Note: Sticky With Champagne Lyrics are Unfinished
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Let's Talk #YouLoveYou
You Love You, is blowing up! Everyone can't stop talking about how amazing it really is!
"Rock music’s big on overbearing personalities that shine on stage but you’d keep at arm’s length in person. Axl Rose and Courtney Love spring to mind. We have no idea what Justin Tranter — the frontman for the Lady Gaga-approved NYC glam-band Semi Precious Weapons — is like when he’s shopping at Gristedes, but his persona is of a petulant, narcissistic 6-foot-tall bleach-blonde bisexual minx. In others words, he’s a f**king rock star and he proves it on SPW’s sophomore release You Love You (out 6/29). From the self-titled opener — where Tranter essays our favorite lyric of the year, "I can’t pay my rent, but I’m f**king gorgeous" — to the redundantly perfect closer "Look at Me," You Love You’s a 9-song, 33-minute hit-and-run that’ll leave you gasping for breath. If you find yourself saying, “Oh no, he didn’t!” while listening, chances are he did and that you love it anyway." - Source: Towleroad.com
Semi Precious Weapons and Lady Gaga Having a Celebratory Drink In Honor of You Love You
Semi Precious Weapons are currently number 57 on the iTunes Chart and I believe #9 on the Alternative Chart. You can do better than that weapons! Buy a copy for yourself and for your friends HERE
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
You Love You Hits the U.S.
You Love You is finally available in the U.S.
You can buy your special autographed copy of the album HERE
Also, Semi Precious Weapons is currently Number 9 on the Alternative Charts on iTunes! Please Support them buy buying a copy of their album off iTunes by clicking HERE! You can even gift it to a friend!
"A club sensation in their native N.Y.C., Semi Precious Weapons have steadily raised glitter-laden eyebrows since the band's garage rock-y 2008 independent debut, We Love You. They even nabbed a coveted opening spot on controversial pop diva Lady Gaga's 2010 Monster Ball tour. In truth, the pairing made sense, as Gaga actually opened for the band in 2006 before she was famous. Cut to 2010, and Semi Precious Weapons deliver their sophomore effort and major-label debut You Love You. Once again featuring the vocals of six-foot-tall, ambisexual frontman Justin Tranter, You Love You plays as an amped-up version of We Love You. In fact, the band included re-recorded versions of their anthems "Semi-Precious Weapons" and "Magnetic Baby," originally released on We Love You. The move makes sense in introducing the band to a wider audience and the slightly bigger/polished-fuzz of You Love You's production does nothing to detract from the original versions. Admittedly, a few tracks such as the plodding "Statues of Ourselves" and the slack "Rock and Roll Never Looked so Beautiful" often seem like a lot of flash and personality minus a great pop hook. Ultimately though, tracks like the Led Zeppelin-meets-T. Rex nugget "Put a Diamond in It" and the bratty AC/DC-inspired "I Could Die" are truly a*s-kicking rockers that balance Tranter's snotty, glittery camp with the band's legit, hard rock ballsiness. And while snot'n'roll is pretty much Semi Precious Weapons bread and butter, Tranter's epic latter album ballad "Leave Your Pretty to Me" is a bittersweet love letter to all the fan girls he's never been able to love before, but for whom the album's idol worship-invoking album title truly takes on a reflexive and yearning irony. He sings, "Girl, go ahead and drink, cuz I can only be so many things. But when you leave, please leave your pretty to me." If You Love You is any indication, Semi Precious Weapons have plenty of pretty, dirty rock & roll to go around." Source: iTunes
Monday, June 28, 2010
Have You Seen This Magic Yet???
Check-out this amazing mini "You Love You" movie by the wonderfully amazing Stevy Pyne! We're wetter than fishermen over it.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Semi Precious Weapons "Dare To Be Filthy"
After a few tours, any rock act worth its decibels should be able to name a couple of its wilder shows with little effort, but Justin Tranter’s pick for most memorable Semi Precious Weapons concert sounds especially libertine. “We played a show at the Dirt Bar in Houston,” says the waifish, tarted-up firecracker of a singer over the phone from LA. For a reason he doesn’t explain, the self-avowed garage-glam outfit has a substantial fan base among Texas strippers, ex-strippers, and “all sorts of ladies of the evening.” The Houston dive adored SPW so much that it rented a sound system and built a stage for the performance, installing monkey bars on said stage. As Tranter remembers it, the scene at showtime was “a room full of insanely beautiful blonde strippers that desperately wanted to look like me, and a bunch of dirty rock dudes. We stayed in the bar for six hours after our show. That was the most amazing rock-and-roll experience I’ve ever been a part of.”
In his excitement at recounting the event, he forgets to talk about the actual performance. But given that SPW are known for going over the top — a male lead singer in pantyhose, manic dancing, pouring champagne into the audience, histrionic guitar solos — the on-stage details are probably just a blur. And the Dirt Bar show wasn’t that crazy. “It’s very par for the course for Semi Precious Weapons,” says Tranter, with a laugh.
Before 2006, the band were a more sober bunch. The entire original line-up of SPW studied at Berklee College of Music. (Tranter: “I have a degree in songwriting, the drummer has a degree in classical composition, and blah, blah, blah.”) But after they moved away together to pursue life as a working band, their “serious, intellectual” approach was quickly discarded. “We got to New York and were shocked at how boring it was,” Tranter remembers. “I thought girls all wanted to be Debbie Harry in New York City, but they actually wanted to be Sarah Jessica Parker.”
Reacting to this perception, SPW began championing pointedly crude rock inspired by the base sounds they grew up with — Guns N’ Roses, AC/DC, Metallica — and emphasizing theatrics as well as sonics. The band aren’t about straight-up glam revival. (Tranter says he hadn’t heard of T. Rex until recently). Rather, they, and some of their NYC peers (like Lady Gaga, for whom they open at the TD Garden next Thursday and Friday), push “filthy glamour” — something “a little filthier, poorer, and grungier than the glam rock everyone thinks of.”
Speaking of “poorer”: finances play a prominent role in “Semi Precious Weapons,” a track on both 2008’s We Love You (Razor & Tie) and the just-released You Love You (Geffen). The music itself is not remarkable (imagine an amped-up, brasher play on Jet’s “Cold Hard Bitch”), but Tranter’s enthusiastic opening wail is: “I can’t pay my rent, but I’m fucking gorgeous.” And he isn’t kidding. Although Semi Precious Weapons are now on a major label and should be getting their share of receipts from their run on Gaga’s tour, Tranter was evicted from his apartment not too long ago, and he remains, he says, “officially homeless, since touring is so fucking expensive.” Not that it’s hurt his lyrics or his attitude. Even when he picked up cans off New York City streets to pay for food, he says, “I was still doing it in five-inch heels and full make-up — looking fantastic.” No wonder strippers like SPW.
Source: The Phoenix
Semi Precious Weapons Twitterview!
Yesterday - Our favorite boys, Semi Precious Weapons, tweeted that they would be answering fans' questions via twitter. We thought, "Hey! What a great idea! Let's post it like an interview." But unfortunately Jawsh and myself got extremely lazy :( So! Before you read this let me warn you. It's kinda complicated.. we didn't fully sort it all out so what you do is - scroll to the very bottom of this post and read from bottom to top. To read the questions just click "In Reply To __________"
Scroll all the way down!
Alright! Phew! That was amazing. Now a question for you all... are you gonna tell everyone you know to buy #YouLoveYou ?
@MonsterCiara94 never get nervous. luckily. via web in reply to MonsterCiara94
@x_littlemonster already have.
@TheFameKingdom we all met at Music school together. We were friends for 4 years before we started the band.
@Lady_Chiara all we have ever wanted to do is play music. since we were kids.
@sophieGAGAward we all came up with the term "filthy glaMOUR" together.
@LadyGagaQuotes yes. #YouLoveYou will be huge. Because the world needs rockNroll again.
@sammonsterr The mask idea was something I've wanted to do for a very long long time.
@LittleLiliB you bought #YouLoveYou 4 times?!?!? Amazing!
@Monster_Jordee I love everyone. Blonde, brunette, ginger...I just love fabulous people.
@Harriet_PawsUp we hope to make an album every year for the next 4 years.
@hausofjay #YouLoveYou
@jasminebridgerx the fans are the best part of the Monster Ball.
@iRycee we were in the studio for a month making #YouLoveYou
@UKfamemonster both at the same time.
@MonsterrWeaponn yes!
@DreamNBelieve yes. xo.
@Lil_FameMonster Yes!
@ohellyeahh Some of the songs are 3 years old, some of them we wrote while recording.
@jrgMONSTER maybe:)
@LeftHandedFitch Lady GaGa and Sharon Stone. Because they are so fucking smart and hot.
@LadyGagaQuotes We are SOOO fucking happy to finally have an album we are truly proud of come out.
@jessimonster being full of filthy glaMOUR is the only way we know how to be.
@GaGasMONSTERpaw they will hear it all. Bonus tracks to come baby.
@weLgaga Leave Your Pretty didn't take the longest to write, but I loved it so much when I wrote it, that I just played it for HOURS!
@aimeemcoles Yes it will be in canada. June 29th!
@sophieGAGAward Justin writes all the lyrics. But we write most of the music as a group.
@IrishSteve like magic. hard work does pay off.
@Meaghan_Monster the best thing about stripping on stage is that I believe rockNroll should be dangerous. And thats pretty dangerous.
@nataliiiie Put A Diamond In It and Sticky With CHampagne are always sooo fun live, but I love them all.
@CaptainKP Its true. I wasnt able to pay rent. You can watch my eviction notice on youtube! Ha!
@Madison_Monster Statues and Leave Your Pretty and Look At Me mean sooo much to me. But I can't really choose a fav.
@NerdofGaga We met gaga because she use to open for us back in NYC in 2006 and 2007. xoxo.
@gagamonster We will hopefully put Leave Your Pretty into our live show very soon. xo.
@x_littlemonster already have.
@TheFameKingdom we all met at Music school together. We were friends for 4 years before we started the band.
@Lady_Chiara all we have ever wanted to do is play music. since we were kids.
@sophieGAGAward we all came up with the term "filthy glaMOUR" together.
@LadyGagaQuotes yes. #YouLoveYou will be huge. Because the world needs rockNroll again.
@sammonsterr The mask idea was something I've wanted to do for a very long long time.
@LittleLiliB you bought #YouLoveYou 4 times?!?!? Amazing!
@Monster_Jordee I love everyone. Blonde, brunette, ginger...I just love fabulous people.
@Harriet_PawsUp we hope to make an album every year for the next 4 years.
@hausofjay #YouLoveYou
@jasminebridgerx the fans are the best part of the Monster Ball.
@iRycee we were in the studio for a month making #YouLoveYou
@UKfamemonster both at the same time.
@MonsterrWeaponn yes!
@DreamNBelieve yes. xo.
@Lil_FameMonster Yes!
@ohellyeahh Some of the songs are 3 years old, some of them we wrote while recording.
@jrgMONSTER maybe:)
@LeftHandedFitch Lady GaGa and Sharon Stone. Because they are so fucking smart and hot.
@LadyGagaQuotes We are SOOO fucking happy to finally have an album we are truly proud of come out.
@jessimonster being full of filthy glaMOUR is the only way we know how to be.
@GaGasMONSTERpaw they will hear it all. Bonus tracks to come baby.
@weLgaga Leave Your Pretty didn't take the longest to write, but I loved it so much when I wrote it, that I just played it for HOURS!
@aimeemcoles Yes it will be in canada. June 29th!
@sophieGAGAward Justin writes all the lyrics. But we write most of the music as a group.
@IrishSteve like magic. hard work does pay off.
@Meaghan_Monster the best thing about stripping on stage is that I believe rockNroll should be dangerous. And thats pretty dangerous.
@nataliiiie Put A Diamond In It and Sticky With CHampagne are always sooo fun live, but I love them all.
@CaptainKP Its true. I wasnt able to pay rent. You can watch my eviction notice on youtube! Ha!
@Madison_Monster Statues and Leave Your Pretty and Look At Me mean sooo much to me. But I can't really choose a fav.
@NerdofGaga We met gaga because she use to open for us back in NYC in 2006 and 2007. xoxo.
@gagamonster We will hopefully put Leave Your Pretty into our live show very soon. xo.
@CariDeeEnglish I have lots of insanely gorgeous friends that cause LOTS of trouble. They end up in my songs. Ms Dee! xo.
@SexpotStephen it is called "You Love You" because everyone should love themselves more than anything.
@InsaneMonsterx3 there are 9 songs on the album.
@Imagine928 we waited to release it in the USA until June 29th, so we would be on tour in North America when it came out.
@ChrisWarhol @musicalmover working with producer Jack Joseph Puig and have Ron Fair as our A&R man was the best part.
@musicalmover working with producer Jack Joseph Puig and have Ron Fair as our A&R man was the best part.
@jtredwell1 put a diamond in it. because violence is glamour.
@GodivaGirlBH I did record the whole album in 5 inch heels. obvs. xo.
@connorbrav the fog is about Lady Starlight and Breedlove. But the song is just about how everyone should know how cool their friends are.
@monstersforever my fav color is nude.
@Joshb89 my fav song changes everyday, but today its Statues Of Ourselves.
@chiarajosephine because you are.
@VeggieHead21 Its about a really gorgeous amazing girl I know who can't stop drinking to much. But she is so fab, I'll always lover her.
@tonyreilly18 We will be making suprise flash mobs of album signings in every venue we go to.
Alright lovers! Lets do this. For the next 10 mins we will try to answer as many questions as we can about the new album. Ask away!
@SexpotStephen it is called "You Love You" because everyone should love themselves more than anything.
@InsaneMonsterx3 there are 9 songs on the album.
@Imagine928 we waited to release it in the USA until June 29th, so we would be on tour in North America when it came out.
@ChrisWarhol @musicalmover working with producer Jack Joseph Puig and have Ron Fair as our A&R man was the best part.
@musicalmover working with producer Jack Joseph Puig and have Ron Fair as our A&R man was the best part.
@jtredwell1 put a diamond in it. because violence is glamour.
@GodivaGirlBH I did record the whole album in 5 inch heels. obvs. xo.
@connorbrav the fog is about Lady Starlight and Breedlove. But the song is just about how everyone should know how cool their friends are.
@monstersforever my fav color is nude.
@Joshb89 my fav song changes everyday, but today its Statues Of Ourselves.
@chiarajosephine because you are.
@VeggieHead21 Its about a really gorgeous amazing girl I know who can't stop drinking to much. But she is so fab, I'll always lover her.
@tonyreilly18 We will be making suprise flash mobs of album signings in every venue we go to.
Alright lovers! Lets do this. For the next 10 mins we will try to answer as many questions as we can about the new album. Ask away!
Semi Precious Weapons Rock the Nylon Mag Party!
Check Out Some Photos of Semi Precious Weapons Performing/Posing at Last Night's Nylon Magazine Party in L.A. (More to Come)
Photos via: Getty Images & Nylon Mag Twitter
Photos via: Getty Images & Nylon Mag Twitter
ITN Talk Rock & Roll With Semi Precious Weapons
The good stuff starts around the 1:19 mark. She's totez jealz of Justin's heels.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Semi Precious Weapons to Premiere A Cherrytree Sesh!
The recording session will premiere the same day their new album, 'You Love You' is released - June 29th
A Weapons Review of #YouLoveYou
Check out this In Depth Review of You Love You by Semi Precious Weapons:
"Unless you have been living under a rock, i’m sure you must of at least heard of this crazy, glamourous, dirty musical phenomenom known as Semi Precious Weapons. The band, hailing from New York City and led by eccentric frontman, Justin Tranter have been supporting the incredible Lady GaGa on her hugely successful ‘Monster Ball’ all over the world and I myself have had the pleasure of seeing them on that tour twice - both times in Manchester’s MEN Arena.
Now has come the time for the loveable band to unleash their debut album to the world and this week it is released in the UK. So what exactly can you expect from this 9 track effort? Here is my track-by-track review:-
1) Semi Precious Weapons
“I can’t pay my rent but i’m fuckin’ gorgeous” serves as the opening line of this album and indeed, this introduction sets the tone for the entire LP. Tranter’s sexual vocals along with a beat that makes you want to fuck the nearest speaker will have you listening to this, their first single release, all over the summer. An epic track which gets the album off to a cracking start. 10/10
2) Put A Diamond In It
The second track has a chorus just as catchy as the first and includes a guitar solo in the middle segment that sounds like a musical drug. “Who wants my baby?” Tranter asks us. I think after hearing this track, everyone will want his baby!! Pure genius. 10/10
3) Magnetic Baby
The album continues along its glam-rock road with another track that i’m sure the likes of David Bowie would be proud of. The self-indulgent lyrics in this track is sure to leave a smile on your face and will probably leave you feeling better about yourself. This is a song that really does uplift me. 9/10
4) Statues of Ourselves
Track 4 sees the album slow down a little, whilst still keeping the energy alive. This track is deliciously dirty (‘While I finger your ribcage”) but also gives a sense of vulnerablity (“We don’t know if this will live”). Whilst its a hard one to explain, this is easily my second favourite song on the album and is quickly making its way up to the top of my iTunes Most Played - i’m sure it will be doing the same on yours. 10/10
5) Sticky With Champagne
Pace picks up again for another filthy-glam infused track that is perfect with the volume turned up at a drunken house party - trust me, i’ve tried it! This was the one track that I wasn’t instantly loving when I first heard it, but it sure has grown on me and seems a favourite with other UK fans. Check it out. 9/10
6) I Could Die
There is something about this song, and i’m still not sure what it is, that just makes me get up, rock out & sing along. I absolutely love it. Its easily my third favourite song. Everything about this track just works - lyrics, vocals, drums, guitar, beat - it’s all pure perfection. LOVE IT! Oh, and Justin’s scream at the end just makes it even better 10/10
7) Leave Your Pretty To Me
Now, here comes the gem. The hightlight of this album. This is where my professionalism goes out the window! My favourite song on the album and I can HONESTLY say that this is one of the most beautiful tracks that I have EVER heard by ANYONE. There are no words to describe this song - you really have to hear it for yourself. “The only thing that ever came easy to her was me…so girl go ahead and drink, I can only be so many things” is the chorus and it is sung beautifully by Justin. You can really feel all the emotion in this track that builds to a epic finale. LOVE LOVE LOVE this. I urge everyone to take a listen to this to see the bands full potential and if anyone fails to be moved by this, you have no soul. Semi Precious Weapons - PLEASE release this as a single! 1,000,000/10
8) Rock N Roll Never Looked So Beautiful
Another really good track, but to be honest, by the time you get to this track, you’re still blown away by the previous one! Having said that, if you can calm down and focus on this one, you have one of the highlights of the album. The pace and velocity of this track keeps changing but it suits it well - this really is a mashup for the ears which I don’t think you can fail to love! 9.5/10
9) Look At Me
The album closes with this stripped back, emotional track which again, shows off Justin’s true vocal talents. This is the band at the rawest and leaves Tranter almost acoustic, his voice laid bare for all to hear its beauty. This serves, to me, as the calm after the storm and leaves you feeling satisfied at the end of the LP. 10/10
OVERALL VERDICT:
In ‘You Love You’, Semi Precious Weapons produce an album that ticks all the right boxes and really doesn’t go wrong. It is a solid effort that i’m sure will leave the music world in awe and wanting more. I think we can safely say that this is a band that have many bright years ahead of them & I can’t wait to see them on their own headlining tour as soon as they do one! Overall rating - 9.5/10"
Photo via: Eric Broz
Semi Precious Weapons Are Giving Away Monster Ball Tix!
The album will be available pre-release, June 26th through 28th, streaming on MySpace. For more information on the ticket give away follow the SPW twitter account: http://twitter.com/preciousweapons The band will be hosting Monster Ball after parties in several cities on the tour.
Look for them at Woodward in Boston, Ghostbar in Atlanta, Voodoo Lounge in San Jose, Refuge in Portland, plus secret locations in cities like NYC, Los Angeles, Chicago and many more!
Check the band's twitter for up-to-the-minute details and see the full tour routing below. Of the band's recent success frontman Justin Tranter says, ""We spent three years driving ourselves around in a murder van to play bars EVERYWHERE, I mean we even played a sports bar in Waterloo Iowa. Now in the last seven months we have made an incredible record that we are proud of, and are on a tour bus playing arenas all over the world with Ms. Gaga! Hard work and magic." The band have just completed the latest leg of the Monster Ball where they brought their dirty showbiz to sold out audiences all across Europe and the UK.
Watch the trailer HERE
Feist, Sting , Lady Gaga and Robyn, among others, have all performed at The Cherrytree House. Who can forget Lady Gaga's riveting Cherrytree House rendition of Pokerface (reposted by PerezHilton.com and sampled even by Kanye West in Kid Kudi's "I Make Her Say"). Well, get ready for Semi Precious Weapons' intimate appearance on The Cherrytree House - out June 29 on www.cherrytreerecords.com.
Mon 06/28 Montreal, QC Bell Centre
Thu 07/1 Boston, MA TD Garden
Fri 07/2 Boston, MA TD Garden
Sun 07/4 Atlantic City, NJ Boardwalk Hall
Tue 07/6 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
Wed 07/7 New York, NY Madison Square Garden*
Fri 07/9 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
Sun 07/11 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre*
Mon 07/12 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre*
Wed 07/14 Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena
Thu 07/15/ Indianapolis, IN Conseco Fieldhouse*
Sat 07/17 St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
Tue 07/20 OKC, OK Ford Center
Thu 07/22 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center*
Fri 07/23 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
Sun 07/25 Houston, TX Toyota Center
Mon 07/26 Houston, TX Toyota Center
Wed 07/28 Denver, CO Pepsi Center
Sat 07/31 Phoenix, AZ US Airways Center
Tue 08/3 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
Wed 08/11 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
Thu 08/12 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
Fri 08/13 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena
Mon 08/16 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion *
Tue 08/17 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion *
Thu 08/19 Portland, OR Rose Garden Arena*
Sat 08/21 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome
Mon 08/23 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place
Tue 08/24 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place *
Thu 08/26 Edmonton, AB Rexall Place *
Fri 08/27 Edmonton, AB Rexall Place *
Mon 08/30 Saint Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center
Tue 08/31 Saint Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center
Thu 09/02 Milwaukee, WI Bradley Center
Sat 09/04 Auburn Hills, MI The Palace
Sun 09/05 Pittsburgh, PA Consol Energy Center
Tue 09/07 Washington, DC Verizon Center
Wed 09/08 Charlottesville, VA John Paul Jones Arena
Tue 09/14 Philadelphia, PA The Wachovia Center
Wed 09/15 Philadelphia, PA The Wachovia Center
Thu 09/16 Hartford, CT XL Center
Sat 09/18 Charlotte, NC Time Warner Cable Arena
Sun 09/19 Raleigh, NC RBC Center
*Indicates tour date with a special Semi Precious Weapons after-party. Check http://twitter.com/preciousweapons for more details. More after-parties to be announced.
Source: AntiMusic.com
Photo Credit: annie*rock & the_gonzJustin Talks About Papa Tranter
Buzznet: What is your physical feature that most resembles your Dad?
Justin Tranter: My legs. However he doesn't wear heels or pantyhose.
BN: What is your personality trait that most resembles your Dad?
JT: Extreme determination.
BN: What song makes you think of your Dad?
JT: WAY too many songs to just list one. Let's just say any song I hear that was recorded and released before 1973.
BN: Who is your favorite fictional Dad (tv character/movie)?
JT: King Triton from "The Little Mermaid."
BN: How has your Dad influenced your musical career in anyway?
JT: My dad loves live rockNroll more than anyone I have ever met, which has made me always want to put on the best live rockNroll show in the world.
BN: If you could sing/play your Dad any song for Father’s Day this year – what would you play?
JT: High Heel Sneakers by Jose Felicianond
Source: Buzznet.com
Monday, June 21, 2010
"If Marilyn Monroe and The Sex Pistols were starring in a Quentin Tarantino film, it'd be our album"
Check out this great interview Artist Direct.com did! It's absolutely fab.
"Semi Precious Weapons lock and load their debut album, You Love You, with style, swagger and a whole lot of sexy rock 'n' roll.They've got the kind of boundless bravado that's characteristic of all unforgettable rock bands, and there's no stopping them once they hit the stage. You Love You bursts at the seams with the kind of dirty, danceable grooves that'd appeal to both AC/DC and Lady Gaga fans. That's the magic of Semi Precious Weapons though. They're one of the last ass-shakin' rock 'n' roll bands out there, and pop culture needs cats like them to keep it in check.
That's exactly what their doing on You Love You (Due out 6/29/10) and on the Monster's Ball tour with Gaga!
Semi Precious Weapons singer Justin Tranter sat down for an exclusive interview with ARTISTdirect.com editor and Dolor author Rick Florino delving into You Love You, the possibilities of the band collaborating with Lady Gaga and what it means to be a rock band.
You don't sound like anyone else out there, but you really capture a boundless old school rock 'n' roll energy. Would you say that's the case?
Well, thank you so much! I think that's the greatest compliment you could ever give me.
How do these songs typically come together?
It depends on the song. Some of the songs start with me alone in my apartment in New York. I don't actually have that apartment anymore [Laughs]. I play piano, so just starting there and writing with a main lyrical idea, normally. For other songs, the four of us get into a room, and something sparks it—whether it's a riff or a lyric. It's different for each song, but there's typically one thing that everyone gets really excited about. If it's a song I wrote by myself, then I bring it to the band to figure out how it's actually going to go. There's always one thing that really sets it off. With "Statues of Ourselves," it was that one line—"We're going to build statues of ourselves"—that blew the whole thing up. With "Put Diamond in It," I had been wanting to say "Put a Diamond in It" and bite down on that song for awhile. I never even told the band about it, but the minute our bass player Cole started playing that riff, it immediately came to me. It's normally one spark that makes the whole thing happen.
Can it be anything?
It can be! We'll be in the van sometimes, and I'll tell the rest of the band this line I thought of. Then, they start thinking of what that line should sound like for the next week while we're on tour. It's amazing! Whether, it's the whole band or me by myself, it's always one exciting thing that starts a song.
What's the story behind "Look at Me?"
I think that's definitely one of my favorites on the album. We were in my apartment for this one; we weren't in a rehearsal room with our drummer. We were like, "Let's write something subtle because we're not a very subtle group of people, obviously." [Laughs] It was the perfect time of my life of a really amazing friendship-slash-relationship. Normally, all of my relationships and friendships become sort of magical, sexual, weird and awesome. I was at one of those moments when we decided to surrender to writing something subtle. It was the perfect time to do it!
Is this your most intimate song?
It's probably the most intimate I will ever get [Laughs].
Is "Semi Precious Weapons" like your call-to-arms track?
It was actually the first song we ever wrote as a band. When we started playing in New York, the set was originally a bunch of songs that I'd written by myself that we were figuring out for our first couple gigs. We were like, "Let's write a song together and see what happens." It was the magic moment of when this band became Semi Precious Weapons. I've been writing songs since I was a teenager, and I always wanted to say ridiculous shit like that because that's how I talk in my normal life. It never made sense for me to say, "I can't pay my rent but I'm fucking gorgeous" while I'm sitting there at a piano by myself. It just felt weird. When our guitar player started playing that balls-to-the-wall straight-up rock 'n' roll riff, I was like, "Oh, now that there's an actual badass band behind me, I can say something like that and even a frat boy would think it's awesome!" If I'm sitting a piano saying that, it's like, "What the fuck is this campy bullshit?" [Laughs] The song defined what Semi Precious is—which is real rock 'n' roll with bold glamorous lyrics that no one else has the balls to say at this point in the world. I've been evicted. You can watch it on YouTube. I collected cans, and I cashed them in at the grocery store to eat because I got fired from a job. I worked many day jobs in retail. I got fired before we started Semi Precious Weapons. I was like, "Screw it, I'm not going to do a day job. I don't care how broke I am. Fuck it!" I had landlords threatening me—rightfully so because I wasn't paying rent [Laughs]. It's not like they were assholes; they were just doing their job. I talk about walking over bridges on the record a lot because I literally could not afford subways. I was walking over bridges and cashing in cans in five-inch heels and full makeup at 4am coming home from a party. Luckily, I'd get in to the party for free and drink for free so it didn't matter if I had any money, but I couldn't get home on the subway so I'd walk back to Brooklyn every night. These are ridiculous things to say, but people can sense it's not bullshit. It can be fun, but it also can be serious and real at the same time.
If You Love You were a movie what would it be?
I would compare it to if Marilyn Monroe and The Sex Pistols were starring in a Quentin Tarantino film. Tarantino is one of my favorite directors of all time. His movies are so beautiful, and they always have very feminine leads that are very violent. Ever since I was three-years-old, I've always been obsessed with beautiful women that are violent, whether it was Wonder Woman or whoever. I loved bitches who kicked ass like Shira! [Laughs] Marilyn Monroe is one of my biggest influences ever—just the way she dealt with her celebrity. It ended grimly so it's kind of sad to reference her as an inspiration. Before she became self-destructive, the way she dealt with her sex, beauty and the amazing polarizing position she held in the world is really inspiring to me. Then there's The Sex Pistols! I think people should either really love or really hate all good rock 'n' roll. Honestly, The Sex Pistols embody that better than any other band that's ever existed. Those are my three favorite things—Monroe, Sex Pistols and Tarantino.
What albums do you always come back to?
It's really split. It's either straight-up rock 'n' roll albums like AC/DC's Back in Black and Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction, Nirvana's Nevermind and Hole's Miss World or it's endless amounts of female singer-songwriters like Patty Larkin, Patti Griffin, Gillian Welch or Miranda Lambert. I love her! She's a modern country star at the moment, and I think she's a fucking genius. Then there's Dolly Parton and Sinead O'Connor. It's a weird split thing for me of really loud dirty rock 'n' roll or really quiet female singer-songwriters. We're at such a weird place in pop culture now where everything's so divided. You have to make a decision whether you're going to be really fun or really serious. People don't want anything in between right now. If you consider yourself a smart person who loves intelligent music, then you can't like anything that's on the radio. I feel like that's so dumb. Obviously, a lot of what's on the radio fucking sucks [Laughs]. We're at such a weird place where everything's so close-minded. If something indie makes it on mainstream radio, hipsters decide it's no longer awesome. We do like fashion and we believe a live show be exciting, so lots of hipsters think it's a gimmick and we're full of shit. To us, it's so funny, if they only knew. Our drummer has a degree in classical composition and could compose a symphony. However, because he likes to wear cool clothes, people automatically think he's a fucking idiot. It's such an interesting place in the world. We love and understand all different types of music so we have the confidence to say, "Alright fine, fuck it. If you want to think I'm an idiot because I wear five-inch heels and that means there's no way I could be a great songwriter, then fuck you and you just don't get it."
Not everyone got Led Zeppelin when they first came out either, and that seemed to work out…
[Laughs] Exactly! Our fans that love us live and die by it, and it's amazing! They get so mad when people don't like us. All great rock 'n' roll bands have been loved and hated. That means it's working.
How's Monster's Ball with Lady Gaga?
It's insane! We're still on it for like another nine months! It's a fucking dream come true to be able tour the world in arenas. We went from booking our own shows in bars. We've known Gaga for years, and she's always been such a huge fan. She actually used to open for us in New York. Whenever we'd talk to her, she'd be like, "At some point, I'm going to put you on tour with me!" It was so amazing. We were confirmed for two weeks in December, and that two weeks turned into a month and that turned into three months. Now, that three months became eighteen months! It's so exciting. It goes to show the genius of Lady Gaga, wanting to push one more boundary. She's like, "Even my opening act is going to make people wonder why the fuck I did it!" She's such a boundary pushing pop star. It's so funny she has this crazy rock 'n' roll band opening for her. It's a great experience for these kids to get the full spectrum.
You two need to collaborate.
I'm sure at some point it will happen!"
—Rick Florino of Artistdirect.com
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