This special edition focuses solely on the upcoming Operation Ivy tribute comp Mooorree Than Just Another Comp, due out in April via Sell The Heart Records and Lavasocks Records. Today we are speaking with members of American Television, who supplied their previously released cover of “Officer” for the comp. We rolled a FIVE.
(disclaimer: Jerred Lazar of AMTV is also a TGEFM contributor)
1) Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions! The first one I'd like to ask is: It seems that almost everyone I meet has a story about the first time they heard OpIvy. Do you remember yours?
Steve Rovery (vocals, guitar): I remember being around 15, and the song that spoke to me instantly was “Gonna Find You”. It's not even the best OpIvy song, that'd have to be “Sound System” or “Knowledge” for me, but it hit home. When Jesse says the intro, “Back in school you ever get busted for trying to walk and have some administrator tell you, ‘Son, you can shirk your obligations / and try to be different from your peers / But responsibility for your future is gonna find you.'” I was like, dude I feel this. I had no clue what I wanted to do with my life and we were in high school expected to start thinking about our career plans. It was literally what I was experiencing.
2) What does OpIvy mean to you in particular, and in the broader pantheon of punk music?
Bryan Flowers (drums): They represent the spirit of youth and energy (no pun intended) that was the reason most of us got into this DIY and punk thing to begin with. Think about what they and their peers built around that fledgling Gilman St scene. It's inspiring, and continues to be, even though those guys are old as dirt now, just like us!
3) American Television is one of three bands that are contributing previously released OpIvy covers to the comp. With that in mind, what lead you to cover “Officer” in the first place and, if you had been given the chance to do a different track, what would it have been and why?
Steve: Recording our cover of “Officer” came soon after the murder of George Floyd. We were disgusted by the callousness of the Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin. While the song context seems to be more directed at toxic masculinity in the punk scene, the line “Officer, you act like an animal, you're out of control” is what made it feel very poignant, and we wanted to shout it.
Jerred Lazar (guitar): If we did a different track, I think we'd do “Room Without A Window” because we're suckers for social commentary and it encompasses a timeless sort of sentiment. It certainly sums up the cerebral nature of our own songwriting. They were ahead of their time and their lyrics are as poignant as ever. I'm not saying we would have written that song if we were standing in their shoes but…
4) Who would win in a fist-fight: Lint or Tim Armstrong?
Jerred: Lint would run circles around Armstrong's aging ass and chase him back up into his tree. He had more energy and less ego. Take warning, there may be vulnerability in youth but one of these days you'll wake up old and jaded!
5) You've recently signed to A-F Records (congrats!). What can we expect from AMTV in the near future?
Steve: We have a completed album and it's off to the press, so that means we'll have a new record around summer/fall. But the release date is still kind of unknown because of pressing delays (thanks Taylor Swift!) We'll be announcing a short run in the southeast with some label mates pretty soon. So you'd better post an article about that, Jeff! Is that good enough for you?
Mooorree Than Just Another Comp is due out 07 Apr 2023. You can preorder digitally at the STHR Bandcamp. For physical releases on vinyl (inventory is going fast!) visit the Sell The Heart or Lava socks web stores.
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.
the white drew carey (aka – Jeff Sorley) is the founder and head editor of TGEFM. He's lived (outside of) Chicago, Madison WI, (ugh) Penn State, Lyon FR, Oxford UK, central New Jersey, and now within earshot of SFO in the Bay Area. When not scouring the web for more great bands and labels to post about, he also spends time drawing (mostly) silly sci-fi and anime stuff under the name Asplenia Studios.