Q&A with Black Lips’
Cole Alexander

Hailing from Atlanta, Black Lips are an explosive, high-energy fusion of punk and psychedelia. With a guitar tone that could easily be mistaken for a Velvet Underground backing track and a drive to always push the envelope, the band consistently creates fun and edgy records. Patrick Carney of The Black Keys produced their latest release, Underneath the Rainbow. This album displays a new level of refinement from the band without taking away from their refreshing management of grit. It soars, but with the grace of being shot from a cannon.

Before their show at High Noon Saloon tonight, Jonk Music talked to guitarist Cole Alexander about their taste, their opinion on dad rock, and what the audience can expect this evening.

Your sound is sort of dirty ’60s garage rock sprinkled with early punk and, in some cases, rockabilly. What are some of your favorite records from these vastly different eras, and how do you translate these sounds to a modern audience?
“I guess we listen to a lot of old music, and that sort of seeps through. But we’re not purely traditional either—I mean, we use modern recording techniques and electronic instruments that weren’t available in the old days so it’s slightly modernized.”

What are some of your favorite records from these older eras?
“That’s a tough one. There’s an old one by The Swamp Rats called Disco Sucks that’s from the ’60s. I like that record a lot.”

Georgia has quite a rich music history, ranging everywhere from old blues legends to country to alternative college rock to hip-hop. How do you think this environment and these traditions have influenced your band?
“It’s different through history. I mean, with older country then in the ’80s you had the whole Athens thing and you get to choose from R.E.M. and the likes. Just growing up and hearing a lot of the roots of these sounds was beneficial. Just to grow up with it, I guess.” 

Ten albums in the last 11 years is quite a lot of work. How do you manage to do all this and keep the ball rolling without getting burned out? How do you guys balance this crazy schedule with other obligations?
“I guess we get burned out and keep going. It’s still fun to make music—definitely better than working in an office or something with a ton of authority. It’s nice to self-suffice and work from the bus.”

Your songs are equally as fun as well as they are socially and self-aware. What do you think this balance brings to the table?
“We don’t really think about it too much; we just sort of write what comes to mind. It’s never too deep really. We like to keep it light-hearted.”

Was the process in writing Underneath the Rainbow different than writing past albums?
“It was about the same—we don’t change the writing formula too much. It was recorded in a different way, though, like using Pro Tools and digital equipment we’ve never really seen before. But that’s pretty independent of our writing process.”

So the Gene Simmons incident… what do you have to say on the days of misogynistic dad rock being over?
“We were just sorta of teasing. I think there will always be sort of a level of misogyny in rock ‘n’ roll, in rap a lot of times. A lot of hyper-sexualization and chauvinism that can be misconstrued. In any sort of entertainment there’s this level, so you have to express it in a particular way.”

Some of your ideas are rather out there, such as the scent machine or trying to get Charles Manson to write some lyrics. At what point do you guys say, “Hey, maybe this is too much?”
“We’re never saying it’s too much.”

Can we expect any craziness here in Madison tonight?
“We never plan the craziness. It either happens or it doesn’t. But I can’t really say yet.”