Ugh, internships. Years ago I told my dad that I was going to take an internship, and he scoffed at the idea. In his classic liberal fashion, he criticized internships as a violation of the Constitution–the 13th Amendment to be exact. He told me that if I did work I should get paid for it; that’s our system.

In these tough times, businesses are cutting back–apparently even on free labor–and internships are often as tough to get as a real job. In the business world, if a entry level job is in a highly desired field you can cut the salary of a fresh employee. Apply that same mentality to the world of internships and the next logical step becomes clear: charging interns.

Business have already picked up on this idea, and media companies are particularly heinous. Recently, the Wall Street Journal reported that “a one-week internship at a music-production company sold last month for $12,000.”

(MORE INTERNSHIPS ARE THE NEW SLAVERY)

It’s very hard for me to focus solely on the death of Lux Interior; the lead singer of The Cramps passed away earlier this week due to a heart condition at age 62. The Cramps were one of several bands from the CBGB punk era of the ’70s who seem legendary, and they had their own garage-punk style which added to the patchwork collection of punks and new-wavers who frequented the club.

While Interior took an Iggy Pop style of punk showmanship, the band also mixed their sound with rockabilly and a whole lot of camp to separate them from many of their peers. Though now that Interior has died and CBGB has been replaced by a high-end clothing store, the punk spirit he embodied lives on in other acts.

“You don’t try, you just do.” I can’t think of a better six words to describe the spirit of a band like The Cramps. Does a bit of that spirit live on in Andrew W.K.? Well, Andrew doesn’t have the rockabilly vibe going for him, but he does have a certain sense of humor and fun about him–I can think of at least four Andrew W.K. songs with “party” in the title (and two with fun). In addition, it’s hard to imagine what an Andrew W.K. live show would be like without The Cramps setting an incredibly high bar to top.

(A EULOGY FOR LUX INTERIOR CONTINUED)

CDs are finally going to go the way of cassettes, 8-tracks and vinyl before them. It was only a matter of time, but according to projections reported by Billboard, digital music sales will surpass CDs in 2013. That’s a mere four years away (or one presidential term, if you are currently in that mindset).

Record companies have weathered storms before, and I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before they figure out a way to turn a profit in this whole mess. However, a victim of the digital age might be the distributors–the middlemen between labels and stores. In the same way a label theoretically signs bands of a certain caliber, a distributor will generally have a certain standard when working with labels. But as the lines between artist and store tighten, who needs the additional middleman? A label can still claim it’s useful–paying for promotion, marketing, tour support and so on. But what can a distributor really offer when the world is all digital and ANYONE can upload music to Amazon.com through CreateSpace or onto iTunes via TuneCore?

Despite the ominous date of 2013, the end of CD’s days may not come so quick. Cassettes stuck around in stores long after CDs became the dominant force in the music biz. I also don’t expect any major label or distributor to go down quietly…no matter what the statistics say.

Well, Rose Hill Drive, YouTube has extended beyond the world of Guitar Hero to something far more strange. One of the latest fads on the website is taking a cappellas of songs and having Microsoft Songsmith insert the lyrics. The results range from surprisingly good to weird or creepy.

The software is supposed to be for songwriters, singing melodies on the fly and then having the program fit in the correct notes for the song. However, those darn YouTubers have co-opted the program’s usage for just about any pop song. Songsmith immediately appealed to me, as I have a certain fascination about the mechanical and mathematical nature of music and the fact that something so artful can be broken down to numbers, equations and formulas. Ultimately, these figures can be built back up into computer programs like Auto-Tune and Songsmith.

As a result, I’ve been forwarding these fascinating “works of science” (as opposed to works of art) to many of my friends for the LOL-value. The first response I heard back was simply, “I thought this was how pop songs were created already!” A lot of people just don’t get it, and it’s completely understandable.

Songsmith does turn pretty much every song into a generic, repetitive tune spewed forth from a Casio keyboard, but those instruments from the ’80s still inspire artists to this day. It isn’t despite their lo-fi, 8-bit sound, it is because of it. Artists found ways to use the Casio to its fullest extent and beyond, in ways the creators probably didn’t even imagine. Songsmith stumbled upon this genius even sooner. Yeah, it was intended to aid songwriters, but it’s become something completely co-opted in less than a year’s time. It’s easy to miss the unintentional genius.

What hasn’t Jay-Z done? Well, an alt-country song for one:

Well, now he can add performing at a presidential inaugural to the list of accomplishments. Though one of the songs caught me a bit by surprise: This one! Yeah, that’s right, “99 Problems (But a Bush Ain’t One).” Hey, that’s actually clever and funny. I wonder if a rather humorless Obama got the joke.

Let’s be honest though. It was a fitting adieu and probably to be expected. Most musicians have very few good things to say about George w. Bush or (more aptly) have a lot of bad things to say about him.

There’s been no media uproar this time–remember how Ludacris got Obama in trouble by dissing Hilary Clinton and John McCain? There hasn’t been a peep complaining about Jay-Z’s little dis, but maybe it’s just because it’s actually clever and funny.

Or maybe it’s because Jay-Z speaks the flat out truth here. Really, that one altered line from Jay-Z’s song pretty much says it all. The economy? Two wars? Heck, I could probably come up with 96 other problems for America right now, but you know what isn’t a problem anymore…

Last year I promised to bring you recipes from your favorite bands. For the first installment, I am proud to present a super recipe from a supergroup! Current and former members of Guided By Voices, Luna, Joan as Police Woman, Dead Air and The Dambuilders came together to form Gramercy Arms. If their collective creative resume wasn’t impressive enough, they can also apparently create in the kitchen.

With Gramercy Arms’ restaurant experience, they were the perfect band to kick off this new feature:

If the above clip is any indication, it’s not hard for bands to fall victim to some pretty gross food. Luckily Gramercy Arms frontman Dave Derby provided a recipe for bok choy with ginger and soy sauce, which is not only healthy but very easy to prepare. Derby describes it as follows:

Here’s a very simple recipe for bok choy, which is fast and goes with just about anything. Though mirin is good, the combination of soy sauce and good balsamic is a pretty interesting tangy-salty combination.

Bok Choy with Ginger and Soy Sauce

Sauce (to use with 4 baby bok choy): 1/4 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup mirin or balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons water 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

Rinse bok choy. Steam until just tender (3-5 minutes) and add sauce.

Be sure to check back to Uncensored Interview’s Blog regularly for more recipes from your favorite bands!

What Andrew W.K. didn’t mention in his Uncensored Interview was his new TV show! There aren’t many details about the show so far, though it wouldn’t be his first television show. So what form will this new program take? Will it be a variety show like the Osbournes? A talk show like Henry Rollins? Lord only knows. The only clue we have is that there will be a studio audience.

A part of me hopes it will be a show for kids, like a new Mister Rogers. Despite his tough outer persona, I have a feeling that inside he is a gentle soul perfectly suited to fill Rogers’ sweater. Regardless of my hopes and dreams, an Andrew W.K.-hosted kids show seems unlikely.

Maybe Andrew W.K. is hosting a new Jackass spin-off! His song “We Want Fun” was the lead single from the Jackass movie soundtrack, and he seems like he would be the type of guy capable pulling off ridiculous, stupid or otherwise impossible stunts.

(CONTINUE READING ANDREW W.K.’S TV SHOW)