Grab your s'mores, your bug spray and pack your bags as Riot Squad Media is about to take over Northeast Pennsylvania with Camp Punksylvania! The 3-day festival with multiple stages and amazing national and local acts like The Suicide Machines, War On Women and A Wilhelm Scream, will take place from 1 September until 3 September, tickets are available here. Old Bridge, New Jersey's punk rock virtuoso Mikey Erg joined TGEFM to discuss his upcoming appearances at Camp Punksylvania for the latest installment of our Camp-centric Roll Of The Dice interview series. Check it out below and I'll see you at the campfire!
Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview! You are gearing up for Camp Punksylvania in the coming months, what does the festival circuit mean to artists such as yourself?
For me, festivals are rad first and foremost because they give you an opportunity to reconnect with bands and friends you've toured with in the past. Also as a music fan, the opportunity to check a bunch of bands off your live wishlist is awesome. If i can get a couple people who've never heard my stuff to check me out in the process that's rad too!
You have been part of so many influential acts that mean so much to so many of us. Does the high bar you've set for yourself in the past help, hinder or affect your creativity today and to what extent?
oh man, yeah. it's tough. I kinda need to pretend no ones ever gonna listen to this stuff to get anything done. haha. I try not to think about it too much. A lot of the stuff I've done that's been the most successful was done quick and easy so I try not to overthink things and just see what happens.
What's the state of the live scene from your point of view? We are living in a “just deal with COVID” world and everything about this timeline is some level of completely fucked. What impact, if any, do the current cultural and political landscapes have on the two of you and your music?
It's definitely harder to get people out to gigs at this point but it seems to be relaxing a bit. we're all just figuring out how to get back to this I think.
You've been in this scene for a while, what is your biggest regret? A gig you turned down, advice you didn't take, what one thing do you wish you handled differently as a musician?
oh man, too many to name. I feel like I'm never making the right decision, haha. I did turn down an invitation to “jam” with Mickey from Ween once 'cause I was about to move away from Jersey. I bet that woulda been an experience!
What pieces of advice do you have for the up and coming acts performing at Camp Punksylvania?
Keep going. Don't quit. Music is awesome!
Any summer camp worth its salt knows there needs to be a lot of different activities to participate in. What activities would you be in charge of if Camp Punksylvania was an actual sleepaway camp?
haha, I've never actually been to summer camp but I think the passing around the guitar by a campfire bit is probably the thing i would encourage happening.
If you were to create a punk sleepaway camp, who are you assigning as counselors?
Glen Matlock, Ian Mackaye, Kathleen Hanna, Shawna Potter
End of the season Campfire; What song are you performing?
“Back to Life” by Soul II Soul
Camp Punksylvania is a smorgasbord of fantastic acts. Which bands are you most excited to see on each stage?
I love Lenny Lashley, Scott Reynolds, Pity Party, Homeless Gospel Choir, The Dollyrots, The Suicide Machines, War On Women and Jon Snodgrass to death.
Time for the most important questions, your opportunity to answer all the age-old Garden State conundrums: Taylor Ham or Pork Roll? Why do people pretend Central Jersey exists? What exactly is a Cheesequake? Was there anything not Jersey-related that I missed that you'd like to share or dive deeper into with our readers?
TAYLOR HAM FOREVER!!! CENTRAL JERSEY FOREVER!!!
Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed's musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he's self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
