One of our newest features here at Scene Point Blank is our semi-daily quickie Q&A: One Question Interviews. Follow us at facebook or twitter and we'll post one interview every Monday-Thursday. Well, sometimes we miss a day, but it will be four each week regardless.
After our social media followers get the first word, we'll later post a wrap-up here at the site and archive 'em here. This week check out Q&As with Circles/Space Raft, Hollow Earth, Cheap Time, and Gazer.
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Srini Radhakrishna (Circles, Space Raft)
SPB: Do you wear earplugs when you play? (Why/why not?)
Radhakrishna: Despite having custom earplugs made over a year ago, I've only used them once. They actually haven't even moved from where I put them the day I got them. I forget that I own them and never think to bring them to practice. I suppose one of these days I will remember, and find out if they were worth the $150 I spent on them.
Steve (Hollow Earth, vocals)
SPB: What do you think of bands playing albums in their entirety as a tour concept?
Steve: I personally think it's great! In 2008 one of my all-time favorite bands, Local H, played 7 nights in a row in their hometown of Chicago to commemorate the release of their then new album. In chronological order they played all five of their studio albums in their entirety, left night 6 for b-sides and rarities, and on the 7th night played the new album front to back on the eve of its release. As a fan, I couldn't have asked for more! That'll easily go down as one of the most memorable experiences for me. And for bands that tour consistently, why not? I see no harm in giving people more motivation to come out and see a band they've already seen before. Of course you do run the risk of alienating people who may not be particularly fond of said album, but I truly think at the end of the day true music fans will largely be appreciative. As a guy who has repeatedly gotten into bands long after I wish I had, or even bands that may have been a bit before my time... I love the idea of being afforded the opportunity to hear some of those deep cuts I thought I'd never hear! I've never really been a fan of songs that only get recorded and never see the stage. Doing full album tours forces bands to dust off those potentially neglected gems. When Hollow Earth formed, we often played our entire EP from front to back, but that's because we didn't have any other songs! Haha, does that count?!
Jeffrey Novak (Cheap Time, solo)
SPB: What inspired you to start performing solo?
Novak: I have never had much patience with waiting. I got tired of waiting to meet the right people to start a band with, so I got heavy into home recording instead. But it wasn't until I saw the Cheater Slicks play that I finally knew I had to perform. Staying at home writing and overdubbing all the time just wasn't enough anymore. Seeing them open for the Oblivians opened up a vision to me that it was all possible and extremely necessary. I had seen a few bands play before them, but I had never seen anything as un-posturing and honest and the Cheater Slicks. They made it real, and they set a certain standard that I and all their other loyal fans still thrive for. The day after I saw them I taught myself how to play the drums and guitar at the same time. Five months later I played my solo debut in Memphis opening for Monsieur Jeffrey Evans. As far as I have ever been concerned, that was it.
Been on a major writing spree lately. We're not touring this summer, so I'm staying home to help the Paperhead get the finishing touches on their album. Plus I'm planning on finishing 4 albums worth of material by the end of the year, 2 of which are almost in the can.
Erik Ziedses des Plantes (Gazer, bass/vocals)
SPB: How do you find new music?
Zedses des Plantes: My current music discovery system has two tiers that I think does a good job of covering stuff happening more "above ground" and things happening on a more DIY level.
Tier 1: I have a regular rotation of websites that I've visited daily for years at this point, and that covers most of the stuff that comes out on the larger indie/punk labels and whatnot. I try and read as many music-related books as I can, about everything from hip-hop and electronic music, to vocoders, jazz, and a healthy batch of punk/hardcore related materials. Finally, I've tried to buy at least one music magazine per month this year.
Tier 2: As much as I hate about 95% of what people use it for and the self-obsessed, assigning-relevance-to-the-utterly-mundane culture it encourages, social media is pretty integral to how I discover music these days, due to the fact that I have a job that is fairly restrictive in how often it allows me time to go out to shows. I've often found out about new stuff by simply seeing what my friends are seeing and finding worthy to post about, or shows that they're booking around Ohio. I also consider myself very lucky to have made friends with several open-minded obsessives, record store owners, and downright curious types in the world of punk and hardcore, who are constantly exposing me to bands and music (both old and new) that I usually would have no idea to look for.
