SLIPPERS
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show and why?
Brandon Laws (drums): We’re usually just hanging out at the bass player’s house. It’s more of the club house. Everyone’s so busy—it’s the one place every week we can all meet and rehearse.
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
I used to live at this loft space on 7th and Pine Avenue, about a decade back. I’d put on shows there. And I had a couple of gallery shows—just local friend artists—and we’d show their art. I recorded a few albums in there. There was a lot of musical and artistic traffic, so it was a nice creative space.
Why’d you leave?
I moved to northern California for a short spell and then came back to Long Beach. It was a lot different then. All the businesses didn’t go that far up Pine. It was kind of like a no-mans land.
What is your favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t here anymore?
I’d say the Foothill Club. I used to play a lot of shows there. And I’d see a lot of touring acts come through town. It was just a nice big room where you could see a headliner in Long Beach, and there aren’t a lot of those around.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
Right now I’m driving a Corolla, and I think I might do fairly well in the Grand Prix. I have good hand eye coordination. And I might be a little bit addicted to speeding.
How many speeding tickets do you have?
Oh, I just picked one up.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
Well, there’s a pretty good communal sprit because we’re not L.A. and we’re not Orange County—we’re something in the middle. But everybody is different, and there are always a lot of different things going on. It’s a good history of music too, because different players have played in other bands with each other. Everybody has worked with everybody else—everyone is open to collaborating with other artists. // MEGAN BRESCINI

VISIT SLIPPERS AT SLIPPERSMUSIC.NET OR MYSPACE.COM/SLIPPERS. SLIPPERS PLAY FRIDAY AT ALEX’S.

TELOMERE REPAIR
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show and why?
Chris Clawson (drums): Probably in our houses—we’re all kind of hermits.
What was the last album you purchased in Long Beach? Where did you get it and what do you like most about it?
It was at Fingerprints, I bought a used record. I think it was Trans Am. I’m a big fan of the drums and bass thing they got going on. Somebody played me a track a long time ago, I think it was my friend Jesse. It just hit me real hard—sounded great. Made me tap my feet!
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach? How old were you and what did you think?
Years and years ago, I saw John Wilkes Kissing Booth. Man, that was a long-ass time ago. I guess I was just old enough to go out drinking. I remember going because the girl I was dating at the time wanted me to.
What Long Beach band’s songs would Telomere best cover?
Maybe something by the Soft Hands—I’m such a big fan of theirs. I’d try to do it just as well!
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
I have a 2003 Toyota pickup, and I’d say… piss poor at best! We used to tour in that truck, actually. It still goes—no crazy noises.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
Alcoholism! I think it’s a pretty well known fact that a lot of drinking gets done in Long Beach. I guess if you can still play a show and hold it down after a few cocktails—no harm no foul! // KEVIN FERGUSON

VISIT TELOMERE REPAIR AT MYSPACE.COM/TELOMEREREPAIR. TELOMERE REPAIR PLAY SATURDAY AT THE PROSPECTOR.

ARROW DOWN
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show and why?
Jorge Gutierrez (drums): I can’t disclose that answer because then people might try to find us—we don’t want to be located.
Do you have warrants or are you just shy?
We’re wanted by the law, man. Or by people we pissed off in the past.
What was the last album you purchased in Long Beach?
I don’t buy records in Long Beach. I just buy them online so I don’t have to go anywhere. That goes back to not wanting to be located, too!
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach?
I don’t remember so it must not have been that important!
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
I’m not a resident of Long Beach—I only go there to get drunk.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
I drive a little Honda Accord. It’d probably come in like … twentieth place. Out of like twenty cars.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
They’re all twats. Including our band as well. We’re all twats. // CHRIS ZIEGLER

VISIT ARROW DOWN AT MYSPACE.COM/ARROWDOWN. ARROW DOWN PLAY SUNDAY AT ALEX’S.

FORCEFIELD ON
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show and why?
Jesse Wilder (guitar/vocals): Usually all in different directions—being a band when you get older, everybody’s got stuff to do. Couple of our people are always in school. A few of us just hang out together. I work at Alex’s, or the Prospector which is where our drummer works at. Maybe Hole Mole.
What was the last album you purchased in Long Beach?
Like an actual CD? I usually buy all my crap online. You know. I think the last thing I bought at Fingerprints was a used version of The Surveillance by Trans-Am. Man, that album for me was like ‘Yes!’ They reached a new level. And then their next release was a complete disappointment. That was kind of where it ended for me as far as being a kick-ass band.
What Long Beach band’s songs would you best be able to cover? Why? How would you redo them?
That’s a good question, because there’s a lot of Long Beach bands that we’re friends with and we love to play with. I personally like to cover songs not quite the same way. It’d be fun to do a Soft Hands song down tempo with a horn arrangement.
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach? Why?
I really like where I’m living right now. I have a pretty cool deal. I’m living in the house where my wife grew up in, because her parents still own it. It’s in a nice area. It’s a nice spacious house near the city college. But I do really miss the town—I miss living on 3rd and temple. That was a really cool place for me.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
I drive a crappy ‘97 Ford Escort, and I think I’d have to sit it out. There’s just no way I’d even get it there to pull in.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
I’d have to say one of the things we all have in common is trying to branch outside of Long Beach. You have all this talent and great bands and nobody wants to book anybody in L.A. and nobody’s heard of you, and people’s old connections are done. It’s all up to the booking agents nowadays. It’s hard to for Long Beach bands to progress further out of Long Beach. // KEVIN FERGUSON

VISIT FORCEFIELD ON AT FORCEFIELDON.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/FORCEFIELDON. FORCEFIELD ON PLAY SUNDAY AT ALEX’S.

MARITIME ACADEMY
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
Eric Golding (bass): My favorite place I’ve lived in Long Beach is Belmont Shore, on Roycroft right up the street from Fingerprints. It was a cozy little studio on the third floor of a building from the ‘30s and I had the best view of downtown and the beach. I would walk to Fingerprints and other places on 2nd St., and it was only a five minute drive to the Prospector, which is where I play and DJ more than anywhere else in Long Beach. I left because the building got bought and the new landlord wanted to renovate the building and every unit, thus raising everyone’s rent by $400. My entire building moved out in a matter of two months.
What is your favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t here anymore? Why?
By far my favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t there anymore was Java Lanes, the old bowling alley that was on PCH by the traffic circle. My friends and I had this thing called ‘Bowling Club’—we would go there once a week and bowl two games, and whoever had the highest score of both games combined got to take home this makeshift trophy that someone bought at a thrift store. It was about three feet tall. We had a Polaroid fun cam and would take a picture of the winner and the trophy and tape it somewhere on the trophy. I must have won that trophy about twenty times in a year—it was a lot of fun and helped my bowling average triple. We were all sad to see it go, and that pretty much ended bowling club.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
I drive a ‘08 Mazda mini van because it gets decent gas mileage and has room for all my music equipment and DJ gear. I don’t think it would do that well in the Long Beach Grand Prix, but it has sport rims and handles turns really well—not to mention that it’s a really smooth ride. I find myself going over 90 all the time without even realizing it.
What was the last album you purchased in Long Beach? Where did you get it and what do you like most about it?
I guess I didn’t really purchase this album, but the last album I got in Long Beach was Forcefield ON’s long awaited full length, Llipspill, which the drummer Brandon gave me when we worked together at the Prospector last week. Even though I have known these guys for years, I can say—completely unbiased!—that it is truly amazing and worth picking up. The chord progressions of both guitars are very catchy, the drumming is fucking tight, the bass lines would make the Ox rise from his grave, the horn section is so amazing and well orchestrated and the lyrics and vocal harmonies are sweet and will make all the ladies swoon and require a panty change! They have it for sale at Fingerprints and it’s in one of the listening stations there as well. I highly recommend picking this album up, or—at the very least—going to Fingerprints and listening to it.
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach?
I don’t know if I can remember the first show I went to in Long Beach, but one of the most memorable ones I can remember was the Woods and Mazarin show at the Prospector about two years ago. I had band practice that night, and afterwards my singer was like, ‘Hey, wanna go to the Prospector and see this great band from Philly called Mazarin?’ We got there and the place was packed from wall to wall—this old Long Beach band the Woods was just starting and played a great set. After they played, there was no Mazarin in sight. I asked Wade who works there where they were, and he said that they were on their way down from SF—they called at 6 PM saying they were just leaving and would do their best to make it on time. It was 12:30am when they showed up—all these kids went outside and started helping them set up. They were on stage and playing in fifteen minutes, and they played til 1:30 AM and fucking blew my mind away!
I’ve been a huge fan ever since. // C.P. MASTERS

VISIT MARITIME ACADEMY AT MYSPACE.COM/MARITIMEACADEMY.

TIJUANA KNIFE FIGHT
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show?
Dan Cady (vocals): Alex’s Bar or the Pike—Alex was our original bass player so we just hang out there. It’s just kind of home base for us. And the Pike because they have the best fish and chips in town.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
I got an old Toyota pickup truck and I think I would probably…well you know I drive like an old man anyway, so I’d probably be hugging the fucking turns and not doing very well at all.
Where did ‘So Sinister’ come from? Why did you choose it for this compilation?
We were in kind of a lull in our writing and when we got approached to do the comp it inspired us to start writing again. This was one of the first songs that we penned and then also recorded. It’s about feeling comfortable with your voice… and I don’t know—what is punk rock about? It’s about being disillusioned, disenfranchised, and loud and obnoxious and angry. You know?
You have a new EP coming out—what’s the scoop?
We’re working on a new project that we will be releasing on vinyl and CD in June, we hope—eight songs titled Saturday Night Apocalypse. // REID SHELDON

VISIT TIJUANA KNIFE FIGHT AT TIJUANAKNIFEFIGHT.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/TIJUANAKNIFEFIGHT. TIJUANA KNIFE FIGHT PLAYS SUNDAY AT ALEX’S.

GREATER CALIFORNIA
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show and why?
Terry Prine (guitar/vocals): “The submarine lounge”—Hof’s Hut on PCH. We all prefer late night meals, usually only eating between the hours of midnight and 5 am in the morning.
What was the last album you purchased in Long Beach? Where did you get it and what do you like most about it?
Fleet Foxes Sun Giant EP from Fingerprints. It has such a nostalgic and optimistic feel with beautifully drenched vocal melodies and harmonies at the center. I can’t wait to hear their full length.
What Long Beach band’s songs would you best be able to cover? Why? How would you redo them?
So many . . . I would love to cover Cold War Kids “Quiet Please,” Lassie Foundation’s “Let Your Boy Come Back,” Blank Blue’s “Eyes Closed,” Lili De La Mora’s “Where the Sidewalk Blends”—but we would probably be best suited to cover anything from the departed band Soon because I already know the keyboard parts. If we were to redo them, first I’d give the songs some proper names (example “Burrito” could be “The Wet Dark Pant Cuff Has Spoken”) then add some MONSTER lyrics and lastly incorporate an epic harmonium breakdown bridge to give Long Beach the biggest musical juxtaposition it has seen in years.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
I drive a Subaru Forester. I probably wouldn’t make a dent in the main race, but no doubt I could kill everyone in the drifting competition.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach? Why? Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
A need for one more true music venue. God bless the Prospector and Alex’s for holding the torch—there wouldn’t even be a Long Beach music scene right now if it weren’t for both of these places. But if one could dream… maybe a place exists where people under 6 feet can watch the band without getting up on someone’s shoulders. A place with a good PA and monitor system that doesn’t have the built-in sizzling bacon sound. A place with safe storage, not in view of the audience or curbside, to store your equipment. (Guys from Crystal Antlers, your van is not the solution.) A place with even the tiniest of back stages to take your lady friend after a good performance. A place where local bands open up for good touring bands and get paid for it. (I know you were thinking the Detroit Bar for a second until I said “and get paid for it.”) If one could dream… // ELLEN GRILEY

VISIT GREATER CALIFORNIA AT GREATERCA.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/GREATERCALIFORNIA. GREATER CALIFORNIA PLAYS THURSDAY AT THE PROSPECTOR.

THE YEAR ZERO
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach?
Lili De La Mora (vocals): September 19, 1986—the Ramones at Fender’s International Ballroom. I grew up listening to the Ramones. My mom was a fan. She even took me to see Rock and Roll High School when it was first released in the late 70s, which looking back now is really surprising considering she was so conservative in other ways.
Rodney Sellars (guitar / vocals): 1986. Love Canal, Plain Wrap, Doggie Style and DI at Fender’s International Ballroom. I was seventeen and it was exciting and terrifying all at the same time. My buddy and I had both shaved our heads into mohawks and the older punks in line were teasing us, saying, ‘Oh, look—it’s the Bobbsey twins.’ I remember thinking that both of us getting mohawks was not such a good idea.
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
R: 2151 Miramar, off of Stearns and Lakewood with Travis Laws and our friend Pat. We moved because the landlord finally sold the house. We were paying $850 for a three-bedroom house because they were selling it and had Century 21 people coming through all the time. We also had a cleaning lady and a handy man on call. For a while it was nice—three beer drinking bachelors living in a quiet suburban home.
What is your favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t here anymore?
R: The abandoned Naval Hospital on Willow and Redondo. My friends and I used to call it Anarchy Land. We spent many summers hanging around and vandalizing the place. Although it had been condemned, the power, electricity and water still worked. It was a thirteen year-old’s paradise.
L: Brett Cutts—I miss him.
Where did the song on the Fidotrust comp come from?
R: The lyrics for ‘New Day Dawn’ came out spontaneously. It’s basically about driving in the desert and getting abducted by aliens. The usual Year Zero fare. It was loosely inspired by Contact. I think if we ever come in contact with an advanced alien civilization, they would be so far ahead of us it might be very difficult for us to understand them. But I’d like to believe that they would try telling us not to worry and that everything will turn out all alright. // ALEX ROMAN

VISIT THE YEAR ZERO AT THEYEARZERO.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/THEYEARZERO. THE YEAR ZERO PLAY THURSDAY AT THE PROSPECTOR.

CHASE FRANK
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show and why?
Anywhere Mike Kearns is spinning. Or House of Hayden.
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach?
Saccharine Trust. At Bogart’s. I think I was in my early 20s. I was instantly in love with their stuff. Since then, Joe Baiza’s been one of my favorite L.A. guitar players. I ended up becoming good friends with lead man, Jack Brewer, who is a killer poet.
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
The Cooper Arms. It was basically a real community, and a bunch of friends lived there at the time. We would have New Year’s Eve parties on the 12th and 10th floors. And the earthquake parties. Yeah—good times.
What is your favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t here anymore? Why?
The Foothill. Great place to see shows and always tons of touring bands. It was a dark day when it was sold.
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
1986 Volvo 240 DL. It would be the ‘clown car.’ // ELLEN GRIELY

VISIT CHASE FRANK AT CHASEFRANK.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/CHASEFRANK. CHASE FRANK PLAYS TUESDAY AT THE KNITTING FACTORY.

THE DEADLY FINNS
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach?
Eleanor Matteliano (bass): I moved to Long Beach when I started high school and there used to be a ton of house and warehouse parties happening all over town every weekend. I remember seeing some oldies like Suburban Rhythm—shout out to Dennis Owens and Ed Kampwirth!—but the quintessential Long Beach band—like it or not—back then was Sublime. Going to the infamous “4th and Walnut” house parties to see Sublime was completely radical for me at age fifteen.
What is your favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t here anymore? Why?
The Foothill Club on Cherry, north of PCH. I was sad to see that go. It had been there since the 1920s and so many great bands played there. I remember trying to sneak in to see X when I was underage. Alex worked there before he opened Alex’s Bar.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
We all want our faces on the cover of the District! But seriously, like any big city, Long Beach is an intersection of many different cultures so I think we all have a lot of different musical influences. It really shows in the diversity you’ll find on the Fidotrust compilation.
Where did this song come from? What’s it about?
I’m not sure. Mike writes the lyrics. Can anyone tell what he’s saying? // C.P. MASTERS

VISIT THE DEADLY FINNS AT MYSPACE.COM/DEADLYFINNS. THE DEADLY FINNS PLAY THURSDAY AT THE PROSPECTOR.

REPEATER
Where in Long Beach is your band most likely to be found when you aren’t playing a show?
Rob Wallace (keys): Well, most of the band can usually be found at the Red Room or other local bars because of our love for the strong drink.
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
Where I live now—3rd and Cherry—is awesome. Steve lives a block away too and the beach is close, and so are the 4th street shops and Portfolio. It’s great because you’ll always see someone you know just walking down the street. One of the perks of living in Long Beach.
What Long Beach band’s songs would you best be able to cover?
We’d cover any song by the Valley Arena because they are all really cute.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
All Long Beach bands just do their own thing. There is no “scene” or “sound” that can define what Long Beach is. With so much diversity in musicians and music, it inspires and helps push other bands to be more creative. // ALEX ROMAN

VISIT REPEATER AT REPEATERBAND.BLOGSPOT.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/REPEATERBAND. REPEATER PLAY THURSDAY AT SAFARI SAM’S.

DIOS MALOS
Ed Kampwirth (keys): Well, my favorite color is bluuuuue, and my favorite time of day is sunset….aaaand….
What was the last album you purchased in Long Beach?
Huh. Last album, huh? Like, from a record store? It was probably Fingerprints, honestly. I’m a living broke musician, so I rarely buy records, honestly. God, I’m trying to think….Mission of Burma. And I bought a Slippers album.
What was the first show you ever saw in Long Beach?
Well I grew up in Seal Beach, actually, and I used to go to—remember Toe Jam? Big Chief and Olive Lawn and Strife, Rage Against The Machine before rage… just hardcore stuff. There was like me and six other people. In Long Beach, it was Bogart’s—I would come up and watch bands at age 14 or 15. I could watch bands through the big window—the band were up against that window and I could go and just stand outside and watch these bands I’d never seen before. I was a big Mike Watt fan—still am—and he played there all the time. Other than that, I saw SNFU at Fender’s. Lotta fights, lotta violence. It was really horrifying!
Where was your favorite place you ever lived in Long Beach?
The gutter, yeah. Place I’m living at now is great. Yeah, great. I dunno—there’s a similar vibe all around, really familiar. Long Beach is a patchy area but it’s always a similar vibe. I always surrounded myself with this huge family of people that are into music, and the arts—I’m involved with all of them. It’s family, you know?
What’s your favorite breakfast place in Long Beach?
Oh, definitely Coffee Cup—I love the veggie chorizo. The only drawback with that place is it’s too popular—it gets crowded. I wanna try the banana pancakes at Eggs Etc. but it’s hard for me to get over there, you know.
Why?
Well, you know, I work!
What is your favorite thing in Long Beach that isn’t here anymore?
Toe Jam—that was essential. That’s what brought me to this place. Especially at that age, you know—you can’t really see shows. Other than that, Dick & Faye’s Café Bistro.
Faye’s legendary. Remember the photo albums she would put together?
Yeah, definitely. I talked to her for like five or six years going there, and sometimes she wouldn’t remember me. It was like I was there every night, but she’d be like, ‘Let me see your I.D., and $2 deposit for the pitcher!’
What do you drive now and how well would it do in the Long Beach Grand Prix?
‘91 Infinity—probably not gonna make it, but if someone were to sponsor me I think I’d be a really good racecar driver. I’d like a beer company to sponsor me. Like, immediately. I’d be great.
What one thing do all Long Beach bands have in common besides living in Long Beach?
80% of the bands will dress in black & blue. LB has always been black and blue—we look good in those things for some reason. I’m guilty as well—the bruised look.
Where did this song come from? What’s it about?
It’s called ‘Don Be Efrey Du Die.’ Yeah, we made it special for the comp. It’s about a lot of things. I don’t wanna tell everyone—I want them to make up their own opinions. But let me see if I can summarize it. It’s a pretty existential song. I don’t want to give it away, but it’s political—religion mixed with the state and you have to act a certain way to get your way. And that’s just bullshit. Everyone should know that’s just bullshit these days. All these people are afraid to die, and that’s what makes them act a certain way. But it’s just a really fucked up message. You know, don’t worry about yourself so much, and don’t worry about it—we’re all gonna die, you know? // CHESNEY HIGGINS

VISIT DIOS MALOS AT WEAREDIOS.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/DIOSMALOS. DIOS MALOS PLAY FRIDAY AT ALEX’S.

THE TRUST US… RELEASE SHOWS ARE THURSDAY AND SATURDAY AT THE PROSPECTOR, 2400 E. 7TH ST., LONG BEACH | 9 PM | $5 | 21+ | MYSPACE.COM/THEPROSPECTORLONGBEACH | AND FRIDAY AND SUNDAY AT ALEX’S BAR, 2913 E. ANAHEIM ST., LONG BEACH | 9 PM | $5 | 21+ | ALEXSBAR.COM. VISIT FIDOTRUST RECORDS AT FIDOTRUST.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/FIDOTRUST.

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