BBC Radio 1 interview with Patrick Wilson - July 12, 1995

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Radio interview with Patrick Wilson
Publication BBC Radio 1
Interviewee Patrick Wilson
Date July 12, 1995
Format Radio
External link Patrick & Rivers[Note 1]
Associated album Weezer (The Blue Album)
Associated concert Weezer concert: 06/24/1995
Weezer concert: 09/22/1994
Weezer concert: 09/23/1994
References See where this interview is referenced on Weezerpedia

Untitled Patrick Wilson interview
Author: Unknown (BBC Radio 1)
Published: July 12, 1995


"Animal Nitrate" by Suede has just finished playing

Host: It is 97.9 FM, the evening session for a Wednesday night playing Suede, who of course headline the Phoenix Festival on Friday, and that track, "Animal Nitrate". I'm very pleased now, because we have Pat Wilson from Weezer, the drummer with Weezer joining us in the studio. Just finished the UK leg of what's been a world tour which has gone on for how long?

Pat: Uh, about a year.

Host: About a year.

Pat: Yeah.

Host: So, did you get into any sort of bad habits?

Pat: Bad eating habits, that's about it. I try to eat good but it's impossible, so. Just try to stay away from McDonald's as much as possible.

Host: So, I've got the biog here, and it says: "Four years ago I was a guy with a bad haircut from Buffalo, New York".

Pat: Yes, thank you very much.

Host: And you wrote that yourself? So, how did you go from being the bad haircut man to, uh, being in Weezer? How'd it all start?

Pat: Well, I moved out of pseudo-industrial city to huge metropolis in Los Angeles and just um, met people with similar interests, and through mutual friends we formed a band. And, about a year later, we were able to secure a record deal.

Host: So what did you think on your first meeting with the rest of the group, did you like them? Were you a bit wary of them?

Pat: It was through a mutual friend that we all had met, so it wasn't like all four of us met each other at the same time. We'd all known each other, we just hadn't put it all together.

Host: Right. This is your first album, isn't it?

Pat: Yes.

Host: So, what was the buildup to this record? 'Cause it's on Geffen Records, which is a big affair.

Pat: Well, when we were shopping our demo, it seemed like Geffen was the only people that were really, uh, interested in us, so we just went with them because we had no, like, indie rock pretensions, or like, y'know "no, we can't do that, we have to sign to Epitaph" or anything. So, after we recorded it, it took about six months for the record to come out so we were all just starving, so that was a terrible buildup for me. And they just put us on the road after that, and-

Host: Why, because you had no money?

Pat: Yeah, absolutely. It was just a nightmare, 'cause none of us wanted to work, y'know, obviously, so. We just starved.

Host: This LP, it's, obviously it's produced by Ric from The Cars, who were famous here, mainly because they were the first band ever to release a picture disc single in this country, because-

Pat: Really?

Host: Yeah, that's a true story, but that's not why you picked him to produce the LP, I'd imagine.

Pat: Well actually it is, um, nah, no. Geffen wanted us to have a producer, we wanted to produce it ourselves, but we said "well lets- lets get one anyway" and, he was the, y'know, one of the only people we thought about getting just because we grew up on his music and uh, he was just a, y'know, a real easy guy to work with.

Host: It's got a few sort of uh, new wave influences almost, or influences from that new wave era in your music. It's that, kind of, right?

Pat: Yeah, kind of, um. I think of the production techniques, especially um, there's a couple keyboards on there, and actually, Ric hated those, so. We had to fight to get 'em on there.

Host: Right. It also says on the biog, I think that, uh. Uh, is it Matt who is the Gary Numan fan?

Pat: Oh, I am- I am aswell.

Host: Are you?

Pat: Well, not as heavy as him, I was uh- When I was like, 10 years old, I got The Pleasure Principle, with the single "Cars" on it. And I think, y'know, that record, I really love it. And Matt like just, went crazy, and he got all these different Gary Numan records. I understand he's looked upon, uh, somewhat unfavorably here, in uh, Britain, but, we just love him.

Host: There is this Cars link, obviously. Ric from The Cars, "Cars" the track,

Pat: Yes, yes.

Host: There's something subtle going on, um. So this LP was recorded last year, I guess, was it? Very start of the ???

Pat: Um, '93, I think.

Host: '93. So, do- do you feel like you've now been playing these songs for ages?

Pat: Oh, I have been playing these songs for ages. It's been probably almost four years now, that we've had most of these songs, so, were due, for some new-

Host: Do you ever reach that sort of autopilot stage?

Pat: Sometimes, but then we just kind of like, we- we can see it happening, so we say "let's try and make it happen again", 'cause some nights, it's just like, it's not bad, but it doesn't- doesn't take off like we hope it to.

Host: Yeah, 'cause I saw you playing at uh, CBGB's in New York, during the CMJ festival last year, and when you got to Britain and played at the Water Rat(?), you did exactly the same set.

Pat: Oh, sure.

Host: So, did you just get into some sort of routine?

Pat: Oh, yeah, it's a nightmare. Just, okay. I wish we could just play backwards once or something, change one song, but, um, it seems that the- the set works best in the order it's in

Host: Right.

Pat: I think we've had two sets in our history. This is the second one, so.

Host: Atleast you won't forget-

Pat: Yeah.

Host: -what's coming next.

Pat: Oh we do, though. We definitely do forget stuff.

Host: You changed it for Glastonbury Festival, though, which I have to admit, I didn't think was uh, one of your best shows, but you seemed to be having a great time.

Pat: Yeah, it was fun. Festivals are a weird place to be, I didn't really know what to expect. Y'know, like a Woodstock type of thing. But it was fun. It's- it's difficult for a band to get up there and play though, because, you don't get a soundcheck, you just go and play, and generally what was good for the band before you isn't good for you as far as what you were hearing on stage, so, y'know we just try to be troopers.

Host: So what are you gonna do? 'Cause you've got some time off, coming up.

Pat: I think we're gonna record, a little bit, before Rivers goes to school for the semester, and um-

Host: He's going back to school?

Pat: Yeah.

Host: This is like a Descendents Milo Goes to College type of a-

Pat: Sort of.

Host: And what's he gonna be doing?

Pat: Um, I think he'll probably study music theory and English, primarily.

Host: Right.

Pat: And for the rest of us, we all have other, other projects, we just wanna keep working hard and use the opportunity that's been given to us.

Host: It's Pat from Weezer. Thank you very much for coming in.

Pat: Thank you.

Host: And this is the single, "Say It Ain't So".

See also

Footnotes

  1. A recording of this interview was included as part of Rivers Cuomo's 2020 demo bundle Patrick and Rivers. The mp3 file is named "01 1994 Interview with Pat Wilson.mp3," though this date is incorrect.