This
entire weekend downtown SLC has a touch of the artistic taking
over.
The
Utah Arts Festival kicked off yesterday afternoon to much fanfare.
With artists from all over Utah and beyond, loads of activities,
local eats, and of course tons of local music! Way too much to fit
into one paragraph, so I'm not even going to try. Let's just say if
you're reading this and you're not planning to go... sucks to be you.
In the midst of all this I've been running around taking many,
many photos and interviewing bands. Today is the first of two
days of band interviews from artists performing for the fest, and we
kick it off with the soulful blues sound of Kate LeDeuce & The
Soul Terminators, and the big British rock invasion of Utah known as
Big Gun Baby! ---
Kate LeDeuce & The Soul Terminators
(Spencer Kellogg, Jeff Phillips, Kate LeDeuce, Dylan Baker, Brad
McCarley, Joe Rudd & Brandon
Hansen)
http://www.myspace.com/soulterminators
Gavin:
Hey guys, first off, tell us a little about yourselves.
Brad:
Collectively, we have 13 good eyes, 14 legs, and 14 arms. We grew up
in five different states and two countries. We have two college
students, one Associate’s degree, three Bachelor’s degrees, and
one Master’s. We weigh close to %uFFFD of a ton. We have one drum
kit (with cowbell), one tambourine, one bass guitar, two regular
guitars, an alto sax, a tenor sax, a lead singer, and two back up
singers. Seven people total: Kate LeDeuce – lead vocals and
tambourine, Jeff Phillips – guitar and backing vocals, Dylan Baker
– guitar, Brad McCarley – bass and backing vocals, Brandon Hansen
– drums, Spencer Kellogg – tenor saxophone, Joe Rudd – alto
saxophone.
Gavin:
What got you interested in music, and who were some of your favorite
acts and musical influences growing up?
Brad: I
remember being really into ”Way Down” by Elvis Presley and the
entire Kenny Rogers Greatest Hits album as a kid. Things changed
radically around age 12-14.
Gavin: How did you all get
together and form the group?
Brad: Jeff Phillips and I
used to work together at a guitar store, I think the Wal-Mart of
musical instruments. He and I had talked a lot about putting a band
together over the years and we finally did it. He’s played with
Brandon for a long time, and we brought him in – at first sort of
temporarily, because he’s so busy with other stuff, but he was such
a good fit at the time that we kept him on, and now I’m convinced
he’s one of the best drummers in town. So the three of us wrote our
first five or so tunes and learned some covers. While all of this was
going on, I was recording an EP for Kate and asked her to sing with
us. She said yes. We weren’t really looking for another guitar
player, but Dylan came in and jammed with us. His style complemented
Jeff’s so well that we asked him to stay on the first day. Brandon
knew Spencer from playing jazz gigs around town, and we got our first
horn player. I knew Joe from recording his other band, the Orbit
Group. He started out substituting for Spencer at a few gigs, and he
just officially joined the band a few months ago. I think we’re
done adding people now. I’ve had designs on adding a trumpet
player, a baritone saxophone player, and keys, but it’s all pretty
hard to coordinate as it is.
Gavin:
Not a lot of people have the funk/blues club sound going. What
inspired you to head down that route?
Brad: I have to
give a lot of credit to Daptone Records in New York for starting sort
of a funk/soul revival. I’ve always loved old Stax and Hi Records
stuff, and Atlantic Records stuff that was recorded in Memphis and
Muscle Shoals in the 60’s and 70’s, but when I heard Sharon Jones
and the Dap-Kings for the first time I was blown away because it had
the sound of those old records, but when I flipped the sleeve over to
check out the recording date, it said 2004. It was one of those
“hmmm?!” moments.
Gavin: What's been the reaction
from people once they hear and see the live show?
Brad:
They dance. They clap. They scream. They drink more.
Dylan:
With the first couple of songs, everyone sort of gives us this
shocked but captivated look. I think we get that because there isn’t
really a band in SLC that has our particular sound. With the
remainder of our set people really start getting into the music by
dancing and experimenting with their unique (and sometimes drunken)
dance moves.
Gavin: You recently played the SLUG
Localized showcase. What was that experience like for you?
Brad:
First of all, it was an honor just to be asked. I would highly
recommend it to any local band. Aside from the interview and photo
shoot, which were both very cool and painless, they take care of all
of the promotion for the show (my least favorite part of being in a
band), and they streamed it live on video. Pretty decent video
too.
Gavin:
I read you'll soon have a 7” EP on the way. What details can you
give us on that?
Brad: It’s actually not an EP, but a
single. It’ll be 45 rpm with an A side and a B side. It’s how it
was done with this kind of music until in 1969 Stax Records proved
with Isaac Hayes’ Hot Buttered Soul that the black record buying
public would actually buy full LPs. Before then, the vast majority of
soul music was issued as singles, and soul LPs were collections of
those singles. The A side will be “Everything I’ve Got”, and we
haven’t decided on the B side yet, though we have three different
options in the can. It’ll be on a new local label called 7 Inches
Of Gold. Digital downloads of the songs will also be
available.
Gavin: Are there any plans for a tour down
the road, or mainly playing around locally?
Brad: Yes,
we’re currently setting one up for Idaho/Oregon, and I really want
to go south this winter.
Dylan: Everyone in the band
loves playing around locally because we’re really starting to see a
positive reaction. I think within the next year or so we’ll be at a
point to tour outside of Utah.
Gavin:
A little state-wide, what are your thoughts on the local music scene,
both good and bad?
Brad: There are lots of great
players and bands in this town. It feels like something is starting
to happen. I’m really optimistic. Just follow the Craig’s List
Musicians classifieds to see some gnarly backstabbing and negativity.
I’m pretty confident that that kind of stuff is isolated to a few
individuals and not indicative of the Salt Lake music community as
whole.
Dylan: There are a lot of talented and unique
local artists in Salt Lake. Because the local music scene is a lot
smaller than in some other states, people can really start to follow
a new and upcoming local band fairly easy. On the other hand, because
the local scene is smaller, it’s really up to the bands to market
themselves well and play in the right venues.
Gavin: Is
there anything you believe could be done to make it better?
Brad:
I’d say that the most that could be done to help Salt Lake’s
music scene could be done by the music loving public – make the
effort to see one show per month featuring local artists, buy a local
record. These are things that help support and nurture a music scene,
in both an obvious, financial way, and because musicians play better
to a full house than to a half full house. More people in the crowd
helps us to play better.
Gavin:
Who are your favorite acts in the scene right now?
Brad:
Well, I should start with this... members of our band play in a lot
of other local bands, like the Radio Rhythm Makers, Triggers &
Slips, The Orbit Group, Chasing Zen, Takt, The Fevered Lips, and Funk
Schwa. I think all of those bands are worth checking out. Beyond
that, the scene is bursting with talent. A few notables for me are
Pink Lightnin’, 2 %uFFFD White Guys, Vile Blue Shades,
Thunderfist, Flash Cabbage, and the Rubes.
Dylan: I
really love the bands that have “the groove” flowing through
they’re music. Some of those bands are, The Orbit Group, Colin
Robison, 2 %uFFFD White Guys, Wisebird, and Funk Schwa.
Gavin:
What do you think of the current trends in music that are getting
radio play today?
Brad: I really don’t spend a lot of
time listening to the radio, but when I do, I usually tune in to
KRCL, and I think they are right on the mark. I think the current
popular culture, celebrity culture etc... is reaching new lows, and
that most of the stuff that you hear on Top 40 radio these days is
probably tantamount to watching “Rock Of Love” or
something.
Dylan: When it comes to the radio, I only
listen to KRCL. That station does such a good job playing a wide
variety of excellent underground music that’s hard to come by. Most
other mainstream radio stations play music that either makes me laugh
or gets me irritated because it’s so bad.
Gavin:
What's your take on file sharing these days and how it affects you as
a musician?
Brad: I’m all for it. Of course, we’re
not selling millions of records or anything, but I think it’s
better to have people listening to our stuff than not.
Dylan:
Having someone listen to our music for free is much better to me than
if they didn’t listen to it at all.
Gavin: What can
we expect from you the rest of the year?
Brad: Our
first single and maybe our second. A couple of short tours. A lot of
nights at Burt’s!
Dylan: A new record and some great
soul/funk songs.
Gavin:
Is there anything you'd like to promote or plug?
Brad:
Salt Lake Recording Service. Burt’s Tiki Lounge. Amplify
Media.
Big
Gun Baby (Brandon, Graeme, Dude, Jaycee and
Jennifer)
http://www.myspace.com/biggunbaby
Gavin:
Hey you two. First off, tell us a little bit about
yourselves.
Jaycee: Well I front a post punk/deviant
pop band called Big Gun Baby. It’s an evolving animal, I write the
lyrics for the tunes and a lot of blood sweat and tears get poured
into it.
Graeme: I play bass and write the music for
BGB. I am a Scorpio, I like to talk, long walks along the beach with
the wind in my hair, and believe in world peace. I own the world’s
largest collection of urinals and can write my name in the snow in
hieroglyphics. Jaycee and I are both originally from London but have
currently made SLC our home. Also in our line up we have a wicked
drummer, Brandon, a Seattle native, who is a snowboarding,
motorbiking lunatic and a new recruit on keyboards, Jenny, SLC born
and bred, a classically trained pianist who could beat most men at an
arm wrestle.
Gavin:
What got you interested in music and who were some of your favorite
acts growing up?
Jaycee: I was always round' a lot of
music from young, we had a lot of parties at our house where bands
would come and play, my sister and brother were always bombarding me
with their taste which I must say were pretty good. As you do though,
I went through loads of musical phases from blasting Primus, Nirvana
and Sonic Youth to the mellower side of things like late 80’s early
90’s indie band from Manchester called the Stone Roses, Happy
Mondays, Madness was also a staple of my musical diet. Also you got
to have a bit of The Specials, The Jam, Pink Floyd that’s all I can
think of for now but. I was on the mod scene from young listening to
Northern Soul. My sister used to take me to a wicked little club in
Camden, London called The Wag. I spent a lot of time there watching
neat little turned out girls and boys with symmetrical hair dancing
to funky shit! That gave me my soulfulness and Johnny Rotten gave me
what I needed for the sneering anger side of things. I don’t mind a
bit of Louis Armstrong or Jimmy Reid either when I’m in the
mood…
Graeme: I grew up in a very musical
environment, we hardly ever watched TV, the radio was always on or
we’d listen to my parent’s Beatles, Rolling Stones, jazz and old
rock’n’roll albums. My parents dragged me along to lots of
parties when I was young that were pretty wild affairs with musicians
and artists so I was always surrounded by music. I first picked up
the bass when I was 17 and instantly fell in love with it, I taught
myself to play by listening along to Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The
Beatles etc. I’ve always had a very diverse taste in music, I love
everything from punk to jazz to reggae, basically anything that’s
played with feeling or has a good groove or rhythm. As far as writing
goes, I’d have to say my influences range from The Sex Pistols, The
Clash, Gang Of Four to Buzzcocks, Nirvana, Jane's Addiction, Blur and
Franz Ferdinand to The Smiths, The Kills, The Stranglers, Suede
etc... There’s just too many to name.
Gavin: How did
you first get into the London music scene?
Jaycee: I
was round a lot of bands playing at my house and then I just started
venturing out to pubs to go and watch them, which you do a lot
earlier in England than you do here. Drinking is a requirement of
being English. When I was out at the pub I’d see bands and think I
want to be up there! I always wrote a lot of poems and lyrics and
eventually succumbed to getting a guitar and doing some open mic
nights around the place. Through that I met more musicians, and went
from there really.
Graeme: I started out in a band
called Descent, we sounded like Fugazi meets Smashing Pumkpkins. We
toured all around the UK and supported several well known British
bands including Placebo. We got a lot of recognition and radio play
but never quite made it to the "big league." The English
music scene is hard, you can fit the whole of England into Utah but
it has a population of over 50 million and so there’s just too many
bands vying for the spotlight and so it’s basically a game of
chance and luck. More often it’s not what you know but who you know
and if you happen to be playing the style of music that happens to be
the flavor of the month, it’s a very fickle industry, but it’s a
lot of fun. I played in a number of other bands as well, everything
from punk to blues to acid jazz, some were better than others but I
just love to play and I think if you want to be a good musician you
have to be eclectically minded and experiment with every style of
music.
Gavin:
What was your time like there with the bands you were part
of?
Jaycee: I was mainly solo doing my acoustic thing,
with a couple of duo projects depending on who I met up with who was
up for it, nothing ever lasted long. I was in a band called Trapse
which was funny can't even remember what we played, and a girly band
out of Soho called the Panda Pop Girls that was bloody awful. We had
one good song but there was a couple of German girls in it who
insisted on chattin' about me in German which pissed me off so I
left. Good job really! Mine and Graemes musical background are very
different but we compliment each other, he puts together wicked tunes
in completely different ways. I've written a few nice tunes that we
re gonna be doing more of now we re a bit more dancey. but he s the
accomplished musician and I provide the lyrics and melodies.
Graeme:
I had a great time, the scene is totally chaotic, there’s so many
great pubs, clubs and music venues. England has a very strong pub
culture and many bars are generally packed every night of the week,
everyone goes down to the pub, it’s just what you do. It’s in our
genes, we come from a very old culture where for nearly two thousand
years all you could drink was alcohol. The water was riddled with
disease and tea and coffee, which didn’t appear until the 1600’s,
were only drunk by the very wealthy, so basically everyone drank
beer, wine and liquor all day and night and with every meal. At any
given time I’d say that over half the population are either drunk
or high. Like I said, I had a great time but in the end it does take
it’s toll on you.
Gavin: How did you get together to
form Big Gun Baby?
Jaycee: Graeme rented a room in the
house where I was. He was fresh from the mental home and I was
getting out of the Soho scene trying to be a good girl but my head
was still there. I seen him play in his bands and known him from
around for a while. At night times we used to talk about shit and
music, have a smoke and corrupt each other and somewhere along the
line we started playin' music together, the tunes I’d written over
the last few years. He gave me the confidence to play again after a
long while that was the start of our collaboration, but unfortunately
ended pretty quickly because we started living the rock star life too
much and forgetting to make any music!
Graeme: Like she
said, too much partying took it’s toll and I decided to escape to
the States to try and clean myself up a bit and ended up staying
here. We kept in contact though and a few years later we met up again
in late 2006 when Jaycee was traveling through America. I had a load
of songs I’d been writing and when I played them to her she was
inspired to start writing lyrics and melodies for them, so she stayed
and BGB was formed.