Banfield crew from left to right - Joe (glasses, drums) Schuyler (beer, drums, keys) Daniel (alien, vox, git) Jon (jumper horse, bass, vox)

hey. are you familiar with the rum diary ? what ? I can't hear you - this music is just too damn loud.
well, they're steadily confusing listeners all over the states attempting to classify their sound.
journalists are namedropping DCFC, Mogwai, REM & Bowie attempting to gather a view on their elaborate sound.
their latest full length Poisons That Save Lives, out now on Substandard, grandly builds on all of this perplexity.
truth: big words don't mean shit when placed against a band this satisfying.
just read below & follow all the appropriate links, you will be rewarded handsomely.

+ do you think a third drummer would be a bit too much ?

DANIEL - It wouldn't be too much musically, but we can't fit anymore drums on a stage, in the van, on our recordings, or in the practice room...so yeah, I guess it would be too much technically.

+ who misses Dale Earnhardt the most in the band ?

DANIEL – I think Joe is the one who is always pushing the most for that song. I like the recording a lot, but it never seems to translate that well live. I think the person who misses it the most outside the band is Gabe (the drummer for continental). He told me once that when we play it live, he feels this strong desire to make love to all of the members in our band individually. It made me a little uncomfortable but then the more I thought about it the more I realized what a hunk he is. You know the one guy in the crowd who always yells "Free Bird." Well, that is Gabe with "The Day Dale Earnhardt Died."

+ what's the greatest part of living in Cotati, and how close are you to SanFran ?

DANIEL - - I am the only one who still lives in Cotati. Sad, but we still practice here. I think the best part is journalists being so fascinated that we are from some little cow town. It seems to add some mystery to our image or something. Every interview we have ever done has involved some question about this here town. Other than that, there is a great music store, record store, market, and 5 seedy bars in walking distance from one another. That's pretty rare for Northern California. There are also some great bands nearby; Polar Bears, Velvet Teen, Fight Like Fight, RH Lasky, John Wayne Crucifix, Life In Braille, The New Trust. We all live about ten minutes from each other. Oh, and to answer your question about San Francisco, it's about 50 miles away.

+ have you guys ever played in/or near Lynchburg, Virginia ( google: Jerry Falwell )?

DANIEL - No, Jon and I have a favorite band from Virginia called Engine Down, but we haven't had the pleasure of playing there yet. We actually haven't made it to the east coast at all yet, but we plan on touring out there soon.

+ have you heard any good music other than your own this year ?

JON – That’s a tough question. I recently tried to think of my favorite top 10 albums of 2003 and I ended up listing a bunch of albums from 2002. Not sure what happened this year? We’ve been really busy so I haven’t had much time to hang out at Amoeba Music. I do like the new Mogwai album and our friends, Desert City Soundtrack, recently released an amazing new album called, Funeral Car. I’ve been listening to it a lot.

+ what would be the best place for me to stick my limited edition sticker from the "mileage" 7" ?

JON – Hmmmmm. I think it would look best on your refrigerator or a piece of luggage.

+ has the moog ever gone on the fritz mid-set or mid-tour? If not, but it one night is does in the future, is there a backup plan ?

JON – You know the Moog has a mind of its own and its given us some unexpected attitude during a couple of shows. Thankfully, Schuyler, the Moog’s master, has a very intimate relationship with the piece of equipment and he’s able to keep it inline most of the time. Sometimes, if Schuyler has been drinking, the Moog will pull a fast one and his impaired motor skills are too slow to react. The outcome of this type of scenario is usually pretty ugly and one of our songs gets a little egg in the face. It would be nice to have a back-up, but these days a Moog in fair working condition will cost you your first child.

+ are there any bands you often get compared to that you wish you didn't ?

JON – God Speed You Black Emperor, Pink Floyd, and Death Cab For Cutie. All three bands are great and it’s very flattering to receive a comparison, but I don’t think the comparison is very true. I would think someone might be disappointed if they bought our CD expecting to hear string instruments(GSYBE), spacey high tech synth effects(PF), and lyrics that make perfect sense(DCFC). At times you might hear some similarity in one song on one of our albums, but I don’t think that would be enough to draw a comparison. I guess I’m just cautions about misleading the public.

+ what was yoni's condition the evening of the "Crazy" rendidtion (drunk / high / sleep deprived / none of the above) from 'bright after rain' ?

JON – His condition was definitely drunk, definitely tired, and definitely sick of being a chef, but he loves it. What else can I say? He drives a car named, “Daddy Vegas”. He calls everyone “Bitch Hog”. He eats peanut butter and salsa on a tortilla, Nald’s, and drinks “the wiggy”. Last, but not least, he’s our friend and a good friend to have.

+ any political views you wish to share? love for george jr.?

DANIEL - Does anyone like George Jr.?? I don't know one person that voted for him, yet he is our president....strange. Sorry, no one in the band is that involved in politics, and if we were, I don't think we would want that to have anything to do with the band. Don't get me wrong, there are great bands that successfully mix art with their political views, but I don't want people to have to think about politics when they are enjoying our music. It can get really depressing. We try and make our music an escape, not a lecture. + + + + + + + the rum diary