Welcome to ZINETERVIEWS, an ongoing feature where  DUM DUM collaborator Bryxan Amsterdam conducts an interview with a band via text message, then creates a one-off handwritten zine. Dig the most recent conversation with Slim Twig, hailing from Toronto with his killer sonic pleasure pastiches. Check out Twig’s video for a spankin’ new track called “Priscilla” and look out for his forthcoming 2nd LP, Sof’ Sike, due August 21 from Paper Bag Records.

Text message from Bryxan Amsterdam (BA): ok
so how’s it going?

Text message from Slim Twig (ST): not too bad. how are you?

BA: good. morning ritual shit going on

ST: i hear ya. what time is it over there?

BA: 10:03 AM in olympia

ST: ok, sorry if i got you up for this interview…
10 is somewhat early for me.

BA: I actually passed out stoned last night really early and woke up at 5 this morning

ST: oh good!

BA: just watched some john cusack movie , had a pretty good morning

ST: movies in the morning. i haven’t did that since i was a kid.

BA: hah! what was your shit back in the day?

ST: i just remember renting like the first austin powers movie, and then having a sleepover at my friends house, watching it night of, then waking up to watch it again in the morning…

BA: hah oh shit. I was really into cartoons on saturdays. friday nights were TGIF in my friend’s basement. awful american sitcoms, great for the teenage soul

ST: no doubt. i watched tenacious d: pick of destiny last night…

BA: that one is great

ST: i actually do have good taste as well, just for the record.
it’s good to appreciate both sides of the coin tho i guess.

BA: haha ov course
so where you at right now?

ST: i’m at home.
hangin out.

BA: cool. how’s the record you’re doing with U.S. Girls coming?

ST: do you mean her full length record? or the split that we just released?

BA: well.. talk about both if you want to. how has the process been between both?

ST: it’s been great!
the split is released in europe right now.
it’s probably my favourite record that i’ve worked on.
because it kind of showcases a lot of different things. one side i wrote, and the other i produced… in that way it’s a very cohesive record.
not like an average split…

BA: comes out in america next month? august right?

ST: yea, that’s right.
the tunes on my side are somewhat of a departure as well.

BA: cool. how so?

ST: well, for the past three or four years i’ve been working within the confines of sample based music.
i’ve decided to step outside of that.
the new stuff is all live, pop driven.

BA: cool. is there anything specific that had an influence on yer decision?

ST: i just got kind of sick of it… i still like the music i was making, but i was finding it hard to connect with an audience that way.
there’s something about a LIVE band that people really dig.

BA: right. sharing a lot of energy..

ST: it’s hard to compete with that i think, for the kind of music i’m interested in making.
i also wanna be considered more of a songwriter, less of a weirdo…

BA: that’s admirable. it’s easy to hide and make great records.. it’s a different thing to go out with a band performing well written tunes

ST: yea i think so. not that there’s anything against the former attitude. i still respect that, and think that i could return to that from a different angle… but i think it’s healthy to recharge your creative juices by doing something different.
i got sick of people calling me a weirdo and saying i was rockabilly this…
which is kind of the two things people said about me in canada anyways…

Sent at 10:15 AM on Thursday

BA: that’s funny shit. in america they call me a weirdo and a faggot
hah!

ST: haha. well ya, i get that too… that’s more just walking down the street. i was talking about what people call me not in real life…

BA: true. where have you been playing out recently?

Sent at 10:18 AM on Thursday

ST: well, as i say this band thing is new to me so i haven’t had the opportunity to travel too far a field with my dudes. just been playing around smaller towns outside of toronto which is where i live. in august i’ll play my first home town show in a year.

BA: cool. have you had the opportunity to perform with U.S. Girls before?

ST: yea totally. we’ve played a couple of shows together. we’re playing some more in august. truth be told, meghan is my girlfriend so it’s pretty easy to link up for shows.

Sent at 10:20 AM on Thursday

BA: solid. any splits or other records coming out you can talk about?

Sent at 10:22 AM on Thursday

ST: well, meghan / u.s. girls and i are thinking about starting a label together to release some of our own stuff, or stuff we collab on, or friends things… so that’s in the works. i’ve also been working on my next album since last fall… it’s taking a hell of a long time, but that should be crazy. some of the songs have string quartet and these kind of things… so again, much of a departure.

BA: that is some amazing news
congratulations on all of that

ST: thanks!

BA: where have you been recording yer record?

ST: well, a friend of mine owns a studio on toronto island and last fall he went on tour for a couple months and rented me the whole space for a time. so i had to kind of learn how to engineer on the fly…

BA: haha

ST: it was a really great experience tho. since then i’ve been overdubbing at my practice space.

BA: classic. any collaborators you would like to mention who lent a hand?

ST: yea!
well meghan is doing back up vocals on a lot of the tunes, and actually got me into a lot of the music that was inspiring to me. also owen pallet arranged the strings for a handful of the songs.

BA: wow!!

ST: he’s from toronto too, so that’s how that came about.

me: I can’t wait to hear that!!

ST: thanks man!

BA: yeah dude. holy crap. you must be floating right now

Sent at 10:28 AM on Thursday

ST: yea, it’s frustrating because it’s taking so long… it’s kind of an ambitious project, trying to recreate some of the productions styles from the 60’s and this kind of thing, but back then they had 10 guys in lab coats working around the clock, and for my record it’s just me… so it’s taking a while!

BA: yeah i’m sure

ST: not to complain at all.

me: haha

ST: being frustrated with these things is what we call a good problem…

BA: a challenge

ST: ya.

BA: cool. well I guess we all need those to get by. or something. sheeeet
thanks for chatting

ST: yes, thank you man for being interested to chat.

BA: ov course. looking forward to the new LP and split!

ST: oh thanks, i hope you like them when they come out.
i’m glad some people outside of my country know about my music!

BA: haha. well if you ever need a show on the west coast , holler

ST: will do sir.

BA: good. stay gold!!

ST: peace.