Interview with Artsynoise.com

Who are some of your musical influences?
JD: As the guitarist: Fugazi, Botch, At the Drive-in, Enemymine, Snapcase, Refused, Converge…countless others along those lines.
John: I have an enormous amount of musical influences. I own something like 3,000 CD’s. Some bands I would have to name would be The Mars Volta, At the Drive In, Refused, Bad Religion, Drive like Jehu, Hot Snakes, …Trail of Dead, Fugazi, Tool, The Melvins, the list goes on and on. My lyric writing is actually somewhat influenced by underground hip hop also, like El-P. I also really like noise techno stuff like Phantomsmasher and Wolf Eyes and that vibe actually comes out a little in our sound with some of the Microkorg parts that I add to the songs.
Tim: God, these guys never shut up about how much music they have. Blah, blah, blah, Hey John, did you read the review in AP on Tender Nugget Colon Push? Oh yeah JD, I totally have to buy that!!
Brooker (bassist): Floater, System of a Down, Primus, Tool.

Where did the name of your band come from?
JD: The Nemesis Theory is an actual, and very controversial, theory of some mass extinctions on Earth having been caused by a dark star...if you google the name, you can’t miss it. Nemesis is the Greek goddess of retribution, which is pretty bad ass. What any of that has to do with our music, I have no idea, but it was about space, which we all dig, and it sounded cool at the time. None of us actually buy the theory itself, however.
Tim: What JD glossed over is that our old bassist Coolidge dug deep and found what he thought was a good fit for us. In the end, I think Coolidge picked the name, because it sticks in your ears and is easy to remember.

How long have you guys been together?
JD: With John, it has been since about June of ’03, but I played with Tim (drums) and our first bassist, Coolidge for a little over a year before that.

What are your favorite bands now?
John: Living in Seattle I listen to a lot of local stuff and there’s a ton of good bands around here: The Abodox, Me Infecto, Smoke and Smoke, The New Mexicans, Harkonnen, Eugene Conrad, The Ruby Doe and These Arms Are Snakes to name a few. What else…I’ve been listening to Decahedron a lot lately. The recent Sub Pop releases from Comets on Fire and Wolf Eyes have also been getting a lot of play at my place. I listen to music constantly.
JD: John and I have fairly similar tastes in music, but we seem to differ quite a bit from the other members of the band. Right now I’m listening to the new Converge, Neurosis’ new album, and John turned me on to the Comets on Fire disc from earlier this year. Locally, I really dig Smoke and Smoke, The New Mexicans, the Abodox...I could go on; there’s plenty. Brooker: Floater, Muse.

Which would you want more, a Moon Man or a Grammy?
JD: Would I rather be respected by MTV viewers, or industry bigwigs? Hmmm… Can I say, “neither?”
John: Yeah, with the current state of the popular music scene getting either one of those awards would honestly make me wonder if my band was complete and utter crap. Then again I’d also be rich by that point, so, whatever. Has a really good band ever won either one of those awards? I think Tool won a grammy once so I guess I’ll go with that.
Brooker: A what?

If everything were to stop right now, what one thing would you, as a band like to be remembered for?
John: Upping the bar a few notches intellectually in the hard rock world. Most hard rock lyricists these days either scream incoherently or write poor fifth grade poetry. I try and write like an actual author would. Kind of like a combination between Henry Miller and Howard Zinn, or something like that. As a band I’d like to be remembered for being original. I think we have our own sound. People always ask us what we sound like and we can’t even really tell them. I don’t really think there’s any one out there doing what we’re doing right now.
Brooker: For making weird, dark, creative music that kicks ass.

Out of all the venues you've played which is your favorite?
JD: I think we’ve had the best times playing the smaller punk clubs in Seattle like the Monkey Pub and the Funhouse. Both of those places kick ass for loud music.
John: I would say the Graceland and the Funhouse. I’d also have to reference the late great Second Avenue Pizza. It still hurts that that venue isn’t around any more.
Brooker: Our most appreciative crowds, and therefore the most fun shows, have been at The Monkey Pub and the Funhouse. Studio Seven has an awesome stage, room, and sound. Playing at the Graceland was cool because I’ve seen so many bands I like play there.

If you could change one thing about the music industry what would it be?
John: Right now there is more good music than there ever has been in the history of mankind, if only by sheer numbers alone. The thing is, your casual music fan would never know that because of media consolidation and what major labels and radio stations are willing to promote. It’d be nice if some rich record executives would see beyond profit maximization and actually push bands based on talent and originality. The way things are currently really sends the message that the people in charge just don’t give a fuck about music at all. It’s all about money. If I was rich I would lose a lot of money trying to bring good bands to a wider audience. If I didn’t turn a profit I wouldn’t give a shit. I’d be doing good for the world and the next generation of bands would be even better than the last. I honestly think the kind of music that is being marketed to kids in middle America that get all their information from MTV and the radio actually makes them stupider. Obviously that’s not a good thing for the future of humanity.
JD: Yeah, perhaps taking down the RIAA would probably help fix that a bit. I’m actually all about free music sharing, though I’ve never really had a computer that could support it. Screw Metallica, they are easily the most evil band in history. We’re stuck in this “Tragedy of the Commons” scenario with file-sharing…eh, I could go on for hours about it, as anyone I know can tell you. I’ve lost friends talking about that subject, so I’ll just cut myself off. Go to our website and email me from the contact page if you want me to talk your ear off.
Brooker: I’d like for the music industry to stop promoting the hell out of shitty pop music lip synched by some air headed hot chick, written by some fifty year old record executive, and played by studio musicians. Rather, I’d like for them to be promoting the hell out of us, four over educated drunks with nothing to show for it who write songs while having hallucinations or nightmares about the impending apocalypse.

What do you want people to get from your music?
JD: I think what most people get from us, right now, is confused. That’s nice, but I think I’d rather they got interested in our music.
John: In an ideal world, if we ever have a decent fan base it would be nice to think that our fans could actually learn something from our band. If they were into our music they might take an interest in other things that we are into. I think the band Tool would be a model for that. To be quite honest I really don’t listen to that band a whole lot any more but when I was younger I thought they were gods. On their web-site they had a reading list and always recommended other artists who were cool. That band has turned me on to things like Mr. Show; comedians like Bill Hicks; bands like the Melvins: and authors like Terence McKenna. I’m actually really indebted to them in a way. I e-mailed their web master when I was younger and he recommended a bunch of really good books about alien phenomenon. It was nice to know that I wasn’t the only one that found that kind of thing fascinating because to be quite honest none of my friends then or now really do.
Brooker: A chubby.

If you could be a member of one 80s band who would it be?
JD: Metallica, so I could’ve told Lars and Cliff to switch seats during the ‘87 European tour.
John: Bad Religion I guess. They technically were an 80’s band because that’s when they started. To be quite honest I’m not really that huge a fan of eighties music. This whole coked out dance pop neo-80’s band revival thing that’s going on right now really annoys the crap out of me. Coke isn’t a cool drug and I’ve done it enough to know. Then again I know people that swear by it. Their lives typically fall apart completely within a year.
Brooker: Motley Crue. Not because I like their music, but because they were complete bastards, they spent their lives in a drug induced haze, trashed their hotel rooms, and married several different Play Boy models each.

If you weren't involved in music, what other careers would you pursue?
JD: Wow, I’m twenty-six years old, and I have absolutely no idea. Scary. I should’ve thought of that on Halloween.
John: Well, I really look at music as a hobby and not a career. We do it because that’s what we enjoy doing. If it ever turned into a career that would be great but I’m not holding my breath. Right now I work with developmentally disabled adults in a management capacity. Eventually I want to move into the mind sciences field. Things like Remote Viewing and altered states of consciousness fascinate me to no end. They need to be studied and understood by humanity at a greater level if we’re ever going to evolve. I’d like to be a part of that development.
Tim: I am with John; this is a hobby for me. I have been in graduate school for 5 years now getting a doctorate in bioengineering. The band is what keeps me sane outside of school.

Give two words to describe the other guys in your band.
John: I can do it in one: drunks.
JD: Heh, “Cheap Beer,” maybe?
Tim: Bitches and 40’s
Brooker: tasty lovin’

Is there any song you hate to perform? If so, which one?
John: We used to do a cover of Devo’s “Jerking Back and Forth” and to be quite honest after playing it a million times I think we all kind of got sick of it. I remember the last time we played it in practice saying, “can we quit playing this now?” The thing is, our friends loved it and still request it at shows, so it might not be entirely dead.
JD: Exactly. I think the band is unanimous in our vote for Worst. Song. Ever. That Devo song was something we covered when we first started jamming, just to get used to playing together, you know? We spent two years trying to stop playing it, and I’m positive that we have finally overcome!
Tim: As the drummer I have to say Incommunicado. I like the song, but it sucks to play.
Brooker: We’ve already stopped playing all the songs we hated to play. Some songs are hard for me to play because of the bass lines I’ve come up with. There are a few songs that I have to contort my hands repeatedly to play while slamming my hands against the bass and by the end of the song I can barely hold the pick. At several of our shows I’ve bloodied my hands to the point of splattering blood all over my bass and covering my pick to the point that it’s so slippery I could barely hold onto it.

What is your favorite song off of one of your CDs?
JD: I personally like Platahedron, because it was the most fun to write. It’s kind of a funny song, structure-wise; we were goofing around with conventions a bit. In fact, as kind of a joke, I was talked into whipping out some cheesy finger-tapping in the middle- it’s not a solo though, it’s a verse, which makes it even more silly.
John: I like them all but if I had to pick I guess I would say “manufactured consent” and only because I love the lyric: “operation enduring imperialism, justifying indiscriminant misanthropy” After this past week’s election I think it really hits home more than ever. I mean people turned out in record numbers to the polls and all they really did was prove how incredibly stupid they are. It’s hard to have hope for humanity right now but I try. Some things are actually better than they used to be. My Grandma lived through World War II and the depression. See what I mean?
Tim: The interlude Eclipse that leads into Manufactured Consent. I think it is some of our best work.
Brooker: The first time I heard the intro to Manufactured Consent I almost spooged. The way the bass and guitar weave together is just perfect and beautiful in a creepy sort of way. I also like The Parasites Are Always Right because it’s a real toe tapped/head banger.

How did you prepare for recording?
JD: Lots of phone calls, plenty of drinking…don’t remember much else, but we were 100% ready going in.
John: They practiced a lot. I really didn’t do anything in particular. I did all of my vocals in two takes.
JD: That’s all we let him do!
Tim: Practice, practice, practice!

What was the writing process used for this album?
John: They basically jam out a song, which can take as long as two months or so. I bring my eight track into the practice space and room mic it. Then I go home and write the vocal part, which normally takes a week or two. After that I add a few Microkorg lines to fill it out and there you go: a brand new song.
JD: As for writing and arranging the instrumentation, the inside of our CD booklet says it all. We follow our own crazy logic.

What was the hardest part of recording?
JD: Keeping the producer(s) sober.
John: Well, to be quite honest, recording in a studio is really fucking boring. It’s all about repetition and waiting. I really didn’t even need to be there for most of it. It was a learning experience though. It’s weird because I love to record stuff on my own. It’s one of my favorite things in the world to do. I’m more into the creative side of it than the technical side I guess.
Tim: Staying focused after 12hrs straight. We did the drum tracks in about 18hrs total; 12hrs the first day, 6hrs the second. Man I was beat after that.

Are you signed to a label or are you DIYing it?
JD: DIY. Not by choice, though. Label support is still a necessity in our world.
John: Right, we’re DIYing it but we’re really going to make a push in the near future to get signed to some kind of a label. We all work full time and there are a lot of things that we’d like other people to work on for us. It’s hard to do it all yourself when the entire band has day jobs. It’d also be nice if we didn’t have to pay to record our next CD. It can be pretty expensive.

Now that you have a cd out do you see an increase in your show attendance/fan base?
John: Not really. When we first had a CD we tried to sell them for five dollars a pop and in about six months we sold like 15. Now we just give them away if you come to our shows. They go pretty fast now. So come out, there’s a free CD waiting for anyone that does, availability might be limited at some shows though.
JD: Is our CD really “out” if you can only find it on our website or for free at our shows?
Brooker: We need to start making people do disgusting and/or humiliating stunts on stage to get a free CD, if for no better reason than to entertain ourselves.

Who would you like to tour with?
John: Any of the local bands I referenced earlier would be amazing. There are so many bands I would love to tour with I’m not even really going to get into it.
Brooker: Any band who plays music we like, aren’t assholes, and will chip in for gas.

What are you doing to promote your album?
John: Well, we need to start doing a lot more. We’re playing shows and we flyer extensively for nearly every show we play. We want to get more press so we’re going to work on that. We really want to get signed to some kind of a label so hopefully they could help us with some of that.

If you had to do it all over what would you change?
JD: Our name- there’s too many of these damn “theory” bands around now and they’re all nü-metal. At least ours is an actual theory. Also, we would’ve auditioned John eight months earlier, when he first called us.
John: It’s hard to say. When you fuck up you learn from your mistakes. That’s what life is all about.
Tim: I would have stopped listening to JD, that boy ain’t right.
Brooker: I like where we’re at, so I wouldn’t change anything. That kind of goes for everything in life. The mistakes and the successes have made me who I am, so I wouldn’t change any of it.

What advice would you give to younger/new musicians looking to record for the first time?
JD: I used to work in a recording studio, so I’ve seen a lot of different kind of musicians go through the recording process, from the weekend warriors to the major label pop punk poster boys with their A&R reps in tow. At any level, I was always most impressed by the bands/artists who could relax and enjoy the whole process without constantly freaking out about one weak note or crash hit. Being a dick makes everybody miserable.
John: And shop around. There’s a saturation of recording studios around town and I bet if you were flexible you could find a pretty good price. Don’t try and write in the studio. You can get pretty cheap decent recording gear these days so buy some and demo all your stuff and make sure you have it down before you waste studio time.
Tim: Be prepared when you enter the studio. There isn’t anything good about spending a week in the studio if you can do it in 2-3 days. Why waste your money. Like I said before, practice until you know you can swing most everything in 5 takes or less, especially, if you are the drummer.
Brooker: Don’t take yourselves too seriously. Don’t try to control absolutely everything. Allow the album to take its direction without forcing it to. Bring something to entertain yourself while you’re waiting for your turn to record. I worked at the same recording studio as JD. To compare two different sessions I worked on, one band stressed about every little detail, did every part over and over again, recorded each 5-second piece separately and hated each other the whole time. Their drummer was so sick of everyone’s nit picking at one point that he drove off. The other band, took things as they came, added parts on the spot, people who came into the studio would find themselves clapping or playing a tambourine on the album, and the members were very supportive of each other. I think their product was better as a result of their attitude towards making it.

Who produced and mixed the cd?
JD: Geoff Ott was the man on the boards for this one. We gave him co-producer credit because he threatened to beat us senseless if we didn’t. Actually, he was really good about giving us ideas for what sound we were going after. I had worked with him in the studio and knew that he had a lot of good experience. I think that just before us, he had mixed a song for Melissa Etheridge, and afterwards he went to work with Three Doors Down. I mean, man, you really can’t get a string of bands more different than that! He called our album “artistic,” and said he doesn’t do those very often. We took it as a compliment.

When you become famous what would you order to have in your dressing room?
John: Probably pot and beer for after the show. Maybe high speed internet or something. Playstation. I’m really not that materialistic so I wouldn’t really want a bunch of exorbitant crap. Well, hot girls would be nice too.
JD: Holy shit, you sound like a frat boy! Anyway, like Q-tip, I gotta say: Chicken and orange juice.
Tim: A hot tub, beer, and some Cheesits
Brooker: Beer, one of those big cartons of goldfish crackers, and chicks.

If you where trapped on a deserted island what one CD or record would you want with you?
John: Probably “Deloused in the Comatorium” by The Mars Volta. In my mind that’s the best hard rock CD that has come out in the past five years. Possibly ever.
JD: Isis, Oceanic. But then I might try to drown myself out of despair.
Tim: Beethoven’s Pastoral.
Brooker: Jethro Tull’s Aqualung. I’ve always loved that album for its intricate beauty. But what would we use to power the CD player?

If you could knock out anyone with your instrument who would it be?
JD: Myself. Wouldn’t that be cool to see at a show? I’ve come close in practice after a couple beers.
John: It’s impossible not to say W.! I’m so fucking pissed about the last election that I’m finally going to have to get more involved in politics in a capacity other than just voting. I can’t believe no one’s tried to assassinate that motherfucker yet. I mean someone took shots at Reagan for Chrissakes! Reagan wasn’t even half as bad as W.- and he was freaking braindead!
Tim: It would be pretty cool to see John knock himself out on my drum set. For some reason I think that would feel satisfying.
Brooker: I’m not sure if the question is asking who we would like to impress with our ability to play our instruments, but I’ll go with the flow on this one and say I’d love to butt Bush right in the face with by bass guitar. I can just picture Bush rocking out in the front row at one of our shows after he’s realized how much we kick ass and he’s finally begun to see the wisdom in our music and realize the error of his ways. And just as he’s screaming out like a little girl how much he loves our music, POW! his entire top row of teeth gets knocked out.

What's the most embarrassing CD you own?
John: C+C Music factory. I bought it when it was popular and still have it. I also have Styx’s greatest hits.
JD: Mine is Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. Aw yeah, you know, the one with Wildside and Good Vibrations? It’s one of my oldest CDs and I only really still own it because it’s fun to whip out at parties to get a good laugh. Seriously, I don’t listen to it! Ever!
Tim: Ugly Kid Joe, I wasn’t too bright as a kid.
Brooker: I don’t know if I really wanted to know this about my band mates. And I don’t know if I want to share this information with them or with anyone else for that matter, but here goes. Def Leppard: Hysteria. Come on, that shit rocked back in the day. It was the first album I ever bought. And I’m not gonna say I don’t still rock out to it from time to time. Nostalgia baby! “I’m hot, stick and sweet, from my head to me feet, yeah.” Brilliance!
Tim: Hey, Def Leppard rocked! Never be embarrassed with that. Hey you had to be conscious in the 80’s to understand.

What's the worst band on the radio?
JD: That is really tough to answer: partially because I don’t really listen to it that much, but also because it has been quite a while since I’ve heard much that’s good on the radio. But I’m going to have to go with Jet. I mean, did we really need a shitty, cheap AC/DC rip-off band? Though, I must say, they probably have the most successful debut single of all time that has less than two chords and a 70-year-old, played-to-death blues rhythm. Gawd, that song sucks.
John: Well, there’s far too many to count but I can honestly say that Linkin Park was the reason I stopped listening to commercial radio entirely. I can’t fucking stand that shit and it was just so overly saturated. I honestly don’t know if I could write worse lyrics than that guy if I tried really hard. I wish I was kidding.
Tim: I haven’t listened to the radio in two years, who wants to hear the same crap every 20 minutes anyway?
Brooker: I gotta second Linkin Park. And what’s with misspelling the name? That’s about as cool as adding an umlaut to your band’s name. I can’t imagine a more half assed, playin’-what-you-know-will-sell, band. Come on, they’ve got nü-metal power chords with one guy singing hooky choruses about how pissed off he is about his girlfriend and another guy rapping. Let’s just throw in a hot chick with huge boobs to complete the package.

How's the local music scene?
John: It’s fucking amazing. There’s so much talent in this city it blows my mind. I used to live in Columbus, Ohio and I was pretty into the music scene there but the bands weren’t even close to as good. People were doing it for the right reasons but they just weren’t that great. I’m not saying that there weren’t good bands though. When I moved out here I was completely blown away by the level of talent. I’m really proud to be a part of it and hope that we’ll become even more immersed in the future.
JD: It’s awesome, though occasionally unsupported. I realize that the bands I like won’t appeal to many people, but it’s sad to see so many empty rooms at so many kick ass shows around town.
Tim: Its fun, but can be difficult to get started in.
Brooker: Bands need to support each other more like they did back in the grunge days. Some bands won’t even talk to other bands because they think they’re too cool for this shit and they think they’re only a few months away from hitting the big time when they can leave all this behind. It should be about having a good time not about trying to get somewhere.

Any last words?
John: If you’re not familiar with our band check out our website at www.thenemesistheory.com there are free downloadable songs and postings for our shows. Come check us out live, I think we put on a pretty good show. If you like loud rock music I can almost guarantee you’ll have a good time and we’ll give you a free CD to boot. That’s worth the price of admission right there.