Leaping Lizards

A chat with David Yow of

Jesus Lizard

by Bret Booth

Jesus Lizard continues to be both divine behemoth and raucous rock band.

Grip's own Bret Booth tracked down Jesus Lizard lead singer / main instigator David Yow at a hotel room in Knoxville, Tennessee. Yow, formerly of Scratch Acid and a seasoned veteran of the sound-heavy Chicago scene, has recently begun second careers in acting, music video direction and domestication (!). We asked this Iron Man of Rock about being in the big leagues (JL is signed to Capitol), the band's upcoming album and how you can mature and grow in rock music without losing your intensity.

Grip Monthly So, where are you now?

David Yow At the luxurious Days Inn in the city of 'hard' Knoxville

Grip What's it like down there?

Yow I don't know. We've been hanging out in the hotel room for awhile now. It's a pretty lazy afternoon and we're all just trying to relax.

Grip How was your Richmond show?

Yow I think it was sold out and we were pretty intense. The people seemed excited.

Grip Let's knock out a couple of generic questions first? When is your next record coming out?

Yow We have an EP that will be released on Jetset Records near the end of the year and a full-length album that should be out sometime around March (on Capitol).

Grip Any titles you want to divulge?

Yow No, but as you can guess they are one 4-letter, monosyllabic words.

Grip Are you satisfied with your current sound?

Yow For the most part. We've done some recording in Chicago.

Grip That must feel good, close to your roots and all.

Yow Yeah, except that all of the members except for me live in Chicago. So it's convenient.

Grip Speaking of Chicago, you've been associated with (the independent) Touch & Go Records for awhile. What is their operation like?

Yow It's like one big family. You know just about everyone that works down there. In fact, I used to help in the shipping room from time to time. The employees there are your friends as well as business associates.

Grip Is your experience with Capitol Records completely different?

Yow Well. . . it's not as tight-knit. Capitol has more resources and greater distribution. They also allow us quite a bit of freedom. (For instance) we are still allowed to record with other labels.

Grip Do you find it hard to escape some of the boundaries that critics have often confined your music to? Or do you even care what others say?

Yow I definitely don't give a shit. As for boundaries, I don't think there are any for (Jesus Lizard). On the other hand, we have been lumped in with some bands. Our new record is a step away for certain. It is a lot moodier than some of our previous recordings.

Grip Does that have anything to do with aging?

Yow To some degree. The sound is not the punch-in-the-nose quality of Goat or Liar, but I wouldn't say that we are losing our edge either. Just a subtle stylistic change.

Grip You have been playing a few festivals within the past couple of years. How are they treating you out there in the ampitheatres?

Yow You've gotta take the good with the bad. A ton of music, however-- plenty of problems. Lollapalooza was a completely different animal. 29 shows, 22 of which had reserved seating. It was great to see so many people out, but at the same time I felt that some of our fans were neglected, being stranded out in the distant grass. I was proud to see that our Lollapalooza was the lowest-selling of them all.

Grip Who are some of your favorite musicians to tour with?

Yow Todd Ashley of Cop Shoot Cop, Melvins. . . and Helmet.

Grip Your bandmate, Duane Denison, is an extremely versatile guitarist. The modern jazz stylings of his sideband, Denison-Kimball Trio, seem very anti-Jesus Lizard. Is DK3 a revolt or merely an exploration on his part?

Yow It's all music, just different. {Yow calls over to a man who is apparently rolling a spliff in the hotel room} John-- this guy digs your music!

Kimball (in the background) Wow, that's refreshing!

Grip Do you have any personal urges of your own to explore some different styles?

Yow No, not really. I'm actually satisfied with everything the way it is right now.

Grip That's cool. I hear you've been doing some acting.

Yow That's right. I've acted in two movie, Walls in the City and Bullet of Wire, and have directed one music video for the Offspring.

Grip Describe Walls in the City and your role in it.

Yow I'm actually ashamed of the film. Anyway, it's about this guy who gets a prank phone call and the girl ends up killing her stepfather, etc. I play the role of the boyfriend.

Grip What do you think of acting?

Yow First of all, acting and being a musician are not one and the same, they are entirely different.

Grip I never said they were.

Yow That's good because most people think that because I'm a performer, that that implies acting must be simple (for me). Acting is extremely difficult and a total challenge.

Grip What about music videos?

Yow I had a blast and would love to do some more work in this area.

Grip Do you ever feel that you can settle down? Energy doesn't last forever.

Yow I have been more domesticated of recent. . . spending time at home with my wife and such. I still have energy when I need it.

Grip Is radio a lost artform?

Yow I don't know if it is art anymore, but it seems to have a huge impact. The power of commercial radio is scary.

Grip Have you read any good books on the road?

Yow Books??! I don't really read. Just menus and traffic signs.

Grip Do you have any advice for aspiring musicians?

Yow It's all about meeting the right people and putting loads of time into your craft. If you get lucky enough to record and have (a label) put out the record, make sure it's not half-assed distribution and promotion. Even more important is touring. You need to get out and get in touch with the people who are going to support you. Sonic Youth and Husker Du are perfect examples of this. There is nothing, really, to their music yet they would be all over the place. Look at them now.

{Grip writer gasps for a second of air, realizing that Mr. Yow has attempted to dismantle one of his favorite bands-- Sonic Youth}

Grip Any stories you want to share before we go?

Yow I was talking to (Steve) Albini and he's a pretty good friend. He was hanging out with Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, working on (Walking Into Clarksdale). Led Zeppelin had always been one of my favorites growing up, so I asked him to play some of our music for those guys. He played them the Goat album, and apparently all they could say was 'trendy." I don't care if people dislike our music. . . but 'trendy'? One word, that's it. I was disappointed.

Grip Kill yr. Idols, huh?

Yow Something like that.