Our story begins with a poker game gone bad... a lifeless body on the floor, hand still clutching its cards... whacked on the head with a bass guitar. In the background, Mike Patton's haunting film score crescendos over the radio waves as the other two poker players argue over what to do with the body. Incinerator? Garbage disposal? They haven't a clue.
Without a doubt, Derrick Scocchera's short film, A Perfect Place, is a dark comedy, wonderfully directed and acted. But it is Patton's striking film score that ups the ante on this noir story; it transforms every scene, drives the action, and pushes the audience into a surreal world that they have visited only in late night, restless dreams.
While some musicians skulk and idle in the corners of your iPod, Mike Patton charges forward like a maestro possessed, and continuously delivers transgressive albums that one-up the status quo. In recent years, we've watched the former Faith No More and Mr. Bungle frontman push new ground with bands Fantomas, Tomahawk and Peeping Tom (amongst others) and now with A Perfect Place, we get to enjoy his debut as a film composer.
Released April 1st on Patton's Ipecac Recordings -- a geeky enclave of the alternative underworld, marked by a distaste for run of the mill, rock-n-roll schmuckery -- both the film and score to A Perfect Place are packaged as a double-disc and are a must-have for cult connoisseurs.
SuicideGirls had to get the details so we dusted off the ol' video camera and met up with Patton over sake and fresh eel in San Francisco's Japantown to chat about his foray into film scoring...
Check out video footage from our interview here.
Erin Broadley: How are you?
Mike Patton: Im good! How are you?
EB: Fantastic.
MP: Hungry?
EB: Hungry indeed. You live around here how do you like Japantown? Come here often to buy Samurai swords?
MP: Or 39-cent Hello Kitty stickers.
EB: [Laughs] Oh, my favorite. So lets talk about A Perfect Place, which you scored. First film score youve ever done, correct?
MP: True.
EB: How was this experience compared to some of your other projects or bands?
MP: Its 100 percent different. If its one of my own projects or even a band, its done when its done. You have the ultimate veto power. When youre working for someone else, youre a hired hand in a sense and he tells you when its done.
EB: Right, the director gets final cut.
MP: Yeah, and rightfully so.
EB: How did you meet the director, Derrick Scocchera?
MP: I was a big laserdisc guy and he had a store in my neighborhood and I used to go shop there a lot. So being a regular customer, I got to know the people who worked there and I got to meet him. It was really a great store. It was so great, [laughs] of course it went out of business. I spent a lot of money in there. We got to be friends and from that point on, he was working for Zoetrope for Coppola for a while and wed call each other from time to time to talk about film and talk about music. Id invite him to my shows and hed send me stuff that he was doing. He started an independent company [Fantoma Films] where he was putting out great DVD box sets from really historic directors Mario Bava, Fassbinder he put out lots of great stuff that, even if I didnt know him, Id just go to the store and buy it. He put together great packages and I was a fan of what he was doing and he said, You know what? I also write scripts, and sent me a few scripts and its hard for me to tell what a movie is going to be like from reading it on paper, but there was a kinship there and when he said, Im going to make a short film and I want you to score it, who was I to argue?
EB: With the 2004 film you starred in, Firecracker, some wondered why you didnt also score the film because a lot of the music you make has a very cinematic element to it.
MP: Yeah. For a musician, using film is part of your vocabulary. At least for an untrained musician, I think its important. It certainly works for me. With Firecracker, I did not want to act in the movie; I wanted to do the score. And the director -- again, sort of an acquaintance who turned into a friend -- he was adamant and said, No, no. Im not letting you do the music; I want you to [act]. I want you to stretch out. I want you to try something new. And I said, Well, okay, Ive looked like a fool before, why not again?
EB: For A Perfect Place, was there any point where you were down on the set, checking it out?
MP: No. I would have loved to but I happened to be out of town when they were filming it and, you know, a film like that is pretty renegade. I think they barely got the permits that they needed to do it and a lot of it was done at night. Its a short film, black and white, beautifully shot, almost like a play in that theres just very few characters and very few sets, but the strength is in the writing.
EB: And the characters. One of my favorite characters is the little old lady who has a collection of bow ties in her house, which is just one of those simple quiet elements that can really define a character.
MP: Yeah. The best part of it is, it starts out with guys playing a card game and they basically, quote unquote, kill their friend who was cheating, [laughs] or so they thought. And somehow, even though we maybe wouldnt be driven to those lengths, you can relate. If you were to kill someone, all these questions would come up. Its not as easy as Scorsese would have you believe: you kill somebody, you drop some lye on them and you bring them out to the suburbs. Its a lot harder sometimes so I think thats one of the premises of the film.
EB: One thing about the score, it taps into a lot of the same themes that are in the film. Were you crafting these compositions scene by scene or was it more, Heres a word, heres an idea, go with it.
MP: A lot of the film was basically done, or close to being done, before I started. Being friends with the director, he showed me a couple of scenes. Also, he would just describe a scene to me and say, I need a theme for when the old lady puts on a seventy-eight and I want it to sound like Enrico Caruso. One of the best directions he gave me was from the outset he said, I want one major theme, and I want you to come up with a zillion variations including the source music, including a seventy-eight record, or when the guys are in a car, flipping the radio dial, I want you to write a piece like that. In a sense, I was doing the score and the source music, in one. It was fun.
EB: The music really moves the scenes along. Thats one thing I noticed; its tied into the scenes enough that it helps the narrative progress.
MP: One can only hope!
EB: How did you strike the balance between somewhat heavier sounds and dark subject matter and still retain a sense of humor within this score?
MP: Didnt think about it. To me every project or every piece of music has a certain amount of requirements. Maybe Ill set out to create some sort of heavy and dark atmosphere and in the end it becomes comedy. To me, its about maintaining a balance and its really hard to quantify that. Its hard to describe what that balance is but I know it when I hear it. The most important part is when its done, let it go.
EB: Right. Youve said before that one of the hardest things to do is to pull back and press stop.
MP: Yeah, yeah.
EB: Does it get any easier over the years?
MP: Eh, depending on the project. To me, certain projects are easier than others. Fantomas I know exactly when that music is written and done and theres no more tweaking to do. Something like this film score is a little more difficult; I was on unfamiliar ground. Sometimes when youre dealing with a collab or maybe a guest vocal for somebody its also hard to know because ultimately, youre deferring to someone else. Usually it works out. But Ive done a few collaborations or guest spots where it just didnt work out, either the artist wasnt happy with it or didnt feel that it suited the track. You do your best and ultimately if youre a guest youve got to know when to go, Okay! Youre the boss.
EB: Its like being a guest in someones house. Youve got to know when to step down.
MP: Oh yes, Ill leave now. I pissed on your couch but Im leaving.[Laughs] I tracked in mud on your expensive carpet
EB: [Laughs] Ill pay for the cleaning bill.
MP: Yeah, exactly.
EB: Back to A Perfect Place, the score you did is about twice as long as the actual film so how did you decide which music was included? Or why the choice to include extra tracks in the CD available?
MP: Ultimately, it is the directors decision. There were certain scenes, certain cues where I did two or three different versions. Like, the thing we were calling the Alley Theme, where theyre dragging the body out to the alley, he wanted something with a beat and percussive so I gave him two different choices. He chose one and used it and then, you know, had the other sitting around so its like, I guess you just put them on the soundtrack.
EB: Yeah, why waste something good?
MP: Yeah. Also, I didnt want to put out a CD that was 20 minutes long and a film that was 20 minutes long. I wanted to extend the CD a little bit and make it a little more desirable.
EB: Right, and to have them be able to exists independently on their own
MP: Well, yeah! Actually, the director made some great suggestions it was his idea to do a vocal version of the main theme, almost as a single, or whatever. It never got used in the film and was a complete afterthought, but that was his idea. That was [the] Twist theme that I did with vocals and its probably one of the standout tracks on the album.
EB: Its a fun track, yeah.
MP: He gave me some direction that was a little hard to follow, just because he was aiming really high. Like, I want a main theme that sounds like Elmer Bernstein. And you just dont press a button and
EB: become Elmer Bernstein!
MP: Yeah. Thats like saying, Ive got an idea for a street fight and I want you to be Mike Tyson.
EB: Just do it, channel it.
MP: Yeah, just grow and kick some ass.
EB: And get a tattoo on your face [laughs].
MP: Yeah [laughs]. Bite somebodys ear off. It was very challenging in that respect but Im glad he was aiming high and forced me to aim a little high.
EB: Last year you got a lot attention for the sound effects you did for the creatures in I Am Legend. Any afterthought on that whole project?
MP: It was great.
EB: You and Will Smith best buds now?
MP: Oh yeah. He was in the studio, patting me on the back.
EB: You guys are gonna put out a rap album, like Fresh Prince.
MP: There you go. Fresh Mike.
[Both Laugh]
MP: No, uh, [doing the sound effects] was clinical and dry and fun and easy.
EB: Was it flattering in the least that they wanted a more human element to the scariness of the film?
MP: Yeah, it was great. It was a completely unique opportunity and it probably wouldnt have come my way unless someone involved in the film didnt put their ass out there and suggest me. So Im really thankful and would love to do more stuff like that.
EB: Youve said before that to keep things interesting, you have to continually reinvent or find new ways to say what it is you want to say with music. How do you find ways to make that happen without feeling redundant?
MP: Thats a difficult question and even harder to realize. You just keep trying. My way of doing it is just to keep doing things. Stay busy. My way of learning and getting better and growing is by doing.
EB: You started Ipecac in 1999 with Greg Werckman. Coming up on your 10-year anniversary, obviously you have expanded your roster and are still going strong. How has it changed in recent years compared to when you first started?
MP: Its been great. I would say the main struggle has been [that] weve kept the same amount of employees and the same business model, if you will, meaning Ipecac is like three or four people. Always has been. Yet, were getting more and more submissions and personally Im finding theres more and more great music that needs to be put out! But we dont have the manpower. Im a little nervous about expanding. What weve done so far has worked. If we were to listen to our distributors and whatnot, wed hire 15 more people and run it like everyone else runs a label.
EB: Then again, you dont want to be like everyone else runs a label because weve seen what happens there.
MP: Yeah. If you really think about it, the reason weve been successful is because of the way its gone. Ultimately the way we do it, if youre looking for half a million dollars and a bunch of hype, were not the right label for you. If you want to record cheaply, which is not to say that it cant be a great sounding record or an amazing record, but do it smart, and then you will ultimately be rewarded because you will make royalties and not dig yourself some sort of loan shark hole where youre constantly in the [dark]. Our label is not for everybody, but people who understand that aesthetic will be really happy with us and well be happy with them.
EB: Another thing you have coming out in 2008 is [the video game] Bionic Commando. You do the voice of one of the lead characters. Tell me a little bit about how you got involved in that? Youve always been a bit of a video game enthusiast.
MP: Yeah, that sort of dropped out of the sky and I think it sort of came about because I did a couple of other video game voiceovers and once your name is in the hat
EB: Youre on their contact list.
MP: Totally. So I got the call and I was familiar with the old 80s Nintendo game .
EB: What character do you play?
MP: The main guy, Nathan. Basically, what I did was I will tell you that my best point of reference was I was trying to channel Henry Rollins [laughs]. It was a real drill sergeant, tough guy.
EB: Did you method act it? Getting into character, weight lifting every morning?
MP: I didnt go quite that far but you have to have some point of reference and Henry was mine. And Henry no offense [laughs]. Hey, eat your eel!! Ive already eaten my eel.
EB: Okay, Im going to eat my eel and you tell me what else we can expect from Ipecac in 2008.
MP: New Melvins, new Dalek, Farmers Market, Desert Sessions, Mondo Cane, Rhazel Finish your eel. Be a good girl.
EB: Im finishing my eel dad. [Laughs]
MP: [Smiles] Ill take that as a compliment.
EB: Mike Pattons my daddy, telling me to finish my eel.
MP: Finish your eel.
EB: [Laughs] How do you balance being a businessman and an artist without completely losing your mind?
MP: I dont think about it, just kind of do what I do. The label is a part of every day; its just a matter of how much of that day. Sometimes its more; sometimes its less. To be honest, its rewarding and most of the things that I do, my contribution to the label is things that Id be doing anyway. Listening to music, listening to new artists I would do that anyway, even if I didnt have a label. So to have a purpose in doing that is even better.
EB: And to put a roof over their heads and not have them be wandering, homeless stray pieces of music.
MP: Yeah, like I said before, the real trouble is theres too much great music and we cant do it all. And thats in the last year or two become a reality. Its a bitch. If I heard something great tomorrow, Id have to tell an artist, This is great, Id love to put it out, but I cant do it until late 09.
EB: Theres no promises of grandeur right away like there are with other majors.
MP: [Laughs] Theres no promises of grandeur, period. But just on a timeline vibe, no artist wants to hear that. I can totally relate but were in that position right now and thats just the way it is.
EB: So whats your next release we should be looking out for?
MP: Mondo Cane. Its a new project of mine. Its an orchestral project of 50s and 60s Italian pop tunes that I arranged.
EB: Fabulous.
MP: Its a crooning record but with an orchestra. Not many horns. And, I wouldnt say very jazzy, but much more orchestral ballad stuff. Lots of singing. But its not in English. Summertime we hope.
EB: Well, any parting words of wisdom?
MP: Eat your fuckin eel!
EB: Ive eaten pretty much all the fuckin eel.
MP: Pretty much?
EB: I just didnt eat the skin!
MP: The skins the best part!
Video Exclusive:
For more information on Mike Patton and to buy A Perfect Place, go to ipecac.com.
Without a doubt, Derrick Scocchera's short film, A Perfect Place, is a dark comedy, wonderfully directed and acted. But it is Patton's striking film score that ups the ante on this noir story; it transforms every scene, drives the action, and pushes the audience into a surreal world that they have visited only in late night, restless dreams.
While some musicians skulk and idle in the corners of your iPod, Mike Patton charges forward like a maestro possessed, and continuously delivers transgressive albums that one-up the status quo. In recent years, we've watched the former Faith No More and Mr. Bungle frontman push new ground with bands Fantomas, Tomahawk and Peeping Tom (amongst others) and now with A Perfect Place, we get to enjoy his debut as a film composer.
Released April 1st on Patton's Ipecac Recordings -- a geeky enclave of the alternative underworld, marked by a distaste for run of the mill, rock-n-roll schmuckery -- both the film and score to A Perfect Place are packaged as a double-disc and are a must-have for cult connoisseurs.
SuicideGirls had to get the details so we dusted off the ol' video camera and met up with Patton over sake and fresh eel in San Francisco's Japantown to chat about his foray into film scoring...
Check out video footage from our interview here.
Erin Broadley: How are you?
Mike Patton: Im good! How are you?
EB: Fantastic.
MP: Hungry?
EB: Hungry indeed. You live around here how do you like Japantown? Come here often to buy Samurai swords?
MP: Or 39-cent Hello Kitty stickers.
EB: [Laughs] Oh, my favorite. So lets talk about A Perfect Place, which you scored. First film score youve ever done, correct?
MP: True.
EB: How was this experience compared to some of your other projects or bands?
MP: Its 100 percent different. If its one of my own projects or even a band, its done when its done. You have the ultimate veto power. When youre working for someone else, youre a hired hand in a sense and he tells you when its done.
EB: Right, the director gets final cut.
MP: Yeah, and rightfully so.
EB: How did you meet the director, Derrick Scocchera?
MP: I was a big laserdisc guy and he had a store in my neighborhood and I used to go shop there a lot. So being a regular customer, I got to know the people who worked there and I got to meet him. It was really a great store. It was so great, [laughs] of course it went out of business. I spent a lot of money in there. We got to be friends and from that point on, he was working for Zoetrope for Coppola for a while and wed call each other from time to time to talk about film and talk about music. Id invite him to my shows and hed send me stuff that he was doing. He started an independent company [Fantoma Films] where he was putting out great DVD box sets from really historic directors Mario Bava, Fassbinder he put out lots of great stuff that, even if I didnt know him, Id just go to the store and buy it. He put together great packages and I was a fan of what he was doing and he said, You know what? I also write scripts, and sent me a few scripts and its hard for me to tell what a movie is going to be like from reading it on paper, but there was a kinship there and when he said, Im going to make a short film and I want you to score it, who was I to argue?
EB: With the 2004 film you starred in, Firecracker, some wondered why you didnt also score the film because a lot of the music you make has a very cinematic element to it.
MP: Yeah. For a musician, using film is part of your vocabulary. At least for an untrained musician, I think its important. It certainly works for me. With Firecracker, I did not want to act in the movie; I wanted to do the score. And the director -- again, sort of an acquaintance who turned into a friend -- he was adamant and said, No, no. Im not letting you do the music; I want you to [act]. I want you to stretch out. I want you to try something new. And I said, Well, okay, Ive looked like a fool before, why not again?
EB: For A Perfect Place, was there any point where you were down on the set, checking it out?
MP: No. I would have loved to but I happened to be out of town when they were filming it and, you know, a film like that is pretty renegade. I think they barely got the permits that they needed to do it and a lot of it was done at night. Its a short film, black and white, beautifully shot, almost like a play in that theres just very few characters and very few sets, but the strength is in the writing.
EB: And the characters. One of my favorite characters is the little old lady who has a collection of bow ties in her house, which is just one of those simple quiet elements that can really define a character.
MP: Yeah. The best part of it is, it starts out with guys playing a card game and they basically, quote unquote, kill their friend who was cheating, [laughs] or so they thought. And somehow, even though we maybe wouldnt be driven to those lengths, you can relate. If you were to kill someone, all these questions would come up. Its not as easy as Scorsese would have you believe: you kill somebody, you drop some lye on them and you bring them out to the suburbs. Its a lot harder sometimes so I think thats one of the premises of the film.
EB: One thing about the score, it taps into a lot of the same themes that are in the film. Were you crafting these compositions scene by scene or was it more, Heres a word, heres an idea, go with it.
MP: A lot of the film was basically done, or close to being done, before I started. Being friends with the director, he showed me a couple of scenes. Also, he would just describe a scene to me and say, I need a theme for when the old lady puts on a seventy-eight and I want it to sound like Enrico Caruso. One of the best directions he gave me was from the outset he said, I want one major theme, and I want you to come up with a zillion variations including the source music, including a seventy-eight record, or when the guys are in a car, flipping the radio dial, I want you to write a piece like that. In a sense, I was doing the score and the source music, in one. It was fun.
EB: The music really moves the scenes along. Thats one thing I noticed; its tied into the scenes enough that it helps the narrative progress.
MP: One can only hope!
EB: How did you strike the balance between somewhat heavier sounds and dark subject matter and still retain a sense of humor within this score?
MP: Didnt think about it. To me every project or every piece of music has a certain amount of requirements. Maybe Ill set out to create some sort of heavy and dark atmosphere and in the end it becomes comedy. To me, its about maintaining a balance and its really hard to quantify that. Its hard to describe what that balance is but I know it when I hear it. The most important part is when its done, let it go.
EB: Right. Youve said before that one of the hardest things to do is to pull back and press stop.
MP: Yeah, yeah.
EB: Does it get any easier over the years?
MP: Eh, depending on the project. To me, certain projects are easier than others. Fantomas I know exactly when that music is written and done and theres no more tweaking to do. Something like this film score is a little more difficult; I was on unfamiliar ground. Sometimes when youre dealing with a collab or maybe a guest vocal for somebody its also hard to know because ultimately, youre deferring to someone else. Usually it works out. But Ive done a few collaborations or guest spots where it just didnt work out, either the artist wasnt happy with it or didnt feel that it suited the track. You do your best and ultimately if youre a guest youve got to know when to go, Okay! Youre the boss.
EB: Its like being a guest in someones house. Youve got to know when to step down.
MP: Oh yes, Ill leave now. I pissed on your couch but Im leaving.[Laughs] I tracked in mud on your expensive carpet
EB: [Laughs] Ill pay for the cleaning bill.
MP: Yeah, exactly.
EB: Back to A Perfect Place, the score you did is about twice as long as the actual film so how did you decide which music was included? Or why the choice to include extra tracks in the CD available?
MP: Ultimately, it is the directors decision. There were certain scenes, certain cues where I did two or three different versions. Like, the thing we were calling the Alley Theme, where theyre dragging the body out to the alley, he wanted something with a beat and percussive so I gave him two different choices. He chose one and used it and then, you know, had the other sitting around so its like, I guess you just put them on the soundtrack.
EB: Yeah, why waste something good?
MP: Yeah. Also, I didnt want to put out a CD that was 20 minutes long and a film that was 20 minutes long. I wanted to extend the CD a little bit and make it a little more desirable.
EB: Right, and to have them be able to exists independently on their own
MP: Well, yeah! Actually, the director made some great suggestions it was his idea to do a vocal version of the main theme, almost as a single, or whatever. It never got used in the film and was a complete afterthought, but that was his idea. That was [the] Twist theme that I did with vocals and its probably one of the standout tracks on the album.
EB: Its a fun track, yeah.
MP: He gave me some direction that was a little hard to follow, just because he was aiming really high. Like, I want a main theme that sounds like Elmer Bernstein. And you just dont press a button and
EB: become Elmer Bernstein!
MP: Yeah. Thats like saying, Ive got an idea for a street fight and I want you to be Mike Tyson.
EB: Just do it, channel it.
MP: Yeah, just grow and kick some ass.
EB: And get a tattoo on your face [laughs].
MP: Yeah [laughs]. Bite somebodys ear off. It was very challenging in that respect but Im glad he was aiming high and forced me to aim a little high.
EB: Last year you got a lot attention for the sound effects you did for the creatures in I Am Legend. Any afterthought on that whole project?
MP: It was great.
EB: You and Will Smith best buds now?
MP: Oh yeah. He was in the studio, patting me on the back.
EB: You guys are gonna put out a rap album, like Fresh Prince.
MP: There you go. Fresh Mike.
[Both Laugh]
MP: No, uh, [doing the sound effects] was clinical and dry and fun and easy.
EB: Was it flattering in the least that they wanted a more human element to the scariness of the film?
MP: Yeah, it was great. It was a completely unique opportunity and it probably wouldnt have come my way unless someone involved in the film didnt put their ass out there and suggest me. So Im really thankful and would love to do more stuff like that.
EB: Youve said before that to keep things interesting, you have to continually reinvent or find new ways to say what it is you want to say with music. How do you find ways to make that happen without feeling redundant?
MP: Thats a difficult question and even harder to realize. You just keep trying. My way of doing it is just to keep doing things. Stay busy. My way of learning and getting better and growing is by doing.
EB: You started Ipecac in 1999 with Greg Werckman. Coming up on your 10-year anniversary, obviously you have expanded your roster and are still going strong. How has it changed in recent years compared to when you first started?
MP: Its been great. I would say the main struggle has been [that] weve kept the same amount of employees and the same business model, if you will, meaning Ipecac is like three or four people. Always has been. Yet, were getting more and more submissions and personally Im finding theres more and more great music that needs to be put out! But we dont have the manpower. Im a little nervous about expanding. What weve done so far has worked. If we were to listen to our distributors and whatnot, wed hire 15 more people and run it like everyone else runs a label.
EB: Then again, you dont want to be like everyone else runs a label because weve seen what happens there.
MP: Yeah. If you really think about it, the reason weve been successful is because of the way its gone. Ultimately the way we do it, if youre looking for half a million dollars and a bunch of hype, were not the right label for you. If you want to record cheaply, which is not to say that it cant be a great sounding record or an amazing record, but do it smart, and then you will ultimately be rewarded because you will make royalties and not dig yourself some sort of loan shark hole where youre constantly in the [dark]. Our label is not for everybody, but people who understand that aesthetic will be really happy with us and well be happy with them.
EB: Another thing you have coming out in 2008 is [the video game] Bionic Commando. You do the voice of one of the lead characters. Tell me a little bit about how you got involved in that? Youve always been a bit of a video game enthusiast.
MP: Yeah, that sort of dropped out of the sky and I think it sort of came about because I did a couple of other video game voiceovers and once your name is in the hat
EB: Youre on their contact list.
MP: Totally. So I got the call and I was familiar with the old 80s Nintendo game .
EB: What character do you play?
MP: The main guy, Nathan. Basically, what I did was I will tell you that my best point of reference was I was trying to channel Henry Rollins [laughs]. It was a real drill sergeant, tough guy.
EB: Did you method act it? Getting into character, weight lifting every morning?
MP: I didnt go quite that far but you have to have some point of reference and Henry was mine. And Henry no offense [laughs]. Hey, eat your eel!! Ive already eaten my eel.
EB: Okay, Im going to eat my eel and you tell me what else we can expect from Ipecac in 2008.
MP: New Melvins, new Dalek, Farmers Market, Desert Sessions, Mondo Cane, Rhazel Finish your eel. Be a good girl.
EB: Im finishing my eel dad. [Laughs]
MP: [Smiles] Ill take that as a compliment.
EB: Mike Pattons my daddy, telling me to finish my eel.
MP: Finish your eel.
EB: [Laughs] How do you balance being a businessman and an artist without completely losing your mind?
MP: I dont think about it, just kind of do what I do. The label is a part of every day; its just a matter of how much of that day. Sometimes its more; sometimes its less. To be honest, its rewarding and most of the things that I do, my contribution to the label is things that Id be doing anyway. Listening to music, listening to new artists I would do that anyway, even if I didnt have a label. So to have a purpose in doing that is even better.
EB: And to put a roof over their heads and not have them be wandering, homeless stray pieces of music.
MP: Yeah, like I said before, the real trouble is theres too much great music and we cant do it all. And thats in the last year or two become a reality. Its a bitch. If I heard something great tomorrow, Id have to tell an artist, This is great, Id love to put it out, but I cant do it until late 09.
EB: Theres no promises of grandeur right away like there are with other majors.
MP: [Laughs] Theres no promises of grandeur, period. But just on a timeline vibe, no artist wants to hear that. I can totally relate but were in that position right now and thats just the way it is.
EB: So whats your next release we should be looking out for?
MP: Mondo Cane. Its a new project of mine. Its an orchestral project of 50s and 60s Italian pop tunes that I arranged.
EB: Fabulous.
MP: Its a crooning record but with an orchestra. Not many horns. And, I wouldnt say very jazzy, but much more orchestral ballad stuff. Lots of singing. But its not in English. Summertime we hope.
EB: Well, any parting words of wisdom?
MP: Eat your fuckin eel!
EB: Ive eaten pretty much all the fuckin eel.
MP: Pretty much?
EB: I just didnt eat the skin!
MP: The skins the best part!
Video Exclusive:
For more information on Mike Patton and to buy A Perfect Place, go to ipecac.com.
VIEW 21 of 21 COMMENTS
redwing13:
Mike Patton's the man!!!
paradigma:
I love Mike Patton 