Gabriel Hermansson, Truckfighter, September 1999

Tell me about your records. What has been released, and where? I know that a full length album has been recorded. When will it will be available? How does it sound compared to your previous work?

Our first CDEP was released in the fall of 98 on the Temporary Residence label. It has two songs and one remix on it, done by our friend Lilienthal. Our new EP is part of the Temporary Residence's Travels in Constants series, and also has two songs. We have a 8" that's just been released, and our LP is scheduled to be released September 20th. We have also just recorded a 7" for England's Static Caravan and a 12" single for England's Resonant label, which is the start-up by Chunky distro. The LP sounds quite different from our EPs. Its much denser, and the music is the most expansive we have ever written (5 songs, 74min). It definitely shows a different facet of our music. I think it takes a little longer to sink in, but is ultimately much more interesting.

To me your music relies heavily on the effectfulness of repetition, what are your thoughts on repetition as a musical idea?

Eno said repetition is a form of change. We believe that. Repetition has always played a major part in nonwestern music, which through minimalism found its way into rock. It really has that ability to draw people in or scare them off. I don't think we ever really sat down and said "lets use a lot of repetition" it just seemed somewhat natural. I think after we discovered the likes of Steve Reich, & Brian Eno, then it became more of a conscious effort. And now that we actively use it, it's taken on a very spiritual form for us, it's very much a way that we lose ourselves in the music...and hopefully the listener.

How much of your music is improvised? Do you see improvised songwriting in conflict with more composed music or do you think they can be combined?

They definitely can be combined, and I think we have a fairly good system down. We allow ourselves, in songwriting, to be very liberal with time. We have very few songs where things happen for x amount of times, and then on to the next part. Its usually something like a changing drum beat or the introduction of a guitar line that takes us to the next part, or even just a look & a nod. It allows us to really go with the mood and to play off the energy, yet still have a coherent idea of where the piece is moving. You have to allow yourself these liberties in instrumental music. No one is singing, & the whole idea of verse chorus verse is done away with. Improvisation really helps the music to stay alive, and always change and re-work itself. The songs that we record hardly ever sound exactly the same when we play them live...and we find that exciting.

Do you have a punk-background? Do you think that the DIY and punk-ideals are important or useful for a band that has outgrown the sounds of traditional punk?

Somewhat. We're on a DIY label, and that's given us a lot of freedom and flexibility. But even punk ethics would frown on some of our practices, such as 21+ shows. But we don't exactly make angst ridden teen music. But in a sense 20 min instrumental songs are punk. We have definitely made a stand, unconscious or not against pop radio and commercial accessibility. I think punk can mean a lot of things. Unfortunately more often than not these days it means Green Day and Limp Bizkit.

Do you think an instrumental band can have a political message? For example, in the days of Swedish prog-rock, instrumental music was thought to be not as revolutionary as songs with lyrics because of the obvious fact that instrumentals didn't have any lyrics that could contain revolutionary ideas. Do you agree? (or do you even care?)

That's a tuff one. but I think the idea of music can be revolutionary in itself. It's just a matter of time and place.

Is rock dead? Has "guitar+drums+bass" been used in every possible way by now, or is there unexplored ways to use it?

Rock's not dead, it's just changing. It has always changed, and will continue to change. There are always new ways to explore with guitar bass and drums. More importantly, there are always new styles to be discovered, or new sounds to hear. We of course, like our label mates, Cerberus Shoal, incorporate non rock instrumentation, which only allows to make the music that more interesting and rich. But its still rock.

Do you use the internet a lot? What do you think about it?

Two of us use the internet quite a bit. The rest have never even been on it. But as far as being a tool, it really rocks. And it's really the best thing that has happened to independent music/art...etc.

How is the music scene in San Francisco?

By far one of the best in the US. Nice folks, great record stores, and plenty of places to play.

Anything else you'd like to add?

tarentel is:
jefre cantu-ledesma
danny grodinski
johnathan hughes
trevor montgomery
kenseth thibideau

we can be reached via email @
tarentela@hotmail.com
www.temporaryresidence.com