Interview — Me Monster

Tyler Davidson

Hailing from the epicenter of punk, Washington D.C.'s Me Monster may leave some heads scratching with the name of their band, but it won't take long for the punk trio to slap you upside the head with their abrasively catchy style. SKRATCH recently conducted an e-mail interview with the troika to discuss what they're all about.

Me Monster is Fredneck (drums), Rashad the Almighty Shoestring (bass/vocals) and James (guitar/vocals).

SKRATCH MAGAZINE: What is the significance behind "Me Monster"?
RASHAD: "Me Monster" describes a person who is overly obsessed with themselves and couldn't care less about anyone other than their own ego. All of the members of Me Monster have recorded solo projects before even forming this band, so we've each stroked our own egos. Now as a band we can stroke each others'.
FRED: Ditto.
JAMES: We like it because it doesn’t have any connotations; it's not one of those names that you can instantly associate with a specific genre or aesthetic. It makes you have to listen harder.

SKRATCH: How does the songwriting process usually work for you guys?
RASHAD: Typically one person will bring an idea to practice for their own instrument and everything else will be layered on top. Most often songs start with guitar. But occasionally a song may be conceived with a drum beat, a bass line, or some crazy lyrics. The most important part is that it is a group effort. At this point nobody in the band has ever written a part for another band member's instrument. We all bring some creativity to the band.
FRED: Whenever James or Rashad bring in an idea, I can instantly hear a drum part in my head and I start playing it.
JAMES: Basically, we just follow our instincts, just keep jamming out until we like what we hear and that's what we stick with. Songs usually come together pretty quickly because we're all pretty experienced with songwriting, so it comes naturally at this point.

SKRATCH: What should people expect from a Me Monster show?
RASHAD: A Me Monster live show consists of volume, feedback, energy, a couple of sour notes, and some pretty badass tunes.
JAMES: Sweat, broken shit, injured audience members, and us passing out after the shows from being too aggro. People seem to be digging it so far.
FRED: We all die.

SKRATCH: What could punk/music in general definitely do without today?
RASHAD: Autotuners. Sects. Uniforms. MySpace.
JAMES: Kids are too lazy. They're spoiled by how easy it is to get their hands on so much music via the 'net that they don't listen as hard and don't appreciate it that much. People don't seem to take it as seriously anymore because it comes too easily to them, and the whole just becomes more and more superficial. Or something. Sorry for sounding like a cantankerous old man. Shit, I'm only 23, what's wrong with me?
FRED: Scenesters with dyed black fashion hair.

SKRATCH: Alternately, what could punk/music in general definitely not do without today?
RASHAD: Touring bands. House shows. MySpace.
JAMES: Sincerity. Community. Bands and fans looking out for each other. Kids who bring energy and enthusiasm to the shows. All-ages venues. Activism. Open-mindedness, openness to change. Bands that push the envelope instead of clinging to the past.
FRED: Definitely house shows. And kids going really fucking far out of their way to play music by any means possible. Passion.

SKRATCH: How would you describe your sound to somebody that has never heard music before?
RASHAD: It's punkcore.
JAMES: A face-melting, gut-busting good time. This shit will fuck your ass up. And it's catchy too!
FRED: A headache.

SKRATCH: What are some of the more prevalent lyrical themes in your music?
RASHAD: We seem to talk a lot about being proactive. Like a lot of other bands we get a little emo and complain about different things. But we take it a step further by trying to come up with solutions to problems or situations
that pop up.
JAMES: I'm not ever really sure what I'm singing about. I like mystery, I like being surprised. So I try not to think too hard about it.
FRED: All I can hear are my drums.

SKRATCH: What is the first instance you can remember of somebody's music affecting you?
RASHAD: I remember the first show I ever went to had some band from a local high school headlining. I knew a couple of guys in the band so I went. Before they played there was another band that completely ripped it up. They were hands down the best band of the night and a great introduction to what a live band is supposed to be like.
JAMES: The N word...Nirvana. There was just so much passion and conviction in their music that I was instantly converted. From them I discovered the whole punk/DIY thing and years of juvenile delinquency and sketchy sub-cultural living situations followed.
FRED: Probably when I was like 9 or 10 years old, I was really obsessed with Michael Jackson. I wouldn't go to Neverland Ranch though. I wasn't that obsessed. I just tried to learn all his dance moves and how to sing all his songs.

SKRATCH: If your music were the soundtrack to a movie, what kind of movie would it be?
RASHAD: A sci-fi dramedy with elements of horror. Our music is kind of scattered and touches on all sorts of genres.
JAMES: Something with Dolomite in it.
FRED: Totally a fuckin' fantasy movie, dude, with fuckin' unicorns and elves and dwarves and shit.

SKRATCH: What are your thoughts on the upcoming election?
RASHAD: People should know what a candidate stands for on the issues before voting and not just let the media decide who wins the election. I've encountered a few people who only voted for someone in the primaries because they shared the same race or gender as their candidate.
http://www.factcheck.org/
FRED: If John McCain is elected, we're all fucked.
JAMES: What they said. I like Obama a lot. He's the only candidate who seems capable of spelling out any of his ideas as opposed to just using rhetoric and glittering generalities. I don't know. I should do more research.

SKRATCH: What can we expect from Me Monster in the near future?
RASHAD: An album or two loads of shows, lots of fun...
FRED: A really bad-ass album and definitely lasers.
JAMES: Being punk and underground is all well and good, but I'm really looking forward to our bloated self-indulgent arena-rock phase. Pyro and dancers and fog machines and choreography and backing tape and double-concept albums and a symphony orchestra. We're getting kind of old, you know...

For more information on Me Monster and their hopefully upcoming "bloated self-indulgent arena-rock phase" (kidding), visit them on the Web at www.myspace.com/bewarethememonster.

To comment on this or any other piece you see in SKRATCH, feel free to e-mail us at speakup@skratchmagazine.com.

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