EARL ZINGER INTERVIEW
August 18th, 2004 by susanna
He rode on the crest of the Acid Jazz wave with his band Galliano. He masterminded the sensational Two Banks Of Four project. And now he’s the exuberant sound innovator behind Earl Zinger, who played at The Big Chill Eastnor 2004 recently. The Legendary Jesse Belle has a word with the elusive Rob Gallagher…
JESSE BELLE: “What came first for you, the music or the word? Because you seem equally at ease creating with both…”
EARL ZINGER: “I’m not sure, it’s a different way round at different times. I hear music in words sometimes and words as music because I find myself listening to the ideas…What? Anyway!”
JB: “Your three main projects, Galliano, 2 Banks Of 4 and, now, Earl Zinger, prove you’re definitely not a one-trick pony. Do you feel the need to prove this or do you just get inspired by doing new stuff/new projects/reinvention?”
EZ: “The Secret Waltz Club and Aquinas Tunebelly are another two projects I really enjoy and they’re more melancholy and soul-ish, which the three you mentioned aren’t. Yeah, I feel a need to prove something, just not sure what it is. And I get inspired from all over the place. So I just do new shit – that’s a positive and a curse. Jack of all trades etc…”
JB: “I remember being well into Galliano back in the day – what do you think of when you think back to those Acid Jazz days? They seemed like more innocent times in a way…”
EZ: Very – I’ve stopped being embarrassed, because that was the power of it – naivety. The biggest argument I ever had with Gilles is when he said we need a single. I thought we were ‘the last poets’ and would only do albums… Singles were commercial!!!! Naive…Or maybe friggin’ stupid. At least a dangerous combination of both…”
JB: “I actually had no idea you were 2 Banks of 4 – do you mean to be a bit anonymous and kind of leave Galliano behind? Or am I just completely dim?”
EZ: “Well, Galliano is so far away now there are people at my gigs who are too young to know it. So it’s behind without trying to leave it there. 2 Banks of 4 is very different…”
JB: Earl Zinger is a genius creation – and I say that because I believe he is a ‘persona’, he isn’t ‘you’ right? Or is he?
EZ: “OK, so we’re in some deep ‘persona’ ‘person’ everybody clap your hands philosophy biznuss? Basically I’m trying to get a cult going, take over a disused monastry in deep Andulacia, and then bredrinise strong with who ever is there. Did I mention they’re money buying the said property in the Zinger name?
JB: “What about the music? You squeeze every influence in there – how do you make it work?”
EZ: “Well it works sometimes and other times it doesn’t as well. But it’s all unchartered waters. Live wise it gets burned in the fire so it all comes out melted together. The Big Chill was a good show coming on after a ceilidh to an audience straight out of the dance tent. The best quote goes to a wide eyed girl who asked if we could put more kick drums in the beat – tremendous!”
JB: “What inspired Earl Zinger? I get a feeling you may also have an affinity with Mike Ladd and his various incarnations (The Majesticons, The Infesticons, etc)
EZ: “I just did a spoken word tour and Patrick Neate who was one of the artists. He was a hip hop DJ in the late 80s in Zimbabwe and so was Mike Ladd. I love that Mike Ladd poem for all those killed by cops … Best word music tip.”
JB: “You also like to take the piss – which we appreciate. What makes somebody or something ripe for a bit of mickey extraction?”
EZ: “Well I take it out of myself at the same time. Like on ‘Escape From Ibiza’ a lyric like ‘Rob Da Bank looking hostile – trying-a stick a Vicks inhaler up me nostril’ came from a night where he did – but I still let him do it… So you know… too many years spent in clubs… And ‘Everyone’s A DJ’ gets written because they are…”
JB: “Out of Galliano, 2 Banks of 4 and Earl Zinger, which one do you enjoy most performing on stage?
EZ: “There’s a freedom with Zinger. Anything goes. 2 Banks Of Four also has some wicked gigs – cosmic jazz – it’s a strong look.”
JB: “Did you enjoy your set at The Big Chill?
EZ: “I was a bit mashed but really enjoyed it.”
JB: “Did you like the festival? Did you stay and camp and chill for a bit?
EZ: “I got to my tent maybe 5am. I thought the sun’s gonna be banging soon so I took off my clothes, put a blanket over me and opened my tent door. I woke up freezing cold with everything wet wet wet. I thought it had rained inside the tent – forgot about the dew!”
JB: “You did a poetry tour recently. Tell me a bit about that… How did that go?
EZ: “School Of Dark – Charlie Darke and Patrick Neate – both very heavy. I did poetry at The Big Chill on Saturday with Blacktronica – was wicked. We did six dates round the country. We met some tremendous spoken word artists and I got to do my first creative writing workshop. Roger Robinson was there as well.”
JB: “Being Norwegian myself I couldn’t help noticing you also did some kind of British Council sponsored collaborationat at the famous Oslo Jazz club Blå – what was that about?”
EZ: “I don’t know! We went and played with two musicians from Oslo. I remember Benji B was DJing and it was a stag night in there so it all made for a lot of beer drinking. It was another cold one due to it being December, although no tent involved this time … in fact, if there had been, I’d have been dead!”
JB: “Do you think ‘the word’ is having a renaissance? For instance, The Big Chill were heavily into literature with Words In Motion this year.”
EZ: “Yeah. It’s the new rock ‘n’ roll.”
JB: “What’s next for Earl Zinger then?”
EZ: “A rock ‘n’ roll project called The Word or a word project called rock ‘n’ roll. I’m seeing which way the wind blows first.”
JB: “And then?
EZ: “Keep it green, baby, I’m gonna try and keep it green.”
JB: “Finally – cheese or cider?
EZ: “Erm. Shall I tell you my tent story?…”
‘Speaker Stack Commandments’ by Earl Zinger is out now on !K7
