Albums of Purgatory Interview Stinking Lizaveta's Cheshire Augusta

Albums of Purgatory: What's the band up to?

Cheshire Augusta: We just returned (x 1 week) from our, let's see, I wanna brag, I think it's our 5th national tour. What was unique about this tour was that it was the first national booked entirely by an agent, formerly we ran up our own phone bill. Tone Deaf Touring headed by Greg Barrett of Youngstown, Ohio did a fabulous job for us on this tour. And since I can't say enough good about him I'd also like to plug his stoner rock festival taking place May 24-26 at his very own Nyabinghi Dance Hall in, of course, Youngstown. Stinking Lizaveta will be playing the first night of the festival which calls itself Emissions from the Monolith and features such amazing bands as Mastadon, Bottom, Kung Pao and Alabama Thunder Pussy. Other than that, we are planning to record our fourth album very soon, hopefully while still in shape from the road. 

AoP: How would you describe the sound of Stinking Lizaveta? 

CA: This is always a tricky question. It's so hard to develop a listeners perspective, or the other way of putting it is I don't know what the fuck we're doing. I always call it rock. To be somewhat funny:  psycho toxic ethnic punk rock jazz freak out music.

AoP: How did you come to be involved in the band?

CA: Yanni, guitar and I formed this band because we wanted to get even more nuts than the bands we were already in. We made a demo, but struggled to find a bass player until we found the Morelli the upright electric that gives Stink her huge bottom.  Alexi, Yanni's brother, wanted to play upright accoustic, but we gave him the Morelli and told him it was his destiny and I don't know maybe he got hypnotized by the older brother thing or maybe we are just f--kin' lucky. He took the bate.

AoP: Can you remember your first gig (how did it go)?

CA: Hah. Our first gig was out of town in DC with a fantastic, constantly evolving from New Wave to Metal band called 9353.  It went very well. But our first home town, Philly gig was scheduled at the 40th St. Underground, West (by God) Philly's only real rock club at the time, 1994. We were ready. We had invited our first gig partners 9353 up from DC and they had loaded their equipment into the club when it was swarmed by police and TV cameras. They were filming, of all things the, of course labled obscene flyers on the window as they shut the place down due to complaints about illegal flyering downtown in a whole other neighborhood.  Whew. We gathered would be fans and took them to our rehearsal studio where we held the show. Stinking Lizaveta will not be stopped.

AoP: What are your favourite memories from the band? 

CA: Favorite memory of a gig is in Lafayette Louisianna at Bernard Pearce's Pussy Cat club which was in an old feed storage barn by the tracks, huge old wood slat structure, no heat in November, not so cold you wanted to die but cold enough to see your breath.   Our friend Michelle from Houston had decorated all of us with extensive glitter make-up and another friend, Tracy started up the set by singing, improvising over some songs. We were set up in the center of this room and the audience was in a fairly close circle around. As we warmed up, steam started rising off our bodies and glitter was peeling off our faces. The whole thing was the best DIY light and special effects show I could ever imagine.  Plus all shows in Lafayette, LA seem to be special because of the people who attend.  There's nothing I could say that would begin to communicate thier beauty.

AoP: What are your favourite Stinking Lizaveta tracks?

CA: Whew, depends on what "state" of mind I'm in. I really dig Slide You Off the Board from the second album, Slaughter House. The drumming is all me and the song has that lyrical, but hard boiled Greek-like-Yanni (our Yanni not that rank non immitator) feel. But I also like The Vent, a song of my own devising, off the first album, ...hopelessness and shame.

AoP: What are your favourite all time songs?

CA: Cool Um... Can't Talk about Love by Van Halen. Etude No. 16, Scriabin I forget what key it's in,  Marquis Moon and Torn Curtain by Television,  any title by Dunaj,  Lonely Woman by Ornette Coleman, The Spiderman theme music from the old cartoon,  Ngungi and Lisanga Ya Ba Nganga  by Franco & Rochereau, Foreign Policy by Fear. I love this question. Favorite songs is the way I listen to music.

AoP: What was the first record you ever bought? 

CA: Oh no. Now you're trying to embarrass me. The first record I ever bought was, well actually does it count if I made my mom buy it? It was Mary Poppins. Yep. The amazing sound track to the movie which I saw 6 times once for every year old I was when it came out.

AoP: What do you think of the position of music today? 

CA: I can only speak for US culture.  In the US there is a feeling that we are being sold out at every level economically, politically, socially. The rich are getting richer the poor are getting poorer. When Americans get rich they tend to get conservative. When they get poor they get conservative for a while and then they loosen up.  Right now we are in the conservative stage. Conservatism is good and bad for art. Conservatism always creates underground expression. We are seeing a slight rise in the number of good bands at our level i.e. at the level of the almost DIY national touring circuit, but mostly threre is a blight on venues and funding. American conservatism can be extremely dry and puritanical at the top.   Conservative people want things to stay in the same place that includes their money and their feelings so they tend to deny and or forget that stuff you take in through the ears and eyes is more than just entertainment.  The same dumb economic warfare that our country wages on foreign nations to "protect our national interests" : destroy local culture replace it with a culture we can both exploit and sell back to the natives is being waged upon us, our own people by our government which is not really a government anymore, but an advocate for the imperialist corporation. Music and art suffer along with all our social programs.  Sorry you asked yet?

AoP: Do you have any funny stories you can share with us about the band?

CA: Well there was the time I thought I could walk a few blocks back to my home at 49th St. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania via Statan Island in New York.  I have since quit drinking.

AoP: and finally, what do you see in the future for Stinking Lizaveta?

CA: Europe Europe Europe. We want to go to Europe!!!!!!