Interview with The V.Cs, 5 October 2005

NB - Please introduce yourself?
V - Vocoder Joe - Vox, Guitar, Synth - Enigmatic leader of The V.Cs, Secret Military Bio-Engineered Cybo-constructed Super Weapon, Dashingly nice chap.

Keyop-503 - Synth, Theremin, Guitar - Chief Technician, Famed inventor & leader of the VC-010 project, Socially retarded but kind-natured fellow.

Fembot-S4FF - Bass, Synth, Backing Vox - Love-o-matic 4000 Mechanoid, Sex-Mex(tm) mechanoid turned undercover spy droid, Fatal weakness to shoes.

Specimen-11010 - Drums - Hired goon, One of the rejects from the VC-010 project, Is capable of amassing the power of 1000 suns...but can't remember how.

NB - How and when did V.Cs start?
V - Eartdate 2003, Thursday - 4 plucky young upstarts are drawn together by an incredible series of events featuring flashing lights and loud noises.

NB - V.Cs - what does it mean exactly?
V - It means a tortured life for those that seek it's meaning.

NB - You play some kind of new wave surf. How did you come on idea to mix these 2 and which instruments do you use?
V - After aeons of head-scratching, this is the best we could come up with. We use Fender Jaguar, Telecaster and Musicmaster Bass; Korg MS-10, MS-20, MicroKorg, Jen SX-1000 synthesisers; Theremin, Vocoder, Human voice emulator.

NB - You released one 7". Can we expect more?
V - Several demos have been released including the Meteorica EP. Current plans are for a single release for track, Heaven & Hell, in the near future.

NB - UK surf band is not a very usual thing? New wave surf band even less usual (at least I know only 1 more) - are there more similar bands that you can recommend (UK or other)?
V - We fit in with the surf-Devo ethic. I suppose our sound could be considered New Wave or possibly Electro but I feel Sci-fi Synthi-surf is a more appropriate title! Any Man ...or Astro-man? is always worth a look. Check out Chuck (Sheffield, UK) for a great surf mess, The Treliks (London, UK) for a more new wave approach and listen to Add N To (X)'s back catalogue for some synth enthusiast joy!

NB - Tell me about yourself ... what you do expect for playing in V.Cs, things you like, things you hate...?
V - Great to meet people with similar tastes in music and who appreciate seeing bands like ourselves. Hate unfriendly promoters/bands and people who aren't in it for the right reasons.

NB - Your 5 favorite bands?
V - Pixies, Devo, Talking Heads, Man or Astro-man?, Add N To (X) - in no particular order.

NB - Can we expect you in Holland?
V - Hopefully we should be over in Holland in Feb 2006. Keep checking www.thevcs.com for listings.

NB - Anything you want to say to No Brains readers?
V - Hope to see you all in the new year! Lots of synthi-surf love, The V.Cs.