Razorcake Podcast #40: With Jeff Proctor
So, I moved to L.A. from San Diego a couple months back and have been making weekly treks up to Razorcake HQ to help however I can. A couple weeks ago, Todd asked if I would like to do a podcast. So I said sure and ran past him an idea I had been kicking around, which was to do a San Diego-themed show and Todd graciously agreed. See, to me, San Diego has produced some of the most fantastically created music ever. And I’m sure everybody from every town thinks the same thing about the music from where they came from, but San Diego is certainly special. Largely a cultural cul de sac (in the most positive way), what with San Diego being the most southwesterly point of the continental United States, our bands have been lucky enough to have been mostly left to their own devices to grow and evolve as they wished. From a relatively small and tight-knit wellspring of musicians would develop a great diversity of sounds, showing punk to be a many-splendored thing. Money, major labels, and mainstream media attention would come and go occasionally, as folks attempted to scout out the next big thing. The phrase “the next Seattle” would get thrown around quite a bit during the ‘90s. Some bands bit the bait and fizzled out. Others bit the bait only to discover it foul-tasting and returned quickly to the comforts and freedoms provided by our DIY subculture. Others, still, would proudly turn their nose and walk the other way when the carrot would dangle in front of their faces. What I have selected are thirteen songs by thirteen bands that all, to varying degrees, represent what has been described as having a particular San Diego sound. I have also attempted to link each band to the next, weaving a long, Byzantine string of relativity to help guide you along and to provide some depth and insight to what have been some of my favorite songs by some of by favorite bands. Enjoy!
-Jeff Proctor
Tracklisting:
Blink-182 “Lemmings” Split 7” w/Swindle (Grilled Cheese/Cargo)
Carter Peace Mission “The Princess is in Another Castle” My Son Is Also Named Spartacus 7” (Yell-O)
Jon Cougar Concentration Camp “Exchange” ‘Til Niagara Falls…LP (BYO)
Spazboy “Here and There” Split 7” w/Swindle (Yell-O)
Everready “Walk” Girl 7” (Skene)
Tiltwheel “Al Quint Is an Emo Pussy” Hair Brained Scheme Addicts LP (ADD)
Fluf “All the Fuckers Live in Newport Beach” Skyrocket 7” (Headhunter/Cargo)
4 “Adjustable” The Past and the Present 7” (Goldenrod)
Hemlock “Leg Room” Leg Room 7” (Goldenrod)
Fishwife “Chiva Talkin’” Snail Killer LP (Headhunter/Cargo)
Hot Snakes “Why Does it Hurt?” Suicide Invoice LP (Swami)
Inch “Chicharrones” Dot Class “C” LP (Goldenrod)
Rocket From The Crypt “Ghost Shark” Group Sounds LP (Vagrant)