RSR: How did Black Hole Kids get started?
Pretty typically. We were all in other music projects that were either winding down or had already come to a complete stop. Matt (drums) and I (guitar) started out with the intention of playing something like Cut The Shit, but it quickly evolved into something more dynamic once Keith (guitar) and Justin (bass) joined up.
RSR.-How would we define your sound and what are your main influences?
I’ve never been good with describing what we sound like so I usually just end up asking my friends. The consensus is crusty screamo. As far as influences go – we’re pretty all over the place. I think Black Flag’s work ethic and intensity should be a cornerstone in any punk band. We’re all big on 80’s American hardcore as well as experimental, goth, psychedelic, d-beat, country, screamo, black metal and etc. Basically anything fucked up sounding I guess. Recently I’ve been trying to harness a similar tone to what La Casa Fantom is doing. That band rules and I’m not ashamed to say we’re ripping them off (in some aspects).
RSR.-Is hardcore punk something you can look at and still relate to?
We’ve all been going to shows for about 7 or 8 years now and in that time we’ve seen a lot of turn over. Kids get tired of punk and move onto other things then a whole new group of young punks crop up and they’ll go on to do the same thing as the batch before and we’re just kind of left hanging around. So in that regard it almost feels like we’re perpetually losing our peers but on the flipside it’s great to have a steady flow of ideas and the ever present potential to form new relationships. I’ll probably always be angry, so if it comes down to it I’ll still be playing and listening to hardcore even if no one else is interested. Hopefully that doesn’t happen though.
RSR.- How is Birmingham
RSR.- How do you go about releasing music – what does your discography look like? Would you accept the help of a smaller label if they approached you?
We recorded 10 songs this past winter at Tape Hiss studio – five of which are on our first EP, Dull Conjecture. We’d definitely be down for some help from a label as long as their values were in the right place.
RSR.- What is the best way to get your EP?
You can download it for free at http://www.blackholekids.com/. If you’d to send away for a copy stop by http://blackholekids.bigcartel.com. I’m pretty sure it works out any sort of international currency exchange for you if necessary.
RSR.- What do your lyrics focus on?
I mainly write about personal struggles or make loose social commentary. If you wanted to boil it down I’d say most of our songs are either about how I hate everybody or I hate myself – I usually try to be a little more elegant than that though. The songs on the EP are about:
The songs on the EP are about:
People who think Charles Manson is cool are idiotic
It’s shitty to ignore people you know
I miss being in my old band, Now I Have A Machine Gun
It’s hard to stay positive when you’re surrounded by assholes
I complain too much for being as fortunate as I am
RSR.- How do you feel about the economic crisis currently effecting Europe ?
I’m pretty ignorant of it to be honest. I imagine it is similar to the economic crisis in America Birmingham
RSR.- What is the average gig like for you? Any bad moments?
We usually try to blast through six songs as competently as possible. Our sets are around 12 minutes long, if not shorter. No bad moments stick out in particular, we’ve definitely had a few rough spots though – breaking strings or missing cues, stuff like that.
RSR.-What are you up to when you’re not playing music?
A: We all have regular jobs that take up a lot of time. Keith is a librarian, I’m a bar tender, Justin and Matt both deliver food. We love comics, movies, and other typically dorky stuff. We lead pretty mundane lives. Punk rock is the best thing we’ve got going.
ABSERDO
RSR.-hey thres, how are you? let´s start with the interview, who is in the band and what were the motivations to start it?
Keith, Rory, Christian P., Ryan, and Dylan. The main motivation behind starting the band was rooted in the history of Ryan and Rory's high-school career. They were never able to date beautiful women, so they turned to music. But, this music had to be fast, heavy, and SUPER pissed.
Keith, Rory, Christian P., Ryan, and Dylan. The main motivation behind starting the band was rooted in the history of Ryan and Rory's high-school career. They were never able to date beautiful women, so they turned to music. But, this music had to be fast, heavy, and SUPER pissed.
RSR.-I heard your songs on your bandcamp, and i really like the way they sound, i could define it for our readers, but i prefer you define it... so please. I would personally describe our music as hardcore. There is a heavy amount of grindcore, death, and thrash influence, but primarily it is hardcore/punk. .RSR- tell us how much releases you got and how do you deal for releasing and distribution
We released our first full length, "Raising a Pervert" on June 1st, 2010 through Horror Pain Gore Death Productions (horrorpaingoredeath.com). Right now we are waiting to release a 7" called "Sweet Baby Eagles Coop" (no label yet) and are looking for a band to do a split 7" with our other recordings. Props to Alex Wilson and Chris Grigg from Woe for helping us out with the new recordings. We are also going to be featured on a compilation being put out by Keith from Hessian later this year. RSR.-Could you tell me more aboutPhiladelphia Philadelphia
Some of our lyrics are definitely socially relevant, but refrain from being preachy. The lyrics are not too political, but definitely contain a message one way or another. Having hard and fast music is just as important as having pissed and meaningful lyrics. .RSR.- what´ll be the future of a band called abserdo? why this name?
The future will hopefully bring more tours, friends, and people to hang with. That's all we're really out for. Abserdo is the original name for Rory's skate company. The band adopted the name when it started in 2008. RSR.- Memory exercise: please remember the first hardcore show you see and what were the thinkings? what are the diferences between that time and now....
I saw Destroi and Deep Dish Doom play and it kinda sucked. There was some energy present, but not many people to feel it. I was turned off from the hardcore scene until recently. There is definitely a stronger scene of what i'm into present in the city rather than the suburbs ofPhiladelphia
Abserdo shows can be full of people and exciting, or basically empty. In any case, we bring the heat every time and Keith never steps down. For us it's about playing and expressing our hate, rather than filling the venue. If the show is on a good night with good bands, people will come out to see it. If not, don't express any less from us.RSR.-Next plans
We plan to tour this summer, hitting more of the northeast coast and traveling south. If someone is willing to put it out, expect to see "Sweet Baby Eagles Coop" on the shelves sometime this summer. In addition, stick around for a potential split 7" after that. Check back to facebook.com/abserdo for updates. RSR.- last words
Fuck metal-heads who think it's tough to wear all black and pants all the time. It's hot out, so we're gonna wear shorts. You think that's lame? Look at Scott Ian, everyone on the back cover of "Mentally Murdered", and Assück. Those motherfuckers wear shorts!
"Why were you dancin' with those guys?!" -Bobby Hill
-Abserdo
(abserdo@gmail.com)
We released our first full length, "Raising a Pervert" on June 1st, 2010 through Horror Pain Gore Death Productions (horrorpaingoredeath.com). Right now we are waiting to release a 7" called "Sweet Baby Eagles Coop" (no label yet) and are looking for a band to do a split 7" with our other recordings. Props to Alex Wilson and Chris Grigg from Woe for helping us out with the new recordings. We are also going to be featured on a compilation being put out by Keith from Hessian later this year. RSR.-Could you tell me more about
Some of our lyrics are definitely socially relevant, but refrain from being preachy. The lyrics are not too political, but definitely contain a message one way or another. Having hard and fast music is just as important as having pissed and meaningful lyrics. .RSR.- what´ll be the future of a band called abserdo? why this name?
The future will hopefully bring more tours, friends, and people to hang with. That's all we're really out for. Abserdo is the original name for Rory's skate company. The band adopted the name when it started in 2008. RSR.- Memory exercise: please remember the first hardcore show you see and what were the thinkings? what are the diferences between that time and now....
I saw Destroi and Deep Dish Doom play and it kinda sucked. There was some energy present, but not many people to feel it. I was turned off from the hardcore scene until recently. There is definitely a stronger scene of what i'm into present in the city rather than the suburbs of
Abserdo shows can be full of people and exciting, or basically empty. In any case, we bring the heat every time and Keith never steps down. For us it's about playing and expressing our hate, rather than filling the venue. If the show is on a good night with good bands, people will come out to see it. If not, don't express any less from us.RSR.-Next plans
We plan to tour this summer, hitting more of the northeast coast and traveling south. If someone is willing to put it out, expect to see "Sweet Baby Eagles Coop" on the shelves sometime this summer. In addition, stick around for a potential split 7" after that. Check back to facebook.com/abserdo for updates. RSR.- last words
Fuck metal-heads who think it's tough to wear all black and pants all the time. It's hot out, so we're gonna wear shorts. You think that's lame? Look at Scott Ian, everyone on the back cover of "Mentally Murdered", and Assück. Those motherfuckers wear shorts!
"Why were you dancin' with those guys?!" -Bobby Hill
-Abserdo
(abserdo@gmail.com)
MEMORY MAP... INTERVIEW 16.06.2011
RSR.- first introduce yourself and the band story.
Hello, my name is Mike Dixon, I'll be the one responding to the questions this time. I play the guitar/fake bass and do a great deal of the singing in the band. Our band story comes out of the vibrant music scene that exists in the city we live in,Bloomington , in the state of Indiana
although I like to do it, because in a way it's the most pure way of making music, it's sound that is actually coming out of your body. There are only a few other things that come out of a person's body, and most of them are considered to be gross!
RSR.- why a name like holiday band as a title for the LP?
Our band was originally called Holiday Band, but there was already a band called that and they threatened to sue after our name started to show up higher on Google than theirs, so we had to change our name. We liked Memory Map too, and it was already printed on our CD covers, so
it was easy enough to change. Now it makes people wonder "what is a Holiday Band?" Maybe a band that only plays during vacations. A band that plays Christmas music. A band that wears Hawaiian shirts.
Hello, my name is Mike Dixon, I'll be the one responding to the questions this time. I play the guitar/fake bass and do a great deal of the singing in the band. Our band story comes out of the vibrant music scene that exists in the city we live in,
although I like to do it, because in a way it's the most pure way of making music, it's sound that is actually coming out of your body. There are only a few other things that come out of a person's body, and most of them are considered to be gross!
RSR.- why a name like holiday band as a title for the LP?
Our band was originally called Holiday Band, but there was already a band called that and they threatened to sue after our name started to show up higher on Google than theirs, so we had to change our name. We liked Memory Map too, and it was already printed on our CD covers, so
it was easy enough to change. Now it makes people wonder "what is a Holiday Band?" Maybe a band that only plays during vacations. A band that plays Christmas music. A band that wears Hawaiian shirts.
I do not know! But I think they are distributed there now. If not, you should press our vinyl over there for us ;-)
RSR.- tell me where we could install your sound...indie..... post hardcore?I'm not really sure what you'd call it. We try to make sounds that are original, although we don't sound like we're from outer space either, people often tell us that it is reminiscent of one band or another, although those comparisons are also often so varied that they come off as just being humorous. Categorizing music is not really necessary, and we don't feel any particular allegiance to a certain style of music. That being said, I think that we do have fun playing guitar and the drums, and that we are influenced by players who really do interesting things with their instruments. We want to create deep moods, and we hope to steal from the best music we can find. For me, I
think our sound would not be what it was if the following artists didn't exist:
Frank Zappa - great sense of melody and chord changes, skip the songs where he's trying to be funny.
Led Zeppelin - 30% of their songs are brilliant. Forget the rest exist.
John Fahey - This is how we get away with not having a real bassist.
Blonde Redhead's Misery is a Butterfly - a big influence, this album has a very pure mood.
Stereolab - they have some really brilliant songs, we were listening to my favorite songs by them in the van, and I think we all really liked what they are doing. Songs from games on the Nintendo Entertainment System - For some people our age, this is the most frequently-heard music that could be considered "composed."
David Grubbs' piano playing in Gastr del Sol - Chords with a lot of character and flavor.
Ordination of Aaron/Indian Summer split 7" - I don't even know if the other guys have heard this, but I would hope that the music I make is as alive as this record.
RSR.-Could we install memory map under the umbrella of hardcore or punk?Sure, although I think that both of those genres tend to be musically conservative, and our music strives to evolve into a genre that doesn't have a word for it yet. It'd be nice to be a band like Led
Zeppelin, where people accept that you might try to make whatever style of music you think might sound cool.
RSR- what do you think about do it yourself?
We do lots of things ourselves. We recorded our album ourselves,released our CD ourselves (although the vinyl was put out by a real record label) we book our own tours here in the US, we are interested in working with the people who make music and music events happen, and
in being friendly with everyone who we deal with. We are friendly people, and we realize that what we do is more meaningful if we can be having great experiences and friendships through being in a band. I think that DIY culture allows us to experience that, and so we'll continue to work that way in whatever capacity we can. We really do like making new friends in new places, and after a tour, I think the thing we are most proud of is not that we made some money or sold some records or whatever, but that we had a good time and got to meet old friends and make new friends.
RSR.- how is the scene on your area...
The music scene inBloomington , Indiana
We are the cause of this, because we will give people a free download of our album if they buy a t-shirt! Personally, I do like to have a t-shirt of a band, it reminds me of the experience of seeing them
live, and I like having something to wear that covers up my nipples. where is more important to seem like a punk or an indie guy than really support one style.
We are kind of on the older side, age-wise, so I don't think we really pay that much attention to style or being "punk" or "indie" as much as some people. I will soon be 34, Mike B. will soon be 31, Matt is 26 (I think) and our drummer is the youngest at 22. Identifying as punk or indie is not really that important to me anymore, although I will say that things like straightedge, hardcore, vegetarianism, zines like HeartattaCk, etc. were very exciting to me at a certain point, and still do influence my world-view to a certain extent. One of us is vegan, one of is a Russian Jew, one of us has a preacher father, one of us will soon have a Ph.D. in Japanese, one of us is religious, two
of us smoke cigarettes, some of us take drugs, one of us plays Dungeons and Dragons quite regularly. We're a pretty diverse group of people, and it is fun that way. We all like the song "Whoever You Are" by Geggy Tah. We can all agree on that.
RSR.- On your track house sitting that is my prefer i see some kind of beatles influences......
That's interesting. I don't think any of us own any of their albums, but I often think "Oh, this is quite good" when I hear their songs. Unlike Coldplay, I think that they deserve all of their fame.
RSR.- do you do the art of your works? i like the holiday band cover
where do you get inspirred?
Our friend David Woodruff designed the album cover. He thought that it looked right for our music, and we agreed. I think we are overall less picky (concerned) about artwork than other bands might be.RSR.- how do you guys feel about living of music? i mean if you would accept it
It would be great to be able to make a living off of playing in a band. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, it would be a dream to do what we love all the time, to work with my friends, and have enough money to live. Right now we all have jobs, some of us even have jobs that we really like, but there is certainly appeal to fulfilling "the rock and roll dream" (minus drug overdoses, etc.).RSR.- do you guys think there is too much conservatism on the punk indie scene? or do you think its an open scene....Yes, sure, take for example what is described in this article: http://www.punknews.org/article/42845 I think it's easy for someone to believe that they are part of a progressive scene but then overlook things like sexism, race, nationality, politics, sexuality. No group is ever perfect, but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't stop trying to improve your world. In the same way that you'd hope that your friends would see past your flaws, I choose to look for the good in what people are doing. I think
that any community that tries to embrace gender equality and freedom is noble in their efforts, and because the world OUTSIDE of progressive culture is still so backwards in many ways, it's hard, even for people who know better, to erase what we've grown up with. Going to a show and not seeing a female in any of the bands, you realize that something's not quite right, although it's not as simple as saying that it's because your scene is sexist. Why aren't there more girls in bands? Why aren't there more men in nursing? Maybe some men just don't feel the need to be nurses, and maybe some women don't feel the need to be in bands. It makes you realize how different the world of a man and a woman really are, and that difference is a good thing in some ways, but oppressive in other ways.
If anything, I think punk/indie scenes are MUSICALLY conservative. There are a lot of boring, traditional bands out there, even if they are very sincere in their message or intentions. I wish more bands would just do something to push music in new directions. There is so much unexplored territory in music, new moods to be explored, it seems
like such a waste to form and band and not at least try to do that.RSR.- next plansWe are working on a new album, and we are really happy with how it has been coming together. We'd like to tour outside theUnited States , we might do a tour in Southeast Asia, and we'd also like to go to Europe as well. I visited Spain Spain
Thanks so much for the interview. It was really fun answering these questions.
The music scene in
We are the cause of this, because we will give people a free download of our album if they buy a t-shirt! Personally, I do like to have a t-shirt of a band, it reminds me of the experience of seeing them
live, and I like having something to wear that covers up my nipples. where is more important to seem like a punk or an indie guy than really support one style.
We are kind of on the older side, age-wise, so I don't think we really pay that much attention to style or being "punk" or "indie" as much as some people. I will soon be 34, Mike B. will soon be 31, Matt is 26 (I think) and our drummer is the youngest at 22. Identifying as punk or indie is not really that important to me anymore, although I will say that things like straightedge, hardcore, vegetarianism, zines like HeartattaCk, etc. were very exciting to me at a certain point, and still do influence my world-view to a certain extent. One of us is vegan, one of is a Russian Jew, one of us has a preacher father, one of us will soon have a Ph.D. in Japanese, one of us is religious, two
of us smoke cigarettes, some of us take drugs, one of us plays Dungeons and Dragons quite regularly. We're a pretty diverse group of people, and it is fun that way. We all like the song "Whoever You Are" by Geggy Tah. We can all agree on that.
RSR.- On your track house sitting that is my prefer i see some kind of beatles influences......
That's interesting. I don't think any of us own any of their albums, but I often think "Oh, this is quite good" when I hear their songs. Unlike Coldplay, I think that they deserve all of their fame.
RSR.- do you do the art of your works? i like the holiday band cover
where do you get inspirred?
Our friend David Woodruff designed the album cover. He thought that it looked right for our music, and we agreed. I think we are overall less picky (concerned) about artwork than other bands might be.RSR.- how do you guys feel about living of music? i mean if you would accept it
It would be great to be able to make a living off of playing in a band. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, it would be a dream to do what we love all the time, to work with my friends, and have enough money to live. Right now we all have jobs, some of us even have jobs that we really like, but there is certainly appeal to fulfilling "the rock and roll dream" (minus drug overdoses, etc.).RSR.- do you guys think there is too much conservatism on the punk indie scene? or do you think its an open scene....Yes, sure, take for example what is described in this article: http://www.punknews.org/article/42845 I think it's easy for someone to believe that they are part of a progressive scene but then overlook things like sexism, race, nationality, politics, sexuality. No group is ever perfect, but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't stop trying to improve your world. In the same way that you'd hope that your friends would see past your flaws, I choose to look for the good in what people are doing. I think
that any community that tries to embrace gender equality and freedom is noble in their efforts, and because the world OUTSIDE of progressive culture is still so backwards in many ways, it's hard, even for people who know better, to erase what we've grown up with. Going to a show and not seeing a female in any of the bands, you realize that something's not quite right, although it's not as simple as saying that it's because your scene is sexist. Why aren't there more girls in bands? Why aren't there more men in nursing? Maybe some men just don't feel the need to be nurses, and maybe some women don't feel the need to be in bands. It makes you realize how different the world of a man and a woman really are, and that difference is a good thing in some ways, but oppressive in other ways.
If anything, I think punk/indie scenes are MUSICALLY conservative. There are a lot of boring, traditional bands out there, even if they are very sincere in their message or intentions. I wish more bands would just do something to push music in new directions. There is so much unexplored territory in music, new moods to be explored, it seems
like such a waste to form and band and not at least try to do that.RSR.- next plansWe are working on a new album, and we are really happy with how it has been coming together. We'd like to tour outside the
Thanks so much for the interview. It was really fun answering these questions.
RSR-. At first, could you introduce yourself and your band?Hey, my name is Johnny Matter, the vocalist from Anion. We hail from Vancouver B.C. Canada
RSR.-Can you tell us anything about the history of your band? Why did you select your name?Well, I've known Steve Sepanzyk (guitarist) and Cole Beniot (bass player) for many years. We always talked about starting a project together but were occupied with bands in the past. So when the time was right around 2 years ago, we formed this band. Steve had some riffs that came first and then we just all contributed and branched off them. We let go of our original drummer this year and just recruited an old friend of our Simon Wittaker Wilson to the drums. I came up with the name Anion and it sort of speaks for itself. We are a very negatively energized band.RSR.- How would you describe your music? Which bands influenced you musically most and which bands do you like? Can you also write your current TOP FIVE of bands and their albums?We just play music we want to hear. If I had to categorize us we would fall into a hardcore/noiserock/punkrock/doom band. We all listen to a lot of different styles of music and some of the same. We have a few side projects also that sound nothing like Anion.
Current top five bands and albums would be too hard to narrow down. I listen to allot of music.
RSR- Are you satisfied with your recorded ep and manolete stuff ? What reactions have you received on it? how do you release this stuff?We are satisfied with the Manolete EP but in a way it's nice to get those recordings released. We've been playing those songs for a while and we are very excited to write and move forward with the new material we have in store.
Reactions have been great. A lot of people enjoy the cover of "Great Dane" we do on the EP.
RSR.- Can you tell us anything about the current scene in Vancouver? Is your city really so red ( on the political sense) as we can hear? Which bands from here can you advise for listening on british columbia?The Vancouver underground music scene has been thriving well considering the closing of landmark venues and the city with holding liquor permits in some venues that should be allowed it and need it to survive. Lots of underground spaces poping up all the time to give places for local bands and touring bands to play. Some locals favourites of mine, check out Burning Ghats, Sabrael, and Spirals
RSR.- How was your best and worst gig?Every gig we've played has been good to date honestly! We just all love to play the songs we wrote and weather its in front of 5 people or 500 we put the same amount of energy in every show
RSR.- Why a bullfighter on you cover? what does this means for you?The bull fighter was a strong image I had in my mind and wanted to use for a long time. Cole put together the lay out for the ep.
RSR.- next plansWe are currently working our next album which will be a full length. Planning our first tour together across Canada.
RSR.- Metal or hardcore which scene do you feel more close.definitely hardcore and when I mean hardcore I mean early 90's hardcore
RSR.- last words
Keep it honest and keep it raw! Thanks for the interest in the band and we look forward to coming out there in the near future http://anion.bandcamp.com/
RSR.- Metal or hardcore which scene do you feel more close.definitely hardcore and when I mean hardcore I mean early 90's hardcore
RSR.- last words
Keep it honest and keep it raw! Thanks for the interest in the band and we look forward to coming out there in the near future http://anion.bandcamp.com/
