This interview was conducted before a re-scheduled show in the Kansas City area.

I found the band in a playful, yet contemplative mood.  This made for a very long, and rather circular interview that led back to certain concepts, and rounded out with a good look at the major goals of Rogue, and the rest of the Crüxshadows.  Feel free to read the first part of the interview, where we playfully examine the idea of "Philosophies" within the context of working with modern music.  Or else you can start here, but start with the knowledge that while some of this introspection was rather serious.  At the same time there was no pretension in the air, and for a good part of the interview, we were having a fairly good time.   We hope you have a good time with this one too...

Rev. S:   How has the road lately affected you?  Has the road given you some new  things to think about, and to process into new material?

Rogue: Ooh that's a really good question, I don't think its the 'road'.

Rachel:   It's not the road itself!

Rogue: although Chris and I today were having this discussion about how every place we were driving has played some role in history, and has been seen by eyes, and there have been battles....

Rev.S: and Trails !

Rogue:  I am sorta wandering in my mind here about what I am trying to say, but everything was something, before it became what it is now.  That has nothing to do whatsoever with the bands philosophy.  If you are saying "has being on the road given me some ideas about new material", then yes!  Being alive gives me ideas for new material!  Day to day experiences, if you have the desire to look deeper into them and draw material out of them, then you have the ability to create art.  It's that sort of ability to observe, when paired with the ability to create, and create adequately, then we hopefully are able to make something that is worth some value.

Rev.S:  Kind of like a process, or the process is the product type attitude?

Rogue: <making an objectionable face to the concept> Eh , well it is a process but it is not, it's more like a... <thinking to self>  it's more of a dissection of the process, than the actual process itself.  The process varies from time to time.

Rev.S: We might be getting too involved in individual technique, learning to play an instrument is not the same as being able to say, mimic the noises of a passing train or something like that as it is happening to you.

Rogue: Right, but what I am saying is I don't sit down and say "OK I need to come up with the part that makes this valuable", or "O.K. I need to come up with a way to say this in a way that catches peoples attention".  It's not quite as deliberate as that, but that is truly what I am trying to do!

REV.S: Of course, yet you have your own 'flow.'

Rogue: Yes, Flow.  I think flow is a good way to characterize it!

REV.S: On to the concept of labels, if you have to label yourself, how would you go about labeling yourself. For example, what would you think if someone wanted to label you a 'psychedelic' band with the idea of the root of the word psychedelic, mental manifestations?

Rogue: I think the problem there, you get caught in a lot of stereotypes with that type of classification.  I have no problem with t he classification of 'Goth'.  You want to call me Goth,  I am Goth! <smiling>   If you don't think I am Goth enough for you,  well then fine, you can call me what you want.  Call me 'crap'!"  <we all explode in laughter>

Rev. S: Unfortunately I think crap is more of an adjective, than a classification.  Unfortunately there is no truth in advertising department, allowing a crap section in the record store.

Rogue: Yeah , unfortunately, your right!

Rev.S:  I guess the easiest place to put you is under 'C'  for Crüxshadows!

Rogue: yeah and that is right next to 'crap'.

Rev.S: Right, right , but hopefully your a lot better!

<by this time we may have gotten out of control, many thoughts here broken up by laughter, and some really bad jokes...>

Rev.S: <regaining control, sort of>  Once again, I am coming into this show tonight with a bit of a 'blind spot' as I have only heard a few things, and I am hoping to be blown away.  A lot of people will be coming out tonight, and they have only an inkling of what to expect.  Maybe they have seen the website, or been recommended this show...

Rogue:  Most people have heard us in clubs.  That's really where our popularity is, the clubs really have made us.  To the art making process,  we try to make music that is danceable, we try to make music that people would like to hear.  We try to make something of universal significance, of value, to place out into the world.  We try to take ideas and concepts and build them in such ways that they can carry those emotions, for example taking myth and using it as a vehicle for a particular emotional direction, so there are many levels to the songs we write,  So I think the people that we do reach, we reach because there is an awful lot of thought about what goes into the music, and what it means.  If you like it because it sounds good, that is fine with us.  If you like it because you can rip it to pieces, and dissect it and have some greater insight into it.  That is good too!

REV.S: That is probably a very good idea to be open to the idea of being dissected anyway.

Rogue: So are we psychedelic?  I think that implies that we are part, and party to the drug culture.  We are not.

<reviews note:  These words happened to be in my head during the performance, especially while they played the accapella version of White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane.  I don't doubt the words of Rogue,  yet it was what I would consider, a well crafted moment of psychedelica!!!>

Rogue: I am not a proponent of drug use, I have seen it ruin more lives than I care to speak about.   To that end I don't encourage anyone to do something which harms themselves.  For whatever value they think they are going to get out of it.  I believe that kind of thinking is more of an excuse making than anything else.

REV.S: Usage on a certain plateau, becomes more of a crutch...

Rogue:  I personally consider myself a 'straight edge', although I don't like the negative connotations with that either.  I am not about preaching to people and telling them what to think, or how to act!  I am not about encouraging people to do things that are negative, and I try not to do things that have a negative impact on a person as well.

REV.S: That's grand, and that is sometimes the best you can hope to do.

Rogue: How do we characterize our music?  Gothic works for me , 'New Wave' works for me.  We are heavily influenced by a lot of 'New Wave' music.

REV.S:  what about 'Synth-Pop' as a label.

Rogue: yes, 'Synth-Pop' works for me.  I think that we don't quite fit with a lot of the 'synth-pop' music, but I think it describes some of the best stuff that is coming out of this genre of music.

REV.S:  I heard a term for bands like Apoptygma Berserk, and Covenant, I'll throw this one at you, 'Trance-Pop'.

Rogue: don't like it. <laughs> It's one of those words that everyone would take as meaning something different.  It might make a good designator in 50 years when people are looking back at it and many things are being jumbled anyway.

REV.S:  It could be too ambiguous, you could put new Madonna and others into that category. <laughter>

Rogue: One of my favorite terms I'd like to resurrect is the 'New Romantics', back in the late 70's early 80's the 'New Romantic' movement was exactly what I am talking about, and it actually became known, or became part of the 'New Wave'.

Rev.S: So what was some of the bands that were more "New Romantics" then?

Rogue: I think that , Duran Duran is probably the most notable.

Rev.S: And that got swallowed up by being just purely popular.

Rogue: Bands like Roxy Music, and even some of the 'Bowie' stuff falls into that category.  Unfortunately, many of the bands did not become very popular.

Rev. S: Would somebody like Iggy Pop fit into that in a 'punk' sorta way?

Rogue: Well,  'New Romantic' was actually a reaction against 'Punk' , it was taking 'Punk" and going the other direction.  You'd have a better time fitting Adam and the Ants into the 'New Romantics' than Iggy Pop.

Rev.S: Yeah, I was being extreme there!

Rogue: Yeah, well that's one of the areas where I got a lot of my influence, bands like the Psychedelic Furs, Thompson Twins, Echo and the Bunnymen.  Music that was introspective, and yet related to me in a way that made me want to move.

Rev.S: It didn't seem to go too  deep and introspective.

Rogue: I don't know about that , I can give you some examples that would be good arguments.

Rev.S: Well. yeah I guess for example there was Thomas Dolby, and he was introspective about the cold harsh computer age reality.  A colder time, yet we still had to think about where we were.

Rogue: To an extent New Wave was like 'Disco' with a soul, 'Punk' with a heart.  It was , a hybrid of everything that had come before, and in being such a hybrid it was unique unto itself.  You can make no references to 'New Wave' music existing before the 80's.  In a way I think to some extent it was the last original type of music to come about...

<thinking to self for a moment>  well maybe I shouldn't say that.

Rev.S: We'll just strike that from the record. <maybe not>

Rogue: There has been a few recently, and actually I can't even say that because 'Rap" and 'Hip-Hop' were there then, and they are original too, maybe I need to take that back.

Rev.S: I guess it would be hard to come out as an act , and not fall into a category.  No one really wants to step out, and just be placed into a 'genre'. Yet every now and then several groups comes out doing something on a similar wave, and they all agree that they are a part of a certain movement, and therefore strengthen the idea of the category.  In your case your related to Goth, yet it is kinda cool that your accepting of that, and your fine with those that might not be able to accept you in that realm.

Rogue: Well, from a person stand point, you know I personally ,and all of the band members pretty much are a part of the scene. So it is difficult to separate us out as artist away from that association.  I don't think is really my role neccissarily to determine where my significance, or lack of significance is in the tome's of music history, but if I were to categorize, I would say we are more of a 'Goth-wave'  kind of band.

Rev.S: Goth-wave' I like that, I think I like that!

Rogue: to some extent we have tried to push that, were trying to score our own little revolution.

Rev.S: The first 'Goth-wave' band.

Rogue: And maybe bands like Bella Morte, whom I have a lot of respect for, maybe they will get on our bandwagon, and we can form a movement of some significance. <laughing at his own thought>

Rev.S:  I like where that ended, so I think we should end it here.  We must thank all the members of  The Crüxshadows, even Kevin who opted to have Rogue do all his talking.  This has been a really fun interview, and I hope the Starvox readers will enjoy it as well.

END

Interview conducted by Rev. Alexavier S. Strangerz 23.3
all Pictures, and manipulations therfore of, done by www.ZenkaoS.com

The Cruxshadows
http://www.cruxshadows.com/

Dancing Ferrett
http://www.ferret.com/discs/

GRIDLOCK
~interviewed via Email by Psionic Imperator

It is no secret that I am in love with music that is instantly evocative. I have loved music of this type ever since I first heard Celtic Frost's "Tears In A Prophet's Dream" back in the days of DeathMetal's ascendance. It is a burning passion, finding new music that fits this pattern, music that is at all times introspective, emotional, invasive, shy, and mysterious. Many projects have come and gone that have touched on these themes, most with great success. Less common are the projects that do more than just flirt with the concept, those people like myself who feel driven to explore this medium of expression to it's fullest extent. Such a project is Gridlock.

There is a persistent belief that dark-electronic music is devoid of new ideas. This is entirely erroneous, and anyone familiar with the soundscape work of Gridlock knows this. Spearheading a wave of talent produced by the now-legendary Pendragon Records label, Gridlock stepped into the spotlight with their first release, 'The Synthetic Form'. Along with such names as Individual Totem and Velvet Acid Christ, 'Gridlock' became a buzzword in the underground, synonymous with 'groundbreaking'. Showing a startling ear for mood, Gridlock stood (stand) head and shoulders above so many of their contemporaries. Proving themselves capable of incredible growth, their second release 'Further' was light years beyond what they had already achieved with ' The Synthetic Form', setting the new standard for textured soundscapes. The trend continued with the release of '5.25' and doesn't appear to be slowing down with the upcoming 'Trace' release on [<unit>] Records, a division of Possessive Blindfold recordings. I was honoured to be given the opportunity to pick the brains of the creative forces behind Gridlock, delivered to you in the form of 20 questions.
.........................................................................
Starting with the basic "5 W's", let's setup some basic information for those readers not steeped in the history of the project:

Who are the members of Gridlock?

Mike Wells and Mike Cadoo

In your words, what exactly is Gridlock?

Mike:  I'd say it's an outlet of expression.  The expression being who we are at the time.  Time changes and so does the expression.

Cadoo: Yeah I guess you could say gridlock is ever evolving.

When did Gridlock form?

Mike:  I started the band in 1994 and just did a lot of experimentation and writing.  I met Cadoo in 1995 as the sound of the band started to take shape, and a friend coined the name "Gridlock" for us shortly thereafter.

Where is Gridlock currently located?

SF bay area

Why was Gridlock formed?

Cadoo: I think we both got tired of the confines of "live" music and wanted to try something that had no boundaries.

Mike:  Exactly, I had been playing in live bands for quite some time before that and felt that electronics would really open a lot of doors, every song being completely unique and tailored, as opposed to being confined to guitar/bass/drums/etc..  So after taking a couple of years to experiment a "sound" really started to come together which was the direction I wanted to be headed in.

What would you say the philosophy of Gridlock is, if any?

Cadoo: I really don't think there is a philosophy??? What do you think Mike??

Mike:  Originally I can remember some specific ideals and goals.  Now I see our philosophy as two things.  One, "what we can get away with", and Two, "what boundaries we can push".

What Gridlock track would you say is your Favorite?

Mike:  Probably a new track we've just finished for "Trace".  Doesn't have a title yet.  Why?  I'm usually more interested in what we're doing rather than what we've done.

Cadoo: I would have to say "scrape" it's just all over the place musically.

Who would you list as the prime influences on Gridlock's sound?

Cadoo: This one is tough...but I think the bands that influenced us  the most when we started is Skinny Puppy, Fields of the Nephilim, and Autechre but that's changed alot. we've been influenced by so much along the way ..from things like My Bloody Valentine to dom and roland to and and back again...

Mike:  Early on when the band was starting, I was influenced a lot by the more traditional Industrial acts.  Not so much now.  I think we pull from all the things we listen to from Ambient to ZZ top...well ok, maybe not ZZ top.

Continuing along the influences thread, what family members have had  the deepest impact on the members of the project?

Mike:  One half of my parental equation has always been very supportive, thank you mom.  As for impact, I suppose the problems with the other half of that equation resulted in some good material on "Further".

Cadoo: I would have to say my parents they always encouraged me when it came to music.

What was the first album you ever purchased?

Cadoo: damn I can't remember that!?!? huh...I think it was a kiss record.

Mike:  AC/DC's "Highway to Hell", still love it.

What was your first concert?

Cadoo: Queen

Mike:  ZZ Top

Cadoo: ZZ Top? yeesh!

Mike:  Oh and Freddy Mercury???

Cadoo: OK OK...beards over balls anyday!

Denny's or IHOP? (It always seems to come down to these two after a  long night at a club...)

Mike:  Hopefully a Speakeasy

Cadoo: Denny's

So when you're not out clubbing, what do you find yourself reading?

Mike:  Bukowski, Kerouac, and owners' manuals

Cadoo: Bukowski, grooves magazine and the SF weekly

Favorite author?

Both: Bukowski

So what does Gridlock find itself listening to the most these days?

Cadoo: I've been mainly listening to a lot of IDM (arovane,spark,funckarma), christoph de babalon, and venetian snares.

Mike:  A lot of Detroit, Glitch, IDM, House, etc... for artists I'd say Theorem, Swayzak, Sean Deason, Arovane, SND, Funkstorung, Sutekh, Taylor Dupree, Bola, Shuttle358.

Seen any good films lately?

Mike:  Yeah, I watched "Scarface" again recently, what a film.  And "Barfly" is always a staple.

Cadoo: No I really don't see to many movies it takes up too much of your time.

So, what are your day jobs? Or does Gridlock pay the bills yet?

Cadoo: Oh no... it doesn't pay the bills...i'm a web designer.

Mike:  Yeah no doubt, it's done out of desire, not for profit.  I'm an application developer.

You did a tour with Individual Totem.. Got a favorite tour tale?

Mike:  Yeah, the guys from Totem loved Budweiser.  That was fascinating and great for us.  We got the imported beer.  Awesome guys though.  Wish them all the best!

Cadoo: That seems so long ago i can't remember....

What's the strangest thing you have listed on your tour rider?

Cadoo: You wouldn't think this would be strange but...Payment.

Mike:  We got paid once?

Cadoo: Yeah and I think it was in turkish lira....

Wrapping things up, I'd like to touch on your decision to leave Metropolis/Pendragon and sign on to <unit>. Was there any one thing  that happened after Pendragon was purchased by Metropolis that sealed your choice to leave and join <unit?>

Cadoo: We thought that Metropolis would be a step up ...but in reality it was a step down.  metro is strictly a units and money operation ..where as Pendragon (the one run by Colm) was for the love of the music first and units and money second. Metro didn't get behind  us at all and that's understandable. When your an experimental artist on a label with such big, more mainstream, acts like Bauhaus, VNV, and Frontline, who sell a whole hell of a lot more discs than we ever would, your bound to get lost in the shuffle. So we left.

Mike:  We were fortunate to learn, from working with Colm, how great it can be to work with a label that is truly interested in EVERY artist that they have on their label.  After Colm's departure, we started looking for a similar relationship with another label, as it turns out metro just didn't fit that mold, so we looked elsewhere.
.........................................................................

Watch for the release of "Trace" on [<unit>] records sometime early 2001.
For further information on Gridlock, as well as monthly prizes and such for the Gridlock fan community, go to
http://www.creative.net/~gridlock/  and browse around.

Interview with Psychocharger
In the back of the club with Jimmy (singer/guitar), Adam/The Diabolical
Dr.K (Bass), Scott (Drums)
~review and photos by Kimberly
addtional photos courtesy of Kevin @ Skully Records
 

(Scott gallently lights his lighter so I can see the questions)

Kimberly: Which bands have you been influenced by, besides, Elvis?

Jimmy: Oh, Jesus Christ. Well, definatly Link Ray and The Cramps, and a lot of Sun Studio stuff. You know- Elvis, Carl Perkins. Plus a lot of the industrial bands. You know, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails.

Dr. K: Definatly The Melvins, though they have nothing to do with psychobilly.

Jimmy: And Roy Clark.

Dr. K:And Buck Owens.

Jimmy: We watched a lot of "Hee Haw" growing up. It's integral to The Psychocharger spirit.

Scott: Johnny Cash, above all.

(Everyone agrees)

Jimmy: He was the original man in black.

Kimberly: I have a theory the he and Jim Morrison were the first goths.

Scott: Ahh.

Jimmy: That's a very valid point.

Kimberly: How did the band get together?

Dr. K: That's an interesting sotry. It goes back a few years. Jimmy, why don't you kick off the early history of the band?

Jimmy: OK. [When] the band actually started, it was just myself making tapes at home because I had this whole concept of this band- this industrial rockabilly band. And I couldn't find anyone to commit to the idea. Everyone said that it was too far out, that I didn't know what I was talking about. So I started making tapes on my own and I sent them out. The response that it generated as really good; people started saying that they wanted to see the band come out and play. Of course, I booked these shows, and I didn't have a band. It was kinda do or die, so I just started recruiting people to play shows. It just became a revolving door [of band members]. This all happened down in Miami. Then I came up to the city started the band here. I knew Adam from high school. Or, should I say, The Diabolical Dr. K.

Dr. K: You've just given away my secret.

Kimberly (laughing): Not like it's written all over you. (I point to his gas station shirt with a name patch that says "Adam" on it)

Jimmy: We've known each other for like, twenty years. So we came up here, started the band. That's when we met Scott, about eight months later.

Kimberly: Sweet. How long have you guys been in New York?

Dr.K: We've been doing this almost a year and a half.

Jimmy: We started in July of '99.

Dr. K: Yeah.

Kimberly (Scott lights his lighter again so I can see): Thank you. How does New compare to Florida?

Jimmy: You know, there is no comparison. I will say this-the one thing Florida has is that the media is more in tune with the local music scene. You know, up here when they're talking about local music, they're talking about Sonic Youth, all the heavy hitters. That's all the local coverage you really get. But in Florida, there are a lot of 'zines, and they focus on the independant music scene. In that respect, Florida's kinda got the edge [on New York]. But as far as bookings and shows, this is pretty much where its happening.

Dr. K: And that's an attribute- to stick out in Florida. Because there's so many bands, it would be really hard for the media to cover them all.

Jimmy: Its a real frenzy up here.

Kimberly: What's the coolest Halloween costume you've ever worn?

Scott: Yoda, definatly Yoda.

Dr. K: I did the Flying Monkey from "The Wizard of Oz" motif. The ape  face and all.

Jimmy: I played a gig on Halloween, and I'm pretty minimalist, so I just wore a Domino's pizza box.

Dr. K: That was certainly the least expensive.

Jimmy: Definatly was. I just pulled it out of the trash.

Dr. K: You were just trying to play "Hide the Pepperoni".

Jimmy: I'm the pornographic pizza guy.

Kimberly: Are you guys voting this year?

Scott: Well, if I was registered, I would.

Dr. K: Could you just say that Scott's doing an absentee ballot?

Jimmy: Dr. K is casting his vote for Gore. And I'm writing in-

Dr. K: Al Goldstein.

Jimmy: Yeah. Al Goldstein.

Dr. K: Jimmy's a First Amendment freak.

Jimmy: That's it. I'm writing him in.

Dr. K: Oh, no. You know who's your president.

Jimmy: Yeah! I'm writing in Charlton Heston.

Kimberly: That's a joke, right?

Jimmy: I'm very much into the NRA.

Kimberly: Ted Nugent is their VP. I walked out on him in concert.

Jimmy (pointing): Blasphemer!

(I relate the very un-PC things Ted said when he opened for KISS during the summer)

Jimmy: That was a little much.

Dr. K: Well, if Ted would just shut up and play the goddamn music...

Kimberly: Yeah. That would have been better.

Jimmy: I respect the hunting, but he doesn't need to pull that xenophobic shit. He's cool enough on his own. He's just becoming a grumpy old man.

Kimberly: Is there anything I missed that you wanted to tell the readers of Starvox?

Jimmy: Send us all your unwanted pornographic tapes, stay in touch with the website.

Dr. K: Rock the vote.

Scott: Porn covers it, I guess.

Kimberly: Thanks, guys.Interview with Psychocharger

Skully Records:
www.skullyrecords.com
Psycho Chargers
http://www.psychonauts.com

Interview with Fate Fatal of Deep Eynde
~Interview by Kimberly

Kimberly: Suicide Drive just came out. How is it different form the band's other albums?

FF: It s a lot more raw. It think its a lot more influenced by the idols I listened to before. A lot of influences by Lords of the New Church, to Ramones, a lot of old school stuff we were infuenced by. Its less polished than City Lights. It just seemed to me, as we're moving into a different era of music in a way, I wanted it to be a little more raw.  I think its time for a revolution, and I think that that's the only way its ever gonna happen. (Laughs) There I go withthe whole revolution thing again.

Kimberly: No, that's OK. I'm big on that, too.

FF: I think that revolution can be a dangerous word, though. Some people might take that wrong, but I'm just going to have to use that word. A revolution means that its time for change of music, and a change in thinking. And for people to realize that its just not safe to sit down and not do anything. They think that its all taken care of, but its just not the case. Its time to really fight. When things are too comfortable, and you think everything's OK- thats the time you should be looking.  When people sit around and think America's the best country in the world- America sucks, basically. America's so great at the expense of other countries. And we'll see a lot of change happen. I talk to a lot of fifteen, sixteen year olds, and they're ready for it. But in terms of what I do, as far as the music, it tends to be a little more raw. A lot of people who are listening to the old music are going, "I don't knowabout this" because its a little scary, or whatever. Its just another branch of me. I don't know if anyone's heard of my industrial band, Kittens for Christians, but it started out in that aspect, so I'm just experimenting with different types of music. But to sum it all up- there IS a revolution coming. And I definatly want to try and light a fire for it, if I'm not around. Its time for people to start thinking. Its tiem to start having more action. We had the '60s and the 80s. Now we have the 2000s, so we know something is coming.

Kimberly: I hope so.

FF: One of the things my teacher in school taught me- all the things she taught me weren't anything that had to do with classes at all. She taught me that this isn't the end. There's always a change.

Kimberly: There's a saying in New York that if you like New York you can't like LA, and vice versa. What do you think about that?

FF: That's a bunch of bullshit because I've been in every state, and New York has so much to offer. I'm native to Los Angeles. My relatives were American Indians so I'm totally native. And what LA doesn't really have is a culture. So many people move to LA wanting to be a movie star or a musician and they're not. (Laughs) [There are] a lot of bitter people in Los Angeles. A lot of superficial people in Los Angeles who live off glitz and glamour instead of a culture. No one tells you the truth out there.

Kimberly: No offense, but I've been to LA, and- ick. Can't take the vibe,

FF: Yeah. Its a totally different scene. Its my hometown, so I'm a little bit partial to it. But then, I'm also partial to Montreal and New York City. They each have the ambiance that I crave. I don't know how to explain it, but there's just a different way of thinking. You have people here who get along, as opposed to Los Angeles. where people
just don't. Everyone is so isolated . Here, people have to get along. Its a great thing. I wish Los Angeles was like that, I really do.  But a lot of people come to LA and spit on, throw trash, shit on it. LA has such a bad rap, it really does. But there is a culture there, the Mexican culture that everybody disses. People come to LA and they think
how cool it is to live on a street with a Mexican name, and they don't realize that it is a culture And then they went and kicked 'em out.

Kimberly: America does that.

FF: Yeah. I wish I could kick everyone out who doesn't belong there. The weather is nice in LA all year round, and its kinda a buglight to everyone. They all think its the ansewr to their problems.

Kimberly : You've made your involvement in S&M very public. What's the pull of masochism for you?

FF:Experimentation. I call it the wall of how far people will go. Where's your breaking point? Some people have different breaking points. Everyone has walls to crack, or break. I was kinda obsessed with experimenting for awhile. Now it's almost on a spiritual level, in a way. That's not to say its still not physical. I used to go to parties and get auctioned off as a slave. Thats a funny experience, because it happened while I was growing up. I was going on stage, there was this auction, where you basically auction off your body so people can do whatever the
fuck they want to to it. So I go to this guy and I say, "You know, I've never done this before". I dont wanna go on stage. So the guy gets up and tells everyone I'm a virgin [to this whole thing]. Boom! I went for three or four hundred dollars.

Kimberly : That's funny.

FF:But when you figure out where your limitations are, in S&M or whatever, you learn to appreciate it a lot more. I don't know why I put myself in that aspect. I used to go to a club where you sign a release form. So if anything happens, they're not responsible for it. Nex thing I knew, I was basically nailed to a cross.

Kimberly: That's pretty intense.

FF: Yeah. I was tied to this cross, and there were pins all over me.  You get to the point where you're like, am I doing the right thing? I'm not so sure. But I love it, and it's definatly a part of my life. The problem with it is, there are certain people that don't understand when to stop. And that's a problem. Certain people think that when you say "no", they should just keep doing it. That's when bodily damage happens.  This one woman had a thirty foot long whip with a cobra at the end of it. She opened it like this (he demonstrates), and she cracked it on my back.  She's the only one who can opertae that, and it really fucking kills. So I remember I was chained to this, um, structure and I'm all naked. I was looking at this girl who was chained across from me, she was naked too,and I remember saying-

(This stupid drunk girl comes in and starts babbling about how the band rocks)

FF: Anyway, we were both wondering what the fuck we were doing. But I crave it. You get to the point where I wanna see how far I can take my body. You know, you saw the scars...

Kimberly: I've heard of them.

FF: I have them on my back because they're for me, not for anyone else.

(He shows them to me, and I run my finger along one of them)

Kimberly: Those are beautiful.

FF: It as very painful. There's two different ways of doing it. You can cut, or this cauterizing thing to take it off. That's what I did, this guy Steve does it. So your grounded to this machine that cuts and burns at the same time. It's fuckin' painful as all hell.

(Drunk girl insists on taking a picture)

Kimberly: How did you feel about the E! channel using the Deep Eynde's music for their episode of the show "Hollyood Nights" on the club Coven 13?

FF: That's something I wanted to express. The E! Channel as certainly trying to do the right thing on that night. I haven't seen it, but I was invited down that night with a bunch of other people. They definatly had a curiousity for the gothic scene,and that's my whole life. But I find that the enviorment they created  that night was a false enviorment. I was a little upset knoing that they only invited down bands who dressed gothic that night. I don't have a problem with that per se, but they were trying to push their sales pitch.

Kimberly: It seemed very superficial when I saw it.

FF: Yeah, it was totally bad. They should have interviewed artists and people who really lived, breathed and starved for it. Because I've done that,  and those people are going to give the proper love and information.

Kimberly: Are you going to vote this year?

FF: I'm going to try. I want an absentess ballot, because I'm going to be out of town on that day. I'm going to try my best. We're actually playing an anti-America show on that day in Winston-Salem, where they have the debates. It's very important for people to vote. I don't want to be a hypocrite and not do it, but I am on tour and I'll try my best to do it. It's always best to remember that people have to the power to change.  If Bush gets elected, I'm thinking so be it, because then people will see how fucked up this country really is. People don't realize that between genetically altered fruit to the homeless, the issues aren't being brought to attention, because McDonald's is keeping a smile on your face. We're forgetting that the real sense of living is about having respect. Having respect for people who do differentthings, the elderly, supporting the homeless. I don't understand. People think we're gonna live forever.

Kimberly: That's an American attitiude.

FF: Yeah. And we as goths, or anyone ho sings the blues- Poe, whoever. People have been singing the blues since the beginning of time, and they've always been looked down upon, because we have a sense of our own mortality.  There's nothing wrong with that. And people who do have a problem with that don't realize that they'll be gone one day. I don't have a problem with that. I know that because I've been around death way too many times. I've seen too many people die. You know what? Fuck them all. I wish I had the same sense of thinking when I got involved in the whole scene. It's makes you appreciate life so much. You see colours you wouldn't have seen before. As for the E! channel, they anted to interview me. And I thought, I don't want to be interviewed next to some weekender. I've starved for my art. I don't want anything I have anything I say right next to them. On a last note, I called them and said that if they wanted to interview me, they should do it on my own turf. They called up and thanked me, but they were only into doing the superficial thing. In the end, they asked me to use my music, which was cool.

Kimberly: That about does it. Thanks.

The Deep Eynde
www.jps.net/deepeynde

Skully Records:
www.skullyrecords.com
 

Sunday Munich
~interview by Matthew
 

In 1998, by an off chance I received a promo of a CD called Pneuma from a duo of musicians called Sunday Munich.  It was the pair’s debut, and it was sincerely one of the strongest debut CD’s I had ever heard. The CD housed a collection of twelve painfully gloomy and introspective songs that delve straight into the deepest wells of the human psyche.  Mid-tempoed grooves, hard processed trip hop beats, haunting cello passages and sparse guitar work are fused together brilliantly by composer/programmer Avis while the unique female vocals and the soul-baring lyrics of Sarah Hubbard complete his musical vision.

Sunday Munich contributes a much needed and desperate twist to the genuine emotive and musical capability of darkwave music.  For the past two years I have treasured this band and have been proud to share their work with friends and audiences whenever I DJ in and around Pittsburgh.   They have returned this year with a follow up to Pneuma entitled Vinculum.  Sunday Munich is one of dark music’s best-kept secrets.  A world of enveloping and transcendent electronic music has yet to be heard, and I would like to take the time now to introduce readers to this exceptionally gifted and deeply moving project.

Starvox: Well since you guys are relatively "new" to most people, lets start at the beginning...

Sarah: Alright.

Starvox: How did you and Avis meet and start creating Sunday Munich?

Sarah: Avis and I met in Chicago and became immediately inseparable. A few months later we moved to Florida. He was writing all the music for a project called Allegory when the singer went to jail.

Starvox: To jail? What for might I ask? If it’s not too personal?

Sarah:  Yeah some old warrant...no one really talks about it.  However this didn’t stop Avis from writing music and when he wrote what later became “Elaborate Schemes.”  He convinced me to give doing vocals a try.  The first album went to press two weeks later.

Starvox: That’s a wonderful song...

Sarah: Thanks it is literally the first time I had ever sung.

Starvox: Really? No formal training or anything?

Sarah:  Yes I had done my share of shower serenade but never for a band.

Starvox:  I always thought your voice was similar to Alison Shaw from the Cranes. Would you agree with that comparison?

Sarah: I adore her vocals and am extremely flattered by the comparison.

Starvox: You are very welcome.  It’s the innocent, 'childish' aspect to her voice.  I hear that same quality in your voice, especially on ‘Pneuma.’  So overall how would you describe Sunday Munich to people who've never heard you guys?

Sarah:  How would you? That’s such a hard question.

Starvox:  Well, I would say very stark and moody darkwave...trip hoppish. Portishead meets the Cranes in a very dark alley.  There is a very sensual aspect to the music as well.

Sarah:  What we try to explore is our inner architecture, what is reflected back when you look into the mirror, the things you don’t want to see... all the little truths.

Starvox: There is a sincerely personal expressiveness in the music, which a lot of bands in the 'gothic' genres are missing. What fuels the passion in the music?

Sarah: I use music as a place to vent. I write from a very personal point of view. I wouldn't know how to do it any other way.  I have a sincere and overwhelming adoration for the music Avis composes.   When I hear a track for the first time it usually just moves me somewhere else. In that place I am free to explore both myself and what the music is saying to me.

Starvox: Songs like "Smallest Tragedy" are almost too painful to listen to they are so personal yet you are drawn in by the way the music is pieced together.  So basically Avis composes the music on his own and presents it to you to write the lyrics and vocal melodies?

Sarah:  Yes.  It works slightly differently with Lee, the male vocalist on the new record but basically it is constant process.

Starvox: I have always been very curious of what 'Sunday Munich' means...is there a story behind the band's unique moniker?

Sarah: It is the ultimate contradiction. Sundays are planned to be this relaxing day of worship yet what inevitably happens is that people become some one else. They pack away what they repressed during the week and put on their best suit and tie and pretend.  They are liars in the face of their god.  Munich has both a beautiful and sordid history.

Starvox: I wish all bands were that creative when coming up with a band name!

Sarah: Thank you.  I think if you are going to be known by a name you should put a little bit of thought into it.

Starvox: Definitely.

Sarah: Although I cant take the credit.

Starvox: Avis again?  <grins>

Sarah: Yes.

Starvox:  So what is his musical background? Is he classically trained? I think the cello is the final 'edge' to the music and I think it sets you apart from other bands.

Sarah: He is entirely self-taught.

Starvox: That is so inspiring!

Sarah: If he is interested in exploring what a new instrument can bring to the music he will lock himself in a room until he can play it.

Starvox:  So did Avis start Kyan Records to release the Allegory and Sunday Munich CDs? Does he plan on signing other acts?

Sarah: Yes that was the original intension. I think we might focus on this project for a while but...you never know.

Starvox: I remember the "Praying For Something New" compilation Kyan released in 1999. A very straightforward response to the stagnance of underground music it seemed. Do you feel the 'scene' is saturated?

Sarah: I don’t know. I think if people mean what they are doing the more bands the better.  Everyone has something different to say and for everyone who is saying something there is someone who will be interested in hearing it.

Starvox: Well, lets talk about the new CD of course. 'Vinculum' is the follow up to 'Pneuma' and there is a remarkable progression...

Sarah: In the music or vocals or comprehension?

Starvox:  I would say all three.  Your voice sounds much more mature. Was there a conscious effort to vary your vocals to be slightly deeper?

Sarah: Between the recording of ’Pneuma’ and ‘Vinculum’ we spent a lot of time writing and working. I was singing up to three hours and day and Avis was writing non-stop. I think we just matured naturally. Kind of came into ourselves a little more.

Starvox: Yes, the music as well is much stronger...with the addition of more acoustic guitars, reverberated clean guitar harmonies, and of course the new male vocalist Lee. How did Lee come to work with the band?

Sarah:  Lee and Avis have been working together musically for quite awhile and have been friends for ten
years.  He did a few vocal tracks for the new record and it floored us.  We fully intend to keep him around and working with us.

Starvox: Was he apart of any other band or project?

Sarah: Yes, he was one of the members in Allegory.

Starvox: I like the male/female vocal variation...it works very well...especially on the track "Going Back.”

Sarah:  He inspires me a great deal.

Starvox:  This question is for Avis.  ‘Vinculum’ seems more 'beat' inspired and trip hoppy. Was there a
conscious effort to try to be more 'club friendly?’

Avis:  ‘Vinculum’ seemed to kind of get away from me in ways.  I went in with no idea of what I wanted to do and just let the chips fall where they may.

Starvox:  The CD is very transcendent.

Avis: Do you think?

Starvox: Very much so.  It is absolutely enthralling.

Avis: Thank you.

Starvox:  I am actually listening to the track  'Phone' right now. Where are those choir samples taken from?

Avis:  That was a song that means a lot to me. The samples come from about three to four different records.  It is about talking with someone on the phone and you know you hate them but you have to talk to them, so you can try to end what you have been doing with them.  It is more or less about hating someone.  There was a time like that I just felt free of all their shit.

Starvox: Well I am going to play Devil’s advocate here.   I think that most narrow-minded of critics might complain that the CD is basically the same pace throughout.  How would you respond to 'trendy' DJs that want 120 BPM music constantly and dismiss Sunday Munich for being too slow?

Avis: The music I write is about my internal architecture. It is about me, and me trying to tell myself the truth. I thank there are enough bands out there trying to write music that people will like.  Do not get me wrong, I want people to like what we do but I write for me, and if other people like it, that is good too.

Starvox: In my opinion, a lot of so-called Gothic music is not remotely Gothic in its atmosphere.  There are few bands as provoking as Current 93, Sopor Aeternus and such anymore.  I think Sunday Munich is about as Gothic as you could get in terms of the mood. Would you agree with that?

Avis: I grew up with Current 93 and Death In June.  But to answer your question I would hope that one day we would be found with the real of that music. But I do not think we are strictly gothic.

Starvox:  Were you pleased with the outcome of the new release then?

Avis:  I think I would like to have more of Sarah on this next one.  On ‘Vinculum’ there were four people that I worked with.  I think I just want to work more with Lee and Sarah. I think I want to hear more of them. I also think that ‘Vinculum’ was too long.

Starvox: Actually, I thought the length was perfect [16 tracks, 70+ minutes].  You get utterly lost in that CD.

Avis:  Do you think so?

Starvox:  100%

Avis:  Cool, I was hoping for something like that. Thank you.

Starvox:  You are welcome. I don’t know much Latin unfortunately, so I was curious what 'Vinculum' means and also the phrase  'vinculum quippe vinculorum armor est’ that appears in the CD sleeve.

Avis:  I am going to let Sarah go off on that one.

Sarah:  ‘Vinculum’ is a term expressed by Giordano Bruno meaning bond or tie. All the different layers in the bonds of love and hate and all the intricacies that go along with that.  It most adequately expressed
to us what the record was and is about.  Although I can’t pretend to express Bruno in its fullness.

Starvox:  In terms of playing live, are there any possibilities?

Sarah:  We are actually playing live. We have a show here in Atlanta on the 21st of December and a few unconfirmed dates after that.

Starvox:  So will it just be the three of you on stage?

Sarah:  No we have a girl named Brianna who did vocals on a few songs on the new record.  She plays keyboards and does a bit of singing.  So it’s just the four of us.

Starvox:  So you guys are in Atlanta now? Did you have plans to relocate to Chicago at one point?

Sarah:  We still do. Different atmospheres lend different flavors to the music. We intend to record each record in a different environment.

Starvox: I was curious about the puzzle piece that is included with the new CD. Any comments on that?

Sarah:  Did it make you think? And stop for just a minute?

Starvox:  YES! (Laughing)  My friend and I were like 'we have to buy ALL the CDs!'

Sarah:  Then it is doing its job. There are a total of 4000 pieces.

Starvox:  WOW! So I assume it does form some kind of picture then?

Sarah:  Yes, but mostly words. All hand written.

Starvox: That’s so cool.  So all over the world in a sense, there is a fan with a piece of the puzzle.

Sarah: I like that idea.

Starvox:  Definitely.  How did the cover of 'Wish You Were Here' develop?

Sarah:  Lee did such an amazing rendition on his acoustic that we had to include it. There is so much said in that song that we agree with. We all grew up with it.  It has been places with us each individually. Now it is a piece of the three of us together.  Pink Floyd is a phenomenal band.

Starvox:  I certainly won’t argue there.   I thought it was a great interpretation of the song.  One last question.  A lot of fans have always identified with bands like Faith & The Muse, and early Dead Can Dance because the sense that the band members were romantically involved.  Is that the case with you and Avis?

Sarah:  Yes.  On a certain level though I think all band mates are intimate or at least should be.

Starvox: As long as it doesn’t end up like Fleetwood Mac of course! (Laughing)!

Sarah: (laughing) Music [should] supercede all the petty shit in my opinion.

Starvox:  So could you give the full information about your show on the 21st for our readers near Atlanta? Hopefully people will go check it out.

Sarah:  It is at the Masquerade. We are playing with a few other bands. We’ll more than likely go on last. I am unsure what time the doors open and/or ticket prices.

Starvox:  But the venue is the Masquerade?

Sarah:  Yes.

Starvox:  Thank you.  Well are there any last words, requests, words of wisdom you would like to say
to the readers about Sunday Munich?

Sarah:  I am always interested in how the music affects people...their questions and comments so everyone should feel free to email me. And in the most honest and sincere way, thanks for listening but more so thanks for HEARING us.

Avis: Thank you for doing this, and thank you VERY much for your kind words they mean more then you know.
 

SUNDAY MUNICH is:
Sarah Hubbard: vocals, lyrics
Avis: cello, guitar, loops
Lee M. Helms: male vocals

With additional assistance by:
Brianna Westfall: additional female vocals
Melissa Mileski: additional female vocals
Michael C.: additional guitar

Official Website:
http://www.kyan.com/sundaymunich

sundaymunich@kyan.com

Sunday Munich
P.O. Box 14024
Atlanta, GA 30324-1024

Precipice Recordings
P.O. Box 190552
Miami Beach, FL 33119

All photos belong to www.kyan.com

This Ascension
by Sonya Brown

This Ascension hails from sunny Santa Barbara, California. Santa Barbara, and its sandy beaches, are strategically located along the Ventura highway which snakes through southern California. Tourist vendors sell brightly colored kites and wind socks with streamers along the sandy sidewalks against the uniformly Spanish-American architectural backdrop of this college town community. Doesn't sound remotely "goth" or "darkwave" at all, does it?

When I first encountered This Ascension, I immediately thought of the beautiful outpost-Missions I had visited throughout various periods of my life. The seraphim-like operatic vocals of femme vocalist, Dru, makes me feel as if I am listening to an angelic entity singing now in a neglected, long forgotten cathedral.  I find that I have visions of a grand movie being filmed in any of these cathedrals and some sordid, Godfather-esque dramatic scene plays out to a powerful This Ascension score for the film.

Why, then, does This Ascension choose such a brilliant location to showcase and headquarter their music? And how successful and thriving could an underground, particularly gothic, music scene become amid all the "high-fiving" trendy pre-dominance of Southern California's touristy haven which is Santa Barbara?

This Ascension vocalist, Dru, provides some insight...

Sonya: While listening to your latest release, Sever, I felt as if I were back in the beautiful missions of Santa Barbara. Do you receive any inspiration from such sources?

Dru: While we all really appreciate the beauty of this environment, I think at first if anything the band got together as a reaction to living in such a place. Santa Barbara is so homogenous. Most of the buildings are of one style and color—white stucco with the red curvy-title roofs. I’m surprised they aren’t handing out tickets to people wearing black walking down the street. When we first started playing out, there was only one or two places that would even have us-- and they both closed pretty quickly. Then we’d find a place that was good, play there a bunch of times, and then the club would go, "Oh, we aren’t going to have bands any more. It’s too much of a pain. We’re just going to have DJ’s." Well this attitude is still pervasive in Santa Barbara and probably worse than ever. There literally is only two places in the whole town to play if you are a loud rock band, and they have their band nights the same evening. Brilliant. One is a surf/sports type bar that it’s really hard to imagine us in. But our friend does the booking, so if I know her she will make the best of it.

Sonya: What would you most attribute as your inspiration?

Dru: Early on I became infatuated with girl bands like The Go-Go’s and The Bangles, which really helped get me into alternative music. This was way back when theBangles sounded kind of like the Beatles—not many people knew who they were yet… obviously both bands became major Top40 stars as well, but at the time alternative music was really something special—not like  today, ha-ha. I was also inspired by heroines of film and literature, everyone from Medea to Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley… also heroic women of the real world such as Cleopatra and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Sonya: Major Influences?

Dru: I feel close to a very wide range of music. I admire the brutal honesty of Billie Holiday’s voice and the playfulness of Ella Fitzgerald. When I heard  Billie Holiday’s rendition of "Summertime," and "Strange Fruit" (which I then learned was not a Siouxsie song) it knocked me out. I hadn’t thought of  music as so "bare" yet so powerful. To me the only thing that comes close to Ella Fitzgerald today is Liz Frasier or Diamanda Galas. That must sound really crazy, but think about it—they all show insane range and agility and they all sing in jibberish. I am lost in the spirituality of Lisa Gerrard. It’s no exaggeration to say that the woman has made a connection with higher powers. This is why singers  were revered in ancient times because people thought they could make contact with the gods or heaven. The first DCD song I heard was De Profundis, and I  seriously didn’t know that music even remotely like it existed. So I got into that band very quickly. I got to see them a few times and Lisa Gerrard once solo (and Brandon once solo, which was also great). The Lisa show was at McCabe’s guitar shop in L.A., a venue that couldn’t hold more than about 100 people. So that was really neat. I think an interesting thing about Lisa  is that she dresses so plainly when she plays. Don’t get me wrong she is a beautiful person, I’m just noticing that she wears a big white robe that almost takes all emphasis away from her physical appearance. This to me just lends more to my theory that she’s almost like a vessel for the music of the universe, god, or whatever you believe in. People that watch her are attracted to this connection she has-- it’s not at all about her connection with the audience. I know I could never be like that entirely, but I do strive for that spirituality.

I am very attracted to the Eastern European singing style of Hungary and Bulgaria, but I haven’t figured out how to sing like that. One of my all time favorites is Márta Sebestyén who fronts a band called Muzsikás. They play a range of folk/Gypsy/Jewish music from Hungary and Romania. I got to see them this year and I was just floored. Vocally some of Lisa Gerrard’s more tribal pieces resemble this style. But there is a tremendous emphasis placed on the "connectedness" of the band with each other and the audience. It’s very personal, like you are all family. I guess ultimately I’d like to make people feel somewhere between this and what Lisa does.

Sonya: Formal Training?

Dru: I always have enjoyed singing, even when I was really little. I was in chorus in junior high but when I started high school we moved, and the new school had no music program—this kind of thing to me now sounds  unacceptable, but it was a very humble area. I didn’t sing again with a group until college, where I was in the chorus for almost four years. I wasn’t a Music major so the choir I was in was mostly just for fun. There wasn’t a lot of formality about it and we spent most of our time just trying to sound decent. But I was exposed to a wide array of classical and folk pieces. That’s probably when I got into Hungarian music because we did a lot of Bartok. I also got very interested in Renaissance and Medieval music then.

I joined the band with very little experience. It was almost a fluke. I think mostly the guys just liked me. I seemed like a cool person that would hopefully come across well on stage. And maybe it seemed novel to have a girl in the band after trying out 3 guys. It was hard for a while. The first couple years I had some bad shows all right. J One quarter of college I took a deficit load so I could work on music a little more. But like with all things, the more you do, the better you get. It was nice because at some point I changed from someone who often has bad shows but an occasional good one to one that normally has good ones and an occasional stinker. I know now that I’m at the level where I could never NOT sing. I’m always looking for people to hook up with and excuses to sing. I’m really glad for the band because I don’t know if I ever would have explored this avenue otherwise and it’s such a big part of me now.

Sonya: Is there a particular category that you prefer to use to describe your sound?

Dru: No, but I wouldn’t necessarily put us in the Gothic category. I know, there seems to be a bunch of bands that say "Hey, We’re not goth!" when asked this  question, and if everyone reacts this way, then who’s left to actually be goth? When people like Andrew Eldridge say they aren’t goth and they hate goth I can’t even believe it. I don’t mind getting put in the gothic category—on the contrary, it’s helped us many  times and we’ve made new fans solely based on the association. But actually I think we have more in common with bands like Tori Amos, Radiohead,  Failure, VAST… just really heartfelt music that people don’t always warm up to right away. One of my favorite reviews of us says we combine U.S. alt-rock with goth/ethereal and I think that is true.

Sonya: The songs "Mysterium",  and "Columba Aspexit" -  is the language Latin? Can you explain what these songs are about?

Dru: These are both religious songs. The translation to Mysterium is at http://www.thisascension.com and I do have a translation of "Columba," if people want to email me… I have to still find a place for it on the site because people ask about it a lot. I think both songs are way less interesting once translated. "Mysterium" basically celebrates the birth of  Christ and is a traditional Celtic song—I don’t know who it was by originally. I borrowed the melody from Connie Dover’s interpretation of this song (with kind permission) and the band re-arranged it. "Columba" is a song by Hildegard von Bingen, a 12th century Abbess who was really ahead of her time (back then women were rarely educated unless they were in a monastery),  She became renown as a visionary, composer, poet and naturalist. When I say visionary, I mean it literally. She had a lot of visions… she was I’d say afflicted by them, and they are immersed in practically all of her songs…  Columba is really complicated, really symbolic. It presents a vision of St. Maximinus as a celebrant of the Mass. I don’t know anything about him except  that he was patron of the Benedictine abbey of Trier, Germany.  I hope no one would be too disappointed if I just said I really liked these songs and didn’t really focus on their meaning.

Sonya: Your music would also be wonderful as a movie score - have you ever considered doing such a project?

Dru: Yes this would be great! So far we haven’t done anything except for very small films, but that is still fun to be a part of. This question is addressed more fully a couple questions down from here. We would be  interested in any films definitely.

Sonya: What is your favorite song to perform live, and why?

Dru: Everyone has their favorites, and these sort of rotate. I really like doing "Love Lost Years" now, even though it’s been around a little while. "I Wish" is a great song live but difficult to pull off, because it requires Tim to play dulcimer as well as finding people to play multiple percussion parts. "Sever" is always great live because it’s so high energy and really grabs  people. It suits my voice very well, I never have trouble singing it. People say sometime I sound like Gracie Slick (who you ‘young-ens’ might not know  sang in Jefferson Airplane—we’ll just forget about Starship, ok) and Sever could be an example of that. It’s really similar to her range and style and she always sounded so alive. Another really nice one is "Swandive." It really comes across beautifully live—it’s a perfect mixture of attitude and softness.

Sonya: Are their any plans for an upcoming tour?

Dru: We’ve always been the kind of band where everyone has a lot going on outside of the band. People are really focused on their careers and such. Not only  did Matt start a multimedia company but he also lives in Texas. But I hope to get something together in the Spring once it’s warmer again and then hit the East Coast. It’s been a while since we were there.

Sonya: The inclusion of "Carol of the bells" is on the copy that I received of "Sever"; however it is not available on all copies. What prompted you to include this classic track, and why only as a limited release?

Dru: It’s funny that you should ask about this because there is a story behind it. Let me preface this by saying I don’t go around whining about this to everyone, but since you brought it up, here is the short version. One day Matt (our drummer and the owner of Tess Records) was called by someone at Miramax films. I don’t remember whom exactly, but it was about the movie that ending up being Reindeer Games. Someone had gotten a hold of the Projekt compilation "Excelsis: A Dark Noel" on which "Carol of the Bells" first appeared. Well they wanted it—and not just for any random, few-second scene, but for the opening titles. Needless to say we were stunned and elated. Then they called back and said no, never mind. Then they called back again and said it was back in consideration. We learned from a separate sort-of related source that it was in, and decided that it would be smart to re-release Sever with the Xmas track in case anyone was interested. Well three weeks before the movie came out we found out that the opening titles had been completely redone to different music. C’est la vie, huh? So we decided that the pressing w/ Carol of the Bells would be limited edition for this year’s Xmas. We’ll see about future pressings.

Sonya: What would This Ascension most like to accomplish in the very near future?

Dru: We have an enhanced CD that we are working on thanks to Matt’s company. It’s going to include re-mixes, the full-length video for the song "Ill-Met By Moonlight," and some other really neat stuff. I would like to record an album of just vocal music at some point, in the vein of "Medieval Babes." I don’t know when I’ll be able to fit it into my schedule though!

Sonya: Are there any comments you would like to make?

Dru: Thanks very much for highlighting the band. It’s ‘zines like this, both printed and online that keep independent music alive. Now we are in an era where Creed is on the cover of Alternative Press and they have a fashion spread of the MTV VJ’s inside, so it’s pretty scary.
Contact Info:

THIS ASCENSION
c/o Tess Records
PO Box 206
Santa Barbara, CA 93102
http://www.thisascension.com
email: aeon00@hotmail.com

Paul Sutherland - percussion
Matt Ballesteros - drums
Tim Tuttle - keyboards
Charlie Dennis - bass
Kevin Serra - guitar
Dru - vocals
 

Get thee behind me!!! A few moments with DJ Tron.
~interview by Adrian

Hardcore. What a word. When we see things in this world that make us step back, scratch our heads in disbelief and wonder to ourselves “how in the hell……”, that is when such a word comes to mind. Underwater nuclear explosions, someone freefalling 65,000 ft with a low open chute, scuba diving into a pack of Great White sharks, and, in my opinion, DJ Tron. In the never-ending world of DJs, very few get noticed unless they cater to the masses with pretty, sickly-sweet, flowing tracks that are breed into the “top-pop name” club circuit or when E laced kandykids blown out of their minds make out to it in the dark corners of nightclubs to it.

Now, enter a guy, who like the songs he creates and the mood he secrets, is one step beyond what most of society considers “safe” and “sane”, someone who would strap you to a twin jet engine of a B-52 bomber, take off, blow up some quiet neighborhood, and make you scream for more… That is what we have here in DJ Tron. The mad jester, the magician, the devil and the lunatic wrapped up into one dark package that makes you realize there is more out there than you are aware of, and maybe, just maybe, within the darker depths of your sanity, you want to look.

He has gained much notice over the past few years with his hard-edged style and “in-your-face” sound that ushers forth like so many nightmares under the bed. You think you know what “techno” music is? You think that all ravers are blissed out 16 year olds in baggy pants and glow sticks? DJ Tron is here to explain a few things about that idea and inform you as to what the real story is, from the struggles of being an underground DJ to the inspirations and dreams that he has.

The “Underground” scenes of our society, be it goth, industrial, techno, or primitive have always been separate from each other and very few times has the genres merged into something that is understood by each other. Now more than ever, we are becoming dependant upon each other and our sounds have been unified at club events and live shows more times than not. There has been a much wider range of acceptance within the underground scenes and as this happens, we grow stronger and understand more about who and what we are. You may not understand gabber, some of you may not like it, but you cannot ignore it and the power it creates. Embrace this dark DJ and give him your undivided attention…..in my mind he deserves it!

DJ Tron: I would begin by calling it industrial hardcore. However, that is only the exo-skeleton covering the undefinable chaos that lies behind the beats. I have described the songs as psalms for the inner-tortured because, like the artist, they contain a myriad of layers hidden in places only found by those cursed with the over-analytical mind. The music is really geared towards them, the people that will look so deep that they will find things that the normal "straight" wouldn't hear with 10000 listens....

StarVox:  I understand your first gig was in 1994 at Nebula. Care to go into how that was? What kind of reaction did you have? What was the major influence you had to start spinning and creating music?

DJ Tron: Yes, my first gig was at Nebula. The only reason I got that gig was because my close group of friends were the ones throwing the party. Nobody knew who I was, except through mixtapes that I released previous to that night...all of which sucked though.... The mixing was, well, tolerable... My fucking hands were shaking SO much that I could hardly hold the needle. The response was great, but you also have to realize that at the time, hardcore was not like it is now. It was more accepted by the masses, and was even the main draw for a while. My reaction went over well because I played ALL of the hardest stuff that I had, right from the get go, and I think people respected that I didn't mess around with the weak shit, and went right into the hard stuff.

 At the time, my major influence was DJ Hyperactive. He was the guy playing the hardcore techno that I listened to when I went to raves. Granted, that music was not nearly as hard as the music that was to cum, but for the time, it was aggressive dance music. He also incorporated elements of hard acid into his sets that really got the bug in my ear that there were different styles here, and I can go in many directions. He also got me records, listened to my tapes, and gave me feedback when nobody else would. I will ALWAYS have the utmost respect, and admiration for Joe Hyperactive.

StarVox:  You're now on Possessive Blindfold. How did that happen, what was the connection between Scott, yourself and the label?

DJ Tron: It actually happened very quickly. You see, while I was locked up here in my studio trying to create this hardcore sound, I lost track of what was going on in the industrial world, which I hold very dearly. My friend reintroduced me to the sound, and when he saw the direction that I was taking my music, he suggested that I contact Scott, and see if we can work anything out. So, we are working things out, and hopefully I will have a full length coming out with him very soon.

StarVox:  Do you think there will ever be an Imminent Starvation, Savak or any other Ant-Zen/Hymen/Possessive Blindfold PA remixes done by DJ Tron?

DJ Tron: Shit man, I fucking hope so... I love that shit. I have not heard as much of it as I would like to, but the stuff I heard, I was VERY into. I would love to tweak out some of the vox in some of that stuff, and do some really creepy stuff to them. Oooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhh, I thought you would never ask!!!! I only hope that I could do the music justice....

StarVox:  Skinny Puppy was noted as being one of your inspirations of your music, any specific album? What other artists inspired you?

DJ Tron: My god, do i have to pick ONE? Everything they did redefined how I interpreted music from that point on. Im talking LIFE CHANGE here, kind of stuff, a rebirth if you will. I found the music that was perfect for ME, in every possible way. It was dark, it was digital, it was angry, it had a message that paralleled my passions, Ogres voice, the horror, the haunting, the song with no beat, etc... These guys were making digital sounding noise back before the gear was even made for that. They explored variations in song structure, abandoning the linear format of most popular music. Ogre spoke from the HEART, and spoke to ME in particular at a time in my life when his words paralleled my inner pain. Adding to the genuosity of the vocal content, was an endless selection of filters with which he mutated his voice in ways still unmatched. The vocals became instruments on their own. Not to mention the BRILLIANT work of cEVIN KEY and Dwyane Goettel (R.I.P.) on the keys. Some of the more exhilarating, sophisticated rhythms, and intelligently arranged soundscapes came not from the studio work, but from the live shows ... in between songs, the two of them would improvise some of the most incredible textures that the interludes themselves almost became just as much a focus as the actual studio pieces. In that, no two SP shows were ever alike!!

I WILL GO TO THE GRAVE SAYING THAT I NEVER HEARD ANYTHING BETTER THAN SKINNY PUPPY!!!!!

But, if I MUST pick an album that would be MOST influential, I will list the top 5, in order from MOST to 5th MOST. (It must be noted that this is not to diminish the other releases, and this is influence rating, not overall album rating)

 Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate
VivisectVI
Bites
TooDarkPark
Aint it Dead Yet (yes, its live, but different)
And, it must be noted that DrainingFaces, contained within "Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate" is the ONLY, genuinely PERFECT song ever written. The one song that I can honestly say that I would do NOTHING to. Just try that sometime, and try to find the PERFECT piece. I mean to the smallest detail, nothing at all that you would change, every note hits exactly where you would put it, every voice lands on the (non) beat that it should, the levels, the panning scheme, the introduction of new elements, the texture, every little possible fucking detail down to a click... is exactly as you would have it, and NO OTHER WAY...

I, in my life, have found ONE, and that is DrainingFaces....

Other artists that inspire me:
Front242
ImminentStarvation
LordsOfAcid
Slipknot
FrontLineAssembly
Destroyer
Dj Siege
AlienSexFiend
Howard Shore
David Cronenberg
David Lynch
Kerry Wood
Marc Acardipane
LennyDee
Hyperactive
Pedro Martinez
William Burroughs
MartinAtkins
lesbian porn stars
Christie
Michael Jordan (#23)
Jim Morrison
Tyler Durden
H.R.Giger

StarVox:  With all the labels of your style of music; gabber, hardcore, acid hardcore, speedcore, terrorcore, etc. which do you prefer?

DJ Tron: I have actually been trying to get away from all of the "styles" within the "style," and just do my own thing. I guess you could say that I am partial to industrial hardcore, and the darker stuff. It does not have to be fast, and it does not have to be slow. If its HARD, and dark, i am into it. Unfortunately, due to all of the spreading of these "supposed" new styles of hardcore, I found myself in a spot where I did not like ANY of the music coming out, and I did not want it to represent DJ TRON when I performed. It came to a point where the crowd expected one thing from me, and that was the REALLy fast stuff. But, I was not happy, in the least, with the speedy stuff coming out. It all seemed cheesy, wanna-be dark, and just fast for the sake of being fast. There was no depth to the music, and no design, which is OK, but these songs seemed thrown together in a matter of minutes, and the quality just SUCKED. This was at a time when my gear was unusable, and I was not able to produce. But, when I was able to produce again, I made the decision that the only way that I was gonna be able to achieve the sound that I was looking for was to do it on my own ... so that is why I now play my OWN music, and I mix them off of my CD players. I am not sure which label they will put me in, but I really feel like I am doing something different, and something that will be continuously evolving and giving the people something different every time.

Not only that, but I can finish a song on Friday, and perform it on Saturday without waiting the 8 years to get the fucking thing on vinyl...

StarVox:  LenNY Dee and his Industrial Strength label has been quoted as being the father of hardcore here in the states by various people. Any comments on that and some of the ridicule he is getting these days?

DJ Tron: LennyDee and IndustrialStrength ARE the fathers of hardcore in this country, hands down!!! All of the new people in the scene have no clue that without HIS records, and LennyDee, hardcore wouldn't be where it is. Lenny got me into REAL hardcore the first time i heard him spin, IN A BARN, in fucking Wisconsin!!!!! Anyhow, he really jump started the shit not only here but worldwide.

The slack he has taken lately has mostly been coming from people who know nothing of the real situation, and are going by here-say. There are some artists that have legitimate concerns with IndustrialStrength, and are fully in the right with their displeasure with how certain situations have been dealt with... I know this... But, I am not one of those artists, so that does not concern me, and is no business of mine.

As far as how Lenny is morphing styles a bit, I say, "Hey, if he is happy, then great... I don't have to like it, but if he is happy, then good for him..." What has been happening over the passed few years is that a lot of DJ's became known for one style, and that was it... The crowd seemed to box you in immediately, and every deviance from that style brought an unfavorable crowd response, and even ridicule. Now, us as DJ's, not wanting that response, would find ourselves playing shitty records, or records that we really did not want to play just to appease the crowd, or avoid that unfavorable ridicule. Its very difficult to be happy when the expectations you are forced to meet are ones that you just are not enjoying. What has happened with ALOT of artists (and I think I can include Lenny in this even though i don't like to speak for anybody), and myself included have had to overcome this mental speedbump of expectations and just try to allow ourselves to follow our hearts, and souls, and do what makes us happy... genuinely happy... His path took him one way. It just so happens that my happiness trail has kept me on the hard/dark path. I mean, if we are doing music simply because of expectations, the genuosity of the piece gets lost, and who wants music with no heart, blood, sweat and inner pain behind it? That's what the popular Top40 musicians are for....

StarVox:  Where do you see your genre heading into over the next 5 to 10 years?

DJ Tron: Fuck, I hope into theater near you ... or at least one that would show Cronenberg movies ... Shit man, if my shit ended up in one of his movies, I don't know what I would do with myself. I could probably cash it all in because anything from then on would be a downfall. Unless of course Kerry Wood breaks the K record. It'd be worth the stretch if that happened...

No seriously, I see this style legitimizing itself on its own. It might take the full 10 years for this one, but its GONNA happen.... More and more people are becoming aware of the style, and its starting it's disassociation with the rave scene already. I mean, shit, as much as I love to play raves, they are too cool sometimes... Anyway, the hardcore areas are getting smaller and smaller, going from the hardcore room, to the hardcore hall, to the roped off hardcore section near the port-a-poties.... really... We used to be on stages, pumping the crowds at prime time, now no promoter allows it... AND THE PEOPLE WANT IT!!!!! So we are finding other avenues to force this down peoples throats. The Tunnel in NY will be doing events with CoalitionManagement every Friday night to try and reintroduce the dark/hard sound back into the club environment, where it once was. I will be a resident DJ there twice a month, for now, and this should hopefully spark the awareness of the masses that this sound is here to stay!!!

As far as out of the whole rave/club environment... C'mon, shit man, is there music more suited for a horror/sci-fi movie than this shit???? Or even in some (in sarcastic tone) Hollywood club scene where they wanna make it all dark and spooky, yet accentuate the aggressive nature of the action sequence where the cop busts the cocaine dealer in the VIP leading to a huge gun fight, many killed, innocent of course, for effect,..... (end sarcastic voice) ... you get the picture...

Even though I think it is more suited for a horror, or even satire flick, I would have given a fingernail to have written for "eXistenZ"....

StarVox:  What state and/or country do you like to play at? Any memorable performances?

DJ Tron: LA- people are NUTS!!!!!!!!!!! good pot and rolls.
AZ- young scene, very receptive to different styles, nice pot
IL - go to jail, do not pass go, pay $10,000...sucky for pot,$$$
NY/NJ- this place is too much fun...... black widow haze, baby!!!!
BOSTON - never been there, wanna watch Pedro pitch live at Fenway, have no clue about the herb scene here
DENVER - nice quaint party, nugs, baby, nugs....
MILWAUKEE/MADISON/MINN./ST.LOUIS - close to home, love it!!!bring my own pot.
SMALLER cities - everybody knows eachother, very fun, usually danks for $$...
SWITZERLAND - WILD bunch... goes all night, nice people, great hash
SWEDEN- see SWITZERLAND
SCOTLAND- they party.... scored no pot, but man, they party!!!! cool people!!!
ENGLAND - see SCOTLAND
HOLLAND - do i really need to say anything at all? "coffee shop, at ONCE!!!"
ITALY - why do they mix their pot with tobacco??? it drives me up the wall!!!!! but, i promise you that there is NO BETTER club to rock some hardcore at than the NUMBER ONE club (RIP) in Milano... oh, about 10000 per weekend, not so bad.... this place straight up rox!!!!
JAPAN - small parties, but SO ENERGETIC!!! their live acts are fun as fuck to watch... scored no herbs.... was a wreck....

I have so many memorable instances, but the most memorable are the ones that I could not recall a single event from if my life depended on it....

StarVox:  I understand you are also a producer. Which do you prefer, Djing, producing, or playing live?

DJ Tron: I LOVE producing.... I love the feeling of control there... I mean, you are in total control of where the sounds go, when they arrive, when they depart, when they freak out, the mood, the aura, etc. Building sounds is an incredible experience as well, if you allow yourself the patience and the time. I try to build mostly all of my sounds from scratch. I fucking LOVE it. But, even more than that, I love the new way in which I am presenting it. I love spinning the CD's of songs that I just finished. Hearing them alone is one thing, but hearing them mixed together takes on a whole new identity. They are SO much fun to play with, and mix with noise and weird stuff. Its so much fun, and it is so satisfying to know that it is my own music up there that I am doing this to, and that the people are enjoying, or not enjoying, or being annoyed by, or having a bad trip to. its very gratifying to know that my mind did that.

When I used to DJ, I would play a lot of records that I really did not want to, or did not fit within the realm of noise that I wanted people to know me by, and identify DJ TRON with. So, when someone would compliment me on my performance, it always left me with mixed feelings. I was presenting other peoples music, yet I was the one getting the props... it did, and still does, seem weird.... Now, I can take those compliments, and criticisms, to heart because it represents input into my own personal art.

I WILL NEVER PLAY 100% LIVE EVER AGAIN!!!!!! unless we use other peoples gear, and even that I don't trust.

StarVox:  Do you feel that you are limited here in the states vs. being overseas or do you find that the party scene is very open and receptive of your style?

DJ Tron: No, and I am very glad you asked that. This is one of the things that we are working extra hard at, is getting this style the recognition it deserves here in THIS country. For so long, the overseas market has been a constant morphing of styles that seemed to dictate how the rest of the world SHOULD present THEIR hardcore as well. We are pushing forth our own style of hardcore, a NEW style ... and NO, do NOT CALL IT NEW STYLE....I KNOW WHERE YOU ALL SLEEP... Its an evolution of the sound. We are trying to turn it into a more listenable medium, while keeping it dancefloor friendly, and even PIT FRIENDLY!!!!!!! The point being no matter how ya like it, we want you to be able to take this home and actually sit and listen to the individual songs as well produced, intelligently written masterpieces, as opposed to three minutes of repetitive synth lines surrounded by 2 minutes of mind-numbing drum rhythms built to ease the tension of the DJ. I think that the people of this country would REALLY embrace the sound if it was presented in an organized fashion, and given proper exposure... Shit man, there is a whole LEGION of people out there who like their shit HARD, and some of this shit is pretty hard.....

If anything, and I may or may not be alone on this, I think we are trying to separate from that "new style hardcore" scene entirely, and take REAL hardcore darkness to a new level... I see that scene as a perpetuation of itself that is close minded to new things, and scared to advance... However, Noizecreator has been doing some crazy stuff over in Germany, and I would love to fuckin play at one of their industrial festivals.. Man, that would be KILLER. I really think that crowd might appreciate the aggression of the sound.

StarVox:  Lots of people think that gabber/speedcore is a dying art, what do you think about that?

DJ Tron: Its only a dying art if the artists give up on it. We, as artists, created that style, and we can kill it... Its all up to the individual.... I only hope that those that choose to get into hardcore take it seriously. I cant think of anybody that takes it as seriously as I do ... ask anybody, I ALWAYS look pissed off. I have not smiled in 5 years, and if I had a nickel for every time somebody said to me, at a show, "Are you OK man?", I would be able to buy a nice chunk of Maui, lemme tell ya. And that is probably what I would buy. But, things are happenin', and this sound is evolving into something that just cant be avoided.

StarVox:  In forms of techno like goa trance and various house styles there seems to be a strong spiritual side to it all. Do you think your style has that same edge or does it come at you from a different direction?

DJ Tron: No, no spirituality in my stuff... More insanity than anything. It ALL comes from within. Rage, I have lots of to misplace, so i channel that into something audibly disturbing... Shit that bothers me, making sandwiches, the cops, losing to Mike Hampton with juiced up Jeff Besler on the mound, memories of people lost, guilt, guilt, guilt, anxiety, the fucking counter velocity of the earth, my need for chemicals to adapt to this human climate, and what it means to global warming and the addition of a day to the calendar year within 23 years (i damn near have proof), all down to my lousy Perfect Dark performance, burnt cookies, 26 not 27 K's, and the koolaid is just too warm to drink without me having to go, get up, get the ice cube, break the concentration of a thought in motion that cannot be recaptured by a memory erased through the introduction of the same chemicals with which I REQUIRE to live.... that is where the music comes from....

StarVox:  On your CD, you have a touch of "satanic" imagery. Care to share your views on that and religion as a whole?

DJ Tron: I am a dark motherfucker, but I am not qualified to answer.... still exploring... The facts are not in, and I refuse to proclaim anything until I can back up what I say.

StarVox:  How are the crowds different in a gabber party vs. the crowds at a D&B, or house party? What is the energy that is being passed around and do you usually get a warm reaction at those parties?

DJ Tron: Actually, I like parties that host a variety of styles.. I love playing like between a D&B DJ and a trance DJ. I think it opens up the ears of "style stickers" to other styles. The only difference that I see in the two crowds is that the D&B fans seem to really wanna groove, and just let the music take control. Whereas the hardcore fans seem to wanna slam, pit, get down, and just get nutz. Both to me are equally as cool as long as you are getting into the music, lettin' the MUSIC work its magic on your body, and just FEELIN the music, then you got the right idea ... and its all good...

I get reasonably warm receptions from both crowds, and I get along with everybody, so I love experiences like that. Either that or they are all scared of me... Plus, it allows me to get to enjoy the talents of some other DJ that might expose ME to something new that I could potentially enjoy. The more things that you can find to enjoy in this shitty fucking place, the better.

StarVox:  In your cd "Chrome Padded Cell" you use lots of movie samples. What are your favorite movies, past and present?

DJ Tron: I can put these in no particular order ... to do an actual top 10 would take me weeks of soul searching and viewing. It would drain me. I take it that seriously!!! But, here are the cream of the crop for now:

FightClub
eXistenZ
DeadRingers
LostHighway
AmericanPsycho
Videodrome
Magnolia
AmericanBeauty
Aliens
Terminator 1/2
Gates of hell
The Beyond
NewYorkRipper
CannibalFerox
Pie(the symbol)
Rush
cheechChong ALL
BOND ALL
VeryBadThings
Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas
Scanners
Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Braindead
Bad Taste
Naked Lunch
Permanent Midnight
DropDeadGorgeous
Cannibal Holocaust
Shivers
The Doors
Event Horizon
Hellraiser 2
Rushmore
Caddyshack
Stripes
Animal House
Halloween 1/2
Shit Dinner
Dr. Strangelove
A Clockwork Orange
Wild At Heart
NinthGate
Flash Gordon
STAR WARS ALL
i better stop...

StarVox:  What is in your cd player right now?

DJ Tron: Slipknot

StarVox:  Is there ever a chance that we will see a down-tempo/chill/ambient side to DJ Tron?

DJ Tron: Yeah, actually I will be producing/spinning hard techno/acid under the name DemonSlut. I will begin a bi-monthly residency at The Tunnel in New York, on Fridays starting October 13th ... that should be killer... I will also be coming out with releases under that name that will fall more in the hard techno realm.

StarVox:  Over the past three years I have noticed a big merging of industrial and techno, and new forms of this hybrid sound are becoming widely accepted in both scenes. What are your thoughts on that? Do you feel within 5 years the lines will be gray as far as techno and industrial go?

DJ Tron: I think its great... I mean by exposing each crowd to the music of the other can only bring exposure way up. Then those people will tell more people, and an awareness, on both sides, will grow among both groups. I think the two groups are almost parallel as it is, its just the industrial crowd has been scared off by the stigma of the rave, and the fucking big hats, pink teddy bears, and glow sticks. I don't blame them, I cant FUCKING STAND that shit, but those are the people gettin into the hardcore. I think a fusion of the two styles is imminent. That could lead to industrial/hardcore shows, instead of raves. This music was made for the industrial crowd. Shit man, I came from that, and my heart stays with gears and spikes. And, I am even trying to add some sort of Goth edge to some of the music by making the tone more somber, as opposed to aggressive. However, I have yet to really hone in on a sound that can fuse the two, without doing an injustice to the Goth sound as a whole. I have SUCH a deep admiration and respect for the Goth artists of the past, and the sound they put forth, that I would not want to make a mockery of the sound just for the sake of it. It will or either will not happen. But, I am commin' industrial and heavy as a motherfucker.

I think the lines between industrial and techno itself began blurring a long time ago. I mean, that is how I got sucked in. I just think that now there are SO MANY new artists getting into this particular genre, and they are bringing all of their new ideas with them from listening to CD's passed, that we are gonna hear some INCREDIBLE crossover experiments... Its going to be an interesting age for music....

StarVox:  When and where was your worst DJ set? Your best set?

DJ Tron: Worst.... hmmmm... I have to pick only ONE? There are SO many....

I would have to say that I played once in Kentucky, outdoors, on some beautiful land... only thing was that the bugs were INSANE!!!!! I mean INSANE!!!!!! HUGE MOTHERFUCKERS.... and they were coming in armies at me while I was playing. They would land on the record THAT WAS PLAYING, and ride it into the needle and smear the guts all over the grooves of the record.... The whole set went like that.... BUG after BUG, it was like fucking Starship Troopers. When I got home, I had to clean all of these bug guts out of my records, it fucking sucked!!!!!!! But the crowd was enthused that I stuck out the whole hour. After me, then they brought the insect candles... go figure...

Best.... actually, just last week I played in Madison, Wisconsin at a dropBass party ... it was fucking AWESOME!!! Being only the third time that I did my CD thing, and being the home crowd, it went over so well!!!! Kurt had me on the main stage, prime time, had a nice set up, and it was REALLY FUCKING LOUD... so, I was very pleased with that one....

StarVox:  What live PA or DJ do you like to work with? Anyone you won't work with again?

DJ Tron: I am somewhat of a recluse... I prefer to work alone... But, if I find the right person, who knows? People soon find out that I am not a fun person to be around for a lengthy period of time. I am VERY QUIET, I take writing music VERY seriously... I WOULD drive the other mad.

I will be collaborating with DJ Siege (Coalition) in New Jersey on some future projects; I think he understands my mental proclivities, and is able to cope with a person like myself, but other than that... NONE.

I would love to do shows with some of the European industrial bands, like do my CDj thing between bands or something. That would be fun...

FANTASY:
I would LOVE to work with cEVIN KEY, but I would probably be too intimidated to do anything ... Same with Dr.Dre, man that guy can produce!!!!! I would LOVE to work with him!!! But, in both cases, I would be a rookie pitcher coming in to work with PedroMartinez, ya know.
Slipknot, I would love to work with those guys ... especially the vocals... i would LOVE to play with those.... They are really in tune with my inner-self.
And, I would do anything to work with the man..... OGRE....

StarVox:  Over the past few years there have been several female DJs standing up and throwing down gabber and hardcore despite the odds of people who think they couldn't do it. What do you think of that and do you have any advices to give for those DJs, male or female, who are having a hard time getting booked because of their style?

DJ Tron: Yeah, I think its killer to see more female hardcore DJs. Shit, DoubleD has been spinning hardcore in Canada for a long time now. I would say the same thing to every DJ, up and coming, male or female, human or not, just DONT GIVE UP... Give tapes away, and give more tapes away, because you know they play those tapes for other people, make copies, etc... Pretty soon your name is in 50 car stereos just from 5 free tapes... PROMO!!!!

StarVox:  Thank you for your time, it was great hearing your views, and please, give us a quote to finish this off with.

DJ Tron: "...i'm just not there..."

DJ Tron is Jeff Besler. t6r6o6n@aol.com

Top 10 (current rotation)
DJ Tron - Chrome Padded Cell (LP) - Fragrant Music
Skinny Puppy - SpahnDirge - Columbia
SlipKnot - 870621345 - RoadRunner Records
Twistericals - Pain - Italian Steel
DJ Tron - all the new ztuff - ApocalypseRecs001
Imminent Starvation - "Self-Destrukt" & "Intravan" (Syncascape Remixes) - Ant Zen
DJ Tron - Resurrection EP - Headfuck Records
E605 - Extremity
DJ Tron, Siege & Menace - Holocaust EP - Strike Records

Top 10 (all time)
4D - Hidden/Mindsafari
Skinny Puppy - ALL
Twistericals - Pain
Jeff Mills - Waveform Transmissions Vol. 1
ATOM X - Bomber EP
REL 962901 Ltd
Slipknot - 870621345
VooDoo Child - Demons/Horses
Fazer (white label acid Track)
DJ Tron - ALL (...of course)

DJ Tron Discography
DJ Tron - "Paranoid EP" - Symbiotic LoveRecs., USA, 1995
DJ Tron - "Massacre EP" - Storm Recs., Scotland, 1995
DJ Tron - "Undead EP" - Blood N' Guts Recs., USA, 1996
Cannibal DJ - "Fresh Flesh EP" - Blood N' Guts Recs., USA 1996
DJ Tron - "Threshold Of Tolerance" - UHF Recs., Australia, 1996
DJ Tron / DJ Tact - "In Full Effect EP" - Symbiotic Love Recs., USA, 1997
DJ Tron - "Torture Traxxx Vol. 1" - Digital Hut Recs., USA, 1997
DJ Tron - "Fuckin Deathcore" - Brutal Chud Recs., Germany, 1996
DJ Tron - "Bloody Horror" - How to Kill All Happy Suckas (2x12") comp. - Brutal Chud Recs. - Germany, 1996
DJ Tron - "Twisted Metal EP" - Killing Rate Recs., Denmark, 1997
DJ Tron - "Beyond" - Hardcore Fuckers CD, 12" - Soundbase Music, Germany, 1998
DJ Tron - "Stabbed in the Stomach" - CD comp. - Kak-a Recs., Japan,1999
DJ Tron / Skullblower - "Chicago vs. Gundso" battle 12" - Rage Recs., Australia, ...tba...
DJ Tron, Siege & Menace - "Holocaust EP" - Strike Recs., Germany, 1999
DJ Tron - "Resurrection EP" - Headfuck Recs., Italy, 1998
DJ Tron - "Chrome Padded Cell" (debut full length CD) - Fragrant / Junior High, USA, 1999
DJ Tron - "The Final Game"_FuckParadeSupport Comp. CD - SuburbanTrash, Germany, 2000
DJ Tron - "Sadists Wet Nightmare"_ v/a compilation, [<unit>] recordings, USA, 2000
DJ Tron - full length CD "...tba..." - Coalition, USA, 2000
DJ Tron - full length CD "...tba..." - [<unit>] recordings, USA, 2000-2001

Mixtapes
DemonSlut - "Panic Attack"... hard techno/acid
DJ Tron - "Eye Grind Disturbance"...ambient noise, industrial, hard techno, hardcore, speedcore, LOTS of orig. material
DJ Tron - "Doomzdance" ...hard techno mix
DJ Tron - "Resurrection"...hard techno, hardcore, noize, lots of original material
DJ Tron - "Night of the Living Dead" ...Recorded Live PA, Chicago, 1996
DJ Tron -"Fucking Silver Box"...acid, hard acid

DOUBLE MIXTAPES: (3 Hours!!!)
DJ Tron - "Persistence of Time"... acid, hard acid, and more acid
DJ Tron - "The End of the Fucking World" ...techno, hard acid, hardcore, speedcore, deathcore
DJ Tron - "Industrial Asylum" ...noisecore, hard techno, industrial, doom hardcore, speedcore, deathcore
DJ Tron - "Fucking Sick and Menacing" .. hard techno, industrial, hardcore, speedcore, deathcore
DJ Tron - "Fucking Harder Than the Devil Himself"...doomcore, gabber, speedcore, deathcore, lots of original material

Aliases:
DJ Tron - Digital, dark, industrial hardcore/hard techno
Cannibal DJ - speed/death core
DemonSlut - Hard Techno (resident Dj, The Tunnel, NY)
Tempest Rainblood - Techno

Booking through Coalition Management
Justin Higgins
973 790 7267
http://www.coalitionmanagement.com

[<unit>] recordings
1624 Chapin St
Alameda, CA 94501
http://www.possessive-blindfold.com/unit

Personal Manager:
Sandra Santostefano

Inspiration/Influences:
Christie Helgemo (my soulmate)
DJ Hyperactive
Lenny Dee
Skinny Puppy
Martin Atkins
Pedro Martinez
Michael Jordan
David x2 (David Lynch, David Cronenberg)
Slipknot
James Bond
Kerry Wood
kind buds

Accomplishments:
- Not having lost Christie through my insane behavior
-Having painstakingly abided that ridiculous law that prohibits random, or premeditated murder.
- Having achieved a level of dominance at playing Multi-player Goldeneye only equated to the dominant play of Michael Jordan in his respective field.
- Not having slashed my wrists and throat....recently (ongoing accomplishment)

Xorcist
~by BlackOrpheus
 
 

(1) Bat, tell me a little about  "Insects & Angels". What mental-emotional "big bang" set this project spinning? What kind of cloth were you trying to weave with this combination of the old and the new?  Did you achieve your objectives?

Bat: I&A is a collection of various soundtracks I had done over the years in addition to some remixes I did of songs off the past few releases. Over the years many people have commented to me how I should score films and I&A was a disc to showcase some of the soundtrack work I've done so as to let the listener enjoy taking a ride with the music rather then just being told how to ride it in the form of lyrics and standard programming methods.

2) The title reminded me immediately of director Philip Haas film "Angels and Insects."  Are you familiar with the film?  Is there  any correlation?  Would you share how you arrived at the use of "Insects &  Angels," and the relevance of the proceeding " Differences and Indifferences? "

Bat: Yes, I've seen A&I and while similar names, there is no connection.

I&A is a representation of perhaps the diversity of my work in that it can swing from one end of the spectrum to the other (harsh/aggresive such as "Pretty", "Stains", "Iron Helix" then soft/melodic such as "Omni", "Meditatio", "Phantara"). Insects and Angels are quite different by definition, yet both can fly. There's some sort of connection in there somewhere ;-)

Differences and Indifferences are the aftermath perceptions from those who hear it perhaps in a reactionary way.

3) I've heard you often "view" film by ear, as a means of identifying potential sampling material.  Can you tell me a little about  film, and its relevance to your music.  What film's have moved you, in that way that only music usually does?

Bat: Some samples I've used are best heard when not viewing any video. Sometimes the acting or visuals can be so bad, that the line is lost to it's surroundings and other times the movie is just too distracting to actually hear a good sample when it comes by.

Usually when I sample something from a movie, I'm also trying to capture it's essence in relation to it's emotional strength from the movie itself. It's not a prerequisite, but if you've seen the movie the sample is from, then there's the added emotional bonus that comes along with it's delivery. Again you could say this points to my desire to score films... to augment the emotional states. One great film which demonstrates this ability is "The Keep. Tangerine Dream did the score and without it, the movie would really stink. With it, and it's a masterpiece.

Other films that I've enjoyed: The Cell, The Ninth Configuration, TP:FWWM (and the whole damn series), Dune, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, Scarface (ya gota love it or maybe it was just the heat of the moment... naaa, actually Georgio Moroder is one of my favorite composers - he did Cat People too), 2010 and others. I also loved the entire Babylon-5 series. The marriage of JMS with Christopher Franke's music (from Tangerine Dream), worked perfectly.

4) As I have gotten to know various net citizens involved in the dark music  genres, I've discovered that many make their livelihood by way of computer or  computer related fields.  You are no exception.  Please share with me your feelings on why vocations in these  fields are so attractive to people of our culture?

Bat: I'm sure there are others who perhaps use the computer to write their music but have day jobs that are completely devoid of one. However, I believe those two were fired last week...

Computers and the surrounding technology in one way or another can help our musical direction/craft. Perhaps it's utilizing resources from our day jobs or just learning new ways to use our current skills to support us. We're also part of that computer-generation where it's been thrust into our hands when we were all teenagers and younger. I just hope we're not all becoming a race of lazy bastards who's asses in 200 years will have morphed into mini-love seats with optical connections.

5) Bat, have you managed a vacation yet?  If you could  take a vacation to any locale of your choice, where would it be?  Where are  you drawn to, and for what reasons?

Bat: My wife and I are due for a vacation. I want to go back to her birthplace: Alaska. She wants to go to see her old digs and I'm dying to sit and watch the aurora borealis for 12 hours straight.

After that, we'd love to maybe move to Ireland for a year or so. We've been drawn to it for cultural and historical reasons / curiosities, have heard wonderful stories about it from people who have lived there and the fact that the computer industry is booming there helps! (Any sound companies needing an audio engineer / sound designer / composer feel free to contact me!)

6) Tell me about your side project "Xenon."  I've heard  it described as ambient, and industrial.  How would you describe it?  What do  you want to accomplish through this creative vehicle that "Xorcist" doesn't readily lend itself to?

Bat: Xenon was created by the extreme mixture of emotional states between three people (myself and Evoltwin.8 and 11) who lived together closely under one roof for a year. We we're all very close and volitile at the same time. The music reflects that in it's own way. All of it was created on the fly with some parts being laid down live with minor clean-up. It's more a soundtrack of the meetings of three minds if anything else. Ambient, droning, spiritual, experimental...

I used to just give it away for free at the Xenon site (http://www.cyberden.com/xenon) but after a few years, moved everything to mp3.com as it was too cumbersome for me to print the artwork and prepare the discs for those people who wanted to buy it. MP3.COM does a good job at that so that's where it lives now. You can get there from the Xenon home page.

7) Do you have a personal system of belief and or spiritual practice that bears upon your craft? If so, can you articulate it as best you can?

Bat: I don't have any particular ritual or belief system that helps me write music. I simply feel religion and spirituality is a beautiful thing as long as it doesn't take advantage of the people who subscribe to it.

I've tried to learn as much as possible when speaking with other people I meet about their views on love, life, death, religion, etc., and in doing so have learned that most religions basically teach the same values and ideals. I feel this knowledge makes one strong spiritually as not only can one understand others, but in doing so, one understands themselves.

Naturally, all this reflects in anyone's craft.

8) I was curious about " House of Usher."  Is the club still in operation?  I'd heard it closed.  In any event, how has your  involvement with it advanced your fortunes?  If it is in fact closed, looking back- tell me about your feelings as regards  being part of this venture.

Bat: House of Usher closed for good back around 1993. We've had a few one night stands now and then, but because San Francisco has turned into a shithole for the local music scene, all the venues that were large enough to accommodate Usher have either closed, turned 21+ only and/or charge way too much money to put on an event like ours. Sunshine and I tried starting up a couple of new clubs, but while the scene was supportive, it just wasn't supportive enough to cover the high rents and overhead involved in running a proper venue.

While Usher was going on though, it was amazing. Once a month we would have some sort of news coverage about the scene, it's music and people. We even had people from CNN and USA Today do stories on the club.

It was really a wonderful and magical time for all those who remember it. It never catapulted my career or anything, but it was inspiring for all who came and were involved and I still get an email or letter every once in a while from someone telling me how Usher was the largest, most amazing club they had ever come across. It was sad when we closed though. I mean, where else could you find a gothic, industrial and ambient club with three stories, three dance-floors, and a movie room plus another 6 or so rooms to just play around in. It was fairyland for us all.

There's still some information about it on my website at http://www.cyberden.com/usher. You can see pictures from our last co-present gig we did with The Fillmore here in S.F. for the Gary Numan show. I plan to eventually post more pictures from over the years when I get some free time.

9)  I understand the music hasn't reached the point that you can rely on its income alone.  What would you credit with keeping you in the style to which you've become accustomed?  Is it in any way as fulfilling as the music is for you?

Bat: Xorcist will never be a band who's music alone will provide a reliable income. It's not possible. We're not a pop, teenage lust, or "we'll do anything" type band. I do what I do because I enjoy it and I take my time about it. The ending result is a much more emotional and connecting piece of work. I can't write boring techno or copy-cat music.

Because of this method of writing, the style of Xorcist changes. Early Xorcist was very raw and EBMish. Now it's a much more soundtrack, ethnic-ambient vibe. Based off of reviews and comments, it's safe to say that all my releases have a 'trademark' sound of sorts.

If anything, I plan to make my personal skills at film scoring my means of a steady income with Xorcist being a fun release.

10) I read recently that the largest such fine to date was levied against  MP3.Com.  What are your feelings about the free trade of music via the internet?  Please give me your take on these issues as they affect-interest you.

Bat: Bottom line is that it's thievery.

Top line is that quite a bit of what's being released out there is worth close to nothing in the first place.

I know that may sound kind of harsh, but after getting CD's from bands and labels constantly for the past 10 years, there has been a major decline in quality for the past 4 years while an increase in quantity.

I can understand a consumer wanting to check an artist out before they spend $15 on them, and free trade on the internet helps in making that determination, but unfortunately every artist falls into this 'free trade', including bands that put a lot of time and effort into their work. In our scene, selling 3000-4000 CD's is about as many as you're going to sell. If internet free-trade takes 500-1000 of those sales, that quite a chunk of royalties. Given that, the bands that put a lot of time and effort into their music are not going to want to spend all their time for something they're going to eventually see no return on.

As for internet free-trade exposing you to people that may not necessarily know about you in the first place, while that may be true, the fact remains that they found you on the net so they already have your music and will naturally be less inclined to go out and buy it.

I think the real problem lies in the massive markup of a CD. It costs in mass quantity, artwork and all, about $1.50 to $2.00 to produce a CD. Provided we all have to make some money, that CD should in turn be sold to the public for about $8.00 MAX. That provides a decent royalty and profit for the label as well as provide a CD for almost half of what one normally pays. I think that would persuade some people to buy a CD rather then go through the hassle of downloading it and burning it.

I wish I had an endless supply of income from someplace other then my full time job so I could not care about having to eat, pay the rent, survive, etc., so I could just write music. I sincerely enjoy hearing and reading stories sent to me about how my music has touched someone in a particular way. That's why I write music, because of the emotional connection. Unfortunately, without a means to write that music, that music stops. Bottom line is that internet free trade contributes to that.

11)  What are you listening to, reading, viewing, and doing that's inspired  you of late? Please tell me about your choices.  Do you have any  recommendations?

Bat: Because of the increased cost of living where we live, the past two years has created sort of a vortex for us with work. The days of being an artist with spare time to read have been replaced with 12 hour work days, leaving the weekends to just catch up on the daily things one didn't get a chance to do during the week. We're trying to change that one day soon and plan to move way the hell away from Northern California, maybe even leave the state. Try to find some middle ground of making ends meet and having time to read again.

Since my day job is doing music and sound design for a streaming 3D Internet company, that kind of makes it impossible to listen to new music... However, in the past, I've managed to read a few cool books I recommend such as Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game books and Dan Simmon's Hyperion books. For a gut blasting laugh, check out any of the Ted L. Nancy "Letters from an Idiot" book. Quite entertaining. Something we plan on doing one day.

As always, mandatory viewing should include Twin Peaks, Babylon-5, 2001/2010 and for campy cheese, a dose of Xena doesn't hurt ;-)

12) What's ahead for Xorcist?  Are there any plans to tour the northwest in the future?

Bat: Touring is something we really want to do again. Unfortunately, to pull off a tour, there are several things that need to happen, almost all of which are not for Xorcist:

We would need a month or two simply to prepare for such a tour. There are a lot of things I want to incorporate such as new video, controlled lighting, etc., and so it's going to take more then just a few weeks to put something decent together.

Another factor is the cost. It's going to cost several thousand dollars if not more to acquire the lighting and computer power to put such a show together not to mention the cost of touring itself. I'm not about to start over-charging venues thousands and thousands of dollars for putting on a show and the labels I've been on have never really helped in this area so I've always had to pull from my own savings and once the tour is over and all has been paid out, we're usually in the red.

Finally, time. Since 1995, the cost of living in Northern California has sky-rocketed higher then any other place on the planet. A $1100 house in 1990 is now $3500 in 2000, yet little or no work would have been done to upkeep it or modernize it. It's a real greedy shit-hole to be honest in the Bay Area and because of that, I've been literally forced to put Xorcist on hold to work full time so we can survive. We really want to move to another state where we can be artists again, but since we're not paid enough to save up for such a jump, we've been having to just fight it out. Luckily, I'm working for a company doing what I love to do; music and sound design. We're hoping one day for it all to pay off and I'll have saved enough to seriously consider taking that two months off and/or moving so we can get back to things like touring, writing, painting, etc.

In the long run I plan on concentrating on scoring productions be it for the internet, motion pictures, tv, etc.. It's what I've always wanted to do. I've never had any help from any of the labels in this department so I've always had to do the work myself which is pretty damn hard in this industry. It's such a nepotistic environment and I'd have better luck if I just changed my last name to 'Goldsmith', 'Shore' or 'Elfman' and said I was a long lost brother or something. However, I've been slowly getting my work into various productions and hope to one day make it my career.

You can follow some of my other non-Xorcist work at http://www.cyberden.com/ic

My wife and I also changed the format of my website after 10 years and it's pretty funny and wacked. Getting about 100-200 visits a day at the moment, but it's growing fast. You can check it out at http://www.cyberden.com/ and as always, I can be reached at bat@cyberden.com

Oh yea, this just in... there's a super secret release about to be announced that I did on the Xorcist and CyberDen web sites. It's a double CD that will only be available on the Internet to start. It's a major piece of work I did that finally is going to see the light of day and it's got quite a few surprises in it as well. It's definately more for the soundtrack connoisseur as well as almost anyone else....

This concludes my talk with Xorcist.  I'd like to thank  "Bat" and Metropolis.  Please accept my best wishes for the future.  I  heartily encourage all of you to listen to the album, and take the trip.

                               -BlackOrpheus