Colt 38: A thrilling ride on a gun-barrell
If we were asked about the first new release of Colt 38, what could we say more than �A freaky experiment through 99th dimension�? The sub-title of this debut album is highly explicit about its content and, more, about its results. The band was born as a side-project of members of That�s All Folks, Hogwash, Acajou and Verdena and a � a freaky experiment..� is its first child. The album is made of eclectic, acid, unexpected rock, no way stoner in an orthodox meaning, more psychedelic in the old sense. Sixties garage and psychedel�a are blended together and the result is eight tracks deepened into the rock�n�roll roots.
Claudio and Enrico are the masterminds of Colt 38 and since it is unlikely that we�ll see them on stage, the occasion to talk with them about this new release ( only available with Vincebus Eruptum #6 out now ) couldn�t be missed.
Let�s start with a bit of history. I�ve got to admit that it�s not easy to find news about you on the net
(after this experience I�m better informed about guns and weapons!)
Claudio: Yes, I know it but news are coming soon.. How has it happened? Simple, I got some songs which I intended to record in a different way than I usually do with That�s All Folks. Enrico ( Hogwash) listened to them and liked them as well, so we�ve started out to collaborate each other. It came out spontaneously.
Enrico: You all have heard it! Mr. Claudio said that a site is gonna come!
The album is sub-titled �Freaky Experiment Through 99th Dimension". What�s this experiment? Has it worked out?
Claudio: Yes, it really works out!
Enrico: I�m really satisfied with it, too! Though me and Claudio live very far each other, I think we have done a good job putting out an uncommon release. When we started, the �motto� was no limits, no schemes�. If it�s worked out or not I think is a matter of sensibility and circumstances.
Almost an year has occurred to recordit and to get it out. Why? I guess you�ve spent a lot of time to co-ordinate all the people� work involved in this project, and everyone of you is already busy with its own band..
Claudio: This is already a good answer to the delay you mentioned, but I have to say that we have made it all by ourselves. Last but not least, our minds are well �widened�, so times as well..
Enrico: A first session has been recorded by Claudio who played a huge amount of stuff in four days only. In a second moment we have added a lot of other instruments, arranged the songs and so on.. Sometimes we were more than ten persons inside the studio, there was a lot of confusion, and a bit of tension too, but we have always succeeded in doing our work going well.
� A freaky..� has a subtle sixties garage mood all along ( a cover of Fenwyck �Mindrocker� and Morricone�s �Adonai� are two examples ) but � The gambling� recall the sexy grooves and noir atmospheres of Girls Against Boys(!!), �Hell & Spacecraft� and �Midnight Siren Blues" are psychedelic mantra-jam suites..i mean, the entire album is eclectic, acid, unexpected�
Claudio: GVSB? My wife recalls a Mama Lion song, instead..
Enrico: No, it got a Jamiroquai feeling! Anyway, I understand your impressions and I tell you that the songs have been developed very naturally. Claudio has recorded all them, then we all gave our personal contribution. We are amazed of the results, too! In particular �Midnight siren blues" was started to be a simple electric raga-jam but it is evolved in a �satanic� mantra full of pathos. As for �Adonai�, the original track was on �il giardino delle delizie�
(1967) o.s.t. but you can find it on Easy Tempo vol. 5 compilation.
Claudio: In the beginning I�d have liked to cover a Chocolate Watchband� song but Enrico wasn�t very much convinced..
Enrico: I simply proposed it to Claudio and he was very amazed of that, although a little bit surprised, he knew that song so it�s been quite easy. I have chosen it �cause I liked the "twang twang" guitar sound and the amazing riff. In comparison to the original score our version has the same western-like mood, though more rough. The Fenwyck �Mindrocker� is available on Nuggets.
Finally, some songs are enriched by keyboards, didjeridoo, sitar and even a dog barking. What about them? �Carnauba� is full of this weird stuff�
Enrico: Well, you can find a lot of these little pieces of contribution in � a freaky..� most of which were played by our friends as guests. We used vintage keyboards such as Piano FenderRhodes, Korg analogic synths and a wonderful mellotron owned by Alberto of Verdena. More, sitar is played by Luca ( the other guitar of That�s All Folks!) while I played the didjeridoo, though it is very filtered to cover my inner inability to modulate a note constantly! The bark of the dog is by Ringhio, Max�s dog ( Max plays bass in Hogwash ). About �Carnauba� I�d like to add a couple of things. It is a jam recorded on a four track recorder by Claudio in Bari and then �remixed� in studio. There we cleaned the sound and just added didjeridoo, djambe, flute and all this kind of strange stuff. As you can see, you can reach good results even if we all live in different places. What is necessary to be is a union of purposes.
Which personal demands have been satisfied with this release?
Claudio: my main one was to work with Enrico, i�m a fan of him; secondly, I wanted to record along with a tasteful food from the outskirts of Bergamo! Thirdly, I went stoned all time long. Seriously speaking, only my demands and Enrico�s ones were to be satisfied because I wrote the songs and he broke his back behind the console to record them.
Enrico: For me it has been a very important experience because for the first time I put my hands on songs full of psychedelic mood; my guitar style is very different from Claudio�s one and the work with him has been a way to confront and to experiment with each other .Yes, I can say that my need of learning while making experiments has been satisfied. By the way, the alcoholics helped me a lot!
What about the lyrics?
Claudio: Some of this, some of that.
Enrico: dlewoprigpdofibpeorigpdofibpdoig
I see.. what are you going to do for the next future?
Enrico: we�re now working to the second chapter of this psychedelic saga. See you!
Mad freaks!
Interview conducted in Italian and translated by Francesco Imperato.
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