LONE GONE LOSER 8- AUSTRALIA’S ONLY ROCK N ROLL MAGAZINE
SPRING ‘03

BANTAM:
So first things first let's get the stuff you're totally sick to death of talk-ing about out the way cos we don't wanna bore you too much. What is the current situation of the Lunachicks cos Theo's got a solo album out., you've got Bantam and who knows what the other Lunachickies are do-ing... but has the band split?
We haven't called it official quits yet. We may change our minds at some point down the road and record or play a show or two, and if we do, it would really suck if we had to announce that we've, "gotten back together" or we're doing a "reunion" I hate that shit, it's so cheesy. So we’ll just keep everyone guessing, me included. Who knows what might happen? My new band might be-come so rich and famous I wouldn't have the time... or NOT...

What actually is Bantam? Like the name, where'd it come from?
Bantam means small, but tough, strong, and feisty. Like the rooster, or like the boxing weight class, Bantamweight fight-ers are under 120 Ibs. I always liked the word. It's also used a lot by companies and products. Sorta in the way the word "Acme" is used. There's a familiarity as well as generic ness to the name that I think is cool.

What was it like working on that short film that was on your "Naked. video and is there any chance of a follow up?
That was actually written from a scene in a feature film that the Lunachicks always wanted to make but never had the time or money to. We had a blast shooting the short film. I really wished we could've done more. If anyone wants to dump a bunch of money in our laps, yeah I'm sure we'd all be down to make the rest of the feature.

What's the most disgusting thing you've ever seen in the toilets of CBGB's?
Hmm that's a good one, most of what I've seen in there is unrecognizable. In fact after awhile I just stopped looking altogether. I shut my eyes and hope my aim is relatively close, not that anyone would notice if it wasn't.

After playing in a band with females for so long... how has the change been to now playing with 2 guys?
Well I notice it the most- since we're on the subject of toilets- when we stop at rest stops on tour I'm in the women's bathroom alone. I wonder to myself, where's my girls? It's a lonely feeling. I never would have imagined.
Who? The Divas? Will they sign my band?

Rockbitch once said that the reason they kicked the guys out of the band is cos their "testosterone levels are high but their creative levels are low". Would you agree?
Well I never met the guys in Rockbitch, but my boys have both. It's just a matter of making sure the creativity stays in the rehearsal room and the testosterone stays in the bar for when I get caught smoking crack in the bathroom and a brawl ensues with the bouncers.

Would you ever say ''see ya later boi" to a sk8ter bo?
I've noticed that misspelling words is the cool thing to do in pop culture lately. Like, EMNEM, c'mon how retarded is that? This must be a method that stupid peo-ple resort to when they're low on creative ideas and just not that talented to begin with.

Don't you think it's setting a bad example that a grown woman who kids are thinking is hip and cool can't actually spell the word 'boy'?
She's actually not a grown woman at all and she is Canadian don't forget, just kidding.

Word on the street is that Squid is hooked up with a wrestler from the WWF... who might this lucky wrestler be?
She's actually engaged to "The Rock" but sshhh don't tell anyone. In public life he's gay and doesn't want anyone to know he's straight. He's out of the closet. It's a sensitive subject.

Does this mean you get invited to all the WWF events and hang out backstage? If so, do you get to mingle with the Divas?
Who? The Divas? Will they sign my band?

Probably not... but you can try! Now you're from New York and so are the Ramones and funnily enough, you like the Ramones... so what's your craziest Ramones story cos Squid said that you girls used to stalk them.
Well, the restraining order really put a damper on things, but we did get to open up for them a couple of times and that was amazing! Unfortunately we never really got to hang out with them for any length of time. We had more crazy experiences being drunk teenagers in their audience.

Still with New York, have you ever seen Jennifer Connelly? I know she lives somewhere around there... Manhattan maybe in some place called the West Village... oh please say you know her and can hook me up with an interview!
C'mon her? I don't get it. What's the big deal? I am however friends with the girl who fucks her with a dildo in "Requiem For A Dream" Impressed?

Um, just a little! We will talk about that later... in the meantime, has Gina ever:
Looked up the tablature to Motley Crue songs on the internet?
Yes I did! Oh wait you knew that be-cause I had to ask you which songs to pick. Actually it was only the lyrics. Have you ever read any Motley Crue lyrics? What the hell?

Seen Debbie Harry sober?
Yes, and I've been to her house even. And can I also say that Chris Stein helped carry my B-day cake to me at my b--day party three years ago, but I'm not name dropping or anything.

Gotten up first thing in the morning and gone down to Rockerfeller Plaza to hopefully get your face on TV when that AL dude from NBC Today goes outside to meet the people?
What, you think I don't do that every morning of my life?! Me and AL are like this.

Been mistaken for Doro Pesch from Warlock?
I am Doro Pesch, oh wait wrong interview

Seen a wolf in the woods?
Sometimes on the way to Gramma's when I take the shortcut.

Met Ron Jeremy?
Just every other Thurs. night

Been to check out that cafe where the outside was used in Seinfeld?
Dude that's my old hood. I used to live down the Avenue.

Invited a pizza boy in to watch Lunachicks videos not including the time when you filmed the "Naked" video?
How else do you think a woman gets laid in this city?

Felt sorry for the dude from Dashboard Confessional?
Just today I was walking down B'way and there were big posters for AP magazine everywhere and that guy was on the cover looking so sensitive and deep. And I thought to myself, 'where the hell is a Sharpie (big fat magic marker) when ya need one?"

One thing I have always wanted to know... a lot of male bands go on tour and try to score groupies at any chance they can get... is it the same with chick bands? Like do they go on tour and hope to pick up at every gig? This ain't directed at yourself or the Lunachicks, but just in general, like maybe you have some stories or something that you can share with us about this...
One would think that being a cool chick in a great band one would get lucky all the time. What I learned was, unless you're a lesbian the only man that's going to approach you after a show is some 40 year old guy who lives in his mother's base-ment and has collected every possible CD and 7" of every existing female band and is suspiciously enthusiastic about getting your autograph and picture for pur-poses I'd rather not think about. Or the dude is 14 and still going through puberty, and also living with mom.

The word on the street is that you've worked on music videos doing set design... what music videos have you been associated in the making of? "...?
Mostly rap videos. Redman, Method Man, um it's been awhile since I did a music video. The Bantam video was the best one... of course

Manowar once chanted "All Men Play On Ten" So what do women do?
Duh, go to 11...

Gina, it seems that while I am getting older, I am also getting uglier... but from what I see, you just keep getting spunkier
and spunkier... what's your secret?
Photo Shop

Now the Lunachicks had an obsession with Jan Brady although I preferred Marcia myself but that's another story altogether, so which Brady Bunch episode is your favourite?
"Johnny Bravo" C'mon now! Greg's in a fringe vest and head-band. What could possibly be funnier? Except the cock I would've drawn in the Dashboard Confessional guy's mouth had I had my damn Sharpie on me, but I digress.

You can hide it all you want but we all know that Bantam has a background of liking metal... if Bantam had to record an album of metal covers, what would they be?
Black Sabbath- The Writ
Motorhead- Loser
Led Zep- The Lemon Song
Foghat- I Just Wanna Make Love to You (we tried
this actually, didn't work)
Uh, I know everyone thinks I'm a metal head but
I'm not lemme think........
Stryper- To Hell With The Devil (How could I not)
AC!DC- Overdose
Metallica- Battery
Bon Jovi- Shot Through The Heart
(Lunachicks used to do this as well)
Motley Crue- Too Fast For Love ('cause we just learned it)

I once dated a girl who thought that because I like listening to bands like The Donnas and the Lunachiclcs that therefore I must be sleeping with all of the the band members... even though I live on the other side of the planet, wasn't at all interested, and actually listened to the cos I actually liked the music... well fancy that, eh? Anyways I don't it, but she was 21 and this is how her brain worked. Now I know you’re not a psychiatrist but I was wondering if you could help me shed some light on the situation cos I'm stumped!
Hey I'm stumped as to why you weren't all that interested.

Ok, you got me there... maybe I was just a little interested but don't say
Anything cos I reckon it’ll haunt me for the rest of my life if I admit to it. So, do you ever feel that women are objectified in the music industry?
No not at all. I feel it's perfectly acceptable for a woman, especially if she's only 16, with no talent to dance around in a bikini and sing songs about how horny she. How is the industry objectifying women when all they're doing is using women as pawns to sell millions of records and promote degradation and oppres-sion towards women? How do you feel?

So, is it harder for a woman to be taken seriously as a muso in the rock world?
Is that Oz speak? Muso? It's 2003. If people are still having the conversation about whether or not women can play guitar as good as men then we're doomed as a species and the human race should just call it quits.

Does it shock you that even after god knows how many years in the business, Rolling Stone magazine still can't put together a decent "Woman In Rock'" special? I mean, Britney Spears are you serious? She didn't even know who Joan Jett was after she covered one of her damn songs!
Rolling Stone knows as much about rock as George Bush knows about world peace. Mainstream media is owned by the same corporate farts who run our government, and neither of them know shit.

Motley Crue have written one of the most disturbing books in rock n roll history. Vince admits to killing people in a drunken car aash and sleep-ing with god knows how many women, Nikki Sixx does more drugs than anyone should able to admit to, while Tommy Lee tells of all the homemade porn he's made... Do you have any trashy tour stories from the Lunachicks many tours that could possibly outdo what Motley Crue have done?
Motley Crue, those wimps? Killing people, porn vid-eos, drugs. That's child's play my friend. The stories I could tell.. they'd make Vince blush, Tommy go soft, and Nikki relapse back to the Betty Ford Clinic. You're just going to have to wait for the book. Lunachicks Naked Naked!!!

Now before we go Gina, were gonna get you to make some life changing decisions... you are to pick one or the other... you can't say neither and you can't say both... you have to at least like one a little more than the other... so let's hit it!

Detroit Rock City or Union City Blue?
Detroit Rock City
Kiss or Blondie
Kiss over Blondie- even though I've been to her house
Samantha Fox or Sabrina?
Who is Sabrina?
Living On A Prayer or Living After Midnight?
I know I'm supposed to say Judas but I have to stick with Bon Jovi- cause I am Bonvolpe.
Lita Ford or Joan Jett?
Oh boy this desn't look good after the last one but I have to say Lita- she plays lead.
Gremlins or Mogwais?
What's a mogwais? Is that the Scottish band?
Andrea Dworkin or Betty Dobson?
I believe you mean Betty Dodson? The clit lady? If so I go with the clit lady.
Spiderman or Superman?
Superman! He wears panties.
Cagney & Lacey or Simon & Simon?
Who is Simon & Simon? Do I live under a rock? Yes I think I do.
The Banana Splits or Lancelot Link The Secret Chimp?
Who the fuck is the secret chimp?
Hot Wheels or Matchbox?
Hot Wheels

The Lunachicks got to tour Australia a few times... you think there's any chance you'll get to bring Bantam over to our shores to kick some booty?
Bring it on! Bantam is dying to come over there, and you better watch out!!! In fact I've got a great idea. Send us over some plane tickets and we’ll crash on you're couch. That's a fair trade right?

Absolutely... although our couch is pretty damn uncomfortable. So any-way, there you have it. Sarcastic to the hilt and we here at the LGL office truly love it. Thanks to Gina for dishing up one helluva enjoyable interview. Sure, she didn't know what a Mogwai was, has never seen Lance-lot Link, had no idea Sabrina existed and claims she was only looking up Motley Crue tablatures on the net because she wanted to get the lyrics (yeah, like we believe you... Sorry Gina but that won't hold up in court), but cut her some slack. Her band's better than your band, she's always going to be better looking than you, she knows the chick that fucked Jennifer with the dildo in Requiem For A Dream, and she slagged off Avril! Heaps good. You can suss out Bantam online by surfing to: http://www.bantamnyc.com and you'll find pics, sounds, merch, the whole deal. See our reviews section for a review of their debut album. Photo of Gina this page and cover photo by G-Spot.