ANDREW: [Critics] have never
really bothered me. I hear it, but it's never been something that
makes me go "that really irritates me that we just all the sudden
happened…" because, I think a lot of our core fans, they do know.
If you look on any of our CDs, especially our old one, you see when
it was recorded and how we did it… there's actually a big story
behind this band. And if you take the time to look for it, you're
going to recognize that we weren't an overnight success.
KEN: Not at all.
ANDREW: So that's never really
been something that's made me go "man, that really bums me out that
people thank that."
KEN: No one's ever walked in
a club and said "I've never heard of this band." We built a story.
We built a story on our own by building fans, selling CDs and drawing
people into the clubs to see us, and that took years to do. "All
for You" was written in 1990! It was on a compilation CD in 1991
-- for an environmental trust fund. We've been at this a really
long time! So - I'm learning to not waste my energy on critics.
But as a writer and as writers… you know, you open yourself up.
When you do that, people take little "pots" and you definitely feel
it. But you gotta learn that even the President this year didn't
get as many votes as he would of liked, ya know? And he's the President!
(laughs)
Big Painted Velvet Elvis
KEN: I used to own a big painted
velvet Elvis, and I'm looking for another big painted velvet Elvis.
But what it represented was…
ANDREW: There's one on Archer
Road right now.
KEN: Yeah, but it's not good…
it's gotta be just the right one. Bobo's looking for me, too. I
had one when I was a kid. It meant a lot to me because I got to
buy it myself. I think I got it in Tijuana when I was a little kid.
It's just a metaphor for this is what's important to me - this little
silly velvet Elvis painting - you can really have everything else
and you can just kinda let me out of this. I'll take this and I'll
be cool. I'll tak this little velvet Elvis, and you can have everything
else, and just cast me out.
Survival Mode
KEN: You do get kinda in survival
mode… "what city am I in?" and that type of thing. We're very fortunate
to be able to do what we do… I mean, we travel around in a tour
bus. And the tour bus is what dawned on me - I was talking to somebody.
At any given time in this country, there's probably only between
90-120 tour busses with bands in 'em traveling around. And so you
have to think - let's just say that's 110 bands at any given time
traveling around in a tour bus. Well, we're one of those bands!
Outta all those millions of bands in the garages and backyards and
keg parties and stuff like that… we're able to have enough people
say "hey, man, we get what you do… we appreciate the music that
you bring to us." It's enough to keep us with a very good crew and
to put on a show that we're really really proud of. That's a long
way from drawing Van Halen on your notebook in high school. You
know what I mean? It's pretty cool… pretty cool to keep it in perspective
like that.
