luckyPRICK

Interview With A Prick

Exclaim! Magazine
Transcribed by Avenpitch

"What is obvious to others is complex and splendid to him and what is accepted by others is questioned by him. Prick, the imagination."
-Prick liner notes.

"I don't know, but do you want to do an interview with Trent?" says the lowkey Kevin McMahon when asked about his former bandmate, and now label boss, Nine Inch Nail's Trent Reznor (who produces and plays on four tracks on Prick, the CD).

"I did last summer," replies the reporter, just trying to communicate, and wondering 'why the attitude?' when this prick's whole presence in the marketplace is due to his famous buddy.

"I don't really have too many reminiscences. But maybe I can conjure some up and call you back."

I guess he needed to get to know me first (newspaper editors please note: this is a reference to a lyric in Prick's "Other People").

"I needed a keyboard player, and he hadn't really done anything yet, as far as his own music went. About five years later, he started up his own label, Nothing, and asked me if I wanted to do something on that."

Right on. Heart-warming networking, neighborly corporate-sponsored friendships. Kevin was Lucky Pierre with ten releases during the 80s in Cleveland, Ohio. His music project now is Prick, and he's still undecided if Prick is the album title or the band name. You see it could be "prick your finger," "suck my prick" or "Kevin is a prick."

Musically, Prick is a together mix of 70s English art-pop (ie. Bowie, Cockney Rebel, etc) and NIN-like cyberthrash. Kevin dramatically emotes through tracks like "No Fair Fights" and the first single/video "Animal." The highlight is the finale, "Makebelieve," epic English-sounding psychedelic pop that would not be out of place on a Legendary Pink Dots album.

"I think the Kinks' Ray Davies is a great songwriter. Bowie... and you know, I listened to mostly British music, so I guess that gets to theway you sing. Sometimes I listen to my old recordings, and I can't believe my voice because it sounds English. Even recently some of it does, but it's not an affectation, it is just the way that things come out."

Prick, the CD, was partly recorded in London with producer Warne Livesey and entirely mixed by Alan Moulder. The result is state-of-the-art sound with industrial-rock rhythm programming, screaming hooks and intimate angst - even some crickets singing for their supper outside Pig Studio, Reznor's infamous rented Hollywood Hills family estate.

"It's kind of something I didn't dwell on too much when I was there. I guess it didn't help when one of the nights I didn't realize I was there alone, and people came up to visit or to... I guess maybe there is something strange about it because I'm apprehensive to talk about it."

"I can't wait 'til they think it's good
I can't wait 'til it's understood
I got it bad"
- "I Got It Bad"