Interview:
Terri Kennedy
Siouxee Sioux?!?! I've met Siouxie Sioux...and baby, she's no Terri Kennedy!!!
The media and some fans' constant comparisons between the lead singer of Siouxee and the Banshees and Southern
California's premier Gothic Diva has been made numerous times. The fact is that we have in our own backyard an artist
whose influence on the Goth scene, music, and fashion, transcends the mainstream success of the heralded Siouxee Sioux
(With all deference to Siouxee's amazing talent, charisma, and beauty!). A singer whose vocal talent, lyricism, and
performance gifts are at least comparable and in many ways exceed that of most all of the lead singers, regardless of their
gender, in gothic music today. A businesswoman whose acumen, savvy, and drive to be the best has led to eight years of
success in owning her own retail outlet. The truly amazing part about this Renaissance Woman, as the following interview
will reveal, is that she remains humble and unfazed by her achievements and talent, spreading praise and deflecting personal
glory. So, without further fanfare, here is 13 questions with Terri Kennedy.
13 Questions With Terri Kennedy
(1) What does "Gothic" mean to you, and why would you say you are drawn to darkness?
Terri: Ever since I was very young I have been fascinated and greedily devoured dark literature. I especially loved Edgar
Allen Poe... Also Halloween was always my favorite holiday..and I remember doing a little haunted house on our front porch
every year for trick-or-treaters. I really enjoy supernatural subject matter ..especially ghost stories, having had a few
experiences with unexplainable happenings. Later, in the early eighties..hanging out in the punk scene, I derived great
pleasure from freaking *normal* people out with the way I dressed. Now it seems pretty tame to me.. but I can still envision
the reactions of people recoiling in fear! As far as defining gothic..that is difficult because it seems to be evolving rapidly at
the moment with all of the media attention and the swelling ranks of people involved in the scene. If I define gothic on a
personal level..I can say I enjoy creating opulent Victorian inspired and fetish-influenced apparel designs for myself and I
enjoy admiring what other people are creating. I think the music elements of goth should not be solely confined to modern
music. I love the nocturnes of the classical composer Debussey and opera...which can be very depressing! I enjoy some dark
cinema like the movie, *Gothic* and the silent film masterpiece, *M*, featuring Peter Lorre. My gothic interests lie in any art
form which is beautiful, dramatic and has exquisite pathos at its core...like poisonous honey.
(2) Have you always been interested in "dark" things...places, people, art, etc., or was/are there other unrelated things that
interest(ed) you?
Terri:I have always had interests in dark subjects. Having touched on that already..I can add that I have plenty of non-gothic
interests. I love magicians...especially Penn and Teller. And I’ll go see a well-crafted comedy film before I’ll see a
tear-jerker. My non-goth musical tastes extend to more avant-garde performers like Yma Sumac and Martin Denny, Big-band
and I collect weird vinyl of Japanese lounge singers, Russian & Greek folk music.....
(3) Do you go out much to concerts, clubs, and parties, or do you tend to lead a more private and reserved lifestyle?
Terri: Because I own a business, Ipso Facto, I work 7 days a week and don’t have much social life when I am involved in a
huge project..which is nearly all the time. But, conversely I can stay up to all hours and get up late, if I desire and take
vacations when I choose. I rarely go to parties, and never to bars, but I do manage a club or three a month...usually for the
purpose of networking, or if the band is playing. Sometimes my husband and I will play chess at a local coffeehouse. I enjoy
reading at home, exploring the internet, listening to music. Of course we have band practice twice a week as well, and we
have been recording a lot lately.
(4) How does your music reflect your views on the world in general, and/or your life in particular, and in what ways? Is it
mostly observations and emotions, or is there a message you want to convey?
Terri: The lyrics I write for Stone 588 are always from a deeply personal view. The goddess subject matter stems from my
personal belief system, and ghost and supernatural references because of the interests I explained. I also write a bit about
historical events that interest and inspire me like the persecution of women accused of witchcraft during the Inquisition.
Relationships sometimes inspire me to write about personal emotions usually anguish or despair. As far as any message, I
try to leave it open to the interpretation of the listener.
(5) Through your band and Ipso Facto you come in contact with many different types of people, and of these people,
undoubtedly many are young. What do you see as the biggest similarities and the most obvious differences between the
baby-boomers, the younger people that you come in contact with, and yourself?
Terri: I meet a lot of kids who think that anarchy is cool and capitalism is bogus. Of course, being an unapologetic capitalist,
I always argue the point that anarchy is only possible when you live at home and your parents are feeding and putting you
through school. Once out in the real world you have to sleep around in a figurative sense to get what you want. I was an
idealist once and politically active. Now I always vote out the incumbents to get rid of the cancer, not find solutions because
there are none, except for *less government.* On the other hand, I am inspired by the enthusiasm of the Manson-inspired kids
who can frighten normals by their appearance, while having a giddy good time. And the kids are an inspiration for me to
continue to seek out new music and fashion.
(6) What influence contributed the most to your decision to start Stone 588? Were there other bands you performed in? How
were they different than Stone 588?
Terri: I had been in 17 different projects before I met Dave and began our collaboration. I began in high school choir, and
later played in punk bands (namely *Humane Restraint*, *HKA*), avante garde and folk bands (*Borogoves*). I did a few
solo recordings where I played all of the instruments as well. My last band before Stone 588 were *Blur* (BEFORE the now
famous band of the same name- it referred to the fact that we all had vision problems) and *Crash Came Dark* which was a
dark/psychedelic band. I was happy to meet and work with Dave, because his approach to guitar playing was so
non-egotistical. It left room for me to apply more melodic and complex vocal structures and I didn’t have to scream to be
heard!
(7) What drove you to open your store Ipso Facto? What makes it so unique?
Terri: I became tired of working for other people. I had all sorts of jobs including stints as a bank teller, retail store
manager, wholesale sales rep, showroom manager, graphic artist. I had attended fashion design school and wanted to open a
boutique where I could sell my own designs, as well as have an underground art gallery in the same space. The store has
evolved away from both of those things in the last eight years, but the gothic/industrial elements have remained. We try to
market creative apparel BEFORE the chain stores uncover and pervert it. We offer a selection of dark/perverse/ angst-ridden
music, fashion and literature under one roof, which I think is pretty unique and convenient for our clientele.
(8) I believe you mentioned that you are a very literary person. What genres and authors do you enjoy the most, and how often
do you read simply for amusement?
Terri: My book collection includes poetry by Sylvia Plath, Poe, Goethe, Herman Hesse, Omar Khayyam, Marquis de Sade,
Anais Nin, vintage photo erotica, Hollywood & crime books, biographies, and works of historical, goddess and supernatural
subjects. I have VERY little time to read, but I usually finish a book in one or two sittings as I read quickly and devour
voraciously.
(9) With the progress in telecommunications and the internet, do you see generally positive or negative impacts on your life
and also future generations, and why do you think so?
Terri: Oh I definitely appreciate the internet because it means I communicate with people all over the world for pleasure and
regarding both band and store business. I guess the only fear is addiction. I imagine virtual reality junkies will be common in
the future. But the public and government cannot be the watchdog of the irresponsible, which is why I am vehemently
opposed to censorship on the net and other media. I hope the information exchanged on the net can be free of the
sensationalism and lies that now plague our news media. As an educational tool, I think the net has boundless potential for
kids. I think its much more entertaining and involving than watching television..and an incentive for people to learn to use
computers.
(10) Do you believe the future of the world appears generally brighter than in the past, or that it is bleak and dying? If you
had three wishes for yourself or the world, what would they be?
Terri: I honestly don’t know. I think future events can run in many directions. I simply hope for the best and prepare for the
worst. I think this whole millennium fever is ridiculous. I do think there is much too much violence in the U.S. and I blame the
proliferation of guns. I am not for more government control, but somehow guns should not be so readily available. With a gun
it is much too effortless to erase someone on a momentary whim. I don’t know what the solution is. Our transient society
contributes to individuals not caring about their neighborhood and other people. European society is much more
stable...people know their neighborhood law enforcement and it’s not such an us/them situation. You’re not as likely to shit in
your own backyard if you know you’re going to be living there for most of your life. Here, we are a society of renters and
transients...not knowing your neighbors..not supporting local businesses.. everyone buys at monolithic malls..No wonder
people are apathetic. Its depressing. L.A. is particularly bad because we don’t use public transportation, so we’re all
isolated in our little vehicles. I’m guilty of it too...You know, I really enjoy walking in the downtown of Fullerton where I
live at 3 a.m...its completely empty like some Twilight Zone episode and its seems so much more peaceful...no angry,
negative, impatient people. The other vital factor in building up our society is education. Its really hard to learn in the
environment at our schools, but so urgently vital that kids educate and advance themselves. I am embarrassed that I don’t
really have much cultural education or knowledge and am not really bilingual. When I talk to Europeans about American
culture..they say *What culture?!* We live in a land where they tear down old buildings to make parking lots. They learn
about history, and stuff like ballroom dancing and don’t have a choice about not finishing school. In Belgium, where my
husband is from, you are breaking the law if you don’t vote. O.k. I know what I said about government control..but it works in
this case. What we need is more relaxation of laws restricting personal freedoms, like in the areas of prostitution and drugs.
In countries where these things are legal..there is not more crime as a result..just less money to be made on the black market.
If people want to engage in these things. Let them do it legally, and they won’t be stealing from their neighbors to afford the
black market price. Just because I don’t engage in these activities doesn’t mean I don’t think people should have the right to
do so if they desire. As far as a dream for society..I guess I wish its based along matriarchal lines as it once was and that
religions didn’t have a stranglehold on the political system in our country and other nations.
(11) What are your views on the institutions of the world, and specifically American institutions (ie. corporations, churches,
non-profit organizations, the justice system, families, banks, government, and mass media), do you hold them in generally
high or low repute? Do you have faith in any of them? If not, what do you place your faith in, if at all?
Terri: I believe that the institutions are still just comprised of individuals who make up society. I think there is hope for
working with big business if brought to the level of the individual. I prefer to see small business succeed..being part of that
contingent...this is another feature of European society I find preferable. I think the effectiveness of the justice system is just a
roll of the dice, but I think there are a lot of good people working in it..I have had several lawyers help me with different
aspects of my personal and business...they‘re not all bad! Law enforcement too..I guess it depends what side you’re on in a
dispute. If we as individuals treat these people as individuals with respect than everything would be more positive. The
media needs a major overhaul in regards to focus. We need to be more informed about what our government is doing and less
of those cute little news reports about puppies and celebrities. What is the CIA up to? Why does our foreign policy support
oppressive dictators and sell weapons to terrorists? That is where the issue of big business gets more sinister. Multinationals
really do hold the reigns of our government. Money. I only really have faith in myself because you can’t really depend on
anyone else, not completely. I feel as though I can achieve anything I want BECAUSE no one else is going to do it for me.
Self reliance is freedom. Of course its easy for me to say this because I am not handicapped in any way. Being helpless
would be suffocating. People who can succeed with a handicap are REALLY my heroes.
(12) What are your views on life and death, and do you live your life differently because of these views? Do you think it's
better to live in the past, live for the moment, or plan for the future?
Terri: I can only think of the present because its so full for me right now. I can’t be sure, but I think the game is over once
your batteries are dead. Try to make the most of now..because there are no second chances. I know this can’t explain some
supernatural experiences I have had. My beliefs oscillate between earth-mother lore and hard science...my focus being more
on the morality of today’s actions than the question of the afterlife. As for the future, I know I won’t be in America
forever..my husband wants to return to Europe eventually. I enjoy traveling, being challenged and experiencing other cultures.
(13) Would you rather be adored and loved, or respected and revered, and why? Do you ever ponder what your legacy will
be? If so, what would you like it to be?
Terri: That’s a bit narcissic, isn’t it? I don’t really have a concern for how people perceive me now or in the future...except
for the small circle of those close to me. But, I have to say it was rather gratifying to know our Stone 588 cd is in the Library
of Congress archives as part of the copyright process. There, within that medium, my written works will be archived for a
long time after I leave this reality.
Fascinating...don't you think? Truly an inspiring person. Get a copy of Stone 588's cd and you'll find out why the Tragic
Kingdom of Orange County's own Gwen Stefani would do well to seek voice lessons from Terri. You'll also wonder why
groups like No Doubt have millions of fans. The answer: because they obviously haven't heard Stone 588 yet!! If you have
time, and are in the area, stop by Ipso Facto and buy yourself some new clothes, or better yet...get pierced, it's exciting and
fun! The following is more information on Terri's store, Ipso Facto, and her band, Stone 588:
Ipso Facto is located at 517 N. Harbor Blvd, Fullerton, CA 92832. Phone: 714-525-7865.
Fax 714-525-5053. Email: ipsofacto@earthlink.net
Ipso Facto Website: http://home.earthlink.net/~ipsofacto/
Stone 588 Website: http://home.earthlink.net/~ipsofacto/s588.htm
Stone 588’s cd, Door in the Dragon’s Throat, can be purchased by mail from the contact numbers above for $14.99 plus
$2.00 frt.
A brief discography of Stone 588:
Compilations Stone 588 has appeared on:
Disease of Lady Madeline- Anubis Records, San Francisco,CA
TV Terror-Felching a Dead Horse-ReConstriction-San Diego, CA
What Sweet Music They Make vol. 2- Thee Vampire Guild, Dorset, UK
Reflections in the Looking Glass- A Tribute to Siouxsie- Cleopatra Records, Los Angeles, CA
Fight Amnesia’s From the Dragon’s Mouth-Germany
Children of the Damned-A Tribute to the Damned- Apollyon- Germany
Sounds from the Underground Vol. 1: Fear Productions Devon, UK
Subnation vol. 2- San Diego, CA
100th Anniversary Tribute to Dracula- Cleopatra Records, Los Angeles, CA
The Vault Compilation- San Antonio, Texas
Gothic Grimoire’s Tribute to the Cure-Germany
Songs from the Wasteland- A Tribute to the Mission-Hollows Hill ( XXX Records) Los Angeles, CA
Back to the homepage