This Charming Man

These are dark times. In the wake of grunge and punk uprisings in the mid-nineties (which in hindsight weren’t all that bad), post millennium’s music executives are committing gruesome crimes against humanity in the hopes of milking consumers of the millions of dollars needed to fuel their coke habits and pay their girlfriends’ implant and botox bills. These horrific crimes have come in the terrific and terrible forms of nu-metal, nu-emo, garage rock, New York fashion rock, William Hung, Brittany, and Courtney (to name just a few). Having perfected their web development, hat-stealing, bus spray painting, guitar case smashing, phone-number posting and band bashing skills, and having already demonstrated the ability to strike fear into the hearts of label presidents, A and R guys, managers, publicists and bands alike, Travis Keller and his Buddyhead cohorts just might be the vigilante tour de force that will restore justice to these dark and gloomy times. In a world inhabited by blood thirsty and money hungry forces that are determined to populate the airwaves, television, and record stores with music that sounds like shit, could it be that these dudes are our one last hope?

Being a self-preservationist, it had never occurred to me to put myself between these perceived guerilla heroes and their targets, in large part because Bettawreckonize has covered its fair share of iffy bands and I wasn’t convinced that we wouldn’t be considered appropriate collateral damage. However, after working through much trepidation and enlisting a tag-team partner (BW’s Josh Mikutis), I asked Keller if he’d be interested in revealing some of the details of these battles and giving us some perspective on their mission.

While the grandiose picture I’ve painted here may be somewhat exaggerated (and I’m almost positive that the dudes from Buddyhead would never describe themselves in this fashion), both interview collaborator Josh Mikutis and I were please to find (in Josh’s words), “Though he is extremely confident in what he says and never holds back, and though his self-assuredness almost touches on cockiness, he is never irritating. I think that he really tries to reaffirm that people need to take deep breaths and relax; and instead of jumping on Buddyhead for being overly critical, people should laugh and enjoy the humor.” So while Keller may not be a millionaire playboy who pulls on a cape and mask to come to the aid of the innocent, it feels like the shots he’s leveled at some of the music industries “heaviest-hitters” have also leveled out the playing field for the music consumer/fan. And we at BW find it both incredibly charming and fucking hilarious.

Interview with Travis Keller conducted via e-mail by Tim Anderl and Josh Mikutis. Pictures provided by Travis Keller.

Name: Travis Keller
Website: Buddyhead (www.buddyhead.com)

BW: Where did the Buddyhead moniker/name come from?

TK: As lame as it sounds, I don’t even remember now... I could lie and make something interesting up for you, but I feel like being honest for once… there was as much thought put into the name as there was into what I wore today. And today I’m wearing the same shit I’ve worn for five days. We never intended Buddyhead to last this long, or half this long for that matter. It was a website I set up to be a temporary home (online) to my photography, because I couldn’t afford a portfolio (still can’t) or whatever to show people my photos. From there it just kinda grew, Aaron and Joe interviewed Ink & Dagger when The Icarus Line was on tour with them. We reviewed some records we liked and didn’t like, wrote some other bullshit, and Aaron and I interviewed The Criminals. Somewhere around then it became a webzine of sorts with records reviews, interviews, features, and news/gossip. A format that’s pretty common on the internet nowadays. So yeah, the name is stupid, it didn’t mean anything in the beginning, but no one ever forgets the name. So I guess we coulda done worse. Or better.

BW: When did you get the idea to turn your website into a commentary/gossip site to the extent that it is now? Do you ever feel like you've lost the reigns?

TK: We didn’t sit down and go “well now we gotta start a gossip site today”. I mean, we’ve never really planned out anything we’ve done, it all just sorta happened. The site, the label, etc. etc. I guess we can thank the Rock N’ Roll gods or some hippy shit for Buddyhead. Not much thought at all was put into anything we did in the beginning. That didn’t start happening till we realized how many people were paying attention to what we were saying, doing, and releasing. Once we realized we had an audience of sorts and that we had an obligation to all the kids who were looking to us for guidance in this messy modern world of rock n’ roll, we definitely put more thought into what we were doing and creating. Before it was more about “weather or not we thought it was funny” or if it made us laugh or not. It’s still kinda like that. I mean our main goal is to enjoy ourselves and a lot of times the only people who get certain jokes are Aaron, myself, and our tight-nit group of friends… but I do think it’s a little smarter and a little more calculated now than it was in the “early years." But I guess that’s not saying much.

Do I feel like I’ve ever lost the reigns? Not really, cuz I'm the only one who can update the site… I don’t see how I could really.

BW: Is it difficult for fans and media to separate the notoriety of Buddyhead’s extra circular activities with the entertainment of the website or the musical merits of bands on the Buddyhead label?

TK: I think a lot of times the “extra circular activities”, as you called em, overshadow or are at least easier for most people to latch onto, than say a good review of a 400 Blows record, an interview with The Weirdo’s, or the Souls She Said record we put out. But you have to realize that when it comes down to it… most people don’t really give a flying fuck about new music (the mainstream music press included), being turned onto a new artist, or reading a good interview. So things like how I stole Fred Durst’s hat from his office or how Joe and I spray painted “$uckin’ Dick$” on The Strokes bus or how Aaron smashed open a guitar case at the Hard Rock Café are much more interesting to some dork who writes for Spin or Rolling Stone to mention than everything else we do. That kinda press gets old, but if all that silly shit makes one kid pay attention to everything else we are doing, and they end up buying say a Hot Snakes record or a Monorchid Record or even a Your Enemies Friends record instead of a Puddle Of Mudd record, then it’s worth it. As far as kids who read the site having trouble separating them, I’m not sure if it’s such a bad thing. If you notice on our new label sampler (Buddyhead Suicide) we have prank calls in between the songs of the bands. So if people are having trouble separating the two, it could be our own fault.

BW: A problem that is often addressed in music today is that major labels and corporations are force feeding music to the masses. What is it that sets Buddyhead, both the label and the website apart from this mentality?

TK: Ummmm… I’d say that (obviously) our lack of funds sets us apart from that mentality. We don’t have a millions of dollars to put behind any of our projects, let alone the fact that Aaron and I can barely even pay rent. Aside from the whole money issue, I’d say our attitude and most of our goals are completely opposite of the “music industry”, and I’m talking about major labels and “indie labels” both. Sure we think it’s nice to sell records and of course I want as many people as possible to hear the bands we put out, but we’re not going to take it in the ass just to make a buck or two. Nor are we gonna bite our tongue or change what we’re doing to make anyone other than ourselves happy to put a bit of cash in our pocket. Yep, Buddyhead is really a self-involved project. But the whole reason we do Buddyhead, the label and the site (and whatever else that name ends up on) is to expose bands, artists, whatever… that normally wouldn’t get exposed. We’re into turning people onto art that turns us on… and having a good time while we do just that. That’s why we do what we do. We’re not scared of “Burning Bridges” or “bumming people out”, this is rock n’ roll kids… we’re not in college and we’re not out to make friends. Deal with it. And I think by now, our “audience” or our “readers” know what our taste is for the most part, so for some kids they rely on us to tell them about shit they might be into… so people that are into what we’re into, come and read what we have to say or buy the records or whatever we put out. We’re not trying to force our shit on people, if you like it cool, if not then cool…

BW: In a recent show review that was posted on your website, the Icarus Line was described as a "gang." Do you think that is the general impression that people get from everyone involved with the website, label, and bands involved with Buddyhead? Does it bother you?

TK: I’m not really sure what people think about us. I couldn’t give a fuck what they think. And if some people really do think we’re a gang, it doesn’t bother me at all. In fact I quite like that idea. But we aren’t a very scary gang in my opinion. Aren’t gang supposed to have some tough guys?

BW: I know people who see Buddyhead as a "fashion police." How do you feel about that? How much do you really care about what someone is wearing? (On a side note, having met you on tour with The Icarus Line, my impression was that you were a bunch of dirty rock and roll dudes in a van, not unlike most of the folks I normally bro down with. Totally underwhelming dude:) -Tim)

TK: I think it's totally funny seeing as how I pretty much wear the same clothes everyday and haven’t cut my hair in over a year and a half... Again, people can think whatever they want about us. I couldn’t give less of a fuck. As long as they’re thinking something about us, then I know we’re doing something right. If people just didn’t think about us or had no opinion on what we do, I’d be worried that we might be wasting our time. But love us or hate us, if you care or react to what we’re doing or saying, then I know what we’re doing and saying matters. How much do I really care what someone's wearing? Not much unless they're on stage trying to sell themselves to me. I want the bands I like to be a little bit cooler than me man… let’s put some effort into what you losers are wearing! I mean come on, if you’re super hard on the eyes wearing teva sandals and shorts, I’m probably not gonna care to watch you do what you do. Put some thought into it champ. Put some descent clothes on. Show me your coolest. You are putting on a show for Christ sakes. But if you’re trying to hard to dress the part, that’s lame too. This isn’t a fashion show. I guess it comes down to people being themselves and being honest. I don’t wanna see some band in uniforms, but then again I don’t wanna see the guitar player wearing a tank top and an Offspring T-shirt. Actually I couldn’t give a fuck what people wear.

BW: Do you believe in journalistic integrity?

TK: Sure.

BW: Did your impressions of Fader Magazine change after they put Joe from The Icarus Line on the cover?

TK: Not really. That magazine still sucks. They put Joe on the cover cuz we opened our mouths and told em their journalism is shit and their magazine is a pile of shit cuz people buy their way onto the covers. So they thought they’d be “real” and put the underdog (The Icarus Line) on the cover. Whatever man. Plus it’s just ads. Even the features and reviews are fucking ads. The Fader is owned by Cornerstone, who is a promotion company, so anyone who hires Cornerstone to rep their shit automatically gets featured or reviewed or whatever in Fader. See Fader doesn’t pay for itself. Weird right? Plus I think most of the writing sucks, I could give a fuck what hip hop New York culture people think about rock n roll. I mean, the issue that had Kurt Cobain on the cover had an article written by some douche who worked at a radio station at the time of Kurt death and how that affected him. LIKE I GIVE A FUCK!?!? Come on now….

BW: What exactly is the point of putting someone's phone number up on your website? Is your phone number unlisted?

TK: What’s the point? Ummm, most of the time, it’s funny.

Aren’t all cell phone’s unlisted? Cuz that’s all I got. THE MAN won’t let me have home phone anymore due to my bad credit. Bummer huh?

BW: I noticed a sort of official looking cease and desist from the lawyer of The Explosion’s manager (who was ribbed during a prank call, which was included in the latest Buddyhead compilation) in the packaging for your compilation? Has Buddyhead ever been sued? Do you have a lawyer?

TK: Yeah, that’s pretty official. It’s the real deal. His lawyer put a stamp on it and mailed it to us and everything. We’ve been sued more times than I can remember, Courtney Love, Fred Durst, that tall label dude Jordan Shur, and Drive Thru (who were super duper big fat pussies about us talking shit on their wack label) have all sent us legal letter a few times each. People like to sue us, I guess It makes em feel better when we poke fun at them. We’ve never actually gone to court, knock on wood, but we get lots of cease and desists or threats that we’re gonna get sued…. The funny thing is, most of the time when someone send us one of those legal letters, they copyright the letter so you can’t publish it so they don’t look like a total pussy for suing you, but Rama’s lawyer (The Explosion’s manager) didn’t know that little trick, so we put it under the CD tray of our label sampler. But back to us, yeah we have the best lawyer as far as I’m concerned. Bryan Christner is our lawyer, dude used to be in Shelter! He’s gotten us outta more shit… I just think it’s funny when people sue us, cuz it’s like WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU GONNA TAKE FROM US? We can’t even pay rent man… yeah fucking sue us you crybaby.

BW: Did Jason Pettigrew have anything to say about Torture Device’s call to Gideon Yago?

TK: I haven’t talked to Jason first hand, but Aaron Burgess, who also works at Alternative Press with Jason told me that “He loved it -- I can't remember the last time I saw him so proud of something mean that he didn't actually have anything to do with. We all share music over iTunes here -- a lot of us play it anytime we need a laugh.”
So I guess he loved it. Which is great. It’s nice when people get the joke, which isn’t always the case when we’re “telling” the jokes. A lot of times people can’t laugh at themselves, and if that’s the case, you’re tripping dude.

BW: I remember hearing a rumor a while back that you’d be writing a column for Alternative Press? Did you freelance to them for a while? Are there any other newsstand publications that have invited you to write for or submit some photos to them?

TK: I don’t think they ever wanted me to do a column, I would if they asked me, but I don’t think that’s ever gonna happen. Not while they’re bread and butter is coming from those pussy pop punk bands they put on their cover every month. Remember when they used to interview real bands like Queens Of The Stoneage and Fugazi? Wow, how times change. I did interview the band, Wire, for them last year. I called Colin (the singer) and we just basically talked shit for like an hour and a half. I gave AP 500 words and the rest of the interview ended up on Buddyhead. I’ve written for a bunch of publications. Off the top of my head… lately I’ve written for Filter Magazine (who had me do a back page rant type thing), Tape Op has used some of my photos, as has Heckler magazine, Thrasher ran a few photos I took of The Icarus Line, Loose Lips Sink Ships (the best zine in the world right now) ran the Kevin Shields interview Aaron and I did in their new issue (well I guess Aaron did that one, cuz he asked most of the questions while I filmed the interview but whatever man!) and I’ve had my photos in tons of other magazines but it’s been a while. So yeah sometimes people ask us to write for them I guess, but most magazines are scared to cuz we like to have OPINIONS and OPINIONS scared advertisers away. Newsstand magazines are all about sucking the advertisers off and they never really have the balls to say “hey this kinda sucks” or “I don’t like this” so everything’s pretty good. Which isn’t the reality I live in. I don’t like everything. I have an opinion. When it comes down to it, most newsstand magazines are all about selling ads and selling magazines, not promoting good music or creative thinking. And magazines like Rolling Stone would never ask us to write anything, but they’ve jacked stuff we’ve written like our rules of rock. Go figure.

BW: Do you guys still receive death threats? Has anyone ever attempted to get revenge for anything you wrote about them on your website?

TK: There was a time when we got a lot of death threats a few years ago. And we still get them from time to time, in fact I got one last week from some anonymous person saying he was gonna stab me in the neck for one of my record reviews. Which would really suck if it happened, but I don’t think thugs work like that. Most of the time they just walk up to you and beat the shit outta you, they don’t email you and warn you. Aaron and I both been beaten about the face a few times for shit we’ve written, (I think I’ve caught a few more punches than Aaron has due to him usually being on tour in other parts of the world) which has to be the most retarded reason to get beat up. Write something back if you don’t like what we’re saying, don’t prove us right and showing everyone what a jock you are. Last year I got decked nine times in the face (yea, at once) once cuz Aaron wrote Good Charlotte was weak or something. I was shocked cuz I thought people already knew that and aren’t they a “punk rock band? Isn’t it “punk rock” to talk shit? Hmm… I must like different punk than them. Go figure.

BW: What is the most appropriate thing someone could do to get revenge on Buddyhead?

TK: Shoot us. Some people should die, that’s just unconscious knowledge man….

BW: Weren’t you guys going to release that dude from Far’s band? Is there some major beef between Flawless and Buddyhead over that?

TK: Dude you’ll have to ask Aaron that one… I was very heavily drunk for good year or so…. Basically I was wasted during that whole period of time so I don’t remember shit nor do I take responsibilities for anything I did or said during that time.

BW: How about MCA’s Jordan Shur? There is a rumor that he got a bodyguard just to protect himself from you guys?

TK: I heard that rumor too. What a PUSS huh? That dude is like eight feet tall! He could kill me! He’s just pissed off cuz now he realizes he got rich for having shitty taste in music.

BW: What do your parents think of Buddyhead?

TK: They don’t fully understand what is it or what it is I do. But then again, my parents have never really understood what I was up to or what I’ve been into, so it’s not a new thing. What do you expect? My dad is an Olympic track coach…. I didn’t really turn out like they planned. They’ve been bummed on me since I found skateboarding and punk in junior high. Once they started to see press on us in magazines they stopped asking when I was going to go to college and do something with myself. Which is nice not to have to hear anymore.

BW: The dude who sings for Your Enemies Friends is pretty popular with the ladies isn’t he?

TK: I dunno, I don’t pay attention to Your Enemies Friends and their ladies... I know Ronnie has got a pretty cool girlfriend named Jen cuz Aaron and I had pizza and beers with em last week (Aaron drank Coke). But I do know that their keyboard player is popular with the guys, can’t tell you how many people ask me if she has a boyfriend….it’s outta control.

BW: Has Fred Durst ever tried to contact/kill you?

TK: He called us a few times (emailed us too) and told us he was gonna kill us or beat us up or something, but he never actually did it. Go figure. I’ve actually never met him, and besides the few phone calls and emails, a few years ago, I’ve never even spoken to the dude. Aaron saw him at Cole Rehearsals the other day cuz The Icarus Line were practicing a few doors over from Limp Bizkit. He said Fred Durst is super short, total midge. Oh and he has had his lawyers send us a few letters telling us if we didn’t quit posting his cell phone numbers and office numbers, that they were gonna sue us, but they never did that either. Guess you could say Fred Durst is all talk and no action.

BW: It seems that complacency is a popular notion in America, to be parallel in satisfaction with the majority of the world. Do you think Buddyhead inadvertently (or purposefully) advocates against this?

TK: I think we advocate whatever we want to at the moment. There’s not much thought put it in it. Which is why it’s so honest I think. Sometimes we even change our minds on something. We just advocate whatever seems right, makes us feel good, makes us laugh, or makes us feel alive. That’s kinda the whole purpose behind what we do. It’s very self serving. But in the end, Buddyhead is for the children as well.

BW: What is the proportion of letters that you receive praising you to letters condemning you?

It’s about 50/50 I think. Well, maybe more like 60 percent bad and 40 percent good. Who knows, the bad ones always stick out way more than all the good ones. It seems people either really love what we do or really hate what we do. There’s rarely anything in between. People seem to feel strongly one way or another which is fine with me, cuz that makes they care... either way. As long as people are paying attention to what we do, no matter what their opinion of it is, I think we’re doing our job. Cuz at this moment in time I don’t there’s really anyone saying what we’re saying, doing what we’re doing, or releasing the records we’re releasing. I don’t see that many magazines or zines for that matter with the same opinion or view point towards music and I sure as hell don’t see any record labels that work the way we work or that are interested in what we’re interested or putting out the kinds of records we’re putting out. For better or for worse. That was a load of shit.

BW: Besides the Strokes, what is the most overrated, current band?

TK: Not sure. But, Shat is most underrated for sure. If you haven’t seen Shat live, you haven’t lived yet son. Jeff Wood was shot in the head and has since turned into the musical superhero known as Shat. Dude is the real deal!

BW: How do you feel about Rolling Stone giving Contraband by Velvet Revolver a higher rating than You are the Quarry by Morrissey?

TK: I haven’t heard either record, so I don’t have an opinion. I don’t read Rolling Stone either or magazines like it. That magazine doesn’t cover rock n’ roll anymore, but then again it really hasn’t for a long time. They cover pop culture, which is boring, disposable, and sucks the life out of me. They’d rather put a kid from some fruit cake WB TV show on the cover of their stapled stack of advertisements than a really good rock band. Fuck that bullshit. Fuck all those “lifestyle magazines” too that try and cover rock for this split second where it’s back “in style”. The only good music magazines you can trust nowadays are Mojo, Uncut, Chunklet, Care Less Talk Costs Lives, and….. Spin man. I fucking love Spin, they’re “100 top coolest people” lists make me tons smartererer. Ok I was lying about Spin. Spin sucks shit too. Fuck that poser Mark Spitz guy while I’m at it! That geek called The Icarus Line “emo," I really love it when people write about bands before they hear their music or see them live, and wrote a book on LA Punk but didn’t include the Weirdo’s barely at all (even though he jacked their song title for the name of his book) cuz he’s from New York City and he doesn’t know shit about LA punk. Dude should stick to writing about how Manny Moore is dressing this week. NEW - YORK - CITY?!?! All those major magazines hate us too, they totally boycott covering our bands and the records we put out. Whatever man, you guys can suck a dick up til you hick up! They’d rather listen around their plush office and listen to Sum 41, and all that other bullshit they get paid to write about. Fucking dorks.

BW: How much does Buddyhead rely on donations and fan support?

TK: We used to rely on it more a few years ago, because back then people were actually donating money to us, it doesn’t happen so often anymore. Back in the good old days, Courtney Love gave us a few grand, Moby slipped Aaron a $100 bill when they met in some gay bar, and tons of readers from all over the globe sent in various amounts of cash too (we got $200 and a Slayer patch from some kid in France). At the time, that money really helped us pay for lots of stuff including vinyl pressings, rent, T-shirt pressings, and even posters for our bands. The donations have dwindled lately, but every once in a while someone will send in $20 or so. I guess we don’t seem as needy? Or we’re not cool anymore. Something is up….