Musically, I'm listening to a lot of rock again. I'm reviving the feeling I got when I first moshed. The show was Verbal Assault and SNFU at a dirty old bingo parlor in Omaha around 1985. We were revved up on No Doz and Grape vodka. It seemed like we slammed for hours. We were instant best friends with other punks we had never met before. The experience changed my life. It felt like some tribal act of passage where the kids make up there own crappy little music to show our individuality from generations past. The changing of the guard.
The next rite of passage is when you discover that your parents music is not all shit. My dad's Jerry Lee Lewis and my mom's Ray Charles were probably cooler than JFA or the Descendants but I didn't feel like I owned their music. Going back further, Billie Holiday or Nat King Cole's early work with a swing trio was the coolest shit around.
Why is it that one seems to prefer music that others don't know about?
Man's inherent possessiveness. Some turned on 311 when radio spun us Ad Nauseum.The problem is this, at the same time that one kid gets sick of something another is having his mind blown for the first time (like Bad Brains did mine). The only thing to do is not let others pick your music for you. Some people are only moderate music fans that are happy to let a DJ pick there tunes for them. I can't listen to much radio not only because of the lack of choice but also because of the all the compression they put on the audio that makes the music lose it's punch. The idea of radio is great -- free music with no hassle + no pesky 'thinking' required. Some programming can be a great way to get exposed to new stuff (like a college jazz station, or the reggae station on my satellite). Over all, the best thing to do is not let a band's amount of popularity effect your taste. For example, I didn't let U2's stadium success taint my affection for Achtung Baby or Zooropa. (Discotheque bugged the fuck out of me but it is not because they are rocks current kings.)
Anyway, back to my current taste for rock. I recently made a rock compilation CD that contained Suicide Machines, Helmet, Bad Brains, Pantera, Descendants, The Urge, Deftones, NoFX, Soundgarden, Fugazi, and Pennywise. Nothing but the hard shit. I notice 311's taste going through cycles of alternating between harder rock like the blue album and then trying to bust into new ground like Transistor. Right now I'm into rock. Hard. Melodic. Loud. We have to follow our hearts.
As much as I consider myself in a punk revival phase I'm also deep into producing my brothers jazz record. This record is not short attention span theater. There are no vocals, and the arrangements are sparse. Pure jazz.
After some much needed rest, I'm looking forward to putting new tunes together with my bros (P-Nut, SA, Chad, Tim). After that, I want to feel that crazy tangible energy of a 311 show. I want to play some smaller shows with a pit and the heat of the old days. When and where we haven't decided yet.
pets- I have two dogs both born in August of '96. Emily, a Doberman and Jake a Miniture pincer. Emily is very inteligent and obediant. Jake is dumb as a fencepost but adoreable.
Top 10 Albums
The Clash- London Calling
De La Soul- Balhoone Mindstate
Bob Marley- Burning
Billie Holiday- Verve box set
Shabba Ranks- As raw as ever
Jane's Addiction- Nothing's Shocking
Bad Brains- Quickness
The Smiths- Louder than Bombs
Beastie Boys- Check your head
Red Hot Chilli Peppers- Uplift Mofo Party Plan
Current Musical Favorites
DJ Food- Refried Food
Outkast- ATLiens
Ernest Rangling- Below the bassline
Rebirth of the cool part four
De La Soul- Stakes is High
Dj Shadow-Endtroducing
Morcheeba- Who can you trust?
Essential Records
Portishead- Dummy
Dub Clash- Old School vs. New
Tricky- Maxinquaye
Nofx- Punk in Drublic
Massive Attack- Protection
Joni Mitchel- Court and Spark
Jaon Armatrading- Classics 21
Dub- Chill out
Morrissey- Vauxhall and I
Top 5 Concerts
The Clash in Omaha '84
The Jerry Garcia Band 50th birthday show '92 in LA
Pantera in Orange county '95
Jamiroquai- LA house of Blues '97
Prince- Chicago, The Metro '93
Top 5 Movies
The Godfather
The Abyss
Barfly
Scarface
Raging Bull
My goal in life is to incourage tolerance, understanding and cooperation between different races, sexes, groups and nationalities through love, education, and art.