Exorcism Number Fourteen: Kristin Gogan AND Eric Truchan

YO! I decided to switch it up and interview a ROMANTIC COUPLE WHO ALSO PLAY MUSIC TOGETHER. They stopped smooching long enough to answer my questions which was cool. (I'm going to interview Steve Gennarelli separately to ask him drum stuff.)

This interview also marks my first live interview which I transcribed. (Note: this is edited somewhat because the 3 of us say "like" in between other words kind of a lot.)

I feel like I don't need to tell you that I love brick mower and Kristin and Eric to pieces but well, I just said it. Now you know. Here it is! Enjoy!

Miranda: Hey. Here we are with Brick Mower.

Eric: Hello.

Kristin: Hello.

M: Well, I should say Kristin and Eric and not all of brick mower. That was obnoxious.

K: That’s obnoxious, Miranda.

M: THIS IS OVER! Just kidding. So, how did you guys meet?

E: Oh, boy. How did we meet?

K: We met at Montclair State, and we both went to a floor meeting for, like, “the holiday season is coming so you have to unplug your fridge”.

E: Clean out your rooms.

K: That’s how we met.

E: I never went to the floor meetings before that. First time!

K: Yeah, me too.

M: Destiny, man, at work.

E: I needed a pen to sign the sheet and say I was there.

K: And I was like, “This guy is really annoying”, but the next day I realized he was apparently very drunk, and was like, “Sorry I was so drunk” and then I was like, “Ok, he’s cool.” He didn’t seem drunk, he was just knocking on my door every five minutes.

E: Trying to give you CDs.

K: He was like, “Hey, uh, I burned this Jawbreaker mix for you.” It was very nice. That’s how we met.

E: Yup, that’s the big story.

M: That was your first impressions? You noticed each other for sure.

K: Yeah, definitely.

M: Ok. When did you guys decide to start doing music together?

E: I was doing home recordings, stuff on a four-track, and I asked Kristin if she wanted to play bass. She mentioned she could play a little piano, which I still can’t play two keys at the same time on the piano… so I said “Ok maybe we could do something on a song that I’m recording, you can play piano or you wanna play bass?”

K: And Eric was in a couple bands at that point…

M: And what were those bands?

K: Paris Gun

E: Paris Gun was a band and then our band was Network of Halos, but that was our recording thing we eventually started playing live.

M: How long had you been seeing each other before that happened?

K: 6 Months?

E: Hmmm, it was in October…we played our first show 9 or 10 months after we met and Kristin recorded some stuff about 6 months after we met. So within half a year we were playing some music together.

M: That’s awesome. Kristin, what other bands were you in? Or were you in any bands before this?

K: No! NONE of my friends played anything unless it was just absolute like, metal. People in bands that I knew were in the kinds of bands that would just terrify me. I couldn’t even think about it. I was just a weird emo kid.

E: Bands would play a weird show at club Krome, and be like “Yeah, we were 1 of 7 bands to open up for Converge.”

K: It was all like hardcore, metal kids. And that’s fine…

M: Not your jam…

K: Yeah, not my jam.

M: And I mean had you always wanted to play? Or were you just like yeah I’ll play bass whatever…

K: I guess I always wanted to play. I was gonna be a musical theater kid. That’s what I was into. I liked punk, I loved the same kind of bands that I like now, but I was just like, I’m going to go listen to some Broadway songs (laughing)

M: (laughing) Yeah I’m gonna be in “Cats” anyway so who cares?

K: (laughing) Yeah, exactly

E: And speaking of musical theater, I thought it was cool that she could hit some notes or had some sort of idea of how to sing, where I still don’t have any idea how to sing.

K: But then I spent all my effort into trying not to sing like that…like it is almost like a detriment. You don’t want to sing like a Disney Princess when you’re singing in a band. You wanna sound like, “cool.” It sounds a little out of place.

Laughter!!

M: So how did actual brick mower start, was that after Network of Halos?

K: We did Network of Halos. We played shows. We were like, here’s this thing we recorded, let’s play this café…we were under 21 or had just turned 21.

E: My brother was playing drums and he had just turned 14. Then our friend Mike, who turned to a life of graffiti and eventual arrests… great guy… no last names. Cool guy. He lives in another state now. But yeah he played guitar. My brother who was 14 played drums. He had a notebook of beats that I would write it out. It was really great.

K: Yeah we would play shows and he would have his composition notebook that he would look at while he was playing.

E: And it was really just 1,2,3,4… 1,2,3,4

Laughter!!

E: Yeah we played under 20 shows like 17 or 18 shows…we wanted to crack 20 shows.

K: We played Maxwell’s which seemed terrifying at the time… and that was pretty cool but it wasn’t 

such a big deal…It was that someone had rented it out. But that was cool. That was our biggest show.

E: We just made cd’s and put out a tape and a bunch of releases in like 2 years that maybe 30 people have. And then we decided to break up. A band with my brother and our friend Mike was tough at the time. So we were like, let’s just break up. What was that 2007?

K: That was 2007 and then I graduated college. And then that was when I was like, OK let’s do a real band.

E: We had talked about doing a real band for a while and we were just putting it off. I started playing drums in other bands. We were kicking the idea around. And we lived in Bellville up in north Jersey for a year. Then we moved back to Keansburg and Kristin was like, “We should really start a band, like we aren’t doing anything.” I was playing drums and that’s fine, but I was getting bored with that too. I wanted to do something else. One night Kristin was like, “Let’s just do what we said we were gonna do for the last year and a half and just like… play.” I was like, “OK! Let’s do it.”

M: And what year was this?

E: This is 2009. We started talking about it in and got into gear in June 2009. We started putting songs together. I called my friend Eric Gieg who has a recording studio in his basement, he went to school for audio engineering, and I was in a band with him at the time. And I said, “Can you just do some demos? I’ll play drums, Kristin’s gonna play the bass, and I’ll record the guitar over it.” And then we recorded our first EP, the Floors EP, just the 2 of us, in August 2009. We did our first show 2009. So from June to October, we just slapped it together.

M: Who are some inspirations for you guys at that time? Who were you into?

E: Well, it’s pretty evident we both like Superchunk. And we get that comparison all the time.

K: I mean that’s kind of the reason I did this band…that’s a huge huge influence and it’s not really a secret!

E: In like 2008 Kristin got super into Superchunk

K: Maybe too much…

Laughter!

K: There are a ton of influences that we didn’t and don’t sound anything like. I LOVE the band Mclusky too. And I’m never gonna be in a band as good as Mclusky ever…nobody is! But I can’t listen to those records and not wanna do something.

E: Yeah we don’t sound anything like that band but you listen to those records and it’s an inspiring thing.

K: Yeah there are things that I take from it like I like dirty bass…

E: And I was also getting into home recording and stuff, which Guided by Voices and Sebadoh were a big inspiration. But I don’t know if that’s a detriment to how I like to work. Sometimes it seems like, “Ok we finished it. It’s done! Move onto the next thing.”  Only, without smoothing things out. We’ve a gotten a little bit better at that.  But even on the first EP, we went and did those songs quickly and put them out. We just throw it out there and see what sticks.

M: Yeah I feel you should never overdo it. So what made you wanna be in a band and not just watch? What made you want to participate instead of being a fan. I always say that and feel bad because it sounds like I’m putting down being a fan and I’m not...but what is the difference for you guys?

E: No, I know what you mean.

K: Yeah…I don’t know! I think about that a lot. I can watch and enjoy something but I’m not the kind of person who can just say “Well that was nice,” and walk away from that. If I really was moved by something, I have to be a part of that in SOME way. And I don’t know why…I don’t know what it is that makes me not satisfied?

E: Yeah I agree with that too. If you’re taking in and appreciating some kind of art it should be for a reason. I guess eventually I personally wanna start participating and put something out. Even if I go through some sort of lull or I’m not really motivated. Eventually, if I read enough, listen to enough stuff, watch enough movies I’m like, “Ok now I’m kind of bored,” and the wheels start spinning again. It’s like I gotta get out there and DO it.

M: Right.

E: But for a long time I put off writing songs. I would be like “Oh I’m 18. I should be on tour by now! Well, I have no idea how to do that. Now I’m 20 and I’m too old to tour because I’m not 18 anymore. Now I’m 22 and that’s too old to write a SONG!” So finally when I was 24 I started writing songs. I thought “Ok… I’m not too old. I’ll never be too old.” What the hell was I thinking!? I was just putting things off.

K: It was just an excuse.

E: It was an excuse to say I couldn’t. There are always excuses.

M: Yeah. Well eventually it happened, that’s what matters.

E: Did that answer the question?

M: Yeah that was one of the better answers! It’s hard to explain, I know.

K: I can look at a painting and be like “That’s beautiful,” but it doesn’t make me wanna paint. But when I was 12 and I listened to a record I thought was awesome, and I said “God… one day I’m gonna do that.”

M: All of it is fairly inexplicable. It’s hard to be like “HERE’S how it happened.”

K: I think that proves it is what you’re supposed to be doing.

M: Yeah. I think all of my favorites are people who CANNOT explain why. They’re like “I dunno, I gotta.”

K: There was an interview with Fugazi, and I don’t remember it exactly, but they asked “What makes you wanna do it?” And the answer was “I dunno. I try not to think about it.” He was saying like, why break it down?

M: Yeah there’s no NEED to break it down, but I’m curious!

K: It’s kind of fascinating!

E: From an outsider’s point of view, it probably seems crazy.

K: Well sometimes, you’ll think “What are we doing? We’re playing for people…when you think about it, it’s SO WEIRD.”

M: It is SO weird!

K: I guess that’s true of anything.

E: It doesn’t make any sense! I guess I’m not putting any SUPER great importance on it but it’s like, it’s GREAT. I dunno.

M: Well once you do it and you’re like “Well, that ruled!” It’s pretty hard to be like, “I’m never doing that again!” You kinda want to repeat.

E: I hear so many people say “Well, when I hit a certain age I’m not gonna do it anymore,” but I couldn’t think of not doing SOMETHING in music anymore.

M: Yeah then maybe we’re not doing it for the same reasons.

E: Right

K: Exactly. There have definitely been people who have been in bands and then been like “That was great…it’s over now!” What!? How can you say that?

M: How and why!

K: Yeah I dunno. It’s different.

M: So talk about the importance of touring and its effects on a band. I mean we all know that it is really useful to like, LEAVE NJ…

E: For a second I thought you were gonna say “useless…”

M: Oh yeah we all know it’s useless and a waste of time and money!

K: Completely unimportant and a silly thing to do.

M: But I mean you guys toured a lot last year and I’m curious about how you feel it affected your band.

E: We definitely got people to actually listen to the music. Nowadays with the internet, someone will just put something out and then suddenly have this big following. That is a different route to getting “popular.”

K: Touring is almost like an investment. You don’t see it right away but…

E: …it starts to pick up.

K: Yeah. Like the other day Eric got a text from someone we met in Chicago just to say they saw our sticker up somewhere! Stupid stuff like that.

E: That’s small and on a personal level.

K: It is very small. But yeah, in terms of the importance that touring has on a band, it’s the time that you put in. At first you may not even feel any type of reward. But after some time, you start to see it and it starts to build.

E: Yeah and it’s what we as a band are comfortable doing. Like I’m sure there are other avenues to take- like maybe there’s a way around touring in order to get your music out there. But this is what we are geared towards.

K: And you meet a lot people that are awesome.

E: The country seems so much smaller. Out here, people complain about driving an hour somewhere. I guess it’s relative if you’re living in a smaller state.

K: And I also think it’s important to do something that, at first, seems crazy and impossible. Then you realize that you can totally do it. Once you get over it, you see how completely accessible it all is.

M: And what about in terms of your playing? I always feel at the end of a tour I feel insanely comfortable playing a set.

K: Oh yeah totally. That’s another residual thing. Definitely after being on tour for 30 days, on day 30, you’re gonna be tight. And then even if you’re taking a break, once get back you still have that experience and comfort of playing with one another.

E: It has definitely helped tighten us up. I mean, we might still have some wonky shows here and there. Sometimes, I think about how I’d rather be taking a nap.

Laughter!

K: Also, not every show feels like the end of the world.

E: Yeah there’s always tomorrow.

M: That effect never occurred to me but I absolutely agree. You feel like, “OK. I messed up…that’s fine. I’m not gonna go hang myself.”

E: Right, not a big deal. There’ll be another show tomorrow…if it doesn’t get cancelled.

LAUGHTER!

K: Whereas if you only play once in a while, every note you miss you will remember for months.

E: Sometimes I’ll see a band that only plays once in a while and I wonder if they put all their eggs in a basket for that single show. Are all the members of this band super pumped tonight because they haven’t played in 6 months and they might not play again in another 6 months?

M: Yeah totally.

(PERSONAL QUESTIONS)

M: Ok, talk about your parents.

E: My parents are funny people. My Dad is a state trooper and my Mom is a teacher. Both blue collar-ish. They got me a drum set when I was in 5^th grade for Christmas. I told them it was the only thing I wanted. So we all opened our gifts and then the last gift I opened was a very beginner style drum-set that I didn’t know how to set up. That was cool. They’ve been supportive up to a point with my music, but after a certain point they don’t get what’s going on and I can’t fault them completely for that. They’re still together. I drop in sometimes. They ask me what I’m doing. Ask me when I’m gonna get a real job. Even though I work some real jobs… I’m not sure what they mean. I don’t know what kind of job they want me to work. I expressed interest in being a teacher years ago for the sole purposes of getting summers off and that’s come up a couple times. They ask, “Why don’t you want to pursue that?” I personally think you really need to be dedicated to be a teacher. So if my main goal is to get summers off -then maybe I shouldn’t be a teacher. But then they still don’t get that. I think they have our first record.

K: They’re like, “Why can’t I hear your vocals on this??”

E: Yeah. But they are great and very good parents.

M: And you Kristin…

K: Well, speaking of blue collar, my Mom is a nurse and my Dad was a police officer. My father died when I was in Middle school. We were super close.  He was my Dad and my bud or whatever. He was actually super into music and he was a really good guitar player. And he wanted me to learn guitar. He also wanted me to be, like, a pro golfer. He just thought I could and should do whatever! He was like “Hey you wanna be a professional jump-roper??!!” He was super awesome. And in terms of music he was into weird country music. He used to say “I stopped listening to music after 1965!” Oh and both my parents are much older. They had me when they were in their mid-to late 40’s. It was awesome because it was like I was only child, but with 5 older siblings. My Mom’s really kooky and very supportive with absolutely everything. She thinks it’s really great that we have a band. I hear her talking to her sisters and she’s like “Oh yeah! Kristin’s band is great! They go all OVAH! It’s great!”

E: Where my parents are like, “Why do you leave? Why are you going places?”

K: Or like “Yeah you’ll go on tour and then you’ll settle down.”  It’s like, what are you guys taking about? This is it!

M: Yeah like, this is settled as far as I’m concerned.

K: But yeah. I have/had great parents. I’m very, very, very, lucky.

M: That’s nice. That’s awesome. Yay. Ok so talk about your siblings.

E: I have one brother. We’re pretty close. Brian is 7 years younger than me. He’s the one who played drums in Network of Halos.

K: He’s the coolest.

E: He’s a cool kid. He’s really good at baseball. He’s the athletic one in the family, whereas I am NOT. He has a really warped sense of humor which he credits me with helping him shape but I think he might be even slightly more warped than I am. Like his boundaries are a little blurry.

K: His snapchats are ON POINT.

E: Sometimes his jokes, I don’t get them. They’re not “to get” sometimes. Yeah he’s a cool kid. So he’s playing all sides of the fence- as far as being an athletic kid, but then just totally out there. He’s a cool guy.

M: And Kristin-all of your 40 siblings? Go ahead.

E: Yeah it’s like Kristin’s army.

Laughter!

K: Yeah, like I said, I was the “later in life” baby. I have 4 brothers: Drew, Dave, Doug, and Russ. And I have one sister, Denise. My 2^nd oldest brother is insane and hilarious and one of the funniest people. I’ll meet people and say my last name and they’ll be like “Oh do you know Dave??” Everyone knows him and he is hilarious. He’s out of his mind. The 2 older ones think they have to be the guardians of the family. And then I have Doug who is wonderfully insane and I love him. He’s like the most offensive yet most lovable person you’ll ever meet in your life. He’s a crazy fuckin’ rebel.

M: Alright. I got one more question, guys.

K: Uh huh…

M: I feel like you know what’s coming…

K: I don’t think that I do…

M: (drum roll on the table) Do you have any… GHOST STORIES!? Now Kristin, I know you have hours of scary conversation for us so just hit us with the worst, most intense one.

K: OK. I always say, if it didn’t happen to me I would absolutely not believe it. I’m very artsy farts-y, but then I’m also very logical. So I totally get that people don’t believe me when I tell this story. BUT, my scariest, creepiest story is this: The house I grew up in used to be an old boarding house back when people would actually vacation in Keansburg. The house is in books about the history of Keansburg. I was about 8 years old. I had already heard stuff, been terrified by stuff, and I just knew the house was different and that I wasn’t just making myself scared. One night, I was sleeping and all of a sudden –out of NOWHERE in the middle of the night- I was 100% awake, like someone had shaken me. And I was like, “Why am I absolutely shitting my pants scared right now?” I had a daybed against the wall and I looked over by the daybed and there was a pitch black figure with fucking red eyes. It’s ridiculous even saying it. It was like a movie moment where the person cleans their glasses. I was like “No that CANNOT be what I’m seeing.” I was just lying there, staring at it, and so scared. Eventually, I was just like “I have to get out of here.” So I held my breath and ran through the bathroom that adjoined my room with my parents’ room. I went to my Mom’s side of the bed and shook her awake and was like “Move over and let me go under the covers.” I got the courage to peek out to see if it was there. I saw the figure standing in the bathroom doorway as if it had followed me. And then, like it was out of a movie, it dissipated. I never talked about it with my parents. I thought, “If I say it, it is gonna happen again. It’s gonna come back.” Talking about it made it real, and I couldn’t relive it.

M: Right.

K: A LOT of other stuff happened in that house. One day after we had moved out, I was talking with my Mom and she was like “Remember that one time there was that thing that looked like Darth Vader in the doorway??” I was just like “WHAT??” And she was like “Remember you woke me up and I looked and that thing was there and then it just disappeared!” It was exactly how it happened. I already knew it happened but then there was confirmation.

M: UGH. It’s so scary. I have heard you talk about this before and every time it freaks me the fuck out.

Ok Eric! Yours!

E: OK. I was recording in my parents’ house by myself on a 4 track in the basement. I had come up with 5 song ideas and I was hitting record and drumming for each track. Before each one I’d be like, “This is track 1, this is track 2,” for reference. At one point I lost count and I said “This is either track 4 or track 5” and the ANOTHER voice said “It’s 5.” And it was 5.

K: Yeah and it WAS track 5!

M: WHOAAAAA! Somebody was hanging out!

E: It’s low but it was very clear. It wasn’t me. It didn’t sound like me. I played it for someone else and they were like, “That doesn’t sound like you.”

K: Eric’s roommate at the time hated scary stuff sooo much. And Eric played it for him and he threw his headphones off and ran outta the room. He was like “FUCK THIS SHIT!!!”

M: That’s my kind of guy!

E: That was the only thing that happened.

M: Hey. I love you guys. You’re the best. That was awesome. You’re the best.

THANKS YOU GUYS. Check out brick mower here. <3

Exorcism Number Thirteen: Chris Pierce

Hey you guys... I'm back. I have some really amazing interviews around the corner, but I am especially excited to share this one with you. It's with Chris Pierce from, well, 8 million bands including Doc Hopper, Groucho Marxists, and For Science. If you play music in the area, he has probably recorded your band either at Technical Ecstasy or more recently at Vol IV. He is a multi-talented dude and a really awesome dad. I was honored with how much he opened up and spoke about in this interview...or that he even wanted to be interviewed at all. I look up to the guy and I bet you do too. You will after reading this. Check it out.

this is Pierce with his adorable kid, Gibson!

What instruments do you play and which is your favorite? Which do you feel most proficient at?  Which do you feel most comfortable playing?

Ok, starting off,  I've been playing drums now for longer than I can remember, and guitar since I was ten or so. I love playing drums, and I see the world through a drummer's eye, but it's easier to lead a band as the guitarist. It's hard to say which I'm more proficient at, it depends on the band. I'm all about THE SONG....it's all fun, I love playing music and can do any role needed.
 
What was the first band you were in and what did you play?

The first band I was in was called DISTORTION... I played guitar and then became the default singer. We did metal covers, we were all in 6th and 7th grades so our musical vocabulary had yet to develop. Every band I was in early on did Judas Priest's "you've got another thing coming" and a slew of Twisted Sister and AC/DC songs. Until we discovered Metallica and thrash in general.

Playing shows at that point were fantasies. Until DIY and punk entered my life, I was an isolated metal kid growing up in rural Maine in the 80's. Not a lot of fun. There were no clubs or venues around us.

Do you have a favorite tour that you went on?

Hard to pin down. I skipped my high school graduation to do a 11 week tour with a band called The AGs and that was such a crazy learning experience. I really love touring and all it entails so there are awesome moments and there are shitty moments on every tour.

Which musicians/bands made you want to start a band?

I was a KISS kid from age 4 or so, and the Monkees tv show was what I thought every band lived like for most of my life. Plus my mom was a hippie and I had every Beatles record growing up. Those 3 bands, then throw in AC/DC and you have how I learned my instruments and how I learned about song structure. Metallica was big for me too. I remember the day we found out about Cliff Burton the way some people remembered learning about JFK. 

Do you remember a moment where you realized you wanted to play music and not just watch/listen?

 I think it was my 8th grade talent show. We were the only band and we opened the whole show with Twisted Sister's "the kids are back," and closed the show with "you shook me all night long." Girls who would never talk to me in person were dancing and jumping around while we were playing. I knew playing music was what I was born to do.

I feel like I always gravitate toward asking drum questions, BUT who are your favorite drummers? What makes them better in your mind than others? Do you have any drumming pet peeves? Like weird set-up or whatever?

As for favorite drummers, Bill Stevenson is huge for me, as is Bill Ward, Phil Rudd, Dale Crover, and John Bonham. It's all about playing just enough and not too much. On the other side, Clive Burr (original Iron Maiden drummer) was very musical and added a ton to their sound. There was a time I would have said Lars Ulrich, but now I know he plays drums like a stutterer speaks. If there weren't multi-track recording, Ulrich would not be able to play some of those songs. 

Drummer pet peeves: tappers, over emotive guys, lefties are visually offensive, and drummers with great kits that they don't know how to tune.

What are some general things about bands that make them stand out to you? As in... besides, like, being good musicians and playing together are there other less tangible things that make you want to watch a band?

It's all about songs for me. There needs to be a hook in it somewhere, either vocally or somewhere else. Some crazy grind bands have awesome riffs, or just a great THING in a song and that's all I need. Delivery is important. Obviously I like the aggression in hardcore and punk, and some attitude and personality can make or break a band.

What made you want to record music and become an engineer? What was the process of learning how to create records like?

I had a cassette 4track when I was 15 or so, and that led me into recording my band and doing demos of myself. I took a college recording course when I was still in HS and I was totally hooked. I always knew that being a rock star was a big gamble, but being a recording engineer might actually be a good gig. I went to a recording school in 1991 after high school, and I was one of the last classes to work on analog multi-track machines. They talked about how there is technology coming out soon (ADATs came out that year) that would make digital recording accessible to the masses and that we might not "need" these big dinosaur machines anymore. I fell in love with big consoles and tape and have never stopped. I bugged all of my friends in bands to let me come to their sessions, and eventually bands asked me to record them without the house engineer. Crazy as it sounds, there was a time that if a band walked into a studio, they guy behind the console would have no clue as to what the band wanted. Before Nirvana, before Green Day, you either had goofy metal guys or the other extreme of jazzy types.I tried to use Husker Du as a reference when we made the first Doc Hopper single in 1991 and they had no idea who I was talking about. That made me want to help my friends bands make records that sounded better than the records we all listened to. 

What are some records that stand out as being perfectly put together sound-wise? What are examples of  favorite guitar/bass/drum/vocal sounds?

"Appetite for Destruction" is perfect example of a perfect sounding record. The planets were in alignment that those morons could make such an excellent album. AC/DC always had great sounding records with not a lot of weird stuff going on. I love the drums on "slip it in." "Dookie" sounds almost perfect too. I like very presence-y vocals and loud guitars in general. Records I thought were great back when I was younger don't always hold up. The 80's and its technology fucked up a lot of great records and bands for years to come.

This feels like a dumb question but here goes: Besides that it is a less controlled environment, how does mixing a band live differ from recording sounds?

Live vs studio... Live you can't tailor the sounds to fit together the same way you do for recording in the studio. It's about damage and volume control. Sometimes when I'm mixing live, I'll try to tell the drummer if his gear is really out of whack and let him tune stuff up, but if its too many bands with too little time, all I can do is tune out the horrible frequencies of that shitty snare and go with it. Make it sound bearable for the 30 minute set. You only get one quick chance to make things sound good. It keeps me on my toes, plus I love watching bands so if I can't make records all the time, I enjoy mixing live. 

 What was your favorite recording experience with one of your bands? What was your favorite recording experience with another band?

It was great making the third Sinkhole record up in Maine at a big place called Big Sound. My younger brother helped me with my drum stuff and we literally slept in the live room around the drum kit. We did that a few days in a row, then it was done. I like records like that, encapsulating a time and place for a band. I don't enjoy a dragged out over thought kind of thing. Rock and roll isn't about that. 

I loved making all the Ergs records, especially "dork rock."  It felt magical when we were doing it, and obviously we all could relate on musical terms. The Measure's "songs about people..." was great too, but honestly I love Fid and we always have fun making music together no matter what the situation is. 

PERSONAL.

Where'd you grow up and what are/were you parents like? Do you have siblings?

I grew up in Gardiner Maine, about an hour north of Portland. It was hard to get music up there, and there was never any live music around. My mom was really into music and she is where I got all of my musical interest from. My parents were divorced when I was 2 or so and I never really saw them together. My father is great and I had both of them in my life for most of my childhood. We lived in a small town, so there wasn't much distance between the two households. 

When I was in 2nd grade my Mom moved to Massachusets to work for the newly formed Digital Corp which eventually became Hewlett Packard. There wasn't much going on in Maine so she felt that was the best way to provide a future for her and I. I stayed with my dad and my grandparents through most of that.

When I was 10, my mother was raped and murdered by someone in her apartment building in Lawrence Mass. I don't remember much else about that year, and it took a long time to process most of the info that filtered down to me from my grandparents. I do remember someone at my school saying something about my mother living with God and the angels in heaven and my response being something to the effect of  "if there is a God why would he do this to me?" and having a severe dislike for the church and anyone using that as an explanation for what happened.

 I have a step brother and step sister, as well as a half brother (all younger than me.) But we all love each other as blood and they are all amazing people. I made my brother move to NJ when he got out of high school and seemed to be doing nothing because I wanted him to see the world outside of Maine. Only the youngest still lives in Maine. Not many people escape living up there. It's that kind of place. 

How has becoming a parent changed your outlook on stuff?

Being a parent has definitely changed my outlook. It's given me a purpose. I do everything I do so I can make his life better, even through a divorce and all the other crap this world throws at you. He keeps me grounded, and inspires me every time I think of him. 

I learned too early that the world is a cruel and unjust place, but I try to do all I can to not instill that in my son. I try to have faith in humanity for him, and occasionally humanity surprises me.

What was school like for you?

School sucked for me. I was usually bored, got bullied and terrorized by hicks all the time. Getting yelled at from a car was a common occurrence. "Fag" was a nickname. Music and skateboarding were my escapes. Luckily I powered through without too many issues. And the same people still work at 7-11 up there. Living well is the best revenge.

What is your favorite place that you have lived?

I love New Brunswick. I lived in Boston from 91-96, and it was fun. I miss it sometimes, but Hub City is the best hands down. The people, the scene, being close to NYC... it's the best ever. I almost moved to Minneapolis once, but it's wicked cold there. I don't like cold.

Have you ever had any weird or paranormal experiences?

I want to believe in ghosts and that stuff, but I'm too much of a doubter. I need to see it to believe it. 

The only thing I believe in that can't be seen is the power of music and community. I've experienced both of those and I know they exist. 

To quote Stiff Little Fingers, "I believe in the power of guitar and drums." For reals yo.

 Real quick...

First off ...thanks so much Chris. This definitely made me tear up a little bit and I know I never say much at the end of the interview. But I just wanna point out that the whole reason why I  started doing this is to see the motivations behind what some of my favorite people's musical interests are. And to like, LEARN about them without it being too uncomfortable and scary. This interview definitely made me understand a dude I have known for YEARS a whole lot better. Because I really had almost no knowledge of this guy's history before, and now I will never think of him as the same Chris Pierce I knew before. You know what I mean? I hope you enjoyed reading because I sure did.

<3 Randa

Exorcism Number Twelve: Brian "Buckets" Buccellato

Hey! I'm back to being nosy. Thank god. This is an interview with Mr. Brian Buckets. I feel like I asked him some pretty straight-forward, perfunctory questions and got unusual and interesting answers. Which is, of course, really neat. He and Chris Pierce (whose interview is forthcoming BTW) have a recording studio together called Volume IV. (Fun Fact: Past Exorcism, Marissa Paternoster has painted some crazy shit on the walls. At their request of course.)

I recently saw Brian play drums in his band Risk Relay and he is really fucking good. It's drumming that is weird but not like, "Oooh look how weird I am!" weird. (You know what I mean.) Technical, but not showy. Fancy, but not for the sake of it. In other words, like...really fucking good.

Anyway here you go. Here you are. Here we all go.

AN HISTORICAL SELFIE.

-What made you wanna play drums and do you play any other instruments? 

It's kind of difficult for me to pinpoint exactly when because I started to become interested when I was 8 years old (I'm almost 35 now.)  I do remember being really into watching MTV, and at the time ridiculous hair metal and Guns n' Roses was pretty much dominating air play.  I remember sitting on the couch, watching music videos and trying to play along with chopsticks.  I also had an older metal head cousin that played, and when we would visit I would watch him shred on one of those enormous two bass drum, eight tom,  two hi-hat, seven cymbal monstrosities….and of course I thought that was the coolest! 

I can play a very small amount of guitar and bass, but I've always been a bit clumsy on both.  I feel like it's one of those situations where being ambidextrous works to my disadvantage; I'm left hand dominant, but I play guitar right handed…I feel like there's always a certain degree of disconnect between what I'm thinking my fingers should be doing and what they're actually doing.   

-What bands got you into music? What about them was inspiring? 

I remember really wearing out my Appetite for Destruction cassette…and then moving on to Iron Maiden, Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth, Overkill, and Nuclear Assault.  I think I was mostly drawn to the over the top nature of what they were doing, whether it was trying to be more technical, badass, fast, or mean-sounding than anything else that was out there…although I'd still argue that Gn'R and Maiden wrote some legitimately good rock music.

-What drummers were your faves growing up? What about their style was interesting to you? 

This is pretty embarrassing considering the guy is now one of the most gigantic turds in music, but I used to think Lars Ulrich was the most creative drummer.  I thought his work on ….And Justice for All was brilliant at the time, but then again, I was still just a kid.  He would play all of these weird timed fills and arrange parts such that each time through the same section of a song he would play something that sounded similar to what he played the previous time, but just a little different.  I always thought Glenn Evans (Nuclear Assault) was really good.  I think I just liked how fast he would play…and he would always have a few songs on each record where he would rip some absurd drum solo at the end of the track.  For the most part, I've never been much of a fan of individual players.  It just so happens that most of the bands I like have competent players.

-Do you feel like your fave drummers changed as you got older? When listening to your old faves now, do you hear their playing differently as opposed to hearing them as a kid?

Sure.  When I listen to Lars now, I feel like I'm listening to a deaf Ringo Starr playing heavy metal.  It's just incredibly goofy sounding to me.  I wonder whether it was all the result of him always being a poor player and lots of tape being spliced together to make it sound passable.  In general, I think my tastes have changed a lot.  I used to think the more notes you could play, and the faster you could play them, the better.  I still love a good shred fest, but I can also appreciate simple, more subdued playing.

-How did you learn to play? Self taught or did you have lessons? How (besides being more comfortable probably) has your playing evolved?

I took lessons for a good six years or so.  I actually played on a practice pad for a couple years before I got my first drum set.  I used to be able to sight read pretty well too.  My instructor never knew I was left handed, so he taught me to play as a right handed player.  I think this worked to my advantage in the end because I was constantly working my right hand harder than my left.  Eventually he saw me playing as I do now (left hand leads, right foot leads) and was like, "Why didn't you tell me you were left handed, you schmekel?!"  I didn't know, I was only 10 or 11 years old…I thought there was only one way to play! 

My playing style has always been tied to the kinds of bands I've been in, and I've really not played with that many different people.  I was playing mostly in Bad Religion sounding punk bands in high school, which doesn't really allow for that much creativity.  I would just try to play as fast and hit the drums as hard as I possibly could.  As the different incarnations of Risk Relay took form shortly after high school (yes, we've been playing together that long) I started to mess around with more syncopated stuff, more counter rhythmic stuff.  I've managed to stop hitting the drums like I'm mad at them…try to listen and balance the kit and just play less, play slower.  I've also developed a dislike for open hi-hats and cymbals in general.  I think that comes from having such a hard time dealing with them in the studio on occasion.

-How do you feel about playing live? Talk about whether or not you have now, or ever had, any kind of stage fright. 

I've been playing shows for almost 20 years now and I have only started to enjoy them in the last five years or so.  In the past I feel like I was way too serious and far too concerned with perfection.  It got to the point where people would complement me after a show and I'd be so furious about some dumb mistake or dropped stick that I'd actually tell them they were wrong and that I fucking sucked!  I still get annoyed when I make a mistake but I feel like can hear the whole picture now…so if the band sounds good to me for 98% of the set, I'm happy.

I'm always a little bit nervous, but I've never had any kind of stage fright.  At the same time I've not played many "big" or "important" shows.

-What got you into recording bands and who taught you how?

I was always interested in sound.  When I was maybe 12 years old or so, I discovered that you could "multi-track" with two boom boxes.  Record something on one, and then play it back while playing something else and recording on the other boom box.  Very sophisticated analog setup!  Then I bought a 4-track in high school and messed around with that quite a bit.  After quite a few poor experiences making records with a bunch of different recording engineers (some quite famous and expensive) I became convinced I could do the job better and not be a dick.  So I took some classes at Brookdale Community College and interned at a studio called Technical Ecstasy with my current studio partner, Chris Pierce.  I took what I learned by watching there, bought some of my own stuff and then starting asking my friends to let me record them for free.  The best way to learn recording is by doing it.   

-How has your knowledge of being able to record sounds affected your process of making a record for one of your own bands? 

I think it allows me to map things out in my head a bit more as far as the process goes.  Like I'll have an idea of how I want to try recording certain parts…whether that's in a wacky way or very straight forward.  I also think my band mates are more willing to follow my lead when I make suggestions or have an idea in the studio because they trust that I've been through the process enough times.  But most importantly, it makes every record we do take forever!  It certainly helps me to have someone else help out.  I had Chris Pierce take care of almost all of the setup during basic tracking of the most recent Risk Relay record, "After Fake End Times."  It sounds great but I'm still searching for the right amount of control to take for one of my projects.

-What are some memorable recording processes with bands in the area? Feel free to be really specific and really scathing. 

I prefer to be pretty vague in terms of the bad stuff.  I know it's boring, but I don't really need to rehash the specifics of those sessions. I've seen a lot in a relatively short time.  I've seen bands disintegrate in front of me; members get kicked out…spoken to in ways that were indescribably evil.  It's always a challenge to make sense of the wreckage after a bomb goes off…it's like, "So…are we still making a record or….?"

Some stuff has been pretty random…I recorded a few songs for the band Mother Night and the bassist decided he was going to smoke some pot before he did his backing vocals.  I figured he was an experienced stoner, but really he hadn't smoked in years.  He legit fainted in the middle of his take…fell backwards…I was still recording in my parents' basement at this point so I guess I'm lucky he didn't hurt himself!  I once shared an interesting conversation with the members Psyched to Die about the Woodsporn phenomenon…the ancient tradition of using the woods of NJ as a secret library for porno magazines. 

Really, the most memorable recordings were the ones where the band could play and the people involved were all good.  "The Secret Audio Suspense" EP I did with The Unidentified, Screaming Females "What if Someone is Watching Their TV?", The Ergs "That's it, Bye" all come to mind.  They were so enjoyable because nothing happened.  The bands showed up to make a good record, and that's what we worked towards.  There was no drama, no bullshit, no awkward moments…I even managed to make a few good friends out of the deal.

  

PERSONAL

-Where did you grow up? What are/were your parents like? Do you have any siblings?

I grew up in South Brunswick NJ.  My parents are both retired/nearing retirement.  Oddly, my father doesn't listen to music at all.  Literally does not own a single recorded album.  Neither of them are what you would consider particularly creative, so I'm not quite sure where I came from.  Most importantly, they have been incredibly supportive of me.  From letting my bands practice in their home, to letting me record there, to helping me to get through college at ages 28-34.

I have a lovely older sister, Michele, whom I often kid about her name being spelled "like a boy's name."  She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts with her husband, 2 year old son, and month and a half year old twin (!) daughters. 

-What was school like for you?

Academically, school was always a bit of a bore to me.  I was never much of a reader and always thought that no one needed math because calculators were invented.  So in high school I didn't really give much effort, but I got good grades.  I played in some bands but somehow playing in a "punk rock" band in high school doesn't really make you a ton of friends.  I did one semester at Rowan…I hated living in a dorm and I really couldn't figure out why I ended up there other than that's where my parents wanted me to be.  So then I did the recording/communications program at Brookdale and still really didn't give much effort to any of the courses besides the audio related ones.  Fast forward a bunch of years….I just graduated Rutgers May 2013 with an Electrical Engineering degree.  I really enjoyed the engineering program.  If you're ever really ready for it, school doesn't have to be that difficult. 

-At the risk of sounding cheesy, how significant a role has music played in your life? 

Without music, I'd probably be heavier (drumming is great exercise), have more stress, fewer friends, less to be proud of in my life, and fewer interesting things to do.  I might have a little more money, though.

-Ever see any ghosts or weird paranormal shit?

Ha.  Not exactly, but I get this weird kind of déjà vu where the event seems familiar because I feel like I once experienced it in a dream.  In fact, it just happened to me today while I was in this future looking presentation room at work!

 



Thanks BUX! Here are links to Volume IV and Risk Relay