Lobsterfest 2014: Buck Gooter
By Eric Perzanowski, Contributor
Since 2005, the Harrisonburg, Virginia-based two-man group Buck Gooter has brought its unique style of “primal industrial blues” to listeners all around. On April 25th, the duo is returning to Athens as part of Lobsterfest. ACRN interviewed Billy Brat, vocalist/guitarist and theremin player of Buck Gooter about the theremin, playing overseas, cool animals and more.
Will Lobsterfest be the first time Buck Gooter has played in Athens?
Billy Brat: No, no, Buck Gooter’s played in Athens quite a few times, actually. I think the first time we played here was in 2007.
What have your past experiences playing in Athens been like?
It’s always very good. I love that town. I like going to Casa Nueva, and walking down the streets. It’s cool.
You guys refer to your music as “primal industrial blues.” How would you describe that sound to someone unfamiliar with Buck Gooter?
I feel like that’s a pretty good description even if you don’t know the music. But it’s just kind of grinding, aggravated music. [Laughs] To someone who doesn’t know anything about our music, I would say that. I wouldn’t really compare us to any bands because most bands that people think we sound like, nobody knows of them, so primal industrial blues sounds right.
In a previous interview, you mentioned that when Buck Gooter started, you and Terry [guitar] “shared similar tastes in weird/heavy bands.” Were there any bands in particular that you and Terry liked?
I would say there aren’t too many heavy bands that I feel are influential, but David Bowie is really influential on me, and I know that Terry’s a big Blue Öyster Cult fan. And just a lot of Fat Possum blues guys, like Junior Kimbrough and R.L. Burnside, that type of stuff. I’m also a big fan of Lungfish, and I think that stuff forms our sound in some way.
Going back to that same interview, you also mentioned how you had a theremin lying around when you guys started, and you jammed on that with Terry for some time. Has the theremin played a role in your music since then?
Oh yeah, the theremin’s always there. The theremin is like the Buck Gooter instrument. I get asked like, "sit in and play the theremin with us” from bands, so it’s synonymous to Buck Gooter, that instrument. It’s been in there forever.
You guys have a video out for the song “Witch Molecules” which is visually outstanding. What was the thought process behind making this video?
I used to see the effect [used in the video]--it’s called datamoshing, it’s kind of a glitchy video effect--I used to see that effect on TV, when the satellite reception would freak out, and I figured out how to do that at will, so I tried to do that as much as possible in one video, just go for broke with it.
This is a silly question, but there’s a picture on your Facebook page where one of you is holding a cat, and I was wondering if that cat was the inspiration for your song “Cats Are Cool?”
No, we didn’t know that cat then. That cat rules. That cat is owned by the members of the band Curse from Baltimore. Its name is “Uh-Oh.” His face looks like he’s saying “uh-oh.”
In addition to “Cats Are Cool,” you guys also have “Skunks Are Cool” and “Pigs Are Cool.” I was just wondering if there are any other cool animals we may hear songs about in the future?
Yeah, there’s “Birds Are Cool,” “Skunks Are Cool,” “Cows Are Cool,” “Snakes Are Cool,” “Cats Are Cool,” “Ants Are Cool” and “Pigs Are Cool.” So those are all the cools songs. “Ants Are Cool” is forthcoming, everything else is previously released.
You guys have a live cassette of a show in Leipzig, Germany that came out last month. What type of response did Buck Gooter receive in Germany?
Really good, man. That was the best tour of all-time, for sure. The whole structure over there is so different, and so much more receptive and it was a great time. It was wonderful. The day after we played Berlin, a guy got in touch with me and wanted to put something out, and it was funny, it took almost a year to get everything done.
Was that the first time Buck Gooter had ever played overseas?
Yeah, definitely. We went over there last April, and just raged for like three weeks; it was really fun.
What do you guys have planned following Lobsterfest?
We’re doing a whole 10-day tour around Lobsterfest, and then we’re kind of just chilling and playing over the summer. We got a record that we’re trying to get put out. And I guess to keep functioning as a band. We’ll be turning nine years old as a band in June.
Do you have anything planned for the tenth anniversary of the band?
No, not really; just keep on rolling, I guess. We’ll try to get to our 10th year and see where we’re at by the end of that. It’d be cool to do a festival or something, but this town [Harrisonburg, VA] sucks too much for that. It’d be cool to play with a lot of cool bands that we played with in the past, but a lot of them don’t exist anymore.
