Check out a new interview with Tiger Army bassist Geoff Kresge!
A.P. Morbid has a list of Top Ten Bands. Among that list is Metallica, The Misfits, and TIGER ARMY. Whenever I was listening to In the Graveyard, Drew knew to spin some Tiger Army for me. My Past two AOL screen names have been Tiger Army Related. When I started this site, I asked a few people what they wanted to see, and they said some Psychobilly bassists, well it doesn't get much bigger than this. Tiger Army has been mentioned in Alternative Press, Geoff Kresge has been mentioned by name (By Matt Freeman of Rancid) as showing him how to play upright bass properly. Geoff Kresge is a former bass player for A.F.I., and even beyond that, Geoff Kresge has his own record label, produced records for other bands, and has even been working on a tape for Kingston Double Basses for an instructional video. Geoff Kresge has appeared on the Fantastic Tiger Army Album "Tiger Army II: The Power of Moonlite" and lended his bass work to the newest Tiger Army Effort; "Tiger Army III: Ghost Tigers Rise". Tiger Army Can be reached at TigerArmy.Com and his Record Label can be found at DeadBodyWreckerds.Com
HRB: You Started on Electric Bass, right? Did you teach yourself or did you get lessons?
KRESGE: I started playing electric bass in 1988, and I'm 100% self-taught.
HRB: Where/ Are you a pick player? Or do you play finger style after playing the upright for so long?
KRESGE: I always played electric bass with a pick, never fingerstyle. Since I started playing upright bass full-time, I very rarely play electric bass, but when I do, I use both a pick and my fingers.
HRB:What Reccomendations do you have for the aspiring upright bassist?
KRESGE: The best recommendation I can make is to keep practicing and not give up, because it can be incredibly frustrating in the beginning. Don't get discouraged. Everyone is a beginner at some point, so don't feel so bad about not being very good at first. Dedication and practice will change that.
HRB: What's your favorite Tiger Army song to play on your Upright, and why?
KRESGE: That's a difficult question to answer because there are some songs that are fun to play some nights that are hard to get through on othernights. It depends on where they are on the set list. Some of the more complex lines are fun to play if they are later in the set and I've had a chance to get warmed up, but if they're earlier in the set, I cramp up sometimes and that makes it less fun to play.
HRB: Is there any formula to how you get that rockabilly sound to Tiger Army songs?
KRESGE: I don't think there's a formula, that's just what comes out.
HRB: Because the Drummer/ bassist relationship is so important to basslines, who's been your favorite drummer to work with?
KRESGE: As far as playing upright, I would have to say it's Fred Hell, because he has a good understanding of where his drums should be in the balance between bass and drums. When you play upright, it's not easy to convey the differences in approach to someone, but Fred knows what that's all about.
From an electric bass standpoint, I would have to say that playing with Adam Carson was great. My favorite drummer I've played with though is Paul Charlton from The Daggers. I learned a lot from playing with him. I wish he lived in LA so we could jam some time!
HRB: How do you practice during the downtime when you're not on tour? Do you play to a CD? or is it Solely with the band?
KRESGE: This is going to sound really bad, but when we're not on tour or recording, or rehearsing for a tour or recording, I don't play my bass.
HRB: What are some of your favorite things to do when you're not playing the bass?
KRESGE: What I do with a some of my time off the road is a record label called Dead Body Wreckerds. Three friends and I have this label, and basically, it's still getting off the ground right now, but we have a couple of albums coming out beginning in the next few months and a 7" or two some time this year as well.
HRB: Could you explain a little how you amplify your upright?
KRESGE: I use a two-pickup system and I have a signal splitter so I can run one amp for my slap sound and one amp for my bass tone. I use effects once in a while, but all the extra cables become a hassle, especially when I'm already running so many just between the bass, the splitter and the amps. We're talking about 8-10 cables without running any effects.
HRB: Whats the biggest problem you've had on the road? (Blisters, gear breaking, etc.)
KRESGE: The biggest problem I have on the road is getting to the next show ontime! Aside from that, the only thing that really bothers me is a fewtimes on every tour, my fingers will split open. I'm guessing it'sbecause the calluses are so dry that the skin gets brittle. It's not as bad as it sounds, but it's annoying.
HRB: What do you think is the most important thing to being a bassist?
KRESGE: The most important thing is that in psychobilly, the driving rhythmic instrument is the bass, not the drums like in other styles. The drums are more of a reinforcement for the bass and have to keep a solid, supporting beat and not get in the way of what the bass is doing. For that to be effective, you have to understand the relationship of the two instruments, both as a bass player, and as a drummer.
HRB: What can the Tiger Army fans expect off the new record? What are your feelings on it?
KRESGE: With Tiger Army, the best way I can describe it would be, "expect the unexpected". I don't want to give away anything about the record, but I will say that it's easily the best record we've made, and if you like our earlier stuff, you'll like the new record as well.
Thanks very much for the interview. Don't forget to check out TigerArmy.Com
Tiger Army Never Die!
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