Los Angeles/Philadelphia indie rock band, Pistol for Ringo, released their sixth record, “AUDIO SURRENDER,” this month. The album contains a cover of Pixie’s “WAVE OF MUTILATION,” which they recorded for an upcoming 2023 Horror/Thriller feature film written by Allisyn Snyder, directed by Dylan Snyder, and produced by Watch The Footage Productions.
“Audio Surrender,” sets the 20-year mark for the indie collective, whose members include: LA-based, Steve Arm, Brian Murphy, and Shane Smith and Philadelphia-based singer, songwriter, and musician Ben Arnold and drummer Matty Muir.
“Audio Surrender” was recorded in Philadelphia, PA at Retro City Studios, mixed in Los Angeles at Hetson Sound, and mastered at Chicago Mastering.
Pistol for Ringo has played almost everywhere on the West Coast, from hipster’s joints in the 213 area code to San Francisco, and even Vegas, as the opening act for an S&M show (no joke). Just one of many reasons they have endeared themselves to indie rock fans as well as garnered musical contributions and support from the likes of Dave Catching, Rob Barbato, and Greg Hetson.
Links to Pistol for Ringo’s music
https://www.reverbnation.com/pistolforringo
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4dMPl2w6PfJNT7SqtdlvjD?si=ORfIz046RgaNmdYdV8IakQ
https://www.youtube.com/user/pistolforringo
1.) What elements and/or characteristics made you say to yourself that you wanted to do music for a living? Who are your influences/heroes/role models?
My 8th grade was spent in a bleak lower class suburb, south east of Seattle. Talk about FOMO, I wasn’t the brightest bulb on the tree, but even I was profoundly aware that rain and hopelessness was the only thing of abundance at the Crossroads Mall. Underemployment was high for those who missed the tech stratosphere. Unless you were fortunate enough to gain employment at Boeing; minimum wage at Fred Meyer, Taco Time or Godfathers Pizza was the only viable option. Viable loosely meaning, as long as you could tamp down the denial with 40 oz bottles of Rainer Ale to make it palatable. So what made me wanna do music? It was the only hope of escape. The only fuel to transport me, at least for three minutes at a time, away from the oppressive suffocation. It was the songs I wrote in my spiral notebook on the 252 bus, with rain soaked shoes. I had to channel this emotion somewhere and my Heath Kit fuzz and Yamaha solid state amp was the conduit. Yes this sounded horrendous, but it masked my penchant for Johnny Thunders and made it sound more like The Birthday Party. People could not believe a 13 year old kid was singing “If I jump on the grenade, can I sleep on your couch?”
2.) If you could compare yourself to an already established artist, who would that be and why? If you don’t like to compare yourself, then music-wise, what separates you from other musicians?
The short form sonic arts, much like 21st century life, is both a cottage pursuit and an act of futility. Like most artists, we dare to examine our flaws and scars, creating a fabric, that with the grace of some higher power, hopefully becomes a body of work. Pistol for Ringo in our best moments, has done this in relative obscurity because this process is how we metabolize what we experience. This metabolism seems to make our art universally personal to those that have found our music. It’s very similar to the awareness that climate change is the inconvenient truth, yet to navigate it on an individual level, we have to opt in against the daunting equation.
3.) Everyone in life goes through adversity of some sort. Is there anything in your life that has any influence on the kind of songs you write? What is the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure on your path to becoming a musician?
Hmmm, perhaps the best way to answer this is with a few lyrics from our composition “Sacred Geometry.”
” Checked in with my higher power, said, “Where the hell you been?
Was it the sage and palo santo that got you listening?”
Every breath and every attempt to survive in this dystopian system is an act of organized denial. This is what makes diversion so intoxicating. It’s those fleeting moments of anesthesia that inspire the most compelling truths.
4.) How do you prepare yourself to write certain songs? What is your song-writing and recording process?
Pistol for Ringo at its core is a cartel of artists. We are a bi costal collective, so our process is collage of various dysfunction and beauty. Any of us could bring in the impetuous of a track, but our super power, is the ability as a group to listen to what the composition wants.
5.) Unfortunately the music industry is full of talented individuals who just don’t get any recognition for their talent and/or hard work. What do you plan to do to make sure you stand out and get noticed? Would you rather be on a major label or would you rather stay independent? Why or why not? In regards to the music industry itself, do you think that the traditional music industry model as we know it is dead?
The idea that one can stand out or cut through the proverbial clutter is so flawed. That notion and those metrics refer to some leftover 1970’s super ego hubris. Pistol for Ringo’s music is a gift to the individual. It’s an exchange. As Shakespeare said, the listener is kind enough to lend us their ears. In return, perhaps our short form sonic art is the diversion that they seek. It’s honest, authentic and humble. If our art moves the listener, then we cut through.
6.) Are you able to make a living with your music? If so, how were you able to attain a career doing what you love? If not, what do you do in order to fund your music career? What advice would give to someone who’s interested in pursuing a career in music?
All five members of Pistol for Ringo have been fortunate enough to derive some economic reward from our art. For some it’s touring, for some its production. Like five individuals at a bus stop, we are all on the bus, but we are far from having revenue streams to individually purchase a vehicle of our own.
7.) How do you think the internet and social media affected the music industry and how musicians are able to market themselves? Social media is obviously an extremely important element in today’s world, especially when it comes to business, branding, marketing, etc. With that being said, do you think an artist will be able to survive in today’s music industry if they’re not social media savvy?
The same algorithm that drives TikTok and streaming numbers is now coming for the composition component of music. Social Media’s leverage is a forgone conclusion. The real question is, will the individual artist survive the cage match of composition?
8.) Artists who try to make music for the general public and make more money are usually seen as “sell-outs.” Do you see it that way and if so, what do you plan to do to make sure your music stays true to your brand and make a good living at the same time without having to “sell out”?
This question speaks more to the privileged academics and trustafarians than it does to Pistol for Ringo. Like Abraham in the desert for 40 years, 20 years into our Pistol for Ringo pilgrimage, a slight economic trickle won’t soon erase our calloused hands or sense of purpose.
9.) Professionally, where do you see yourself 5 years from now?
Music doesn’t truly reverberate without the listener. Music is a shared experience. With all of the global and local issues facing us as a society and as individuals, perhaps a better question is what will be the listeners environment in 5 years. Audio Surrender is a gift in the now. It is a breath. Hopefully Audio Surrender is a window for the listener and a soundtrack to their moment. Playing the “what if” game seems to always cheapen the now. In the future, be it five months or five years, if Pistol for Ringo continue to share an exchange with listeners, that is all any true artist can ask for.
(*Answers by Brian Murphy)