Interviews

For today's Roll Call we call out Tony Dekker from Ontario's Great Lake Swimmers.

Who are you?
Tony Dekker from Great Lake Swimmers.

Describe yourself in three words.
Big huge nerd.

Who - dead or alive - would you most like to meet?
Leonard Cohen.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Nobody. I don't slap people in their faces.

On Friday, March 27 Feeding Fingers made an appearance on National Public Radio (NPR), reeling through a 40 minute+ set of interviews and eight live acoustic numbers from their album Wound in Wall and from their most recent release, Baby Teeth.

Josh Martin left Atlanta for New York in October 2007. The former guitar player for local punk staples Beat Beat Beat and Carbonas was passing through the Big Apple while on tour when he fell in love with the city. So much so that he decided, on a whim, to stay there for good. "I needed a change of scenery," he offers dryly from his basement apartment in Brooklyn.

For today's Roll Call, we call out Justin Brooke of Howlies.

Who are you?
Hi! My name is Justin Brooke and I play in the alternative rock/adult contemporary band Howlies.

At straight-up 3 p.m., the appointed hour, a man on the other end of the line announces himself: "Heyyyyy, it's Southside!"

And so begins a spirited 40-minute conversation with one of rock 'n' roll's most undervalued artists, Southside Johnny Lyon, who has fronted a horn-heavy R&B band called the Asbury Jukes for more than three decades. After his first troika of LPs, released in the latter '70s on Columbia, fell short of commercial expectations -- especially in light of the concurrent rise of his Jersey shore compadre Bruce Springsteen -- Southside and company focused mostly on touring.

Some people separate their day jobs from their night gigs. For Senor Kaos, hip-hop is a full-time hustle. Voted Atlanta's best hip-hop artist of 2008 by 89.3's Beatz and Lyrics show, he also doubles as a show promoter and blogger (TheKaosEffect.com). He recently interviewed Atlanta indie rap group Collective Efforts -- which released it's latest EP, Time for Hope, in 2008 and plans to follow up with a full album this year.

Axl Rose rarely gives interviews, as you may have heard, but when he does, he has a lot to say. Billboard scored a Q&A with the mercurial Guns N' Roses frontman, and he gives plenty of insight into the making and marketing of Chinese Democracy (including a detailed slam on record companies), and talks freely about other topics.

The Andalusians craft a sound that is more akin to the Pixies, Throwing Muses and the freewheeling alternative rock of late night MTV circa 1989 than any of their Dischord Records peers. The group is the main vehicle for songwriter Basla Andolsun, and her debut "Do the Work" 7-inch is out this month on Dischord Records.

Donning masks, jumpsuits and a "heavier than thou" attitude, Slipknot has drawn as much praise as criticism by fans and critics alike. Fans complain that they're getting too commercial, while critics claim it's all a gimmick. Singer Corey Taylor, who also sings with the band Stone Sour, feels that the band hitting its 10-year milestone -- a mark many bands fail to hit -- is enough to show they are for real, and aren't going anywhere. I spoke by phone to Taylor before the current tour's opening date in St. Paul, Minn., about the tour, the band's evolving sound, the recent news of a solo album and all those breakup rumors.

For this edition of Roll Call, we call out, uh, Phoebe Cates of Attractive Eighties Women.

Who are you?
I'm Phoebe Cates, charismatic frontman of Attractive Eighties Women, the best band in Atlanta.

Describe yourself in three words.
Big loud jerk

Who -- dead or alive -- would you most like to meet?
Dinosaurs. Preferably in a safe controlled environment. Maybe some kind of park?

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Math