Discover The Margaret Hooligans: Raucous, Irreverent, Quirky. Explore their unique journey, DIY basement recordings, and unexpected inspirations in this insightful interview.
1. Let's start with the basics. How did you come up with
the name "The Margaret Hooligans" for your band, and what does it
signify to you both?
There are four answers for this question because we never
travel in a straight line, but if you ask Meg, she will say the name is a
reference to Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan from the T.V. show M.A.S.H. If you
ask Mr. Strontium, he will say it refers to the time Sally Kellerman, who
played the original Hot Lips in the movie M.A.S.H., was on the Johnny Carson
show and he accidentally introduced her as Margaret O’Hooligan. The third
answer is one our British fans have given us, because they think it’s a mash up
of their former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s name and the widespread
football hooliganism that was occurring under her term. The fourth, and best
answer to this question, is that we are The Margaret Hooligans because a
Margaret Hooligan is a person getting up to mischief whom you would never
expect. We are middle aged suburban parents making loud, raucous, somewhat
crazy music that is not what one would expect from boring old farts.
2. Your music is described as a fusion of garage rock,
proto-punk, funk, and soul. Can you tell us about the specific elements of
these genres that inspire your sound and how you blend them together?
Nope, that’s a secret I will take to my grave.
3. Meg, your transition from playing the guitar to a
custom electric baritone ukulele is intriguing. What motivated this shift, and
how has it influenced your approach to songwriting and performance?
A little over a decade ago, I cut off the side of my left
index finger. The injury caused nerve damage and I was unable to play the
guitar because the steel strings caused too much pain. A year later, I picked up
an acoustic ukulele to give to my daughter to get her interested in making
music, but I realized I needed to learn the instrument to teach her. I
discovered the nylon strings were tolerable to my sensitive finger, and got
into playing it for myself. Eventually, I met Adam Mendel of Joyner Instruments
at a ukulele festival in Bend, Oregon who was hand making electric ukuleles. I
bought one and the rest is history. At that point, my finger was not as
sensitive, but I was really into playing on the smaller scaled instrument and
used to four strings. So I have started going back to the guitar a bit - Our
Museum of Failure, our single from last month, features some lead work on the
bottom bass strings of the guitar, but I still prefer four strings for most of
the rhythm work. I think it gives us a different sound because of it’s slightly
higher pitch and I think that works well with Strontium’s drums. As far as how
it’s influenced my songwriting - I think sometimes having fewer options is a
good thing - everything is simplified and reduced to the absolutely most
essential elements.
4. Mr. Strontium, you've played the drums for several
other bands in the past. How has your diverse musical background contributed to
the unique sound of The Margaret Hooligans?
Meg: He feels like he can yell at me more because he’s been
in more bands.
Mr. Strontium: (laughs) Well, all the bands have been
different, but I’m always the same: I provide the energy for the songs, and for
some reason that energy is still strong.
It really cuts down on the bulls**t. We don’t have to be
polite to each other. If a part is boring or clunky, we stop it, say it’s crap,
and move on without worrying that a George Harrison-ish band member might get
mopey.
6. What's the story behind the teapot in your
instrumentation? How does it fit into your music and performances?
One of the benefits of recording everything in your basement is that you have time to experiment in ways that wouldn’t occur to you if you were paying for a studio by the hour. Mr. Strontium has a habit of just drumming on glasses and other items in our kitchen, including this old teapot. He decided to experiment with water levels to see what would sound best recorded.
7. Can you share a memorable moment from your journey as
The Margaret Hooligans, something that stands out as a defining experience for
the band?
Not a moment per se, but the best part of our musical
journey has been meeting and collaborating with other bands. We traveled to
England this summer to meet these folks in person and it was truly magical. We
got to record music videos with 9 o’clock Nasty and see them perform live, and
we got to jam and record with The Qwarks in Brighton, the first single of which
came out this month, Monkey Nuts. It was just such a wonderful thing - to meet
people online whose music we admired and whom we had been speaking with for
ages, and then get to meet them in person and have a great time. It was the
best of what the internet and music making has to offer.
8. Your influences span a wide range of genres and
artists. How do you go about incorporating these diverse inspirations into your
music while still maintaining your unique sound?
I feel like you knew in advance I wasn’t going to answer the
first question properly and are circling back around. Is that true? Do you have
psychic abilities?
9. As a band with strong DIY roots, how do you approach
recording in your basement? Can you give us a glimpse into your recording
process and any unique challenges you've encountered?
Pro tip: the trickiest part of recording in your basement is
remembering to turn off your HVAC when recording and getting all of the
equipment up before a backed up sewer line causes a flood and threatens to ruin
it all.
10. What is the significance of your family life and the
presence of pets in your creative environment? How do these elements impact
your music and daily routines?
We don’t perform live because we have a 12 year old daughter
who is too young to attend most of our shows and our lives revolve around her,
as well as our three dogs, elderly cat, and three ducks. Because of them, we
prefer to stay home and make music here.
That being said, we definitely have written a few songs
about dogs, My Dog Ringo and Doggie Pizza Crust, and there is a line in
Americans Hate Americans about glitter on our ducky farm, so our pets do have a
way of weaseling into our lyrics! And our daughter has contributed to our
efforts, she’s been a back up vocalist, sometimes trumpeter, and a regular in
our music videos.
11. Can you tell us about the dynamics of performing as a
duo, and what challenges and advantages it brings to your live shows?
I can only tell you about the dynamics of playing as a duo
in our basement since we do not play live shows. There’s probably a bit more
arguing in the basement than what we would do onstage. I also think the
bartender mouse in our basement waters down the drinks, but I don’t dare tell
him that.
12. The Margaret Hooligans have been part of the music
scene for a while now. How do you feel you've evolved as musicians and as a
band since you first started?
There’s fewer tears and microphones thrown. I think we write
music a bit faster because we’ve learned each other’s musical language a bit
better. Other than that, I just hope we’re still sticking it to the man,
whoever he/she is.
13. Is there a specific message or emotion you hope your
music conveys to your audience, or do you leave it open to interpretation?
We try to Trojan horse most of our messages. Only the people
who are really listening and paying attention with their Ovaltine decoder ring
will get them.
14. What can your fans and new listeners expect from The
Margaret Hooligans in the near future? Any upcoming projects or exciting
developments you'd like to share?
We have three singles out this month - two were
collaborations with other bands. Our single, Monkey Nuts, was created with The
Qwarks when we were there this past summer and is a psych garage banger about a
refined sushi eating monkey who discovers peanuts and goes apeshit. Meg lent
her vocals to a couple of unicorns from I Am the Unicornhead for their lovely
anti-discrimination anthem, Take Me As I Am, which just came out. And Revenge
of the ScarJo, is our second single from our fourth album, and is a satirical
look at what would happen if women were the apex predators and subjected men to
ubiquitous sexual harassment. The music video for ScarJo also features Pete
Brock and Ted Pepper from the band 9 o’clock Nasty and it’s hilarious.
15. How do you balance your musical pursuits with the
rest of your lives, including family and other responsibilities?
I am not sure we do really. Family, the needs of our
creatures, work, and daily housekeeping just about do us in. The music is what
saves us from ruin.
16. Finally, if you had to describe The Margaret
Hooligans' music in just three words, what would they be?
raucous, irreverent, quirky
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