Words with Travis Laws

 

Hi Travis, how did you end up in Whirlpool ?

This band was started from an idea discussed between vocalist/guitarist Rodney Sellars and guitarist Travis Guichard regarding maybe recording a bunch of songs Rodney wrote that his other band (Sense Field) wasn't interested in using. I was roommates with Rodney at the time and he and I played music together casually at home all the time. One day we all got together with my brother Brandon Laws on drums and Whirlpool was born. Later we added vocalist Rachel Stolte and drummer Scott McPhearson who replaced Brandon. I was playing in at least 2 other bands right before and during this era (Final Conflict and Emission).

Was it a full time band ?
 

Yes and no. We practiced and played regularly and did two albums and one US tour in the short two years or so years we were together. Rodney and Scott's other band was getting signed by a major label at the time and we had some difficulty at actually being a full time band although we took it seriously and not really as a "side project". I have always and still am involved in as many music projects that I can handle.
 

Were you involved in the composition process ?
 

Yes. Rodney came up with most of the lyrics and chords and we all contributed to the arrangement and orchestration.

What are your greatest memories ?
 

My greatest memories are the one month van tour and the writing/recording of the second album. I really thought we were an amazingly tight and creative force during this time. It was a fun little family for a while. I still miss playing in this band and am proud of the Liquid Glass album.

 Have you got some favorite songs ?

 

I like the whole Liquid Glass album. Cult of Misjudgment is a favorite song.

Do you stay in touch with the other Whirlpool guys ?

I see Rodney once in a while, we live in the same city and his current band plays around here often. Travis G. lives in Prague. I visited him a few months ago. The first drummer, Brandon, is my brother, I see him all the time. I sort of lost touch with Rachel and Scott. I hear from them through myspace every so often.

You were in Final Conflict. Can you talk a bit about this band ?

Final Conflict is a legendary Southern California political "hardcore punk" band that started around 1980 or so and is still around, in some form, to this day. I came in late and was just the "kid bass player" for a while. When I was in high school, all the "punks" and "metal heads" were into this band and I ended up with a copy of their first album. By the time I was almost out of high school, I had a terrible part time job working at a telephone answering service. The guitarist/leader of Final Conflict ended up working there along side of me. One day he said they needed a bassist so I bought a bass and started playing with them (I was playing guitar in a couple bands at the time and had never really played bass much). I ended up playing, touring, and recording with them for 5 years or so before I got too busy playing with other projects. I quit Final Conflict right around the same time we started recording the second Whirlpool record. Since then I have filled in a few times over the years when they didn't have a bass player.


Which band you played in do you consider the most important ?

I couldn't choose.

How did you end up playing music and bass in particular ?

I inherited music from my family. I have been around my dads guitars and music collection all my life. I play many different instruments. Bass guitar is a cool, relatively new instrument with many possibilities. You can secretly lead a band as a drummer or bassist even though nobody really notices. The foundation is everything.

What music represents to you ?

I'm not sure what music represents to me. For a man of few words like myself, it is a strange yet natural way of nonverbal communication and expression among humans.

Can you talk a bit about the band you play in now ?

I have been in too many band/projects to name. I have been dividing my time practicing my various stringed instruments, collaborating on other peoples projects, and getting more and more into music recording and production and creating my own songs. My current project is just now officially forming featuring all of two musicians and a huge pile of drums and electronic gear. No name yet. I hate trying to describe music because anything good usually will not fall into a certain category. If I had to describe what we are doing now in my current main project I would say heavy/dub/tribal/drone/experimental art rock kind of thing. Like scary film soundtrack music with gigantic weird beats and bass lines over it.

Do you still listen to hc/punk ?

I listen to anything good. It is impossible for me to describe sounds and music styles anymore.

What was the meaning of hardcore for you ?

I don't think that I ever identified with the "hardcore scene" you are talking about. I'm 36 years old. Back in my day "hardcore" was just a music style description that came after "speed metal" and "punk" in the 1980"s. Bands like D.R.I., S.O.D. and even Final Conflict were called "hardcore" or "hardcore punk", meaning heavier, scarier and faster than before.

Were you straight-edge ? What is your point of view about it ?

I certainly was not. Nobody I ever hung out with or played music with ever called themselves "straightedge". I casually knew people who listened to or were formerly a part of some of the "straightedge" bands but they and all of their acquaintances eventually turned 18 or 21 and either drank, smoked, or fucked and were then officially out of the club. I can't imagine anyone thinking that Whirlpool were a straightedge band. I guess Revelation Records had some of those bands on their label. Rodney and Scotts's other band at the time, Sense Field, were not straightedge. Travis Guichard's previous band, Outspoken, may have been involved in that scene when they were young but he was not straightedge.

Have you ever been to France ? Europe ?

I just backpacked through Europe with my girlfriend a few months ago. We went to Prague, Italy, and Ireland over the course of a month. I have not been to France yet but may be passing through when we travel to Europe again later this year.

 

Words with Travis Guichard

Hi Travis, how did you end up in Whirlpool ?

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I was working with Rodney Sellars at Revelation Records in 1994 and we were putting cd’s together or something and came up with an idea for a band to work out some of the stuff he had been writing that wasn’t going to be used for Sense Field. It basically developped from that idea. Rodney and I started getting together and rehearsing a lot, soon, Rodney’s roommate Travis Laws (Final Conflict) was playing bass with us and Trav’s brother Brandon was playing drums. After playing some shows, we decided to jump right into recording an album. While recording the first album, we realized that we wanted to add another element to the music… I knew Rachel Stolte from the Orange County music scene and at the time she had just stopped singing for local band Cold Water Crane. She liked the idea of trying something new, so she and Rodney started writing vocal harmonies that would work with the existing ones on the recording. We recorded the tracks and that was that.

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First album, 1995

Was it a full time band for you ?

It wasn’t quite what you would call a “full time band” for any of us. We all had other things going on at the time. Rachel had acting, Travis had Final Conflict and some other projects, Brandon was in Emission, Rodney had Sense Field, and I had Mean Season and Outspoken.

How do you feel about it more than 10 years after ?

I guess I feel the same about it now as I always did. I'm glad we recorded the 2 records and got to spend so many good times together. Meeting other bands like Shades Apart, Engine Kid, Iceburn, etc. I always wished that we had done a little more with it, pushed it a little further, but we were all just too busy with other things at the time. Not to mention, Sense Field was in the middle of signing with Warner Bros Records. Sense Field's new touring schedule made it hard to play as much as we would have liked, and it wasn’t just Rodney … by this time Scott Mcpherson from Sense Field was playing drums for us as well. This is when it REALLY became a side project! Haha! Anyway, I still feel great about it more than ten years later.

Did Rodney write all the songs ? How were you involved in the composition process ? Is that you singing on "Suppositions" ?

Yeah, Rod wrote almost all of the lyrics and music. On the first record he wrote everything and Travis, Brandon and I just added our own personal parts. I think that all of the lyrics that Rachel sung on that were written by Rod. On the second record, Rodney came up with most of the music ideas, but the rest of the band had a lot more to do with the writing process. It was more like…we all created them together, and I definitely think it shows. Travis Laws wrote the lyrics to “Suppositions”. If I remember correctly, Rod and Trav Laws came up with the weird timing and chords, then Scott added his part, then me. Travis Laws sung on that one (you can hear my faint backup vocal on the chorus). Rachel and Bob Stolte (her Dad) wrote the lyrics to "Insecurity" (Rod, Trav, Scott, and I did the shouting backup vocals), that’s a good one! I will add a story… "Cindy Crawford Pumpkin". Rachel was going to UCLA and had these 2 Hawaiian Tropic model roommates (I’m not kidding) and on Halloween they actually carved a Cindy Crawford pumpkin. Ridiculous. So that is where that song idea came from. Haha.

What were the bands you tour with ? Did you play outside the US ?

Well, we didn’t really officially tour “with” anyone per say, but we played a lot of shows on that tour with Shades Apart, Engine Kid, Deadguy, Iceburn, Texas Is The Reason, Braid, and one in Florida with 108.

How was it to be on Rev ? Did you feel like a family with the other label's bands ?

It was great to be on Revelation ! Jordan was (and continues to be) a great help. I guess it did have a kind of family atmosphere, we all hung out a lot at that time, went to shows, parties, etc...

How was your public ? Hardcore people, punk people, whatever people...

Our fan base (or lack thereof haha) really seemed to vary, all of the above ! We were on the soundtrack to a surf film, so we reached that community (I actually talked with a lot of surfers who knew us from that). But yeah, all kinds of people seemed to be into it.

Do you feel you were part of the emo scene ?

Ummm. I guess so. I suppose that our music could be classified as “emo”, but then again…I have a hard time with the term “emo” ha. We played with all kinds of bands, from Smile to Deadguy to Braid to Texas Is The Reason and on and on, so I don’t really think that we were really that much a part of just the emo scene.

Greatest memories ?

Ha ha, there are a lot of those ! The first would be the tour we did in summer 95. Innertubing in Connecticut, playing in NYC at CBGB’s at the 95 CMJ festival , shooting the video out in Palm Springs with Jim Brown, recording with Jim Monroe. The list goes on and on.

What is this video you're talking about ?

We did a video in 95 for the song “Blinding light” out in the desert in Palm Springs. Jim Brown shot it. It was a lot of fun to do and the video is pretty funny. I remember we stayed at Jim’s parents house on the golf course out there, pretty cool.

What is your favorite Whirlpool record ?

I would have to say Liquid Glass. We had been together for almost a year by the time we recorded that so we were tighter, and I don’t know of many drummers who are tighter than Scott. Also, as I said before, we were all more involved in writing that one.

Liquid Glass, 1996

Do you stay in touch with all the other Whirlpool guys ?

Yeah, I am in touch with all of them, myspace, emails... Travis Laws came for a visit earlier this year and a while ago Rachel told me that Great Northern might be doing a European tour.

Any chance for a reunion ?

I wouldn’t really count on a reunion, but you never know, it’s not out of the question. I’ll talk to them about it, ha ha. Of course everyone still has something going on. Rodney is doing The Year Zero, Scott plays with so many people I can’t keep up. He played with Elliott Smith, I think he plays with Bright Eyes now, Rachel plays in Great Northern, Brandon plays in Slippers, Travis L. plays in Knives of the Official Disappointment and I am doing photography full time in Prague, Czech Republic (I do as much home recording as possible). A reunion would be fun.

Which band you played in do you consider the most important ?

I think that Mean Season would be the one. I did more with that than with anything else, wrote more of it, toured the States and Europe twice, actual fan base, haha! Can’t forget Outspoken though, that one was pretty popular in the hardcore scene too. Outspoken could never do enough. We could never really do a full length tour, never went to Europe…could have done a lot more with it, but John Coyle (our singer) lived up in San Francisco with his wife Tina and their daughter…so he was pretty busy with his family life.

Travis with Outspoken

What inspired you to play music ?

My mother was a singer and my father sings and plays guitar as well…they also played a lot of rock records while I was growing up. Beatles, Stones, Beach Boys, Doors, etc... so that had a huge influence as well. My younger brother Ben started playing drums in 6th grade, so I ALWAYS had him to practice with.

What did hardcore mean for you ? How about straight-edge ?

To me it meant hanging out with my friends and having a good time. Listening to and playing music…just good times! I think that straight edge is a positive thing if it is kept in perspective, but extremism can be dangerous. Some of my friends (from the old days) are still Edge. Many (like myself) aren’t anymore. It was good for me at the time and I’m glad to have been involved.

Do you feel "out of step with the world" ?

I suppose I was always kind of a black sheep haha! But I still fit in pretty well.

How did you end up being a photographer in Prague ?

My Dad is a professional photographer, so I grew up around it, hung out at his studio as a kid (when I wasn’t BMX-ing!) and learned from him. I never took it that seriously until I moved to Prague as an English teacher and realized that I hated teaching English. I had some connections here, so I started assisting a guy and shooting as well. There are quite a few models to shoot in central-eastern Europe, so I stay busy enough.

"Guichard", isn't that a french name ? What do you feel about France in general ? Have you ever been there ?

Yes, it’s a french name. My ancestors came over from Holland though. I’ve actually never been to France, so I don’t’ really have any experience with the place. It’s one of the few countries in Europe I haven’t been to and I want to see it. I’m not really that far away… maybe I will make a road trip soon.

Words with Rodney Sellars

Hi Rodney, how did you end up in the punk/hardcore scene back in the days ?

Well, punk rock was the first kind of music I ever heard that made me feel like I could be a musician. I grew up on Pink Floyd and AC/DC, their music was so "perfect" in a way. It was intimidating, like Sabbath or ELP or Zeppelin. But then I heard The Freeze and TSOL and The Adolescents, they were like a gateway drug into a bigger world !

Can you remember a bit your time in Reason To Believe ?

I had a really stinky pair of shoes. No socks, summer time, sweating, you know the deal. They were really bad ! The band made me strap them to the outside of the Ford Bronco we were touring in. One day I sat and watched the laces of the shoes dance in the highway wind for hours. That thought still stays with me to this day. I can tell you about playing with Luke Puke and the Vomits and a young girl on way too much acid, or the gay hair dresser from Richmond who was a card carrying member of the KKK, or the crazy hot straightedge fest in Florida. I guess it just depends on how much you wanna know.

Then Sense Field...Can you remember the beginning of the band ?

Chris Evenson and I always say the acoustic guitar killed Reason to Believe. The Sense Field song "Thought of Living" in particular. We liked the song but we didn't think we should do it as Reason. In retrospect, it might have made more sense to stay as Reason to Believe. I can't say that we had any organized goal at the beginning of Sense Field. We were just really into acoustic guitars and recording songs on Chris's four track. At the time I was really into writing ambitious songs with lots of parts. I guess there was not a goal so much as just pursuing our creative inspiration. John Stockberger (bass) came up with the name. He was reading a buddhist spiritual book on LSD and the word "Sense Field" started glowing on the page.

You sing many songs on "Killed For Less". Why only on this one ?

In the early days I wanted us to be a two singer band like Fugazi or The Pixies. We even had Jon Bunch playing guitar for awhile. I just never really felt right.

What is your view on the evolution of the band later on ?

Scott was my favorite drummer. It would have been cool to stick with Gavin Oglesby's artwork the whole time. I like when bands records all look similar. The sound change was fun. I think some of the stuff on Tonight and Forever turned out pretty cool. Wish I would have sang more. I didn't like our producer much.
I love Living Outside. I can just sit back and enjoy it. I didn't have to go through all the pain of making it. I think Chris and Jon wrote some amazing songs on that one.

What are your greatest memories with Sense Field ?

Water falls in Norway, Dining at the Sony building in NYC. Opening for Fugazi, Guided by Voices, Built to spill, cliff diving in Idaho in a summer rain storm. Parked on the road in New Mexico waiting for a UFO to land, Canada, Prague, Germany. Too many things to mention.

What was it like to play again  at Rev25 ?

Pretty heavy and intense ! Sometimes I go on youtube and watch old live Sense Field stuff and Reason To Believe. I still really admire and love those guys, for all the drama we had over the years, playing with them was the most intense musical experience I've ever had.

What led you to form Whirlpool ?

I was completely obsessed with the Pixies, but I couldn't understand why Black Francis didn't let Kim Deal sing more and work together. I just love girl/guy dual vocals over quirky pop about other worlds. My greatest memory of Whirlpool was rafting down a river somewhere on the east coast, the water was warm, we had one raft the only held beer. Another great memory was playing Jon Hilts house in NJ. After the show, A guy from Engine Kid was hanging out in the Rev van. He saw Rachel's body suit hanging from the rearview mirror and was like "Oh, that's just wrong, you can't have sexy girl clothes hanging off your mirror in the tour van!"

What about Overland ?

At this point, I feel like it was a missed opportunity. I like some of the stuff I did on that album, but if I had that budget to record now, I could have done a way cooler album.

What are the news with The Year Zero ?

We have another full length album completely recorded, but Lili and I are both not happy with the way it sounds. We like the songs, but the mix isn't quite right. Not sure what to do on that front.

Which band you played in do you consider the most important ?

Reason to Believe/Sense Field. I know that's actually two answers, but it was all the same guys, we just added Scott for Sense Field. It was pretty cool to evolve with your friends from hardcore to "alternative".

What are your views on straight-edge ?

As far as straight edge goes, I have the utmost admiration for people who can stick to it. I have a hard time with the substances, I just really love the feeling, but I do think you are at your best when you are mostly free of chemicals.

How do you feel in the world today ?

To be honest, a little lost but I guess quite a bit more relaxed. Back in the day, it felt like we were on a mission of the utmost importance. A lot of that thanks to Jon Bunch. Now I just feel like I'm just working and paying my bills. But I must admit, there were times when we were driving in the van, I'd see a quant little homestead off the highway and think, 'I wanna get off and live there.'. I guess I kinda did in a way.

Words with Sergie Loobkoff

Hi Sergie, what does Samiam mean ? Solea ?

Samiam is from a childrens story by Dr. Suess. The story is told in a sing along style where words rhyme and repeat...and the character ends phrases by saying his name this way: "sam-i-am'. As in "I do not like them,' said sam i am" for example. The story is basically about someone that is closed minded and through the course of the tale, he realizes that by not trying anything he misses out on alot the world has to offer. None of us have actually liked the name...it sort of was better than calling the band, "Jason Beebout and the Shitheads' or something.
Solea is the title of a song on Miles Davis's album, 'Sketches of Spain". It was Garrett's idea...I don't hate it...but I think it sometimes puts people off to the band. Solea, as we found out later is a style of flamenco guitar picking that is really sad....which neither of us know how to play. So, it's not an accurate description of the band in anyway. ha.

  

What is your favorite Samiam album ? How about Solea ?

Of course I don't really listen to these bands...but I would say that Clumsy, You Are Freaking Me Out and Astray are the best Samiam records...I might go as far as to say that they are the only ones that matter. Perhaps we could take the best songs from the other 4 albums, rerecord them better and have an additional double album...but I'm not a big fan of the first three...they are pretty sloppily written, arranged, played and recorded. The last one has some good songs but is ruined by inept recording...but I don't really want to get into that discussion.
For Solea, I think this new one is 1000 times better than anything else we did.

What are your greatest memories ?

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.efinately the traveling...the friendships with members of the band and various people around the world. Some great shows too...but what is a great show? and hour or 45 minutes or something ? some of the worst van breakdowns and miserable touring conditions that were horrible at the time...now I look back and feel this pride that we stuck it out as friends. It's sort of like my war stories...since I'm lucky enough never to have had to go to war.

What were your major influences when you started Samiam ?

Dinosaur Jr, Beatles, Built To Spill...Sonic Youth...Eno...a lot of bands that don't sound very similar to either band. I think that is why neither band sounds like typical "poppunk" or 'punk" or "indie rock" has an identity of it's own...because we didn't start Samiam, for example, while listening only to Minor Threat and Bad Brains or whatever...we listen to that and the Zombies and Swans...

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Is there a future for Samiam ? Solea?

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Samiam is planing to remix our last record actually...maybe redo some bass and vocals and guitars if necessary. I hope it works out because people were really disappointed with the sound of the record. We tried to go with this concept of making a punk sounding record and I guess it backfired. We are also talking about touring europe in the spring.
As for Solea, I'm not sure. Scott, the drummer is in Beck's band so we are sort of in limbo. I'm also not sure if Garrett is into playing loud music anymore so...

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Photo : Piper Ferguson

Is there a particular meaning for the last Solea album title "Finally We Are Nowhere" ?

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In all the adversity of making the record and the way it seemed a perfect title. And it's true, really. After so many years of making music and touring...neither Garrett or I are really anywhere in the music industry...which isn't something that we are particularly woeful about. We are happy to have the ability to do it...even at such a modest level.

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Can you tell a bit about the Atlantic/Pacific project ?

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It is an excuse to take a trip to Europe basically...because of Scott, we can't do a Solea tour...so Garrett called me up and asked me if I would do it with him and John (the other singer). My role in the project is sort of minimal...mainly because I don't sing. They are both excellent singers and guitar players and don't really need me but I guess I'm fun to have around and can sprinkle some pixie dust on the songs.
We wrote a bunch of simple acoustic-y songs and are going to play about 5 or 6 Solea songs and then Garrett and John are going to do a few solo songs...perhaps a Texas Is The Reason one or two.
It's all for fun, we don't have record...or a label...and aren't worried if 25 people show up at a show we won't be too sad...hell we are on vacation !

What are your main reasons for playing music ?

100% for fun and as a hobby...like drawing or skateboarding. I'm not particularly great at any of these things but I enjoy them and they keep me busy...which is good. Otherwise I'd probably be fat and watch a lot of tv or something.
In the past, with Samiam, there were times when the band became something like a job...and that was kind of shitty because I lost one of my hobbys kind of. And definately lost perspective on all the good things that happened...like I took alot of exciting times for granted. Now I really feel fortunate when I get to travel to japan or europe to play music. It's amazing that it's a possibility for me.

What hold you apart from the "common people" ?

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I'm not sure what you mean by 'common people'...I don't feel the least bit 'un-common'.
Although, to be perfectly honest, I don't feel like I relate to 90% of humans...but I, you know, love the 10% that I do relate to and try to be tolerant of the other 90%..

What are your views (relations) about the whole hardcore / straight-edge movement ?

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I have no views...and never was part of hardcore or straight-edge. I do love my Snapcase and Refused...but not much else in that whole genre. As for straight-edge...I'm not into extremists...and anyone that would be so into their non-participation of drinking or smoking that they develop a persona around it...well, I don't want to offend anyone...but it's weird. Like, "ok, you don't drink...so what? Good for you if it works for you, what business of mine is that?".

What is your vision of the world we live in ?

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If I think about the world I see it's full of greed, sadness, injustice, etc... I know it is better to see the beauty of it all and rise above all the negatives...but what can I say, I'm a pessimist.

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Did you feel part of the emo scene ?

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I'm not really part of any scene...and I don't really know if there is a scene with emo, is there? Seems like that concept went out the window once bands like Fall Out Boy and whomever became so big. Then again, I just don't know, I don't keep up with the latest bands or anything.

What do you think of France ?

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I love Lyon, I think it is the coolest city in france. I'm not into Paris in the same way I'm not into New York City...it's awesome but too much for me. I also love the countryside in France...driving from show to show is pretty breathtaking sometimes. If you tour in America, while there is awesome sights, a lot of the villages are just ugly and boring for me.
I like the way french people are honest...but sometimes you all can be heavy-handed with your unsolicited opinions. ha. Like when a french kid might walk up to me and tell me that my band is shit...and I say,"uh, ok...fair enough for you to think that...but I didn't ask you for your opinion." And the typical response is, "I'm french, I say what I feel...not like you americans that do not have the ability to express youselves." ha. ha. It's sometimes very comical the discussions I get into on tour.

Words with Scott Mc Pherson

 

 

Hi Scott, let me know some things about your musical path...

 

 

Hi, I started playing drums when I was about 10, just bashing away in my bedroom to records. In fact playing to records is how I learned to play. I don't have any formal training. In high school I started playing in some punk bands and that's where I cut my teeth. In 1991 I joined sensefield. They were reconfiguring their old band, Reason To Believe and Jon Bunch called me and asked me over to play with them. I was just back from a trip to europe and had just enrolled in school. I was going to try to get my life together and wasn't looking to play in a band. It was a lot of fun so I joined. As far as song construction, it basically started with an idea from Rodney or Chris. From there we would all contribute and help shape the songs. We tried to be as democratic as possible. I played with them until 1998. During that time Rodney had started Whirlpool as side project. I started playing with them when the drum seat became open. That was never really anything more than a vehicle for Rodney to use the songs that didn't make it into Sense Field. When I left, I started to play all kinds of people just searching for something that would fly. In 2000, a friend of mine who was asked to play with Elliott Smith called me and asked if I would come over and try out. I did and it went well so I was in. That was probably the pinacle for me. I was finally playing songs that I truly loved. There's really nothing better than playing music that you are a big fan of. From there, I've been lucky to play with other singer songwriters and solo artists whom I respect and admire. I am currently playing with Beck, and life is beautiful.