Well, I figured I might as well post the the interview by Rob Galgano from
his You Could Do Worse Zine #2.
 
============
The Connells
by Rob Galgano
 
The Connells have been a long-time favorite band of mine. They do what they
do and you must love them for it-hummable pop-rock that doesn't follow any
conventions or trends. If you look back over their whole career, you'll
only find subtle shifts in sound, but you're sure to find solid music. I
got the chance to talk to the Connells'  lead singer, the friendly Doug
MacMillan, before their show on April 18 at Gabe's. Here's what happpened,
in my first outdoor interview...
 
DM: Doug MacMillan (vocals)
Peele Wimberley (drums)
Mike Connell<P>
George Huntley
 
YCDW: Rob Galgano
 
YCDW: What's the difference between the Connells in 1984 and the Connells
in 1994?
 
DM: In '84 to '86, we were learning about what we did individually in the
band; we didn't know if we'd be able to take it 5 or 6 years, much less as
long as we have. Now, this is our job and we're a lot more confident about
what we do. Stylistically, it's not all that different.
 
YCDW: You sounded a lot moodier back at the beginning of your career
("Scotty's Lament", "Darker Days").
 
DM: It was probably a variety of things. I never really sang before and I
was trying to find my voice.
 
YCDW: What keeps the band going now?
 
DM: Just making records. We hadn't had a record out for a few years, and
just the mere fact that it seems like it's worth it. Also, it seemed like
every time we made an album, that each one got a little better than the one
before. It's not like there's a signpost that says "you should probably
hang it up." I think we'd be able to see it if it was there. I'm a little
frustrated at times, wishing we could get on a level where we wouldn't have
to play in small venues as much as we do, because it makes the music
suffer. It's not as good for the band or the audience, but sometiemes those
shows can be more fun.
 
YCDW: Do you find that your lengthy contract with TVT has a negative effect?
 
DM: Yeah. We tried to get off the label and we couldn't, obviously. So we
still have the same number of options, but all the creative decisions were
restructured, which has been the best thing to happen to us. TVT never call
or bother us, which was not the case on One Simple Word and Fun & Games.
There was a lot of tension and unnecessary dabbling. For videos, we get the
say in those, so from that standpoint, it's good.
 
YCDW: It seems to me that the Connells have gotten a lot gentler over the
years. You used to play a lot faster (Darker Days); now you're almost folky
at times.
 
DM: I guess it's just a natural songwrting progression. Take "'74-'75"-we
tried to work that up as a faster song, and it just wasn't right. It didn't
sound right, didn't click as well. We do mess around with tempos a lot.
"Slackjawed" is the exception. Now I look at Darker Days and it just seems
so rushed. That's your classic example of a band being in the studio 'way
too early.
 
YCDW: What's going on with the North Carolina scene?
 
DM: There have always been a lot of bands around there-Raleigh, Chapel Hill
and Durham. When we first started playing in '85-'86, there was a lot of
interest from England. The BBC came over, Demon Records came over. The
independent scene was really big over there. That's how we got signed.
Darker Days came out on Demon, an import label. We were even part of a
layout in Seventeen magazine!
 
Of all the bands I knew from there, nobody went around trying to take
advantage of this scene. They wanted to do it their own way and not have to
deal with the upper echelon of the business.
 
YCDW: Have you ever considered any alterations to your sound?
 
DM: We wouldn't want to do something for the sake of doing it. After we
worked with Lou Giordano, everybody said we sounded more like ourselves
than on the previous two albums. On those albums, we tried to branch out
and put more ornamental instrumentation on the songs, rather than just stay
with what comes naturally. The only real difference we've tried out is in
writing songs as a band, but it just doesn't work. We've taken a stab at it
a little bit, like with the piano being the main instrument in songs, and
we've really fucked aorund with tempos, but it seems that the way the songs
were written were the best.
 
YCDW: Has you audience grown over the years?
 
DM: It has. You can see a lot more people at our shows. It's interesting to
see the really young kids, 15 or 16 years old, and the guys who've been
listening to us for 10 years. I kinda like that. The older guys stand in
the back, and it's weird for them, and I'm like, "Hey, you think it's weird
for you, what about me?" I used to coach swimming, and now these kids are
coming to my concerts. As far as touring goes, we have pockets where I've
seen it get a little bit better.
 
YCDW: Have you been able to hold on to your longtime fans?
 
DM: There's a few friends that we've gotten to know over the years who are
thankfully really honest with us. There's one guy who's a big fan of the
band who just didn't like One Simple Word, because of the production. It
wasn't because of any sellout, but that we got steered in the wrong
direction. That's one thing we really don't have to worry about, because
we're not big rock stars. I'm friends with some of the guys in Soul Asylum,
and I can tell it's a little different for them, the way they're proabbly
perceived by people who know them.
 
YCDW: A lot of people are really into the song "'74-'75." What's it about?
 
DM:  You'd probably want to ask Mike about it since he wrote it, but my
explanation is that it's about looking back at a relationship. We made a
video for it, using a high school graduating class from that year. Mark
Pellington, who did Pearl Jam's "Jeremy" video did this one. He contacted a
bunch of people from Brock High School in Raleigh who graduated at that
time, took their yearbook photos and showed them as they look now. Mike
said it really wasn't about those years, they just happen to sing well.
The same thing goes for the song "Get A Gun." They just fit with the
melody.
 
YCDW: Do you still play a lot of your older songs?
 
DM: We still play "Hats Off" and some of the stuff from Boylan Heights. We
try to get a little bit of everything in there.
 
YCDW: What's the song that you're asked to play the most that you wouldn't
have expected?
 
DM:  "Pawns" on Boylan Heights, or the CD bonus track on Fun & Games (it's
called "Fishing Line" or something like that). We thought it was just
filler, but people like it. We've never played it live.
 
 
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