Thanks, Dad

Photo by Bethany Black
 

duo No Age make really fuzzy music, which is my favorite. Everything sounds better under a fuzzy layer of fuzziness, doesn’t it? I feel like it’s something psychological, but I’m not sure what. Something about the far-awayness of people’s voices is soothing to me. Or whatever—it just sounds cool and fucked-up. No Age play catchy tunes that are cool and fucked-up and they are cute and have cartoon-character names. Basically everything you’d want in a band.

Vice: Hey Randy Randall, is that your real name? Randy. Randy Randall. Gosh, that’s fun to say.

Randy Randall: Yes! I’m glad you asked that. It was my dad’s name, Randy Lee Randall. I guess my parents weren’t creative enough to come up with anything else. Or maybe they just wanted to fuck with me. I always look at it like the Johnny Cash song “A Boy Named Sue.” My dad wasn’t always the nicest of guys and I like to think that he knew he wouldn’t always be around to help me out so he gave me the same fucked-up name he had, thinking it would make me tough the same way it had made him tough… But it didn’t.

How has having such a retarded name affected your life?

Randy: Here’s the general conversation I have at least once a week: “Hi, I’m Randy Randall.” Pause. “Really? Like, Randall Randall?” “No, just Randy.” I don’t mind—it’s really helped me with job applications. I go in for an interview and they’re like, “Randy Randall! We’ve been waiting for you!” It’s like they already know me and I’m the office funny guy before I even get the job.

And Dean, what’s your last name? I hear it’s quite something.

Dean Spunt: Spunt. Dean Spunt. It’s Russian I guess.

Wow… Heavy.

Dean: Obviously when I was a kid I got, “Hey, Cunt! Hey, your name is Dean Cunt!” all the time. I was just like, “Ha ha ha, good one.” Also, in LA there’s a small chain of doughnut shops called Spudnut, so I got that too. My whole life it was either “Hey, Spudnut!” or “You Cunt.” I guess it’s funny.

Spudnut! AHAHAHAHA! That is hilaaaaarious. Where does the name No Age come from?

Randy: It was the name of a compilation that Greg Ginn put out on SST. It was Process of Weeding Out era, and he was really into instrumental music, so he made all the bands on his label do instrumentals for this record.

Dean: It’s the worst music ever. Like, imagine all the cool bands on SST, but later and sucky. And just playing instrumental jams.

So, what’s on the horizon for No Age?

Randy: Right now we’re putting out five vinyl-only EPs all on different labels.

Now why would you do such a thing?

Dean: We thought it would be funny. Plus it’s an excuse to design five awesome-looking things. We have a shitload of ideas.

MEG SNEED
No Age’s five EPs are out now on Teardrops, Upset the Rhythm, Deleted Art, Post Present Medium, and Youth Attack.