Soul-Junk interview by markSlatch recently had the pleasure to do an interview with Soul-Junk's Glen "Galaxalag" Galaxy & DJ "Slowlyrotatingfan" slo-Ro. For those of you who are unfamiliar with their music, it could be described as a combo of indie rock, hip-hop, soul, and all-around lo-fi sonic experimentation with "holy ghost" lyrics, leading some to compare their sound to Ween, the Beastie Boys, and Beck. Since 1995, Soul-Junk has released twelve EP's and twelve LP's, including two double-length releases. The new album "1958" is coming out on Sept 2nd, on Sounds Are Active Records. |
As a founder of the prolific, but now defunct Truman's Water, what led to you leaving the band?
Glen Galaxy: It was a simple at the time - God said leave. Spoke to me in the back of a pickup shell somewhere on the tour road around North Carolina or Kentucky. Now I know it was aimed at making me preach - then I just thought it was about starting a new band.
Why are all of Soul-Junk's releases named after years?
Confusing it is yes. Basically full-lengths go up from 1950, EPs & 7"s & stuff go down from 1949. I had a historical significance in my mind about 1950 from listening to a lot of early out-jazz & early '50s proto-rock. & I wanted to inflict a concept titling system on the good album buyers.
Many of your releases have come out on different well established labels such as Homestead, Shrimper and Sub Pop - labels that do not usually have any music with spiritual/religious/christian connotations. Is there a reason you bounce from label to label?
I think all the different labels are a result of having such pointed evolving music & being a Holy-Ghost band. People who are into the music we're into can deal w/ our lyrics/focus & style movement for an album or 2, but it's not like we sell 50k records or anything. So it ends up being kinda project-to-project. We don't have big blow-outs w/ anybody...
Do you ever encounter hostility from spiritual/religious/christian groups because your approach and direction creating music and live shows are so unique and untypical?
I think when you talk about the way people perceive us, it's fine to use "spiritual" or "christian". When you talk about us as we see ourselves, it's more "Holy-Ghost"... you could throw in "pentecostal" if you want every now & then - it's a little more cartoonish of a word in most peoples' minds but it's definitely what Soul-Junk is and it sets us apart from the vanilla-fied Christian music world.
There seems to be a point where your music changed from guitar-based music to DJ-based music. What led to the change?
Change came from wanting a wider & more damaged sound-scope. It also came from rocking members not being able to tour.
How did you meet up with DJ slo-Ro?
slo-Ro & I met when we were kids & his dad was preacher at my church.
slo-Ro: Glen made me leave my good paying job in NYC to join him in the sunny so-cal hiphop stylee lifestyle. Thank you Galaxalag.
Was that a photo of you in the frog suit recently at your website? Do you usually perform live in animal costumes or was this an unusual occurance?
Frog suits occur, so does massive use of cardboard (by slo-Ro). So do Darth Vader panels & eskimo hoods.
Are live shows just you and a DJ?
Live shows are Galaxalag & slo-Ro, plus whoever is right to join us for that outing. Lately we've been playing a lot w/ Jason from Aspects of Physics. He's good, & he & slo-Ro do the sound mash-up well together. Before that we did tours with DJ 3rd Rail, & also a couple with DJ Mizzicah. We've been able to pull off the right mixture of dope sloppy beats as a 2 piece lately so we'll play that way a lot too.
What can one expect to see and hear at a live show by Soul-Junk?
Soul-Junk live sets are fairly nice & amorphous... blasts of bombastic hits amongst a soup of hornet-head baritone sax skronk & slo-Ro's sinister sound-curving.
slo-Ro: All I have received from my participation with Soul-Junk are wounds, head wounds, back troubles, cuts, bruises, chipped elbow bones, etc. It is a dangerous business... does that help explain the live shows? Plenty of interpretive neo-pseudo-judo-breakdancing.
What does your backstage rider have listed on it?
Soul-Junk's rider has hydraulics & neon glow under the chassis.
Any plans of touring the east coast?
East coast is always right for visits because Daniel from Danielson Famile sits proudly in South Jersey & helps us find reasons to make pilgrimages.
You have lots of varied music and sound samples such as string quartets, tribal drums, and sound collages. Do you clear all your samples?
Some are clear. Some you can almost see thru, but not really. Others are mirror-image.
I see that you have been adding tracks to the free download 1940 "web only" EP. How do you feel about the battle between record companies and fans who download free music?
We have good benefits from free music that found it's way to us, so we offer some back.
Any artists you enjoy playing with or any bands that you think deserve more attention?
Neil Michael Haggerty , Mr. Dibbs, Deerhoof, Les Mccann, Hamid Drake, Wobbly, Latin Love Machine, Finis Jennings Dake, Asa Chang & Junray, Himp Hoxp Festivals.
slo-Ro: Son Ape, Sagan, Bizzart, The Curtains, Castanets, Sufjan Stevens, The Upcoming Patagonian, The New Case Quarter Label, The Macho Nacho Quintet, Newcomer Kid Nasty Pup, stole him out from under the Master P. Roster, attempts at new hiphop vernacular and catch phrases amongst outerspace free-hop rhythm drops.
Did I really hear a reference to John Candelaria on "non-linear", the ace of the 1979 world series champions Pittsburgh Pirates?
The same gentleman who got me in so much trouble with little league coaches trying to cop his mad sidearm style.
Does being in Soul-Junk pay the bills?
Nobody we know sells any records. It's ok.
The new album is coming out very shortly- what can we expect this time around?
This new record is fairly manic. If you picture clear or at least translucent samples jumping off each other with Holy-Ghost banter across the top, plenty of sense of apocalypse & cataclysm & catacombs optimism sword-in-mouth Jesus love. We anticipate lion-feedings so we dish it up noisy as we can but it's more see-able than ever before, you know? Many good people help out like Greg Kelly & Daniel Carter & Bizzart & sick nigh unto death type scratching from Mizzicah.
slo-Ro: The new record really captures the live sound. It's like a giant robotic butterfly trying to take flight, spilling pollen off of its legs and hiccupping grape soda bubbles.