Sounds Like Interview: Thomas Truax - Feelin' Bad For Dracula

It's Halloween. Boo. Scary scary spooky Friday frolics to you all. I'm really really chuffed to bits to be bringing you the third in my occasional "Sounds Like" interview series, in which I don my Pringle sweater, sit in a leather chair on a beige set, fire up the Parkinson theme tune and quiz the best music stars, so you don't have to. Or something.

Mighty mighty pleased to say that I've managed to grill Thomas Truax for you. I mean, not literally, I know it's halloween and everything, but he isn't inside my George Foreman with a parsley garnish. No, rather I have quizzed him on his latest musical offering, his hopes for world peace and whether or not he'd like to bite my neck. I know. Questions we all need to know the answers to.

Here's the interview. Oh, and before I forget, here is the frankly wonderful video to his new single which I already reviewed here.

Thanks for agreeing to answer a few questions for the blog, Thomas - I really appreciate your time - it's great to be featuring your new single. 

Thanks for spreading the good word!  Unlike with Jehovah's Witnesses and so on, we are only allowed one night a year to do this when we are releasing Halloween records.

1.) Firstly – BOO! Did I scare you – what with it being Halloween and everything?

Yes.  I scare easily, I should cut back on the coffee and try to get some more sleep I guess.

2.) OK, seriously, the new single is really cool and I love your sense of theatre and spectacle – especially in the video, which has a real feel of vaudeville. Does being a master of the dark arts come naturally to you?

I'm glad you like it, thanks.  I've never really thought of myself as being a 'master of the dark arts', or a master of anything really, except maybe of Hornicator playing (but even with that there's certainly room to grow). But yes I've always felt naturally inclined to a kind of love of most things nocturnal, and old fashioned show business as well.  It worried my parents a lot, and other people around me.  But then I discovered the world is made up of both night and day people, and show people tend to be night people, generally.  We night people have it easier, there's a lot less traffic on the road to contend with.  

3.) The new song sees you collaborating with Brian Viglione from The Violent Femmes/The Dresden Dolls. Is collaboration with other artists something you’re keen to explore more of in the future?

I became a sort of solo artist/ one-man-band through necessity rather than desire initially. I really like working with other people, especially when you've got the same goals in mind, or creative simpatico.  I felt that working with Brian (we laid down a lot of -as of now still unfinished - tracks, so there is more to come) and in the past I've worked with a lot of other people, especially on my early 'solo' records.  Even live initially I didn't feel very comfortable playing alone so I'd always have 'special guests' come on.  But I got more confident as a solo performer and my invented instruments started taking on personalities, which may be partly loneliness/insanity on my part.  Mostly it was the economics of it. He who travels alone travels fastest, and all that. But it's healthy to collaborate at least now and then.

4.) You’re having a Halloween party – which musicians/singers/creatives would you invite to join you and why?

Screamin' Jay Hawkins, David Lynch, Captain Sensible, Siouxsie Sioux, Leonard Cohen, Sun Ra, Nancy Sinatra, Cibo Matto and Karen O.  Because they'd all dress well and it would sound out of this world.

5.) Can you let my readers know if you’ve got any live shows coming up?

Tonight!  (Halloween) I'm playing in Dortmund, Germany at the Theater Dortmund. That may be the last show for a while, but there'll be a lot more touring coming up in the not-too-distant future. 

6.)  If I ask nicely, will you bite my neck? I feel kind of left out after watching the video…

What blood type are you?

I'm A Rhesus Ready Salted....for those of you that are interested....

Thanks again to Thomas for a great interview, hope you all enjoyed reading it and I hope you'll go forth and purchase the new single and give it your support.