The Chaingang of 1974 - White Guts Released April 27th 2010
This Why the name “The Chain Gang of 1974″? Are you influenced by artists that released albums that year? Maybe an ode to another bass-heavy band with a year in their name (DFA 1979)?
Growing up you were obsessed with the band Oasis, how did your musical scope expand to encompass influences like Talk Talk, David Byrne, and James Murphy?
The Chain Gang of 1974's Kamtin Mohager Fondles a Feline.
Oasis was the first band I ever became a fan of. I had always heard songs on the radio growing up, but I never knew who the artists were. So Oasis gave me that first real sense of loyalty to a band. From there, I had this weird phase from the age of 11 to 13 where I was obsessed with Dave Matthews Band and 311 (haha). But I still don’t regret that because it allowed me to appreciate diversity in music at an early age. From there I found myself getting really into the earlier Emo scene with the likes of the Get Up Kids, Gloria Record, American Football, Juliana Theory, so on and so forth. I was obsessed with all the Vagrant Records band’s and surrounded myself with that world. I loved it. But the older I got, the less Pop Punk I listened to and I started venturing in towards more of the experimental/dance types. I remember not liking LCD Soundsystem when I first heard his debut record. I always remember growing up and hearing Talking Head’s tracks on the radio and TV, but besides “Once In A Lifetime,” I never really pursued it much. With age, I started to appreciate it more and more. In my opinion, I believe Talk Talk is one of the most underrated band’s of all-time. They don’t get that credit that a lot of the 80′s band’s received, at least on a mainstream level. Mark Hollis has one of the greatest voices I will ever hear. I believe in diversity when it comes to musical interest because in the end it will be more beneficial to your song-writing skills.
What’s your favorite Talking Heads track?
What’s your favorite recent song that David Byrne has contributed to (His stuff with Fatboy Slim, Dirty Projectors, Brazillian Girls, Eno)?
To be honest with you, I haven’t dug too deep into David’s solo or contributing work. I only have 4 of his record’s (“Everything That Happens Will Happen Today,” “S/T,” “Feelings,” and “Uh-Oh”), so that means I have 5 more of his albums to check out. That’s what I love about him. So much damn music.
Your songs have very developed bass lines and bass production, would you say that bass guitar is the instrument you’re most comfortable?
To you, what makes a good song?
To me, a good song is music that is able to evoke emotion. Whether that’s a good or bad thing, that’s the most important aspect to me while writing a song or listening to one. I think that’s why I love 80′s music so much. It seems like a lot of the music written back then gave off a lot of emotion, but in the least cheesy way possible. And yeah, people can say everything about the 80′s was cheesy, but I believe it was done in a different way. A cool way if you want to say that. It just makes you feel good.
What do you enjoy about writing songs on your computer?
Kamtin Mohager of the Chain Gang of 1974 standing in front of a nuclear explosion.
I can only hope that the possibilities are endless when it comes down to creating music. I love being able to manipulate anything and changing sounds into something that can sound out of this world.
What’s been the best gig you’ve been to since you started The Chain Gang of 1974?
I have been to a lot of shows in my life. Way over 500. And the best show I have ever seen had to be Arcade Fire and LCD Soundsystem at Red Rocks a few years ago. It inspired me in so many different ways. Both musically and to the way I live my life. There was a pure feeling in the air that I believe everyone could feel. It was powerful.
What’s on the horizon for The Chain Gang of 1974?
The debut album, WHITE GUTS, will be released through my own label, Golden Gold, on April 27th. I’ll then be leaving on April 25th to tour as 3OH!3′s live bass player, which is something I’ve been doing for the past year. We’ll be heading all over the country, along with going to the UK, Europe, and even Japan this summer. So I’m quite excited for all of that. The Chain Gang of 1974 will also be doing a few weeks in the US performing DJ sets, even though I don’t really DJ like anyone else. So I like to call it “IMNOTAREALDJ-SET.” I’ll have a few weeks off in September before leaving with 3OH!3 again, so I’m planning on recording another album with Isom Innis who co-produced White Guts. I’ve already begun demoing and have a ton of ideas of where I want to take this next. So I’m really excited to continue working and not slow down. I can only hope people give WHITE GUTS a proper chance and hear it for what it is.
The Chain Gang of 1974 – STOP!
