Luger Boa are soon to be embarking on the State of Rock Tour along with I Am Giant and Black River Drive. You could say that the tour is going to quite literally rock and one man who wants to make sure of that is Luger Boa front-man Jimmy Christmas. He kindly answered some questions for us and is by turns interesting, funny and downright surreal. In other words, it's quite entertaining.
Hi, how are you?
Very, very good indeed. I have just polished off some exquisite eye fillet steak cooked according to a superb recipe I got from Ryan (Luger Guitarist and chef extraordinaire), have opened a bottle of excellent Pinot Noir , am looking at a phenomenal vista of the city of Auckland, and if my luck's in, will soon be making love to a beautiful woman. I have had worse days, for sure.
What’s been happening with Luger Boa recently?
We have completed the recording of the 2nd album and have been rehearsing the new material in anticipation of the coming tour. Simon Bass Creature has been prowling the studio like a caged beast and I fear that if we don't get him back out there soon he's going to eat one of us. My choice would be Sam . He looks delicious.
What are you most looking forward to about the State of Rock Tour?
The sniff of a live show always gets the blood boiling and as I mentioned, live shows are where it's at for the Luger band. The last time we took the stage was in February so its a long time between drinks! Hang on, what am I saying, its been about 8 minutes between drinks actually, but as far as the shows are concerned, its time to fire up the reactor and electrify the relevant devices!! We cannot wait to be back in the hands of a hot crowd. You what I mean.
What can audiences expect from your live show?
Contortionists, chainsaw juggling, trapeze artists, chimpanzee wrestling, ice sculptures...hang on, I'm reading the wrong pamphlet here. Oh yeah, here it is...High Energy Twisted Mutant Rock n Roll ! Sounds great huh! Might try and get hold of the chimpanzee wrestlers though, that sounds intriguing. Is it legal??
Do you have any tour essentials?
Clean socks. Our guitars. A list of the venues we are playing and directions to same. Raw meat in case Simon gets hungry and tries to break through his cage to get at us.
If you could tour with any band in the world, who would it be?
Unequivocally, AC/DC. No wait, the Rolling Stones. Yes! Hm, the Stooges perhaps? Yeah, oh, or maybe the Hives again. Iron Maiden put on a good show, the Pixies are going around at the moment and, hmm...tough question actually. Lets say Black Sabbath in their prime. Do they have to be alive right now? Please be more specific. Pass.
Do you have a favourite venue in New Zealand?
I really love the Christchurch Town Hall. It has suitable backstage alcoves for storing unusually shaped packages, is acoustically superb, and I have always found it to be packed with local rock n roll enthusiasts dancing wildly and roaring their approval of a well played power chord. Tough to fault.
Tell us about the best or most memorable gig you've ever played.
As far as Luger Boa is concerned, the past 18months has been one long explosive tour involving ourselves and the likes of Head Like A Hole, The Kings of Leon, Shihad, the Mint Chicks, The Living End, Airbourne and thousands and thousands of rabid gig goers.. All of which is pretty damn memorable apart from the bits I can't remember. There are however, photos. And apparently if I put $10,000 into a brown paper bag and leave it behind the cistern, 3rd cubicle along in the male toilets at Britomart train station I can have them back. Hmmm.
Does Luger Boa have anything new on the way?
Oh yes. A whole album of new material, an elaborate system for distilling pure drinking water from urine and our own plans for the successful habitation of the Moon. We are looking for volunteers to test the systems by spending 365 days in a shipping container in Avondale.
Do you find comparisons annoying, interesting, helpful or all of the above?
I really depends what you are comparing what with. If you where to tell me, those hamburgers taste like something that has been through the digestive system of a cat I would probably find that helpful, if I was on tour, hungry, and looking for something worth eating. If you were to say Sam, the guitarist from Luger Boa, reminds me of a young Mick Ronson, or indeed, an alive Mick Ronson, I would think that was interesting, and fairly accurate. And if you were to compare our forthcoming album to the genius of 'Exile on Mainstreet' or 'the Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars' I would be annoyed, because you're not supposed to have heard it yet and that would mean there has been a leak. So, all of the above.
What's the strangest comparison you've read about Luger Boa?
I once read that watching a live show from Luger Boa was like being covered in honey and licked all over by a large group of Ringtailed Lemurs whilst simultaneously having millions of tiny supernovae explode behind your eyes. Weird. Although, not ever really able to experience it myself I am not able to confirm or deny that it is true.
In your opinion, what is the state of rock in New Zealand?
Continuing to improve and about to get fucking mindlblowing from the 18th of June til at least late July.
What else does 2010 hold in store for Luger Boa?
An album release, much more touring, the completion of the miniaturisation of our mind-control device (which currently takes up nearly the entire double garage at Joe's inlaws house in St Heliers and is starting to wear a bit thin apparently), invasion of various land masses here and abroad and a new pair of self inflating trousers for us all! Its going to be a good year! See you on the Tour!
