Saturday, April 16, 2011

Blip Nation Interview: Meet Rollerballrocco

Blipper since: November 28, 2008



Pete Dulin: Where in the world do you live?

Rollerballrocco: Southampton, United Kingdom
                                                                                                                                             
Dulin: Imagine you're 14-years-old browsing through a music store. What band/artist do you wish you had discovered that was so great you want to tell all of your friends about them. What would you say?

Rollerballrocco: This Heat...Liquid Liquid...Throbbing Gristle...Cabaret Voltaire. These bands were around in the late '70s when I was around that age. I discovered them a little later in the early '80s. They were all true pioneers of sound at this time, and influenced so many bands over the years. Their music reverberates even to this day. I would say to any of my friends today that didn’t know them, to listen and understand where so many of their current favourites drew their inspiration from.
                                               
Dulin: What song(s) give you comfort in times of stress?

Rollerballrocco: Whales singing (heh), and The Virgin Prunes - Down Old Memory Lane.       

Dulin: What is your dream job?

Rollerballrocco: Well, I worked as a singles buyer for Virgin Records in the early '80s, and loved the buzz of working with the punters and the record labels, as well as indulging in my passion of listening to new and exciting music, and going to live shows. The instores with artists and bands were especially fun. I have at various times over the years toyed with the idea of opening my own independent record store ‘a la’ Rough Trade in London, and Criminal Records in Atlanta etc...Those guys have a blast, and make me miss being in ‘the industry’...hmmm...maybe one day still...who knows?

Dulin: Better dancer - Thom Yorke or Morrissey?


Rollerballrocco: *shrugs* They wouldn’t stand a chance in a dance-off with the late, great Ian Curtis of Joy Division.

Dulin: Do you play any instruments?

Rollerballrocco: I have been in several bands over the years. mainly as a vocalist and percussionist, and I can keep a good beat on the drums. In the early '80s, I was in a band called ‘Dis.’ We classed ourselves as Art Noise Terrorists, in the vein of bands like Einsturzende Neubauten, SPK and Test Dept. We had a great local following as our live shows were pretty notorious. The gamelan-like metal percussion, miked up glass smashing, screaming backing tape loops, and metal grinders producing a barrage of flying sparks, raised more than just eyebrows with local venue owners and the police. After the break-up of this band, I was in a post-rock outfit called ‘Haul’ similar to Swans. I still have an open project called ‘Chrome Skulls’ which I hope to resurrect with a former band member one day.

Dulin: If you could be a guest artist on tour with your favorite band, what song would you like to play with what band?

Rollerballrocco: I don’t have a favo(u)rite single band. That would be an impossibility for me. But if pushed, drunkenly singing ‘Heart Attack and Vine’ with Tom Waits around a piano in a late night dive bar in NYC would be ACES!

Dulin: Do you have any favorite song lyrics? What are they? Tell us about the appeal of those lyrics.

Rollerballrocco: I rarely like specific songs for their lyrics as a whole. I like snippets and lines of songs in juxtapose. I quote lyrics as I get the urge, on Facebook and Twitter from time to time as conversation starters.

Dulin: Where do you find out about new music and artists?

Rollerballrocco: A number of places: Spotify, Last.fm, The Hype Machine, The Line Of Best Fit, RCRD LBL, Stereogum, A Heart Is A Spade, The 405, DIY, and great Podcasts like Jon Hillcock’s New Noise. But there is a world of other great sites and bloggers out there.

Dulin: What are some of your favorite lesser known artists that you want the rest of the world to know about?


Rollerballrocco: This question is always a moving target for me. See my Blip / Twitter Feed for further details.

Dulin: If you could name a music genre, what would you call it and what would it sound like?

Rollerballrocco: Music genres are for pigeons and holes. They sound like this ‘Coo Coo.’

Dulin: If you could convince all of your Blip listeners to do one thing with you, what would it be?

Rollerballrocco: I guess it would be to support those up and coming talents that I blip so often. Go see them live, buy their merch, and most of all buy their music in whatever form that suits your listening experience. For me, I’ve lived through a lot of media changes over the years, and currently support the cloud streaming concepts like Spotify and Soundcloud....Go on, subscribe.

Dulin: Favorite female and male vocalist? What about her and his voice appeal to you?

Rollerballrocco: Favourite female and male vocalist? That would have to be Wayne / Jayne County then...the transvestite spirit of punk!...2 for 1!...heh heh

Dulin: If you were on a world tour as a Blip.FM DJ and ambassador, what three countries or cities would you visit first? What DJs would you like to meet? 

Rollerballrocco: USA @katost @Modster @cuezaireekaa @craigz @melky @lilyetc @jennyleepenny @by_starla and of course @SlipperyDistortion, all have impeccable taste. Canada @SabriESC awesome taste. Chile @Alvaroxx this dude roxx.

Dulin: What influences your blip picks? Mood, nostalgia, new artist/song, social interaction, or other factors?


Rollerballrocco: My blips primarily feed my Twitter site http://twitter.com/rollerballrocco. It’s mainly new bands, and new single / album updates from established artists. I rarely use blip to chat in the way others do. I hope folks don’t think I’m being ignorant, but I tend to have a smaller groups of friends that I interact with through Facebook and Superglued (which is another site / app I’d like to recommend. Foursquare meets Twitter meets Last.fm)

Dulin: Pick one song that encapsulates your personality, and explain why.

Rollerballrocco: I’m an Upstart - The Angelic Upstarts. Still Punk after all these years!                               

Dulin: If you could blip one song to the rest of the world, what would it be?

Rollerballrocco: The Laughing Gnome - David Bowie. Smile, life just ain’t that serious!

Dulin: Favorite cigar?

Rollerballrocco: Gil Gonzales Davila Soldado...Cubano!

Dulin: What makes for a good remix?

Rollerballrocco: A good remix should completely deconstruct the original, but remain faithful to the source. One of my current favourite remixers is ‘Blackbird Blackbird.’ His remixes are so so good. Inventive and Fun.
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Pete Dulin is the co-publisher and editor of www.presentmagazine.com and writes freelance for magazines, websites, and newspapers. 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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