Interviewed march 1998 by E-mail

Slint never played live here. By the time anyone knew about Slint, the band had already split. So all that’s left is two amazing records a single and a live bootleg and five ex-members all going their seperate ways. The number of things David Pajo, former Slint guitarplayer, has done since is impressive, the diversity of the things he’s done is ever more impressive. He played with King Kong, Will Oldham’s Palace Brothers, Stereolab during their tour in 1996, Brian McMahan’s For Carnation, Tortoise, the list goes on and on. Reasons enough to forget about the band he played in long ago. Until two years ago he always played with other bands, never with his own. And now he does, AERIAL-M.

RESPECT

This new outlet brought us two impressive singles and one very nice album. Why did you finally start your own band? David: ‘It was time. I wanted to know what it was like to fuck up on my own, to score alone. How does it feel to crawl and soar.’ And are you happy now you finally decided to do it? David: ‘Yes, but it’s both strengthening and draining. I still need more experience before I can comment on this. It’s too early to talk about how it feels because I haven’t fully done it yet.’ David is not that easy to interview. During an interview with Tortoise three years ago he was the only one to say absolutely nothing for the whole hour it took to interview them. And onstage he is much the same, he tries very hard not to be the center of attention. Isn’t that a bit of a problem when you have your own band? David: ‘I hate reading what I say or write because I feel like a dolt, I hate seeing photos of myself, I hate thinking backwards, I hate being the center of attention for anyone. I’m an introvert at heart and there’s probably a bit of self loathing in there. And in a way it’s the same with being the leader of a band. It’s nice to know what’s going on and be able to move things in a way that is preferable to me. But at the same time I don’t want to be a tyrant. But as leader you have to make the rules and pave the road, you know, so you make your sacrifices. Superficially you appear to be an asshole but really it’s respect for the music. If you don’t have that respect why the fuck should anyone else?’

EMOTIONAL

By listening to the music David is making at the moment and of the things he has made in the past, it becomes clear he totally respects music. From the care he took in composing, recording and playing, you can hear his music breathes a sense integrity you hear with only very few. It must feel strange that music you have made up by yourself years or months ago has suddenly become a product? David: ‘Exactly. I feel very weird about taking a painting for example and putting a logo on it and mass marketing it. It’s something I’m torn about. But I’m making a poor man’s piece of art you know. I’m trying to make an album a piece of art that anyone can buy for a reasonable price and every copy will be exactly the same. If I paint the picture then I don’t mind using it; it’s mine to do whatever I want with. But using someone else’s art for an album is something I don’t think I can do.’ The music of Aerial-M is instrumental, very quiet and can slip into someone’s mind and senses easily. Is it made for people to experience? David: ‘Instrumental music or music with metaphorical lyrics can be abstract but the beauty of it is that it can be taken as personally as anyone lets it. Songs are read differently according to one’s personal worldview. It’s a natural medium for me to show facets of myself or tell invisible stories that I normally don’t show to anyone. I personally find it comforting when a musician or writer feels the same thing I do or confirms something I already know. It’s not because I need to know that I’m not alone; it’s just nice when someone can put words or music to something that’s difficult to express.’

ROCK IS NOT DEAD

David already has a lifetime of music experience behind him and he hasn’t even reached the age of thirty. He started playing in bands in his early teens. How did you become a musician? David: ‘I picked up drums and guitar right away, I was suddenly very good at it. Plus I dropped out of school because I was playing guitar 9 hours a day; when I played for 6 hours I felt bad. I wasn’t chasing girls around or trying to be popular, I was playing guitar. I chased girls later when I had a more confidence. The first song I ever wrote was called “I hate elevator music”. I jammed on it with maybe one or two other guys and it was a laugh. Once I discovered punk rock I was welcomed quickly into the scene because I was one of the few people that could actually play (even though I had shitty taste in music). Suddenly I had lots of friends. They were geeks, punks, skins, rednecks, goths, gays, bitches, whores, rich kids, and junkies but they were pals and I could relate with them.’ Not long after that, Slint, and then years of playing with a wide range of bands, always guitar or bassguitar. Listening to the last single it seems like the guitar is getting replaced by more electronic instruments. David: ‘Stereolab and Tortoise are to blame. Those bands opened my mind to that sort of stuff. I was into Suicide when I was younger (and still) but that was as far as I’d go. Now I’m less snobbish about electronic music and I really really love it. Sound is sound, right?’ But are you planning to do more things like that? Is rock dead? David: ‘Fuck you if you think rock is dead. I mean I don’t want to hold the torch for rock. But it’s still strong. It’s still evolving.’

BLOOD ON A MARBLE FLOOR

So what are you going to do with Aerial-M in the near future? David: ‘I have too many plans. I’m just worried that the quantity of songs will lessen the quality of the songs. There will be a sequel to “M Is…” as well as a remix album, then if all goes well, a 2nd lp before the year is up. For the remix album I’ve invited Tim Goldsworthy from UNKLE, Bundy K Brown, Markus from Tied and Tickle Trio, and a very special guest. Oh and I’m trying to put together an Aerial M video that can be purchased through Drag City but that may be a long time from now.’ Did you make that yourself? David: ‘Well there’s a guy in California that does these cool little video art projects, just beams of light that follow certain patterns in a song. Really crude and simple but very cool and timeless. I might have him do a couple songs and I’d like to do some animated stuff on my own. Maybe even a short play.’ Great. Finally something to see with Aerial-M’s music, rather then imagening yourself. What do you see when you’re making this music? David: ‘It’s not like I hallucinate when I listen to music, I just imagine little narratives. It helps me write a song if I’m thinking in terms of, “So now this thing is flying around happily but suddenly he gets whacked by an alien. He’s been hit, his group scatters. There are lasers going everywhere, it’s all confused. But he doesn’t notice because he’s watching his blood pool on the marble floor.”‘ Oh dear, I wonder what song that was.