YOUR QUESTION

11/02/2020 Dylan

Hello Trevor! Been a massive fan of you and your playing for many, many years. Can say for certain I would never have picked up a bass if it weren't for your playing, and I was floored when I heard Sister Phantom Owl Fish. The synergy between you and Mary Halvorson is such a unique mood and sound, I find your strength as a band leader is a lack of ego or the urge to show-off, it really feels like the band breathes together, if that makes any sense. What helped you develop as such an excellent band leader?
Also, I know you're probably sick of questions about the Bowel of Chiley tape, but one thing I've always found puzzling about is the track "( )," which I'd consider an absolutely brilliant track, and stands out pretty dramatically. Was there any particular reason that song was dropped after that demo?

MY ANSWER

Being a side-man for the majority of my career and watching band leaders work —seeing what is successful or not in their modus operandi —has benefited me. Knowing, as a sideman, what I want or expect from a leader and trying to give my bandmates the same: clarity, direction, allowance, a balance of freedom and boundaries, a good paycheck.
That song (pronounced “parenthesis”) was a favorite of mine as well. Very cool Die Kruezen-esque writing from Trey. I think once we got into the material that eventually became our first record we dropped everything else. Most of our songs have a shelf-life.

YOUR QUESTION

11/02/2020 wondering about death

On Jeremiah Cymerman's podcast you say you don't fear death because we're all gonna die. Do you mean that? I'm not sure how I'd react if I found out everyone would live forever except me, but objectively that doesn't seem like it'd be a bad thing. Because of the way we perceive time--where the past seems relevant or knowable solely from how it affects the present--it seems like my death will render all my experiences meaningless, and the only way to escape dread is to care exclusively about the consequences of what I do in a moral or esthetic sense. And even then I dread the time when all those consequences are no longer felt by anybody and become meaningless. How do you think about this stuff fearlessly?

MY ANSWER

I think I had a clear understanding at a young age that eventually the sun would swallow the Earth and all of history as we know it (or will know it at that point) will evaporate. I’m not sure I’d call any of that meaningless. Your experiences having meaning in the moment they are happening. Death is a part of us; it’s a part of the whole structure. There’s really no reason to fear it. Pain, I fear, but that’s instinct. We came from the stars and we will return to the stars and who is to say that is an end? Even without the Earth or history or some tangible lineage, who’s to say what our consciousness becomes? I think in a lot of cases, fear is a waste of energy. You can’t stop death so there is no point in not embracing it. Meditate on it. It is within us.

YOUR QUESTION

11/01/2020 Crackerfoot

How is your electric bass? I heard the sickening thud of floor hitting strings, and stings hitting fretboard at the end of “The Night They Came Home” concert. Was it Scott subconsciously getting revenge for his arthritis?

MY ANSWER

I think that was my own fault for not setting it down properly. I’m old now. That set was exhausting. The G-string tuner got separated from the back of the headstock, but it’s fine now. I had it repaired.

YOUR QUESTION

11/01/2020Eric Millington

Howdy, great job on the livestream. Question... was that ACTUALLY the Eureka Public Library? Or just a set? Not sure WHY this interests me, other than being a Bungle fan and wondering about such nonsense. Anything planned for the livestream that didn't make it in? Thanks again for making 2020 slightly less terrible.

MY ANSWER

Did you know that Halloween III and the TV-movie Salem’s Lot were both filmed in Humboldt County?

YOUR QUESTION

11/01/2020 Andy

I’m sure you have met David Yow... is he a funny guy?

MY ANSWER

Very.

YOUR QUESTION

11/01/2020Tyler Hartman

As a beginner bassist, I mostly pluck using either my index or middle finger.
However I find it QUITE hard to alternate between those fingers every pluck at a consistent tempo. (I believe that is a very common technique, right?)
Do you have any advice on how I could improve?
Also, I have recently discovered Astrud Gilberto and the late France Gall. ( Particularly, I am VERY fond of their 60's releases! )
I'd love to hear your option on their music.
Are you a fan of Bossa Nova and Yé-yé?
-Many Thanks, Trevor!

MY ANSWER

Put on your metronome at a slow tempo, maybe something like quarter-note = 60 and play eighth-notes alternating 1st & 2nd fingers. Keep an eye on these fingers as you might not know if you’re alternating or not at this point. Your muscle memory isn’t developed yet. Make sure the 8ths are even. Once this feels comfortable step up the tempo two notches and continue in this manner.

Yeah, those Frenchies are fab, right? Serge Gainsbourg wrote a lot for Gall, no? Some of that stuff is a little campy but it’s fun. Wouldn’t say I’m necessarily a ‘fan’ but I dig it.

YOUR QUESTION

10/30/2020 Warner

When MB signed to WB how many albums was the contract for? Or was it an album by album case? I imagine they said nothing when they heard you disbanded, no? Is it ever weird for you to think about the likelihood that there probably isn’t a single person who’s working at WB these days who knows who you guys even are?
Thanks for all the music and inspiration! Glad you guys are at least temporarily back at it

MY ANSWER

Each album was on ‘option’ meaning, they would decide if we were gonna do another record after they balanced their checkbook and figured out how much we had lost them. Potentially it was a 7 album contract. They never really said anything ever. I don’t think anyone at WB knew who were were in the ‘90s when we were ON the label.

YOUR QUESTION

10/29/2020 Dying

I am like snorting and drooling--chunks of food flying out of my mouth and acidic coffee burning my nasal passages--gasping for air laughing at the idea of the word "DEMO" added to the end of the Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny title. That is some deeply funny ass shit. What was the decision making process behind that, Trevor?

MY ANSWER

Well, the original demo didn’t have the word “demo” in it so the re-recording had to since it was originally a demo.

YOUR QUESTION

10/25/2020 eric

Is it easy for you to separate art from the artist or does it depend on the situation? Case in Point: Burzum....A groundbreaking band in the black metal genre. But the sole member Varg is about as divisive as it gets. From church burnings, to going to jail for 15 years for murder and his admitted neo nazi views it can easily turn people away. The flipside is one car argue that its extreme music. The fact this music was made by an extreme person only adds to its "authenticity" Kind of like if a gangster rapper goes to jail for murder, it may add an authenticity to his albums. Then you look at people like R Kelly or Morrissey. They play simple R&B or indie rock so them being fucked up doesn't really add anything to their music (as opposed to Burzum or gangster rap)

MY ANSWER

Ah, this question. Trying to get me cancelled? It is a tricky question. It’s fairly well known that Miles Davis beat his wives. Does that stop me from listening to his music? No. It does not enter my mind when I listen to his music. I suppose it is a case by case situation, but as an audience member one simply has to make personal choices and separate or not based on their own moral compass. No one is an angel, and I bet most of us would be taken aback if we really KNEW what some of our favorite artists were up to behind closed doors. Ignorance is bliss. In this day and age, we are privy to too much information. There are things we aren’t supposed to know.

I mean, I’m not going to listen or support a neo nazi under any circumstance. I also wouldn’t listen to music by, say Charles Manson, mostly because I feel it would conjure negative energy that I don’t want in my house and ears. Do I continue to enjoy Polanski movies despite his deplorable behavior? Yes. That’s a personal and conscious choice that I make. Perhaps on my compass what he has created outweighs what he has destroyed. Humans are complicated and multifaceted and never black and white. Art might end up being the only positive aspect of a person’s whole.

YOUR QUESTION

10/23/2020 Bunny positioning

Hi, question about the mix of Raging Wrath. Are Trey and Scott’s rhythm guitar tracks panned to the same positions of the stereo image throughout the entire album, or does it change from song to song? If it’s the same on each song, mind divulging who is on the L and who is on the R? This is very exciting info 4 geeks.

MY ANSWER

I believe they stay in the same position throughout, and I’m pretty sure Scott is on the right, Trey on left. Scott starts the first riff in Anarchy and you can tell it’s him by his tight-as-a-frog’s-ass rhythm. Trey has a more fluid attack, if that’s the right word.

YOUR QUESTION

10/22/2020 Reed

Have you ever gotten into Grindcore or Norwegian black metal? Bands like Emperor, Mayhem, Burzum, Deicide, Napalm Death etc. Its usually the next logical step after thrash. If so, what bands?

MY ANSWER

Yes, of course, I got into all of those bands to a degree. I’m a big fan of Full Of Hell and Intestinal Disgorge. Cattle Decapitation also.

YOUR QUESTION

10/21/2020 Tommy Westerkamp

Hi trevor, a bass player only question :-). Thoughts on 6 string basses? Or five string? Do you still play 5 string bass? I am struggling what to play. i own a 4 and a 5 string but the 5 string is now with a high c. It's not very functional in my opinion but i like the sound of it on its own. The low b is better in context with a band. Hopefully you like the question otherwise no problem. i understand :-().
Greetings from Amsterdam.
Best regards, Tommy

MY ANSWER

I’m not a fan of higher strings for bass. I feel like guys who like to play up there should be playing guitar, although it is a sounds in itself. I use my Alembic Europa 5-string quite often, but I also l love playing four string, which is what I was raised on. I choose which bass I’m going to play depending on the music, and not just based on the number of strings. My Pbass and Europa have completely different sounds, for example. But you can’t really beat those extra five notes on the B string, not to mention the facility you gain with being able to play lower notes higher up on the fingerboard.

No need to struggle, I think. Use the appropriate bass for the situation. That’s part of your versatility.

YOUR QUESTION

10/18/2020 Chris

Thoughts on Dillinger Escape Plan? They seem to have a lot of Bungle in their DNA.

MY ANSWER

I dig that band, although I haven’t kept up on all their records. We taught them everything they know.

YOUR QUESTION

10/18/2020 Luke

1) Having worked so closely with Trey and Patton, do you ever check out albums they have done that you were not involved with. Would you check out the first couple Tomahawk albums when they were initially released or SC3s last several albums, or Faith No More etc?
2) Will Moonchild ever release another album or is that project originally done?

MY ANSWER

1) I was a fan of Tomahawk before I was involved, mostly because of Duane’s writing, but of course, I had to study those records to eventually learn the songs. I try to keep track of everything Trey is involved in and have several SC3 records. FNM I was never particularly into, although I always gave those records a listen when they first came out, or would go see them live just to be supportive. Not really my cup of tea though. It does get harder to be objective about colleagues whom one works with regularly.
2) That project is done. Zorn tends to have a limit with certain bands and that one completed it’s purpose.

YOUR QUESTION

10/18/2020 Bobby Big Bill$

How can I purchase master license for Squeeze me macaroni?

MY ANSWER

What on God’s earth for?

YOUR QUESTION

10/15/2020 Norton Karn-Vanian

Thoughts on Skinny Puppy?

MY ANSWER

My one thought is that I saw Godflesh open for them in the ‘90s. I went for Godflesh, of course. Left after probably the 3rd SP song.

YOUR QUESTION

10/12/2020

Sorry, I have 3 questions.
1) Would you be annoyed if someone intentionally chose to listen to your Nocturnes record at, say, 2 o’clock on a bright, sunny afternoon?
2) Are you friends with Lev Zhurbin or was he more of a hired session player? I remember back in the MySpace days circa 2006 when he was an unknown player just starting out and he had some pretty cool compositions, but I hadn’t heard anything about him since then.
3) This is not a common position but I think I hate Flea even more than Kiedis and I know some people love to say how it’s really just Kiedis who is the problem and that no one else in that wretched band is a dick or whatever. I know Kiedis was direct with Bungle management about hating you guys’ (or at least Patton’s) guts, but I’m just wondering if Flea and you ever crossed paths, like at WB in Burbank or a festival or something, and if he was “nice” to you, because that’s his schtick, being a suuuuuper nice guy!

MY ANSWER

1) People are free to adhere to their own rituals as deems fit. Also, I probably wouldn’t be aware of it.
2) The Secret Quartet was put together by my friend Jenny Choi. I didn’t meet Lev until the first rehearsals for that piece, so really more of a hired hand.
3) Believe it or not I saw Flea once at a FLEA MARKET in South America once — maybe Santiago….? I swore I would have punched him in his stupid mouth if I’d had the opportunity. That guy is loathsome every time I see him in some music documentary that he thinks he has the authority to talk about. Why do all those guys talk so much?

YOUR QUESTION

10/11/2020 Ultra Mono

Hi, sorry for yet another Bungle related question, but I have to know the story behind the DV cover art, as that photo has been an obsession of mine for years (even got the viperfish tattooed). All I know is that someone named Arthur Hertz took that picture, and that it wasn't your 1st choice but WB made you change it, or something like that.
And thank you for staying clode to your fans, even when they come up with stupid questions you already answered too many times. ;)
Socially-distant greetings from France !

MY ANSWER

See previous question for more on this, but no, that was indeed our first and only choice for the cover. WB did fuck up a lot with the inside artwork though, thus the “scam” we concocted to get the artwork we wanted in there.

YOUR QUESTION

10/10/2020 Sofia

Hey, it's Disco Volante 25th anniversary today. One thing I am curious about is that picture on the cover. Where did you guys found that pic and why did you choose it as your album cover? I love that pic and actually wanna have it tattooed. :)

MY ANSWER

Once we figured out there was a deep sea diving theme to the record I did some research in what is still my favorite place to do research: The public library! This was in San Francisco and I found a book (probably credited in our liner notes, but I can’t remember) with lots of good stuff. That photo was screaming album cover and everyone agreed immediately— a rare occurrence.