Foot Village

Primal, but far from primitive: Prying into the realm of Foot Village

Foot Village are a self-described Drum – n – Shout band hailing from the Hollywood, CA area: their sound is fed solely by a barrage of tribal drumming and yelled, yelped and screamed vocals. While some might dub such as setup as “reduced instrumentation,” don’t be fooled: Foot Village are able to generate more sound – and more compelling sound, at that – per instrumentalist than any lesser group could hope to put forth, regardless of the size of their amplifiers. The band has grown tremendously and in inspiring fashion over the years and, with the release of their newest album, Anti-Magic, on the horizon, Foot Village reach new sonic heights that are sure to delight, impress, and confuse old fans and new listeners alike. Brian, one-fourth of the village’s source of sonic energy, graciously granted me an interview over G-Chat a few days ago: here are the results of our interactions. (Brian is also involved with the most excellent punk/experimental Death Bomb Arc record label – please check it out for more lovely noise!)

Band Interview: Brian of Foot Village

(note: this is a largely unedited interview that was conducted over instant messenger – smileys and the like are preserved)

Jonathan: Okay! How are you doing?

Brian: This is a pretty sweet week – I finished some big projects. Namely, getting the last of the Deathbomb Arc Tape club done… after months of delay.

J: That’s great to hear! Will it be available to the public in the near future?

B: Future, yes. Near… well, my computer ate shit and had to get formatted last week, so now I have to recreate all the digital masters for 240 min worth of music before it can be archived.

J: Argh, I’m sorry to hear that. Computer problems are the worst, especially when you lose stuff you’ve worked hard on.

B: I need to get better at backing stuff up. But really, who has the time??!?!

J: Well, yes… but when you consider the time you can lose if you don’t make backups, it is usually worth the investment… but, hell, I hardly ever get around to it, so I really shouldn’t be preaching here, heh. By the way, I just heard Clubtraxx I III for the first time a few minutes ago – and the “inspirational message” at the end. [You can hear the track for yourself on Foot Village's MySpace page] ‘Tis a very good point, and it’s funny I should hear it today of all days, when I’m doing a lot of goal-related questioning. So, thanks for the implicit long-distance mini pep talk! It helped.

B: Jonathan from Captain Ahab has an incident where both his computer and backup hard drive died at the same time. Now his computer automatically backs up to like 4 portable hard drives every night. The inspirational portion of Clubtraxxx is 100% thanks to Josh Taylor. Often he knows just the right little thing to add to recordings.

J: In reading over your MySpace page and the Foot Village Web site, I have seen a lot of words referring to friendship, family, or community. Does FV work to cultivate a sense of community with other musicians?

B: I hope that FV inspires a certain sense of community with anyone we encounter. Not necessarily the type of community where we all have to work together, but one that understands that miracles are in everyone’s power, as silly as that may sound – community in the sense that we all are important.

J: Do you use music as a specific tool to help more people become aware of that notion, that we are all important?

B: I think we kinda use spectacle more than the actual music. We’re pretty aware that our instrumentation alone catches people’s attention. We try to have a pretty upbeat spirit with it all too, and a fairly casual manner. I love early rock n roll, the really happy stuff like “Surfer Bird”. I think, especially live, the joyous spectacle of the band conveys a sense having fun that is political without treading into blatant Rage Against the Machine territory. I know this is laughable, but I think the most important political rock song is “Fight For Your Right To Party!” I’m also very aware of the limitations of art/music to make social change. I just hope we set a good example.

J: I don’t think it’s laughable – it’s actually very nice. It seems that music with a political edge does tend to be on the aggressive and hostile side of things. When reading descriptions of Foot Village, I often come across quips like “barrage of noise” or “maelstrom of feral sound-” the band is regularly described in something of a fearsome light. Would you agree with that description? Do you think it’s at odds at all with the upbeat spirit you try to maintain?

B: It is very hard for me to know what Foot Village recordings sound like to someone that has never seen us live before. We are high energy, and there is a lot of sound. That is for sure. Hopefully the silly lyrics/vocal delivery informs the listener that the drum energy is positive, but since we also play with negative ideas sometimes, I realize that audience response will be varied. Our new album will definitely fuck with people on that level.

Foot Village – “Erecting the Wall of Separation” from Deathbomb Arc on Vimeo.
J: Do you think that a listener wanting to experience Foot Village for what it really is should do his or her best to get to a live show? Is it a more “full” or “authentic” experience than the recordings?

B: We treat the live and recorded versions of the band as two different things that need different types of effort and expression to live up to our expectations. We love them both. But the live experience probably gives people an ecstatic feeling that the recordings don’t necessarily give. Although… it seems like your listen to Clubtraxxx made you feel happy? But the visceral experience of the live show – while I’m not going to say is superior, is definitely unique. We wouldn’t put so much effort into the albums though if we didn’t think they were a super fun and entertaining experience as well.

J: Absolutely. And yes, it did make me feel happy I find that there is a strong positive correlation between times I feel happy and times I listen to FV.

B: That’s the highest compliment we can get, thank you!!! That said, we have some intentionally negative songs on our next album… because we aren’t really heroes on it.

J: Could you tell me a little more about the intention that inspired those negative songs? Is the band “moving in a different direction?”

B: Anti-Magic, our next and third album, is actually something we have planned since before the first album was done. The first album would be about researching other countries. The 2nd would be about forming our own nation. And the 3rd would be about our first war. It is about Foot Village becoming intolerant to other nations, aka “magic nations” that make other forms of music using electricity. By the end we repent and thus the huge collaboration with dozens of bands for “Chicken & Cheese 2″. We remain a happy band in the end, but to tell this particular story we needed some very evil sounding shit. We aren’t concerned about putting ourselves on a pedestal. We can say things in songs that make people thing we are stupid because we telling stories, fictions, fairy tales. This isn’t Crass or Rage. This is Foot Village!

J: I’d like to learn more about the image of the Village. What are its residents like? What books would you find in its public library? What parts of town would tourists want to stay clear of?

B: This level of detail hasn’t really been revealed yet… our album art kind of jokes at this…when you see Foot Village in the art, all you see is a giant wall . The lyrics to our song National Jamthum tell a little bit though:

[PAUSE]

Oops! I just realized that those lyrics won’t be printed on the art! its the only lyrics we left off. Mysterious, eh? Sorry! It had something to do with free wi-fi and bottomless pizza. It’s probably best that details like you asked for are mostly left up to the imagination. The plot of our albums is more a spirit than a backbone anyway. We don’t do rock operas.

J: Well, what of the graphic on your MySpace page? I was curious about that – is it a rendition of the village itself?

B: I’m curious, what did you think?

J: Well, first of all, I was struck by the apparent lack of technology or machinery. There appears to be a juxtaposition between the architecture of the buildings on the far left and those to the center – almost a mishmash of two different cultures. The trees growing out of an otherwise apparently barren desert were striking as well. All in all, it gave me the impression of being a forlorn place, perhaps a village abandoned by its residents in fear of an impending conflict – there’s a sense of “uneasy calm before a storm” about it.

B: Hmm… I think you may have just convinced me that we need to change it. Although I think we do love the desert.

J: Oh… I’m sorry! I hope my interpretation wasn’t too far off – keep in mind that it is just one interpretation.

B: It’s a decent representation of the idea, but we probably should make something better. I think that, once people see the extensive art we’ve included on the Anti-Magic album, it will really help paint the right picture. It’s all landscapes that we built and photographed.

J: I confess that I haven’t had the pleasure of experiencing the album art myself.

B: That art is under lock and key until July.

J: So, perhaps after putting it in more context, I would be a bit closer to the truth…ah! Well, my birthday is in July, you know! That will make an excellent present. (i.e. having it available will be most excellent!)

B: Perhaps I should make a public wish list too: Foot Village fans should buy me Green Lantern comics!

J: I will keep this in mind

B: Maybe we can trade. I actually have a deal like that with a friend of mine… he buys me comics every week and I give him a copy of everything I put out on my label or that Foot V does.

J: That sounds like a plan. So, I have a couple of questions related to FV’s sound…

B: No prob!

J: First of all, I was impressed and intrigued when first hearing tracks by FV because you were able to do so much with what some would consider to be “so little -” using “just drums and vocals.” What attracted you to that style of instrumentation – what about drums, specifically makes them such an important instrument for the band?

B: We started off this way just because we were a group of people that didn’t know how to play drums, wanted to learn, but were embarrassed to play with people that knew their instruments – a drum camp of sorts. But we’ve stuck with it because it is such a surprising way to make an infinite combination of sounds. Even though the instrumentation is narrow in a physical sense, the fact that such unsuspected limitless possibilities come from it really helps convey that spirit we were talking about before, a spirit that says anyone can do anything they set their minds to. Besides, we love hard rock. In NYC someone said we sounded like Metallica. Why mess with our sound when we sound like that?

J: Indeed. Well, in terms of composition, what are some of the challenges, if any, of working with a limited array of instruments? Does it put taps or restrictions on the way you express yourself? If you or any of the other band members have been in more “traditional” band setups, how does the compositional process compare?

B: The one thing that is hardest to do is make verse-chorus-verse style songs. We tend to do more linear compositions that just have weird references to early/later parts of the song, rather than actually repeating stuff. But maybe that’s just us. Grace and my old band, Rose For Bohdan, was that way too. We actually think of our sound in terms of bass lines, guitar riffs, etc a lot. But we also think in more abstract terms too. There aren’t really other bands doing this, so its hard to reference much. We make up the rules as we go along. We try to keep it catchy and true to the rock spirit though. I don’t really think we’re a noise band or anything.

J: How did you go about selecting the various drums/kits that the band uses? Do you aim to maintain a homogeneous sound between the different kits, or do you try to select drums that will create more of a complimentary array of tones when played together?

B: Each of us has pretty personal taste in our own drum sounds. We’ve found that by letting these natural tastes exist, there ends up being these weird orchestras of sound that is really rich. We do think of the arrangements in terms of low drum here, high drum there, etc etc. But as far as all the timbres go, we just like to have a wide variety of tones going on.

J: Do your vocal styles emerge in a similar, natural way? To what extent to you target specific sounds or timbres where vocals are concerned?

B: Usually we sing the way we would in any other band, which means screams and such. But the demands of singing over such loud drums has led me to do this more operatic stuff lately, that carries more. Josh though is a true vocal artist and loves coming up with lots of crazy voices and attitudes.

J: Is attitude important to you in your live performances? I read in a previous interview with the band that some of the members (Grace, if I recall correctly) will go so far as to scream in the face of audience members. Do you prefer to elicit visceral reactions from your crowds?

B: Well, we like to engage. It’s on the same page as getting the audience near us even when we play on stage. In fact, we wont play on stage if the audience cant join us.

J: Alrighty! do you have the time for three more quick questions?

B: Sure! I got distracted because we were on the phone with the Ghost Busters. for real!

J: Hahaha. Have a spirit infestation on your hands? (I confess, I took a phone call earlier in the interview as well – no worries)

B: Actually, yes! There is a ghost in our kitchen that keeps smashing shit and making the walls knock and saying creepy things in our ears. We saw a Craig’s List ad for GhostBusters. So they are coming over Saturday.

J: That’s pretty amazing

B: It will be on some TV show.

J: Oh! Like Ghost Hunters? You should send a link to the 31G forums when it airs.

B: I will

J: Which leads me to my next question, actually – how did you come to join the 31G Forums? And how do you feel about the animosity that gets tossed around on there on such a regular basis?

B: It’s actually less negative there than most music boards! I post FV news pretty much everywhere. but 31G is one of the few places where the response to our news makes me excited to engage in conversations. If you want to see true negativity, just check out this: http://terminal-boredom.com/forums/index.php?topic=18490.0

J: That’s…. pretty fucked. And also kind of hilarious, in a weird way.

B: Yeah, i don’t mind or take it personally. I even responded to that thread just to let them know that we can handle “dude talk” if that’s what they feel the need to test us on. I mean, it’s just music. Why get upset? It’s all in fun. Or, at least, it should be.

J: I agree. I don’t know why so many people see the need to use the Internet as a weapon – and such an ineffective one at that.

B: Well, it just goes to show that the pursuit of happiness is still something that needs a lot of work in this world – apparently, the Internet isn’t enough lately I’ve been realizing that just being in a “happy band” isn’t really enough to make me feel like I’m doing my part. I’ve turned my sights to some more direct volunteer work.

J: I was just about to ask about that. Do the members of FV need to rely on extrinsic sources of income to support themselves financially? Is it challenging to strike a balance between music and other forces in your life? And, one more related question: A lot of musicians that I have spoken to in recent times have mentioned that they have to make great sacrifices to pursue progressive music. Do you feel personally that you’ve had to fight to keep your music going – and is it worth it?

B: FV is not our job, but more than any other bands any of us have been in, it has a lot more opportunities for us… like going to EU and doing albums with crazy art. So I’ve pretty much eliminated most other music projects so that I have lots of time for FV and all the other stuff I do for fun, income, life, etc. But I would be doing music no matter what, so I don’t consider it a hard fight or anything. I work hard regardless of how well things are going. Its more just a matter of keeping a good attitude. We all slip. But the four of us offer each other good company and always have our friendship to fall back on. I also have incredible people in my life that help me keep my head/actions in line with my heart/beliefs.

J: Well, that wraps up the main body of questions! I do have one bit of advice I was hoping I could ask you for: I am a noise musician, and am hoping to spend a great deal of more time invested in my music – but I have this cognition that I would have to sacrifice the integrity of my family in order to make things work. What advice would you have to someone who’s just starting off as a musical performer doing less than common music to strike a balance between those various life forces, such as finances, family, etc?

B: I’ve risked a lot and sacrificed a lot to get where I am. I spent a year living in my car because I believed I was on the verge of paying my rent through music if I could just stop working so much. I don’t know if I’m just lucky or what, but I pulled it off. My expenses are low, but I pretty much pay them through running a label and other music things – just not Foot Village I guess the only for sure advice I can give is to ask yourself with every decision you make, “When I’m old and on my deathbed, will I be glad I made this decision?”

J: Thank you kindly Well, I will have to get going soon. Any closing thoughts?

B: Sure, I just want to make sure people know that if they can’t afford to buy our new album, they should copy it or find a place to download it. We are really proud of it, and lots of people helped contribute. It should be heard. The money is important for many reasons, but the listening trumps that.

Trundle on over to Foot Village’s lovely website for more info in the band!