The Untitled Interview #46: Starring Steve Kille (Dead Meadow)

I think it’s entirely possible that I’m still in recovery mode from the wickedly amazing Dead Meadow show here in DC back on my birthday last month. Their transcendental, triumphant swirl of stoner rock, psych rock, post rock, and rock rock both cleared my mind of cobwebs and filled it with still more, though much more interesting, cobwebs. It also might have cleared out my sinuses, so there's medicinal qualities to be found in Dead Meadow, too.

They possess one of the loudest, biggest, fullest live sounds I’ve ever come across, and a big piece of that extraordinary sonic puzzle comes courtesy of bitchin’ bassist Steve Kille. Profuse thanks to Steve for answering some queries for LET. Read on as Steve waxes on and off about Fugazi, Thin Lizzy, and yes, Chuck Norris, and make sure to throw on some Dead Meadow while you read. It’s the perfect accompaniment.

Les Enfants Terribles: What was the last song you listened to?
Steve Kille: “Superstition” - Stevie Wonder.

LET: Playing music is:
SK: No choice.

LET: What album most made you realize you wanted to make music?
SK: Oddly enough, Fugazi’s Repeater. I figured, "I could do this."

LET: Beatles or Stones?
SK: Neil Young or both!!! It really depends on the mood.

LET: Top 5 albums (of now, of this month, or of ever):
SK:

Thin Lizzy – Jail Break
Neil Young – Zuma
Beatles – Rubber Soul
Guilded By Voices – Alien Lanes
Best of Don Ho (I love the tropic escape)

LET: Favorite music-related movie?
SK: Rock N Roll High School. No question.

LET: Half-full or half-empty?
SK: Broken.

LET: Which of your peers do you think is making the best music these days?
SK: Nick Cave.

LET: What’s the first thing you think when you wake up in the morning?
SK: How to pay bills.

LET: The greatest record store in the world is:
SK: Amoeba.

LET: Shaken or stirred?
SK: Poured with rum, an umbrella and splash of pineapple, I don’t like martinis.

LET: Little-known Dead Meadow fact?
SK: We have a guilty tour pleasure of watching Walker, Texas Ranger. No joke.

LET: If you weren’t in a band you’d be:
SK: Rich?

LET: How often do you make it back to DC? And what, if anything, surprises you about the city when you’re back here?
SK: Hardly ever. I am surprised that there is nothing to do there anymore.

LET: If you were so inclined, whom would you form a tribute band in honor of?
SK: Thin Lizzy!!! No question.

LET: Best song ever written?
SK: “Dancing in the Moonlight” by Thin Lizzy.

mp3: Darlin (Dead Meadow from Three Kings)