The Nothings
phone interview in direct from Los Angeles on Pogopop
Power Station 100.5 FM Roma 28th dec 1999
Pogopop=P
The Nothings, Philip Holmes= N
P (Pogopop): We are live connected by phone with Los Angeles and we have Phil, lead vocals and guitarist of the Nothings, a Los Angeles band who recently edit an album called "A lot to learn". We broadcasted several times the 7th track of it "Secret Society" and we also reviewed their job on the Pogopop web site. The album was produced by Steve Jones, hystorical member and guitarist of the Sex Pistols.
P: Hi Phil, how are you? Nice to hear you!
N: Hey, hello! How are you? Nice to hear you!!! Come stai? (in italian,"How are you?" n.d.P.)
P: Well! we see that you have already learnt italian! so maybe you'll have a tour in Italy soon!
N: I hope so! maybe the next summer!
P: Would you like to tell us the Nothings's history?
N: Well, we were together in the '80, we played around Los Angeles, where I met Bob, the drummer, and Lenny, our bass player, and we were all in the punk rock right then, and we trapt Steve Jones down from the Sex Pistols, one of our heroes, and we asked him to produce our record, and he said that he would! So...
P: What are you doing now? Are you on tour or are you making another album?
N:  Right in this moment we are rehearsing the new album and we are playing some local gigs here in Los Angeles and hopefully the record will be finished for the next tour in the summer. Steve Jones is going to appear in one song, he will be playing and singing with us...and maybe he will produce some of it. We were talking about it right now, with him! He is working on a Nirvana tribute album, he is producing it, he is busy with that so he will recording with us in the spring, maybe around march.
P: Which are your influences? Which are your musical roots?
N: I like the old AC/DC a lot...
P: Oh, we started with them tonight!
N: ...yes? Bon Scott... I think he was a terrific singer, I think he was the original rock & roll heroe, and I like the old, the very old, Alice Cooper, the Sex Pistols, obviously, and I like the Motorhead, I think that Lemmy is a great...
P: You like hard rock a lot... a mix of metal, hard rock and punk rock..
N: Yes!!!.. And the Ramones of course!!!! One of the greatest bands I think!!!
P: How is the Los Angeles' scene today, do you like it?
N: No, right now I don't like it !!! I think that the radio over here don't play enough punk rock and hard rock...
P: Like in Roma...
N: ...they play too much popular like Britney Spears,you know, Ricky Martin...
P: It is the same in Italy! The mainstream music!!!!
N: Yes!! that's no good! no good at all!!  San Francisco has a better music scene.
P: Yes! We have been there and we think the same! Do you think that punk rock is the way to crash down this popular music or is it a hopeless fight?
N: Well... we got to keep on the fight, we got to kick down the doors with the punk rock against the system!
P: The last question for the Nothinghs, you told us that you are going to finish your album and you'll be on tour the next summer in Europe...
N: that's correct, we'll be... hopefully next summer, we'll be there.
P: We are waiting for you!
N: Oh yes!!! And we'll come to see you first!!!
P: We can do a session together...
N: Yes, you're great!
P: Along with your title track "A lot to learn" we salute you and we say thank you for having called us!
N: Grazie della serata (in italian "Thank you for tonight") is it good?
P: It's perfect!!
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