I believe we’re being lied to every day.
The game: put it right in your face
Kill the people to spread fear
Deceive us for a thousand years
I believe we’re being lied to every day.

I believe religion is a tool of war
To control and bleed us dry is what it’s for
God’s in us all that’s understood
Ain’t no reason to spill more blood
I believe religion is a tool of war

The pain that hides down deep inside
The pain that hides down deep inside
All the thoughts runnin’ through my mind
Some are nice, some not so kind
The pain that hides down deep inside

Believe
Believe…

I believe justice can’t be bought
The deck is stacked in the favor of a privileged few
The truth alone should be sought
Justice for me and you
I believe justice can’t be bought

I believe we can make this paradise
Or living hell, truth be nice
Standing in your brothers shoes
Together we can’t lose
I believe we can make this a paradise

From the 2010 split EP between Wino and Scott Kelly on Volcom Entertainment.

Photograph by Johnny Hubbard

A Conversation With John Garcia

~By Lara Noel~

Let’s talk about your new album, “The Coyote Who Speaks in Tongues.” This album has moved me so much. I feel like I’m sitting in a living room just listening to you play. It’s so far removed from everything that you’ve done. Very touching.

Thank you for those very kind comments. I appreciate that. Lara, this record is not for everybody. I’ve gotten some comments and criticism about the different takes of “Gardenia” and “Green Machine.” It’s not for everyone, but Ehren Groban and I certainly enjoyed making this record. We had a blast. Half of the fun is turning these songs from one end of the spectrum into the complete opposite. That was the really enjoyable part, but it was challenging.

A lot of journalists today have asked me, “Well, why did you do it, is it because you’re getting older?” No, it’s not about getting older, it’s more about a challenge. I just wanted to do it. There’s no long, drawn out, Jim Morrisonesque, super philosophical answer. All the minor and major imperfections in this record – the breathing and the strings hitting the neck – it’s not perfect on purpose. That was our plight. We wanted to do something, like exactly what you said, in your living room. That’s what we did, we sat in his living room in Palm Springs and practiced this record. When we went on tour and played some songs acoustically, we had a couple drinks on the plane from Germany back to home and said, “Why don’t we just record this thing and release it?” It was totally unexpected, and that’s exactly what we did.

It’s not rocket science, it’s just balance.

I love that. As an artist, you have to continually push yourself. I can only imagine how challenging it was to be able to pull off the Kyuss songs acoustically. It’s so refreshing to hear them played this way. I have to say, when I heard “Gardenia” played acoustically, it brought me to tears.

That’s very kind, too kind. Thank you so much. Again, these are cover songs. Brant Bjork wrote “Green Machine” and “Gardenia.” Scott and Josh wrote “Space Cadet.” I just happened to play in the band and sang the original tracks. Some journalists will ask, “Well, why did you do it?” It’s because I wanted to revisit some of these songs. I think Ehren also played a tremendous amount of respect to these songs.

I am curious as to how you came to pick the tracks for this album?

Pretty much through trial and error. Some songs worked and others didn’t. We had about maybe 17-19 songs we were planning to do. Not all of them worked, but we’re used to that. Some songs lend themselves to acoustics and some just don’t. It was as simple as sitting down in his living room, like we were talking about earlier, going through the emotions and working them out. We were planning on doing some Hermano songs. We tried them out, but they didn’t work. Ehren and I had wrote a few songs for our upcoming record: “Kylie,” “Give Me 250ml,” “The Hollingsworth Session,” and a few other ones. You have four Kyuss songs, some live tracks, and a few new ones that were written specifically for the upcoming electric record and this acoustic record. So, essentially just trial and error and us having fun. That was the enjoyable part of working it out – song selection, how they lend themselves to acoustics, and then how they don’t. Simple stuff. No long, drawn out, philosophical answers, sorry. Just working it out and having fun.

This is a very personal album, not what a lot of people were expecting, but I think it speaks for itself very well. As for this upcoming record, you’re going back to electric. Can you tell us any more about the project?

Ehren and I are working on the electric record and close to being done. Hopefully, it’ll be released by the end of this year or the beginning of the next. I was hoping to have everything released last year, but between work, family, kids, this and that and everyone’s schedules, it’s tough. We’re focused on the electric record and taking it one step at a time.

There are going to be new songs, like “Kylie” and “Give Me 250ml” – the electric version and an acoustic version – along with some new tracks. We’re not going to have any Kyuss tracks on this sophomore record. They’re going to be all original and 99.99% all songs that Ehren, the band, and I wrote together. I expect it to be harder, faster, heavier, meaner, and better than the first electric record. I’m really looking forward to it.

Lara, I still enjoy playing. I still enjoy writing. All of my spare time is devoted to it. It’s hard when you have a full time job and two kids. I love my family more than anything in the world. Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a family guy. It’s tough trying to get the time to get into the studio, let alone record the thing. We’re working hard on this and hopefully it comes out beginning of next year, end of this year.

Between day jobs and family, it’s so hard. It’s remarkable that you can put this volume of work out. It’s not easy, especially as you get older. People question what you’re doing as an artist and whether it has to do anything with your age. I don’t think it has anything to with age. It’s just a progression of self.

Totally agreed, and you’re right, it is remarkable to be able to do the shit that we do: hold down a full-time job, be a father, be a husband, then trying to record on top of it, and achieve a balance. Hopefully having everything play out right, having enough steaks in the freezer, being happy with what I just got done creating with Ehren. I don’t claim to be any Jim Morrison, by any means. I just take it one day at a time.

My kid’s happiness is very important to me – my kid’s education is extremely important to me – as is my wife’s happiness and our overall well-being. Family life in and of itself is a very welcoming full-time job that I love to do. Trying to find that balance between, work, family, music, and keep everyone happy, including myself – you’re right, it’s tough. It’s a remarkable balance of power that you have to be able to do and manage. Sometimes I overthink these conversations, when all it’s simply that you have to be dad, be a husband, and keep yourself happy. It’s not rocket science, it’s just balance.

How do you find yourself creating that balance?

Lara, it’s a lot hard work, but you manage. It’s day-to-day life. You work hard at your day job and you want to do well at your career, you want to be a good dad, and this is just something they don’t teach you in high school. Either you’re into it or not into it. Either you’re a fucking bum and you don’t have that drive to get up and go to work and provide for your family, or you do have that drive. Again, they don’t teach you in high school how to be a dad, you either have it or you don’t. I’m fortunate enough to care about my family, care about my kids, care about their education. I’ve had a job since I was practically seven years old. I work for a living. That’s what I do. I’m not a full-time musician. As much as I’d like to be a full-time musician, I’m not. I help run an animal hospital alongside my wife in Palm Springs and we love our jobs.

Just let the song breathe.

It’s all about balance and the drive to have a good life, to just thrive, really. It’s not something I overthink. It’s who we are – not just me, but my wife. We just keep moving and grooving, rocking and rolling. We work hard, we play hard. That’s what we do, because it’s a necessity. Everybody’s different. Everyone’s kids learn differently. We get moms and dads who say, “Well, my kid did this at this age,” and so forth. That’s fine. Everyone has their own plight in life and we’re no different. It just so happens that I’m a normal dude, normal guy, with an extraordinary career – one, being able to work with animals, and two, talking to Lara on the other side of this line about something I helped create. I’m very lucky and blessed, to be quite honest.

It’s beautiful how devoted you are to your family. When you’re on the road and doing what you’re doing, how does that affect your family life?

Lara, it’s definitely hard. When I leave, Wendy is the true hero here. She’s the one behind the scenes that keeps everything moving and grooving. When I’m gone, she has to make lunches, drop the kids off at school, and go run the animal hospital, then come home and make dinners, do the showers, and the homework. She’s got the hard job. My job is easy. That’s the balance of her and my family allowing me to do this, and it has to make sense in every way. The finances have to make sense. Emotionally, it has to make sense. Physically, it has to make sense for these old bones to hop in a van and go tour Europe for two or three weeks and have it not take a toll. I miss her and she misses me, but she handles it in spectacular fashion. She’s tough and the real hero behind the scenes. She’s tough and she’s mean. I would not want to meet her in a dark alley, because she’s really a bad ass.

You know they say that behind every good man is a good woman.

That’s true. 100% true. In my case, there’s no doubt or question that she is the real deal. I’m extremely lucky to have her, as well as the kids. The kids are very unimpressed with what I do, which is totally cool. Wendy and I never forced anything down their throats when it came to music, sports, or anything. Whatever they’re into, we nurture that. If Madison wants to listen to Taylor Swift, I crank it up. If Marshall wants to run around the block 150 times because he needs to get his wiggles out, then he’s going to run around the block 150 times. We nurture every bit of it. It’s fun being a dad. We try to enjoy life to its fullest extent because that’s what you’re supposed to do.

You have to live everyday like it’s your last, because there are no certainties in life. I firmly believe in that.

Yeah, agreed 100%. Again Lara, I’m just really lucky to even be talking to you about some of this stuff. It’s a pleasure. It’s an honor. I never used to be this way, but I’m thankful to have the opportunity to talk about something I helped create with this acoustic record, and again, I have to give credit where credit is due. If you’d be so kind as to let your listeners and readers know about Ehren Groban, because he is a force to be reckoned with. He’s a great songwriter, great musician. He’s a little bit of a wild card, but that’s why we like him. He’s a great guy and super talented. Kind of an untapped diamond in the rough that we found here in the desert. He’s a bad-ass.

How did the two of you meet?

I was introduced to him by one of my producers, a guy by the name of Harper Hug. We sat down at this little bar called Melvyn’s in Palm Springs, had a beer and martini. I told him I was looking for a guitar player, and the rest is history. He’s actually a really sweet guy who will do anything for anybody, for me, and for my family. Literally, I can call him after I get off the phone with you and say, “I need some help,” and he will be here in thirty minutes. That’s the type of guy he is. He wants to work. He wants to be a musician. He wants to tour, no matter what. He’s a local dude. That’s what I wanted, someone local that I could work with, not somebody in Florida or New York. I wanted someone I could work with after work. He and I will get together in his rehearsal place in Palm Springs. We’ll sit down and have a vodka cranberry, shoot the shit for two hours, then start writing. Ehren’s laid back and will shoot the breeze with the best of them. Again, I don’t think he gets enough credit for what he does for me and the whole John Garcia band. Can’t talk highly enough about him.

I’m just a normal guy with an extraordinary career.

This album that you just put out, is this the first time you two have worked together on a project?

We worked together a little bit. He helped do the first electric record and that was kind of the beginning of the relationship. This one is basically him and I working very closely with one another and a direct product of our relationship. I expect our song writing process to continue to thrive, now and in the future.

It’s very evident on this album that you put out. You can feel that energy completely. Like we you said, it’s not for everybody, and it’s not perfect, but that’s what makes it so special.

That’s right. It’s not perfect on purpose – that was completely intentional. I could have sat in the studio for another six months and gotten rid of all the noisy picks and hum bars, all the major and minor imperfections. I didn’t want to do that. I didn’t have the time to do that. I didn’t have the finances for that. We went in and – boom – knocked it out last summer in Palm Springs. I love it for that. I absolutely love it for that.

It’s a comforting album and, again, so personal. The acoustic deconstruction of the songs we’re so used to hearing plugged-in is fascinating and beautiful. I’m curious as to whether you wanted them to sound this way originally?

Not really. I didn’t know how “Green Machine” was going to turn out. I had no idea “Gardenia” was going to turn out this way. No idea “Kylie” was going to turn out the way that it turned out. That’s the beauty about going into the studio. Intentional things you want to project and hear don’t always turn out the way you want them to. Sometimes songs that you think aren’t going to come out well end up coming out better than expected. That’s what I love about being in the studio and having the red light on, recording—go. Well, how is this going to sound?

We had three guitars, so we kept it very simple. We had a six-string steel, a twelve-string steel, and a six-string nylon, that’s it. We had some percussion in there with Greg Saenz. We had Mike Pygmie doing some bass, and an incredible keyboard player who came in and knocked it out of the park, guy by the name of Ronnie King – a desert local, a desert legend, really. Everybody wanted to be involved in this project, everybody wanted to be there. It wasn’t like I had to force anybody or pay them and say, “Hey do me a favor and do this.” They all wanted to be a part of this project. I’m very lucky to have a crew like that. They surprise me.

No long, drawn out, philosophical anwsers.
Just working it out and having fun.

To answer your question, we had our vision. The vision was: keep it simple. Do not overplay these. Let’s keep it simple and minimize everything. Pull the reigns back, including me. Don’t fill up the song with vocals. Don’t fill them up, just don’t do it. You’re going to ruin the song. Just let the song breathe. Let’s let that solo play out a long time. It’s supposed to stop here, but let’s do it one more time. Let’s let the music breathe and speak for itself. That was our plight. Ehren was a part of that. I was lucky enough to have these guys be a part of this vision that Ehren and I shared. We were lucky to have Steve Feldman work at the desk. Robbie Waldman oversees everything and is executive producer for all of this, as well as a performer. This was really cool and I had such an awesome time doing it. This past summer, my son was in there, my daughter was in there. There was a beautiful pool and Jacuzzi at the studio. Robbie Waldman had a beautiful place.

Since then, Lara, the studio is shut down, believe it or not. This was the last record that was done at that studio. When that studio opened up, Chris Goss from Masters of Reality, who is now one of the producers for The Cult, opened that studio. I was the first person to play in the vocal booth of that studio, and now, become the last person to sing in that studio. What an amazing space that place was. Now it’s for rent. It’s a bit emotional for me, because I loved that place so much. Ian Astbury did his solo record there called ‘Spirit Like Speed’ and the bands The Flys, Queens of the Stone Age, Fu Manchu – so many bands that have done so much in that studio. I was the first and the last to sing in the place. Again, very emotional for me but I’m happy the record came out the way that it did. Just a really cool experience to be a part of that at Unit-A Recording Studio in Palm Springs.

That’s pretty incredible. Just hearing that makes the album all the more special.

Yeah, I dig it. Again, it’s emotional. I talked to Robbie Waldma when he came by the clinic the other day with his cat, and we were shooting the breeze. It’s just a bummer for me. If I had enough bread myself, I’d open that place back up again. It’s just a shame, but life goes on. We’re probably going to be recording in a studio in the desert. I’ve yet to find out exactly where, but we’re working on it.

Any tours coming up before you’re done recording the new album?

Ehren and I are going to go over to Europe in March, just him and I for an acoustic run for a couple weeks. Then in April, the whole band is going to go over to Europe and test out some new material, try it out, and get our sea legs back a little bit. When we get back, we’re hitting the studio in the summer of this year and recording the record. Then come June, Slo Burn is going to do a few shows, just for shits and giggles. We’re going to go over there, play a couple shows and have fun. Just three tours for this year. Maybe hit the studio this summer, but besides that, just enjoy life. So it’s all coming up quickly. Ehren and I are getting together again very soon to start rehearsing for the acoustic tour and then Slo Burn will get ready for that little run. So just moving and grooving and rocking and rolling with nothing else planned.

Well we wish you’d come up the West Coast so we can see you.

It would be nice to tour the United States. I’d love to be able to tour the United States but unfortunately it takes a toll where now I have to pay to play in the United States. Lara, it has to make sense in every single way. A lot of musicians will shy away from talking about finances. Twenty years ago when I was single and didn’t have a care in the world, I could do these things, but when you have two kids and a wife, a house and this and that, send your kids to college, you just can’t take off and bail. Unfortunately, the United States doesn’t make sense financially for me to be able to perform.   Over in Europe it does make a little more sense. I’m not saying I’m making a million dollars by doing these tours, nor have I quit my day job by any means, but it makes more sense to go over and tour Europe. I’d love nothing more than to do a West Coast tour, and maybe in the future I might be able to do it. In the meantime, we’ll just be here in the desert, taking it from there.

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