Entrevista a The Vectors por Edgar Valencia - Diciembre 2019

Con motivo de celebración, hoy podemos decir que tenemos un nuevo colaborador en SdP.
Se trata del valedor Edgar Valencia, de el sur de California y estuvo platicando un ratito largo y tendido conmigo en Pineda de Mar, en la costa catalana de España, con motivo del Psychobilly Meeting, este mismo año.
Edgar por entonces me habló de su banda de Psychobilly que se llama Lost Boys y no dude en entrevistarlos cuando tuve tiempo y predisposición.

Ver entrevista a Lost Boys aqui 

Edgar, que antes de ocuparse de la parte mas ritmica de Lost Boys había tocado en The Southern Wolves, se caracterizó, desde hace años, por ser una fuente de Psychobilly de cualquier tipo de variación, demostrando que el gusto esta en la diversidad. En su canal de Youtube podréis encontrar muchas muestras de Old School Psychobilly, así como Neorockabilly, Modern Psychobilly o como dice el...

Fuckabilly

Con su ayuda vamos a tratar de llegar a todas las bandas de Psychobilly y derivados que podamos de los Estados Unidos de América, porque ya lo hicimos con la escena Psychobilly méxicana, con la ayuda de Kat, Kumo, Lluvia, Rod, Viry y Fiambre y el bueno del Pep Rdz, como no decirlo, esta vez también nos vamos a valer de ayuda para acercarnos a los Lobos que acechan en el lejano oeste.

Ver especial Psychobilly en México aqui

Acabamos de llegar a EEUU y que mejor manera que tras pasar por los Lost Boys, Radarmen y Uhh Random Bunch? cómo los grupos que han tendido este puente entre España y Estados Unidos, sigamos conociendo tan espectaculares como The Vectors y su Rockabilly castizo mal intencionado.

Ver entrevista a Radarmen aqui

Ver entrevista a Uhh Random Bunch? aqui

Hi, who is in “The Vectors” and what instrument do you each of you play?

Watts: My name is Watts and I play guitar.

Skum: I’m Skum, I play drums.

Zeke: Zeke, I do the vocals.

Gretch: I am Andres a.k.a. Gretch and I play the upright bass. 

What is the musical genre or sound of the group?

Zeke: Early-‘80s rockabilly…uh…style.

Watts: And more rockabilly.

Zeke: (Laughs) And more rockabilly.

New-wave-abilly?

Why “The Vectors” as a name?

Zeke: That name refers to vector line graphics video games from the early ‘80s, like Asteroids and Tempest. When we started the band, I told the other guys to come up with a name, but after a few weeks, they still had nothing, so I made a list of examples just to give them some ideas. “The Vectors” was the first or second name on the list and right away they said that they wanted to use it. I tried to read them the rest of the list, but they didn’t wanna hear it. I told them that there has been at least one punk band and one garage band with the name and they didn’t care. So here we are.

Where are you guys from?

Zeke: I’m from New York…I live here in L.A. and have lived here for four years.

Skum: I’m from the Valley…Van Nuys…Born and raised.

Watts: Born and raised in L.A.!

Gretch: Boyle Heights, east of the L.A. river.

Zeke: As opposed to IN the L.A. river. 

 

When did you start playing as “The Vectors”?

Skum: I’ve been playing a year now with The Vectors. I was their third drummer.

Watts: I joined the Vectors about a year ago, I took a leave of absence and I’m back now. I answered a Craigslist ad and here we are.

Zeke: I think each of these guys is underselling themselves. I think…Skum has been here almost two years- almost the whole time the band has been together. And you been here (points at Watts)…almost a year-and-a-half.

Watts: My memory’s foggy.

Zeke: Yeah, mine too. But…whatever…We’ll figure that out later. Skum replaced two previous drummers, neither of whom lasted more than a single practice, so he is, in effect, an original. I’m a founding member of the band, been doing this almost two years. Gretch was the first guy I asked about staring the band, so he’s a founder too. 

Are any of you in other groups or projects?

Skum: I also drum for two bands…uh…One called “Tres Muertos”; psychobilly, and another one called “The Devil Wrays”; psychobilly.

Watts: I’m in a rockabilly band called “The Vargas Brothers” and a rock’n’roll band called “The Rip ‘Em Ups”.

Zeke: I got a band called “Mania” with some local punks in East L.A. I’m sure they’re nice people. 
Zeke: They’re very nice boys.

Gretch: I also play upright bass in a band called “Spectre” which is more psychobilly-influenced, we have a self-titled EP on Killjoy records.

Spectre en Killjoy Records

What are your influences? (Musical, literary, film, etc.)

Skum: I mostly listen to jazz and swing for…uh, Vectors drumming.

Zeke: What are other influences you got?

Skum: You mean specific names? Vectors. (all laugh)

Gretch: Early rockabilly, ‘60s garage, and psychobilly.

Watts: As for me, uh…all roots music in general. For this particular project I really like early-eighties/mid-eighties neorockabilly like uh...Restless, Nitros, etcetera.

Zeke: Yeah all that- Polecats, early Stray Cats…We’re not trying to sound like any of them particularly, but that is definitely…where those guys were coming from is definitely…we’re coming from the same spot. With the same sort of influences, the stuff that was around at the same time, the stuff that influenced them- the stuff that they came out of and the stuff that was around at the time, even in the popular culture…All that stuff is stuff that we feel and that influences us. But also I read a lot, write a lot, collect toys and music and other things, and a there are aspects of each of those things that influence me, but we ain’t got time to mention them all here. 
 

For each of you, what are your top three bands?

Gretch: The Cramps, Kittyhawk Bomber Billies, Torment…

Watts: Oh. That’s too hard to answer. Mainly guitar players for me, I have too many favorite guitar players. I can’t possibly have…a favorite.

Zeke: Yeah, that question is a little silly. Like, who cares? It’s not the silliest question, but it’s silly.

Skum, what are your three favorite bands?

Skum: I don’t know. I…

Zeke: Yo, you like MF Doom.

Skum: But that’s not really a BAND…

Zeke: So what?

Skum: You want psychobilly? I guess The Krewmen. I got ‘em tattooed on me…

Zeke: You got Shark Bait tattooed on you too…

Watts: Ricochets, Ricochets, aaaaaaaand Ricochets.

Zeke: Mine? I want Sigue Sigue Sputnik in there somewhere….Three of my favorite bands wouldn’t even register as rockabilly bands. I like stuff like Rudimentary Peni and Septic Death and new wave and old hip hop and hardcore, power pop…You want three favorite rockabilly bands? Charlie Feathers is on there, Johnny Burnette… Carol Burnette. (All laugh)

Zeke: Yeah. That’s a hard one to answer. It changes all the time.

Do you have something recorded and are you guys going to record something new soon?

Zeke: Funny you should ask, because we just finished doing a bunch of recording today! In our man Bobby’s studio- Minor Chord Studio. So, all the people who read this, come to California and record with Bobby. Drop everything and come here now, you humps.

Gretch: Hopefully, we’ll release something ASAP. We have options open. What do your songs talk about?

Watts: Oh, wow. Love, travel..No, I don’t know.

Zeke: You guys can put your two cents in.

Watts: You! You write ‘em.

Zeke: What do our songs talk about? Anything from emotion to…uh…monsters. (Watts laughs)

Watts: Mythological creatures.

Zeke: It depends on what we feel at the time…We try to make them not about stuff so much on the silly side.

Skum: Mostly lyrics are the last thing that we do. The music is what we write first.

Zeke: Yeah.

Skum: Lyrics come later, so I guess it depends on the mood of the music.

Zeke: Absolutely. We definitely don’t just say ‘This is what we’re gonna write a song about’ and then just make it fit the next thing that Watts comes up with or what Gretch comes up with. We write lyrics to an existing piece. “Lost In the Storm” is about being emotionally battered in a relationship, and “Untamed” is about just going out at night and wilding out. But we don’t know what they’re gonna be until the music is written. Any notable bands you’ve shared the stage with?

Zeke: Fuck, that’s a gay question. 
Watts: We’ve played with a LOT of bands. I dunno… 
Zeke: Who cares? It don’t matter what bands we’ve played with, it matters what we do…What are we gonna say? That we played with such-and-such or so-and-so? So what? There are are a lot of shitty bands playing with a lot of good ones, so who cares who they’re playing with? If you’re a shitty band you’re a shitty band and who you open for does not make you a better band. I agree.

Do you have any upcoming shows?

Zeke: Upcoming shows?

Skum: Do we?

Zeke: Actually, this is the first time in a year or so that we DON’T have anything booked. We WERE doing back-to-back gigs for a while, but we haven’t taken any shows in a month or two because we knew that we had to record and write new stuff. We are back on track, though, so we are taking bookings again now.

Any new bands emerging out of your area? In your guys opinion what is unique about the Southern California Psychobilly Scene? What do you guys think the future holds for psychobilly in your area?

Zeke: That’s a good…

Gretch: As of recent, I would say there’s been less shows than in previous years, but that hasn’t stopped more bands from popping up randomly, each with a unique sound. As for the future of the scene and the music, I have no doubt it will continue strong. I never fail to see new faces and meet new people. It’s a genre that is constantly evolving.

Zeke: Listen to you.

Skum: I’m not saying anything because will pay for saying anything. Take it away, Zeke.

Zeke: There are a few guys who I have seen improve over the years here. The Sindicates are a 100% better band than they were when I first heard them four years ago. Those guys are dope. We like The Lost Boys…They are coming from a good place and they are probably going to a good place. Grims and Peabrains are dope. Daffys would be dope if they gave a shit. But newer bands are hit or miss.

Skum: Deranged is coming up. They just got a new drummer.

Zeke: I ain’t heard them, I don’t think.

Skum: I haven’t had a chance to hear… at least a full song yet, I’ve just seen videos on Instagram. I haven’t had a chance to catch them live

Zeke: But you like what you’ve heard.

Skum: Yeah.

Zeke: Okay, dope, dope. Our boy Ben’s band Jesse & the Rock’N’Roll Three are killer. And we just saw Watts’ other band The Rip ‘Em Ups play last night at the Cochran Club and they are mint. (Guys start talking about some unrelated stuff)

Zeke: Last thing is, uh, I’ll say this about…the Southern California psychobilly scene is very active, but you gotta separate the psychobilly bands who are good from the fucking haircuts. ‘Cause you got all the “haircut” bands who just think that an upright bass and a wedge all of a sudden makes you into a good psychobilly band. But 90% of those bands are shit, because they don’t know how to write songs and they’re just about image and they’re not about sound, or quality sound, at all. You gotta have both. You gotta have everything. If you have one and not the other, well, then you’re not gonna be successful. People wanna see crazy people making good music. If you’re not that crazy and you make good music, people are gonna be like…ehhh, maybe…But if if you’re crazy and make good music, people are gonna be all about you. A lot of people (bands) think you gotta just LOOK crazy and not BE crazy and not show and prove and be a shit band and it just doesn’t matter and I’m tired of seeing shit bands- I’ve been seeing these shit bands for decades in every genre and I’m sick to death of it. There’re good bands in Southern California, there’s good psychobilly bands, but too many people just, like, latch onto psychobilly like it’s a gimmick and not a workable genre.

Watts: I agree. I concur.

Zeke: Psychobilly is big, it’s not as big as it was, but that’s because there’s not as many posers out there. People who just jumped on it ‘cause it was a new thing, and now they’re fucking Soundcloud rappers.

(Skum laughs)

Zeke: It’s not as big as it was, but it’s got a lot of potential. That’s what I gotta say about that.

The Vectors en Facebook