Most musicians have large loads.
[Disclaimer: this post will be a scrapbook of pictures. This is an entirely "checking-in" post and will likely sound schizophrenic.]
In short: It has been busy these last few weeks. So busy in fact that when I looked at the date of my last post I nearly fainted. My apologies for making you wait. Bated breath, and all that.
In long: I’ve been back and forth between sanity and insanity these last few weeks and there isn’t a whole lot I can put to paper [or screen] at the moment. I’m working my ass off trying to get the re-launch of [modern.orphan.designs.] off the ground but as a one-woman operation I’m starting to feel the effects. I gave myself a lengthy-yet-reasonable time table in which to get all of these designs up [including my fucking book, The Rough Chronicles of Bipolar Romance, which needs to see the light of day now that it's finally here] but there are things hindering me from doing so. But never fear, the same time frame is in place and M.O.D. should have a re-launch sometime in the next month. [Don't forget to sign up for the G&D Feed, or sign up with your email using the M.O.D. site or the right hand side of this screen, so you'll know exactly when M.O.D. re-launches and get your limited, 1st edition copy of TRCOBR!]
I’m also trying to attend the annual Nimrod Literary Conference coming up in October, but between the recent job loss, hospital stays and lack of launching M.O.D., the money situations looking a little dire. I’ll never understand why the entrance fees are so fucking expensive. Since “Orphan” is the key word around here, if anyone has some change they can throw into my proverbial velvet hat, please do so using the Paypal donation button to your right. Even $3 can help me go and attend classes to further my art, learn new techniques and refine my skills so that I can come and tell you for free on here.
There’s also a bit of news going on with myself and a few familiar faces you’ve seen around G&D – currently I’m working on a DIY Artbook Project with Natascha Artworx from Hamburg, Germany! This is a 100% DIY and made-with-love endeavor and, once finished will look fabulous! Miss N. sent me a few of her paintings in the mail and I was floored – she works a lot of the time in watercolor which is a medium I could never master in college. So, as soon as I get my parts done and send them off look for that in the near future!
In even more other news, I met up with Kill Hannah last week and managed to stay sober the entire time, thus eliminating my need for pictures-as-proof. Consider these pictures-for-pleasure. You might recognize this face from an interview I conducted about a month ago:
Gil and I are on a mission to fuck you up.
- Mat Devine wears Chicago Suicide Club and prescription sunglasses at night. Take that Cory Hart.
Maddox - looking like a demon. I didn't fix the red eye because I'm for shit at Photoshop.
[On Kill Hannah's current tour with She Wants Revenge, Maddox is filling in for Dan Wiese who was married yesterday and by now is well on his way toward a honeymoon. Maddox has played in a handful of regionally successful acts including Miser and Jupiter Blue, with whom Kill Hannah have a long and sordid history. He also asked me to interview him so we'll see where that ends up. Hit me up M!]
The reason why this isn’t filed under “I just need the airfare [&] I’m gone” is because, while yes I funded my entire portion on change, the hotel stays were hardly 4-star and I wasn’t nearly so concerned with the amenities of the entire thing. The La Quinta in Dallas was decent, even though they fucked me on a smoking room and the Motel 6 in Austin had no carpet, the ugliest bedspread known to man, no hot water and the air conditioner leaked so badly when I arrived back to the motel clothing and shoes were soaked in freezing water.
For the rest of the story follow me on Twitter. It’s stuffed full of stories-in-pictures, sarcasm and hope[lessness].
Heidi Cannon and John Bourke at the Trash Yourself release party in LA.
In keeping with familiar faces, DJ/Producer John Bourke, who I’ve interviewed in the past had a release party at H. Wood for the new effort from Trash Yourself, titled “Forget It.” Find it, buy it and dance your ass off. Although John admitted Trash Yourself had never done an Oklahoma show before, that’s about to change on October 28th as their Myspace calender claims to have TY playing Robotic in Oklahoma City.
So, Orphans, now that you know what I’ve been up to your charge is to go out and find a great show to attend and tell me about it. Write an email, send pictures, poems or other forms of evidence – I don’t care. I’ll even post a couple on G&D. I want stories of sweat, screaming, catharsis and need. You could even check out She Wants Revenge/Kill Hannah on tour, or find Trash Yourself ‘s new CD and throw your own house party.
Report back and we’ll compare stories!
Baram on stage with Kill Hannah. Photo by R.E. Barbash
ser⋅en⋅dip⋅i⋅ty [ser-uhn-dip-i-tee] – (n.) – 1. an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident. 2. good fortune; luck
Serendipity is the only way to describe how Israeli-born guitarist Gil Baram wound up playing with Chicago’s unconquerable sons, Kill Hannah. A friend at the Musicians Institute (M.I.) in Hollywood, where Baram had attended, informed him that the band was holding auditions to replace departed guitarist Jonny Radtke. Familiar with the band and eager for a challenge, Baram spent a mere 24 hours with a portion of Kill Hannah’s catalog before stepping in front of Dan Wiese (guitars) and Elias Mallin (drums, and also a former Musicians Institute student). Less than a day later, before any final decisions had been made, Baram ran into Wiese and Mallin by chance at a restaurant next to his apartment; three hours later everyone was smiling and Baram had a home.
Gil has been playing music since age 14, beginning with a band in Israel before he came to the United States to attend M.I., where he formed a project called The Lure. (You can hear the remnants of The Lure on his MySpace page.) After The Lure’s breakup he made the transition to freelance musician as a business move and ran the gamut of fame in a relatively short time frame. Two weeks after graduating the Institute he was picked up to play for pop-superstar and poster-girl for abusive relationships, Rihanna. After that gig he auditioned again and was chosen for professional BMX rider Rick Thorne’s band, Good Guys in Black.
Baram’s first tour with Kill Hannah came earlier this year when they opened for Lacuna Coil. I was able to catch a couple shows with the new lineup. While some musicians are content to be a faceless tool on stage in exchange for a paycheck, Gil’s performance with Kill Hannah is a palpable wave of vigor and warmth, devouring the fans’ sweat-soaked energy and reciprocating his own. He moves, moshes and most of all, the guy can play.
Baram holds a fire for the art he creates. It’s a burning reminder for the pursuit of unshakable dreams, and the idea that the humanities don’t care if you’re in LA, Africa or the lost city of Atlantis—they’ll move you just the same. This is why they cannot die. We spoke last week over the phone, discussing everything from Kill Hannah’s extensive back catalog to the state of the humanities. Gil answered each query with an infectious excitement that promises the desperate ears of today that we will have worthy music for tomorrow.
Julie M. Tate: How did it feel to travel abroad to the Musicians Institute? Did it scare you or were you more anxious for the opportunity?
Gil Baram: I spent most of my life in Israel so coming here was about the best move I’ve ever done. It was terrifying and it was really hard for the first six months but totally worth it.
JMT: I must imagine the cultures are completely different.
GB: Yeah, it’s completely different—people in Israel act completely different. It’s like you walk on the street here and smile at strange people, they’ll probably smile back at you. In Israel if you smile at someone it doesn’t go that well. It’s just a totally different culture. I think it’s based on the constant conflict in Israel. Here people are focused on totally different problems and different day-to-day realities.
JMT: So you had to grow up with that constant conflict.
GB: Yeah. It sounds weird but you get used to it and it’s not a big deal. It’s a part of your thinking. You’re raised in a constant war and suddenly you’re in a place where people are raised in a constant kind of comfort. There’s strife around the U.S. and there’s shit going on but there’s kind of a sense of tranquility. They’re not as worried about survival.
JMT: Did you have a big record collection? Dealing with constant conflict I imagine music was a form of escape for you.
GB: Oh yeah, wow. Michael Jackson was the first concert I ever saw when I was like 12. What do I listen to? Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, The Cure, The Smashing Pumpkins, Pantera, Metallica, White Zombie, Pink Floyd, Prince…I like everything. When people ask me what I listen to I say “Slayer to Sinatra and everything in between.”
JMT: Why LA? Was the move to California a conscious decision or did you come to the States and end up in LA?
GB: I didn’t know where to go [career-wise] in Israel. When you’re in Israel you have this awesome concept of what the United States is—not that it isn’t—but you’re totally illusioned about it.
The more I tour and see the States I understand “why LA” and the more I dislike LA in a way. I look at Israel like Missoula, Montana: it’s a small place in the middle of nowhere. People in places in the middle of nowhere have a grand vision of LA: it’s “the place where dreams come true.”
JMT: Yeah, they definitely talk it up.
GB: If you want to be a hired gun, if you want to do gigs and sessions, there is no better place to be than LA. If you want to be in a band, there’s no worse place to be than in LA. The market is over saturated with bands from LA and to be honest there’s no real musical direction. There are good bands in LA but the fact you have to pay clubs to play there, that doesn’t really happen anywhere else around, does it?
There are a lot of hardworking bands that come here. It’s just rich kid central. There are kids who are 16 and their dad’s a movie star, and they go to places like the Key Club and buy out the place and play there. There’s no place to play in LA for a band. There are only other [LA] bands and their girlfriends. I’m totally trash-talking LA.
JMT: I do it all the time. It’s an easy city to hate. I have friends that are in bands in LA who shit-talk LA. Hell there are high profile bands, like Tool for example, who are based in LA and hate it too.
GB: Tool are known LA-haters aren’t they?
JMT: Exactly. So it’s not necessarily anything scandalous. It’s a double-edged sword because if you want gigs or opportunities, yes, LA is the place to be but at the same time you have to put up with all the bullshit.
GB: What you’re saying is 100% correct. Because LA is very good if you’re already “in the business” and you’re a successful band. LA is a great place if you want to get into the pop business, the hype business. If you want to start a band and really be a band? No.
Baram and former Kill Hannah guitarist Jonny Radtke. Photo by Darkroom Demons
JMT: So you’ve never wanted to stay a freelance musician, you’ve always wanted a permanent spot with a band?
GB: Definitely, definitely. I hate being a hired gun. I hate the pop side of music. It’s horrible, it’s fake and you’re like a very cheap tool. You’re not a person. You’re a guitar or a set of drums. In the hired gun world I know this guy and he’s 50 years old. He plays for Prince and he plays for Justin Timberlake and he’s made a shit load of money and he played for Rihanna for a little bit. After all that he’s still 50 and running around LA chasing gigs. So that is the world of the hired gun, and I’m over it.
JMT: You’re half that age and you’re already over it. That’s telling.
GB: I feel super lucky I get to play with Kill Hannah because when I first heard of them I only knew a bunch of songs. The deeper I dive into the catalog of the band the more I love it, the more epic it is. I like listening to really old stuff now like “Nerve Gas.”
JMT: Yeah, a lot of the older songs had a really huge feel, they filled up a room even straight from the album. Then you hear them live and they’re mind-blowing. There’s a lot of room in Kill Hannah because they don’t pigeon-hole you into one position. They have everything from pop to rock to almost experimental.
GB: Exactly, and that’s fucking awesome. That’s how music should be. It shouldn’t be defined by a genre, it should just be art.
JMT: Right now I’m sure your free time is pretty much consumed by Kill Hannah and trying to learn the back catalog, but do you still record original music at all?
GB: All of the stuff I did with my other band [The Lure] I wrote all the music and the singer wrote the lyrics. Right now though, yeah, I’m working on learning the Kill Hannah catalog. I do write, but Mat (Devine, vocals) is fucking awesome. I’m bewildered by his songwriting ability. The more I listen to his songs, the more I realize there are no producers behind that and he didn’t really learn any of that. He just writes that way. I’m in awe.
JMT: Well Mat’s method of thinking is admittedly a little tweaked. So the artistic things he produces, whether it’s his lyrics or his chord structures, tend to come out that way.
GB: I had this conversation with an A & R while I was going to school and he was telling me how he can listen to a band and know within ten seconds if a band has that “thing.” Which is usually like 1% of all the bands ever and listening to Kill Hannah you know that the band has that “thing,” that elusive 1% thing. It’s pretty awesome to be so close to it.
JMT: Well and in terms of songwriting getting to work with a musician like Dan must be refreshing as well. If you think of the music industry right now guitarists like Dan are rare in bands, in terms of the way he can layer a sonic landscape. The musicians you work with bring a lot to the table.
GB: I really like Dan’s playing. In a way it’s completely opposite to mine and it’s awesome in any way to be playing with someone who is totally different. Dan was playing me some stuff while we were learning the songs and I was like, “Oh that’s a guitar? Really?! You can play that? I thought that was a sample or something!” He’s like the creepy mad scientist, and he’s fucking epic about it. I feel like there’s so much room for me in the band. There are no restrictions and you’re able to put yourself in there.
JMT: Yeah, anything that can enhance and make it better. It’s not just “insert guitarist here.” Kill Hannah really aren’t about that, they want to add and grow.
GB: Exactly.
Photo by R. E. Barbash
JMT: Obviously you have a passion for music—you’ve been playing since you were young and moved half-way around the world to pursue it. Do you think the humanities are an important part of preserving our culture?
GB: The thing I hate the most about music in the past 10 years is I feel that a lot of the pop and mainstream is devoted to the art of making money and not the art of art. Growing up the only consolation you get from all the shit you go through every day, from being the outcast kid and all that shit, is the music. Which, between listening to bands like The Smashing Pumpkins and Pantera and all that stuff, it touches you somewhere. I don’t guess, I know that’s why people connect to Kill Hannah the way they do. So yeah, music has to mean something, has to talk about human emotions and what’s going on in the world today. Fuck yeah. It’s pointless if it doesn’t.
JMT: I’ve talked to people though, whose attitude is, “Oh, it’s just something I do. I have the means to do it so I’m going to do it.” They don’t want to get into it any deeper than that. They like it because their friends do it and it helps them get laid. To me if it’s worth a shit it has to mean something more than that.
GB: Exactly. If it has any sort of value what you’re saying is absolutely correct. Because whoever is in this business to make money is A: an idiot and B: in the wrong business. Because there’s nothing better than getting the connection with fans when you’re playing on stage and just knowing that people are vibing off what you play, or people are singing back the lyrics to you. That they actually take the time and are touched by the music. When you listened to the new album you remember a song called “Vultures,” right? Or “Sad Eyes?”
JMT: Yeah.
GB: Where Mat says “love must be just for idiots?”
JMT: Yeah, I remember.
GB: You know exactly what that means right? And so do I but it means two totally different things to you and me, and it probably means something totally different to Mat. But that’s what makes it art.
JMT: See I love to hear people still talking like this because if there’s one thing I try and re-iterate to people it’s that these things are still important, even in the Information Age. We shouldn’t reduce great works of art to entries on Wikipedia. This thinking still exists in two totally different places: I’m in the middle of the Bible Belt and you’re in a city that’s commercialized the humanities arguably more than any other.
GB: I don’t think it’ll ever die out, you know? Because there’s always going to be people using music for what it should be, as an escape or a communication form. Whoever does music to please people and thinks they can give people what they want is dead wrong. That’s one of the things you see in LA, people doing the trendy thing, doing whatever works. They don’t get it. But all those bands that make that “thing” work, make it work because what they’re doing is original and touches people in some sort of way. You can’t imitate that. You’ve got to do it your own way.
(Kill Hannah are currently gearing up for a month-long tour with She Wants Revenge beginning September 8th. Their upcoming album, Wake Up the Sleepers, is slated for release on September 29th through Original Signal Recordings. A digital 45 featuring the album’s first single, “New York City Speed” plus a B-side, will be available on iTunes on August 18th. Check www.killhannah.com and www.myspace.com/killhannah for details. Listen to the latest sneak peek from WUTS, “Strobe Lights,” at www.purevolume.com/killhannah. Download “New York City Speed” for FREE here. Song uploaded with permission.)
Call me Elphaba.
I’ve been sick for four days. I’m pretty sure I had a lithium buildup in my system resulting in mild lithium toxicity. It isn’t hemlock but it’s nearly as glamorous–that is until you’re puking up the whole-grain cinnamon roll you bought from the trendy coffee house at 2 a.m. and continue to do so until long after the sun has come up, and gone back down, and up again ad nauseam. Until your muscles and skin ache, until your hands are trembling so bad you can’t type and you spill your drinks, until you can’t hold yourself up but can’t afford to call in to work. Until all those things. Something like that. It’s simple. Drink plenty of fluids. Two to three liters of water a day. I simply hadn’t been following that rule. After two weeks of slacking that’s what happened.
Everything is behind. My writing, merchandising, editing, interviewing–basically my mental pudding capacity. Right now at this very moment I’m listening to The Smashing Pumpkins because I’ve reverted to some form of fetal state and listening to The Pumpkins is what I used to do in high school when things were overwhelming and I needed comfort. Guess what? It still makes me feel better. Little teeny parts of me are starting to push through the black cloud I’m wearing even though it’s terribly out of season and everyone is talking about how frumpy and clueless I am.
I have promises still waiting to settle, t-shirts still brand new, a balance in the red and one large, encompassing dream way out on the horizon.
And my lime Jello brain asks: why should I press on?
M. Orphans, whether or not you decide to pursue a career in the arts, one day you’ll have every conceivable odd stacked against you, and you’re going to say “what in the holy fuck am I doing this for?” How you answer that question will determine whether or not you have the guts and gumption to keep doing whatever the “this” is. I was reading a post by Tom & Lorenzo [T Lo] and although their answer is pretty blog specific I think it’ll make sense to a myriad of artistic mediums:
“…we started this blog because we were in the midst of Hard Times and Dark Days and it was a way to keep that at bay and just do something for the sheer enjoyment of it and because, contrary to our expectations, people actually came to read us…when you have a blog that suddenly becomes “talked about,” and when you feel like you’re drowning out in the real world, that blog becomes your lifeline and the people who read and support you become, in many ways, more important to you than even your friends and family. Because those wonderful strangers are demonstrating something that even your closest compatriots sometimes fail to: they believe in you.
It’s a small thing and one that can easily be overstated and over-dramatized, but it’s still a unique and powerful experience – especially because its one solely of your own creation. There’s no publication or editor or marketing department. It’s just you, and your thoughts, and (hopefully) your talent, putting it out there in the ether to the faceless strangers who have, to your eternal gratitude, decided that you have something to say worth listening to.”
Now everyone on the face of the planet can understand the comfort and necessity of needing someone to “get it.” But I’m also of the mind that any struggling musician, poet, mixed-media artist, interpretive dancer, street performer, novelist, etc. can feel what that’s trying to say. If you’re in this business you know it has it’s own brand of difficulty. However, I was having a discussion yesterday where I mused that the arts and artists were one of the few lucky sorts that “work” in a thanked position. (We aren’t going to include the heads of English/art departments or what’s left of the record industry at the moment, that’s an entirely different post.) So many jobs are thankless (see: most of our day jobs) but art is one of the few professions where you are able to meet your “customer” face to face because they want to say “you inspire me,” or “you saved my life with your words,” or “that color scheme inspired my bedroom plans,” or whatthefuckhaveyou. Fans of art want to meet the artists who make it so they can say “thank you.” Now, being in a “thanked” position doesn’t mean you’re getting rich and famous–you might, you might not. (God let’s hope so.) But it’s more than most people get, and one of the unique perks for choosing an entirely difficult profession.
Then again, being an artist can get you these sorts of responses too:
D has candy, kiddies. Totally harmless.
(Taken from Monsieur Devine’s latest Kill Hannah Fuse Blog where he has an open call for questions he’ll answer at a later [likely much, much, much later] date)
“Dear Mat-
I am not a Kill Hannah fan. By that, I mean that I don’t know much about your music. I am a hardcore Nine Inch Nails fan, however. But my best friend loves you guys, so I went with her to see you perform with Lacuna Coil a few weeks ago. I noticed something then, and now, after my friend showed me some of the responses to this post, I have to say something.
Your fans. How do you deal with it? How do you deal with having a bunch of teeny bopper, illiterate, stalker fucktards as fans?
Seriously. At the concert, there were girls who were following you all over – I have to say right here, that I wonder how the hell they’re affording it in this economy- and saying that they think they’ll be able to get in your pants because they’re “friends” with your newest band member, (who I can’t remember his name, it has something to do with a fish, though) who left them a comment on Myspace saying to come to the next concert. You might want to tell him to stop feeding the delusion. Unless, of course, it really does mean you or a band member are planning on fucking them. Which I doubt, because there were some really ugly, obese girls there.
I guess my question, in short, is how do you have the patience to deal with the douchebags and stalkers?
Oh, and how do you think Obama’s doing so far? 202 days in office now.
PS- thanks for giving my friend a kiss. You made her night.
Spy Girl on August 9, 2009 at 06:23 AM”
(Poor Papa Raccoon. His kids are gnawing on him. Now if that isn’t fodder for a great work of art Orphans, I don’t know what is.)
Addendum: Of course I’m eating my words. M. has answered his first round of questions over at his Fuse Blog and, I found myself talking to the computer screen: “You motherfucker, you haven’t lost it.” His response to a klepto who wanted a career in the arts:
“…but you have to understand, one doesn’t become at artist to make money… one becomes an artist to bare one’s soul, to search for truth, to quiet the demonic voices in your head, and to score chicks at local galleries. That’s Art with a capital A . the rest is just “craft”. If you’re content to whittle wooden seagulls on he weekends for a local fair, then that’s cool, but that’s not art. if however, you are fully consumed by a suffocating twisted desire that can’t be tamed, then you have to let everything else go. Forget about the word ‘lucrative’ and ‘career’— cos you were an artist the day you were born and you’ll be one on your deathbed. Commit fully, never compromise your essence, pay your dues, and as you do, the universe will guide and protect you. Get tortured baby. Stop stealing jeans. Steal paint.”
I should make that an honorary addendum to the What is a Modern Orphan? description and page.
John Bourke - photo courtsey of Matthew Isaac
A few weeks ago I touched on the idea that it takes very little to be called an “artist” anymore. In a world where you can learn virtually anything with the click of a button, the margin to distinguish between amateur and professional is quickly getting smaller. DJing in particular is an art full of misconceptions. While I would never call myself a DJ by any means (my play lists are as manic-depressive as I am), because of my network of friends I have a small working knowledge of what’s required to keep a party moving forward into the waiting arms of dawn. In this case one is required to own a mental Rolodex of songs spanning decades and a near spider-sense of anticipation for the sweating mass in front of you. Both DJ and dancer have a sort of symbiotic relationship—because they move you sustain momentum, and if they aren’t moving then you aren’t doing your job.
John Bourke is a 26 year-old DJ and producer based in Oklahoma City. He’s also one-half of the sleazy, electro-punk duo Trash Yourself (alongside another Oklahoma native, Heidi Cannon). Although he’s considerably younger than powerhouse DJs such as Tommie Sunshine and DJ AM, that hasn’t stopped him from playing some of the hottest parties of the year, including SXSW in Austin and Debonair Social Club’s 4-year anniversary with Dark Wave Disco in Chicago. Even mega-companies such as Warner Brothers and Capcom have licensed his services.
Not bad for a boy from a state where there isn’t much support for the electro/house scene. Consequentially there isn’t much competition either, and what talent you’ll find has banded together under the name Dance Robots Dance, a self-proclaimed “international DJ collective based out of the unlikely state of Oklahoma.” DRD hosts a hugely successful dance party called Robotic every Wednesday at Kamps in Oklahoma City. While it might not seem so superficially, this is a lesson every artist would do well to learn: If you can’t find a home for the art you create, then build one.
I spoke with John shortly after he’d finished producing a few tracks for the upcoming Kill Hannah album, Wake Up the Sleepers, and discussed Trash Yourself, what makes a “good” DJ, his influences and getting the hell out of Oklahoma.
“Oklahoma isn’t a great place to network for dance music.”
Julie M. Tate: Since the majority of us only spend time on the dance floor and not behind the tables we only have one side of the party. What prompted you to start remixing/producing?
John Bourke: Just loved the music. Pretty much as simple as that. I loved electronic sounds and wanted to figure out how to make them.
JMT: Describe your first DJ set.
JB: Man, I can’t even remember. I did some Live PA and band stuff before DJing. But the first one I can remember was at this club Sanctuary in OKC that (DJ and Rise Up Productions founder) Unadave was running. I was playing breaks at the time with (Sanctuary resident) DJ Phenom. We had been producing music and then he invited me to DJ with him. I didn’t really know the mixer that I was using but I made my way through it with maybe a bad mix or two.
JMT: As far as DJ’s go, you’re not necessarily “unknown.” Warner Brothers has licensed your music for the Matrix DVD box set and Capcom has licensed your music for Final Fight: Streetwise. Do you make certain songs to cater to outlets like this and others for the dance floor, or do corporations generally come to you?
JB: Anything I have done licensing-wise was in a situation where they approached me to license a song. I haven’t ever really made music specifically with film or TV in mind—I’ve just been lucky enough where someone thought it fit their format and sent me an email.
JMT: With acts like the Shiny Toy Guns and the infamous Flaming Lips, Oklahoma has seen its share of talent succeed outside these southern walls. For electronic/experimental acts do you think it’s wise to aim for the outside market or try and build around a relatively untapped market here in this state?
JB: Well, its sounds so cliché now but with the internet you can really do anything from anywhere. Oklahoma is a great place to live and write but there’s a plateau here—you can’t network and meet people that are excited to help you build your career. You really have to get out of here every once in a while to network. Oklahoma isn’t a great place to network for dance music.
!Trash Yourself live at Debonair Social Club, 2009. Photo courtesy of darkroomdemons.com
JMT: Did it take long to “come up” in the scene here? Although you’ve been DJing for eight years, your band Trash Yourself is still relatively new. Was it easier because of said market or more difficult because it isn’t as promoted in Oklahoma?
JB: We still haven’t ever played a Trash Yourself show in Oklahoma City. Kinda weird I guess. We play all over the country, but there hasn’t been an occasion here that’s been appropriate I guess. We usually only do really crazy electro parties or large events like massive raves. It’s almost easier in a sense for people in other cities to dig on what you do.
JMT: Trash Yourself has gained recognition from SXSW to playing the 4-year anniversary at Chicago’s Debonair Social Club. How do gigs like those generally come about? They aren’t exactly low profile.
JB: A lot of it is just traveling and talking to people. There is a lot to be said for meeting people face to face. We kind of have a good rep from throwing parties in OKC. A lot of people know me from that. Hopefully people enjoy the music also and that’s why they call on me to play their party.
“It is important to be surrounded by people that know more than you at your craft.”
JMT: You’ve co-authored songs for the Shiny Toy Guns and currently have wrapped up production on some songs for the new Kill Hannah album coming out in September. How was that experience?
JB: Chicago was great! I had a lot of fun with all the guys. The studio we worked in was amazing. It was a legit major studio. (Chicago Recording Company) Smashing Pumpkins recorded their albums there so we were in the rooms that songs like “1979” and “Tonight, Tonight” were recorded in. It was very inspiring, I learned a lot from the experience. I hung out with Shiny Toy Guns in LA when they were recording their last album at NRG studios. That was pretty rad too. It is important to be surrounded by people that know more than you at your craft. That’s one thing that’s been hard about living in Oklahoma—there isn’t much of an artist community for musicians.
JMT: How does producing other artist’s music differ from producing your own? Aren’t you working on the debut record for Trash Yourself?
JB: Well for the Kill Hannah project. The singer Mat (Devine, lead vocalist) had the songs written but only had demo mixes. There were just really roughly made on a keyboard with few tracks, and a rough vocal. My job was to recreate the parts but with updated sound and feel. So it was more polishing everything, detailing, and adding textures rather than writing. I tried to keep the integrity of what Kill Hannah wanted. Greg (Corner, bassist) sat in on several sessions with me so that I knew it was going in the right direction. With Trash Yourself, I just kinda do whatever the hell loud noisy music I want.
(For a preview of John’s work in the studio with Kill Hannah, download the track “New York City Speed” from their upcoming album Wake Up the Sleepers HERE. You can also download John’s remix of “Crazy Angel” from the album Until There’s Nothing Left of Us, HERE. Links used with permission.)
!Trash Yourself with Greg Corner of Kill Hannah, 2009. Photo courtsey of darkroomdemons.com
JMT: You’ve worked on more than one occasion with wunderkind the Toxic Avenger, a self-proclaimed fan of Weezer and The Smiths. His history also includes playing in various punk and hardcore bands throughout the years. Do any of your influences fall outside the electro/dance scene?
JB: Yeah, definitely. My roots are industrial from when I was like 15 or so. I was a big NIN fan. Unfortunately I don’t have much time to listen to music other than dance music right now. I did just get the M83 album Saturdays = Youth, which I love. Chad (Petree, guitarist/vocalist) from Shiny Toy Guns made me get it. I suggest all of you do too. My next project will probably be a band that falls somewhere in between Cut Copy and M83.
“…maybe you don’t have to be on MTV anymore. There are other ways to gain fans now.”
JMT: The DJ/house culture has been around for years and sometimes is responsible for launching a sub-par song into the mainstream. That being said, do you feel the scene could get/needs more recognition or is it doing fine with the momentum thus far?
JB: I think with people like the Crookers blowing up and having their remix of Day N Nite played everywhere, things are going pretty good. That’s an example of what a remix can do. That remix was everywhere. It got so big it eventually made the original popular about a year later. When I was in Chicago Crookers played at a theater there and had over 3,000 people come out. Other major rock acts weren’t getting that many people there. Just shows that maybe you don’t have to be on MTV anymore. There are other ways to gain fans now.
JMT: Speaking of the popularity of remixing, so-called “DJ Schools” like DubSpot in NYC have reportedly seen a major increase in enrollment, in part due to the recession and partly due to the fact it’s “hip” at the moment to be a DJ. I think the mainstream consensus is if you own a CD collection you can DJ as well. Do you believe someone can be “taught” to be a good DJ?
JB: Teaching helps, but I don’t think its at all necessary. If you want to learn something you will learn. It is really as simple as that. There are so many videos on Youtube, and magazines that teach you anything anymore. Almost everything I know about engineering audio is from the internet and mags at Barnes and Noble. There’s no secrets anymore. This is the Information Age.
JMT: While you still regularly hold down DJ sets at Robotic in OKC, are you trying to make a move as well? Heidi splits time between NYC and OKC, and Fellow Robotic DJ Joshua Distance has already made the move to Austin, TX.
JB: I’m definitely ready to move. I need a change of pace. Either LA or NYC…or both. I just have a few things I’m trying to take care of here first. I fly a lot though, so I’ll always be making stops in OKC.
(John Bourke is currently on tour. For a list of tour dates click below or visit any of the following sites: !Trash Yourself on Myspace, John Bourke on Myspace or John Bourke on Twitter)
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A veritlbe Pharm Party.
[If you don't know what the "airfare" posts are about, please see this description.]
Being sober is a funny thing. I used to do drugs. I mean, a lot of them. Any of them. Probably all of them. I still miss ecstasy. Every once in a while I’ll reminisce then regret it in the morning. Getting wasted is overrated but if you haven’t done it you don’t know what you’re missing. I’ll probably talk more about this later. But for now, back to the point.
Like any drug, no matter how often you do it, the come down always sucks. Tour is no different. Your body gets used to the grind, the drive, the adrenaline. For anyone who’s tried their hand at sobriety you know how difficult it is. Sure, the first few days it feels just like heaven to sleep, shower and hear yourself think…then it hits: you aren’t going anywhere for awhile. It’s like your supplier was just incarcerated for an indefinite amount of time. Your skin starts to itch. Your anxiety goes through the roof. After a couple of months you’re dying. Let’s just fucking GO. Get the hell out.
Despite how much I enjoy getting away for a couple of days every other week and then coming back, I always leave whatever city [except Birmingham] with a sense of longing–you want to stay inside the feeling, the experience. It’s why people shoot heroin 10 times a day. You don’t WANT it to go away. But it always does. It’s a story that’s been told a hundred times before.
Oklahoma City, OK, July 6th, 2009
Hotel: none
Budget after initial costs: $211
Other Attractions: Lacuna Coil and Kill Hannah at the Diamond Ballroom [OKC], Jeremy Dawson and his storm chasing van
Oklahoma City really doesn’t have much to offer. So there’s not much to say. The Diamond Ballroom is a tin-can off the interstate in the middle of nowhere surrounded by rusting 18-wheelers and gravel. However, you can still smoke inside, which is more than I can say for 90% of the venues/bars I visit these days. That’s a plus, I suppose. I didn’t bother with a hotel since I’m staying in Tulsa, at the moment.
The show in OKC was the kick-off in an almost month-long jog between Lacuna Coil and Kill Hannah. I’ve been listening to Lacuna Coil since I was in high school years ago and was excited to see them live. Although, like meeting people in person, sometimes that can disappoint you. The vocal mix sounded terrible, among other things. The idea of Lacuna Coil still excites me however and I’ll still listen regardless.
Kill Hannah debuted new touring guitarist Gil Baram along with a host of songs from their upcoming album, tentatively titled Wake Up the Sleepers. [A line from one of the new songs they've been playing called "Strobe Lights," which, by the way, is an infectious mess of guitar-gasms, dance beats and catchy everything.] There were very few breaks in the set’s energy and for a first show with a new member I’ve definitely seen worse. My money is still on the re-worked version of “New York City Speed” which even had the plethora of Hot Topic goths bobbing their heads.
Openers Dommin were fun–some weird mix of Depeche Mode, Joy Division, Voltaire, The 69-Eyes and, occasionally, the vocals reminded me of early 90′s Tool. Their song “Dark Holiday” from the Dommin EP sounds like they’re playing a saloon in Hell. I believe I invented a dance called the “goth shuffle” for their set. I talked with their bassist, Billy, for a long time over a few cigarettes and we attempted to answer the ongoing debate: The Cure Vs. Depeche Mode [I won't say which side I'm on.]
Seventh Void are knitted together using members of Type O Negative and Inhuman, and were the other opening band on the bill. While I didn’t enjoy them at all they seemed to garner a sizeable reaction from the crowd in OKC. That’s probably because while the entire country is blanketed in shitty Staind-esq rock, OKC has a larger concentration than most.
After I had an amusing back and forth over wine and leftover lamb. FYI, two words a boy in a band never wants to hear are these: blood disorder.
Instead of hitting the bar 30 fucking minutes away I opted to head home. I’m getting old, apparently.
Kansas City, MO, July 7th, 2009
Hotel: The Q[uarterage] Hotel
Budget after initial costs: $176
Other attractions: Lacuna Coil and Kill Hannah at the Beaumont Club, The Riot Room, some gas station on I-35
The Q Hotel in is arguably the nicest hotel in the city. It makes a true effort to be eco-friendly and it’s standard amenities include almond-scented Aveda products which is a complete win. Aveda is one of my favorite bath and body lines, with natural ingredients that usually smell amazing. The rooms had very clean looks, bright greens, blues and whites, hi-def TV’s and more mirrors than I knew what to do with. The coffee bar downstairs was decent and there was a little bookshelf with a sign that said “Need a book? Take a book. Have a book? Give a book.” Which nearly melted my little black heart. I left some swag on the shelves. Who knows where it’s all at now. Their front desk staff was very friendly and the on-site spa looked a little creepy but regardless it’s always nice to have a massage option before doing any heavy partying.
The Q Hotel, Kansas City, MO
Each band had a tighter set in Kansas City and was the exact same from the night before. I spent most of my time catching up with everyone I’d missed so dearly in the last few months. You never get enough time but, hey, that’s tour. You take what you can get, when you can get it. It’s a given rule. I even met an extremely nervous girl who stopped me just to say she read my site. I was flattered and gave her some stickers and buttons for her courage.
As I stood outside during Seventh Void, the crowd was not so friendly however, as most of the smokers going in and out were trying to escape their set.
After the show we went to the Riot Room for some band I thankfully missed after a detour back to the hotel. I was accused of starting the night off right with Patrón shots for myself and Gil, and I might or might not plead the 5th. Gil’s a fucking firecracker on and off stage. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t in bed until 5:30a.m., even though I had to be up at 9a.m. to hit the road home. Completely fucking worth it.
Check back in the next few days–I just so happen to have an interview with Gil Baram coming your way. [I'm still editing the John Bourke interview. It'll be live soon, promise.]
P.S. There are a lot of things that get left out in between the words. It’s like a cryptogram. Whether it’s shame or selfishness there are some things that must be left unsaid, to be mulled over on your own. You fall in love with it, every bit, even the bad parts. Even if you want to scream your entire story to the waiting universe sometimes, well sometimes dear orphans, you just can’t find the words. It is yours.
