BAND: VHS or Beta
INTERVIEWER: Max Schloemer
INTERVIEWEE: Mark Palgy of VHS or Beta
DATE OF INTERVIEW: 09.17.07

BAND MEMBERS:
Craig Pfunder - Vocals, Guitarist
Mark Guidry - Drums
Mark Palgy – Bass

MAX: How is life treating VHS OR BETA right now?
VHS: Never been better. We finished the record and we’re in the first half of our North American tour, every night has been a pleasant surprise.

MAX: What bands influenced you to become a musician?
VHS: Classic rock, Zeppelin, Hendrix; my mom was a big Motown and R and B girl fan so Jackson 5 and Motown influenced me a lot. Zeppelin 2 made me really want to play guitar a lot. I actually played guitar for 11 years before I played bass.

MAX: Were any of you ever in bands when you were younger? What was that like and how did it help shape your career?
VHS: No.

MAX: Your new album “Bring on the Comets” was just released on August 28th. How is this album different from your previous album, “Night on Fire”?
VHS: I think we probably read too much of our own press…I think we decided that we had been categorized as a digital genre type band. So we decided to write songs, make them good, and make them how we wanted to make them sound. We still love dance music but this was a little bit more of a shift towards rock and roll than straight up dance music that we had done before.

MAX: ”The Making of Bring on the Comets Parts 1-5” on youtube.com was really informative on how your new album came about. What advice would you give to your fans that are creating their music in the studio?
VHS: It’s really case sensitive, it all depends on how much money you’ve got . If it’s your first record I would try to make the songs as good as possible and not having it sound like the most amazing thing. I think a good song can stand on it’s own two feet no matter what…

MAX: That’s really cool that VHS OR BETA is performing on The Conan O’Brien show on Oct 1st. How is performing in front of a TV studio audience and being taped different than performing in front of an audience at one of your tour stops?
VHS: We’ve never done anything like it so we don’t really know. We have friends who have but we haven’t. We’re really looking forward to it. It feels awesome…

MAX: This tour has about 20 shows booked all over the US and also Mexico City. Any plans for another tour?
VHS: In November, we’re doing another US tour.

MAX: Best thing about being on tour?
VHS: The best thing is that the people show up to the show and they give so much energy and sometimes I just stand up there and think I just love my job!

MAX: Worst thing about being on tour?
VHS: Worst thing about being on tour is the driving, we’re still at the point where we don’t have a bus. The drive can be pretty brutal. You’re in the van for eight hours….I always thought being in a band you’d get to sleep late but no…

MAX: Who are some local Louisville bands that you’re into right now—listening to, watching out for?
VHS: There is a band called Waxfang in Louisville that’s doing pretty well, Kevin Ratterman is there drummer. We were in a band with him and he actually recorder “Le Funk”. Early on I liked going to hard core shows. I liked a band called Erchint a lot.
MAX: Yeah Herb Simrall was in Erchint,”
VHS: yeah Herb actually recorded one of our records, they were awesome.

MAX: On your days off, where would we see VHS or BETA at?
VHS: Playing poker, Texas Hold Em.

MAX: Who is the best poker player out of the group?
VHS: Craig and Shea are pretty damn good. I am still learning but I love the game.

MAX: Are they any crazy stories from the road so far?
VHS: Crazy stories ummm -

MAX: Are you guys a band that plays pranks on other bands?
VHS: No, ahh we need to…

MAX: Any thing you would like to say to your Bandvibe fans?
VHS: The fact that we can come to San Diego and people come out to the show makes me so happy. This is what I wanted to do since I was a kid so it’s totally awesome.

For more information on VHS or Beta, log onto:
+http://www.vhsorbeta.com
+http://www.myspace.com/vhsorbeta