Questions for Ryan Adams

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Okay, this isn't quite as classy as Ned interviewing Jason Pierce, but I'm speaking to the ol' rock 'n roll fuckwit later this week. Anyone got any questions?

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:52 (twenty-two years ago)

ask him what song he's going to be singing at Grey Cup on Sunday.

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Much I would like to ask him the Bryan Adams questions and all -- ask him if he ever gets tired of rock and roll or anything resembling 'roots' music. Seriously.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him why his records suck so bad. No, not really. Tell him to stop talking about growing on Punk Rock when his records still sound like yawnsome alt.country crapola.

And kick him for me. Hard.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:56 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him what music Alex should buy for his nephew.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:56 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him why everybody I know who likes him a lot is a complete asshole.

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:56 (twenty-two years ago)

Hahahaha

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:57 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him why he walked off-stage in Australia. I think it was Australia where the fans kept shouting Summer of 69

― nick.K (nick.K), Thursday, 13 November 2003 16:58 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if Princess Di was any good in bed.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:01 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him to defend the indefensible: himself.

― Chris Ott (Chris Ott), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:04 (twenty-two years ago)

Even Uncut hates him now. Isn't that everyone in the whole world then?

― Dr. C (Dr. C), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:05 (twenty-two years ago)

Possibly - but I hated him years before it became fashionable!

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:08 (twenty-two years ago)

No.... wait, That's Bryan Adams.

You can leave it in 'though - might be good for a laugh.

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Laugh = immediate termination of interview

― DJ Mencap (DJ Mencap), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:19 (twenty-two years ago)

And indeed vice versa.

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:26 (twenty-two years ago)

Why do you feel the need to release every song you've ever written? Do you really want to be Bob Pollard: The Next Generation?

― Keith Harris (kharris1128), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:41 (twenty-two years ago)

(follow up to Keith's q) did your mommy not come and look everytime you made boom-boom in the potty?

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:45 (twenty-two years ago)

What's with the shitty album covers?

― Gear! (Gear!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Keep 'em coming!

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:56 (twenty-two years ago)

If you seriously ask all these I salute you. Get him drunk first.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:57 (twenty-two years ago)

Show him this and ask if he's a fan.

http://www.nihilistdisco.matterwave.net/images/yakidk.jpg

― Gear! (Gear!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:57 (twenty-two years ago)

ask him "if you were one of the Fab Five from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, which one would you be, and what you do to change my look?"

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 17:58 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if he agrees with this statement:

“Rock, it needs to be true. When the guy sings, ‘I’m going down to Kansas City to get me some crazy little women and I’m gonna get me one,’ you have to believe he’s going to Kansas City, he knows about crazy women and he wants to get him one. And if we do that, bingo, it rings.”

And when he does laugh and point at him and say "Dude, you just agreed with Huey Lewis! How lame are you?"

― Keith Harris (kharris1128), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:03 (twenty-two years ago)

y'know, I think he IS Huey Lewis...

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:04 (twenty-two years ago)

you so cool

― athos magnani (Cozen), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:05 (twenty-two years ago)

"Who do you think you are, Huey Lewis?"
OR
"Is it hip to be square?"

― Keith Harris (kharris1128), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:06 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him who he prefers: Youth or Raven. Regardless of his answer, shout "WRONG, HERETIC, PREPARE TO HONOR THE FIRE!" Then, roughly push him over, strike a match and set fire to his shirt.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:07 (twenty-two years ago)

I mean that seriously, the whole supposed adherence to a code of classic rockalism but with a fresh "now" attitude and fluffy hair.

except huey always seems like a nice guy

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:08 (twenty-two years ago)

Serious question: Ask him about his thoughts or involvement with Grand Theft Parsons.

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:08 (twenty-two years ago)

ask him nothing but questions about whiskeytown and a possible whiskeytown reunion

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:08 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if he's jealous of Caitlin Cary because her records are so much better than his.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:09 (twenty-two years ago)

haha - ask him his opinion on current hip-hop cuz his answer'll be lame no matter what (either reactionary a la jack white who I still love anyway or 'oh I think it's great I love missy and outkast' which is such a fucking lame stingworthy response).

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him what he thinks of Robbie Fulks.

― Jazzbo (jmcgaw), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if Jim Barber bragged about banging Courtney Love.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:12 (twenty-two years ago)

Wear a Robbie Fulks t-shirt

― Gear! (Gear!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Tell him to take a lot of pills and die.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:14 (twenty-two years ago)

Hahaha

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:14 (twenty-two years ago)

http://robbiefulks.com/store/tshirt1icon.jpg

― Gear! (Gear!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:14 (twenty-two years ago)

How can it be country AND alternative?

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:15 (twenty-two years ago)

by sucking

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:16 (twenty-two years ago)

"alternative" country, like "alternative" rock = I'm not very good at this

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:17 (twenty-two years ago)

y'allternative

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:17 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if he runs screaming from the idea that people might actually like to listen to music without guitars.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:19 (twenty-two years ago)

"I like Willie Nelson! He's ALTERNATIVE!"-Bobby Hill, son of Hank

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:19 (twenty-two years ago)

"Ask him if he runs screaming from the idea that people might actually like to listen to music without guitars"

Some of his stuff is piano-only. Now he detest music made by completely electronic goodies.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:21 (twenty-two years ago)

Ah, good point. I hadn't investigated his music enough to know that (and I can't say I feel deprived).

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:21 (twenty-two years ago)

"did you see what Winona Ryder wore to the [big fuckin deal event]?"

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:22 (twenty-two years ago)

make up some quotes from ja rule trashing ryan adams and get him to trash ja rule and then in your article leave out that you instigated it with some made up ja rule quotes.

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:23 (twenty-two years ago)

ask him what he thinks of ashton kutchnor's endorsement of john edwards, and whether he has the balls to make such a stand ie. 'are you half the man ashton kutchnor is?'

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:24 (twenty-two years ago)

"if you were a chicken finger dip, would you be honey garlic or peppecorn?"

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:26 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if he and Robbie Fulks are willing to meet with Minister Farrakhan.

― Keith Harris (kharris1128), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:27 (twenty-two years ago)

yeh ask about whiskeytown some

― athos magnani (Cozen), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him how come all his girlfirends(Leona, Wynona, Parker) look like they could be sisters. I mean, does he have some thing against blondes?

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:29 (twenty-two years ago)

I've interviewed him a few times, he's always been very very nice. Ask him about sequencing his records; since he has so many songs to pick from, how does he pick the ones that go on *that* record? What was the musical 'center' of his last few records? What were his surroundings when he was writing Rock and Roll?

I suppose the obvious question is why did he work with the Smiths' producer on his last album and what did he get out of it?

Also ask him if he wrote "Gonna Make You Love Me" in Cancun.

― teeny (teeny), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him if he'll ever release an outtakes compilation...

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:33 (twenty-two years ago)

You have more patience than I, Teeny (if I was asking those initial questions, I admit I would feel like I'd be in hell).

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:34 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him what it was like to work with Robin Hood

― Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:38 (twenty-two years ago)

and maybe throw in a few fat jokes too?

― athos magnani (Cozen), Thursday, 13 November 2003 18:41 (twenty-two years ago)

"Why Bother?"

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Thursday, 13 November 2003 19:07 (twenty-two years ago)

Why would you be in hell, Ned? I know you don't like him but it's just a job. FWIW, he was much nicer than Jason Pierce. :)

― teeny (teeny), Thursday, 13 November 2003 19:49 (twenty-two years ago)

'are you half the man ashton kutchnor is?'
GOLD! PURE FREAKING GOLD!

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Thursday, 13 November 2003 19:50 (twenty-two years ago)

how is Adam Duritz so much better at starfucking than you are?

between yourself and Conor Oberst, who's winning? is there some kind of checklist involved?

― Josh Love (screamapillar), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:07 (twenty-two years ago)

Make sure to note that Duritz is fat.

― Gear! (Gear!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:08 (twenty-two years ago)

"Why are you emailing Fred over a lukewarm review?"

― El Diablo Robotico (Nicole), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:17 (twenty-two years ago)

"ts: 'pump up the jam' vs. 'gonna make you sweat'?"

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:18 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him why he doesn't play "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" at his gigs anymore ;)

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:34 (twenty-two years ago)

and whether or not he got to meet kiefer sutherland when he did that 3 musketeers song. because 24 totally rules.

― Felcher (Felcher), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:35 (twenty-two years ago)

ask him something that would be more appropriately asked of Bryan Adams

― cinniblount (James Blount), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:38 (twenty-two years ago)

Yes, ask about his affair with Princess Diana.

― El Diablo Robotico (Nicole), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:40 (twenty-two years ago)

what's it like being a shitty Tom Petty?

― Felcher (Felcher), Thursday, 13 November 2003 20:42 (twenty-two years ago)

"I know you get pissed when people ask you to play Summer of '69 at your gigs. Why is that, since it's one of your biggest hits?"

"Do you ever get confused for alt-country singer Ryan Adams?"

"Are you running away or dancing on the cover of Cuts Like A Knife? Or is there a third, more risque reason for the pose?"

― Gear! (Gear!), Thursday, 13 November 2003 21:03 (twenty-two years ago)

Does Keith Richards still return your phone calls?

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Thursday, 13 November 2003 21:08 (twenty-two years ago)

Why would you be in hell, Ned?

Because I'd rather be asking "How come everything I've heard from you wants to make me stab you?"

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 21:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Thanks Ned -- that'll be my opener.

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 13 November 2003 22:40 (twenty-two years ago)

YES!

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 13 November 2003 22:41 (twenty-two years ago)

As him why nothing looks good on him but you

― Vic (Vic), Friday, 14 November 2003 00:32 (twenty-two years ago)

Parker ...oh good i knew i needed to put this crush behind me.

david, hm...

― typo acapulco (gcannon), Friday, 14 November 2003 01:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him how long it takes to carefully tousle his hair every morning.

― Christian Rawk (Christian Rawk), Friday, 14 November 2003 01:49 (twenty-two years ago)

wow yall HATE this motherfucker, huh?

I didn't know about him having beef with Robbie Fulks - what's that about? Somebody fill me in.

― roger adultery (roger adultery), Friday, 14 November 2003 03:15 (twenty-two years ago)

I really like the AMG review of hisnew album - classic Erlewine stylee in tring to be balanced but saying he's terrible - also funny is how they gave all his efforts after heartbreaker 3 stars!! hahaHA. so much for critical "acclaim"

― Vic (Vic), Friday, 14 November 2003 03:50 (twenty-two years ago)

when will you do a duet with tina turner?

do you think that kevin costner will approach you to do a soundtrack for one of his films?

who's fatter, jim derogatis or jim o'rourke?

in a bar-room brawl between you and jeff tweedy, which one of you would be the one who gets dragged along the counter?

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 14 November 2003 04:08 (twenty-two years ago)

do you live yer life in the red?

who's filthier, you or andrew wk?

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 14 November 2003 04:09 (twenty-two years ago)

if you got into a fight with jeff tweedy, do you think that he'd call o'rourke over to sit on you?

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 14 November 2003 04:10 (twenty-two years ago)

when you gonna bang chloe sevigny?

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 14 November 2003 04:11 (twenty-two years ago)

how come we've never seen you and ethan padgett in a room at the same time?

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Friday, 14 November 2003 04:12 (twenty-two years ago)

How about....Didn't you realize that repeatedly thanking Alanis Morrissette in your liner notes and posing for all those pics with a pistol in bed just made you look like an utter, utter jackass?

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 14 November 2003 04:20 (twenty-two years ago)

real question

ryan seems pretty cognizant of how he's portrayed in the press; ask him how that self-knowlege affects his approach to music.

― MerkinMuffley (MerkinMuffley), Friday, 14 November 2003 05:27 (twenty-two years ago)

Tell him that when you put "Ryan Adams naked" into google image search you get this:
http://www.efetus.com/thechord/New%20Releases/Images/67581800762.jpg
and ask him how he feels about Of Montreal

― Sonny A. (Keiko), Friday, 14 November 2003 05:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Tad, Jim O'Rourke has lost a lot of weight.

― hstencil, Friday, 14 November 2003 06:00 (twenty-two years ago)

plus he's a pretty rocking dude

― cinniblount (James Blount), Friday, 14 November 2003 06:03 (twenty-two years ago)

here he is prior to auditioning for weezer:

http://www.jjrecords.com/Images/Imagesevents/ORourke.jpg

― the surface noise (electricsound), Friday, 14 November 2003 06:04 (twenty-two years ago)

Ryan Adams at his worst is still better then most the jokes on here. "You should ask him why he sucks! And like why is he is so bad and sucky!?!" Like even 'Gold' has a better hit to miss ratio then this.

― bnw (bnw), Friday, 14 November 2003 07:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Ask him what he thinks of Elton John's new record, which was inspired by Gold.

Sadly not the Spandau Ballet song of the same name.

― Billy Dods (Billy Dods), Friday, 14 November 2003 10:07 (twenty-two years ago)

I'm roaring with laughter inside.

― Raymond Cummings (Raymond Cummings), Friday, 14 November 2003 16:27 (twenty-two years ago)

Ryan Adams in an interview or something was taking potshots at a number of other acts, and Robbie Fulks wasn't spared. He referred to him as a "novelty act". Robbie Fulks then heard the story about how a concertgoer was booted out of a venue by Adams for shouting out for him to play "Summer of '69". Fulks told fans on his website:

October 17th, 2002
Piss off Ryan Adams, win a prize!
Site user HiramW1 was the first to report the following amusing anecdote:

"Singer-songwriter Ryan Adams is not amused by the similarity of his name to Canadian rocker Bryan Adams. At a Ryan Adams concert at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn., on Tuesday, someone in the audience yelled out a request for Summer of '69, a Bryan Adams hit. Ryan Adams, former leader of the band Whiskeytown, reacted with a stream of expletives and ordered the house lights turned on. The alternative country musician found the fan who made the joke request, paid him $30 as a refund for the show, ordered him to leave and said he wouldn't play another note until that happened. The auditorium's general manager, Pam Matthews, stopped the fan on his way out, "apologized profusely" and allowed him back into the concert. The fan kept Adams's $30."

We here at RobbieFulks.Com find that just too damn funny. So much in fact that Robbie made this offer:

"Any reader on this site who attends a Ryan Adams show and disrupts the show with a Bryan Adams song request will receive in return merchandise of his or her choice, equal to the cost of the ticket, from my online store. You're on the honor system, necessarily; but please provide the date and location of the show, what you yelled, and what Ryan's reaction was."

― Gear! (Gear!), Friday, 14 November 2003 17:24 (twenty-two years ago)

What does he think of the Paris Hilton Sex tape?

On a more serious note, perhaps you ought to ask him about Elliott Smith.

― Charles McCain (Charles McCain), Friday, 14 November 2003 17:46 (twenty-two years ago)

Wow, that's so funny! Man, I love Robbie Fulks. "Couples in Trouble" rules and is NOT a 'novelty' record at all.

It occurs to me (being a person who at one time counted Whiskeytwon as one of his favorite bands) that Ryan could avoid all the "Bryan Adams" crap by going by his real name, which, if you read the liner notes to Faithless Street, isn't Ryan at all - it's DAVID.

― roger adultery (roger adultery), Friday, 14 November 2003 19:52 (twenty-two years ago)

A bit of lovely boomerism for you, brought to us tonight by the EW reviewer Tom Sinclair:

It's small wonder that rock critics love Ryan Adams: Dude sure knows how to push their buttons. On his breakthrough solo album, 2001's ''Gold,'' the young, ex-Whiskeytown singer-guitarist came on like 10 different great '60s/'70s artists, recalling everyone from the Rolling Stones and Neil Young to The Band and Traffic. Playing spot-the-influences was half the fun with this guy (although, truth be told, he did manage to stamp every song with his own distinct persona). On kcoR N lloR, Adams seems to have moved on to cribbing from '80s and '90s role models. ''So Alive'' channels early U2, while ''Burning Photographs'' could be a lost B side from A Flock of Seagulls. Despite its title, ''This Is It'' evokes not the Strokes but the Replacements. (Indeed, the shadow of former 'Mats main man Paul Westerberg hangs heavy over this album -- not to mention over Adams' own booze-stoked, I-toss-off-future-classics-between-boilermakers cartoon image). In keeping with the alt-rock aesthetic, there is a primitive urgency to many of these tracks -- in particular, ''Note to Self: Don't Die,'' which sounds like the best Nirvana pastiche Bush never got around to doing -- but it doesn't all add up to a CD that's as good as ''Gold.'' That's probably because the source material carries considerably less mythos. Will '60s/'70s always beat '80s/'90s? You betcha -- until someone manages to convince us that Bush were greater than the Stones. Grade: B

― Vic (Vic), Saturday, 15 November 2003 05:26 (twenty-two years ago)

yay! thanks for reminding me why i don't read EW.

― Jay Dee Sah Mon (Kingfish), Saturday, 15 November 2003 08:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Playing spot-the-influences was half the fun with this guy

When was this published? I used this EXACT phrase in my review a month ago. (I'm sure I unknowingly ripped it off someone else, but still.) (also I know it's horrible writing.)

― teeny (teeny), Saturday, 15 November 2003 19:05 (twenty-two years ago)

so what's the word, Chuck?
How'd it go?

― HuckleberryMann, Saturday, 15 November 2003 20:58 (twenty-two years ago)

http://www.popfile.de/index.jsp?url=/artistinfopage.jsp?interpreter=Ryan+Adams

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Saturday, 15 November 2003 23:14 (twenty-two years ago)

haha!

― gygax! (gygax!), Sunday, 16 November 2003 02:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Ach, well -- nothing too contraversial in the end, quel suprise. He wants to be an opera singer. He thinks he must have been a slave trader in a previous life for all the shit he's getting now. Etc.
I'm a shitty music interviewer anyway -- I blame Natalie Imbruglia, who scared the bejeezus out of me two years ago with her almost elemental vacuity.
But thanks for the questions, it'll be up at www.eye.net in a few. Next time I'll ask him about the stabbing, Ned ;-)

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Tuesday, 18 November 2003 16:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Hurrah!

He thinks he must have been a slave trader in a previous life for all the shit he's getting now.

There's a convenient dodge. "Clearly it's not my OWN fault people hate me!"

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 18 November 2003 16:56 (twenty-two years ago)

So, here's the interview, which'll be in Toronto's eye next week. Think I was too polite, but the answer to the last question is great, as is his description of George Bush as a "masthead" (sic, obviously). Anyway, cheers for the suggestions.

So, how's olde England treating you?
It's fuckin' depressing. We're at the BBC studio to perform on Jools Holland's music show, and it's dark at 4:30 so it might as well be fuckin' midnight. It's fucked up. I miss being home in New York.

Are the Brits giving you slack over your president's visit?
Aw, I don't give a fuck about that guy. He's not my president. I don't think he's anybody in the US's president. Apparently he didn't even win the election. He's an idiot. I think he bumped his head on the plane on the way here. He's just a masthead, it's Donald Rumsfeld who's running stuff. But what do I know? It's none of my business, they're the ones that control the world, I just wanna play music.

Rock N Roll is lot heavier and less polished than Gold. Was that a deliberate attempt to rough things up?
It's more interesting for people to say I have a masterplan or something, but I just wrote a bunch of songs and put them on the record. It happened that me and Johnny [Pisano, Adams' bassist] don't have an acoustic guitar in our rehearsal space, just electrics. We wanted to play more loud and obtuse, like a live show.

No plans to release a trendy electronica record then?
Well, I've got some pretty weird shit at the house. I'd like to write an opera or something, but there's not enough fuckin' time in the day. I have a new band, Werewolph, with me, Johnny on drums, my friend Spanky singing, and this girl Sarah on bass. It's really fuckin' heavy stuff. Really, really, really. Goth-heavy.

Like the Sisters of Mercy?
No, more like The Melvins. Some of the other guys think it sounds like Black Sabbath or Voivod. It's gonna come out on my label when it's done, but I have to get home from touring to record it.

You're not playing any older music on the tour.
I played songs [from the new albums] on the first night and people bitched about 'em online and stuff. But then I thought, "fuck everybody," so now I'm only doing songs from Love Is Hell and Rock N Roll. It's like, shit man, I just released two fuckin' records, I should probably be playing them on tour. Maybe the new stuff doesn't make people happy, maybe they want me to stay the same. It's not gonna happen though. I have to grow up.

Music journalists tend to be quite snarky about your image as a rock 'n' roll hellraiser.
Y'know, whatever karmatically I've done to end up in this position where I seem to be in constant quarrel with people, people havin' problems with me, it's just fuckin' amazing. Y'know, I must have lynched the fuck out of somebody in a past life, or maybe some of my relatives were in the slave trade, or like they were the guys that invented bullets. Something very wrong.

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:03 (twenty-two years ago)

By the way, he seemed quite a sweetie -- although not the brightest pea in the pod, I'm thinking.

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:06 (twenty-two years ago)

whatever karmatically

I want to kill him.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:11 (twenty-two years ago)

you should have asked him what kind of music he listens to (see other active thread)

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:13 (twenty-two years ago)

There was a bit where he went on about LOTR and Battlestar Gallictica, but I cut that out

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:16 (twenty-two years ago)

...but what did he say?

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:26 (twenty-two years ago)

He's a big sci-fi nut, particulalrly for LOTR and Battlestar Galactica. He didn't care to elucidate, but I think the influence is clear on his music :-)

My favourite part, which I edited for, um, clarity, was him saying: "I'd like to write an opera. (Pause.) Or something. (Pause.) But first, there's not enough fuckin. (Pause.) Time in the. (Pause.) Say. (Pause.) And second. (Long pause.) Second is that there is also not enough time in the day."

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:46 (twenty-two years ago)

(that's "day", not "say")

― Chuck Tatum (Chuck Tatum), Thursday, 27 November 2003 19:47 (twenty-two years ago)

maybe he could work by night?

― Huckleberry Mann (Horace Mann), Thursday, 27 November 2003 20:31 (twenty-two years ago)

I thought his performances on Jools Holland were alright, actually....the songs are dumber but the energy, the ringing 80s sound was exciting.

― Pete S, Thursday, 27 November 2003 22:41 (twenty-two years ago)

one month passes...

Bump... because I'm interviewing this crazy cat tomorrow, and... well, if my first question is "What is it about you that so many people hate?", what can my follow ups be?

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Wednesday, 21 January 2004 17:21 (twenty-two years ago)

"Is Jim DeRogatis your friend?"

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 21 January 2004 17:30 (twenty-two years ago)

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