Allison Busch, drummer extraordinaire of Awesome Color, took a few minutes to talk to me while waiting to perform with her new band, Red Dawn II, at Sodafine as part of the third annual Make Music New York festival on June 21st. I learned--after some uncomfortable gushing (from me) about how much I love their band--that Allison does not take praise lightly. She is truly grateful when she hears that fans dig Awesome Color. Watch for them on tour this summer with none other than the venerable rockers from Sonic Youth. Yes, awesome indeed.
1. How did you guys meet and what are your influences?
We met skateboarding in Ann Arbor, MI. Michael [Troutman] (bass) came to my house to skateboard and we became friends. At the time he was in a band called the Violent Ramp. Then we met Derek [Stanton] (guitarist/vox] at one of their shows. Our influences are Wolf Eyes, USAisaMonster (they actually gave us our first show)...
2. How has the skateboarding scene influenced your music?
I learned a lot about music skating. I really liked the music I heard in skate videos or in Thrash [magazine]. I also got into Sonic Youth, Black Flag and Dinosaur Jr. through the skate scene.
3. What is your goal for Awesome Color going forward?
To play with Hair Police: the best band in Lexington, KY. We love playing with them. We had other goals, too, like to play the Elbow Room in Ypsilanti, MI, as a touring band. We did that.
4. Have you signed with a label?
Yeah, we signed with Ecstatic Peace a few years ago [2005]. They have put out all our albums [a self-titled debut and then "Electric Aborigines", most recently]. They are putting out our [third] album this fall, too.
5. Who are your favorite bands to play with, aside from Hair Police?
There are a lot of bands in New York right now that I like: Oneida, Tall Firs (Aaron [Mullan] recorded our first album), Knyfe Hyts. We like playing with Wolf Eyes [also from Detriot]. We just finished touring with the Black Dice; we like playing with them a lot. We also did a tour with Sonic Youth and will be going on another one with them. We toured with Radio Birdman when they reunited for a bit...
Bonus question: What is happening with your new band?
Red Dawn II? We are playing today (Sunday June 21st) in a few minutes. The band is me and Wolfie, on guitar. It is raw punk. We sing about horror movies.
