Hey Little Stevie,

AC:Your new album " Generations", theres a lot of dark, minor, synth kind of stuff on it but it's mangled with lounge overtones.Like leonard Nimoy & Alister Crowley collaberating on a film soundtrack. Are you familiar with the works of Alister Crowley?

LSM:Not his soundtrack work [Crowley], but ah, the dulcet tones of Nimoy, now there's a voice. "Mangled" is a bit pejorative by the way, 'interspersed', 'intertwined' or 'intrinsically interlaced' would perhaps be a little less abrupt. Q:Everyone who creates something has an idea of the vibe they're trying to establish, if not when they embark on the project, then once it's rolling. In five words or less describe what you've tryed to achieve with "Generations" A: Five words or less is a big ask... Options:
[1] cool, understated, mellow 'alright' grooves
[2] down with it mellow cool
[3] grooves for your current mood
[4] this is little stevie mccabe

AC:I understand that you will be playing some "selected live engagements"

LSM:Yes, these TBA (contact John Baker).

LSM:I don't recall, but there's a lot I don't remember. Probably, je ne regret rien.

AC:When you undertake these "selected live engagements" will you be supported by a band or silicone chips & 32 bits?

LSM:A finely-honed 32 bit computer beats a 2 bit band any day, and even if it crashes it's generally more reliable than a group of two or more rock musicians in a room. I am endeavouring to involve other live performers in my current show; the computer is, however, a part of it for the forseeable future. I have nothing against bands or fellow musicians but have learnt not to place undying faith in them. I can 'whip out' a tidy score if anyone ever wanted to produce a full orchestrated version of any of my current works, but I'm not a stage producer, my energies are better focussed in other areas. Why burn yourself out doing something when someone else can do it better, and actually enjoy it (ie. 'run' a band, beg for money for performances and/or performers, convince so-and-so at such-and-such authority that your work deserves their suppport more than some other entity)?

LSM:It was a hard lesson that even the things you hold most dear, the relationships you think are absolutely universal and unfoundering can just disappear in the twinkling of an eye, without a bye-your-leave. It strengthened me by showing me the righteous path of self-reliance and instilled in me a fierce and altered sense of reason and purpose,and enabled me to break free from the entity that was into the entity which is. This is here, this is now, that was but a trifling moment ago, lest we forget. A band is a band, and your commitments wax and wane like the fickle moon, but yourself is yourself, indivisible as a quark. The streets were mean, mother, I cut my jib on those streets an' it wuz the makin' of me. I soon learnt what was what and how many nickels you need to eke together a dime. The street tells you what is what and sorts out the mothers from the others.

LSM:It's a publicity stunt by my John Baker, patron & promoter of "Generations". I have absolutely no qualms whatsoever about doing a live interview. Anytime, any place. You name it, I'll be there.

LSM:Absolutely not (well not mine anyway)

LSM:If it is, it's not a bad thing. I never had much of a social canvas anyway, and don't regret that. For me, minimal contact leads to maximum results. It stems from the urgency of the small amount of contact which does eventuate, if things are around all the time you take them for granted and don't use them. If you keep them restricted, all of a sudden there's a demand for them.

LSM:It serves its purpose, to provide me with instant resources (ie soundbites, pictures, etc.) if and when I need them, 24 hours a day, 8 days a week. It serves this purpose exceedingly well, better than any person would.

LSM:Anything recent by Beck, maybe Prince or one of those "Ill-behaviour" remixes; there'd probably be a bunch of Frank Sinatra albums getting re-released that I could cheat and get, too, and I probably would. Give me a CD voucher and I'll let you know.

LSM:P166 Mhz PC (Windows 95);
32 Mb RAM, 6 Gig Hard Drive;
AWE 32/ AWE 64 soundcards (not both at once!);
[Note: this is pretty much a standard generic 'workhorse' PC]
HP CD-Writer Plus Compact Disc Recorder

These connected via home-made patchbay to:
Behringer Autocom Compressor;
Tascam Portastudio 424 MkII 4 track cassette deck;
MIDI S/ware: Cakewalk Pro Audio 5
Audio Editing S/ware: Cool Edit

LSM:Yes, this is capturing time and moments in time. Capturing moments in time is exactly what artists have been trying to do for millenia, all of a sudden it's a little easier [ie. better, more reliable and less time consuming storage/transfermedia] , but the momentum and drive is still there to do it. It's pretty natural, I would have thought, maybe people already take it for granted (ie. - How many people expected to hear - "What a bummer - no-one bothered to record Woodstock!" - 40 years earlier it would have been impossible. 20 years earlier it would have been difficult. 20 years later it would have been digital. Forty years later than that it would be live on the Net and no-one would actually be at the gig). I just appreciate the fact that it is possible, and never want to get to the point when I take it for granted. Beethoven and Mozart would have killed for a computer and a DAT recorder , orobably even a tape deck, now you or I can go and buy one for a few weeks pay. Don't you forget it. If that's a reflection of my personality, it's just that. As for a representation of an identity, yes, it's as good a representation of the identity I want to portray as any, and probably a better representation than many, due to its breadth. What I mean is, I'd rather have my memopry judged by this representation of what I have produced than, (for example),the 3 Flying Nun Axemen Releases only. NOT recording surplus when it is possible to do so for a few bucks seems decadent and opulent. I don't know what will happen to the surplus material when I die, but it has more chance of something happening with it than relying on the kindness of others [to record your gigs, songs, etc.]. I don't really mind what happens to it, but it seems a crime to not do it because you can't be bothered, though I've done that myself. If you have any faith in the theory of Relativity, you must also accept that time and space are equivalent and interchangeable, and by indelibly recording a period of time I have therefore staked out future space, which will more than likely unrecognizable as the same entity (ie. the experience of a song recorded in 1998 in a room in Herne Bay, Auckland may be transformed into a series of sound waves being transmitted through a loft apartment in New Jersey or North Carolina in 2008 - it is a similar yet different experience which would not have occurred if not for the diligent recording of the dull but persistent recorder of pieces. Remember,anytime, any place (time permitting). I'd like to talk to you, you have interesting questions. Don't be a stranger.