If you live in the Los Angeles area and you're cool then most likely youve heard The 88 on the radio. But if not then prepare to be blown away by the band that Tower Records selected as their band of the week.
Publications like Rolling Stone and Entertainment Weekly have been singing the praises of Keith Slettedahl and the rest of the band for months. All their critics have noticed that Slettedahl channels Kinks frontman Ray Davies but thats not bad thing. The kind of rock that The 88 shove out there hasnt had a revival a long time. If The 88 is any kind of indication of how good this music is going to be then Im there front row!
Check out The 88 website
Daniel Robert Epstein: This album has been out for a while.
Keith Slettedahl: Yeah it just keeps gathering momentum. Things keep happening. We definitely want to start recording a new record but it seems we just keep getting attention for this one. They are still playing songs on the radio in LA. Personally I would love to do some new stuff because we have been playing these songs for a while but were real proud of the record.
DRE: When you're in concert do you play newer songs?
KS: Yeah about half the set is not on the record. We have a lot of songs that are newer than even those.
DRE: What does the title Kind of Light mean?
KS: There really isnt a lot of meaning to it. It was just a phrase that popped into my head. I was reading this book on The Who and Pete Townshend was saying there is a kind of light to Tommy. I would love to say I got the title from that but I didnt [laughs].
DRE: Can you just lie?
KS: I guess I could.
DRE: I read that you were 15, listening to Motley Crue but you wanted to listen to your dads old records instead.
KS: I would hear snippets of things. My mind started to open to other music. Once I got into The Beatles I got totally into that stuff. When I finally got my dads records from that point on I just kept going back further and further. I was into metal, which I still like, but its funny when I hear that stuff it brings back good memories.
DRE: Where would you be today if you had stuck with Motley Crue?
KS: [laughs] I dont know.
DRE: Were you always into playing music?
KS: I was actually more of a jock when I was younger. Even throughout high school I was into sports. No one in my family played an instrument. I never had piano lessons or anything but I loved music. At a very early age I remember being extremely moved by songs on the radio like Freebird or Lighter Shade of Pale. I got more and more into it but I never thought I could do it or play anything. Then me and friends started messing around and playing Spinal Tap songs. They would tell me I had a good voice. I was very shy and blew it off. Then I met Adam Merrin and then I started singing while he played piano. Then I picked up a guitar and slowly started getting better at that.
DRE: What sports did you play?
KS: Mainly baseball and basketball.
DRE: What did your jock friends think? Did they start beating you up automatically?
KS: No, I was never a tough guy with jerk friends. I still have good friends from that time and we are still totally into sports.
DRE: Do you guys wear your suits onstage?
KS: Yeah we do. Its just a thing we do. It started with our drummer, Mark Vasapolli; he is really into jazz, so when we first started playing out we were wondering what to wear. He was big on the suits and we thought it looked cool. If we dont wear the suits we all look very different from one another. We care about what we do and I hope that the suits reflect that.
DRE: Do you write all the songs by yourself?
KS: Pretty much. A lot of the songs on the record are pretty old. I write the songs but the band does a lot of the arranging especially since Brandon Jay joined the band. He joined after the record was done but he is really good with the arrangements. I write the songs but there is a lot of input as well.
DRE: Whats your writing process?
KS: I will sit down with a guitar, put on a tape recorder and just start playing. Sometimes its there and sometimes its not. I just try to be present to try to catch it. Mainly I try to do it as much as possible. I wish I could write a good song at will but it doesnt work that way for me. Some come write out and others dont. I have trouble with words sometimes. I usually have the melody first. Often I will have an idea floating around for months until it gets finished.
DRE: How did you hook up with your record label, Mootron Records?
KS: Yeah its EMK/ Mootron. EMK is a friend of ours. He started a little record label and put out some world music bands. He basically put our record out. Then we got on with Mootron after the CD was done. Im not sure how we met up with them. I dont remember. But they have distribution.
DRE: Who will be putting out your next record?
KS: We dont know yet.
DRE: Are you getting courted?
KS: Yeah we have some interest.
DRE: Are they sending you good free stuff?
KS: [laughs] No, not yet.
DRE: I found a lot of articles that talked a lot about your drug problem.
KS: I talked about it in first interview I ever did then pretty much every interview afterwards kind of ended up the same.
DRE: Was your drug problem that big of a deal?
KS: It was pretty bad. I went into rehab.
DRE: Are your albums all very personal?
KS: It is. A lot of the songs on the record were written during some really bad times. Even if Im not writing about me, I am. Its still all saying something about me.
DRE: I read that Brandon is also known as Quazar.
KS: Yes he plays in another group called Quazar & The Bamboozled. Hes been in a band called Lutefisk.
DRE: Isnt Lutefisk some Wisconsin delicacy of dried cod in a lye solution?
KS: Yeah it is [laughs]. A lot of people call him Quazar.
DRE: What do you guys call him?
KS: I call him Brandon.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
Publications like Rolling Stone and Entertainment Weekly have been singing the praises of Keith Slettedahl and the rest of the band for months. All their critics have noticed that Slettedahl channels Kinks frontman Ray Davies but thats not bad thing. The kind of rock that The 88 shove out there hasnt had a revival a long time. If The 88 is any kind of indication of how good this music is going to be then Im there front row!
Check out The 88 website
Daniel Robert Epstein: This album has been out for a while.
Keith Slettedahl: Yeah it just keeps gathering momentum. Things keep happening. We definitely want to start recording a new record but it seems we just keep getting attention for this one. They are still playing songs on the radio in LA. Personally I would love to do some new stuff because we have been playing these songs for a while but were real proud of the record.
DRE: When you're in concert do you play newer songs?
KS: Yeah about half the set is not on the record. We have a lot of songs that are newer than even those.
DRE: What does the title Kind of Light mean?
KS: There really isnt a lot of meaning to it. It was just a phrase that popped into my head. I was reading this book on The Who and Pete Townshend was saying there is a kind of light to Tommy. I would love to say I got the title from that but I didnt [laughs].
DRE: Can you just lie?
KS: I guess I could.
DRE: I read that you were 15, listening to Motley Crue but you wanted to listen to your dads old records instead.
KS: I would hear snippets of things. My mind started to open to other music. Once I got into The Beatles I got totally into that stuff. When I finally got my dads records from that point on I just kept going back further and further. I was into metal, which I still like, but its funny when I hear that stuff it brings back good memories.
DRE: Where would you be today if you had stuck with Motley Crue?
KS: [laughs] I dont know.
DRE: Were you always into playing music?
KS: I was actually more of a jock when I was younger. Even throughout high school I was into sports. No one in my family played an instrument. I never had piano lessons or anything but I loved music. At a very early age I remember being extremely moved by songs on the radio like Freebird or Lighter Shade of Pale. I got more and more into it but I never thought I could do it or play anything. Then me and friends started messing around and playing Spinal Tap songs. They would tell me I had a good voice. I was very shy and blew it off. Then I met Adam Merrin and then I started singing while he played piano. Then I picked up a guitar and slowly started getting better at that.
DRE: What sports did you play?
KS: Mainly baseball and basketball.
DRE: What did your jock friends think? Did they start beating you up automatically?
KS: No, I was never a tough guy with jerk friends. I still have good friends from that time and we are still totally into sports.
DRE: Do you guys wear your suits onstage?
KS: Yeah we do. Its just a thing we do. It started with our drummer, Mark Vasapolli; he is really into jazz, so when we first started playing out we were wondering what to wear. He was big on the suits and we thought it looked cool. If we dont wear the suits we all look very different from one another. We care about what we do and I hope that the suits reflect that.
DRE: Do you write all the songs by yourself?
KS: Pretty much. A lot of the songs on the record are pretty old. I write the songs but the band does a lot of the arranging especially since Brandon Jay joined the band. He joined after the record was done but he is really good with the arrangements. I write the songs but there is a lot of input as well.
DRE: Whats your writing process?
KS: I will sit down with a guitar, put on a tape recorder and just start playing. Sometimes its there and sometimes its not. I just try to be present to try to catch it. Mainly I try to do it as much as possible. I wish I could write a good song at will but it doesnt work that way for me. Some come write out and others dont. I have trouble with words sometimes. I usually have the melody first. Often I will have an idea floating around for months until it gets finished.
DRE: How did you hook up with your record label, Mootron Records?
KS: Yeah its EMK/ Mootron. EMK is a friend of ours. He started a little record label and put out some world music bands. He basically put our record out. Then we got on with Mootron after the CD was done. Im not sure how we met up with them. I dont remember. But they have distribution.
DRE: Who will be putting out your next record?
KS: We dont know yet.
DRE: Are you getting courted?
KS: Yeah we have some interest.
DRE: Are they sending you good free stuff?
KS: [laughs] No, not yet.
DRE: I found a lot of articles that talked a lot about your drug problem.
KS: I talked about it in first interview I ever did then pretty much every interview afterwards kind of ended up the same.
DRE: Was your drug problem that big of a deal?
KS: It was pretty bad. I went into rehab.
DRE: Are your albums all very personal?
KS: It is. A lot of the songs on the record were written during some really bad times. Even if Im not writing about me, I am. Its still all saying something about me.
DRE: I read that Brandon is also known as Quazar.
KS: Yes he plays in another group called Quazar & The Bamboozled. Hes been in a band called Lutefisk.
DRE: Isnt Lutefisk some Wisconsin delicacy of dried cod in a lye solution?
KS: Yeah it is [laughs]. A lot of people call him Quazar.
DRE: What do you guys call him?
KS: I call him Brandon.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
VIEW 5 of 5 COMMENTS
Also generally preceeded by a 14, referring to the 14 word creedo "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children."
Cute, huh?