It’s White Flag’s World, We Just Live In It: An Interview With Pat Fear

By Less Lee Moore

Note: this interview was originally published in May 2010.

Recently we’ve been treated to new music from the venerable White Flag, an excellent EP called Keepers Of The Purple Twilight. Released on Target Earth in March of this year, all five songs are fantastic, featuring the White Flag hallmarks of clever, witty lyrics, which are often belied by hooky, but rocking tuneage.

One intriguing factor is that lyrically, the tunes are pretty introspective, perhaps pondering where a band like White Flag, who has been consistently making music but continually underrated over the years, fits into this weird world of American Idols and Justin Biebers.

If you haven’t been paying attention to White Flag, we’re here to help fill in those gaps for you. What follows is a conversation with singer, guitarist, songwriter, and main Flag-waver Pat Fear about the history of the band, including just a few of the “28 years of stories” he’s accumulated about punk rock, playing Greenland, The Shaggs, Os Mutantes, Gasatanka Records, and being the most connected band in the universe.

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Redd Kross, Researching The Blues

By Less Lee Moore

” . . . there’s nothing more comforting than being in a room with my brother where him and our drummer are just talking endlessly about Bob Dylan bootlegs and we have stupid inside jokes about public access shows from 1984. With them I can just turn my brain off and I don’t need to worry about the social aspect of this environment—that’s sorted.”
—Steven McDonald, interviewed in Stereogum, July 30, 2012

Disclaimer: Redd Kross has been an integral part of my life for almost 20 years, so I can’t promise that this review will be 100% objective. I can, however, promise that it will be 100% sincere.

Redd Kross. Oh, where to start? So much history that I can’t cram it all into one review, but chew on this: The band has been around for more than 30 years. Despite various lineup changes, two members have remained steadfast—brothers Jeff and Steven McDonald, now both in their 40s. (Your math is correct; Jeff and Steven started the band at ages 15 and 11, respectively.) And yes, they have been integral to my life, something that can’t be overstated; after all, the name of this website was inspired by the name of one of their albums.

Throughout the band’s existence, Redd Kross may not have released as many “proper” albums as other bands, but they’ve been no less prolific, participating in various soundtracks, tribute albums, singles, EPs, and at least two alter egos (how else do you describe Anarchy Sixx or Tater Totz?). Although their sound has never been what purists might consider punk rock, their attitude has always been. Even the bubblegum pop of 1990’s Third Eye contains a metal tribute to Japanese girl group Shonen Knife. Thus, answering the question, “so what does Redd Kross sound like?” has always been tricky.

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Shonen Knife, Osaka Ramones: Tribute To The Ramones

By Matt Keeley

Sometimes the redundant can be awesome. Shonen Knife‘s own music is quite Ramonesy, so some out there might not see the point of them doing a full album of Ramones covers. Those people who I may have just made up are stupid. Shonen Knife are awesome, as are the Ramones. How can you go wrong with an album of Shonen Knife—a band that was dubbed the “Osaka Ramones” by a Ramone himself—doing Ramones covers? You can’t. QED.
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Let’s Have Fun With Shonen Knife: A Video Interview

By Matt Keeley

I have been listening to Shonen Knife for literally half my life. I’m 30 now, so do the math! That being said, I’ve only been able to see them live twice: once on the Gokigen Tour in 2005, and recently for the new album Free Time. There’ve been line-up changes since the first time, but the sound is the same and just as good as it always was.

I was so thrilled to interview Shonen Knife before their show at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle—the first stop on the new US tour. I got to talk to all of them and ask Naoko Yamano about her songwriting, finding records in Japan when she was growing up, Japanese vs. English, writing about animals and food, and more, including the band’s recent experience playing in China. She even tells a scary story, seeing as it is the Halloween issue and all!
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