YOUR QUESTION

12/28/2020 Alex Ducote

Hey man, I just wanna say I love your playing for Mr. Bungle, your work for that band is super underrated and you're one of my bass idols. I wanna ask how you guys managed to make the sax in Mr. Bungle hearable, because I want to start a weird funk/jazz/death metal band, and I'm thinking of looking for a vocalist who can play the tenor sax, because I really like how it sounds in metal. Problem is I'm worried the guitars and drums will drown out the sound, so I'm curious what you guys did to make it sound loud, especially in live situations. Thanks for your time, you're the best!

MY ANSWER

First off, you don’t need to start a weird funk/jazz/metal band. That’s a bad idea. Saxophone has a timbre that is not dissimilar to distorted guitar so it has to be treated appropriately in the mix. Orchestration is key to individual parts being heard. It really depends on where you put it, how you can make it blend so that it doesn’t sound unnatural and EQ. There’s probably a Tape Op article about it. I’m no sound engineer and I usually leave that job up to the professionals. With large orchestrations there is always a bit of a battle and that is part of the game. The more you try things out the more apt you are to find solutions.

YOUR QUESTION

12/27/2020 Kieran

I know you love 80s Slayer. But thoughts on mid 90s to early 2000s Slayer? Divine Intervention era and of course their down tuned guitar and hockey jersey wearing Korn era of the late 90s

MY ANSWER

I don’t really feel Slayer exists without Lombardo, and frankly I sort of stopped listening to them after SITA. I did have Undisputed Attitude which I enjoy to a degree, but their importance to me is embedded in a certain era and my own history. Sometimes an artist and their audience grow apart and that’s natural. Korn has always been horrible.

YOUR QUESTION

12/26/2020 Mike Bouchet

Hi Trevor, I hope this finds you doing well.
Do you actually get paid anything when people buy your music on itunes? Do you receive any kind of payment through Amazon or other streaming services? Whats the best place for people to buy your music?
Thanks for all the great music and inspiration over the years.

MY ANSWER

Streaming services are a joke as far as payment is concerned. You’d laugh if you saw the statements which list micro-cents. 200 plays at .000000000072 parts of a dollar. The best way for people to pay for music is live shows, merch, physical copies and making payments to the label or artists (say, via Bandcamp) directly.

YOUR QUESTION

12/23/2020 Huw

Hi Trevor, hope all is well!
1. How does Zorn usually present his music to you, would there be a rehearsal before the concert/recording, or would you have to study your parts before hand and run it all at soundcheck/the concert?
2. Which do you find more technically taxing, german bow or playing the electric bass with a plectrum?
3. When time allows, how would you usually structure practicing and composing?

MY ANSWER

1. Usually I get written music in advance and work on it myself as the other instrumentalists do. Rehearsals tend to take place just before the record button is pushed or at soundcheck.
2. I think there is more involved with bow technique, probably because it is a much larger implement with more physical options, more margin for error. Bowing can also be fragile with the possibility of truly horrible tone and this is taxing to control.
3. I have a list of exercises and techniques to practice; long-tones, arpeggios, a Bach prelude, etc and, time allowing, I work on each thing for a certain amount of time. I also try to pay attention to diminishing returns and muscle pain. Occasionally inspiration rears it’s unpredictable head and interrupts my noodling so I have to pause the technical work to write down an idea, and I certainly believe it’s important to pay attention to those unpredictable moments. However, it’s also important to set aside dedicated time to compose, to sit down with only the goal of writing. Composing and practicing technique are two totally different mindsets and should be respected as such.

YOUR QUESTION

12/23/2020 lucyhi,

I've heard you've been diggin billie eilish, what's your favorite of hers? and do you think she's changing the game by going against typical girl pop star stereotype and by writing her music?

MY ANSWER

I haven’t done the deep dive, just appreciate her videos mostly, and a certain melancholy in her songs. Changing the game? Not sure I’d be that extreme. But you know me, I’m grateful for anything that goes against stereotypes. There are plenty of other female pop artists that have preceded Eilish as songwriters. I think the thing I value the most is her appeal to young people; that sort of sets the bar higher for their taste in future art, which of course, bolsters art in general.

YOUR QUESTION

12/21/2020 CT

What do you find sexy?

MY ANSWER

Psychology.

YOUR QUESTION

12/20/2020 Zemaraim

Hey Trevor, I'm curious what was behind the decision to go outside of the bandleader with the track "Zemaraim" for the Unknown Masada release in 2003, having you, rather than Patton, arrange it, and what was your approach--were you trying to sort of arrange like Mike/achieve the Fantomas sound, or were you simply thinking, "Ok, I've got rock guitar, electric bass, Dave Lombardo, and Patton, what can I do with this Zorn composition in this context?" It's interesting, but not surprising, that this is the one thing recorded by Fantomas that doesn't really sound like Fantomas. I think your metal roots really come through in this arrangement!

MY ANSWER

Zorn asked me to arrange that Masada tune and I can’t remember if he suggested using Fantomas or if it was my decision. My guess it that I was under a time constraint but also busy in the studio with those guys in California, so I used what was at my disposal, whipped up a fairly simple arrangement and had us blast through it during some down time. It is certainly not in the style of Fantomas, merely utilizing the players.

YOUR QUESTION

12/17/2020 PrimusFan

Hello Mr. Dunn! I got into Mr Bungle this year and was wondering about what inspired some songs. For instance, My Ass is on Fire. Where did that come from? As well as Carousel. The first album seems to be darker than the rest and was just curious what inspired them. Plus, personal favorites.
Also, you're a brilliant bassist keep doing what you're doing. Oh and loved the funk you bring to the table!
Hope you have a good day :)

MY ANSWER

I’m not sure how to answer the question “where did that come from?” Where does anything come from? The lyrics have to do with self-anger. Carousel is about the dark lure of the circus/carnival/funhouse what have you. They’re all pretty dark if you ask me.

YOUR QUESTION

12/15/2020 Marcus

Hi Trevor, I recently got a copy of Zorns Film Works V "Tears of ecstasy", brilliant album, love it, but I'm confused, the 12th track "Cusp" is a fragment of "Everyone I went to high school with is dead" off the masterful Disco Volante. The thing I'm finding strange is that the liner notes of "Tears" say all songs written by John Zorn and on Disco Volante it says the tune is composed by you, my question is who wrote it?
Many Thanks

MY ANSWER

I’ve heard about this though I’ve never heard the soundtrack myself. I am the sole writer of “Everyone….” but I guess it was sampled for that particular track in the film. Hilarious!

YOUR QUESTION

12/15/2020 Monicker

On the first SC3 record Trey wrote the refrain “Rock and Roll is a thing that needs to die,” but I was never convinced that you, Trevor Dunn, were personally committed to that mantra yourself, which leads me to a general question about band membership and lyrics:
Being that you’ve played in and attached your name to a handful of groups (Bungle, SC3, Melvins, Tomahawk) that have other lyricists, have you ever found yourself unable to get behind a particular lyric that another band member has written? Like has a line or two ever just made you cringe (at the time of recording/release, not years later in hindsight)?
I'm not necessarily asking you to name the exact line/band/lyricist, but rather if you've ever had such an experience before, and how you internally navigated that moment. I understand that compromise is part of the deal, especially when you’re a sideman in someone’s project. But my question is more about what is the thought process like for you—someone who cares deeply about music, and who plays mostly with close friends—when these divergences in ideology and aesthetics come up? Also, do you think it is the responsibility of the lyricist to explain to the other members of the band what the lyrics “mean”? Have you ever found yourself on either end of such a situation?
Thanks in advance for your answer and sorry for the preamble!

MY ANSWER

You may or may not be surprised to find out that I don’t know what all of the lyrics are about. Even in Bungle, we didn’t explain them to each other, and I don’t think anyone feels like grilling the lyricist about what some phrase “means”. That’s actually pretty refreshing. I don’t recall ever cringing in a collaborative band, so perhaps I’m just fortunate, or ignorant, or both. Other than Bungle, each of those bands you listed has a pretty clear leader/lyricist, or leaders in the case of Tomahawk. So in those cases it’s easy for me to ‘step aside’ and let the story be told. I feel that a lyricist’s choice of words has as much artistic merit as any particular chord or rhythm. None of these bands are making political spoken words records, for God’s sake.

I have had fellow bandmates eyeball me over an obtuse or curious lyric. If they really want to know where it came from I’m happy to explain, but usually the takeaway is simply, ‘you’re a weirdo’. Another thing to consider here is that not all lyrics mean something, or have some discernible narrative. Sometimes words are used non-programmatically, which I suppose, is not easy to understand by someone who doesn’t mess around with words. Suffice it to say, I don’t always know what my own lyrics mean.

YOUR QUESTION

12/15/2020 Michelle

Hi Trevor
big fan. I want to ask you about the process of naming songs. I saw the conan interview the other day where Buzz talked about that and I became curious about your own process... and also about some songs in particular. dawn's early vengeance??? Equation Of The Found Object???? liver colored dew?????????

MY ANSWER

The process varies. I have notebooks with lists of title possibilities; Occasionally, like in the case of my last duo recording with Buzz, we wrote quickly and titles had to be generated “automatically” or in the moment without over-thinking. Sometimes a title is the first thing that comes to me even before one note is written (i.e. Platypus, Egg). Other times I struggle with it even after lyrics are written. And variations in between. “Equation...” is the name of an essay by André Breton. “Dawn’s…” just came to me during some Bush-era Gulf War shit. And “Liver…” was a phrase I came up with during an automatic writing session that I liked and later transferred to a list of possible titles. Sometimes I have a title-less song that needs one and then I have to find a match which is not always easy.

YOUR QUESTION

12/14/2020 Johnny Bates

Hi Trevor,
Since none of the 738 interviewers asked these important questions during the insane press cycle of the glorious RWOTEBD release...I have to:
1. Please explain the Donut Shop mascot. What does it refer to?
2. How the hell did you guys come up with Tom Leydecker for the cover of the original tape? I mean...why him and not a band member? What was his connection to the band and what does he think about appearing in thousands of new pressings?
3. Bungle bootleg aficionados know that by late 1986 you weren't playing much metal at live shows. Do you recall how many actual gigs you played between the first ever gig (setlist in the yearbook CD) with Jed and the switch to Bowel of Chiley era type shows hat he bowed out of?
4. Once life returns to "normal" do you dread having to re-learn these tunes for the hoped for tour or do you feel like you played them enough to get right back into it?
5. In the past you've mentioned penning a Bungle coffee table book. I still want it. The Yearbook CD doesn't count. Is that still in the realm of possibility?
6. What's more painful...playing thrash metal for 90 minutes or signing hundreds of posters?
7. Not a question - years ago I asked Steve Lederman about being a roadie on the first Bungle tour. He told me he had all the videotape footage from it and he was waiting for the band to ask him for it so they could "make a CD-ROM". Yeah...it was a long time ago. The anniversary of that album is next year..hope something special is planned! Regards,
JB

MY ANSWER

Damn, no less than seven questions. Might have to put a cap on you bastards.
1. Don’s Donut Shop and geek rights.
2. He was a fellow “Logger” at EHS who happened to fit the description of what we imagined Mr. Bungle to look like in human form, probably based on the ‘50s hygiene film. We didn’t know him at all. Just asked, hey wanna let us take photos of you doing weird stuff with trains? How could anyone say no? We, of course, tracked him down to get permission to use the photos. Apparently he runs a successful beef jerky company in McKinleyville.
3. Five? Six? I’m only guessing.
4. This stuff comes back pretty quickly, and much of it is deeply ingrained. With other bands I play in, the dread is real.
5. There’s plenty more where that came from; I’m not sure what the boundaries of that realm are anymore.
6. The latter, 100%.
7. Something like 48 hours of footage….

YOUR QUESTION

12/09/2020 Steve

Do you like Varese?

MY ANSWER

Yep. Every single piece.

YOUR QUESTION

12/08/2020 Vagina Kushner

How many bows do you have? Do you have a primary one that you use? Have you tried any carbon fiber bows? If so, what do you think?

MY ANSWER

Looks like I have about 7 bows. My main one is indeed carbon fiber. I like it quite a bit, but also switch off between that and a cheap wooden bow which is lighter and less stable (in a good way). I still have several French bows from when I used to play exclusively on that, none of which are very expensive.

YOUR QUESTION

12/07/2020 Mount Analogue

Hi, just a little curiosity I had about the new recording of Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny. Did you guys record onto tape at Studio 606 or did you track digitally? Oh, I forgot I had another question: The Secret Song on Disco Volante, I know that's Bär on drums, but who is on bass, Mike or Bär? It's Mike on bass on the second half of Backstrokin', and the first half is an upright bass preset on a keyboard, correct?

MY ANSWER

How nuts do you think we are? Tape? Who tf records on tape anymore? That was all digital.
Pretty sure that’s Mike on my Alembic on Secret Song. You can tell by the bad technique ; D Speaking of which, I don’t think I played at all on Backstrokin’. That song was one of Mike’s hotel recordings whist on tour. I think you’re correct about the first part, but the 2nd part is electric bass through an envelope filter.

YOUR QUESTION

12/01/2020 Bobby Vinton

Hi there Trevor. As a musician and composer, you are perhaps (I don’t know if this is actually true) best known as a member of Mr. Bungle. Bungle was a band that made big, elaborate record productions with meticulous arrangements. But for a longer period of your career now you’ve operated predominantly within a jazz/live band setting as a sideman. My question is: do you ever long to be involved again in something that is production and arrangement heavy that would result in a "studio record"? I’m asking because you (and your compatriots) were so damn good at that every time you gave it a try. Cheers!

MY ANSWER

It’s harder and harder these days to do big production stuff mostly for financial reasons. That said, I’m doing some of my own producing at home. But, yeah, it would be nice to have a budget of $100k and a month in an actual studio again. I wouldn’t say no.

YOUR QUESTION

11/22/2020 David Mirrione

Hello Mr Dunn! I am 14 year old from California and You inspired me to play bass.I have two questions my first is, What is the story behind secret song? I have heard a lot of different things so I would like to get that cleared up and my other question is, What bass did you use on Disco Volante? Disco Volante is one of my all time favorite albums and I have always wondered that question. Have a nice day.
-David

MY ANSWER

Glad to hear it! The Secret Song came from a string of riffs, something we called a “snake”, that had the potential to become an actual song. One night during the DV sessions I left the studio early, probably to go make my $50 at a jazz gig. In the meantime, Bär, Danny, Trey and Mike arranged and recorded the instrumental. Later I found the tape and was all, wtf?! Mike wasn’t around when I found it, so we didn’t tell him and I recorded the vocals on it. Somehow Mike got wind of that but he and I didn’t tell the other guys that he knew. They all thought it was going to be a surprise when the album came out, which Mike pretended it was and acted like he was pissed off about it. Then we put it in a hidden groove on the vinyl and didn’t I.D. it on the CD. Meta-secret.
On DV I mostly used my Alembic Europa 5-string, my upright and my Ken Lawrence fretless. I also used a Guild Ashbory on parts of Golem and possibly a beater Vox that wasn’t mine.

YOUR QUESTION

11/19/2020 sara

did u know that faxed head ripped off sudden death and didn't even credit u guys ? they fucked up the song like it sounds like its breaking and dying and shit. u should sue those coalinga r*tards
take care trev!

MY ANSWER

Scourge ripped off Spreading the Thighs of Death and Fantomas ripped of Methamatics (see an upcoming question). But “ripped off” is the wrong term. We’re like a village of folk musicians, or a dub DJ, using melodies in homage as a development of the larger cultural milieu.

YOUR QUESTION

11/18/2020 Rudie

What do you think of Darth Vegas or Rahsaan Roland Kirk?
Your playing on Mr. Bungle's debut album reminds me of Jamaaladeen Tacuma, but was he an influence?
Happy to have Mr. Bungle return.

MY ANSWER

Never heard of Darth Vegas. I love Roland Kirk. The Inflated Tear rules as does The 3-sided Dream. Tacuma was/is definitely and influence, but I don’t think I heard him til much later. I can’t think of anything on a Bungle record that sounds like him.

YOUR QUESTION

11/18/2020 The Scruff

My mother decided on the sobriquet. Not me.
1. Do you have a favorite key or musical mode to perform in, either for your selection's tone or the range it provides with chord/scale progressions?
2. Do you prefer fretless bass guitars (which I am postulating given your proficiency with contrabasses, unless your smiles and concentration belie your frustration) or fretted basses?
3. Danny Heifetz in a 2013 interview briefly explained how Theo Lengyel became disillusioned with the band, but he credited Theo to playing the trombone and flute. When did he use either (or you with the student clarinet you fear) in a live or studio setting?
4. I am not asking for them to return or Mr. Bungle to cease playing what initially and currently united them, but why are saxophones seemingly making a resurgence in heavy metal? I prefer bass and contra-alto clarinets in the genre.

MY ANSWER

1. No, but I’m always exploring. I will say that Db is a pain in the ass on the upright, but not all my choices are based on ease or comfort.
2. I rarely play fretless and though I do enjoy it, I’m more at home with the frets. The difference in scale length and hand positions is so different on upright and electric that knowing one doesn’t necessarily facilitate the other.
3. Theo played mostly alto sax and occasionally trombone on tour; the latter usually on cover songs. I played clarinet in Danny’s band Dieselhed at a live show in SF once, and again at the Women’s March in NYC around 2017, and on some film music I’ve written.
4. Well, Scruffy, you can’t always get what you want. I have fortunately not heard any metal with sax in it.