411 lines
14 KiB
Plaintext
411 lines
14 KiB
Plaintext
|
|
_
|
|
| \
|
|
| \
|
|
| | \
|
|
__ | |\ \ __
|
|
_____________ _/_/ | | \ \ _/_/ _____________
|
|
| ___________ _/_/ | | \ \ _/_/ ___________ |
|
|
| | _/_/_____ | | > > _/_/_____ | |
|
|
| | /________/ | | / / /________/ | |
|
|
| | | | / / | |
|
|
| | | |/ / | |
|
|
| | | | / | |
|
|
| | | / | |
|
|
| | |_/ | |
|
|
| | | |
|
|
| | c o m m u n i c a t i o n s | |
|
|
| |________________________________________________________________| |
|
|
|____________________________________________________________________|
|
|
|
|
...presents... The Jesus Lizard Interview
|
|
by G.A. Ellsworth
|
|
|
|
>>> a cDc publication.......1991 <<<
|
|
-cDc- CULT OF THE DEAD COW -cDc-
|
|
______________________________________________________________________________
|
|
|
|
Interview conducted by G.A. Ellsworth (Matt) in May, 1991.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chad and I set up interviews with The Jesus Lizard and Dinosaur Jr. for a
|
|
final project in my Audio Production course and for broadcasts on our
|
|
respective radio shows. We drove down to Bogarts in Cincinnati and checked in
|
|
at the front door. As it turned out, Dinosaur Jr's label, Sire Records
|
|
(subsidiary of Warner Brothers/subsidiary of Time Warner the mega corporation
|
|
that owns more media outlets than any other company in the world-ie they are
|
|
basically in control of what people in the United States read, listen to, and
|
|
see for 'news' and 'entertainment') had not left us tickets and back stage
|
|
passes at the door as they had promised.
|
|
|
|
We were frustrated, but decided to try to meet up with the bands around
|
|
back by the stage door. We approached David Yow and David Sims of The Jesus
|
|
Lizard at the back door and told them about Sire Records not coming through on
|
|
their end of the deal. So being the cool guys they are they told us to just
|
|
grab some equipment and walk in the door with them just saying "we're with the
|
|
band." Which we did. After we were in we had to deal with the guy who was in
|
|
charge of backstage security who knew that there weren't seven members of The
|
|
Jesus Lizard. (Um, Steve Albini was hanging out too, he was running sound for
|
|
them and so he was band member number 5.) So we convinced the security dude to
|
|
put Chad on The Jesus Lizard's guest list, and I'd continue to tell people I
|
|
was in the band.
|
|
|
|
So we were hanging out in the dressing room below the stage when we
|
|
started rolling the tape.
|
|
|
|
Chad: Does that microphone actually pick up? From all the way over there?
|
|
|
|
Matt: It's a shotgun mike.
|
|
|
|
Chad: How far would it pick up? If I went across the street?
|
|
|
|
Albini (with a mock gay drawl): Please Chad, shut the door...
|
|
|
|
Steve Albini radio I.D.: Hi, this is Steve Albini and I'm not in a band or
|
|
anything, and I ceased to be important about five years ago and I don't listen
|
|
to the radio, but if I did, and I happened to live in Cincinnati, which I
|
|
don't, I would listen to WYSO, 91.3fm, Yellow Springs.
|
|
|
|
Steve telling a favorite joke when he thought he was off-mike: What's the other
|
|
one, uh, um, Gay Chinese restaurant... uh, um, Sum Young Guy Cum... heh-heh
|
|
sorry... (No, he's not hung up on homosexuality... no....)
|
|
|
|
David Sims: Hey, who the hell are you?
|
|
|
|
David Yow: Mike the Mechanic...
|
|
|
|
Chad: ok..
|
|
|
|
David Yow: So this guys name is Cliff Lippman, and his radio name is
|
|
Cliff-Hanger.
|
|
|
|
Chad: Every DJ in Northern California has a stupid fucking name. I think it's
|
|
a law.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Yeah, I'll bet it's worse than Southern California, woh-hoh... Well, I'll
|
|
eat... (looking at Chad) Ok, you're on the list (looking at me.) You have to
|
|
sneak around..
|
|
|
|
Matt: Ok...
|
|
|
|
Albini: Ok, later... (pause and from outside the room) How the fuck do we get
|
|
out of here?
|
|
|
|
Stage hand: Up those stairs, to the stage, out the other door....
|
|
|
|
David Yow, Duane Denison and Steve Albini were off eating a cheese burger and
|
|
playing pool down the street. Leaving us with Mac McNeilly and David Sims.
|
|
|
|
Chad: Yeah, I saw you guys with Sonic Youth out in St. Louis. That was the
|
|
best sound I've heard in a long time.
|
|
|
|
Mac: That was Steve doing sound.
|
|
|
|
Matt: Was he doing it for both bands or....
|
|
|
|
Sims: No, just us.... sorta like... this doesn't really look like it's going to
|
|
be that bad, but sometimes opening for these really big bands like this we
|
|
really get shafted on the P.A.
|
|
|
|
Mac: So that's really the major reason that Steve is along is to make sure that
|
|
doesn't happen.
|
|
|
|
Sims: Besides the fact that he does a good job on sound.
|
|
|
|
Matt: So you don't play with the soundboard set up for the other band....
|
|
|
|
Sims: Yeah, and so we don't play much too quiet you know?
|
|
|
|
When the other guys returned we started the 'official' interview. David
|
|
Yow took my microphone and spoke to the group saying "This is the interview.
|
|
If you have a comment to make, you can make a comment, but make it quietly, and
|
|
civil. Keep a civil tongue, don't say fuck or cunt or swollen twat."
|
|
|
|
Albini(to the 3 groupies who came back stage to meet the band and were in the
|
|
process of drinking the band's beer.): Just keep drinking girls..
|
|
|
|
Groupie 1: Are you from a radio station?
|
|
|
|
Matt(reading the microphone switch, hoping it was on): Uh, yeah. Uh,
|
|
lesse... AUS or EIN?
|
|
|
|
Groupie 2: That means your ass...
|
|
|
|
Matt: Chad, ask a question.
|
|
|
|
Albini: You may not touch my monkey.
|
|
|
|
Groupie 2(looking at the 10 inch cylinder which is my microphone): That is the
|
|
most awesome thing I've ever seen. Great design. What is that called exactly?
|
|
|
|
Matt: A shotgun mic.
|
|
|
|
Simms: This is Kim, and this is Lisa... this is Mac, David, Steve, David...
|
|
|
|
Groupie 1: Mac, David, Steve, David...
|
|
|
|
Albini: That's Jennifer, Mac, Lisa, Chad, Matt...
|
|
|
|
Yow: Jennifer, David, Chad,
|
|
|
|
Mac: Matt, Chad, this is David... (audio is kind of garbled as everyone starts
|
|
saying everyone else's name at the same time...)
|
|
|
|
Albini: Everywhere I turn, there are like stacks of Jennifers...
|
|
|
|
Yow: Ok, hey hey HEY HEY!
|
|
|
|
Chad: To start off with, who are you all, and why are you in The Jesus Lizard?
|
|
|
|
Sims: Nothing else to do.
|
|
|
|
Yow: The Jesus Lizard and because we are in The Jesus Lizard.
|
|
|
|
Chad: So you're a skate band right?
|
|
|
|
Yow: No.
|
|
|
|
Chad: You were all in different bands before you were in The Jesus Lizard
|
|
right?
|
|
|
|
Yow: Toxic Shock OI! Tha's right, I were in Toxic Shock.
|
|
|
|
Duane: I was in Cargo Cult... before that I was in a band called Bill's Corpse
|
|
which was the best fucking band.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Actually what he meant by that was that he had his penis in a man named
|
|
Bill who was dead. Duane is kind of into fucking dead men.
|
|
|
|
Duane: But I'm not alone in this, I was just read Montgomery Cliff's biography,
|
|
and I wasn't alone in this. Monty had a doctor who used to raid the morgue and
|
|
put stiffs down in his car...
|
|
|
|
Chad (the segue master): So are you guys touring right now?
|
|
|
|
Yow: Um, actually, last Saturday was the last day of the last tour we're
|
|
doing... we had a little time off... we have another show on Tuesday... then in
|
|
June we go out for another month.
|
|
|
|
Chad: Where are you going?
|
|
|
|
Yow: Western Canada and California... Bye Jennifer, bye Brian... bye
|
|
man... There's actually a chance we might be opening for these guys again.
|
|
Someplace. There's going to be several shows with Glass Eye from Austin
|
|
warming us up.
|
|
|
|
Matt: They do a great cover of Cecilia...
|
|
|
|
Sims: Yeah, it's a GREAT cover!
|
|
|
|
Albini: They're going to be WARMING you up?
|
|
|
|
Sims: Baking.
|
|
|
|
Chad: Do you have day jobs?
|
|
|
|
Yow: It's not like we're rich, we don't have time, because we're touring
|
|
constantly... but we do make extra cash doing Mexican fireworks like this.
|
|
(he tosses a lit match at Lisa)
|
|
|
|
Lisa(Groupie #1): And turning tricks on the side.
|
|
|
|
Chad: All right.
|
|
|
|
Matt: Wow.
|
|
|
|
Sims: I had this hamburger on the corner called Wings and Rings and I had this
|
|
hamburger that just about made me vomit...
|
|
|
|
Mac: But it was juicy.
|
|
|
|
Albini: It's not made for faggots to eat... you don't want a lighter you want a
|
|
bottle opener right?
|
|
|
|
Lisa: Whatever.
|
|
|
|
Jennifer: Are you drunk already?
|
|
|
|
Matt(to Jennifer): Um, excuse me, please don't kick my tape recorder...
|
|
|
|
Yow: Oh, I'm sorry.
|
|
|
|
Matt: Uh, we're catching the chaos of the moment...
|
|
|
|
Yow: My scab's all gone... um, keep it down, keep it down....
|
|
|
|
Matt: Is this what most Jesus Lizard dressing rooms are like?
|
|
|
|
Yow: No, most have a deli platter and girls with a lot less clothes on...
|
|
|
|
Sims: Midget Clowns and small dogs.
|
|
|
|
Yow: There was this time in Pittsburgh where a midget clown was running around
|
|
giving flowers to everybody.
|
|
|
|
Chad: In the dressing room?
|
|
|
|
Yow: Yeah, and everywhere...
|
|
|
|
Chad: Was he a fixture at this club?
|
|
|
|
Yow: I have no idea...
|
|
|
|
Sims: No actually, they mixed our rider up with Queen's... They thought that
|
|
the midget was for Freddy Mercury...
|
|
|
|
Yow: Bicycle, Bicycle...
|
|
|
|
Albini: I want to smell a bicycle seat...
|
|
|
|
Yow: I could grow a mustache if I so desired.
|
|
|
|
Matt: I'll bet you could...
|
|
|
|
Yow: I damn straight could! Chad, what's the next question?
|
|
|
|
Chad: Do you know why KRK from Flipside says that you and the Laughing Hyenas
|
|
are going to "take it to the grave..."?
|
|
|
|
Yow: I don't know why he said that, I don't know who he is, and I don't know
|
|
why he'd say that... take WHAT to the grave?
|
|
|
|
Matt: I think he meant that as a band you would "take it to the grave..."
|
|
|
|
Yow: Do you think he's so stupid as to imply, oops I spit on myself, that we're
|
|
gonna be a band till we die?
|
|
|
|
Duane: I think he meant that we were going to die soon.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Well, if you look at the big picture, we're all gonna die pretty damn
|
|
soon.... Did you know that Yoko Ono is 2 years younger than Johnny Cash?
|
|
|
|
Jennifer: Johnny who?
|
|
|
|
Chad: Any good anecdotes?
|
|
|
|
Mac: Tell them about the band with the ice machine.
|
|
|
|
Duane: Well, there was this band in Europe called Cadaver Back and they were
|
|
gonna play with us, and they set up their stuff, and they had driven 3 hours to
|
|
get there, and they ended up not playing because their smoke machine didn't
|
|
work. So they packed up their stuff and left. I guess it was a drag for them
|
|
because they couldn't play with smoke.
|
|
|
|
Yow: That's really sad.
|
|
|
|
Sims: I was in disbelief...
|
|
|
|
Chad: Um, groupies, have you read I'M WITH THE BAND?
|
|
|
|
Groupie 1: What does that have to do with anything...
|
|
|
|
Groupie 2: Pamela Debarres? That book... (garbled)... Can you imagine that?
|
|
|
|
Yow: I'm illiterate.
|
|
|
|
Dinosaur Jr. starts playing upstairs...
|
|
|
|
Yow: Oh, fuck, is this Dinosaur Jr.? This whiney bullshit, I don't know about
|
|
this kind of crap, with the jangley guitars, and the weak ass garbage... I
|
|
don't know... is this what it's coming to?
|
|
|
|
Matt: So you like this?
|
|
|
|
Yow: Yeah, I like it a lot.
|
|
|
|
Chad: You've worked with Steve on all the albums right? How has that been?
|
|
|
|
Yow: He's good to work with and his tongue is gentle on a man's taint.
|
|
|
|
Chad: We've run out of Jesus Lizard questions, can we give you the Dinosaur
|
|
interview also?
|
|
|
|
Matt: We're not going to get to talk to them, so you guys can do both...
|
|
|
|
Yow: Can I ask the questions? You guys, you guys, hold it down... Matt and
|
|
Chad didn't get to talk to Dinosaur Jr. so we're going to do their interview
|
|
for them.
|
|
|
|
Duane: I'll be J.
|
|
|
|
Chad: Steve will you be Murph?
|
|
|
|
Yow: Someone stole our radio station's copy of Green Mind. Can we have another
|
|
one?
|
|
|
|
(Big pause, then everyone starts whining)
|
|
|
|
Albini: Um, we don't have stuff like that on tour...
|
|
|
|
Duane: Call our record company...
|
|
|
|
Albini: Aren't there people who take care of all that?
|
|
|
|
Yow: What's wrong with you guys?
|
|
|
|
Duane: We're J. Mascis!
|
|
|
|
Yow: Did you find a new bass player yet?
|
|
|
|
Albini: No.
|
|
|
|
Duane: Um.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Has the new album been doing well?
|
|
|
|
Albini: No.
|
|
|
|
Duane: It turns pretty good.
|
|
|
|
Yow: How did you get so tight with Sonic Youth?
|
|
|
|
Albini: Sex.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Have you written any songs about THEM?
|
|
|
|
Duane: The giant ants?
|
|
|
|
(At this point David Yow starts rotating between questions on the list and
|
|
questions he made up)
|
|
|
|
Yow: Do you guys like Flipper Jr.?
|
|
|
|
Duane: Not at all, those guys suck.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Was your father really called Dinosaur?
|
|
Yow: How many times must a cannonball fly?
|
|
Yow: I like the God, the 600, the uh, Goo demo... how many songs were recorded?
|
|
|
|
Albini: Uh.
|
|
|
|
Yow: What is Lou Reed doing now?
|
|
|
|
Albini: Giving head down in Soho!
|
|
|
|
Yow: What is Louis Armstrong doing now?
|
|
Yow: What do you think of Lebanon?
|
|
Yow: Are you guys computer wackers?
|
|
Yow: A computer BBS Amigo?
|
|
Yow: Do you have anything you'd like to close with?
|
|
Yow: What is the significance of Bug? Why not beetle or worm?
|
|
|
|
Duane: Beetle or worm.
|
|
|
|
Yow: Whose hair is the longest?
|
|
Yow: What does J. stand for?
|
|
|
|
Duane: Freedom!
|
|
|
|
(At this point we all start laughing so hard we can't continue)
|
|
_ _ ____________________________________________________________________
|
|
/((___))\|Demon Roach Undrgrnd.806/794-4362|Kingdom of Shit.......806/794-1842|
|
|
[ x x ] |NIHILISM.............517/546-0585|Paisley Pasture.......916/673-8412|
|
|
\ / |Polka AE {PW:KILL}...806/794-4362|Ripco.................312/528-5020|
|
|
(' ') |Tequila Willy's GSC..209/526-3194|The Works.............617/861-8976|
|
|
(U) |====================================================================|
|
|
.ooM |Copr. 1991 cDc communications by G.A. Ellsworth 08/31/91-#191|
|
|
\_______/|All Rights Pissed Away. FIVE YEARS of cDc|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|