moved by words.

Which bands/artists, if any do you admire for their mix of political awareness and music?

No, because I don’t know any. I’m doing a typical middle aged thing where, because I was in punk and all that sort of stuff and it was the type of music I liked and then when I hit about the age of 45 or something and I stopped listening to new music and I started going back. Like now, I’m listening to bands like The Who again and the small face and sixties stuff and getting back into listening to ska. It’s really odd, I’m sort of going backwards rather than, but no, now I'm appreciating how good that music was and how it moved me. If Lady Gaga is meant to be the new punk then I don’t think very much of it. And you know, someone like Justin Bieber, I mean, if that’s all there is then I feel sorry for the young people and they really should be out there starting their own bands and having riots.

What are you looking forward to most during the upcoming Australian tour?

A bit of sleep and get this first gig out of the way because we’re all a bit jet lagged and nervous. But once we get this first show out of the way, we’ll be a lot better. We got in yesterday morning and we haven’t stopped really. The flight was 24 hours or something stupid like that, but we’ll be alright, we’ll get through it.

After this Last Supper tour wraps up, what are your plans for the future?

I’m going to take a year and a half to two years off and knuckle down on some new material. I’ve already got it in my head, what I want to do is a spoken word thing, but its not going to be like Henry Rollins standing up on stage. I want it to be almost like you’re going to watch a play or something, so there would be very simple stage props, some visuals, keyboards and bass, just background music. And I’d just talk about me and what I've done, if anyone’s interested. I’ll be talking about crass and then in the second half I will open up to a question and answer sort of thing. Because I know there are thousands of people out there that want to talk to me about crass. Part of the reason why I’ve called it the last supper and what I want people to know that this is the last time I will be playing Crass songs live, so people don’t come to my new thing expecting to hear crass songs, because I’m not doing it.

As Tall As Lions

2011-05-23T20:38:00.000-07:00

As Tall As Lions are an indie rock band from Long Island, New York. Forming in 2001, they worked together for 10 years with three record releases and a number of tours on their belt. This interview took place on their last ever Australian tour with the lead singer, Dan Nigro.

By Hayleigh Sipek

As Tall As Lions were formed in late 2001, how does it feel like to be at the end of a decade of music together?

It feels good for me, it’s different for each of us so I speak for myself and myself only on this I’m just at a different point in my life right now and I wasn’t enjoying being on the road constantly and I didn’t feel like I was actually becoming the creative person that I wanted to be. I felt really stagnant, stale and confused with my creative process – I never wanted to be somebody who kept on doing something when they weren’t sure of what they were doing.

Would you say it’s a moving-on point as well?

Yes, it’s a different time in my life. I will admit that there are a lot of regrets that I have, everything is a learning experience and there are times when I think that everything’s meant to happen for a reason.

What would you suggest for other musician, would you say, “go ahead and do 10 years as a band”?

When you’re young and you start touring and doing the band… like for us we got signed when we were 20, we were still in college and we didn’t really listen to anybody which I think is the ethic when you’re a couple of young dudes in a band and you’re like “we don’t give a fuck what anybody says and we’re just gonna do whatever we feel” and you get advice from people who actually know what they’re talking about but you almost want to do the exact opposite because you don’t want to do what someone is telling you to do and you want to be defiant of it and there’s definitely been a few times, looking back where we should have just listened to some people who were telling us what the right things to do were. I definitely would say if bands are looking to try and make it that to find people that you trust ie a manager, a record label who have a good head on their shoulders and have your best interest and to be able to take their advice… not all of the time but not to be so guarded by their mind and their ideas for what a band should be.

I guess managers aren’t meant to be the producers the band as well?
There’s definitely a tough line in what a manager is supposed to do and what they’re not and what a record label is supposed to do and not supposed to do. You need to be able to work in that harmony, it’s a really big thing in the making of a band that can have longevity.

‘You Can’t Take it With You’, the last album- what was the creative space for that?

The creative space was weird for that record because we had come off of three years straight of writing and touring off of the self-titled. We spent the better part of a year writing and recording the record and then as soon as we were done recording it we went on tour for all of 2006, 2007, just non-stop touring and it was a really weird time for all of us because we were starting to see the first taste of success and people really genuinely caring about the band and people coming out to shows for us and being really passionate about what we were doing and so that kind of was feeding our confidence and egos but also draining us of a lot of energy and we came off of two years of being on the road. For me personally the last thing that I wanted to do, and I remember getting really anxious and not feeling like I wanted to go back into the studio, but feeling the pressure of getting back in the studio and that created a really negative tone. I think everyone was feeling really jaded and tired and wanted to take a break because even though we needed to go back into the studio and make another record we had just spent years and years doing one thing. We just went into the studio and started arguing and didn’t have a clear vision and I think the end product, ‘You Can’t Take it With You’ has a few good songs on it but overall it wasn’t a very cohesive record, there were more weak points than strong.

Alternative Press rated it pretty highly, what is your relationship with them?
Yeah they were nice to us, they’re good people over there. We built a really good relationship with them and I think they really wanted to see us succeed and they tried and did all they could to help us out in that sense which was nice of them.

You came twice to the annual Soundwave Festival in Australia, how did you find that experience?

Nothing would beat our first experience of coming to Australia, we came in 2007 and for us we were obviously all pretty young, this was four years ago, just the fact that you come from a small town and all of a sudden you’re in a different continent getting paid really good money to play shows. That was definitely one of the highlights of being in a band, was being in Australia and playing on a massive stage to thousands of people. The first day we were in Brisbane I remember we took the city cat and we went to the Kangaroo Hotel and we took the city cat to North Quay and we walked up and down the little strip. We went to a little restaurant and we didn’t realize that you’re not supposed to tip and we were trying to tip the waiter, and he wouldn’t accept the tip and we were like ‘nah take the money’ and he was weirded out that we were trying to give him ten bucks. I have a lot of good memories of Australia, which is nice.

Do you have a favourite place in Australia?
I’ve had a lot of really great experiences, we had a few days off in Sydney that first time and we spent a day just going to the aquarium and we went to the botanical gardens and they have those crazy bats there. The second time Julio and I came together and we had three days off in Melbourne and found this really great Chinese restaurant and we ate there like every night. We had some good times for sure.

Do you have any plans in particular for this time?
I’m still trying to figure it out, because we’ve been here twice and I still haven’t been to New Zealand and I kind of fell like if I’m over on this side of the world and it might be the last time I’m over here, you never know, I think that probably I’m going to take a few days and go to New Zealand.

So you played last night at The Hive, how was that?
It was definitely a weird transition because we just did the American farewell tour and we were playing these gorgeous venues all throughout the states to go to playing a teen centre to 45 kids in Brisbane. You never feel like you’re above it because you’re not and it was fun but there’s definitely a weird way that it transpires in your head to go from playing massive shows to a tiny show were maybe 25 people really care.

Are you used to an all ages crowd?
It’s different in America because it’s either all ages or 21 and over so it’s a little bit different because obviously the main demographic of people that go to shows are probably between the ages of 18 and 25 so when that’s split in half by the drinking age most shows for bands unless they’re an older crowd band specifically are going to be playing all ages shows because a lot of their fans are teenagers or in their 20’s and wouldn’t be able to get a show.

What do you think of Elliot the Bull?
They’re great, it was honestly the first time I saw them play (last night). They’re amazing people and they’re really tight, it was cool.

After the tour do you have any projects are you just going to chill out?

I’m in the middle of working on a solo record right now so I’m doing that and I’ve got a couple of other things going, I started getting into writing songs for other artists and that’s what I spend a lot of my time doing now. I just signed with a publishing company a few months ago so I’m just building up a catalogue of songs for other artists.

Anything you have to say to the fans?

Check out the solo record, the project is called ‘Blocks’ check it out!

Bamboozle Day One

2011-05-14T12:08:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago, I made the journey up to the Meadowlands outside New York City for the annual Bamboozle Festival. My second year in attendance, I knew that the only thing you can expect from the 'Boozle is a non-sensical, yet brilliant band lineup, teenage boys who still think 'Free Hugs' signs are clever, and over-priced food. This year the festival area was expanded with extra rides and two new stages, making for even more difficult time management decisions. The above photo was taken at the top of the ferris wheel before doors opened, aka the calm before the storm.

The first band to play on Saturday were pop-punkers We Are the In Crowd, who I will admit to knowing nothing about, but enjoyed regardless. They've just been revealed as one of the acts for the new Soundwave Revolution Festival, which come to think of it, is basically the Australian equivalent of Bamboozle.

The best stumbled upon band of the day was Brooklyn via Israel married duo Hank & Cupcakes. It's hard not to stop when you walk by a woman standing on drums in a Lady Gaga-esque outfit throwing lipstick into the crowd. Judging from the audience size at the end of their set compared to the beginning, others were clearly drawn in as I had been. Making unique, upbeat indie dance music is difficult enough, but for only two members to do the work of four and pull off a great live show is even more impressive.

Forever the Sickest Kids singer Jonathan Cook climbing the stage scaffolding during their hit, 'She's a Lady.' Several seconds after this was taken, he accidentally dropped the microphone into the sea of people below. Fortunately, the two teenage fans who caught the mic returned it to the stage and were personally given free merch by the band as a thank you. Aw!

"I take it this is the first time many of you have seen us," laughs Tokyo Police Club singer Dave Monks after instructing the crowd to sing along and receiving a quieter than expected response. One of the hazards of playing a festival like Bamboozle is that you honestly don't know what percentage of an audience are there for another band and Tokyo Police Club handled the waiting Thrice fans with grace. Actually my first time seeing them (after years of failed attempts), I was glad the indie pop Canucks lived up to their recorded work and filled their short but sweet set with hand claps, bright clear vocals, and happy keyboard dances.

Just a man and his guitar, the always amazing Frank Turner took the stage sans band for Bamboozle. He enlisted the help of the audience to be the harmonica (he forgot his) in 'Dan's Song' and when some were hesitant, he went for his usual banter, "If you're the type of person who's too cool to do air harmonica at a fucking festival in the middle of the afternoon, you're too cool to be here anyway, you hipster motherfuckers!" Doing a perfect mix of old and new tunes (including my personal favourite 'Photosynthesis'), Frank promised a major US tour in the future to support his upcoming release England Keeps My Bones.

Due to a HUGE crowd at a tiny stage, I surpassed a much buzzed about The Movielife reunion show and instead wandered over to the area usually reserved for comedians. There I watched the legendary Marky Ramone do a 'cooking show' to promote his new line of pasta sauce. Yes, I'm serious. It smelled delicious and 80% of the people present were waiting for comedian Bo Burnham and had no idea who Marky Ramone is. As you can see, Marky also chugged an entire jar of the pasta sauce. This is not even in the top ten weirdest things I saw at Bamboozle, if that gives you an idea what that weekend was like.

It was especially exciting to see Pennsylvania locals Tigers Jaw (who I once saw at a gig in my friend's garage with five other people, a dog, and someones Mom) play to a large crowd. Even the band themselves didn't believe it, "Why are you guys watching us? Don't you know New Found Glory and Das Racist are on now?!" The die-hard crowd screamed along with every word, some yelling at pauses that they came from the Midwest just to see this band. If by any chance we have any Midwest or Southern US readers, I suggest you check out Krazy Fest in Kentucky, which has a fantastic lineup consisting mostly of all the good PA/NJ bands us East Coasters tend to selfishly hog.

As the day goes on, the names get bigger and it becomes more difficult to get photos. Sorry Dashboard Confessional, Gaslight Anthem, and Taking Back Sunday fans, I assure you their sets were fantastic, but I have no photos or notes because by this point I just wanted to sit and listen to them play from far away. You would too if you'd been standing in the sun for ten hours straight. Here's a photo of a midget wrestler dressed as a chicken in the new Bamboozle Luchador Ring to make you feel better. The only thing that made this sight even more ridiculous is that Miley Cyrus' brother and the chick from Gossip Girl were standing next to me cheering them on. Yes, that's in the top ten weird moments.

Oh Bamboozle, you so crazy! More on Day Two coming soon!

New Single from Prayers for Atheists!

2011-05-10T22:21:00.000-07:00

The second album from Prayers for Atheists, "New Hymns for an old War" has just been released. Check out the single 'Guns Up'!

The Beginning, The Struggle and The Reward - Steve Towson

2011-05-05T04:24:00.000-07:00

There is something about songs of protest and revolution that I just can not go past. Whether it is the political point which is being conveyed, the traditional aspect which speaks of an infamous historical event or just the pure romanticism of it all, I love protest songs.

The latest release from Queensland’s own, Steve Towson, “The Beginning, The Struggle and The Reward” is a five tracks of hardship, struggle and workers rights. All except for one of the songs are covers selected from a wide range of artists including Joe Hill and John Lennon. This release differs greatly from what we’re used to with Towson, it’s incredibly stripped back and raw which highlights the intense passion in his voice. “The Beginning, The Struggle, The Reward” does not sound like an album of covers, the strength and passion in Towson’s voice makes each song his own and indicative of his desire for change. This short but soulful release is well worth a listen. I was fortunate enough to catch Steve playing tracks of his new album at the May Day Workers Concert recently held in Toowoomba on the first day of his tour to launch “The Beginning, The Struggle, The Reward”. Accompanied by his guitar, a cello and a flute, the songs truly came to life and a raw, emotive energy was inescapable for everyone in the audience.

-Words and Photography: Angie Hurlock

The tour to launch “The Beginning, The Struggle, The Reward” has just kicked off, so go and catch Steve at one of the following dates.

Steve Towson "The Beginning, The Struggle, and The Reward" tour

6 May: Mt Morgan, House Concert (41 Byrnes Parade)

13 May: Townsville, at The Cot.

14 May: Cairns, at Mofo (70 McLeod St), with Babylon 420 and Meat Bikini.

27 May: Brisbane, at the Jubilee Hotel, with Wheat Paste, The Great Shame and Paddy McHugh & The Goldminers.

4 June: Brisbane, at Fat Louies, with The Young Liberals and Fever Pitch.

29 June: Toowoomba, at Smells Like Zines store (Shop 4/203 Margaret St).

The Amity Affliction in Philadelphia

2011-04-10T20:32:00.000-07:00

I trudge through a mixture of snow and rain towards First Unitarian Church. Entering the basement, I notice a teacher chasing an escaped preschooler from down the hall amongst confused looking musicians trying to load in their equipment. “When we got here there was a wrestling meet finishing up, now it’s a kid on the loose. Is this place always so weird or am I part of an April Fools Day joke?” mutters a nearby merch guy. Unnatural weather aside, it’s just the wonder of playing a show at Philly’s favourite all-ages, no barrier venue. An hour before doors open, there’s already a line of over one hundred young fans snaking around the block. A sign reading “Tonight’s show is totally sold out…Sorry folks. Totes Magotes!” sends away even more disheartened teens. I ask the first girl in line if she knows anything about The Amity Affliction. “Ooh, that’s a horror movie, right?”

While it’s clear few audience members have heard of The Amity Affliction before tonight, the crowd quickly began to jump around during ‘I Hate Hartley’ and sing along with the chorus of 'Youngbloods.’ A cheer went up when lead vocalist Joel Birch declared his love of the US and more importantly, the Phillies. Throughout the unfortunately short twenty minute set, keyboardist Trad Nathan vaulted off his Nord Wave synth, Joel matched his growls with bass player Ahren Stringer’s clean vocals, drummer Ryan Burt smashed cymbals, and Clint Splattering (also of The Getaway Plan) swung his guitar around nearly hitting me in the face several times. Joel dedicated ‘Stairway to Hell’ to the church with a sly grin and by 'Anchors,' the audience was converted. “I can’t believe that was the first opening band! They just set the bar crazy high for everyone else!” squealed a girl behind me.

Outside by their van, Trad happily eats a well deserved post-set vegan cheesesteak. “I’ve wanted to try one of these since I saw it on ‘Man v. Food,” he says in between bites. We discuss a number of Philadelphia area music greats such as Ink & Dagger, Thursday, Balance & Composure, and of course, Will Smith. “Philly’s a really cool town. Especially coming from a place like Baltimore last night!” he laughs. We both glance at Ahren, who is wearing a Baltimore Orioles hat. “Hey, I just like cheering on the underdogs!” Ahren defends. I inquire whether anyone on their travels so far has treated them differently because of their nationality. “These dudes came up to me a few nights ago asking if I had a pet dingo and if Australia is a third world country!...There’s obviously a lot of uneducated fucks in this world,” stated Trad. Ahren disagrees, “Everyone seems to treat me like I’m American, we aren’t much different anyway… Although, we see a squirrel and lose our shit, while you guys shoot them with BB guns!” “My main problem,” explains Clint, “is that people hear I have an accent, see my red hair, and automatically assume I’m Irish.”

Several minutes later, as if on cue, resident homeless man Jimmy walks up to Clint and asks him if he’s Irish. Once corrected, Jimmy rambles on about the Outback and koalas. Trad watches amused, “this guy is a full on legend!” Jimmy has been around for at least the ten years I’ve attended shows at FU Church, always talking to everyone from fans in line to the biggest names in rock music. “You should interview this guy instead!” jokes Helmet, a friend of the band serving as photographer/crew/merch on tour. I shift the topic back to the current tour and what it’s like being an opener again when you draw a crowd of thousands at home. “It works both ways,” says Ahren, “[headliners Of Mice & Men] are giving us big crowds to play to and we’re doing the same for them in Australia. You get what you give!...We’re pretty stoked with the responses we’ve gotten so far.” Joel has now been roped into Jimmy’s monologue as well, exchanging uncomfortable glances with Clint. “So the mama kangaroo punches ya in the face, then the baby pops out and throws ya an uppercut!” Jimmy wheezes. Jimmy leaves for a minute, then returns with a coffin shaped cigarette case, handing the gift to Clint. As he shuffles away, I’m struck by the irony of such an object.

“We will be [working on a new album], after the Australian tour in May we’ve got a whole bunch of time off to write. We don’t know where we’ll record though,” Ahren reveals. He also mentions they’re wrapping up the video for ‘Youngbloods,’ which should be out in a few weeks. From videos to merch, The Amity Affliction are heavily involved in every aspect of their band. Ahren designs their products himself because “we kept getting shitty merch design, so I took matters into my own hands and drew what we wanted… Some of the t-shirts bands put out these days are disgusting.” There’s a commotion outside the van and we exit to investigate. Several members of various other bands on tour are yelling at a drunken dudebro whose friend keeps insisting “He’s had a bad day, guys!” Woe, is Me bassist Cory Ferris informs me this man spat at their singer, then went on to cause more damage including punching a girl next to him in the face for no reason. I remark to Ryan how this situation is reminiscent of the SXSW incident involving Ben Weasel. The members of Woe, is Me aren’t looking for a fight, but they want an apology and clearly aren’t going to get one from this long gone fellow. Two of the men managing the door come out to handle the situation. “Whoa! Those guys are from Paint It Black!” exclaims Trad at the sight of punk rock icons kicking the drunk hooligan and his friend off church grounds.

With the amount of touring they do, members of The Amity Affliction have met many other musicians, but admit to still feeling star-shocked when it occurs. “Soundwave was insane, walking around backstage you got to see all your childhood heroes,” Ahren said excitedly, “I met Toby Morse from H2O!” Helmet laughs and eggs Joel on to tell me about his hero encounter. “I blew it. I met Chad Gilbert. He was cool and I wasn’t,” he states quietly. The mention of Warped Tour brings Joel’s spirits back up. “I would fucking love to play Warped Tour!” “Hopefully we will,” adds Ahren, “but we have to wait until we get a chance. It would be a dream come true.” Any possibility of seeing a tour from Lovecats, Ahren and Trad’s electro collaboration or Joel’s other band The Author? “Oh God, our side projects aren’t going anywhere. We’re too busy. They’re done!” declares Joel.

The show ends and the crowd swarms out, several boys stopping to tell Trad and Joel how much they enjoyed their set. Someone mentions we should go to a bar, perhaps Paddy’s Pub (from ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,’ which is sadly not a real place). The band eventually come to a consensus that they’re too broke and low on energy to venture around Philly. I decide to leave them to their rest for the next day’s big show in New York City, where they spent two months recording ‘Youngbloods.’ We exchange goodbyes and I walk past Jimmy cocooned in his sleeping bag. “Go Phillies! And kangaroos! Unbeatable team!” he yells at me. I quite agree, Jimmy.

Chicago Irish & The Cultural Infusion

2011-04-05T23:04:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, Terry, Andrew, and Darryl of The Pogues stepped into the guitar shop I work in for a look around before their show. These men hardly look like the type to incite rowdy shows, long past their heyday, all baby boomers. Yet, these are just the men who were pioneers in sparking a trend in punk that still burns bright today. Irish rock, Celtic punk, whatever you like to call it, it’s one of those formulas that simply works well. Faster-paced, politically charged music mixed with danceable Irish-inspired instrumentation. Even covers of some of the oldest folk songs just get better with wear.

Yes, it’s been going on for 30 years now. One would think it’s getting old at this point, but take it from a Chicagoan: we still love it. The United States has over nine times the Irish than Ireland itself, and I’ve often heard that Chicago itself has more Irish than Dublin. I would be surprised if this wasn’t true. Irish punk naturally speaks to this city, its heavy immigrant roots, rough and tough heritage, bringing pride back into a heavy Irish population. It’s only natural that Flogging Molly has spent numerous St. Patrick’s shows right here. I can’t keep track of Dropkick Murphys fans and we have our own Tossers, home-grown from the south side.

“So”, you might say, “that’s all fine and dandy about your clover-loving, Guinness-drinking city, but I’m not Irish. Why should I care?” or simply, “I’m Irish and I don’t care.” Well, you don’t have to have particular blood to enjoy the music, the music that these artists create truly speak to a wide audience, while broadcasting a cultural flavor. More importantly, the entire genre has opened the doors for even more ethnic infusions of punk. Exhibit B: Gogol Bordello, a gypsy punk band (wait, what?). Infusing Romani culture with political punk party music (pun intended), you can bet it’s at the very least intriguing if not down-right infectious.

Some people may find it arrogant, infusing personal cultural backgrounds into music. But rather than an over-zealous sense of ethnic pride, I feel it’s more often a voice, a color, a lens to speak from and share. Reaching out to an audience, regardless of their heritage, with your own stories from your own background can be a truly beautiful thing.

The Pogues start their European tour in July. The Dropkick Murphys are currently touring Europe, coming to the US this summer, then back to Europe. The Tossers aren't straying far from home, but they're out there too. Gogol Bordello is currently on tour in the US and will be in Europe this summer. Check em' out!

Closure in Moscow interview

2011-03-30T09:25:00.000-07:00

Before listening to the above interview, please read the introduction, otherwise you will be rather confused!

When researching Closure in Moscow, I discovered the band is notorious for their sense of humour, especially during interviews. I prepared myself for the onslaught of silly, but was still caught off guard when lead singer Chris DeCinque decided to answer all my questions by whispering into his friend's ear, who then talked for him. Fortunately, guitarist Manny Zennelli was not feeling shy and joined the interview as well. It's a long interview (23 minutes!) but worth the listen because it's comedy gold. At one point I mention a site they don't believe is real, it so is: http://brospony.ingbros.com/

Here's a list of the people present to help you distinguish voices:

*Myself- The girl whose voice makes me sound like I'm 12.

*Manny Zennelli- The Australian fellow who actually talks.

*Chris DeCinque- Present, but silent. Speaks with the help of Jersey Guy.

*Jersey Guy- The American speaking on behalf of Chris. He also contributes his own opinion, the best way to tell if he's speaking for Chris or himself is whether or not there's a long pause before he speaks. (I feel terrible for forgetting his name, but you can see him on the right holding a camera in the first photo.)

*Camera guy- There was also another entourage member there either filming or taking pictures during our interview. He's mostly silent, but talks at a few points when we're discussing eagles.

*"Mary"- A girl walking by at an inopportune moment. She ran away, haha.

*Warped tour worker- A guy who asks me for a pen and handed it back with the cap off, getting ink on my hand. That's what lead to the awkward pen comment.

2011-03-29T00:25:00.000-07:00

Interview with Dennis Lyxzén of AC4

2011-03-26T01:43:00.000-07:00

Back in September 2010 I was lucky enough to see AC4 play in their hometown of Umeå. I thought that this would be my only chance to see them play. However, this April, AC4 are coming all the way from northern Sweden for a nationwide tour of Australia that kicks off in Brisbane on the 7^th of April. I spoke to front man Dennis Lyxzén about hardcore, growing up isolated and the pending Australian tour.

By Angie Hurlock

The origins of AC4 can be traced back to the late 80’s to a band called Step Forward, but twenty years on and a plethora of bands in between, AC4 formed in April 2008. Including members from the Vectors, Regulations and Refused, AC4 play old school hardcore punk with a sheer passion and intensity which can not be ignored. “We’ve known each other for years and years and years and we figured that we needed to make this happen. We’ve all known each other so long that it is just like hanging out with a bunch of dudes that could be your brothers. Also, I think it came from the realization that we were the only four punks left in the city our age”. This city in which Dennis talks about is Umeå; a city renowned worldwide for the amount of great punk bands it has produced, yet it remains almost oblivious to the rest of Sweden. “Sweden is a small country and we [Swedes] are really worried about the latest trends. Apart from the punk scene, the Swedish music scene is pretty horrible. So, most parts of Sweden and the Swedish media take very little notice of what we are doing up here. Which is of course very nice, it means that we can operate under the radar”.

To my surprise at the AC4 show I saw in Umeå, the crowd was tiny and the entrance fee was cheap, which reinforced the idea that in their hometown, they are just a local punk band. “I guess we are [a local band]. We have no illusions of being anything different. When it comes down to it we are a band that plays really fast raw punk/hardcore. We are happy that anyone likes us. Also, up here people are hardly impressed by anything. It’s a good thing”. The punk community of Umeå is impressive, for a city with just over 100, 000 people it constantly has gigs and boasts a never ending list of bands which seem to all be unified by the isolation of living in the north of Sweden. “We live in a really remote and isolated part of the world so that makes things tight. The town is small which means that we have to work together and it means that most people are smart enough to see past small and petty scene bullshit. Not everybody of course, but in general we have a pretty good vibe up here. It is however amazing the amount of bands that this small town has produced. But never underestimate boredom and isolation and fighting the raggare. Raggare is a Swedish mix of rednecks and rockers”.

In the days of one of Dennis and David Sandstöm’s earlier bands, Final Exit, Dennis played bass while David took the vocals and initially this is how Dennis wanted AC4 to be as well. “I wanted to play bass and have David singing but I was voted down. I guess they like me more as a front man than as a crappy bass player. I have a strong desire to one of these days just to be that guy in a band. Just play bass and take no responsibility. It is hard to always be the guy that is supposed to talk and sing and dance”. Despite working together on various projects together, AC4 is the first proper project that both David and Dennis have worked on since the demise of Refused in 1998. “It is good to work together again. I think that we get reminded of the energy that drew us to each other in the first place and sometimes we also get reminded why Refused broke up”.

With AC4 and Dennis’ other current band Instängd, his passion for hardcore is evident and inspiring. “Hardcore is where I grew up and that’s where I spent the better part of my life. Even when I was doing the most amount of touring with The (International) Noise Conspiracy I still went to the local hardcore shows. I did my label and still put on punk shows at home. It is a tricky thing to grow old in the hardcore scene but it is sort of the only place I belong, so it will do”. Many of Dennis’ bands including AC4 have used their platform to express political awareness through their music but he understands that politically motivated music is not for everyone. “For me music has been like that always. I am not saying that it should be like that for everyone, but for me punk liberated my mind and made me aware of politics and the way the world operates. I always thought that it is best to sing about stuff that is close to the heart whether it is politics or just existential ponderings. I also never thought that I would get a platform where I could speak my mind growing up as a working class kid in the north of Sweden. So, I still feel I have some sort of weird obligation to speak out for all the people that will never get the chance”.

The upcoming AC4 tour of Australia is not something that Dennis had imagined possible for AC4 when the band was first starting. “It [AC4] is a project based on desire and lust. When we started we just wanted to play some shows and hang out at my house and watch football and drink beer and jam some old school hardcore punk rock ‘n’ roll. I think that we realised that we could actually be a functioning band when we did our first European tour. We actually managed to play all the shows without any major disasters so we figured why not get a bit more active. Then we were asked to do a tour down under and how can we turn that down?”. Dennis has already been to Australia this year touring with Bloody Beetroots as part of Big Day Out and he is looking forward to coming back in April with AC4. “It was a great time [touring with Bloody Beetroots]. It was really easy for me. It wasn’t a very punk experience but a great contrast to a lot of other stuff that I am doing. I am very much looking forward to coming down again, I really love Australia.”

Interview with Dan O'Connor from Four Year Strong

2011-03-16T08:15:00.000-07:00

Four Year Strong interview by TakeAimZine

It took some time for me to post this interview because despite seeing them three times, I realized I don't have any photos of Four Year Strong! As discussed in the interview with lead guitarist/co-singer Dan O'Connor, Philadelphia FYS shows unfortunately have terrible luck. They've been shut down by the fire marshal and had rowdy crowds get them kicked out for trashing the infamous First Unitarian Church basement. Warped Tour was no different, two of their amps sparked out causing a delay. The show eventually went on, but photographers were not permitted to take any pictures due to time issues.

The band finally had a jinx-free Philly gig in October 2010 while on tour with Comeback Kid. However, yours truely underestimated the excitement hometown heroes The Wonder Years would create and recieved a concussion due to five teenagers jumping from speaker tops directly below onto my head. Needless to say, I was not able to take photos in that condition. Sorry once again for the lack of accompanying pictures, but the movie recommendations, Tom Hanks talk, and Dan's guilty pleasure song confession make up for it. Enjoy!

2011-03-15T17:36:00.000-07:00

Lukestar - Taiga (2011)

2011-03-14T00:36:00.000-07:00

Taiga is the follow up from Lukestars 2008 release “Lake Toba”. Taiga holds no emotion back with each song full of intense energy and a natural feel that sits remarkably well with the band. This release is a lot different from their previous album, it is a more confident approach to their writing and musical ability, they follow no set course and let their melodies flow naturally. Vocalist Truls Heggeros is astounding in his unique ability to en-capture the listener and pour out his emotion before you with his angelic voice. Lukestar are their own on this album and are a fine example of the uniqueness of the Norwegian indie scene. Check out their latest clip here and visit their facebook here for album details

UX Vileheads - new song up!

2011-03-13T19:19:00.000-07:00

Swedens Ux Vileheads have a new song up on their blogger. Ux Vileheads are of a similar vein to the Regulations, Instangd and AC4. Check out this bands new song up on their blogger at http://uxvileheads.blogspot.com/2011/03/new-song-up.html

Competition Time!

2011-03-10T03:30:00.000-08:00

Want to win a copy of Gaslight Anthem's 'American Slang' on vinyl? Go to the takeaimzine facebook page and check out the competition details on the discussion board.
www.facebook.com/TakeAimZine01

A Decade of Pennybridge Pioneers

2011-03-08T03:58:00.000-08:00

Throughout history particular albums have attributed to defining a generation and Pennybridge Pioneers by Millencolin is by far one of those albums. The Swedish skater punk band released their fourth album Pennybridge Pioneers in 2000 and had a succession of hits from the album including ‘No Cigar’ and ‘Fox’. The album was a combination of fun, fast paced, skater punk songs mixed with slower songs that became anthems in which teenagers related to, as is the case with the final song on the album, ‘The Ballad’. The songs from the album have become timeless and part of Millencolin’s appeal is that they engage a large demographic of people. For me as a teenager at the time of Pennybridge Pioneers release, if you had not heard of Millencolin directly then you were first exposed to Pennybridge Pioneers through the Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 soundtrack. Millencolin have maintained a massive following in Australia with Pennybridge Pioneers reaching gold record status and Millencolin have continued to show their appreciation for Australian audiences. In 2008, their seventh album ‘Machine 15’ was released in Australia before the rest of the world including Sweden. They then embarked on a massive world tour which lasted for more than a year and started in Perth, Australia. So, with it being a decade since Pennybridge Pioneers was first released and Millencolin touring Australia as part of the Soundwave festival, Australian audiences have been treated to hearing the album live and in its entirety. From the moment they walked on stage and kicked into No Cigar, the crowd went crazy as they do every time Millencolin play Brisbane and sung along, word for word to every song.

Words and Photographs by: Angie Hurlock

On a quest with the white tiger prepade

2011-02-28T03:43:00.000-08:00

By Nathan Hankinson

The White Tiger Prepade take you upon a spiritual journey through sound and light in their debut release ' Mystic Force In Gatekeepers Question Overflowing The Fountain Of.. '. Coming out of the Metal haven 'Oslo' the White Tiger Prepade take their music through a mind altering noise explosion that rids of prediction and continuity. The music orginal on its own is captured with hypnotic and psychedelic visuals through their video releases that accompany their music. The Tiger Prepade are pushing the boundaries for better and worst. I was fortunate to get in contact with the band and ask a few questions of their quests and this is what they had to say.

1. From what I can see and from what I have heard of the white tiger prepade, it is more than just a band playing songs, how would you describe the white tiger prepade to an unknown?

Before we describe ourselves, we want the "unknown" to reveal its true nature. An "unknown" source is most likely to not make much sense of the explanation we could give in words. We ARE just two guys playing in a band playing songs or jams. Although we believe that our music and all music is able to communicate further and deeper beyond the "unknown", we know that we dont know, and throughout the unknown we dont know, that we dont know . We believe that we as humans are becoming more and more alien to ourselves. It might be that we know all the unknowns around, somewhere inside us. Aliens or not, we are living on the same planet for one reason. To make balance with the earth and ourself. Music can paint this beauty of balance.

2. The Norweigan scene seems like a tight community of artists, what would you say the benefits are of being a Norweigan based band? Are there avenues for artists to showcase them selves in Norway? What restricitions do you find?

Like ripples in the ocean, music spreads around everywhere. Soon we have shared our music with people all around the world. If you are true to music it will be true to you. Reveal its nature, the core of all movements. We feel very part of this movement. Although we are surfing in the outer realms of the community, it is the same core we are swirling about. The benefit is clearly there when the music finds a way by its self. We have never pushed music onto people. People have found us. When it is time to play, we play. It must come out of the right impulse. We think of it as the music calling us.. The wave we send out from shore grabs something in the deep ocean and pulls us back out again.

3. Do you see restrictions in your music? where would you want your music to evolve to?

We are open sources. Music is not something, but somewhat like life. And life takes the people to the next level. We expect us to change, and we do. A total of ingredients is necessary at all times but keeping stuff at the minimal we find the biggest creative rooms. The only restriction is not to be restricted to one thing, but to be open to whatever comes.

4. Your sound shifts between intense and peaceful, what were your influences in the development of your sound?

Balance between the ancients and the futuristics. Grand optimism and panic depression. Google earth and planetary meditations. déjà vu and lucid dreaming. The inner living image and the materialized feelings. Sacred geometry and profane chaos.

5. Bands that inspire you?

We go deep and way back with metal. Everything that has some kind of punk or metal attitude is sure to be inspiring! But most of all the things that is on the flipside of us..

It is the most interesting. Piano, synth, ambient, and any form of instrumental music carry their colors out in a very direct and special way. It hits you in the core of your body and soul and spreads to you feel your boundaries. These have been making impressions the last year: Lubomyr Melnyk, James Ferraro, Charlemagne Palestine, George Garside, Enno Velthuys,

Mark Anthony Heide, Michael Sterns, Oneohtrix point never, Mort Garson.

The White Tiger Prepade have just had their debut release 'Mystic Force In Gatekeepers Question Overflowing The Fountain Of.. '. You can hear most tracks for free from their myspace check out www.myspace.com/whitetigerprepade. It is a well worth the listen to hear another side of what Norway has to offer.

The World/Inferno Friendship Society

2011-02-21T20:54:00.000-08:00

A cheer bursts from the crowd as silhouettes fall into place within the dark. So far, it’s a normal show. This is where normal ends. The lights snap on, the stage ablaze in white light. A motley crew has filled the stage; each dressed in their own idea of their evening’s finest. A pale, skinny man dons a suit, sipping, no, inhaling a bottle of red wine. His eyes dark and what seems to be a mischievous smirk permanently affixed to his lips. You are certain this man is the devil himself, his charisma already striking the audience as otherworldly. He kindly greets the audience, then brings forth a tom drum from nowhere, and begins to hammer a primal beat into it. Music quickly sneaks into the beat until an uproar of chorus turns the room into a chaotic circus; infectious and effective in snatching the audience’s participation is a song called “Tattoos Fade”.

This is the World/Inferno Friendship Society. Who? After all these years, I doubt the most avid fan could give you a clear answer. Somewhere lost between worlds of anarcho-punk, cabaret-punk, swing-punk, lots of punk. Yet, as far as punk goes, they’re strictly unconventional. If you can imagine big band, soul, and circus music with an attitude, I suppose this is the product.

Hailing from Brooklyn, the band has undergone many lineup changes over the last fifteen years, but throughout its span, maintained a very faithful cult following. The only constant member has been frontman Jack Terrycloth, formerly Pete Ventantonio of Sticks and Stones. The man has an infectious personality, and could probably convince the world to spin the other way if he so pleased. As the band as a whole seems to carry that effect with songs like “Let’s Steal Everything”, “Addicted To Bad Ideas”, and “I Wouldn’t Want To Live In A World Without Grudges”, one quickly understands how outspoken World/Inferno can be.

Emma Goldstein once said, “If I can’t dance, I don’t want your revolution.” If Emma was still alive today, I think she’d be proud. It’s hard not to move at a World/Inferno concert. The meek, meager and shy quickly loosen up as the band and audience melt into a tumult through the night. Slow songs, fast songs, songs concerning Weimar Germany, heroes such as Paul Robeson, Peter Lorre, and the romance and magic of living in the moment.

If there’s one thing that you must know and love about this band, it’s their zeal for Halloween. To place it on a pedestal, World/Inferno went as far as naming it Hallowmas. They put on a special show every year, elaborately planned and full of surprises. Grand entertainment such as fire breathing, circus acts, burning effigies, home-made pyrotechnics, and rallies into the street as the band plays "Pumpkin Time", paying homage to the Great Pumpkin of Peanuts make the night unforgettable.

And while the band changes, it's still alive and kicking and even kicking it on tour now. They are scheduled to release their fifth LP, The Anarchy and the Ecstasy, on March 15^th. That’s next month kids! Stay tuned and check it out.

Interview with Winston McCall of Parkway Drive

2011-02-21T10:27:00.000-08:00

Last July, I was given the opportunity to report on the Camden, New Jersey stop of Warped Tour, but the magazine I was freelancing for ran out of space and opted out of using my article. Ironically, the same thing happened the only other time I'd been to Warped, in 2006. The hilarious interviews and photos I risked heat stroke for sat in my computer, gathering virtual dust. I imagined anthropomorphic versions of the files crying and wishing that I, their creator, share them with the world. Well, my gigabyte friends, now is the time.

I start off with my first interview of the day, Winston McCall of Parkway Drive. Winston is the sort of person you look at before a performance starts and think, "Well, he doesn't seem like he'd be in a hardcore band!" Then he goes on stage, blows your mind and eardrums, and walking off, becomes that friendly chap from Byron Bay once again. He was honestly the nicest person I've interviewed and as soon as our conversation started, my nerves went away. Unfortunately, for our interview they stuck us in the hallway where the catering line was, so the chattering you hear in the background is a mixture of other interviews and bands complaining that they're hungry. At one point you can clearly hear a girl say, "I want some turkey!"

Parkway Drive are currently touring the US (I'll be at their Philly show on the 27th!) and will tour Australia in May, starting in Brisbane for their Mix N' Mash Tour.

Photos and interview by Danielle Reicherter July 16th, 2010

P.S.- Before I started recording, I nervously (read: stupidly) told Winston that the gym I go to is on a Parkway Drive. While this is true, I regretted saying it instantly, but he was genuinely interested in that, saying that he always likes trying to find actual Parkway Drives around the world. Aww.

HorrorPops Australian Tour 2011!

2011-02-14T16:44:00.000-08:00

With a stage show which includes Go Go Dancers and novelty lollipops, HorrorPops have been moving crowds into a rock 'n' roll frenzy for more than a decade with their unique variation on punk rock. Most often cited as a psychobilly band, HorrorPops left their native Denmark for somewhere with a better Rock 'n' Roll scene as singer/bassist Patricia Day told me. “There is a total of 3, yes three rock'n'roll venues in all of Denmark. When it comes to rock music Denmark is a third world country, there is no future there. If we could have relocated to Australia we would have, but it's actually easier to get US work permits than Australian. But Australia is to us a perfect combination of the grandness of the US and the local culture and humour from Europe and it's a great rock'n'roll country”.

It's been more than five years since Australian audience last experienced HorrorPops live in Australia, but this April they're back for a nationwide tour.

Tickets are available now from the Principal Entertainment website.

http://www.principalentertainment.com.au/

AC4

2011-02-08T03:37:00.000-08:00

Words & Photographs by Angie Hurlock

When I arrived in the small Northern Swedish city of Umeå one of the first things I noticed was the various propaganda posters for the election which was happening at the time. However, amongst those posters promising a better Sweden was one that caught my eye, AC4 were playing that Saturday night and I couldn’t believe my luck. Umeå is the hometown of AC4 which consist of Dennis Lyxzén & David Sandstöm from Refused and Jens Nordén and Karl Backman from The Vectors who band together create an old school hardcore punk explosion.

In the days leading up to the gig I asked a friend of mine in Umeå about what AC4 were like live to which the response I received was, “they’re great if they’re sober”. So, on that chilly Swedish autumn night I made my way to the river where the gig was to take place on a boat and because they were all local bands, entry was only a mere $8 Australian dollars. Despite being nearly as far away from Australia as possible, to my surprise the bar at the gig was serving Coopers Pale Ale which reminded me instantly of home.

The first band to play were called Forever Young and were pretty decent but not incredibly memorable. Following them was Håll Det Ākta which had the largest fan base of the night. Although the last band of the night was made up of what I would deem as an all star punk line up, the young crowd to my astonishment seemed to be far more interested in Håll Det Ākta and most had left by the time AC4 were to play. As Dennis took the stage the small crowd took a few steps back leaving a two metre space between us in the front and the band, as soon as the began to play the reason for this shift became clear. As they kicked into an array of songs off their self titled album, Dennis began dancing and swinging his microphone in a way which has become synonymous with the performer during his time in Refused and The (International) Noise Conspiracy. The energy omitted by the AC4 is infectious and drummer Jens in nothing less than incredible. As they wrapped up their set a guy in the crowd picked up a girl, slung her over his shoulder and began running around in circles while her legs flailed in the air. It was a perfectly dangerous, high energy and hilarious act for the show to end with.

When I returned back to Australia my friend told me he was bringing AC4 over in April 2011 and I couldn’t wait. So, now I sit and wait anxiously for April 7^th when AC4 are taking over The Zoo in Brisbane and recommending everyone to catch them on their first Australian tour.

For tickets to their Australian tour check out: www.newnoiseagency.com

VIOLENCE IS TIMELESS

2011-02-08T01:50:00.000-08:00

For the past thirteen years, Swedish band Division of Laura Lee have been making great albums and touring a brand of punk rock that is uniquely their own. I spoke to drummer Håkan Johansson about the beginnings of Division of Laura Lee, Carcrash Records and the future of D.O.L.L.

By Angie Hurlock

Named after ‘70’s soul singer Laura Lee and armed with a sound influenced by Fugazi; Division of Laura Lee began in September of 1997. “Me and Jonas [Gustafsson, D.O.L.L] were in a three piece called Uncle. We had a rehearsal that day but Mattias couldn’t join in for some reason. Henrik who wanted to start a new band was in the studio, so we started jamming. Per [Stålberg D.O.L.L] joined the next day and a week later we had our first show in our friend Daniel’s apartment. Two weeks later we recorded our first seven inch”.

The “97-99” album, a compilation of early material release in 2005 has a sound that differs starkly to the later albums and truly captures their influences including, Nirvana, Fugazi and Swervedriver. “The acts, combined with the four of us and our diverse backgrounds make the foundation of our sound. To this we add flavour and colour and blend in some nice lyrics”. It was not until 2002 that D.O.L.L’s debut album ‘Black City’ was released with singles, ‘Need To Get Some” and “Black City” making their name instantly known. Following this they released “Das Not Compute” in 2004 before releasing “Violence Is Timeless” in 2008.

For the “Violence Is Timeless” album, Division of Laura Lee invited guest directors to create video clips for each of the twelve songs on the album. The idea for this grew from a desire to do something different. “We first talked about releasing a new song a week. We soon found out it had been done numerous times before. We wanted to do something bigger and better. That’s when we came up with the idea of releasing a video for every song on the new album [Violence Is Timeless]. We started asking friends if they wanted to make a video for a song of their choice on the new album and soon video’s came pouring in! We released one video every Monday leading up to the release date of the C.D. It was beautiful”.

Håkan was able to confirm the rumour that Division of Laura Lee are back in the studio and working on their fourth album. “The truth is we’re writing and recording new songs for an album. We have no deadline scheduled but we are anxious to get going.” The direction for these new songs sees Division of Laura Lee delving further into their musical skills. “We are heading towards melodic rock versus nervous post punk. We are also flirting with the rhythm patterns of acts like Nine Inch Nails, electronic beats transcribed to acoustic drums”.

After more than ten years and three albums to their name, Division of Laura Lee’s recording process and time in the studio tends to run smooth and methodically. “We make three or four songs and put them on tape. After a few of those sessions we know what direction the album is taking and we can either redirect it or go with the flow. Since we don’t like singing, we always do the vocal parts last minute”.

Håkan also runs Carcrash records which has released the likes of C.Aarmé and The (International) Noise Conspiracy, but the label began as a way for Håkan to release his own music. “The first release was in 1996 by Jonas and my band Uncle. We also did a seven inch with Per’s band at the time, Outstand. I wanted to get our music heard and I had the possibility to do it. I soon realised that there was so many great bands that got stuck in their rehearsal rooms. So I did my best to give them the possibility to release a record. Then it kind of snowballed from there. I wish I had more time to work with the label, but seeing how the market has changed and how easy it is to release music today, I made the decision a few years back that Carcrash will only work as a portal to the digital distribution channels”.

Division of Laura Lee have been on a hiatus from touring for a while now but are looking forward to getting back on the road. “One of the main reasons we became a band was because we wanted to tour. We miss it a lot. There is still a tonne of places we haven’t visited yet.” Over the years D.O.L.L have played with a diverse array of great bands including Turbonegro, however it’s The Catheters that were Håkan’s favourite to play with. “They’re [The Catheters] one of the best bands I have seen live. It was always a challenge to go on stage after them. We are still great friends after doing as many as three tours together. Sadly they are not a band anymore. But you can find two albums that were released on Sub Pop in the early 2000’s”.

For now, Division of Laura Lee are continuing to record new tracks and play shows in their native Sweden. “Between shows we’ll just keep working on the new songs and other projects such as photography, design, studio production and plain hard work”. Australia has never been fortunate enough to experience Division of Laura Lee live, but it is something that Håkan hopes to rectify. “We will get there. We have failed in the past, but we won’t give up easily”.

Alleycat Records

2011-02-08T01:44:00.000-08:00

As you would have noticed by now, Take Aim Zine has spent some time taking a look at the Scandinavian countries and their alternative culture scenes. One thing I have noticed while putting together these articles and while I was in these countries is that there is this amazing d.i.y spirit and comradery which unites the differing scenes. One of these examples is Jonk who founded Alleycat Records in Sweden five years ago. I spoke to Jonk about how the label began and the future of the record industry.

By Angie Hurlock

For Jonk, starting a record label was a childhood dream. Growing up going to concerts is what first made him realise that he wanted to be a part of the music scene. Jonk found himself a part of the music scene after some teenage stripping antics in a club. “When I was seventeen, me and a male friend were asked to strip in front of 50-60 girls at an 18^th birthday party at a club. The deal was that we could stay at the club and have free booze that night. We were young and stupid and since we couldn’t enter any pub because of the 18 year rule, we thought it was a great idea. I spoke a lot with the owner of the pub that day and he asked me if I could have my birthday party there. So I had my party there and it was a packed house and since they made a great winning off the bar he asked me if I could arrange some more party nights there”. From these beginnings, Jonk began to regularly organise parties at the venue. “I did some parties where we played the music we wanted to instead of the new disco stuff they only ever played at the pubs in Lerum, the small town I grew up in. I did it for fun and then the owner started to pay me a little and I thought that maybe I could use this money to arrange some concert with live bands. So after sharing the idea with a guy I met at some punk concerts we booked some bands and had a club night.”

It was not long after this that Jonk started Club Riot with a friend from university in the much larger city of Gothenburg. “The club went well but we had different ideas of the music that should be played, he was more into heavy metal and I was not. I wanted to have variation with rock music from the 60s to nowadays rock music”. Jonk began Club Slacker with close friend Matilda at the Henriksberg which ran for several years. “Matilda became pregnant so we quit the club and I started a new one called Showdown. Same stuff, but I didn’t want to keep the name since it wasn’t us two making it any longer”.

After five years of putting on club nights in Gothenburg, Jonk felt he needed a change and that he needed to do something more. “My parents gave me their old shitty car when they bought a new one and since I never drive I thought it would be just expensive to have that car standing, so I sold it and contacted a band called Sweet Addiction to start a record deal. I had no clue how to run a record label at all but that’s the way I’ve always been doing stuff. People over all are afraid of doing new stuff without insurances, but well, just do it. You lose money, sure thing, but you gain so much more out of it. I am still not making money out of the record label. One in five records gets me some profit, but I look at it as an expensive hobby.”

Among the names on Alleycat records is Detroit trio Koffin Kats who earlier this year embarked on a six week tour of Europe. “Oh damn, most unlucky tour ever, but a good tour though. Six weeks in Europe and they played everywhere, but fucking unlucky. After five days on tour they were hit in Romania by a trailer from behind, so they got sandwiched between the trailer in front and the trailer from behind. The van got totally smashed, they had to go to hospital but they all survived and continued the tour. The tour manager Owen flew back to the UK, picked up a new van and drove back to the Czech Republic to meet the band for the next gig. They only missed one gig on the tour and then they were at the hospital. Hardcore, I say”. Also on the label are Australia’s own, Digger and the Pussycats from Melbourne. “I love those guys! [Digger and the Pussycats]. I was contacted by their last booking agent for booking gigs for them in Scandinavia, so I booked them four gigs up here and then one before the shows the agent could not be reached. I got an email one week before from the agent that said they had to cancel Scandinavia. Some weeks later I got and email from Digger and the Pussycats where they asked me if I could help out booking some gigs in Scandinavia, I told them I already did and that they had cancelled. It turned out that they never knew about the Scandinavian plans before. So I started to book their gigs up here and me and Joel from Denimzine released their album on license up here. We knew it would be a big loss but we had some extra money spare and since we both love the music and Sam & Andy, we just had to do it”.

Despite not having any knowledge of how to run a record label in the beginning, Jonk has learnt a lot over the last five years and would suggest to those thinking about starting a label, not to plan too many releases. “I planned one release in March and one in June and so on for a year and since 99% of the bands get delayed with the recording, the design and so on, you just end up with having three releases in one month and then prostitution is the only solution to get money for all the releases. I also recommend to work kind of like a management for the band. Be sure to them a booking agency and help with merchandise and so on. If they don’t play a lot live it’s hard to sell records nowadays”.

For now Jonk plans to focus on the releases that Alleycat has upcoming and to continue with his club nights in Gothenburg. “Right now Trubbel’s new 7-inch is being pressed and albums for The Kendolls, Transwagon and Impo & The tents are all in the making. After that some tour booking, and running the clubs, after those releases I will wait for a while before I release some more since I need to have more time between the releases to be able to work professionally with it. I will book some less since it’s hard to have time for everything. I’ll focus on Showdown and Club Slacker and the record label and try to get some better distribution”. The future of Alleycat records sees it going c.d free and focusing on vinyl releases only. “It’s [vinyl] a cooler format and most records are sold at livegigs and mailorders nowadays and if you take me for example, I buy a lot of 7-inches and LP’s but rarely a c.d”.

Epidemics – Waking Up The Dead

2011-02-08T01:33:00.000-08:00

Fronted by the charismatic Emma Swänström, Epidemics have a sound which is reminiscent of punk band Vice Squad possibly contributed to the similar vocal style of Vice Squad’s frontwoman, Beki Bondage. Released on Ny Våg Records in 2008 and produced by The (International) Noise Conspiracy’s Inge Johansson, Waking Up the Dead consists of a great punk rock sound mixed with sweet melodies (‘Never Grow Up’) tied together with lyrics of the pressures of modern day society in the eyes of a non conformist. My favourite songs on the album would have to be the first track No Good Advice, Straight Jacket and the extremely catchy, ‘Wake Up and Scream’. ‘Waking Up The Dead’ is a great punk rock album, which is definitely worth a listen.

3 ½ / 5

Angie

Introducing Sam McKenzie!

2011-02-08T01:21:00.000-08:00

There are some very common themes in your work, what else inspires you other than girls, ghouls and guitars?

I guess I'm mainly influenced by people. Not really specific people, just people in general. I really enjoy trying to get certain personalities across in my drawings. Trying to get lively characters and expressions, with all those little quirks that people tend to have. The girls and ghouls bit falls under this. I love drawing all kinds of folk, really! But pretty girls and ugly men are the most fun. I love Music too, and my love for Rock n' Roll comes across pretty clearly. Stylish movies, TV shows, Old Movie posters (especially for the typography), Comics and such are big influences too.

How would you define your style?

Well, I’d say it's quite cartoony. In fact, I'm trying to head in a more cartoony direction. I've been incorporating many cartoon-type characters into my usual kind of work. I think it's a nice contrast. I find it hard to specifically define my style, as I'm so close to it. It's kind of hard for me to step back and take a fresh look at it. I'll leave that to other people.

Who are some of your favourite artists?

So, so many. I'm very lucky to have close friends who also draw and create excellent work. It's amazing how inspiring that can be, feeding off of each others work. People like Karl Kwasny, Dave Collinson, Philip Dearest, Ben Cee, Mel Stringer and more. I know I'm leaving some friends out, sorry about that! As for international artists, I really like Rockin' Jellybean, Jamie Hewlett, Jordi Bernet, Brandon Graham, Sheldon Vella and much, much more. It's not fair to make me choose and name names.

What are your favourite mediums to use?

I like ink on paper mostly. I draw everything by hand and then do all the colour work in photoshop. I've developed a bit of a process over time, involving a lot of sketch work. Getting a pencil and just hacking out shapes and lines, real messy. Then taking parts of that and using a lightbox to do a second pass (or more, if needed). Gradually tightening up the lines and form. Then I'll blow it up to A3 size and again using a lightbox, will ink the drawing. I prefer using thin pens, like a .01 fineliner. Then I take the finished inks in to photoshop and clean it all up and add colour. The process tends to vary a bit every time, really.

Are there any plans for a compilation of your art?

I would love to work towards an art-book of some sort! Or do some comics. That would be amazing.
I have actually compiled some 'zines in the past. But they were kind of last-minute things, just to get my work in to peoples hands.
But I'd really love to put out a book of some sort! Hopefully in the not-too distant future.

Dungen in Philly

2011-02-08T01:06:00.000-08:00

Words and photograph by Danielle Reicherter

Hallå skarp pojken! Jag lik söt svensk fisken bäst! Now you all know the traditional Scandinavian greeting which translates to “Hello cute guy! My favourite candy is Swedish Fish!” I learned that from a girl I went to middle school with and of course I remember it several years later despite this being the only time it has come in handy. Save for Old Swedes Church, there is unfortunately little Swedish influence in Philadelphia. I’m pretty sure all us intense Germans and Irish folk scared them off so they decided to colonize Minnesota instead (a lovely place, but I’m contractually obligated to laugh at them because of Brett Favre). Fortunately, some of my favourite Swedes are fond of crazy ol’ Philadelphia and paid the hipster hangout Johnny Brendas a visit.

I first discovered Dungen while reading a review of their 2004 album ‘Ta Det Lugnt’ in an issue of pre-sellout Spin Magazine. The description of their prog-groovy sound caught my interest and I jotted their name in a notebook I carried everywhere with me like Harriet the Spy. Except, I stupidly wrote ‘Dungeon’ and not the Swedish word for ‘group of trees.’ Imagine my confusion when researching their music several weeks later, I kept coming up with an Australian metal band. I forgot about Dungen until I was (ironically) in Australia on a road trip with none other than Angie. ‘Panda’ came on her shuffle and I was completely mesmerized by it, asking her to play it repeatedly. “You like Dungen? I love them. Swedish is like the language of the elves,” she laughed. Thus, I became hooked.

“ALL THE HONEY IN THE BLOSSOM!” sing-yells the guy next to me, who oddly resembles Ron Jeremy. You’d think a fan would know that though everyone in Dungen can speak English, they proudly sing in their native tongue (sadly a rarity these days, Americans Against Global Americanization!). I love how not understanding the language a song is sung in makes me pay extra attention to the beauty of the words rather than their meaning. Gustav Ejstes is probably used to misheard lyrics and continues to sing as ‘60s montages are projected behind him, casting colours on his face. The band (rounded out by guitarist Reine Fiske, bassist Mattias Gustavsson, and drummer Johan Holmegard) seemed a bit shy at first, hiding in the shadows toward the back of the tiny stage, but open up and jam on songs like ‘Hogdalstoppen’ and ‘Barner Undrar.’ Keep in mind, when I use the word ‘jam’ here, it means an appropriate length piano or flute riff with beneficial additions to the recorded song as opposed to ‘jam’ in the horrid Dave Matthews Band fifteen minute saxophone solo for no reason sense.

There was little banter between songs other than a comment from Reine about eating cheesesteaks (the equivalent of Will Smith doing a show in Sweden and saying “Had some herring today! Mad tasty, yo!”), but it was their quiet charm that made the show extra interesting. Here are a bunch of foreign musicians singing words you can’t understand in a dark indie bar with no props or gimmicks to a crowd in a country that usually demands neon, bling and Autotune. Yet I’ll be darned, everyone present was just as entranced as I was by those incomprehensible lyrics and flowing music that gives the feeling of cruising around in a ‘74 Chevy Laguna. Especially Ron Jeremy-guy.

Norway's Nö Music

2011-02-08T00:57:00.000-08:00

When I first thought hey I might do an article on Norway and its music scene I had a very narrow mind and figured it would just be bands like Emperor, Darkthrone, Immortal, Mayhem and various other bands of the metal discipline. That was until I came across an online zine called Nö Music; a Norweigan based zine that promotes all music from across all genres from Norway. I was excited to hear all this new music that I had no idea was out there, it was a definite learning Experience. I had to get in contact with them and find out more, and fortunately I got a reply from one of the writers of the zine and they were able to give me a comprehensive introduction to the Norwegian scene in particular the Oslo scene from which Anne Lee writer of Nö Music is based.

By: Nathan Hankinson

Ann Lee's introduction to the Oslo scene came as a touring band “I used to play in a Japanese-English punk band from London, and we frequently toured in Norway. I fell in love with Norway from the first time there, and started making connections with Norwegian bands, often trying to book and promote them in the UK. I also worked as a "guitar tech" slash roadie for a Norwegian band Serena Maneesh in the UK, and after awhile, when the keyboardist left, they asked me to join the band. I toured with them for over a year and was based in Oslo. Later, I started my own management company and started promoting other Norwegian acts.”

So how does Norway manage to produce so many bands being such an isolated country? Norway is an incredibly small country- 4.5 million- and to have such a large and well-supported music scene (supported heavily by the state) is something quite unique. I see friends from the States and UK pass through more then if I myself regularly went to travel. The booking in Norway is a fierce and diverse competition, but we also get the best concerts and acts as a result. In other words: we're spoiled! Small venues in Oslo still struggle though..many of the best underground or "cool" venues have or are near closing down because it is incredibly expensive to maintain a healthy booking budget and the beer prices are through the roof, not by choice.

Five bands that you would say best describe the Norwegian scene? This is a difficult question. I could name 5 pretty popular acts...describing the state of Norwegian mainstream pop/rock. All the music from Norway on the other hand, is probably too diverse to summarize with just 5 bands. You of course have indie bands on tour now which are quite successful internationally-- Datarock, Kings of Convenience, Jaga Jazzist for example. You have to mention the Bergen-scene if you wanna talk about what's "popular" or "pop" music right now, though I personally think most of it is shit. But then there are "cult classics"-- black metal legends Darkthrone for example or Motorpsycho from Trondheim. Turbonegro I guess you already know, who aren't really doing anything anymore these days. A-ha just played their "last" concert. My favorites are probably much more obscure, old school metal or noisy-- Next Life, White Tiger Prepade (in this issue!), Nekromantheon, Obliteration, Hellhammer, Noxagt.

I guess when most people outside of Europe think of Norway and music, several different varieties of metal comes to mind. However once I had researched I was amazed to see the diversity and talent that Norway has to offer. What would you say would be the main contribution as to why Bands from Norway struggle to get heard outside of Scandinavia, what do you see as the future of Norway and music?

When compared to other European countries, what we think in Norway as a "scene" really doesn't compare. It's tiny. Shitty acts, especially those with a schtick, like "girl power" solo female acts, get way too much cultural funding. Ingrid Olava or Ida Maria for example. On the other hand, Norway has birthed some of the greatest cult bands, who oppose "mainstream" and are of their own accord, musically and aesthetically--- that stuff of legends.

LUKINZINE.SE

2011-02-08T00:47:00.000-08:00

Since September 2008 webzine, Lukinzine has been online connecting music lovers to the sounds of upcoming punk and hardcore acts. I spoke to creator, Ramon about running Lukinzine.

By Angie Hurlock Photographs by: Ramon Calvo

Like everyone who runs a fan zine, Ramon grew up with a passion for music and bands, but around the age of twelve a love of hardcore developed. “I discovered hardcore thanks to skating and hooking up with some older people who told me to burn my melodic punk albums and listen to some real music instead. After discovering stuff like Minor Threat, Sick of it All, Bad Brains and Black Flag it was all downhill from there”.

Prior to starting Lukinzine, Ramon wrote for various webzines and blogs before being asked to write for Fourfinger [a larger and full time online music magazine]. “I wrote for them [Fourfinger] for awhile, but then the guy who ran the magazine kept missing updates and things were really almost never going in the direction I liked. I talked to him about it and he asked if I wanted to take it all over but that he would still be in charge. I thought about it but soon realised that if this was gonna be the case I might as well just start something on my own and just focus on what I like. And so I did; Lukinzine was born”.

The main focus of Lukinzine’s content is based around hardcore bands and promoting bands that otherwise may not get much exposure. “During the 90’s when hardcore really blew up in Sweden I was in my teens and completely into it. Not just the music, but the whole concept of the D.I.Y movement and helping each other out and making things happen together. Lukinzine is a way to keep that part of me alive and at the same time letting people know more music that might not always be out there in any big way”.

Lukinzine remains a webzine despite Ramon at time considering printing the zine. “Right now Lukinzine takes way too much time already, so I don’t think a printed version is gonna be something that comes around in the near future. I love zines and I really admire the people who still put out printed ones because there is a lot of hard work behind it, and people should definitely support the printed ones before the web based ones, no doubt. Those people are the real heroes.”

The future of Lukinzine looks to involve a complete makeover of the page and a commitment to update more often. “Right now I’m always thinking, ‘I’ll write about that tomorrow’, but then I never get round to actually doing it”. Running a zine is hardwork whether it be print or online, but for Ramon it’s worth it to get the music he loves out there. “Sure it takes a lot of time and sometimes even feels like a burden, but when you get good feedback or realise that bands you were one of the first to write about now are getting noticed feels like a reward enough. Or just getting a happy mail or phone call from some random band saying they like what you wrote about their latest album or whatever. Acutally, even when you get those angry mails from people who take reviews a little too serious are pretty motivating too.

Check out Lukinzine here! www.lukinzine.se

The BOMBETTES!!

2011-02-08T00:37:00.000-08:00

Like many great Swedish bands; The Bombettes hail from Umeå, a small city whose bands have made an immense impact on punk and hardcore. Their album, ‘Get Out of My Trailer, Sailor!’ is ten songs of pure punk rock bliss. I spoke to singer, Elin about The Bombettes and what it’s like coming from ‘Umeå Punk City’.

By Angie Hurlock

The Bombettes were looking for a singer when you joined, how did you get involved?

A dear friend of mine told me that some friends of hers had a band and were looking for a singer. I had not played any music for 4 years but still I thought, ‘hey I can do that’. So I did. At the end of our first rehearsal we had already made a song.

How would you describe the Bombettes to someone who hasn’t heard you before?

We play danceable catchy punk rock with a hint of 60´s and a whole lot of riot.

There seems to be an incredible scene in Umeå. What is it about the Northern city which leads to such amazing bands?

Some might say it is because the northern cities are so boring, but I love it here and I am not bored at all. It has to do with many factors I think. First of all, the Hardcore scene during the mid 90´s of course but also (and maybe more importantly) it is a fact that the northern parts of Sweden are more industrial, more economically challenged, more sub cultural - Sweden’s "underdog" so to speak. That makes us wanna do things ourselves, nobody else will do it for us.

What bands/musicians have inspired you?

I can’t speak for the other bombettes, but for me personally it is difficult to name drop. Music is the biggest love of my life - and has always been. I take inspiration from lyrics, from 60´s girl groups, from the DIY UK indie scene during the late 80´s (bands like Heavenly, the Field Mice, Talulah Gosh etcetera) from soul singers with deep voices from punk bands and from different subcultures. I live and breathe pop culture!

How did you first get involved in the music scene?

Well, I played the piano and the violin as a child and when I was 13 I started my first own band. A punk rock band in which I wrote all the songs and both played the drums and sang haha. Big no no today if you ask me. I moved to Umeå when I was 20. I moved here [Umeå] to study at the university but also because I knew a lot of great things about Umeå when it came to the music scene. Back home in Luleå (a small town even further up north) I was very involved in politics as a teenager and we saw what happened in Umeå during the 90´s, we were very jealous of that.

You have recently toured America, how was that and how were you received?

If anyone had asked me 15 years ago what my biggest dream was I would have answered: to tour America. So it was sort of a dream come true. The response was great; we played different types of venues - from basements to clubs. The one thing that hit me was how amazingly big but still small the DIY punk scene really is. I am so proud to be a part of the Umeå scene. It doesn’t matter if we’re in Germany, Spain or in America there are always people who know a lot about Umeå. Quite amazing for a town with 100 000 inhabitants. The thing is, Umeå is more famous abroad than in Sweden. Swedes generally don’t give a shit about the northern parts.

Finally, is there a chance of coming to Australia?

Sure. If anyone is interested in putting up some shows just contact us and let’s make it happen!

Listen to The Bombettes on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/thebombettes

For Bookings: thebombettes@gmail.com

Get Out of My Trailer, Sailor! Is out now through Ny Våg records : www.nyvag.com

2011-01-27T14:37:00.001-08:00

Take Aim Zine

Adam McIlwee of Tigers Jaw

The Static Jacks interview

Back from the Morgue - Mad Sin in Australia

Spraynard at LAVA Space

The Casualties are coming to Australia... finally!

Bizoo Regional Tour!

Book review: 'Damned' by Chuck Palahniuk

Bizoo: The Best, The Worst and The Trash That Never Made It!

Hannibal Buress interview

Candy Town

"If Lady Gaga is meant to be the new punk then I don’t think very much of it"

As Tall As Lions

Bamboozle Day One

New Single from Prayers for Atheists!

The Beginning, The Struggle and The Reward - Steve Towson

The Amity Affliction in Philadelphia

Chicago Irish & The Cultural Infusion

Closure in Moscow interview

Interview with Dennis Lyxzén of AC4

Interview with Dan O'Connor from Four Year Strong

Lukestar - Taiga (2011)

UX Vileheads - new song up!

Swedens Ux Vileheads have a new song up on their blogger. Ux Vileheads are of a similar vein to the Regulations, Instangd and AC4. Check out this bands new song up on their blogger at http://uxvileheads.blogspot.com/2011/03/new-song-up.html

Competition Time!

Want to win a copy of Gaslight Anthem's 'American Slang' on vinyl? Go to the takeaimzine facebook page and check out the competition details on the discussion board. www.facebook.com/TakeAimZine01

A Decade of Pennybridge Pioneers

On a quest with the white tiger prepade

The World/Inferno Friendship Society

Interview with Winston McCall of Parkway Drive

HorrorPops Australian Tour 2011!

AC4

VIOLENCE IS TIMELESS

Alleycat Records

Epidemics – Waking Up The Dead

Introducing Sam McKenzie!

Dungen in Philly

Norway's Nö Music

LUKINZINE.SE

The BOMBETTES!!

Want to win a copy of Gaslight Anthem's 'American Slang' on vinyl? Go to the takeaimzine facebook page and check out the competition details on the discussion board.
www.facebook.com/TakeAimZine01