ATLRetro

Molly Harvey performs at Black Mass 2011 Halloween show at 529. Copyright Vincent Tseng 2012. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

When Jeffrey Butzer clues us in about a gig, we always perk up our ears. But when Tender Prey turns out to be a FREE Nick Cave tribute show the day before Halloween featuring such interesting denizens of the Atlanta/Athens music scene as Jeffrey, Molly Harvey of The Residents,Cave Women, Andy DeLoach (The Lady Vanishes) and Ben Trickey – and also songs by Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen and PJ Harvey – well, you betcha we’re ready to head down to 529 on Tues. Oct. 30, declare it our Birthday Party and see what Bad Seeds may be planted or men be grinding.

Yup, we’re bat-crazy about Cave and have dug The Residents for longer than we can remember. There’s this pesky rumor that Residents rarely, if ever, give interviews, but Molly Harvey even was so awfully badass as to answer a few questions. So hell, yeah, we just had to make her the Kool Kat of Halloween Week. For your reading pleasure and because the show is on a Tuesday, it’s no trick. We’re going ahead and treating it to you early…

What’s your earliest memory of Nick Cave and was it disturbing?

I can actually remember where I was, in the living room of a $100/month house in Richmond, VA. My roommate was a big Birthday Party/Nick Cave fan, and he’d play them a lot. I actually did feel disturbed. Nick Cave’s music represented that [part] of the world which was still very unknown to me and seemed out of reach, like a language I never had any hope of learning.

Nick Cave has evolved chameleon-like through a number of musical iterations from the Birthday Party to solo work to Grinderman? Which Nick Cave will you be representing at Tender Prey and why?

We’ll be playing a variety of his music, not sticking with one album or era. We just tried to pick stuff that we like and that is a bit Halloween-y. Looks-wise I am fond of that Bad Seeds fancy bad man look. I’m encouraging suits and nice shoes. We’ll see.  Nick and the Residents certainly seem to share an obsessive interest in the odd, as well as pushing musical boundaries and making people uncomfortable.

Was Nick Cave an influence on you or the Residents or vice versa?

I would say he was probably not an influence on The Residents. I am always surprised by how many artists they DON’T listen to. But I could be wrong – they may be huge Nick Cave fans. I love his music, but I’m not an obsessive fan, and there is plenty of his material that I’ve never heard. So musically/stylistically, he’s not an influence but definitely is someone I admire. I love that no matter what he does, his stuff has a very definite signature, yet not all his stuff sounds exactly alike. That’s a delicate balance to achieve.

Can you tell us anything more about the Tender Prey show, how it came about, and why we shouldn’t miss it?

Well, you should come out because aside from our band, there are about 17 other acts (or two or three) doing great stuff: Leonard Cohen tunes, PJ Harvey, Tom Waits. It’s going to be high caliber songwriter night with a bunch of solid musicians. And did anyone mention it’s FREE? It’s free. So that’s always good. We did a Halloween show last year at 529 that was a lot of fun, so we thought-what the heck. Let’s do it again. And there will be puppets.  This is going to be a totally fun night, because everyone knows these songs we’re playing. All the bands that night are paying homage to artists we love, so right there it sets a really positive note up for the night. Jeffrey and I participated last year in a Halloween show at 529 that we called a Black Mass. It was silly and tongue-in-cheek, but I wasn’t interested in even parodying that energy this year. This is more celebratory.

You’ve been with the Residents, hang out with Jeffrey Butzer, and now you’re doing Nick Cave. Do you ever do anything musically that could be classified as remotely normal? Would you ever want to?

Normal like…doing commerical jingles? Or Christmas caroling? I would. No one asks me to, though. I actually auditioned for all these theaters here and didn’t get one call, so I think I should stick with weird. Normal people don’t usually really care about what I do.

The Residents, "Demons Dance Alone" concept album 2002. Photo courtesy of Henrik Kam.

How did you meet up with Jeffrey Butzer anyway and aren’t you collaborating with him on some stuff?

Jeffrey and I met through our mutual friend Matt Steadman, who is also playing guitar in the show. I guess Jeffrey was a Residents fan, and Matt and I worked together, and someone mentioned something and – voila! We are trying to collaborate on some stuff. We really want to make some original work together. It’s a matter of us being in the same place for enough time to develop something. But the wheels are turning for putting a little band together and doing original stuff. We’ll see.

This isn’t you, is it? https://www.mollyharvey.com/ Are there ever any uncomfortable mix-up moments and what would you say (or sing) if you were asked to lead a corporate soul woman leadership forum?

I actually have been told that there is a girl in [San Francisco] who pretends – or at least used to pretend – to be me. She apparently gets very drunk and blabbers on and on about her and The Residents. I hated hearing that. That’s the kind of thing that may have created misunderstandings that I don’t even know about. As far as the Corporate Soul Woman, I WISH I would get some of her clients. I’d tell them to listen to their hearts, but only for the month, that at the end of the month they’d have to come back and get checked out by me so I could give them more timeless wisdom.

What else are you up to right now, and when you will be playing live next?

I am momming it up. I have a young child and that takes up pretty much all my time. Creatively, I am a sewer. That came out wrong. I like to sew. I make things with fabric. I am also working on fleshing out a character who I hope will be singing with Jeffrey before too long.

The Residents at The Fillmore, Halloween, 1997. Photo courtesy of Henrik Kam.

Finally, since it’s Halloween and you have been known for some pretty insane stage costumes, are you willing to give a hint as to what costume you’ll be wearing? Any favorite place to shop for over-the-top clothing in Atlanta or Athens?

Funny, I have no intention of dressing up this year in any costume. Maybe that’ll change between now and next week, but if anything I sort of just feel like looking nice, like being onstage is a special occasion that I want to honor with a dress and matching socks and washed hair. Since dressing up for me has been the norm in my musical career, I want to explore and see what it’s like to create characters solely with my voice, face and body. But shoot, maybe I’ll find a great wig between now and then and that desire for realness will be over! Shopping-wise I have found some great, funny things at Rainbow, but thrift stores are always my favorite places to find that unintentionally over-the-top outfit.