DIRTY CAKES
Charley (Guitar) and Jonathon (Drums)the Los Angeles band Dirty Cakes, answered a little Email interview that TiTT sent them. It certainly was interesting to see the answers! We are sharing them with you here!
TiTT asked; Does flannel make you write harder?
Charley answered; “Rock and Roll at its core is about one thing, and one thing only… SEX. It’s also about Drugs and The Devil, but those are ONLY a means to an end. By definition, being a Rock Star is sexy… and nothing but NOTHING, is more Rock Star than jeans and a T-shirt with a leather jacket!
As the great warrior poets Saxon once said…’Denim and Leather brought us all together, it was you that set the Spirit Free.’
We live in the promised land, Los Angeles, and when it gets frigid cold, when our bones are shaking and our fingers get numb, you know, around 50F, flannel is great for warmth… its comfortable, practical and a good set of flannel can be your best friend when you’re alone and the world doesn’t make any sense.”
Jonathon added; “Well, it definitely adds to the chaffing when I’m playing drums in my flannel long johns. I don’t know about writing harder, but it definitely allows us to sweat harder which makes the cake that much dirtier…and saltier.”
TiTT readers like salt….
TiTT told Dirty Cakes that they had baked a cake yesterday, it was flat! Our readers need to know, why are yours Dirty?
Charley didn’t mince his answer; “We have a very strong punk rock ethos, we believe in the classic grunge philosophy of sarcastic metaphor and antiphrasis. If either of us were ever the epitome of our namesake, it would probably be the end of us.
Jonathon took it to the toilet; “Many assume it’s a reference to urinal cakes or erotic cakes in the shape of genitals. To be honest, I feel our name has a long-standing and rich cultural ancestral meaning associated with the poorest of the poor who wish they could afford EZ bake ovens.”
We here at TiTT listened to the Dirty Cakes EP. Queens Of The Stone Age are obviously a big influence, but, we hear Creedence Clearwater Revival and David Bowie too. Can you see your sound changing and evolving over time like QOTSA and Bowie?
Charley answered first; “First off, BRAVO and thank you for putting us in such immaculate company with some our greatest influences. Our sound will most definitely evolve, we’re excited about our upcoming EP and the growth that it will show between us. It will hopefully garner in a whole new slew of fans and educate the children on some of the finer, more psychedelic shades of the devil’s music.
We hope our next effort will expose our childhood and teenage roots in The Zombies, The Pixies, Alice In Chains and The Vines.
Jonathon came in a very close second, almost in stereo… “I echo Charley’s sentiment and thank you for the comparison. We pride ourselves on our diversity and open-mindedness to influence. I think a real fear for us is to put out an album of songs that entirely sound the same. As some artists evolve from record to record, we desire to evolve from song to song. If it’s not obvious that our sound has and will evolve from song to song on the next record then you’re not listening to Dirty Cakes.”
I’d Luv To See You Nekid is the EP discussed above and it’s well worth. Follow the Bandcamp link below!
Of course there was a bit of a hoo ha at Grammy this year, we at TiTT put it to them, no holds barred; What do you think of The Grammys?
Charley answered “Well that strikes us as maybe a loaded question… As sponsored musicians of The Grammy Academy’s MusiCares program, we owe more than we can express in words to their organization. Do we maybe disagree with some of the awards given out, of course, but art is always subjective and anything that gets children excited about music is FUCKING AWESOME! Our definition of good music is something that gives you a visceral reaction and Grammys annual live show excites a wider audience than any other promoter could ever imagine… and without their awards, kiddies the world over would lose something magical to aspire to.”
Jonathon, who is now not eating urinal cakes at this time, went on “The Grammy Academy’s MusicCares program helps and saves the lives of numerous musicians annually. They have personally helped me and I am forever indebted to focusing on my work in music to compensate for that aid. That being said, an award for art requires that the genre of art that you’re investing your heart and soul into be respected equally with all the other genres who get their fair share of onscreen time without interruption. I’m saddened to say that the way Queens Of The Stone Age, Lindsey Buckingham and Trent Reznor with Nine Inch Nails were treated at this most recent Grammys, was an absolute shame and travesty to the whole program. I’d still gladly accept a Grammy if I ever earned one.”
TRAVESTY, yes!
We put it to Dirty Cakes that; they describe themselves as psychedelic desert grunge rock. So, Lets play word association:
Charley said;
Psychedelic;
– Group Sex, Soft Drugs & Rock and Roll
Grunge;
– Rough Sex, Hard Drugs & Rock and Roll
Desert;
– What Happens in the Desert Stays in the Desert
Roar your big block 2 hours past skull rock, take a left at the 3rd cactus and crank Chuck Berry till the woofers in your door shred themselves in the dust and dirt. Don’t stop till you find what it is that you’ve been truly looking for and don’t let the sun find you.
Jonathon was obviously not quite as horny! He replied; “Psychedelic Desert Grunge Rock means hard-boiled, blaring, intense, punk-rooted, in-your-face, melodic ear-humping to your brain, heart, and soul simultaneously while being very thirsty.”
That said, do you prefer cake or rock?
Charley, once again, straight to the point “They tend to be very similar, when its shit, its shit… and no amount of sugar can polish a turd. That being said, if you made us decide between Black Sabbath or Chocolate Cake, we’d take both, cuz rules weren’t meant for breaking, these boots were made for walking and nobody puts baby in a corner.”
Again, Jonathon is a little distracted; “What kind of cake? What kind of rock? Fruitcake? Crackrock? No, thank you.”
We have to wonder if at this time Jonathon has gluten allergies… However, we continue to question
What do you think about the following bands?
Autolux;
J: Eh.
QOTSA;
J: Our greatest inspiration.
Deap Vally;
J: Don’t Know.
Should we tell Jonathon now that Deap Vally toured with Queens Of The Stone Age last year? No? OK!
Do you ever find that you sound too grunge or too psychedelic?
At this point Charley answered a question with questions;
“Is the Sun ever too Sunny?
Is bacon ever a bad choice?
No, the answer is no…”
Either that was his answer, or this is a poem that wasn’t supposed to be here and the real answer is “Sometimes.”
Jonathon let’s us know that he probably listens to boy bands, without actually admitting as much; “You’re like a child who wanders into a movie half way through and asks what’s going on? If there was ever too much of either in our sound, we’d find a few more guys, call ourselves Two Directions and cover ‘One Way or Another,’ in a very asexually erotic fashion.”
TiTT writes in the Great White North. We need to know, have you ever thought about becoming a band that writes in snow? The snow here is just crazy;
Charley still probably prefers the sun; “Would have to be pretty simple lyrics, we use very large font and there’s only so much Rock Star Zero Carb in the world.”
Jonathon is committed to the fact that there has been a weather shift and replies; “I’m up for the challenge. I’ll let you know when the Arrowhead water guy delivers our next 5-gallon jug during the freak Los Angeles blizzard of 2014.”
When you play live, do you look at the audience or the floor? Greg Edwards is a shoe staring kinda guy and as an audience member, TiTT needs a little eye contact!
Charley is a little looser than Jonathon about this subject; “Oh we make eye contact… its ocular coitus and believe us, you’ll climax.”
Jonathon gets a bum deal; “Being the drummer, I’m usually forced to look at Charley’s ass.”
Are you happy that Failure are back together?
Jonathon is obviously not on the side of Ken Andrews as his answer was such; “I’m sure someone is happy that they’re back together, but it’d be ironic if they succeeded at all with a name like that. They should have stayed broken up and played one-off gigs opening for Gym Class Heroes.”
From the Grunge era. Who was most influential? You can’t say Kurt Cobain or Layne Stayley.
Charley for a Buzz; “Oh that’s easy, all roads lead to The Melvins… They’re the Romulus and Remus of Grunge, and Neil Young is the Wolf!”
Jonathon for the win, short and sweet; ” Seattle.”
The question on everyone’s, less augmented lips! Is Courtney Love an Icon?
Charley cuts to the quick; “The answer really depends on your opinion on the following question; Was Yoko Ono a good thing? Jonathon is at the knuckle; “If you think Tyler Perry is funny, Keanu Reeves is a good actor, then you probably think Courtney Love is an icon.”
Well, she is doing a show about fashion….
While we are discussing possible icons let’s go here. Did Bruce Pavitt and Jon Poneman do music a favor or disservice?
Charley is probably not a fan; “Yes, Yes, Yes, they pretty much are single-handedly responsible for the downfall of the 3rd Generation Copy of a Copy of a Copy, bands that were nothing more than the Partridge Family with fuzzy guitars shitting on the good name of Van Halen.”
Jonathon is in complete dis/agreement; “I completely agree with Charley, except for his mommy jeans. We’ve definitely gotta do something about that unless they’re really that comfortable, then get me a pair too.”
Are you any wiser reader? Hmmm
TiTT asked a simpler question; What do you want to achieve with you brand of Desert Rock?
Charley gives a food answer, which is formidable; “We want to make Kick Ass Records and have a Fuck-Ton of Fun doing it! Everything else is Gravy.”
Jonathon is drooling; “Mmmm….Gravy.”
Riki Rachtman aside, do you miss MTV?
Jonathon is boggle eyed, Charley is still off making gravy; “I miss every channel that has stopped producing quality television in lieu of dumber programming for dumber audiences. How long has it been since quality art or entertainment has been on A&E, history on the History Channel (Hatfields & McCoys doesn’t count, that was redneck history), or anyone has genuinely stood up and said Bravo after a show on…Bravo. I will say, BBC has quality programming. MTV should fire everyone and put only music videos back on again, but please, no Christmas videos.”
It’s always good to have a built-in fan base. TiTT wanted to know if the DC relatives like their music?
Jonathon is a proud guy and gushes “Oh yeah, they love us. My stepfather and mom bought me my first drum kit. Pop has been playing blues guitar for decades and we recorded in our family’s studio. It cost us at a discounted rate, but he’s a professional who runs a real business from Songwriters’ Studio Services. I believe if they didn’t like our music, I wouldn’t be writing this. I grew up going to concerts thanks to my mom who actually saw Jimi Hendrix live and my Stepdad actually saw Led Zeppelin live. When I was 8, they took me to see Michael Jackson on his BAD tour at the L.A. forum. I’m a lucky, happy, blessed lil drummer boy.”
Give it to us! Three non rock influences?
Charley is wasted on “Whiskey, Pussy and Satan” and Jonathon is tripping with “Dogs, God and Acid”
Do Dirty Cakes have an opinion on European fans?
Charley seemingly has a closet full of Italians; “We have tons, and we love them… It’s nice to know that as long as we bring jimmy wraps, we’re not going to have pay for hotel rooms or food on our next tour.
Which kind of goes without saying of course, but what you never hear about, is the pure joy of all those accents every morning.
Oh yea and the contrast… everyone needs a little contrast in their life.”
Jonathon is on the tarmac; “I love all of our European fans and they seem to be able to recognize quality music and promote it sooner than American audiences. I would love to tour Europe in the near future!”
For now though, Europe will have to take a step back and get dirty with food on the internet.
Huge thanks to Dirty Cakes for their time and erm, yes, their time!
Get tickets to a show HERE
HAVE A HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHARLEY!
Karen G Feb 23 2014
Turn It Up To Twelve 