I DIDN'T REALLY MOVE WITH MARTIN STAMPER

It's been a while since my last post, and it comes to us from Martin Stamper of Fast Heart Mart.  I had originally lost this interview and just recently found it in one of my folders. 

Was music a part of your decision to leave?

I really did not leave. I had to go on a vision quest and I will return. I love the Albuquerque scene. It's like ancient Egypt isolated for 3000 years without outside influence.... sort of?

 What do you miss most about Albuquerque?

It's cheap and Sunny.

Do you Visit? if so how often?

I have not been back in 2 months. 

Virginia is a long drive from Albuquerque, how long did it take? and what did you listen to on your way there? 

It took me 5 days and 70 gallons of veggie oil. I listened to the wind and Elvis when I went to Graceland.

where are your favorite places to play in your new city?

Farmer's markets. I'm learning banjo.

Do you have any songs about Albuquerque/NM?

Yes. Lots. "Cheap and Sunny",  "What to do in AL-bu-quer-que", "The White Man Stole This Land", "New Mexico", and probably others I'm not thinking of at the moment. 

 What was you last show like in Albuquerque?

Hazy.

Name a band you miss from Albuquerque?

The Handsome Family, The Old Main, Of God and Science, A Man About A Horse, Selsun Blue, Choke Cherry Ranch, Rob Nakai's various projects, Young Edward, way too many to mention and I hate forgetting to mention my favorites, but I always do. 

Name a band you are now turned on to in your new city?

None in the city. "The Virginia Ramblers" and "Hackensaw Bays" are in Virginia.

Ever plan on Returning?

YES; YES; YES; YES

Fast Heart Mart will be playing a show in Albuquerque (his first here in 6 months) on Saturday Night December 19th at 11 PM at The Guild Cinema 3405 Central NE before the midnight movie World Premiere of his New Zealand Tour Rockumentary titled "Put Me On An Island"! There will be a matinee showing of the film the next day, Sunday December 20th at noon. The admission for Saturday night is $7 and Sunday is $5. Both are all ages events.

THE SHOWS I KNOW & MOOD SWINGS WITH BOBBY

This weeks post is a two-for-one deal.  I sent Bobby of Shoulder Voices two interviews to fill out, and he was happy to participate.


What are you thoughts on house parties? 


Are fun and sketchy.

Coffee shops? 


Are hangouts for pretentious losers.

Theaters? 


Are for movies if you are straight, and for plays if you are a gay.


Bars? 


Are much better now without the smoking, thank you very much.

Battles of the bands? 


Are for kids

Art spaces? 


Are worse than coffee shops.

Record Shops? 


Are there any left? If so, good luck with that.

Festivals? 


Are usually not run very well.

Open Mics? 


Fun! fun! fun! till the sound guy takes the microphone away.




In our next interview, Bobby spills on songs that conjure his emotions, in this weeks segment called "mood swings" 


Tell me the songs that make you




Laugh: most WEEN songs


Cry: The Beach Boys


Lazy: anything by Low, Slowdive, Mojave 3, Luna,


Try: two words, MARK MALLMAN


Happy: The Monkees


Sad: Unit 7 Drain


Angry: Pink Floyd The Wall


Glad: anything by the Gingerbread Patriots

THE JIST WITH NOELAN RAMIREZ

This is my second in-person interview, and it comes from Noelan Ramirez.  The interview took less than two minutes, because I ran out of questions to ask, and the launchpad was closing .  Noelan is currently the drummer for bands The Lowlights, The Fire Season and Bellemah.  The Lowlights are about to put of a full length album avalible september 28th on Darla records 




What bands are you in now?

Bellemah, Lowlights. and the Fire Season.

The new lowlights album is about to come out.  are you excited?

I am very excited.  I think it been a year and a half of recording, another year and a half of mixing, re-mixing, doing over dubs, chewing my nails and waiting for it to come out. It's finally coming out September 28th

Damien (Lowlights front man) moved to Los Angeles, do you guys still work on music?

I just visited Damien a month ago and we hung out. We took a little road trip to San Fransisco where we worked on music, Banjos, saw, all kinds of different instruments, hopefully I'll be going back soon.  We talk about once every other day or at least once a week.

Lowlights working on new material?

We haven't really discussed it yet. He has invited me to go out there anytime I want to start working on new material,  hopefully playing some shows here too.  

You have three bands and run a business, When do you have time for yourself?

I own one business (Owl Greens Music) where I usually go from 11 to 5 everyday, then I either go to The Black Bird Buvette or to The Launchpad. So i don't know, somewhere in there I'm able to squeeze in some personal time, but really I don't have much time.  I Golf, on Mondays I usally go to the driving range from eight to ten.

THE JIST WITH MARK E MOON

I sent Mark a Myspace message last night with questions about him and his music. Mark can be found in local bands The Hollow Lines, The Booty Green, Mark E Moon and  front man for Mei Long (before they broke up),

Here you are folks, short and sweet, mark e moon gives us the jist

what are you currently listening to?

Listening to Harmonia and Tangerins Dream's "Phaedra" at the same time. Links up perfectly!

If you could add one instrument to your band what would it be?

Little Phatty moog which is $1000 and way outta my range...


Your in multiple bands.  Is it hard to schedule practice?

Nope. I edit film and become dad at will...

how did you come up with the name hollow lines? mei long? and booty green? Mark E moon?

The Hollow Lines is a conversation/drug reference. Mei Long is the first dinosaur bone. The Booty Green is Sly Stones lime green cadillac.  Mark E Moon is a Television LP.

Name a couple of disbanded Albuquerque bands you would like to see reunite. 

Jealous Gods, Smoke Rings, Mei Long

Is stage fright a problem?

Yes. I like bourbon.


Name a dead musician you would like to see live.

John Lennon and Sky Saxon


what kind of movie do you see your music being the soundtrack to?

Vanishing Point

When's the record coming out?

Hopefully soon! SEAN WHERE ARE YOU?

Downtown usually gives the bands free drink tickets,  what do you order?

Makers Mark.

any weird show rituals?

We kiss a cross before every show...God sail with us and all who sail with us!!!! sailors rule.

MOOD SWINGS WITH DAVID JORDAN

laugh, cry, lazy, try, happy, sad, angry, glad.   


These are the topics of todays post, which come to us from David Jordan of Yeti Hands.  This new segment focuses on a list of songs that we associate with these certain emotions. Here is Dave's list of songs that have that affect on him.   


Laugh:


cap'n jazz - "take on me" - tim kinsella tries so hard to hit those high notes, tries so very very hard. it rules.

Cry: 


penfold - "i will take you everywhere" - this song always hits hard at the low times in my life. it gives me that dropped feeling in my stomach even when i'm feeling good.

Lazy: 


anything by pavement. 

Try: 


glassjaw - "tip your bartender"/"mu empire" - these two songs are a killer psych up combo, great opening tracks. it makes me ride my bike really fast.

Happy: 


the weakerthans - "aside" - this is one of my favorite songs of all time. it's a song about being flawed, run over, and slightly broken. but being proud of your battle scars. 

Sad:


I can't decide, so i'll name two. the beatles - "eleanor rigby"/mono - "yearning" - eleanor rigby is one of the saddest songs of all time. paul mccartney gets a bad rap, well, for basically not being john lennon. but lennon never wrote a song as affective as this. and mono, UGH, i think being japanese gives this band some post rock superpowers. i defy anyone to see this band play this song live and not be blown away. 

Angry:


 i can't think of anything in particular. but you know when a band is totally awesome, and you love them to death? and then they put out an album that just sucks and you can't get into? yeah, that makes me angry. 

Glad:


my chemical romance - the black parade lp. yes, that's right. my chemical romance. why does this album make me glad? well, because of it's association with eyeliner, i avoided it for many many years, but lo and behold, it's actually a really good album. so i'm glad i finally decided to check it out.

You can catch Yeti hands live at The Launchpad on October 16th with the Oktober people, Bellini, and Grave of nobody's darling 

THE JIST WITH NATE SANTAMARIA

This post is my first in-person interview, and was super stoked it was with Nate Santamaria of Excalico.  Nate performed live yesterday at the launchpad with Yourself and the air, Mark E Moon and Bellemah to which Nate played a awesome set.   After the show, and with plenty of Miller High Life in my tummy I approched Nate while he was loading his gear.  We had both had a little too much of the creature, and with my trusty I phone slured a few questions in his direction. 


So Nate,  I understand that you changed your band name to excalico. why is that?

 Some asshole, whoever copyrights shit, took every spelling of calico possible.  I was at a show and this guy Bud Melvin who's in a bunch of great bands said "you should change your name to Excalico", and I said "that's a fucking great idea",  Because you know there are so many bands out there that are "ex this, we use to be this". So I decided I used to be Calico. Now I'm Excalico.  So fuck it.

Your the front man for The Oktober People,  why did you start Calico?

I started Calico because I've been prevalent in the fact that I love pop music, and for some reason pop music has a bad name.
 The Oktober people doesn't want to play straight up pop music, but that's not a bad thing that they don't want to play pop music, that's fine, but I do.  I also gained an affinity for loop sampling and building my own song live, which is the funnest thing in the whole world,  and sometimes I fuck up, you know? and shit happens.  So next question.

What kind of drinks do you prefer when your playing a show?

I prefer whiskey on the rocks, Jameson I guess, and Tecate is always cool. but who cares about drinks?   I care about drinks when I'm nervous, I have this bowel thing going on,  sometimes I get to a bar an I'm like "Man I have to take a big ol crap",  And it sucks because my bowels act up when I get to a show and think "OH man I have to crap in this bar?  God This Sucks".

How often do you practice in Excalico as opposed to The Oktober People?

About the same amount,  but if I'm practicing for Excalico It's usually for six or seven hours.  It's pretty tedious, I get there around noon or something and leave at seven, but if I smoke or drink I'll be there longer.

Do you prefer House shows, bars, all ages shows, or theaters?

I guess I prefer house parties the most because it's kids, it's devious, and everyone is breaking the law

What kind of crowd are you looking for?

Where everyone is breaking the law.

How did you come up with the name Calico?

I heard a song by a band that I really liked  and I thought they sang a certain lyric,  and I was like "Calico yeah, Come on Calico".  They weren't singing  that lyric.

ON THE ROAD WITH YOUSELF AND THE AIR

In case you didn't know I'm in a band called Bellemah .  Since The interviews are running a bit short I decided to interview a (Non New Mexico) touring band  from Chicago IL  that will be playing with us on September 8th at the launchpad.  I got in contact with Erick of Yourself and the air and asked him a few question about his band and touring, here's what he had to say.  

are you touring with any one?

 no, were touring with ourselves this time.

Will this be your fist time to Albuquerque?

We've been to albuquerque before, about a year and a half ago, we played at the space and the atomic cantina...? do you know of those?

In your about section on your myspace it says you are five friends but there only four in the photo.  who is not pictured?

Well...we used to have a guitarist, still do..he's just not in the band at the moment, or not active at the moment. his place is still here and will always be..so he'll always be in this with us in one way or another.

It's obvious your big bulls fans, ever meet Micheal or Scottie?  Or Luc Longley? (i'm asking because he played for new mexico in college)

 Ha...no i don't think any of us met them...my mom once served Scottie back in the day... I met Steve Kerr once, he was the small white dude whom made a couple of winning three pointers at the buzzer..

do you prefer: Bars shows, house parties, all ages shows, festivals or theaters?

I'm not sure which kind of show we prefer...we've played em all, and they can either go two ways...good, and not good.  I guess we just like playing shows where there is an overall good feeling in the air, and a great connection is made.

will you be calling home daily?

well...some of us call our GF's..thats it really, so i guess ya..?

what is your diet like on tour? 

Our diet is better on the road than at home.  We get to eat at some great kitchens and sample the local recipes..which is always sooo great.  and when we sleep at peeps house, they usually do a great job on cooking their specialties..so we suprisingly eat very well..and we steal from gas stations a whole lot as well..sorry.

will you be having a merch person. if so can you tell me about him or her?

 We do have a merch person..but he's kind of an all around guy.  Hes one of our best friends that happened to tour with us last time, and took off to come with us again. He's doing his best at representing us and becoming our acting manager..its really funny how it all happened, and were loving it.


what reading material l will you be taking with you?

Umm...can't really say what i'll be bringing to read this time...usually just kinda comes up last minute style...all of us do have books though...My gf has a book about living the buddhist life, I may snag that one.  um..one of us was reading Jack Kerouac last time, and there was a book about controlling your mind in a non-concious state rolling around last time too...so i duno


what artists/albums will be on the rotation on the road?

Too many albums, too many artists, pretty much everything you can ever think of, too often

THE JIST - WITH JEREMY BARNES

This post come to us from Jeremy Barnes of a Hawk and a Hacksaw.  About to start a North American tour, I asked him some short questions and he gave me some short answers.  

Who is your favorite Albuquerque band?
   

a hawk and a hacksaw

What is your diet like on tour?

   

in europe, it's good, in the usa it's not 

Are you touring with anyone?

   

in the fall, damon and naomi will be opening for us. 

What inspires you to write a song?

   

many different things- boredom, hummingbirds, travelling, people, etc

How did you come up with your name?
   

don quixote

You incorparate a lot of musicans in your band. How did you meet all of
them?
  

randomly searching for inspiring musicians

What brings you back to Albuquerque
  

family

You tour internationally, do you pick up some of the languages?

  

a bit of french, hungarian, romanian.  i can order a drink in quite a few languages now.  

What city is your Favorite to play?

  

possibly poznan, poland, but it is hard to say. 

THE SHOWS I KNOW- WITH SEAN McCULLOUGH

Tonights post comes from Sean McCullough, guitarist and pedal guru of the the Oktober People .   Sean gives the low down on what he thinks of the venues he plays.


How do you feel about house parties?

I love, love playing house parties.  The intimacy of playing in a living room with 30 people standing 2 feet away is so much fun.  It has been far too long since I have played a house show.  I want to play one right now.

Outdoor shows?

Also fun, probably mostly because it is different, makes you feel like you are a some huge band when you get to play outside.  Though my few outside show experiences have been to pretty small groups of people.


Theaters?

Theaters are weird because people are sitting.  People should not be sitting for rock bands, a least most of them shouldn't.


Bars?

I like to play at bars, especially now that you can't smoke in them.  I like to have a couple of beers when I play and hang out with friends that are having a good time.  Obnoxious drunk people that are not there to see you can be a real drag though.  I like to play in bars in states or cities where people of any age can come.  New Mexico is pretty dumb that way.


Battles of the bands?

Thinking of music as a competition is sooooo depressing to me.  Bands I have been in have taken part in battle of the bands (I was out-voted) and it was a pretty terrible experience.



Art spaces?

Art spaces can be fun.  If someone comes to an art space for a show you generally know they showed up for the show and not just cause they were bored and wanted to drink.  They are all ages as well which is great.

and fianlly Festivals?


Getting to play SXSW was one of the highlights of my music career and such a huge bonus that you get to see all the other bands for free.  Non stop awesome music for 4 days, can't beat that.

You can see The Oktober People live at the launchpad with As Tall as Lions on September 2nd

THE SHOWS I KNOW- WITH JOE ANNABI

Today's post I  caught up with local art rocker Joe Annabi of Yoda's House.  In this segment I ask musicians thier opinions on shows, the likes and dislikes of playing or attending that peticular Venue.  Here's what Joe had to say. 


What are your Thoughts on House Parties?


are good chillin' fun.  it's nice to be under the radar a little bit when getting your freak on.

 Coffee shops?


are my livelihood.  not sure what it'd be like at a shop other than Winning, as we have access & control over so much there as employees.  

 Theaters?


are fun, but it seems like a less preferred location for our crowd.  we definitely notice diminished attendance.  

Bars?

attract a high concentration of drunk assholes.  i'm not anti drinking or anything, but i'm not really much of a bar goer in general.

i do get into a bar show now, and then if it's with the right touring act, or something special, but in general i like to keep our shows all ages. which works out for all the under agers we attract.

bars are a good way to make some cash, but yoda's house is pretty much a pro bono community arts project.  we exist to support touring artists in the capacity of setting up, promoting, and playing shows.  it's allowed us to host some really amazing talents that may have otherwise not played our fine city.

maybe someday we'll set up shows for the sake of getting out there and making some money, but even when we toured last fall we were mainly raising money to pay for the expenses of the trip.  free vacation, and good times with a new group of kids in every city.

did i mention we're a bunch of dirty hippy kids?  

Battles of the bands?


the only one i've ever seen was in Bill & Ted's Bogus Jouney.  it was awesome as i recall.


Art spaces?


are where we shine.  cirq is currently my favorite place to play.  that giant shoebox really does wonders with our reverby sound.  doesn't work for alot of bands though.
R I P stove.  

Record Shops?


played a zine shop / community center in Milwaukee.  it was the worst attended show i've ever played.  maybe we'll play a record shop when we have a record for sale in a shop.  can't put the cart before the horse.  

Festivals?


are best if you camp.  

Open Mics?


never played one.  i intend to give it a shot once i get the new songs i've been working on polished up.  i'm trying to compose some beat driven pop noise songs, and i think some of it could work as a one man act.   Winning has a pretty bangin' open mic on thursdays, but you don't see much experimental stuff, so i want to bring that to the table.

THE JIST - WITH MAURY CRANDALL

Maury is the drummer/vocalist for the Giranimals.  I first met Maury when I first moved to Albuquerque five years ago at the golden west.  The Giranimals lineup has changed a lot in the past years,  but it's always been Maury and Connies songwriting that have kept me coming back.  Currently working an new album and keeping the shows to a minimun,  there is definatly some anticipation on their next move.

What are you currently listening to?

At this very moment as I type I am listening to "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" by The Buckinghams...one of the coolest breakdowns in classic pop/rock. Lately in general, Elliott Smith, Wye Oak, Love As Laughter, The Band. And not a lot of people know this but I am a closet jazz freak. Been listening to Wes Montgomery, Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Sunny Rollins, and others. I go through spurts where I listen to a lot of jazz.

If you could add one instrument to your band what would it be?

I would add a cool horn of some sort. Baritone sax would be rad. Is Jerry Mulligan available?

All ages or bar shows?

All ages shows are usually more fun, but the cool all-ages places never seem to last long in Albuquerque.

Your headlining a major music festival. Name three things you would required in your rider.

A rider? What's that? I dunno, maybe showers in the dressing room, lots of cold beverages. Oh, I got it-a babysitter for our three kids.

How often do you rehearse?

We "rehearse" (if you can call it that) once per week at most. It's exceptionally hard for us to schedule some weeks, so we miss sometimes. But, if we have a show coming up we try to maintain the one per week practice schedule in the weeks leading up to it.

Tell me the story behind one of your songs.

Our song "Bonnie and Ned" is about my grandparents, Bonnie and Ned Russell. My grandma, Bonnie, passed away in 1999, and I wrote the song several years later sort of directing it to my grandpa. The hook goes, "Don't slip away...Please don't join that fray." Seems like when one dies in an old couple, the other soon follows. But Ned battled on for almost 10 years. He passed away in May and I gave the eulogy at his funeral.

Is song writing up to the band as a whole? or an individual?

Songwriting in the giranimals is nearly always a solo thing. Connie and I write our own stuff and work on our songs individually and get an idea of how we want them to go, and then introduce them to the band. But Jav is a great songwriter and has been contributing a lot, which is really cool as none of our past members did much writing or song crafting.

Favorite local venue?

We really liked playing at Stove (rip). Launchpad is great too.

is stage fright a problem?

Stage fright is definitely still a problem at times. Connie still gets nervous quite a bit right beore we go on. But, you suck it up and play through it, right?

Name a dead musician you would like to see live.

Hmm, Otis Redding with Booker T anf the MG's backing him. Or Wilco with Jay
Bennett because that band is definitely dead now (just kidding).

What's more important,  practice or promotion?

I guess practice is more important, because if you get a lot of people to your shows but suck, then what have you accomplished? Besides getting on TRL or something, nothing.