Interview Monty Colvin (Galactic Cowboys)

As I promised to y'all I did a follow up interview with Monty Colvin of the Galactic Cowboys. We spoke in 2009 and my timing was perfect because after an hiatus of 9 years they decided that same year to do some reunion shows. Unfortunately the reunion didn't bring them to Europe. So Needle Dose was curious how those shows went and more importantly, the current status of the band!

But first of all another question came into my mind. I was curious about their former producer/manager Sam Taylor. Taylor produced the first two albums of Galactic Cowboys, but he also had King's X and Atomic Opera under his wing. Some strange rumours were going on about the role of this man and the influence he had on the scene back then.

Who was Sam Taylor and how did he get involved with Galactic Cowboys?

I met Sam Taylor around 1988 when he had just started managing King's X. I was friends with those guys and Sam had helped to get them signed. I had heard he had worked for ZZ Top before that, but that's about all I knew. When I joined the Awful Truth, Sam started working with us too and produced our demos. After I decided to leave the Awful Truth, Sam told me if I got a new band together to give him a call and he'd consider managing. A couple months later, I had Galactic Cowboys up and running and he loved what we were doing. He ended up not only managing us, but producing our first 2 CD's, put us on the road with King's X and helped get us a huge contract with Geffen Records. At first things were great. Sam had some excellent ideas about song arrangement and studio production. But as time went on I felt more and more controlled and intimidated by him and things just got really uncomfortable. Everything stopped being fun. I can't begin to go into everything, but our relationship with Sam ended rather badly. He went on to produce some other bands, and we got new management and made 4 more cd's. In my opinion, Sam was a very talented man who helped us a lot. I will always be thankful to him for that. All that said, I also have a lot of regrets.

How did these reunion shows go, there were four I believe?

 The reunion shows went pretty well. I had a lot of fun playing with those guys again. We did 3 shows. Dallas, Austin and Houston, Texas.

How was it to play together again with your old bandmates?

It was great. We hadn't played together in 10 years, but things came together pretty quickly. We practiced for 3 days before the first gig. I honestly had totally forgotten how to play some of those songs, but it all went well by the time we got in front of people. I wish we could have had more time to get ready, but it was a fun time on stage.

What were your feelings/emotions after those shows were over?

Well, my feeling was that it was just a great experience. I think it healed a couple wounds for me. It was a chance to do it all again without any pressure, and to just enjoy it. I feel like I've changed a lot as a person since 1990, and it was good to just relax and enjoy playing.

How did you guys part ways this time?

At first it was good. I talked to a couple of the guys about doing more shows. But since then there has been no talk. From what I hear, Ben took the GC website down and no one has contacted me about doing anything else.

What is the current status of Galactic Cowboys? Any plans?

I'd have to say GC is pretty much dead at this point. There are no plans to do anything. I'd still be open to doing something again with those guys, but I'm not expecting it to happen. I gave that band all I had for 10 years. I have many regrets about it, but I've moved on. I've got good memories and some bad. But we got to do some cool things....made some good music...and I'm glad I got to do it. It's a shame that we couldn't just make another CD someday, but there's probably just too many personal issues preventing it. 

How's it going with your band Crunchy?

I'm hoping to start recording some new songs at some point. I've been busy with other things the past year. I do a podcast that is on my website and I've been having fun TALKING about music. However, I do have some new guys who play live shows with me and I'm excited to play more Crunchy shows. The vocals are killer, and they bring a whole new excitement to the stage.

What are you listening to these days?

My favorite album of 2011 was by Times Of Grace. I'm a huge Killswitch Engage fan, and it was right up my alley. I also like Of Mice And Men. Their cd, The Flood was amazing. I thought the new Megadeth cd was really good. Black Country Communion put out a great album, and Glenn Hughes sings like a freaking GOD on it. 

How's your art career going?

It's been alright. I sell paintings off my website. I do commissions once in awhile. People will want me to paint their kids portraits. And I'm doing a book cover for someone at the moment. I've also done some mural things the past few months, like painting logos on people's walls. I enjoy that kind of stuff. If anyone is interested, drop me an email.

Anything you like to add?

Be sure and check out my podcast. It's very entertaining, if I say so myself. I enjoy turning people on to new music, and possibly giving them a good laugh in the process. Feel free to email me and ask questions, give me your comments, or whatever. I'm a pretty nice, down-to-earth guy for the most part.

Website: http://www.montycolvin.net/

Interview Last Crack

There are bands who suddenly seem to disappear completely off the radar. They release an album that you cherish, you share it with your friends, you feel part of something special and then..total silence. Last Crack was one of those bands. After seeing the cover of their Burning Time I just knew that their music had to be something different. Their music was intense, spiritual, the guitar playing was incredibly unique and on top of that was their singer Buddo, who sang like a kind of alternative Bono, very passionate and with a sincere concern for mother earth and love. And I can honestly say that even today there isn´t a band who sound anything like them.

Last Crack was part of a very healthy alternative scene in the early 90´s. A period which seems a little bit forgotten in history, but which created a lot of unique bands. There were no boundaries and a lot of different genres were mixed. Their debut album was Sinister Funkhouse #17 (1989) and it was immediately evident that something was going on here. The album created some buzz, Aardschok magazine loved it, and in 1991 Last Crack released their magnum opus: Burning Time.

Burning Time gathered positive reviews from all over the world and seemed to mark the big breakthrough. But..nothing happened. Their was a long silence and then suddenly in 2002 there was a one off reunion show. In 2004 Last Crack was flown in to do a show in Amstelveen. A second life was in sight and new, very promising demos appeared on the internet. Awesome new tracks like Greta Grinder and Siren Song raised high expectations for a new album. But again, nothing happened. In 2009 I tried to get in touch with Last Crack´s very charismatic singer, Buddo. After some searching I found him and was delighted I found him and very happy to give me an interview.

Buddo,what are your memories looking back at the early 90's? In my opinion it was a very healthy period music wise. There were no boundaries and everything seemed possible with bands like Jane's Addiction, Mind Over Four, Rapscallion en King's X.

I just came out of my alternative punk phase. I listened to bands like Fear, Desecendents etc. When I auditioned for Last Crack I had this idea of mixing alternative rock with metal. I didn't like typical 80's metal like Poison or Warrant. I just moved to Austin when I auditioned and Austin had a very healthy underground scene with bands like Glass Eye or Zeitgeist.I wanted to use the intimacy and roots of those bands and combine it with the power of punk and metal. I loved Jane's Addiction from the first second I heard them and really thought they re-invented hardrock. Soundgarden was important and so was Mother Love Bone. When Last Crack first started touring the focus really was on the music. You didn't had internet like nowadays and I was still listening to tapes on my Sony walkman. It was really a healthy time where risks were taken. Most important for me though was the end of hairrock domination hahaha!

Did you guys realise at the time you were doing something unique?

Funny that you ask me this. Don Bakken (guitarist) used to say at the time that our music was unique. I didn't believe him at the time. I just thought we were a metal band because my perspective on the whole scene was different because of my hardcore/punk background. The other guys loved bands like Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin and Van Halen. Paul Schluter (guitarist) was heavily into metal and always brought in the hardest music possible. I think what eventually came out of this formed Last Crack. Not until years later, and the band didn't exist anymore, I realised how special we were.

Don't you think that many people have forgotten how much beautiful music was being made in the early 90's and that this period got stuck between the hardrock from the 80's and the current musical era?

Yes..I do. The 80's was a time of excess, stadiumrock. After that, rap took over. And somewhere in between the alternative scene came up..but that was short lived. We have to give credits to bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam and Chris Cornell for not giving up between al those fake popmusic.

When I listen to Last Crack I hear a lot of love, spirituality and a deep concern for this planet coming out of your songs. Agree?

As far as my lyrics go; i always try to express my personal and private emotions. I always compare myself to a coal miner who digs deep to get the precious diamonds to the surface. A lot of my lyrics came out of meditation. I always saw the stage as an altar, a holy place.

Do you feel Last Crack got enough recognition over the years?

I think we would've gained a lot more if we stayed together. It's simply our own fault for not being able to keep this band together. But everyday I'm blown out of my chair from the messages I get from fans all over the world. We are very grateful that there are many people today who are listening to our music and remember us.

* I recently talked to guitarist Paul Schluter. Almost a whole new album was recorded in 2005 but is still in the vault. I was fortunate to hear 5 complete songs and I can already tell you that it would be a pity if they never see the light of day! I hope to publish a follow up interview with Paul here on Needle Dose as soon as possible*

Interview Galactic Cowboys

I think it was around 1991 I was reading a review in Aardschok magazine..a review that seemed impossible to me: it was about a new band from Houston, Galactic Cowboys. According to the review they were a mixture of old school Metallica and the harmonies of The Beatles and CSNY. I remember vividly trying to imagine how that would sound, but I couldn't figure it out. So the next weekend I went to Utrecht to my favorite record store White Noise (r.i.p.) and listened with open jaws to their debut album. It was a mindblowing experience and their next album Space In Your Face even took their unique sound to an extreme. Major label Geffen didn't know what to do with them, but Metal Blade became their new home and GC continued to release great albums. At The End of The Day was their magnum opus on which all these elements came to an ultimate high but unfortunately they released their last album, Let It Go, in 2000.

In 2009 I tracked down bassplayer/vocalist Monty Colvin. My timing was perfect because they were just talking about playing some local reunion shows. As a prequel to a new follow up interview this is what we talked about in July 2009.

Can you describe the scene in Houston back in the day? It seemed there was something in the water over there. You had all these great bands like Galactic Cowboys, King's X and Atomic Opera who all, strange enough, had a great love for The Beatles in common.

I was a huge Beatles-fan. I remember very well that my brother came home with the Sgt. Peppers album. Also; my parents played a lot of gospel music. So I was a fan of vocal harmonies from a very early age. Then I discovered trash metal in the 80's and I thought it was awesome to try to mix all those influences. King's X were already friends of ours by then and they also loved The Beatles. But I wanted GC take it more into a trash direction.

You signed with major label Geffen. How do you look back on that period?

We were very excited when we signed the deal. They promised to make us the biggest band on the planet. We were quite naive and believed in the whole picture. In the end, they did very little for us and eventually we got stuck between Guns 'n Roses and the whole grunge movement.

When Machine Fish (1996) came out Wally Farkas became the new guitar player. In my opinion your sound became a lot more poppier, don't you think?

The songs were already written when Wally joined the band. Because of the lack of success we had strong doubts about the musical direction. After Machine Fish we started experimenting with different styles and yes, we became more poppy. Our drummer/producer Alan Doss wanted us to sound more mainstream, like Stone Temple Pilots. Besides that I think we all grew tired of the fact that we were still considered as only a simple metal band.

How do you look back on that musical era, say early 90's? In my opinion there were no musical boundaries anymore.

As far as the 90's goes; I was sick of that whole Seatlle thing going on. It seemed that the general thought was that everything had to be depressive, everything was so serious. Of course; great music was released but rock 'n roll is supposed to be fun, you know? Nowadays I'm not sure what alternative means anymore..but there are a lot of great bands out there.

I always had the feeling you guys quit to soon. At The End Of The Day was a great and complete album that sounded like a fresh start to a future with lots of possibilities.

I've put 10 years of my life in that band. We released 6 albums and it brought us nowhere. Also; I had the feeling that we were still seen as King's X little brother. When Let It Go came out we weren't really a band anymore..We went our seperate ways and in fact Let It Go were 3 solo albums under the Galactic Cowboys flag.

What was the reason the band split up?

We were simply frustrated. Tours got canceled, we got zero promotion for our albums and for me personally it was the time to do other stuff. I already had a lot of songs for a solo record and my heart wasn't in GC anymore. Only singer/guitarist Ben Huggins wanted to continue, but Alan was already out of the band. That was the end of it.

What are your memories of Holland? You played on Dynamo Open Air 1995?

That was a great period! The stage was huge and the crowd gigantic. I remember it was raining very hard that day but it suddenly stopped when we started our gig. I also remember the Stuck Mojo gig because I was watching in the pouring rain. I would love to play there again.

What are all the ex-members doing nowadays?

Alan is a producer. Wally has a cd mailorder company and Ben is a soundman and has his own band Gristle. I have my own band Crunchy and released 3 albums. Also I have a live radio podcast named Monty's Rockcast. In that show I talk about music, popculture and it's the best podcast ever hahaha! It's a great show for everybody who loves great music and wants to have a laugh!


Discografie Galactic Cowboys:
* Galactic Cowboys (1991)
* Space In Your Face (1993)
* Machine Fish (1996)
* Feel the Rage ep (1996)
* The Horse That Bud Bought (1997)
* At The End Of The Day (1998)
* Let It Go (2000)



Websites:
www.myspace.com/montycolvin
http://www.galacticcowboys.com/


*Galactic Cowboys reunited in 2010 for 4 reunion shows in the Houston area. How these shows went, how they seperated afterwards and what the current situation is I hope to inform you soon in a little follow up interview with Monty*

Interview with Rebekah Gonzalez (Metal Assault Radio)

Her nickname on radio is Bestial Bekkah. If that doesn't give you an indication about what she does you should listen to Metal Assault Radio. Disturbing The Peace is the name of her own metalshow, based in the Seattle area. Of course, nothing is cooler than playing your favorite metal tunes live on air while headbanging in the studio..but what I find most amazing is her age. In her early twenties, Rebekah knows so much about metal that in fact I find it a bit threatening! I got to know her around 2009 and on and off kept in touch since then, sometimes swapping some short messages, especially about her love for Dutch deathmetal band Pestilence. And in this case: a real interview!

How did your love for metal start?

Well let’s see…I was around 11 years old, living with my father at the time. He had this console with many cd's and a stereo. The music selection was mainly Latino artists with the occasional rock choice until I came across a sealed CD and like any curious kid I wanted to unwrap it as soon as possible. This life changing compilation was Black Sabbath’s We Sold Our Soul For Rock ‘n’ Roll. I was not aware of what it was and had not been told about this band yet despite the fact that at the time I was already listening to a few bands like Rush, Def Leppard, etc. Even so, nothing had yet held the dark sound that Black Sabbath had to offer me. I popped that baby in not knowing that my life would be changed from that very first time I heard War Pigs. The next album to come into my possession was Judas Priest’s live album, Metal Works. This took me to a different spectrum of metal, thus making me realize I had a lot of discovering and hunting to do in the world of metal, a journey I am still on today.

How did you get involved with Metal Assault Radio?

Before Metal Assault Radio I had worked for another metal site as a DJ. After that ended I decided to take a break for awhile and focus on some other things. I was contacted by a few sites looking for DJs, M.A.R. being one of them. At the time I was not interested in doing live radio (I pre-recorded my shows on the old site) for several reasons, so I kind of stewed in the idea for awhile and/or declined the opportunities. A little later I posted on my Twitter account links to download a few of my old issues just to share with some past listeners, as well as new. The owner of M.A.R. saw the link, downloaded and listened to one, then contacted me again asking if I’d like to work with M.A.R. He offered to let me do a pre-recorded show if that would make me feel more comfortable to come on board, thus I accepted. That lasted about 1 or 2 issues until I decided I didn’t want to deal with it anymore and started doing live, whereas I still am today and loving it!

In what area is the show broadcasted?

If you have computer and internet access, you can enjoy M.A.R. at any hour of any day in any part of the world. ;) However, if you are interested in any particular DJ’s show and the hours of their show, all of our schedules are available at the website. If you tune in at a point when none of us are on the air then you can enjoy The Pit, our Auto DJ.

How many listeners are there approximately?There is an average of about 2,000 - 2,500 a day, reaching between 90 - 100 different  
countries. Naturally some days are better than others, and some hours of the day peak over others

Is the show dependent of sponsors?

Nope! Not dependent on them at all. The site does work with some great record labels etc.


What do you think of metal nowadays?

Ooh hard question to tackle well metal today is certainly not what I would like it to be, haha. I am very proud of the local scenes, especially where I am from, Seattle. I think local scenes seem to be where the majority of the talent is hidden nowadays. It is clear that thrash has had a major comeback and to be honest I’m not sure if it’s really a good thing or not. I am happy that it did because it’s nice to see some of the classic bands getting back out on the road again and touring. However I feel that the majority of the newer thrash bands have hopped on this wave while seeing it possible to excel. That does NOT go for all of them though. There are some that are incredibly impressive and talented. As far as other genres go...I can’t stand any type of “core” metal. It needs to have its own name and label and should not be associated with metal whatsoever. I am most certainly not talking about grindcore though, that shit slays!

What are your favorite bands?

I know that this is a hard question for almost anyone to answer, but as always I will try my best to mention the key bands that come to mind even while my mind is going a mile a minute! A few of the bands that hold great importance to me are Agalloch, Iron Maiden, Death, Windir, Rush, King Diamond/Mercyful Fate and Pink Floyd. Although there is a wide spectrum of music that I enjoy, I feel that this mini-list is a well rounded one. ;)

Are you a fulltime DJ? If not, what do you do besides the show?

I do not DJ fulltime, however that would be killer! I had worked for the same company outside of M.A.R. for about 3 and a half years. That part of my life has ended, and I am now on a new excursion in life. I was daytime jobless for a few months before I stumbled upon the opportunity, brought on by a friend, to work for the band Queensrÿche. I worked for them as a roadie over the summer and that was amazing.

What is the focus in your program?

There is not a constant main focus to my show. Some weeks I have a theme and some are more random. I am open to requests some weeks more than others depending on if I am trying to keep a theme or not. There have been times where I’ll focus on death metal for an hour, thrash metal the next and then black metal for the last. I like to focus on a certain region sometimes also, for example I’ve done 3 hour shows on strictly German metal ranging from bands like Running Wild to Necronomicon to Airwolf to Exumer to Masterplan.

How long does Metal Assault excist?

Metal Assault Radio was established in May of 2009. I feel honored to have started here so early and have been able to see the many great doors open for M.A.R. as well as growth and change.


What is your top 10 album list ever?

As hard as this is to do

Morbid Saint - Spectrum of Death
Iron Maiden - Somewhere In Time
Atrophy - Socialized Hate
Death - Individual Thought Patterns
Windir - Sóknardalr
Dissection - Storm Of The Light's Bane
Agalloch - The Mantle
Agalloch - Ashes Against The Grain
Agalloch - Pale Folklore
Terrorizer - World Downfall


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http://www.bestialbekah.wordpress.com/