All The Queen's Men is an alternative band with a ferocious and risk-taking streak. Their CD, Madame Static pushes the listener in all directions from rage to heartbreak and back again. The band is over five years old, but only came to its current incarnation when Christine Zuffery, formerly of January, joined in 1999. The band is Catherine Capozzi, Christine Zuffery, Tamora Gooding and Chris Farrell. For more information visit www.atqm.com

 
FEMMUSIC: Describe your songwriting technique?

CC: Our songwriting technique is an ongoing evolving process. We've tried everything from starting with guitar grooves, drum loops and keyboard sounds, to just jamming. With our musical style being "rocktronica", it's helpful to start writing from the drum groove. At rehearsal, we start a jam over a drum groove/loop that Tamora has created. We record the ideas we like and tweak the song from there. Christine adds her keyboard/sample sounds and her lyrical and melodic ideas. Catherine and Chris work on guitar and bass parts. We usually try several different arrangements until we come up with something that feels right to all of us.

Madame Static is a perfect example of every songwriting method that we've utilized (so far). The song "You Want Me", started with one of Catherine's guitar riffs. "Azalaya" was created out of a drum loop. Christine worked with the loop adding keyboards and vocals, and then we all jammed on it at a rehearsal and hammered out the final version.

FEMMUSIC: What is the biggest challenge of being an independent band?

CC: Fighting off millions of groupies! NOT. The challenge is creating awareness on a limited budget without a manager, distributor or promoter. As an indie band, you're destined to wear many hats-music creator, manager, booker, promoter and engineer. You're the CEO and CFO. Learning time management is important as well as having everyone take responsibility for at least one of the non-musical "hats". Thankfully, we are able to do many things with the help of talented people that we (unfortunately) can't pay enough.

FEMMUSIC: What was the biggest challenge in making your last CD?

CC: Our latest CD, Madame Static, was homemade. We recorded, produced and mixed it ourselves in a home studio environment. Since we all have day jobs, the recording took place over a 3 month time period on weekends (and sometimes weeknights). Talk about intense! The biggest challenge was to find the best monitoring reference for mixing. Home studios are not usually acoustically designed (like pro recording studios) for the very delicate art of mixing album tracks. Tamora and Christine invested massive amounts of hours mixing the tracks. It was the ultimate test of endurance and patience.

FEMMUSIC: What is the key to band longevity?

CC: There are many factors that contribute to longevity. The key is having members that share a common vision, the ability to communicate effectively and a respect for each other as people and musicians. It's important for every member to have an equal voice, to be committed and responsible. The X-factor helps; it's the musical and "other" connection that just happens when you're with the right people it's not really quantifiable. Finally, having a sense of humor goes a long way in keeping things together. Your band is your chosen family, make sure you enjoy working with your bandmates!

FEMMUSIC: Who are your mentors or influences?

CC: Collectively, artists whom we admire for their artistic vision and integrity have influenced us. David Bowie- constantly evolving and ageless; Bjork- clearly follows her own muse; Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Jeff Buckley, PJ Harvey, Moby, Aphex Twin, and Led Zepplin.

Individually, we have our own heroes to add to the list. For Christine, it's Diamanda Galas who brings the human voice to a place she never thought possible. Catherine includes Jimi Hendrix for his innovation, soul and making unbelievable sounds from those six strings. Chris looks up to Ozzy for his longevity and commitment to individuality. Tamora is most influenced by Bjork, a true artist, not an industry puppet who is told what to do or how.

FEMMUSIC: What one thing would you like to change about the music industry?

CC: We would like to see the industry think out of the box and get back to developing artists and careers rather than one hit wonders. One more thing, we would like to get rid of the corruption in radio programming.

FEMMUSIC: As women in the music industry have you been discriminated against?

CC: Well, we've all experienced subtle discrimination. From playing in clubs and listening to the same "old" comments, i.e., "Wow, three women in a band and they can actually play too!!" It's strange that people still have this archaic notion that woman aren't supposed to rock. It's ok if you're doing the accepted singer/songwriter thing. But, once you start venturing into the 'boys' club of rock, things get a little weird. Take the current state of radio, where are the women rockers? On mainstream commercial rock stations, there are no women. Go to the top forty stations and you'll hear the women (Britney, Christine, etc.)

FEMMUSIC: What advice would you give a new artist or band?

CC: There are many important things to keep in mind. Here are some of our thoughts:

-Stay true to your art and do what you love not what you think someone else would like you to do.

-Be committed, dedicated and professional.

-Set goals and follow through.

-Follow the path of a successful musician that you admire, walk in their footsteps and ask for help when you need it.

-Treat people with kindness and respect.

-It's the music biz…the highs can be unbelievable, the lows devastating. Try not to get too high when things are amazing and don't drag yourself down when the bad times hit.

-Finally, remember to thank your fans and the people helping you along the way.

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