Goldfinger

John Feldmann: Lead Vocals, Guitar
Charlie Paulson: Guitar
Simon Williams: Bass
"Dangerous" Darrin Pfeiffer: Drums

If there are only three hundred and sixty-five days in a year, then how did GOLDFINGER do three hundred and eighty-two shows in 1996? "We just love playing music," says JOHN FELDMANN, singer/songwriter for the band that holds the record for the most live shows performed last year.

Maybe their intense touring schedule was the best way to increase their speeding ticket collection. Maybe it was the only way they could do national headlining tours and still go on the road with bands like No Doubt, 311, Reel Big Fish, the Buzzcocks, and both NOFX and Pennywise as a part of the Warped Tour.

More likely, though, GOLDFINGER became far too familiar with tour bus toilets as a matter of demand following their #1 alternative hit "Here in Your Bedroom" from their highly acclaimed self-titled debut LP. Concerning this pop-punk smash, New Times writer Jim DeRogatis noted, "their self-titled album on Mojo offers fourteen fast-paced, two-minute chunks of punk-pop nirvana with just a hint of Jamaican seasoning," while Los Angeles Times writer Sandy Masuo described it as having "gritty energy, infectious rhythms and irresistibly hummable melodies."

GOLDFINGER follow up their Mojo Records debut with HANG-UPS. Produced by FELDMANN and label president Jay Rifkin and mixed by Dave Jerden (Jane's Addiction, Social Distortion, The Offspring), the album contains 16 new tracks, including "20 Cent Goodbye," "Authority," "Too Late," "This Lonely Place" and "Disorder." HANG-UPS spews out enough full-throttle melodious songs to knock a person on their ass and demonstrates how their ska-laced pop-punk sound has evolved to the point that GOLDFINGER blast all punk conventions with creativity, originality and fearless innovation. Bassist SIMON WILLIAMS remarks, "Hang-Ups is a bigger, thicker, poppier record. We mixed up the sound to create a more diverse record in a pop sense."

Guitarist CHARLIE PAULSON adds, "For the new album, we tried to focus more on writing a collection of songs rather than trying to make sure we're playing fast enough or making a statement of style. We're all two years older, as are most of our fans, so why hand them yesterday's newspaper?"

Solidifying their ska and pop influences, GOLDFINGER recruited musicians of such renowned ska-inspired bands as No Doubt, the Skeletones, and Fishbone (whose singer Angelo Moore shared vocals with FELDMANN on "Carlita" and "I Need To Know") to lend their unique touches to Hang-Ups. Utilizing the expertise of these players, GOLDFINGER made use of such instruments as the flauto magico, mandolin, theramin, and guico as well as the Hammond organ, sax, trombone, and a drum machine. Still, GOLDFINGER's true growth and talent really shine when one hears how eloquently they incorporate these sounds and influences on Hang-Ups.

Another big inspiration for the band has been their road experiences, which led to a more heartfelt style of lyric writing. PAULSON explains, "Touring the world helped us break out of our shell, which is essentially Hollywood. This city is such a vacuum that people seem to think it's the end all, but right now there's someone in Berlin on their way to a factory and someone in Japan's getting on the bullet train, and these things have nothing to do with what's cool in L.A. at the moment. Seeing the world in this way affected our songwriting. We're not able to change the world, but we say what we need to for us, and somebody's going to identify with it."

FELDMANN adds, "The first record was mostly relationship-oriented because that's what inspires me the most to write songs. Hang-Ups goes a little deeper, though, because I was also very inspired by all the people I met on the road. It reminded me of what it was like when I was fourteen and first playing in bands and all the problems I had with my folks." Songs along these lines include "Authority" and "Too Late," the latter of which is about a dad who dies before he settles all his issues with his son.

Yet, as a band that prides itself on doing Twisted Sister and Motley Crue covers in concert, GOLDFINGER is still GOLDFINGER and serious lyrics always keep company with smart ass songs permeated with snide sarcasm and tongue-in-cheek humor. Prime examples on Hang-Ups include the pissed-off, pro-snowboarding anthem "S.M.P." (Skiers Must Perish) and the Satan-skater tribute "Chris Cayton." With one caustic line after another, GOLDFINGER constantly remind us that they're the band who penned the song "Fuck You and Your Cat." All in all, GOLDFINGER mix creative, innovative songwriting, massive pop hooks, and an often frightening sense of humor into a sound that makes for one of the best and craziest live shows anyone could hope to see. As Sandy Masuo of the Los Angeles Times noted in a review of the band's performance at the 1996 KROQ "Weenie Roast," "Saturday's program was highlighted by GOLDFINGER, which lit into its ska-punk set with style and speed, swerving from one tune to the next...with a sassier sense of humor and operating at Ramones velocity." Yes, GOLDFINGER is all that and more, but can they do three hundred and eighty-three shows in one year? Stay tuned and find out. The Highway Patrol sure are.



  - Credit goes to Mojo Records