(Photo Credit: Tom Jeffers)
Can you introduce everyone in the band and what instrument they play?
Lizzie Crowe (She/They) - Voice, violin, mandola, mandolin, mellolin, cello.
Eric Coleman (He/Him) - guitar, bouzouki, cuatro, mandocello, cittern.
What made each of you want to become a musician?
Lizzie - music has been my life since I was a toddler. I sang almost as soon as I could speak. My mother was a concert pianist, and when she had kids became editor of the Arizona Daily Star entertainment section. She took us to see The Nutcracker when I was 4, but we were front row and I was too short to see the dancers’ feet, so I hung myself over the orchestra pit wall while my dad had a firm hold of my leg and I spent the entire ballet watching the players. I was hooked.
Eric - A lot of my young life was spent in West Virginia. We went to a lot of little folk festivals, and I would watch the bluegrass bands tear it up. As I got older, I discovered a lot of the early 70s hard rock and prog rock, and really got into that music. But I always thought I would never be good enough. In 1977 punk rock happened and a bunch of us leaped right into it. I was the drummer in Iowa's first punk band, White Lunch, and played in various bands into the 80s when I moved to Chicago. Punk showed me that anyone can make music if they are willing to work at it. You don't need to be the fastest, best whatever. You just have to be real.
(Photo Credit: Amanda Collins and Raeanne Rodriguez)
Can you describe what style or genre you guys are in?
Catherynne M. Valente coined the phrase Myth Punk to describe her writing. There are a lot of us who have taken that to heart. It's taking old stories and putting a modern spin on them. Princesses who save themselves rather than waiting and pining.
How did you guys come up with your band name?
Our friend Xap came up with it. She thought it encompassed the mischievousness of the songs, and she hadn't heard any of them yet. Shows how well she knows us.
What artists influenced each of you in your music endeavors?
Lizzie - The Beatles, Aretha Franklin, Renaissance (the band), and a lot of The riot girl movement of the 90’s.
Eric - I could go on for days. The Chameleons are the biggest influence on the echoey stuff that I do. Pete Townsend on the more direct playing. The biggest influence as a performer was a guy named Alex Harvey. He was this crazy little Scotsman who fronted the best band I ever saw. And he had no fear as well as the ability to communicate with even the biggest audiences.
(Photo Credit: Amanda Collins and Raeanne Rodriguez)
In your opinion, what has been your biggest achievement as a band?
For both of us it is being asked to go play at a little music festival in England. Eric lived there many years ago, and being asked to basically go home again was marvelous. And Lizzie got to go to the British Museum!
Is there a piece of advice that you wish someone would have told you when you were starting out?
Lizzie - Don’t be afraid to suck. Get all the suck out in the beginning. The suck tank is limited, and it will go from a flow to a trickle to a drip much faster than you fear, even if it’s not as fast as you would like.
Eric - Trust your vision, and be true to it. If you do it well, your audience will find you.
What is everyone’s favorite song?
Lizzie - This answer comes in two parts, my favorite overall and my favorite to sing. My favorite to sing is Snow White, Red Road. It’s an eerie retelling of the story of Snow White where she wins the day her way. My favorite overall has to be Persephone.
(Photo Credit: Amanda Collins and Raeanne Rodriguez)
Eric - This is hard. I'll mention two, for very different reasons. Our very first song, Widow's Garden, still makes me smile. It really sized up who we were going to be as songwriters and as collaborators. Horizon is the song that really came as close on the album to how I heard it in my head. And it is very much about us. It's a history of our first 5ish years together.
Where can we find you guys at?
cheshiremoon.net
cheshiremoon.bandcamp.com
Lizzie & Eric
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