INTERVIEW ENTHUSIAST

Teenage Enthusiast: To start, what have you, as well as the other band
members, been up to for the past few months?

Hamish Rosser: I have fallen into a job as a TV presenter which keeps me occupied between gigs. I've also been playing in a glam-rock piss-take covers band called "Bigphallica". Its all hairspray, eyeliner, spandex and cucumbers in the pants as we bust out the hits of Van Halen, Guns n Roses, Motley Crue, Bon Jovi etc.. And some surfing in between. The other guys? - you'll have to ask them

TE: If you could let everyone know one thing about The Vines, what would it be?

HR: We're all getting sex changes to become a hot all-girl pop quartet and we're changing our name to "Sausage Party"

TE: They were some unconfirmed rumors on the web that you recently became a father. Are those rumors true and is there a little Hamish in the world?

HR: To the best of my knowledge these rumours are untrue. I severely doubt that I have any offspring either born or on the way but if there is someone claiming to be the mother of my child I'll happily supply the DNA to put an end to this silly rumour right away.

TE: Are there any songs from the Winning Days sessions which have not been released? Can you give any info on these tracks if they do exist?

HR: All the songs we recorded in Bearsville are on the album. We did, however rehearse for two weeks before recording and I think Craig has a few tapes of these sessions but they're old songs that were originally demoed when Dave Oliffe was playing in the band. We even tried combining "Landslide" and "Blues Riff". More recently Patrick and Craig recorded versions of "Going Gone" and "Give Up Give Out Give In" which have been released as B-sides

TE: Its also been said in the past few weeks that you guys have began rehearsing some new material lately... Do any of these new songs have names yet?

HR: Craig has written more than an album's worth of new material and we've made a few home recordings of these. The songs have names but I'm keeping them secret for now.

TE: Style wise, how do the new tracks sound? In what ways are they different (or the same) as the past two albums?

HR: When you hear them you'll know that they're Vines songs which have always been stylistically diverse. They range between spacey ballads, alt/country tunes and balls-out rockers

TE: Do you have a ballpark guess at all of about when can fans expect some new songs?

HR: I wish I knew. Probably not this year. Sorry

TE: Has the band thought about producers for the next album? Would you ever consider self-producing?

HR: We don't know who will produce the next album at this stage but it will almost definitely be recorded in Australia. Self-producing sounds too much self-indulgence to me.

TE: How, if at all, has Craig's diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome affected the band?

HR: Asperger's syndrome is something that Craig was born with and he's disappointed that no-one ever figured it out sooner. It was Tony, our long suffering English guitar tech who expressed a suspicion that Craig had this condition and it turns out that he's right. The doctor who confirmed this advised our management that touring is the worst imaginable environment for someone with Asperger's and the condition is responsible for Craig's infamous antics. As a result future tours, if any, will have to be planned with this in mind.

TE: Is the supposed chaos on tour as bad as the media makes it out to be?

HR: Craig is not the brat the media make him out to be. He's usually a quiet, polite guy who keeps to himself but of course this doesn't make for interesting reading so the press create some myths about the time he locked himself in the bathroom for three hours (twenty minutes actually) and kicked someone in the face (no injuries there). Sure there's chaos but if there wasn't then the tours really would be boring and monotonous

TE: What would you say is your singular best memory of your time in The Vines so far?

HR: There have been so many highlights but I shall regale you with a tale from the Aussie Invasion tour we did with Jet and The Living End. Our tour manager had previously worked for the Dandy Warhols, who live in Portland, so every time we play there we invite them to our show. The Dandies own a massive warehouse space in Portland called the Odditorium where they rehearse, record, make their videos, hang out and party. We received an invitation from Courtney Taylor (DW's singer) for us and Jet to have a dinner party with them at their warehouse and who else should be there but the Strokes! It turns out that they had a day off on in Portland on their tour, they parked their bus outside and set up their gear in the Odditorium to work on some new songs. So there we were - The Strokes, Dandy Warhols, Jet and The Vines all crowded around two massive tables enjoying a fine three course dinner and wine. It was a great to finally meet the Strokes who had become friends with the Dandies and Jet during the Australian Big Day Out festival in January 2004 and be able have conversations with them that are more meaningful than the brief encounters I'd had previously. After the gig that night we returned to the warehouse for a memorable after show bash which kicked on quite late.

TE: Can you give us all a quick hint of what fans can expect to come from The Vines in the near future?

HR: Rumours, gossip, scandal, arrests and celebrity girlfriends (in no particular order)

TE: If you had to pick one, what is your favorite place to tour?

HR: Our best crowds have always been in the UK but I love touring around continental Europe more than anywhere else. The European countries all have their own languages, history, delicious food, wine, art and the challenge of attempting to speak a foreign language. Places like Amsterdam, Paris, Bordeaux, Zurich, Milan and Stockholm are so much more memorable than Pittsburgh and Columbus. I do have a soft spot for New York though.

TE: Some news articles have said that Craig had written up to 300 in preparation for Winning Days. Is it true that you guys had that many and if so, what happened to all of them? Might you guys still use them in the future?

HR: 300!? More like 30 and you've already heard most of those. The plan now is to move forward and use all new material

TE: What will the tour situation be whenever the next album is released? Will there be a tour at all?

HR: Whoa whoa. One step at a time. Lets get the album out first then we'll talk about touring.

TE: On a lighter note, some people have made you out to be quite the ladies' man. Are you as fond of the groupies as they say?

HR: Ladies-yes. Groupies-no.

David Gringer, in addition to being one of coolest people I have ever had the opportunity to associate with, was Howard Dean's 2004 New Hampshire organizer as well as John Kerry's Minnesota 3rd District organizer. At age 23, he has worked on an astounding amount of political campaigns and already is viewed by some people as a rising star in the Democratic party.

Teenage Enthusiast: To start off, where did you grow up?

David Gringer: I grew up in Brooklyn, NY.

TE: Well where did you go to school, and what did you study?

DG: I attended the University of Pennsylvania and was a history major. I graduated from Penn in 2003.

TE: When someone asks you what you do for a living, what do you call your occupation?

DG: Great question, I usually just told people I was working for at first Howard Dean, and then John Kerry. In the general election I would often tell people I'm working to defeat George Bush. As for an occupation, I guess I don't really have one. I don't like to think of campaign work as an occupation--it's really just being an active participant in our democracy.

TE: What made you decide to go into this field and what advice would you give to someone who is considering entering this same arena?

DG: I decided that I had to do everything possible to defeat George Bush. My advice would be that given the tremendous amount of work entailed in being on a campaign, one should only do it if they believe strongly in the cause.

TE: How did you get started in it?

DG: I started when I was 16 years old on a State Senate race on the West Side of Manhattan. I highly recommend to anyone to start on a local race--you get a lot of responsibility immediately, and learn good political instincts.

TE: You were the NH organizer for Howard Dean's presidential run, What is your favorite memory from the Dean campaign?

DG: On Halloween of 2003, we had a huge Halloween party with the Governor there, and I dressed up as the Governor and delivered his stump speech verbatim. At the end, Governor Dean got on stage and raised my arm up in the air. The next day, The Note, a widely-read political journal, called my performance the highlight of the night.

TE: Dean was very much the front runner in the pack of Democratic candidates at the end of 2003 but at the primaries it seemingly all fell apart. I'm sure you probably asked yourself this a lot and I hate to bring it up, but what do you think went wrong?

DG: I think fundamentally our campaign was never able to broaden its base of support beyond our core group of enthusiasts. We were doing so well with who we had, we forgot that we actually needed more VOTERS to win the election.

TE: Would you support Dean becoming chairman of the DNC or a different candidate?

DG: I think we should wait and see what happens, I will always be, however, a Howard Dean supporter.

TE: What's something about Howard Dean that most people wouldn't expect?

DG: He really cared about the well-being of his staff.

TE: What is something interesting about the Dean campaign itself that people wouldn't expect?

DG: The campaign was filled with different types of people--not just young kids who knew how to use the Internet. There were rich kids, idealistic kids, political hacks, you name it. We did all really believe in Governor Dean, however.

TE: Why is it, do you think, the Democrats lost the election?

DG: I think ultimately, what is most instructive is in the Senate races we lost. The Democrats had candidates that frankly looked just like Republicans. As Harry Truman famously said, when Republicans run against other Republicans, Republicans win.

TE: How do you personally think they can overcome that and win again?

DG: People in rural areas think that Democrats will say and do anything to get elected. We need to nominate candidates who stand for something, and have a positive message to make people's lives better. Paul Wellstone was the perfect example. He won areas that no other democrat could win...not by pandering to the right, but by saying what he believed, and fighting for every one of his constituents.

TE: Kerry has hinted and his brother said its a strong possibility that he'd run again in 2008, would you support him becoming the Democratic candidate?

DG: Way too early to discuss.

TE: Have you or would you ever worked for a Republican Candidate?

DG: I have not worked for one, but I would consider working for one in the future if they supported policies I believed in and were the better candidate. I do like Mike Bloomberg the Republican Mayor of New York City. However, I would never support a Republican candidate for Congress no matter how moderate if they planned on supporting the current Republican leadership in either House.

TE: Its no secret you don't like George W. Bush. But in your eyes, is there anything he could do to redeem himself?

DG: He could announce his and the Vice President's resignation following the 2006 elections and do everything in his power to make sure the Democrats took control of Congress. That would mean Nancy Pelosi would be the new President. Seriously, I believe the President has sent troops to die for our country for a war based on lies. In my eyes that is unforgivable.

TE: I want you to think about this one. If you could say just one thing to a Bush voter, what would it be?

DG: You reap what you sow.

TE: Would you yourself, ever be interested in running for office?

DG: Absolutely.

TE: Although voter turnout for younger voters was up this election, it was still only 17% of the votes cast. Why do you think such a large number of young people are so apathetic towards politics?

DG: Well, that's something I am very puzzled about. I know in my region of Minnesota, on college campuses, they were running out of ballots because voter turnout was so high. From what I saw, young voter turnout was amazing. Maybe in the red states young voters didn't quite see the importance of their vote.

TE: If you did not have this job what job would you be doing?

DG: I'd probably be working for an urban redevelopment corporation. I love cities and seeing them improve.

TE: What do you do during the campaign "off season"? Do you even have an "off season" between campaigns or other work?

DG: This is my first off-season, I just filed for unemployment this morning.

TE: Among other things, you were Howard Dean's NH organizer and a Kerry-Edwards organizer in Minnesota. Where do you "live" during different campaigns in the country?

DG: I lived in the homes of various supporters. You never know on a Presidential campaign when you'll have to pack up and move, so you can't get your own place, even if you want to.


TE: Now, I want to steal a few lines from James Lipton....

What is your favorite word?

DG: Given

TE: What is your least favorite word?

DG: Over

TE: What sound or noise do you love the most?

DG: The New York City subway

TE: What sound or noise do you hate?

DG: Quiet

TE: What do you love most about your job?

DG: That when my kids read in a history textbook about what a terrible president George Bush was, I'll be able to tell them that their Dad did everything he possibly could to stop him.

TE: What do you dislike the most about it?

DG: Losing.

TE: If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

DG: Thank you for what you've done.

Recently, I got a chance to interview Lee Ranaldo, the guitarist of the musical group Sonic Youth. Sonic Youth has just released their 21st studio album entitled "Sonic Nurse" which is in stores now. Unfortunately, technological restrictions did not allow me to ask Lee follow up questions. But I would like to thank Lee for the opportunity none the less.


Teenage Enthusiast: What is your opinion of popular music today? Is the state of it better or worse than when Sonic Youth was founded?

Lee Ranaldo: It is just as good. You have to look around and find it.

TE: What do you think of new bands like The Strokes, The White Stripes and The Yeah Yeah Yeahs?

LR: I really like YYY's and The Liars a lot, among others. The 2nd Liars record is real good and under the radar.

TE: Popular music today as well as the culture in general is arguably more sexist and objectifys women more than ever before. How do you feel about this? Is it possible to stop or reverse this trend?

LR: Its F---ed up and only 1 example of the bogus moral path our nation (and hence the world) is travelling down. There are so many things wrong with the way we think, eat, live that its unbelievable.

TE: What about Sonic Youth are you most proud of? Are you ashamed of or would you change anything?

LR: I'm really happy w/ everything we've done- its all (good + bad) been part of the trip. Its been a very special ride we are still on.

TE: How do you see Sonic Youth’s music changing in the future? Do you foresee the band surviving for another 10 or 15 years?

LR: Who the F--k knows...

TE: What do you think of democratic presidential candidate John Kerry? George W Bush?

LR: I wanted Dean, Hate Bush- Will work for Kerry.

TE: What do you think the ideal relationship between politics and music (if any relationship at all) should be? Will Sonic Youth be doing any tours or special events for the election or voter registration?

LR: Voter registration at all gigs, Politix and music are strange bedfellows.

TE: What is your favorite Sonic Youth album and why? Favorite song to play live?

LR: No favorite other than most recent. I like em all a lot.

TE: What is your favorite part about playing live? Do you prefer being in the studio or being on tour?

LR: Fav part is the total, locked-in mass release we can achieve, taking the audience along w/ us (on a good night). Its a unique experience- not a reproduction.

TE: Which musician currently on the scene would you like to collaborate with the most?

LR: Oh I dunno, I have great collaborations w/ many that are fulfilling. Neil Young? Who Knows....

LR Mpls 07-29-04