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frequently asked questions about tris mccall if one of these bottles should happen to fall q: did tris really write all of these songs? a: almost all of them, yes. the lyrics to "dear governor kean" are by elizabeth post. the form for "it's not the money, it's the principle" is taken from q-tip's outro on "verses from the abstract". leslie speaker contributed ideas, and deserves her credit as editor-in-chief. besides that, this is tris's show, for better or for worse. q: is he serious with songs like "the new jersey department of public works"? a: yes. q: no, c'mon, what's the deal with the new jersey patriotism and all the politicians thanked? is he running for office or something? a: tris mccall is unelectable. q: how long has he been a resident of this garden state? how close has he come to all the chemicals and nuclear waste? a: tris has lived in new jersey his entire life. as for the stereotypes, he hopes they are debunked in part by the songs on the album. q: who took the photos? will there be a showing at any point? a: leslie speaker is the photographer, and yes, there will be a showing soon. tris is hoping to contribute text to a display of leslie's photographs of abandoned buildings along the hudson, in the swamps of kearney, and in the north ward and ironbound sections of newark. he'll let you know when and where the showing will take place. other projects q. what other tris mc call recordings exist? a: tris refers you to the accompanying discography for descriptions of everything that is worth you knowing about. trust him -- if it's not listed there, you don't want to know about it. q: what's next for tris? who will he be working with? a: tris is glad you asked. he has more prospective projects than his has time, so plenty of these, sadly, won't ever leave the planning stage, but tris is currently working on a set of mid-eighties sounding disco songs (think lisa stansfield), and a fifties-style analog synth/rockabilly hybrid. he isn't writing the disco tracks for his voice, so he needs to find a willing young woman to help him realize the sound. ya interested? get in touch. moreover, tris wants to record out a mccall/d-scribe album, featuring five songs by our subject, five songs by david, and tight harmonies and *squeezing out sparks* arrangements on all. perhaps most unaccountably, tris, long an admirer of the sublime metrical poetry of children's doggerel, is attracted to the notion of undertaking a folkways-type project of playground rhymes. finally, he'd like to continue his collaboration with scott miller, possibly cutting a single of "can't stand the sun" sometime in 2000. q: will tris ever do another favorite color album? or is he a solo act for good now? a: tris would love to do another favorite color album. he's out of neopsychedelic songs for now, though, and he'd have to write a batch, or just turn up a batch that he'd want to perform, in order to seriously consider resurrecting the group. there's also another problem: tris thinks that neopsychedelia isn't something he does too well. his voice and instrumental style are far too terrestrial. despite all of the cosmic metaphors employed on color out of space, tris mccall is just not an interplanetary dude. he doesn't sound like a spaceman, he sounds more like a mailman. that said, if any lunatics out there would like to fund a new favorite color album, tris and the group would be on it in a flash. those guys love tremolo and reverb, and would like nothing better than to spend some quality time in an analog studio spinning out endless variations on "astronomy domine". q. wasn't the favorite color also doing chamber-pop shows? do any recordings of those chamber-pop arrangements exist? a: yes, some do, but that lineup was not meant to be any sort of direction for future recording. tris wanted to be sure that the lyrics got heard, so he took to sitting down and playing an acoustic guitar over cello. he's going to stop that now. he would, however, like to say that cellist sheryl galvin is an outstanding musician, and he'd be pleased to play or record with her in the future. q: what's the status of the relationship between tris mccall and the denver zest? will the zest be playing any live shows? a: sad to say, zest (and bottles) bassist martin nienstedt relocated to new orleans, and drummer jens carstensen is pretty busy with his duties in the excellent come on, so it's unclear when the zest will play out. robin van marst has been recruited as interim drummer, but no dates are scheduled. tris is hoping this state of affairs changes soon, and if you dig denver zest vs. peekskill sizzle and you'd like to lend a hand, please do get in touch. q: will tris add analog synthesizers to my band's recordings? a: almost definitely, if it can be arranged without too much hassle. but tris denies responsibility for the chaos such a move could bring upon your project. scott miller q: is scott miller really "a nice guy as minor celebrities go"? a: without a doubt. but the most remarkable thing about miller is the intensity of his intelligence. q: did he sing or play anything on if one of these bottles should happen to fall? did he help write any of the songs? a: nope. the songs were already written by the time tris sent demos to miller, and there were always more than enough musicians on hand to cover every instrumental contingency. q: how did tris deal with with the presence and proximity of his favorite pop musician? wasn't that bizarre for him? a: oh, yes, definitely at first. he wanted to say the right thing and avoid coming off like a musical incompetent. but scott miller is nothing if not charming, and by the time the two were cutting vocals, tris was almost behaving normally. almost. q: so what does "regenisraen" actually mean? a: kill the pigs, acid is groovy. didn't you read the liner notes for tinker to evers to chance? economics q: how was if one of these bottles should happen to fall funded? a: by direct contributions from supporters of tris mccall's music and projects. q: weird. you mean average, non-music industry people actually gave him money to do this? a: right. for further theoretical discussion of the implications of acquaintance-assisted recording, read the articles on patronage pop on the momus website. q: are you sure he isn't just a trustafarian? a: oh, mighty sure. q: is this why tris doesn't charge anything but postage fees for his records? a: well, yes and no. tris would, ideally, like to have every song he's ever recorded available for free download as an mp3 file. unfortunately, the disk space necessary to contain so many songs is impossible for him to come by. moreover, tris acknowledges that there's something nice about owning an actual copy of the compact disc -- you get leslie's photographs, your own copy of the hudson county glossary, a groovy little silver thing with words on it, etc. but since he isn't independently wealthy -- and doesn't, to be quite honest, have two nickels to rub together -- he needs your help with postal fees. and hey, any *additional* help is more than welcome, and tris ain't too proud to get sycophantic if he has to. q: hey! is tris trying to guilt-trip me into supporting his next project? a: like many artists, tris has to balance his desire to cut records with an often equally urgent need to eat. luckily, he's quite naturally small and thin, so a bowl of arugula will often do. contributions to the tris mccall operating fund and residuary trust are always welcome -- or, you could just come to union city and bring him some cookies you baked. up close and personal q: what's tris's favorite variety of cookie? a: tris favors thin-mint girl scout cookies. but any nice cookie will do. the blander the better is a good rule to go by; tris mc call is a very bland boy. q: what about peanut butter cookies? a: yes, by all means. bring them on. q: what's the relationship between tris and leslie speaker? a: he gets her to spin at various rates, thus causing a phasing effect. q: where does tris mccall live? a: union city, new jersey, 07087, and please no stalkers. |