By: Kristin Belmonte
Date: February 14th, 2002
February 14th, 2002 - Valentines Day... Also the day the Distillers started their tour with the Suicide Machines and Sick of It All in New Haven, CT. But for being some mushy day all about flowers n love n shit, it hadn't been going so great for anyone. The Distillers were missing their guitarist, Rose "Casper", everyone looked tired and ...well just kinda haggard, and the day hadn't been going so great for me either. I know the band was supposed to do a sound check and I don't think they did. I wonder why? I walked into Toad’s Place (the club) about 2 hours before showtime, and the band was just kinda sitting around in the middle of the floor, with their equipment all over the place, just talking and what not. One of the other bands was doing their sound check, so it was pretty noisy. Brody was happy to show me her guitar which had just gotten a make-over; she spraypainted it white ("There’s white all over the place outside!"). So me and Brody went over to a corner table and started talking, but didn't even get 10 minutes into the conversation; it had gotten so fucking noisy we couldn't hear each other. So we went down a flight of stairs, and found the band room. "Nah". Down the hall, she found Ryan, the bassist. "Hey Ryan! Wanna do an interview?!" "OK". We settled on the women's bathroom, and since Brody had to take a piss, it was convenient. Ryan was equipped with a bottle of nail polish, and set to work on painting. He was very intent on his nails, I noticed. I think he was painting them maroon....
Sink Hole Kristen - So, you just released a new record last week, do you have an explanation behind the title, “Sing Sing Death House”?
Distiller Brodie - I was watching a documentary on “Sing Sing Death House”, the prison. I really liked the title as a reference for a person. Like in dream books, a house represents yourself, your body. Thats where it came from. Sing Sing Death House is not a catharsis, its just a representation of dealing with shit, like problems.
SHK - It came out (the CD) on my birthday, by the way...
Brody - Really? Happy Birthday!SHK - Thanks, it was a pretty nice present.
SHK - So what was the scene like, and people in general, back in Australia?
Brody - Australia is funny, they’re really good at goofing on themselves...It’s a lot different though, there’s only 18 million people in all of Australia compared to billions in America over the same amount of land. The scene is good, but its small. I used to hang out at this punk club called the Art House. Really, I don’t know how it is-I haven’t been over in a couple of years.
Brody - Yeah...I miss my family and my old friends.
SHK - Which do you like better, Australia or the U.S.?
Brody - They’re similar and different. America is one big Colossus. I think I’d find it hard to go back and live in Australia after living and living so much over here.
SHK - Coming to America-did you just up and leave Australia-how did that happen?
Brody - Me and Timothy (Armstrong) had been going out for about a year when I moved to America to be with him.
SHK - Thats sweet... But sad cuz it’s Valentines Day.
Brody - And I’m here and I’m not at home...
SHK - Not exactly how you want to spend Valentines Day?
Brody - You miss a lot of shit when your away on the road. You miss people’s birthdays, anniversaries, all that shit.
SHK - So how are things with you and Tim?
Brody - Great, we just had an anniversary. Four years of marriage.
Brody - (while checking out my bag) I love this band (pointing to an Unseen patch).
SHK - Yeah, I saw them a couple weeks ago...
Brody - They’re pretty great, I was just reading an interview with them.
SHK - So your drummer is from the Nerve Agents, are you sharing him, or whats up with that situation?
Brody- Well, the Nerve Agents just broke up (this was breaking news at the time). They broke up less than a month ago and it really sucks cuz they were one of my favorite bands. I’m really still kind of delirious. It’s fucking shame, cuz they were so fucking good. Anyway, when Andy came to the band it was meant to be permanent, but it’s definitely permanent now.
SHK - So who are your other favorite bands?
Brody - Well, like I said, I like the Unseen a lot. I like the Death Wish Kids, I love Blitz. You know, the standard punk rock lineage-The Exploited, The Ramones. I like Rancid (of course!). I can’t really think of any new bands I like.
SHK - What did you listen to when you were younger, when you first started getting into everything?
Brody - I had just turned 12 in 1991 and Nirvana and Sonic Youth were blowing up and that whole scene was huge. I really liked Fang a lot. Do you like Fang?
SHK - Never heard of ‘em.
Brody - Ahhh... Ya gotta listen to Fang... (the sound of drums and guitars suddenly got really fucking loud) Maybe we should find someplace else to talk.
Brody - (still) Where were we? Oh, I was telling you about Fang, you’ve gotta hear this band. They influenced so many bands. I swear Kurt (Cobain) listened to Fang, you can really hear it in early Nirvana. They were great, then Sammy (Fang’s lead singer) killed his girlfriend and everybody denied that they listened to them. He was a crazy motherfucker. Yeah, you should get a hold of a Fang record. I think its where all the grunge bands got their ideas from.
Ryan - Totally, I think that whole Seattle thing kinda came from them.
Brody - Cuz Fang was constantly touring up and down the West Coast all the time.
SHK - So whats your deal (to Ryan), you were working in a record store when they found you?
Ryan - I really hate work, but you got to do it, so I always tried to at least work in record stores. It was a record slash comic book slash toy store, so it was fun for a little while. I’m really glad I’m not doing that shit right now-really glad.
Brody - I liked that store. They had a really good collection there, good selection.
SHK - What was it? (insert commercial here)
Ryan - It was called Axis Records and Comics and it was just full of things that you wouldn’t find anywhere else. All kinds of odds-n-ends.
Brody - Are you from here? (New Haven, Connecticut)
SHK - Yeah.Brody – What’s the scene like?
SHK - There’s a good amount of people depending on where you look...
Brody - We got here last night and we were trying to find someplace open, like a magazine store or anything, and they were all closed. We had to drive to New Yawk...
Ryan - The one thing I’ve noticed is all the buildings turn out to be college buildings. I see something that looks like a church, nope its a library.
SHK- Its all Yale. All the dorky college Yaley’s walking around....
SHK - The song “Desperate” is about heroine addiction - is that about you, or someone you know?
Brody - It was just in general. It affects a lot of people. A whole lot of people in the punk rock scene especially. That shit is fucked up and evil. It’s the devil, its not cool at all, don’t do it. Yeah, that’s what I say - Don’t do it!
Brody - (under her breath) God, I hated that band...
SHK - Oh, you hated the band, okay.
Brody - (playing air guitar) No, I didn’t hate it, it was just my first band. It started when I was 14. It only lasted 2 years. It was a girl band, punk rock girl band. You know a bunch of 14 year olds trying to play really fast and we didn’t really know how to. (the air guitar playing gets REALLY fast) We all learned together, so it was cool, but it was really just a fucking mess.
SHK - How old were you when you first listened to punk?
Brody - I was 13. My first band (that I heard) was Discharge. That’s really my favorite punk band, still. Fucking Discharge.
Ryan - Me? About the same, 12 or 13. There was this guy who worked in the guitar store I worked at who got me into the Germs and The Bad Brains. I was a little skate rat when I was younger, so I was into that whole obnoxious Red Hot Chili Peppers shit, I guess that was what got me into it.
SHK - Around here most kids start out with metal and graduate into punk.
Ryan - I’m the opposite, I love metal!
SHK - So are you involved at all in Hell Cat?
Brody - Me and Timothy sometimes go check out bands together. Kids send me their tapes all the time...
SHK - How long did you last in catholic school?
Brody - 3 years. I went to the first one, got kicked out, then the 2nd one lasted until about 3 years. I dropped out of school in the 9th grade. I hated school. It fucking sucked. I think everyone hates it. Is there anyone who likes school? I can’t function properly sitting in the same fucking position for a fucking hour.
SHK - I used to go to catholic school for a while and it really sucked.
Brody- Were you baptized?
SHK- Yeah.
Brody - Not me. I wasn’t baptized and that got me in trouble. I got in fucking trouble for drinking jesus’ blood and eating his flesh. “Your not a child of god” they’d say. Fuck you! I just want to get drunk off this shit. Man, they’re the same way. Catholics are drunks! It’s kind of hypocritical in a way. They’re all pedaphiles, too.
SHK - Do you ever get pissed off about all the comparisons to Rancid?
Brody - No! They’re a great fucking band and they’re my best fucking friends, why would that be bad?
SHK - In everything you read in magazines and shit, people are ALWAYS comparing or linking you to Rancid...
Brody - Thats naturally gonna happen cuz I’m his (Tim’s) wife, but I think thats really just lazy journalism. People are quick to jump on that without even trying to get deeper. What are ya gonna do?
SHK - Where did you get the idea for the song “Gypsy Rose Lee”?
Brody- From Gypsy Rose Lee...It’s really about the women who brought me up when I was younger. There was this game we would play when I was real little and I’d be Marilyn Monroe and my friend would be Gypsy Rose Lee. She’d be dancing around with a cape and no underwear on-she was 5...
SHK - A lot of your songs talk about fucked up family life and...
Brody - Everyone in this band comes from a dysfunctional family. A lot of people you meet in punk rock come from a dysfunctional family.
SHK - That’s why we connect to the music.
Brody - Things are a lot better now for my Mother and me. I think that with girls and their mothers you reach a certain age and there’s this undeniable tension. Your trying to leave the nest, she wants you stay...I think for me, I had to realize that my Mom was her own person. It was really weird-I mean when you finnally realize that your mother is her own human being with real feelings. When you realize that even though she’s your mother, she’s a woman with her own identity. It’s a weird thing to go through, but once you do, you’ll be a lot more respectful. I had to become friends with my Mom before we could go back to that mother/daughter relationship. I’m sure it’s like that with Dad’s and their son’s, too.
Ryan- With my Dad, I knew he was his own person, so that didn’t matter. With us, the problem was him relizing that I wasn’t going to be exactly what he wanted to be. My Mom and I get along great. With my Dad, it’s a little weird, but that’s just because he’s highschool football coach guy.
Sink Hole Kristen’s Friend (sorry, don’t know your name - editor) - What do you do for fun when your not on the road?
Brody - I like bookstores a lot. I hang out with my friends. I’m kind of a homebody. We have 2 little kittens. I’ll cook dinner, chill out, watch movies, write...
SHKF - What is your favorite movie?
Brody - Godfather.
SHKF - My favorite’s Scarface!
Brody- Yeah!!! Scarface is good, I like Goodfellas, too. Mob movies fucking rule! Your (talking to Ryan) the only one who hasn’t seen Godfather! I can’t believe that.
Ryan - Neither has Andy or Tony (guitar tech).
Brody - That’s unbelievable. It’s one of the most famous movies in cinema history. Ya gotta see it dude. I don’t like the 3rd one, though-it sucked. The 1st and 2nd were awesome.
SHK- Are you not big on mafia movies?
Ryan - No, I love mafia movies! Goodfellas and Scarface are 2 of my favorite movies ever.
Brody - Yeah, aside from the Godfather movies, there’s this French movie called Betty Blue (sp.?) that I like a lot. It’s the story about a relationship between this crazy fucking girl and her boyfriend and they live in this shack on the beach. It’s a funny movie-it’s all in subtitles, but it’s great. You HAVE to see it. That chick is so fucking beautiful! She’s the reason I dyed my hair black. She’s a crack-head now, but back then...She was fucking gor-geous! She had this gap in her teeth and (motions with her hands to show big tits)
SHK - Well, I know you have to go, but I have to end this interview with you describing yourselves in 5 words.
Ryan - We are the Distillers.
Brody - That’s 4 words dummy. She said words, not syllables. (mumbling) We’re fuckin’ pist as shit.
Ryan - How about “hey we’re the Distillers”?
(editor’s note - that’s still just 4)