At the Duke Coffeehouse in October, a small but enthusiastic crowd scrunched up close to the stage to devour the sweet melodies we'd come to expect from the Spinanes. Two seven inches on IMP Records had hooked me on Rebecca's gooey, unabashedly folky harmonies. Rebecca turned her guitar up and flung herself at it. Two feet from the P.A. speaker, I could just make out the vocals. Scott banged his drums furiously. Very different from the strummy, subdued beauty of their first singles. I grinned like a fool through the entire show and then, still grinning, conducted this interview.(Tricia Tuttle)
SF = Tricia; R = Rebecca (gtr/voc); S = Scott (drums)

R -- Jonathon (Poneman of Sub Pop) came to see Hazel play and we opened for them. He liked us and wanted us to do a single with them. Then they had us go up to Seattle to play and they decided to do a whole album.
SF -- Is the album more like your live shows or your 7" sound? Your live show is much rawer and heavier than I would've expected.
R -- Well, the first two singles were recorded over a year and a half ago. Not that that is a bad thing, but the stuff is pretty old. The album is sort of a cross between our live shows and those early recordings
SF -- Who produced the new Sub Pop CD?
S -- Brian Palson, he has done Slint and Unrest and Uncle Tupelo.
SF -- Did Sub Pop just give you some money and say "Choose who you want to produce?"
R -- Yes, basically. They had suggestions but the decision was ours. I think if we'd said "I want my two year-old sister to produce," they would have objected, but they left it open to us.
SF -- What tapes are in your car right now?
S -- Crackerbash, Hazel,The Smiths.
R -- Motown, the Breeders.
SF -- So you all have fairly common tastes and influences?
R -- I grew up on girly stuff . . . Joni Mitchell, I went through a Carly Simon phase in college too.
SF -- Are their many contemporary women who rock your world ?
S -- Definitely. Lois, Scrawl, Mazzy Star, Tiger Trap. .
R -- I actually used to play with Lois. She's a friend and we did a band together for a party.
SF -- Is it a misconception that the Pacific Northwest has a higher percentage of women rockers?
R -- There are a lot of women playing.
S -- But it's getting to the point there that people don't even say, "Oh, she's good for a girl." It's just like, "wow, she's rocking me." It's not an issue.
R -- I still get comments (she takes on an incredulous tone), "Wow, you play guitar really cool."
SF -- . . . for a girl?
R -- Well, it's never really said but it's implied. I actually get that from women too. It's like people expect a girl to get up and play really pretty, soft, la-la folky stuff. But there's definitely a lot of support for women.
(At this point I mumble embarrassing apologies about this being my first interview while I scramble for some more questions. They very graciously reassure me.)
SF -- Oh yeah. Was that last song a cover? Because I saw Mac (from Superchunk) singing along. How does he know the words?
R -- That's so funny. Our booking agent is a friend of theirs. I guess she sent him a tape.
R -- It's so weird because the publicity guy at Sub Pop called me up and said some woman at Spin was writing and wanted lyrics. I was like, well, okay. Then I told Scott and he was like "no way." That's how I felt too, but I was confused about it for a second. It was a relief to say no, we don't give out lyrics.
SF -- Why don't you want to give out your lyrics?
R -- Because it's people's impressions that matter.
S -- Why does every song have to send a message anyway? Can't it just be a pop song?
R -- Songs are about moods and a combination of sounds and language. Why isolate one element? It bugs me.
S -- Plus a lot of songs tend to be very personal as far as lyrics go and you can hide your own meaning in your lyrics and still get it across but you don't have to be totally exposed.
SF -- Yeah, well, there's also the point that you miss those beautiful misunderstandings like my sister thinking "Our Lips are Sealed" was "Alex, I See You" and singing it with utter confidence until she was about 19.
R -- Absolutely.
SF -- I noticed you turn your guitar up after the first song. Does that have anything to do with being a two-piece band. Do you feel like you have to fill in gaps?
R -- Well you definitely have to hear what's going on. There's a certain tone I can only get when my guitar is loud. If I don't like my sound, I'm a grouch the whole show.
SF -- Is this your first tour?
S -- No. We came out with Some Velvet Sidewalk for three weeks. They're friends of ours.
SF -- How much have you guys been involved in the whole K records, Portland/Oregon phenomena? You were on the International Pop Underground compilation they put out.
R Yeah that was actually our first show. I've known Lois and Calvin and Candice (they run K) for about seven years each.
SF -- I know this is stereotyping, but I would almost figure you guys for a K band rather than a Sub Pop band. Why Sub Pop?
R -- We'd talked with K but it was ultimately a matter of us not doing what was expected. We try to do this across the board. There's two of us and everyone expects us to be quiet and on K. That's everyone's total stereotype of K.
S -- They are trying to break out of that now with bands like Tiger Trap and Fifth Column.
(I searched blankly for the right closing question.)
SF -- What's the worst interview question you've gotten?
S -- Why don't you have a bass player? Every time we get that.
(Phew! I hadn't asked it.)
R -- It's understandable, but it's like ho-hum, next question.
SF -- Well then, What's the best interview question you've gotten?
S -- Why don't you have a bass player?
R -- It's a probing question.
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