M is a musician I came across in NYC in the mid 90’s, I think I first met her at a No Neck thing on Chrystie St. and immediately took a shine to her, found out she sang and asked her to join the Mammals of Zod immediately. I can’t remember what order we added them but all of a sudden we had the four fiercest lead vocalists in the world. M (now performing as Mem Nahadr), CitiZen One (now known as Lipbone Redding), Kid Lucky and Emmallyea Swon Young. (You see, everyone had made-up names in NYC in the 90’s, maybe they still do.)
M and I collaborated a lot for a few years and then a little less in the years after 9/11, but she’s very active making music and keeps being awesome. MUCH more high-profile than I have ever been, she’s sung with a lot of big names and is well known and regarded in the circles where people know things.
I wrote this song on guitar and asked her to sing on it. She came up with great lyrics as always. We had this song in our bag for a few years when, post 9-11, I decided it was time to try to make an awesome pop record. I put together the best band I could and the best songs I had handy, rehearsed a little and went in the studio. We did about one take of everything because I had no money. I mixed the tracks at home myself on a pirated program. It took me forever. I sent some copies around, gave them to people, nothing. Nobody even said they liked it or what. It was so discouraging.
When I listen to this track I actually like the way it falls apart at the end. The thing is like this snowball, getting bigger and bigger, and at one point it just breaks apart, but keeps rolling because it has so much freaking momentum.
The thing I like the best is the drummer. CJ Wright was, at the time, and for some years prior, the greatest drummer of all time. I don’t know, he might still be. I just haven’t heard him for a while.
Daniel Carter’s horn parts are the bomb.
Basically, this band is the precursor to Fist of Kindness, because I assembled Orin Buck, Rich Gross and I for the first time here. The three of us would go on to collaborate with David Gould and Gary Miles in a cover band called the Executioners of Excellence and played the Charleston in Williamsburg. Miles moved to DC and then we added John Gelber on vocals and I think that’s when we became Fist of Kindness, or maybe shortly after when there was a showdown between Rich and Gelber and I stepped up on vocals thereafter because I realized I wanted to, even though I didn’t think I was all that good.