Features / One Question Interviews

Santos Montano (Old Man Gloom)

SPB: How do you choose your album art?

Montano: There are two things that make Old Man Gloom function: Breakfast and solidarity. There is one caveat to this. Well, two. Our solidarity is compromised when I use the word "caveat," as it makes Nate furious, and the other is album art. There is simply no …

Eli Hansen (Real Numbers/Three Dimensional Records)

SPB: Who is your favorite pre-1960s artist?

Hansen: I'll have to go with Chuck Berry... but it's not easy picking a favorite from the BIG THREE: Chuck, Little & Bo.

Daniel Menche

SPB: Who is your favorite 1980s artist?

Menche: Well, in the entire ‘80s I was age 10-20. So, of course, that was a big chunk of time for a youngster like me. There were so many amazing artists to look up to. Too many to count or recall fully. How about I start with the earliest when I …

STV SLV (The Hood Internet)

SPB: What is the worst interview question you’ve been asked?

STV SLV: Usually we get annoyed with "How do you choose which tracks to mix together" or almost any question that leads with "What inspired you to..." but that irritation is just a product of being asked the same thing a hundred times. I'd say …

Brian Lake (Buildings)

SPB: What is the furthest you’ve ever driven to play one show?

Lake: Well, we sweated in 130 degree heat in Houston then drove 9 and a half hours to Birmingham. Needless to say it was a boring weed induced drive.

Henry Rollins

SPB: Have you found that your background as a musical performer has influenced your ability or technique in other media endeavors, such as acting, hosting, and interviewing subjects?

Rollins: Yes. In my opinion, they are all basically the same thing. They all require honesty, focus, guts and discipline.

Worthwhile Way

SPB: What is the biggest difference you experience between Japanese and American audiences?

Chegeno: I think the biggest difference is the mind of positive or the negative.

Aki: No offense to everybody who is Japanese and American, Japanese audiences [are] rather quiet. American [audiences are] always cheerful.

Justin Foley (The Austerity Program)

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

Foley: Terrence Dixon's From the Far Future, pt. II. Here's the very little that I know about it: Dixon is a legendary Detroit techno DJ who put out From the Far Future Pt. 1 twelve years ago. …

Mikael Kjellman (Martyrdöd)

SPB: If you could release a split with any current band (that you haven’t met), who would it be?

Kjellman: I think it's a tough one to answer, especially says bands that we haven't met. And I had the opportunity to meet with many of my favorite bands already. There are several artists that I admire as …

Chris Besinger (STNNNG, vocals)

SPB: What is the worst interview question you’ve been asked?

Besinger: Not sure what the worst question we've been asked is, pretty much if someone is interviewing us I think it’s ok. Sometimes, we do get questions that are thinly-veiled attempts to get a very specific answer, like recently we were asked something to the effect …

Chris Mason (Dirt Cult Records, Low Culture)

SPB: As somebody who runs his own label, what do you get out of releasing your own records on another label? Is it easier or relieving? What is your preference?

Mason: I started Dirt Cult Records as an outlet to release my own band's music because at the time no one else would, …

Matt Agrella (Look Mexico)
SPB: Who does the majority of the band’s driving?

Agrella: Driving. We try to divvy this up pretty evenly, though some of our biggest arguments will be over petty "No, you still have 15 minutes left," or "You're stopping now?" We've figured out that 3 hour shifts work for us, but a lot of bartering goes …

Chris Kluwe (Tripping Icarus, ex-Minnesota Vikings)

SPB: What happens to Tripping Icarus now that your job has moved you to a new city? Going into the band, did you expect this to happen at some time given the nature of your full-time job [as an NFL punter]?

Kluwe: The band is currently working on finishing up our fourth cd (tracking's …

Quelle Chris (rapper)

SPB: Of the following gas station food options, rank the following - popcorn ball, candied peanuts, or red licorice?

Quelle Chris: I will rate them on a scale of -3 to -1 in fairness to the unmentioned but understood top contenders.

The candied peanuts are an immediate -3 and most likely wouldn't be bought because of their …

Trevor (Mercy Ties)
SPB: What is the longest tour you’ve been on (in terms of time)? How did it go/would you do it again?

Trevor: Our longest tour was 24 days. Started in Seattle, we did the west coast, 4 days in texas, some of the midwest, and ended in Portland. The goal of our band is to put out …

Stan (Iron Tongue)
SPB: What is your all-time favorite record and why?

Stan: KISS - Hotter Than Hell

It's everything you'd want in a rock record. Oh, and they had stars over the girls nipples in the cover, which was awesome when I was 10.

Ryan Raichilson (Bright & Barrow Records)

SPB: What do you think of Record Store Day?

Raichilson: I have nothing but good things to say about Record Store Day. Although Bright & Barrow hasn't actively participated by putting out a record on RSD, I've really enjoyed it as a consumer. I know there's been some reports out there talking about how …

Seth Gile (Arms Aloft)
SPB:Do you do anything to minimize the cost of gas while on tour?

Gile: The best way to minimize the cost of gas at this point is to book a smart route and keep yourself as busy as possible. There's no way to change the fact that it's 4000 miles from our home to the west …

Grath Madden (The Steinways, House Boat)

SPB: What was the first punk show you attended?

Madden: Does Green Day with Riverdales at the Baltimore Arena count? ‘Cause probably not, but, yeah, it was that. When I was first starting to go see bands, I wasn't interested in "punk shows" as much as I was into "Mighty Mighty Bosstones concerts." I …

Kaycee “Ninevolt” Tarricone (Convul, guitar)

SPB: What kind of guitar do you use? How did you choose this model?

Tarricone: I've recently been using a Fender Jazzmaster with a P90 and a zebra humbucker. The neck pickup has a sloppy ground that gives off some strange sonic alchemy when you hold it right. It's really sunk into the body whereas …