Features / One Question Interviews

Stomatopod

SPB: What song has the best use of whistling? 

Elliot: “Young Folks” by Peter Bjorn and John....the whistle is the hook....and starts the song... (although that Guns ‘N’ Roses song probably sold more records...)

Sharon: “Love Is A Battlefield” by Pat Benatar.

Her album Crimes of Passion was the first cassette I ever bought (but …

Andy Pohl (Sell The Heart Records)

SPB: Have you ever signed a band you didn’t personally know?

Pohl: Yes, I've worked with many bands that I didn't personally know beforehand. Most have been introduced to me by other bands or musicians that I personally knew, such as Failing Up, Original Son and Heavy Seas. There have been a …

Davey Warsop (Suedehead, Beat Union, Sharp/Shock)

SPB: Noting that Terry Hall recently passed away, what is your favorite song by The Specials and what does it mean to you?

Warsop: It’s so hard to choose but currently I’d probably say “Do Nothing” … The lyrics and melody are just so haunting. 

But they had so many great …

Chris (School Drugs)

SPB: What model van is your go-to for touring?

Chris: Econoline E-350 with extended cab, the fifteen-passenger masterpiece. Generally bigger and more comfortable, able to haul all gear and personal effects. Out of the thirteen vans I've owned, four of them were that very model. The last van we had before our current ride, known …

Sarah Mary Chadwick

SPB: Do any of your musician friends have tinnitus?

Chadwich: Tinnitus? I barely knew him!

Shaylee

SPB: What song would you want played at your funeral?

Shaylee: Hmm, my funeral? I've never given it much thought, but the first one that comes to mind is "Motion Picture Soundtrack" by Radiohead. The organ on the track feels very reminiscent of a funeral procession, and the lyrics about how "it's not like the movies" would …

Michael Allen (Sundown – guitar/vocals)

SPB: What is your favorite stretch of highway to drive on tour?

Allen: There's a bridge in Florida heading into Tampa called the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. It's on 275, I believe, and it was when we finally saw the ocean. Bowie had just come on the radio and we had the windows down …

Eric (Some Became Hollow Tubes)

SPB: How did COVID impact the recording of this collaborative record?

Eric: COVID gave us the gift of time. We worked slower than usual, since we were adjusting to life at home and finding other things to occupy the mind from all the gloomy stuff. After the initial shocks, cancelations, uncertainties and …

Solilians

SPB: What is your favorite music related film or documentary? 

Solilians: German filmmaker Claudia Heuermann’s Sabbath In Paradise (on Tzadik) explores the question of what it means to be a modern experimental Jewish musician from all angles, capturing Radical Jewish Culture and downtown NYC’s East Village golden age of the early ‘90s in all it’s breath, …

Nathaniel (Spaceships)

SPB: Tell us about your amp pairings and how you chose them.

Nathaniel: I run a stereo rig with a Vox AC15 and a 1960s Gibson Falcon. I encountered a Falcon while helping a friend who runs an amp repair shop. He had me put it together and test it, and I fell in love -- …

Shrugdealer

SPB: What is the worst job you’ve ever had?

Shrug Dealer's WORST JOBS:

Sol Doubt (bass) - "Door-to-door vacuum cleaner salesman."
Russ Worstell (lead vocals/guitar) - "Beer keg delivery driver."
Josh Smith (drums) - "Drummer of Shrug Dealer. Or carpet cleaner. That one actually kinda sucked.
Rob Lanterman (lead vocals/guitar) - "I run an independent record …

So Hideous (Brandon Cruz)

SPB: What instrument (or instrument combo) was the hardest to capture in the studio when recording None But A Pure Heart Can Sing?

Cruz: We’ve used strings on every single one of our releases but it was particularly challenging on this album as we tried a different methodology. On the last two records …

Jon Pagano (Sullest, Weak Teeth, Best Practices)

SPB: What’s the secret to a successful tour?

Pagano: Preparation and communication are critical. Plan a route, then plan a secondary route, and honestly for good measure, plan a third route. With so many variables, you’ll want as much flexibility as possible in case something falls through. Make sure you get …

Suho (Sidecar)

SPB: How is the Busan scene different than other punk scenes in Korea? (What makes it unique compared to, for example, Seoul?)

Suho: Besides the 1990s when punk rock was at its peak in Busan, it’s a challenge to play punk here because Busan doesn’t always have many bands, and the number of venues is small. …

Andy Diaz (Safety)

SPB: You break a string onstage during a song. What’s your strategy: attempt a BB King-style replacement while playing?

Diaz: If I break a string in the middle of a song, I simplify the chords until I have the opportunity to grab my backup guitar. For me, having a backup tuned and ready to go …

Sandré

SPB: What was the first concert you all attended (together)?

Sandré: We went to the Idles show together two years ago. It was incredible. Stefi and Rosa ended up on stage. Marc lost his glasses. Nothing happened to Carles but he enjoyed it very much. 

Jason Fusco (Shehehe)

SPB: What drummer (not your own band) stand out to you the most?

My faFusco: vorite drummer is Michael Gonzalez of the local Athens, GA band Deep State. I just really dig his driving style of playing. It's aggresive, but fluid, reminds me of why I play drums in the first place, to really feel …

William Thomas Fay (Something Is Waiting)

SPB: I hear you make your own cabs. Can you tell us what the most important custom features are for your personal sound? 

Fay:

P. Bohner (SPELLS)

SPB: The band name is almost refreshingly simple. How did you choose it?

Bohner: Well first off, I would like to say that I am personally not a fan of being IN bands that contain the article "THE". I love bands that have articles in their name but I personally gravitate to names without it. …

Chris Murphy (Seven Crows)

SPB: Coming from the band’s perspective, how does it feel in 2020 to release a new record (as compared to releasing a record under different circumstances with live shows etc)?

Murphy: 2020 has been a challenge from all perspectives but I’m trying to make the best of it.

My music background is in …