Mike from Volcom

I'm sure you're probably aware of Volcom - you'll have seen the likes of Geoff Rowley, David Gonzalez and Dennis Busenitz throw themselves off (and up) all sorts of things on skateboards in their clothes for years now - but I'm not sure you know about their in-house record label, Volcom Entertainment. They've been putting out music via downloads, CDs and - most importantly - records, for years now. Since so many bands I like have had music out on Volcom - bands like Turbonegro, Riverboat Gamblers, Valient Thorr, High on Fire, Melvins, Harvey Milk, Tweak Bird, RTX, Andrew WK, Earthless, Kurt Vile, Torche, Best Coast and Saint Vitus - I thought we should find out what's going on. I tracked down the label's boss man, Mike Nobrega, at their Costa Mesa HQ to find out what the deal is...

Which came first for Volcom, the record label or the clothes? What do you do there?
The apparel brand started in '91, and the label pretty much came together as a fully thought out thing in '95. Eleven years ago I was hired in to work here. The label had got some notoriety through this band CKY - and some other things - and some major labels came along and wanted to do a deal where Volcom Entertainment we kind of be like a repertoire source, and develop artists that would go on to maybe be at the major label. That's where I came in, and where we really got a lot more organised as far as areas a typical 'record label' would handle. The sales and marketing, the repertoire, the development, managing the catalogue... All of the things like that. 

So you're doing the hard work for the majors? Are you not in danger of having loads of artists just pass through?
No, no. At the time, that was kind of the model, but we're not under that model any more. That went away in the late '00s. Maybe around 2007 or so. The situation with labels in the US became more dire. Labels went out of business, and you've seen over the years how it went from six giant major labels to five, to four and so on. So as we gained more independence, our bands actually stayed with us for longer. Valient Thorr have been with us since 2004, and we're about to start working on our fifth album with them. So quite the opposite happened in a way. The bands we'd been working with, from a development standpoint, actually ended up staying longer. Probably because the demands on their success we not as overblown as they would have been with a major label. A major label wants success straight away, and that's why so many bands get dropped, and careers get ruined because of that. Because we're part of this big brand, and we're a unique hybrid, we have a bit more space and a bit more breathing room to let people grow.

So it does it help that you're an independent label with the backing of a giant brand?
To a degree. From a financial standpoint, we're not a 'deep pocket' kind of thing. We're pretty frugal with the bands, we try to make really good financial decisions that are good for the bands down the road for years. The old system, where a band would take a large advance or something, you're really just taking a huge loan and putting yourself into debt immediately. That's just not a good way to go. It's better to be more financially responsible so that further down the road the artist will get returns, even if they're small. But returns, as opposed to anything they might gain having to get paid back because it all went out in the beginning. We're a small team here, but we work well together and we try to run our operation as honestly and realistically as possible. I think that's what appeals to a band like Torche, say. We signed Torche about this time last year, and released their album in April, and it was extremely successful for us. Really beyond what we had anticipated. All the bands are great to work with. They're all really good people.

There's been some really good stuff out on the 7" Singles Club. How did that come about?
That was this guy Kurt Midness, that was his brainchild. He built it over the years. He plays in a band called Black Bananas, and he has really good taste in music. It's become really respected and renowned, and it's something we're all very proud of. Everything from making the records, to designing them, to curating the release - he's done all that stuff.

How independently does the Volcom label operate from the Volcom clothes brand? Do you pass each other in the corridor?
Oh, absolutely. We're all in the same building. Our office is smack dab in the middle of the creative area of the building. It's a pretty large building, and there's a lot of people, but from a company standpoint we are actually a separate company within the corporation. From a marketing standpoint, and a branding standpoint, it all works together hand in hand. To them, we're a component of marketing; and to us we're a label to our artists. It all flows. We have our own autonomy over the label. Honestly man, Volcom is a really great place to work. They foster everybody's creativity and talent. They give you the room to do your thing and to experiment, and I think that's what makes the brand successful overall. I think you can see in the stuff that comes out of Volcom that they really appreciate art.

What have your personal highlights been, as far as music that you've released?
Jeez, there's a lot. Like I said, the bulk of our roster has really been here as long as I've been here. Riverboat Gamblers and Valient Thorr and all those things. Really, the highlight is just seeing them all grow! In 2004 Valient Thorr was just an obscure, weird little band from the southern part of the US, with a loud voice and a crazy look, you know? But seeing them develop, into a band that's toured the world, and is known all over the world, that's a big highlight! I think the whole thing is a highlight!

Cool. What can we expect from the label in 2013?
We're gonna continue along with the Turbonegro record, and the relationship there. That's been a relationship that the brand has had for a long time, but we never had the opportunity to do records with them until recently so we're very happy about that. They've got the fascinating twenty year history so we're really happy to be working with them. That, and Valient Thorr are going to be releasing a new record in the summertime. They'll be touring all over the world. Then we've got some new bands. There's a young band from Orange County called the Lovely Bad Things; their first full length is coming up in February. Out of New York we have a young bunch of guys called The Dirty Fences, and we're doing their first full length this year too. So we have our long-term artists that we're continuing to work with, then we've got some talent that's coming up. It's a really nice mix.

Check the Volcom Entertainment website for a cubic assload of cool shit.

Valient Thorr

The longest-standing band on the Volcom roster, Valient Thorr have been making insane, raw, outer-galactic rock n' roll for the label since 2004. As the recording of their fifth album (and preparations for a global tour) get underway, I spoke to leader and vocalist Valient Himself...

Who are Valient Thorr?
We are. You can either look at is as five dudes who came here from the planet Venus and ended up playing rock and roll to spread messages of peace and tolerance to a war torn planet Earth, OR you can say we are thousands of like minded people who understand what it means to be humanitarians, judge not, mind our own business when it comes to 'wedge' issues, help others always not matter what, and spread posi vibes the world over. 

What is Valient Thorr?

A collection of stories that we are actively living, hopefully leading up to the eventual salvation of most of the human race through fast music that tries to inspire others to exfoliate the bad and soak in the good times.

You had a big summer of touring. Where did you get to? Did you see anybody cool?

We did US and Europe. Saw a lot of rad stuff.  Some of my favorite things was seeing Sean Kuti and Egypt 80 at Jazzfest in New Orleans, Ivan Neville and Dumpstaphunk at Bonnaroo in Tennessee, The Obsessed, Sleep, Danava and Voivod at Roadburn in Tilburg Netherlands, and Orange Goblin were great at Desertfest in London. So many shows, buddies, and crazy times, its really hard to remember it all. You have to sit back and think really hard.

 

 

Who's the best band you've played with?

That's too tough of a question. We've played with so many good bands. Known and unknown. I guess out of the known bands, some of the best were Motörhead, Gogol Bordello, Mastodon and The Stooges. I think the best bands I've ever seen were Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Melvins, and Sean Kuti.

 

You're from Chapel Hill. There's a load of bands from Chapel Hill - who do you like from there, and who lets the place down?

I think my favorites from the old days are Archers of Loaf and Polvo. I think some new bands to check out are Caltrop, T0w3rs, Black Skies and Colossus. I wouldn't pay attention to any that let you down. Raleigh is where a lot of us stay now too. We are spread out all over NC. Demon Eye, Birds of Avalon, Thunderlip, Salvacion, Mountain Thrower, The Dynamite Brothers, 2013 Wolves, Crusades and Bitter Resolve are other great NC bands at the moment off the top of my head.

How did you get together with Volcom, and how did the split with High on Fire come about?
We met Volcom reps and company dudes way back in 2003 after completing our first album ourselves. We played a show with then recently signed band ASG in Wilmington, and they asked us to do couple things, then asked us to put out a record with them in '04. Then we quit our jobs and lived on the road the next three years solid. Over the years we've made countless buds. Volcom has a seven inch vinyl club and puts out twelve splits a year. We did one with HR from Bad Brains a few years back and then when this came up, we've known Jeff since he played bass with Zeke, and we've known Matt from a good number of years now. The suggestion to do something like that was made two years before it happened when we were out with Mastodon. Some times it takes a while for things to come to fruition.

 

What are your three favourite movies made between 1980 and 1985?

That's way too hard. But - If pressured, I'd say, number three Mad Max, number two River's Edge and number one, Big Trouble in Little China.

What's the best album artwork you've ever seen?

Not afraid to ask the tough ones, huh? I don't know about favorite, but I've always loved D.I. - Horse Bites Dog Cries. My brain hurts too much to think of others.

 

What's the most injured you've seen somebody get at one of your shows?

Hmmm. I've seen a few chicks get clocked by Nitewolf's bass. I've been knocked by guitars pretty bad before. The weirdest worst one I guess was when we were in France at the end of a tour in like '08, the music stops and all of a sudden I saw this kid come flying down to the floor from the upper balcony. Like almost on my head, just missed the stage. I immediately started laughing, then decided we better check if he was OK. It was just so unexpected, I couldn't stop laughing. He ended up being OK. 99% of the time, people are cool to each other at our shows. I usually try to intervene quickly to squash quabbles and try not to interrupt the show.

Mark Mothersbaugh does kids TV music. Can you see yourself doing that in the future?

I would love to. Even more than that, I would love to do voiceovers for cartoons. I'm actively pursuing a voiceover career. So anyone out there working production... I'm available.

 

Do you guys skate much?

I just cruise on a mini board, but Nitewolf rips and Eidan Thorr is still known to get down from time to time as well.

Are you annoyed or flattered that Chris Haslam stole your hair, your beard and your clothes?

Hahaha! I don't think it was like that. I know Chris, he digs the band, we're buds. I'm pretty sure it was a coincidence. He's said he gets people yelling "Valient" to him, and when I skate around town in Costa Mesa, I've heard people yelling "Haslam" as I'm cruising by.

Mötley Crüe or Suicidal Tendencies?

Is that even a question? S-T baby! Fuck Mötley Crüe! Suicidal Tendencies were a thousand times better the whole length of their careers. Even their bad stuff is better.

Steve Albini or Bon Scott?
Bon Scott. I mean, I like a couple Shellac songs, and he's a pretty good producer, but Bon Scott is Bon Scott!

What are your next plans? Are you coming back to the UK any time soon? It must be about time for another album...

I can't tell you anything except we are holed up working. You know us, we'll be back soon.

 

 

Find out everything else at the Volcom Entertainment website.

Ghostface Killah and Sheek Louch - Wu Block

Born from the minds of the Wu-Tang Clan's Ghostface Killah and D-Block's Sheek Louch, the first album by their collaboration Wu Block features Ghost and Sheek joined by Method Man, Raekwon, GZA, Mastah Killah, Jadakiss, Styles P and Erykah Badu; so you can be assured it's a banger. Essentially a full-blown Wu-Tang/D-Block collabo, it's an album of exactly the kind of raw, original street genius you'd expect from from this line-up of New York hip-hop royalty. Ghostface has already said of it: "This is a unique street album combination, like milk with oatmeal. And a dash of cinnamon. We got killing on lock. It's like assassination day - nothing but darts being thrown. It's like Batman and Robin shit. It's real street shit for the fans. They've been thirstin' for this". Based on this description, I thought I should ask him and Sheek what the deal is with Wu Block - and hip-hop in general.

So what's Wu Block? How did it come about?
S: Wu Block is a classic bunch of motherfuckers, it started with me and Ghost, running around together and us having a respect for each other and getting on each other's projects. We just figured out we had this whole body of music, and said, "Yo, let's put some shit together and give the street something that it's been missing", and other cats came about you know, and just sprinkled their little bits and pieces everywhere. Classic project, man. The Lox and Wu-Tang.

Did you mean for it to be as big a thing as it is?
S: What up, what up - what I had I mind - I thought it was going to be me and Ghost, and he just painted this picture man, like "Everybody's gonna be on this", then it just turned into something crazy. I give all that credit to Ghost.
G: If it's called Wu Block, it just makes sense. OK, you got D-Block, you got Wu-Tang, we just merged all of that shit in one and just made a bigger project. You know what I mean? Me and Sheek.

Illustration by Andy Smoke.

How does it work? I mean, who does what?
S: We're together a lot. Like when we're touring. Me and Ghost lay the foundation, and then we'll say "Hey yo, Method Man will sound crazy on this", and we'll get him in there, and he'll hear it, and tell us what he think, and then we get Styles, and Jada, you know? We'll be together a lot.
G: This ain't no pieced-together shit, because you can't just put somebody on a certain track. That's coming from my side. If you don't fit there, you can't get on that. It's like he said there. It's like making clothes. That shit is tightly knitted, tightly stitched, you know what I mean? Fine stitched with the right shit, the right material. That's how we came out to make this great album. It's not just thrown together. It's not "OK, you can rhyme. Get on that because you can rhyme". Nah, nah. From who wrote the song, to the line-up of the song, to the order of the song, to everything. Everything just gotta be right, you know? That's what Wu Block is about right now.

So this is definitely a collaboration, rather than a compilation? There's a fine line sometimes.
G: Our shit is homegrown. Even the stories we got on there, you can tell we was all in there together, and how we feed off each other. When you hear it you know. It's just crazy, man.

Can you tell when you're writing a single, and when you're writing an album track?
G: You might have an idea of what could be a single, but for the most part when you finish that shit, when you finish all that, that's when you look at it and go "OK, this is what it is right here". When it's done. It's the streets and the producer of the album that are really gonna pick your song. When you sit back and listen to all the shit you did, one by one, that's when it's "Oh shit, this one stands out a lot", you know? Then you make a radio mix, and there you go - you got it.

Anybody can make tracks nowadays and put them out on a blog or whatever. What do you think about that? Is it detrimental to the overall quality of hip-hop now?
G: For me, hip-hop is 100% watered-down right now. I have to say this. I love it, as far as the art, and for how it gives motherfuckers a chance to get out there. Motherfuckers from China, Japan, wherever, motherfuckers who would have been in trouble. As an outlet, it's got me into movies and all kinds of shit. But the watered-down part I'm talking about, there's no more thought process in what motherfuckers are saying on the mic no more. Lyrically.
S: Right. Right.
G: If the beat is hot, they'll call it a day. They got their ringtone record, and they don't give a fuck about what they're saying on all the rest of the album. There's no more creative development, there's no more artist development now. You can't say to rappers now "I love all your old shit". They've only got one record. There's no substance to it. Everything is the same. Do you wanna sit through an album with fourteen songs - and it's fourteen fuckin' club records on it all day? To me, a great artist is one who can sit there, and make great music, and through that music paint a picture. I don't wanna be in the club for fourteen fuckin' records, because there's only so much you can talk about on that shit. Your jewellery, your bitches, your drugs, your cars. You know what I mean? Luxuries. And that's about it. And you wanna give me that for fourteen records? I'll be like, "Nah, tell me something!" Their struggle, tell me about that struggle shit. Let me hear what you went through, or let me just hear your imagination. That's what it's like with us, we have all that. We have records where we're rhyming, we have records where we're just jivin' around, we have stylistic records; we have Sheek, and Genius, and Masta Killa and it just sounds beautiful.

I grew up listening to Wu-Tang, but this shit sounds really fresh.
G: Identification is a must, man, with this shit. Motherfuckers gotta relate to you, and you don't wanna let them down but you gotta show 'em growth on this shit, like where we been all this time. For the person that loves real hip-hop, that's into not just lyrics, but everything - style, whatever the case may be - you're gonna feed off that on this. It's that time right now. What we gotta do is make sure that the masses are aware of it, and we can just do the rest.

What do you think of artists playing full albums live - old albums - rather than making new music? 

G: People do that?

Yeah man, GZA toured 'Liquid Swords'. Public Enemy did 'Nation of Millions'.
G: Those are classics! You can't deny a classic. Music is not how it used to be. Brothers are not pushing music like that, where everybody got something new coming every year or whatever the case may be. But that classic? That's what's left in people's minds. But it's not even old people, I've been to shows where there's kids eleven years old that are singing that shit. That's a plus! That means that you got fans still coming out for your old, old shit. You can do this shit like the fuckin' Beatles, man!
S: Yeah. Forever.
G: Ain't nothing wrong with it, to stay on top. For those type of fans, you gotta keep givin' it to them. Like, I don't wanna wait two years to do another album! Let me put out an album in like a year, and inbetween that time let me just put songs out. Just songs, and songs. Even if they're not on the album. But yo, make sure you do an album release once a year. A year to eighteen months.

What about people who don't do that? When you've got Lil B and A$AP Rocky making a track that almost lasts a year. Do you think the art of the hip-hop album is dying?

G: Pretty soon it's just gonna be all single deals. Remember I said that. It's gonna be all single deals. Brothers like that, they're not ready to put a whole project together. They just want to live through those songs. They'll put it out when they get ready. Everybody's different. Ain't nothin' gonna stay the same. Our thing is that we gotta remain who we are, but at the same time know when to adapt. You have to learn to adapt. For example, when Marvin Gaye was doing all that sexy shit, 'Let's Get It On', all that fly shit he was doin' back in the day, there came a time where he went through a whole period where he skipped off to fuckin' Europe to write songs. And by that time the disco era was coming in. And he had to adapt to it. He fucked around, and he made 'Sexual Healing' , but he didn't know that 'Sexual Healing' was gonna be that song, because everything was changing. So he had people listening to it for him, and he was scared. But then it came out and it did what it did. When times change, sometimes you gotta change with the times, but still have your shit on it, you know what I mean? You do what you do, but you gotta recognise that it's a new wave now. And that's what's goin' on right now with all this other shit, B.
 

Do you look forward to changing with the times? You guys kinda changed the times yourselves in the past. 

G: I'm always gonna keep my ear to the street. I'm not gonna become no-one else, but I'm always gonna have my ear to the street. You have to, if you're gonna stay in the game. When we get up to go today we're gonna turn the radio on and see what the hottest beat is, so we can freestyle to it. My friend, who's downstairs playing pool right now, I'll ask him who's hot right now. And tomorrow he might tell you something different. And then next week it's another rapper. It's that quick that it changes. You gotta keep your ear to that shit, man.

Who's new that stands out to you?

G: I like J. Cole. Uncle Murda. Is Drake considered old or new?

Both, I think.

G: Yeah, he's somewhere in the middle.
S: That's just going with the main shit. That's not the underground shit right there.
G: Here's what it is. You got brothers, and they know how to rhyme and stuff like that, so you can't sleep on 'em and shit, but the music changed. It ain't just about samples and all that other shit, like how it was back, back, back before. Now you have bigger beats now. It sounds like there's a lot of different musics comin' in. You gotta adapt. You gotta play that same card that they can play, but still keep your cards, you feel me? A'ight, so say for instance you're doing an album, and let's say you did do a radio record with them big-ass beats or whatever the case may be, you still gotta have - on the rest of the album - some of your shit that you know your people know you for. Or you're gonna lose 'em.

What's your next move, once the Wu Block album is out?

G: We got a lot of work. He's got the D-Block album to finish, and I'm gonna fuck around and finish my Supreme (Clientele) 'Blue & Cream' album. It's just a bunch of work we're gonna be doing. We're gonna keep it moving. But we're definitely gonna tour off this.

(Thanks again to the brilliant Andy Smoke for another rad illustration. Check out more of his genius - including some amazing mixes - at his blog, Little Lie Down.)

Jehst and Kashmere

Existing as he does, as one of the most respected producers/MCs/lyricists in UK hip-hop, Jehst can pretty much do whatever he likes. Hell, if he wanted to make a concept album with his mate Kashmere based on 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' - Hunter S. Thompson's legendary seedy, corrupted, acid trip to the post-hippy dark heart of the supposed American dream - then who's to stop him? Nobody, that's who. And that very album, 'Kingdom of Fear', is out now on his own YNR Productions label.
Bite My Wire managed to get Jehst and Kashmere in the same place for long enough to find out what the fuck is going on. Perhaps, if they explain things, we'll rest easy...

Kashmere and Jehst on drugs

How did Kingdom of Fear come about? Obviously you guys have worked together in the past...
J: It's something that we both talked about. We were both working on different projects, and it was at a time when rap in this country was starting to get commercial. A lot of people had a lot of business concerns wrapped up in the music, and creativity was getting slowed down by all the politics and the business. We just wanted to get back to the essence of making music in the moment, and enjoying the process, and it actually not being preconceived. Like, what happened in the session is that we'd do a track, and then we were onto the next thing. I remember Kashmere saying at the time, that the reason an album is called an album, is because it's a record of that time, in the way that a photo album is an album. It shouldn't necessarily be a compilation of ideas. I think nowadays, especially in rap, most albums are put together on the basis of box-ticking. "We've got this producer, we've got this collab..." And that was starting to be the case even with the UK underground. We were just bored of everything. We didn't even know what we were going to do. Kash brought the Hunter aspect - that concept - to it.
K: A lot of people probably aren't going to get it by listening to it, but this album was about agriculture. We're just trying to put it out there, to tell everyone to support their local farms. Because without farms, where are you? You know? What can you do? Life is just pointless without farms.

So you just sat down to make an album, then Kash decided it'd be like this?
J: Nah. I won a competition, and I got some free tickets to fly to Los Angeles, and when we got to LA, we thought "Let's do a little road trip", and we actually started living the Hunter S. Thompson lifestyle without even realising we were doing it. Then once we realised it had all been done before, and that we were just biters, we thought that if we were going to be biters we might as well just be true to it. Like all hip-hop goes back to the sample, and we stay true to where the original idea came from, and we just said "Fuck it", and just ran with it. It just became Kingdom of Fear.
K: Plus, it's really expensive to hire cars out there, you know?
J: You know what they say, 'Don't drink and drive, smoke a spliff and fly home'. That's actually where I made my millions. I've got a 25% share in a t-shirt company based in Scarborough, and they were one of the first people to actually print the 'Don't drink and drive, smoke a spliff and fly home' t-shirts. I don't need rap music! I just do that shit for fun. All that shit where I rap about being broke, what I mean is, I'm broke doing rap. Because that ain't paying me. I'm not being silly, I've got billions in the bank, off the t-shirts.
K: He doesn't like to show it off.

Yeah, you actually wouldn't think you were as rich as that.
J: What I'm saying is, rhyme doesn't pay. Crime pays, and t-shirts pay better. Merchandise is the future of the whole music industry. People say that live shows are the future of the music industry, but the reality is, we've got hologram-Snoop now.
K: Tupac.
J: Oh yeah, sorry - hologram-Tupac. Snoop's real, right? I thought Tupac was still alive, and the hologram was just him revealing that. Because Elvis is still alive, you know? He actually rents a room from me in Brockley. I was confused because Snoop has now reincarnated himself as a lion. I think Snoop's maybe been doing more drugs than we have.
K: He kind of reminds me of the eighties TV show, 'Manimal'. Where the guy could transform into different animals. And I think Snoop has really shown people how it's done.
J: But Snoop is frontin', he's not being true. He needs to do a video like Manimal, the way we did Kingdom of Fear, and just say "Look, I'm biting my whole shit. I'm on a Manimal thing". Do you remember Manimal?

I do, yep.
J: What about Trumpton? Do you remember Trumpton?
 
Hell yeah man.
K: Believer.

Right, Hunter S. Thompson is known for just how American he is. Was it easy to translate that into a UK hip-hop album?
K: It wasn't hard, man. We just went to McDonald's, and got a bunch of Big Macs. Because that's really the main American thing. McDonald's is bigger than Hunter S. Thompson. That's on the real. Starbucks.
J: When I was growing up I just wanted to be a member of the A-Team.

Don't you any more?
J: I am now. I'm B.A. Baracus. I'm Plan A. That's why Plan B's called Plan B. But just look at B.A. Baracus. A lot of people don't realise this, but my make-up artist is a genius. Eminem was blowing up around the time I came out, so we figured out that if I whited myself up I'd sell more records. If you saw my mum, you'd understand that I look a lot like B.A. Baracus. As long as I don't wear the feather earring, then it's cool. If I wear those feather earrings people are just hollering at me in the street, going "Mr. T! Mr. T!" Some people think it's a gay thing. How is that gay, dungarees and Converse? And a mohawk, and feather earrings? And the gold chains?! Eric B and Rakim had gold chains, are you telling me Eric B and Rakim are gay?

So now that we know how wealthy you are...
J: He's on Disability Allowance because he's a drug addict.

Did you take a lot of drugs making the album?
J: He wasn't a drug addict before we made the album! Hahaha! Mainly just Ajax.
 

When people like you two, and somebody like Dizzee, are obviously multi-millionaires, what do you feel about people like Task Force who are not?
J: I think Task Force should have invested more money in their t-shirt printing. I used to wear the Grafdabusup t-shirt and the Wha Blo t-shirt, but where Task Force went wrong, is that they spent to much time trying to make good music, and writing good lyrics. Whereas if I can refer to the artist you just named, I mean, he doesn't does he? You can just leave his name blank, so we could be talking about anybody. I'm being a bit silly, but let's be real - that's all it is. It's not all about rap, or hip-hop, it's the same for any form of art. Any form of artistic expression. You come into it thinking it's the industry for making money from your art, and it's not. Everything's about celebrity culture, everything's about fucking social-network-following, reality TV bullshit. There's not really that much place for people who are trying to do something from the heart, to make paper. I don't want to get too into the politics. You know what, much love and respect to Task Force. They were a huge influence on me, I love those guys. I love their shit. I don't want to get too much into who did what, and what happened to who, but we're from a time where people still looked at the type of music that we do with the eyes that it would never, ever make anybody any money. So it was never a concern for us. When we started making money it was a surprise. And that spawned the generation that capitalised on the opportunity to make money out of rap music, out of hip-hop culture or whatever in the UK. So you had a generation where some guys came along then disappeared real quickly, and some guys went on to make fortunes. A lot of the guys who did make fortunes did it by changing up their whole styles, and realising it's a business. That's all it is. I handle my business because I gotta pay my rent and I gotta eat, but you know, fuck business, fuck capitalism, fuck the 'indusrty' side of music. It's just an industry like everything else, except you don't put on a shirt and tie. That's the only difference. You put on some skinny jeans and some fucking Blazers or whatever it is. Most of them have got office-job mentality and I hate most people in the music industry. Even the ones that I like. Can we go back to talking about Ajax?

Of course.
J: Ajax gets your whites whiter than the leading brand. I won't get my payment if you don't print that. I've got an investment in Ajax, along with the t-shirt company, but I don't like to mix up the two businesses. They're two separate things.
 

Kashmere and Jehst in the Stockwell Arms. Photo by James Thompson.

The album only took two weeks to make. That's not very long. Did you rush it or something?
J: It took two weeks to make, but then we sat on it for about twenty years. And it took somebody about forty years to make a video for it.
K: For real, was it rushed? Nah, it didn't feel like it. I was rushin'.
J: Yeah, we were rushin'! It was fun. The last solo album I did took six years, that wasn't much fun. We produced the Steps comeback album. Take That smashed it with the comeback album, so why can't Steps do it? Because I'm their ghost writer, they've got a lot of new stuff ready to go. And we produced a lot of their stuff with Shock G from Digital Underground, he helped out a lot. And Hammer was our business consultant. Do you remember Ya Kid K?

Yeah, from Technotronic.
J: Well Ya Kid K is now known as A$AP Rocky, I don't know if you know that.

Wow. I did not know that. What are your plans for when this album comes out? Do you just sit back and watch the money roll in?
K: The money has already rolled in, you know what I'm saying?
J: When the album comes out we have to start counting the money. The problem is that we have to pay people to count the money. It's really confusing, because we can't really budget how much we have to pay these motherfuckers to count our money, until they've counted the money.
K: When they start counting the money, that's when counting the money gets serious. Because counting money, is counting money. And you've been to the bank before, they're very serious in the bank. Because they're counting that money.
J: Because of the financial arrangement we have with the money counters, we have had to set up a Fritzl-style basement situation, to keep them motivated to work.

I can understand that.
J: I'm just going to put this out, and this is an exclusive - if you sell this on we'll sue you - when we removed Jimmy Saville's gravestone the other night, we actually took that down into our Fritzl-style basement where we keep our money counters, and showed them, and smashed it up in front of them. We said "Your whole life could go the same as Jimmy. He thought he'd got away with it. But we'll come back for you. Even in the grave". So, you know, that helped to motivate the money counting.
 

Did you guys have much to do with the downfall of the late Jimmy Savile? I mean, you moved in similar circles...
J: Hold up, I don't know if we can respond to that. We moved in the same circles? I might have to talk to my lawyer about that. You know what, I'm not going to say that we did, but also, I'm not going to say that we didn't. It was crazy times. The seventies was a crazy time. Certain things happened. We weren't aware of everything Jimmy was doing at the time.

So it just didn't seem wrong at the time?
J: You know what, I never saw Jimmy in those kind of scenarios. We only ever went out tracksuit shopping, or for a little bit of jewellery. We'd argue a lot of the time, because what me and Jimmy had to do, we'd ring each other before a night out, and say "You're not wearing that tracksuit, are you?" because we'd always buy matching tracksuits.
K: Listen, Jehst always thought he was cool. I always thought he had a problem.
J: That's because he touched you.
K: I always kept my trousers on.
J: He touched you through your trousers. That's what I heard.
K: I wore a pair of boxer shorts, a pair of tracksuit bottoms, and a pair of jeans. And a chastity belt. Over the top of all of that. And a condom.
J: You did wear all of that protective clothing, but then to put a thong on over the top? I think you maybe gave him the wrong impression, and the chastity belt did look a lot like a red codpiece. You look a lot like Cameo! And I've never seen you both in the same place at the same time. That's an exclusive. 'Kashmere and Cameo never seen in same place at same time - YOU work it out'.

Jehst and Kashmere. Photo by James Thompson.

Torche

Torche, of Miami, Florida, recently steamrolled their way across Europe to celebrate the launch of their third album, 'Harmonicraft'. They make this rad, super-heavy stoner/sludge pop music, and are now being adored by the hipster indie press as much as they are by the metal community. Suitably, everybody agrees that they're amazing. The new album is out on Volcom, so I thought I should say hello.

 Photograph by Gary Copeland

OK, introduce yourselves.
S: Steve Brooks. I sing and play guitar.
R: Rick Smith. I play drums.
A: Andrew Elstner. I play guitar and sing back ups. Jon is out eating.

You've been signed to Mogwai's Rock Action label in Europe. How did that compare to a US label? How did you get hooked up with them?
R: In 2005 - or 2006 - we toured with Mogwai in the States, and on that tour we became friends with them. I don't even remember how it came about, but we somehow got an offer from them to do the European version of our first full-length record. And we said "Hell Yeah." It was awesome. I've been a Mogwai fan for a long while now, so when they asked us if they could do the record we were excited about it. As far as the experience goes, working with the label goes, we just let them run with it and do their own thing with it.

Did you record it with them, at their studio?
R: No, we did it in the States and a different record label, Robotic Empire, actually released it in the States first. Then Mogwai released it in Europe after. So it was already a recorded record. Both records they did for us we already had recorded for another label already, they were just doing the European licensed version.

Are you going to do more with them?
R: Umm, at the moment the labels we work with have European distribution pretty heavily, so there's almost no need to, I guess, in some ways. But it was a cool experience. They're awesome dudes, and the label is very cool too. 

Is there a discernible difference between working with a conventional label, run by musicians, and working with a label like Volcom, which has kind of come to be through their dealings in skateboarding and whatnot? Obviously they've been putting out some killer stuff recently...
R: Oh yeah.
S: Yep.
A: I think it's fuckin' awesome, the Volcom thing. Obviously I have no experience - as the new dude in the band - as to how Rock Action was as an experience, apart from total respect. With Volcom - to be blunt - the reach is a little more broad and the pockets are a little more deep. And it's a label that's part of a 'lifestyle' company, you know? They've been selling clothing to skateboarders, snowboarders and surfers since like, the eighties?
S: The nineties I think.

Yeah, the early nineties.
A: Yeah, so they've been fuckin' amazing. There's been no hassle. There's been nothing but positive support from those guys.
S: Especially now, when it's hard to get the support that a lot of bands used to get from labels. They're able to market us in different ways, because of the different aspects of their company.

You're being interviewed for a skateboard magazine right now.
S: Yeah.
A: But they have money coming in from different things other than just records, so there's a little less pressure... In a positive way! It's not like it makes us lazy.
S: They gave us a good deal. And it's the same with all the other labels we've been on, we really know the people we're working with. We're friends with them and we trust them. They're pretty much of the same mentality that everyone else has been.

I know the Melvins got a load of socks and suits from Volcom when they did their record. Did you get anything cool? Did you go for a trolley dash around the warehouse?
A: That's exactly what we did!
S: They cut me off! They cut me off because I took too much stuff.
A: When we first signed on with them it was like "OK, cool, we better do some business-y stuff", but then - they have a factory store in Costa Mesa - they just went "OK, take what you want, go crazy".
S: We had to ship stuff home. We were on tour at the time, and there was just so much stuff.
A: We grabbed fuck-ton of stuff. Jeans, socks, shirts, bags, luggage, hats, headphones, underwear, belts, sunglasses, towels...
S: We were broke, and most of the clothes I was wearing were so old, that I just got me this huge bag, like this tall. Like $300 worth. The bag itself, I mean. The bag was about $300, and I filled it. It was like a shopping spree. You put a bunch of broke motherfuckers in there and tell them to go crazy?
A: By the time we were done they were like "Uh, OK. I think we should go now". We had these three huge boxes.
S: We had a pile, about the size of this room.

Photograph by Gary Copeland

 

What do you think of the UK?

R: I love it. People seem really excited that we make the trip to come out, so as long as people are excited, we're more than psyched to be here. It's been two years since the last time we were out here, so I feel that with these shows, the reaction from the crowd has been awesome. everybody's super cool. I like the vibe. Especially after touring the States so many times in the last couple of years - it's refreshing.
A: During the day is cool too, you get to walk around and see some shit you'd never normally see. Like Nottingham Castle.

It's been four years since your last album. What have you been doing?
S: Every year we've put out something. We did the Songs For Singles EP, we did the Boris split, we did the Part Chimp split last year. Basically we spent last year writing this record. And recording it. And then it took six months or something to get it out. And we tour a lot. In order for us to make a living we have to stay on the road. This time we took a lot of time off in order to write the record, and between recording the record and having the record released we were just sitting at home, and working regular jobs.

Is the band your day jobs now?
A: I want it to be. I'm not good at working in retail. I mean I can do it, I just don't care. I care about this, I don't care about that.

I see you've got some XXXL shirts. Where do you sell those?
A: (Immediately) In the US.
R: It's an American thing because there's a lot of fat-ass people in America. Occasionally you'll get a ghetto-fabulous dude who wants to rock a XXXL t-shirt, you know? Out to the nightclub or whatever. So you gotta have that too.
S: Or some little tiny girl what wants it as a nightshirt. Any time we don't have them, there's always a bunch of people like "You don't have XXXL? What the hell?!"
A: Only when you don't have them, there'll be some massive dude who's 6'8" and 350lbs, going "Aw, dude..."
R: They're fat here too though...

But people are ugly here! And drunk. I'd rather have fat people than ugly, drunk people everywhere.
R: Hahaha! Oh, man...

You make a point of declaring that you're not a metal band. Can you explain this? In what way are you not a metal band?
S: We're a band that's influenced by metal as well as punk, and rock and Middle-Eastern music. We don't think like metalheads.
A: We're just a hard rock band.
R: A very open-minded hard rock band. I think bands like Bauhaus and Swans are some of the heaviest shit ever, and they're not metal bands.
S: I love stuff that's influenced by Hüsker Dü, but I love eighties metal and thrash - stuff I grew up on. I grew up listening to Sabbath and Priest and Maiden and all that, then in the mid-eighties I got into thrash. A lot of the San Fransisco Bay Area thrash bands, then the whole rise of the underground and Florida death metal. Then in about '88 I started venturing off and listening to different things. After Clandestine by Entombed I was like "Everything great has been done". In metal. For me. There are bands now, like High On Fire, and that's the kind of metal I like. Really raw, powerful metal.
A: The new High On Fire record is, to me, a fuckin' masterpiece. Dude it's so good, it's just so right. It's super powerful, and it's kind of meathead-ish without being stupid.
S: The drums sound unbelievable. They sound like a fucking locomotive. Or if you're riding a wooden rollercoaster. It's like DOOF DOOF DOOF DOOF.
R: It's cool when you hear a recording of them, and they're playing metal, but it doesn't sound like they went to the same studio that every other metal band went to, and had the same drum preset triggered in on their drum kit, and the same guitar tone... It's unique. It sounds like them. It has room to breathe, it's not prog-y for the sake of being technical, you know?
S: That's what killed metal for me.
R: It's a pissing contest. It's "Look how complicated we can be" but that shit's just not brutal anymore. You don't want to hear this brutal song then all of a sudden this guitar solo comes in and it's this beautiful thing, with all these sweeps, and all that shit.

Who else is doing metal right just now? You did that split with Boris, do you consider them to be a metal band?
R: No way. I think they're a total rock band. They're an interesting band too, they're kinda like the Melvins, they're a band that can do anything they want to do. It's never the same thing. You can tell someone to check out Boris and they'll pick up one of the drone records, and they'll be "What the hell is this?!"
A: I think we're all of a similar mentality. We're all influenced by the Melvins. I saw the Melvins in like '91, and they had the power of a punk band, and they were just heavier than any band I'd ever heard - part from Swans of Godflesh or something like that - as far as a rock band, they were so fuckin' heavy. They changed everything for me. You can be heavy without having this strict black and white. There's this huge grey area in what they do. And with what we do. A lot of our newer stuff is kind of Krautrock-y
S: Very driving, very repetitive, very psychedelic. It's all over the board, but still sounds like us.

Is this change a reflection of the things you've been listening to more recently?
S: Just trying different things, and just progressing as a band.
A: It's about keeping yourself excited as well. There are certain bands who can do formulaic stuff really well, like AC/DC are still just crushing faces all around the world. It's the obvious example, but when you're writing songs and playing live you do it to please yourself.
R: We haven't changed that much as a band. The production's changed, and maybe the songwriting slightly, but we haven't changed as much as people make out. People are like "Oh, you guys have turned into a total pop band now" but we were kind of a total pop band before.
A: When people say that, I'm like "You didn't hear that from the beginning?!' It's always been there.
S: You're damned if you do and damned if you don't. People want you to write the same record over and over again, but then when you do, they're like "Aw, it's the same thing!" But we've been pretty lucky to have such a dedicated fan base. Everyone has a different favourite record, which is cool. We don't want to be one of these bands that writes the same record over and over.

Like Mogwai...
A: It's a similar vibe. I don't know what their MO is, but maybe they're still trying to perfect a certain ideal, and they want to try it again, and try it again. Some of the reviews for our new record were all "It's cool, but it's just the same" and some were "It's cool, but shit's totally changed".
S: Vice magazine said we'd changed too much, then Pitchfork said we hadn't changed enough.

What's the best band you've played live with?
S: Harvey Milk is one.
A: Big Business.
R: Part Chimp. Boris. We've been lucky, we've toured with a load of great bands.
A: We toured with Jesu.

Volcom had a 'Name a Metal Band' competition on the Sidewalk forum. What do you think of some of these? (I show the band the list)
R: 'Necropaedophilia'? Is that fucking dead children? Jesus, God...
A: 'Haha! 'Endoscope Periscope'!
S: I like 'Rectal Suffocation'... 'Dangerwankk Mumfukk'! 'Pout at the Devil'! Hahahaha! Oh, God... 'Frozen Mammoth', 'Stillborn Grandma', 'Chainmail Sexbeast'? Haha... 'inFANTASYde', that's clever. 'Cradle of Milf'! Haha!
A: 'Prison Jism Power Shower'! Dude... That can be Steve's side project. Those are fucking amazing. This is so good.
(A member of venue staff comes in, and immediately leaves)
A: He was offended.

What did you listen to in the van today?
R: The Chameleons today. Trans Am.
S: Rectal Suffocation...
A: Amps For Christ, Psychic TV...
R: Godflesh. It's all over the place. Japanese noise punk - Attack SS
S: Cock Sparrer, Black Flag, Deicide...

Do any of you skate?
R: Absolutely. I don't skate so much now, what with all the touring and stuff... I'm just scared of hurting myself now actually. I kinda had to stop when I broke my finger. I broke my finger and I realised I couldn't play. There were a couple of dudes down in Florida when I was growing up that used to skate for Element, so they'd always have product in the trunk. That was how I used to get a lot of my stuff. It's hard for me to not get on a skateboard and mess around when somebody has one, but I just can't right now. If I hurt myself I'm out of work.

What two musicians would you like to see fight each other?
R: I want to see Dale Bozzio kick the shit out of Lady Gaga.

They're both men, anyway...
S: Haha!
A: Aw, dude! Dale's awesome. Lady Gaga sucks.
S: I think just Madonna and Lady Gaga would be satisfactory. I just want to see Lady Gaga get the shit beat out of her. I feel I want to see a lot of musicians get the shit kicked out of them, by anyone. I want to see a bunch a metalcore bands fight each other and kill each other off. I hate those flat-ironed haircuts.

What's the best non-musical thing you've bought on eBay?
S: I don't think I've ever bought anything on eBay that wasn't music related.
R: 'The Orkly Kid', with Crispin Glover in it, on VHS.
A: I collect - when I have money - old tobacco pipes. It's the most Spinal Tap shit ever. You can buy them all crusty and beat up, and I'm pretty good at fixing them up, and making them look new-ish. Then you sell them and make money. I had fifty or so before I moved from Atlanta to St. Louis. Made a bit of loot...

Torche are recording a new album for Volcom this Winter, for a late 2013 release, and are touring Europe again in June.

39 Rad Balloons - A Skate Video Music Mix

39 Rad Balloons by Fingersmcneill on Mixcloud

I made a mix of some of my favourite tracks from skate videos.

Jason Lee - Freestyle (Blind, Video Days)

Archers of Loaf - Lowest Part is Free! (Dan Wolfe, Eastern Exposure 3)

Danzig - Mother (Zero, Thrill Of It All)

Tortoise - Tin Cans and Twine (Stereo, Tincan Folklore)

Fugazi - Waiting Room (Big Brother, Shit)

McRad - Tom Groholski (Not actually in a video, as far as I know)

Kirk and The Jerks - To Be A Hero (H-Street, Hokus Pokus)

Beastie Boys - So Whatcha Want (Blockhead, Debbie Does Blockhead)

Casual - Me O Mi O (Plan B, Second Hand Smoke)

Sizzla - Haunted and Nervous (TWS, Sight Unseen)

Diamond D - Best Kept Secret (New Deal, Whatever)

Method Man - Bring The Pain (World Industries, 20 Shot Sequence)

Nena - 99 Luftballoons (Blind section, Trilogy)

Earthless - Jull (Emerica, Stay Gold)

Bad Brains - I (Toy Machine, Brainwash)

Beastie Boys - Time For Livin' (Plan B, Questionable)

Mike Ternasky and DJ Dek - Am Rap (H-Street, Hokus Pokus)

Sub Society - The Isolator (H-Street, Next Generation)

Bob Dorough - Three Is A Magic Number (Girl, Mouse)

De La Soul - Keepin' The Faith (FTC, Finally)

Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeroes - Home (Lakai, Am I Am)

Morrissey - Speedway (Alien Workshop, Mindfield)

Black Sabbath - Killing Yourself To Live (XYZ, Stars and Bars)

Iggy and The Stooges - I Wanna Be Your Dog (Flip, Sorry)

Milk - The Knife Song (Blind, Video Days)

David Bowie - Panic In Detroit (101, Falling Down)

Tommy Wright III - On Da Creep (Palace, Tres Trill)

Sebadoh - It's So Hard To Fall In Love (Foundation, Art Bars, Subtitles and Seagulls)

Stereo Total - Movie Star (Alex Craig, H'min Bam)

Ice and The Iced - We've Had Enough (88, Destroy Everything Now)

Althea and Donna - Uptown Top Ranking (FTC, Penal Code 100A)

Daniel Johnston - Casper (Justin Pierce (RIP), Kids)

The Pastels - Nothing To Be Done (Chris Mulhern, This Time Tomorrow)

New Order - Age Of Consent (Osiris, Subject To Change)

The Odd Numbers - Little Kings and Queens (New Deal, Useless Wooden Toys)

Rites of Spring - For Want Of (TWS, Transmission 7)

Ish Marquez - Gin Is Not My Friend (Landscape, Horizons)

Dinosaur - Little Ethnic Song (Lots of Alien Workshop videos)

Jereme Rogers

BITE MY WIRE, your top-selling skateboard gossip monthly, was able to negotiate this WORLD EXCLUSIVE print interview with the HOTTEST new rap talent on the block - the enigma that is JEREME 'J. CASSANOVA' ROGERS! Jereme spoke candidly to our man, revealing his innermost thoughts, from personal philosophy to his sleazy secrets as a bed-hopping SEX ADDICT! We get the scoop on Jereme's SENSATIONAL move into music, how it is to OWN his own company and his remarkable REFUSAL to retire from professional skateboarding after his SHOCKING split from Girl!

How are you finding it being a musician, a pro skateboarder and a company owner?
I eat, though I am not an eater. I talk, though I am not a talker. I am not what I do, nor confined to what I do. I am a human being. At the core, I am formless... Skateboarding, music and good business are just some of the few things I do as a human. My strength and identity is inside and comes from nothing external.

Hip-hop's coming back into skateboarding. It was all shitty indie rock for a while, but now people are skating to hip-hop again. Obviously there's Lil Wayne putting his rap career on hold to skate. How do you think this change came about? You were kinda ahead of that.
First off, thank you... Secondly, change always comes about. I have definitely noticed skateboarders more openly claiming to make music, rapping, etc. I was definitely the first from skating to actually openly pursue music so head on with the ambition I did... But if anything, what I wish is that all things I do to inspire in man, is freedom from fear.

What's the longest you've gone without stepping on a skateboard since you started?
One year. When I retired in June of 2009, I didn't skate once or even own a board until the following June, 2010.

What's the longest you've gone without fucking a girl?
It's been a while... I don't fuck anymore, I make love. That does not mean that it's slow with candles lit every time, or that there must be wedding vows or commitments, but that it is pure; an act of Love. There's married men who've never made love to their wife. The only difference in the act, is the internal experience, whether one is viewing their partner in a derogatory fashion, or purely; with Love. One leaves you feeling unfulfilled, the other; inspired.

Do you ever fuck the same girl twice?
I have, but naturally this question is slightly cancelled out by my last answer.

What was the first album you owned? Do you still like it?
It was a Memphis Bleek album that I won mixed in with some other stuff at a skate contest. And no. Hahaha!

Picture by Andy Smoke.

Do you go to shows?
I've been to some, but definitely don't make it a point to go.

People look at stuff in the street and think about how good it'd be to skate. Do you check out which rooftops would be good for getting naked on?
It's the only way to do it right.

Who do you want to do a song with? Have you asked them? Anybody cool asked you to work with them?
Everybody good, no, and yes... But I'm gonna work with everybody I want. I'm in control of my destiny as much as a man has ever been.

Would you be happy for some people to see you as a skateboarder, and for some people to see you as an artist? Or should everybody appreciate that you're both?
There's nothing that everybody should, only things that everybody could, and I would be happiest if people saw me as I am. But vision is clouded by fear, and opened by Love. People can only see me as they see themselves. It takes doubt in self to doubt someone else; love of self, to love anyone else; and hate in self, to hate anyone else. All starts with self, and ends with everyone else.

Which gets you most girls?
Freedom... Freedom from fear attracts all humans, men and women alike.

You're smarter than a lot of people think. Does it depress you to see some of the reactions to stuff you do? Or do you do stuff to wind people up?
Nothing outside of me has power over what's inside of me. If you let external circumstances affect the state of your internal life, you'll have no power over your external life. Internal power is the leading cause of external power. You must first feel you are, before you are... If you let what's outside of you have any effect on what you feel you are, you'll never be what you want. By saying "You made me upset" - or made me anything, you're forfeiting your power over self, and giving that power to someone else.

What's Pink Dolphin? Nobody in the UK knows what that is.
I don't either, it's just some brand that gave me free clothes and I wore them over dirty ones.

Who else do you think would be a good fit on Selfish?
I don't... I think little, plan less. I live in the moment; present. What matters most is feeling, and my thoughts are aligned with my feelings. When someone feels right, it will be because they are.

Why did Selfish go to France, and not the UK?
I've been to the UK, more than once I believe...I've filled three passports. My travel exploits are quite a blur, all of which I'm grateful for and have had a positive effect on my internal make up.

What set up do you use for making music?
Pro Tools... Industry standard shit

How long does it take you to make a track?
One sitting, whether it takes 30 minutes, or several hours, it's still done in one sitting. I come back to tracks for mixing and tracking, but never for vocals or writing, that's all done in one sitting or not done at all. And I don't actually write, I let it come to me naturally... It never sees the light of day on a pad or phone or any other place outside of my own mind.

How much music are you sitting on? Is there going to be a J. Cassanova album?
Of course. I'm always steps ahead of whatever content I got out. That's just how it goes for anyone who wishes to continue doing what they're doing. You must remain ahead of what you're perceived as or they'll stop caring to make any perceptions of you at all.

Did you ever prank call a shop and pretend you were your own soundboard?
No, but I did listen to some of the prank calls made with it, and all bias-ness aside, they were thoroughly entertaining.

Why did you say you weren't getting royalties from Girl?
I was getting my cheque, just not my actual royalties. I got a three thousand dollar guarantee a month, which operated as a minimum; meaning I get that no matter what, but if I sell over the minimum, I get the extras - royalties kick in. Thing is, everyone on the brand got that same minimum, I believe on Chocolate as well. But everybody wasn't breaking that minimum, which means it costs them money... Which is wrote off as marketing costs. Though some of us were breaking it, myself being one of them. Zumiez (big U.S. skateboard chain-retailer) told me I was one of their top three sellers for years. So what had happened was, they were letting my royalties fall back into the company to cover their overhead, which helped keep a boat afloat that had some leaks. For two years I apparently didn't break my three thousand dollar minimum, yet Zumiez alone - who I was a top three seller for those same two years - had over three hundred stores in the U.S. If I sold ten boards a month to each of their three hundred locations - which is not a lot of boards for one of their top three sellers to move each month in a mall shop - then that would equate for six thousand dollars a month at two dollars a board, just off Zumiez. Don't forget, we're taking about Girl here who sells all around the world. So clearing a three thousand dollar minimum was not an issue. I was rookie of the year that year, 2006... I was also the highest rank street skater. Yet somehow, I was still not clearing my, what was at the time, measly minimum. So I inappropriately blurted out at Tampa 2007, after getting second to Koston, who had a flawed run, against mine which was flawless, that all I wanted was my royalties, when Rick Howard asked what I wanted after doing so well. The following month I got a six thousand dollar cheque... The first time I broke my three thousand dollar minimum, "apparently", and on top of that, it was April; tax time. Coincidence... Sure.

How much do you pay your team?
We give them double the industry standard... Which is two dollars a board. We give them four.

I heard you lurk on a certain skateboard forum... Would that be right?
I don't lurk. I don't kill time, I cherish it. But God bless you guys, I hope the forum is awesome, and I will gladly read every comment after this to see what you magnificent humans have to say.

Can people send you beats?
People can do whatever they want if they apply the right mind, principles, and passion to it.

Jon Horner made this into a brilliant comic. See the full-size version here.

 Cheers for doing this Jereme. Massive thanks also to the brilliant Andy Smoke and Jon Horner for the illustration and the comic. Andy drew Jereme's last Selfish graphic, and loads more of his work can be found on his blog, here. Jon draws all sorts of amazing things, and his blog can be found here.