Plowing Mud Forever
Words: Elextra - Images: Plowing Mud Forever
Words: Elextra - Images: Plowing Mud Forever
What are your goals within the band?
Wally: To make stuff that people will laugh at, dance to, have sex to, all that stuff. Just make people feel something, I guess...and to get shit off our chests...you know, lots of stupid shit happens to everyone every day, and some of them live their lives through music. Maybe we can make them laugh a little harder, shaking their heads, thinking, "yeah, them bitches know what's up."
Kirk: I think we both also try to make music that explores different territory than most of the stuff you hear on the radio. So many musicians write from the same formula and try to have the same sound and I can't get into bands that do that. So I try to write stuff that I think I would like to listen to, which is usually music that goes off in different directions and that can't be pegged down to one specific genre.
What are your goals outside of the band?
Wally: It'd sure be nice to make a living making music and not working a day job. I know our stuff'd be a lot better since we'd be putting 100% into it, rather than less than that...hey, it's tough working two or three jobs.
Kirk: That sums it up for me too. I'm not looking any farther than just breaking even at this point, because that's already a tough enough level to reach. If we can make enough money off the band to keep the band going as a self-supporting unit, that would be a dream come true. Speaking of self-supporting units, I have one of those in my pants. And I assure you, it is no dream.
What obstacles (if any) do you find get in the way of the band?
Aally: Well, we don't use a drummer, so a lot of times, people seem to shy away from us, just because of that. I think it's pathetic. Those rotten bastards. Like us for the music for fuck's sake. A lot of jazz, r&b, and classical musicians don't have drummers, how come they don't get the beef? I'll tell you why, cuz people are weird. People either really like us and think we're original or they hate us and think we're using a drum machine because we can't find a drummer. That's not true at all. Oh, and the day job's a major obstacle. Mine sucks and gets in the way for 40 hours a week. Boy, oh boy.
Kirk: It's not that we're against all drummers, or that we think they all suck and can't keep a steady rhythm if their lives depended on it, and we haven't ruled out using drummers in the future, but for this first album we wanted to just do our thing and create music without boundaries. And to be honest, writing, performing, and recording songs becomes a lot easier when you have less people involved in the process.
How did you hook up with burning stinging records?
Wally: Actually, Burning Stinging Records was founded by me and my business partner, Kirk, who's also in Plowing Mud Forever. You see, we wanted 100% control of our material, and this was a viable way to do it. Also, we get all the money in the end...mu-hahahah!
Kirk: Ah yes, we're just rolling in the dough. Naked! Unfortunately, my nipples got hard and poked tiny holes in all the money and now we can't use it. Frown.
What kind of priority rating is given to the making of cd covers/posters and other content used to promote?
Wally: We're always trying to make things look as professional as possible, so we put a great deal of time into making the visuals and music. In general, we're always trying to make things funny or eye-catching. I like to think, "hmm...what would I do or think if I saw that cd cover/poster?" and then I'd go from there. If I thought it sucked, I'd start over or spit on it. If it was good, I'd keep it and see if Kirk would spit on it. If he didn't, that meant that it was acceptable.
Kirk: If you don't like something, spit on it! If you don't like us, come to our show and spit on us! But buy our cd, dammit! I don't care if you like it or not. After you buy it, you can spit on it all you want.
Being independent, how important do you think it is to be aggressive in pushing cd and concert sales.
Wally: It's pretty damn important. We're always trying to get people to hear our stuff. We do giveaways at our show but since we're so brand-spankin' new, not many people know about us or even want free shit. That's so surprising to me. I figure that later down the line, after a few more shows, people'll start buying the cd and more will come to our shows. It's just a matter of time. But for now, things are a bit slow, and we both have day jobs. I'd like to continue to give away stuff though. If I was a fan, I'd sure like some free stuff.
Kirk: Even if I wasn't a fan, I'd take a free cd from somebody, even if it was just to mock and laugh at them. Hey, we're not above being mocked and laughed at. If we were, we wouldn't be doing this.
How is songwriting handled? What's the procedure of it?
Wally: Sometimes, I'll write a song, and Kirk'll make up the bass parts. Sometimes, Kirk'll write the song and I'll make the guitar. Usually, the person who writes the lyrics also makes the beats/ arrangement...then we'll bounce ideas off of each other and fine tune the sucker..
Kirk: One time Wally misinterpreted some lyrics I wrote and when I heard him misquote my words, I actually liked what he said better than what I wrote, so I changed it to what he said. But I didn't tell him, and I took all the credit for it anyway. Hahahahaha!
What are your upcoming plans?
Wally: Well, we're working on developing a more fun live show. Of course, we're always writing new stuff...we're just not recording it yet. We're also working on a video game that'll be on our web site. It's pretty dirty, and I'm not sure it'd be appropriate for kids. Then again, some of the songs on our new release, Super Happy Hammer Hour has some adult material, too...not too bad, though, if you ask me. It's all one big metaphor.
Kirk: Yep, a big metaphor for ass-fucking. Just look at the name, Plowing Mud Forever. What's that all about? If you have any idea, please tell me because I'd love to hear your interpretation. Speaking of which, we have some mildly perverted text games up on our website right now. You get to select what actions your character takes as you go along. There are no graphics, so you have to use your imagination. Nonetheless, they're fun because Wally and I wrote them. You can play these text games at www.plowingmudforever.com if you're a loser and have nothing better to do with your time. While you're at it, buy our cd, nerds.
Do you have any tour plans?
Wally: We were actually thinking of this...and figured we might do well in Canada, Europe, or Japan...more open-minded people there, compared to the us. Right now, we're just playing shows here in NYC.
Kirk: NYC has treated us much better than I thought they would so far. I thought we'd have to haggle with club owners for months before getting a show, but some of them have actually asked us to play at their clubs. I was amazed. Wally set it all up. He's the guy who's contacting the clubs right now, sending out promo packages. We're trying not to let them down, both trying to promote our live shows to get as many people there as possible. But that being said, every area has a certain style of music that prospers more than others. I don't think we fit that style here in NYC, so it's taking us a while to find the weirdos who would like our stuff. I'm sure they'll eventually creep out of the woodwork. And then the world domination will begin.
Do you have any favourite local bands, zines or venues?
Wally: Well, your Virus Zine looked purty when it was up...looking forward to seeing the new one...as for bands, not really...then again, I haven't really seen enough. Venues, well, I think I ultimately want to play Knitting Factory and Mercury Lounge. I do like Bowery Ballroom, to see shows, but it ain't cheap.
Kirk: I have to get out more and check out the local scene. There's a lot going on, and when you look at music from a local perspective you can find other people who are interested in creating unusual music. There's also the flip side to that coin, and you can end up seeing a lot of bands that suck. That being said, I can't say I have any favorite bands in NYC yet. Plowing Mud Forever is my favorite band! They rock, dude! They sound like Pearl Jam meets Kenny Rogers meets Gwar!
Describe your sound
Wally: You mean without sounding full of shit? Hmmm...weird noises, distorted guitars, melodic vocals, sampled drums...it's a mixture of alternative, rock, metal, grunge, punk, goth, industrial, techno, and ambient, twisted around a base, like a piece of licorice, dirty with lint and shit, cuz it fell on the floor and picked up all this stuff, and then eaten by some bratty kid.
Kirk: And if that doesn't give people a good enough idea of what the music sounds like, then they should check out the audio samples on our website. And they should do it as soon as possible, before this whole internet fad goes away. Here's the url once again to make it easy for even the laziest of readers: www.plowingmudforever.com. Go there now, you lazy pieces of crap! Just kidding. We love everyone.
Wally: Yes, love! Thank you, Virus Zine and Elextra!