BALLS OF STEEL:

An interview with Future World Emperor

Dr. Phineas Waldolf Steel

By Jessica Hopsicker

Life is short, and far too much of it is spent being miserable. This is a tragic fact, but this truth has been hard-wired into the human psyche for generations upon generations: that we can never truly be happy. We dwell on our own mortality, strive for stability, and want what our neighbors have. In order to fill the void, many turn to alcohol, medication (prescription and otherwise), or to gods. Some of us may just as soon wallow in misery rather than do something about it. In the tired old age of today, unhappiness has become an excuse, a crutch, and a staple of everyday life. Our formal education forced us to cast off our “childish” dreams of grandeur and thrust us headlong into the real world; where we must sacrifice ideals and embrace the social norms of becoming an adult. If you don't conform, you're ultimately labeled with some sort of mental illness.

Interview

Phil Lesh: All in the Music

by T. Virgil Parker
We live in a time that experiences historical watersheds with startling rapidity. For instance, it is not quite half a century ago when the shackles of American Puritanism were, if not broken, loosened. Don't believe me? I invite any inter-racial couple to walk down any street in the 1950's.  There are parts of our nation where the Constitution was considered voluntary until the National Guard stopped by. Teachers had to sign loyalty oaths.
Interview

No Stranger to Fate: Dave King of Flogging Molly

by Jessica Hopsicker

I received my copy of Whiskey on a Sunday from a co-worker during my weekend job as an adult video store clerk. When I wasn't working seven days a week or drinking on my downtime, I finally had time to watch the disc. It was then my stomach flipped, "I'm gunna interview these guys," I thought to myself as I sprawled out on the futon completely entrapped by the band's full length documentary. The pre-interview jitters I took as a sign, that perhaps it wasn't some sort of childish delusion, interviewing a band that I've loved for years. Sure enough, here it is.

Interview