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Let 'er rip, 'Cordz! >> What does it take to make Paul Gott angry, anyway? by RUPERT BOTTENBERG
"I'd just like to say, everybody should vote for Michel Prescott, the only mayoral candidate who considers squeegee punks to be a social problem and not a criminal one. You look at everybody else--you've got Mayor X, Mayor Y, an ex-cop--all trying to take credit for getting rid of the squeegee punk problem, instead of the problems that create the problem. "This whole backlash, as far as I'm concerned, is rich people from the West Island who don't want to deal with the fact that they've screwed over a generation of kids. It's one of the few things in life that still makes me angry." See, I did it. It was tough, but I found something to coax a pissed-off semi-rant out of Gott. Despite his rep as the growling, surly frontman of local punk stalwarts the Ripcordz, Gott confesses that the piss and vinegar are slow to rise these days. "I've never been an angry person," he shrugs. "On the other hand, I tend to be very opinionated..." Gott reminds me--repeatedly--that the Ripcordz are not a political band. And I don't think they are... not with a capital P, anyway. Leftist fistpumping was never their bag. Think of them as a party band with an attitude. "When we started," recalls Gott, "we didn't even consider ourselves a punk band. We played rock 'n' roll, just faster and with more distortion, of course." You can hear it on their latest disc (#8, so you know), Is That a Squeegee in Your Pocket or Are You Just Happy to See Me? Their sound is nigh-on trademarked: buzzsaw guitar and scary growl, sure, but it's got a taste of C&W twang to it, and plenty of poppy hook factor. "There's a lot of Spice Girls in there," snickers Gott. Oddly enough, the new disc bears the Underworld logo. The Ripcordz have been the house band of Gott's own label, En Guard, since time immemorial, but this time around they've elected to delegate the promotional reponsibilities to a bunch of eager young skate brats on the north side of the island. "It's a win/win situation," says Gott, happy to be free of the hustle hassle and equally pleased to be helping out a fledgling new-school label. Although the Ripcordz play punk according to the original blueprint, Gott has no qualms about pitching a tent in the new-school camp. If anything, the phat-pant posse is almost more receptive than the dog-collar demographic. "It's kinda funny, every time we tour across Canada, there's something new going on. It used to be people didn't even know what punk was... we'd get stuck playing with bar blues bands. Now when we go out west, we play more with new-school bands than old-school. Two mohawks in the audience and 400 skaters." Truth is, Gott's a bit leery of the time-warp tag. "It's a bit distressing to see posters that say, 'Ripcordz: old-school punk legends from Montreal.' It makes me feel old and crotchety." You can't accuse this bunch of being lost in the past. Not after they released a self-titled CD-ROM back in '95, well ahead of the current "enhanced CD" onslaught. "I'm still really happy with that thing," says Gott. "I still think it's one of the best CD-ROMs I've seen." So there it is: a wicked new disc, a growing fan base, even plans to finally tour the States--something the Ripcordz have always avoided ("partially because Americans scare me," he laughs). "This is exactly where we want to be," says a very satisfied-sounding Gott. No wonder it's hard to get him pissed off. Ripcordz launch their new CD at Jailhouse Rock, Friday, October 16, 9pm, with guests the Brats and Ugly Since Birth. Admission is a very punk $1
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Your attention, ladies and gentlemen: Mr. Paul Gott of the Ripcordz has the soapbox.