The Stills are back in the studio recording their follow-up to Logic Will Break Your Heart… they’ve got some new news to spill, so without further a-do, here’s our interview conducted by clueless drunken writer (and Stills fan) Chaz Bartok:
Chaz Bartok: Hello? Is this thing on? Who’s this? Never mind… (static). Hello? How is the new album coming? What can fans expect?
Dave Hamlin, The Stills: We’re having a great, great time putting together and recording all the songs that’ll make up our second effort. We’re almost done pre-production and we go into the studio on march 28th. This record is gonna be really different than our last one. Most of the songs on “logic”, I wrote when I was a very young man and they came from a completely different person than I am today. I’m not very old now, I’m just older than I was 5 years ago. Sometimes you get younger with age, but I’m happy I got older.
CB: (static). Cool. So you have a new drummer? I liked the old one, he was a cool guy… he was no good at pool though, I ran the table against him at Spaceland in Los Angeles. Did this contribute to his ouster?
DH: I’m the old drummer and I’m still in the band just not on drums. I play guitar and sing now in the band. Two singers is gonna be pretty intense and good. I think it’s going to really make us invincible.
CBL What? Shit, I’m sorry, I’m really bad with names/faces/etc! Anyway, do you read your reviews?
DH: Unfortunately, sometimes. I hate the good ones and the bad ones though—it’s really sick. When I read a good review I usually think the writer likes us for the wrong reasons and when I read a bad review I have the ability to take it personally. I quit magazines and everything else media related not long ago, so, I feel empowered by ignorance and pretension.
CB: Where were your favorite tour stops on your last tour?
DH: Japan, Coachella, SXSW, Germany…LA.
CB: Yeah I saw you play twice in LA and both times were great, I was floppin’ around like a fish outta water, it was amazing. So Festivals are awesome, right? Would you ever do a free-form jazz exploration in front of a festival crowd?
DH: Our keyboard player Liam has really gotten me into Jazz recently so maybe that isn’t so much of a stretch. Have you ever heard Eric Dolphy? He’s good. Thank you. My name is Dave Hamelin.
CB: Thanks Dave! That name is now seared into my brain. What? Hello? OK, thanks for doin’ it, BYE!