LINKS:
vandals.com
kungfurecords.com

      They've been in the Penelope Spheeris film Suburbia and the film Dudes, as well as an episode of the X-Files.  And while some of their peers have fallen by the wayside, the humorous group, which first formed in Huntington Beach, continues to put out music relevant to older as well as its newer fans.
    Their current release, Internet Dating Super Studs, makes no apologies, with musical staccato rhythms and lyrical irreverent wit.  Songs such as "43210-1," "Appreciate My Honesty" and "Soccer Mom" simultaneously hit the rhythm bone and funny bone.
     The enhanced cd features a promo for the album with fans who posted an online dating profile as part of a band contest to “win a date with The Vandals”.  More than one million people entered the contest, and the fans themselves selected the four winning contestants.  Put the cd into your computer and watch as Quackenbush takes two over-enthusiastic teenage boys for ice cream, Freese runs back and forth between his uppity date and his crying baby son, Escalante and his wife double date with two Satanists at a Slayer concert, and Fitzgerald tries to just have a simple conversation with his Columbian date who speaks no English.
     The Internet Dating Super-Studs promo gave Escalante a chance to showcase one of his many considerable talents.  In his case, it was his video and film obsession, which alternates with a law career (most notably representing Sublime), his record executive career at his label, Kung Fu Records, his practicing kung fu and bullfighting careers.  (Granted, kung fu and bullfighting may be more hobbies than careers at the moment, but give the man time.)
     But he is by no means the only member of The Vandals who wears many hats.  Quackenbush once toured Europe as the singer for Pennywise when they were in a pinch.  Fitzgerald did a few years as the guitarist for Oingo Boingo, and appeared on many of Danny Elfman's film scores.  Fitzgerald is now scoring his third feature film and recently hit it big by landing the job as lead guitarist for Tenacious D.  Matador career aside, Escalante recently starred in and produced the feature film That Darn Punk and recently finished directing his first feature film Selwyn's Nuts.
     Escalante has also directed videos for The Ataris, Audio Karate, Useless I.D., Ozma, and others. Joe and Warren also own Kung Fu Records, home of the debut release from Blink 182 and the pop-punk sensation, The Ataris.  Ultra session guru Josh Freese spent two years playing drums on the recent Guns 'N' Roses album (the "mother of all side projects) and is currently drumming for DEVO and A Perfect Circle, in addition to his Vandals duties.
     I recently caught up with him via phone to ask questions about the new cd, and here’s what he had to tell me.

CN:  So, how did you choose Ryan Williams to be the producer?

JE:  He was already at the studio working on another project. We worked together well and decided to use him.

CN:  When you came off the Warped Tour, etc., how long before you started writing the new album?

JE:  We took some time off. We didn't start working on it until around the beginning of 2002.

CN:  How long did it take you to write the new material?

JE:  It only took about 3 or 4 months.

CN:  How long did you spend at Rumbo and Pulse! recording it?

JE:  We spent about 12 or 14 days recording, and then 8 days mixing.

CN:  You say you studied music a bit in school, but when did punk take hold of your soul, and when did you know that music was what you wanted to do as a career and not just as a hobby?

JE:  When I was in jr. high, I learned that the burnout hippies at my school hated punk rock. That was all I needed to know.

CN:  Who were some of your greatest influences when you first started playing in bands?

JE:  Buzzcocks, Ramones, Clash, Dead Kennedys, TSOL

CN:  What do you listen to for pleasure...what's in your cd player now?

JE:  Alkaline Trio, The Crush, two business cds from Audio Business Briefings, the new Australian Ataris EP, Hot Rod Circuit, Neal Hamburger...

CN:  What did you learn first, drums/bass or bass/drums?

JE:  I taught myself the drums in high school, and I taught myself the bass about 15 years ago, but I'm a bad teacher.

CN:  Do you still play drums at all?

JE:  Yes, I have a Roland electronic kit in my home studio that I love to play.

CN:  What other instruments do you play?

JE:  Trumpet, violin...

CN:  How long have you been playing the trumpet?

JE:  I played in elementary school and junior high, and then I didn't pick it up again until I played on this album.

CN:  What kind of equipment are you currently using on tour? What do you use when you record?

JE:  Ernie Ball amps, speakers, and basses... I love them .

CN:  When you're not touring, how much time do you guys spend together outside of writing, rehearsing, and recording?

JE:  We hang out a lot. We're always working on something together or hanging out with mutual friends like Pennywise or No Doubt or NOFX.

CN:  What is a typical day like for Joe the record honcho/lawyer/bassist/matador?

JE:  I usually go into the Kung Fu Records office in the morning and check my e-mail. I usually have about 250 e-mails, and about 235 of those are junk. So I go through that, then I go over to the studio and check out what is being worked on. The Kung Fu office pretty much runs itself. We have 10 people on staff, so it pretty much runs itself.

CN:  What inspires you to stay a part of the Vandals when you could so easily just hang it up and be a record company honcho/music lawyer kind of executive aging gracefully behind his desk?

JE:  Good question. It's still fun, and it makes more money every day, to be honest.

CN:  What do you look for when it comes to talent/bands that you consider for the Kung Fu label?

JE:  Nice people that can write songs and are honest about what they want out of the music business.

CN:  How did you come up with the Internet Dating promo and who came up with it?

JE:  Warren came up with the name. And then the promo was just a natural progression from there. Warren and Dave came up with a take-off of the Hot.com thing because they're so into that.

CN:  I'd have to say that Josh's date with the high maintenance chick and the screaming baby was my favorite.

JE:  Yeah, that's my favorite, too.

CN:  There's been a real re-emergence of the old school '80s punk stuff, what with you guys going strong and D.O.A, having a new cd out now, what are your thoughts on that?

JE:  The scene is getting bigger and bigger. Some of the older bands that have reformed are doing really well.

CN:  How did the exposure of the "Oi! to the World" remake by No Doubt affect your fanbase?

JE:  It was a really good thing. Some people have said, 'How could you let No Doubt do one of your songs?', but I'm really proud that I now have a gold record for something that I wrote, whether they say that it's a remake by No Doubt or I wrote it for No Doubt, I'm really proud of it.

CN:  You also have the triple platinum award for your law part with the Sublime record.

JE:  Yeah, that was a gift from their people for the job that I did, but I'm more proud of the No Doubt gold record because it's something that I wrote.

CN:  What made you want to study law?

JE:  It's for over achievers that don't know what else to do. Modest achievers go into teaching, and under achievers just play in bands or install cable.

CN:  How did you decide to name your label Kung Fu Records?

JE:  I study kung fu.

CN:  What style?

JE:  San Shou.

CN:  How long have you been studying?

JE:  Since 1992.

CN:  Have you studied any other kung fu styles?

JE:  No. That's the only one.

CN:  How did you decide on San Shou as opposed to other styles of kung fu?

JE:  When I was small, someone told me that it was what David Carradine was using on the TV show Kung Fu. It wasn't necessarily true, but when I investigated the style, I liked that they only teach killing and maiming and they don't mess around with tournaments that put limits on fighting technique. They only teach you to go all the way and nothing else is ever practiced.

CN:  Where do you study currently (and/or in the past)?

JE:  Whittier (California) with Juan Meza.

CN:  Who is your current Sifu?

JE:  Juan Meza

CN:  Do you do it mainly for health and exercise or do you compete?

JE:  Only for health and piece of mind.

CN:  What places/ranking did you attain?

JE:  I have a brown belt right now.

CN:  Do you train every day, even when on tour?

JE:  I'm so busy, I'm barely training right now. I'm waiting for a break so I can get back into it.

CN:  How did you first get into film?

JE:  It started back when we did the Sweatin' To The Oldies. The director dropped out because his girlfriend died. I was always interested, so I jumped right in. I ended up doing a lot of the music editing and the sweetening on it..

CN:  Have you studied film production at all, or did you learn everything "hands-on" only?

JE:  I taught myself (through books and trial and error) everything I know about cinematography and film editing and DVD authoring.

CN:  Who are some of your favorite directors?

JE:  Robert Rodriguez, Woody Allen, McG...

CN:  What gets you hyped the most, writing, shooting, directing, film editing, or music editing/sweetening/soundtracking, etc.?

JE:  I like shooting but it's exhausting manual labor the way I do it. The biggest rush is in the Telecine booth where you transfer the film to tape for editing. It's where you see if all your half-assed techniques and guessing actually created an image. You never know what's going to pop up on the screen. So far, I'm 100% from my very first try. I haven't ruined anything. But I still get nervous everytime I go in there. I can't afford reshoots.

CN:  How do you choose the music/bands for the soundtracks to your films?

JE:  I have a little library of all the music I own and like in the back of my head. I look at the scene and I just try to think about what would fit, and I go and get it off the Kung Fu shelf. If I don't have anything, Warren Fitzgerald can score anything for me.

CN:  How did you come to do Selwyn's Nuts?

JE:  It's a film that stars Warren. He had said that he wanted to do a film. I told him that if he wrote a screenplay that I would shoot it and put it out. (Selwyn's Nuts at: selwynsnuts.com). It is shot on 16 and 35mm film and features No Use For A Name and the soundtrack will have 7 unreleased NUFAN songs on it along with MxPx and some other Kung Fu bands. It's about a frustrated baker who escapes his abusive girlfriend by becoming an abused roadie for No Use For A Name. Then he finds love in an electric wheelchair. I'm taking it with me (on tour) right now. I have it on two 88-track discs and will edit it on the bus. I spend lots of time editing on the bus (with a laptop).

CN:  How did you get into bullfighting?

JE:  I've been going to bullfights since I was 3 years old.

CN:  It's part of your culture, right?

JE:  Yes. I've always gone with my family.

CN:  When did you start to study bullfighting?

JE:  About 3 years ago. I started going to the Academy. I've killed 5 so far.

CN:  Yeah, I saw the pictures on your website. They were excellent. You looked so intense. You've got to have big balls to do that.

JE:  You've got to have big balls to want to get into it, but once you learn, it becomes more natural. But it's hot with all the corduroy and suede and leather.

CN:  How long does it take to learn bullfighting from start to finish at the Academy?

JE:  I spent two years there. Going mostly on Saturdays and a couple other days each month.

CN:  Where do you practice?

JE:  When I'm in LA, I practice in Griffith Park.

CN:  Not with real bulls...

JE:  No, that gets expensive. But with horns.

CN:  El Juli is your favorite?

JE:  Yes. I hadn't seen him when I first started, but I had always heard about him. He's only been fighting for a few years.

CN:  Besides El Juli, your current fave, did you have any other matador idols when you were growing up?

JE:  Carlos Arruza, Manolete, El Cordobez, Belmonte

CN:  Describe for me what it was like to take the knowledge from your training and actually apply it the first time you stepped into the ring with a live bull...what are the emotions you experienced?

JE:  You suck really bad the first several times so you are just hoping to get one or two good moments where you are actually "doing it." No matter how small the animal is, it's always terrifying for some reason.

CN:  What is the philosophy behind the dance of matador and bull and what does it mean to you?

JE:  It's like surfing. Nature has provided you with either a triumph, if you can dominate it for a brief moment, or death if you are arrogant or ill prepared. And you can't just do it, you owe it to the crowd to look good while you do it. That's where the artistic part comes in.

CN:  I've interviewed many musicians over the years since 1985...and you have got to be the most multidimensional and original when it comes to your interests outside of music...punk/kung fu/bullfighting are all so physical, yet creating music & film/music law/running a label are so internal and intellectual...have you always had such a high-functioning capacity and zest for life?

JE:  I've been through phases. I was like this when I was really young, taking Ice skating lessons, magic lessons, painting, music, football, basketball, baseball, anything I could get my hands on. When I got into punk rock that was it for me, mostly for financial reasons. When I became a lawyer and started making money, I started fulfilling my dreams like Kung Fu and Bullfighting.

CN:  Do you ever just relax a la couch potato?

JE:  That's my real dream. I love television above all other things. I've got a floating plasma screen and two satellite dishes, Tivo and Ultimate TV. My favorite shows are Curb Your Enthusiasm, Sopranos, Ali G, and American Dreams.

CN:  Does your wife participate in any of your activities with you?

JE: She loves the bulls, but she's never seen me work out at the Kung Fu school. She works at Kung Fu with me and she discovered our first band, The Assorted Jelly Beans. It instantly sold 30,000 copies and we thought it was going to be easy everytime. Of course it's not, but we do it together.