An Interview with... Indielove webradio host Zeke the Freak

So tell us a little bit about your show and what you do over at Indie Love Radio.

My weekday 5-7pm show is very tame compared to The Sunday Night Freakshow, but the constant is always great Canadian Indie Music. I talk about current events and whatever info our bands send me. The Freakshow is something completely different. Irreverent, irrelevent and not for the weak of heart, The Vixen and I talk about whatever is turning or burning our cranks. Also, we now feature one Hard, Hot and Heavy band every week, with one of my favorites, Easy Way Out, coming in on Sunday May 4th.

Nice... who is this Vixen you speak of? Sounds soooo... uh... Super Villain-esque!

The Vixen Meaghan, is my not so new anymore co-host on The Freakshow. She's hot, open-minded and the yin to my yang. Since her arrival, things are a tad more freaky (if that was ever possible), much more interactive and funny as hell. We have a blast and really don't care if anyone else does. We even hang out aside from the show as much as we can, and things just carry on. I can honestly say that I've never laughed as much before her arrival.

Can you give our readers an example of freaky?

An example of me eh? Well, I re-wrote the lyrics for the Twelve Days Of Christmas to The Twelve Days of Freakmas. The partige "in a pear tree" was replaced with "A finger up my pooter". Also, The Vixen and I are re-working a clssic film genre, PORN. We are currently working on a Super Hero Porn Blog cumming soon to the Freak Show. On top of this, I think the freakiest thing is the way I have inspired those around me to freakiness. One of my many, many, many talents is being able to turn any comment sexual. Now it has gotten to the point where I do not even have to comment, or even react and Im being told to shuuuuuuut up! Everyone else is now thinking what I would think, before I can think it!

Do you have any off air plans for your show, maybe a Freak Festival of some kind?

Plans, plans, plans. Halloween is a big night for me, and The Vixen as well. With her announcement that she is with child, another Freak in the making, we will be dressed as pregnant nun and her priest. Indie Love Loud is still in the works. That would be a showcase for all the Hard, Hot and Heavy bands. I'm just need to find the right venue. Freakmas was a big hit last year and that will end up being the first tradition for The Freakshow.

What are the top 5 bands your spinning right now on your show (excluding Easy Way Out)?

My top five is hard, but here it goes. In no particular order:

Warmachine
Virtue & Vice
Aberdeen
Dame
Fake Reality

You can learn more about Zeke the Freak at: http://www.myspace.com/thesundaynightfreakshow
and sign on to hear his various radio shows at indielove.ca

An interview with... EWO Guitarist Mauro Cecchi

List the gear you use and describe the desired sound you like to hear blasting back at you from your cabinet.

Gear:
Ibanez SA
Epiphone Les Paul
'66 Fender Telecaster
Mesa Boogie Sinlge Rectifier Head
Marshall Cabinet
Line 6 Floor Pod Plus

Desired Sound:
Well, it always depends on what the song is asking for. For example, on a heavier track like Beat Down or New Age I like to hear a perfect blend of sustain and presence in my leads and a thick, chugging pound in my rhythm. When it comes to the tracks that are a bit more laid back, let's say, Leave the Bottle or Perpetual Blue, I want to hear a warm, ambient sound that sets a mood of comfort.

Mood and comfort are certainly awesome bedfellows. Describe the ultimate setting or mood for writing music or jamming out new tunes.

There are many different moods that can define the outcome of a song. Any mood that you're in is perfect. New songs depend on moodswings in my opinion. Anger tends to bring out a more aggressive sound while anguish may bring out a bone chilling power ballad. Happiness will always give you those songs that you can dance to.

Jamming out new tunes always depends on how everybody in the room is feeling. Sometimes its just good to let everyone do their own thing for 5-10 min and see what kind of creation we can come up with together. You never know what off note or off time fill can do for a song.

In point form, name 5 bands/acts that have influenced your songwriting the most.

In the beginning I would have had to say:
Black Sabbath Santana Metallica

...now I would have to say I'm steering more towards:
Incubus Rage Against the Machine

...while keeping that same feel from previous years

I'll pluck Incubus from the lot for this next one... what, specifically, about Incubus do you find most inspiring?

There's nothing bad to say about Incubus, especially their album S.C.I.E.N.C.E. Their style is like no other. Mike Enzinger aka Fabio Fungus Amongus (no joke) is a hardcore guitar player who has all kinds of trippy loops and riffs with sci-fi sounding movie effects. He has influenced me like no other guitar player. I try to create songs with the same dynamic feel that he does. He has a funky side to him that I love and, in my opinion, are some of the best riffs of all time. I would love to steer into that direction of sound for EWO. Alternative Rock with a dash of funk and a hint of down right dirty in yo face heaviness.

At a recent show, you had some technical difficulties that, unfortunately, ended the set early. From what I understand, it was like lightening hitting twice. Can you lay it all out for the readers?

Don't remind me. I had nightmares of that happening and it finally came and bit me in the ass. From the minute I woke up that morning, things were just not right.

Anyways, we get to The El Mocambo to play some soup kitchen benefit. We all thought we were gonna be late because we were suppose to be on stage at 11:00. Once again EWO's set time was pushed back. The place was almost empty that night and none of us were really pumped to be on stage.

Finally, 1:00am rolls around and the venue was actually looking pretty good. The audience was all warmed up and ready for more. So, EWO hits the stage..

1,2,3, DANANANA DA, DANANANA DA (we opened with See What I See). Not even 30 seconds into the song, the tuning is out of whack. I look down only to find my D string dangling from my guitar. Lucky the song kept on going and we were not booed off the stage. Next song, I had to borrow a guitar from one of the other bands. So, we start the tune and guess what, the same string on a different guitar pops off.. I guess that we were not meant to play that show or maybe I should have just slept through the whole day. That was the shortest set in the history of performance, not a fact but I'm pretty damn sure.

So that was a rough experience, tell us about the opposite end of the spectrum. From what I understand you're having a blast with street level promotions an sales.

Oh yeah.. Grindin on the streets is my favourite part of this whole music thing (besides playing of course). Rain or shine I'm out there hustling EWO discs with all I got. My strategy is pull up, swing open the doors of the Dodge, blast the music and make sure every single person that passes by hears the name Easy Way Out. No matter who it is is, I will try and get them to buy our disc. 1 out of 5 or 6 will stop and buy one which is even more of a reason to do it. We got a good product. Sales are doing great, by the way, people. If you don't have "Steal the Show" I would advise you get it while it's HOT!!!

So where are the corners you can most likely be found selling "Steal the Show"?

We can most likely be found on Queen and Spadina, Yonge and Dundas or around Ryerson. Those are probably the best areas. Next, we'll be hitting malls like Yorkdale and Dufferin Mall. It's a long summer and there's a lot of sales to be made. Hope to see some of you out there.

An Interview with... EWO Drummer Mark Cesario

Mark Cesario: Kick ass drummer, loyal friend and harbinger of groove.

Easy Way Out was a 3 piece instrumental group for a long time before forming the current line up in 2006. What we're the biggest challenges trying to make a go of it instrumentally?

Oh yes, the good old days (sigh)... I'm just kidding. For the record we never consciously made the decision to be an instrumental band. We had been looking for a singer ever since day 1 and had always wrote our songs with the intention of vocals being sung on top however we were never able to find anyone that we gelled with until Jay came along. We really just jammed as much as possible and tried to come up with cool stuff and ended up cutting an EP more for ourselves than anything. So I guess the biggest challenge with being an instrumental band was trying to find a singer that would compliment our sound.

George Reefah appeared on your first EP, how did that come about?

Being one of our good friends, Reefah, would come by the unit occasionally to get drunk and jam it out with us. It was awesome!!! We were all lovers of hip-hop and thought that it would be fun to incorporate a rock feel to it. Anytime an artist can work with another artist who brings talent and experience to the table it allows everyone to get better so it was only natural that we write a few tunes for the EP.

Well the new lineup certainly seems to be working out well for Easy Way Out. The EWO bio says that you and guitarist Mauro Cecchi we’re childhood friends. How did you two meet?

Definitely, the new line up is a powerhouse and has been great to work with. It was a long time coming but worth the wait. Mauro and I actually met in Junior kindergarten and we were good friends up until my parents decided to move out of the area when I was in grade 5. Turns out that I ended up meeting another friend of ours from that same elementary school again in high school so by chance I think I might have seen Mauro at a couple of parties over the years. It was not until Mauro was hit by a car and bed ridden, for like 6 months, that we started hanging out more. It's unfortunate but that's what happened. I had just started fooling around on the drums and had told him that when he got back out of his bed that we would jam together. I never knew he even played the guitar. So we started jamming it out just the 2 of us for fun.

But the Drums were not your first instrument were they?

Nope, I started with the saxophone when I was 10 and played it for a long time. I've been thinking of picking it up again.

What drew you to the drums?

I've always loved the drums. The fact that it acts as the glue in the band and that their sound has the immense power to make your body move is what drew me to them. There is nothing like the sound of a fat kick and a warm snare. Another thing that really drives me is the emotion that it can bring to a song. I feel that when I play with emotion I'm at my best. It's also a good way to let out some aggression too!

Weather it’s TV, live, radio or just walkin’ by some kid playin’ the buckets on the street, what is the first memory you have of drums?

My cousin used to play the drums and he had this really shitty kit that he had set up at his house. Every time I was over I always used to play the only beat I knew. DOO-DOO-DA-BOO-DA-BOO-DA-BOO-DA

Sounds like something Fred Flintstone would have played. On average, how many hours a week would you say you spend playing the drums?

40 or so, I try to play for at least an hour a day weather it be on the kit or just practicing rudiments on my practice pad but sometimes I'll play upwards of 5 hours plus on any given day. It's all about discipline, like going to the gym, you have to keep it up on a regular basis to see results.

What’s next for Easy Way Out?

We'll be releasing, what I consider, our debut album in January so keep an eye out for that. The album is called "Steal The Show". Currently we've been playing as much as possible, working on making our show one that will leave a lasting impression for everyone in the crowd. You never know who's out there listening. We also have been writing some new stuff to keep things fresh. We don't want to play the same songs all the time, it gets boring for us and our fans.


Next Blog: EWO finally get a spot on Shoeless Mondays, what the hell does that mean? And what doors could it potentially open for the indie stalwarts?