GUNPOWDER ROAD: An interview with American band Chaos Of Birds!

 

Part 1 - "THE INTERVIEW"

 

1 - What was your earliest musical memory and what inspired you towards perusing a career in music?

 

Meghan: "I remember sitting in the car with my mother listening to '50 Ways To Leave Your Lover' by Paul Simon and my feet barely hung over the seat, so I know I was really young. By the time I was about seven I knew I was going to be a musician, it might have been Andy Gibb that made me pursue that idea at first."

 

Will: "My earliest musical memory is of my Fisher-Price record player, my poor mom, I mean who wants to listen to Davy Crockett at six AM for two years straight? I wore the groves off that thing. My pop got me into music, we restored this acoustic guitar he found in the trash in the seventies and taught me a few chords. It's been downhill ever since."

 

Nicole: "I remember watching my dad trying to learn to play the trumpet when I was a toddler. I though it was amazing to watch that shiny thing make loud noise."

 

Matt: "Watching my dad play honky-tonk on a Cadillac-green hollow-body Gretsch."

 

2 - Had you been involved with any other bands prior to Chaos of Birds?

 

Meghan: "Special K, Mavis Piggott."

 

Will: "Ha, none you've heard of..."

 

Nicole: "Mavis Piggott, Fire Party and Special K."

 

Matt: "Yes, a few. Grave Tulips, Wild Easy Mom, INICU, Scythian, Stone Killers, Mind, Gutwrench, Dixie Lowell and the Mississippi Mudfish. Royal Trux, Sawdust."

 

3 - How did Chaos of Birds begin?

 

Meghan: "Chaos Of Birds began in 2004 when Will and I decided to start playing music together. We moved out to LA from DC to play with some friends that lived out there and we recorded the EP, but it didn't work out. The timing was wrong, the city was wrong. We moved back to DC and kept playing out. Then we relocated to Oakland and resurrected it with Nicole and Matt."

 

4 - Where did the name Chaos of Birds come from?

 

Meghan: "The name came up when I was telling a friend about this weird bird magnetism I have. I've been chased by crows, harassed by turkey vultures, dive bombed my sparrows and finches. I had a bird fall out of the sky and die at my feet. There's something going on there that I don't understand. It's the 'Chaos of Birds'."

 

5 - How would you describe the sound of Chaos Of Birds?

 

Meghan: "Filthy, swampy Goth rock."

 

Matt: "Swamp rock."

 

Meghan: "See, it's swampy."

 

6 - Who would be your dream collaboration?

 

Meghan: "I can't possibly answer that question. There are literally hundreds of people, alive and dead, that I would want to collaborate with. Chopin? Jimmy Page? Howlin' Wolf? Peter Murphy? I could go on and on."

 

Will: "What, only one? How about R.L. Burnside inviting Frank Black over to his place. And Frank would pick up Toots and the Maytals on his way of course."

 

Nicole: "Why dream when the present is fantastic?"

 

Matt: "Tom Waits."

 

7 - Any new songs in the pipeline?

 

Meghan: "The pipeline is all new songs. There's a pipeline a mile long completely packed with tunes."

 

Will: "Always."

 

8 - When can fans be expecting a new single, EP or album?

 

Meghan: "We'll be recording a single in December in Manchester with Eromeda Records and then hopefully a new album shortly after."

 

9 - Any live dates coming up?

 

Meghan: "We will be touring the UK the first two weeks of December!"

 

10 - Who would be in your dream super group?

 

Meghan: "Elizabeth Fraser, Johnny Marr, Budgie and Simon Jones from The Verve. And Tricky. And they are all my minions."

 

Will: "I'd pay a days hard earned wages and then some to see Earl Hines lay it down with John Hartford and John Hurt. I'm sure being dead wouldn't stop any of them."

 

Matt: "Me (on bass, because it's my dream), Peaches and Luz Interior (vocals), Eddie Hazel (guitar), Bonzo (drums) and Flavor Flav (playing whatever he wants)."

 

Part 2 - "THE QUICKFIRE ROUND"

 

1 - Favourite Beatle?

 

Meghan: "George."

 

Will: "The Mocker."

 

Nicole: "George."

 

Matt: "John."

 

2 - Favourite band?

 

Meghan: "Siouxsie and the Banshees? Zeppelin? Bauhaus?"

 

Will: "Currently, The Foghorn String Band."

 

Nicole: "Led Zeppelin."

 

Matt: "Iggy and the Stooges."

 

3 - Favourite new band?

 

Meghan: "Savages."

 

Will: "George Frakes, that dude can play."

 

Nicole: "Savages."

 

Matt: "Savages."

 

4 - Favourite song?

 

Meghan: "The Killing Moon - Echo and the Bunnymen."

 

Will: "Currently it's Church Bell Blues by Luke Jordan."

 

Nicole: "Under Pressure - Queen and David Bowie."

 

Matt: "Smokestack Lightnin' - Howlin' Wolf."

 

5 - Favourite album?

 

Meghan: "Hyaena - Siouxsie and the Banshees."

 

Will: "Currently Northern Charms by Sean McArdle."

 

Nicole: "Pretenders - Pretenders."

 

Matt: "Rock For Light - Bad Brains."

 

6 - Vinyl, CD or download?

 

Meghan: "All of these are good."

 

Will: "Yes please."

 

Nicole: "All of the above."

 

Matt: "Vinyl and download."

 

7 - Style icon?

 

Meghan: "Keith Richards."

 

Will: "I refuse to answer that questions on the ground that I don't have no style."

 

Nicole: "Clean clothes."

 

Matt: "What?"

 

8 - Favourite clothing brand?

 

Meghan: "Ann Demeulemeester."

 

Will: "Is this a trick question?"

 

Nicole: "Alabama Chanin."

 

Matt: "Thrift Store."

 

9 - Favourite film?

 

Meghan: "Being John Malkovich."

 

Will: "Dr. Strangelove."

 

Nicole: "After The Wedding."

 

Matt: "The Warriors, 1979."

 

10 - Favourite TV show?

 

Meghan: "Sherlock Holmes, with Benedict Cumberbatch."

 

Will: "Never touch the stuff though I did watch a fair bit of the Twilight Zone when I was a kid."

 

Nicole: "Freaks and Geeks."

 

Matt: "The Wire."

 

11 - Who would play you in a film of your life?

 

Meghan: "Tilda Swinton."

 

Will: "Anyone willing to take the job I suppose."

 

Nicole: "Cate Blanchett, seriously."

 

Matt: "Christopher Walken."

 

12 - Favourite food?

 

Meghan: "Ethiopian."

 

Will: "Take some good thick wheat bread, toast it, butter it, and slather in in peanut butter, experience bliss."

 

Nicole: "Kale."

 

Matt: "Burritos."

 

13 - Football team?

 

Meghan: "I am not allowed to have one lest I make enemies."

 

Will: "Whomever is losing."

 

Nicole: "If I told you, you might kill me..."

 

Matt: "My daughter's eleven year old girls team, The Wombats!"

 

Hope you enjoyed this feature on Chaos Of Birds! Check out our previous feature on Casual Agenda!

 

Check out Chaos Of Birds here - https://www.facebook.com/Donetomyself

 

You can also like our Facebook page to keep up to date with all future interviews at the following link - https://www.facebook.com/aldorabritainrecords

 

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