1.Please list
members + give a brief history of the band.
Dave Kaufman -guitar/vocals Jim MacAlpine -guitar/vocals Josh Kogon
-bass Nick Wombolt-drums. Mark Gillis played bass and sang a bit before
he moved to Montreal. Dave Mark and I lived together and when other
bands we were in were slowly dying we decided to throw something together.
I knew Nick from another previous band and thought he might be up
for it.
2.
What does VKNGS mean to you?
I don't know. It looks cool when you write it down.
3.
What were the original goals of the band, and have they changed over
time? If so, what are your new goals?
Every time we achieve a goal we set new ones. New goals include getting
this new record out, playing places we haven't yet.
4.
What politics and/or ethics, if any, take part in the band's writing
and business choices.
We don't have any strict ethical policies that come into play for
anything. We work and deal with people we know and like, and we don't
deal with assholes. We are punctual to a fault. Nick and I are really
big on that kind of thing.
5.
What is your take on the current state of the punk/diy scene locally
in Halifax and nationally within Canada?
That's a hard question to answer as we haven't been west of Ontario
as a band. In Halifax? I guess it's good. There are a lot of bands,
but not too many venues for younger bands. I'm old. I don't get out
that much anymore.
6.
What is your musical background? When did punk/hardcore/whatever come
into play and how have your past bands influenced you to where you
are now?
I got into it through skateboarding, meeting new people and getting
turned on to new bands. My then-girlfriend's mom took me to a record
store and said I could pick any cassette I wanted, and I got Black
Flag's 'My War' and it ruined my life.As far as learning from past
bands, you learn from your mistakes and hopefully don't repeat them.
This band is alot heavier than anything I've done before, but I've
always been into this stuff. We were talking about this the other
day, we have never had a shitty practice. We always have fun. This
band is an outlet for so much shit, you can't not have fun playing
these songs. With some other bands I used to dread going to practice
because you knew it was going to be 3 hours of bullshit, walking on
eggshells around whoever is in a pissy mood, or dudes would be so
fucking high they couldn't remember songs we'd been playing for a
year. We practice so infrequently that half the time we just yak and
catch up and make fun of each other.
7.
What do you think sets VKNGS apart from other bands?
That's not for me to say. I don't know. The burl factor maybe.
8.
I read an interview in which you stated that you never plan on providing
lyric sheets to your music; can you elaborate on this position? What
are some of the things you try to communicate through your music,
if not lyrically?
We try to write songs that keep us interested musically, lyrics are
secondary. None of them are any good, few make sense, and most are
lifted straight from books or other bands. Now you know.
9.
Tell me a little bit about your relationship with Truro's Noyes Records.
They released your s/t 12" and are set to release your latest
effort. What initially drew you to Noyes and what has made you stay
on?
I was in North of America. Chad is a huge NoA fan. He moved in next
door to me and we became friends. I started a new band, he started
a new label. It seems pretty natural. I think we stick out like a
sore thumb on that label but that's fine with me.
10.
You've been noted as being one of the most powerful bands in Halifax.
I saw a video in which you overwhelmed the power supply at a show
in Truro. Apart from this, what has been the craziest thing to happen
at a VKNGS show?
Shit I don't know. People clapped, that was kinda crazy.
11. Is it true that
your music is featured on an Italian snowboarding video? If so, how
did this come to be?
Apparently it is, and I have no idea. Chad owes some Italian dude
a favour now I guess.
12.
If you had to choose a VKGNS song for a mixtape that includes Fucked
Up, Career Suicide, Ampere, A History Of and Van Johnson, which song
would you choose and why?
I would say 'ugh, Van Johnson? Really?' and I'll say some random number
that corresponds to a song that nobody's heard. So, 19.
13.
What are the last five records you bought and your current top five?
Latest would be Superchunk, Envy, Sebadoh, Metallica. I've mostly
been buying the cd version of cassettes I used to have at used record
stores, or getting vinyl from eBay.
14.
What plans are in the future for VKNGS?
Get this record out so I can stop thinking about it. Maybe by September
it'll be ready. We're getting more active towards the end of the summer,
tour plans tba for Feb/March.
