CD Collections, Already Dead? Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Do the Denial Shake.
(enjoy the special soundtrack that accompanies this installment of “Gimme Gimme Schlock Treatment” provided via 8tracks)
We can all agree that thanks to iTunes, iPods, and CDRS , our old CD libraries have become completely irrelevant. Fact: No one needs cds anymore. At least that is what I’m currently trying to tell myself. I’ve done something today that is forcing me to falsely embrace this mantra. You see, thanks to my recent actions I’m currently in a state of denial.
Today was the day I decided to take my once untouchable CDs to SecondSpin to trade in for cash. As it already stands my extensive cd collection had already been whittled down to just the bare bones of a music aficionados life blood Long ago I convinced myself that I could part ways with most of my cds after copying them over to my external hard drive…and from there another external hard drive.Yes, two hard drives are a bit excessive but I couldn’t live with myself if I lost all of those mp3s. Finally feeling secure about the backups I was freed to sell back these old cds to Second Spin (for more cds) that I had no emotional attachment to.
So long “…And You Will Know Us From the Trail of the Dead”. We had some good times “Franz Ferdinand”. Hate to see you go, but I love to watch you leave “Rilo Kiley”. Even though I had all of my music (117 gigs) backed up on MULTIPLE hard drives I could never bring myself to sell back certain cds, even if they hadn’t seen the light of a CD player laser since Clinton was in office.
Nevertheless I wanted cash for a new bike so I convinced myself it was time to clean house. I grabbed the remnants of a once proud collection and headed over to SecondSpin. Stepping into the store I felt a bit panicked. As I watched the salesclerk examine each cd for scratches I found my cds taking on a life of their own, making desperate last minute pleas with me. Elvis Costello’s Greatest Hits tried playing the whole “We look alike! Don’t do this” card. I didn’t bite. The Who’s Tommy looked at me as if I murdered Keith Moon and said “If I knew this was going to happen I would have joined Quadrophenia in the trunk of the Prius, all scratched up. At least those discs died with some dignity!” The Beatles “The White Album” looked at me incredulously as if to say “Um, HELLOOO I’m the White Album. You’re joking right?” Afraid not lads. That decision triggered something in me. I was frightened. I realized if I could hand over an album like The White Album for $9 I was capable of truly horrific things.
Years of memories and emotions came flooding in as I watched the register put prices on pieces of my life. These cds with their album art, their cd silk screen, and their cases each with their unique cracks all have specific stories that wouldn’t make sense to their new owners. They’d be lost on everyone but me. How could I abandon them and how could they love anyone else. I was the Daniel Plainview of SecondSpin. At that point I knew what it felt like to give up a child for adoption. True, it wasn’t hard to say goodbye to Me First and the Gimme Gimmes. Sure they hold a special place in my heart, but it’s more for novelty’s sake…like the time I hooked up with that wonky eyed fat girl with the onion breath. It was a great story and everyone had a good laugh but nothing inspiring came of it. The same cannot be said for The Flaming Lips’ The Soft Bulletin…which I turned in for a measly $2. This was an album that re-introduced me to a band that I once thought was a one hit wonder. As it would turn out, I was reacquainted with a band that blew away their “She Don’t Use Jelly” one hit wonder label and this album would become the Pet Sounds of the late 90’s.
Some cds were too scratched up to be returned, others were not returnable as the store’s inventory was already at full capacity and each time I feigned indignation at these “slights”. In reality I was celebrating the salesclerk’s overly judgmental eye. Radiohead’s The Bends was rejected due to cd laser burning from overplaying that I immediately could translate back to when I first got the cd and I played it at least 1000 times in my old “top of the line” Sony cd walkman ( “Look it even comes with a wired remote!” ). That disc was my introduction to Radiohead outside of “Creep”. Even if it was scratch free I’m not sure $3 would be worth kissing goodbye the memory of riding in the backseat of a car studying the liner lyrics to “Black Star” till my eyes hurt.
The parting pains for Interpol, The Raconteurs, and Sigur Ros were there, but not nearly as bad as what I would see waiting for me at the bottom of the return pile: Beck’s Sea Change. Dare I part ways with Beck Hansen’s ode to breakup? What would I look to when I too suffered from crushing personal loss or heartbreak? Hearing it on my iPod simply would not do the trick. This album has always had a strong hold over me and I couldn’t bring myself to part ways with it. I hoped, no PRAYED that it would fail the scratch inspection. It didn’t. Of Course. As I inched closer to see what the return would net the salesclerk compassionately responded “Are you sure you’d like to return this?” I feebly responded with “Um…only if it’s more than $2”. As soon as I got $2 out of my mouth the register responded with, rather curtly I might add, a return price of $2.50. It surely heard me and now was testing my resolve. We both sat there string at Beck’s face, for what seemed like forever until I finally snatched the cd off the counter and said “I’ll keep it I need something to listen to on the way home”. Luckily the salesclerk was unaware that I easily have 80+ ripped cds in my car. It didn’t matter.
To me, nothing would feel more perfect to me than listening to “Already Dead” as I drove home with the dirtiest feeling $80 that I’ve ever put in my wallet. As I sit here looking at my return receipt taunting me like a long paper snake of lament part of me wants to drive back to the store and explain to “Brett” and his hipster moustache that I made a huge mistake. He could keep Maladroit and Chulahoma but not Icky Thump. Surely he’d made mistakes in the past hadn’t he? Could he not understand? Had he no regrets? I feel like Jason Robards in Magnolia pontificating about the pains of our actions. This is the regret that you make. He had nurse Phillip Seymour Hoffman to voice his regrets to. Now all I have is Beck.
“So stupid, that fucking mind! Stupid! Jesus Christ! What would I think, did I think for what I’d done?” – Earl Patridge (Magnolia)
“Already dead to me now”
‘Coz it feels like I’m watching something die” – Beck Hanson (Already Dead)
Part IV – Jon Brion (Part 1 of 2)
The War for Independence
Chapter 4: Jon Brion
Over the last, oh, I don’t know, twenty years or so, a trend has emerged whereby rock and roll songwriters get to do film and TV scores. The first big example that comes to mind is Oingo Boingo’s Danny Elfman, who first became hugely successful scoring Tim Burton’s movies. Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo became similarly attached to Wes Anderson, Jonny Greenwood from Radiohead recently scored There Will Be Blood, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers of The Police have both done some scoring, and hell, even Toto and Queen had some success with Dune and Flash Gordon, respectively. But the one who made the transition with probably the least amount of mainstream success is Jon Brion (one might be able to make a case for Mike Viola, or somebody else, but I’m making a case for Jon Brion, so there).
What I’m Listening To…BB’s May Soundtrack
Radiohead - “House of Cards” (In Rainbows)
The sound. The voice. Over and over and over. I can’t get enough of it – ever. Radiohead. Strange how this sound is intoxicating. And everytime I listen, I can hear something different – hear something new in his voice – feel something amazing – it can take me to my place. I like to think I’m the only one who feels this way but I think this “little band” makes millions feel the same way. Although “Fake Plastic Trees” is something I can listen to over and over, this past month I have listened to In Rainbows every single day and loved it more each time. Am I crazy? Yes, I think I am…. but be crazy with me and listen….
Hollywood Kill - “Leave Your Troubles Behind”
Hollywood Kill played at Phlight Restaraunt a few weeks ago and I unfortunately missed it. BUT, thanks to good friend and owner of Phlight, she turned me on to them. “Leave Your Troubles Behind” makes ya want to leave your troubles behind indeed! Their sound is what I want now. Their retro, pimp, hollywood look is right on!
Check them out here
The Pierces – “Boring”
MUSIC. I MAKE IT. – Q & A with Sienna and Laura from The Randies
The Randies – Thought I Could Change
The Randies are:
Sienna DeGovia: vocals, bass
Laurita Guaico: vocals, guitar
Laura Cataldo: vocals, guitar
Tosha Jones: drums
Discography:
At the Friendship Motor Inn
Saw the Light
To be released: Bye Bye Beautiful
This whole month you’ve been listening to featured Band the Randies on some of the various TRAffIK segments and now we wrap it up with a Q&A with Sienna and Laura.
TRAffIK: How did you come together?
Sienna: Laura and I met at Mr. T’s Bowl in Highland Park where we were both playing with other bands. Her friend was screwing my boyfriend at the
time and Laura witnessed me throw many a drink on that lovely little
ladies’ head. We started a band, recorded an album with a couple of
ill fitting bandmates who quit right after the album came out. Then
we met Laurita at the awesome Kiss or Kill shows where we we’re all
playing and hanging out on a regular basis. We recorded another album
toured our asses off and went of a major quest for the perfect drummer
who we FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY found in Miss Tosha Jones from Indiana.
TRAffIK: Length of time as a band?
Sienna: a billion years! no just kidding….about three years in our current
configuration.
TRAffIK: Have you always been LA based? If not where were you previously?
Sienna:Yup we’re LA through and through…(the
good-east-of-highland-no-fake-titties kind of LA)
TRAffIK: Where does your name come from?
Sienna: Oh god, from the part of someone’s brain that is full of bad ideas.
TRAffIK: When you aren’t playing music what else can we find you doing?
Sienna: Eating mostly. Or playing with food.
TRAffIK: How would you describe your sound?
Sienna: guitar driven, vocal heavy, pop rock with killer harmonies.
TRAffIK:What is the song writing process like for your band?
Sienna: Someone wiill come in with the structure of a song, or the basic
melody or lyrics. Then we will work on it as a group until we all
like it. Sometimes we even finish lyrics for each other. It’s a very
collaborative process.
TRAffIK: What is the recording process like for you?
Sienna: We like to record everything live and then go back in for guitar
tweaks and vocals. Right now the recording process has been
slooooooooow and frustrating because we depend on the kindness of
talented engineers and producers to donate their valuble abilities.
As times get tougher in the music biz and the world in general, free
studio time seems to get more scarce.
TRAffIK: Rumor has it you’ve been working on a new CD when will that be available
to your audience?
Sienna: We are hoping to release it in the next couple of months, so Spring 09.
TRAffIK: Has the making of that CD been any different than your previous ones?
Sienna:We’ve had more time to work out all the songs and to play them live in
front of an audience because we toured a lot before recording. Our
other two albums were very very rushed in that we were finishing the
songs in the studio and had never even played some of them live.
TRAffIK:What has been your most fun show to play so far? Why?
Sienna: All of the Warped Tour shows have been fun in that rock n roll summer
camp way. It’s just an indescribable feeling to be on tour with a
giant group of like minded people. You can begin to feel really crazy
for pursuing a life in music as the years creep by, bt then you do
something like the Warped Tour and you realize there are a lot of
freaky music junkies just like you out there . We also played a
great show in Missouri with a band called Ludo on our last tour. The
crowd was awesome and we are all friends so that was really
fun…..Some of my favorite shows of all time were the Kiss or Kill
shows when that scene was really tightly knit. There was always a
really fun and light hearted feel to the night. Everyone was there to
have a good time and support local music. No attitude, just good
times.
(Since we at TRAffIK love Makeovers check out as the Randies restyle Ludo during last years Warped Tour)
TRAffIK: Worst Show?
Sienna: Too many to mention!!! I have stage fright that will rear it’s ugly
head for no reason at any given moment. I’ve played so many shows
just completely paralyzed with fear. ugh, it’s the worst.
TRAffIK: What is your favorite place to play in LA? Outside of LA?
Sienna: In LA I still like playing at Mr. T’s though I heard they may not be
doing live music there anymore…..We’ve played at the House of Blues
a couple of times and of course that is amazing. When we’re on tour
my absolute favorite place to play is The Melody Inn in Indianapolis,
Indiana. They put on a night called Punk Rock Night and there is
still a great big scene of rowdy music fans. I love it.
TRAffIK: Do you feel it is harder to develop a following in Los Angeles as opposed
to other cities? Why or why not?
Sienna: Yes, definitely. There are just too many bands in LA. You can throw
a rock without hitting a musician in my neighborhood and there is a
general “too cool for school” attitude that pervades every club in LA.
In other cities, people are basically happy and grateful that you
drove all that way to come out and play for them.
TRAffIK: What is the audience like in other cities? What areas have the best audiences?
Laura: Sometimes its the suburbs and the areas of the states that have absolutely nothing going on for the kids. As an indie artist it is better! They are genuinely so excited to see live music and we aren’t competing with a gazillion other events going on the same night.
TRAffIK: What are some of the elements that you feel make a great show?
Sienna:I think it’s all about energy. If the band is relaxed and having a great time that really comes across to the crowd. Some of our best shows have happened right after a nasty band fight too. As long as the band is really feeling something (even if it’s just rage at each other!) and not just phoning it in you’re gonna have a great show.
TRAffIK: What do you wish there was more of in Los Angeles music wise (i.e.
supportive fans, better bookers, more venues, more support, etc.)?
Sienna: How about all of the above! It’s really a sad time for LA and the
music scene because Indie 103.1 just went off the air. When Indie was
around there was at least ONE other option besides main stream
corporate crap radio, but now there is nothing but the internet. I’m
also hoping that kids will want to start rocking out again. I’m
really really tired of people being into bands that don’t know how to
sing in tune or play their instruments, let alone write a good song.
It’s gotten to the point where all you need is your grandma’s grey
high heels, a pair of mens socks, skinny arms, a snare drum that you
play with two cucumbers and you too can be the next indie-rock
darling! I don’t want to sound bitter, but it took me a lot of years
and a million shows to get to the point where I can say (with
confidence ) that I am in a great band. It burns a little to see a
newbie with quirky fashion sense and absolutely no talent getting all
the attention. But whatever.
TRAffIK:How often do you play shows?
Sienna: We have slowed down since we got back from the Warped Tour last summer
(trying to finish this next album at long last) but anywhere from 3-8
per month if we’re in LA, to one every night if we’re on tour.
TRAffIK: How many tours have you gone on now and what areas have you covered?
Sienna:I think we’ve traversed the US about 8 times now. We’ve done the warped tour 3 times and we have also done a bunch of mini weekend dates up to the bay area or out to Arizona.
TRAffIK:What are some of the misconceptions that you think bands that have never
toured have about touring (if any)?
Sienna: That it’s always fun. It can get really boring and really lonely and
really fattening. Or that people will be at every show you play. We
have literally played to zero people before. It’s so weird. You can
play a packed club one night and the next night just a few hundred
miles away there is no one at the show.
TRAffIK: What was your experience with booking shows/working with bookers and how
were the shows different if any?
Sienna: A lot of bookers don’t know how to work with smaller bands. They will
put a touring band on last after all the local bands at midnight on a
tuesday. That is just a recipe for disaster. Laurita has gotten
really good at fighting for what we need to have a great show as a
touring band. It sucks to have to push all the time, but that’s the
nature of the beast.
TRAffIK: Many bands used to (and may still have) the mentality that playing a
festival like Warped Tour would be their big break and officially put them
on the map. What was your experience with playing the Warped Tour stage?
Sienna: It’s always a great experience to be a part of the Warped Tour, but it
does not a star make. There are so many bands playing all at the same
time that it’s really a daily struggle for the little bands to get
noticed. You have to promote, promote, promote every day. It’s like
boot camp for bands. If you are a small band, you are driving
hundreds of miles every night, loading in tons of gear over hot
pavement every morning at 8 am, passing out flyers and hanging up
posters until you get your thirty minute set, playing, packing up and
then doing it all again. Every day for weeks on end. It’s very
physically grueling but artistically rewarding to be part of such an
awesome traveling group of crazy musicians.
TRAffIK: How did the opportunity to play come about?
Sienna: A friend of a friend of a friend recommended us to Kevin Lyman and he
put us on the Kevin Says Stage for three California dates. The next
year we asked him if we could do more dates and he said yes. The NEXT
year we asked again and he said yes AGAIN! Kevin Lyman has been
incredibly supportive to us over the years. I think he appreciates
that we do everything ourselves with no label support. We will be
forever grateful to him for everything he’s done to help us out.
TRAffIK: What is the lifestyle of a touring band? What sacrifices do you have to
make as a person?
Sienna: Basically you have to be willing to give up every human comfort and
security. Everything most people take for granted is put in jeopardy
by the touring lifestyle. Financial security, family relationships,
romantic relationships, education and physical and mental health are
all put under incredible strain while touring in a band regularly.
There were a couple of years where we were gone at least 6 months out
of the year, living out of our van. I had to sublet my apartment,
give up my day jobs, and try to hold together some semblance of a
social life while I was in and out of town. That was the worst,
because even when I came back to LA I had no place that was my own.
To tour a lot is hard. To tour a lot as an DIY band with no tour
support is nearly impossible. I don’t know how we’ve kept it up for
as long as we have.
TRAffIK: Do you feel bands from other cities have a different mentality than LA
based bands? If so how so?
Sienna: In general I would say there is a more welcoming feeling from bands in
other cities. Usually, just like the audience, the bands tend to
appreciate that you came all that way to play.
TRAffIK: Do you feel there is more of a support system for bands in other cities?
Sienna: Every town is different. Indianapolis has a strong supportive scene.
We’ve never really made a connection in Chicago….The smaller
college towns seem to have tighter knit music communities. New York
is just like LA; everyone is cooler than you and nobody cares.
TRAffIK: Is there anything that you know now that you wish you had known before setting out on your first tour?
Sienna: I wish we had focused more on the west coast first before setting out
on some of our bigger more ambitious tours. It was awesome to see the
country like that, but as a result we have some of our strongest fan
bases in cities that are 2000 miles away. It makes it really hard to
pop in for a quick couple of shows.
TRAffIK: What music do the Randies listen to on the road?
Sienna: Every one listens to different stuff. Laurita, Laura and Tosha are way more with it musically than I am. I tend to stick to the classics and not try anything new. Eventually you get so bored though that anything goes and you’ve run the gamut from Celine Dion to Megadeth.
TRAffIK: What are you listening to these days?
Sienna: I’m listening to early David Bowie. Laura: I’ve been listening to a lot of old Jazz & Blues Standards to Radiohead(can never seem to kick them)
TRAffIK: What are some of your band member’s (or band as a whole) influences (musical or otherwise)?
Laura: We have a vast array of influences, I know Sienna loves old pop and musicals, Laurita and I share similar PJ Harvey, Metal, Rock N’Roll, to Radiohead. For the most part I think we all share our influences dating back to the first time we heard a Beatles record.
TRAffIK:What are some bands that you think did things right…or that you look up to?
Laura: I have always admired Sonic Youth…Fugazi, Nirvana. Um, Katy Perry for having her face wrapped around her tour bus last summer. You gotta be pretty strong to live through that one. People that werern’t afraid to go against the grain.
TRAffIK: Are there any local (or other independent) bands that you are really into?
Laura: Haven’t really been able to get out much…but I have seen a few M.Ward shows and I really love his songwriting.
TRAffIK: What do you feel are some of the current challenges of being an independent band/artist?
Laura:Its a lot harder to get your music out there without the security blanket of advertisement, airplay, and the ability to be on the road 2-300 days outta the year to travel the world and get your music heard.
TRAffIK: How do you feel about the current condition of the music industry?
Laura: It’s losing ground in this economy. Also the way technology is changing so rapidly between digital downloads and CD’s. What’s going to come after downloads?? maybe music will be up at some satellite somewhere and it can literally be transmitted to “soundtracks” in our heads.
TRAffIK:Your first video for “Thought I Could Change” earned you the spot of a Featured Video for a month on FuseTV, how did that come about?
Laura: We won a contest on Sonic Bids, its a website that helps Indie artists submit their epks to different festivals, and opportunities out there for artists.
TRAffIK: What was the experience making that video?
Laura: It was the best time EVER! We were all so excited to be there that day. It always helps when you have an amazing Director (Jesse Grce) and crew.
TRAffIK: How did the idea for it come about?
Laura: Jesse actually came up with the concept and shot it.
TRAffIK: What was the experience like shooting your video for “Freezerburn?”
Laura: FREEZING cold! That is real ice on the walls and we are in real running freezers. Our friend Robbie Stauder is a “documentary” film maker- his idea to shoot this video was to literally put us barely dressed into an ice box in Deer Park on Long Island. It was pretty cool,the behind the scenes experience was almost like being on an episode of the Soprano’s and what its like to be in a real “meat market”.
Here is The Randie’s video for “Freezer Burn“
The Randies Freezer Burn Music Video
TRAffIK: What are the Randies listening to right now?
Laura:
Death Cab for Cutie - “Transatlanticism”
M.Ward - “Never Had Nobody Like You”
Radiohead - “Nude”
Kings of Leon - “Charmer”
Faith No More - “Epic”
Smashing Pumpkins - “The Beginning is the End is the Beginning”
Eagles of Death Metal - “WannaBe in L.A”
Fugazi - “Blueprint”
And You Will Know us By The Trail of the Dead - “Mistakes and Regrets”
the Bronx - “White Guilt”
Loretta Lynn - “Van Lear Rose”
Queens of the Stoneage - “Another Love Song”
Yeah Yeah Yeah’s - “Maps” (just really love this song)
The Randies - “Bye Bye Beautiful”
TRAffIK Stopper – Heather Ellis
We love fashion. We love people. Most importantly we love and applaud the creativity that YOU people have. Being “fashionable” has many definitiions and manifests itself in many varied appearances and we want to see and share it all!
So every month we TRAffIK peeps will pick a new FASHIONISTA to feature. We might see ya out at one our favorite LA spots, at the super market, or just walkin’ down the street, and if we take notice of you stopping TRAffik with your “oh-so-rad” threads and sense of fashion then we’ll want to take that and throw you up on our site and learn more about you through a Q&A.
On these streets, we know there are all walks of life on display and we want share what you got goin’ on with all the other Angelinos who are in TRAffIK.
This month’s FASHIONISTA is San Francisco Native Heather Ellis. In this Q & A she gives us a brief overview on her sense of style, days as a punk-rocker, favorite designers, and where fashion stands today.
TRAffIK: Where are you from originally?
Heather Ellis: I am originally from SF, I moved to LA in 1999 to work in the music industry.
TRAffIK: What is your occupation?
Heather Ellis: I am a sales agent for a fashion showroom and a stylist.
TRAffIK: How would you describe your personal style?
Heather Ellis: My personal style is a mix of everything I love really, bits and pieces of my favorite fashion. I love Scandinavian fashion, especially Danish…and there’s always a little 80’s in there. Some people think the 80’s was a bad time in fashion but I think it was a very creative time in general, in fashion, music and art. Actually I think much of the fashion from the 80’s, especially street fashion, paved the way for so much of what we see today.
Eric: an Introduction
Hello. My name’s Eric and I’m writing a column for a website.
I’ve never written a column before, and I’ve certainly never written anything before 3 am the day it was due, and odds are you’ve never read anything I’ve written before (unless you’re familiar with my seminal analysis of the later works of Richard Strauss as applied to the epic battle between Batman and Star Wars, which I may or may not have drunkenly written for a music history class at some point [it may or may not have been a thought-provoking edge-of-the-seat analytical thrill ride]), so I think it’s fair that we get a few things out in the open before we begin. Five things, to be exact.
First of all, I’m not exactly sure yet what my column’s going to be about. I think it’s mostly going to involve music, since that’s the subject I’m legitimately qualified to write about (which already puts me head and shoulders and torso and most of my legs above most people who write things about music). But I’ll probably occasionally just start ranting about things that piss me off, and those things are many and varied. This could happen at any time, so if it does, just let it run its course until I tire myself out. Maybe try to put a wooden spoon in my mouth or something.
Second, I promise never to say “literally” when I mean “figuratively.” I will never use the word “prodigal” to mean “somebody who returns,” because that’s not what it means. I will never say “goal-oriented” at all. I’m also going to steer clear of “mindset,” because that is a stupid word, and I’ll keep any and all discussions of irony to subjects that are actually ironic and not just unfortunate or interestingly coincidental.
Third, I’m kind of a solipsist, so even if my readership grows to a staggering five or six people, I’ll mainly be writing to amuse myself. If anything I write accidentally strikes anybody else as funny, I can accept that as collateral amusement.
Penultimately, I’m going to give you a small puddle of word-vomit about the relationship between me and my favorite subject, which is music. My resume (just so you know) includes a bachelor’s degree (or “BM,” which I think is pretty funny and appropriate) in music performance from the University of Arizona (magna cum laude! Hooray for me!), and a master’s in same from USC.
I started out playing what’s commonly and reductively known as “classical” music, because that is what I thought I wanted to do. After years of tearing my hair out, growing it back, beating myself up, and setting instruments on fire, I finally discovered that what I wanted to do was Make Stuff (and Burn Things[just kidding]). What I didn’t want to do was see the music that I loved above all else ruined for me by contractors, rampant nepotism, conductors (the mass of whom are incompetent or pretentious or nasty or all three), union restrictions, paychecks arriving months late or not at all, et cetera ad nauseam. In short, the business. And the assholes. What it is, largely, is the asshole business. And I was not about to let the asshole business diminish the impact of something I’d worked on almost my entire life.
So I started playing rock and roll. On the viola. No, really.
I really do that! I get to write and record and perform my own viola parts (Making Stuff!), and it’s nice to play for a crowd of people who are actually reacting, jumping around, singing along–as opposed to sitting quietly and reserving polite applause until the end of the performance. And the fact that I don’t rely on it to make a living anymore means I can pretty much ignore infantile bookers, dickhead sound guys, surly security, occasionally indifferent or openly hostile audience members, and throw-a-handful-of-shit-against-the-wall-to-see-what-sticks bills, record label owners who are amoral business criminals at best and the face of purest evil at worst…all the things that make that business such a colossal pain in the ass.
Yeah, viola rock is kind of a niche market. But there’s something of a precedent in place: John Cale from the Velvet Underground studied viola, and so did Jonny Greenwood from Radiohead and Mary Timony from Helium. Nirvana had a cellist on the “Unplugged” album. The Arcade Fire, the Raincoats, the Adicts, and Pulp all feature violinists. Mick Ronson played violin. Lots of bands use strings in some capacity, whether I like what they do or not (mostly not). So it’s not all that odd, although it is uncommon to hear it done really well.
And I have a day job, as a video game tester, which I enjoy very much. So I have gone from being a disgruntled and impoverished professional to a contented, overly trained semi-professional, and I do not regret that even the tiniest of bits.
And finally (that’d be “fifth,” if you’re still counting, which I’m not), I really do not like critics at all, especially critics of rock and roll music. But I’m gonna leave that to be dealt with in a different column, because my ire is boundless, and usually pretty wordy (if you couldn’t already tell).
Get the wooden spoon away from my mouth, I’m done for today. So now you know me a little bit, and I’ll leave it up to you to decide whether my ramblings are a) outdated, noisy, and ill-informed, b) the result of demonic possession, or c) detritus sloughing off a tragicomically deranged brain.