Interview with Pete Nolan, one half of the Magik Markers, Prior to their Baltic tour where they played in Tallinn, Riga and Tartu. This in the week after shooting scenes in “The Temptations of St Tony” a new film from Homeless Bob and director Veiko Õunpuu.
You were here in Estonia because you're involved with Veiko Õunpuu's new movie, ‘St Tony’. Please tell us how did you land a part in that movie?
I don't know really. They contacted us about being in a nightclub scene in their new movie and asked to use some of our songs and if we could appear. We were flattered and thrilled.
Did your friends believed you when you told them that you're going to do a movie somewhere in Estonia?
Well I just got married last month and I'm having a baby too. So it kind of slipped my mind to tell anyone till just recently. They'll believe any incredible thing I tell them at this point.
Have you seen Veiko Õunpuu's previous film, “Sügisball”?
No I'm dying to see it. I've just seen a number of scenes on youtube and I have no idea what they're saying.. but it looks really cool. I asked the producer to send me a copy but I haven't gotten it yet.
Three shows in unknown place. Please describe your expectations?
I don't know. I've heard Tallinn is beautiful. I'm expecting to have a cool time and hopefully we'll have enough time in each place to really take it in and meet some cool folks. How do the early days of an American experimental rock band looks like, was it a constant feeling of being a weird bunch of outsiders and no chance to get gigs or establish yourself in any other way? No we've always made our own gigs. Just having a good time with our friends in our basements. I guess my friends are weird outsiders but I don't think there's any reason to be self conscious about it. My friends are always up to something. Creative weirdos that are gonna' make stuff whether anyone gives a shit or not. Voodoo jammers and stick shakers.. playing the spoons in living rooms and kitchens. I love em'.
You've probably had experiences of playing to the “wrong crowd”. Please tell something about the ‘most nightmarish’ concert.
Shit I dunno. It kind of sucks to play for an unreceptive crowd but you can always have a dialogue even with people that aren't into you. I recently had the experience of playing drums for country rocker Donavan Quinn and the 13th month. That was fun here in New York.. but we drove up to Boston to play a show at this sports bar. We played with D. Charles Speer who was fucking amazing, King Darves and the drummer from Negative Approach, who were both really great. There was not one person at the show. Donovan lost a ton of money on the rental car and even more importantly there was no one there to see this incredible show. I don't know if that's a nightmare.. but it's a fucking shame.
I've read about this pay-to-play system that exists in US clubs. How familiar are you with that?
I haven't encountered that. I wouldn't play a show unless I was getting paid, unless it's in my neighborhood with my friends.
Please name few main influences of The Magik Markers, what was on your mind when you first started the band?
When we first started the band? Geez that's a long time ago.. I don't know. I think at the time I was interested in making weird scratchy dark improvised psychedelic noise zones of New Zealand bands like Doramaar and Dead C. I don't think I'd really want to do that exactly today. Those bands are great tho. Elisa definitely had a the firebrand impulse of the MC5 in those early days when she would take the stage like Hazel Motes from Wiseblood. That was cool. We took our name from a song by weirdo sixties horror folk dude Simon Finn, who's tweaked mushroom poetry and paranoia still plays a part in our sound today.
Tons of self-releases and two ‘official’ albums. Do you draw the line between them?
I don't know.. I think the bigger releases that are easier to get we might pay more attention to crafting.. but if that's all you've heard by us you're missing out on some cool stuff for sure. I'm confident in saying that each of our releases is very different, and if you like what we do you should seek out the CDR's I make on my Arbitrary Signs label as well as the releases we've done for other small labels. I think they all stand up for themselves in one way or another.
Recording for Thurston Moore's label with Lee Ranaldo - let's set the scale what it means in American context?
Well from my context as an American growing up in the cornfields of mid Michigan, bands like Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Fugazi.. and the killer shit you'd hear on skate videos on Powell or Santa Cruz were my first introduction to a broader world of underground weirdo stuff that could be found if you looked hard enough. These were the bands that managed to be heard by kids in the sticks in America. From there I found out about the killer history of punk bands in my own state like the Stooges and Src and the MC5 even early Bob Segar System. That's when I started to feel like I was a part of something apart from what was going on on tv or whatever. So fast forward to 2001, when we start playing shows at western Massachusset's community joint the Flywheel. One of our first customers was Thurston Moore. Imagine the mind fuck of being approached by someone you consider to be an icon.. and he's saying he likes your jams and he wants to buy a tape. This is the kind of shit that Obama talks about when he says that in America you can come up from no where and be a part of what's going on .. not just on a local level.. but be working on a level with people that are playing in the big leagues. You just have to want it and you can put yourself there.
What was the main difference between recording with Ranaldo and recording by yourself? More discipline?
Yeah Lee was way more organized than I expected. He works like a mad scientist.. taking notes on everything and helping us along.. encouraging the good stuff and getting it polished.. Elisa and I were kind of like the Rats of Nihm or something.. unnaturally intelligent beasts in a lab. He definitely had his own slant on our sound.
Did all the fuss and praise that all of sudden, almost out of nowhere surrounded your latest album surprise you?
I heard some good stuff.. but I didn't really experience that much fuss or anything. I'm glad some people dug it for sure.. We're working on a new one next month with legendary producer Scott Colbern.. so I hope people are as open and stoked to check it out. He recorded a ton of Sun City Girl's records as well as the latest Animal Collective and Arcade Fire records.
According to your YouTube videos you're loud indeed. Do you put plugs or something in your ears before you'll either practice or perform?
I don't wear earplugs no... but I wouldn't encourage kids to stand in front of a pile of P.A. speakers without them. That's where it's the loudest.. sometimes it can be pretty hard to hear what's going on onstage.. that's weird huh?
If you have an hour long radio show, then how would the playlist look?
I don't know.. I love being a dj.. here's the playlist for the dance party CD I made for my wedding party, it's kind of classicly' but that's cool:
01. Bob Dylan and the Band from Basement Tapes “Take me down to California Baby”
02. The Monkees from Head “Still Haven't Made it to the End”
03. Magik Sam “Boogie Chillun”
04. Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band from Blue jeans and Moonbeams “Observatory Crest”
05. Som Imaginario “Super God” from Love, Peace, and Poetry
06. Latin American Psych Compilation Les Planet Sauvage weird disco sounding jam on the soundtrack
07. Eddie Grant “Electric Avenue”
08. Genius Gza “Liquid Swords”
09. T Rex “Get it On”
10. John Cale “Big White Cloud” from Vintage Violence
11. Neil Young “Long time now”
12. Velvet Underground “I Can't Stand it”, “Real Good Time Together” & “Coney Island Steeplechase”
13. Bob Trimble “The End of the Rainbow” Iron Curtain Innocence
14. Rolling Stone's “Passion Woman” Beggars banquet
15. The Band Basement Tapes: “Slow and Easy”
16. Creedence “Keep on Chooglin”
17. Lou Reed “Kicks” Coney Island Baby
Magik Markers in Tartu (November 15TH '08)
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Harry Lurcher
jun 14 '09
13 contributions
Heard once that life is too serious to be taken seriously. Poet, promoter, director of creativity, frustrated artist and aspiring human being. In the future will people be good enough sports to look back on us and laugh rather than with anger? In his future hopes to be older and travel with an ark in space. Favourite animal is a dog, called Harry the Lurcher. Now somewhere in space. Believes in re-uniting the thoughts with the feelings.
published • August 2nd '09
