Be Afraid, Be VERY Afraid. Then Be Smitten. Then GET RAWKED!! The Shining Twins Conquer NYC, One Villy At A Time...

Boys BEWARE!  They're actually quite sweet...

Gimmicky? Perhaps?  FUN? Abso-fuckin-lutely!  Legendary impresario and "Girl Band"  "appreciator"  Kim Fowley would have a hard time corralling The Shining Twins.  Originally hailing from San Diego, now residing in the “East Villy” of Manhattan, this three-piece is more Richard Kern than Stanley Kubrick.  The Shining Twins deliver primitive, 60’s girl group inspired odes to pills, mental conditions, celebrity, and friendship, with tongues placed firmly in well-defined cheekbones.  Their songs conjure Brooklyn’s Vivian Girls on Quaaludes, minus the Phil Spector “Wall of Sound”, delivered in child-like sing-song that borders on sounding, well, “Psycho”.  “Twins” (they’re not) drummer/vocals Marissa Kreiss and bassist/vocals Alex Weiss are joined by guitarist Xanax Aird.  In the space of one year  they have played shows with Adam Green, The Black Keys, Cassie Ramone (of The Vivian Girls), The Lemonheads, Juliana Hatfield, and collaborated with "Super Producer" Mark Ronson on his new album.  "The Twins" have popped up in celebrity name-maker Interview Magazine, as well as at the end of hallways (Kubrick fans HOLLA!).  Recently, the band ventured west playing with fellow New Yorker Adam Greene from the Moldy Peaches in their native San Diego.  With one EP Come Play With Us under their belt, they are working on their next EP entitled This Is Dumb due for release soon.  Duvet predicts that this band will be making a lot of noise this year.  Behold, The Shining Twins interview...  

So what are girls like you doing in an interview like this?  Or, What’s going on in The Shining Twins world these days? 

Well right now we are smoking a joint on the top bunk of our bunk bed in our pink apartment. Our “world” these days consists of smoking weed, fucking with boys, practicing and writing more songs for our full length. We just got back from France and we’re headed to Japan in two weeks.

You’re originally from San Diego, what prompted the move out East?

Originally we both came here to go to school. But we got bored and started a band instead.

Is it tough trying to make The Shining Twins stand out when there are so many bands on such a small island, and that’s not even taking Brooklyn into account?

It’s hard to say. We’ve gotten really lucky. There are so many good bands in New York and Brooklyn right now, like Dirty Fences, Guards and The Babies. But who can resist twins, right?

What were some early influences?  What made you want to start a band?

We started a band because we were bored and sick of dating boys in bands. At the time we were listening to a lot of Guided By Voices, The Damned and girl garage groups like Thee Headcoatees and early riot grrrl bands like Bratmobile. We figured that if the boys we were dating could be in bands, we could start our own band, play our own music and meet even cuter dudes.

I think my first exposure to you was listening to Mark Ronson’s show on East Village Radio.  I was blown away by the confidence and attitude you had in both the music and as personalities.  Where does that come from?

We felt really comfortable with Mark, because he’s an amazing guy and our good friend, so having him introduce us to the scene through his show made it a little easier to be confident in what we were doing. Also, we’re pretty annoying and persistent to begin with, so we think that sort of thing just comes through naturally?

I see you have since collaborated with Mark Ronson, can you talk a little about that?

Haha yeah. We met Mark through mutual friends, and he called us at 5 in the morning one night and asked if we would come to his studio and rap for him. We ended up doing two songs, one with Spank Rock and one with Pill and MNDR, who are all fucking awesome. We haven’t actually heard the songs, but we hear we sound like a pretty fucked up version of the Tom Tom Club.

All work and no play makes...Or, they want your skulls!

I have to ask about the name and the image you play around with…are you big Kubrick fans?

Of course we love The Shining. The book too. But we’ve really always thought of ourselves as twins, and Alex’s dad said we looked like “those twins from The Shining” when we were really hungover one morning. We thought it was pretty accurate and kept the name.

What are some artists (of any genre or medium) that get you excited?

The Ramones, The Damned and The Stooges. We think Road To Ruin, Damned Damned Damned, and Raw Power are the three most perfect albums of all time. You can listen to all three in a row, front to back. We LOVE Jim Goad. He’s a writer who created “Answer ME!” that 90s magazine that got banned. He writes about sluts and serial killers and shit all the time. And Tank Girl is our idol.

Your first EP Come Play With Us has a wonderfully “primitive” quality to it and the songs sound like perverse nursery rhymes, filtered through a glorious drug binge. What inspires a song?

You pretty much nailed it. Perverted nursery rhymes filtered through some sort of glorious never ending binge. And the other usual stuff – boys we like, boys we hate, girls we hate, and how crazy our families are.

So you’re working on a new EP This Is Dumb, how is that going and what can we expect from this release?  When is it scheduled to come out?  What label, etc.?

We’re pretty much done with it. We’ve recorded everything, we just need to mix and master it. It’s a lot punker, louder and faster than our first record, where we learned to play our instruments during the recording. As for what comes next, just prepare to be attacked by The Shining Twins very soon.

You’re working with Albert Hammond Jr. from the Strokes on your new EP?   How did that come about?

He is helping us finish This Is Dumb. We met Albert at a bar, forced him to listen to our record, and he offered to help. We’re really excited because we’ve been obsessed with The Strokes forever.

Is there a sound in mind or record that guided the recording process?

After we wrote our first EP, we started studying records like it was our homework. We decided that we wanted to create our own sound, that combined that “perverse nursery rhyme” shit and more punk rock, dirty records like The Germs’ What We Do Is Secret. We also wanted to show that we actually learned how to play our instruments, and knew what we were doing. We wanted people to be able to listen to our music and not be able to tell if we were boys or girls. Just musicians.

Good luck Mr. Fowley...

If you could work with anyone who would they, he or she be?

Kim Fowley.

You recently went to play some shows in Europe, how were you received over seas?

Let’s just say, God Bless The French.

Are there any differences in playing there vs. here in the Good Ole US of A?

Yeah, it’s more about being a spectacle and putting on a show in France, which we love doing. Also, they don’t really understand all of our lyrics, which is cool with us. They tend to like us more because of it.

Any plans on touring the West Coast?

Hopefully. We want to tour everywhere. Forever and ever and ever and ever.

What is the one thing nobody told you about “life on the road”?

We haven’t really been “on the road” yet, and we can’t wait to, but everyone says we’re either going to get AIDS and/or end up in jail. From what we have experienced, however, nobody could have predicted how crazy Xanax (our guitar player) is. We are making a movie about him and his “Xanic” episodes. He’s insane. REALLY insane.

Where would you like to see The Shining Twins 5 years from now?

Still touring, racking up boys and maybe rapping a lil bit.

Duvet puts The Shining Twins through "The Wringer" for these Ridiculous but Necessary Questions”

What is your favorite cheese?  Marisa: Brie. Cuz it’s the most fattening. Alex: Cheddar? I don’t know? What comes on a cheeseburger?

The Olsen Twins or Nelson?  Olsen Twins. Obviously. But only until they were 13. Now they suck.

Beverley Hills 90210 or Gossip Girl?  Gossip Girl. NO QUESTION. We are in LOVE with Chuck Bass.

Xanax or Valium?  Both. Come on.

A month in the van with anyone (your pick)?  Evan Dando

The Swedes In A Visual Nutshell: Curated By A Non-Swede...

Sweden may be a country few that read this blog truly know about and I am one of you...What I do know is that their music is as inventive and diverse as anywhere on the planet!  From ABBA's POP to the classical METAL of Yngwie Malsteem, I had relegated Swedish culture to the freezer to be thawed out and devoured at a later date. That later date hath arrived!  Now, you can't go anywhere without seeing someone reading the "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larrson.  It's the land that brought the world Ingmar Bergman, Bjorn Borg and one of my favorite Muppets, "The Swedish Chef". So like the great salmon the Swedes are known for, swim up the mainstream toward the Midnight Sun!  The videos below serve as supplemental material to the "What Duvet Said...About Music" Issue 8: "The Cure For Stockholm Syndrome?  Less ABBA: Duvet Looks at the Music of Sweden in This SUPER-SIZED Edition!".

The Hills Have Eyes: Parisian Artist "JR" Is Watching And Now So Is The Rest Of The World...

In the fine tradition of Banksy we have another compelling and anonymous artist altering the urban landscape.  The 27-year-old Parisian "street artist" and recent TED award winner, who goes by the moniker "JR", is responsible for uplifting the dilapidated slums of Kenya to "High Art".  His "wraps" have appeared in Paris, Brazil, Cambodia, as well as Kenya, often featuring the inhabitants that make up the various slums he chooses to canvass.  Like Banksy, little is known about the artist, is artistic motivations, and identity.  There is no doubting the visceral impact these images have when viewed from the comfy confines of the First World.  Money made from the sale of these works, largely by affluent westerners, gets re-invested into the slums that inspired them.  "JR" is one part Batman and one part Robin Hood!

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo via eldret_99/Flickr

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo via eldret_99/Flickr

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo via Wooster Collective

Photo via 28millimetres.com

Photo taken by unknown

As Discussed On The "What Duvet Said..." Survivor Tank: (Going Half Way) Podcast, We Give You "Scrambled Pornography!!

Take a look at these precious memories of the good old days!!  This was how many of us learned about sex in the days before the Interweb...well, this and the "Spanish Channel".

These Bulls Are Heading Straight Into Your iPods and a Town Near You: Nashville's Run With Bulls, Minus The BULLSH*T!!

Nashville, Tennessee is a town known for music but often a very specific type of music.  Think overly quaffed and bedazzled, Nudie-suited and booted, and don't even get me started about "New Country".  Well, I'm here to tell ya, there is a rich and vibrant underground in Music City that is every bit as rich and diverse as any other music capital in the country.  One shining example is Nashville's Run With Bulls.  This power trio comprised of Brad Sample (vocals/guitar), Chris James (bass), and Philip Turner (drums) make a very exciting and polished racket!  The band combines well-crafted songwriting with excellent musicianship to create a sound that is uniquely familiar.  Blurring the line of what Southern Rock, Country, Blues, and Pop can sound like when handled by hungry, talented, and honest musicians.  Below is my interview with RWB's Brad Sample.  I recently met the band at the Austin City Limits Festival, where their barn-burning mid-afternoon set compelled me to want to know more about these Southern gentlemen.  They couldn't have been nicer and I truly hope they make it to the West Coast soon! 

So give us bit of background on the band. How long have you all been together?

Other bands you were involved in, how you all met, etc.?

We have been playing together for about three years. Chris and I (our bass player) have been playing together for about four.  I was doing a solo thing at that time and needed a bass player for gigs that I had coming up in a few days.  A friend suggested Chris, I said no, he told him to come try out anyway. I was pretty pissed when he showed up at rehearsal because I was just planning on writing and getting some arrangements down with the drummer, but he sounded killer, knew the stuff, played the gigs the very next day, and we've been making music together ever since.  We found Philip a similar way.  We were hard up for a drummer, and I ended up running into him at a church.  I asked him who he liked, he said a few bands, I said "you're hired, can you practice tomorrow and play two gigs this weekend"  Ha!  He came to practice, and honestly Chris and I were planning on just using him for those two gigs and firing him, but he was SO good that we couldn't.  We really started digging the three piece thing and when we singed with our management company in '09' and we came up with the name.  I played in tons of other bands before this one, so did Chris and Philip.  We still do a good bit of gun slinging on our own when we have free time.

What were some early influences? Are there bands out there that you think, “That’s the kind of career I want.”

Early influences for me would have to be bands like The Black Crowes, Joe Cocker, Buddy Miller (who is my favorite artist and guitar player ever) Stevie Wonder, Steve Winwood, Nirvana, The Police, Oasis, Tom Waits, RadioHead.  Stuff like that.   As far as a career I would love to model?  I'd have to say somebody like Jackson Brown.  He got to write and play for EVERYBODY! He had a great career of his own, I mean, the guy was a superstar. And he still tours thirty five years later.  I think that would be pretty great and I think the boys would dig something like that as well.

Run With Bulls...photo by Alyssa Dawson

How would you describe the band’s sound?

We like to call it Nashville Rock.  I think it falls in the new wave of southern rock pretty well with bands like The Kings of Leon, Parlor Mob, Jet, stuff like that.  There is a good bit of just throw down, good time jamming.  But I feel like we try and bring a bit of thought to it as well.  You know.  We try to not always just bang on stuff and yell really loud.  Ha! 

How are the songs written?  Is there one songwriter or is it more collaborative?

Lately we've been trying to write as much of the stuff together as we can.  Someone will have an idea for a groove, and we'll build on that.  Songs like "Shake This" and "Arrhythmia Shuffle" were written that way.  Now obviously songs like "Break My Heart" and "Follow the Light" are a little more of a story so it's hard to get a flow going with three mouths shooting out ideas.  So stuff like that is usually written by one just one member.

What are some of the things or themes that inspire a song?

I think most anything can inspire a song.  Girls and heartbreak usually seem to be good fodder for a tune!  But we also like to write about what we see around us.  I think something that hits us really hard lately is the numbness, mediocrity and complacency that seams to be choking our generation.  It's pretty loud to us so we write a lot about that.

I hear names like Jason and the Scorchers and Kings of Leon mentioned when describing you guys…. How do you feel about those comparisons?

I think we're all pretty flattered for the most part.  Jason and the Scorchers...Great band!  Kings of Leon...Great band!  Doesn't bother me in the least.  I will say though, that I think a lot of those comparisons come, first of all because we're from Nashville, and second because we have guitar solo's in our music.  Which really doesn't happen that often anymore.  I don't necessarily think that we "sound" a ton like those bands, but we sure don't mind being in their company.

What is the Nashville scene like for bands like Run With Bulls who seem to be operating outside of the “traditional Music City” machine?

It good and bad.  It's good because when you have people that hear you and then find out you are a band from Nashville they go "MAN!  I can't believe that you all sound like that!  I thought only country came out of Nashville."  It's also good because their are SO many amazing players in this town, you have to get your chops up quick to stay alive.  It's bad sometimes because the business side of the city, very often, has no idea what to do with you.  At almost every gig in Nashville we hear from some executive "HOLY CRAP!!!  That's the best thing I've ever heard!"  And to that we say "Great, what do you think you can do with it?" and they respond "Ooooo... Well I'll have to check with our marketing team and see if they think they'll have time to mess with a rock act right now...You know we just signed another big boobed blond chick who can't sing worth a shit, but is hot as hell and people don't seem to mind that when she opens her mouth it sounds like cows incubating and giving birth to an alien race that is going to take over the world...Ya so she's taking up a lot of our resources...But! We'll be sure to keep you on our radar and give you a call in a couple weeks."  It's been a couple of weeks for a long time for us...Ha!  But we're making headway and I know we're all glad for, and proud to be from Nashville Tennessee. 

Tell me a bit about your recorded work? What label, who produced it, was there a sound in mind or record that guided the recording process?

The record we have out now is our first project.  We did it with the faithful and amazing backing of our management company R&D Management.  They really gave us all the freedom we could have ever asked for.  We got a travel studio rig, found a couple spaces around town we, first of all, could get into and use, and second, really liked the sound of.  Most of the songs we're cut in our friend Jay Woodard's barn.  We fondly call it "Woodard's Woodshed Studios".  A good few we also cut in our friend Katy Branson's house in East Nashville.  We call it the "Branson Mansion".  The record was self produced, and as far as sounds or a sonic footprint goes, we really wanted it to feel like a good Run With Bulls show.  We wanted it to be full of energy and grit, but also knew we could not put out some crap live recordings and call it good.  I wanted it to feel like you were standing in our rehearsal space feeling the sweat come flying off foreheads, seeing the blood on the guitar strings, feeling the sweetness of the brokenhearted, and wanting to call every one of your friends and say "GET THE HELL OVER HERE RIGHT NOW!!!"  So we set out to track as much of it live as we could while still getting really great sounds.  The records I was constantly referring my ears to were Nevermind by Nirvana, Ghost in the Machine by the Police, Pablo Honey, by RadioHead, and Californication by The Red Hot Chili Peppers.  I wanted to make sure we were filling it out with just the three instruments, and I really think we got there.  The record is trashy, but smooth, aggressive, but really sweet in some places, and I think all around pleasing to the ear.

Live you guys really put on a fiery show, how has the road and touring affected the bands sound?

Fiery Indeed...

Ha!  Thanks first of all.  Live is where we live.  We love playing.  We play as much as we can... We play early shows, we play late shows, we play three shows a night, we play covers that we have to make up the words to because drunk people will not stop yelling them out.  We just really love to play.  That said I think the sound has kind of developed itself because live is our priority.  We try and make sure that anything you would ever hear on a RWB recording would be warmly and accurately represented at a live show.

Any plans on touring the West Coast?

We'd love to and there is always a "plan" but funding and promo has to fall into play.  I think we're going to hit a few spots on the West Coast next year.

Where would you like to see Run With Bulls be in the next couple of years?

Ruling the world.

Who is a typical Run With Bulls fan?

I think the typical RWB fan is someone that really loves music.  I know that sounds silly but that's the only consistency I can come up with.  We played a gig this weekend a a kid who was wearing a Nirvana shirt and looked like he was thirteen came up to us and said "Man!  I love you guys.  I heard you on the radio five months ago and have been waiting and waiting for you all to play a show that I could get into around here!"  At that very same show we had a guy who had to have been sixty come up and said "Thank you all so much for playing Rock and Roll!  I really miss hearing that stuff" Haha!  It was great. 

If you guys could work with anyone who would they, he or she be?

I'd love to work with Ethan Johns. I'm a huge fan.  Actually heard some of his first works in Tumbling Ground a little record by a guy named Kevin Prosch recorded in the early nineties. But I really love what he does with rooms and instruments.  Love that first Kings Of Leon record he did and the early Ryan Adams stuff is killer too.  Obviously it would be really neat to work with somebody like Rick Ruben or something just because he's so hugely talented and awesome. 

Who is singing harmony on the song “Follow the Light”?

That would be the beautiful and talented Miss Natalie Prass.  Everyone really should check her stuff out.  It will blow your mind.  She's a good friend and one of our favorite artist around town.

Anything you want our readers to know about Run With Bulls they may not know?

Ya, look out!

Duvet puts Brad Sample through "The Wringer" for these Ridiculous but Necessary Questions”

What is your favorite cheese?  Irish salted monk cheddar 

REO Speedwagon or Journey?  Oh geese...Journey...Duh! 

Beverley Hills 90210 or Gossip Girl?  Hmmm?  I'm going to have to go with Gossip Girls...That blond chick...Woa...

Taylor Swift or Miranda Lambert?  Ooooo, that's tough...I'm going to have to say....Taylor... because she's the reason for the tear drops on my guitar.

A month in the van with anyone (your pick)?  C.S. Lewis I think....Or Jimi Hendrix!  Damn I can't pick.

Run With Bulls EP Brand New Tongue Available on Amazon.com

Sail on Down the Line: Peter the "Not So Great" Sculpture May Be Searching For Another Port To Call Home

Zurab Tsereteli's sculpture of Peter the Great in Moscow

Duvet is curious to know what your opinion is of this statue of Peter the Great near Russia's Kremlin? The 322 foot, copper, stainless steel, and bronze sculpture by Zurab Tsereteli has the great Russian ruler on a island both literally and in terms of public opinion. Many are saying, "Ship him out!" I say it's kind of cool looking and should find safe harbor somewhere on the Vegas strip in front of a Soviet themed resort/hotel.  This is not the first time Tsereteli has drawn criticism for his work, which has be described as, "pompous and out of proportion".  We think Peter has never looked, well, GREATER!  maybe they can motorize the statue and offer rides along the Moskva River.  Or, will the time-honored tradition of banishing the statue to Siberia win the day?  Click on the title above to read more about the controversy.

If You Only Saw One Act At Treasure Island This Weekend...It Should Have Been Die Antwoord

Strike a MUTHAFUCKIN pose!

South Africa's Die Antwoord made their US debut at this year's Coachella Festival and was by all accounts a polarizing and eye-opening experience.  Several months later the Hip-Hop trio were causing jaws to drop at the Treasure Island Music Festival on Saturday.  It's hard to know how seriously to take Die Antwoord but judging by their performance I would say VERY seriously.  Band leader Nija definitely has the flow of Eminem and the conviction of N.W.A.  His rhymes are as outrageous as they are confusing.  His foil, Cape Town's version of a "hood rat", is the pre-pubescent looking Yo-Landi Vi$$er.  She matches Nija's moxy spitting verses with a tone that can only be described as child-like.

Yo-Landi Vi$$er in action...

 Her performance in a half-shirt and gold lames skin-tight pants was downright NASTY!  It was so disturbing to my buddy that he felt guilty watching it and I suggested maybe a shower was in order when he got home.  The beats are supplied by DJ Hi-Tek and are as inventive as any DJ's in the game.  The strike a balance between minimal and otherworldly.  The South African "culture" the proudly boast presenting was certainly not the one FIFA wanted highlighted in this year's World Cup.  It will be interesting to see if Die Antwoord has staying power or if they will be relegated to a curious side-show on the 2010 music landscape.  Below are some vids to give you a better idea of what all the fuss is about.  

They Be Jammin: Parisian Trio Jamaica Kick Out the Sub-Zero Jams at the Treasure Island Music Festival!!

Parisian Trio Jamaica play island music...photo by Robert Celli

When one hears the word Jamaica it is easy to imagine being transported to an island paradise.    A place where tin-roofed shantytowns keep a quarantined watch on the pampered tourists below enclosed in their Club Med encampments.  One thinks of Bob Marley, bobsledding, Red Stripe, ganja, and escargot?  You may have to readjust your definition of Jamaica to include a trio of Parisians.  Jamaica, the band, made their San Francisco debut this past Saturday at the Treasure Island Music Festival.  Hailing from Paris, France, with a debut record No Problem due out sometime in the near future stateside, the three-piece tore through a tight forty-five minute set.  Their music has hints of fellow countrymen Phoenix in it's pop-meets-dance sensibility, but owes as much to the French electronic music duo Justice in its hard-hitting bite.  In fact Justice's Xavier de Rosnay helped co-produce their album.  Jamaica's songs are at once nervy and polished, with plenty of muscle delivered by the syncopated playing of rhythm section Florent Lyonnet (bass) and David Aknin (drums).  The piece de resistance for me is vocalist/guitarist Antoine Hilaire.  His easy vocal delivery is contrasted perfectly with angular riffs and some downright HEAVY guitar squalls.

Live the band has an easy charm with plenty of confidence in its material.  There was a formidable French contingent in attendance and everyone, band included, dealt with the arctic conditions as the wind whipped off the Bay, by bouncing in place.  It was also the first time since a U2 video that I saw a drummer play in a parka.  I look for this trio to be popping up at festivals all over the world next year.  Jamaica are also known to do DJ gigs in addition to the more traditional RAWK set-up.  Their single "I Think I Like U 2" is a sure bet for many remixes in the coming months.  Below is some video I took with my trusty FlipCam.  I apologize for the shaky parts but shivering will do that.

Some Photographic Booty From The Treasure Island Music Festival

In anticipation of Miike Snow...photo by Robert Celli

Ferris Wheels are now obligatory at music festivals apparently...photo by Halli Forster-Celli

Not a mythical gnome but rather Little Dragon singer Yukimi Nagano putting a spell on the  gathering...photo by Halli Forster-Celli

Jamaica's Antoine Hilaire breathes in the cold, bay air...photo by Robert Celli 

Sun sets on the huddled masses...photo by Robert Celli

Trip on this!...photo by Halli Forster-Celli

If only the weather was worthy of palm trees...photo by Robert Celli