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The Combine



MYSPACE

Brittany: Tell us about yourself and what you do in the band.
Gabe: Well my name is Gabe. I like Star Wars, long walks on the beach, and anything that has to do with Star Wars. I'm pretty much a nerd. I also like to play guitar and scream occasionally for the Combine.

Brittany: How long have you been playing music?
Gabe: As a band we've been playing music together since November(?) of last year. We started as a three piece and got our good friend Dan Cunningham to scream for us in March of this year. Me and our drummer Dylan have been playing music together since eighth grade though. I myself have been playing the air guitar and plastic toy guitars since i was 3 but I didn�t start learning for real until I was 9. I'm seventeen now so I've been doing that for about 8 years.

Brittany: Do you have any major influences?
Gabe: Like anybody, yes, but these change regularly. We also have very differing musical tastes as far as the more popular music we listen to goes. When we're in the car though, we all tend to gravitate more towards JAMN 94.5. We definitely dig the mainstream rap thing.

Brittany: How did you guys come up with the name The Combine?
Gabe: The name came to us pretty randomly at practice a while back. We were talking about books we had recently been into, one of these being Ken Kesey�s novel �One Flew Over the Cuckoo�s Nest�. In this novel there is a theme throughout addressed as �The Combine�. Technically speaking, a combine is a farm tool used to weed out dirt and other excess from crops. In �One Flew Over the Cuckoo�s Nest� however it is used as a symbol for society being an institution that weeds out the sane from the insane, the capable from the handicapped and so forth. We all wanted our lyrics to convey these sort of socio-political themes and so we thought the name was befitting. Also, we thought it had a pretty devastating ring to it.

Brittany: If you could put together a tour who would be on it?
Gabe: Hmmm well for a headliner I would definitely say Sean Kingston�that kid is a fucking genius!! I would also have our friends in To the Barricades! and Alessa because they are awesome dudes who play awesome music and I could definitely spend a couple weeks with them out on tour.

Brittany: What is your favorite song to perform live?
Gabe: Usually it�s �There�s No Government Like No Government�. I get really pumped on that one. Maybe a little too pumped. It�s also really cool and inspiring to see and hear so many kids screaming �I am my own� at the end of that song. I mean, it�s awesome that they�re singing along at all, that means a lot to us definitely. But what�s even cooler is that you can tell they really mean it, that they are just as pissed-off and defiant as we are and they really do get the message. It�s very empowering.

Brittany: What's the last cd you bought?
Gabe: The new Deftones. Actually I�m not sure how new it is at this point. Either way, it�s called �Saturday Night Wrist� and it�s really good.

Brittany: Do you have any dream venues?
Gabe: There used to be a venue in Allston called the Library. Jonah from TDB Records ran it in his basement and I used to go see my brother�s band play there. It was really rabid. Cramped, sweaty, and overall a very cool atmosphere for punk shows.

Brittany: What is the best advice you can give about the music business? Gabe: Don�t thrash for cash! DIY or DIE!!! Brittany:What's your opinion on major labels and indie labels?
Gabe: I think it�s cool that there are a lot more people setting up their own labels independently now. I think labels should put out records that they like, from bands that they like with similar ideas and beliefs as opposed to just putting out what�s guaranteed to sell. Although in this day and age there is usually a market for everything whether or not what genre it is. As a band we are not really whoring ourselves to labels at this point however. Right now what�s important to us is to keep writing songs that we like and crafting them to perfection. When we get some better recordings I think we�d be open to releasing something through a label or a distro, but even if we have to keep releasing stuff on our own we�ll still be making the same music so it makes no difference.

Brittany:What are your goals for the future?
Gabe: For me, graduate high school. As a band, Dylan is moving out west for school this year, so our primary goal is to find a fill-in drummer. After that, write new songs, get some more legitimate recordings done, make t-shirts, buy a van, and with any luck set up a tour for next summer.

Brittany: Any last words?
Gabe: Whatever you do, rock that fucker hard. And remember: the Force will be with you always.





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