From hot girls in ugly swim caps to opening for the Vandals and the most amazing 3 seconds with social networking queen Amanda Palmer; this “Goodbye Gadget” interview has it all. The Oakland band has been featured on Punk’d and Fusion, and played ESPN’s X Games, WARPED, and The Grand Prix. Grab a Monster and enjoy…
Goodbye Gadget? Is this some sort of device that automatically says all your goodbyes? Or is it Gadget a person? I guess what I’m getting is how did you come up with your name?
Ana: Such a device would be great. Alas, we are only stuck with giving folks the “delete” right? Well, Jess and I used to be in an all-girl punk band named Inspect Her Gadget. (you may cringe now). Even though we needed to change the name because we had a new sound and almost all new other members, we just couldn’t say goodbye to the gadget history. So the inability to say goodbye to the gadget ended up Goodbye Gadget.
I definitely hear some Gwen Stefani influence in Ana’s vocals, but when I first listened, I heard raw emotion that reminded me of Amanda Palmer. After looking at your bio, I see that you opened for The Dresden Dolls. Were you familiar with their work before playing with them?
Ana: I am both a Gwenabe and an Amanda fan. I loved Dresden Dolls the second I realized her expressive tendencies were similar to the kind of lyrics and emotions I was already writing. Being in a show with them was almost too much for my little heart since I had been a fan before others were familiar with the those fabulous tirades on the 88’s. She played catch lemon with me for exactly 3 seconds before that show. But those were MY 3 seconds.
You started off as an all girl band. Now you have a couple of male members. Do you think that having Venus and Mars working together has broadened your musical spectrum?
Ana: Absolutely. Male energy tamed the riot grrrl inside us without breaking her. Our pop and softer sensibilities now have some grit and power that are very present in our rhythm section.
Chris: Having “Venus and Mars in the same band” is not as bad as it sounds. I think it’s a perfect match. We even each other out. I never think of it as a girls and guys band it’s just a band of good friends that love to play music. We’re family brothers and sisters. I feel honored to play in this band. It’s a great place to be.
Jess: I don’t know…personally (for me) I’m not sure if I’d say having male members was the only thing that contributed to broadening my musical spectrum…or was the sole reason for the band evolving. I definitely have a larger appreciation for various kinds of music now than I used to. Was it because we have guys now vs. all girls? Maybe, but I believe that could happen whether it was a new girl joining or new guy; depending on who the person is. Just having new members at all will change things-you get different perspectives. Plus at some point after you’ve been playing together a while you just want to try different things-it’s fun. Is it a different experience playing with guys vs girls? Yes. Not good or bad, just different. How much has that contributed to the band or our own outlooks on music? I have no idea! But whatever the reason, what we have works and I’m really grateful for that!
Neil: Yeah I think it has broadened the group’s musical spectrum by having the two forces working together as well as being a lot of fun.
In several of the places that I read about you guys, they called you Pop-Punk. I’m not a big fan of labeling music and to me this simple genre description doesn’t really do you justice. So please describe yourselves, not limited to just genre types.
Ana: Fists come out on the subject of labels. Are we punkish pop? Rocking punk? Techno pop? Rock Pop. Dancy rock? Alt Rock? Chick rock? Chick pop? Bubble gum dancy techno alt rock punk? Dark Pop?
We live in the land of alternative. We rock the pop out.
Chris: You know it’s hard to place this band in any one genre. There are so many influences that we all have individually and collectively that come out when writing. Each song has a different feel, vibe and certain mixture of collective influence. So to lump us into one genre would be unfair. You mentioned Pop Punk…well, we have that. We also have New Wave, Rock, and Pop. I mean, I guess under the umbrella of ROCK so many things branch off. So to answer your question we’re a rock band.
Pave: I hate pigeon-holing bands to one genre. I feel like it becomes restrictive to the bands ability to freely experiment and try out other styles of music. I believe our music takes from many different genres, including pop-punk, electronic, indie, hip hop and alternative.
Neil: I’m not a fan of labels either. When we write songs I think we are all pulling from our own influences and what one person uses as inspiration may be greatly different then another. I don’t think you can sum up the sound of this band with a list of influences either. There are elements or rock, pop, alternative, electronica, indie, and punk.
Jess: As you can tell (by all of us answering this question) this is definitely an area we’ve struggled with. It’s the never-ending question. People ask it. The networking sites we’re in ask for it. I think we are “Alternative” however that’s extremely broad. When I say “Rock” people think Nickelback. If I say “Pop/Punk” they think of New Found Glory. We do have Rock, Punk, Pop, Indie and Electronica elements. I typically say “Shiny Toy Guns meets AFI meets Old No Doubt” and I’ve had people tell me that’s pretty accurate.
There are many artists from the Bay Area that have had an impact on music. Dead Kennedy’s, Grateful Dead, Faith No More, The Donnas, Green Day, Primus, Rancid, hell even MC Hammer to name a few. What mark do you want to leave on the music scene there?
Ana: We hope to go beyond gender and labels to be music that people don’t have to feel guilty about liking, with a narrative that can go deeper without alienating.
“Because, I’m Not Myself You See” is your latest EP. There is a certain degree of transition from “Killing June” to this release, in a good way. What do you attribute the change to?
Ana: Keys and synth were the crunchy goodness we think was missing all along. Most importantly though, the organic way this particular set of gadgets now all make music together is like the magical dust that goes way beyond gender. Feels like family now. (dramatic sigh)
Pave: Adding keyboard/synth into the mix really transitioned us into our new sound.
Jess: Definitely the keys/synth were a big part of it. Not just the sound though, but the person behind it-Neil. It’s what initiated the whole change in our writing process. Whereas I used to write a lot of the music, bringing in a song or riff that we’d work on-now I can bounce ideas off Neil. I can say “I have this part but I don’t think it works because it feels empty” and he can fill it in. Or I can sing something to him that I think would sound good, and he can play it. Now we’re all really collaborative. We write in the studio throwing ideas off one-another and it works really well.
In your short time as a band you have played some really big shows and with some really big bands. What has been your favorite experience playing live, so far?
Ana: Besides playing catch lemon with Amanda, I would say the unexpected crowd reaction opening for Otep, Crisis and Kittie was by far a shining moment in my mind.
Chris: You know we have played some great shows with some big bands. We have met celebrities and other famous people. Which is so awesome and I feel extremely blessed and very fortunate for the opportunity. My favorite shows are the ones that we have met life long friends or kids that would like our autograph or picture with them. That makes me feel so good! When we have a great night and we all hit our marks and the stars align…there is nothing like it in the world! I could play for hours up there and truly feel like I’m in heaven.
Pave: One of my favorite experiences was opening up for the Vandals. Josh Freese (drummer) is one of my idols and major influence. So it was great to meet and talk with him.
Jess: The Vandals was definitely a highlight for me. I couldn’t wait to meet Warren! I’ve seen so many live shows and he just cracks me up (if you’ve seen them live, you’ll know what I mean)! I also enjoyed playing the San Jose Grand Prix. Big stage, super experienced technicians (which you’d think wouldn’t be a big deal, but it is), performing multiple times a day for several days and watching motorcycle stunts in front of you while you play-it was pretty cool.
Neil: Opening for the Vandals at Slim’s in San Francisco and meeting Josh Freese and Robin Finck from NIN.
You have played some (I hate to use this term) “extreme sports” events, such as, X Games and Warped Tour. Is anyone in the band an (again, I hate this term) “extreme sport” enthusiast? If so, what is your favorite?
Ana: I can’t get on the treadmill for more than 30 seconds without crying. I have old skateboard scars on my knees not from when I was a cool s8’er girl, but when I was a lame klutz that bought all the gear before realizing I had no balance. But! this chicky WAS into competitive swimming as a kid. A swimming cap isn’t so extreme. Just extremely ugly.
Pave: I like to snowboard, and by snowboard I mean ride upright for about two seconds, fall on my ass and repeat until I reach the bottom of the hill. Besides that I used to skateboard back in the day (which was a Wednesday, by the way), but became fearful that I would break my arm and not be able to drum.
Chris: We have played Warped which is my favorite! As far as an “extreme sports enthusiast” I guess I am. I used to surf and skate. I enjoy watching the pros do it now. I don’t surf or skate anymore but still very much appreciate it. The Metal Mulisha were on Warped one year and were extremely sick-they are so intense. Those guys can ride!
Neil: Not really, I was never into skateboarding or BMX and have yet to try snowboarding. When I was in high school we invented our own extreme sport that consisted of attaching a rope to a jeep and being pulled down the street while on roller blades. It wasn’t long before I ate it and that was the end of that. I’m more of a mainstream sports enthusiast especially baseball and football.
Jess: I think they’re impressive to watch, however I’m the biggest klutz in the world-so sports of any kind is just bad news bears for me. I was always the last person picked in gym class!
Lastly, are there any shameless plugs you would like to put out there?
Chris: I have no plugs other than GO BUY OUR NEW E.P. “Because I’m Not Myself You See” . I also want to take this time to say Thank You for your time and interest in our band and for the interview!
Jess: I’m all about the shameless plugs. YES! Please buy our E.P.-you can download it off iTunes, eMusic, Amazon mp3-all those online music sites. And please check us out online-we’re on a bunch of sites, including MySpace, Facebook, Reverbnation & more!
www.myspace.com/goodbyegadget
Phot by Mike Siemsen
~Alexis Paige~
No comments
Trackbacks/Pingbacks