Yet another short interview with Woods while we both avoid responsibility at our day jobs.
Q: What’s your most hated question
someone asks you when they find out you play music?
A: I’m not sure that I have a
specific most hated question when people ask me about music I play. But, I’m
a reserved person socially around people I don’t know…so any social situations
with strangers or co-workers where someone is prying into my personal life or
interests is going to bother me.
Q: We talked before about finding
music from skate videos. What other way did you find music you had never heard
as a kid?
A: Before I had really watched any
skate videos, I was already listening to punk and a little bit of metal from my
dad, kids I grew up with, etc. Skate videos introduced me to so much
music outside of the realm of what I was already into. From there it
became years of scanning through liner notes from albums, paying attention to
shirts you’d see in band photos, stickers on guitars, and either making
lists or mental notes of it all.
Q: Who are some people that comes to
mind when someone says “rock star”?
A: Van Halen, which kind of sucks
because most of the DLR stuff is awesome. Other than that, I think of a
bunch of guys who wrote corny music, aged horribly, and are on their 10th
farewell tour.
Q: Next piece instrument you’d like
to purchase/learn?
A: Akai MPC2000 classic. It’s
a little dated at this point and doesn’t have all the flashy lights and
features that newer machines have, but it will be here this week and I’m just as
excited to use a piece of equipment that so many producers I respect made their
bones with almost 20 years ago.
Q: What’s the best decade for the
most consistent good tunes?
A: I don’t think it’s possible to
simplify it like that, across all genre’s…so excluding everything except
hardcore punk and metal, I’d say the 80’s.
Q: And the worst?
A: The entire 2000’s.
Q: What format do you have the most
of your favorite albums on?
A: Right now, Mp3’s.
Q: What’s the worst part about going
to local shows?
A: It’s hard to answer this in a way
that sums everything up nice and neatly, because there are, and have been many
amazing years in Cleveland’s scene. I think everything that plagues local
music scenes is the worst. Simple minded, cliquey morons who are more
concerned with putting money in their own pockets than paying bands.
These are the same morons who book and support only surface level, flavor of
the month bullshit. The domino effect from that, and the lack of DIY
venues around the city is absolutely crippling. On the other end of the
spectrum, when there were good venues and shows would consist of mostly local
bands, it was infuriatingly annoying hearing people say “eh, all locals?
I’ll pass” – then these same assholes are scratching their heads 6 months
later, wondering why all the local bands who got no support, no money, and
shitty offers called it quits.
-Novak