Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Blip Nation Interview: Meet krisp

Blipper since: May 11, 2009




Pete Dulin: What part of the world do you live in?

krisp: Kuna, Idaho, USA.

Dulin: Since you began blipping, have you had any experiences that surprised you? Please explain.

krisp: I sure have! In March of 2010, I began receiving a heaping helping of props from a blipper named @tammik. I checked out her page, and admired her taste in music.  Our blip friendship subsequently led to a Facebook friendship, which in turn led to many email exchanges, and then to nightly, lengthy phone conversations. I was living in Orlando, Florida at the time, and had been divorced since 2004. After that experience, I was pretty certain that I would remain single for the rest of my days... As I got to know Tammi, I realized that I wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with her, even though she lived far away in the wilds of Idaho. Luckily, she felt the same way. We got married in September. I moved to Idaho. I've been given a new lease on life. If it weren't for Blip.FM, all of this wouldn't have happened.

Dulin: How would you improve Blip.FM?

krisp: 1. Get rid of the cell phone concert videos.  2. Less reliance on YouTube.  3. Give blippers the ability to easily upload tunes. I know that last one is really just a pipe dream, as the copyright/use hurdles are probably too difficult to overcome.

Dulin: What legacy of musical knowledge would you like to impart to your children?

krisp: My passion for music began around the age of 10 - at that time, vinyl was the prevailing format, and I think, during that era, the music biz was more about art, and less about 'product'. I'd like for my kids to really cherish music the way I did as a kid, and in turn, develop a passion for it that will last their lifetimes. I would also urge them look beyond the music that is being spoon-fed to the general public, as most of the 'corporate' product (there's that word again) seems to become obsolete rather quickly.

Dulin: Are you still a freelance writer? Does music inspire your work? Do you listen to music when writing or brainstorming to find an idea or rhythm to your words?

krisp: Yes, I am still a freelance writer.  I'm always looking to sink my teeth into a new project!  I always have music playing when I write (right now it's 'Bruises' by Chairlift), so I can't help but be inspired by music, either consciously or unconsciously.


Dulin: You have a great post on your blog (http://wajaba-wajaba.blogspot.com/) about album covers. One of my favorities is 1965 Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass, Whipped Cream & Other Delights. My dad had that record. As a boy, I stared at that cover for hours. What are some of your all-time favorite album covers?

krisp: Thank you for the kind words about that post.  I LOVE Whipped Cream... (both the cover AND the music)!  As I mentioned before, I came of age in the 'vinyl' era, and the album design/cover art/liner notes were all a very important part of the total package.  I'm glad to see vinyl making a 'comeback' of sorts these days.  Some of MY personal all-time favorite album covers, in no particular order, are:

Some Girls and Beggar's Banquet - The Rolling Stones

Bitches Brew - Miles Davis

Candy-O - The Cars

Strange Days - The Doors

Weasels Ripped My Flesh and We're Only In It for the Money - Mothers of Invention

London Calling - The Clash

Aladdin Sane - David Bowie

The Ramones - The Ramones

One Step Beyond - Madness

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes

Maggot Brain - Funkadelic

Aja - Steely Dan

Abbey Road - The Beatles

Dulin: Name a cover song that you respect. Who covered it? Who did the original? Why is the cover respectable?

krisp: I love this question, because I love interesting cover versions of well-known (or at least fairly well-known) songs. The first one that popped into my head was 'Satisfaction' by Devo, which, of course was originally done by the Stones. Devo took an iconic song, deconstructed it, reassembled it, rendering it virtually unrecognizable. The whole Q: Are We Not Men? album was pretty groundbreaking, actually, and remains one of my all-time favorite albums.

Dulin: What artists are you excited about for 2011?

krisp: Amos Lee, Cold War Kids, the great Wanda Jackson!!!, Lucinda Williams, Beasties, Fleet Foxes, Praxis, Kate Bush, Radiohead, anything involving Jack White, RHCP, Arctic Monkeys, QOTSA, Wolfmother, ZZ Top (Rick Rubin).  It's also very exciting when new artists emerge and surprise us!

Dulin: Do you remember the first music you ever purchased? What was it? Format (record, tape, CD, mp3)? Why did you buy it?

krisp: The first music I ever purchased on my own was Naturally, by Three Dog Night, on vinyl.  Bought it at White Front (anybody out there who grew up in Southern California remember White Front?) on sale for $2.99 (suggested retail for most LPs at the time was $5.99!). I bought it because I loved the tracks I had heard on my transistor AM radio, particularly their cover of the Spooky Tooth song, 'Liar'. I'm a sucker for good harmony vocals, and they don't get much better than these guys, particularly Chuck Negron. Turned out to be a damn good album - I still have it. Very funk-tinged, actually.

Dulin: If you could blip one song that could reach everyone on the planet, what would you choose?

krisp: I think the world would be a much better place if we would all shake our collective booties more often, so I'll pick "Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine" by James Brown.

Dulin: What song or lyric do you wish you would have written? Why?

krisp: My all-time favorite piece of music is 'The Ecstasy of Gold' by Ennio Morricone, so I'd have to go with that one.  Lyrically speaking, I think Leonard Cohen is the most brilliant lyricist ever, and I'd love to have written:

Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?


Dulin: Do you have a special song that makes you think of your significant other or a moment in your life? Tell us about the song and moment.

krisp: The song, "Thank You", by Led Zeppelin, makes me think of my wife, Tammi.  We were going to have this song played at our wedding, but we wound up not using music.  Maybe if we renew ours vows at some point...???

Dulin: Think of another Blip.FM DJ. You don’t have to reveal who it is. What question would you most like to ask him or her?

krisp: Well, I DID ask another Blip.FM dj to marry me...

Dulin: You're in a vault at a major record label. You get to pick a secret album by any artist never before released that will be shared worldwide in 2011. What artist/band would you pick? What would you want the music to sound like?
krisp: Another tough one.  Well, I hope this is what you were going for...

Following On the Beach, Neil Young was supposed to release an album called Homegrown.  He cut about 18-20 tracks for the album in 1974/75, and there was even a cover designed, but, ultimately, Neil decided to shelve the largely acoustic album, and release Tonight's the Night instead.  Some of the reconfigured tracks showed up on other albums, but I'd love to hear the album as originally intended, in its entirety.

Dulin: Any other thoughts to share?

krisp: All in all, I really do love Blip.FM. It's heartening to connect with so many people who are really passionate about music. And Pete, I love what you are doing with this blog - it's fun to read what other blippers have to say.
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Pete Dulin is the co-publisher and editor of www.presentmagazine.com and writes freelance for magazines, websites, and newspapers. Always looking for the next great song, he can be found in the Blip Nation at http://blip.fm/slipperydistortion. He can be reached at Twitter.com/petedulin, http://www.facebook.com/pete.dulin and www.petedulin.com.

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