The man named VICE COOLER, AKA purveyor of lounge-rap, no-fi electronica and unglamorous glamour HAWNAY TROOF, talks to JODY MACGREGOR, who then translates from his excitable txt-message-speak to English for the sake of the sensibilities of our gentler readers.

JODY MACGREGOR: What was your first ever gig like?

HAWNAY TROOF: The first two shows that I ever attended were in the same month – I  saw This Bike Is A Pipe Bomb play at an Elk’s Lodge in Mobile, Alabama and then a few days later saw Unwound, Deerhoof and The PeeChees play together at a Jaycees Hall in Biloxi, Mississippi. These shows had a profound effect on me emotionally, and ironically I would go on to tour with three out of four of those bands. But I toured with Molly Neuman (from the PeeChees) other band Bratmobile, so you could sorta say all four.

The first show I ever played was [...] at a coffee shop in Mobile. It was a noise band that I was in. We covered Sonic Youth, Bikini Kill, Marilyn Manson and Nine Inch Nails. We played a few originals also. People moshed and it was a total disaster.

The first Hawnay Troof gig was at a show in Birmingham that me and my friend couldn’t afford to get into. We said fuck it and started a band. We played before the headliner beside Coke machines in the back. No one ever asked us why we were there

JM: What I’ve heard of Islands Of Ayle so far sounds quite different to your last album, Dollar & Deed. How so?
HT: New techniques. But the most noticeable thing is probably the composition change, added bass lines, and an overall more developed focus.
JM: Will Islands Of Ayle be another double album?
HT: Sort of... the first pressing in the U.S. and Europe comes with a limited-edition remix disc. But this is just a small portion of the copies. I wanted the album to not be as strenuous to listen to as D+D... more focused and shorter. Hopefully leave people wanting more [rather] than feeling burdened to listen to [it]! (Though I love D+D!)

JM: What should we expect from your live show?
HT: Hopefully crowd surfing.

JM: How has your current tour gone? Have you had any gear stolen this time?
HT: Nothing stolen... yet. We got towed and had to spend all of our money getting it back. It was impounded illegally and we ended up rolling into New York city with four dollars! There was also this really awesome crazy guy in Chapell Hill who had pissed himself and was running around being INSANE with a HUGE boner telling me that he wanted to ‘give my dick germs.’ He could also push his balls into his abdomen where you could see it... and said that his dick [was] full of beer and he wanted to ask the cops if they ‘wanted a beer’... also we have been through three hurricanes... We saw Houston flooded. There’s been a lotta fucked up weird shit actually...

JM: What volume should your music be heard at?
HT: Whatever volume is most comfortable!
JM: What is the secret truth of Hawnay Troof?
HT: I am in a town that has its own STD, ‘the raider rash.’

ISLANDS OF AYLE is available on Valve/MGM. HAWNAY TROOF will be playing at this year’s Parklife Festival alongside Dizzee Rascal, Peaches, Goldfrapp, Neon Neon, Blackalicious, Snob Scrilla and many more. www.myspace.com/hawnaytroof

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