Mike: First
off what's the combined age of everyone in the band?
SNAKE: Old.
ACTION: I think
118 years?
ROYAL: I guess
75, in hexadecimal.
PANTS: Can we
use Roman numerals? MCMLXXII
Mike: All
of you have been going to shows for awhile do you see a change
in local shows now from when you first started going?
ROYAL: There
used to be more of a concern about the cover charge, that's
pretty much out the window. Beyond that, it's still mostly comprised
of
sub-par bands who stick it out for a summer or two, but think
the world owes
them everything.
ACTION/SNAKE:
The only change I see is everyone gets younger and I get
older.
PANTS: I stopped
going. Who should I see? The Plain White Ts?
Mike: Do
you think that the scene suffered when Dave Eaves turned his back
on it?
PANTS: Did he?
I miss the cackle.
ROYAL: Turned
his back on it? He's been trying to SAVE it all these years!
He's working hard on bringing the Cornerstone festival to Fireside
since 1998.
ACTION/SNAKE:
Why are we still talking about Dave Eaves?!?
Mike: Where
do you like to play in Chicago?
PANTS: Fireside.
ACTION: I like
the usual stuff. Fireside, Prodigal Son, Mutiny. They're all
good places that have always been good to us. Always been good!
SNAKE: Anywhere
that will have us.
ROYAL: I agree.
I still like playing the Fireside after all these years. I wish
they didn't get rid of the Wrigleyside.
Mike: Where
do you not like to play in Chicago?
SNAKE: Anywhere
that won't let us play there.
PANTS: Fireside.
And Prodigal Son. Why doesn't Brian Petersen turn some
back? (Rob Reiner lookin' mutherfucker)
ACTION: Magoo's
Underground, nice place, nice people, but finding parking
gives me an ulcer!
ROYAL: I won't
say "disliked", but the show at the Big Horse was not
one of
my better Chicago memories. It wasn't completely the club's fault,
though.
Mike: Do
you prefer all ages shows or 21 and over ones?
SNAKE: I think
it doesn't really matter. Playing some bar shows, one group
of people will show up, and playing an all-ages show, another
group will
show up. But, I prefer to play stadium and arena shows.
ACTION: I don't
have a preference one way or the other. We try to do a
combination of both. Sometimes its fun to see kids go off, but
at times they
can be as jaded as 21+ crowds, sometimes its fun to see a bunch
of geezers gassed on booze at the 21+ shows. I guess it depends
on the how the crowd is acting and what kind of mood I'm in.
ROYAL: I still
like the all-ages show, but we're playing about 50% bar
shows, and we're doing well at both. I like almost any show where
people
attend.
PANTS: ALL.
Mike: What
bands do you like to play with?
ROYAL: In no
particular order: The Mashers, I Love Rich, The Arrivals,
Mushuganas, probably some others I can't think of right now. I
like to play
with out-of-town bands when they actually have the balls to show
up.
ACTION: The Mashers
are always great, I like playing with the Arrivals, and
the Matics. I Love Rich, and the Mushuganas are also some faves
to play
with.
PANTS: Mashers.
SNAKE: Why are
we still talking about other bands?
Mike: What
was the strangest show Mexican Cheerleader ever played?
PANTS: Three
weeks at the Sunset Motel.
ACTION: I don't
have any great war stories, but I thought a show we played
at the Big Horse where some gentleman showed up looking for the
Mexican
cheerleaders was amusing. Apparently, they wanted to see some
young,
skirt-wearing, pom-pom shaking girls, and instead, they got us.
Lately, I
have noticed that there are older wierdos showing up expecting
to see
cheerleaders of the Mexican variety. I'm not sure if they stay
to watch...
ROYAL: I think
our first show with the catfight ranks up there, or the show
in Carbondale with the pubic hair in the hotel room and the neighbors
barbecuing and the nasty prostitute. Of course, who can also forget
the
cameo appearance on the Goodyear blimp?
Mike: Why
did you decide to release your latest CD on 2 different labels?
PANTS: Did we?
SNAKE: Money.
No one had any.
ROYAL: When you
find two companies that are chomping at the bit to go
bankrupt as quickly as these guys, it's like that song "Room
Service", I can't say no... No!
Mike: I
saw that the band traveled to Colorado to record your CD. How
was that and why did you decide to go there and not record it
in Chicago?
ROYAL: Attica
Studios didn't renew their lease, and since 99% of the other
places in Chicago were putting out acoustic records and "Hot
August Night"
tributes, we skipped town for a while. I heard a few records done
by Matt
Van Leuven in Denver, and I wanted our record to sound like that.
Everyone
in Denver treated us like kings, of course. I think that's my
new runner-up
favorite city (sorry, Knoxville).
PANTS: Vacation
seemed like a good idea, and it was like touring, only by
plane. Our options locally had dried up until recently.
Mike: I
noticed that Mexican Cheerleader has not put out a 7". Is
there a reason for this?
PANTS: We are!
ACTION: Fear
not, a 7" on yet another label is on the way.
ROYAL: There's
actually some split 7-inches that have been in the works, but
you know how releases go. We gave a song to a label over a year
ago, and
it's still "coming soon"! I wanted to put out an EP
next year, but it looks
like it's blossoming into another full CD.
Mike: What's
so different about being in Mexican Cheerleader than the previous
band that all of you were in?
ACTION: The big
difference between this band and my old band is that Mexican Cheerleader
is not only good mechanically, but we are also good mentally.
PANTS: Less hassle,
less fans, but we're working on both.
ROYAL: A lot
less porn in the van.
Mike: What
was the last great album that all of you have purchased?
SNAKE: Either
Cave In "Jupiter", or Queens Of The Stone Age "S/T",
or Isis
"Celestial". Don't make me choose.
PANTS: "Futuristic
Dragon" by T. Rex. Masterpiece.
ROYAL: "Blastronaut"
by the Lee Harvey Oswald Band in 1996. Yes, it's been
that long for great albums. Don't kid yourself.
ACTION: The last
truly great album(s) that I purchased would be AC/DC's
"Back in Black", or Guns-n-Roses "Appetite For
Destruction". I got them at
Sam Goody's in the summer of 2000. Socially, my stock has been
on the rise
ever since.
ROYAL: Why, why,
WHY are we still talking about those records?
Mike: Where
do you like to purchase your music?
PANTS: Cletus.
ACTION: I live
in a small town in Michigan. There are not any good stores to
go to there. I get some stuff from Amazon.com. If I see a band
and they are
selling their stuff, I try to get it from them. If I'm in Illinois,
I go to the Record Breakers in Hoffman Estates. Those guys are
good!
ROYAL: I can
get good collector items off of Ebay. Besides that, I'll go
wherever they have what I'm looking for.
SNAKE: Anywhere
that likes to overcharge. I'm a huge fan of the $19.98 CD!
Mike: If
a Mexican Cheerleader song could have either been featured in
Good Burger or Dude where's my car which one would you choose?
PANTS: "Good
Burger" fucking rocks. Those kids are genius. Shaq was in
that movie. Can you believe it? SHAQ.
ACTION: I'll
go "Dude" on this one. They had a dog that smoked pot
in that
movie. Funny.
SNAKE: Neither.
We're quality and both those movies suck.
ROYAL: Is there
any way we could get a deal for the original "Brian's Song"
instead?
Mike: Any
last words to wrap
ACTION: No.
SNAKE: Yo yo
yo.
PANTS: Fuck Shaq.
Brian Urlacher is the Shit.
ROYAL: Chemical
Blue discography coming soon on Johann's Face! And bring back
the all-you-can-eat crabs.
for more info on Mexican Cheerleader please
visit: www.mexicancheerleader.com
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