PUNK BAND: KRAUT
FROM NYC April 1983
Author Unknown:Origin: Print: Archive

Kraut was in Boston not long ago to play at Maverick's. Although the over-20 crowd attracted many assholes
and there was excessive fighting and violence to mar the music, Kraut still played a great set. Kraut wails as a live
act. Guitarist Doug Holland alternates between powerful rhythm passages and incredibly adept, non-excessive
lead work. Drummer Johnny Feedback and bassist Don Cowan are a tight rhythm section while singer Davy
Gunner has a strong voice and presence, but isn't overbearing. There are no stars in Kraut. They play as a group,
with no one trying to upstage anyone. I interviewed their band in their van before the gig.

SP: How long have you been together?

Don: Almost two years.

SP: Are you happy with the way the album came out?

Doug: Yeah. We did it all summer long. We worked on it about 2 months.

Don: We're not only happy. We're proud of the album.

SP: How did you get Steve Jones to play guitar on it?

Doug: We paid him.

Don: No we didn't. He paid us. We met him at the Channel last year and he liked us. He said Kraut was his
favorite American band. Then he came down to New York to play with The Professionals and got stranded
because the band broke up and the rest of the band went back to England. He stayed in New York and we
asked him to play on the album.

SP: What happened to the all-ages gig you were supposed to do?

Don: This is something I'd like to talk about. The Channel booked us for an all-ages gig. A week later, I got a
call--"You're canclled, you can't come up and play." So a week later, I called up the Channel and said, "look, we
want to play." I'd seen ads in Boston Rock. We wanted to play and didn't even give a shit if we got paid. We just
wanted to play.

Davy: We called them up again and they still said "you're cancelled."

Don: They said "you can't play, you're cancelled, that's fucking it." No reason. Right up to the last day they were
saying it wasn't cancelled. Meanwhile, they were telling us it was. So one day after, I called 'em and they said,
"you guys didn't show up." I said "you're fucking crazy." They claimed it was our fault, when it wasn't. We wanted
to play.

SP: Tell me about NY's scene.

All: Lots of great shows at A7, CBGB's, Mudd Club, Great Gildersleeves. Bands--Abused, Gilligan's Revenge,
Heart Attack, U.S. Chaos, Reagan Youth, Even Worse, Mob, Urban Waste, Young and Useless, No Thanks, Bad Brains.

SP: I heard that in NY, the punks dance in a circle and pound each other on the back.

Doug: You've been reading Straight Edge too long.

Davy: They dance in a circle, but they don't pound each other.

Johnny: Skanking originated in New York. Slamming started in California.

Don: The singer from The Crowd started slam dancing.

SP: Where did your name come from?

Doug: Off a can of sauerkraut. No, it's just a name.

Don: When we started this band, we had anything form Anal Agony to Krout. We said, 'wow, this name might
make people think. It would be a wonderful pastime if they actually thought about something.' Just cabbage. Has
nothing to do with anything.

SP: You're distributed by Faulty?

Doug: Yeah. They manufactured and distribute it.

SP: How's the record selling?

Don: Pretty well. We've sold over 10,000 and it's only been out since February 28th.

SP: Are you planning to tour extensively this summer?

Doug: Yeah, we are, but we just came back from a midwest tour. We went as far as Detroit.

SP: Did you play with Negative Approach?

Doug: No, but we met them. They're really cool guys.

Johhny: OP, their drummer, is a good skater.

SP: Is the song "Sell Out" directed at anyone in particular?

Don: All record companies and people who believe in large record companies.

Davy: What's the use of thinking when someone does it for you?

Don: The whole idea of "Sell Out" is that with us having our own label, we're taking a chunk off of that building on
5th Avenue. If our record sells 10,000, then that's 10,000 less sales that RCA makes, so fuck 'em.

Doug: Ca we quote that?

SP: That'll be on the cover of the next issue.

Davy: Yeah, "Don Cowan says 'Fuck 'Em!'"

SP: I notice slags against bands in the NY 'zines. How come?

Doug: I don't know. We don't have problems. If we're that bad, maybe we should stop playing.

Davy: Someone started the rumor that we were rock stars and it caught on after awhile.

Don: We're sure not making any money at this.

Doug: If we weren't having fun, we wouldn't do it.

SP: What do you think of Boston?

All: Boston's great for skating. We just came from a great place... Lots of wholesome girls. They all wear white.
They're all virtuous girls in this town.

SP: Do you consider yourselves a political band?

All: No!!

Doug: We're just trying to tell people what we think. What's going on with us.

Davy: We write about what's happening to us at the moment.

Don: We write songs that make the whole world cry.

Davy: We write for the moment and then later we can deny writing it.. "I don't remember writing that."

SP: Where do you guys live?

Davy: Lower east side of Manhattan. All the way down, with the muggers and the druggies.

Doug: We're mostly from Queens.

SP: So contrary to popular belief, you're not rich suburban kids from Long Island.

Don: I wish. Come to my apartment and tell me if we're rich. I lived over a liquor store for 21 years.

SP: What do you think of straight edge?

Davy: I have nothing against it. I think it's a cool idea. I don't think they should put anyone down, though. I believe
people should do what they wanna do. It's cool what they do, but I don't believe they should condemn somebody
for having a can of beer in his hand. I've never met any straight edgers like that, though. I drink beer and some of
my friends are straight edge.

Johnny: It's what you choose to do.

Davy: Johnny's straight edge, but he makes up for it with Coca Cola and clove and sex...

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