The Untitled Interview #14: Starring Oli Walker (Mississippi Witch)

I hope by now, dear friends, that you trust my judgment somewhat. So when I tell you (again) how much I love that rapscallion pair of ex-Pat Yanks who now call the UK home known as Mississippi Witch, I would hope you would spare a moment (or several) to check them out. The boys of the Witch are a roustabout duo, up to no good in the best possible way. The music they make is utterly divine, saturated with the rhythms of the Deep South and the space oddities of the deserts of the Wild West. How they make such a sweet, terrifying, sensational racket with only two of them is a marvel indeed.

I had the good pleasure of twisting the arm of Oli Walker, the vocal/guitar half of Mississippi Witch, into answering these here questions of mine. He’s a nice boy, and smart, too (see: Beatles vs. Stones). Oh, and he’s got a decent set of pipes, as well. I do hope that the Witch brings their aural hurricane over to these shores sooner rather than later.

Les Enfants Terribles: How the hell are you?
Oli Walker: Good thanks.

LET: What was the last song you listened to?
OW: “Under my Thumb” - Rolling Stones.

LET: Playing music is ___
OW: Better played between 12 and 3.

LET: What album most made you realize that you wanted to make music?
OW: Hot Rocks - Rolling Stones.

LET: Beatles or Stones?
OW: The Stones! I'll take this opportunity to quote Keith - "I'm Sagittarius, half man, half horse with a license to shit in the street.”

LET: What're your top 5 albums (of ever, of this week, of this minute)?
OW: Eeeeer, in no particular order -
Sticky Fingers - Rolling Stones
The Doors - The Doors
Led Zeppelin lll
Electric Lady Land - Jimi Hendrix
Harvest - Neil Young

LET: Favorite music-related movie?
OW: The Kids are Alright.

LET: What city or venue would you like to play, but haven't yet been to?
OW: Ohio and New Zealand, anywhere really. I think America is where we need to be…

LET: Half-full or half-empty?
OW: There's always more where that came from.

LET: What do you miss most about life in the US of A?
OW: The desert, steak and shrimp, Van Nuys…

LET: Apart from your band, which of your peers do you think is making the best music these days?
OW: I don’t hear much of what’s going on nowadays, but Queens of the Stone Age, Raising Sand (Robert Plant/Alison Krauss), Tom Waits…

LET: What's your favorite track on Black Gamble?
OW: “Just For Roosevelt”, it was the first song we did and sums up the state of mind of the band at the time…

LET: What's the first thing you think when you wake up?
OW: Mississippi Witch, and must get bigger amps.

LET: How do you settle band arguments?
OW: We only see each other when we play or record so we just do what we do, I don’t have any control over it, and neither does Dan, we just play.

LET: The greatest record store in the world is:
OW: I wish I knew, I’m all for record stores, I can’t find any good ones…

LET: How will you be celebrating Halloween this year?
OW: With a big fire and some chalk.

LET: What's the longest flight you've ever been on, and where were you going?
OW: 12 hours or so, California - London.

LET: Shaken or stirred?
OW: Both…

LET: If you weren't in a band, you'd be:
OW: I have no idea, I don’t think there was ever anything else I could do, so I'd be in trouble. Probably wondering round with a dog and a strange look on me face…

LET: Best song ever written?
OW: That’s a tricky one, I'll just say “House of the Rising Sun” – as done by The Animals.