SAD-BASTARD-MUSIC

http://sad-bastard-music.blogspot.com

INTERVIEW WITH FELIPE FLORES

(Band: CHOLO)
By: Fabricio Santibáñez

>> To begin with, tell me a little about the origins of the band.

I started the band in 2003. Dave and I were playing together for a couple of years before that as a different band.
After typical band egos went awry we re-grouped as cholo and gave it a more personal name since I was writing
the songs. Rosa and Gary followed soon after.

WWW.CHOLOMUSIC.COM
>> You are a multiculture band (members from
Guam, Peru, Ireland and USA) Why do you choose
the name of "cholo"? What is meaning for you?
Is there a special reason to use this term so
familiar and natural to the popular peruvian
culture... Or maybe is a salute to the nature of an
outsider's perspective?

It's complicated but I'll try to simply. My grandfather

was from Puno, Peru and as a kid he called me a
"cholo americano" I didn't understand what that meant
until I started attending a mainly all white school on
Long Island. That's when the subtle racism kicked in
and made me realize yes I was american but also
from somewhere else. After some confusion,
hardships and adolescent soul searching I embraced
it.It's something I wear on my sleeve and is as much of
my identity as my eyes, nose, hair and teeth and am
proud of it. Growing up in a household where I heard spanish, ate lomo and seco and at school I heard english,
ate burgers and fries really presented conflicts with acceptance and identity that many first generation
immigrants face, especially as the family grows and other generations begin. So part of the name is a dedication
to those kids.

>> How you can describe the sound of the debut album ("Cholo", 2005)?
It was definitely a heavy guitar Pixies/Clash/X influenced album but nowhere near as good. There the kind of
songs I played air guitar to as a kid and still do.

>> How was the recording process of "Unlimited Nights and Weekends"?

We recorded at Emandee Studios in Brooklyn New York with the highly patient Mark Ospovat. It took us about a
week to track drums which we did in dec 2006. Then we added the rest little by little and finished recording in
March 2007. It was pretty straightforward but got a little frustrated with the saxes. I take my sax playing too
seriously.

>> http://sad-bastard-music.blogspot.com INTERVIEW - page 01

 >> Now you have two albums out, which are the most difficult to record: the first album or "Unlimited
Nights..."?

Well recording any amount of songs is tough. Your always listening with a critical ear, making tough decisions
and sometimes just not getting it right. You also have to know when to let go and say something is finished even
when deep down you know it's not because that's just an infinite loop in your head.
"cholo" was tough because we recorded a bulk of it with a friend in various apartments. His schedule became
tougher once he got a girlfriend so it took longer than “Unlimited...”. And at that time it was mainly me calling the
shots. Also, there's a comfort level that exists now which didn't back then.
“Unlimited...” was a different experience. The songs were more accomplished than "cholo" and with Rosa writing
about 1/2 the songs we all had to adjust to each others styles of recording, ok I had to adjust because everyone
had more input than before.
But in the end after many beers, burgers, tacos and some bickering we survived without much damage.
WWW.CHOLOMUSIC.COM

>> In "Unlimited Nights and Weekends" we find more vocal

participation by Rosa Bordello. What track do you find the
most interesting to sing with her?

All of them. I know Rosa will hate me for saying this but she was a
in work progress until we started recording “Unlimited...”. This is her
first band so when we brought her on board I knew there would be
growing pains because at the time she was 19. But I have to say it
was all well worth it. Gary and her collaborated on a couple of the
songs so he deserves credit. They're the Lennon and McCartney
and I'm the Ringo.

>> Tell me, what are your favorite songs of cholo, and why?

I like all of Rosa's songs because she is a crafty and a unpredictable songwriter. She writes a lot about her
colonial experiences on Guam and listening to them I feel like I was there. That's the makings of a good song
feeling like you are part of it even if it has nothing to do with any experience you've had before, in this case living
in Guam. As for my songs, I like the ones where I can distort the hell out of my guitar or go ape shit on the sax.
I have some serious angst.

>> You and Gary Gartlan performed in the emsemble of avant-garde composer Glenn Branca, one of the
most important figures on the American underground music scene. Musicians like Page Hamilton
(Helmet), Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth) participate in the ensemble, tell me more of
this experience and how happened it?

Gary and I worked together at MTV Networks for a couple of years. Their was a department their called Labs
that did some really great things bringing in speakers like

FABRICIO SANTIBÁÑEZ
filmaker Todd Haynes and groups like The Tractenburg
Sideshow Players. They brought in Glenn Branca to compose
a piece and perform it as a private show. They sent out an
email and boom we signed up. It was a great experience.
Branca is a nut but takes his craft very seriously. I would love
to go out a rager with the guy. Wharton Tiers (who recorded
some of the earliest Sonic Youth records) and Kurt Loder (MTV
VJ and news anchor) were also part of the ensemble.

>> The final track (”Low Life [I-III]”) -definetely one of my

favorites!- reminds me some of the incendiary spirit of
"Daydream Nation" by Sonic Youth (the concluding track
"Trilogy," true to its title, is an awe-inspiring epic in three parts)... talking about that, what bands (or
music styles, like No Wave, Punk, Garage Rock, etc....) were your main influences?

>> http://sad-bastard-music.blogspot.com INTERVIEW - page 02

 WWW.CHOLOMUSIC.COM
Everyone has a time in their youth where music
makes a strong impact. I think because you
spend more time listening to music while not
listening to your authority figures. For me it was
bands like Sonic Youth, Pixies, Poster Children,
Mudhoney, Descendents, Nirvana, Smiths, Cure,
Jane's Addiction, Dead Kennedys, Fugazi
amongst others that were on my CD player
constantly. I also played in the jazz band and
orchestra in high school and college so artist like
Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane,
Brad Mehldau, Joshua Redman, Ornette
Coleman, Billie Holiday, Holst, Górecki, Ravel,
Rachmaninoff and John Zorn were just as
influential. In my "adult" years I gained an
appreciation for The Fall, Beatles, Radiohead,
Blonde Redhead, Velvet Underground,
Pavement, singer like Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, Ella Fitzgerald and a lot of classic rock. But honestly if I could
write and play songs like Steve Wonder from 1972-1976 I would probably never play any other type of music
again.

>> To me, the sound of "Unlimited Nights and Weekends" is a big step forward from previously -and
brilliant- record. What kind of sound textures or rhythms do you like to experiment in a future? What can
the listeners expect from your future sound and compositions?

Good question. I think of the guitar, sax and vocals like 3 different things. Meaning I write seperately for each
one and interweave them like a modern day TV show like ”Lost” or “The Wire”. A lot of subtext and stories with
each instrument. I do like writing 4 part harmonies on the sax so maybe I'll play around with that some more. As
cliche as this sounds I think I would like to bring in some sort of piano keyboard sound but who knows.
What I do know is that I'd like to continue pushing the envelope with the possibilities and/or limitations of the
current instrumental setup we have. So whether it's subconscious or not I won't know till I sit down and start. I'm
sure Rosa will bring in some songs that will mix it all up but somehow manage to fit.

>> New York is a prolific place to make music.. Any up to date group that you guys can recommend us?
Which one you would like to be in a tour with?

We played this festival this year called CMJ (College Music Journal) here in New York. The best part of it was
getting a free badge to see all the other bands. I really liked Xiu Xiu. They are all amazing musicians and have it
all figured out. Other bands of note: Silversun Pickups, Band of Horses, Deerhunter and our friendo El Jezel.
As for touring, wouldn't mind touring with Deerhoof or Broken Social Scene but I think Van Halen and Led
Zepplin would beat them out if they came knocking. Can you hear me Jimmy?

>> Anything you would like to add?

Don't be afraid to start a band. Remain humble and lose the attitude, we don't need more arrogant assholes, we
have enough of them running the country. We do need some more latino indie rockers though.
Oh and ¡Que Viva El Peru!

You can find more info about the band at their

official website and at their MySpace site:
www.cholomusic.com
www.myspace.com/cholo
>> http://sad-bastard-music.blogspot.com INTERVIEW - page 03