Skot is an interesting dude, who I have had a lot of respect for his band 400 Blows over these years. I didn’t really meet him until recently when Danny Lanois introduced me to him at The Echo. His band 400 Blows have been playing shows across the world for nearly 10 years. Just now they are packing shows all across LA and are finally getting the credit and respect they deserve. Anyway after having a few at the Red Lion in Silverlake we sat down and shot the shit.

400 Blows Alex's Bar

400 BLOWS AT ALEX’S BAR IN LONG BEACH

Randall: What’s up with the German thing its pretty rad?
Skot: Those are Navy CPO officer uniforms. The German issued uniforms tend to be grayer in color. What I was telling you earlier most people associate uniform code with Nazism because the Nazis were able to make the biggest statement with that. Everything is about packaging any military or any form of anything bands are about packaging. The uniforms are actually an anti-fashion statement. I didn’t want to worry about the way anybody looked. I didn’t want anybody feel like they had to wear a certain fashion or look a certain way. I figured we came up with these minimal looking uniforms and we would all be wearing the same thing and it would be just about the music. The equipment was all black so let’s come up with a dress code that was all black. Let’s take away rather than add to. In a sense when you minimalize things a lot of the times it can add to something. Even the Salvation Army has uniforms. I have a Salvation Army jacket that says SS. Does that mean they are Nazis? No they are helping poor people out. But 400 Blows has nothing to do with that no Nazi association what so ever.

Randall: New guitar player how did you find him?
Skot: Scott has been a buddy of mine for years; he’s played in bands that we have played with. He has always been that guy who I run into and see around who I thought, carried himself extremely well, was really funny, was really fun to hang out with and was really talented. So naturally when we lost our old guitar player I was at a bar and I saw Scott. All the sudden a bell went off in my head. This is the guy. I don’t want to just play with this guy I want to hang out with this guy. So I went up and asked him,”What are you doing right now? I don’t know? Hey you want to be in 400 Blows? Fuck Yeah, let’s do this!” He came to the first practice and it went so amazing. He learned maybe 2 songs and we stopped practice and ended up hanging out all night long. That’s what sealed the deal our love for music, what we were doing with music, and our ability to hang out with each other and treat each other as brothers. I don’t know of another person on the planet who would be a better addition to this band. It’s exciting, the level is raised.

Randall: Where are you originally from?
Skot: I was born in Simi Valley. Then my mom within weeks relocated us to Mercer Island a little island off the coast of Seattle. I spent most of my childhood there. Then I moved to Venice Beach as a young teenager got into a bunch of trouble moved to a reform school out east. Eventually came back lived in Venice again. Somehow along the line got the art bug in my veins and moved to the Silverlake/Echo Park/Downtown area of Los Angeles, which till this day is still one of the biggest booming artistic neighborhoods in Los Angeles and even maybe in most of the world. I still love it here I think it’s very thriving.

Randall: Best Gig?
Skot: I could not answer that. We have had so many amazing gigs with some many amazing people come out. Even our last gig at The Echo I was sick as a dog and I felt like after I walked off that stage I accomplished everything I wanted to. On our tour Flagstaff, Arizona we played in a tiny basement and it was packed you couldn’t breathe I almost passed out. Everyone was singing our songs girls standing in front of me like 19 or 20 singing the songs hitting it right on the beat I almost wanted to give them a microphone. There was sweat dripping off the ceiling it was pretty hot in there. That was a beautiful gig. Can I say it was the best? I don’t know.

Randall: Worst Gig?
Skot: Actually it was on this tour Eugene, Oregon. Fuck Eugene. I hate that town you and your puka shells and your sandals can fuck the fuck off. I hope I never see you again I will fly over you before I drive through you ever again. Thank You, Good Bye, Good Night.

Randall: Metallica or Slayer?
Skot: Fucking Slayer come on. Slayer is a petrified tree they do not move. They are who they are and nobody is going to change that. Metallica obviously got too big for their britches and obviously lost some of the passion. I’m sorry Metallica I love Master of Puppets and Ride the Lightning. I love a couple of songs on Kill’em all the rest of that record is pretty ridiculous. Cliff Burton a god but he is gone now. Most of the new Metallica shit…..Shit is the keyword. They are talented, but I think they got tired and lost passion.

Randall: Who do you think is the heaviest band ever?
Skot: I don’t think there is such a band as the heaviest band ever. Hard to answer you can say a lot. This isn’t really a band I listen to all the time, we talked about them earlier Slayer. Slayer has never been anything, but Slayer. You go to a Slayer show and there will be 10,000 dudes and maybe 3 chicks, but they will be the sluttiest chicks on the planet. The last place I want to be is a dude ranch, but when I go to see Slayer I AM FUCKING PYSCHED! Those dudes fucking rock out. I would never even want to open up for Slayer their fans are so into them that any band that plays before them will not get any props until Slayer hits the stage. The reason why there is no other band out there that is unrelentingly themselves in what they do than Slayer. Except the Fall which really isn’t a band, but it’s Marky Smith. Marky Smith and Slayer consistently put out the best records. Some bands are like”Oh they are just putting out the same record”. I see so many bands putting out records changing their style and changing what they do. Most of them are sucky and self indulgent. I would rather see a band do what they do and just keep on getting better at it rather than change genres and genre hop, very few bands do that well. Radiohead I think does that very well. It is a rare quality though. Most bands don’t have it. I say if you got a good formula stick with it the possibilities are fucking endless. I don’t get sick of Slayer ever. I think all their records are rad. And I think the same about The Fall. I think everything Marky Smith does is worth while and everyone should here it.

Randall: Best band in LA?
Skot: I couldn’t answer that. I have a lot I can name that I like. Autolux the band that practices next to us, nothing like us. I like them they are more of a pop band. They are fucking beautiful and they have an edge. They are all amazing people. I can’t say a band is my favorite band I like them all for different reasons. I love New Collapse just a keyboard player and drummer. When they play nothing but pure passion. Another band, from the Mid 90s, now broken up, is Festival of Dead Deer, still to the day one of the best live bands I have ever seen. Best band I could not say I like them all for different reasons. It depends on the mood. When I am at home Animal Collective, I want music that won’t just sink me into a chair, but through the chair into the floor. I love jazz I love a lot of stuff.

Randall: Top Five Desert Island Discs?
Skot: Your killing me.
The Beatles- Revolver
The Birthday Party- Hits
The Germs- GI Record
Mahler- 9th and 10th Symphony
Captain Beef Hear and the Magic Band- Lick My Decals off Baby

Randall: I met you through Daniel Lanois how did you meet him that’s a pretty awesome combo 400 Blows meets Daniel Lanois?
Skot: I meet Daniel Lanois through my work. I would play music at my work. He is a music man. He would ask me questions about the music I would be playing. So we formed this relationship based on music, I had no idea who the guy was. It wasn’t until my friend Greg who is in this band the Afghan Wiggs came in and explained to me who this was. I can be a star struck guy, but I didn’t even know who Daniel Lanois was. Even after I knew that I was impressed, but the thing that I like about Danny is he always has talked to me as someone who he works with. To this day as a friend as someone who I drink with go to his house and hang out he treats me as an equal. On the food chain he is at the top and I am close to the bottom. One thing that I will always respect about him is when he introduces me to people he would make it seem like I was no bigger than them or them no bigger than me. To me I love that. In this world none of that shit should matter. I don’t care how many awards you won, how much money you have, what is more important is are you a real human being. The guy who matters is the guy who is going to jump in front of the bus and push you out of the way. It’s not really that deep but what I am saying is mutual respect, and that guy has always been respectful.

Randall: If you watched Danzig and Henry Rollins fight, who would you be rooting for?
Skot: Booth those guys are steakheads, but they both have done work I love. I would have to say if both those dudes got in a ring I would probably have to give it over to Henry Rollins. Henry Rollins would probably kick some ass no offense Danzig. Neither of those dudes should be fighting.

Skot: Now, Why did you want to do this interview? Why would you want to interview a dude like me that is my question?
Randall: I am a fan of your music. You are a great LA Band. This site is mainly geared for LA.

Skot: How do you feel about the Los Angeles music scene, your asking me all these questions?
Randall: LA has a lot of potential there are many great bands out there. The problem is we need to stick together, that’s why I chose you guys. You play with many random LA bands, but they are all good. A lot of blogs and websites now have this boner over anything that is “new”, or bands who have this pretense where they try and be indie and original where they just ended up forming a style and trend driven genre in itself, just like disco punk, screamo or something lame like that. You guys keep it real.
Skot: Sounds good. Lets smoke a bowl now dude.

400 Blows: Myspace

MP3
Root of Our Nature
The Ugly Are So Beautiful

400 Blows is playing next in Los Angeles Jan. 5th at Safari Sams in Hollywood with The Bronx, and Qui (David Yow from the Jesus Lizard recently joined this band! It should be terrifying and fun!)

Contributed by Randall. He writes his own blog at www.freethescene.com