An Interview with Slick!

Nick Slick, front man of Oakland's very own rag tag trio of gutter glam heroes Slick! had some time to sit down and answer a few questions for us.  In a revealing interview, find out why he talks like Tony the Tiger, why he doesn't care what his audiences do while he's playing, and why he believes Joe Jackson is a spaceman!

Interview by J Castro

Who is currently in Slick and what do you all do in the band?

Nick: We are a classic three piece or power trio as alot of people like to say. It consists of me Nicholas J.C. Slick! on guitars, vocals, various keyboards (on the record) and miscellaneous percussion, the lovely and talented Sasha Simone on bass and angelic harmonies, and Matthew the monkey man Costa on drums.

How did you all meet and decide to play in this band together?

NICK: Last year I was in a band called Glitz, we were booked to play a showcase at SXSW 2014 but 2 weeks before we were scheduled to hit the road our drummer told us that he couldn’t do it. It put us in a very difficult position, with little deliberation we hit up every drummer we knew who could pull off learning two sets in two weeks. If you’ve ever been in a rock & roll band you know that drums (and drummers) are notoriously the most challenging component to integrate into an already formed band that already has a specific particular sound. Every drummer we knew was already too busy or it was too short notice to pick up and go tour the south west for a couple weeks. Finally when things were looking pretty bleak, I was telling my good friend Mike Noda (later to play bass in Slick!) who I was living with at the time about this predicament and he suggested the drummer in his band Caldecott the man was Matt! I hadn’t considered that because they were more of an accessible easy listening to mellow indie band. Kind of like something you’d hear on an adult contemporary radio station like KFOG, but we decided to give it a try. It turns out Matt was very familiar with us and previous bands we’d been in and was quite a fan. So he was very enthusiastic and glad to be a part of the whole thing, on top of that the guy’s a great drummer, of course it was a little shaky at first but by the time we played our way down to South-by and back he had it down. Later we disbanded due to creative differences and Matt & I formed Slick! We’ve been a band less than a year and have already gone through numerous bass players, I had known Sasha through other projects she’s involved with that were outside of the “scene” that I’m more familiar, I knew she’s ambitious and a talented player so it was perfect timing.

How would describe your band’s music to someone that’s never heard you before?

NICK: I’d say if you like Rock & Roll, Pop, Glam, Punk or anything that’s timelessly classic, what we do is everything you’d want to hear. With Slick! you can hear everything from the Beach Boys to G.G. & The Jabbers, from Roy Orbison to KISS I could go on forever with the blanks to the blanks but I think you get the idea. I want to have a very recognizable sound but nostalgic at the same time without barricading myself into one thing.

What typically inspires your song lyrics?  Are there any subjects you guys purposely avoid in your song lyrics?

NICK: Lyrics, I will admit are what I’m least good at musically, I tend to stray away from cerebral poeticism or politics. I’m not a Bob Dylan Leonard Cohen type of songwriter even though I’m a fan of both. My lyrics are usually very surface level, simple, dumb not much nuance or double entendres hidden meanings etc. As far as what inspires them, a lot of it is from my life experiences or stories from my friends or family. The musician’s condition is another inspiration “You don’t like me (Cuz I rock & roll)” is a testament to how I feel about the current state of bay area music not limited to, “Your band Sucks” as well. The rest are about all that romance, because let’s be real, people can’t get enough of that shit. It’s autobiographical though is what it comes down to, all I can do is write about what I know and see if I can do it in a way that people can relate to. We’ll see about that though.

What’s your favorite album to listen to from beginning to end?  Tell me a little about the first time you heard this album.

NICK: Fun House by The Stooges. I was very young and very on drugs.

I was reading this interview with Nick Cave and he said that out of all the art forms, music has the power to change a person’s mood the fastest.  Do you agree with this statement, if so are there any records that you put on that can change your mood pretty fast?

NICK: I do not agree with that statement. I think it’s probably true for people who love music, however there are so many people who really could care less about what they hear. Why do you think the radio can get away with playing the same 20 songs all day every day? I think the average person when it comes to music is either indifferent or adapted to whatever is presented to them. That being said it’s obvious that there are very common threads among what the average person likes and how it makes you feel. It’s been said if you play a song that’s based in the major scale it will typically sound like a happy or more upbeat song, however minor can be interpreted as sad or melancholy. Mostly seems like ain’t nobody care.

When you guys are playing live, what’s the most annoying thing an audience members has done that totally distracted you from rockin’ and rollin’?

NICK: I just want ‘em to go crazy, other than that they can do pretty much whatever they want. It’s a show it’s about having fucking fun!

If Slick could tour with any band from any era throughout rock ‘n roll history, who would it be and why?

NICK: Probably the Doors or the Grateful Dead hahahahahahahaha need I say more?

If you were a space explorer and got stranded on a life sustaining planet with only (A) one person, (B) one meal, and (C) one record to listen to for the remaining

of your life there, what would all of  these be:

NICK: The Person : An alien woman that first would try to kill me but then later fall in love with me and then we would fuck and create an entire race of alien humanoids that would create technology and 10 million years later destroy the planet through our selfish ways and have to go colonize another planet.

One Meal:  Either Chinese food or Mexican food

I probably wouldn’t bring a record I would just start a band with my humanoid/alien children and I’d exploit them for the entire planet, I’d be like a spaceman version of Joe Jackson, actually he probably was a spaceman.

What’s the single best piece of advice someone gave to you that you followed and actually helped?

NICK: When anybody asks you how you’re doing? Reply with “I’M GREAT!!!” and say it in the voice of Tony the Tiger.

Where can people go to buy or listen to you music?

NICK: A bar, your mother’s house, the street, my house, any venue in Oakland or San Francisco, iTunes, Spodify, Soundcloud, Youtube, the mall, a car, any body's town via www. it’s extremely easy to find if you’re not a useless person.

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Narco States

Photo by Katie McGuire

     Narco States are a five-piece band from Minneapolis, MN that just recently released their debut LP in late 2014 called Wicked Sun on Piñata Records. The record emits a unique brand of psychedelic infused aggressive rock n’ roll that sounds like it could have been played in a scene from the film Apocalypse Now. Narco States intensely weave melody, darkness, and agitation into a thick blanket that’s gently laid over your head as you sit back and start to spin around the room to their music. While so many bands these days are going around giving the term “psychedelic” a bad name, Narco States are here to repo it, rub some dirt on it, and throw it back to the masses the way it’s supposed to sound. 

Interview by J Castro

Let’s start off with some introductions, who’s currently in Narco States and what does everyone do in the band:

Michael MacBlane-Meyer - Lead Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Ritual Sacrifices

Aaron Robertson - Lead Organ, Farfisa/Wurlitzer, Beard, Incense

Nate McGuire: Lead Guitar, Hendrix Riffs

Erik Johnson: Lead Druummz, Pomade and Black Rimmed Glasses

Nick Sampson: Lead BASS, Drugz

How did you all meet and decide to play music together?

MICHAEL: I posted one simple Craigslist ad that said "Looking for someone to play my Vox Organ" and at the same time decided to browse the ads and I came across a post from Nate that mentioned The Growlers and 13th Floor Elevators. Then the emails began to fly and samples were traded and it turned out we all kind of knew each other from other places and times so we got together and the rest, as they say...is mystery.

Your music has been compared to the likes of The Rolling Stones, the Stooges, Black Sabbath, and the Cramps. All of these bands had iconic and influential front men. Tell me a bit about your personal favorite front man/woman; when did you first see them perform and what you felt the first time you saw him/her?

MICHAEL: Phil May from The Pretty Things, Andy Ellison from John's Children, and Stiv Bators from Dead Boys have all had big effect on me but the most influential lead man was Stewart Lupton formerly of the band Jonathan Fire Eater. I had been going to shows for a long time and had numerous influences but he was the single greatest frontman I ever saw live. I had never seen anyone writhe around, straddling the microphone stand while looking so dapper and dodgy at the same time. It was like Patty Smith and Lord Byron had a child together and he was up there on stage.

With the way most of today’s contemporary culture is rooted in convenience and instant gratification, do you see rock n’ roll bands ever being as much of an influence to popular youth culture as they once were?

MICHAEL: I think you'd have to ask the youth that question. As I get older I can feel myself getting jaded and thinking no music or bands are as good or influential as the ones I have adopted as my favorites or experienced when I was younger. My gut reaction is to say that it doesn't seem likely, but that's the same expanding gut that wants those damn kids to "stay off my lawn," so I sure hope the answer is yes. The youth look like a bunch of virtual obsessed zombies to me. I hope there is a real and true underground scene boiling somewhere under all of this technology that will shake the foundations of passive rock fans and technophile hermits.

AARON: I agree with Mike. But it is hard to argue that rock has anything even close to the influence that it had in the ‘60’s/’70’s. It just seems to be more of a commodity now for most people, just another product. And these days most people don't even OWN music, they just "rent" it on Spotify. Maybe someday there will be a point where it's more important to contemporary culture, but I'm not counting on it. There's just too many other distractions today with technology.

                                                                               Photo by Katie McGuire

With much of your obvious musical influences being bands that were in their prime decades ago, are there any current bands that inspire you?

MICHAEL:  Although some may have broken up already, I am currently really digging on Summer People (especially Burn the Germs), Bits of Shit, Los Tones, and Japanese Motors.

AARON: Mount Carmel, Radio Moscow, Pentagram, The Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell, Kadaver, Orchid, Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats, Daikaiju (who I just discovered when we opened for them, amazing performance).

I was reading an interview with Keith Richards where he said that anyone buying digital music is getting short changed. Do you agree with this?

AARON: Absolutely. My belief is that digital music is good for the car or whatever, but for serious listening I think it's hard to beat vinyl. The sound, the look, the artwork, the ritual of playing records, the mechanical process, even the crackles and pops, it's all part of the experience. That's just me though, and I tend to be pretty obsessive about vinyl.

With that being said, what do you think of the whole vinyl revival: fleeting trend or a legitimate resurgence? There has also been some comments about record processing plants turning away small labels that have kept them in business for years with small runs, in favor of pressing major label’s releases with much larger runs, any thoughts on that?

AARON: Revival? I've been buying and listening to vinyl since I was a kid in the ‘80’s. To me it's something that's always been there; it hasn't ever left. I go to the same record stores that have been open since the ‘70’s in some cases, and most of my friends have done the same over the years. The only difference now is that it's easier to get new releases on vinyl and there are a lot of labels re-releasing older stuff (which is really cool for getting records that were previously really rare). It's cool that people are discovering how awesome the format is, but from my perspective, not much has changed. So as to whether or not it's fleeting or not, I don't know... I lean towards it being a legitimate resurgence because of how cool records are, and people tend to get very passionate about it (like myself). The downside to the hype is like you mention, plants turning away some customers. Even worse, the wait times to get vinyl pressed compared to the "old days". It's not uncommon to wait 6 months to get a record pressed, when it used to be a month or so. I guess the plants go where the money is, but there are definitely some smaller plants (Palomino records comes to mind) that are geared toward smaller pressings and labels, and in my opinion offer way better quality and service than some of the bigger, more popular plants that don't give a damn how many flaws are in your final product and take months to deliver.

What are the elements that you’ve felt all have fused together when your band has had a really good show? Can you tell me about the last show Narco States did that you felt went really well?

AARON: I feel like our last couple of shows has gone really well, because we have a stable line-up once again that has jelled over time. For me, it's simple, a good show happens when you transcend reality and let the music play itself.  In my case, I almost go into a trance and just let it happen. When all of us are comfortable and don't have to concentrate on what we're playing, those are the BEST shows. Kawabata Makoto from Acid Mothers Temple said in an interview that I read years ago something along the lines of the musician not really doing anything more than tuning into the notes/music from the universe and letting that through via your instrument. I think there's some truth in that.

MICHAEL: We just need the right mix of medication and illegal drugs. It's all about balance.

What sorts of things influence your lyrics? Are there any subjects you purposely stay away from?

MICHAEL: Mental illness, Esoterica, Cultism and Existentialism compose the bulk of it. However there is some sex, relationship and self-deprecation salted in as well. I stay away from Politics, Cars, Stature, and Materialism.

Where are the best places to go or the best sites for people to find out more about the band, listen to your music and buy your records?

AARON:  narcostates.com goes to our Bandcamp page with all of our music (most of it available to stream for free), and there are links to shows and our Facebook page there.

Check it out!

What does Narco States have in store for the rest of 2015?

MICHAEL: Well…Since Satan refused to let us sign a contract…we are shooting a music video, playing some killer shows and recording a new album this winter and doing some touring as well.

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Labor Party

     Labor Party is a trio of veteran hard rock n’ rollers influenced by bands like The Stooges, MC5 and the Dead Boys that reside in the Phoenix metro area. Their music is fast, loud, guitar fueled rock n’ roll with enough power in the backbeat to run the city they’re playing that night. Their experience really comes into play when you see this band live.  They seem very much at ease on stage allowing them to put on a highly energized, highly entertaining show as they hurl their music at their audience like boulders on catapults.  They have a look in their eyes like all they do is start the engine and where the music is going to take them is anybody’s guess. And that’s what makes Labor Party so undeniably great at what they do.     

Interview by J Castro

Who’s all in the band and what do they do to keep the Labor Party rolling?

Buck Ellis - Drums, backing vocals.

Sharon Labor – Bass guitar, backing vocals, poetry.

Frank Labor – Guitar, vocals.

Tell me a bit about your musical careers and how you ended up here in Phoenix, AZ. I know you guys have some other musical projects going on now too.

FRANK: Buck is a Phoenix native believe it or not. He’s got a long history in the phoenix punk scene going back to the early ‘90’s. He has been in bands like: Hunky Dory, Sam the Butcher, Punk Rock Karaoke, The Shifters, and Balls. I started playing in bands back in Pennsylvania in the late ‘70’s. After playing in a few cover bands, I was in a punk band called The Speds. I think every show we did we played to people who were seeing punk for the first time. In the early ‘80’s I was in a Mod band called The Tickets. I met Sharon at that time. She had a band with her cousin Karen Lynn and the late great Lisa Wack, playing some ‘60’s inspired rock n’ roll. By the mid ‘80’s we were working together in a neo-psychedelic band we called 8Five Kalidocolor. We got an offer to go to San Francisco so we left PA and headed west. We stopped in Phoenix to visit my family who had moved out some years before. We noticed there was a really good scene here for original bands so when things fell apart with our San Francisco people we decided to try it here. Our first band here was The Now. I think we stared that around ‘92. Sharon played keys, we had a good friend of mine who was in The Tickets and 8Five Kalidocolor to play bass and my brother played 2^nd guitar. After that we formed Hubcap, in the mid 90’s, and once that ran its course we started Labor Party in 2001. We picked up Buck in 2005 and he’s been there ever since. I played lead guitar for Jeff Dahl for a few years from 2005 – 2008. Last year Sharon started a band called Battered Suitcases and we are both in that now.

Frank and Sharon; with all the tragic stuff that happens to couples that are in a band together, how have you two managed to keep it going for so long? Any secrets/strategies you wish to share?

FRANK: We’ve been doing this since we were in our early 20’s so it’s hard to imagine it any other way but it seems to me that it’s better for a couple to go out every weekend together rather than one going to play a show while the other is stuck at home or going somewhere else. You can’t really be mad at your spouse for spending so much time working on a band if you’re in it to. Ha-ha.

SHARON: I think it’s because we truly support one another and appreciate that we share the same interests and dreams, that’s priceless. I always thought it’d be tougher to be with someone who isn’t a musician, we’re a strange breed! Aside from all the romance it helps a lot too that we’re best friends! 

Tell me who you consider to be the biggest influence on your music and tell me about the first time you heard this individual’s music and how it changed your life? 

FRANK: I have so many big influences each one as important as the other. Far too many to cover here so I’ll just mention one that just popped into my head: Robert Quine.

I think I was around 17 or 18. A radio DJ who was a fan of The Speds took us to his place in a shitty ass neighborhood in the north end. Everything was dark around there. Not just the streets but even inside there were just a few little lights, some of them covered with cloth to purposely keep them from being too bright. It was a strange place with a bunch of people living there, most of them DJ’s or musicians or both. We were all drinking and high which may have played a role in the experience. We all jammed into a tiny bedroom with a high quality, really loud stereo. He played us a bunch of records most of which we were all familiar with but then he put on Richard Hell and the Voidoids’ Blank Generation. The whole song is great but when that Robert Quine guitar solo hit… HOLY FUCK! That shit just blew me away, so fucking nasty and harsh. Absolutely gut wrenching. It sounded like the amp was inside one of those metal trashcans in the alley. I thought this is it! This is what lead guitar is supposed to sound like! I never thought of guitar solos the same after that.

You guys have been in bands and playing music for a while now. What do you think of promoting music through social media? Is it a better, more efficient way to get the word out or just a huge pain in the ass? 

FRANK: Well it is a pain in the ass but it so much better than the old days of handing out flyers and going on a long flyer hanging trip. The only flyers I do now are just for the bar where the show will be and sometimes for the area just around the bar, if the neighborhood is right for that. I do look forward to the death of Facebook and I hope that whatever takes its place will be more band friendly. I know there are some better sites for bands out there the only problem is only bands are on them.

I feel that the trick to releasing a live recording is to try and capture a quality recording that still accurately portrays the unique energy signature of a band’s live show. I feel that the Live 6 EP Labor Party put out a few years ago does just that.  Can you tell me a bit about that record (where it was recorded etc.)?

FRANK: Thank you! That’s exactly what we were going for. We even left in a few flubs here or there. There’s one song where my mic was knocked over by some guys acting up in the front. The vocal drops out for a couple seconds but we thought it added to the feel so we left it in. There’s a spot where you can hear someone busting on Buck for wearing an American flag shirt. There was no way that wasn’t going on the final cut. We recorded 2 shows for that. One was at Jugheads and the other was about a week or 2 later on the 4^th of July at the Chop and Wok. We set up a bunch of mics on the front of the stage facing the audience and one above the crowd about half way back. We were just as concerned about capturing them as we were about us. Andrew Roesch produced it for us and did a great job. Him and our road manager at the time Kody Thames did all the engineering and set up. They did all the hard work we just had fun. It was set to be released as a 10 inch vinyl record. Our record label fucked us over and dropped us right before it was going into production. We had a show in Baltimore with our former label mates The Jukebox Zeros from Philadelphia. They had just left the label because of discrepancies over digital sales. We were on an east coast tour and the label told us we were not allowed to play with them. Of course we did the show. And that was the end of that.

We liked it so much we put it out ourselves. We couldn’t afford to do vinyl so we just did it as a CD.

Tell me about a record that you own and enjoy that you feel Labor Party fans may be surprised you are in possession of?

FRANK:  I got a lot of ‘em but the one that seem to surprise people the most is The Allman Brothers – Live at the Fillmore East. They started a genre of music that I am not a fan of but I love Duane Allman.

SHARON: Madeleine Peyroux – Careless Love.

Describe the music scene here in the metro Phoenix/Tempe area now as compared to when you guys first got here? 

FRANK: The scene here always flows in waves. It’s up then it’s down. We’ve been lucky enough to ride a couple of those up waves. Things have been slow for the last couple of years but I do think they are picking up.

What types of things usually inspire Labor Party song lyrics? Are there any subjects you guys purposefully avoid and have you ever written a song that in hindsight you regret writing? 

FRANK: I write a shit load of songs I regret. The good thing is they don’t make it on to any CD’s. If they never got recorded they never happened. I never know what’s going to inspire me but it seems a good portion of my writing comes from working class struggles. Right now, we’re working on some song inspired by things like street art, the under belly of society, mental break downs and age. The only subject we avoid is politics. Not everyone in the band has the same opinions so it best to just lay off that subject.

What’s coming up in the near future for Labor Party?  It’s been a while since the last LP, any new recordings coming out soon?

FRANK: We are pretty close to finishing a new album. Hopefully we will find a label interested and get it released soon. If not we’ll just release it ourselves. We’re hoping to get back on the road in 2015. It’s been a while since we toured and we really miss it.

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