This week, we're renovating Trap Set HQ; so we're sharing one of our favorite episodes, featuring the great Carla Azar. This episode was recorded a few years ago. Carla is currently busy with several projects, including a new Autolux album. We'll return in August with some of our most intense episodes to date!
When he was eleven years old, Steven McDonald co-founded a band with his older brother, Jeff. That band, which soon became known as Redd Kross, became a fixture on the late 70s LA punk scene and--remarkably--is still active today. Steven tells Joe about: precociousness; opening for Black Flag at an eighth grade graduation party; the joy and pain that came along with identifying as a punk; having a romantic relationship with a 26-year-old woman when he was 13; hanging out with Raymond Pettibone; signing with a major label; working as an A&R consultant for major labels; how he reconciles his permissive childhood with modern parenting; playing with Melvins and Off!; working as a producer; and much more! This is an action packed, "triple-LP" length episode.
As a member of influential bands such as Jawbox, Burning Airlines, and Channels, J. Robbins exhibits an exceptional gift for unorthodox yet unforgettable vocal melodies counterbalanced with jagged, angular guitar hooks. For over 20 years, he's built a parallel career as an in-demand producer for artists such as: Faraquet, Braid, and The Promise Ring. This is one of our most emotionally intense and life affirming episodes.
Aaron Harris comes from a family of ship builders. Although he broke from tradition to become a drummer, his drumming is finely crafted and architectural, evoking images of a sleek and efficient sea vessel. Aaron tells Joe about: music as an escape; leaving his hometown; working as a bike messenger and at Boston institution, Newbury Comics; co-founding the influential band, Isis; moving to Los Angeles; his parallel career as a composer; and celebrating his impending parenthood.
This week, we're taking off for the holiday; so we're revisiting one of our favorite episodes, featuring the incomparable Sara Lund. Sara is still playing with Nocturnal Habits and Hungry Ghost. If you're in Portland and you'd like to study with Sara, please hit up our friends at Revival Drum Shop.