"Choosing a producer for this record was very difficult. We weren't unhappy with Ted, we mostly wanted to try something different," says Girls Against Boys bassist/ keyboardist Eli Janney. "We talked to a lot of producers, and looked at a lot of discographies, and Nick had the one with the most records that we liked. He has done Public Image Ltd.'s The Flowers of Romance, The Birthday Party, Killing Joke's second record, Gang of Four, Midnight Oil's 10,9,8,7... and Red Sails in the Sunset, and a lot of cool remixes and some great dub reggae -- very cool stuff that no one else had done."
When asked how their not- yet- titled major- label debut, which is being recorded at Seedy Underbelly Studios in Minneapolis, will differ from 1996's House of GVSB, the Touch and Go release which landed the band in Spin magazine's Top 20 of 1996 (as well as many others), Janney says, "There are a lot more samples and electronic sounds on this record, harking back to the Nineties vs. Eighties EP (Slate Records 1990/ Adult Swim 1992). I like some of the electronic music. There's a lot of crap out there, as with any music movement. But some of what we've been listening to includes Fat Boy Slim, Thievery Corporation, Snooze, and the Bassbin Twins."
Janney says the band may play a few live shows in February and then hit the road full- time in the spring. But if you can't wait until then for your GVSB fix, New Wet Kojak, the "psycho jazz" side project of GvsB singer/ guitarist Scott McCloud and bassist Johnny Temple, will be playing some dates to support their latest Touch and Go release Nasty International.
Meanwhile, the band's last "House of GVSB" soiree at Minneapolis' 400 Bar looks to be coming to an end on Tuesday (Oct. 21). Since September, the band's been throwing a weekly shindig at the club where Janney and Temple have been spinning records -- everything from '70s disco to the latest in electronica. McCloud and GvsB drummer Alexis Fleisig usually come along to the 400 Bar as well, hanging with friends and fans. Recent special guests have included Atari Teenage Riot, Brick Layer Cake, and Arcwelder, who played live while Temple and Janney manned the turntables and Alexis took pictures.