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| November 5, 2002 | |||||
| It's
like that: Jam Master Jay Let's
talk about sex Rolling (the 20-sided die) with
Lil' Pocketknife Return
to a Savage Republic Chapter
two Uneasy
listening Punctum Correct
Techniques
|
Rolling (the 20-sided die) with Lil' Pocketknife The San Francisco hip-hop band cut up and get the proudly nerdy party started. By Sarah HanSharp like a knife. A handy knife ... that has scissors on the other side. – George Patterson on Lil' Pocketknife THE MEMBERS OF DIY hip-hop band Lil' Pocketknife – Kristy Geschwandtner, George Patterson, and Lynnae Burns – are taking a break from recording their upcoming five-song EP when I meet them at Patterson and Burns's home in the Mission District, which also houses Nobody's Perfect, a small recording studio. A squat, funny-looking dog comes running out to greet me when I get there. They think Mike might be Chihuahua and boxer, a befuddling mix, but one that definitely has some cute consequences. Like Mike (but not like Michael Jordan), LPK are a weird conglomerate of things – hip-hop, new wave, and nerdiness – that makes sense and works well together. So well that even though they have yet to release a record and have played only a handful of shows at house parties and venues like Kimo's, Arrow Bar, and Hotel Utah Saloon, LPK already have a growing number of fans. Their enthusiasm and ability to get asses shaking have earned them the reputation as one of the most fun party bands in San Francisco. They're also one of the most modest band in San Francisco. Geschwandtner ("Lil' Pocketknife" on the mic), Patterson ("George" on keytar), and Burns ("No Skills" on drums) are the first to knock themselves down, even when everyone is telling them they rule. It's not that they don't believe in themselves, but they're aware that their DIY approach to music doesn't always translate to masterful talent. Burns started off playing keytar until she realized she was especially bad at it. She switched instruments with Patterson, who had previous percussion experience in Portland, Ore., humor-core new wave band Knodel. "I'm not going to be the only bad one," Burns says while laughing. "Now we are equally incompetent." I'd be listening to NWA and think, 'I know what they're talking about because I'm living it. – Kristy Geschwandtner Geschwandtner, the band's originator and namesake, is female, white, from the burbs of New Jersey, has the energy of a cheerleader – and she raps. Two years ago she met Burns when they moved into the same warehouse in the Tenderloin. At the time, she was writing rhymes and making up dance routines to 2 Live Crew with Jill "Switchblade" Herrera, who also performs with Double Dutchess. Patterson was introduced to Geschwandtner through Burns. He recalls meeting Geschwandtner for the first time: "She came into the room and said, 'Hey, guys, I have a new rap. Want to hear it?' Then she'd go into her room, get out a piece of paper, and start rapping, 'Straight from the TL to the – wait, hold on guys!' " Burns says. "[She was] like an eight-year-old who does cartwheels when her parents' friends come over." Patterson and Burns were smitten with Geschwandtner's raps and break dance routines. When Patterson moved to San Francisco from Portland, the couple decided to record Lil' Pocketknife and started coming up with background music for Geschwandtner to rap over. They had no intentions of becoming a real ensemble that would play shows. But then Geschwandtner got LPK a show at Kimo's in April, and the threesome officially became a group. We are the most punctual band. – Kristy Geschwandtner Lil' Pocketknife aren't trying to be like anyone but themselves. "We're a whole different animal," Burns says when I ask the band to compare themselves to other Bay Area hip-hop/dance-oriented bands such as Gold Chains, Gravy Train!!!!, and Da Hawnay Troof. While they admire serious hip-hop acts, they stress that they choose rapping as a means of expression because it's what they equate with fun. "If you look at your record collection and pick out the records you like to play at parties," Patterson says, "most people put on hip-hop records." He also points out that their backing tracks are actually derived from new wave and rock. And unlike highly sex-focused bands like Gravy Train!!!!, LPK are pretty prudish about the topic. Geschwandtner changed the lyrics in one of LPK's songs about pimping because she had a problem using the word "ho." "There are enough people talking about women like that," she says earnestly. She changed the words to "I got a bro on the corner making money for me." If you had to categorize LPK, you might call them nerd-hop. They're not trying to say they're from the projects or they're tough. They site Alan Parsons Project and Bruce Springsteen as influences, write songs about monsters, Dungeons and Dragons, and Attention Deficit Disorder, and care that their parents might be offended by the cursing in their songs. "I didn't swear until I was 19," admits Geschwandtner, who now sings the word "motherfucker" several times in a row in the song "A.D.D." At a recent house party in the Haight, LPK played to a packed living room; everyone was shaking, bobbing, and gyrating like crazy. Geschwandtner immersed herself in the crowd, hopping up and down while pumping her fist in the air to get the party moving. During "Dungeons and Dragons" the crowd began to chant along – "You got your 4-sided die, 8-sided die, 12-sided die, 20-sided die!" LPK were taking these hipsters back to their geeky roots, to remembering the days when they were playing RPG games in their parents' basements. And they weren't just remembering their nerd-dom, they were proud of it. The new record is so silly.... It sounds like a really well-produced record that some 13-year-olds made. – George Patterson Lil' Pocketknife are currently looking for a label to put out their EP, and in the meantime they plan on selling their CD-Rs at shows. The band seem very casual about getting their recording out there, maybe because they're busy with other projects (Geschwandtner moonlights in cheer-core band K.I.T., a conceptual Friends Forever tribute band, and Patterson and Burns record other bands at Nobody's Perfect). But as I'm leaving the studio-apartment I can tell the three are anxious to get back to work on their EP; the door has barely closed before I see Patterson and Burns picking up their instruments, and Geschwandtner ... well, she's off getting another Coca-Cola. Lil' Pocketknife play Dec. 12, DNA Lounge, 375 11th St., S.F. (415) 626-1409. LIL' POCKETKNIFE STAT BOXESName: Kristy Geschwandtner Name: Lynnae Burns Name: George Patterson
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| Design by Rhatia Carr |