Interviews

Dananananaykroyd

James McDonald 15/12/2008

It's getting cold, fucking cold, and this can only mean one thing: another year is starkly drawing to a close, bringing cries of 'Hurrah! Another year, surely this one will be better...' To summarise what was unmistakably 2008, we at GIITTV relentlessly pestered those lads and ladesses of Dananananaykroyd to help us wrap-up, a task which David Roy was only too happy to aid.


So, Gareth Gates came up with the band name?

Yes. How did you know? He approached me during a recent Ghostbusters convention, dressed as Ray Stantz, and accidentally introduced himself as the actor instead of the character. I mean, what a gimp! Oh the laughs we had about that one. Turns out he can actually speak properly as well, he just loves scat.

What was the last argument you had as a band about?

Probably something along the lines of "Waah waah, you're not pulling your weight.. Waah waah, stop using the van as your own personal, gigantic, metal, dirty laundry hamper.. waah waah, where's our gin.. Waah waah!"

Something like that. And it would just be me arguing. With myself in a mirror.

Do you prefer writing songs or recording them?

I dislike both with a passion. I just find them both to be such a frustrating and slow process. I only really enjoy playing live. It's the results i'm after, the joyful conclusion of hours of slogging over dead riff crap and excruciating brain-wronging verse, chorus, verse, verse, chorus, chorus, chorus, fart, when will the voices stop, why am I the worst guitarist ever pish. Fantastic fun too!

Despite said trauma, the album's recorded, track-list announced, what can we, the lowly listener, expect from your debut long-player?

An intro track, a large group of people we'd just met shouting our band name over and over and then a relentless rock journey that very rarely lets up for 45 minutes. Then there's some whispering and then we play the last song. All in all, it's quite good.

How was New York?

New York was fantastic and strange, thanks. It was like being on the best holiday ever, but you had to wake up really early and work really hard every single day with an American man shouting at you until your songs sound like the way they should sound for people to like them.

You're re-releasing a tour edition of your rather smashing ep 'Sissy Hits' next year, do you think this'll be enough to entice people to a Kaiser Chiefs gig?

Nope. It's a way for us to have an extra pile of stuff for sale at the merch counter that just might sell enough for us to eat dinner every night on that particular tour!

How will you be spending Jesus' birthday this year?

My girlfriend and I will be having a very lovely homemade veggie sausage casserole round at my parent's house, with everyone else tucking into some pasty, baked animal or whatever and scoffing sarcastic crumbs at us "loser veggie losers". I hope I get good presents. I asked for a new telly!

Best rumour you've heard this year?

Crap! Johnny Foreigner have been dropped!

Would you be kind enough to tell us your 5 favourite/most played albums of 2008, pretty please?

5 most played albums for me, personally, would be:

Women - Women
Hot Club De Paris - Live At Dead Lake
Johnny Foreigner - Waited Up Til It Was Light
Maps & Atlases - You & Me & The Mountain
Torche - Meanderthal

What was the last book you read?

I'm currently arriving late to the 'Lord Of The Rings' party, it's going good, but the last book I finished was probably 'The Amber Spyglass'.

Any good?

Phenomenal to the point of insane, mind-boggling genius. I heavily recommend it, as well as the previous two books from the Dark Materials trilogy, of course.

If you were a super hero, what would your super power be? Or would you be all non-conformist and not have a power at all?

I've always wanted to be able to shoot croutons out of my eyes at dogs.

You've just been confirmed for next year's Hinterland, excited much?

It's too far away to think just now. The idea of this event happening in Glasgow is great news for everyone though. And the lineup already looks great. Before then, however, we have many, many, many shows all over the damn shop. My brain doesn't think too far ahead. It would burst.

On the subject of, can you confirm the tall-tales about Danana appearing at a certain Texan music festival next year, or is it all balderdash?

If all goes to plan, Dananananaykroyd will indeed be appearing at the South By Southwest festival in Texas 2009!

Name two things you can't live without on a day-to-day basis (excluding oxygen, water and weed)

My girlfriend and Harry Hill.

Which venue did you enjoy playing most this year? You've been to a fair few...

Without a doubt Glasgow Barrowlands. One of the greatest gigs we've ever played and one of the best nights of my life!

Finally, Capitalists or Communists?

Chips and cheese and garlic sauce from Morello's.

Aykroyd's last words?

There's no use crying over Slim Whitman.

Danana Image by Patrick Doyle.

Hmmmm, so that's that then.
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