Interview conducted by Carlos in March 1997 Thank you for allowing me and the readers of Carmin Vampire know a little more or have a specific idea about your group. As the first question, we’d like to know the names of the members and how long its been since you started. Dave Rhine-guitar; Terri Kennedy-vocals; Eileen Bowe-bass, keyboards; Mike-drums Terri: I met Dave through a drummer in his band, Guts on the Floor which was trying to reform. They had played around the L.A. scene in the mid-eighties. That incarnation never ended up happening, but we enlisted the services of Guts bassist, Jon McFerson and started Stone 588. After Jon moved out of state to attend college, we went through several rhythm sections, working with bassist ,Tony Sequido for a couple of years. I met Eileen at my store where she was consigning tapes of her band Dichroic Mirror. She befriended the band and engineered half of our cd, Door in the Dragon’s Throat. She now plays bass and keyboards in Stone 588, along with our new drummer Mike. What has been the outcome from the beginning until now? Terri: We released our first cassette in 1993, entitled "Eyes of a Statue"; "Eden Lost" in 1994; "Catharsis" in early 1995 and the CD "Door in the Dragon’s Throat" in November 1995. We have participated in a number of compilations along the way including "The Disease of Lady Madeline;"on Anubis, compiled by X, House of Usher DJ; the Siouxsie compilation,"Reflections in the Looking Glass" on Cleopatra; Thee Vampire Guild’s "What Sweet Music They Make vol.2" out of England; Apollyon’s "Children of the Damned" from Germany; "from the Dragon’s Mouth" from The German fanzine Fight Amnesia. Also soon to be released is the Mission tribute "Songs from the Wasteland" on Apollyon, "TV Terror-Felching a Dead Horse" on ReConstriction, and the new Subnation comp. Do any of you reflect either through the music or lyrics personal experiences? Terri: The lyrics I write are deeply personal. Subject matter ranges from history, spirits and myths to personal relationships, which are a good source because such emotions are deep, raw and real. . I use metaphor to broaden the meaning for the listener to derive their own interpretation. I understand supernatural events were a major source of inspiration to the group..can you relate some incidents? Terri; Both Dave and I have had supernatural experiences. I have encountered the spirit of someone I worked with who died in a tragic accident. I woke up one night to find him standing next to my bed trying desperately to tell me something, but not being able to communicate. I sat up and said "Go Away." After I opened my eyes again, he was gone. Dave had several meetings with spirits, including the time he and his girlfriend were outside and both saw the ghost of a kid leaning up against a car...also the specter of a woman maternally stroked his head when he was sick as a child. We recorded in what was reputed to be a haunted studio where the spirit of a young child would mischievously disconnect jacks from amps when no-one was looking, but we never experienced anything. I recently acquired an old house and several of us have heard the sound of washing dishes and whispers, which we think is the spirit of the old lady who died in the house, but we never see anything. Unfortunately, she doesn’t actually clean up our kitchen!...(I am sitting here alone at home typing this at five in the morning, hoping whatever spirits abound don’t decide to make an appearance right now.) Would you say that gothic essentials deal mostly or come out from this source? Terri: I couldn’t begin to guess what gothic essentials are, nor do I find it relevant. I think there is far too much emphasis on adhering to some kind of mold already created. Everyone should write and create in the way that best suits themselves. It makes it a lot more interesting for the audience! Personally I have been interested in literary forms that delve into the darker side since I was young..long before I discovered goth. I studied ancient cultures in college and my continued reading has an emphasis on women’s roles in society and myths. My most recent lyrical effort targeted the magickal properties of menstrual blood as the subject which really has a lot of historical significance to previous matriarchal societies, but has been vilified by today’s culture as taboo. How do you see the Gothic scene at this point? Terri: The Los Angeles scene has increased greatly lately and there has been a lot of television and print media coverage . Very little of this has been accurate, but it has brought some positive results regardless of how they paint goths as satan-worshipping and suicidal. For the last 7 years, I have owned a gothic apparel and music store in Southern California and have seen it really grow in the last two years. Right now a lot of clubs in our area have been established so there are alot of places for bands to perform. But the DJs need to play more new music, and there is also too much emphasis on appearance and not musicianship, culture or being real! Are you acquainted with the Gothic scene in Mexico? Terri: I have only heard from bands who have been fortunate enough to play in Mexico City how numerous and passionate the fans were when they played. We are definitely interested in performing in Mexico. My personal experience playing at a Spanish gothic venue here in Southern California, was very pleasant as the audience got really involved with the show and they offered some cool visual with videos of atmospheric vampire films. I have recently become acquainted with some of the Spanish/Mexican gothic /darkwave bands whose music I really enjoy and am hoping to be exposed further. Where do you think lies the tie/connection between a group and the Spanish audience although they can’t understand the language? Terri: I think music is a language in itself. Rhythm is probably more powerful than words to stir emotions. There are a lot of European bands that I enjoy without understanding the lyrical content. I like the sound of different languages than my own.. Many lend themselves to the beauty of melody much better than English...like Latin (which I sang in church choirs) Why is it hard to hear or accept Spanish speaking bands in America. Terri: I think the huge Spanish audience hear is just perhaps discounted by the American public because they are simply not aware of them. I heard a story where a well known English speaking radio DJ had a group from Mexico as guests on his show and he was rather indignant that there was a group playing huge sold-out shows here in Southern California that he had never heard of. The language difference does create a barrier by the way it is marketed and the prejudices of the average American. But I think if people here could be more exposed to it, they would appreciate the music, especially in the goth scene because bands like Dead Can Dance and Cocteau Twins often use non-language type singing in the songs with successful results. I have a very low opinion of the American mainstream music market anyway. Payola is the only way to ensure that commercial stations will play your music. So Stone 588 has no better chance of getting airplay than the Spanish -language bands because mainstream radio wouldn’t play us regardless. Anything that can’t be neatly categorized is rejected by the labels because they can’t easily exploit it. So an eclectic group like Miranda Sex Garden lost their contract because they don’t fit in any category. Aditionally, I think audiences need to demand new music. In the goth clubs, which are supposed to be home to “the alternative,” people would rather dance to ten year old songs than check out new music they are unfamiliar with.. There shouldn’t be a “herd mentality” in what is supposed to be a cutting edge scene. What is the difference between the European influence here and the Spanish? Terri: For the moment I think the Spanish music is less distributed here to listeners outside the Spanish community. But I think that is going to change rapidly. If the scenes start to overlap then American goths will hopefully embrace the music coming out of Mexico and Spain and vice versa. I know that a lot of European groups purposely sing in English, not their native language, to have a cross continental appeal which translates into more records sold. They have much smaller areas where any one language dominates, so they are much more compelled to use English which many more people understand. While this allows people in various European countries to comprehend the music's lyrics, I know certain German bands have adopted the stance that they should preserve the use of their native language in their music on purpose because of the English language dominance. I can understand both sides, but it is sad that Americans mostly don’t have language skills in any other language but English and expect the arts to adapt! If possible do you plan to play in Mexico in the near future? Terri: If a promoter can fund our expenses we will be estatic to perform in Mexico. But as we are self-financed we cannot hope to accept any offers of shows far from our home due to financial constraints. Promoters please contact us! Lastly is there anything you’d like to say to Carmin Vampire’s readers? We appreciate this chance to expose your readers to our viewpoints and hope their interest is aroused. We are working to get distribution in Mexico, but meanwhile if anyone is interested in the music of Stone 588 please write us at Ipso Facto at 517 N.Harbor Blvd, Fullerton, CA 92832 USA or send $2 for a catalog. Our CD may be purchased for $18.99 postage paid to Mexico from this address. We are also online at http://home.earthlink.net/~ipsofacto/s588.htm email address ipsofacto@earthlink.net The online catalog of Ipso Facto is at http://home.earthlink.net/~ipsofacto/Back to the homepage