We were at a coffeeshop in bloody Los Angeles, I remember that I was without cigarettes thinking on my belle and suddenly a cherry pie was on a wooden table with a single glass of water waving at me.
It looked good and yummy, so while eating it (hiding this act from Edward and Karene's human eyes), I was carefully thinking on the questions to ask Edward because Karene (that's his wife) told me that she would send me to hell with a one way ticket inside a voodoo spell if I wasn't a good interviewer to them both.
What I knew while making this interview was that we suddenly were all over the place at random decades from the previous century or on this same century that we're supposed to live in.
Out of nowhere from the coffeeshop's backdoor appeared a pretty waitress that served us coffee, another piece of cherry pie and cookies, she told me then that I actually live in the 18th century.
I know that I stared and smiled towards her, admiring her beauty while obviously agreeing with everything that she was telling me.
Edward was holding an holy cross on his right hand and Karene had some sort of knife on her left hand, so without cigarettes and with a pretty waitress serving me cookies, cherry and coffee, what could I do?
I've immediately posed some questions to Edward always carefully looking left and right while staring at a calendar that was in front of us stating that we were in 15th December 1777.
I remember that it did rain and on that day after the interview, I immediately ran out from the coffeeshop where we were to buy some cigarettes at a tobacco's store, with a written paper on my coat that had the pretty waitress phone number in it, while noticing a newspaper dated 15th December 2019 in there.
I quickly forgot about this little detail while I was phoning to the number that the pretty waitress gave me and in two hours we were both having a good diner while chit chatting about life and romance.
Below is the interview to Edward (un)censored and with Karene's blessing.
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| Edward, Karene, me and an artwork based on me by Italian artist Bernardino Constantino in 1777's LOS ANGELES |
1) Nervous Gender band was founded in 1978 in L.A.
How did this electropunk movement started?
Were you trying to send some message regarding society at the time or were you simply creating new sounds?
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| Nervous Gender pamphlet artwork |
The original Punk movement consisted of guitar bands,which I enjoyed,but found I was more drawn to bands with synthesized noise. Like any movement, you bring your past influences and insights along with you.
The jump from listening to Brian Eno and later to Ultra Vox was a naturally progression for me.
Around 1977, a friend sent me the album of a New York band named Suicide.
That along with seeing The Screamers perform here in LA inspired me to start Nervous Gender.
Electro-Punk and Synth Punk were all included within the Punk Rock movement.
The jump from listening to Brian Eno and later to Ultra Vox was a naturally progression for me.
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| Eno |
That along with seeing The Screamers perform here in LA inspired me to start Nervous Gender.
Electro-Punk and Synth Punk were all included within the Punk Rock movement.
2) In 1981 your LP "Music from hell" was released and Paul Roessler of The Screamers moved to New York to play with German singer Nina Hagen and Don Bolles also left the band being replaced by a eight year old boy named Sven Pfeiffer.
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| Sven Pfeiffer's Nervous Gender |
Can you tell us what happened during the release of this album with Nervous Gender?
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| Music from Hell |
Politics mixed with personal pain.
Non-straight sexuality was still avoided by the Punk scene.
I wanted to express the same aggressive energy towards the culture in regards to its bigotry and dismissal that it displayed towards those on the "outside" of society.
Aggressive sexuality was not to be a cause for intimidation, rather an opening to a larger sexual diversity.
Non-straight sexuality was still avoided by the Punk scene.
I wanted to express the same aggressive energy towards the culture in regards to its bigotry and dismissal that it displayed towards those on the "outside" of society.
Aggressive sexuality was not to be a cause for intimidation, rather an opening to a larger sexual diversity.
"Music from Hell" was recorded by Subterranean Records out of San Francisco, where we had a move enthusiastic following.
At that point the band was made up of Don Bowles, Gerardo, me and Bill Klein. Everything was recorded over one weekend. We were left to our own devices for the record.
Subterranean placed no specific guide lines on us.
At that point the band was made up of Don Bowles, Gerardo, me and Bill Klein. Everything was recorded over one weekend. We were left to our own devices for the record.
Subterranean placed no specific guide lines on us.
3) You played along bands such as Einstürzende Neubauten, Non and Psychic Tv in the 80's.
These bands are raw and pass a message of renewal in music.
How was your link/bound/message with the above mentioned bands when you played with them?
Getting to play with Einstürzende Neubauten and Suicide was exciting.
These were people we looked up to and being on the same venue with them was an honor.
These were people we looked up to and being on the same venue with them was an honor.
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| Einstürzende Neubauten "kollaps" album from 1981 |
4) In mid-eighties, the band was on the verge of breaking up.
What did happen with Nervous Gender at this time?
During the 80's we were on the verge of breaking up. It was an odd time in LA.
The police were shutting down Punk music venues.
Punk was becoming a "one trick pony" not as experimental as original.
More like a copy of a copy.
Rav's were becoming the next big thing. There was a lot of competition for the weekend crowds, Rav's were huge.
Usually held in old warehouses downtown and opportunities were less and less.
The police were shutting down Punk music venues.
Punk was becoming a "one trick pony" not as experimental as original.
More like a copy of a copy.
Rav's were becoming the next big thing. There was a lot of competition for the weekend crowds, Rav's were huge.
Usually held in old warehouses downtown and opportunities were less and less.
Bruce Moreland and Wall of Voodoo doing Nervous Gender songs gave us access to a different audience along with the punks.
5) You played also with American band Christian Death.
What was Nervous Gender fusion with this goth band?
I remember listening to them and they were always passing a clear message of the world where we live in and when Rozz Williams died, I stopped listening to them.
Are you a fan of Christian Death?
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| Christian Death's album "Only theater of pain" released in 1982 |
Our friendship with Rozz of Christian Death started in early 80's.
It was not based on anything happening at the time, but was more the fact that the influences for his music were pretty much the same as ours. While NG was not gothic at all, the subject matters was.
At one point Rozz lived down the block from us. We saw each other on a daily basis along with Ron Athey and Patrice Repose.
There were conversations about religion, Sexuality and death.
These conversations inspired all of us in different ways.
I was a fan of Christian Death before I saw them perform.
First time I heard of them was from Don Boles and his description made me want to go see them when they came to LA.
It was not based on anything happening at the time, but was more the fact that the influences for his music were pretty much the same as ours. While NG was not gothic at all, the subject matters was.
At one point Rozz lived down the block from us. We saw each other on a daily basis along with Ron Athey and Patrice Repose.
There were conversations about religion, Sexuality and death.
These conversations inspired all of us in different ways.
I was a fan of Christian Death before I saw them perform.
First time I heard of them was from Don Boles and his description made me want to go see them when they came to LA.
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| Rozz Williams and Gitane Demone |
6) How did you and your woman Karene in 2005 were involved in another project named Kali's Thugs?
Can you tell us a bit about this project?
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| Edward Stapleton in Kali's Thugs project |
Gerardo died in the early 90's.
Karene and I got a computer and decided to take some of her poetry (she was doing Poetry Slams around L.A.) and I put some music together using toys.
The kids were growing up and we had so many toys around the house I thought by manipulating the sounds and create some odd sound tracks.
I would create the sound tracks and Karene would sing or recite over them.
We were both influenced by Eastern music at the time.
The CD's were put out under the name Kali's Thugs.
Karene and I got a computer and decided to take some of her poetry (she was doing Poetry Slams around L.A.) and I put some music together using toys.
The kids were growing up and we had so many toys around the house I thought by manipulating the sounds and create some odd sound tracks.
I would create the sound tracks and Karene would sing or recite over them.
We were both influenced by Eastern music at the time.
The CD's were put out under the name Kali's Thugs.
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| Edward Stapleton performing with a Kali's Thugs t-shirt |
7) Can you tell us a bit of your own influences in any kind of art forms while creating music with a clear message,
In terms of art, I was influenced by Francis Bacon and H.R. Giger.
Music: Bowie, Vandergraf Generator, Virgin Prunes, Coil and Laurie Anderson.
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| A Francis Bacon's triptych |
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| An H.R.Giger artwork |
Music: Bowie, Vandergraf Generator, Virgin Prunes, Coil and Laurie Anderson.
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| Vandergraf Generator "godbluff" album from 1975 |
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| Laurie Anderson "big science" album from 1982 |
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| Coil album "Love secret's domain" released in 1991 |
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| Virgin Prunes "a new form of beauty" album released in 1981 |
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| David Bowie "outside" album released in 1995 |
8) The world where we live in is crazier and crazier all the time with social networks among other things.
How do you compare this metamorphosis to what happened in the 80's in California?
As for social networking now and back in the 80's.
We all pretty much lived downtown L.A. in lofts, or in my situation an empty church. That was where the clubs were, so you networked in the coffee houses or other peoples digs or in the clubs.
If you wanted to know where someone was going to be you just had to check the band flyers on the telephone poles.
Now it is easier to keep in contact with people.
We all pretty much lived downtown L.A. in lofts, or in my situation an empty church. That was where the clubs were, so you networked in the coffee houses or other peoples digs or in the clubs.
If you wanted to know where someone was going to be you just had to check the band flyers on the telephone poles.
Now it is easier to keep in contact with people.
Within days of posting new music Oliver was in touch.
He was in Berlin at the time and was interested in putting out a a vinyl record of the songs in more of an EDM style (which seems to be the most popular in clubs there).
Soon Bernardino Constantino, an Italian multimedia artist along with Nicola Rettino showed interest in working with us creating image and short films referencing the songs.
He has published one full color soft bound comic book based on one song and another that will be out soon based on the song Cardinal Newman.
He was in Berlin at the time and was interested in putting out a a vinyl record of the songs in more of an EDM style (which seems to be the most popular in clubs there).
Soon Bernardino Constantino, an Italian multimedia artist along with Nicola Rettino showed interest in working with us creating image and short films referencing the songs.
He has published one full color soft bound comic book based on one song and another that will be out soon based on the song Cardinal Newman.
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| Artwork for Nervous Gender by Italian maestro Bernardino Constantino |
Artwork for Nervous Gender by Italian artist Nicola Rettino
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| Artwork for Nervous Gender by Italian artists Bernardino Constantino and Nicola Rettino Many thanks to Edward for this kind interview and to all international musicians and artists that shared their time, memories and their passions in life with myself in other exclusive interviews that can be read in this same blogue in previous posts in it while knowing us all that we're all normal human living beings sharing life and memories in a blue planet named Earth. Below is a live video with Nervous Gender playing their theme "Cardinal Newman" |
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