S O H I N T F R EE H E C W ISSUE 14
table of contents ART 10 WK INTERACT 14 GREG SIMKINS 18 LUKASZ BANACH FILM 22 Q-TIP FASHION 26 THE GREAT MAKE-OUT 34 BOOTY AND THE BEAST 40 STATIONS MUSIC 50 HEAD AUTOMATICA 54 VALIENT THORR 56 LETTER KILLS 58 BILLY TALENT DESIGN 62 LUDOVICO PHOTOGRAPHY 72 CALIFORNIA GRIND 78 LIVE DAYBYDAY SEX 88 ENTERING THE HOLY LAND 90 BENEATH THE SHEETS
“Is this a saucey magazine?” Yes George, we’re saucey.
STEVE SAYS
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chew on this magazine Issue Fourteen | Dirty, Dirty Titty
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| art
WK INTERACT The artist goes by the name WK Interact. Interact, for the kinetic imagery often reflected in his work, and WK for, well, he says he likes the letters. He was born and raised in France. He immigrated to New York City over 15 years ago and has graced the walls of NYC’s Lower East Side and SoHo neighborhoods with his stark black and white posters. His work is often identified by the stretched motion quality you get when you leave the aperature on a camera open too long while photographing a moving object. These apparitions of fluid motion range from the simple celebration of movement-a life-size skateboarder, to the nightmarish-a three story tall female head violently shaking, screaming, to the absolutely violent - a mugging by masked criminals. The man himself is a very soft-spoken Frenchman with an accent made of croissants and berets. We went for a walk and he gave me an outdoor gallery tour of downtown New York.
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You told me you’re doing about 10% of what you want to do. What’s the other 90%? I have all of these images I’ve amassed over the last fifteen years that I’m dying to use. I have already between 60 and 70 images up in these neighborhoods. I love street art but you can only go so far. I have my studio/store at 101 Stanton Street in the Lower East Side and several concepts and projects in the works with some commercial companies but you can only work so fast in this medium. So many ideas, so little time. I understand you’re doing some commissioned work in France. Can you tell me more about that? Yes, Gallerie Lafayette, Paris’ Marks and Spencer of sorts, offered me a commission to provide the artwork for a complete redesign of the first shopping floor, about 8000 square feet of wall space. This is an incredible honor, and I was keen to do it until I noticed that a Paris Metro station runs right up to the entrance of this level. I have always wanted to do some work in the Metro so I gambled on their level of interest in me and told them I wouldn’t do anything unless they gave me two hundred feet of wall space in the Metro tunnel. I wasn’t too happy about the designs they wanted for inside the store, but I told them I’d do anything they wanted as long as I could have this space to myself. I was pleased to see that they tried their best to contact the subway authorities to request this privilege for me. After four attempts to present the idea they succeeded. It’s funny because now I have 14 more window displays to do in the store as well as the Metro brass considering giving me the same 200 feet in EVERY Metro station in Paris. They will have to gauge the public response from the
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initial work before this becomes a reality, but I’m very excited. My only concern is that the commercial nature of my project may open the way to the Metro systems becoming giant billboards for large companies. I think advertising can be very intriguing and I enjoy it for what it is, but I’m wary of these companies abilities and willingness to rip people off. If you had the chance to do anything in the world right now, what would it be? What’s your dream project? I don’t really have a dream project per se. I’ve lived my dream. I came here from nothing to the streets of New York, and have taken my style of art and made it accessible, enjoyable, talked about, and noticeable. My life’s work is my dream. A plus to that is that it has also provided me with an income, every artist’s dream. I’ve done what I came to do. Every project I get now I try to challenge myself with and make it unique but I feel a comfort in that I am living a charmed life right now. I’m walking in one of the most famous and storied neighborhoods in the country, the world even, and my works smile back at me while thousands of people a day get to experience it for the first time. That’s my dream. Our walk takes us blocks away from the studio and as we talk I notice map-clutching tourists pointing at several of his more gargantuan works and he smiles. He walks through the streets with the familiarity and comfort of a man stalking the hallways of his boyhood home. He’s made a home of New York and the city has embraced him as its visionary laureate. After all, New York IS movement-it is motion, speed, violence and grit-all locked into the importance of “now” and perfectly reflected by his art. Christian Detres
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| art
Simkin s Craola
Tell me about yourself… I’m 29 years old, my wife and I live just outside of LA and I’m pretty much addicted to painting. I’ve been drawing since before I was talking and it’s one of those things that drives me in life. I watch a lot of cartoons too. You know, Sponge Bob, Billy and Mandy, old Bugs Bunny reruns, really anything that’s on Cartoon Network. Cartoons have been an inspiration to my art since I was young and probably always will. I first picked up a spray can about 11 years ago and still manage to find time to paint here and there, but not as much as I would like to. I enjoy tattoos…drawing them and getting them. I have been fascinated with them since I was young and got my first one when I was 20. What medium do you prefer for your illustration work? Acrylics first and foremost. I picked them up about 3 years ago and haven’t stopped. Before then all my artwork was done with pencils (graphite and colored), markers, computers, spray paint, paint pens, pen and ink, and some airbrush. Now it’s almost all acrylics, pencils, pen and ink, and digital. A lot of your work has bunnies, Beetlejuice-striped tentacles, and Mickey Mouse in it. What’s the deal? Bunnies are evil, I don’t care what anyone says. Sure they play on your emotions with their cute looks, but what is really going on behind those beady little eyes? My parents allowed us to have rabbits as pets growing up. I’ve probably had about 15 since I was a little kid. I read “Watership Down” when I was 12 and immediately grasped onto the characters. They were underdogs trying to fight their way out of oppression and into a world where no one spit on them. It was a cool story, and I still try to put references here and there in most of my paintings (that’s where Inle comes from and a couple other things). Of course like many other kids I loved Dr. Seuss growing up and all his striped and snaky backgrounds. When I saw Tim Burton’s work in “Beetlejuice,” he just took those worlds and made them better. Sure the striped snakes and stuff are a nod to Tim Burton. The guy is amazing and I will forever love his work. Mickey sneaks into some of my work, along with many other cartoon characters, just because I want to see what it would be like to have them living in the worlds I create.
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What were your favorite cartoons as a kid? So many to choose from but here goes: The Jetsons, The Flintstones, Tom and Jerry, Bugs Bunny, and The Shirttales. All those stop motion Christmas specials, The Snorks, G.I. Joe, Puff the Magic Dragon, Mighty Mouse, and all the Mickey Mouse Cartoons. All the Disney and Don Bluth cartoon movies, any Hanna Barbera stuff…man, I could go on all day…Space Ghost, okay, I’ll just stop there. Most West Coast graffiti has a very defined style to it. Yours breaks that mold. Where do you draw your graffiti influences from? I don’t know, mostly from my friends. Werk, Rygar, Steven, Natoe, Anger, Plek, Deas, Esel, Potna, Ditch, Axis, and others. I also like the 3D stuff that the Europeans like Toast, Daim, Loomit, Shokone and guys like that do. These days I have to admit that my stuff has slipped a bit. I don’t find as much time to paint walls and haven’t painted many 3D pieces lately. When I get to paint these days, I have been stoked to just rock a burner with weird-ass letters that probably don’t make that much sense. West Coast, East Coast, Mid West, Old West…I don’t really pay much attention to that stuff. What commercial work have you done? Let’s see, pretty much in order from when I was 18: Pogs for Ted Williams Card Company, shirt designs for White Stone Clothing, designs for Serial Killer clothing and skateboards, designs for Pacific Sunwear, and designs for United Clothing. I also did graffiti backgrounds for that movie “Swordfish,” concept art for Mattel, album covers for Deviates and 1208, and merchandise for Deviates, 1208, Western Waste, AFI, and Pennywise. Currently I work for Treyarch/ Activision. You draw tattoo flash. Other than yourself, do you know anyone that has gotten a tattoo of your work? Actually I get emails about that the most. At first most of my friends were getting my stuff tattooed on them. Now people from all over send me emails with pictures of my stuff tattooed on them and I think it’s awesome. That is a commitment. I really appreciate these people who like my artwork that much and want to get it permanently stained on their skin. It’s rad.
Tell me about imscared.com. I started imscared.com a couple years ago as just an online portfolio of my work. It was so I could share new art back and forth with my friends. The name came because I didn’t really think that www.craola.com would really fly well with a certain children’s drawing utensil company. The site has been revamped a couple times, previously by my friend Ian Rees, and now by my friend and graffiti artist Werk from NR. He has really made the site work the way I want it to and I am grateful for the time he has put into it. What are you listening to right now? I bounce around between different bands a lot. I have been listening to “The Shins” a lot lately. Both “Chutes Too Narrow” and “Oh Inverted World” are amazing. I can’t wait for “The Used’s” new album. The first one got worn out in my CD player from so much rotation. Also my buddy Alex Pardee did the artwork for the new album, so I’ve got to support that. “Brand New’s” “Deja Entendu” was a rad album. Let’s see, other bands that I like to listen to: The Smiths, the Cure, Finch, Thursday, A Skyline Fracture, Boy’s Night Out, Armor For Sleep, Alkaline Trio, Mars Volta, Refused, Belle and Sebastian, At The Drive In, Taking Back Sunday, Social Distortion, Jawbreaker, AFI, Braid, Existereo, Shape Shifters, The Beatles, 88 Fingers Louie, The Little Rascals soundtrack, and the CD that is in my car this very minute...Bing Crosby’s Greatest Hits. Do you like the band Journey? What is your favorite song? Why yes, I do like Journey. “Don’t Stop Believing” rocks my world! What’s in store for the future? Well, me and the little misses have been talkin’ about having some kids. So maybe Craola2 will be scooting around with a marker in his hand before too long. I have always wanted to put a book out with some of my work and make it into a kids book. I’ll probably keep on making video games and definitely keep on painting. Justin Vaughan
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CLAYFACE The Art of Lukasz Banach by Cameron Ayers
Lukasz Banach does good things with paint. Recently he took time out to discuss Poland, the color red, and the masturbatory drive of the artist. Many young American artists may not be familiar with Polish art. Is there a Polish style today? Or certain mood in Polish art that you see? In a way, you can compare what’s happening here in artistic fields (the young ones) to the similar things that are happening in the music market. The rule “you can be an artist too” seems to be still on top, although it’s becoming a little boring. I assume it is going to change as well. Of course, not everybody is following this already beaten track, but the mass haste, lack of respect for the workshop itself, and sometimes a pose not compatible with the skills, are still reigning nowadays. Well, but this is a main trend, and down there, under the earth, there surely bore some worms like me. By observing what’s in power now, I come to the conclusion that I am an underdeveloped, selfeducated painter, and I make out-of-date paintings.
Some of your imagery can be disturbing. It leaves me feeling uncomfortable. I like that. Is that a motive of your work? You like that. But a journalist, while seeing my images, recalled her visit to the exhibition of Francis Bacon’s paintings and stated that she cannot deal with that kind of painting for a long time; that it was stuffy and overwhelming and that she had to leave the art gallery more rapidly. For some reasons I really liked her statement. Of course, it doesn’t mean that crushing the spectator is the motive of my doings, absolutely not. I’m not painting clearly “for some reason,” but rather the fact that when I’m not painting I feel really bad. If I couldn’t do it, I’d probably get crazy after some time and shoot my head off. I am not going to be the first one who’s used this catchy comparison, but the motive of many painters conduct is probably close to the motives of someone who is just masturbating-it’s a form of drive and regulation. What’s interesting, we feel the need to watch it. The hope is however, that the artistic drive oscillates in different dimensions than those purely biological. Or maybe that’s only what we think? Your imagery seems like it could have been taken from dreams. Do you ever use images from your own dreams or nightmares? I’ve never used a motive originating directly from a dream. My dreams do not stand out above the “national average.” I know people with far more interesting dreams than mine. The most interesting is the part right before falling asleep, it’s the time when most of the short “flashes” appear that show for a second some scenes that can be painted. But sometimes they also appear during the daytime and I would like to point out that they have nothing to do with the mystic blinding of a visionary. I have to admit that it is quite hard for me to answer such questions because they are, so called, things hard to express. Of course, tireless scientists would say that for creation of those images some specific chemical reactions that take place in my right hemisphere (I am left handed) are responsible. Scientists, in the most violent and prosaic way, can perfectly pierce the inflated balloon of our mystic way of thinking.
Do you find a connection to the Surrealists of the 20th century or do you look to something new? The Surrealists have this nice ability to loosen up imagination so that, in a way, it freely suggests elements or motives to the paintings which they create, regardless of whether they suit and match compositionally the scene shown in a painting. I am not that interested in it and although I use something similar to the free associations method, I’d rather use some of my own specific justifications of location and the character of placed objects on a painting. Maybe what I have written above is not an accurate view of the Surrealists, but I have never gone deep (theoretically) into this field. Anyway, some time ago I’ve been invited by Czech surrealists for a small exhibition there in Czech Republic and they turned out to be the most respectable people I’ve ever met. For the other part of your question-I prefer not to think about paintings in a way of new, classic, avant-garde, commercial, non commercial and so on. You have a similar color scheme in the paintings I have seen. It reminds me of rubber for some reason. What brings you back to the red/pink colors? I’ve got no idea. It seems that on this part of development my imagination entered the Red Light District and that’s where all this dull surfacing dirt comes from. But seriously, I think that probably the red color is the most suitable to what I’m now interested in-a bit different attitude towards the light than in a 19th century painting. It is a hard thing to express. Together with entering into the red and pink colors I also enlarged the formats a bit-big formats have always had a bigger influence on me. And though my formats, for the time being, do not exceed the height of a twelve-year-old child, I’d like to paint larger ones in the future. This red color is misleading to some people. I’m finding out that those red paintings are the most violent, because they show flesh and blood. Such an attitude is an outcome of a too literal feedback. Drops of red paint shaken down from a brush are for such a receiver spattered blood. Red, because of red light illumination, the person is already thinking about raw flesh and ripped off skin-it’s for the same receiver. It’s just a mistake in the reception, nothing else.
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| film
Q-Tip formerly of the band A Tribe Called Quest has appeared in a few films and even written one, Prison Song. But none of that could possibly compare to the experience of having the role in the new Spike Lee film, She Hate Me. She Hate Me is the story of a young black biotech executive [Anthony Mackie] who is fired from his job for exposing corrupt business practices, then turns to impregnating wealthy lesbians for profit. Q-Tip has the role of Vada who is mostly played for comic relief because he has a low sperm count.
Q-Tip
DANIEL ROBERT EPSTEIN
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When he sat down for an interview Q-Tip hid behind his sunglasses the whole time. In fact I saw that sometimes he even had his eyes closed when he was answering our questions. It was somewhat bizarre and not at all what I expected when talking to one of the people that pioneered the Native Tongues Posse which was made up of De La Soul, Queen Latifah, the Jungle Brothers and Monie Love. Since Q-Tip went solo he released Amplified to mixed reviews and this fall he is releasing the long awaited Kamaal the Abstract.
What was it like getting to act in a Spike Lee film? Yeah it was a big deal for me. Spike is a great auteur filmmaker and African-American actors like to pass through his door. It’s a prestigious gig so it was a pleasure. Did you want to contribute a song or was that never an issue? Well of course if he wanted me to he would ask but I guess it didn’t pan out for whatever reason. Not a big deal. He approached initially about acting, which I was honored to do. Was it rough playing someone with a low sperm count? No, I studied for acting for 11 years so it’s just another part of myself that is hidden that I got to dig through to find it. I had to do it. As a hip-hop star, did playing this role affect your machismo? [laughs] No, it’s just a movie. You have to approach things as they come and you can’t take yourself too seriously. I certainly don’t. How much improvisation does Spike allow on set? It’s great working with him because it’s all about the rehearsal. You are kind of free to improv and bring up questions. I love his approach and to him shooting the movie is the easiest part. He has the storyboards and it’s all set up. He knows exactly what he wants. He gave us freedom in rehearsal to discover new things though, then we got it tight and shot.
Have you taken acting classes? I’ve studied maybe three and a half years at HB Studio, the Uta Hagen thing and ever since then I’ve studied with Susan Batson who has worked with Nicole Kidman. You were in the tabloids last year because supposedly you were dating Nicole Kidman. Was it tough to get that kind of attention? No I think we’re in the business for getting attention. I definitely wasn’t looking for attention about a friendship I had. It must be tough for her to have everyone in her business like that. I don’t even think twice about stuff like that. So it was only a friendship? Yeah. Have you thought how you might be lumped in with all the other rappers who act? I know I’m a part of that just because of circumstance but I really don’t think about that. I feel like my responsibility is to the work and to do my craft whether it’s acting or writing music, and just being honest and truthful in that. Have you thought about acting in the theater? Definitely. I have a lot of ideas that I write down because I feel that it’s really difficult for African-Americans to find really good roles and material, unfortunately. If we want to be seen and heard we have to be proactive. So I’ve been working on several things including theater. But I’m not going to jump into it without any regard for the craft because it’s a whole other animal that needs to be respected. You have to work at it so you can pull it off night after night. As an actor, film is great because you can play around a bit and figure out what works and what doesn’t. On stage everyone is watching so it has to be flawless.
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Would you feel more comfortable onstage because you’ve performed your music live so many times? It’s different because when you’re doing music it’s your show and you have the ability to improv but when you’re doing a four and half hour long O’Neil piece which calls for this certain line to said with this emotion on this part of the stage, you have to be meticulous. The only thing that is similar is that they are both on a stage. Did you find any commonalities between acting and music? It’s all art. The thing that’s cool about art is that there are a lot of liberties you can have with it. Today you can see that there is a lot of structure in the art world that’s been co-opted by business. They want to wrap their minds about it, package it, figure it out and put it into a box. But that can stagnate the growth of artists. I encourage anybody who has the voice and vision to see themselves as having a multi-pronged type of thing. What did you gain from working on She Hate Me? The thing that I got from Spike is something I have to work on, is being on time [laughs]. Spike knows how to manage time, which is strange to me because you can get really lost especially when you have to manage such a huge vessel. Spike sits there looking at his watch going “Cut! Next shot! Action! Cut! One more time! Check the gate! Next shot! Action! Cut!” Then he’s done. He doesn’t play and it is something to be admired. Do you have an opinion on selling your sperm? It must be tough. Life gives you a whole bunch of situations and some people really want to start families and others just want to have children regardless of their sexual orientation. I think everyone has that right, so why not? I’m for it. Why not bring a life into the world if you can.
Do you ever want to direct a film? I guess everyone thinks about directing but that’s like 20 years down the line. Right now I am just trying to get my feet wet with more acting and writing. What ideas do you have for movies? I can’t tell you that [laughs]. What movie directors do you like? I like a little bit of everybody but probably [Akira] Kurosawa is my favorite. Of course Scorsese, Capra, Orson Welles, Paul Thomas Anderson, Darren Aronofsky, Todd Haynes. So you’re a real a film buff. Yeah I’m a cinephile. What’s the next project for you? I have a solo album coming out around October on Interscope/Geffen and I’m looking forward to that. What guests are on it? Common, D’Angelo, Andre 3000, and more. Why did A Tribe Called Quest have to break up? We grow and we move. You don’t see it coming back together? No. I’ll issue a challenge if Lauren, Wyclef and those guys get back together then we’ll get back together and we’ll all do a tour. danielrobertepstein@hotmail.com
| fashion
The Great Make-Out Photography by Jonathan Martin
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On Kathryn: Addicted To Love Shirt by 80stess.com On Brandon: Def Leppard Shirt by 80stees.com
On Karen: Shirt by Tabloid, Undies by Huster Threadz On John: Shirt by Refuse To Be Smart, Shorts by Sinister, Hat by Teenage Millionaire
On Cristina: Shirt by Cursed On Cristina: Shirt by Chulo Pony, Shoes by Detny On David: Luggage Shirt by Daybyday On Miki: Shirt by Daybyday
On Robin: Shirt by JVON On Myke: Shirt by OK47, Wristband by UHF On Magen: Shirt by Cursed, Pants by Chulo Pony
On Bethany: Shirt by Local Market On Nathan: Hoodie by Sinister
On Stephanie: Dress by Teenage Millionaire - On Grayson: Shirt by Gama-Go, Jacket by Sinister
| fashion
Booty and the
Beast Photography by Jonathan Martin ILLUSTRATION BY Joe 2H | 2HekTIC.COM
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On Ashley: Dress by Dirty Laundry
On Ashley: Top by Strhess, Skirt by Dirty Laundry
On Ashley: Dress by Bench
| fashion
STATIONS Photography by Jonathan Martin
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On Caitlin: Top and Skirt by Dirty Laundry
On Kiana: Dress by Yo! Japan
On Caitlin: Dress by Chulo Pony
On Kiana: Skirt and Top by Hustler Threadz Special Thanks: Select Showroom, Dirty Laundry
| music
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Dinnertime-ish, drinking oj with tall, uber-thin, velvet blazer wearing Craig Bonich. The Keith Richards to Daryl Palumbo’s struttin’ Mick Jagger. Bonich is taking time to chat about Head Automatica, touring with The Cure and The Used, and making pop music. The other boys are outside in the van, smoking tweed and chatting comedically about fashion (core)...specifically Daryl’s short, tight, black, booty shorts….hot….
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Photo: Peter Menocal Defymagazine.com
I was reading through the liner notes and noticed there are no shout-outs to other bands, no mention of influences. Who influences you? Craig: Well, the record was primarily written by Daryl and Dan the Automator. Dan did a lot of the beats, but Daryl was primarily responsible for the music. And [the influences] yeah, it’s anything and everything that influences Daryl. We’re very much British influenced, and maybe some American rock and roll...yeah it’s rock and roll. Your website calls it “electronic cock rock” what’s that about? Yeah, that would be referencing our show actually, not the music. It’s just kind of balls out and not really giving a fuck and you just gotta’ play it…play it hard and fast. What’s your fan base like? The fans, the fans vary far and wide. I guess it’s because the music is so diverse and eclectic that it appeals to everybody. I mean even my mom loves it…. Have you experienced a lot of people asking questions about or comparing you to Glassjaw because of Daryl and Larry’s history? Or being disappointed because this is not at all the same? There are tracks, like “The Razor,” on the record, and while it’s very different from Glassjaw, it could be kinda, kinda like Glassjaw, but it’s got a little dancebeat, and a complete chorus, and it’s just different. But Daryl’s voice is distinct enough that anything he does, you’ll know it’s him. So ya’ll just got off from touring with The Cure right? What was that like? It was great, it was cool, we were a little odd on the tour I think. Not that we didn’t fit in, but that…we rocked. (laughs)
A little more than The Cure? Well, not to say that they didn’t rock, but we rocked in a different way. We went on first, so we really had the weight of kicking the tour off. Like the first Cure show that went on, it was in Florida, July 24th, we were the first band to play, so we set it off right. So I understand you’re going to be touring with The Used, is that right? We are going on tour with The Used in October. That will last through mid or early November, You’re both on Warner…so that might be a good fit for you all? Well, you know, we are really different from them. The thing about this band is that we can play with a lot of bands. We can play with more heavy bands-like we toured with The Cure which is heavy in a different way. We toured with I’m A Robot, and Thursday, and they’re more hardcore, and we just played with Vox, and they’re a very meticulous stoner rock kind of band. So I was told that Decadence was going to be kind of electronic music, and I was expecting you know, “nts nts nts” and it’s not like that at all. Well, yeah, the record is all pretty much live, I mean the drumming is all live. There are some beats that were produced after, that gives a hip-hop flavor to it all. Dan the Automator is like, you know, underground hip-hip (pause) god.
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So are you getting much radio play? The third song on the record, “Bleeding Heart Baby,” that will be the first single. The release date for it has not yet been unveiled, so I guess it’s up to the record label. It was kind of a soft release, as far as promotional and stuff goes, so hopefully it kicks in.
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i So when I listen to it I hear some sort of call back to the 80s. Do you think that it’s getting back to when pop music had a little more to offer? Sure, I mean our record has a serious 1978 stamp on it, which is ok, because that was when a lot of the bands that moved me to write the music (played). I mean that year was the year. If you look at my record collection probably 60% of the records are from the periods of 1978 to 1981 in the first place, so you know… Okay, so it’s still pre-show, but now post-dinner and the lads are in the van. I can see Larry in the front seat, he’s combing up the pompadour, and has changed his shirt 3 times. I’ve been patiently waiting outside and have finally been invited in to chat. It’s then that I learn that Larry Gorman, who is a really good drummer, is just a little dude, that Brandon is a giggler, and that Jarvis sometimes begrudges his suit. There is a “funny” smell in the van, hmmm… Alright, so I just picked up the album, and it’s not what I expected because I’m familiar with Glassjaw. I was wondering how often do ya’ll run into that? Daryl: Everybody says that, I mean people who don’t know me personally, or Larry personally, would say that it’s totally unexpected. Logically, for someone like you in Salt Lake, for all you know I listen to heavy bands and that’s it. But for people in our lives who know us this is so much more us than anything we’ve ever gotten a chance to do. I think if you listen to it, you can hear some different influences, Depeche Mode, and other pop stuff. It doesn’t sound like hardcore, or electronica. I don’t like electronica. I don’t like things that are like, “blip blip blip.” The word electronica is fuckin’ stupid. I’ve seen it written a lot, and the last thing you think when you hear this band is electronica. It’s different than like Primal Scream or Depeche Mode, and neither of those two bands would you call electronica. When I was planning to do this band I knew I needed to do something that had both aspects, whether it’s garage rock or pub rock, or a fuckin’ shit kicking bar band, or cock rock…whatever you wanna call it, it was that, and I knew there needed to be breaks in it and electronic music and spirit.
So was the visual concept with the retro cover art style and design, was that you? I met a woman named Jane, she’s one of the most amazing graphic designers I’ve ever seen. Right off the bat she was like, “Explain the vibe,” and I gave it to her, and she just cranked that out, totally into it. It’s visually memorable, you get a neon yellow CD. Yeah, it’s very cool, it goes along well with the whole “Decandence” title. But the music doesn’t; there’s a lot going on, but it’s not pretentious…it’s not over the top. Where did the title come from? Well, some of the shit is decadent, and it’s not so much that we live decadently, I mean everybody has a couple of nights where they live really decadently…(laughs) So I have to ask, what is your favorite Journey song? It was at this point that all the boys in the van broke into an a cappella version of “Any Way You Want It,” complete with instrumental sound effects and non Perry-like falsetto background vocals…classic.
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Valient Thorr Valient Thorr, is a proto-punk, post-Zepplin and Alice Cooper, Valhalla monster, that rocked out Warp Tour like a beefy bouncer with a Toll House bag of chips on his shoulder. I saw visions of MC-5 and Iggy Pop dancing in my head and had to figure out who they were. Little did I know they are completely insane. I felt comfortable immediately. Who in the hell are you, and where do you come from? I am Valient himself and this is Dr. Strangees, Eiden Thorr, Jjin Thorr, and Donn Thorr. We live in Chapel Hill, NC, but we originate from inside the planet Venus. Whuh? From inside the planet Venus. We crash-landed on the planet Earth in 1957 near Washington DC. We needed help from NASA, but that’s a fake program-well, had been in the past, in different time streams. There’s all these different time streams you know? We fast forwarded, got help from all over the earth, then came back here in the year 2000 to Chapel Hill, NC. It all worked out and now we’re here spreading our positive vibrations all over the place. What label are you on? We had a CD come out on Venge Records called “Stranded On Earth,” but we’re unsigned now. We’re working on a CD right now. We have high hopes you know, crazy things are afoot in this time stream right now. I see MC-5 and Detroit written all over you. It seems a lot of punk rock bands have lost the “roll” in Rock and Roll - the soul, the roots of sweat and grit that defined the genre in its most storied and celebrated incarnations. I now see where it went. You found it. Where’d you get it?
We came from the ICE man! From deep in the planet Venus. There’s radio waves EVERYWHERE! We were saturated with soul. It makes us really happy that you said MC-5 since they are our heroes. We played with them 2 months ago at the beginning of this tour. Did you know we’re on the campaign trail right now? Thorr in ‘04 baby! The real deal is the bands like MC-5 and Easy Beats. They are rock and roll! They fuel the fire! They gave us the sweat we show you now. It’s all about sweat. Well, you’re definitely sweaty… You gotta sweat man! That’s what a leader or a President should do. Sweat! Here’s the energy, this is what I’m going to do for you. I’m gonna work it-I’m going to ROCK! I walked away with a very unclear vision of who they were until later that night when I saw them all changed and groomed hanging out by the step-van they arrived in. Amidst the parking lot of air conditioned buses I saw what I was meant to see. Lighting a cigarette that he rolled himself, Valient nodded to me and I saw the miles of touring road in his eyes and the grit of 50 years of rock and roll under his nails. There is no glamour, only sweat. There is nothing small about the eruption of TRUE rock and roll upon someone with the senses to hear it. I highly recommend seeing them live-just try and stand still. Christian Detres
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Letter KILLS This five-piece band from Temecula, California, one of the seemingly thousands of LA suburbs, has built up a strong following by having a drive to play anywhere, as often, and as long as necessary to spread the gospel of their music. Tireless and committed, they have beaten the daunting odds of being birthed in one of the most musically prolific regions of the country and have earned the respect and sponsorship of other bands lucky enough to have known them when. Pop-punk with quirks, tourrette-ish callouts balanced with Coheed-ish vocal sweetness sets them apart from the deep still waters of the California-band well. “Formed in 2002 and given an entire-tour long spot on the Warped Tour” is not a sentence you’ll hear often this year. This is how they got there... What’s the last question you want to hear? Matt: Political questions. I’m so sick and tired of having to weigh in on George W. Bush. We’re a band. We play music, not politically-themed music. Save those questions for Bad Religion.
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Sheesh, okay. So what kind of things are you talking about that is important to you? What are you excited about? Tim: Music, our new record “The Bridge” which just came out. It’s all about that these days. We’re musicians and we play music. Trying to be an authority on anything else is kind of conceited I think, and pointless really. It’d be like asking the Pope who should the Giants pick in the NFL draft.
Photo: Pamela Littky
I hear he’s a Raiders fan actually. I listened to a lot of your stuff on the way here and I like the fact that you play with the vocals a lot. Within the same song you can go through Frank Black to Claudio to David J and it sounds like that’s exactly the way it should be. The fact that you do this within a musical genre that has gotten very predictable is pretty refreshing. What’s your favorite part of the music? What excites you when you listen to it now? Matt: For me it’s been the way we’ve been able to capture the energy of the live set. A lot of times you’ll go to see a band and love them, buy the CD and they sound like a zombie, Valium-ridden version of themselves. This music was made to be enjoyed by many people at the same time, singing back and dancing together. In my opinion, a good CD will transmit that very well. You’re from the outskirts of LA somewhat. I’m curious as to what “scene” you came out of. What part of the L.A. thing brought you to where you are now? Matt: Well, we’re from Temecula, and there’s really only one venue there for kids to go and see music. So, since on any given night you can sell this place
out, just for simply not having any competition, a lot of people were exposed to our music. And we would play CONSTANTLY. Birthday parties, house parties, wherever we could. Local homeboys done good like New Found Glory and Finch were big supporters of ours. They brought us along on their ride to fame. A lot of respect and love goes to them. Having to come from an area that pumps out bands like a 16-year-old pops pimples must be hard right? Tim: Gross man, really. But yeah, if it weren’t for Randy in Finch setting us up with an audition with a record label, we’d probably still be struggling amongst the literally thousands of bands trying to make it there. It’s almost like a video game where you win a “battle of the bands” on the first level and get on as a supporting act on the second, sell out clubs as a headliner on the third, and then get on a tour like this... Do you feel like you’ve beaten the game yet? Matt: There’s a few Mega-Bosses out there, but we’re about to pull out the Power-Ups... Christian Detres
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I didn’t always love Canadians. There seemed to be something just a little bit “off” about them, like they just came down from an acid trip-a vague scent of Wonder Bread and Cheese Whiz also. Talking to them used to be like talking to a hot girl with just a bit of a lazy eye-you just couldn’t get what was wrong with them for the first few minutes. I think Canadians are Pod People from that movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” Lately I’ve had a chance to meet a lot of them and I recant. My prejudices were invalid and I have been corrected. Billy Talent is cooler than I’ll ever be. They also get free health care. I find it really hard not to fuck with them though, they just seem so innocent. Canadians are great, really. You guys are fucking insane good. I heard somewhere that you said your biggest influence is 1977. A good vintage, I must say. What does that mean exactly? We draw a lot of our musical influences from The Clash, The Ramones, The Sex Pistols, etc. but we also draw a lot from Fugazi and At The Drive In. What the fuck is Boxing Day? And are there trees and ornaments and whatnot? Many, many, many, years ago, on the day after Christmas, all the servants who worked in all of the rich peoples’ homes would get a box of gifts. Seeing as they had to actually WORK on Christmas catering to the wealthy, they wouldn’t have their Christmas until the day after when the cheap deals were available. I guess Boxing Day is Christmas for the second-best. Where’s your favorite place to play? Where do you get the most love? Um, I guess Germany. The Germans also love David Hasselhoff. What does that tell you? That’s a fallacy! I looked into that. That’s a stereotype. That’s like saying Canadians live in igloos! They DONT?!? Haha, seriously, PLEASE, next time you tour Germany play the Knight Rider theme before you go on, see what happens. We actually used to do that. I’d go around in Speedos carrying a pontoon too. In America we have a really good fan base in Seattle and Detroit.
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I can see that. Those places like it dirty. So has it been a good thirteen years together? Yeah, it’s been good. I mean it’s not like it’s all blowjobs and limousines... BULLSHIT. I’m not tryin’ to hear that. I heard Canadians are made of snow. Is that right? Yes, we’re made of snow. If we go outside too long, we melt. We don’t have computers yet and run on a 36 hour clock. Well, I’m emigrating there then. We’re not going to accept your ass! We’re gonna be at the border with rifles! You ruined your country already, don’t come ruin ours. SO, anything else you want to say to our readers? Yeah, nobody in the band is named Billy. Please don’t call me Billy. Okay, one last thing, what do you think of the band Journey? Oh wow, Journey, I don’t know. What’s their big song? Shit... Are you kidding? There’s like a hundred of them, “Don’t Stop Believin’’” ... (singing) “Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow...” NO! Not that one! (singing badly with Justin) “Don’t stop believin’, hold on to that fee-eee-li-in...” OH, Journey! No, I’m not a fan. But I like The Darkness. Christian Detres
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THE ART OF MIKE TUCKER
Line is the only artistic element that does not exist in nature. The concept of Line is manifested by human interpretation of nature’s shapes. So why is it that people use Line as the most basic element of art? From children drawings to adult sketches, line is always the first move. With this great irony, I came to my conclusion: Line is the purest, simplest human interpretation of life. That was 2 years ago, and since then I haven’t strayed too far from this concept. It’s my base, and in every piece I keep that in mind. For example, in these pieces I have kept line, but added the second purest element, Vector-a 2 dimensional, uniform, single-colored, simplest instance of a shape. And my third element, also kept as simple as possible, Color. I guess this ultra-conservative take on art can be considered Minimalism, but I like to think of it as purity-the exact intent of the artist. I feel that something has been dead in art for quite a while, the humanity of it. Abstraction has scared everyone away from the world of static art. Why is it that every single person you meet enjoys movies or television? Yet, only small percentages take interest in the art world? Because the medium of Film still has the humanity in it, the warmth of personality, life. And that is exactly what I try to achieve with my art-the themes of Love, Hate, Happiness, Beauty, the humanity. And I have something that Film doesn’t have-an exact interpretation of a real point in time. So far I’ve been successful, my art has appealed to a large audience, and overall there’s been a lot of positivity. From here I can only move forward, to keep delivering interesting work, and to make a contribution to the art world that I care about.
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Photography by
LISSA HAHN
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live daybyday We gave the guys at daybyday a few disposable cameras, and this is what they came up with. We are so ashamed. Check out www.livedaybyday.com
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Nick Tharpe
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Scott Mayo
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ng the Holy Lan i r e t En
I dimmed the lights, poured another glass of wine and put on a Sade album…the mood was just right. After a few minutes of seducing and smooth talking I managed to get myself into a serious fuck session…with the Fleshlight. This toy whispered sweet nothings into my ear till I couldn’t take it anymore, just calling for my penis. After soaking her up in some hot water and inserting love oil into her, I slicked myself up and glided into her Real Feel Super Skin®. At my own pace I started off kind of slow and easy giving it the old in-out, in-out. You know, just trying to find her “special” spot and letting myself get comfortable in this new situation. Being a huge fan of anal sex, I was immediately a fish in water. I knew exactly when to slow down, speed up, and keep it steady. And the bitch didn’t talk back. After about 45 seconds, (I mean fifteen minutes) of this constant stimulation I reached my climax and began to cum. At first I contemplated on pulling out, not knowing if she was on the pill (last thing I need is another sex toy baby running around here), but I went with it and it felt oh so right. Then we both laid there, my eyes glimmering in the faint light feeling a tad bit dirty, but satisfied. We were both satisfied. A few moments later I got up and washed her out, put her back in the package and cleaned myself up. While I sit here thinking about the comparisons between a real woman’s ass and the Fleshlight, I would have to say they both have their ups and downs, but the Fleshlight will never ask me for rent or a ride to the store, or need someone to talk to, or say the popular “Why don’t you talk to me after fucking me in the ass?” line. And that works for me. Thanks Fleshlight, thank you.
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Chewicide Girls ChewicideGirl - Tami | Photography by Jonathan Martin
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www.chulopony.com