CREATED BY ELEANOR ORCHARD
AUGUST /13
CONTENTS
PREFACE BY ELEANOR ORCHARD
JASON POLAN New York based artist jasonpolan.com
THEO KATZMAN Pop/Punk/Indie musician from Brooklyn, NY theokatzman.com
MAD MOON RIOT A rock ‘n’ roll band operating in LA madmoonriot.bandcamp.com
TYLER OAKLEY The ‘Professional Fangirl’ from LA discusses The Trevor Project tyleroakley.tumblr.com
JIM CANTIELLO The digital correspondent discusses his previous work as the Klaine King. jambajim.tumblr.com
I am admittedly a Glee devotee. That is the only explanation I can give for my excessive production of ‘Glee’ related drawings. Previously I was producing a zine entitled The Gleek, this was not because the content related exclusively to Glee, but instead it was a way of of communicating my frame of mind. My use of the zine medium is my subtle attempt at elbowing forward what I believe deserves to be publicly recognised. However, my intent with The Gleek was misunderstood and therefore I have spent some time rebranding in order to create a more approachable definition of what I am doing. So please allow me to introduce to you the “Eek” zine. “Eek” is the vocalisation of repressed excitement. It’s the sound you make when attempting to appear composed while surrouneded by those who don’t share your enthusiasm. There is this public expectation to remain indifferent, or often critical towards popular culture and because of this I have publicly been considered foolish, immature and misguided in my affection. I’m not a stalker, I’m not madly in love with celebrity, I’m not crying into my pillow because “I love them so much!”. None of that. I am excited for new talent, creativity and when someone I admire is successful. I’m basically a cheerleader who is trying to concieve a way of translating my enthusiam. Let me take this opportunity to explain that I am not a self declared writer, literary visionary, or even a profficient interviewer. I draw. I draw things that have an impact on me. However, drawing was not enough. I needed to understand why I admired them.These interviews are a way of communicating why they influence me. If you are a grammar critic, or a cynic I recommend you don’t read this. The “Eek” is an amalgamation of fanaticism of popular culture and I’m pretty sure popular culture has never beeen grammatically correct.
DORIS CELLAR NYC musician/artist with a distinct style and a sweet disposition doriscellarmusic.com
CORY In Memoriam
Content & illustrations by ELEANOR ORCHARD eleanororchard.com eleanororchard@live.com.au @eleanororchard Edits made by Bhavna Vasnani
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@polan jasonpolan.com everypersoninnewyork.blogspot.com
JASON POLAN is a prolific artist working in New York City. His illustrations have been published in The New Yorker and The New York Times, as well has his own various project publications. He is consisting producing work for his long running Every Person In New York project and the Taco Bill Drawing Club! What would you consider to be your biggest influences? Family, Friends, Food, Books, Movies Why do you find blogs an appealing method of promoting your work? I like that blogs are a somewhat easy way that a lot of people can see my work if they want to. Have you had any peculiar encounters with anyone who has noticed you drawing them? Once, a lady in San Francisco gave me a candy necklace after I drew her, but usually, I am a bit in the background when I am drawing people and they do not notice me. Have your always been interested in drawing? Yea, I have been drawing things since I was little. I started with drawings of animals.
How do you allocate your time for your various projects, including Every Person In New York? I wish I was better at that! I always feel like I should be doing more. Can you tell me 2 truths and 1 lie about yourself? I am 28. I am 29. I am almost 30. What would you consider to be significant points in your career? I am not sure. Things happen gradually usually. What is the motivation behind your work? I want people to be happy and surprised and excited. I have found art is the best chance I have of trying to make this happen. Where do you prefer to draw? I like drawing people at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and animals at The Detroit Zoo (I cheated and picked two). How do you process something as you draw it? I think drawing helps me retain things I wouldn’t retain otherwise. Sometimes I will see people and remember I drew them a couple days before. Drawing helps me slow things down a little. What would you do with one hour and ten dollars? Take my family and a couple friends out for Taco Bell.
Theo Katzman is a New York based musician with a distinct sound and a repertoire propelled by the endearing and enthusiastic attitude he has towards his work.
Firstly, can you tell us two truths and one lie about yourself? I went to high school in Hong Kong, My father was born in 1928, I’ve climbed a mountain in Alaska What initially animated your interest in music? I grew up around music. My Father is a professional musician, my Mother’s parents were professional musicians. So it was always around me: being played on the stereo in the house, my father practicing. I grew up like any other suburban kid, playing sports, doing lots of activities. When I was twelve years old I heard Led Zeppelin, and I HAD to start playing drums (I’d been playing clarinet in the school band). After two years of drums I started writing songs and picked up the guitar. Then in college I started playing bass. So it’s been a gradual evolution, but music has always been in my life. When you set your mind to writing a song, what is the first thing you do? The songwriting process can begin any number of ways. It can start with a groove, riff, chord progression, melody, lyric, topic, or some combination therein. The most important thing for me is that I turn my phone off, so that I don’t become distracted and get out of “the zone.” If you could collaborate with anyone (dead, alive, or fictional), who would they be and what kind of collaboration would take place? I’d like to have a late-night hang with Kurt Vonnegut, Captain Hook, and Dave Chappelle. I’m not it would be about anything other than getting loud and hilarious. If you had to describe yourself to someone not from this planet, how would you do it? I would say I’m really passionate, I love music and food, I like moderate climates, and I’d prefer to breathe oxygen over whatever other gasses their planet has to offer.
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What was the motivation behind calling your album ‘Romance Without Finance’? The title Romance Without Finance is about this thing that happens when you fall in love with a person, and you want to treat that person like a king/queen. You spend all your money doing fancy things for that person, and you go broke. The phrase comes from an old jazz song, and the full phrase is “romance without finance is a nuisance.” Music is that love for me, and I’m ready to treat it right, you know? Are there any particular moments you believe have helped shape the direction you are going musically? I've had so many important musical experiences thathave shaped me as a musician and artist. It's hard to pinpoint any particular ones that have shaped me more than others. Teachers, collaborators, friends, gigs, recor dinsessions, they've all shaped me. Do you have any quirky pre/post gig compulsions? Pre-gig I like to have a huddle with the band and get in a collective headspace. It's like we're going out on the field, and we want to have fun, play hard, and win the game. Post gig, I like to do a vocal warm-down. Nothing fancy, I suppose:) What is at the forefront of your mind at this very moment? At this very moment, I'm thinking about boarding thi plane...also about writing a book one day. If music did not exist, what would you be doing with your life? If music did not exist, I would definitely be in the food business. Cooking, selling, farming, something like that. I love food as much as I love music. Ultimately what would you like to achieve or complete eventually? One day, I’d like to own music production facilities on
both the east and west coasts of the U.S. I’d also like to have a non-profit music education organisation.
I can’t deny who I am. I’m a pretty happy guy, despite the typical struggle for inner peace and creative expression.
What is the response like from fans, such as online and in person? People seem to be enjoying my music and videos. I feel very fortunate for that. The response to my album has been very positive.
What do you think is install for emerging musicians such as your self? Do you believe the music industry is on the right track? I can’t really tell what I think of today’s “music industry” as a whole, but for better or for worse, I’m gonna do my thing regardless.
You seem to have a consistent aesthetic in how you convey yourself visually, which also compliments your sound. How did this image signature develop? How would you describe it? Or are you even consciously aware of it? I’m glad you noticed a consistent image aesthetic! I believe that every artist can represent his or her self across mediums. For example, musicians can have visual representation of themselves, in the form of photos, video, and graphic design. We live in a world which is becoming increasingly visual, with all of the online and social media activity, so it’s very important for musical artists to identify with some sort of visual representation. Some musical artists really resent this, which I can understand, but ultimately, I embrace it. Your personality is prominent in what you do. Do you believe your quirky charm assists in positively enforcing your identity as an artist?
@theokatzman www.theokatzman.com
What is your ideal venue for a gig? My ideal performance venue is one in which people are listening. Not every venue is set up to nudge the audience into a collective listening head space. Ideally, I prefer to play to intimate audiences, although large rooms can be fun also. Why is music important to you and what determines a good performance? Music is important to me because I believe music can set a positive momentum course in a person’s soul, whether it be from release of painful emotions or receiving joy from the music. Music can inspire in a way that few other elements can. A good performance for me is one in which all the performers and audience members are experiencing a feeling together.
I’m not sure how to describe MAD MOON RIOT. They’re like a vinyl your parents used to play, but somehow they possess a quality of sound you haven’t heard before. Pou, Matt and Ru embrace Mia’s vocals and together they create this pressure of sound that leaves you breathing heavily. They’re contagious and the free 5 track EP is only augmenting their fanbase. It’s going to be a pandemic and I’m willingly infected. Initially how did you find the process of navigating around your individual styles and settling on a cohesive sound? MIA: Surprisingly, all of our different styles kind of seemed to mesh pretty well when we got down to it. Three of us are the same age, so we grew up with the same classic rock bands. If you set out to be in a rock band, you have to figure your influences will overlap at least a bit. I do think that our sound changed from how the songs were originally written because we all add our own something. I don’t think we knew what we would sound like when it all came together, but we’re all very happy with the result. I think it’s a unique and raw sound because we are all unique and raw folk. Unless you’re talking about personal style as opposed to musical style, in which case, I have no comment about Pou’s capes. When considering a new song do you work together creatively, or do you individually construct a sound and then propose it to the group? POU: A large portion of the material was already written by Ru and Matt, but now as we’re preparing to record our album it’s a group effort to refine and shape each part of each song.
as well as each of you individually? MATT: In terms of musical style, we’ve always been influenced by more American bands than UK bands, guys like Guns n Roses, Metallica, Green Day, Aerosmith etc. Even though we all listen to a large variety of styles, we all came together over our love of riff based rock and roll, and that’s ultimately where we place MMR. As well as helping to shape our style, listening to those types of bands really encouraged us to understand things like song construction, melody and dynamics, but that’s an ongoing process and we are definitely still learning more and more all the time. When I write lyrics, and I can’t speakr any one else, I always tend to write about people I know and situations I’ve been through. Every song is influenced by personal experiences I’ve had, good and bad. I think one importantthing, which can be tough at times, is to not just write a whining song. Even if writing about a tough experience or a relationship that no longer exists, I’ve always tried not to just moan or stew about it. I think that’s where we really clicked with Mia, as she is extremely focused on positivity and our lyrics tend to have that as a common theme.
Who or what is influential to the sound of Mad Moon Riot,
Ideally (not necessarily realistically), who could you see
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MMR collaborating with in the future? RU: Slash, Fall Out Boy, Aerosmith, Jack White. If ever there were a reunion of the original Guns N Roses getting the opening slot for that stadium tour would be huge! When do you define a song as being finished? MIA: Music is never finite and always evolving, but I suppose when we actually get it into practice and hammer it out for a few weeks. If we deem it good enough to play in a show, that’s “finished” enough for us. Why did you choose to make ‘Make Me’ a free download? MATT: For a new band we thought the most important thing was to get as many people to hear our stuff as possible. At the moment a lot of people are prepared to spend 3 or 4 dollars on a coffee but won’t spend 99 cents on a song, so we thought we would take that problem away and ma ke it free! What kind of dynamic does the band have, both during a performance and during the band’s creative development? MATT: It’s a really fun dynamic. As much as we would like to think of ourselves as cool as fuck rock n rollers, a lot of the time when playing, we end up
acting like idiots and generally just laughing at each other. We’re extremely lucky that even though we’ve only known each other and played together for a few months, we have become extremely close friends, and are able to take the piss mercilessly out of each other. This sense of fun has trans lated over to our playing, so you’ll probably see a lot of smiling and laughing when on stage. But that’s what I always wanted out of this band, to have a great time. How would you describe each other? (Ru answering): Mia: SEX, filthy, fun, confident, rock ‘n’ roll through ‘n through, mischievous Pou: Lovable, like a little brother, happy as Larry and open Matt: Sensitive, ladies’ man, surprisingly shy Ru: Handsome, sophisticated and witty, sort of like a modern day saint and not dissimilar in appearance to super-hunk Jason Statham. The current MMR insignia and photo shoots have a strong visual correlation to the sound. What is influencing this aspect of the band’s presence? Does the band have a design vision to coincide the music?
MIA: That’s cool that you think so. We wanted to have our logo and key photography be an extension of the music, which is always a tough thing to try and articulate visually. But, cool, if you think we succeeded! It’s important to me (mia) to have a strong aesthetic, people sometimes DO judge a book by the cover, so it feels necessary to present your band as a complete package. That said, we rely on friends to help us create our aesthetic, from the photos to the graphics, we ask favors of those who we think have a firm grasp on who we are as a band. Stepping away from the generalised allocation of genre, how would you define the band’s genre? MATT: Like standing balls out during a thunderstorm. If a Mad Moon Riot animation was created, what would be the distinctive visual and personality traits for each band mate? MATT: Mia would be all hair and tits, and would travel the world seeking out mean fuckers and melting their faces with her voice. Ru would be a calm and spiritual temple dweller until you piss him off and he goes all Dhalsim from Street Fighter 2 on your ass. Think extending limbs and yoga fire. I’m going to sidestep any racial Asian/kung fu stereotypes with Pou and instead give him the power to make dogs do his bidding. His love each and every dog in the world has earned him the respect of his canine brethren who in return have offered him the unique power of locking into their doggy minds. This power is sometimes used for good, sometimes for evil. Pou is a man that you would be foolish to trust! I will let somebody else answer this about me. MIA: Matt is a tough one, maybe like a modern day prince charming (I tend to go animated fairy tale rather than video game, sorry) whose special power is to lure in the ladies, but rather than luring them in for evil, he lures them in to slap sweet bass rhythms on their brains, giving them the gift of music, and rendering them powerless to his charms. SO, if he WAS the evil version of this, he would have an army of animated princesses trailing behind him doing his dirty work. I like to envision him as the Pied Piper of a beautiful, royal militia. Moral of the story is, don’t piss Matt off, because Princess voodoo is the worst kind. What would you like to achieve within the music industry? RU: To become the biggest band on the planet and bring back stadium rock n roll to the masses of 2013 (and indeed the new millennium), spreading that to a new generation of listeners who have never even heard of Led Zeppelin, AC/DC or Janis Joplin. I’m talking headlining main stages of festivals in the dark, sold-out arena tours and the like. STADIUM ROCK! MIA: I just wanna play gigs, son. How do you prepare for a gig? Do any of you have habits
or routines that help get you in the right mind set? MIA: For Ru, it’s probably meditation or some shit, but I’m gonna go ahead and say lots of liquor. It’s important. 14.What are your individual backgrounds in music? POU: I forced my parents to buy me a guitar in fifth grade so that I could learn how to play and impress a girl in my class after watching a movie on the Disney Channel. It’s basically been the same story for the past twelve years, only I don’t watch the Disney Channel as much anymore. MATT: I grew up playing the piano and clarinet from a young age but got introduced to the drums at around 12. Funnily enough it was after seeing Ru play that I decided that’s what I wanted to do! I then played in bands through school and uni as guitarist, vocalist and drummer, and even did the singer songwriter thing for a while too. However it was when Ru and another old school friend were putting together a band and needed a bass player about 5 years ago that I thought, yeah I could probably play that. That was the band that Ru and I wrote a most of the songs that have become the MMR tracks today. MIA: I always annoyed the hell out of my parents by singing terribly in the backseat of the car on long trips. There are lots of home movie proofs. But m ost recently, I was the bass player/vocalist in NYC punk band Shoot the Freak, until I became a co-conspirator in the birth of NYC’s best all-girl cover band Guns n’ Hoses. And now I got one hell of a mic stand. What kind of response are you getting from the fans? MATT: It really has been unbelievable, and the comments and feedback have been slightly overwhelming at times. When we first put the EP up for download, the speed of comments and downloads was almost too much to handle! You also have to understand that for myself and Ru, we had been playing this style of music together for the past 5 years in London to almost no response. Now we get daily tweets and facebook posts telling us things like we are now someone’s favourite band, and people uploading our photos to tumblr etc, and it still hasn’t quite all sunk in. Also, someone also got one of the lyrics to Running On Empty tattooed on them. That was pretty cool! How are other musicians and people within the industry responding to the music you’re producing? RU: Really well. It’s great because we’re finally getting recognition after about 10 years of trying to get somewhere: the EP has already seen thousands and thousands of downloads in a couple of months, whereas in back in London you know how many we had in half a decade? 12. 12 downloads in 5 years (one of which was Matt to double check that the download link worked. It did). So coming over to the States we’ve had some huge names working with us, a legendary A&R guy going on record stating that it rocks and that he will be a reference for us
and that he thinks the EP has serious legs. My favourite quote about us from the industry so far is from Kevin Shirley: “Diggin it. Sleazy n tough” What kind of an audience are you catering to? MIA: Anyone who likes to be rocked, man. We are not trying to garner any specific type of fan base, we just like playing rocking music, and we love when people sing our lyrics back to us. Who doesn’t? If you got a pulse that can beat to that steady kick drum, we want YOU. Can you tell us two truths and one lie about the band? POU: Ru hates spicy tuna on crispy rice, Matt does not have the prettiest eyes you’ve ever seen, Mia never got in trouble at summer camp, and Pou makes money on the side by selling puppies on the black market. How many lies was I supposed to tell? If you could spread a rumour about the band, what would it be? MATT: The Carly Rae Jepsen song “Call Me Maybe” was actually written about the young singer’s obsession with Pou. Could you give us an analogy that would describe how you see Mad Moon Riot? RU: Like a second generation sports star – genetically we have all the natural ability and everything in the locker, but we’re training hard and working on the fundamentals to hone our skills to make the step up from college to pro. We’re not resting on our laurels and are working to have success in our own right, rather than being known for previous generations’ success.
DOWNLOAD THE 5-TRACK ALBUM MAKE ME FOR FREE ON THE MAD MOON RIOT BANDCAMP PAGE
M A D M O O N R I O T. B A N D C A M P. C O M Play Loud
TYLER OAKLEY is a notable YouTuber,
help better understand suicide and crisis prevention.
professional fangirl, and an advocate
How do you help support LGBTQ youth? My own way of supporting LGBTQ youth is by being present online. I’ve been documenting my life on YouTube for the past five years, showing a normal gay guy go through experiences and challenges. When I was growing up, that didn’t exist. I want people to search google and find me and see that they don’t have to fit a mold or a media stereotype. They can be themselves!
for The Trevor Project. His involvement in popular culture is surpassed only by his sass. He’s the guy that you ship with everything and everyone. What is your involvement in The Trevor Project? I’m an online advocate of the Trevor Project and have been for the past four years. My work with them started years ago when I made a video about how important their work was, and it was featured on the front page of YouTube. They then reached out to me and thanked me, and from there our relationship grew. Since then, I interned at their headquarters for a Summer and co-hosted their red carpet event, “Trevor Live” last December. Now, I work to help spread their campaigns to my own audiences. Do The Trevor Project events have a specific kind of atmosphere? Definitely an atmosphere of hope and positivity. It would be easy to get down about the concept of suicide, but the events focus a lot on the good work being done and the idea of coming together to get more good work done in the future. What are the 3 most important aspects of the organisation in your opinion? Relatability - the team knows how to infiltrate media in a way that people can connect to. Suicide is a difficult and heavy topic, and they make it approachable in a very seamless way. Reliability - the organization is ready, 24/7, 365 - to help. Plain and simple. Authority - you can trust The Trevor Project to always have the latest information and studies done to
Who do you believe are the most influential in the promotional aspects of The Trevor Project? A lot of attention goes toward the celebrity endorsements of The Trevor Project, but I’ve always believed any individual has a huge amount of power to spread good in the world. If just one teen from each high school because a liaison for the Trevor Project, brings the campaign to their school, it’s much more powerful than a celebrity making a video and throwing it against the Internet and hoping it sticks. Everyone has power, people just don’t realize it yet. How has the internet changed the LGBTQ community for the better or the worse? They’ve helped small-towns gays see that they’re not abnormal - that there are plenty of gay people out there, and it’s given them a means to connect and a way to learn their voice and place in the movement. Also, before the internet and major LGBT online news sites, LGBT news didn’t get press. Now, if something happens, it’s all over the Internet, on pro-gay news and blogs. You utilise Youtube as a way of communicating with your fans. Why do you find this method so successful? Because it’s a real human, talkingand being vulnerable in front of a camera. On a blog, it’s just words, which can be carefully crafted and edited. On music, it’s more than that, but you still don’t have a face. With video, it’s face, voice, words, everything. It’s the closest thing to actually being with someone.
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tyleroakley.tumblr.com youtube.com/user/tyleroakley @tyleroakley
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Before working in Los Angeles, JIM CANTIELLO worked in NYC. His video commentaries on the relationship between Kurt and Blaine (Glee) earned him the nickname ‘Klaine King’, but due to a detachment of interest, he has since abdicated from the throne. How do you feel about being known as the ‘voice of the Klaine fandom’, or ‘King of the Klainers’? I’m beyond flattered that “Glee fans tell me that I speak - or, uh, sing -their mind. But I’m also a little embarrassed! Only because I don’t feel like I’m worthy of such a big title. I simply dig the charaters’ relationship and rhyme the word “insane” a lot. What is the first thing you do after watching a Glee episode? I look over my notes and then I hunker down and write lyrics. I might check Twitter to see if people are buzzing about the same thing that I responded to (usually they are, hehehe), but also it’s agood way to doublecheck that I didn’t miss anything ridiculously obvious.
What’s the difference between professional Jim and the King Jim? Where is the line? As far as Glee-cap Jim/Twitter Jim/Tumblr Jim and Real Life Jim? I don’t know. I never think about “Glee” except when I’m working on a Glee-cap. And I’m probably even more awkward and nerdy in real life. I share an alarming amount of traits with Sheldon from “The Big Bang Theory.” What would your ultimate Glee story line be? A one-time stunt episode that takes place at their 20 year high school reunion! (I’m a sucker for old person makeup and fat suits.) If you were cast in Glee, what would your character and plot be? Well the show already has enough actors who look way too old to be high school students, so I’d fit right in! (Ikid, I kid. Sort of.) I honestly have no aspirations to be an actor, so I’d have to play myself. Perhaps MTV News sends me to McKinley to produce a big feature segment on the Glee club, and characters get jealous over who I want to interview for my story? A quick cameo would probably be the most fun, though. When word spread that Klaine was gonna ‘do it,’ a few Twitter people suggested I play the dude who sells them condoms at the pharmacy. That would have been hilarious What kind of feedback do you get with the Gleecaps? (Oh by the way,
is Gleecap infected because I can’t see them in. Australia. Yes, that is me threatening the internet) I’m so lucky that Gleeks have embraced my crazy recaps! I’ve covered a few other series where the fans were livid that I dared to poke a little fun or criticize their favorite show. But I quickly learned that Gleeks are just as opinionated as I am, so it’s all good. I was also relieved that nobody’s ever said, “Please stop singing. You’re the worst.” The last time I sang in public (other than drunken karaoke), I was in 9th grade, playing Captain Von Trapp in the school musical, so I have zero training as a singer. Or a songwriter, for that matter. So it’s cool to do something that’s SO out of your element and have people not only like it, but also give you royal names, want to interview you for their fan zines and all that jazz. Actually, one of my buddies who makes his living as a major label artist told me that he’s always impressed with my tunes and called me a “legitimate singer and songwriter.” That blew my mind, you know, to hear that coming from an ACTUAL legitimate singer/songwriter. And then just the other day someone who works very closely with one of the big Glee cast members discovered my Glee-caps and sent me a really complimentary email, which also mad me very happy. (And relieved that they didn’t think I was total lunatic. Ha!) When writing your opinionated summaries, do you just write down a rant and hope to fit a tune to it? Or do you have a method? (It’s very effective) Thanks! The lyric thing is always the trickiest. So many times I’ve had to treat “Glee” plot ploints really loosely in order to fit ideas into the rhyme scheme or time signature. Like, when Blaine and Kurt had that big fight in the car, I sang, “Kurt’s losing his mind.” I meant ‘losing his temper’, but ‘mind’ rhymed with ‘time’ so that’s what I used. In my brain it was a loose definition, so it worked. I’m not a good enough songwriter to be able to perfectly encapsulate nuance in the 60-90 minutes give myself to write lyrics. Typically, I create and record the instrumental music track a day or two early. It’s the only way I can get the Glee-cap done in a timely fashion. (Fox won’t send me screeners so I see the episodes when they air live, just like you.) The last time I scrapped an entire pre-written track was the night Kurt and Blaine kissed. I had a somber song all worked out but as soon as that awesome smooch scene happened I was like, “Screw that! I need to do a jaunty Randy Newman thing!” After that, I began paying close attention to all the spoilers on the internet so that I’m not caught off guard again. I like the Glee-caps to have some connection to the overall episode tone. So when I saw Santana’s lesbianism was the focus in “I Kissed A Girl,” I thought, “Oooh,
an Indigo Girls-esque song would be fun to write.” When I learned that Rory would be introduced during “Pot O’ Gold,” an Irish folk song was the way to go. When I was in LA this past fall driving around (or sitting in traffic, as it were), I always had that week’s Glee-cap instrumental track on repeat, just so I could hum different melody ideas over it, or sing potential lyrics that I was able to pre-write based on spoilers. It was so productive!! It’s much harder to do that in NYC because I commute to work on the subway, and the last thing anyone wants to hear at 8 in the morning is some random dude singing gibberish peppered with, “Klaine This!” and “Klaine that!” I’d be committed to an insane asylum! Who is present when you record the Gleecaps and how do they react to your theatrics? Last season, I was often the only person present when I taped the Glee- caps. I was a one-man-band (no pun intended). I did everything by myself on overnight shifts when the rest of the office was at home asleep. Well, USUALLY I was by myself. Without fail, the security guard would enter the MTV Newsroom to do his late night rounds just as I was hitting a high note or something. It was mortifying. Especially the one for “Silly Love Songs.” The dude literally caught me holding a gong, wearing sunglasses and a ridiculous earpiece and singing the line, “Blaine put his Thicke in the gap” at the top of my lungs. You’d think that I would have said, “Oh, hey dude. I do these recaps. It’s like, a comedy thing. Have a good night.” But instead I just reverted to being a 4 year old who thought “If I don’t see him, he doesn’t see me,” dropped the gong and ducked behind the piano podium. But this year, I requested that I do less overnights. It’stoo taxing now that I’m 30! My bosses graciously allow me to come in early Wednesdays so I tape them with a crew in front of the entire Newsroom. But thanks to an old daily webshow I had in 2009, called “Detox,” I’ve done almost EVERYTHING in front of my co-work, ers. Nudity, drag, I talked to imaginary objects. I mean, after you do filthy things with a popsicle in front of a camera crew, you can do anything. Singing about TV is the least embarrassing thing I’ve done in the MTV Newsroom. How vast is your bow tie collection? It’s Blaine worthy. For the record, I was wearing bow ties long before Blaine Anderson existed. ;) I’ll have to count, but I’d guess I have three dozen bow ties? After one notable Gleecap everyone in the fandom was fondly referring to each other as ‘Pig Sluts’, what do you think should happen with Sebastian now that Grant
seems to be a more permanent meerkat? Hahahahaha, oh, darling slutpig. I totally stole that from “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.” My favorite lady, Kim, was accused of doing meth in a bathroom, and she retaliated by screaming at her accuser, “You’re a pig! You’re a slut pig!” My wife and I had been quoting that for weeks before Sebastian made his debut. I’m so happy more people are saying it now because, honestly, it’s the perfect insult. It’s absurd! The only person I can think of who would has a right to be mad at that term is Miss Piggy. Or Babe, maybe. (Note to self: re-dub the end of “Babe” so that James Cromwell says, “That’ll do, slutpig.” I happen to LOVE the addition of Sebastian. It brings out Kurt’s jealousy and cattiness, which Chris Colfer does brilliantly. And it makes Blaine really uncomfortable and awkward, which is also fun to watch. And Grant plays him PERFECTLY. The three of them have great chemistry together, and you can tell the “Glee” writers are having a ball writing for him. If you met your doppelganger in the street, what would you do? “Stop wearing my bow ties, man.” Are you a fan of the faces behind Klaine? Are you excited
for Chris’s book release and movie? Did you see Darren on Broadway? I think Chris and Darren are super-talented guys! I can’t wait to see Chris’ upcoming work and as much as I’d love to catch Darren in “How To Succeed...”, my work schedule is pretty unpredictable so I don’t think I’ll be able to see him before his run ends. But I’m sure he’ll be back on Broadway in the future and I’ll be first in line. I’ll just have to take a day off of work to make sure I can go! Are you a fan of Starkid? I know OF Starkid but don’t know their work specifically. I’m not a huge Harry Potter fan (I know, I know, don’t hate me) so I’ve never really had any urge to check out their Potter musicals. But in theory, they sound like an amazing crew and I’m happy that cool creative offbeat people are getting attention these days. What/who has been the most influential upon your approach to your work? Impressing my wife and making her crack up is the ultimate goal for nearly everything I do, but with Glee-caps my friends Brendan Kennedy and Kenny Mellman are also huge influences. They’re an amazing couple, some of my closest friends and also two of the most brilliant artists I’ve ever worked with. Brendan is my favorite pro
ducer. I call him my professional soul-mate. (He’s the one who directed me to hump the curtains in “Soft Focus Sexin’.”) And Kenny is a superstar. Before I knew him he was one half of Kiki & Herb, this hugely successful punk cabaret act, and now he hosts this genius monthly show in New York called “Our Hit Parade” with Neal Medlyn and Bridget Everett. It really gets my creative juices flowing. I secretly want to do some kind of onenight-only live Glee-cap show with Kenny this summer. Tell me two truths and one lie? In first grade, I got in trouble for telling a dirty joke about an electronics stores in show and tell. I once crashed my car into a bus that was driving the original Karate Kid’s daughter to school. Paul Rudd sold me his extra ticket to a sold out Rufus Wainwright concert the night I moved to NYC in 1999. If you were organising the ultimate dinner party and could invite 4 guests, dead or alive, who would they be and what is the topic of conversation? John Lennon. Paul McCartney. George Harrison. Ringo Starr. Topic of conversation: The Rolling Stones. When asked to recall three significant pivotal points in your
career, what comes to mind? In 2005, while I had a gig as a tape operator and voiceover audio engineer at MTV, I wrote a snarky inter-office memo about pop culture that caught the eye of the executive producer at MTV News, who hired me on the spot. In 2010, I got Martha Stewart drunk on television and she talked about her dating life! In 2011, Simon Cowell tracked me down minutes after our first interview to hire me for “The X Factor.” What do you like about the Glee fandom? They’re a really creative bunch who also have a winning sense of humor. If you could only say only three sentences for the rest of your life, what would they be? Thank you. Food? [Saving one for private. Sorry.] Describe Klaine in your own words. Klaine is saving lives. When I think of all the isolated gay kids growing up who now see a happy, healthy, engaging gay couple on a mainstream primetime TV show, my heart sings. So I sing!
DORIS CELLAR’S MUSIC IS AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD ON HER BANDCAMP PAGE D O R I S C E L L A R . B A N D C A M P. C O M OR LISTEN TO HER MUSIC ON SOUNDCLOUD SOUNDCLOUD.COM/DORIS_CELLAR
DORIS CELLAR is an innovative romantic, which defines her music and gives it a distinct Doris quality. Independent musicians are often dismissed as being bohemian, but Doris defies ‘indie’ and exposes herself as a creative visionary. I may be biased in my affection for her, but there is no denying that Doris is a prolific, determined individual with vision. Her recent departure from the band Freelance Whales was a shock, but it’s exciting to watch her solo work unveil itself. Doris is always ready to respond to her fans on Twitter and frequently has charming conversations with them. Although I have not been able to see her perform live, I have only ever heard good things about her. Doris recently initiated a Kickstarter to help fund the mixing and mastering of her upcoming solo record, which I anticipate eagerly because I know it will be a wonderful expression of herself as a musician. You will definitely not regret looking her up online and downloading her work.
PHOTOGRAPH BY MIKE STYLES
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