CH3--Interview with Mike Magrann
by Peter Thorsson/Skrutt/Sweden
-Yes, very much so! I think it's the first time Kimm and have really been able to take control and put out the songs as we wanted them heard....
-Won a Superbowl bet with Bill----he had to put out the cd, we didn't have to paint his store! Actually, we'd heard good things about dealing with Dr Strange, and we were looking for a simple, honorable agreement...that's what we got!
What drives you to play this type of music? is it love to it or?'
-Or what? Kentucky Bourbon?---you've been reading too many old show reviews buddy!
Nah, we just always love to play live, and I think you have to have a new cd out
to be able to do that.....We started as Punk rockers because it was either that
or stay back in the bedroom another five years learning to play the guitar
better! After you understand the freedom and energy available through this
music, ther's no going back, eh?
-About 12 drummers, 6 bass players, me and Kimm.
-Actually, this is the first cd.....everything else was just released on vinyl, so that will give you an idea on how long it's been.....Private lives, Kimm and I got married, (no, haha---not to each other----like we haven't heard that one before!) had kids, do the dad thing.....
-Better clubs, that's for sure.. back in earlier days, the more established clubs were very afraid to book punk bands and their playfully destructive fans! We see a lot more emphasis on merch now, of course, and the all ages shows do bring out the kiddos!
-mmmmm... any favour of that fact? I like it!.....well, I guess it's nice to be able to go wherever you want---there are certain freedoms that come with age, as long as you have the vacation time and cash! It's a drag to see people die, and more die every year as you get older!
-For me, it means freedom-----the absence of rules that say you gotta be this or that to be punk....
-We've done some shows with Pistol Grip--great band--The Skulls are back in action and doing well, also the Stitches, really cool old school sound....My daughter's 3rd grade violin ensemble is also kicking out some serious jams....
-I know I always have and always will get it mixed up with Switzerland, which may not be a big deal to you, but it hurts me!
-No not really...but I hear y'all make some dynamite watches and knives!!
-Obviously, you've never been to the live show---we'll break it down for a 20 minute drum spotlight while Kimm and I go backstage and eat powdered doughnuts! Nah man, what's the point in all that extra stuff? I say you get to the point of the song, and if you don't really hear a solo or have a good idea for one, why force one in there?
-No, What is a good concert! We're getting pretty close to an Abbott and Costello routine here, Thor! Actually, I'm not much one for concerts, I like a dark dive bar on a weeknight, and seeing a band you've never heard of before come out and impress you. That's about the most satisfying experience, I'd say....
-We used to have extensive contact with the fans, but the wives pretty much put an end to that! We have a website nowadays (www.chthree.com), so that's good way to get quick feedback from the folks....we try to get out there and play, it's interesting to see the old guys come out to the shows with their grandkids though!
-Onstage, I'd say it was the time Kimm got the brilliant idea to take the fire extinguisher off the wall and make his own fog machine, which then shorted out the electonics on all the gear and evacuated the club. No, wait, that was me......Okay, one time Kimm fell into the drumset and when he tried to stand up his belt loop caught the bass drum lug and he pulled the whole set up with him and stopped the show. Oh, wait a second......no, that was me again. Here's one--Once I went to see WASP and Blackie jumped off his platform and fell right on his ass. The he got up and said, "Well, you lucky Fuckers got even more than you paid for tonight! Thank You!" I stil use that line every time I fall down.
-I think if you're having fun up there it shows---we are not always the tightest band live, but we do seem to get the energy of the song across....
-Hmmmm....I think I know what you're getting at, but I'm not sure--let's come back to that one.
-Absolutly nowhere----has no meaning, though if someone out there has a good story we can tell these goddamned interviewers, we'll pay 'em for it!
anger fear or what?
-Yes, after the disbelief---and I don't know how else to describe it--it was pretty much anger. Having been fed so many violent images and Hollywood effects throughout your life, when you finally are confronted with true catastrophe, you just cannot believe what your eyes are seeing. Our leadoff track on the new cd, "Better Days" is about that....
-You kiss your kid goodnight a second time, after she's already asleep, because no one's safe!
-Hey, okay---howabout after that I wash your car and and then buy you a cheeseburger! Next time, I'll ask the questions, ya bastard---seems a lot easier than sittin here answering them!! Just kidding---You gotta know the Clash and Replacements are way up on the list, along with Aerosmith (Get Your Wings), Kiss (Alive) and Misfits (Walk Among Us)
Saw the Clash on Combat Rock Tour, 999 at the Santa Monica Civic with Dickies, Some Black Flag shows that truly felt dangerous--life threatening-at the time, and the time Blackie fell on his ass, of course.
In life, I have been known to favor: friendship, loyalty, Friday afternoons, charred steaks, cold booze
-Cosmos Factory was the first, Transplants was the last, and I'm selling Fear of Life on Ebay right now for 25 bucks! Actually, don't buy too much stuff, just burn some downloads, go beg at Bill's store.....
Y-ou mean the strategic raping and pillaging of someone else's painfully conceived creative notion for the shallow enjoyment of someone too obtuse to go out and purchase it themselves through proper channels? Nah, I'm all for it actually---as long as the music gets into the right hands, they're welcome to it. It's not like we ever made any real money from record sales.....we're just happy if the drunk guy in the front row knows the words to a song or two!
-The new cd is zipping right out of the gate----can you believe my Mother asked for a free copy? I told her to go get one herself--they got wheelchair ramps at Virgin Megastore--, so there's another sale right there! The old stuff (from when we're as most wellknown) still sell slowly and steadliy. Whenever we talk to Robbie Fields he emphasizes the slowly part....
-With grammar like this, it's never boring!
-Well, aren't you the thoughtful journalist! Hey wait a minute, you're tricking me into doing your job, ya sneaky bastard!
-Well, we continue to try to get word out about the new cd, and we shall be back on the road this Spring....looks like some shows with 999 on the West Coast, and some European shows around the Holidays in the Sun Festival in June.
-What? The goddamn question's not over yet?
-Onomatopoeia. It means the naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it. Ex: Buzz or Hiss. How's that for a wisdomword!
-Does your cheese have the holes in it naturally, or do you guys put them in after?