swimmer's ear magazine #16

8/14/2019 Swimmer's Ear Magazine #16

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Win Free Produc

What was the name of the short skatepark that was located at t

1201 E. Lake St. location, after T

Cites Skate Oasis, but before 3rd

Prizes

- Kyle Berard Accel Wheels

- Lo Cut 3 Etnies Shoes (s

- Plus a grab bag of various p

Send answers [email protected]

by September 1st for a chance to wi(Correct answers will be thrown in a hat and selected ran

Only 1 winner will be picked for all the goods.)

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Danny Way vs. Tony Hawk

Today, Saturday July 9th, 2005, Danny Way once againamazed the world with a World Record jump over theGreat Wall of China. He landed it on his second attempt.

After he landed a straight air over it, he tried it 3 moretimes, landing backside 360’s over it. Can you believe theguy 360’d the Great Wall of China? That’s fucking insane.Sure, to jump that 61 ft gap is huge, but imagine spinning360’s over it.

Also today, Tony Hawk is gearing up for another stop onhis extreme sports whoring arena tour, Boom Boom Huck Jam.

Who do you think is earning more money today, and whodo you think it earning more respect?

I think you know the answer.

After looking at the sponsors for both Way and Hawk, youcan tell who’s after the money and who’s in it for skate-boarding. Danny’s sponsors include: DC Shoes, Plan B,and Independent trucks. Tony’s include: Birdhouse, Adio,McDonalds. Not to mention his earlier endorsements forBagel Bites, Hot Wheels, and Club Med.

Both Tony and Danny are alike. Both were young skate-boarding prodigies, Danny with H-Street and Plan B, and

Tony with Powell Peralta. Both are known for their vertskating skills. Both own their own skateboard companies.

It seems though, as soon as Tony landed the 900, that theendorsements started flowing. He has video games, kidsclothing lines, stadium tours. You don’t see Danny Way excepting endorsements for fast food joints or other com-panies outside of skateboarding every time he breaks aworld record, do you?

Tony Hawk is a great vert skateboarder, but the choiceshe’s made and the companies that he’s affiliated himself

with since becoming popular are only cheapening skate-boarding. Instead of pushing kids to go out and skate, he’spushing kids to stay inside and play video games, sit at anauditorium and watch extreme sports, or eat the terribly unhealthy food McDonalds.

Danny Way has done nothing but push skateboarding in aninventive and positive way. Congratulations Danny onanother World Record feat.



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Ed

Adam

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Contributing Photograp

Zach W

Sam M

Adam

Th

David Lewis, Zach Windah

McGuire, Tom Ward at Fat W

Alexis Henry at Epitaph, and

companies that sent us pr

Cover: Uly Marin - Kickflip - Iowa Ci

Luke Hunt - Back Tail - South Minne

Photos: Sam M

Swimmer’s Ear Magazi



Dan’s ZineDan’s Zine is a cool zine from NJ. It’s put together by Dan Bracaglia. Issue 20 is mostly photos, butthey’re quite good. Dan’s Zine also has hilariousfake ads. www.freewebs.com/danskatezine


variance - Paper Cuts

What’s Your Subject?

Subject is a new newsprint magazine from Chicago/New

York. It is published by Liz Schroeder(New York) andNora O’Donnell (Chicago) and is beautifully art directedby Luckyface.org’s Sarah Eva Krancic. Each issue of Subject focuses on a different subject. Issue one’s sub-ect is “What’s in a Name?” It has interviews with bands Tv on the Radio and Braid and articles about MomsNamed Sharon and a feature story of the city of Calcutta. Issue two’s subject is “Carnival!” It has interviewswith bands the Fiery Furnaces and Maritime, and articles about various freaks and circus related materi-al. Both issues have been pretty good reads. They have a limited run of 1,000 and it is hard to find. Trychecking out their website at www.subjectmag.com, for more information.

How Do You Pay

Paying in Pain is a rad skate zi

California. They really capture thpendent spirit. They have tons photos and plenty of well writttent. Each issue keeps gettingthan the last. This magazinelook awesome if it was on somgloss paper like the major tions. For more inforwww.payinginpain.com

Non StopParty Wagon™

Al Burian is an independent societyicon. He writes so well that everyone

wants to be like him. In Burn Collector 13, join Al on his travels over-seas for a family reunion. Then follow him on his hitchhiking/train

journey all around Europe. A great reanby any standards.

Get FocusFocus Skatebo

Culture Magazine isfree mag from thCoast, that covers tCoast skate scene. features a guest editRicky Oyola, and int

with amateur Darren Harper and pro ChrIt has a lot of nice photos and great desigalso do articles with skate shops (Kineticcompanies (Syintific), websites (Post2

and trick tips. They really took the time ta good newsprint skate mag, unlike somnews print mags I’ve seen. Future issuesbe awesome. www.focusskatemag.com




Powell Pat Channita Deck - With most skate brands manufacturing boards out of theU.S., it’s refreshing to ride a board that is pressed in the same warehouse that the com-pany is located. This Powell deck has a nice ride. It’s a little smaller than I’m used toriding, but it spins and flips well. It’s lasted over 3 months. That’s included a session at3rd Lair, plain street skating, and flatground flip tricks sessions. It’s tail is turning into a

razor from so much use. Overall, I would recommend the Pat Channita deck to anyoneooking for one.

Powell Bombers Wheels 60MM - These Bombers wheels from Powell are an excellentoverall wheel. They are grippy and soft for bowl and park riding. And they work great onasphalt.

Bones Swiss Bearings - There is a reason why these are the best bearings in theworld. For those who don’t know, the ABEC rating doesn’t really apply to skateboarding.ABEC is an acronym for Annual Bearing Engineers Committee. The duty of the ABECcommittee is to establish tolerances and specifications for the size and geometric accu-racy of all bearings. Companies send their bearings to the committee to be rated.

Bearings are rated from 1 to 9, using odd numbers. The higher the number the tighter the tolerance and greater precision.

“Significantly, the ABEC committee doesn't test for axial—or side loads. Skateboarding exerts tremen-

dous axial loads on bearings when skaters slide sideways or boards land on their rails, flexing the

wheels over the bearings. Bearing components can deform or be damaged by heavy or repeated axial

oads, particularly if they are manufactured to a high tolerance.

In the early 1980s, George Powell realized that skateboarding did traditionally unconventional things to

bearings. Powell, who has a background in engineering, began to experiment with various bearing

designs for skateboarding. The Powell Swiss bearings were the first bearings designed specifically for

skateboards. Powell recognized that bearings used in skateboarding should be designed with axial

oads in mind, and that unlike bearings made for electric motors, skateboard bearings don't have to

spin quite as fast. Machine bearings are typically packed with thick grease, which ensures a long life

but is sluggish at low temperatures. For his skateboard bearing, Powell began using a lighter lubricant that was less resistant and retained far less dirt than heavier greases, and synthetic ball retainers

instead of metal retainers that are more easily damaged from axial loads.”

So, that’s why the Bones Swiss are the best bearings. To further prove my point, askany pro that has ridden them or skate some for your self.Source:http://www.twsbiz.com/twbiz/industrynews/article/0,21214,704264,00.html)




variance - Walk and Roll

Bastien Salabanzi Etnies Shoe

The debut Bastien Shoe from Etnies is quite a comfortable shoe. Lots ofpadding around the ankle/heel area and a nice thick padded tongue. It h

nice suede and leather combo with cool checkerbox stitching on the sideThe Bastien also comes in some nice colorways, grey/white/gold, black/two tone brown, and all black.

Etnies Lo Cut 3

The Lo Cut 3 from Etnies looks more like a shoe to chill in than to skateMinimal padding around the heel/ankle area and a thin padded tongue. Lo Cut is also an all leather shoe with the Etnies Level 2 Foam sole. Froskateboarding aspect, they might be ok if you like having a lightweight sbut they might not hold up as well. From a chill aspect, you could rock th

to the club in a variety of outfits, or to the corner store for some milk andeggs. Check page 3 for a chance to win these Etnies Lo Cuts!!!

Movement Bearings ABEC 7

I’m the kind of guy who hates cleaning his bearings and have tried to avmost of my skateboarding life. But most bearing companies choose to mbearings with removable shields for easy cleaning. Movement designed bearings with guys like me in mind. It even says so on the box. It also sathey make bearings with maximum performance with minimum maintenaand they’re totally right.

Kyle Berard Accel Wheels 51MM

These Kyle Berard wheels from Accel roll good as shit. I mean these fucare round. These would be good for street skating only since they’re 51mThe good thing about Accel Wheels is that they’re guaranteed not to flatand if they do, then you get new ones for free. These Berard Wheels arethe harder side of the wheel spectrum, but as long as they’re not squarethey’re good. Check page 3 for a chance to win these Kyle Berard

Wheels!!!

Mike Vallely Dual Durometer Accel Wheels

Like the Kyle Berard wheels, these wheels roll pretty good also. These DDurometer wheels have an outer white core and an inner black core. Thare pretty hard and are fast on asphalt. They are a little smaller than I usride, but they work just fine for street and park riding. I have tried to do wslides in them to see if they flatspot or not, but they are kind of grippy.




Good & Evil

The new Toy Machine video features a very different team from their last team video a few years ago. All of the skaters are young andeager, minus Ed Templeton, he’s not so young but he’s eager. All of the skaters have exceptional parts, but standouts are Josh Harmony

and Matt Bennett. Diego Bucchieri has a killer part that shows that theguy is a crazy skateboarder. Good & Evil also has a bunch of fun extrafootage from tours, demos and general clowning around.

That’s Life

One thing that the riders in That’s Life have in common is an over abundance of skaters in tight pants. Except Justin Strubing. His pantsare normal size for his figure and his skateboarding is quite good.

Again everyone has good parts especially Leo Romero, Corey Duffeland Mike Rusczyk.

Dave Hackett Deathbox Deck

This is one fatass deck, but they’re better that way. Great for pool/bowlriding or just cruising the streets. Large tail and nose that will bringback the nostalgia of skateboarding days gone by. Great for an olddude reliving his youth or an amateur exploring his roots.

Premier Snowskate - Warrior SeriesThis snowskate from Premier is a great starter board for someonlooking to get into snowskating. Steep nose and tail for getting intricks. This is a plastic model so it is a bit heavy, but it would ma

an interesting ride down a hill. It has a plastic shell, with foam paon top for footing. It also has a slight concave.

Premier Snowskate - JP Walker Mini WoodThe JP Walker model is for the more experienced snowskater. Itresembles a skate deck, except that it is wider and thicker than askate deck. The Walker is made out of wood that has a coating obottom much like on a snowboard. It also has a smaller nose anthan their plastic models.

Turn it Out DVD“Turn it Out” is a DVD put out by Premier as like a promo for the

decks. It looks like it is a montage of sponsor me tapes edited invideo. The quality is pretty crappy and dark, but the tricks these do on snowskates would even make the most experienced skateboarder wonder how they did it. Some tricks pulled in the video: flip backside lipslides, fake/nollie frontside kickflips, heelflips, 360nose/tail slides and a variety of hand rail tricks. It’s quite somethseeing these kids ollie onto rails.



ChangeInSoundBruce Lee Band“Beautiful World”The Bruce Lee Band consists of Mike Park andmembers of the Rx Bandits as the backing band.The music is inspired by British 2-Tone Skabands like English Beat and Madness. If you’re

still into ska music, then you’ll probably love thisalbum. I know the guys at Radio K’s Rude Radiowill. (Asian Man)

Bughummer“The Getaway With”Bughummer was a band from Georgia that wasn business from 1992-1998. It features Keely

Davis, who now plays with Engine Down. Itsounds like a heavier version of Slint, as in thefact that it goes from semi quiet to loud andheavy. Previous to getting this CD, I had neverheard of Bughummer, and anyone I asked hadnever heard of them either. It made me wonderwhy Lovitt would release this 7 years after the

band disbanded. I mean the music is good, butI’m sure there wasn’t anyone patiently waitingfor this release for 7 years. With this releasethough, I’m sure more people will be interestedn their music, than in the past (Lovitt)

Cex“Know Doubt”This is Cex’s first release since Cale Parks fromAloha joined him. “Know Doubt” sounds kind of ike a sound collage/sound manipulation album

more than anything. The vocals are there but aresometimes hard to hear or make out. All thesongs are inventive and good. And one of thesong’s lyrics were written by Rjyan’s grandma.

(Record Label)

Challenger“When Friends Turn Against You”5 new songs released on the Chezch Label Day After Records. This EP has a different sound

than their previous full length, but still soundsgood. It should keep you rocking until their nextfull length is released. Since this was released ona foreign label, it may be hard to find. (Day After)

Chin Up Chin Up“s/t”In 2004, Chin Up’s Chris Saathoff was killed in ahit and run in Chicago. The rest of the band con-

templated not continuing with the band, butater decided that Chris would have wanted them

to stay together. The new Chin Up Chin Upalbum is a reissue of their first Ep but with extratracks and a video of “We Should Have NeverLived Like Skyscrapers.” Three of the songs areremixes done by other Chicago artists, TimKinsella and Stephen Snydacker. If you’re famil-ar with their first album, “We Should Have

Never Lived Like Skyscrapers,” then you’ll enjoy this. (Flameshovel)

Coquettish“High Energy Politics” Whoo, Japanese punk, but sang in English, which makes it sound like its from the US. “HighEnergy Politics” sounds like early SuicideMachines or Rancid, with punk mixed with ska

and hardcore vocals. It’s a pretty good CD. If you’re into bands that are more hardcore punk and not emo punk, then you’d probably dig this.(Asian Man)

Criteria“When We Break”Criteria falls into one of those member in aSaddle Creek band that also fronts a band onSaddle Creek. But more specifically, lead gui-tar/vocal Stephen Pedersonused to be in Cursive, but nomore. “When We Break” is agood post punk/rock albumthat is similar to their first

release “En Garde.” Theopening track, “Prevent the World” is quite good, and will intrigue you enough tolisten to the rest of thealbum.(Saddle Creek)

Crooked Fingers“Dignity and Shame”Crooked Fingers is modernpop/folk songs with Latininspired trumpets. On“Dignity and Shame,”Crooked Fingers invites Australian singer Lara

to sing on some of the songs. Lara’s voice is a brilliant addition to singer Eric Bachman’s. Thefirst track is an instrumental Latin trumpet andguitar ensemble, and the same sound shows inlater songs. (Merge)

Curl Up and Die“But The Past Ain’t Through With Us”“But The Past Ain’t Through With Us” is a greatshort album from Curl Up and Die. Only 4 songs, but the last one is over 14 minutes long. This isthe kind of hardcore/metal that I can get into.The vocals are right on, and the guitars riffs areon target. The last track is mostly slow and quiet but then erupts into an all out thrash fest and

finally ends all mellow. (Revelation)

Cursive“The Difference BetweenHouses and Homes”The new Cursive album is a collection of songstaken from their early 7 inches and 2 unreleasedtracks. It doesn’t really sound like their lastalbum “The Ugly Organ,” which is their best work. If you like the earlier Cursive sound, then you’ll probably dig this, but if you’re stuck on

“The Ugly Organ,” then you might wathis up.(Saddle Creek)

Darker My Love

“S/T”Darker My Love is hard to classify genre. They’re not heavy enough tothey’re too heavy to sound indie. They’ between. The vocals sort of remind meon some songs, on others it reminds mIn with atmospheric guitars (Tarantulas)

Deathray Davies

“The Kick and The Snare”Deathray Davies’ follow up to 2003’s “ At The Black Nail Polish Factory,” is a rshine compared to “Midnight’s” darpulling influences from bands like ThThe Kinks, Beach Boys and even The and Replacements. “The Kick and Thea lot more upbeat than their previous athe songs are more layered with horns instruments. (Glurp)

Del Cielo“Us vs. Them”Del Cielo’s sound could be comparab Alkaline Trio, except it’s women p

instruments and singing and not guyThem” is a soild album with thumplines and catchy hooks. The drummingtar are top notch and the singinSometimes I feel that the vocals don’t music, but all in all the album soun(Lovitt)


Chariots (americap: Aaron



Des Ark “Loose Lips Sink Ships”I was a bit confused when I first listened to this CD.The only song I had heard prior to this CD was aoud rocking track. The opener on “Loose Lips Sink

Ships”, is a mostly acoustic guitar slow ballad. The

rest of the songs up until the last one are solid rock-ers. The ender is a quiet acoustic number. I oftenwonder how a duo who only play guitar and drumsdo it, but they do a great job playing their instru-ments, and keeping the music from getting boring.(Bifocal Media)

Despistado“The People of and Their Verses”Despistado’s debut full length and last record everdoesn’t have much to say. The music is good, butthe way the vocalist sings it feels like he’s yelling theyrics at you and there is no variation in his tone.

Some of the songs sound the same due to the guitartuning and playing. Their previous EP was good

because it gave you a small dose of the band’ssound. Maybe this would be better if you listened tot in separate listenings. Since the band broke up

prior to releasing the album, it is only availableonline at sites like downloadpunk.com andItunes.com. (Jade Tree)

Euphone“V”Euphone’s previous releases were instrumentalalbums, but on “V” some of the songs have vocalswhile the others are instrumental. You could say that this is a departure for Euphone, but it seems tohave worked for the best. (Record Label)

The Explosion“Black Tape”Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t past Explosionalbums be a lot more aggressive and raw? “Black Tape” is a great sounding album, but it seems likethis type of catchy, hook driving punk has beenplayed to death recently by all the other punk bandsout. Some stand out songs include “Here I Am,” and“We All Fall Down.” (Tarantulas)

Full“Desperandum”Vocal by Ms. Wings. Hopefully no relation to thePaul McCartney band Wings. The vocal work isclassy and well sung. Ms. Wings has a nice voice,

smooth not jagged. Full has a electronic jazz andfunk feel to it. I can see this band playing in a dark ntimate club setting. (Self Released)

Get Him Eat Him“Geography Cones”I can’t even to begin to classify Get Him Eat Him,except that track 5 “Mumble Mumble” is quite awe-some. “Geography Cones” is like lo-fi indie jangly eccentric heavy rock. Makes no sense, but shit isgood. (Absolutely Kosher)

Gold Rush“Ozona”“Ozona” is the UK’s Gold Rush’s tribute to the tiny town in Texas the album is named after. The albumstarts out with a splash of drum cymbals, followedup by a tambourine, then a neat little guitar riff, that

will sure to get your toes tapping. If you pop thisdisc into your computer, you can watch a video of the album opener, “Wait For The Wheels.” (Truck)

Jackson United“Western Ballads”It’s apparent Chris Shiflett haslearned a lot from slinging guitarin bands Me First and the GimmeGimmes and Foo Fighters. Hehas taken his experience in those bands and put together a greatpunk album. Each song is catchy and easy to listen to. In a nutshell,it sounds as though Chris blend-

ed On a Wire era Get Up Kidsand In Reverie era Saves the Day and added some of Weezer’s early pop sensibilities into one rockingalbum. The first track will pull you in with its rhythm and flow and Track 5 will keep you entertained with its DaftPunk influenced bass and discoesque guitar.(Magnificent Records)

Jim Yoshii Pile Up“Picks Us Apart”

The 3rd Jim Yoshii Pile Up album sounds quiterelaxing. It’s got good interplay between instru-ments, and they do some cool vocal overlappings.

It’s in the same family of Pedro the Lion or Zykos when it comes to overall sound or if you had tolump it into a genre. (Absolutely Kosher)

Lake Trout“Not Them, You”I went fishing at the record store and caught LakeTrout’s new album “Not Them, You.” It kind of tastes like Radiohead. Of the 16 tracks, there are 3 -4 genres represented. Some of the songs sound likeCave In, some are instrumental. Track 6 is a niceinstrumental songs with piano, flute/horn(I think),and live drums, not computerized ones, and if played on big speakers, it sounds great. (Palm)

Long View “Mercury”Long View is a major label band from the UK.Mercury is a reissue of their UK hit album, butpackaged for American consumers. A lot of thepress say that Long View have a U2 “Joshua Tree”sound. I wouldn’t know, I have never listened to any U2 album, so I can’t agree or disagree. The songsare good, but at times seems overproduced and the vocal layerings are sometimes too much.(Columbia)

Lords“Swords”Thirteen songs, each under 2 minuteLouisville, KY classic metal/punk band. sound Motorhead influenced but at a hig

The recording sounds like it was recordeshow, like the instruments aren’t as full sothey should. (Jade Tree)

The Loved Ones“s/t”This would be a great CD to have if you’r Valentine’s Day. Others will ask you wdoing on Valentine’s Day, and instead “Oh, I’m having Soup for One, and goiearly” you can say “I’ll be up all nighLoved Ones.” And if you’re a guy, people

that you’ll be with a bunch of ladies, and girl people will think that you’ll be with hot muscley guys, tending to your every you’ll really be alone, rocking out to Ones EP. (Jade Tree)

Make Believe“Shock of Being” With most releases with Tim Kinsella inall credit goes to Tim. In Make Believe, credit to Bobby Burg, Nate Kinsella, Zurick. This may be the most “rock” banhas been in, but if you played it side by sidother projects, it would be hard to tell th(Flameshovel)

Swimmer’s Ear Magazin

The Lovp: Shane M

And who needs D.C. when we’ve go




The Mars Volta“Frances the Mute”If you’re going to listen to The Mars Volta albumn one complete sitting be sure you have a couple

of hours to spare. The album itself is 77 minutesong, and there are few if no breaks in between

songs. And after, you’ll need an hour or so towrap your head around what you just heard. Themusic is like nothing I’ve heard, but is one of thebest albums of 2005 if not the most original.Listening to The Mars Volta isn’t like listening toa normal band, listening to the Mars Volta is anexperience. (GSM/Universal)

Mayday “Bushido Karaoke”I’m sure every member of every band on theSaddle Creek Label is also in a side project bandthat is on Saddle Creek. Examples, Tim Kashner,main band Cursive, side band The Good Life,Coner Oberst, main band Bright Eyes, side band

Desaparacidos, Joel Patterson, main band TheFaint, side band Broken Spindles, and the listgoes on. Mayday is no exception to themain/side band phenomenam that’s going on atSaddle Creek. Mayday is Ted Stevens who youmay have heard playing guitar with Cursive. Butwith Ted, it’s unsure which is the main band and

which is the side project.The music is good butdoes a lot of genre hopping, like “Standing inLine at the Gates of Hell” sounds like CrookedFingers or The Good Life, and other songs kind

of Beatle-esque or even folk/country. (SaddleCreek)

Minus the Bear“Menos el Oso”If you’ve heard Minus the Bear before, then theirsound on Menos el Oso will be nothing new,except that their sound has matured and gottena lot tighter. They have changed quite a bit fromtheir earlier recordings. No more silly song titles,or songs about donkeys, girls, and parties. Their

sound is very original and soothing to listen to.Jake Snider has smooth buttery vocals thatmake Minus the Bear a pleasant listening experi-ence. (Suicide Squeeze)

Bob Mould

“Body of Song”I’m not familier with Bob Mould’s previous work in Husker Du, Suger, or his solo stuff, so I can’tcompare “Body of Song” to anything. What I cantell you is, on some of the songs, he does thiselectronic thing with his voice that sounds kindof cool. I can tell you that Brendan Canty fromFugazi is a guest musician on this CD. The songsare good and would appeal to anyone who is afan of Bob’s previous work. (Yep Roc)

The Narrator“Such Triumph”Pulling influences from bands from Chicago’spast, i.e. Cap’n Jazz, The Narrator have put

together an album that doesn’t copy the Jazz butimproves on it. The Narrator’s sound is raw andangular and is never boring to listen to. The track “Wait No Actually” is a stand out. The first partof the song is like nothing else on the album,sounding like it came off an early Promise Ringalbum. But about halfway through, the tempo

breaks and they’re back tonormal. Definitely worth alisten. (Flameshovel)

The Nein“Wrath of Circuits” When I first listened to“Wrath of Circuits” the first

song started out kind of dull, but then towards the end gota lot better and even had afunky breakdown at the endof the song, and the rest of the album continues toevolve from there. The Neinplay a sort of rock with sam-ples and sound manipula-tions. The sounds manipula-tions and samples add a lot

to the original sound of The Nein. (Sonic Unyon)

Okay “Low Road”

Bright Eyes isn’t the only artist that can releasetwo different albums on the same day. But I’msure Conor got tons more coverage than Marty from Okay did. And I’d prefer Okay over Oberst’s warbally vocals any day. “Low Road” is a perfectpop record that has distorted guitars and kazoos.Marty was in the band Dilute but had to leave the band due to a chronic stomach disorder thatkeeps him confined to his house hooked up to anI.V. almost daily. The songs reflect the emotionand struggle, but are upbeat and positive.

Okay “High Road”The songs on “High Road” are similar ton “Low Road” but seem to have lessguitars but Marty’s signature vocal so

of froggy or croaking, is still there alonsincerity. Plus any band that uses a kazsongs gets an A+ for originality. (AKosher)

Pama International“Float Like A Butterfly”Pama International is a group of musicing from London, England. It featuresof The Specials, Galliano, Push, TheSkanga, Paul Weller Band, Andy Hamiland a special guest appearance by MadThompson. Now if you know anything or ska’s past, you’ll see that this is a lisof ska’s best bands. This CD includes 8

ska, dub and rocksteady, plus 4 extrecorded live on the BBC Radio OnMan)

Paint It Black “Paradise”If you enjoyed PiB’s first CD “CVA” thetotally dig “Paradise.” It’s everything “ but with longer songs. All of “Paradisare over a minute long. Instead of quickenergy, they extend that burst up to 1 m44 seconds on their longest song. 21spilt up among 14 songs of blistering (Jade Tree)

Parish School“Alikeness”Parish School is Brian Case From 90 and is his first solo release.“Alikeness” to piano based album with slow songs whispery to normal vocals. The songs aand intricate, and the beats are sremindful of the Postal Service. (Recor

Rah Bras“EPS”EPS is a remastered collection of their fout of print EPs.And I honestly don’t k

anyone would want to listen to thissounds like a shitty jam band improviand sound. (Lovitt)

ChangeInSound

The Nein



Rammstein“Reise,Reise”In 12th grade I had Political Science with one of the monotonist teachers ever. Our class was nextto a German classroom. Every day the Germanclass would play “Due Hast” and sing along. Our

teacher had a hard time talking over the Germanndustrial rock music of Rammstein and I

assume that he didn’t like that kind of music. Imagined he listened to adult contemporary, or

Kenny G or John Tesh. Music that wasn’t offen-sive or harsh in any way possible. I don’t think hewill be happy when that German class gets a holdof Rammstein’s new album “Reise, Reise,” butthose kids learning German will.(Republic/Universal)

Reel Big Fish“We’re Not Happy, Till You’re Not Happy”Reel Big Fish’s first release since “Cheer Up” isclassic Reel Big Fish. I’m not sure if “We’re Not

Happy, Till You're Not Happy” is better or worsethan “Cheer Up,” but they’re close. It’s amazingthat RBF haven't broken up yet like most otherska band of the Mid 90’s. But with each new release it seems they add more and more coversongs. “We’re Not Happy...” has cover songs by Morrissey, Tracy Chapman, and SocialDistortion. RBF’s musicianship and humor isstill there but it seems they are lacking in the“coming up with more original songs depart-ment.” Overall “We’re Not Happy” is a great skaalbum and it’s great to see Reel Big Fish still pro-ducing music after all these years. I’d take 20more years of RBF music than listen to the hor-rible rock, hip hop, and “punk” they play on the

radio nowadays. (Jive)

Satori“Savor Every Moment”Satori mix reggae, ska, rocksteady, and bluebeatnto one heck of an album. It sounds like the

album was produced in a smoky studio inJamaica, but it comes from the sandy beaches of California. This album is pretty bass heavy sonext time someone passes you blasting the new 50 Cent, roll up to them, turn the volume up andshow them what good music sounds like. Satori

features members of Rx Bandits, Link 80 andThe Exit. (Asian Man)

Say Hi to Your Mom“Ferocious Mopes”One of my favorite bands of the moment, Say HiTo Your Mom has created another great albumof wonderful pop songs. If you get this album,read the lyrics, they are just as interesting as themusic is. Stand out songs include “The Twenty Second Century” “Yeah, I’m In Love With An Android” and “I’ll think I’ll Be A Good Ghost.”The lyrics are like answers to questions peopleask him and are often humorous and inventive.(Euphobia)

Schoolyard Heroes“Fantastic Wounds”Imagine if you took Gwen Stefani and bitch-slapped her out of her hip hop phase and thenteamed her up with Iron Maiden, that's whatSchoolyard Heroes sounds like. RyannDonnelly’s vocals are loud, fierce, and have asmall bit of operatic style at times. The best thingabout their music is the guitar and drums. SteveBonnell’s wailing guitar and metal riffs areintense, the last track has a killer guitar solo,totally GNR/Slash influenced. Brian Turnermakes the drums sound more interesting thanmost bands I’ve heard this year. His drumming

style is a major part to the sound of this band.(The Control Group)

Shai Hulud“A ComprehensiveRetrospective”This CD is a retrospectiveof past Shai Hulud demosand live recordings. Tracks1-6 are from a demo from1996, which sound quitegood for a demo, standardhardcore stuff with group vocals. Tracks 7-9 are fromlive from Crucial Chaos at

NYU, which sounds like atypical live recording.There is some fun in between song banter thatgoes on here. Tracks 12-15are recorded during a prac-

tice session at their warehouse. Track 16 is arecording of the song “This Wake I Myself HaveStirred” on a four track. Tracks 17-19 is a record-ing of songs with new singer Chad Gilbert. Thelast 5 tracks that round out this CD are guitar

solo rhythm tracks which are kind of bo booklet that comes with this CD hainformation about each song and is ac best thing about this retrospective. (Re

Sparrow “The Early Years”Sparrow sounds a lot like The Shins w

fi indie Beatle-esque sound. There argood upbeat songs on the album that’llhips shaken. If you’re a fan of The Sh you should check this album out. (Kosher)


Say Hi To Yop: M.

These Arms Are Snakesp: Robin Laananen

Department of Demo-L

Calls From Bethany This NJ hardcore band could be comThursday, “Full Collapse” era. CFB vocals, one sings the songs and tscreams the choruses. The songs so your typical hardcore love songs, and

duction is quite good. It sounds like tthe time to make their music souninstead of using cheap recording. Ydownload songs at www.purevolume.com/callsfrombeth

Unsigned bands:Send us your demos/CD-Rs for Swimmer’s Ear - Dept. of Demo-ListeP.O. Box 2076, Maple Grove, MN 55

Come with me you pretty thing and we’ll celebrate with amput




Spitalfield“Stop Doing Bad Things”Spitalfield's follow-up to their “Remember RightNow” album a few years back is way better. Withtheir new album “Stop Doing Bad Things,” theirsound has matured and gotten a lot better. I’d

even say that “Stop Doing Bad Things” is betterthan Jimmy Eat World’s “Futures” album.(Victory)

Spitzz“Sick, Savage, Sensual”Guitar driven classic punk with rough vocals andchoruses with group yells. There is nothing real-y exciting about this band. They sound alright,but it’s not something that’s gonna get heavy rotation in my stereo. A fairly short full lengthwith 11 songs coming in just over 22 minutes.(Tarantulas)

Spoon“Gimme Fiction”I don’t see why everyone loves Spoon and thinksthat Britt Daniel is some musical genius.“Gimme Fiction” is a good CD, but is nowherenear where “Kill The Moonlight” was. The songson “Kill The Moonlight” are a lot more catchy and unforgettable. “Gimme Fiction’s” song aregood and well played. “Two Sides of MonsieurValentine” and “The Delicate Place” are quite

good and “Was It You” sounds influenced by the

American Analog Set. Overall “Gimme Fiction” isok but not Britt and Jim’s best work. (Merge)

The Static Age“Neon Lights, Electric Nights”The name of the band and title of the albummakes it sound like its going to be some electrorock band with bleeps and blips next to scream-ng guitars. Which is sort of half true. It reminds

me of slow 80’s rock with synths. The musicmakes you feel like the emotion of the music is

saying just as much as the lyrics do. It featuresremixes by members of The Explosion and AFI.(Tarantulas)

Statistics“Often Lie”

Denver is back with the second installment of hisStatistics entity. With each recording he gets far-ther and farther from his computer roots andgone with a more guitar rocking sound. Not thatthis is bad. The only downer to this album is it’snine songs just over a half hour long. Hecould’ve added 1 or 2 more songs to fill out thealbum a little. The closing track is an instrumen-tal song which sounds Explosions in the Sky influenced. (Jade Tree)

Strike Anywhere“To Live in Discontent”“To Live in Discontent” is basically an anthology

of past releases and b-sides.

The first 2 tracks were origi-nally released on the “Breador Revolution” 7'' on Fat Wreck Chords. Tracks 3-8 were previously released asthe “Chorus of One” EP.Track 9 is a b-side of the ExitEnglish sessions and track 10is a song that appeared on ademo CD in 1999. Tracks 11-13 are covers of songs by Gorilla Biscuits, Dag Nasty,and Cock Sparrer. Definitely a CD worth checking out.(Jade Tree)

The Stnnng“Dignified Sissy”The Stnnng should receive

an award for coolest cover artwork and bestalbum title. Their music has left me speechless,though. The vocals are almost spoken, but spo-ken fast, with a few screams. And the music isheavy but can’t be categorized into metal orthrash or hardcore. Maybe some classic rock influence? The lyrics are great and inventivethough. (Modern Radio)

Temper Temper“s/t”

Temper Temper is a deceiving band. The first 2tracks start out fast and snyth based, making youthink they are going to be like the Faint, thenhalfway through track 3, boom, out comes theorgan. I have nothing against organs, but whenthey’re not used correctly it becomes annoying. All of the songs are in the same organ dance dark rock and then Track 10. “Heart Like A Fist” is anupbeat positive fast organ rocker. If their othersongs were in the same vein of this one, they would have an ultimately better CD. (Revelation)

The Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tow“Love in a Facist Brothel” With a name that’s sure to please the Fartwork that is perverted and disturmusic on “Love in a Facist Brothel” is o be classified as fast jangally moshable

hard to understand what this band sounless you’ve heard it, even then it stiexplain. I suggest you download a tra you buy. (Revelation)

The Sights“s/t”This Detroit band can be described band. It’s sad to say, but it’s the truth. a blusy rock with organs. It’s the typethat you could walk into a smokey bnight and they’d be in the back kickingout, while enjoying sips from their between songs. It can be well enjoyed insetting, but it’s not something you’ll h

played on college radio. A bonus with that it comes with a short video that ininterview with the band mixed in with footage. (Scratchie)

The Vets“Ad Infinitum”The Vets have a sound like Slint. Quiet to loud parts and back to quiet partdamn good. The album is around 70long, so listen to it when you’re drivi where far, because you need to listalbum in one sitting, or you just wo(Modern Radio)

Tim Kinsella“Crucifix Swastika”This is Tim Kinsella’s 2nd solo releaknow anything about Tim, then you knois a music making machine, often playintiple bands at once. All the songs onalbum were written during his honeymsongs on this release sound similar to has done with Joan of Arc, but are all o(Record Label)

Vox Vermillion“Standing Still You Move Forward” Vox Vermillion has some beautifully s by women. And this is the first releas

and Murs new label, Women Recordthe songs are over 4 minutes long and hand cello in them. Track 3 is cool with isound and handclaps. (Women Record

ChangeInSound

Spoon




T T h h e e L L o o v v e e d d O O n n e e s s

East Coast Punk East Coast Punk




How did the 3 members come together to make The Loved

Ones?

roadied for Kid Dynamite in 1998 and 1999 and kept in touch withSpider through the years. I was in a band called The Curse that brokeup just before we were going to do a record for Jade Tree and at thetime Spider wasn't playing bass for anyone. Sneeringer, we bothknew from Trial by Fire, and I was working on Brian Mcternan's housen DC. On the off days during the recording of the last Thrice record,Sneeringer, Spider and I would sneek into the studio and jam, and itended up being great chemistry...thus, The Loved Ones were born...

Since each member of The Loved Ones has been in a band that

has had a CD released on Jade Tree, was Jade Tree your first

choice for a label?

Well, to some degree yes. It was an obvious choice to “start the bandout” so to speak on Jade Tree by releasing this EP. We aren't quitesure what label we are going to have put out our full length yet, butJade Tree is definitely part of our past and part of our family, thoseguys are great and its been fun working with them again...

Since The Loved Ones’ past bands have all broken up, have you

taken certain steps to avoid that from happening with this band?

think when you go through a band or two where it doesn't work out, you naturally make certain adjustments to tyou choose to interact in the future. If you are in a relationship with a member of the opposite sex that ends becauare selfish or unfaithful or whatever it may be, typically you think about those things then when you are attemptinext romantic endeavor...

Do you think putting a tagline of ex bands on The Loved Ones packaging will turn away or confuse fans e

ng to hear music like those previous bands?

Well, some. The thing is, we decided to tagline it because I always like to know what people in bands that I enjoup to, so I don't so much mind it. I guess the problem is, if someone loves Paint it Black or something and buys ouexpecting that, they may be disappointed. But maybe they also will realize they were mislead and we can lead thegreener pastures...Just kidding.

Has working in the past with bands like The Explosion and The Bouncing Souls, helped with touring wit

bands now?

Of course. We haven't toured yet with the Explosion, but I suppose it’s just a matter of time. We have played a hashows with them though, and our first tour was with The Bouncing Souls. Some people like to give us shit about are only on those tours b/c of who we know, but the thing is, you play with who you know. If we knew those peoplty bands, we would play with them! Instead we are fortunate enough to have some friends in some great bands, soafforded some great opportunities. We don't take them for granted and we pour just as much heart into a show wBouncing Souls or whoever as we do with local bands on a show we headline. We are passionate regardless of play with.

Live Photos: Adam Krause

nterview With: Dave Hause




How has touring gone so far and how has the response been

from fans?

We did 10 East Coast dates w/ The Bouncing Souls, Against Me!,Murphy's Law, and Let it Burn in November and it was great.People warmly received us, and we are looking forward to our East Coast Tour in Feb w/ Strike Anywhere and the Unseen.

Have you started writing material for a full length, and when

do you plan to release one?

Yeah, I would say we have it a little over half way written. We planto record it in June/July 2005 and we will release it frankly when-ever a label makes us a deal with which we are comfortable. Iwould imagine late 2005.

Will you be writing more acoustic songs, like

“Drastic” for the Full Length?

Yes, there are already a couple of acoustic songs inthe mix, and probably more coming.

What influences the way you write lyrics andmusic?

would say just general life, mostly the struggles inife. Often times I get inspired by other artist's takeon life, and I get compelled to write based on that aswell. But usually I write about my immediate sur-roundings, and sometimes beyond that too.

The songs on the EP sound very radio friendly,

and could be enjoyable to a large audience. If

The Loved Ones were all of a sudden a popular

band being played on major radio stations, howwould you handle that?

guess I personally would just try to take it as it comes. Luckilythere have been many artists who we respect who have gonethrough that sort of thing that we respect, who did/do it with graceand poise that we can look up to. I also feel like I personally havea strong family and friends network that definitely will tell me if I'metting things get carried away, so I'm not that worried about it...Butthanks for saying that the songs could be enjoyable to a largeaudience, lets hope they are...

Do you think where a band is from geographically influencestheir sound? Do you think The Loved Ones would sound dif-

ferent if they were from the Mid West or West Coast?

Oh sure. I think that geography has a huge impact on the way aband sounds. We would most likely not sound the way we do if wewere from either of those places. Regionally the scenes differ, andso do the influences, so naturally the sound does too. They don'tget the BOSS on the West Coast man, and we don't get StrungOut...it just doesn't compute...



f you had to put a show together of bands from the Philadelphia

area, past or present, which five bands would definitely play?

would say The O'Jays, The Hooters, Tommy Conwell and the YoungRumblers, Kid Dynamite and The Loved Ones (if I was putting theshow together we would definitely play!)

What made you want to get involved with the Philly punk

scene?

Just a love of the music led to like minded individuals that sort of hada community set up already. I enjoy the Philly scene, but thankfully Ihave other friends with other interests, too. It can get stuffy, lets putt that way...

When did you start playing music and what got you hooked on

t?

started playing guitar around age 12. I'm not sure what got mehooked on it, but I played an 8th grade talent show, and the thrill of playing live definitely has infected me ever since. It’s fun and it hasgrown into a great form of expression since then. I guess then it may

have had more to do with girls...

What Is planned for the future of The Loved Ones?

Well immediately we are going on tour w/ Strike Anywhere in Feb(East Coast), playing record release shows and festivals in March,and then hopefully touring more extensively in April. Long term, is towrite songs, record them, and play them to as many people as pos-sible. We are in it for the haul man...





Brian DorryMarketing Director

Hooligans

Darren CruzCreative Visionary

How did Hooligan start, and where did the idea for sponsoring bands and noboarders come from?

Darren and I have always been into punk/hardcore and skating. So back in 2002, I wmanaging 9 Lives and trying to think of cool merch items we could do when we wenthe Warped Tour that year. I thought of 9 Lives skate decks, they liked the idea, soDarren in to help design decks for them and another band I was friendly with, SmaBike. We made up about 50 of each deck and took them on the road. The rest is prethistory; on that tour I met the guys in Death By Stereo, they liked the idea of having tdeck as well and it started the snowball effect, we picked up Boysetsfire, Strike Anand so on.

How do you go about picking bands for your company? Do bands ever com

first?

Basically, we try to go after bands that we think hold the same ideals as us, the Dethic, bands that actually say something with their music. Not trying to sell an imageout most of them are our favorite bands anyway. A lot of bands have come to us firstof a network, this band tours with that, sees our decks and wants to know if we'd be ed in them. We have picked up some awesome bands like that but, we've turned doof bands too.

Who does the design for the boards?

Darren & I collaborate on the deck designs plus we've also had guest artists like SFairey (Bouncing Souls), Tim Gough (Paint It Black) and Andy Cummings (The Esoteon designs too. We're also working on a line of decks with Derek Hess for his Strhesing line which we are very psyched about.

Do the bands have a lot of input on what their boards will look like, shape and

wise?

We work with the bands so we have both have a board we can be proud of. Bands hfinal "OK" on the designs and shape. Chuck from Hot Water Music mentioned that the shape of this old Natas board from the 80's, so I went out and found one so wmake a mold of it for the HWM shape. I did the same thing with Dave from Paint It Bwanted the PIB board to have an old Rob Roskopp shape so we hooked it up.

How many of each board do you make?

It depends on the demand we think we are going to have for each design. We hashort runs and ran out but, since we make our own boards we can always press moneed. The Bouncing Souls model has gone into a bunch of pressings, they move

decks.

How are Hooligan boards prices compared to other skateboard companies?

We under cut most companies price by $10-$15. We use the same process and wmost of the top companies do. Our decks are 7-ply Canadian maple cut and presshere. We take pride in the fact that our products are made in the US, while companElement and World Industries have decided to out source to China to have their deckBuy American and Americans work!



Do bands get board royalties from deck sales?

We are just starting to get some distribution in some shops and online sites; once that is in place, we are going to put adeal into motion. Hey, if there are any shops out there that want to carry our decks give me a call!!!

Why do you think skateboarding and music go together so well?

That's like asking why beer and football go together so well. Music and skating is a way for kindred spirits to come tothink it kind of goes back to the early 80's when punk rock and skating weren't commercially viable, they were both undeand dangerous. In 1984 a pro-skater would never been scene doing a Hot Pockets commercial and you'd never hear a Busong in a SUV commercial, parents tolerated their kids skating and listening to punk rock but, they weren't considered ctive behavior by any means. You'd see Cabellero skating with SST stickers on his board; Thrasher Magazine used to scompilation tapes with bands like Cro-Mags, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, SS Decontrol, Agnostic Front, 7 Seconds, Agent Bad Religion, Social Distortion, Dead Kennedys and Sick Of It All that became the soundtrack to skating. Me and mywould get our little boom box out, steal some wood, build a ramp and skate until we had to go home.

Will there be boards made for all the bands on your roster?

Eventually, sometimes it takes a while for a band's deck to come out for one reason or another. For example The Explosone of our first bands on the roster and their deck is finally coming out this Summer.

Does a band or its members have to skateboard to be considered for your company? Do all the bands on you

skateboard?

There is usually at least one member of each band that is into skating but, its not a requirement. A lot of these guys grew ng like me, so they do have a history with it and are excited about having their own model skate deck. But its not like Ito make them ollie in front of me to make it onto our roster.

What should people expect when they pick up a Hooligan Skateboard?

A kick ass skateboard! One of our goals is to provide top quality boards at reasonable prices. There is no reason whyshould cost $55 or $60 just because it says "Bam" or "Flip" on it. Kids don't realize it, but so many of the skate companthey think are independent, grass-roots companies are really owed by large corporate conglomerates and they are the onng up the prices. I've had more kids complain to me about the shitty quality of boards put out by some of these top coare than I care to remember. That really pisses me off, if somebody is bucking up and buying one of your decks it should to last. Remember the most expensive isn't necessarily the best.

What bands can we expect to be on the roster in the future?

We just added The Esoteric (Prosthetic Records) and Smoke Or Fire (Fat Wreck Chords) to the roster. The Street DogsWig will be the additions. I've also got some top secret legendary bands that will be added to the roster soon. Definitely iner, faux-hawked, metalcore bands in matching outfits. We made that mistake once already and had to drop those s

Atreyu. -- Check us out on the Warped Tour This Summer!!! Buy more boards!!! Hooliganskate.com



Starting in February 2005, Asian Man Records re-released the out of print Screeching Weasel cThey re-released “BoogadaBoogadaBoogada,” followed by “My Brain Hurts,” “Wiggle,” “AnthemNew Tomorrow,” “How To Make Enemies and Irritate People” and finally “Kill The Musicians.”

BoogadaBoogadaBoogada - The original “Boogada...” album sold over 125,000 copies. It’s a great introduction to Screeching

The re-release is remastered and redesigned with new liner notes and photos.

My Brain Hurts - Probably the best album of their early releases. Many of the Screeching Weasel albums have close to 20 more on them, “My Brain Hurts” comes in at a perfect 14. Just enough to get your SW fix, but not too much t make youRemastered and redesigned with new liner notes, photos and flyers.

Wiggle - “Wiggle” has been out of print since September of 2003. It’s a classic punk album. Remastered with a special bonus tall new artwork with never before seen photos.

Anthem For A New Tomorrow - Originally released in 1993, Screeching Weasel’s 5th release takes their signature sound ato it with tighter production and catchier melodies. Sold over 100,000 copies world wide with no commercial radio airplay.

How To Make Enemies and Irritate People - Classic Screeching Weasel to say the least. Another short album, with only

But still has the same amateurish song titles and lyrics. You can really tell what punk bands was influenced by Screeching WeaselYou’ll hear parts on this album that will remind you of other band’s albums recorded years later.

Kill The Musicians - This album includes all of the rare 7 inches, split EPs, and various compilation tracks, collected onto onCD. Remastered and redesigned with rare photos and new liner notes.

Available Now!!!

Coming Soon!!!

Blow Me, A Fanzine - The name says it all. Asexy,

provocative zine with a cast of junkies, yuppies, kiddies,

oldies and goodies.

Super Friends #1 A zine of found photographs made into funny and dis-

turbing personal ads.

While I Was High 2 Another hilarious collection of stories while being crunk,fucked up and passed out.

While I Was High

Chris has never been drunk or high in his life, but he’s had

friends who have been. While I was High is a collection mous stories and comics about random peoples’ adventintoxicated and fucked up. Imagine smoking weed and geed by your elementary school D.A.R.E. Officer. While I Wa

a great collection of humorous short stories.

Cathartic Reason’s Bleeding Hearts Brigad

Join Jimi and Destiny as they set out to destroy all of the forced happiness companies with a BIC Lighter and a caline. Bleeding Hearts Brigade is a black and white hacomic by Pen 15 Films leader, Jimi Nguyen. If emo couldlated into comics, then Jimi has done it. It’s love, heart bfire, wound up in a nicely drawn comic.

Swimmer’s Ear Back Issues #1 - #15

Get all the past issues of this long running zine featuring boarding, snowboarding and independent music. Tons of photos, interviews, articles and other fun stuff.

All of the past issues were limited run, so there are only each issue left.

Subtitles Publishing • [email protected] • P.O. Box 2076 • Maple Grove, MN 553




Michael Stenerson - 5050 Gnar Grab Out - Iowa City, IA - p. Sam McGuire




crooked finger

Originally 21 songs were recorded for a Crooked double cd, what made you change your mind to msingle CD with 12 tracks?

We just felt like a double album might have been toall at once...too much clutter. As it was when wesongs together as a double it seemed quite all oplace...that could've been a good thing, too. And I'd if I said I know it's the right thing to do...to make record...but you have to decide and do something...s what we did.

Are you planning on releasing the other 9 songs?

Yes. "Ship To Spain" will be released on the BRecords anniversary CD...And "Carousel" will be releITunes as a single with "Call To Love" and a remix ve"There's a Blue Light" on February 1, 2005. "The BEl Cuchillo" and a new version of "New Drink for Drunk" will be on the 4th side of the “Dignity and vinyl release. "La Maleta Fea" is on the Me Anniversary CD...All that's left is "Sinisteria," "LPretend To Be New Men," "Cannibal," and "QuarThe first two--"Sinisteria" and "Pretend"--I'd like tothe movies and the last two--"Cannibal" and "Quarmust go to the doctor...they're sick and need somattention before they're let loose in the world.

Lara Meyerattken's singing is a great compliment singing, will she be singing on the Crooked Fingers t

Lara will sing with us on this tour on only a very fedates, as she will be busy with other projects duritime. She will very much be a part of the Crooked family from this point on, though, and that will future tours and future recordings. In the meantilovely and talented Barbara Trentalange will be singius.

Do you plan on collaborating with Lara on future CFingers albums?

Yes.




interview w/ eric bachman

In terms of writing and recording, what did you do different-ly with “Dignity and Shame” that you didn't do on your pre-vious albums?

The major difference with this record is that we treated it likea live band. We tracked all 22 songs in 7 days, with someoverdubs but not as many as usual. And we--more specifi-cally, Martin Feveyear--mixed all 22 songs in 5 days. Otherthan that, the same due diligence went into the writing thatalways does...And obviously, there's no quick fix formula forwriting well...you have to be patient and open/connected.And, of course, because we recorded the basic tracks togeth-er we rehearsed a lot as a band before recording. That madethe record more collaborative than in the past...not so muchin terms of the songwriting but in terms of arranging.

Does it ever bother you that in any press about CrookedFingers, it mentions Archers of Loaf. Do you think you willalways be referred to as Eric Bachmann of Archers of Loaf fame?

No...I am very grateful to have been in that band...but no, Idon't think I will always be referred to that way...it's already starting to decline, actually. Maybe a lot of people that likeCrooked Fingers are too young to know about the last band Iwas in. Not to mention, December 1998 was the last

show/sign of life for that project...that's quite a while ago.

Do you plan on doing any more EPs of cover songs?

At this moment...No...but I don't know.

How is the producing going, what recent albums have you pro-duced?

No producing right now...I always consider things whenthey're presented to me, but I'm far too excited about tour-ing the new record. Also, it wouldn't be fair for me to pro-duce something right now that someone is really inspiredabout because I wouldn't be able to give it the time andeffort it deserves because I'm so focused on Crooked Fingers.

What do you have planned for Crooked Fingers in 2005?

Touring.




Having your board gripped for you is such a convenience. The shop where you buy

board will put it on for you, at no charge even. But I’m sure some of you have never thoughdo it yourself. Gripping your own board gives you a sense of accomplishment, and if those skhoes at Zumiez can do it, I’m sure you can too. Follow the directions and soon enough you’lon your way. If you’re a grom, get some parent supervision, because even though chicks scars, they do not dig dudes with missing fingers.

(fig 0.1) (fig 0.2) (fig 1)

(fig 2.3) (fig 3) (fig 4)




You will need a razor blade and a metal file. Make sure your sheet is longer than the board. (fig 0.1, fig 0.2

Step 1: If you’re putting grip on a new board, wipe any dust or dirt off. If you’re regripping your board, take off youand wheels.(fig 1) If you accidentally/intentionally put your griptape over your bolts, you not only look like an idioook like one of those dipshit mall skate store workers who don’t know shit about skating.

Step 2: Peel off half of the grip’s backing and lay the grip on one end of the board making sure you’re not putticrooked.(fig 2) Hold the other end up and slowly smooth your griptape down making sure there are no air bubblesWhen you get to the middle of your board peel off the rest of the backing and smooth the rest of the grip out.(fig 2your hands over the deck to spot air bubbles.(fig 2.3) If you do find a bubble, poke it with the razor blade and smout.

Step 3: Take your razor blade and go around the board cutting off any excess tape.(fig 3)

Step 4: Grab your metal file and smooth off the edges so the griptape follows the curves of your deck.(fig 4) If ythis step, your grip will look like it was put on by a 2 year old.

Step 5: Grab a screwdriver and poke holes where your trucks go.(fig 5)

Step 6: If you don’t like having the board super grippy, take some of the excess griptape and rub it against the tapdeck. This will give the grip a day old feel, grippy but not so grippy you can’t move your feet. After that, put your truwheels on and go skate. (fig 6)

(fig 2) (fig 2.1) (fig 2.2)

(fig 4.1) (fig 5) (fig 6)




At what point in your life did you decide being a musician

was what you wanted to do?

It was never a conscious decision on my part to be a musician.

It was something that happened that I fell in love with and kept

doing.

What’s the worst job you have ever had?

Every job is a tie until I started doing graphic design and even

some of those are absolutely terrible.

What would you be doing if you weren't in a band?

I would be doing graphic design and not worrying about pay-ing rent

Would you rather work for your money or win the lottery?

I would rather win the lottery so I could continue playing

music with no regard for making money from it.

Could you ever work a 40 hour a week, 9 to 5 desk job?

It's been a while since I've done so but I think it's possible. It's

just a different state of mind.

Who do you owe your success to?

Success? I wouldn't call it success but I definitely owe where Iam at to all the people involved with this band. From the rest

of the boys in the band to Jade Tree, David Lewis, Susanne

Dawursk and of course everyone that likes our band and

bought our record. Thank you.

At what point in your life did you decide being a mu


I started playing drums at age 17 literally right after go

Lollapolooza and watching Patty Schemel play drum

Hole. I had never seen a woman play drums like that

and was totally and completely enthralled. I started takin

sons, and in a few months started my first band. I was h


Cashier at Mr. Chicken ‘n Ribs. I am vegan. This was i

school and miserable. I was just vegetarian at the time bu

Ugh.


I do other things besides my band that I might focus on

such as freelance writing and travel, but there isn't any

would say I am missing out on because of my band.

Would you rather work for your money or win the lo

I'd love to win the lottery! I run a small record label E

Fever www.exoticfever.com and I would like to be able t

tons of money to support the rad artists on it!

Could you ever work a 40 hour a week, 9 to 5 desk jHehe. I do! I am a grantwriter at a national youth violenc

vention nonprofit based in DC called The Empower Pr

www.empowerprogram.org.


My mama. She is the single most loving, energetic pe

have ever met!






I think I was a freshman in high school. I had been going to

shows and buying records for a couple of years as a fan of the

music but once I started becoming aware of how amazing and

vibrant the D.I.Y. scene in Philadelphia was (mainly thanks to

shows at the First Unitarian Church and Stalag 13) I knew I

had to get involved. And I have been ever since.


I worked in a fried foods joint for about fifteen minutes. Hard

up for cash, I accepted a friend's offer of hooking me up witha relatively stress-free position slinging chicken fingers and

wings, but when I realized that no matter how hard I tried, I

couldn't get the stink of the friers out of my clothes, shoes and

hair, I stopped showing up. They could have paid me a hun-

dred dollars an hour and I doubt it'd have been worth it. Thus

ended my career in the service industry, hopefully forever.

What would you be doing if you weren’t in a band?

Probably trying to start one. Or maybe working as a nightclub

singer, radiantly going on with my decadent show (even in the

face of a second Bush presidency) and holding my many

admirers at enough of a distance that I might keep from havingto bother with genuinely deep emotions.


How about both?


I've done it a couple times. It's only as bad as the job itself is.

Some of the more creativity-based ones were amazing, barely

even like working at all; however some of the ones felt like

being in prison. For now I'm content to stay out of that world

so I'm more free to tour, help out with R5 Productions' shows

and pursue my modeling career.



I've never actually decided this actively. I am a dedicate

assed dilettante who has studied music most of hi

Starting a band seemed like a reasonable thing to do

never expected it to be my main occupation.


Fixing classic arcade machines for this complete dic

would challenge me whenever I tried to get paid.

What would you be doing if you weren't in a band?I think I would start one of those 'car title' loan places. T

a credit card company. Maybe both.

Would you rather work for your money or win the lo

I would like to win the lottery and devote all of my ti

learning interesting things and making stuff.

Could you ever work a 40 hour a week, 9 to 5 desk j

Nope. But I can work an 80-hour-a-week, all-over-the-

very taxing and glamourous job. Turning this band into

cessful business has been the most stressful and sweat-

ing thing I have ever done in my working life, and I'm nodoing it alone.


Everyone who works with us through our label, our bo

agent, our publicist - David Lewis, everyone in the distri

chain who has said a kind word encouraging buyers to p

our CDs, and everyone who has ever spe

Dollar/Euro/Kroner/whatever on us. Also, the other

who taught us how to operate: Avail and Hot Water Mu






The other guys probably decided by middle school, but it took

me a little longer. I didn't start playing guitar until my first year

of college. But I would say sometime in the next year or so I'll

be ready to make the leap of referring to myself as a musician.


Actually I've kind of liked every job I've ever had, I just get

really tired and hungry after an hour or two so I want to leave.

I was a dishwasher at University of Delaware when I was in

high school, which seems like it would be terrible, but about15 people who I was friends with got jobs in the same dining

hall and we mutinied and pretty much had the run of the place

for the next two years. So that was awesome.


I'm actually a Law School Graduate, so I guess I would be

expected to do something with that.


I think I can speak for all members of Dr. Dog in saying that

we would rather win the lottery than not win the lottery.


I would like to imagine that I could, but I'm not really that

interested in finding out. I have mastered living on very small

amounts of money just to avoid those type of situations. I do

admire a finely crafted desk though.


Our band has been dealt a series of insanely lucky breaks, from

being asked to open for My Morning Jacket, to being featured

in the New York Times, to having an amazing manager appear

out of nowhere to help us out. But more abstractly, we owe

our sense of musical success to people like the Beatles, DavidBowie, Neil Young, Brian Ferry, the Beach Boys, Bob Dylan,

Pavement, Sonic Youth, the Kinks, Nirvana, Sam Cooke, the

Clash, R. Stevie Moore, Otis Redding, Brian Eno, Talking

Heads, and about a million others. Also, Philadelphia has

been very good to us.



If I had to pick a point in my youth where I decided that I

ed to be a rocker it would be the summer before my senio

of high school. I was 16 I think, and was playing guit

singing in this noise punk band called the geEk Aggre

I’m from a medium sized city in upstate NY called Sy

and in the early 90s there was a huge local hardcore sce

a really young kid we would skate all week and go to Th

Horizon for their Hardcore Matinee’s. It was a full days

of the craziest hardcore bands for like 3 or 4 bucks. Ththat I got into bands like Youth of Today, Quicksand, F

Split Lip and Op Ivy as well as some of the killer local

like Earth Crisis, Infusion and Framework. I don’t kno

was my age or the just overall standoff-ish attitude of the

but I didn’t feel like I could be out there doing what

bands were doing. Around ’90 or ’91 this shift happened

local hardcore scene and all these skateboard kids

going Vegan X-Edge and all of a sudden the scene go

more suffocating. You’d go to the same Sunday shows y

been going to and if you didn’t have huge X’s Sharpi

your hands you were scum. I tried to stick around for a

but it just didn’t feel right. A year or two later I met thin the band geEk Aggression and started playing guita

them. Through those guys I got introduced to the gr

Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, Scratch Acid, Ramon

used to practice almost every day, just getting stoned and

ing the loudest most angry noise our little bodies could

we started playing shows it all started to make sense. A

point I began meeting people, older guys who were in

mid 20s still rocking out. The two people that made the b

difference in my young rocker-dom were Rob Walsh fro

scariest band in Syracuse, SpamHammer and Lee Wate

drummer of Sonic Whirlpool, who is still the most rock

erfuckers I have ever met. It was actually those guys thme to Chapel Hill, the rest is history…or something like

Continued on next page...




What is the worst job you have ever had?

I sold vacuum cleaners door to door for Kirby Vacuum. I had to

wear nice shirts and a tie. They would sing songs like "Gimme a

K. I. R. B. Y. What's it Spell? KIRBY! What do we sell? KIRBY!

What do we make? !!MONEY!!" I think I lasted 4 days. I would

ride my bike to work and get there all sweaty and have to ‘fresh-

en up’ in the gas station bathroom near the shop, get in a van witha group of hopefuls and knock on doors. It was the utmost in

humiliation.

A very close second was going door to door collecting money for

NCPIRG. They had a killer help wanted add "Earn $300-$500 a

week working for the environment" I lasted a little longer there,

maybe 3 weeks. I hated interrupting stranger’s lives to ask for

money and would usually just sit under trees and read pretending

to be working. Needless to say I really sucked at it and I think I

only made my weekly minimum one week and that was cause one

of the managers felt sorry for me and gave me one of his dona-

tions. They would bring us out in groups, drop us off in a neigh-borhood and leave not to return until late in the evening. We

would go all over Chapel Hill and Durham. One day they dropped

me off in one of the low income ‘ghettos’ of Durham. I got out of

the car and my jaw dropped. I couldn’t do it, I wouldn’t do it. I

absolutely would not subject these poor people to the spiel I was

taught. Our country had cut out very definite areas of low priced

housing, keeping the poor legally segregated by the only thing

more powerful than laws, money. Yeah sure, segregation is against

the laws held upon us by the US Government, but not the laws of

economics. I decided that instead of asking for money I was just

going to spread the information, one thing that doesn’t flow freely

in these parts of the country. I went door to door and instead of giving my "please help us out and give generously" spiel, I told

them the facts and as an experiment collected signatures. I think I

made it to 4 houses before I was approached by two men, one very

large and one small, both drunk. The little one asked me for some

change while the big one made his way around to my side and

before I knew it he gave me a bear hug, picked me up and the lit-

tle one rummaged through my wallet and took what little money

I had, thus concluding my stint as an environmental activist.

What would you be doing if you were not in a band?

Probably getting a lot more sleep, having a lot more money andlooking for people to play in a band with.


I would love to win the lottery, but only because it would enable

me to be able to do more financially for the punk community.

Even if I, out of the blue, got a lot of money I would never stop

"working". I would just be able to "work" in different ways.

Instead of being a productive tool making money for som

someone else in exchange for a living wage, I would be

towards helping other people make a living wage through

in a way that doesn’t compromise what they are doing

modification for a mainstream demographic.

Could you ever work a 40 hour a week, 9 to 5 desk jo

I do work a 40 hr a week job right now, actually its usua

than 40 hours a week but my desk is a work bench and m

work is carving hunks of wood into beautiful guitars. I twhole desk job thing really comes down to what your opt

I don’t ever believe I’ll be in a band that will afford me to

to work for someone else in some capacity. If my optio

flipping burgers in a place that gave me a hard time for tak

off for tour, wouldn’t let me call in sick and paid me like a

tured servant OR enter data into some computer or desig

boards on AutoCAD while sitting at a desk in a place that

paid vacation and sick days. Well, then you better believe

a desk job. But for now I am lucky enough to make m

with the toil of my hands. Weather it be crafting wood int

or building bikes. At least I am producing something I lo

if it does make someone else rich.


I guess the success I have is only possible because of a ne

amazing people all over the world that are willing to live a

is a little harder, do a little more work and get paid only i

ing they are part of something that totally kicks ass. I owe

that there are punk clubs and collective show spaces to ba

the Minutemen and Black Flag who were willing to all

one van and drive all over the US and play in any shithole

would have them. I owe the fact that kids under 18 can

see shows at clubs to bands like Minor Threat and Fugwould only play shows if all ages could come. I owe the

there are labels like Bifocal Media and Lovitt Records t

amazing bands that have been playing subversive music

versive way and doing it with the help of small local la

put out music because they love it and telling the majo

labels and the Clear Channel controlled mega radio sta

fuck off. And I guess more than anything else I owe it t

Rolling Stone and Atlantic records for making the most

down, unoriginal and uninspiring shitbag of a music indu

will continue to turn an ever growing handful of kids aw

the mainstream garbage that is shoved down their thr

make them search out truth and meaning in art. Withmusic industry true diy punk would cease to exist.




Rider Unknown - p. Zach Windahl




Michael Anderson - p. Zach Windahl




Jackson Roman - FS Flip - Ceder Rapids, IA - p. Sam McGuire



Jackson Roman - Cedar Rapids, IA - p. Sam McGuire





Uly Marin - Feeble - Iowa City, IA - p. Sam McGuire



Uly Marin - Lipslide - Ceder Rapids, IA - p. Sam McGuire





Lilman - Ollie - Iowa City, IA - p. Sam McGuire



Swimmer’s Ear Magazine

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Unknown Rider

Josh Folly



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