Dr. Dog - Scott McMicken Interview

Dr. Dog Accepts Its Fate

by Tina Whelski

There comes a time when everything makes sense. The stars align. Clocks freeze. The universe is trying to tell you something. At least that’s what Dr. Dog discovered while recording Fate, the follow up to the band’s critically acclaimed album, We All Belong.

When “fate” surfaced as a possible album title, the Philadelphia band stopped in its tracks. And after a few days of “swooning, and freaking out,” as singer/guitarist Scott McMicken tells it, they realized something greater than themselves was weighing in. Songs they’d written over the last six years suddenly had similarities. And “fate” tied them together conceptually. So members Frank McElroy (multi-string guitar, full-grip chords, harmonies), Juston Stens (trapset & harmonies), Toby Leaman (finger bass, vocals), Zach Miller (organ), and McMicken (woof + mud distortion solo guitar and voice) stepped aside to let a process of observation take over. Instead of finding ways to put ideas into their material, they looked for ways in which they already existed. The result was an album McMicken describes as a subjective experience.

“I’ve never felt as detached from my own songs,” says McMicken. “And I mean that in a good way. This is probably as close as I can get to hearing them as though I didn’t write them and didn’t have anything to do with them. That way of thinking was so important to making the album. Just separating everything you put into them. So that you can re-interpret them and try to put them into this greater story.”

Scott McMicken talks to The Aquarian about recording Fate.

“Fate” wasn’t the intention for the record. How did it evolve?

It was a very natural thing. It just unfolded very slowly from very tiny little seeds…Like Toby saying, ‘What about Fate as a possible name for the album?’ And that was chosen at that point in time just as the word…I liked it immediately aesthetically as a big powerful four-letter word. I don’t know if I liked Fate or didn’t like Fate. I didn’t know what I thought it even was. It was just this big romantic thing in my head. That being said, right away I did realize that it was an interesting title just in the fact that it causes me to question. It’s a word taken for granted. And obviously everyone is so familiar with it. But I really had nothing to say about it. It’s one of those interesting things. What the hell is fate?

What themes emerged as you questioned fate?

The interesting thing is all the songs were written well before we started talking about this idea of fate…So it had less to do with how we were going to go about writing and manipulating our songs to suite this idea and more to do with just re-interpreting these songs…I’d say the only way we got manipulative of material, in order to represent what it was we were slowly starting to think about, was that it helped us choose which songs fit and which didn’t.

The metaphor of trains runs through the record. Why does that work so well?

Basically it was just like, ‘What can we do to point out what we are starting to notice about these consistencies between the songs?’ There’s enough of it in the songs themselves. But we wanted to take it up one notch and tie them all together. So Frank came up with the idea of the train…It suits everything about the album because it’s such a musical sound. It’s got a nice constant, flowing rhythm…And the dynamics. I really like that the passage of time has a lot to do with this album. And I think the passage of time has a lot to do with the train. Its presence is always somewhere in the abstract. It’s like it’s always far from you, but on its way…There’s just this romance around the train.

Can you tell the story of a song from the record?

There are little bits of magic sprinkled through all of them. That’s what got them past the chopping block…When I got to looking at these songs, in my head, they represent how constantly changing I am as a songwriter. Not on a huge level, but like trying new things over the years that I like a lot, like simpler songs. “The Breeze” was me trying to write a song that essentially didn’t change at all. It’s one melody and one chord progression that goes like five or six times or whatever and then it’s over and it never really breaks. So that was an experiment in songwriting for me.

“The Rabbit, The Bat, and The Reindeer,” that’s a weird song too, because that was me again trying something that was really not my thing in songwriting, which was sort of a hate message. I always try to put so much passive acceptance into every song I write (laughs) because that’s how I like to live. But that was me trying to be angry about something.

On We All Belong Dr. Dog was getting used its upgraded recording equipment after the success of Easy Beat. Did knowing the studio better free you up on Fate?

Yeah it certainly was convenient…It felt like the first time we as a band went into making an album with a really strong sense of our own identity. For years the studio has just been this blank slate. Especially for the first three, four, five years of being a band, when we never really played live. It was all just this completely imaginary band. We weren’t trying to capture a sound that actually existed. We were just inventing one for every song. So this felt like the first time we actually stepped into the studio with this pretense, you know? I think where we’ve come so far as technicians in the studio made that possible. And the truth is though I’m very very happy with the way the record turned out and I have no regrets…I don’t think it was a full hundred percent representation. But I’m totally fine with it. I accept that about the process. I know that you can only really go so far as you’re capable of. And that every step of the way is educational. I think we just put a foot in the door on some different ways of recording. So I think for the next one, we’ll just pick up where we left off.

Originally published in The Aquarian Weekly November 26, 2008 issue.

Dr. Dog perform "The Rabbit, The Bat, and the Reindeer" on Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson .

and "From"

Nick Cave - Interview

One Word At A Time

by Tina Whelski

It’s better to believe in something than nothing at all. So whether Nick Cave is searching for faith in the pages of the New Testament, on the disorderly streets of New York City, or rummaging inside his own soul, it becomes clear. He at least believes in the journey.

“A hemorrhaging of words and ideas,” is how the Australian-born singer/songwriter describes Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, his fourteenth studio album with The Bad Seeds. And like previous works, his narrative songwriting looks for God, love, and sex to explain their mysteries. But this time, he probes more emotional, abstract territory. And lets himself and bandmates, Mick Harvey, Warren Ellis, Martyn Casey, Jim Sclavunos, Thomas Wydler, James Johnston, and, Conway Savage get more expansive.

Nick Cave talks about Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!

Can you describe your mindset going into Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!?

What I tried to do was make a record that was not just a bunch of songs but that the songs kind of echoed throughout each other. I’m just trying to think what I was trying to do. I can’t remember what I was trying to do to be perfectly honest. It was a long time ago.

I’d imagine from start to finish, that your music passes through many lives. After completing the album and listening back, did it surprise you?

Well I was really pleased that it was good. That’s all I really cared about. And then I quickly forget about it and involve myself in the next thing. It’s always the next thing that’s of interest to me. But it’s important to know that thing before is at least good. And Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! is a good record. It’s been an immense pleasure to play live. But what was going through my mind when I wrote it and all that sort of stuff, to be completely honest, I have no idea. I can’t really remember. Since then I’ve been writing a closing chapter for a novel, I’ve written a screenplay, I’ve done the music to the Cormac McCarthy movie The Road. All sorts of things have been going on. So it’s difficult to remember what the actual process was behind the record. But the process is pretty much always the same. I just sit down and do something. There’s not really a story behind it. I just put my head down and work.

Let’s talk about the narrative on “Today’s Lesson?”

“Today’s Lesson,” I think, was one of the first songs that I wrote. I mean what normally happens, and this took a longer time than usual, is that I have to write myself from the last record I made. So I sit down and I start working on a new record and it takes maybe a month to stop writing songs that sound like the last record. Or that come from previous records. This record took a long time to do that, to get away from what sounded to me like Nick Cave lyrics. And I think “Today’s Lesson” was one of the first songs that I found kind of wrenched itself away from that kind of writing. It was something different. “Today’s Lesson,” to me, is much more abstract. There’s a kind of humor to it, but it’s an extremely sinister, violently sexual song.

I guess what happened was that I found a different way to be narrative. Songs that I’d written before that had always been largely narrative songs. That’s just the way that I write. I find it difficult to write any other way. But there’s a different narrative style going on in these songs, which is much more confused and much more about digression and things like that. With that particular song I wrote it and it really creeped me out lyrically. I found it a very disturbing song. It related strongly to certain things that I was thinking about at the time. And that I’d heard about at the time. But it wasn’t a straight narrative. And that really pleased me.

What’s going on in "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!?"

Well you know that song came out of unfinished business. I’d spent many hours as a child at bible studies, hearing the stories of the bible. And that particular story always disturbed me. That Christ had brought this guy back after being dead. After being dead for three days as an example of his miraculous powers? And you never found out what happened to Lazarus. And we don’t ask him. That always disturbed me, so I thought that I would finish the tale.

Let’s discuss one more.

Well “Moonland” was kind of a long song. With much more of a narrative story within those words. I just kept chopping down and chopping down. And I got rid of the event that the story is around. And just talked about the peripheral activities going on around the song. That ended up being beautifully mysterious to me.

I’ve been playing Grinderman concerts for a while. It’s quite nice to do this interview because you keep reminding me of particular songs and I keep thinking, ‘Fuck that’s right. We do that song.’ And that song live is wonderful. It’s become something else.

People often paint a dark picture of you. But these songs seem like your way of casting those feelings away. To me that’s ultimately optimistic?

Well, I find the whole process of writing and recording a positive thing to do. It can’t be anything else. If you want to use that language, it is an optimistic thing to do. I know I’ve written some heavy going songs in my days. And I apologize to everyone for that. But I’ve never considered them depressing.

Do you remember when music touched you in a way where you knew it would always be part of your life?

I’m still surprised that it is. It was never what I was going to do. It was just an accident. I wanted to be a painter. But through a series of accidents I ended up being a musician.

We talked earlier about how for you, it’s always about moving on to the next project. What were you working on today?

Well I’m writing a novel. And today I killed off the central character. I’m quite pleased about that. It was a big day for him. (laughs). He is now officially dead. Which means I’m nearly finished the book. So that’s been quite exciting.

What inspires you to write?

Everything inspires. Other people’s art inspires me. Everything that I see. But in the end, I work. I sit down, put my head down and I work. And inspiration doesn’t really have that much to do with it. It’s more about writing one word after the next.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds perform at WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden on October 4.

Originally published in The Aquarian Weekly Oct 1, 2008.

Nick Cave Video for "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!"


an older one, "Into My Arms."

My Morning Jacket - Tom Blankenship Interview

Songs For The Road

by Tina Whelski

Give My Morning Jacket an open road and they’ll jam it with fans. At least that’s what the Louisville, Kentucky band’s been doing for nearly a decade. There’s just something about these hillbilly rockers that people can’t help but like. Maybe it’s those honest, sweet guitar sounds juxtaposed with the band’s super-frenzied performance? Or it’s that haunting, soul-searching reverb that’s aching for contact? No one knows for sure. Not even the band. But what is clear is that My Morning Jacket is quickly becoming known as one of the best live acts in America. The band’s upcoming show at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall scheduled for June 20 sold out in just 22 minutes. And with the release of their 5th album, Evil Urges (ATO Records), just a few days ago, it is obvious My Morning Jacket is heading for new territory.

My Morning Jacket established its signature sound with independent releases of The Tennessee Fire (1999), At Dawn (2001), and its ATO debut It Still Moves (2003)—all recorded in their Louisville, Kentucky farm studio. The band became more adventurous on 2005’s Z, leaving home for Allaire Studios in the Catskill Mountains. But with Evil Urges, the band deliberately made itself uncomfortable, opting to record in the less serene New York City at Avatar Studios. The result is an impressive evolution in their sound.

It seems the wider My Morning Jacket travels, the more interesting things get. But even though Evil Urges stretches east, south, north, and west musically, there’s still a familiar space grounded by Jim James (frontman), Tom (“Two-Tone Tommy”) Blankenship (bass), Patrick Hallahan (drums), Carl Broemel (guitar), and Bo Koster (keyboards) that you’ll recognize as pure My Morning Jacket.

My Morning Jacket bassist, Tom (“Two-Tone Tommy”) Blankenship talks about Evil Urges.

You recorded Evil Urges in Manhattan with Grammy-award-winning producer/engineer Joe Chicarelli. What was different about the way the band approached this album?

I think we intentionally set out to have a different recording environment than we did the last time. We’ve worked at Allaire before in upstate New York and it was definitely out in the middle of nowhere. It took like fifteen minutes just to drive up the hill. And the records before that were all done at the farm. We’d always been kind of secluded. So we really wanted to switch it up this time. All of us were really excited to go to New York to do it in a big city. I think we all wanted to experience it as well personally. So the prospect of spending a month living in Manhattan was pretty enticing.

How did this change affect the music?

It was a good work environment because we spent twelve hours a day locked in a studio from eleven to eleven or twelve to twelve or whatever it was. It was different because before everything was more relaxed. You just kind of strolled into the studio whenever you woke up. If a couple guys wanted to stay up late until 2:00 a.m. and work on something they could. If you wanted to wait until it was really late at night and light some candles and look out over the mountains or look out over the farm and record a song, you could do it. It was different here because you had these twelve hours you had to work. That was it…It was more like you just focused on what you had to do and spent a day or two on a song tops knowing that maybe you wouldn’t get the chance to re-visit it again. So there was a certain amount of pressure that added, which I found nice and freeing in a way. To have everything structured and set in stone. You know how your work day was going to go, how your work week was going to be.

Did you have a specific thematic intention entering the studio?

I think personally I had an idea what the record was going to be like and it didn’t turn out anything like that, but we’d never really discussed going for a certain sound or a certain kind of direction. It was just we had this group of songs and we kind of cut out a few here and there. So it came down to like twenty songs or something. And it would be like, “Let’s try this twenty or seventeen and see how it goes.” Cause usually the album will sort of piece itself together.

Is there a song that’s particularly special to you?

Yeah, there are a couple, like “Evil Urges.” I think that was one of the most fun to write because it started out as two riffs. Like that intro riff with the bubbling roads and stuff and then the kind of big chorus part. Those were just two riffs that Jim had and he wanted to fit them together. I think it was the first song that we worked on and it was kind of nice because we were all starting from scratch. It wasn’t a demo that we had previously or something that we were familiar with. So it was a nice ice-breaker. And it was one that we spent the entire month in Colorado last year rehearsing. Every day we would play that song. So every day it really went through a lot of changes and was probably the most collaborative thing that we’d done.

How does an MMJ song typically come to life?

The process doesn’t change too much. Jim makes demos at home and hands us like two dozen songs or something. And we all live with them for a while. Then we get together and everybody just plays whatever comes into their minds. We just kind of hammer them out from there.

Where does inspiration often strike you?

I would listen to the songs in the morning here at the house and I guess it was last spring I had to do a lot of mowing. I had to mow the yard like every five days or something and then I had to rake between mowing because I had this ancient mower. So anyway, I spent a lot of time outside working and I would still have the songs in my head and I could hear little bass parts come up that way. So a lot of my stuff came when I was just working in the yard.

Your first-ever headlining show at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall is scheduled for June 20 and it sold out in just 22 minutes. How does it feel knowing people can’t wait to be in the room with you guys?

It’s surreal. And it’s insanely flattering and unbelievable. Definitely unbelievable would be the major thing. I obviously believe in us, but just that anybody really wants to see us that much and that a show would sell out that quickly just blows my mind.

What do you think makes your live show such an attraction?

That’s a good question. It’s funny, when I see “Okonokos” [live 2006 DVD] or something like that. When I actually see clips of us playing, it’s like “Oh wow these guys are pretty good.” It’s so strange. Well I guess it’s not that strange. When you’re in the middle of it and you’re doing it you just have no clue. But even when I saw Patrick and Carl play with Bobby Bare Jr. in Austin a couple of years ago I was like “Holy shit,” watching them play. I understood. Not being a part of what they were doing and watching them play as individuals. There was a weird energy and a magical thing that happened. It’s hard to describe. I don’t know, it’s weird. Years ago when we were touring on At Dawn live shows were so different. It was like we wanted to be, I don’t want to say we wanted to be a metal band, but that’s what it felt like when we got on stage. Like we were Metallica in the ‘80s or something. (laughs). It wasn’t even something we talked about. It was just like that was what we did. I guess it was what we had grown up listening to and watching all the time. Hardcore and metal and stuff like that. I guess that really seeped its way into the live show, whereas the recording was a totally different world. Maybe that’s where it comes from. Just that music we were listening to growing up.

Do you have a song that’s a favorite to play live?

"One Big Holiday” would probably be the obvious answer. Because we’ve been playing it for so long, since the first year the band started. That’s one that I can’t get tired playing. And hearing people chime in at the verses. Its like, “Oh my God it’s insane.” And you can’t beat that intro. You know the ticking and then the guitar comes in. It’s like one of those live staples. Like it was written to be that kind of song. One that would get people off their feet. So that’s always fun to play.

My Morning Jacket performs at Radio City Music Hall on June 20.

Originally published in The Aquarian Weekly (6/18/08).

MMJ on Conan O'Brien in 2006 performing "One Big Holiday," my favorite.


"Thank you Too" from Evil Urges


With the Boston Pops on David Letterman.


"I'm Amazed" Video.

Nelly McKay - Concert Review

Nelly McKay @ Joe’s Pub
NYC 4/1/08

by Tina Whelski

Sitting pretty in a pink chiffon dress and matching hair ribbon singer/pianist Nelly McKay filled her Joe’s Pub set on April 1st with an unusual mix of jazz, rap, techno, politics, and zombies. She tapped out tracks from her new album, Obligatory Villagers, along with a scattering of blues covers, several works-in-progress, favorites from her debut CD, Get Away From Me, and some bizarre theatrics.

Her stream-of-conscious lounge show included animated interstitials where she tackled topics like the presidential election. “The thing about Obama is he’s great,” said McKay in her cooing voice. “And he’s so attractive. You know that seals the deal. The thing about Hillary is, well she wants it so bad. I don’t know. I’m just going to feel like such a sell-out if I don’t vote for her…It’s just so hard,” she said exaggerating the point. “I’m glad you find my pain amusing,” she said interrupting the audience’s laughter.

McKay then charged into “Sari,” rapping “Sometimes I feel like I shouldn’t apologize so much” (and messing up the next few lines purposely, so she could apologize and begin again).

A techno version of “David” followed.

“I try to make these things fresh again,” said McKay about her older song. “I think I tried this once here and it didn’t come off, so I’m going to go for twice.”

McKay screeched out a few lines that resembled high-pitched Dolphin cries and improvised others. Ultimately, she acted out a scene between two people in a club. “Hey this is really crappy,” she said. “I hate techno music, don’t you?” “Yeah,” she said answering herself. “Let’s stay a few more hours.”

But no one stayed. Seconds later she transplanted herself in another era and a snappy, mind-blowing version of “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” began. McKay was so authentic channeling the nursery rhyme Ella Fitzgerald originally made memorable that it was as eerie as it was enjoyable.

Then a Ukulele appeared and McKay was suddenly playing the tongue-in-cheek “Mother of Pearl” from her new album. ”Feminists don’t have a sense of humor,” sang McKay. “Feminists just want to be alone. Feminists spread vicious lies and rumors. They have a tumor on their funny bone.” The song’s zinger comes when she tells feminists to “lighten up” and explains, “These feminists just need to find a man.”

During this endearingly bipolar performance, the songs that followed—a soft and lovely cover of “If I Had You,” “Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans,” popularized by Louis Armstrong, and McKay’s disorderly “Inner Peace” all somehow worked together.

McKay summed up the night best when she was talking to herself. Hunting through stacks of songbooks and scribbled notes she said, “Isn’t she all over the place? Like what the fuck are we doing here honey?”

So when McKay ended the night with “Zombie” and her guest ensemble appeared, arms out-stretched and growling with vacant looks (think Shaun of the Dead), they oddly enough didn’t seem out of place.

But that’s McKay’s charm. Nothing is out of place. She’s a timeless paradox. An equal opportunity performer. She appeals to everyone. Even the walking dead.

Originally published in The Aquarian Weekly (5/7/08).

Nelly McKay performing "Mother Of Pearl."


And on The View last year.


On David Letterman with "The Dog Song."

Cat Power - Concert Review

Cat Power @ Terminal 5
NYC 2/6/08

by Tina Whelski

As she slinked across stage it was easy to see that Chan Marshall, who performs as Cat Power, was well past her age of doubt. A few years sober, with her infamous stage antics and breakdowns now distant memory, she was lovely, confident, and maybe even happy during her sold-out New York City show at Terminal 5 on February 6th.

Supporting her eighth album, Jukebox, a collection of mostly covers, Marshall once again borrowed the words of her heroes to express what’s perhaps a little too intimate to say alone.

Her bright smile peeked thru hushed lighting as she opened with Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York,” backed by The Dirty Delta Blues band. Her sneaky, quiet vocals seemed comfortable wrapped around the Hank Williams cover “Ramblin’ (Wo)man,” and James Brown’s “Lost Someone,” but her interpretations of “Silver Stallion” originally performed by The Highwaymen, and Janis Joplin’s “Woman Left Lonely,” sounded more natural.

The Atlanta, Georgia-born performer seemed most at home with her older songs. She introduced “Metal Heart,” which appears on Jukebox, re-made from her 1998 version, as “an old song from when I was a young girl.” She followed it with “Moon,” “Where is My Love” and “The Greatest,” all from her acclaimed The Greatest album.

Other highlights included “Song To Bobby,” Jukebox’s other Marshall-penned tune, and “Lived In Bars.”

Erratic phrasing lends to Marshall’s unique sound. It’s as if she cautiously chases, then catches every thought. Though pretty, it can leave you a bit breathless without some up-tempo relief. But a cozier venue than this former dance hall might have solved that. And feedback that broke the mood all evening didn’t help.

During her ruined cover of Patsy Cline’s “She’s Got You,” Marshall gracefully worked in the line, “That feedback is pissing me off,” to wild applause. It proved how far she’s come as a live performer. Marshall was only fighting feedback—not herself.

Originally published in The Aquarian Weekly (2/27/08).
Photo by Tina Whelski.

Here's Cat Power singing "Lived In Bars" on Later With Jules Holland.

Anthony Raneri of Bayside - Interview

by Tina Whelski

Anthony Raneri appears sans Bayside at the Knitting Factory on January 18. The punk rock band’s front man will perform acoustic versions of Bayside’s music, along with whatever else he can think of. Raneri discusses playing what he wants, where he wants.

You’re playing solo shows before re-joining Bayside for a tour supporting the band’s latest album, The Walking Wounded?

I’ve been doing these shows for a couple of months now. This is my hobby I guess. Our band has gotten to a point now where I have a very rigorous schedule and it’s turned into a job in a way. I still love it and wouldn’t want to be doing anything else, but playing music isn’t what it was when I was twelve. It’s not like I can grab a guitar and play whatever I want. So it’s just a chance for me to go wherever I want in the country. It was cold and snowing in New York so I was like, ‘Alright, I’m going to San Francisco.’ So I flew to San Francisco with a guitar and I just played last night. And I’m playing in Orange Country tomorrow. I get to play wherever I want and whatever I want. You know what I compare it to? It’s like 50-year-old dudes who go to work all day and then on Friday nights they play in a cover band at a bar somewhere. It doesn’t matter that they’re not making any money. It doesn’t matter that nobody’s there. There’s no pressure. There’s no stress at all. They’re just loving that they can play music. That’s what this is for me.

What will you play?

Well at these shows I play some Bayside songs. And then I play some covers and songs that I’ve written that aren’t Bayside songs. I play “Duality,” mostly songs from the new album. I play “I and I.” I play songs that I think translate to acoustic well, because I always hate the sound of people playing rock songs on an acoustic guitar. Some songs are meant to be played with a band and some songs aren’t…I just play whatever I think sounds right.

What are “Duality” and “I and I” about?

“Duality” is about the two personalities that are inside everybody. The song ‘I and I’ sums up the theme of the new record. On the first record I was in more of a dark place. And it really reflects in the lyrics. There’s really not much sign of hope. On the second record there was kind of this, ‘Okay, I understand that things are going wrong and I need to figure them out.’ And then on this new record I’m great and I’m loving life and I think I figured out how to do that and why I’ve gotten here. And that’s kind of what ‘I and I’ is all about. Being happy where you are. I think too many people try to change the world to make them feel better. But if something’s getting you down or you’re at a bad place in your life, the way to move on from that is to change the way that you’re looking at it. Change the way you’re handling it. Not to change the thing itself. You can’t really mold the world to be a place that you want to be in. It’s really in your own head and you’ve got to show yourself a better way of looking at everything.

What’s next for Bayside?

We’re shooting a video for “Carry On” which we’re pretty stoked about. We spent a long time trying to decide which song would be the second single from the album. “Carry On” wasn’t the obvious choice. There were other songs we were talking about that probably would have had more mass appeal and that’s kind of what you go for when you release a single. But we just love the song. It’s probably the fastest, heaviest, most punk rock song on the record…And then at the end of January we’re doing a ‘B’ market tour, which I’m really excited about. When we first started playing shows we couldn’t get a show in Manhattan. Nobody would book us. We’d have to play in Queens or in Long Island or something. We couldn’t get a show in Philly. We’d have to play in Reading, Pennsylvania right outside of Philly. Or we couldn’t play in L.A. We’d have to play in Ventura because nobody would book us in L.A. Since we got our record deal and started putting out records and got a booking agent and all that stuff, we only play in L.A. and Manhattan and Philadelphia and stuff like that. So we really wanted to go back to all the places we used to play all the time.

Sing along with Anthony Raneri at the Knitting Factory on January 18.

Originally published in The Aquarian Weekly (1/17/08).

Bayside's "Duality" Video.