2. Your latest album 'Over
Now' on BALLYHOO WITHDRAWAL RECORDS is a thoughtful, sober
and contemplative offering. This is a far cry from singer
and guitarist Timothy White's Metal background, was it a
conscious shift away from that style or did he and the band
just grow out of it?
Not necessarily grew out of it, metal is
not a style we ever played as a band. My musical vision was
expanded some years back when I moved to Texas and met new
people. For instance... growing-up in Indiana I didn't get
exposed
to a variety of musical genres or lifestyles, so whatever was the most popular
is all we heard. That's where the metal was and still is for me. It's not what
I listen to now, except for the classics, Metallica's "...And
Justice for All", "Master of Puppets" and that's really about
it...you know, the classics. To me, those two albums transcend "metal".
So, I moved to Texas in 1989 and was exposed to so much music and style all
at one time. It was amazing to hear all this
new and interesting music that was out there. I got into punk, psychedelic,
shoegazer, dream-pop, tons of stuff all at once. I didn't realize I was so
hungry for music...of all kinds. I'll tell you what really got me out of metal.
In 1990 my apt was burgalurized. All they stole of mine was my Metallica cassette
collection leaving my Jane's Addiction, punk and other cassettes. I never got
to replaced them. So there you go...someone stole my metal.
3. What are your current musical influences?
My Bloody Valentine, Alan Parsons, The
Doves, Catherine Wheel, Superdrag, J. Mascis, Longwave, Sonic
Youth. I don't really do throw-backs the way some people
do. A lot of people say they're influenced by The Beatles
and such,
but who's not? I think that goes without saying because they started the lineage
we all follow now in rock/pop music.
4. What are your plan for next
year? More touring or are you working on another album.
What will your next album be like?
Another album, or Ep, or both. Our next
album should be bigger and darker in sound and scope. Snowdonnas
started as a band in transition and it still is.
5. You have a very British sound similar
to Elbow, The Electric Soft Parade and Doves that is very
popular in the UK at the moment is it frustrating being stuck
in Texas?
Yes, it can be frustrating being here while
sounding like we're over there. We want so bad to be where
our influences lie. I will say that it's kinda nifty being
here in Texas and sounding the way we dobecause we're novelty
to most, but at the same time very familiar to people that "get
it". And that helps us connect with other bands and
people that really appreciate what we're doing. We're motivated
by the few that think we're great...that's all it takes.
6. What is the music scene like in Texas
at the moment, describe for the unitiated the Texas sound?
Very diverse. Texas is a huge state with
lots of culture from all over the world...there's really
no other state like it. You can find whatever you need here.
The music is even more diverse due to the mixing of all the
different cultures and styles and that creates these musical
hybrids. If if had to say, the indigenous sound(s) is country
and country rock. Texas has many singer/songwriters writing
in that style. You find a lot of people trying to live that cowboy lifestyle
even in the big cities. I'm not
saying it's the wild west out here, because it's not, Texas has many metropolitan
areas such as Dallas, Houston, Austin, but for the most part people predominately
breed the western
mentality statewide.
7. Tim White has been quoted as still being
a metal fan. Is he fed up with the growing commercialisation
of metal and can he recommend a band that is going to resurrect
the genre and instil some integrity back into it, or will
he have to form it himself?
Mis-quote. Yes, I'm fed-up with the overall
commercialization of music as a whole.I have not heard of
any band ready to resurrect metal with a straight-face yet.
I'm sure in the coming months there will be someone...it's
about that time. All the greats have run their course and
burned-out.
8. Your album is quite sorrowful
in places especially the track 'Watchful Watching' containing
the lyrics; " Swallowed
my pride, ate me from inside. Hole in my heart, I'm so torn
apart." What was the story behind the song and the lyrics?
That song is an admission of guilt. It's
written to everyone in my life. Everyone from God to my friends.
It's a continuous feeling of guilt I have about not returning what is given
to me. The first two lines are the truest and sharpest...summing-up the whole
idea.
9. 'Rocket Cherries' on the album sees
you experimenting with the electro genre is that a one off
or is it a direction you see the band heading in?
Well, not really. That's just how the song
got captured and recorded. The keyboards are shrill and high
in the mix, there's some effects on my vocals. It is based
on a My Bloody Valentine song...and we know they aren't electro.
So, what you hear on the album is a bit of a mis-representation
of what I
want that song to be, but that's the compromise you make sometimes when you
record the way we did...quick and dirty.
10. Who or what makes you angry?
Myself
11. song, poem or book would you
say sums you up, if any?
I'm too moody and scattered to be
summed-up in one piece...it's sad really.Sometimes a painting
by Dali, sometimes a book by William S. Burroughs, sometimes
the acid-soaked ramblings of Gibby Haynes...who
knows?
www.snowdonnas.com David Adair
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