Nancy Fullforce is a relatively new band. When did you form?
The band came together after the last band I was in, KILLRADIO,
disbanded a year or so ago. The drummer, Duke, and I always got
along really well and had very similar interests in music. We both
fans of bands like THE BRONX, MURDER CITY DEVILS, ROCKET FROM THE
CRYPT, etc… so when I started writing new songs and coming up with
the idea of a new band, he was the first person that came to mind to
ask about working on it all with. The other guys in the band, JAKE
CHAOS and ARMAND, have been friends of mine for years so they came
to mind right away when looking for musicians to do the shows with.
Previously, you were involved in the bands KillRadio and The
Confused. What was your background in music before those bands?
I
have grown up playing guitar and being involved in music since a
kid. I had played in the school band in middle school. It didn’t
last long though cause I was using a flying V guitar and playing
through the keyboardist’s amp whom I’d drown out in volume
constantly. So I ended up leaving that to start a band and play for
friends after school while in high school. It wasn’t until I moved
to San Diego as a teenager that I joined a couple bands and started
doing real gigs. Other than playing music, I’ve been involved in
music photography and journalism in the past. I’ve done work for
SKRATCH, BIG WHEEL, VICE and other random web press. I never thought
I was that great at any of that though, it was all just an excuse to
get into shows for free and meet the bands I enjoyed.
You DJ around town quite often, when did you start DJing and what
type of records do you spin?
I
started doing that when I’d have time off between tours with
KILLRADO. It was hard to maintain any sort of job while touring so
much that DJing just came up as just a way to make money. I’ve
always been one of those “music nerds” that owns a million albums
and was always making mix tapes for people. So it came pretty
natural to me and also it’s just really fun to do; playing all your
favorite songs to a crowd of people. I prefer to do more indie/punk/rock
n roll style of clubs or events, but also enjoy doing a good party
where people appreciate a good Sylvester or Madonna track right
after a Cazwell or KIDSONTV song.
One of your regular DJ gigs is at Chi Chi LaRue’s Dirty Deeds
at FuBar in
West Hollywood.
How did you get lined up with this crazy night, and what it your
favorite thing about it?
I
got that gig through my friend, Michael Schmidt. We met years ago
through Miss Guy of the TOILETBOYS and have good friends since he
moved out here from New York. He has seen me DJ places like Rage
and Sunset Junction so I guess when the “fill in” was needed for
when Chi Chi was away, I got the call. That night is seriously so
much fun- one of my favorite places to DJ. It’s like a little bit
of sleazy New York inside West Hollywood. Some of the stuff that
you see there never happens anywhere else in this city
unfortunately, so it’s a great experience for people looking for a
little shock value in a night out on the town. I really love the
sexual openness of it all and how it’s all just part of another
Wednesday night. I’m so glad to live in a city like that.
Nancy Fullforce recently played a show with The Randies and Girl in
a Coma. How did that show go? What did you think of those bands,
and what are some other bands who you would like to play shows with?
That was great! Both those bands were a lot of fun to hangout with
and I love ALEX’S down there in Long Beach. I’ve seen so many great
shows there as well. If I could have my fantasy of list of bands to
tour with I think it’d include CSS, DEATH FROM ABOVE (if they got
back together), YEAH YEAH YEAHS, PEACHES.
Your music is pretty fast, loud, and energetic. Who would you say
are your influences? Who writes the songs for Nancy Fullforce, and
what is the process normally used?
When we started we made it a point to avoid any slow songs. The
whole idea of the bad is to be a full throttle rock band and I think
we take a lot of our influence from bands like ROCKET FROM THE
CRYPT, BILLY TALENT or QOTSA. I usually come up with a riff or some
sort of messy order of a song then Duke will fix it with some magic
on the drums. We do all the music first and I usually adlib all the
words until it sticks. Sometimes he starts with a drumbeat and we
just jam it out until it’s done. We’ve been writing some new stuff
for the next EP lately and that seems to be how it’s coming about.
The track “Dead and Alive” was remixed by Mikey B, can you tell us
how that came about? How do remixes fit into the world of Nancy
Fullforce?
I
really enjoy a lot of electro music while DJing or just when out at
clubs. I don’t really have any interest though in being in a band
like that so I guess the remix came as a happy medium. Mikey B. is
a friend of mine from New York who’s a rad character of that city;
he also worked for Heatherette whom I love. So I knew he was the
perfect guy to make something I could spin in clubs but also would
be something still in the ballpark of the band. I’d love to do more
in the future for sure. As long as it’s not some house-music-raver-glowsticks
shit, I think it’ll fit into the Nancy collection just fine.
I
know you have an affinity for musical theatre. What are some ideas
you would have for a Nancy Fullforce show if you could do anything?
(Meaning no limitations on budget or resources)
You know, that was actually one of the initial ideas for the band.
I wanted to make a rock musical that didn’t suck and was edgy that
people who usual hate theater would enjoy. It’s still something I’m
keeping mind for the future. I’d love to keep the set up have when
playing live when we’re in the crowd in the set up for the play.
It’d be great to have the different stages of the show surround the
crowd the same way we do when playing as a band. I also picture
using a lot of video screens instead of stage sets to really make it
all visually exciting. So, yeah, eventually there could be
something to put together.
What’s the story behind the name of the band?
I
knew I wanted something with “Nancy” in the title to represent the
gay undertones and overtones of the band visual identity. Then when
I wrote a note to myself that listed ideas of the band, I wrote
“full force” to remember to keep the sound of it all as loud as
possible. So the two just looked good together and really
represented what I wanted the band to be.
I
know you have already recorded an EP. How can a person get their
hands on this? Can you tell us a little about it?
We
want to go around the usual process of putting out music. Instead
of trying to get signed or putting all of our money into printing up
CDs independently then complaining that everyone’s just downloading
it anyways, we figured we’d just work with that whole system. We
plan on just keeping any “releases” online as a digital album or EP
and then possibly printing up limited vinyl for sale at shows. No
real plans to struggle to get our Cd on the shelves of Best Buy
unless someone wants to offer.
What are your future recording plans? Touring?
Yeah, we’re going to record with Nick Jett again from the band
TERROR this Summer. Doing another 4 tracks or so as well as a
couple cover songs for some possible compilations coming out. We
hope to get that all up before we plan on heading to
Eastern Canada
for a small tour and surprise shows. The music scene is really
amazing up there and it’s such a nice area of the world to see. I’m
really looking forward to going back and hopefully stirring up some
trouble.
You do video editing a lot on your own, have you made any vides for
Nancy Fullforce, or do you plan to in the future?
We
actually just finished a video for “Dead & Alive” this past week. I
directed it with photographer Alicia Cheatham and Queerpunks.com
writer Jeremy Alva. We lucked out living in a city like Los Angeles
and managed to make a professional video with all borrowed equipment
and staff. It’s currently being edited but should be online in a
week or so. There’s a chance soon after it’ll be added to LOGO’s
NewNowNext program this Fall.
What do you think about the current state of the music industry?
Are digital downloads and all the new technology helping small bands
get started, or is it making it harder for new bands to stand out
amongst the thousands of other unsigned bands? What do you see
happening with mainstream music in 5 or 10 years?
I
think the internet all together certainly has made it easier for
bands starting out to get their music out to the people. On the
other hand, it’s hurt a lot of the process of how a band excels and
can grow. I think the whole thing is in a transition phase right
now and in 5 years or so music downloading will be working in some
way for everyone for the better. The hard thing about it now is
that labels all still rank a band’s success by album sales as well
as people on the business side of music such as booking agents and
press. I think it’s all sort of confusing for both sides right now,
the bands and the labels, but will eventually turn into a great
system of making and releasing music.
