Mudhoney Articles
Rumore
September '91
Translated from Italian
Nothing To Say
Mudhoney's philosophy
What are the main differences between "Every good boy deserves
fudge" and your previous releases?
Steve: Basically I think that this is more like a concept album. We
didn't start with that in mind, but looking back we realize that it's
just like that.
Mark: It revolves around the idea of driving, of helping someone to
drive up to here. In these two years we have created a complete rock
opera. It won't take you two years to listen to it, but we needed all
this time to get it together.
Steve: As for the differences between this album and the previous stuff,
first of all this record has fourteen songs. Also we have grown up a lot,
although you probably won't think so after this interview. In this record
there's also some harmonica and keyboards. It's almost like if we were
reborn in these two years, as different people with the same names.
Dan: This record has a crappier sound compared to our other stuff, but
that's actually a good thing.
Did you approach the studio in a different way than the times before?
Mark: Yeah, we got in there walking backwards.
Steve: The spirit was the same: panic, pure and simple. We didn't have
anything ready so we had to go in the studio first and then write the songs.
Not that we didn't have any song, we just didn't have enough material for a
whole record.
Mark: This happened because, at first, they had told us to record just a
single, so that's what we had ready. Then, just a few weeks before entering
the recording studio, they jumped on us saying that we actually had to release
a new album, which is what we did.
What can you tell me about the changes within the band?
Steve: Are you talking about the way we write our songs? Well, that was really
easy of course. But that's exactly why we didn't have to work too hard.
Mark: Yeah, this time it was much easier. We worked with another producer, not
Jack Endino. These two men are very different. This guy [producer Conrad Uno,
owner of Seattle's Egg Studios, Ed.] is really good, and it's very easy to work
with him, even though he's got a beard. Jack had a little pointed beard on his
chin and we always teased him for that.
And what about the lyrics?
Steve: Yeah, this time it's all about some kind of travel documentary about
helpings someone to get away and to walk down the road to self discovery, while
the previous record was basically about pot and girls.
Mark: It goes without saying, but really, it's not a very serious record, and
it's not very metal. We don't raise the sword of the hero, and we don't drink
the blood of the priest. I bought Venom's first record, the one where they sing
about drinking the blood of the priest and fucking the dying bitch. As you can
easily guess, that's us!
Steve: We realized that dark metal was our road. As I said before, we were lost,
but now we have found ourselves again, and that's all part of the process of
inner rebirth we went through. As a result, we walked the full circle, and to us
that means exactly the same thing.
Mark: Yeah, we had lost our souls kissing the ring of sacrifice, but now a new
soul has entered into our bodies.
Dan: You should see us in one of those days when we speak all the languages of
the world, Babel style.
What do you think about the current alternative rock
scene?
Mark: The mega corporations are buying it all, and the government approves this
kind of economical manoeuvres. That's the reason why I don't believe in the
underground anymore, because it's a lie.
Steve: I saw many young underground bands trying to take advantage of the
situation, but when you find yourself in the middle of that there's not enough
money for us and them. One of the two has to leave... so we left the ship, we got
out of there.
Are you considering signing to a major?
Mark: We can't really talk about this. Let me just tell you that someone has been
approaching us. I know bands that took that step and now are facing all kinds of
problems. I'm talking about Mike Watt for example: now at last he can buy all the
flannel he wants! [He is referring to the Minutemen's first album for Columbia,
"Flying the flannel", Ed.]
How has your idea of Mudhoney changed during time?
Steve: Actually, we never had an idea, not even in the beginning. Our idea back
then was to drink loads of beer and reharsal in our studio. Then we added some
stuff to this idea, such as money, women, big cars and fame, so our concept...
or our lack of concept has grown.
Are you happy with how things are going for you?
Mark: As I said before, everything has a good side and a bad side: to us it's the
same, even though so far there's been a lot of bad sides. Late at night, when we
go to bed, we're in tears. At the same time though in order to do this record we
were able to quit our jobs for six months, so we're not too sorry to be musicians.
Now all we have to do is to wait and see what happens to our bank account.
Are you satisfied with this album?
Mark: For a while I took some distance from it, someone even told me I was being
too aloof. But really, I love this record, and I'm very happy with it.
What's the greatest misunderstanding about Mudhoney?
Steve: When people say that we're very athletic. I mean, there's so many people
giving too much importance to our running, jumping and fighting skills. Another
thing that people didn't get is that we're not some intellectuals trying to look
like fools. The truth is, we're fools trying in every way to look like intellectuals,
just the opposite of what people thinks.
Mark: It seems that people know us, and that's good. When we walk down the street,
they spit in our faces so we're forced to go around with plastic masks. Matt also
wears a plastic collar for improved protection.
Steve: It's obvious that we got nothing to say, what we come up with is just bullshit.
A lot of bands state they got nothing to say, but actually they're simply ripping us
off. We are the only ones that have really nothing to say.
