Black Cat Music are a different kind of band. They are not really punk in the modern sense. They are rock and roll without the posturing. Artists who are passionate about what they are doing, but don't take themselves too seriously. They refer to their songs as "The new romance", trying to go for something different from the norm. A great dynamic band live that you all should check out. This interview was done by Jimi Cheetah with Brady and Travis of the band in a bar on Haight Street during the big fleet week celebrations in San Francisco. Occasional gaps in the interview would occur when the Blue Angels did flybys and deafened everyone. JIMI: How are you doing today? BRADY: Good. TRAVIS: O.K. JIMI: Are you excited about your big maximum rock and roll interview? Brady: Yeah, I've been waiting for this all my life. JIMI: Halloween is coming up, Black Cat Music, do you have any big plans? BRADY: It's definitely my favorite time of the year, but I don't know yet. There's a lot of great shows going on. TRAVIS: We're not doing anything as a band. JIMI: So with the black cat and other spooky imagery that you have are you worried about being considered a goth band? BRADY: Some people get that from us, but..... JIMI: And you’re cool with that? BRADY: Yeah, sure, that's fine. We're kind of spooky. TRAVIS: I'm not worried about people saying we're a certain kind of band because in the long run, if you listen to the music you know what it's all about. It's not like, are they this or are they that, cause we get accused of that a lot. JIMI: Do you think you’re spooky? BRADY: No. JIMI: Travis, do you think Brady is spooky? TRAVIS: No. Not at all. JIMI: Now, you all have been in other bands of note, do you want to talk about that? BRADY: No. All four of us have been in punk bands for about the last six years. That's that. JIMI: You have REVENGE tattooed on you (Brady across his chest, Travis on his wrist) Explain? BRADY: It's the only reason I get up in the morning. JIMI: Do the other two guys have the tattoos yet? TRAVIS: No. JIMI: How come the other guys aren't here? TRAVIS: They're workin' and stuff. JIMI: Are you the spokespeople for the band? BRADY: Not necessarily. We all operate separately. We're friends and everything, but the only time we are really all together is when we do band stuff. Everybody leads crazy busy lives. We hardly ever see each other. JIMI: Do you think that keeps the personal relationships better? BRADY: Yeah, absolutely. I live with Travis, but other than that we don't see each other. TRAVIS: When we play or practice it's not just practice it's more of an event. JIMI: How often do you practice? TRAVIS: A couple times a week. BRADY: We have been together for about a year and a half. JIMI: What was the first show? TRAVIS: The first show was at Gilman. With the Receivers and.. No it was the Cuts. The Cuts and Drunk Horse. JIMI: The next show you’re playing? BRADY: It's at Sixteen, which is like a rock and roll dance club in the city. It's like a dance club and everything, but crazy 80's rock people show up. Like Joan Jett was there a couple of weeks ago, Debbie Harry. JIMI: So like crazy old scenesters? BRADY: Yeah, and they have fun bands play there a lot. Like rock and roll bands. Then after that show we are playing at Gilman Street on Oct. 29th with American Steel and the Cost. Should be really fun. It's been a show in the works for a long time. JIMI: Yeah, it's like American Steel's comeback show. BRADY: They're back from Ryan being sick and everything. TRAVIS: Their hiatus. BRADY: It's their record release, it will be really good. JIMI: What's your favorite club, to play in or hang out in? BRADY: I really don't go out to clubs that much, but if I do I like them kind of dark and murky like that. I like Bottom of the Hill a lot, we haven't really been playing that many club shows. Just record stores and parties. We played in a garage on Valentines day. It was rad. We played first and then the cops came because we were to loud, so none of the other bands could play. Felt bad, cause we had jumped on somebody else’s show and then got it broke up. JIMI: How's your hearing? BRADY: (seriously) what's was that? TRAVIS: I've got rock and roll ears. I can't hear anything. JIMI: Now you (Brady) and Dan (the drummer) have been playing together for a long time. The band to me seems, not necessarily centered on but pulls a lot from the drumming. BRADY: Yeah, he's an amazing drummer. I wouldn't even call myself a musician per say, but he is the most insane musician I've ever worked with. He has a weird internal instinct for what we do. We do a lot of writing together. He is definitely the backbone to this. TRAVIS: He's what a drummer should be. He kinda holds the band up and pushes them. You play with him, rather than just playing. BRADY: It's great to, because the four of us, this is the only time I've ever been… We weren't even going to start a band… (Brady has a knack for starting many sentences before he gets to the one he wants - Jimi) BRADY: Originally it was just the four of us having fun making music, like whatever. When we came together for the first time to play we were all just open mouthed about it. Form your own opinions, but it just really gelled. There was no way we couldn't peruse it. TRAVIS: We write a lot together, all the songs. JIMI: What's the plan for the future? BRADY: We just recorded a record, like 8 or 9 songs. We're really happy with it. It's a lot different. It's got a bigger feel to it. We're really happy with it and we're going to try and find somebody to put it out one way or another. It's good. It's got a lot of rock and roll stuff on it. Some kind of moodier stuff than before. We just tried a bunch of different things. It's funny we're really not a punk band, so we don't feel restricted by anything. We don't have to write within the framework of our band as like whatever, we just go for it. JIMI: You can go as rock as you want. BRADY: Whatever, if it sounds good or if it feels good we just do it. We don't question it. JIMI: How would you describe the band? BRADY: I don't know, just kind of a rock and roll band. I all ways feel that we are making the music I want to hear. I don't listen to a whole lot of new music. I listen to some. But I don't listen to whole lot of new bands. I think we all just wanted to make the music that we weren't hearing. JIMI: That you weren't hearing? Brady: Yeah, you can't find the music you want to listen to, you just make it. TRAVIS: We're definitely not a retro-rock band. There a lot of those now, most of them suck. BRADY: There is this huge scene of like Johnny Thundersesque bands that are trying to live the 70's over again. I don't know… There are too many bands in the world. JIMI: Some of them are good, but a lot are just on the bandwagon. BRADY: Some people just shouldn't make music. Just because they can doesn't mean they should. JIMI: What about touring or anything like that? BRADY: We're going to L.A. in November for a couple of dates. To play with this band called Nightmare Syndicate. Like Orange County, San Diego type of thing. We're just trying to wing it. Everyone is working or in school full time. I Work 7 days a week. It's kind of hard but we are trying to set up some for the spring. It's all really sketchy. Details sketchy. Like on a magic 8 ball. Future uncertain. TRAVIS: We don't have the money to back it, you know. JIMI: Do you rely on the magic 8 ball for a lot of the bands decisions? TRAVIS: It seems like it. BRADY: Just set one on the dash board and go for it. TRAVIS: We all sort of gather around it at practice. JIMI: Map out the tours according to it. Should we play Phoenix? (Mock 8 ball ceremony) TRAVIS: Outlook not good. JIMI: So Travis, tell us something about the band, what's your reason for doing this? TRAVIS: It started out that Brady and I just wanted to play music together. We didn't even know what was going to happen with it. I knew Dan from a while back cause we used to work together, so I said to Brady, so what about Dan? Just fit together perfectly because he played with Dan and we all knew each other. At the time and right now there are not a lot of good bands in the bay are, but especially in the east bay there are like a handful of good bands. BRADY: We have played with some cool bands TRAVIS: There are some, but it just seemed like there wasn't much going on. BRADY: My problem, and I know this might sound pretentious, there are just so many bands out there and like 75% of them are just awful. Sure it's not up to me to decide who makes music or not. But I’m gonna just step out on the limb here and say that 75% of people in bands should just go back and be hunch-backed indie rockers and buy the records and shut up. TRAVIS: Bands are like jobs, there are a lot of them, but most of them suck. What are you gonna do. There is like a million bands right now and anyone can put out a record and anyone can do whatever. You just have to sift through so much shit to find something that’s decent. JIMI: Are there any bands that are inspiring you right now? Brady: Right now the band that does, we played with this band called The Kill In Me. They are amazing. The set is completely fluid, the lights fade in and the music fades in, they rock. Kick ass. Then the light and music fade back out. TRAVIS: There is a rad band out of the east bay called Drunk Horse. We played with them and I was really impressed BRADY: They are kind of like super progressive.... TRAVIS: Like Uber-Rock. They know what they are doing, that's why I like seeing them. JIMI: You like seeing someone doing something different. BRADY: The whole thing for me is pushing the envelope. It's not enough to be in a shitty punk band, playing music that was done in the 70's, that's all been done before. The whole phenomenon of underground music has become this safety net for people who are incapable of doing something new and exciting. To me it should all be like changing. New stuff. Trying to get that out in our music is what we are shooting for. Trying to make it something new. If it's been done before than what's the point. There is always like one or two cool bands and then legions of people just trying to follow it. TRAVIS: Yeah, a band that defines it and then they just multiply from there like little bunnies. JIMI: It seems like I have known both of you guys since you were youngsters and you have always been in bands doing something. BRADY: We were definitely both music kids. JIMI: You grew up on it and you’re pretty much in it for life? Both: Yeah. JIMI: Do you see yourselves at like 50 years old making music, still creating? BRADY: I think at some point I'm gonna get disillusioned about the whole process of putting out music and playing it live. I am much more of an art fag kinda guy. I'll probably do something else artistic, but not necessarily always music, but then again maybe I will. JIMI: Do you do any other art? BRADY: I do a lot of painting. A lot of design. Sculpture. Whatever. Just like anybody does, except I think I take it a little more seriously. Unfortunately. JIMI: Do you do anything with it, or just kinda do it for yourself? BRADY: I'm going to go to school. It pretty much is just for me. It started out doing flyers and I felt like I had a knack for it, so I just kept doing it. JIMI: There is a lot to be said for good flyer art. There are some amazing graphic images that can come out of those. BRADY: I really get a kick out of kids doing it. A lot of people in any underground scene… Everyone can appreciate music because it's this total passive thing that you just listen to, but within that same community there is a lot of the most amazing artists. If not doing music stuff, maybe they are like painters or whatever. Nobody really notices that stuff. This is the new generation; this is the new left bank of Paris. If you’re into that kind of thing you have to open your eyes, because it's all around us. JIMI: Do you think there is a strong artistic scene here? TRAVIS: It's getting better. BRADY: There is a big artistic scene here, but it's anywhere that kids are. Just some places there is more of a sense of it. The community gets going and the chemistry of it just works. It clicks. When a place is the place to be, that's when shit gets interesting. Obviously that can't be made to last forever. It happens and then it fades, but if you can be there and be a part of it. Take it over and fuck it up and get high while you’re doing it. That's the way to go. JIMI: It's like the Sex Pistols first show there were like 50 or 60 people there, but out of those there were the Buzzcocks, Siouxie Sioux, Morrissey and all these amazing people came out of it. They were there at the hub at the right time. BRADY: Yeah, right. Like there was a lot of really amazing music coming out of San Diego a couple of years back, or the East Bay in the late 80's. TRAVIS: Seattle. BRADY: It changes geographically, but when it's on, it's on and that's the time to just open up and live. JIMI: Do you think this is a pretty open artistic community? BRADY: Not Really, It's kind of on a down time right now. JIMI: What about you Travis, do you have any other passions besides music? TRAVIS: No. All I know how to do is play guitar and that's about it. JIMI: So this new recording, you did this one with Willy Samuals? TRAVIS: Yeah with Willy at Nu Tone Studios. JIMI: Tell us a little about Willy? BRADY: Willy is an amazing guy, he was born with a microphone in his hand and he has taken a lot of classes. He's got the kind of patience that I don't have. JIMI: Seems like he's got a great ear also. TRAVIS: He started out the typical kid. He likes music, plays drums. He would always hang out at guitar stores and listen to people and acquire knowledge. Started out with him just having a 4 track and recording friends. Graduating to an 8 track and now he's got the full studio with everything you could want. He's doing really good. BRADY: With us he doesn't just record or push buttons. He likes us and he produces and helps us out. It wouldn't be the same without him. I'm really into having a third party in that process. Bouncing ideas off of people. If you just think that you are so D.I.Y. you can sit in a little room and it's gonna be your best work, than your completely mistaken. JIMI: I also think Willy has a knack and a certain passion for it, that in a few years he'll be a name guy like Kevin Army or Andy Ernst. That people will know it's quality and that it represents a certain scene. BRADY: We told him that and he told us to shut up. He's really modest. He's one of those people that are definitely going places. JIMI: Black Cat Music has a dark love theme to it's song lyrics. Do you consider these love songs? BRADY: I don't set out meaning to. That's the kind of stuff that gets me to sit down and write though. It's about loss and disappointment. Waking up tomorrow and knowing things are going to be much worse. At the end of a horrible day, tomorrow will be much worse. JIMI: Is that your basic attitude then? BRADY: Everybody thinks I'm a really down person, but I think I get a lot of it out in the music. JIMI: Good music for Nihilists? BRADY: Yeah, it's like nothing is ever going to be all alright. Your not going to get all you need and want. TRAVIS: You can't always get what you want. JIMI: No matter how much pot you smoke and Reggae you listen to, everything is not going to be alright. BRADY: Right. You spend all your time going after your dreams only to get hit by a bus the next day. TRAVIS: That's life though. JIMI: Any Black Cat Music message to the people for the end of this? BRADY: I want to say something evil but I shouldn't. JIMI: Go ahead. BRADY: Attention, if you’re in a really bad punk band: stop what you’re doing. Sell your guitar and buy records. By all means stop making awful music. Bands don't die they multiply. TRAVIS: If you see me at a show buy me a drink. BRADY: That goes for me to. JIMI: I think that probably goes for all the guys. BRADY: Actually, if you see me at a show turn around and run for your life. Scrapbook