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L.A.'s Premire All Girl Band
PHANTOM BLUE

VOL 15 NO 19
Sept 18, 1997

An Interview With Phantom Blue

By Jim Warino

Click here for live photos

It's early September and I have been given the illustrious job of interviewing five young women collectively known as Phantom Blue.
Not your typical 90's band with little musical talent and acquired knowledge, but a special hybrid band that ranks them at the top in their field. Join us, won't you, as we enter the minds of vocalist Gigi Hangach, drummer Linda McDonald, guitarist Josephine, guitarist Tina Wood, and bassist Dyna Shirasaki . . . . Go Blue!

Rock City: What does Phantom Blue mean?
Linda: A name that we thought was cool that didn't really mean a girl band.

Rock City: How long has this line-up been together?

Linda: About 6 months. I think it's our best lineup yet, and I'm not just saying that because they're all here. (laughter)

Rock City: What were your early influences?

Tina: You have an hour?

Linda: I liked Iron Maiden.

Tina: I got into metal when I first started. Now I like Dream Theater. I'm into extreme music.

Gigi: Robin Zander and Freddie Mercury.

Dyna: I like Aerosmith, funk music, and music with a lot of groove.

Rock City: Dyna, what did you start on?

Dyna: I took piano for ten years. Guitar I picked up at age 12, bass at 13, tuba at age 12, and what else, oh, and string bass when I was 13.

Rock City: And you're going for a degree in what?

Dyna: Biochemical Engineering.

Rock City: You squeeze that in with karate and scuba diving?

Dyna: There getting squeezed out, actually. Scuba diving is on hold right now.

Rock City: Linda, when did you start?

Linda: I started piano when I was six and hated it. Then I played violin for about a year in the 5th grade. Then a little acoustic guitar, and finally drums when I was 16.

Rock City: Who got you into it?

Linda: It was Clive Burke, Iron Maiden's first drummer. I got suspended in school for being a bad girl and it was a hot day and I laid out in the sun and borrowed my brother's Iron Maiden records. It's a true story (laughing) I thought Wow, I want to do that!

Rock City: Now you're working on the computer?

Linda: I'm not working the web pages, but I'm doing a lot of the artwork, business cards, and band fliers!

Rock City: Tina, what did you start on?

Tina: I'm boring. (laughter) I started on recorder. (more laughter) No, I actually started on guitar. Started late at age 17.

Rock City: In England?

Tina: Yeah, I always wanted to play. I come from a very musical background. A lot of art in my family. When I heard Randy Rhoads, that was it. When I was in college I played classical for a year.

Rock City: You're currently a luthier?

Tina: Yeah, I'm at Splash Sound. I went to Luthier school building guitars for about 4 years. Building, construction, and design . . . and when I left college, I started doing the band thing and worked repairing guitars.

Rock City: Gigi, when did you start singing?

Gigi: When I was 18.

Rock City: Any opera lessons?

Gigi: No

Rock City: I heard you took lessons from one of Elizabeth Sabine's prodigies?

Gigi: Yes, Janiss Masi. She's really good.

Rock City: What did you learn?

Gigi: It's really weird. It's hard to explain, but it's really natural. I incorporated it into my everyday singing, sort of thing, and it helped me a lot.

Rock City: How so?

Gigi: Making it so I don't blow my voice out a lot. (laughing) I feel my voice is indestructible now!

Rock City: Josephine, what did you start on?

Josephine: I started on piano when I was 11. Then my brother got me into rock music in high school.

Rock City: In Indonesia?

Josephine: Yes

Rock City: What music?

Josephine: George Lynch, actually.

Rock City: Wow! Any classical?

Josephine: Yes, on piano. I'm actually a good sight reader on piano.

Rock City: You girls are in standard tuning on your songs, and drop down on a few, right?

Josephine: Actually E flat and dropped to D flat.

Rock City: You all have a very talented band. In this "don't give a shit climate" you seem to strive for excellence.

Tina: It's staying true to your roots. Hard driving music.

Linda: If you're going to play like shit because everyone else sounds like shit, it's just a waste of time.

Tina: It's not about joining a bandwagon. It's about enjoyment and playing what you like to do.

Rock City: You're new tune "I'm So Happy" has a lot of chromaticism and sounds very mid 90's . . . what's it about?

Linda: it's about one of our former band members. (laughing)

Tina: Oh!?

Linda: We will let anyone that knows them figure it out. It's a song about attitude.

Rock City: How do you write your songs? . . . collaboration?

Tina: All our new stuff is with all of us working together on a song.

Rock City: What's your favorite clubs?

Josephine: Key Club and I liked the Alligator Lounge when we played.

Dyna: I like the Whisky?

Tina: I like the Roxy when Eddie's running the sound.

Linda: I like the Alligator Lounge. I like the drum sound at the Roxy.

Rock City: What are you working on now?

Linda: We're working on a live CD from our tour of Europe. Also, it will have some new new tunes with our new line-up. A mix of the old and new.

Rock City: What's the difference with the new line-up?

Linda: Phantom Blue today is the Phantom Blue I always wished we could have. There's always been an element missing. Now we have it. Backup vocals, cool people, 3 part harmonies, and may other things!

Gigi: More conscious of melodies. It's not guitar masturbation. And my actual voice it taken into consideration, which is nice.

Tina: It's good to have everyone on the same level. There's no weak link. Plus, there's a lot of different influences.

Rock City: Plus culturally, with Japanese, Spanish, English, Finnish, French, and Indonesian backgrounds.

Tina: We're proud of our heritage!

Rock City: What music do you like now?

Gigi: Oh God, I have a different favorite band every week. I like Smashmouth, Tonic, Aerosmith and Cheap Trick.

Josephine: I like funk and jazz. Tower of Power and a lot of James Brown.

Rock City: I heard you like Testament.

Josephine: Yeah!

Rock City: They're playing Key Club.

Josephine: Yeah, I'll be there. I studied with Alex Skolnick.

Rock City: Did you go to GIT?

Josephine: That's what brought me out here, actually.

Rock City: I heard that Mark Dawson (Richard Dawson's son) is helping the band out?

Gigi: Yes, he is booking the band and taking care of the web page and other helpful things.

Rock City: Gigi, what's up with the Trent Reznor dating story?

Gigi: It was a long time ago, in Ohio. He was in a top 40 band and was the singer.

Rock City: Did he see your band?

Gigi: No, I used to watch his band when he played up the street from my house, and then he came into the Sahara club where I worked and he thought I was cute and we saw each other for about a month or two.

Rock City: Have you seen him sing?

Gigi: No, but it would be cool though.

Rock City: Have you toured abroad?

Linda: We've toured Europe three times.

Rock City: Do you have a web page?

Linda: One official one! www.phantomblue.com , and abut 35 bootleg ones. Some of them have live clips. I'm trying to get a hold of a live show from one of them now.

Rock City: With the popularity of women in music, is it easier now?

Linda: Definitely. Now there are so many out there. But at the same time we've proven ourselves by playing around.

Tina: It used to be very male dominated, but now the doors are blown wide open. You can do whatever you like without people checking you out.

Gigi: I don't think girl bands are the hip thing right now. More half and half. Sometimes it hurts the band because clubs want to put you on all girl band night.

Josephine: No, not really. I don't think we are playing the kind of music that is popular right now. You know there are a lot of female artists out there and they play whatever they play, and there are, of course, a lot of copycats and all that stuff, but you know we are not following the mainstream right now, really. Not really. (laughing)

Rock City: How would you categorize the band?

Josephine: Heavy, aggressive, melodic . . .

Rock City: Metal?

Josephine: Uh, if I say that, I don't think it's acceptable . . . in this era. (laughing)

Rock City: It's definitely not currently trendy, but although the Ozzfest was this summers highest grossing tour, and the metal headlined palloozer was one of last summers biggest tours, it's kind of fading.

Rock City: What would you like to do in the future.

Tina: I would like to retire early.

Dyna: I would like to tour the U.S.

Gigi: I would like to be recognized. Being known that we have made a musical contribution.

Josephine: We would like to get out there more and you know, get known by more people, and even though the band has been around, there are a lot of people that haven't seen us. I want the band to be known more for the music.

Rock City: Any final thoughts?

Josephine: Hi mom!

That was the fabulous Phantom Blue, mermaids of the high seas, baring their souls for all of you. Be sure to catch them at Mancini's this weekend, or at C.I.A. soon, or at the Country Club Nov. 6th.
You can reach them at 562-984-8414 by mail at the: Phantom Blue Fan Club, 8033 Sunset Blvd. #174, Hollywood, CA 90046. And check out their cool web site at www.phantomblue.com. See ya.


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