Finding Their Religion

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For those about to stage dive, Mudhoney salute you; for those about to remain dweebs in the mud, Mudhoney couldn't care less. A Seattle benediction, a Sub-Pop original, a semi-custodian of Nirvana's blitzkrieg, Mudhoney make a quarantine like noise for the crawling metropolis that's nigh acceptable and holy underground. Lots of hair and volume and stun gun attitude and guitars that pervade the ying yang of midnight's chosen few...

Black Sabbath meets thrown up Monty Python if you will, only the American version thereof. So welcome boys and girls to the paraplegic propensity of Mudhoney - as seen through the (now married) eyes of singer Mark Arm. A frazzled world of tongue-in-cheek rifferamma that's a mean tease, seventies, nineties, anti-freeze, all rolled into one.



Is Generation Spokesmodel about anyone in particular?

‘’It's about a lot of people, kind of like flavor of the month. Kurt Cobain, he was one, but not exactly. It's a fine line that I'm trying to talk and one which fits lots of people... like me. It's both hypocritical and tragic at the same time.’’

What moves the heart?

‘’My wife. It's a question that's similar to what moves the ocean? What moves the heart?’’

How did you find working with Jack Endino again?

‘’Great, very easy. Just like fudge and cake. We recorded it in the basement of his house, cause we wanted to go somewhere else.’’

What's your plan of action for the upcoming months?

‘’Tour, tour, tour. We're going to Taiwan to do some shows with Pearl Jam. Also, Bangkok and Singapore and places like that, which is a whole new market. The shame being, we're only doing one show in each place, so it'll involve a lot of travelling without actually seeing much.’’

Who or what do you admire?

‘’I don't really think about it too much. I guess an original point of view and an idea that isn't easily shaped. Captain Beefhart comes to mind, basically because he stuck to his guns. Neil Young's another. Any art type thing I suppose.’’

How do you see rock'n'roll fifty years from now?

‘’Don't know, don't care.’’

What's the most odious record you've ever heard?

‘’That's a hard one... fuck, I don't know. I don't know where to begin. Anything too commercial, a Whitney Houston record... just schlock that could be anyone.’’

Talking of Whitney Houston, what's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of New Jersey?

‘’The Garden State. Hmm, the club Maxwells... Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi.’’

If murder was legal, who would you kill?

‘’I still wouldn't do it. It's not a good idea.’’

What's your views on the new so called British Invasion?

‘’Well it's not the Rolling Stones and the Kinks is it? You mean the Happy Mondays and the Stone Roses and stuff?’’

More like Suede, Blur, Oasis and possibly Gene.

‘’It's kind of boring I suppose. As for some of those bands that like to get up on a soap-box, they can go and die so far as I'm concerned.’’

How would you describe My Brother The Cow?

‘’Big and female. It's weird to over analyse.’’

How about a cosmic surfride through the metallic anguish of subliminal Soundgarden and doom driven Danzig?

‘’What?’’

A cosmic surfride through the metallic anguish of subliminal Soundgarden and doom driven Danzig.

‘’Hmm (sounds pleasantly surprised)... whatever seems to work.’’

Favorite U2 album?

‘’October.’’

What's the greatest song you never wrote?

‘We Are The World.’

How about Imagine?

‘’Too deep.’’

To what degree was F.D.K. (‘Fearless Doctor Killers’) inspired by the likes of Operation Rescue and John Salvi (who's responsible for shooting up three abortion clinics, killing two people and wounding five others)?

‘’Well we wrote that song before John Salvi. It's the only political song we've ever written. To us, it's a shared contradiction without getting too preachy. In my book, murder isn't biblical, yet here are these people who are religious and stuff, going around killing people.’’

So how do you feel about the Pope?

‘’He's gonna burn in hell. If anything, he's keeping people down. All the money that's generated through the catholic church goes straight into the Vatican... all these cardinals living in luxury and mansions. The same applies right across the board... it isn't just the Catholics.’’

What's the spark behind Execution Song?

‘’That's one of those unfortunate songs that we had to use to fill up space. It's a fine song with a cool riff, but it's a little embarrassing because of the stupid words.’’

What's your ambition?

‘’To make it through this year.’’

Where does the name Mudhoney come from?

‘’It comes from the name of a Russ Myers movie.’’

Who or what should be obliterted off the face of the earth?

‘’That's not for me to decide. Plenty of things. If no-one subscribed to that thinking, it wouldn't have to be done. It's all down to people getting in each other's faces. Everyone's got to have their room.’’

Describe the music industry in three words.

‘’Big and greedy.’’

Can you remember a couple of great gigs you attended?

‘’Divo in 1980 during the Freedom Of Choice tour, and Black Flag with the Meat Puppets in 1983; both in Seattle.’’

Tribute albums - do you think they highlight the fact that there's a severe shortage of great songwriters out there?

‘’We've done 'em, but we don't like 'em. What's the point? We took part in the Stab Your Back, Damned compilation album, which I think at least showed a consistency. So far as something like the Black Sabbath tribute album is concerned, that's just goofy! It's the nineties, so why re-do it? Nothing's ever gonna come close to Masters Of Reality, so why bother?’’

How about something like the Richard Thompson tribute album?

‘’With artists like Richard Thompson, it could go either way. In his case, depending on who's doing the covers, it might get his music heard by a lot of people who wouldn't otherwise hear it. If it helps his career, it's a good thing.’’

Do you miss Kurt?

‘’I started missing him before he killed himself. He’d got reclusive and had nothing left to learn.’’