For Your Listening Pleasure
Sebadoh – Bakesale
News to You
First off, let me just say that this week, the turkey sammiches are ON ME… but if you want a taste of my leftover stuffed mushrooms, be ready to pay up.
Second, please take a few moments to check out Part One of Claire Flynn Boyle’s The Justice Squad. Definitely worth the read, and it’s no doubt better than anything you’ll ever get out of me, even on my best days.
And now, skimming through the news this week — and wondering if any of you are as relieved as I am by this little tidbit — I came across news that Ice Cube is close to finally signing with Dr. Dre’s Aftermath record label. Big news? To early to tell, but this could be very interesting… Sure, last week I made fun of the fact that Ice Cube’s CDs are being reissued, but while he’s had a few great singles, I personally haven’t been too hyped up about his solo career. He’s one of the most visible hip hop artists around, breaking into the mainstream with movies like the Friday trilogy, Higher Learning and others, and was part of the first hip hop “super group” NWA. I call NWA a super group partly because they’re one of the only big-time bands to have spawned successful solo careers for so many of its members. Eazy-E, Dre, Cube, Ren… they all had pretty decent careers on their own. But Cube and Dre together? That’s only happened in spurts since NWA broke up, and a reunion can be the best thing to happen to Ice Cube — and his fans — in years.
Interview with Jed Davis of Collider
As you may know from the tag-line that appears at the bottom of each of my columns, in addition to writing regular columns for 411, I tend to contribute to a great, HIP (!) online magazine called 1-42 (located at www.onefortytwo.com). As it turns out, “1-42” is a play on words, if you will, for the magazine’s editorial schedule: publishing 1 new issue every 42 days (or six weeks, whichever comes first). Well, the latest 42 days has run out, and Issue 2 is up as of this morning, featuring an interview by yours truly with one of New York City’s up-and-coming singer/songwriters (and front-man for electro-punk band Collider) Jed Davis.
27 is the age at which many musicians’ careers suddenly end — just ask any fan of Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain or Jimi Hendrix. But for Jed Davis, being 27 has him making a name for himself as one of the New York City hidden treasures in the music scene. His tribute song to Joey Ramone, “The Bowery Electric”, brought Tommy, Marky and CJ Ramone, as well as Ramone producer Daniel Rey, together for an historic recording session that produced a single set for release in the near future. He has collaborated on projects with Brian Dewan, Arturo Vega, Flaming Lips producer Dave Fridmann, and Belle & Sebastian producer Tony Doogan. He regularly performs throughout New York — solo, behind his keyboard, or fronting Collider. (And Jed has even been featured in a recent issue of indie comic Gabagool (#3, by Mike Dawson and Chris Radtke), and subject of a tribute album Everybody Wants to be Like Jed (J-Bird Records), featuring King Missile III, Daniel Johnston and Wesley Willis.)
Reprinted with permission, here is my interview from 1-42. Once you’ve read this, do me three favors: (1) Find something by Jed or Collider to listen to and let me know what you think, (2) Click around and read everything else in 411’s Music, Movies, Figures, Games and Wrestling zones, and then (3) Check out 1-42 for some interesting pieces on everything from music to politics, culture and relationships.
Photo credit: Jessica Sipos, Collider.com
Matthew Michaels: When did you write your first song, and how many have you written? What inspired you then? What inspires you now?
Jed Davis: I wrote my first song when I was 7 years old. It was 1983 and I was in my first “band” – I would go over to Joey Aversano’s house with Kevin Langley and pretend to play along to Kiss and Def Leppard records. Joey had 2 play guitars and a play drumkit (Kevin and I used to fight over who would get the drums). When we “wrote” songs, they were pretty much just the songs off “Lick it Up” and “Pyromania” with different lyrics. For example, I distinctly remember Kevin turning “Rock! Rock! ‘Til You Drop” into “Rockin! Rockin! ‘Til You’re Poppin.” Eventually I came up with an original song called “Whacko.” Can’t remember now, but I doubt it was about much of anything – I mean, I was 7. Since then, I have written about 300, at least half of which, I can safely say, are better than “Whacko.”
What inspires me now? Stuff that happens. Mostly stuff that pisses me off or makes me sad… every once in awhile, maybe 2 or 3 percent of the time, something positive will bring forth a song. But for the most part, when good things happen, one becomes CONTENT – not inspired.
MB: How long have you been writing/performing music? Have you always been with Collider, or were you in other groups?
JD: I started writing songs “for real” when I was in 7th grade, but the local band – the Rapists – wouldn’t let me perform with them because I was too nerdy. I was only allowed to write the songs, heard but never seen. The Rapists’ excuse was that I was a keyboard player and keyboards would turn them into a “poseur group,” like Europe. They wanted to be more like M.O.D. or Exodus, and a keyboard-playing dork would only cramp their style.
Eventually I started playing drums… I had a friend named Erik Christiansen who wanted to be a guitarist but had no idea how to play; we teamed up so bands who needed a drummer could have me, but they would have to take him in the deal. I switched back to keyboards in 1991 when I joined a band that already had a drummer – this was Skyscape. Since Skyscape, I’ve been in 3 other bands: Structure from 1994 to 1995; the Hanslick Rebellion from 1995 to 1997; and Collider since 1997. Skyscape is still kicking around a little too – we played a 10th anniversary reunion show at CBGB in March, 2002.
MB: When listening to Collider’s 2 independent albums, Blowing Shit Up and Physics, there’s a
definite change in style of the songwriting. How would you describe how your sound has changed since their release, compared to your more recent music?
JD: The sound of my music can’t really be said to change, because there isn’t one. Like any songwriter, what I bring to the table is more a sensibility than a sound or style. The sound is dictated by the band performing the songs. Physics sounds the way it does because it was written for a band but there was no band to play it. By the same token, Blowing Shit Up was written under the assumption that no band would be playing it. The latest batch of songs was written for a band, and then the roster of the band changed 4 times, changing the sound a little bit each time. It sounded pretty punk for awhile, but that could almost be attributed to a lack of chemistry… this latest version of Collider is the most cohesive and versatile group I’ve ever played with and that will eventually show in the music. We just learned Faith No More’s “Angel Dust” in its entirety and played it note-for-note on Halloween night. We rehearsed it a grand total of 3 times in a week-and-a-half and it sounded great. I can’t tell you how proud I am of this band.
MB: How would you describe your music’s sound at this moment in time?
JD: I’ve long since run out of patience for this question – in the time it takes me to answer it, you can just pop the f*cking record on and figure it out. So when people ask me what my music sounds like, I ask them what their favorite kind of music is, and then I tell them that’s what I sound like.
MB: What projects are you currently working on with Collider? What is the timing for your next release(s)?
JD: We’re recording an EP for SonaBLAST! Records in December; God willing, it’ll be available by January. Tommy Erdelyi (AKA Tommy Ramone) is producing and we’re scheduled to record it the second week of December.
MB: Would you rather write songs and perfect them in the studio or play live?
JD: They’re totally different things. I love writing songs, I love recording, and I love playing live.
MB: How do you determine which songs to include in a set (band/solo)? Is there a difference in how you choose songs to perform solo vs. with the band?
JD: The solo set is for songs I like that would sound goofy played by a rock band.
MB: What went into deciding to cover Faith No More’s “Angel Dust” on Halloween?
JD: If we liked nothing else about them, Mike and I always appreciated the way Phish would put on a “musical Halloween costume” every year – letting the fans pick an album and then covering it in its entirety. We had an opportunity to play on Halloween night so we decided to try it.
Why Angel Dust? That album was one of our favorites from high school, it’s still better than anything that’s come out since, and we wanted to see if we could actually play it. With no time to really poll our fans, we wanted to pick something over the top but not too ironic, something challenging… Joe and I thought of Van Halen’s 1984, but Sean nixed it – he never even owned the record. Other candidates were the This is Spinal Tap soundtrack, Blondie’s Parallel Lines, and Pet Sounds. Now that we know we can make it through Angel Dust, I’m sure we’ll get to all the rest eventually.
MB: How important is the Internet, and specifically your Web site (Collider.com), to the band? To communicating with your fans?
JD: The Web has become the place to consolidate your fanbase. You can tour every city in the world, but your website is the one place where ALL of your fans can see you anytime and hang out with one another, no matter where they live. We want visiting collider.com to be worth everyone’s time, so we’ve tried to make the site as rich, fun and comprehensive as possible. I think we’ve done a pretty good job.
MB: What solo projects (or those independent from the band) are you involved in?
JD: I perform solo piano shows a couple times a month, and I play drums in Dom Maltempi’s band, R.V. Wolfsegg.
MB: You’re currently working on a musical with Arturo Vega, and have performed at events that he’s been involved with (Joey Ramone birthday parties, Antagonist Movement). How did you meet Arturo, and how would you describe working with him?
JD: I met Arturo when Collider performed (as “Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Crummy Stuff”) at the Ramones’ Cyberpunk Blitz in 1999. Working with Arty is both inspiring and frustrating – we go about our business in very different ways. He focuses on one project until it’s done, and works pretty much around the clock to finish. I tend to go where the, uh, muse takes me – juggling a number of projects until inspiration strikes, then zeroing in on one and really throttling it. But until I feel the music coming, I can’t force it. We work with the same intensity but different priorities. Plus, Arturo sees the musical as one piece – one project – while I look at it as a collection of songs, each of which is a project in itself. So my pace is slower than anyone expected (including me), but the musical is almost done and I think it’ll be great. The working title, by the way, is Rise and Shine.
MB: How did you meet Joey Ramone? Tell me about what went into writing the tribute song (“The Bowery Electric”) and how it felt to record this song with so many people that had close personal ties to Joey.
JD: I met Joey at one of his birthday parties. He took a liking to Collider and invited us to open for him at what would turn out to be his last show at CBGB (actually his last full performance – he did a few songs at the Continental a month or so later, but that was impromptu). Joey had a genuine enthusiasm and affection for young New York bands and Collider was no exception.
I was at Arturo’s the night Joey passed away. I had been living in Woodhaven at the time, at least an hour’s subway ride out of the city – starting with the F to the J at Delancey Street. It was late; I was already tired and miserable, and of course the F was pulling out just as I got into the 2nd Avenue station. I was too fidgety to stand around on the platform and wait, so I decided to head back up the stairs, walk the Bowery and reflect a little. The song tells it exactly as it was – I had it almost complete by the time I got back to Woodhaven. I scribbled it out in my pocket planner on the way home.
I never thought Tommy, CJ and Marky would get involved. Collider was gonna record the song with Daniel Rey producing. But the fact that these Ramones all liked the song enough to lay their signatures on it just tells me that I did my job, which is to put everything I have of myself into the words and the music. Those guys are punks – they can smell bullshit a mile away. And of all the things they could do in tribute to Joey, they chose to record my song. That blows my mind. Everything in my life that is remotely connected to my experiences around the Ramones has been an honor, period. I’m the luckiest guy I know.
MB: How did it feel to perform the song at Joey’s birthday party this year?
JD: Best moment of my life, bar none. I used the guitar solo to reflect: First I looked forward at the microphone and the crowd beyond it. Then I shifted my gaze down the mic stand to the stage and looked at my feet to situate myself in the picture. I turned to my right to see Daniel playing the guitar solo, then continued turning to look at Marky on the drums and finally CJ chugging away on the bass. I completed the 360 by turning first down to my shoes and then back up the mic stand as the last verse began. I have it all like a little film in my head – this is pretty much what it looks like to front the Ramones.
MB: You’ve had a pretty busy/exciting year, and have some great projects coming to fruition in the near future. What are your short-term and long-term musical goals?
JD: Short term, I’d like to make a living at this so I can realistically keep doing it. Then I can attempt my long-term goal of creating a resonant and vital body of satisfying work – satisfying to me first, my friends second, and then of course the public.
MB: What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when I say the following:
(a) Gabagool!
JD: A great indie comic. But let’s get it straight: I don’t have a goatee anymore, I never wore short pants in my entire life, and I might have been a Rock Soldier in high school but I NEVER had a mullet-moustache combo. Never.
(b) “The Impractical Application of Dreams: Clouds”
JD: Excellent two-man play by Adam T. Perkins, an Australian who does a great American accent.
(c) Saratoga
JD: If everything works out, where I end up. Maybe even if everything doesn’t work out.
(d) The Colliderverse
JD: All my favorite people conveniently located on one Internet bulletin board.
(e) “Everybody Wants to Be Like Jed”
JD: Anything is possible.
(f) Long Island
JD: Coulda woulda shoulda.
(g) Brian Dewan
JD: A genius, a national treasure. One of my goals is to one day have enough money to put Brian in a kickass studio long enough to record a box set of every song he knows.
(h) The NY Mets
JD: Can’t they fire the GM and owner, too?
(i) The White Stripes/Hives/Strokes/Vines
JD: Hey, rock and roll has finally ceased to be a product! Now it’s something even worse: a prop.
(j) Jed Davis
JD: Nice try.
(k) Kiss
JD: The hottest band in the world. I’d love to see them beat up the Vines – just totally clobber those little f*ckers.
December 2002 Preview
That’s all for now — hope you enjoyed it! A big thank you to everyone who’s stuck with me every week (sort of) since 411’s music zone popped up a few months ago, and definitely keep the feedback coming…
Over the next few weeks — unless something major pops up — here are some of the topics I plan to touch on:
— Music and television…
— Thoughts on the December 13 Tom Petty/Jackson Browne concert, and if it was worth the $75 or not (guess where THIS one is going)…
— A running diary on either the recent Elvis documentary (taped, but as yet unwatched), a yet-to-be-determined special Christmas concert, or of an episode of The Osbournes (which I’ve still yet to see)…
— Oh, and I’m sure there’ll be a “Generic Year in Review Column” mixed in here somewhere, where I wax philosophic about 2002, the year pop died, a new rock fad was born, some real American Idols were lost, remembered and/or came out with their best records in years, as well as 2002’s similarities to the last big, palindromic year in music: 1991.
Until next time… peace. love. moe.
– Matt
Till My Head Falls Off can be found weekly on 411 Music (old columns are archived in the pull-down menu below). Already hit everything on 411? Matthew Michaels also contributes to 1-42.
