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Coming Up My lil chat with PurpleMelon the band
-----------------------------------take 3: Note I had, interviewed the band during the summer. However, the interview was wiped out and the band happily agreed to another, thru their very busy hectic schedule- My first interview of a Rock Band-
Thanx Boys! :) don't blame me if it sucks! lmao! Below purplemelon.
Side Note: Oct 31st Happy Birthday TOM!~ posted a Birthday message-vid for you from Paul McCartney of course!!!! hehehehe Just posted promo vid Purple Melon at the Viper Room in November see it below!!!!
harleyblues here with Purplemelon the band via the wonders of the internet .. I'm in Northern Calif. PM, in Southern Ca. The band has graciously offered to do another interview since, the 1st was lost.. I am chattin with, two of the band members. Owen & Tom. I hear, Jason, is in the background nursing himself back to health
Owen he is, hes been poorly for over a week now...but nearly back to full health
hb.Hello Fella's So please tell us what is PURPLE MELON
Owen:& Tom Hello!!
hb: hi guys!
Purple Melon is a four piece , British Band...that try to write and perform what they consider to be real music
harleyblues: lovely!!
Owen: Sorry, not try WE Do! ( Owen laughs )
harleyblues
So give us the bands stats where is everyone from who does what ? ha!!
Owen: ok Tom Hill..lead vocals, guitar, piano Owen Barry..guitar and vocals Eric Joyce...Bass guitar and vocals Jason Ganberg ...Drums and vocals
harleyblues: So people have been asking, where DID the name Purple melon come from?
Owen:There are many rumours circulating around the origin of the name...but the honest answer is....
we new we needed a name...so we just came up with a list of different names, then it was a case of seeing which we could use and register and Purple Melon IT WAS! this may or may not be the actual reason tho:P:P but its the less crude version
harleyblues Ok so the rumor bout Eric isn't true than?
Owen: it seems a lot more people like the name Purple Melon over here in the U.S.Well...he does have unusual coloured genitalia...but its just a myth that its linked to the name
harleyblues lmfao!!!!!!!! ")")
So, how long has the band been together and I understand you recently moved to California from England?...
Owen: the band has been together just over 3yrs, but the current and what we'd call the definitive line-up..have been together 18months
harleyblues cool
Owen we moved to LA late Feb. 09
harleyblues must been something of a culture shock?
Owen and so far loving it
to be honest... the world of Purple Melon is a fun/surreal place where ever we are, its such a unique mix of people involved, there's never a dull moment.
moving to America was just a continuation of what went before, just a different city
How would you describe Purplemelon's music style?
.
Owen:
I like to describe our sound as very nostalgic yet fresh classic in a classic rock genre
harleyblues:right on! Your sound is fresh & exciting!!
Owen thank you..(smiling)
harleyblues
Who are your inspirations?- be honest
Owen I think its mature yet still has a young spirit as individuals , we all are very different I terms of our musical backgrounds there are a lot of influences we have in common between the four of us.
harleyblues....like?
.
Owen: The Faces, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Free, Stones,Beatles, Wings, ;);),10cc, but there are a lot of unusal influences too.
harleyblues; nice, all British bands :):)
Owen: a lot of jazz, blues , even pop artists we just like good , well crafted music. what ever the genre, if its connects with us...then its OK!
harleyblues:
what do you think of Paul McCartney? :):)
Owen:
One of the greatest song writers and part of the biggest band ever.Genius
harleyblues
that Macca is !
Owen: an inspiration to any musician.
.
harleyblues What about The Beatles?
Owen The Beatles are a huge influence on all of us...we constantly find inspiration in what they achieved.Tom is a huge huge huge Fan. they're music is the benchmark to which we all aspire to meet.
harleyblues: Nice.Does the band cover any Beatles, Faces etc at gigs?
Owen to be honest...it take a very brave or stupid band to cover a Beatles song. It needs to be done well or not at all.
harleyblues. kinda like Oasis? hahahaha
Owen: Those songs are so well known, to cover them...u are never going to please everyone. ha yeah :) laughs..we play Maybe I'm Amazed. Great song but no actual Beatles. We do very few covers
harleyblues. Like any of the current bands today?
Owen to be honest...not a lot The Black Crowes, Queens of the Stone Age. We like Jellyfish, when they were around ...There's an English band called Big Linda...up and coming group.
harleyblues Getting back to the Wings cover.. Tom can hit em High notes?
Owen Tom does hit those notes! as you'll hear soon enough im sure.Kings of Leon are ok
but none of those band are playing in the Purple Melon household any where near as our pre 1979 collection
for us, its making the old... new and relevant to today. The kids of today are missing out on the good stuff
harleyblues: Sorry, I believe Purplemelon is far more musically talented than Kings Of Leon, much more.
Owen: ):) :):) :):) :):) ( huge Smiles!) thank you Christina
harleyblues..aww your welcome
Owen
to be honest, we're not huge fans...( of Kings of Leon) .but its a step in the right direction compared to most modern bands. They are good at what they do tho
harleyblues
speaking of old music making it new what are
your thoughts on the 60's 70's vibe should it make a come back?Owen
I guess there was a recent 80s come back...I wouldn't be surprised if there is a total 60s 70s come back so many great bands from that era, it would be great, especially if it helps push our music out to more people so...we are doing our best to make that come back happen!
Note: Purple Melon Live tonight at IndependentVideoshow.com @ 6pm pst
harleyblues
:):) ( I'm laughing) Is the band all caught up in the Rockin Roll lifestyle.. ?
Owen
ha, no not really...
harleyblues..??
Owen we like to party and have fun..but we keep it seperate from the music
harleyblues does that include drug use or?
Owen: non of us got into music because we wanted to be Rock Stars and party , get drunk, take drugs ,have massive egos etc...we all started doing what we do because we love music its all about the music no we no we're not a druggy bunch at all
harleyblues right on!!!:)
Owen: you'll be more likely to find us having a good feed and a few pints of lager we like a good Curry!in fact, we like to eat..lots the music is our love...and all those other trappings are just a distraction...
hb So none of ya's fit the bill of a Keith Richards?
pm:we like to have a lot of fun and a laugh, and because we're in a band ,i guess it would be easy to assume we'd be bad druggy types....but no, none of us are quite in Keith's shoes yet..or intend to be, apart from music fame.
hb speaking of eats what do you like to eat since coming to the states?
pm hmm...we love a good Burger! so many different burger chains to try and choose from:):) some awesome Mexican food too.
hb and Tom LOVES the Curly fries...
pm yes ! he does lol
pm Tom is an Odd ball I guess we all are in different ways it's a very dynamic group, like no other band ive been in before a mix of characters that just works I guess.
hb So I understand you are making a new album who produced it details please :):)
pm: we actually started making the album back in 08. in the UK and it was finally complete around May 09.
we worked long and hard with Paul Stacey in the studio, and made a record we are all
very proud of Paul is a truely awesome musician and producer...we learned so much in the time we spent making the record (Paul was guitarist in the Black Crowes, and produced their last two records)
hb: wow, coolio so you got some support from the Crowes :):)
pm:
we recorded at Rockfield studios in Wales, where Queen recorded Bohemian Rhapsody, and many other classic records were made there. We did it the old fashioned way as well..we recorded to tape
hb damn very old school.. nostalgic how many takes and reels of feed did you guys go thru in the making of the album?
pm ha! I've no idea but i know we spent a long time in the studio and Paul worked us all VERY hard.
hb the name of your upcoming album?
pm The Album is most likely going to be called Henry's Rocket which is a song from the album
hb How has the bands popularity increased since moving to the states which venues have you played?
pm: when we moved here we knew very few people...just a few myspace friends we started out playing smaller clubs, first band on, playing to hardly anyone but we just stated going out , meeting people, we found anyone we convinced to come see us once...always came back, and even better, they brought new people with themso now we have a really good crowd , and healthy following here..its amazing how quickly its grown the word has really spread. So we play The Viper Room, The Key Club, The Mint, Knitting Factory
hb.those are the happenings to be at :P:P
pm
all the good Hollywood venues also still try to get out to new places tho...its so important to keep reaching out to new people keep people talking about the band, and making it grow
hb How does the LA scene differ to London?
pm It seems there are a lot more people out, and up for going to see live music...any day of the week
hb so true in LA
pm in London its more of a weekend thing I think thats why its easier to get a buzz going about a band here
harleyblues: What has been the crowd response to Purplemelon? you guys aren't hard to look at all nice looking lads
pm: its odd, because people that see us for the first time just stare...
hbhehehehehe!
pm then after that,they seem to just have fun we're lucky, we seem to attract a really good bunch of people to our shows
hb your look is very old school
pm we usually get a really good fun vibe, just because everyone there,including us..are just fans of music
hb being British brings its fascination also
pm: I find it has helped. Being English and in a Rock band will get you noticed out here, but I guess if u cant back it up,then u will sink!
harleyblues so the expectation is high :P:P
pm maybe , we dont know. I think it just gets u noticed initialy
hb meaning, they're British, good looking, and can play ha!!
Owen well...if u say so
hb so modest :):)
pm it seems to be going well so far anyway
hb give us an interesting or dark fact of each off the band members
Owen: hmm ....I'm thinking
hb take your time Ha!!
pm Tom can hold his breath for over 20seconds lol Eric is fatter than he looks, Jason has webbed feet, and I don't actually exist.
harleyblues..hahahahahaha
Owen sorry, cant think of anything that not rude
hb rude?
Owen ok...Jason and Owen don't eat fish or seafood, Tom hates zucchini. Eric will eat anything.hes a waste disposal unit
hb what has been your most valuable music experience, since coming to California?
pm tricky..just being able to play so many different venues and learning the value of loyal fans and friends they have really helped us settle in and get things happening here LA is just a base , we plan to try and have Fans all over the US...then the World! but the people that helped us start out here are invaluable to us.
hb what happened to "Don't give up" on You tube your vid?
pm we took it down because it was the demo version the album version is yet to come
hb I love that video
pm :):) (smiles)
pm well we'll try hard to improve on it for you!
hb aww just dedicate a song to me on your next gig and record it with great audio, will do for my blog :):)
pm" :):) we actually really need to get some good quality live clips up.so when we get that sorted i will see to it!
hb what's next for Purplemelon ?
pm We would all love to go back to London at some point and play Wembley Stadium. 90,000 people amazing! there are some pretty amazing stadiums and Arenas here in the US too
harleyblues
do you have any gigs coming up?
Owen: ...next for Purple Melon...we are in talks with Record Labels and releasing the album, also a Possible TV show, and documentary..lots in the pipeline! then next two shows we have are at The Viper Room, on the 7th and 19th of November
hb what ? a TV show, documentary?
pm well we have had a camera crew documenting us for the past couple of years...but we're in talks about a tv show as well, but we'll see...lots of cool stuff going on :):) We tend to keep our myspace up to date on gigs.. www.purplemelon.co.uk
hb a tv show in the states? that would be something .. VH1?
pm cant really say too much about the show at the moment, but if it goes off then it will be a huge help for us in spreading our music to a wider audience will keep u posted!
hb: Making the grade a British band in Cali..Any last words thoughts , rants, raves you'd like everyone to know?
pm: Yes!
we want people to help make real music come back, and help us do so by joining us on the Purple Melon facebook page Owen
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1587013901&ref=name#/purplemelonmusic?ref=mf
Help spread the word. Tell your friends, and your friends friends
and your friends friends friends etc...Support live Music Real Music..thats all ;);) Thank you for the interview and for being patient with us.....
hb: thank you so much Owen, Tom, for giving us in site into PURPLEMELON the band!!!!
pm: You are very welcome. the first (3rd) of many perhaps
Promo Vid of Purple melon's upcoming Gig at the Viper Room 8852 W Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA ) On November 19 2009
hb: So there you have it people my lovely lil chat/interview with the hip- hot Rawkin lil band Purplemelon. See them live! see them soon! check them out on MySpace * Facebook
Dig this interview? please leave a comment below :)
harleyblues~
All fotos courtesy of Purple Melon :)
Oct 31st Tom's Birthday!! Well they had this lil chat online Purple Melon did, as mentioned above. a few accoustic ditty's thanx lads for mentioning This blog, the interview, and saying hello to me via a tv cam.. kinda cool, I seen ya waving! :) You guys are the best...
Love & hugs harleyblues/christina~
xxxxo~
We wish for Purple Melons Huge continued Success!!!
