Onze laatste liverecensie.
Onze laatste albumrecensie.
Ons laatste interview.
Onze laatste video.
This is my first CV show, what can I expect?
John: "Um, Chas (Smith: Synth and theremin) is raising his eyes."
Chas: "Expect the unexpected."
John: "When we record in the studio we spend more time on particular parts. When we are
live its more like visual; just energy. A lot of times there are bands that just don't have much
energy going for them, you know? Also, live I think that our shows have gotten 100% better since
we added a strobe light and the multi-colored lighting. "
So the key to a good show is the lighting?
John: "It's less to do with the music than the light. Just kidding. But we have a bubble
machine too... I just think that live it has a cretin energy and spontaneity to it. As opposed to
recording where you are more concerned with what people hear. And here we are more concerned as
to what they (the audience) see, I guess."
Chas: "See and hear."
John: "Yeah."
How is the new record going?
John: "We started recording in November, and we have been working on it the whole time."
You've been recording in Cleveland still?
John: "Yeah, yeah, we are recording it at the same place as the last one (2000's Nightlife
at 609 Recording). Right now we have gotten an attorney, we have been getting off of our label
(Motel Records) and in a couple of weeks we won't be on them any more. We are just trying to get
off of that, we can't really talk to any other labels until that is done."
Are you looking at getting onto a larger label?
John: "I just think that it is better to have a label that lets you put out a record
a year."
Was Motel kind of stringent?
John: "No, they are just totally inept, they aren't stringent. Basically (we are looking
for) a label that puts out a record and does the minimum amount. We don't really need that much
support from a label."
You guys do all of the recording yourselves, right?
John: "We do the recording ourselves... We just need a label that will get the damn thing in
the stores."
Are you guys financing this one yourselves, like the last one? I heard that you put a lot
of time into Nightlife.
John: "It was about 300 hours, its been about the same for this one. We spend a lot of
time on this stuff. Everyone has other lives and other bands. So it is the kind of thing where
Don (Depew), who did the last record is the consistent thing there. Because he is always there
in the studio; everyone else has their own thing going on."
The last album was more of a solo project wasn't it?
John: "Well, Don and I. Don has a really good sense for sound and really good ideas and
stuff. I don't like when people start doing the same thing over and over again. I don't think
you have much say in the matter, I think people are creatures of habit and will do things over
and over again. So what you have to do is to change the environment around you. And I think that
most of the time people are like "I don't want a producer to tell me what to do.". But I like
people who come up with an idea out of the blue. And I may never have thought of that, but I
am going to try that. I think that is an important approach to have."
You put lots of new sounds on the last album, synths, theremins, sax, are there any plans
to add something this time? Banjos, Didjeridoos...
John: "I think the didjeridoo is making a big comeback. "
Chas: "Too many people use it now."
John: "I don't know. There are all sorts of different layered sounds in this one. On this
record I think there is an idea like when there was this period in music when pop music was
played by rock bands. I think there was a period from like 1967 to 69 when bands were basically
coming up with pop stuff and they were playing them like hard rock bands. And I hope that some
of it comes off like that. So there are a lot of hooks there. The thing that I hate are pop
drummers, you can't be a pop drummer you need to be a rock drummer. All of the best pop bands
like the Creation and the Yardbirds, they all played like hard rock bands."
How was South by Southwest (the Austin, Texas indie music festival)?
John: "It was alright, the crowds were good. We drove all the way to Texas and we never saw
so many propane tanks. Like Frank (Vazzano, guitar) would say it is all propane tanks and pre-fab
houses. But it was fun. I get tired of seeing bands that are just fucking boring. I mean if we
are boring its because we are having an off night. We all like music, but we see that that is
only part of it."
Frank: "We're all a bunch of clowns."
John: "Yeah, its good to have fun."
How have the shows with (Dinosaur Jr. frontman) J. Mascis been going lately?
John: "Good, they are nice guys."
Does that go back to your Homestead days?
John: "Yeah, I was in a band called Death of Samantha and he was in Dinosaur we were
both on that label. I don't know, its weird because some people fall by the wayside and some
resurface all of the time. Its like that in everything. (Mascis, whose band Dinosaur Jr. is
considered to be one of the greatest bands to emerge from the 80s post punk/ alternative scene
recently disbanded Dino, which had all but dissapeared and released a critically acclaimed solo
album) I think that people who fall by the wayside are those who see it as a hundred-yard dash.
The marathon runner, those with sensibility are those who keep resurfacing. But in the end, this
record may not sell that much or anything. But what about Seven Mary Three. They had a record
that sold a bunch and who knows where they are now? And more importantly than where are they now,
WHO CARES? ... Well, let me ask you a couple of questions."
Ok, Shoot.
John: "This shirt with these pants or these pants with this shirt?"
(Petkovic holds up a red pair of pants with a white shirt and a white pair of pants with a red shirt)
I'd go with the red shirt and white pants.
Dave Hill (bass): "It's totally mod."
Chas: "You should wear the red on red."
John: "I don't want to look like a tomato! (after some discussion) We always mess around with
clothes and stuff like that, too."
(This shows off well. Part of Verde's glam is the music but even more it is their look. Velvet
pants, leather cowboy hats, and skin tight trousers are all in full effect tonight. In addition,
Frank is a dead ringer for Ron Wood.)
After a while a discussion begins on everyone's real-life jobs away from Cobra Verde.
John: "Mark is a wiz when it comes to computers, Dave is a graphic artist and Chas, Chas
teaches a rock history class at Cleveland State.
How do you go about doing that?"
Chas:"It's a bunch of bullshit."
John: "What he does is he will go from tour to class all dressed in his rock gear."
Now John shifts gears to a discussion on what kind of music he doesn't like.
John: "You know what I can't stand? I can't stand heart-felt music. I can't stand people
who wear their Achilles heel on their sleeve."
Dave: "You were just saying the other day that you love heart-felt music!"
(Laughter)
John: "No I didn't... I said I love heartless music."
Chas: "He said he likes Heart's music."
John: "With these guys who are always whining and connecting with their audience. With us it
is more like we don't practice. I just hate these bands that always fucking practice and labor over
every dumb thing that they do. You know? I mean with us more thought is probably goes into these
dumb lights that we have. With music I can't stand these bands that try to make something out of
nothing. If you don't have the ability, how can you just sit around in you basement hoping we make
it."
At this point John goes off to put on his clothes for the night and returns with a pair of white pants that are so tight you can see the veins in his legs.
Where do you guys do your shopping?
John: "Everywhere we go to, every city we always go to the thrift stores and stuff."
http://www.kindamuzik.net/interview/cobra-verde/cobra-verde/366/?bw=1mailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmailmail
Meer Cobra Verde op KindaMuzik: http://www.kindamuzik.net/artiest/cobra-verde
Deel dit artikel: