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1. Hi! Introduce yourself about anything please.
This is Dan, I play guitar.
2. Any line-up changing since it existed? Cream Abdul Babar now consisted?
Yeah, at first we had 2 guitarists, me and Tradd, then Tradd moved over to electronics. This was the same time we added Derek to play Keyboards. Now we added another Guitarist, his name is Will. So now we have 8 members! They are:
Dan - Guitar
Will - Guitar
Derek - Keyboards
Tradd - Electronics
David - Bass
Jason - Drums
Ian - Singer
Mike - Trombone
3. What does the ‘Cream Abdul Babar’ means? Kareem Abdul Jabar?
It's a play-on-words between Kareem Abdul Jabar and Babar the Elephant! It's pretty much 50-50 to the people we meet who either hate the name or love it.
4. How old are you guys now? I do believe that you guys have your own daily job... how you separate your time between job and scene activities?
I am the youngest member and I am 29! The oldest is Derek who is 33. We have been playing in Cream Abdul Babar for 10 years, so it has been a long
time! We pretty much go on tour anytime we have vacation time from work.
5. Whose the one responsible for the making of artworks and the layouts of the most Cream Abdul Babar releases? Your favourite artists?
Tradd, who does electronics carries all the responsibilities of the artwork... he is really good at it so we let him handle everything.
6. I do concern with the chaotic sounds and creative musical structures delivered by Cream Abdul Babar... and the lyrics had been written sarcastically... sometimes the words play with some metaphor that made it just like a work of cynical poem for me... how long does it take to make songs like that? How much time consumes Cream Abdul Babar to finish a complete set of LP/CD etc? How you describe your sound?
yed, almost everything we write is somewhat sarcastic. There are too many bands that are too serious with their lyrics. I think that is Great,
but for Cream Abdul Babar, it needs to be fun. We put the name of the band on a flier and people think it is pop-punk or ska, but then when they see us play for the first time it is very heavy and confusing, so that is cool.
It actually takes us a long time to write songs and to write an album. We
have many, but with 8 people in the band, it is hard for everyone to be happy with everything so it takes a long time. I like to describe our sound as Experimental Hardcore, somewhere between KARP and THE FAINT.
7. Teen Cthulhu is awesome… When the ideas to make a split CD ep with them came up? On talking about Mira, they definitely differ from the sounds Cream Abdul Babar have made… how the ideas to make a split 7” came up?
We both had arcticles in Metal Maniacs magazine, and each band thought
the other band was super funny, so I emailed Teen Cthulhu and asked them if they wanted to do a split. They said yes, and then I emailed Hyperrealist Records, and asked if they would put the record out and they said yes. So that's that!!
8. Complete these sentences: He’s eating pizza while I’m shitting in my pants happily without him knowing what’s really happens…
...I sit down on the floor and feel the ooze.
9. Why trombone? Why not saxophone?
Mike knows how to play trombone, so we added him. We didn't care what he played, only that he played something!
10. Hyperrealist or At A Loss Recordings?
Hyperrealist is the easiest label to work with. Anything we want to do, they will do. They are great and are very interested in making sure the record sounds good and looks good. They are very much into artwork. At A Loss is great too, and the bands they have are all awesome!
11. I'm still wondering, what's ‘E is for Intelligent’ actually all about? Is it about ecstasy? ‘Tijuana Donkey Ride’? Tell me more about it.
"E Is for Intelligent" is about exploring your fantasies, whether sober or on drugs. It's a freedom song. Everyone is entitled do what makes them happy. If you want to do drugs, do them. If you don't want to, then don't. But don't tell people what to do. "Tijuana Donkey Ride" has strange meanings, they are not obvious. I tell you it is about a night riding around in a Trans-Am with the top-off and everyone is naked.
12. Concerning to the split CD with Kylesa, I’ve attracted with the abstract of front cover layout… what’s the intention to spread within that image? The newly Cream Abdul Babar/Teen Cthulhu split CD ep artwork is the weirdest though… tell me more please.
The feeling that I personally get from the Kylesa split is that it is a
"meeting of the minds", but I am not sure what the author meant. That was painted by Laura from Kylesa. The cover for the Teen C split is art from Max Ernst, he was this german abstract artist. I think the cover is great!
13. Are you considered yourself political? Is Cream Abdul Babar a political band? Your view on DIY activism?
Here is what Cream Abdul Babar thinks: GEORGE W BUSH is an asshole.
14. Anything you know about Malaysia generally?
I know I get spam email from there!! :)
15. As being an ‘american’, how you feel about the recent issue of US government getting involved on attacking the Iraq in the first place?
It sucks. I hate Bush and I think going into other countries to help "control" them is totally wrong.
16. How about political condition in your place when concerning to the cultural activities, daily life, the system, the people etc. Do you find it hard to keep on living in the Florida? Have you been involved in street protest lately?
We protest when they try to ban gay marriage, and when they try and stop the vote counts. Florida is very nice to look at, but Bush's brother is the governor, so it is kind of fucked. But it is strange because in the USA most people do not know that their country or state is fucked. They think it is great. BUt the people who know, try and spread the news.
17. How much capitalist and multinational corporations have ruined your life? How much it has strengthened the value of your life instead? Are you financially ok?
I am lucky and capitalist and multinational corporations haven't ruined my life. But I do tell you that if you look around here, there is so much shit that sucks, and most people don't even realize how fucked it is. People get things taken away from them and they say "oh well"..they don't challenge and try get to their freedoms back.
18. What is your favourite food? Tell me some worth bands to check out from your hometown. Do you like reading books/zines? Tell me your favourite one. I do believe that you have your own favourite list of bands, mind to tell me?
I love all food. I love sushi and I love pizza. I love it all. Some bands I love: The Faint, Tv On The Radio, Franz Ferdinand, Mastodon, Flaming Lips, Asschapel.
19. Do Cream Abdul Babar consume drugs? Beers? Are you guys vegetarian/vegan?
we do drugs and drink a TON of beer. We love beer. No one in our band is
vegetarian or vegan, although we all will eat it!
20. After years you get involved in this phenomenon called 'scene', what you've got through this? What you've expected to gain in the first place when you've decided to entered in before? What made you interested to get involved? What's the condition that you hope for to be adapted and to be practiced logically/practically in this hc/punk scene?
Most scenes pushed us away for so long we just decided to do our own thing (DIY) and eventually it seems that the scenes are starting to take notice... after 9 or 10 years! strange!
21. Which shows you guys played enjoying a lot all these while? Any great event happens there publicly? What's the last event/show/gig that you've attended lately? When? Is it great?
We love playing in Savannah, Georgia...where Kylesa is from. That town is
fantastic. Also, playing in san Francisco is awesome! when we play at Gilman Street, it rules! The last concert I went to was to see Franz Ferdinand in NYC. It was awesome!
22. Tell me your opinions about the condition of mother earth nowadays. As it slowly down to rot, what's thing come to your mind that you think deserved to be heard by all those evil-richness-scumbag that keep continuously sucking those mineral greedily out from the soil?
We are all screwed and unless we really try and conserve all our resources, the next generation is going to die.
23. What's your opinion to plastic images of models in some fashion magazines that being appeared gloriously to promoting those wasted crap product towards readers/spectators, which is after many years human condition (especially in this globalization era!) being measured by those media that they're not cool enough, not beautiful, not fit enough, not included in 'selected circles', not this, not that etc... so that they (human) will keep consume those product in order to get those cool, beautiful, fit etc just like the images of those 'appealed models' that they've exhibited? Not just the 'normal' people being hypnotized, as we can see randomly there are also have numbers of people in the scene which care too much about what they've to wear, to act etc for their outlook rather than care about the way of their thought which sometimes leads to hc/punk is more likely a fashion show that have a dress code to be followed which I can see is all pathetic. Need your views here.
People should love other people for who they are not for what they look like or what they wear. I am not saying you shouldn't dress nice IF YOU WANT, but we should really take a look at who we are and not make judgements based on clothes or how fat someone is. You are right about the scene too...too many kids wearing their hair like playboy models... because they think it's cool. But IF YOU WANT TO DO THAT, fine, but they shoudln't think they are cool for doing that, nor should anyone beat up someone who doesn't look like that either.
24. What’s your opinion on marriage and on having children? Did you find it necessary as a bond for a couple to keep on living together? Or is it such a state of mind (or psychology) in proving that they are already shared their life?
I am getting married in April, I understand what you mean about the psychology, BUT it also feels good to have a celebration of your love.
25. Mind to tell me your future plan? Future releases?
We are touring in September across the east coast again, and we have a CD of cover songs coming out! then a split 7" w/ MELT-BANANA from Japan.
26. Ok, Dan... I think that's enough for me to ask you. Anything left to say or something to add? Mind to asking me one question about something you'd like to know? Please state your latest address to be contact please. Thanks for the attempt to answer this interview and allow me to make this set of questions for you. Your participation is highly appreciated. Thank you.
Thanks so much for the interview!!! I am about to move, so I don't have my next address yet!!! Good luck to everyone in Malaysia and remember, we hate Bush too.
Visit: http://www.creamabdulbabar.com" title="http://www.creamabdulbabar.com" target="_blank"http://www.creamabdulbabar.co...
E-Mail: whatswrongwithyo@hotmail.com
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