Joe Jack Talcum, perhaps most famous for his time as guitarist / singer / songwriter for the Dead Milkmen, has been a fixture on the Philly music scene for the past 25 years. His other projects have included the excellent Butterfly Joe, Touch Me Zoo, and Jiffy Squid. Currently he records with Brian Sprenger in the ridiculous and entertaining project, The Cheesies. Punkers might also know him as organist and sometimes vocalist for Chunksaah Records artists, The Low Budgets.

Cheap Shot! caught up with Joe in early April for a sitdown interview. At almost forty minute of (digital) tape, it’s by far the lengthiest chat we’ve done so far, so you might want to grab a snack and take a quick bathroom break before proceeding. Also, we’d like to thank Joe for being a good sport. We’ve utilized the popular (laughs) tag here to attempt to show Joe’s good humor throughout, but we had to cut it off after a while, because both Joe and the interviewer were laughing throughout much of the proceedings. That’s a long enough introduction...here’s the much longer interview!

CS: So, how are you doing?

Joe: Good, thank you.

CS: We tried to set up this interview earlier, when you were on your little mini-tour with the Presidents of the United States of America, the little club tour you did in the Northeast. You played The Troc. Was it a different experience considering you usually play smaller places with your solo shows?

Joe: Yeah. It was intimidating at first. In fact, I was a little nervous. I was more nervous before the New York show - that was the first one I did with the Presidents of the United States of America - than with The Troc. But it was a little intimidating to think that I was going to play completely solo there. But, on the other hand, I’ve played The Troc so much that it’s very comfortable for me to do.

CS: So it’s easier with the hometown crowd.

Joe: Yeah definitely. When you go out there and they cheer for you before you even plug in.

CS: Were the Presidents fans of yours before the show? How did you get on the tour?

Joe: The Presidents were fans of the Dead Milkmen. Chris was inspired by the Dead Milkmen, he told me. That’s not exactly how I got on the show. I got on the show because Pleaseeasaur, a friend of mine, who also is friends with the Presidents of the United States –

CS: From [your former side-project] Touch Me Zoo, right?

Joe: Yep, Touch Me Zoo. He did a tour with them before and also did the West Coast part of this tour, and couldn’t come out to the East Coast. I think they asked him, and he referred them to me. “Well, I can’t do this, but ask Joe Jack.”

CS: Before that, you were on tour, obviously, with the Low Budgets and you did a couple of solo shows on your days off. All through Europe, and a lot of Eastern Europe... What are the fans like in countries like Serbia and Bulgaria? How are they different from the American fans?

Joe: Well, the Serbian fans who came out to our show were great. They were really attentive and energetic, enthusiastic. It helps when you get an audience that’s so into it. Philadelphia audiences are great! I don’t think there are better audiences in the world. But Serbians come close. And, also, there were three other bands on the bill in Serbia. They were all local bands, actually, from Belgrade or close [by]. They were just phenomenal. I mean...it was an amazing show to see. [Just] to see so much talent, and you know, you would never hear of these bands.

[Joe promised to email the names of the bands to me later. He was good to his word:

“Kevin,

Here are the other three bands that were on the bill with The Low Budgets at Klub Zica in Belgrade:

888
http://www.myspace.com/888rockers

SADAMOVI SINOVI
http://www.myspace.com/sadamovisinovi

and
PRLJAVI DRIPCI”]

CS: You guys were supporting Leave Us A Loan, which came out last year.

Joe: Yeah.

CS: I was wondering if you have a favorite song from the album.

Joe: I like playing “Wipe My Ass With the World.” Just cause it’s fun to do, and I do this little dance. (laughs) But, umm, I think my favorite song to listen to is “Clark Park After Dark.” We don’t play it too much live, but I like it.

CS: You sang lead on two of the songs on the album: “Change It” and “Craft Fair.” Are you gonna be singing lead on any more songs on upcoming albums, or do you kinda just want to play organ and do backups –

Joe: I will do anything. I like to sing lead, but definitely not more than two songs.

CS: Yeah. Yeah, I remember reading before – I think it was an interview with Mark Prindle – you were talking about how on the later Milkmen albums when you were singing more songs, you were a little uncomfortable at first.

Joe: Uh huh.

CS: In the band setting, anyway. Obviously you have your solo work, Butterfly Joe –

Joe: Oh, yeah!

CS: And the hundreds of other projects...

Joe: It gives Chris (Peelout, the Low Budgets’ frontman) a break from singing. He doesn’t have to sing every single song.

CS: Yeah, he has a really intense style, so it’s good... (trails off) Had you played much keyboard in a band before the Low Budgets...you’re playing organ. I mean, I know you touched on it, but I know Rodney was doing it a lot of the time in the Milkmen. And obviously, with The Cheesies, there’s some keyboards on there, but was it strange to take over playing organ full time?

Joe: Yeah. No, I’d never done that. It was a learning experience. Cause it’s one thing just to play keyboards when you’re recording and it’s, you know, just coming up with a melodic line to embellish a recording. And it’s a totally different thing to have it as your instrument in a rock band, you know?

CS: How does it feel to live in a world where as fine a short film as The Low Budgets in “The Cursed Organ” isn’t up for an Oscar?

Joe: (laughs) It sucks! I’m glad somebody appreciates it.

CS: I actually watched it again before I came down today, and I was cracking up at it.

Joe: If Chris ever gets back to the United States, we’ll probably do some more of that stuff.

CS: What’s he doing now?

Joe: He’s working in Berlin, for a TV production company, a film production company... Called Opal.

CS: Has he been doing that? Or is that something he just picked up.

Joe: Uh uh. No, it’s something he picked up. I mean, he got that after he left.

CS: Are you still working full time when you’re not in the band?

Joe: Yeah.

CS: Wow. That must be a pretty cool place to work, if they’re just, “Oh yeah! Go ahead! Go tour Europe!” So they’re pretty flexible I guess.

Joe: (laughs) Well, it cost me two weeks of my vacation time but –

CS: Ohh!

Joe: – They’re pretty flexible. I don’t know any other company that would do that.

CS: Yeah. Yeah, I don’t even get two weeks of vacation time.

Joe: I did check in, while in Europe. I checked in every time I could. I did some work over there, as well. Otherwise it would’ve been all my vacation time. (laughs)

CS: Yeah, cause that was almost a month of being on the road.

Joe: (laughs) It was five weeks!

CS: Oh yeah, yeah! It was February, too! I forgot. You really got around.

Joe: Yeah, it’s a cool company. They’re Philadelphia-based.

CS: Alright, back to your solo stuff for a minute. You put out your Home Recordings compilation on Valiant Death Records. Are there any plans for another solo album?

Joe: Yeah. I’m hoping to record another full album by year’s end. And, also, I recorded half an album, a split, with Mischief Brew - it’s coming out, also by year’s end, cause I already recorded. And Eric did half of it, I think, pretty much acoustic. I did mine the same kinda way, acoustic. But a couple tracks, Dean from the Dead Milkmen plays drums on.

CS: Awesome. Is “Sex Sting” gonna be on either –

Joe: Yeah, it’s recorded for the split.

CS: Okay. What were the Butterfly Joe shows like. Did you have to bring other musicians out with you? Or did the four of you guys cover it?

Joe: No, the four of us did, except for the at the very beginning. We played as a five piece, with a marimbo player, also. But that just didn’t... That was great to do, but it was too much.

CS: How many shows do you think you played with them, roughly?

Joe: We started in 199– , I guess 1997 for real, but...1998, we didn’t play too many shows. Half a dozen, and maybe a dozen. 1999, we played a lot more. 2000, we played at least a dozen shows. Then we didn’t play for a couple years, ‘til 2002. We did one show and that was it. So –

CS: Is Butterfly Joe done?

Joe: Pretty much, I would say, we’re done. You never know. [But] we’re pretty spread out.

CS: I was a really big fan of that album.

Joe: Thank you.

CS: This is actually kind of a weird question. Have you ever heard The Decemberists?

Joe: Yeah.

CS: There’s something about... It kinda seems like they’re doing the Butterfly Joe album, but without the humor. Did you ever get that impression?

Joe: (laughs) No! But, the next time I listen to them, I’ll have that in mind!

CS: Vocally, there’s something similar to you. In some weird way...I can’t put my finger on it. And, at the same time, they do the multi-instrumentation over the basic indie rock sound. I don’t know there’s just something and, the first time I heard them, I was like, “This kinda sounds like Butterfly Joe, but not funny.”

Joe: We prided ourselves, at least I did, on not being synthesized. It’s all real instruments playing. “Real” in quotes. Even with the accordion and whatever, so.

CS: To be fair, The Decemberists do that, too. I mean, they’re fine. I’m not trying to knock on them.

Joe: Oh yeah!

CS: I’m gonna put this up on the site, and it’s gonna seem like I’m just ragging on them. Someone’s gonna take exception, but... You come out squeaky clean, though! I don’t know, very weird impression I got. But there’s something (trails off)

Joe: Yeah, some people would probably rather me not have my sense of humor, but I take it everywhere! (laugh)

CS: Do you think, actually, that a sense of humor is important, like it’s kind of missing now?

Joe: Well, not really. It doesn’t always have to be in music. Music I like has it. I also like music with no humor whatsoever. I mean, sometimes the humor’s not in the songs [themselves], but the more you get to know the people that make it, you understand where it’s coming [from]. Everyone has to have humor. It doesn’t always have be in the song.

CS: Are there any other bands or musicians you know that, musically, might come off really serious, then, if you get to know them, they’re just off the wall?

Joe: I don’t really know that many bands!

CS: Or that you’ve met! You know, not that you’re hanging out with all the time.

Joe: The Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their music isn’t that serious. I mean, they have a lot of serious songs. But, you know, they know how to have fun.

CS: Oh, like anybody will be surprised to know that!

Joe: Yeah, no one’s gonna be surprised! But I don’t know. I haven’t hung out with that many bands, to be honest. Ween, I’ve hung out with them, but they’re DEFINITELY not serious!

CS: Did you tour with or did you play a couple shows with The Dickies?

Joe: Yes, the Dead Milkmen did, actually. You’re right. And they’re also not serious! And the Angry Samoans, and they’re not serious. And The Minutemen, actually, have their humor. I mean you probably... Have you seen We Jam Econo, or whatever that movie’s called?

CS: No, I know... their music even comes across. It’s not...it’s... I don’t know, it’s not humorous...

Joe. It’s fun, but, it’s not humorous. Ar-artist...artsy... Poetic! Poetic is right.

CS: Were you guys fans of – you or anyone else in the Milkmen, I guess when you were starting – were you fans of any of the hardcore punk bands out then besides, like F.O.D. and a couple of the local bands that you’ve mentioned that you were friends with? Were you fans of any of that – Black Flag, Minor Threat, or the Bad Brains or –

Joe: I definitely liked Black Flag, Minor Threat, and Bad Brains [inaudible]. Dead Kennedys, also. Locally, I liked Autistic Behavior, YDI, FOD, of course.

CS: With Bad Brains, can you still listen to them with “Don’t Blow No Bubbles” and all the offensive crap that went on with them as far as with MDC, and the issues they had with them? I mean, that’s pretty highly publicized. Does that affect your enjoyment of Bad Brains anymore?

Joe: A little bit, but, you know, I liked the earliest Bad Brains stuff, and then I stopped paying attention to them in the mid-80's sometime.

CS: So the homophobia didn’t even account into it, because it was the music you weren’t interested in anymore?

Joe: Yeah, I wasn’t even interested in it, anyway.

CS: Do you keep up with Dean and Rodney? Do you still talk to them regularly?

Joe: Haven’t talked to Rodney in a while. But I look at his webpage every now and then. Dean, I just saw a couple weekends ago at a get-together in Media.

CS: It’s actually kind of funny, Rodney’s website has something to do with the next question. In this post on there recently, he was talking about Dave Reckner, your old manager. And the quote is that, “half of his philosophy was working tirelessly to make Joe happy.” Is there any truth to that? Do you care to rebuke it?

Joe: There’s probably a grain of truth in there. (laughs) I don’t know... “working tirelessly!” That’s funny, though.

CS: ...This is the other part - and I don’t know if this is just one of Rodney’s goofy, off-hand comments - but he said that Dave almost landed you a part in a Disney movie. Is there a story there, or is that just a goofy, off-hand comment?

Joe: Uhh, I don’t know what that story is...

CS: I’m disappointed. I was hoping there was some kinda wacky story behind it.

Joe: They would always keep things away from me because I wouldn’t agree to... I would do everything I could not to participate, ‘til the very last minute. I didn’t totally agree with everything that went on with the management of the Dead Milkmen, but, whatever Dave Reckner did, it worked for us.

CS: The story [Rodney] was actually talking about was something about... he hasn’t gone into it yet, but a sniper in Serbia. That’s how he brought it up. I don’t know if you remember that or not, but he said it sounds like a bigger deal than it actually is.

Joe: I’d like to see where that’s going.

CS: Did you guys ever get put on a bill where you felt like you really didn’t fit in?

Joe: Oh, lots of times! Especially Spring Flings. At Temple’s Spring Fling, we were put on right before uhh – the band Spinderella is in...

CS: Salt ‘N Pepa?

Joe: Yeah, Salt ‘N Pepa. And then in the 80's music conferences they have, they did a kind of similar thing. We got put on the bill with - although it made more sense at the time - we got put right before 2 Live Crew at one of the music conferences in New York City.

CS: Did you meet them?

Joe: No, no. Did not get a chance to meet them. They were in and out. They didn’t do their own soundcheck, so... I saw the show, but I didn’t actually meet them.

CS: Were there any songs you ever got sick of playing live?

Joe: I don’t know if we got sick of it, but “Bitchin’ Camaro” was one that we stopped doing for a while. And then, just, no one would let us NOT do it, so. We wouldn’t put it in the set, people would be so disappointed that we didn’t play it that we’d have to... feel bad, and end up playing it all the time. That’s probably the one song that we played at just about at every show.

CS: And you did play it at the Dave Blood [Memorial] show. ...I remember one of the strangest parts - and I went to the first night - when you did “Bitchin’ Camaro,” that’s where Rodney gave his speech. And at the end of the speech, you kinda stepped up, and you came in with the “What kind of car did you get?” line. Was that really difficult to do, considering the circumstance?

Joe: It was a pretty powerful speech. I wasn’t prepared for it.

CS: Did you know he was going to –

Joe: No, I didn’t know. I never know what Rodney’s gonna do in “Bitchin’ Camaro.”

CS: Wow! See, I thought that was kinda set up.

Joe: (laughs) No, it wasn’t, for me.

CS: Wow.

Joe: No, all of our “Bitchin’ Camaro”'s are kind of ad-libbed, although –

CS: Yeah, I just thought with the situation –

Joe: – in tours. Yeah.

CS: Yeah. Wow. Alright, well –

Joe: We did practice the stuff, the whole set. And, I don’t know, there might’ve been some kind of warning, that, “Oh yeah we’re gonna...” The thing with Rodney is that he wants to keep it fresh. He won’t practice the way he’s gonna do the thing for real, because it won’t be the same.

CS: Right.

Joe: Like a first take kinda guy, is the best.

CS: Were a lot of the songs on the records where he talks – I’m thinking of the “Sour Jane” bit, and a couple of others – did he just improv any of those? Like, “Stuart,” was that...does he write these things out ahead of time?

Joe: “Stuart” was a little less improv’d than the others. I remember that one evolving and [becoming] solidified. All of the stuff on Metaphysical Graffiti’s totally improv’d. In fact, a lot more of it was recorded than what we actually used. We picked the ones that worked the best for us.

CS: Well, since I asked you if there were any songs you were sick of, were there any songs you wanted to play live but, for whatever reason, never got into the set a whole lot?

Joe: When “Punk Rock Girl” was on MTV, actually we started getting sick of that one. We toured so much. But I couldn’t not play that one, and it was the one song that I got to sing. So, regretfully, the other songs that I would’ve liked – you get your one song in a set, back then I did. So, you know, I regretted that that sort of overshadowed, like “Guitar Song,” another song I could’ve sang, but didn’t sing at so many shows because then people’d be wanting to hear – obviously, they wanna hear the MTV song, “Punk Rock Girl.” So that’s one...

CS: Do you have any idea if the Hollywood Records albums are ever gonna be reissued?

Joe: I don’t know. No idea. You’d think with iTunes and all this, they would at least put it out on that.

CS: The Butterfly Joe album –

Joe: – I don’t really talk to anybody about that stuff.

CS: Yeah, I should ask them.

Joe: Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t have any clue. I wish it would happen.

CS: Have you seen how much people pay for them, those two albums? They’re 30 some dollars, the cheapest you can get them. I mean, you can catch them at a store on South Street, things like that, and you can buy them at a more “CD price,” normal price.

Joe: Well, Not Richard But Dick is the more rare of them and, I think Soul Rotation’s getting pretty cheap. Or, just get it for free, from the filing trading sites! (laughs) But no, I haven’t been paying attention. I’ve been paying attention to the Butterfly Joe CD, cause that’s out of print, too. That’s still pretty cheap, you can get that for...

CS: I got it off of Amazon, actually pretty recently. I had to get another copy of it. I didn’t realize it was out of print. I didn’t wanna just download it, I wanted the CD. So, I’m weird like that.

Joe: That’s good.

CS: Okay, this is kinda weird, uhh...I read somewhere that “Puking Song,” the end part of it, is kind of a rip on “Hey Jude.” Is there any truth to that?

Joe: (laughs) No that I know of.

CS: So that’s just an observation, that’s not correct.

Joe: I don’t think we thought that far into it! But that would be good.

CS: I don’t have the exact quote, but it’s something I read a while back in Guitar World magazine. I have this issue, and it was the top 100 guitar solos of all time. And they asked different people, different guitar players what their takes were and the guitar player from the Voodoo Glow Skulls actually said that “Punk Rock Girl” was his favorite guitar solo because it was the perfect “anti-guitar solo.” How would you respond to that? Would you agree with him?

Joe: How was that? I would like an explanation. Cause, it’s everything you’re not supposed to do in a solo?

CS: I always just kind of understood it as like...

Joe: It’s understated?

CS: It’s understated... It’s like...it actually like...I laugh during that guitar solo, you know what I mean? And it fits, it’s perfect there, but at the same it’s...I don’t know! And I think that’s what he’s getting at. And a lot of the other solos on this list, you have “Stairway to Heaven,” you have “Comfortably Numb,” and all these technical aficionado guitar solos.

Joe: Well yeah, there you go. I can buy that then!

CS: Yeah. He doesn’t wanna hear that. I don’t know. Would you take that as a compliment?

Joe: I’m taking it as one, yeah.

CS: Okay yeah, cause I read it and I considered it to be a good thing. But it just kinda jumped out, cause you have all these shredheads I guess, they’re asking and then Dead Milkmen solos. You never got put on to a bill with any Steve Vai’s or any of those types, right?

Joe: No, not that I remember. Well, we were on the bill with Living Colour for some shows.

CS: Wow! Were you on the road with them? Or did you just play a show?

Joe: We just played a few shows. We, like, bumped into them here and there. Same circuit at the same time I guess.

CS: How did the Living Colour fans react to it?

Joe: I remember a fairly good show in Nashville, TN, but it was a mixed crowd for sure. (laughs)

CS: When you’re writing songs, do you ever come up with the title first, and then everything else? A couple songs, I was thinking, specifically, “Leggo My Ego,” and a couple things like that. They’re very clever. And “What Did Her Autopsy Reveal,” it’s just kind of seems like –

Joe: Yeeeah, you’re right.

CS: There’s nothing wrong with that at all. Is that a common thing for you to do?

Joe: Sometimes. Yeah. Sometimes when I’m having writer’s block I’ll just take someone else’s title. I used to do that, and just write a new song with that title.

CS: “I Am the Walrus”?

Joe: “I Am the Walrus.” Or, one of my solo ones, “If You Love Somebody Set Them Free,” which inspired Rodney to write “If You Love Somebody Set Them On Fire.” So, you know, wherever you get you get your inspira - you know, inspiration comes from a lot of other songs. Steal a lot, borrow some.

CS: When you were writing “Radio,” off the Butterfly Joe album, do you remember...I just remember this one part, “Static, Howard Stern, Green Day, Ween.” Were you actually going through the radio there? Do you remember how that line came about?

Joe: Uh, yeah, just going through radio here in the morning, hearing Howard Stern, blah blah blah.

CS: Green Day and Ween.

Joe: Green Day and Ween. Things that were on the radio at the time, yeah. Not exactly in that - you know, it wasn’t in the actually - but you know, all that stuff was on the radio at the time.

CS: I remember you guys [Milkmen] actually played a show with Green Day, Dean wrote on the website. Do you remember that? You played out in California.

Joe: Yeah.

CS: When Dookie came out.

Joe: It was, like, their big party, celebration show.

CS: It was their release show?

Joe: It was during their release week. I don’t know if it was THE release show. And then they had a lot of things going on. I know MTV was there. And it was before it made the big splash, but it was about to. Sold-out show.

CS: Were you a fan of any of that or was that not [inaudible]?

Joe: I was a vague fan of Green Day during that time period. I mean, I thought they were pretty cool. But I wasn’t, like, super into them, gung-ho. I was a little surprised that they made it, that they broke so big. But, you know, I wasn’t too surprised, with the MTV coverage of them at that time. It seemed like the normal thing.

CS: You also have The Cheesies, of course. And that’s basically a recording thing. Have you ever done any shows with Brian Sprenger?

Joe: With The Cheesies? No. We’re talking about doing some kind of solo tour with him playing, and a band, so it wouldn’t be just me on guitar. But we haven’t done any [live] Cheesies stuff. I’m not sure...I think we should. But, right now, we just keeping it to be a recording project. We don’t wanna commit to anything.

CS: Are there any really good local bands right now that we should know about? ...Other than your projects!

Joe: I like Hatchetface.

CS: Doesn’t the - isn’t [she] from Hatchetface, the singer who’s on “Breathing Kiel” from the [Low Budgets] album?

Joe: Yes. So there’s a relationship to the Low Budgets there. And Brian from The Cheesies used to play in Kablammo with her. Audrey’s her name. They’re a good band to go see. Uh, yeah! Hatchetface.

CS: And that’s the big local band right now?

Joe: Well, I don’t know! I don’t really pay - I’ve been away from town for two months! What do you suggest?

CS: I’m just trying to get ideas! That’s a standard question [we do]. It’s a local music site, so...

Joe: Oh, yeah!

CS: Do you have a favorite Philly venue that you like to play? Or Philly area. It doesn’t have to be right in the city.

Joe: Well, The Troc. I love the Troc. I love the Khyber Pa – Khyber Pub.

CS: You were ready to say “Khyber Pass!”

Joe: Almost said that name. You know, I’m an old guy, I like all the old places. I like basements.

CS: I’m not gonna call the TLA "The Filmore!"

Joe: You’re not gonna call - What’s it called, “The Filmore?” The TLA?

CS: Yeah, the TLA, that’s NOT The Filmore. Sorry! Yeah, but nothing wrong with basements. My old band, that’s pretty much all we played. You can’t get in anywhere.

Joe: Yeah, it’s tough.

CS: Cause there’s nowhere to play. And the bars all want you to play Zeppelin covers and stuff, and I’m not interested.

Joe: Bands on Myspace ask me, “Can you hook up a show for me?” Do you mind playing a basement? That’s pretty much all I’m gonna be able to play!

CS: This is actually another question I asked Rodney. But did you notice that you and Rodney are the only people who prominently sing with the Philly-area accent? I can’t even think of any other band who did it. And I think that was kind of a trademark of all of both of your projects.

Joe: Yeah, well...

CS: Why do you think that is?

Joe: I don’t know. Maybe they’re smarter than us. I don’t know why people don’t sing with their Philly accent - or why we do, I don’t even think about it.

CS: That’s a bigger thing for people in England now. People sing with the total Cockney accent on. But I don’t even think their accents are that thick. And then people from the US’ll kinda sing like they’re from England. But for some reason you can’t sing with a traditional accent.

Joe: Well, on our first trip to the West Coast, people thought we were from England, because of our accents. (laughs) “It’s a Philly accent.”

CS: I remember I got made fun of [by my friends] in college, because of all the people - they aren’t even from that far away, they’re from, you know, like, Kutztown and Allentown and places like that - and they would make fun of the way I’d say “o” and “home” and... it’s old. But, for some reason, people don’t sing like that.

Joe: Yeah, maybe it’s because, if you’re trained to sing, you’re trained in a different way, and we weren’t trained.

CS: That’s actually, strange, though. I always thought - I didn’t get the impression that you guys, necessarily, would’ve gone into training, it just didn’t seem like you’d wanna do that. But I always thought, on all your stuff, Milkmen and afterwards, there’s always been really good vocal harmonies. Does that just kind of come natural?

Joe: I think it’s just from us singing since we were [in] high school, doing our stupid little tapes. I don’t know, just from, maybe being from the same area, too. But having the ear to just, you know...it obviously came natural! (Laughs) We didn’t work on it, too much, is what I should say. We must’ve...

CS: I have one more Milkmen question, then I promise I’ll stop. I know you always get stuff about the band name, but... you know, obviously, there’s a bunch of different answers to it. But the steady one seems to be [Toni Morrison’s novel] Song of Solomon and [the character] Milkman Dead. Is that the case, and if that’s the case, is that pretty much the most inappropriate band name ever, considering how serious that book is and how unserious –

Joe: (laughs) Yes it is. And it’s not the case. We got so tired of people asking that question, that we decided we would just answer differently each time or come up with conflicting answers so that, if anybody did wanna check later on, they’d be like, “Well, obviously, they don’t...we can’t tell what the true answer is, because they always answer differently.” So that’s the way we wanted it.

CS: Well, you can keep it like that.

Joe: I don’t think we ever told the true answer in an interview, except maybe once. But then you wouldn’t know which one it was!

CS: No, no, no!

Joe: (laughs)

CS: I’m not trying to... I prefer the mystery. But I just thought, either way it’s strange, because you can obviously corroborate the evidence. You have the Milkman Dead character in Song of Solomon. So, I’ve found out it’s NONE of the things I’ve heard about. That’s good... that’s interesting. Alright, what are your upcoming plans, musically or otherwise?

Joe: Well, like I said, I’m working on new songs, trying to hopefully have some kind of album, probably a solo album, recorded by the end of the year. Do some more solo touring, possibly not just acoustic, but with a band. Not like Butterfly Joe, but that sort of thing...stripped down. But in the acoustic vein. I guess it IS that sort of thing! (laughs) What am I saying? But no accordion yet.

CS: Aww, I like the accordion. It’s actually kinda cool, too, how you’ve always used the accordion. It’s not like a novelty, necessarily. It’s not too say the songs are without humor, of course, but I don’t know. You kinda treat the accordion with respect.

Joe: Oh, yeah! My dad played the accordion. I have to.

CS: That’s why? Well, there you go. Anything with The Low Budgets? Or are you guys taking a break for now?

Joe: We’re taking a break. I think we need a little hiatus, before we get back together. Our tours are crazy, so, they take a lot out of us. We did a U.S. tour, followed by a European tour.

CS: Yeah! Yeah, you deserve a break, there.

Joe: That’s what a normal band - and I don’t think of us as a normal band, although we are a normal band, I guess. That’s what the Milkmen would do to support an album. To me, it’s a lot tougher these days.

CS: Right, and you have your job.

Joe: Yeah.

CS: And, finally, and you have to answer this. Do you prefer Genesis with Phil Collins or Peter Gabriel fronting?

Joe: I guess Peter Gabriel, because I like his solo albums better.

CS: I end every interview with that. I made Rodney do “Toto or Asia,” so you got off kinda easy.

Joe: Well, I think that’s kinda easy, too. It’s no contest. Sorry.

CS: Poor Phil.

Joe: (laughs) Poor Phil!

CS: He can go weep with his Oscar, after that Tarzan song.

Joe: Oh, he’s got nothing to cry about!

CS: That’s true. He’s Phil Goddamn Collins. Anything else to add?

Joe: Uhh... 6 and 7...is 13. It’s a bad joke.

CS: I appreciate it.