Brandon Allin
07/28/05, 11:27 PM
This interview was conducted with Dave Kirchgessner of Mustard Plug
Hey Dave! First off, I just want to say thank you for taking the time to answer some questions for me. It's great to have you here. So, what have you been up to lately? Anything exciting going on?
Man, it’s been a really busy summer for me. Putting together Ska Is Dead 3 has been a lot bigger undertaking than I thought, Mustard Plug is working on new songs, breaking in a new drummer, working on a greatest hits album that comes out in the fall, and an upcoming DVD that chronicles the history of the band.
You guys are getting ready to embark on Ska Is Dead 3 in September. Tell us a bit about what you expect from the tour this year.
Yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. We get to do a bunch of shows with the Planet Smashers which is always a blast and it will be really fun touring with the Toasters again. We haven’t played with them since the Ska Against Racism tour in 1999. Also this year there are a lot more up and coming bands on the tour. I’m pretty excited about being able to put on bands like Hawaii’s Go Jimmy Go or Toronto’s The Flatliners, bands that hopefully represent the future of the genre in addition to bands that are more established.
Is there an ultimate goal behind Ska Is Dead, or was it created as more of an excuse to get a group of bands together and prove that ska really isn't 'dead'?
Yeah, that’s pretty much it. I mean the goal is basically to put the best Ska bands together on one tour and revive and celebrate the scene and it’s music, and to do so in way that retains it’s integrity and that of the independent music community.
Are you the one who's in charge of choosing the bands who will be seen on the tour? If so, how you go about deciding which bands to choose?
The tour is constantly evolving as to how it is put together. For this one, what I did is, I emailed every major Ska band I could, to find out who was interested in doing Ska Is Dead. The Toasters were very interested from the start and really excited about the concept so once they were on board I consulted with them regarding the time frame of when the tour was going to go out. When that was established I went back and re-contacted all of the bands to once again see who was interested and could work with the schedule. Mustard Plug was interested in doing about half of it and so were the Planet Smashers. There were a bunch of other bands I talked to as well, but it kind of boiled down to these three bands for most of the tour. I then came up with a short list of more regional bands and in conjunction with the Toasters plotted everything out and fit in the other bands where possible. Keep in mind this all happened over many months and was incredibly more complicated than it all sounds. To make a long story short, I don’t really choose the headliners, they’re the ones who choose to be on the tour. When it comes to the less established bands I look for bands that seem to be working really hard, are building a following, and have the talent to hopefully become future headliners in their own right. When it comes to the opening bands, we try to put in the best locals. I always think it kind of sucks when a big tour comes through and ignores the locals. It’s cool to give up and comers a break and it gets the local scene involved too. On this tour the local bands were picked by myself, The Toasters, and the local promoters, depending on the show.
Let's talk a bit about Mustard Plug. Are you guys planning on recording new material anytime soon?
Yeah, definitely. We’ve been working on new stuff for a while. It just keeps taking us longer and longer to write new stuff. There’s a lot of reasons for this. First of all, after 14 years, our standards for songwriting has improved a bit. For better or worse our songs are generally more complex now. We also try really hard to both keep to our own sound while at the same time writing songs that are completely different from previous songs. This is tough. We’ve also had several line up changes in the rhythm section lately which has bogged us down. We’re kickin ass now though, and have been a lot more prolific in our songwriting lately.
What is your new material sounding like? Should we be expecting more of what Mustard Plug has done before, or something different?
It’s too hard to say yet what the new album will be like. I’m sure it will be different, but you’ll still be able to describe it as punk influenced Ska or whatever. Some of the material has been a bit darker. We’ve also tried to incorporate a little more two-tone and trad Ska influences.
Your most recent record, Yellow #5, saw the band doing pretty much everything in a 'do it yourself' fashion. Is this the route you plan on taking for your next release?
Actually I think the next one will be a little less DIY in the studio. It’s really nice to have someone you trust, that isn’t in the band to help out in the studio. I’d say we really need someone awesome to help mix it. Songwriting and arranging we have down but on the other stuff it’s good to have another pair of ears that you trust.
What was it like producing one of your own records, rather than having a producer outside of the band on board?
It was fun. In certain ways it took the pressure off and added to the freedom of the experience. But… when there is disagreement or indecision about something it really is good to have someone outside the band to throw in an opinion.
It seems like you see more and more Ska bands dropping off the map everyday. How come you and the rest of the gang have been able to hold on for the ride, despite the undeniable unpopular reputation of Ska itself?
It’s interesting because a lot of the older bands have stuck with it in some form. Look at the Toasters, Mu330, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Buck O Nine, Chris Murray, The Slackers, etc. They’re all still going. I think it’s because, like us, they started at a time before Ska had any popularity in the U.S. At the time we started, we didn’t play Ska because we wanted to be popular; we did it because we loved it. It seems like a lot of the bands that broke and started emo bands or whatever, probably weren’t that into it in the first place. I’m not saying this applies to every one. When it comes down to it, it’s just really hard to keep a band together no matter what the genre. Having more members just makes it tougher. It’s actually more amazing to me how many band do keep it together. That said, I think the key may be in keeping your goals realistic and no doing it for mass approval or to be a huge rock star and most importantly, keeping it fun to do.
This next question ties in with the previous one. One of our forum members, GlassyLight, wanted me to ask you if it's at all a challenge to continue playing a genre of music that the public has lost interest in/has little commercial viability?
No, not really. Generally speaking I hate the public. They suck. Bunch of idiots. Bush voting, over-consuming, unoriginal hypocrites that would sell their grandmother for a low mileage Lexus and a Supersized Extra Value Meal. I’m only half kidding, but I’m definitely not a fan of 21st century American mainstream culture. I guess that’s why I’ve always been attracted to the underground punk and Ska community.
What made you want to start a Ska band in the beginning?
Basically I love the music. It was a lot of fun. There were no Ska bands in Grand Rapids so we figured someone had to start one.
I thought this would make for an interesting question. If you had to compile a mix cd of your 10 favourite Mustard Plug songs, which songs would you choose?
That’s tough but... right now I’d say, in no particular order: Puddle of Blood on the Streets of Gold ,Lolita, Beer Song, Not Enough, Time Will Come (live version, recorded one sucks), Suburban Homesick Blues, To Be, Go, Someday Right Now, and Over the Edge.
Another one of our readers, JunkBondTrader, wants to know what you think about the Fireside Bowl in Chicago sticking to bowling instead of throwing kickass concerts? He also says that he saw you guys play 3 and a half years ago, and that you rocked out with The Lizdexics.
Yeah, it’s sad the Fireside Bowl shows are over. It really was the end of an era when it shut down. It was such an important place for band to get their start and I really credit it with getting us off the ground in Chicago. It’s funny when Mustard Plug first started playing Chicago in the early 90’s all the Ska shows were 18+, but we were able to get into the Fireside Bowl and really get things going for us. It’s sad, it was a really horrible club, but really awesome at the same time. I kind of think the kids felt like it was theirs and that’s what made it special.
I have another reader submitted question for you. Nivek wants to know how your daughter is doing, and how you manage family duties on top of your band?
Yeah, actually I have two daughter’s now, ages 1 and 4 and they’re both doing great. It’s really challenging to balance being in a band and having a family. The way it works for me is, my wife works full time and I do most of the kid watching. We have day care for them 2 days a week so that’s when I get the band business and Ska Is Dead work done. The hardest thing is touring. The girl’s grandmothers help out a lot then and they’ll go to day care a day or two extra. The days of doing 6 week tours are definitely over for me. We try to keep it to 1-2 weeks at most. For the Ska Is Dead Tour, we’re doing the first two weeks, then, we’re home for a week, then fly out for 3 days on the east coast, then we’re home for 2 weeks, then we fly out to do the last 10 days on the West Coast. It’s kind of a pain in the ass but I don’t want to be a washed up rock star statistic whose kids don’t know him. Know what I mean? It’s a pretty a-typical lifestyle for either a father or a professional rocknroller to have but I’m old enough now to live my life in a way that works for me instead of feeling like I have to conform to either stereotype.
Well Dave, that's all the questions I have for you today. Thanks alot for the interview! Ska on.
____________________
www.mustardplug.com (http://www.mustardplug.com)
Hey Dave! First off, I just want to say thank you for taking the time to answer some questions for me. It's great to have you here. So, what have you been up to lately? Anything exciting going on?
Man, it’s been a really busy summer for me. Putting together Ska Is Dead 3 has been a lot bigger undertaking than I thought, Mustard Plug is working on new songs, breaking in a new drummer, working on a greatest hits album that comes out in the fall, and an upcoming DVD that chronicles the history of the band.
You guys are getting ready to embark on Ska Is Dead 3 in September. Tell us a bit about what you expect from the tour this year.
Yeah, I’m really looking forward to it. We get to do a bunch of shows with the Planet Smashers which is always a blast and it will be really fun touring with the Toasters again. We haven’t played with them since the Ska Against Racism tour in 1999. Also this year there are a lot more up and coming bands on the tour. I’m pretty excited about being able to put on bands like Hawaii’s Go Jimmy Go or Toronto’s The Flatliners, bands that hopefully represent the future of the genre in addition to bands that are more established.
Is there an ultimate goal behind Ska Is Dead, or was it created as more of an excuse to get a group of bands together and prove that ska really isn't 'dead'?
Yeah, that’s pretty much it. I mean the goal is basically to put the best Ska bands together on one tour and revive and celebrate the scene and it’s music, and to do so in way that retains it’s integrity and that of the independent music community.
Are you the one who's in charge of choosing the bands who will be seen on the tour? If so, how you go about deciding which bands to choose?
The tour is constantly evolving as to how it is put together. For this one, what I did is, I emailed every major Ska band I could, to find out who was interested in doing Ska Is Dead. The Toasters were very interested from the start and really excited about the concept so once they were on board I consulted with them regarding the time frame of when the tour was going to go out. When that was established I went back and re-contacted all of the bands to once again see who was interested and could work with the schedule. Mustard Plug was interested in doing about half of it and so were the Planet Smashers. There were a bunch of other bands I talked to as well, but it kind of boiled down to these three bands for most of the tour. I then came up with a short list of more regional bands and in conjunction with the Toasters plotted everything out and fit in the other bands where possible. Keep in mind this all happened over many months and was incredibly more complicated than it all sounds. To make a long story short, I don’t really choose the headliners, they’re the ones who choose to be on the tour. When it comes to the less established bands I look for bands that seem to be working really hard, are building a following, and have the talent to hopefully become future headliners in their own right. When it comes to the opening bands, we try to put in the best locals. I always think it kind of sucks when a big tour comes through and ignores the locals. It’s cool to give up and comers a break and it gets the local scene involved too. On this tour the local bands were picked by myself, The Toasters, and the local promoters, depending on the show.
Let's talk a bit about Mustard Plug. Are you guys planning on recording new material anytime soon?
Yeah, definitely. We’ve been working on new stuff for a while. It just keeps taking us longer and longer to write new stuff. There’s a lot of reasons for this. First of all, after 14 years, our standards for songwriting has improved a bit. For better or worse our songs are generally more complex now. We also try really hard to both keep to our own sound while at the same time writing songs that are completely different from previous songs. This is tough. We’ve also had several line up changes in the rhythm section lately which has bogged us down. We’re kickin ass now though, and have been a lot more prolific in our songwriting lately.
What is your new material sounding like? Should we be expecting more of what Mustard Plug has done before, or something different?
It’s too hard to say yet what the new album will be like. I’m sure it will be different, but you’ll still be able to describe it as punk influenced Ska or whatever. Some of the material has been a bit darker. We’ve also tried to incorporate a little more two-tone and trad Ska influences.
Your most recent record, Yellow #5, saw the band doing pretty much everything in a 'do it yourself' fashion. Is this the route you plan on taking for your next release?
Actually I think the next one will be a little less DIY in the studio. It’s really nice to have someone you trust, that isn’t in the band to help out in the studio. I’d say we really need someone awesome to help mix it. Songwriting and arranging we have down but on the other stuff it’s good to have another pair of ears that you trust.
What was it like producing one of your own records, rather than having a producer outside of the band on board?
It was fun. In certain ways it took the pressure off and added to the freedom of the experience. But… when there is disagreement or indecision about something it really is good to have someone outside the band to throw in an opinion.
It seems like you see more and more Ska bands dropping off the map everyday. How come you and the rest of the gang have been able to hold on for the ride, despite the undeniable unpopular reputation of Ska itself?
It’s interesting because a lot of the older bands have stuck with it in some form. Look at the Toasters, Mu330, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Buck O Nine, Chris Murray, The Slackers, etc. They’re all still going. I think it’s because, like us, they started at a time before Ska had any popularity in the U.S. At the time we started, we didn’t play Ska because we wanted to be popular; we did it because we loved it. It seems like a lot of the bands that broke and started emo bands or whatever, probably weren’t that into it in the first place. I’m not saying this applies to every one. When it comes down to it, it’s just really hard to keep a band together no matter what the genre. Having more members just makes it tougher. It’s actually more amazing to me how many band do keep it together. That said, I think the key may be in keeping your goals realistic and no doing it for mass approval or to be a huge rock star and most importantly, keeping it fun to do.
This next question ties in with the previous one. One of our forum members, GlassyLight, wanted me to ask you if it's at all a challenge to continue playing a genre of music that the public has lost interest in/has little commercial viability?
No, not really. Generally speaking I hate the public. They suck. Bunch of idiots. Bush voting, over-consuming, unoriginal hypocrites that would sell their grandmother for a low mileage Lexus and a Supersized Extra Value Meal. I’m only half kidding, but I’m definitely not a fan of 21st century American mainstream culture. I guess that’s why I’ve always been attracted to the underground punk and Ska community.
What made you want to start a Ska band in the beginning?
Basically I love the music. It was a lot of fun. There were no Ska bands in Grand Rapids so we figured someone had to start one.
I thought this would make for an interesting question. If you had to compile a mix cd of your 10 favourite Mustard Plug songs, which songs would you choose?
That’s tough but... right now I’d say, in no particular order: Puddle of Blood on the Streets of Gold ,Lolita, Beer Song, Not Enough, Time Will Come (live version, recorded one sucks), Suburban Homesick Blues, To Be, Go, Someday Right Now, and Over the Edge.
Another one of our readers, JunkBondTrader, wants to know what you think about the Fireside Bowl in Chicago sticking to bowling instead of throwing kickass concerts? He also says that he saw you guys play 3 and a half years ago, and that you rocked out with The Lizdexics.
Yeah, it’s sad the Fireside Bowl shows are over. It really was the end of an era when it shut down. It was such an important place for band to get their start and I really credit it with getting us off the ground in Chicago. It’s funny when Mustard Plug first started playing Chicago in the early 90’s all the Ska shows were 18+, but we were able to get into the Fireside Bowl and really get things going for us. It’s sad, it was a really horrible club, but really awesome at the same time. I kind of think the kids felt like it was theirs and that’s what made it special.
I have another reader submitted question for you. Nivek wants to know how your daughter is doing, and how you manage family duties on top of your band?
Yeah, actually I have two daughter’s now, ages 1 and 4 and they’re both doing great. It’s really challenging to balance being in a band and having a family. The way it works for me is, my wife works full time and I do most of the kid watching. We have day care for them 2 days a week so that’s when I get the band business and Ska Is Dead work done. The hardest thing is touring. The girl’s grandmothers help out a lot then and they’ll go to day care a day or two extra. The days of doing 6 week tours are definitely over for me. We try to keep it to 1-2 weeks at most. For the Ska Is Dead Tour, we’re doing the first two weeks, then, we’re home for a week, then fly out for 3 days on the east coast, then we’re home for 2 weeks, then we fly out to do the last 10 days on the West Coast. It’s kind of a pain in the ass but I don’t want to be a washed up rock star statistic whose kids don’t know him. Know what I mean? It’s a pretty a-typical lifestyle for either a father or a professional rocknroller to have but I’m old enough now to live my life in a way that works for me instead of feeling like I have to conform to either stereotype.
Well Dave, that's all the questions I have for you today. Thanks alot for the interview! Ska on.
____________________
www.mustardplug.com (http://www.mustardplug.com)