Not That Question Again!

Ten Questions For Kaika Kale.

1. What the heck is a Quahaug?
Ok, I sometimes forget that not everyone is from New England like myself. A Quahaug (kwah HOG) or (kwo HOG) is a hard shell clam native to the New England waters. The Quahaug takes its name from the Narragansett Native American word "poquauhock" (the word is similar in Wampanoag and some other Algonquin languages), and as New England tribes made valuable beads called wampum from the purple shells , the scientific names 'Venus Mercenaria' & 'Mercenaria Mercenaria' are related to the Latin word for "money".

2. What are your musical influences? In my younger years, I was a huge Who fan. I wanted to be Pete Townshend. However, in terms of my own guitar playing and songwriting, I was particularly influenced by the late Doug Hopkins of The Gin Blossoms. I lived in Tempe, AZ back in the late 80’s, on the eve of The Gin Blossoms success. I was fortunate to get to know Doug a little bit before his untimely death. He’s was a great player and songwriter. Other influences of mine are Billy Bragg, Johnny Marr, & Jimmy Page.

3. What’s in your iPod? I’m currently listening to a great new 2 piece band called The Cold Stares from Nashville. I can't get enough of them. They absolutely kill. Other favorites of mine are Stereophonics, Wolfmother, RadioHead, Better Than Ezra, and fellow New Englanders Martin Sexton and Spouse.

4. What’s the last concert you saw? The last two major concerts I saw were U2 in Boston on both the Vertigo & 360 tours. They are simply the best live stadium act in the world right now. Amazing shows and experience.

5. What’s your deserted island CD? Any of the first 4 albums by Zeppelin or U2's The Joshua Tree.

6. What’s your favorite Rock & Roll quote? ‘Pop music often tells you everything is OK, while rock music tells you that it's not OK, but you can change it. There's a defiance in rock music that gives you a reason to get out of bed in the morning. Most pop music doesn't make you want to get out of bed, I'm sorry to say. It puts you to sleep.' - Bono

7. How does one go from being a teacher to being in a Rock band? Being a teacher and a musician have some similarities. You need to be an entertainer in both cases. When individuals are having fun, it makes the learning easier. However, as a teacher, I had one distinct advantage over being a musician. I had a captive audience!

8. What's your favorite song off your first album Venus Mercenaria? I think I need to give a noncommittal answer and say that songs are like children. You have no favorites, but you love them all for different reasons.

9. Are you looking for a major record deal? No...there's no need these days. I can be creative and put out an album on my own any time I want. The real challenge for an Indie musician is finding ways to be seen and heard. I'm actually more interested in securing a publishing deal with a dynamic company that believes in and shares in my musical vision. That said, I'm always interested in talking to professionals in the industry who can possibly take my music to a higher level. That includes Major or Indie labels, publishers, managers, etc. If they're interested, I'd be happy to talk to them regarding the ways we could work together.

10. What's your favorite TV show? I can't say that I have one currently. It's all pretty mindless. However, growing up I use to love "Creature Double Feature" on channel 56 out of Boston. They would show two B-rated horror flicks back to back on Saturday mornings. I love this genre and remain a fan today. So much so, that I wrote a song called Mollusk Station that appears on my first album Venus Mercenaria. It pays homage to the B-rated horror movie.