Guitarist.Bassist.Melvins enthusiast!Amateur DJ?This edition of Fistful of Questions goes out to Harjo guitarist Brent Miller.
What is your full name?Brent Miller
Do you have any aliases?Nope
If you had an alias what might it be?Milhouse
What bands are you actively involved with?Harjo is the only band I'm actively involved with. The other Harjo members perform with Fire at the Plantation, Icepick to the Face (John Angel), COMMANDO, Living Earth Show, Freighter (Travis Andrews), and Nature Creeps Beneath (Sal Barra)
What was the first instrument that you played?I started playing saxophone when I was 10.
Tell me about one of your first musical memories?When I was 5, I had two tape recorders with speakers in them. I would record myself introducing songs like I was a radio dj, and then play the song into the mic on the other tape recorder. For some reason I put Kenny Rogers "The Gambler" on my "radio show" multiple times.
What was the name of the first band you were in?When I was 14 my friends and I decided we wanted to start a band, so I bought a bass and started learning how to play songs off the Metallica Black album. Our band: Fatal Slumber.
Tell me about the genesis of Harjo.
My music studies led me to Stony Brook, New York where I was hanging out with other composers that were heavily into post-war American Experimentalism like John Cage and James Tenney (that's what we were there to study), but we also had a DEEP love of all things METAL. We all had at least some ability on guitar, so inspired by Glenn Branca and Sunn 0))), we decided to form a guitar-only ensemble (usually a trio, sometimes a quartet) and play through whatever crazy pieces someone in the group wanted to bring into rehearsal.
As members started to drift away to chase jobs and such, I slowly became the keeper of the Harjo vision. Once things started to coalesce around a particular sound, I decided to start making albums with the group. Harjo has always been more of a concept than an actual band. All of the pieces are fully notated, so anyone that can read music can step in and perform with the group, giving Harjo a flexible roster of musicians for performing and/or recording.
There's also a version of the group that I call HARJOalone, a solo version of the group that explores the same territory as the trio version. Any of the Harjo members can perform these pieces.
What inspired the name Harjo?One of the inaugural members of Harjo grew up in Oklahoma and had strong family ties to the Native American population around the Tulsa area. His mom suggested the name Harjo, which means "crazy," which is what she thought about our music.
How long did it take you to write and record The Magi?I have been kicking around ideas for The Magi (the piece) since 2018. I was thinking about the poem by Yeats, a poem that touches on the search for knowledge, the quest for spiritual enlightenment, and the allure of the unknown. I had a bunch of ideas scribbled in my staff paper notebook, but I didn't really start organizing everything until July 2021. The material went through a lot of permutations over 5 months, until I had a final score that I emailed out to everyone in December 2021. We did a couple of rehearsals in January 2022 and then headed to Sharkbite Studios in Oakland, CA to work with Scott Evans, who is such a delight to work with. He has amazing ears and is really good at capturing electric guitar sounds. We tracked everything in 2 days. The Great Memory was written in a day. We recorded it at a session last year with a few other tracks that will be coming out on other releases.
If you could insert yourself into any one band what band would it be and why?I have an intense obsession with the Melvins. I'd love to have my turn as their bass player just so I can play those songs over and over again. It would be so much fun for me.
Have you ever heard a song and immediately wished you had written it?If so... What was the song and artist?To be honest, I get too excited about other people's music to wish I had written something. My fandom runs super deep; however, I do wish I could write something as perfect as Sleep's Dopesmoker...
Who are some ofyour biggest non-metal musical inspirations?John Zorn and Alfred Schnittke changed the trajectory of my musical life. Ligeti's music taught me to be a more complete composer. David Bowie reminds me to just keep exploring.
What's a non-metal song that you'd like to do a cover of?Radio Cure by Wilco
Every time I see Sunn 0))) I'm just blown away by the experience. They've really tapped into something special and have pointed out a direction that is ripe for exploration.
The year is 2000.Where are you at and what are you listening to?So much Melvins. And Mr. Bungle. And a lot of classical music that I needed to know to graduate.
What advice would you give young musicians that are just starting out in the music business?Find what sets you apart from other bands and really hone those elements. Also, find your community. The communities that we belong to are essential not only for audiences at shows and selling records, but also the other bands in that community will push you musically.
You are going to spend more time on marketing than you are on actual music making. Get ready for that.
What is an absolute band killer?A lack of transparency, whether it be how the money is handled or how songs make the record, or even who does the driving on tour. Everyone needs to know how decisions are being made.
Have you ever recorded a song that you really didn't like, but somebody else in the band really did?Yes. That's when I put on my "imagine I'm in the pit orchestra for a Broadway musical" hat and take pleasure in trying to perform the notes with perfection.
If you were to start your own music festival what would be the name of that festival and who would be the three headlining bands?I'm terrible with titles! That's why I named the tracks on the new album after the poems they were inspired by lol. But I love curating. I would want bands that I love, but aren't so intense that I don't want to see any other music afterwards. I think that makes three headliners Melvins, Sleep, and Electric Wizard.
What's the longest time you've gone without bathing?Even when I've been on tour, I've been able to track down showers. I think that means that a four day backpacking trip is the longest I've gone.
What's one thing that most people don't know about you?I hate flying.
Indeed! I'm all about music discovery. I only really listen to podcasts that introduce me to new music. Makes those train commutes tolerable.
Do unicorns sleep standing up?Unicorns are not cows.
Give me three albums that I should listen to immediately, if not sooner.Big Business - Command Your Weather
Captain Beyond - Captain Beyond
Naked City - Torture Garden
You're driving cross-country and you can only listen to one album the whole time.What album will it be?Melvins Five-Legged Dog
You are writing a book about your life thus far.What is the title of that book?Experiment!
What is your favorite song by Taylor Swift?Lover
Slipknot or Rammstein (if you had to choose)?Rammstein
Boobies
Waffles or Pancakes (if you had to pick one)?Pancakes
Star Wars or Star Trek (if you had to choose)?Star Wars
Favorite band t-shirt you own?My "Melvins Rule You Do Not" t-shirt
Favorite meal?A nice steak dinner
Favorite book?
Marabou Stork Nightmares by Irvine Welsh
Favorite movie?2001: A Space Odyssey
Favorite album?Bullhead by the Melvins
Favorite video game?Master of Orion 2
Favorite Professional Wrestler?John Cena
Huge thanks to Brent for taking the time to answer my questions.You are appreciated.If you are reading this then by all means click on the link so conveniently provided below and check out Harjo's The Magi.You will be glad that you did and you can thank me later.~El Pedo Caliente (aka Uncle Jameson from the Fistful of DOOM show)
https://harjo.bandcamp.com/album/the-magi
