Interviewed by Elizabeth Jacobsen
The Los Angeles, CA-based all-girl band Prettier Than Pink
could be described as the world's first iPod group. While so
many of today's pop/rock acts concentrate on a signature style
- the falsetto moping of Coldplay; the adolescent yelping and
post-grunge guitar crunch of Fall Out Boy; the arty disco of
Franz Ferdinand - Prettier Than Pink take a grasshopper leap
from one genre to another. Signed to Sutton Records (http://www.suttonrecords.com) in the U.S.
but with roots in the Philippines, Prettier Than Pink recently
released Chop Suey, a crazy, hyperactive CD that should satisfy
short attention spans worldwide. Leader Lei Bautista (vocals/guitar)
recently spoke to Alternative Rock Review to explain the
band's wildly varied tastes.
Elizabeth Jacobsen: The songs liberally jump from one musical
style to the next. When you were writing the album, were you
consciously thinking of that?
Lei Bautista: Yes. We felt that there was no real point in
creating an album with songs that sounded alike. We like challenging
ourselves after finishing a song, making sure that one does not
sound like the other. Most our detractors have mentioned the
fact that it is a collage of genres being mistaken for 'mangled
stew' or a poorly produced album in terms of type of songs. Well,
we called the album Chop Suey for a reason. We are in an age
of iPods, no format radio listening, where you hear Frank Sinatra
followed by a song from Green Day. We think our album is a reflection
of where the industry is headed: the music of the next generation.
Also, the Beatles had no format whatsoever either and look what
legacy they left.
EJ: Considering the eclectic tastes on Chop Suey, did you
have problems with your bandmates not being able to keep up with
the shifting of genres?
LB: Not at all. It was so much fun. No monotony, no boring
riffs. Just surprises and exciting expressions of music.
EJ: What was the inspiration behind the very funny "Little
Men, Big Cars"?
LB: An ex-boyfriend that called me to say "He bought
my (dream) car for himself" to throw it at my face for dumping
him, as if to say "look what you're missing now, honey."
It goes out to all the men who think they're all that just because
they can afford nice wheels. It's pretty pathetic. They use their
big toys to make up for something they're really insecure about.
EJ: How did you come up with those U2-ish guitar sounds
on "Irish Rose"?
LB: I really don't know. There really is no logical explanation
to that. Most people think when we go into the studio, a lot
of hardcore internalizing goes into a song when there really
is no hair pulling behind it for me. I just sit down and it's
as easy as typing on the computer to write something. I just
said, this is a Bono tribute song and everything else just flowed
out one morning, all of two hours that it took to record the
'U2-ish' sounding guitars. No rocket science there.
EJ: What are the musical differences between Prettier Than
Pink in the U.S. and its Philippine incarnation?
LB: Huge difference. You need to custom tailor your sound
in the Philippine market to make a hit over there. A lot of musical
compromise. You need to appeal to the masses which we'll call
"Filipino ballad" for a lack of a better description.
There is not much freedom and appreciation for experimentation
and uniqueness. This CD is a coming-out-of-the-closet album.
The irony being it will be hard to penetrate the Philippine market
with this album. It's geared toward an international audience
not a specific market.
EJ: How much of a contribution did the other members have
in the composition of the tracks?
LB: Well, I composed six songs, three of which my husband
penned and 1 my 9-year-old daughter wrote. Pam [Aquino], lead
guitarist, made three and our bassist at that time contributed
one song. We usually just give everyone the basics of the song
and jam it. Everyone ends up contributing different riffs and
ideas depending on what they hear in their heads while playing
the material. And voila! A song is born.
Visit the website at: http://www.prettierthanpink.com
