Features / One Question Interviews

Joe Anderl (The 1984 Draft)

SPB: What is the origin of the band name?

Anderl: Both my parents are from Omaha, Nebraska. My dad graduated from the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. Since my dad was in the Air Force, we moved around a lot so we didn’t have deep ties to any real geographic region or sports teams outside …

Alex (The Remote Controls)

SPB: What’s your favorite Ramones deep cut?

Alex: My favorite Ramones deep cut is “Oh Oh I Love Her So” from Leave Home. I’m a big fan of Joey’s love songs and this is one of the best. The song has a cool ‘50s/American Graffiti vibe but set against the backdrop of Coney Island. The live …

Donnie Hopper (The Bare Minimum – bass)

SPB: What stands out to you about your first live show with The Bare Minimum?

Hopper: What stands out to me about my first show with the Bare Minimum was how big the shoes were that I had to fill. It was a St. Paddy's Day show on March 15th, 2019. I had …

Ash (The Clever References – guitar/vocals)

SPB: How important is TikTok platform for a DIY band?

Ash: It's a lottery ticket. You can do everything right on that platform, and find that the algorithm has changed and it's kinda left you behind. Alternatively, a piece of content you make might skyrocket you to fame that risks you being a passenger of …

Serge Nakauchi Pelletier (TEKE::TEKE – guitar)

SPB: You use a variety of instruments. Were there any mic challenges or unique studio setups to require the sounds you achieved on Shirushi last year?

Nakauchi Pelletier: I don't recall any “challenges” per se in terms of set ups or even choices of microphones. Obviously, you want the best option for each instrument …

Joey Affatato (The Carousers)

SPB: What is the furthest you’ve ever traveled to see a show (and who was it/where)?

Affatato: The farthest I've travelled for a show was about two hours away. It was to see Badflower at the Pat Garrett Amphitheater in Strausstown, PA

Adam (The Right Here-bass)

SPB: What’s the last record you didn’t care for much on first listen that’s really grown on you since?

Adam: The album that I initially dismissed was Let It Be by The Replacements. After listening to Sorry, ma and Stink I was looking for more hard-hitting, in-your-face punk rock so I fired up Let It Be …

Paul (Tor Johnson Records)

SPB: What’s the most challenging technology change in running a label right now, in 2021-22?

Paul: When I started the label 20 years ago the internet was nothing like it is now. Keeping up with streaming services, social media (I'm still horrible at twitter), websites (I update the store, but my website is kind of a …

Christian Dryden (The Ritualists – vocals/songwriter)

SPB: Besides the ‘80s and ‘90s references on display, are there any particular contemporary songwriters who inspire you?

Dryden: Yes! We love The Horrors, White Lies, Wand and Temples. They are all excellent, newish bands that really challenge the listener with incredible textures, grooves and soundscapes.  

Tyler Daniel Bean

SPB: After music, what arts interest you?

Bean: I’m inspired by the thought Annie Dillard put into creating a sentence, the quiet way Agnes Martin’s minimalism intentionally rejects the ease of machines, how Mark Rothko’s experimentations with the drying times of paint additives helped change the ways we experience modern art, the way Richard Siken blends dreams …

Jebb Riley (There Were Wires)

SPB: You haven't played live in years. What do you think will be the hardest song to relearn/remaster?

Riley: I’d have to go with “Gasp”. It’s long, but it’s the many mood, tempo, and part changes in that song that I think will be challenging. When we wrote it, it was a period when we were …

Jeff (Too Many Voices-bass)

SPB: What type of bass do you play and how did you get it?

Jeff: I own a few basses. I have an acoustic bass guitar I fiddle around with at home (bought that in 2004 at a music store in Denver), a Fender Musicmaster bass (which is a short-scale bass and that one actually does …

Lauren Gurgiolo (The Dialtones)

SPB: What’s a record you’re really into that would surprise your fans?

Gurgiolo: I listened to this masterpiece from 1995 to 2006 every day. When I think of it, I immediately feel comforted and at home. I fell in love with the sound multiple times over the years, especially in emotionally rough times when most albums …

Chris Veinot (Talk Show Host)

SPB: Was any of the “Blood in the Sand” cat footage shot specifically for the video or was it all footage you previously had on hand?

Veinot: The only thing shot specifically for the video was the intro, with Maila (the big white marshmallow doofus) lounging like an idiot in front of the radiator. The …

Tommy Plural (The Plurals)

SPB: What do you remember about the first Plurals live show?

Tommy: The Plurals -- from the beginning, and to this day, Tommy, Nich, and Hattie -- started playing together when we were all still in high school, largely jamming on Pixies covers in the spring of 2004. We cycled through a lot of joke band …

Tom Gibbs (The Bar Stool Preachers – guitar)

SPB: What kind of guitar do you use, and what do you specifically like about it?

Gibbs: I’ve got two axes in my touring arsenal. My favourite though has to be the “1962 Hagstrom KENT PB-24-G.” I love that its super lightweight and the tone really packs a punch. It also comes …

James Woodard (The Grasshopper Lies Heavy – guitar)

SPB: I have two #1 guitars; one for stage; and one that stays home for recording and practice.

Woodward: My old #1 is my 1982 Gibson Les Paul Standard in a tobacco burst finish. It came into a guitar store I worked at about a decade ago and instantly knew I had …

Dennis Jagard (Ten Foot Pole-vocals/rhythm guitar/songwriter)

SPB: What was the most striking or memorable moment of your first practice when you reunited?

Jagard: It sounds silly, but my strongest memory is of us all pulling our cars up to the rehearsal area and seeing baby seats in nearly every car. We were no longer punk rock kids, we were now punk …

Tired of Everything

SPB: Who is your favorite 1970s artist? 

Will: Yes

Matt: The Cure

Dylan: The Doors

Eli: Motörhead

Eric Quach (Thisquietarmy)

SPB: In recording your new record, did any particular piece of gear (or combination) stand out for how it captured or delivered the final tone that you were seeking for the album?

Quach: Not anything in particular per se. Though to further elaborate that answer, here are some photos of our setup at Méduse Audio's studio for the making …