04/07/2008
EXTRA! EXTRA! An Interview with Honus Honus of MAN MAN
May it be stated right off the bat that I skipped a mandatory class to interview Honus Honus (aka Ryan Kattner), the lead singer of MAN MAN, a troupe of five Philly musicmakers under absurd monikers with even crazier live performances.
Avoiding the requisite Tom Waits and Frank Zappa comparison questions, we chatted about important issues of the current age - from ladyfolks and defecating bums to how ridiculously psyched we are for MAN MAN's record release show this Tuesday night right here in lovely Philadelphia!
My apologies, World of Academia. I find myself more excited for MAN MAN than my next project. Read on and you'll understand why...
As a member of MAN MAN, What are your thoughts on WOMAN? Are we inherently good or inherently evil?
Women are complicated. Women are human. Women are crazy. But they're also inspirational. They're like Michael Vick and fighting dogs...nobody wins. Heartbreak is a big influence on this band.
Why do you love Philadelphia? Can you sum it up in a sentence or less?
Yes. One word: Attitude. The tone of "Im gonna do what I'm gonna do. If you don't like it get out of my face." Also the combination of affordability and lack of an exclusive, closed creative arts scene. I lived in Philly for about 12 years. It's a good city to mess up a lot in and experience all of your early 20's meltdowns.
So as someone older and wiser, what advice can you give me?
Have a sense of humor about everything. That idea is in our music, too. Give everything a shot because it's better to have the experience than be afraid to fail or be hurt. If you're afraid, then what's the point?
How do you take your eggs?
Poached or over easy. A little bloody. Nothing serious about a little blood in your mouth. That applies to most things...but not everything.
If you had the chance, what would you want to relive or redo?
I don't wanna revisit many things or relive my early twenties and definitely not high school. Everyone has to have that asshole, self-destructive period. To some extent, it leaks into "The Now," but it all adds character. At this point though, I don't want anymore character. I'm not putting on a play.
So how do you reconcile this sincerity with the extreme theatricality of your stage persona?
It's hard trying to separate the two. The live persona is still me, but it's a whole different element of me. If there wasn't that sincere me, the stage persona wouldn't translate as well. Live performances are an outlet to get garbage out of my system and have fun at the same time. It's funny, when people meet me not on stage they're surprised that I'm not out of my mind like I am during the show. If that was me all of the time, I would be in a straight-jacket...or in prison.
Describe your ideal show - bands, location, time, etc.
Philadelphia, obviously. We've had some ideal shows in Philly. Last summer's free show in Rittenhouse Square was one of them. It was raining all day, but when we played, there was this weird mist and there were kids crowd surfing in the park. It embodied everything I love about this band, and all of the people in the restaurants nearby, not here to see us, were having their snotty-ass dinners with this abrasive music ruining it.
Is abrasiveness a goal of your music-making, because you seem to be just toeing that line?
I like that this band has a polarizing effect on people. They either love us or hate us. I don't want that "Middle Ground Effect." I also feel really lucky to have found like-minded musicians who can put up with me. The other members of the band don't get enough credit. They're amazing musicians and people.
This reminds me of a funny thing that happened. When we were on the cover of the Philadelphia Citypaper, I was riding my bike and saw a bum leaning up against the weekly box with us on the cover. He was defecating on the box, and I thought, "that is an amazing review of the article!" That's kind of how we are - no pretense, cut straight to the shit, literally!
What predictions do you have for the future of MAN MAN?
First of all, I don't take any of this for granted. It could all be over tomorrow, and kids could hate this new record, who knows? Honestly, it's great that the word is spreading. It's hard to think about the future though. We can do anything we want to since we're not necessarily locked into being "The Guitarist", "The Vocalist", etc. As long as my throat holds up...
Have you ever canceled a show due to throat complications?
We had to cancel a set once. When we tour, we tour really hard. The only way to earn fans is to tour, to get out there in the trenches. People know about this band because we spent the last 3 years touring. We're really lucky that people will come out and see us.
So what about this upcoming record release show? Any thoughts before The Big Night?
We're really excited for the show. It'll be on the early side so everyone can come out. I'm really pysched, and I love people knowing that our band is from Philly, because God DAMMIT, I love Philadelphia! Haters be damned, I love Philadelphia!
And dammit, I love MAN MAN!
Rabbit Habits arrives April 8th on Anti Records. Please consider pre-ordering online now, and I'll see you Tuesday night!
Posted by Robin on 04/07/2008 9:44 AM in Experimental, Interview, Indie-Rock
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