A Popup Interview with ashengrace

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A Popup Interview with ashengrace
[ Artist Website ] | [ Buy Our CD ]

VR:
Do you have all your songs downloadable at mp3.com?

ashengrace:
yes and no. There are songs from every ashengrace release available for download, but a number of songs are only availble by purchasing the cd.

VR:
Who are your biggest influences?

ashengrace:
Pink Floyd, Cocteau Twins, Clan of Xymox, the Cure

VR:
Discribe the times revolved around your song "nameone", that led to it to be written:

ashengrace:
Ahh, here's a favorite. "The Wishing Hour" from "Drawing Down The Moon". I have said in previous interviews that there is no drug influence behind the music I write. "The Wishing Hour" is one of the exceptions: I'd taken a particularly bad hit of acid one night at friend's house. After spending a few hours wishing I would die I dragged myself over to our pathetic excuse for a mixing console and fired up the equipment. I'd decided that whatever came out would be exactly what I put on tape. I got a nice little drum loop assembled and improvised everything else. It was done in an hour. It should help to mention I'd watched the movie "Solarbabies" at the time, you figure out the rest :)

VR:
If you could put on a show anywhere were would it be?

ashengrace:
That's easy, Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, CO.

VR:
What have you enjoyed the most about doing what you do?

ashengrace:
Taking a really bad experience and making something good come out of it.

VR:
Do your songs have a message?

ashengrace:
That's up to the listener. I've never written a song to get a point across. i write about what I write about. If someone else relates to that, awesome.

VR:
What is your favorite song on the radio?

ashengrace:
I hate the radio as it's mostly crap.

VR:
So, tell me..what exactly, motivates you, the artist to write songs?

ashengrace:
A desire to express myself. Sometimes it's the only way, even if the recipient doesn't know exactly what I'm talking about.

VR:
Do you do any recording on your own?

ashengrace:
Well, seeing as ashengrace is a solo lineup at the moment, yeah.

VR:
Tell us a story about the making of a song:

ashengrace:
That's a vague question since it can come from anywhere (see "The Wishing Hour"). I write songs using the same formula John Lennon used, only not as well. "Get an idea, go with it, make it rhyme, give it a backbeat, and you're done."

VR:
Who is your favorite unsigned Band?

ashengrace:
Too many to name. Particular favorites are Falling You, Heaven Falls Hard, Mara's Torment, Gossamer (but technically I think they are signed), In Heaven And You, Andrea's Winter, Naethyrlord (This guy is just awesome), Martin Ball...

VR:
Where do you want to be a year from now personally?

ashengrace:
Not In Tucson.

VR:
What do you like most about being an INDE artist?

ashengrace:
Not having some asshole in a 3 piece suit who's never touched a musical instrument, mixing board, or sheet music in his/her life telling me how to write "hits". Also the profit margin is much better. major labels are notorious for raping their own clientele. Just look what happened to TLC.

VR:
How big of an impact do you think the underground, indie scene has on the current pop culture?

ashengrace:
A really shitty one unfortunately. The "underground" scene never got the chance to impact the "pop" culture, thanks to Grunge.

VR:
What makes you and your band unique?

ashengrace:
What makes me unique is I'm the only person named David Holton on the planet who plays in a band. Not to mention my stunning collection of Legend Of Zelda paraphanelia (sp?). As far as what makes ashengrace unique, well, you may be able to derive some influences of who I/We listened to growing up affecting our sound. That happens to every musician. However, there is NO band on the planet that sounds exactly like ashengrace. In the "genre" I seem to have fallen into, usually what the singer is singing about isn't important. Take My Bloody Valentine for example. I doubt that 80% of the people who listen to that group know OR CARE what the lyrics are. The vocals are deliberately buried as far back into the mix as possible. In the case of ashengrace, what I play and what I say are equally important, in my humble opinion. This is why I make the lyrics to my songs availble for people to read, who are interested that is....

VR:
Will mp3.com really provide an avenue for people to make it?

ashengrace:
Absolutely. It's a true "alternative" to signing onto a major label. mp3.com gives you all of the same tools a major record label can give you, PLUS it's directly integrated with a new form of promotion (mp3 technology, the internet). And this above all else, you get a really slick looking website, tons of promo tools, and you can get paid. Like any corporation there are rules to deal with, some of them cool, some of them utter b.s. But for the most part it's the best thing that ever happened to us.

VR:
What is your favorite local venue?

ashengrace:
There's a place here called Club Asylum (Eclipse) that's a nice place to hang and drink. But nothing compares to "The Shelter", which is the greatest bar in history, anywhere.

VR:
Name and describe your most memorable gig.

ashengrace:
Halloween 1991 with the pre-ashengrace band "Euthanasia". I went on with Ian (played bass for ashengrace awhile back, and yes he's coming back) and we really connected with the audience. Our gig was closed with a cover (and a brilliant one at that, IMHO) of the cure's "Pornography". I then went on with another band to play keyboards, who also did very well. That was a great night.

VR:
Virtually Records needs a theme song, would you be interested?

ashengrace:
Absolutely.

VR:
Tell us about your website:

ashengrace:
Lots of songs, lots of pictures, lots of news. And it's really pretty to look at.

VR:
Where do you think this MP3 business is going?

ashengrace:
Straight up. Wave of the future. Biggest thing since the CD.

VR:
Are there any established artists with whom you would like to collaborate?

ashengrace:
Yes.

VR:
How important do you think tour support is?

ashengrace:
Uh, try touring without it.

VR:
If you could talk to anyone in the music business, who would it be?

ashengrace:
"Chili" from TLC so I can know what NOT to do.

VR:
How do you write your songs (how do you think of them)?

ashengrace:
An idea comes to me at random. I go with it.

VR:
Tell us about the hardest time surrounding a gig or studio project.

ashengrace:
The tail-end of "Drawing Down The Moon". There was a lot of arguing and fighting going on. I wasn't getting anywhere and it was really unpleasant. Came out really good though, in my opinion.

VR:
Who drives the tour bus?

ashengrace:
Ain't no steenkin bus.

VR:
How do you guys put songs together?

ashengrace:
With masking tape (didn't you just ask me this?)

VR:
Do you feel that "underground" is just a marketing term like anything else?

ashengrace:
Hmm. No. Not by a long shot. I suppose it could suffer the same fate "Alternative" did, but I doubt it. We are lucky in the sense that "Underground" means "Unmarketable" to major labels.

VR:
If you could get a message to the inside mp3.com what would that message be?

ashengrace:
Enough is enough. Get your damned hands out of the honeypot before you get stung.

VR:
Have you ever paid for advertising for the band?

ashengrace:
Yup. Several times.

VR:
If your band could open for a headlining act, who would it be and why?

ashengrace:
Pink Floyd. 100,000 people. Any questions?

VR:
Somethings burning.. Did you leave dinner on the stove?

ashengrace:
Nope. That's my cat. Trying to dry him off in the microwave.

VR:
Do you desire to come up with a new form of music or do you like safety in numbers?

ashengrace:
new form, definately.

VR:
How do you feel about NAPSTER's situation?

ashengrace:
To be honest, I really don't give a f*ck. Just another corporation now. Used to be a really cool tool for finding songs you can't find anymore, but those days are done. Other companies will learn from Napster's mistakes (and yes, they made some big ones) and do really well. As for the RIAA who persecuted, er, prosecuted them, they rip off their performers even more than napster users did, so they should shut the f*ck up.

VR:
Where would you want to be musically say a year from now?

ashengrace:
A much better player. And touring.

VR:
What would you change about the music business in general?

ashengrace:
Slash cd prices in half, with a 50/50 split between the label and the artist.

VR:
What would you do if you lost your musical abilities and are you a fullfilled enough person to accept that if it happened?

ashengrace:
Deal with it. It's happened before. We call it writers block.

VR:
What made you want to pursue songwriting?

ashengrace:
That's too embarrassing. Can't say.

VR:
Nice shirt your wearing, where did you find that?

ashengrace:
I'm naked at the moment, thanks.

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