Roof of Hal Samples Space, Dallas. Filing video for Mourning's Wake" Photo by Roderick Peña
Tartufi is Lynne Angel and Brian Gorman.
LittleBook: Why did you start a band?? Lynne: I have been playing in bands since I was a kid. It just seemed like the obvious thing to do after moving to SF.
Brian: Why do fat people get fat? They do what they love... or what they love does them... or maybe they have issues with expressing their love. We started a band to avoid the inevitable onset of childhood diabetes.
LB: How did you find each other??
Lynne: Brian and I met at a show and kept on running into each other. At one point he told me he had just become a taxi driver and I thought "this man is BING BONNNG - I must play music with him".
Brian: It was like one of those old Reeses Peanut Butter Cup commercials- the "you put your peanut butter in my chocolate" ones. We were both working in different projects and doing well but not really with anything too significant, and then we met and blaaaamo!!!! We were a salty sweet treat that would be shaped like eggs at Easter and Christmas trees at Chanukah, and still be just as good. No, better.
LB: What's your most memorable moment as a band??
Lynne: Why .... I do believe next week will become our most memorable.
Brian: There was that time that Lynne needed a kidney and I happened to be a perfect donor match. Of course I offered up my big bean without hesitation. Lynne protested though and we stayed up for hours discussing life, family, love of friends, art, and how our choices shape our life's direction. We cried. The sun came up and we had just decided we would share a "band kidney", when Lynne's doctor called. Turns out she was just gassy.
LB: Where do you practice? What do you drink at practice? What do you do at practice when you’re not practicing?
Lynne: At Secret Studios in SF. We drink coffee, tea, water or soda pop. When we are not practicing we are trying to exorcise the demons that live in our gear, re-arrange our rig, or do some cable re-routing job that takes 4 hours only to discover that it was a bad idea, feedback does indeed hurt like a mother, and that we had best put everything back the way it was lest the demons get angrier.
Brian: We practice in a perfect dark box in San Francisco. We drink coffee, tea, soda (diet for Lynne), or water. We don't drink or fuck around at practice, it's all music and business and usually great fun.
LB: What's the hardest thing about being a band in 2009?
Lynne: Living in a city that is so very expensive.
Brian: Our bosses at Tartufi Inc. have yet to offer a compassionate health insurance program for their employees. We are considering a strike.
LB: What's the best thing about being a band in San Francisco?? Lynne: The scene here is AMAZING and this city has been very kind to us in terms of support and affection. There are a TON of incredible bands coming out of the Bay Area and the art scene in general is consistently inspiring. I love it here.....bad.
Brian: There are a million bands and great musicians here. To stand out you really have to work for it, and to stick around for more than a single album cycle you have to work even harder. I like the push that the city gives in that respect, it sets the stage for a cultural meritocracy.
LB: What do you want people to know about your band, what are you doing next?? Lynne: That we travel heavy but it is for good reason. We are about to tour the UK supporting Marnie Stern and play the Super Sonic festival in Birmingham.
Brian: There are just two of us and yes, we are married, brother and sister, with child, and afraid of heights and depression (as well as snakes), but we love fireworks and popcorn. Next up we have a UK Tour, and when we return we are co-organizers of the Rock Make Street Festival in SF (w/ The Bay Bridged, Whiz Bang Fabrics, and Noise Pop). We run a rock music school for kids ages 4-7 called Saturday Morning Rock Out! (w/ local celebrity Paco Romane) and we'll be starting a new session on August 1. We will be booking a few big, all day festival type things around the Bay Area in the fall, planning on a EU tour in October and November, and will spend the last days 2009 finishing writing our next album.
LB: What’s up with your CD where can I get it, where did you record it?? Lynne: You can get Nests of Waves and Wire at your local independent record store, Amazon.com, Itunes and at shows. We recorded it with Tim Green at The Hangar in Sacramento and Louder Studios in SF.
Brian: Looks like Amazon is your best bet currently. We recorded it at The Hanger in Sacramento and at Tim Green's Louder Studios in SF.
LB: Favorite local Band or a memorable show??
Lynne: Low Red Land. Our triple release with them at Slims was rad.
Brian: Low Red Land.... I just heard some piano parts for their upcoming acoustic recording project- holy crap this is going to be good
LB: Favorite venue to Play??
Lynne: Bottom of the Hill is great, as is The Independent, The Rickshaw and Slims. I work at El Rio and therefore think - nay - KNOW that it is one of the best places to play in the city. The bands get treated VERY well there and the sound is great.....so what if the stage is a lil wobbly? Who needs sure footing?
Brian: The V.A.C. in Garden City / Boise Idaho. The Milestone in Charlotte, North Carolina. Space in Dallas Texas. The Oriental in Denver, Colorado
LB: Have you played Treat st. before? What do you like about it?
Lynne: Yes - we co-organize the festival with The Bay Bridged, Whiz Bang Fabrics, and Noise Pop - and played it last year. It was super fun, a huge success and one of the only chances you will get to see so many rad artists and musicians FOR FREE in this city. Rock Make is an outdoor music and craft festival that runs along Treat St between 17th and 18th. It is on Sunday, August 23rd. It starts at 11:00 am, is all ages, and again, admission is FREE! Bands this year include: Tartufi, Low Red Land, Geographer, Two Sheds, The Ferocious Few and many more! See www.rockmake.com for details!
Brian: We organized and played Rock Make last year. It's awesome to play an outdoor, all-ages, free show in SF on a street that we cleaned human feces, needles, and used condoms from hours earlier. We cleaned this street and now we will fill it with your faces that we will rip from your skulls with our fancy rock music, skin-from-face-prying-device that we brought especially for this occasion.
LB: Do any of the members ever take their shirts off at a show or at practice??
Lynne: Ummm no, not anymore.
Brian: Years ago when we first started touring I tried that bullshit. In all honesty I was trying to avoid doing laundry while on the road, but when I see photos of me I look just like every other skinny, rocker douche bag, who should stay clothed at all times in public. Now I go for a run before our shows, sweat through the shirt, play a show, sweat through it again, and then wrap Lynne's post-show sandwich in my twice soaked shirt. Sweat is the fresher keeper.
LB: Who's the smelliest member after a sweaty gig??
Lynne: Me in the feet, Bri in the armpits. A tie.
Brian: I just raised my hand and then put it down after offending myself with my own odor. Guilty as charged.....wait we didn't play a show today. Now this is really embarrassing. Um...., Lynne stinks.
LB: Favorite pre / post show; food, indulgence or ritual??
Lynne: Post show beer for sure.
Brian: Sometimes late at night as we stop for gas between Somewhere, U.S.A. and Somewhere-Else, U.S.A., Lynne will come to the van will a twelve pack of beer and a big orange bag of deliciousness. After a good show, there is nothing like listening to a great album and sharing a bag of Cheetos and some beers before going to sleep at a rest area.
LB: Where do you think live music is heading??
Lynne: Right on over to the UK y'all!
Brian: Probably for the stage, just around showtime.
LB: How do you feel about people downloading your songs for free , do you offer free downloads??
Lynne: We do not offer free downloads - there are many many MANY chances for people to get songs for free these days. We understand it is a reality but appreciate when people purchase our music legally as it does directly support us as working musicians.
Brian: I think we expect people to copy, share, and download our stuff, it's part of our culture now. Artists still need to make a living though, so we prefer the paid option. Dear readers if you can't afford our album I am sure we could work something out along the old barter system rules. I could use a tennis racket and Lynne is always easily swayed by fireworks (big ones though, don't even try to pass any of those rinky-dink, legal in California crap off on her). That's right America, let's make a deal.
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:: T A R T U F I ::
www.tartufirock.net
www.facebook.com/tartufisongs
www.myspace.com/tartufi
