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Reel Big Fish interviewed by Liam
Liam:
Could you please introduce yourselves and what you do?
Aaron:
My name is Aaron Barrett and I play the guitar and I sing for Reel Big Fish.
Scott:
My name is Scott Klopfenstein, I play trumpet, guitar and sing for the band Reel
Big Fish.
Liam: How is the tour going, you
having a good time?
Aaron:
Yeah this tour has been amazing, especially the UK leg of the tour. For some
reason we are super famous over here, it’s crazy! We are on that P-Rock
channel and that other thing and that radio station and in that magazine
too…There have been thousands of screaming girls..
Scott:
Yeah what he said…
Aaron:
The energy at the shows has been amazing. The people have been going wild and
crazy and that makes it more fun for us cos we put on a better show. We work
together you know? The crowd can’t do it by themselves and we can’t either.
You need to work together.
Scott:
I agree with him totally…
Liam: Any good stories or injuries
happened so far on the tour?
Aaron:
No one has got hurt so far on this tour. Except Dan fell off the stage.. Where
was that..? Somewhere, Wolverhampton maybe.
Southhampton. Definitely one of the hamptons.
Liam:
Yeah there are a lot of hamptons here.
Aaron:
(laughs) It’s been fun. We are up to two bottles of vodka a day, instead of
just the one, and the Jack Daniels of course and everyone has been drinking the
bottles on Newcastle that I requested personally. Yesterday they took us to a
strip club, in limos. That was pretty funny. I don’t like strip clubs so much,
cos I’m gay. It was fun though. I’m just kidding. I’m not really gay… I
like girls. I’m like happy gay not real gay. Unlike Scott, right Scott..?
Scott:
Yep!
Liam: Your new material seems to have
a more mature edge, was this a conscious effort or did it happen naturally?
Aaron:
It’s a very complicated story. It was two years of misery, heart break and
disappointment that went into making that album. We were just sending the
demo’s to the record company, them telling us they hate them. We had this
producer who was insane. It came out kind of good cos there are lots of
different kinds of songs and lots of different flavours. Also it is fun. There
was no conscious effort to be mature, I think we are just getting old. Matt Wong
is 30 now! We’ve got two married guys in our band but it’s not like we did
it on purpose. It’s not like we can’t be immature, cos we certainly can!
Aaron:
It’s just one of those albums that didn’t come out naturally and smoothly.
It was forced, forced out of our bottoms. It’s like we were constipated. We
had to take a laxative, so it was kind of runny when it came out.
Liam: For all the Female Reel big
Fans, what is you favourite sexual position, that come highly recommended?
Aaron:
I like the one, what do you call it? Where the guy lays on his back and the girl
sits on top that one is good.
Scott:
What’s your favourite sexual position?
Scott:
It’s called the congress of the cow and it’s not always an easy position for
women emotionally. But I find it to be both satisfactory for the man and the
woman at the same time.. You can find out more about it in the karma sutra of
which I am a really big supporter and fan of. I’d recommend taking a little
yoga before you do just because yoga is good for the soul the mind and the body.
Liam: You have a wide selection of
funny music videos, do you think these reflect the nature of you band? And do
you enjoy making your music videos?
Scott:
We have funny music videos? We do like to be funny... (Engages in a lengthy and
ridiculous stupid laugh…)
Aaron:
I was on the internet in a chat room talking to this rude boy, who was only into
traditional ska. He was saying how all these stupid bands are ruining it. So we
had a whole conversation about how we were influenced by not only music but
comedians like Robin Williams.
Scott:
Humour does belong in music!
Aaron:
Yes I am ripping on the guitar and talking at the same time it is amazing!
Liam:
Yeah, very impressive.
Aaron:
(laughs)
Liam: Is the record industry really
similar to the way you portray it in ‘Sell Out’?
Scott:
I am in love with somebody. What was the question?
Liam:
(repeats question)
Scott:
Oh right I am in love with somebody. Wait what was the question…
Liam:
Who are you in love with..?
Scott:
...Oh well the thing about the record industry is it is kind of a sticky wicket,
if you say that.. Which some people do. So I would rather not elaborate on that
any further... And I am in love with somebody.
Liam: If you could have an animal
mascot for RBF what would it be and why?
Aaron:
A pig, pigs are cute... Like a pot belly pig. Or a little dog, dogs are nice.
Scott:
(in the background of the dressing room…): Am I going mad or am I telling you
to stop smiling?
Liam: What would you be doing with
your life if you weren’t in RBF?
Aaron:
Probably. Hacking into the mainframe. That was Carlos’ answer form the other
day and I thought it was really funny so I had to use it...
Scott:
(Whilst being massaged by a groupie...): Nothing will ever be ok again! Do you
want to know why, I’ll tell you why, cos everything is crazy! Everyone is
crazy! There are people who aren’t crazy who try to be crazy and that is
crazy! Then there are people who are crazy that try to be normal and that’s
also crazy! It’s all crazy..
Liam: Your next release goes
platinum, what is the first thing you go out and buy?
Scott:
There is an array of things I would buy. For one I would buy a gasoline powered
turtleneck sweater and an electric dog polisher. I mean I’d buy some dumb
stuff too, but you know. Really just the essentials..
Aaron:
I’d buy a Mazzurati number 3, you can always tell a mans success by the amount
of Mazzuratis he owns.
Liam: What has been your most heart
wrenchingly embarrassing stage moment ever? And how did you over come it and
retain what was left of your dignity?
Aaron:
We don’t get embarrassed on the stage that much. We revel in the awkward
silences.
Scott:
One thing you must understand about the Reel Big Fish is what we take as
prolific and important and powerful. Most people would consider the worst
moments of their life! What most people consider awkward and embarrassing, we
get paid to do in front of a thousand or more people every night. You know what
is really embarrassing? Being uninteresting. That’s embarrassing, to us. We
are egomaniacs… that’s why.
Scott:
We are actually more comfortable on stage than off, because onstage we can do
what we want. When we are not onstage we are shy and uncomfortable.
Liam: (Takes a moment to ponder
Scott’s antics during last 20 minutes. Then moves on to the next question...)
Liam:
Did you set out to become a ‘SKA’ band or was that just what you became? Do
you enjoy playing shows in the UK?
Scott:
We kind of started out as this weird thing, and then it became Ska. It became
Ska pretty quickly though.
Liam: Do you have any invaluable tips
or advice for young musicians just starting out?
Scott:
Do what you want to do and do it yourself for as long as you can!
Liam: What is your next plan of
action?
Scott:
We are going to work on a new record and it is going to be amazing. Also a DVD -
’Ten Years Of Shame’. We have been around for 11 years but there hasn’t
been a lot of shame involved in the last 2 years. Just a lot of sex, drugs and
Pokemon.