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Tuesday, 06 May 2008 |
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There are a few bands that will always be more than you come to expect. Hot Water Music is one of those bands that have always been able to bring it all to every show, touring constantly and hanging around afterward to get to know their fans even when they had a long drive to the next city. They remind us that punk rock was, and is, about connecting with those around you and gaining strength from each other. Over all these years, Chuck Ragan has been much more than just a rough voice and an image. He has become an icon of a talented, humble and hard-working American – and he is a legend that is thankfully not yet done. Our Tim Rynders sat down with Chuck to talk about Hot Water Music's reunion. NR: How have the first few shows gone? Does it feel like you’ve never stopped playing as HWM or does it feel more like a distant dream? CHUCK: They’ve gone and felt absolutely incredible. The friends, fans and general turnout have been overwhelming and it’s just been everything and more than we all hoped it would be. As far as the feeling of HWM stopping or not, it’s been a little of both, I’d say. When I first flew to Florida to meet with the boys to play for the first time in 3 years, it felt as if it’d been a damn decade. Then it took about the first 3 chords and it all fell back into place. |
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Monday, 21 April 2008 |
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Mute Math's unique sound has been compared to U2 and Sting, but front-man Paul Meaney says Mute Math is an entity all its own. The band plans to prove that they're irreplaceable when they enter the studio this summer, by abandoning their roots to pursue the potential in each individual instrument. Our correspondent Mark Sherbin sits down to chat with Mr. Meaney... |
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Monday, 14 April 2008 |
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Our Marissa Ross got the chance to have a little chat with Taxi of Psychedelic Rock Group Dr. Dog. Here is how it all went down... I found out on a Wednesday afternoon I would be interviewing my favorite band on Thursday at noon. I ran around my house, singing at the top of my lungs, “I’m going to looooove you! Till the day I was born! And I’m going to caaallll yooou! So keep your ear to the horrrn!” Oh, man. I had just purchased Passed Away, Volume One that morning, and had completely fallen head over heels in love with Dr. Dog for the sixth time. photo: bighassle.com Back in 2006, I was drinking fo’ties with some pals. One good and very wise friend said, “Marissa, listen to this. They will be your new favorite band.” I was then subjected to the melodic bliss of the Takers and Leavers EP. It hit a chord that hadn’t been touched since I got Rubber Soul when I was eleven. I sank into the couch, utterly taken away by the awe-inspiring harmonies and the lyrics that spoke of all of my heart’s inner clangings I could never quite string the right words together to express. I felt like a schoolgirl again, wide-eyed and open hearted, trailing like a puppy behind a series of albums that I devoured in unconditional love. |
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Friday, 11 April 2008 |
Kevin Anderson is someone that I once shared a near-death experience with. There we sat, in the college dorm-room, and we were playing Tony Hawk 2 and we hear a sound that sounds like a falling bomb. Staring each other in the eyes, we both felt ripped off in the sense that we were going to be the last thing that each other saw before a nuke hit the campus. Turned out to be a dud, and fast-forward a few years, and Kevin wakes up, alive, in Nicaragua, as part of his work for Rise Up International. This is the grand-opening weekend of the Rise Up flagship store, and a portion of all of their gross receipts goes towards humanitarian efforts in Nicaragua, India, China, and locally. But not just for this weekend...this was the driving purpose behind opening the store in the first place. Here are the photos that Kevin graciously shared with us (my favorite is at the top here): Related Articles: Interview with Jesse Roberts of Rise Up International |
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Monday, 31 March 2008 |
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This week we present the first ever TLS video interview, and we were fortunate enough be joined by Jake Kiley and Chris Aiken from the legendary Southern California-based punk band Strung Out. The format is one of the most interesting ones I've seen in a while (Kiley and Aiken came up with it). It is a back-and-forth Q&A session based on questions submitted to their myspace page (myspace.com/strungout) by fans of the band. I have been a fan of Strung Out since their "Suburban Teenage Wasteland Blues" album came out (I was 13), so it was especially interesting to have them be a part of our site. Plus, the video was hilarious. Thanks to Kameron Shannon for filming and Donald Frith and Matt Salamone for the editing. |
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Friday, 28 March 2008 |
When a photographer's work makes me think about the whole process of the idea without thinking that they are just being facetious, I enjoy the work so much more because there is a refreshing honesty and I know that few hipsters would dare pretend that it has anything to do with their own existential angst. Sure, we are talking about a photographer who tries to trick you into thinking that people are flying, but he does it in a way where you feel let in on the joke, and so you aren't pissed off. The man has a CV longer than any article I have ever written, mostly filled with awards, but also showing his humble roots working for Young Photographers United. Jan works mostly in London and Berlin, and sent us some of his work to share with you, our loyal TLS readers, and since so many of you have probably seen the " Dreams of Flying " we wanted you to see some of his other work, including his newly released book which I just purchased five minutes ago here. |
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Tuesday, 18 March 2008 |
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Interview by Rebecca Zaragoza Making new music is a daunting task for Doug Martsch. This could come as a surprise to Built to Spill's ever-appreciative fan base, according to the energy at their recent show at the Echoplex in L.A., and people cannot get enough of their artful sound. My favorite thing about Built to Spill’s music is its effortless melody and tone and voice that resonate with many seasoned-ears; it's nostalgia seems timeless in a season when music seems so easy and available and fashionable. So how is it that such a respected musician can find his creative process to be daunting? This interview took place over the phone one week prior to Built to Spill’s show in L.A. Thanks go to Warner Brothers for cooperating with New Reform to make this interview happen. NR: Hey Doug, how are you doing man? DM: Good, how are you? NR: I’m doing well, thanks. So I was researching past interviews you have done and I have noticed that many writers often use the interview to show how much they know about your music. In this interview, I really want to get to know you as the face behind Built to Spill. So my first question is- Do you enjoy being interviewed or is it something you would rather not have to deal with? DM: Oh, you know, I think the first few interviews I did were really fun. But then, you know… I think a person can only be interviewed a certain amount of times. NR: Definitely! You guys have been around for awhile- |
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Friday, 14 March 2008 |
We came across the photography of Matthew Dols recently, and really liked his work, and asked him to share some of his favorite photos with us. He is very talented, and here he is, in his own words in response to our questions: I do not remember the first photo I took, but I do remember the first photo I printed, I still have it. It is an image of late afternoon light on the railing and altar of my fathers church (he is an Episcopal minister). It is a very high contrast image. My first camera was a 35mm Mamiya/Sekor that my father gave me to take a Photo class in high school.
The music that inspires me is pretty broad, but I would have to say that when my photos are working I can hear Medeski Martin and Wood, Rage Against the Machine, Soul Coughing, Fugazi, REM, and the Replacements in my head. It is as though when my photos are accomplishing my vision, I can hear their theme music in my head.
I currently live in Wilmington North Carolina. I have studied and lived in Washington DC, Iowa City, Iowa, San Francisco California just to name a few. Every person I know has a box of personal items that they keep hidden. But it is not exactly hidden; they subconsciously want someone to find it.They want someone to care enough about them, and their life to want to know the stories behind the things that matter enough to them to keep hidden in a box. My artwork shows the world my box, not so that they will care about me, or my life, but so that they might better understand their own life, through mine.
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Friday, 07 March 2008 |
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When I first came across the photography of Michael Singer, I had about 20 firefox browser tabs opened and my neurons were firing in spontaneous bunnytrail mode and I simply grabbed the RSS feed as my mind was sucking me in a different direction even though I would have very much liked to have stayed. Since the site is called "A Visual Notebook" it came up near the top of my RSS reader, and I kept noticing these tiny thumbnails that looked like colorbursts. Finally, I did it on his terms, slowed down for a minute, and took some time to really see what Michael Singer was up to. And I liked that his photos all represent a necessary slowing down in life, and an appreciation for naturally occuring textures. His work shows a careful emphasis on perspectives and different angles that reveal a bit of mystery, but also leave a lot to your imagination. In his own words, he wrote to us to convey what his photography means to him: My photography is mainly focusing on two subjects. First, the spaces that light is able to build (while i see also shadows as a form of light). Second, the membranes between inner and outer zones. Actually, this is my main interest, in art photography as well as in life. I'm fascinated by the permanent coexistence of an inside and an outside of things. With that dualism, theory meets real life every second: from birth to death, we are constantly moving from insides to outsides and back, and mostly it's only a matter of definition or point of view. For me, the real magic takes place at the interfaces of insides and outsides. While the moments of crossing these boundaries seem to be impossible to visualize, i believe that photography can at least reveal some of the requirements for that journey. This is what most of my visual notes are about.
He was born in 1955 in Graz, Austria, and lives in Vienna, Austria. You can check out "A Visual Notebook" here. |
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