Despite the recent departure of long time bassist Matt Lukin, the band has forged on with former Lubricated Goat member Guy Maddison. Their new album Since We’ve Become Translucent showcases a more experimental yet fundamentally secure Mudhoney, integrating horns and backing vocals into their trademark fuzz box signature. Vocalist Mark Arm spoke to Altercation recently about the trials and tribulations of musical maturity.
Interview by Justin Habersaat.
Altercation: I hear you’re getting geared up for some European dates. How does the audience differ over there?
Mark: Well, we haven’t really been to Europe since 1995. We did one show in 1998, but that was in London. We’ve done some phone interviews with European journalists recently, and they all keep asking if we have any regrets (laughs). You know, “tell me about grunge” type of things. I guess we’re supposed to be reflective or something by this point. We only have a ten day window to do shows over there, because not everyone in the band can get away as readily as myself.
A: Have you played many shows with the new lineup?
M: Yeah, we played a couple of shows a little over a year ago around the Pacific Northwest. About this time last year we did a three week tour to Chicago and back. Guy is a great player.
A: Have you seen your approach to songwriting change since he joined the group?
M: Well, our approach is still similar. Someone usually brings up a couple of riffs or whatever, and we all work on it together. Guy has been a little more active in bringing stuff forward and working with what we have than Matt had been for the last couple of years.
A: What led to Matt’s departure?
M: He just completely lost interest.
A: Was there any hesitation on your part when it came to recording a new album?
M: No, the hesitation came well before that. We weren’t sure what do after Matt quit, since we had been the same four people since the get-go. In the early days, we had always said that it wouldn’t be Mudhoney if someone were to leave. When Matt quit, he told me that he wanted us to continue, he didn’t want his leaving to affect the rest of us. I think that might have been why he stuck around as long as he did, like he didn’t want to let the rest of us down. But eventually he just had to give in to his desire to get off the road and stop playing music. It just won out.
A: How have you seen the road change since you first started out?
M: The first time I went on a U.S. tour was in 1985 with Green River, and that was a totally different thing from booking a tour now. The infrastructure wasn’t really set. We didn’t have access to a booking agent, we just called up places ourselves. We ended up doing seven dates from Seattle to New York (laughs). A couple of those were pickup shows, where we hung around a place for a week, then played it again before we left (laughs). It was a lot more difficult than it is now.
A: Did you have a record out at the time of that tour?
M: We had a record due out on Homestead that was supposed to be out by the time of the tour, but it wasn’t ready. They made us several promises of tour support with shows, and didn’t do that either (laughs).
A: This new record has been getting a lot of really good reviews. Is there a specific record that you’re most proud of?
M: Not really. I mean, I really like the last record we did, I just don’t think that many people heard it. It’s darker than this record, that’s for sure. It had a very different feel, and the circumstances surrounding it were very different. I think that’s a strong album.
A: Some of the songs on the new record are pretty lengthy, clocking in at seven minutes plus. Did you do more ‘jamming’ this time around, for lack of a better word?
M: We always kind of do, especially when we’re tooling around with something new. We try and condense things, make stuff tighter. If we do put a jam into a song, it’s usually after a song is established. Like the first song on the new record, “Baby, Can You Dig the Light?”, starts with nothing. We didn’t have an idea of what the song should do, except there was a drum beat floating around. The idea was to have it come out of nothing, and whatever the bass played with that drum beat would determine what the song would become. So there were a couple weeks where we were just playing around with noise, trying to make it into something cohesive.
A: I was surprised to hear the horn sections on the new album…
M: Yeah, that was something that we had always talked about, although mainly in theory. The Saints have always been one of our favorite bands. We just didn’t really know how to go about it (laughs). I think we’ve always been hung up on the idea that we should be able to replicate what we do in the studio live. We sure as shit won’t have a horn section on tour (laughs). This time, we just decided to do everything for the record. We know we’re not going to be touring all that much, so most people’s exposure to the new music will be through the record. fundamentally secure Mudhoney, integrating horns and backing vocals into their trademark fuzz box signature. Vocalist Mark Arm spoke to Altercation recently about the trials and tribulations of musical maturity.
Interview by Justin Habersaat.
Altercation: I hear you’re getting geared up for some European dates. How does the audience differ over there?
Mark: Well, we haven’t really been to Europe since 1995. We did one show in 1998, but that was in London. We’ve done some phone interviews with European journalists recently, and they all keep asking if we have any regrets (laughs). You know, “tell me about grunge” type of things. I guess we’re supposed to be reflective or something by this point. We only have a ten day window to do shows over there, because not everyone in the band can get away as readily as myself.
A: Have you played many shows with the new lineup?
M: Yeah, we played a couple of shows a little over a year ago around the Pacific Northwest. About this time last year we did a three week tour to Chicago and back. Guy is a great player.
A: Have you seen your approach to songwriting change since he joined the group?
M: Well, our approach is still similar. Someone usually brings up a couple of riffs or whatever, and we all work on it together. Guy has been a little more active in bringing stuff forward and working with what we have than Matt had been for the last couple of years.
A: What led to Matt’s departure?
M: He just completely lost interest.
A: Was there any hesitation on your part when it came to recording a new album?
M: No, the hesitation came well before that. We weren’t sure what do after Matt quit, since we had been the same four people since the get-go. In the early days, we had always said that it wouldn’t be Mudhoney if someone were to leave. When Matt quit, he told me that he wanted us to continue, he didn’t want his leaving to affect the rest of us. I think that might have been why he stuck around as long as he did, like he didn’t want to let the rest of us down. But eventually he just had to give in to his desire to get off the road and stop playing music. It just won out.
A: How have you seen the road change since you first started out?
M: The first time I went on a U.S. tour was in 1985 with Green River, and that was a totally different thing from booking a tour now. The infrastructure wasn’t really set. We didn’t have access to a booking agent, we just called up places ourselves. We ended up doing seven dates from Seattle to New York (laughs). A couple of those were pickup shows, where we hung around a place for a week, then played it again before we left (laughs). It was a lot more difficult than it is now.
A: Did you have a record out at the time of that tour?
M: We had a record due out on Homestead that was supposed to be out by the time of the tour, but it wasn’t ready. They made us several promises of tour support with shows, and didn’t do that either (laughs).
A: This new record has been getting a lot of really good reviews. Is there a specific record that you’re most proud of?
M: Not really. I mean, I really like the last record we did, I just don’t think that many people heard it. It’s darker than this record, that’s for sure. It had a very different feel, and the circumstances surrounding it were very different. I think that’s a strong album.
A: Some of the songs on the new record are pretty lengthy, clocking in at seven minutes plus. Did you do more ‘jamming’ this time around, for lack of a better word?
M: We always kind of do, especially when we’re tooling around with something new. We try and condense things, make stuff tighter. If we do put a jam into a song, it’s usually after a song is established. Like the first song on the new record, “Baby, Can You Dig the Light?”, starts with nothing. We didn’t have an idea of what the song should do, except there was a drum beat floating around. The idea was to have it come out of nothing, and whatever the bass played with that drum beat would determine what the song would become. So there were a couple weeks where we were just playing around with noise, trying to make it into something cohesive.
A: I was surprised to hear the horn sections on the new album…
M: Yeah, that was something that we had always talked about, although mainly in theory. The Saints have always been one of our favorite bands. We just didn’t really know how to go about it (laughs). I think we’ve always been hung up on the idea that we should be able to replicate what we do in the studio live. We sure as shit won’t have a horn section on tour (laughs). This time, we just decided to do everything for the record. We know we’re not going to be touring all that much, so most people’s exposure to the new music will be through the record. fundamentally secure Mudhoney, integrating horns and backing vocals into their trademark fuzz box signature. Vocalist Mark Arm spoke to Altercation recently about the trials and tribulations of musical maturity.
Interview by Justin Habersaat.
Altercation: I hear you’re getting geared up for some European dates. How does the audience differ over there?
Mark: Well, we haven’t really been to Europe since 1995. We did one show in 1998, but that was in London. We’ve done some phone interviews with European journalists recently, and they all keep asking if we have any regrets (laughs). You know, “tell me about grunge” type of things. I guess we’re supposed to be reflective or something by this point. We only have a ten day window to do shows over there, because not everyone in the band can get away as readily as myself.
A: Have you played many shows with the new lineup?
M: Yeah, we played a couple of shows a little over a year ago around the Pacific Northwest. About this time last year we did a three week tour to Chicago and back. Guy is a great player.
A: Have you seen your approach to songwriting change since he joined the group?
M: Well, our approach is still similar. Someone usually brings up a couple of riffs or whatever, and we all work on it together. Guy has been a little more active in bringing stuff forward and working with what we have than Matt had been for the last couple of years.
A: What led to Matt’s departure?
M: He just completely lost interest.
A: Was there any hesitation on your part when it came to recording a new album?
M: No, the hesitation came well before that. We weren’t sure what do after Matt quit, since we had been the same four people since the get-go. In the early days, we had always said that it wouldn’t be Mudhoney if someone were to leave. When Matt quit, he told me that he wanted us to continue, he didn’t want his leaving to affect the rest of us. I think that might have been why he stuck around as long as he did, like he didn’t want to let the rest of us down. But eventually he just had to give in to his desire to get off the road and stop playing music. It just won out.
A: How have you seen the road change since you first started out?
M: The first time I went on a U.S. tour was in 1985 with Green River, and that was a totally different thing from booking a tour now. The infrastructure wasn’t really set. We didn’t have access to a booking agent, we just called up places ourselves. We ended up doing seven dates from Seattle to New York (laughs). A couple of those were pickup shows, where we hung around a place for a week, then played it again before we left (laughs). It was a lot more difficult than it is now.
A: Did you have a record out at the time of that tour?
M: We had a record due out on Homestead that was supposed to be out by the time of the tour, but it wasn’t ready. They made us several promises of tour support with shows, and didn’t do that either (laughs).
A: This new record has been getting a lot of really good reviews. Is there a specific record that you’re most proud of?
M: Not really. I mean, I really like the last record we did, I just don’t think that many people heard it. It’s darker than this record, that’s for sure. It had a very different feel, and the circumstances surrounding it were very different. I think that’s a strong album.
A: Some of the songs on the new record are pretty lengthy, clocking in at seven minutes plus. Did you do more ‘jamming’ this time around, for lack of a better word?
M: We always kind of do, especially when we’re tooling around with something new. We try and condense things, make stuff tighter. If we do put a jam into a song, it’s usually after a song is established. Like the first song on the new record, “Baby, Can You Dig the Light?”, starts with nothing. We didn’t have an idea of what the song should do, except there was a drum beat floating around. The idea was to have it come out of nothing, and whatever the bass played with that drum beat would determine what the song would become. So there were a couple weeks where we were just playing around with noise, trying to make it into something cohesive.
A: I was surprised to hear the horn sections on the new album…
M: Yeah, that was something that we had always talked about, although mainly in theory. The Saints have always been one of our favorite bands. We just didn’t really know how to go about it (laughs). I think we’ve always been hung up on the idea that we should be able to replicate what we do in the studio live. We sure as shit won’t have a horn section on tour (laughs). This time, we just decided to do everything for the record. We know we’re not going to be touring all that much, so most people’s exposure to the new music will be through the record. fundamentally secure Mudhoney, integrating horns and backing vocals into their trademark fuzz box signature. Vocalist Mark Arm spoke to Altercation recently about the trials and tribulations of musical maturity.
Interview by Justin Habersaat.
Altercation: I hear you’re getting geared up for some European dates. How does the audience differ over there?
Mark: Well, we haven’t really been to Europe since 1995. We did one show in 1998, but that was in London. We’ve done some phone interviews with European journalists recently, and they all keep asking if we have any regrets (laughs). You know, “tell me about grunge” type of things. I guess we’re supposed to be reflective or something by this point. We only have a ten day window to do shows over there, because not everyone in the band can get away as readily as myself.
A: Have you played many shows with the new lineup?
M: Yeah, we played a couple of shows a little over a year ago around the Pacific Northwest. About this time last year we did a three week tour to Chicago and back. Guy is a great player.
A: Have you seen your approach to songwriting change since he joined the group?
M: Well, our approach is still similar. Someone usually brings up a couple of riffs or whatever, and we all work on it together. Guy has been a little more active in bringing stuff forward and working with what we have than Matt had been for the last couple of years.
A: What led to Matt’s departure?
M: He just completely lost interest.
A: Was there any hesitation on your part when it came to recording a new album?
M: No, the hesitation came well before that. We weren’t sure what do after Matt quit, since we had been the same four people since the get-go. In the early days, we had always said that it wouldn’t be Mudhoney if someone were to leave. When Matt quit, he told me that he wanted us to continue, he didn’t want his leaving to affect the rest of us. I think that might have been why he stuck around as long as he did, like he didn’t want to let the rest of us down. But eventually he just had to give in to his desire to get off the road and stop playing music. It just won out.
A: How have you seen the road change since you first started out?
M: The first time I went on a U.S. tour was in 1985 with Green River, and that was a totally different thing from booking a tour now. The infrastructure wasn’t really set. We didn’t have access to a booking agent, we just called up places ourselves. We ended up doing seven dates from Seattle to New York (laughs). A couple of those were pickup shows, where we hung around a place for a week, then played it again before we left (laughs). It was a lot more difficult than it is now.
A: Did you have a record out at the time of that tour?
M: We had a record due out on Homestead that was supposed to be out by the time of the tour, but it wasn’t ready. They made us several promises of tour support with shows, and didn’t do that either (laughs).
Continued
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