1-800-BAND

     There was a time in the early 1980’s when I loved MTV and the videos they played, an era when it seemed rock music was still moving in new and exciting directions. The pop and new wave bands then had the ability to echo our own wide-eyed enthusiasm for the times and of the heartbreaking losses in love we went through and put it to terrific pop tunes. Well many listened but few learned, 1-800-BAND are some of the ones that took really good notes.  They learned to channel a similar romanticism and inject it into fun and undeniably catchy songs similar to the Pretenders and The Cars. 1-800-BAND do what so many rock n’ roll bands wish they could accomplish: they make something old sound new again! 

Interview by J Castro

Ok Al, let’s start off by telling me who’s all in the band and what you all do to earn your place?

AL: Al Huckabee on guitar and vocals, Polly Watson on keyboards, Robbie Kongress on bass and Aaron Carroll on Drums – all positions formed by the cooling of molten lava, no one earned a thing.

Now a bit about your musical careers, I know you were all in other musical endeavors prior (and maybe you’re in other bands now) so can you give us a brief rock n’ roll resume? 

AL: Sure, 1-800-BAND is made up of former members of the Hong Kong, a great new-wave-y Brooklyn band, Crimson Sweet which was a scrappy art-damaged punk band which toured incessantly for about eight years and Another Saturday Night which was a raucous rock n’ roll outfit. Somehow out of the murky overlap of these progenitors emerged the clear pop stylings of 1-800-BAND.

The band is based in Brooklyn NY. Based on your experiences, what are the best and worst parts about being in a band in a HUGE city like New York?

AL: Best part – there are countless clubs, countless bands and endless opportunities.

Worst part – there are countless clubs, countless bands and endless opportunities.

You guys did a great video for the song “Diver Blue” off of your EP of the same name (Almost Ready Records).  Have you seen the comment on Youtube by the guy that said you were “careless” about the senseless violence in it?  What do you think of that comment?  Do you think any band or public figure has any kind obligation to try and steer things away from that sort of thing? 

AL: Thanks, I’m glad you like the video. It was collaboration between the band and the extremely talented David Cavallo. Dave not only made the Diver Blue video but also the video for Would You Believe It from our debut LP. He’s also the cinematographer for Jodoroski’s Dune, which is an amazing documentary I can highly recommend for anyone who enjoys movies, stories or life. I’ve not seen the comment you refer to but I suppose the idea is that violence in a work of fiction is somehow a causal link to violence in real life. I reject this idea. I think fiction, fantasy and art are the safest ways known to mankind to explore, understand and form opinions about very difficult real-life problems.

If the commenter is looking for ‘careless’ decisions that give rise to Americans shooting each other dead in the street s/he should check out District of Columbia v. Heller 554 U.S. 570 (2008) and other similar lower court decisions. You bring up a great question about the obligation of bands and public figures. I think if 1-800-BAND were writing school curricula or crafting public policy we would all be in a lot of trouble but we aren’t; we write pop songs and make rock videos. We’re artists, we make art.

What sorts of things typically inspire 1-800-BAND songs?  Can you remember the most unusual person or place that inspired you to want to write about?

AL: We’re inspired by the same things that everyone else is: romance and having a great time! One thing I love about songwriting is how small, strange, disparate ideas can all coalesce and work together to form a song. In the song “Diver Blue,” Rob came up with that idea and the rhyming line “Change for a two, Diver Blue” as in change for a two-dollar bill. I love that because everyone knows what a two-dollar bill looks like but no one has one in their wallet right now. Two-dollar bills are cool but why? Our protagonist wants the girl but she’s with another guy so he has to break them up: change for a two. So the chorus is about this specific mundane piece of currency which by itself is perhaps nothing to sing about but in the context of the song its catchy, it rhymes and you can feel the heat of the underlying desire.

Or check out Polly’s lyrics in “Many Happy Returns”

“Sky and city receding

Curs whipped and bleeding

I’ll never tell you goodbye

I’ll never tell you goodbye

So watch the city burn

And many happy returns”

This is the complete opposite, this is not about a piece of paper in your wallet, this is like the end of the word! But if you can sing along with it and you can feel passion in it then it can rock.

You guys did a tour of the East Coast/Mid West earlier this year. How did you feel that went?  If you could do it over again is there anything you would do different?

AL: The tour went really well, thanks for asking. Touring is always an adventure, it’s serendipitous and no matter what happens you know the day is going to end in a party so it’s pretty great. The shows were really well attended which helps a lot. The only things I would do differently is tour more.

What are some of the things people do at your shows that aggravate/distract you the most while you’re playing? (example: texting, or taking pictures, stuff like that)

AL: Ha, that’s a great question – yeah the taking pictures or video thing is pretty funny because it sort of postpones life right? Wouldn’t people rather enjoy hearing and seeing the show in real time instead of recording it for…for what? Do they go home and watch it? I have no idea.

If a year from now 1-800-BAND were celebrating the best year the band has ever had, what particular achievements would you be celebrating?

AL: There is a kind of diversification of roles that comes with increasing success; when you first start a band you do everything yourselves (xerox the flyers, silk screen the T-shirts, change the oil in the van) but as things progress and move forward you can hand off some of those projects to people who specialize in those fields, so your T-shirts look better and the band can concentrate more time and energy on musicianship and songwriting. That’s the achievement I’m hoping 1-800-BAND can celebrate soon.

If you could experience the feelings of hearing your favorite band for the first time, what band would it be and what about the experience changed you forever?

AL: For me I think that would be hearing the Los Angeles band X for the first time.

I’d never heard anything that was so passionate, nuanced, and hard driving at the same time. They really rock but the music works at a lot of levels, it’s hook-y like pop music but the songs are about desperation and just barely getting by it’s incredibly creative and expressive but very accessible at the same time and it also serves as a great document of the time and place it was created. It really blew my mind.

Where can one go to hear the band or to purchase some of your tunes?

AL: Your local record store or your favorite digital music source.

What lies ahead in the near future for 1-800-BAND?

AL: Mitch Easter is producing our next effort so we’re really excited to work hard to bring our best in terms of songwriting, and musicianship. With each of our records, we’re reaching wider and wider audiences and that’s a really good feeling – we just want to continue to make records that mean something to us and that people can connect with.

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Bad Doctors

     While Bad Doctors might need a technical support team to set up all of their gear, one thing they don’t help with is crafting catching songs. Burning City sounds like a lost tape from Factory Records or an unreleased Manchester band from the mid-‘80’s full of brooding hook laden pop written much the same way New Order and mid-80’s The Cure did played with the energy of Devo. Bad Doctors may play basement shows with the punks, but that doesn’t seem to be the last stop for this new wave machine.

Interview by Ed Stuart

Who’s answering the questions?

This is Luke, Matt and Dan.

Where is the band from?

We're from Philadelphia.

Who is in the band and what instrument do they play?

Luke mostly plays bass and synth, Matt sings and plays guitar, and Dan has a drum kit.  We all do other stuff too.

How did The Bad Doctors start?

We started about 8 years ago recording demos into a boombox, just a whole lot of tapes. At some point that’s hard to pin down, we started writing The Bad Doctors on them when we were done. Distractions was the first demo (not committed to tape) that was good enough to be released, but there’s a stack of old recordings buried in a military ammunitions case somewhere.

What bands were big influences on the sound of Bad Doctors?

Big Influences: AFX, Wendy Carlos, John Wesley Harding, Andie Oppenheimer, Introspective, “Sweet Lips” from Monaco’s Music For Pleasure, and the t-shirts of Sean McBride.

What is the scene like in Philadelphia? I read Bad Doctors played a lot of house parties and basement shows to build an initial fan base. Is this typically the way bands get fans in Philly?

The punk scene is definitely the most active crowd in Philly, so we immediately gravitated towards it. We wanted people to listen to us and we wanted to get them dancing. A lot of shows we played with (indie) bands would be empty, and if people showed up they definitely wouldn't dance. In the punk community, kids showed up and listened. They either loved us or hated us, but they supported us either way: they let us keep playing shows, and sometimes they danced. There's a lot more going on in Philly, but that's where we grew up in the city.

To piggyback off the last question, there is a quote from Radio Static stating, “In terms of DIY venues, it depends more on whether or not we can fit all our electronics in the show-space than anything else.” If you’re playing house parties and basement those shows must have been pretty cramped. Did you ever worry about bringing all those electronics to those shows?

Yeah, it’s a huge problem. We need a technical support team, to be honest.

What are some Philly bands we should be looking out for?

Sgnls, Crazy Bull, Psychic Teens, Void Vision, Pat Martino, Charles Cohen.

How did you come into contact with FDH Records and eventually decide to release Burning City with FDH?

Colin at SIT AND SPIN RECORDS made Matt buy a Destruction Unit record which FDH released and made Eric Hansen, who founded FDH, buy Distractions. It was a pretty devious play by Colin to get us in touch with each other, but it worked.

Do you think music can still be a vital force in such a disposable age?

Well, if we're talking vital forces, Trismegistus would say that fire is the element of change, and fundamentally the only vital force in existence. All other forces are illusory. We’re just musicians trying to communicate as honestly as possible.

There is a quote in The Styrofoam Dome that describes Bad Doctors as “The band has crafted a hybrid of post-punk, new-wave, dance, and indie that keeps you in a modern time frame while also sounding eerily like a record that could have been in the vaults of Factory Records.”

Fair enough.

50 years ago people used to buy music and get their water for free, now people pay for water and get their music for free. How do you think this affects music in any way?

Steal your water and buy our music.

In an interview with Radio Static, there is a quote stating “We put out Distractions in 2010, but we’d been making a lot of bad music for years before that.”  Some of your fans might disagree with this quote. Is this case of a band being harder on themselves then they should or does the band honestly believe that?  What were some of the main differences when approaching Burning City then when writing for the older material?

Anyone who was around in our early days watching and listening to what we were doing wouldn’t disagree with that quote. The songs were decent, but we had no idea how to perform them. We made a lot of people watch us learn how to perform our songs. We used to write songs and the idea would be complete, the song would exist in its own little universe, but for Burning City all the songs were written in a way that would establish a structure to hold a much larger idea. It was a much longer and more deliberate process.

Who did the artwork for Burning City?  What was the initial concept? 

Michael G. Haddad, a Canadian guy, did the artwork. We had some ideas in terms of style and he knew exactly the vibe we were going for. If you look at his work on the Teledrome Lp or the Zebrassieres “I am Human” cover, you’ll see what we mean. He does fantastic work. Conceptually, we wanted a cold, minimal labyrinth; that’s what he gave us.

Where can people hear The Bad Doctors and what’s next?

We're going to be on tour towards the end of August, through the Midwest and a bit of the south. You can get our records at a show or on FDH's website. The title of our next work is The Day of The Minotaur. The rest is unknown. 

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The Smoke Bombs

     The Smoke Bombs smash and grab fistfuls of British Street Punk in one hand and early 1980’s Southern California hardcore in the other. They then take it to an old abandoned warehouse downtown where they mix it up and add some secret ingredients.  They then stuff some ping pong balls full of it and create a device that emits a dense, hard hitting brand of punk rock into the atmosphere immediately upon ignition. They hurl these handmade concoctions at unsuspecting audiences and it causes the foundation beneath the arid desert floors to quake. So remove any loose articles of clothing and strap your shoes on tight, The Smoke Bombs have arrived and the room you’re in is about to turn upside down!

Interview by J Castro

Introductions!  Please tell us who you all are and what’s your function in The Smoke Bombs:

LAYTON: Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar

BRANDON: I’m Brandon Meunier and I play guitar in The Smoke Bombs.

JASON: Jason Stone - Drummer/Cheerleader

TODD: Todd Joseph: Bass

What’s the conception story of The Smoke Bombs?  How did you all meet and decide to play music together?

LAYTON:  Bored with my last band Asses of Evil. I wanted to start something different.  I got Jason our drummer and Todd from AOE. Jason suggested Brandon for lead guitar. I knew him from his work as a guitar salesman, and liked him a lot. Never had heard him play but hired him over the phone because I liked him, turned out pretty well.

BRANDON: I met Jason (our drummer) through work. I told him I was looking for another band. A few weeks later he was asking if I’d like to try out with Layton and Todd.

JASON: My world changed in like a 30 day period, got fired from a band, lost my wife, son, house and my studio in one big fat Fuck You from the World. I ate as many pills as I could afford, apparently not enough? Next Day, I got a call from Layton to start something new.

TODD: Layton and I were in the Asses of Evil and then split and formed The Smoke Bombs in the wake of the Asses.

When I hear your music, I get a street punk vibe. I can hear elements of Cocksparrer, Sham 69, and Stiff Little Fingers. Were any of these bands influences to you guys growing up and do you remember who got you into punk rock in the first place?

LAYTON: I am not so much into those bands as much. Brandon really likes that kind of stuff. I like the 80’s southern California stuff, Circle Jerks, Descendents etc. I also was a huge fan of Todd’s first band Junior Achievement, as well as all the great hardcore bands in Arizona like JFA, Mighty Sphincter, Soylent Greene, Conflict etc.

BRANDON: Yes it’s a huge influence for me even still. Those are three of my favorite bands of all times. No one really got me into it. Punk itself got me into it. With the few friends I had I was able to meet people who I’d trade music back and forth with. It’s been that way since day one.

JASON: Stiff Little Fingers for me. 1st punk band I was turned on to was Junior Achievement “TJ’s band from the 80’s.” I had an older guy next door to my parent’s house that was SICK and TIRED of hearing R.E.M.’s Green while I rode my skateboard. He charged over and said “TURN THAT SHIT OFF!!!!!!” I thought he was going to kick my ass! Instead he handed me Junior Achievements 12” and a cassette he already made.

I never looked back, that was 1985.

TODD: I grew up on The Clash, Generation X, The Damned, Sex Pistols, and SLF. I’m also a big CA punk fan: T.S.O.L, Social Distortion, Bad Religion, Adolescents, and Shattered Faith.

I see you guys play out fairly regularly, how would you describe the music scene in Phoenix/Tempe?

LAYTON: Too many bands. It seems like since Nirvana broke, and Guitar Centers were put up all over the place, everyone thinks they can do a punk band. I have been doing this since 84. It used to be that when an out of town band came through either JFA or Junior Achievement, ONS, would get a gig opening for a big band. Also everyone went to one show, wherever it was Tempe/Phoenix. Now there are too many shows competing against each other on the same nights for a dwindling amount of punk rockers.

JASON: Strong, easy to bash the scene but it’s easy to bash any scene. Phoenix is full of good people and it’s not hard to find them if you look & listen.

TODD: It’s pretty good! Good local bands to play with. The Clubs/Bars are pretty accepting of loud music. It could always be better, but it could also be a lot worse. When the weather gets cooler the scene gets better!

You guys are playing (and have played with) some pretty big names in punk. Some of your upcoming shows are with Rikk Agnew Band (Social Distortion, Christian Death, Adolescents, D.I.) and Eddie and The Hot Rods here in Tempe, AZ. How do you feel playing shows with such influential bands? 

LAYTON: The best chance of getting a good draw is having a good headliner. These guys are just like us, but came together in the right time and place to get big. I don’t mean to say our music is as good as this classic stuff, but Todd and I talk and feel like if we were together in ‘84 playing Mad Gardens we would have gotten some notoriety, more than we get now. 

BRANDON: It’s awesome!

JASON: Honestly, it’s just another show. The thrill is standing in the crowd watching the “influential” band. The bummer is after it’s over I have a car load of gear to take home. I like meeting the heroes / legends, I don’t take much seriously anymore so if the hero is an asshole, whatever.

TODD: I love it, that’s what I’ve always wanted to do. I’ve been able to play with The Bad Brains, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, T.S.O.L., Shattered Faith, Crucifix, Youth Brigade, on and on it’s always a blast!

Speaking of playing live, do you guys remember the worst show The Smoke Bombs ever played and tell me about what made it such a disaster?

LAYTON: Not really, all in all we have had some good shows. Weeknight shows are pretty pathetic. We have had some low turn out shows with Dime Runner, and Black Irish Texas which were weekday shows. 

JASON: I played one high on cocaine, that didn't go so well, won’t do that again.

I like them all; we haven’t really had a disaster show. It would have to be pretty bad for me to call it a disaster. I like playing drums as long as nobody dies, it’s good.

TODD: Maybe the time we played with Scorpion vs. Tarantula up in Cottonwood. We played OK, but the crowd was weak. We had fun anyway, we always do.

What sorts of things typically influence your music?  And can you remember the most unusual thing that inspired a song?

BRANDON: Lyrically: life, the day to day. Nothing is that unusual anymore really. Musically, it’s when I get around my gear I just want to hear it. I’ll start riffing around and that’s that.

JASON: A hot October Night. Hey, I’m just the drummer I follow along to what the boys write.

TODD: Most songs are spontaneous; they just come out with all of us adding our input.

I was watching an interview with Fat Mike and he was saying he regrets writing some of the early NOFX songs, he went on say that change of mind is a sign of intelligence. What do you think about that quote and have you ever written any songs you regretted later?

LAYTON: Not a NOFX fan. I know they come from the old school, but just never got into that kind of music. I can’t remember regretting anything I have written. 

BRANDON: I think everyone regrets early material at some point. It doesn’t bother me really. I’ll reflect back on it and pull ideas out. It is what it is and it always makes you a better writer.

JASON: Not in this band….

TODD: Sure, but I don’t dwell on that.  The more you write the more you improve.  I don’t really regret anything; it’s all in good fun.

What sorts of things do you enjoy doing other than playing music, any hobbies or anything like that?

LAYTON: Hanging out by my pool drinking beer and listening to ‘80’s hard core.

BRANDON: Honestly this is all I do. I collect musical gear and listen to and write music.

Those are my main hobbies.

JASON: Skateboarding, Snowboarding, Bicycles I dig all that shit. Go fast and take chances.

TODD: Art, skateboarding, partying, picking up chicks, eating.

What are some records you like putting on that can guarantee to lift you up when life’s kicked you down?

LAYTON: I don’t know that music does that for me. I just listen to it when I fell like it.  Toxic Reasons Kill by Remote Control comes to mind. 

BRANDON: The Crack – In Search Of…

JASON: NOFX - The Decline, Freeze - Talking Bombs, Malignus Youth - ALL OF IT,

The Clash – Supermarket, AC/DC - Sink the Pink (Makes me Laugh every time)

William Shatner - Common People, U.S. Bombs - That’s Life, Frank Black & the Catholics - I Want Rock & Roll, Black President - Not Amused, Etta James - In the Basement, Alkaline Trio - Maybe I’ll Catch Fire, Plump Tones - Fire Chicken

TODD: Whatever I’m into at the moment.  Right now, it’s The Horrors, Jason Isbell, Temples, Dum Dum Girls, and Drive-By Truckers.

What do the Smoke Bombs have in store for the remainder of 2014?

LAYTON: We just finished recording our first full length album.  We’re getting the artwork together to have it pressed, should hit store shelves by fall.

BRANDON: New album coming out very soon and continuing to write more material.

JASON: New record coming VERY soon.

TODD: Finish our record, do a video for one of the songs, write new songs, play a few gigs, party!

Sell your beats online at ReverbNation.com

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Swimming Pool Q's

      Swimming Pool Q’s was like a host of 1980’s pop bands making the kind of songs that should have garnered big hits, but 
instead in a cruel twist of fate were near misses. After starting out so brightly by opening for bands like Devo, The Police and Lou Reed, The Q’s signed a deal that would ultimately cost them. Now thirty years, the Swimming Pool Q’s are eagerly awaiting to be 
found all over again. This year features The A&M Years release, which is a testament to their jangle-pop songwriting that should 
have done better the first time around.

Interview by Ed Stuart

Who’s answering the questions?

Jeff Calder

Where is the band from?

Atlanta

Who is in the band and what instrument do they play?

Anne Richmond Boston, vocals; Bill Burton, drums; Jeff Calder, vocals & rhythm guitar; Bob Elsey, lead guitar; Robert Schmid, 
bass.

Can you give a brief history of Swimming Pool Q’s?

We formed in Atlanta in early 1978.  Later that year we opened shows in Georgia for Devo and The B-52’s, and shortly afterwards began touring extensively in the Northeast and down South. Our first single was “Rat Bait”/”The A-Bomb Woke Me Up” in 1979.

Our debut album was The Deep End [DB Recs] in 1981.  We signed with A&M Records and released two albums on the label:  The Swimming Pool Q’s (1984) and Blue Tomorrow (1986), touring nationally with Lou Reed during this period.  The Firing Squad 
for God EP (DB Recs) appeared in 1987; World War Two Point Five (Capitol/DB) in 1989.

Following The Deep End deluxe reissue in 2001, we launched Royal Academy of Reality [Bar/None] in 2003, a very complex 
album we worked on throughout the 90’s. The A&M Years deluxe reissue has come out this year (2013).  We have a new album in 
various stages of completion and should be releasing a digital EP of three new songs in October.

Recently the band had a Kickstarter funded campaign to release the A&M Years 1984-1986? It was a successful campaign. Congratulations. I had read in a previous that it took Jeff Calder over 15 years to obtain the rights to The Swimming Pool Q’s and Blue Tomorrow. Why was the battle so long especially considering that A&M gave up on the band after those two LP’s?

Thank you!  Earlier in the 2000’s, we started trying to get these recordings re-issued. By then, A&M had long been out of the 
picture, and their catalog became ultimately controlled by Universal Music.  Universal is a big company, and it took us a while to 
get to the right folks, but when we finally did in 2012, everything went smoothly.

Do you think major labels hold the same power today as they did as they did before? Why?

Probably not, but perhaps the major labels never held any power, and it was all just a mass delusion.  Really, I have nothing 
insightful or interesting to offer here, and I think it’s probably a good idea to remain skeptical of claims to wisdom in this regard, 
so please strike everything I just said!

Do you think music can still be a vital force in such a disposable age?

Maybe.

How has the band’s view of playing and recording changed since the 1980’s?

As for playing, it’s pretty much the same: stand and deliver, as the Ant [Adam] would say.  We don’t use much MIDI, not that we aren’t all for it. Before we recorded the two albums that comprise The A&M Years, we just set up in the studio, played live, did a 
few overdubs and, like most bands that were it.  For The Swimming Pool Q’s and Blue Tomorrow, we worked with some great 
engineers and producers--David Anderle, Ed Stasium, Mike Howlett.  We got more comfortable and learned a lot very quickly 
about the process of modern recording, and we’ve gone down that road ever since. Now I’d like return to the beginning and make a very simple album, but, of course, that seems like far more work than just piling up 72 tracks and figuring it out later. Sometimes I think that recording is only about creating problems and finding solutions, just for the fun of it.  Until recently, I helped manage the Atlanta Studio Southern Tracks, one of the top American facilities.  We made albums with hundreds of artists.  For years, I loved 
staring at the same equipment everyday and saying to same inane stuff about how cool it looked, over and over.  That’s how records are really made!  A lot of my running buddies are recording engineers. They are the unsung heroes of the business.

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