All photos by PUNKassPHOTOS
My Interview with frontwoman PATRICIA DAY
Horrorpops were featured in Vogue Magazine in November, was that a surreal experience for you?
That was a fucking joke! (breaks into her wicked laugh) That was ridiculous. I think the only one’s who were really proud of that was our mum’s. They have it framed on their walls. For us it was just one big joke. We’ve been looking like we have for so many years and having people either beat us up or spit at us for choosing to look like this and then all of a sudden we’re in Vogue Magazine and we haven’t changed in one way it’s kind of ridiculously funny and in another way it’s also kind of cool. All those people that were like ‘dirty, slutty, bitch’ whatever now think I’m fashionable (laughs) In that sense it feels good but it’s also like ‘come on this is ridiculous’.
In an article I read on you guys it said that you’re ‘too pretty to be playing rock n roll’, do you think it’s just jealousy?
I don’t know? I guess a rock n roll band is not supposed to look how we do. A few thought that we were put together by some label or something because of the way we look, people think we look too good to be able to play (laughs) which is like I don’t mind being ugly and I don’t mind being pretty either it’s all the same to me I don’t give a fuck to be quite honest.
Where does your style come from?
I have no idea? Okay, Denmark as a country with sub-cultural style is pretty much like the bush in Australia. If you see a punk on the street I mean I would go up and ask him what that person’s name was if he didn’t already know because there’s not many. I started getting tattooed and when I started getting tattooed it was all biker girls getting tattooed, it wasn’t rockers and rollers and getting tattoos was the same as stamping yourself with ‘white trash’. I didn’t care. I felt that they were beautiful and my dad had tattoos and I was like I didn’t mind being like my dad.
Horrorpops seem to be nonconformists with everything from music, to dress, to live shows, were you a nonconformist in high school?
This is the point were I should be ‘oh yeah I remember high school’ but, I seriously don’t! (laughs) Fuck!
That can only be a good thing thought because my high school years were horrible.
So was mine. I do remember getting beat up a lot.
You just try to block it all out.
Yeah I think so (laughs)
A lot of people admire your style, would you ever consider having your own clothing label like Gwen Stefani or Corey Parks?
If someone paid me a lot of money sure, if not I don’t give a shit. I’m not into fashion. I actually don’t like fashion. I am what I am, if that’s fashionable now fine it probably won’t be in two years but it doesn’t mean I will change.
You studied costume design?
Yes but that’s totally different. I like dressing up drag queens and making dresses that can’t fit into a living room. It’s not really the same as fashion. It’s just building stuff that I like.
You come across so confident, are there any days where you ever feel insecure about your appearance?
Oh yeah, everyday (laughs) I wake up and go ‘gee I’m fat’ and ‘gee I look old, god!’ and ‘honey do you think I look fat in this dress?’ all that shit, every fucking day.
Is there anything you do to look after yourself?
(giggles) No, I wish! I think a lot about it like ‘oh I better drink some water’ and ‘oh tomorrow I’ll work out’ and ‘oh tomorrow I’ll start my diet’… yeah sure!
I read in an interview with you and you said that you say ‘no’ to women in rock articles and you don’t like to be defined by your gender, and I know you love to rock out on stage as just a person but, there must be times when you like to indulge your female side?
Whenever it’s to my advantage (laughs) I won’t try to hide that fact. If it’s to my advantage to be female I will use it. If I can blink my eyes and get an expensive bag, I will do it (laughs) As a person I sure enjoy being female, I would never want to be a male but as a musician it doesn’t matter. It’s where I put the difference.
What’s something that makes you feel sexy?
I don’t know? I don’t know if I’ve ever really feel sexy to be quite honest.
When your on stage are you conscious about the way you’re perceived by the audience?
No. I just go like ‘oh shit!’ when I see the pictures. It’s like ‘why did I wear that? I look fat!’ Things like that. When I’m on stage it’s all about being a band, not about being me. It’s about the band as a whole not just myself or how I act.
I know the band are all great friends, what do you most value in your friends?
Honesty, openness. The fact that I can yell at them and they can yell at me – we can have a huge fight and then be friends again the next day. Just to be open and honest. If a girlfriend or a friend of mine is about to do something stupid I will call them out on it. I won’t pretend everything is alright just to be friends with them.
You’ve just completed new album, Bring It On!
Yeah!
I’ve read past interviews where you’ve commented you prefer playing live to recording in the studio, did you still feel the same way this time around or did you warm to it a little more?
No (very definite, laughs) I hate being in the studio. It was better this time around, I will admit that because we had a producer with us. We had Brett Gruewitz with us and he is just a fucking great guy and I keep pinching myself that he was actually sitting next to me. I couldn’t believe it. That was weird. It was nice too in the way that there wasn’t so many decisions we had to make ourselves like ‘does this sound good? ‘does this sound good?’ Brett was like ‘it sounds great’ and we didn’t have to think about it. In that sense it was easier this time around but I still don’t like being in the studio. It’s a fucking boring hole!
Listening to your albums there’s so much emotion and so many different moods coming through in your vocals, before you get into the booth to lay down your vocals how do you prepare for that?
I don’t know? I’ve been told what I’m doing is method acting. If it’s a sad song I think of something sad, if it’s a happy song I think of something happy. It’s really easy because I wrote the lyrics and I don’t have to pretend even though some songs are not about myself and they’re about something my friends have told me or experienced. I know how they felt when they were experiencing that in that way it’s not strange for me to sing it.
Did you learn anything about yourself while writing the new album?
The new album is different. The lyrics are better because I’ve been living here and being so much in the States in the last two years my English has become better. I know more words and I know how to describe things more accurately. This time it’s a lot about what happened to us as a band and the things we’re experienced in the past two years.
How has living in California influenced your life?
I guess for all of us we’ve just been more proud at what we’ve been doing. Living in Denmark, it’s almost embarassing saying you’re a musician. That’s the kind of question you’d try to avoid when people asked you what you do. If you say you’re a musician they’re like ‘do you make a living off that?’ or ‘oh you think you’re a rock star now?’ It’s like ‘oh god no!’ In California it’s more accepted. I feel better about what I’m doing.
What’s the strangest situation in which you’ve heard one of your songs?
(giggles) In a dressing room trying on clothes! That freaked me out. I was like ‘oh god! No!’ and I had to leave.
Did anyone in the store notice?
Yeah, they were giggling when I ran out. It was so embarrassing!
That’s so funny!
(still laughing) No its’ not!
If the band went to a karaoke bar, what song would you be most likely to sing?
Oh trick question hey? (laughs) I would probably pick something by Bowie or Prince.
Do you think you could hit the high notes like Prince?
(laughs) No but, I’d have a hell of a lot of fun trying to do it. I did do Prince once, I did Kiss and nobody got it. I was laughing and everyone was looking at me like I’m a fucking idiot. I didn’t care though I was having loads of fun.
You’re about to go out on the road again for a long period of time, what’s it like being out on the road for so long?
We all love it. We really love it, come on have a look at our touring schedule. I’m sorry but we’re touring the US with some of the coolest bands like The Transplants then we’re flying out to Australia and then we’re flying to Japan then we’re flying to Denmark for a few days then we’re flying back to the US to tour the whole US. It’s like a fucking holiday with your five best friends.
I have goosebumps listening to you talk about it all.
(laughs) It’s fucking cool. I won’t lie. I know it might sound arrogant or something like ‘check out my touring schedule’ but it is fucking amazing!
What’s the most outrageous thing that’s ever happened to you on tour?
Oh god I can’t say that one (laughs) Oh no, oh no I won’t go there (more laughter)
Do you sing in the shower at all?
(laughs) No no. If I did there would be a lot of people yelling at me to shut up the fuck up.
Are you familiar with the alternative girls website, Suicide Girls?
Ah-ha.
Would you ever consider doing a photo set for them?
No. I must say that this is me as a person this not a band opinion but I do not support them. All of a sudden because I have tattoos people expect me to drop my clothes. I’m not a feminist in the sense that I don’t believe women should display themselves like that – I think it’s great they do it and I think it’s great that a lot of guys can actually see the prettiness in girls that look different and have different hair not just the typical blond, big boob chicks – that’s fucking awesome! The side effect has been though that if you do look differently now everybody expects that you are a Suicide Girl or that you’d like to be one. So, hell no I won’t drop my clothes!
Geoff has joined the band on guitar, how is he fitting in?
(breaks into an uncontrollable giggle) I love Geoff! He’s really good. The original guitarist Kartsen, he played on Hell Yeah he had to stay back in Denmark because his girlfriend got pregnant and to start a family and all that. Kartsen was amazing, he was an old friend it was really cool and he was in the band for a year then he had to go because he fell in love with a girl from of all places he had to fall in love with a Danish girl it couldn’t have just been American or whatever but anyway, we kind of knew when we were in Europe that Karsten couldn’t stay anymore. It was obvious he was gathering up the courage to make that decision. So we decided we wanted to get someone in that was a friend, you know how much we value friendship, and we were like ‘who knows us?’ and ‘who do we really like?’ The only person we could think of was Geoff. We called him up and were like ‘hey how are you? What’s up? Do you want to play guitar in Horrorpops?’ He was like ‘Ah… sure but dont’ you want to hear me play first?’ We were like ‘No’. We didn’t even know he could play guitar. He came and rehearsed and in that first rehearsal we realised he was the best guitar player we’ve ever had. He’s been on the road with us hanging out, so it was so natural for him to join the band. He also helps write some of the songs. The process is shared between all of us and that’s really cool. He has some great ideas.
Do you still have the two original go-go dancers, Millie and Kamilla?
Millie had to go as well. It was really sad and I don’t feel good talking about it. When we started playing shows in 1996 we thought we’d play a few shows here and there but then it really started taking off and we were touring so much. She was like ‘I can see this is only going to go in one direction and I have to finish my education. I can’t be gone from my education for the next three years or I’ll lose what I have’. She went back to Denmark to study.
What do you hope your music inspires people to go out and do?
(laughs) drink, not use their brain and have a good time.
Last question, what’s something that you know for sure?
(laughs) Oh shit! That’s a good fucking question! I don’t know shit for sure! I don’t no nothin’! It’s a day by day thing.
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