KRUZT
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By Paul Autry GOT KRUZT? ONLY BALLBUSTER HAS IT! Musicians are a dime a dozen in the Pennsylvania scene. People get together, make a little noise, but, for the most part, they're soon forgotten and someone new takes their place. So, it's safe to say that there's not too many musicians who've made a lasting impression in the Pennsylvania music scene. But, there's two performers who have managed to make a name for themselves through various degrees of success. Two guys who people know, if not personally, by name alone. I'm talking about the legendary Alexander Paul and John Donavan. Both artists have had their own projects over the years as well as playing together in various situations, the most well known being Youth In Asia. Once again, Alexander Paul and John Donavan have joined forces under the name Kruzt and under this name, they've released their debut CD, "No Accounting For Taste," an album that has become well known rather quickly in the Pennsylvania music scene and, like a raging fire out of control, it's quickly spreading all over the rest of the world. Alexander Paul isn't one to discuss his musical efforts in detail because he would prefer to let the music do the talking. So, where others have failed to get an "on the record" conversation, Ballbuster Magazine has triumphed in getting the exclusive, debut interview from the man behind the music, the one and only, Alexander Paul. PAUL AUTRY: Please give us a little backround history on yourself and John Donavan. ALEXANDER PAUL: I've been in a zillion bands over the years. Everything from doing weddings one night to screaming the next. In the 70's, I was in a band called The Rockids that had some fun and did the East Coast thing. As for John, he had several regional bands that did well and he had airplay all over the world. He was in Cold Shoulder, Freak Show and Youth In Asia. He also did the "PA.'s Finest Stage Stars" compilation CD's, which recieved favorable reviews in previous issues of this magazine. PAUL AUTRY: After everything you've done in the music scene, what made you decide to take on a project like Kruzt? ALEXANDER PAUL: To answer this and several questions...I thought of the name Kruzt years ago 'cause there's a piece of my brain that has my antenna up to what I think is a cool band name. Around February of 1999, I got the means to record and, at that time, I was mostly interested in learning recording. I was around tons of this stuff for zillions of years. But, I never did get to grab my own knob. I let everyone else spin my dials. I quickly realized that I was getting results that would've cost millions of dollars in Analog equipment not so long ago. Part of the recording process for me was learning how to turn on the computer, I can definitely appreciate the virtual studio at this stage of the game. What we're trying to accomplish, which is slowly but steadily coming into focus, still is that we just want to combine some classic ideas with some tricked out stuff. As far as the guitar and bass is concerned, none of the solos have any punch ins and the rest of the guitar and bass are almost single take. A few of the solos are first take. But, for the most part, I had the luxury of the pick of the litter with everything and I'm quick with the delete button. Maybe too quick. PAUL AUTRY: Once you got involved in this project, did you have a clear understanding of what you wanted to do or was it something that developed as you went along? ALEXANDER PAUL: As I said before, it was kind of like "computer," then you can record on a computer. Then, realizing this stuff sounds prety good on computer and that there's stuff like that. It just developed along the way. PAUL AUTRY: How would you describe the music of Kruzt? ALEXANDER PAUL: It's a touching tale of a boy, his guitar, his computer and his faithful companion Fido, his favorite guitar pick. I see it as a Ozzy heavy but it's own thing. PAUL AUTRY: Can you tell us a little bit about how this album was recorded? ALEXANDER PAUL: If you mean all that technical stuff, I used pre-ampy things with knobs. For me, I like to listen and not pay attention to numbers as far as the analog stuff was concerned. If that was my thing, I would have tuned in years ago. It's still just a big learning process and I'm still knee deep in the hoopla. PAUL AUTRY: Your most well known project was Youth In Asia. Looking back on the time you spent with that band, how would you describe your experiences with them? ALEXANDER PAUL: I learned a lot, maybe too much. But, for me, it's always been a three ring circus. I figured it's like that for everyone else. I'm just more conscious of it in relationship to myself. PAUL AUTRY: You included a new version of "Kamakazi" on your album, as well as a totally new version of the unreleased Youth In Asia track, "No Accounting For Taste." What made you decide to give these songs a second spin in the spotlight? ALEXANDER PAUL: "Kamakazi" is the only song who's lyrics haven't been written since November of '99. "Kamakazi" and "No Accounting For Taste" has the only music that hasn't been written since March of '99. I started the music to "No Accounting For Taste" as one of my early projects with the new toys, focusing on the technology and experiments and it's now down a whole step. The lyrics were done since November of '99 and I came up with the hook "No Accounting For Taste" even though others wrote the rest of the lyrics before this take. I re-did "Kamakazi" cause it's one of those songs that traveled through many projects of mine that, I guess, lasted Al's test of time. PAUL AUTRY: Can you tell us about some of the other songs on the album? Which ones are your favorites and why? ALEXANDER PAUL: I definitely heard the songs so many times in mix down that I'm still in the post psycho stage. I don't mean anything like my precious babies are all gems or something else equally pukey. I'm just plain burnt. If I had to push one, it would probably be "No Accounting For Taste," followed by "Slaves." PAUL AUTRY: How was the songwriting handled? ALEXANDER PAUL: My whole life, I never wrote any lyrics. I would come up with one liners like "No Accounting For Taste," but, I always wrote guitar music even when I was playing for two minutes. It's just bouncing around on notes. But, everybody was listening to the music and saying I should do that guitar instrumental thing and then, in November of '99, I don't know what I did. But, I just started cranking out lyrics. PAUL AUTRY: While it's still early in the game, you've accomplished a lot with your album so far. Can you tell us a little about what you've actually done and what more do you hope to accomplish? ALEXANDER PAUL: There's some airplay and internet stuff in Europe thanks to Lord Litter and other DJ's. Radio and internet stuff happening here in the USA on different levels. We got an article in the Daily Item, which is a newspaper in Sunbury, Pennsylvania that reaches 75,000 people or more, thanks to you and Ballbuster, which was also mentioned. Plus, we're available in the big internet super stores (Amazon.com, etc.) and it's a special order item in stores all over the place. PAUL AUTRY: Besides the CD, what other merchandise do you have available? ALEXANDER PAUL: A lot of people are into shirts and while we were at it, we did the hat thing. It's on the "GEAR" page on our web sight. PAUL AUTRY: Since you mentioned your web page, it has been attracting a lot of attention. Was it your idea to make a strong internet presence? Also, what kind of plans do you have for your sight...any changes? ALEXANDER PAUL: I put all my eggs in one basket on this. I had cards printed, but, I don't have anything else that's not online or in the digital format. To me, I had to choose a direction and everything headed elsewhere was probably expensive and would divert my attention and energy. This way, if someone wants to see my mug, I don't have to pay for an 8x10 glossy for the privledge instead of paying for fun stuff like computers and guitar strings. As far as my web page is concerned, Zoom Technologies rocked out and cut me some slack. As far as changes are concerned, I'll worry about that tomorrow. PAUL AUTRY: Finally, for the people who will be reading this, do you have any final comments for them? ALEXANDER PAUL: The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. But, I get my jollies at the moment with European, Australian and Japanese airplay and the people who respond and send e-mail from those countries.
Editor's Note: While Alexander Paul didn't mention it when I asked, it should be known that I had a stong influence in the new version of "Kamakazi" being included on this album. For the past eight years, I brought this song up almost every time I spoke with him...well beyond the point of being a royal pain in the ass.
See what a lot of hard work and dedication can do? All in the name of rock and roll!
Copyright 2000, BallBuster, The Official Int'l Underground Hard Music Report |
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