May 2018

Name: Brendan Krick

Website: www.brendankrick.com

Socials: Twitter

Why We’re Laughing: An everyman with a set that is as relatable as it is funny, Krick’s bits place the audience in the driver’s seat of the impending punchline to be, albeit with a slightly harder R rating than how most of us are probably used to living our lives.

TrunkSpace: Was comedy always in the cards? Were you a “funny” kid, even at an early age?
Krick: My parents would describe me less as a “funny” kid and more as having a “learning disability.” I made funny videos for the morning news as a teenager and wrote comedy sketches for the school talent show. Stand-up grew out of that.

TrunkSpace: When did you decide to pursue stand-up comedy as a career and did you make a plan for how you would attack things?
Krick: I realized stand-up was something anybody could attempt when I saw the movie “Funny People.” I found an open mic in Harrisburg, PA, then wasted four years performing about once a week with no plan. Once I moved to Philadelphia, I got more motivated and two years later I moved to LA.

TrunkSpace: How long did it take for you to discover your voice as a comic?
Krick: I’m definitely still finding it. I’m constantly throwing out old material and re-evaluating what kind of comic I am. (A good one, please book me.)

TrunkSpace: Is the approach you take now on stage different from the approach you took when you first started out? Is it one act that grew into itself or would you consider them two completely different acts?
Krick: When I started I would just kind of say a weird non sequitur to shock people. Now, I don’t want to shock people. I want people on board for whatever weird or dark thing is about to happen.

TrunkSpace: Is the neon “Open” sign in your brain always turned on, and by that we mean, are you always writing and on alert for new material?
Krick: I tweet a lot, so that helps stimulate my brain into a joke-writing space. Writing for The Hard Times has helped me feel comfortable forcing out rough material to polish later. I can produce on-demand reliably but there’s a lot of editing involved.

TrunkSpace: How much work goes into a joke before it’s ready to be tested out in front of a live audience?
Krick: Almost none. I won’t do new jokes for a paying crowd, but if I’m at an open mic I like to write on stage. If I spend too much time working out an idea in a notebook, I tend to spoil it.

TrunkSpace: If a joke doesn’t seem to be working, how many chances do you give it in a live setting before you decide to rework it or move on from it altogether?
Krick: Two or three times. If I can’t make the bit work after adding more context or framing it in a different way, I’ll drop it and pick it up again in a couple months. I have some bits I do all the time now that I had previously given up on.

TrunkSpace: Is it possible to kill one night and bomb the next with essentially the same set, and if so, what do you chalk that up as?
Krick: Definitely. This happened to me at a contest in Philadelphia. I advanced at the quarter finals with a dirty set. At the semi-finals, the crowd was not responding to dirty material and I failed to adapt to their response. To quote Bill Hicks, “There aren’t any bad crowds, just wrong choices.”

TrunkSpace: Does a receptive and willing audience fuel your fire of funny and help to put you on your game for the rest of your set?
Krick: If an audience is really feeling me, I’ll get excited and lean harder into my delivery. I can’t decide if that’s good or bad. Probably goes back to finding my voice.

TrunkSpace: What is your most memorable performance experience (good or bad!) that will stick with you for the rest of your career and why?
Krick: Last summer, I was going through a weird time in my life and I walked from one venue to another listening to “The Marshall Mathers LP” and I somehow wound up crying a little bit (very cool). I had the set of my life, and for that I will always thank Eminem, my spiritual king.

TrunkSpace: How do you handle hecklers? What approach do you take?
Krick: Hecklers want to be a part of the show, and I don’t like letting them. An epic heckler takedown will still give them that moment and possibly encourage them to keep interrupting.

TrunkSpace: What are your thoughts on the stand-up landscape in 2018? Are you optimistic for the future of live comedy?
Krick: I don’t like thinking about the stand-up landscape. I’m funnier than I was a year ago. That’s the only part of this I can control. Everyone who’s getting opportunities deserves them, and all the comedy coming out right now is great. I’m very agreeable. Please book me.

TrunkSpace: Finally, who do YOU find funny?
Krick: Shane Gillis. Look up Matt & Shane’s Secret Podcast.

In our ongoing feature Between the Sheets, TrunkSpace picks the imaginative brains of authors to break down what it takes to create the various worlds and characters they breathe life into via the tools of their trade… sheets of paper. While technology continues to advance and change the pop culture landscape, the written word has remained one of the most consistent and imaginative art forms.

This time out we’re chatting with author Erin Duffy about her new novel “Regrets Only,” why her husband may need to be concerned about character comparisons, and the reason no one should ever adopt her method of writing.

TrunkSpace: As you gear up for the release of “Regrets Only,” what emotions are you juggling with? Is it difficult putting so much of yourself into something and then releasing it into the world?
Duffy: I’m so excited that “Regrets Only” is about to be released! I love this book so much and can’t believe it’s almost pub day! I will say, as happy as I am, I’m also really nervous and mildly terrified. I put a lot of myself into everything I write, and people who know me well will be able to recognize certain attributes in Claire that they know are true to me. It’s very personal in a way, and that’s more than a little unnerving. Actually, now that I think about it, it’s my husband who really should be worried, because if people think that Claire’s husband, Owen, is modeled after him, he’s about to start getting an awful lot of hate mail. Oops.

TrunkSpace: Where did the core concept for “Regrets Only” originate from and what approach did you take to bringing it all together? There are plenty of heavy moments, but at the same time, lots of humor to take the reader on a journey. Was that humor element always present, even from the start?
Duffy: It totally was! Actually, I was about to move from New York City to the suburbs myself, and I was having a hard time accepting that an entire phase of my life was over, and that I was going to have to deal with a house and a car and a mortgage and a lawn and trees and all the stuff that comes with the transition to suburbia. It terrified me, and after one particularly irrational freak out, my husband very calmly said, “What’s the big deal? If you don’t like it, we’ll leave.” And that made me wonder: what if you couldn’t? What would it be like to move somewhere you didn’t want to be, and then become stuck there for one reason or another. That’s where the idea of this book originated. Like most things in life though, I think even bad times are best handled with a good dose of laughter, and let’s be serious, you can often find nuggets of hilarity in tumult. I wanted the reader to feel badly for Claire, but I always wanted them to laugh along with her at the absurdity of her life.

TrunkSpace: When you were putting together the book, did you have a particular reader base in mind, and once you concluded, did you feel that tonally you hit the mark for your desired audience? Is that always a balancing act… finding and reflecting a particular tone throughout the course of an entire novel?
Duffy: This book is interesting because on some level, there had to be a target audience, right? Women who themselves have young families that govern their new lives will totally get Claire and the neuroses she’s battling, but as the book came together I realized that it really speaks to all women no matter what their stage of life. Claire reflects on the choices she made along the way and struggles with the fact that she gave a lot of herself away without stopping to think about the consequences, and that’s something that I think everyone can relate to. “Regrets Only” explores how women define themselves – married, divorced, single, working, non-working, etc., so I think there’s something in this story for everyone.

TrunkSpace: In a way, is suburbia a bit of the “villain” of the book?
Duffy: That is such a great question. In a way, for Claire, it is. City life affords you a certain amount of freedom and anonymity, and you lose both of those things in the suburbs. Small towns are great, unless you are an outsider, in which case they can be pretty scary. But life has a way of making decisions for you sometimes, and that was certainly true in her case. More than anything, suburbia represents a right of passage for Claire and for a lot of women, and that comes with a good amount of conflicting emotions. Some handle the transition more gracefully than others, and Claire, well, she struggles a little. No, a lot!

TrunkSpace: As you look back at the work, what are you most proud of when it comes to “Regrets Only?”
Duffy: I didn’t intend for there to be a feminist angle to “Regrets Only” when I started writing it, but I realized that it really does delve into the pressures that women put on themselves to be the perfect mom, the perfect wife, the perfect professional, and how we need to let all of that go. It’s okay to make choices and prioritize yourself sometimes. A lot of the women in the book struggle with how to define themselves. I’m very proud that I was able to explore that topic while still keeping the humor and the style that my readers enjoy.

TrunkSpace: Prior to pursuing a career as an author, you worked on Wall Street, which inspired your first novel, “Bond Girl.” Do any aspects of your previous career, even within the characters themselves, show up in “Regrets Only?”
Duffy: Claire is certainly an over the top personality, and that’s something that carries over from my previous career. One of the best things about Wall Street is that there are really outrageous characters, and I think I borrow traits from people I used to work with without even realizing it.

TrunkSpace: How long did it take for you to discover your voice as a writer?
Duffy: Honestly, that happened pretty quickly. I’m pretty true to myself in that regard, because I think it helps to distinguish my books from many others. I like snark, and humor, and wit, and I try to imbibe my characters with those qualities as much as possible. That’s what comes naturally to me, and it seems to be what people respond to as well, so I’m not looking to change it!

TrunkSpace: Regarding the process, is writing a labor of love for you or does it feel more like labor? Do you enjoy the process?
Duffy: I really do enjoy the process. It’s fun putting words in someone’s mouth. It’s therapy in a way. Claire has problems with impulse control. A lot of the time she says and does things that I wish I would do if I was in her shoes, but would likely never have the nerve. I like taking some time away from my normal life to create someone else’s. That said, there are days where it is complete and utter torture. There is nothing worse than making time to write and sitting down and discovering that you have nothing interesting to say, but it happens. Those days are awful. The goal is to make sure there are more good days than bad ones, and in this case there definitely were.

TrunkSpace: And what does that process look like? What are the ideal conditions for putting in a good day of writing?
Duffy: The ideal conditions would probably involve an entire day spent in a quiet, enormous office with a soft leather chair, a zen garden, aromatherapy candles, and Enya playing softly in the background. Unfortunately, I have three small kids and next to zero free time, so my writing process is absolutely nothing like that. It’s ugly – so, so ugly. I wrote most of “Regrets Only” in the middle of the night at my kitchen counter while wearing pajamas and slugging stale coffee left over from the previous morning until some child started screaming and forced me to stop. Some days were better than others. Let me be clear: absolutely no one should write the way I do. It’s almost offensive to the profession. But, for reasons that I can’t even begin to understand, it seems to work for me, so I’m sticking with it.

TrunkSpace: Do you self-edit as you write?
Duffy: I definitely self-edit. I will go through two or three complete drafts myself before I ever show it to anyone. You have to be able to read your own work and be honest with yourself when it just isn’t good. I have tossed entire chapters and rewritten them from scratch. I’ve added characters, removed characters, moved the back to the front and the front to the back in order to get the story just right. I’d bet that most writers self-edit. Let me know if you ask anyone else!

TrunkSpace: Where are you the hardest on yourself as a writer?
Duffy: Everywhere. I constantly think my plots should be more complicated, my characters should be more three-dimensional, my vocabulary should be broader, you name it, I critique it. I read a lot, and am constantly amazed at what some other writers are able to accomplish. Every time I start a book my end goal is for my process to become smoother, and to end with something that I’m proud of. I can honestly say that I am very proud of this book.

TrunkSpace: What are you working on now and what will people be able to read next?
Duffy: I’m working on another novel now about a group of women who find their lives intertwined in the most surprising way. The main character has a family secret that eventually turns her life upside down. It’s called “With Friends Like These.” I’ll keep you posted!

“Regrets Only” is available today from William Morrow.

In recent years, the ‘80s have become trendy again as the decade enjoys another resurgence in pop culture, appearing in everything from television shows (“Stranger Things”) to games (“Tales from the Loop”). While some people are just now getting on the nostalgic bandwagon, MGT has been delving deep into goth rock for years, a genre originally made popular by bands like The Cure. MGT takes that classic sound that is so intriguing and haunting, and then they put their own modern and artistic synth spin on it to create something that is new and refreshing, and yet somehow familiar.

We recently sat down for a chat with Mark Gemini Thwaite and Ashton Nyte, two halves of the group, to discuss their latest collaborative album, “Gemini Nyte,” available now from Cleopatra Records. The duo shares what it’s like to work with The Cure founding member Lol Tolhurst, their process in bringing an album to life, and why their cover of the Stone Temple Pilots’ original “Atlanta” was the perfect exclamation point to round out the record.

TrunkSpace: A lot of times albums organically come together after a gestational period. Other times they can manifest manically and quickly. How did “Gemini Nyte” come together for you? And how did the creation of the album compare to “Volumes?”
Thwaite: Ashton and I first started collaborating on my first album “Volumes,” which featured a number of different guest vocalists. Ashton and I really clicked musically… once we had quickly written “The Reaping” and “Jesamine” for that first MGT album, I kept sending Ashton more demos to sing on and he kept sending back these fantastic completed vocals and melodies. It was obvious within two or three months that we would quickly have a whole album’s worth of material to put out so we left “Reaping” and “Jesamine” on the “Volumes” album and started stockpiling songs for a brand new album, “Gemini Nyte.”
Nyte: Yes, it was all rather fluid and organic experience. We had the bulk of “Gemini Nyte” written before “Volumes” was even released.

TrunkSpace: For us, listening to “Gemini Nyte” felt like a journey with a beginning, middle and end, much like a good book or movie. Was that something you set out to do? What sort of process do you use to select your song arrangement with a new album?
Thwaite: With “Gemini Nyte” we had two thirds of the new album demoed by the end of 2015 – this was still six months before the “Volumes” album was even released. We slowed down a bit then as the label advised us they would be promoting the “Volumes” CD first, so we realized we would have to sit on the new material for a while. So we kept writing and slowly added more songs, and this allowed us a luxury of time to determine the sequence of the album, but also what the album may benefit from sonically and dynamically. It was great to finally hear the whole body of work all sequenced and mastered. It has some quality songwriting that we’re very proud of. We wanted the album to be a journey and listening experience.
Nyte: I think the songs pretty much dictate the arrangements. Some started as fully fledged instrumentals, that I would write lyrics and vocal melodies for. As is, some took a little re-arranging to fully realize the vocal or lyrical direction the song was taking and others evolved out of simple acoustic demos. We just keep chipping away until it feels right.

TrunkSpace: Where do you find the inspiration and material for your songs? Is it more introspective and internalized? Or is it something you draw more from outside sources?
Thwaite: Usually I demo some riffs and chord changes, often full arrangements with drums, bass, guitars, synths etc. – verses, choruses etc. I then send those demos to Ashton and he formulates some vocal melodies and ideas. Ashton lives in Missouri, myself in California – 2,000 miles apart – so we pretty much work long distance with file sharing. Usually it starts with the music demo. As for influences, they are vast and varies. Usually from a musical point of view, I come up with a riff or chord change on an acoustic guitar and take it from there. Often the end result will be vastly different from the original acoustic idea. For example, “Everything Undone” started life as an almost Mission-style strumming riff which I then added drums and synth lines to, and then a bridge and then a heavy chorus, and it now has more in common with Nine Inch Nails than the Mission, but Nine Inch Nails were also an influence so it all goes into the melting pot!
Nyte: On this album I tend to respond lyrically to an atmosphere Mark has created instrumentally. There is a dystopian theme of sorts running through much of the album. It is difficult to not write about the state we find the world in these days.

TrunkSpace: Lol Tolhurst, founding member of The Cure, provided a special remix of your song, “All The Broken Things.” What is the remix experience like? Did you work directly with Tolhurst? Or is it more like, you give him the song, and you get the remix back to be unwrapped and listened to like a present?
Thwaite: Lol and I actually live quite near each other in Los Angeles, so we could have collaborated on the Broken Things remix, but as is often the case with remixes, I left Lol to it and he worked with his studio engineer to come up with his unique take on the mix, adding his distinct keyboard synth melodies and beats. I didn’t want to influence it in any way – just see what he brought to the song. What we did collaborate on was his keyboard additions to “The Assembly Line” on the special edition single release. I went around to Lol’s place and we discussed the best approach, but left him a blank canvas for both Lol and Pearl (Porl) Thompson to work with.

TrunkSpace: You put so much of yourself into the creation of an album. Are you holding your breath once the album is released? Or is it a huge relief, and you’re just ready to get on the road and share the music at live venues?
Thwaite: Personally I find it a relief once the album is completed, sequenced and mastered. I enjoy the writing and recording process, but once you commit to releasing something, it usually involves a deadline and release date, and in our case a record label, so then the pressure is on. Once we can sit back and listen to the body of work as a whole, it’s definitely a relief and a fantastic experience to hear it all together. And then to get to perform the songs live to an audience is also a wonderful thing.
Nyte: Yes, especially considering that this album was essentially written and recorded some time ago, it is liberating to have it out in the world.

TrunkSpace: Do you prefer playing live to the nuts and bolts of creating an album? Do you find one more enjoyable than the other?
Thwaite: I enjoy both studio work and live work in equal measure. The studio recording process is great, particularly as we both have our own studios to work in. We can be very creative and take our time to get it right, no studio clock ticking. But on the flip side, I also love performing live and when you get the synergy of a great band and that connection with a receptive audience, it’s amazing. I start to miss touring and performing live if I’m stuck in the studio too long.
Nyte: I agree. I’ve always seen them as two halves of the same puzzle. I’m seldom satisfied with one without the other. The engagement and interaction of the live environment certainly completes the circle. This is also an album best enjoyed at a rather high volume, so concerts check that box and provide the cathartic release.

TrunkSpace: As fellow STP and Scott Weiland fans, we were really excited to see the “Atlanta” track on “Gemini Nyte.” Art often inspires art. Can you tell us a bit about how STP and Weiland have impacted your work and why you specifically chose “Atlanta” to cover?
Nyte: We were both moved by Scott Weiland’s passing and I reached out to Mark to do a version of my favorite STP song, “Atlanta.” I had originally intended to put it out as a solo single, paying homage to Scott. Once Mark started adding various bits and pieces, I knew it had to be a Gemini Nyte song. I can only hope that our love for Scott and STP’s work comes through on our rendition of this exquisite song.
Thwaite: I’ve been a fan of STP for many years, and their material has stood the test of time in our opinion. The guitar work of Dean DeLeo is always inventive and inspiring – I hear a lot of Jimmy Page in his writing and playing, and I’m a huge Zeppelin fan. The whole band are masters at their craft and in Weiland they had the perfect chameleon frontman, incredible singer. It was an honor to pay our own little tribute to the band and the man.

TrunkSpace: “Atlanta” was also the last track on the STP album “No. 4,” and you chose to end your album with the song as well. What was it about the song that felt like the perfect way to end “Gemini Nyte?”
Thwaite: As soon as I finished mixing the track, I said to Ashton, “That has to be the album closer.” Pretty hard to beat, very sober and introspective. I wasn’t that familiar with the original version on “No. 4” when Ashton suggested it, but yeah, that song also closes their album. I guess great minds think alike!
Nyte: It is a beautiful song and deserves to be savored. It had to be the album closer.

“Gemini Nyte” is available now from Cleopatra Records.

Years ago, Bob Ross captured the world’s imagination by creating works of art right before our eyes. It was like watching a magician. With a stroke of a brush he magically formed a “happy tree” or a “little friend,” and it was amazing… BUT, imagine if he had done that using nothing but his lips instead of a paintbrush. Well, that’s exactly what artist and creative thinker Natalie Irish is doing, but she isn’t painting landscapes. Natalie is producing incredible life-like portraits armed with nothing but a blank canvas and lipstick.

We recently sat down with Irish to discuss her lip-bitingly incredible work, chatting it up with Conan O’Brien, and why she’s so passionate about educating people on Type 1 diabetes.

TrunkSpace: When we saw your portrait paintings, we were super impressed to say the least. When we found out those paintings were done using just your lips, our minds were completely blown! Can you tell us how you came up with the idea to paint just using your lips?
Irish: I’ve always loved trying new mediums. In high school I learned about Chuck Close and tried his fingerprint technique. So, in 2001 I blotted my lipstick on a tissue one day, and when I saw the lip print I thought that it could be used in a similar technique. It’s all in the spirit of pointillism. Then the experimenting began. What kind of lipstick works best? What kind of surface? How do I make different shapes and shades? No one else had done it before, so I had to figure it all out, which was and still is exciting. I am still finding out different things I can do with the medium after working in it for 17 years.?

TrunkSpace: With your lips as the paintbrush, you must be up close and personal with the canvas much of the time. Do you have to step back often to take it all in or make adjustments? And, can you give us an overall idea how your whole creative process comes together when you’re working in this lip-centric style?
Irish: My eyes usually become fatigued way before my lips start hurting. I have to step back and look at the entire canvas, find the spot I want to make the next mark, and then get so close that I can’t actually see where my lips are touching the canvas. I’ve had a lot of practice with my aim, but it still hurts my eyes. I have special made bifocals that help reduce the strain on my eyes, but I still have to work in short sessions. There are a lot of things like that and weird techniques and problem solving that has come along with painting with my lips. I feel that because I have studied art my whole life it makes it easier, especially in the beginning. I use the same basic principles that you would use in any medium: balance, shading, proportion, etc. Because I knew how to create a portrait with pencils, charcoals, paints and brushes, when I went to try it with my lips I was able to focus on how to do things I already knew, but with a different “brush.”?

TrunkSpace: What do you use to create your color palette? Is it all lipstick? Or is it paint? Or maybe a combo of both?
Irish: It’s all lipstick. I have no desire to put actual paint on my lips! Also, I don’t think you could get the same texture with anything but a cream-based lipstick.

TrunkSpace: You were a guest on the Conan O’Brien show, and you got to share your artwork with the entire Coco nation. What was that experience like? And did that open any creative doors for you?
Irish: It was great. I’ve always been a Conan fan. They shipped a lot of my artwork out to California to be featured on the show and everyone was so nice. They wanted to purchase the portrait I painted of Conan to have for their green room. I asked that they make a donation to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation instead and the painting is still in their green room to this day. It was great to talk about my work on the show, but the feedback from the diabetes community really was incredible. I have been on an insulin pump for 17 years and was able to show it and talk about it on the show. Tons of people reached out to tell me how much they enjoyed it or how much their kids with Type 1 were so excited to see a pump like theirs on TV. It was quite overwhelming. My website even shut down from all the traffic, wasn’t ready for that!

TrunkSpace: Can you tell us more about your work to bring awareness to Type 1 diabetes?
Irish: I love to talk to people about Type 1 Diabetes because education is so important. It’s a very misunderstood disease. I talk to kids with Type 1 every chance I get. I have blue hair and tattoos and wear “Star Wars” t-shirts, so I don’t look like most of the “adults’ that come and talk to them. Most people with a chronic illness are told that they may have to work a little harder to make it happen, but you can still be or do anything. I tell them that I’m living proof of that – I made up my own job! I’ve had the opportunity to be a guest at many conferences and walks and fundraisers all over the country. It’s always been a goal for me, that one day I could use my artwork to maybe make some kind of a difference and raise awareness to things that are important to me. I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon either. The main message I would like to get out to folks with or without this disease in their lives would be, very simply, do some research. Find out exactly what Type 1 Diabetes is. Then you can see for yourself that insulin is not a cure and the need to continue with fundraising and advocacy is very great. Not to mention we need to tell people what the signs of diabetes are. More and more people are developing type 2 diabetes because they’re not understand diabetes at all. During my time educating people, I have met many wonderful men and women who are suffering and their stories can certainly help others. Foot health is a major concern with anyone suffering from diabetes and not many people know that. If it wasn’t for a guy a met a few years back telling me about diabetic socks for men on sites like wholesalediabeticsocks.com, I wouldn’t be able to share that with anyone as I wouldn’t know. Who knows how many people that information could help!

TrunkSpace: Listed under your past work you have a number of VIPs and interesting clients, but one that really peaked our interest was “Ripley’s Believe it or Not.” What sort of work did you get to create for this collector of curiosities?
Irish: Originally, Ripley’s commissioned a portrait of Kate Middleton, which is in their museum in Piccadilly, London. Later they purchased a piece I had created of Elizabeth Taylor, shortly after her death. That one is either in Florida or Dallas… not sure! They sent me a Christmas card one year with a photo of the lady with super long fingernails on it. Best Christmas card I’ve ever received!

TrunkSpace: You teamed up with Urban Decay for the “Revolution Lipstick Launch.” This sounds like the best partnership since wine and cheese! What was it like working with Urban Decay, and did you get to create any special works of art for the event using the line of lipstick?
Irish: Oh my, working with Urban Decay was a dream! I have traveled all over the world working with all kinds of cool companies and clients – Avon Brazil and Chile, Magnum Ice Cream in Budapest, Cirque du Soleil in Vegas, and Covergirl at an MTV VMA party, to name a few. But Urban Decay, that was indeed a perfect fit. I’ve always loved their products and brand and have used their lipsticks to paint with since I first started. They contacted me and wanted to have me and my work be a part of their new Revolution lipstick launch in Sephora in Times Square. I created a total of 12 pieces, most of which were exhibited at the “Kisshibition” Event. I also worked on a painting live throughout the party. It usually takes 2 to 3 weeks to complete a piece, so when I do I live painting I bring something that is almost completed to finish at the event. We also teamed up with the Art of Elysium for the event. They auctioned off most of the paintings for charity after the launch. The founder, Wende Zomnir, is such a cool chick and we had a blast working together, we even went to the same college, University of North Texas! UD has always had a fun, colorful approach to cosmetics and I believe that makeup should be just that, FUN! And their lipsticks are so great to paint with. While I use many different lipsticks when I paint, I think the most frequently used lip colors in my paintings are Urban Decay, stage makeup (Ben Nye and Mehron), and formulas that I have made. And they have never paid me to say that. (Laughter)

TrunkSpace: You’ve accomplished so much in the art world using nothing but your lips. What’s next for you? Do you have any upcoming exhibitions or partnerships we should keep a look out for?
Irish: I have lots of projects I’m working on. I am currently working on perfecting the formula for my own lipstick line, which I am super excited about. As for lip painting, I still have new things that I want to do with it and am currently working on a series for a gallery show. (Details coming soon!) These newer pieces are focusing on beauty treatments, all the things we do to alter our appearance. I’m really enjoying working on them. I also am always working in other mediums. I studied Metalsmithing and Ceramics at university and I was always told that I needed to pick one medium and stick with it. But, I don’t work like that. I think art breeds more art. I can be throwing pottery and get an idea for something I want to sew and then get inspiration for an oil painting from a piece of jewelry I’m making. I can’t even watch television without knitting or doing something with my hands. I hope to start showing more of my different mediums in the future. One common theme that has made itself apparent in my many different mediums is that I like to use things in ways that they aren’t intended. Working with different mediums helps facilitate that too. I love to use sewing and textile techniques with metal and using plastics for sewing and knitting. It’s about looking at things differently, like seeing lipstick as a tube of paint and my mouth as a brush.

For more information on Irish, visit here.

For more information on the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, visit here.

Spending more than a decade in New Orleans, a city known for being a rich musical melting pop of genres and styles, gave singer/songwriter Luke Winslow-King a new perspective on his relationship with his audience. The Big Easy’s communal creative scene scene instilled in him the responsibility of an artist to be entertaining, authenticate and original, three qualities that are instantly apparent when listening to his latest album, “Blue Mesa,” due May 11 from Bloodshot Records.

We recently sat down with Winslow-King to discuss the importance of artistic exploration, why he feels more confident in his craft than ever before, and the reason he hopes others will find a meaningful message in the songs that have impacted his own life.

TrunkSpace: You recently moved back to Cadillac, MI after spending more than a decade in New Orleans. New Orleans is the kind of city than can leave its mark on people. Where has the city influenced your music and creative POV the most?
Winslow-King: I would say New Orleans has influenced my music a lot with the style, flair, and swagger that the culture there has to offer. I was really fortunate to learn from and play with some of the greats there including: John Boutte, Little Freddy King, Washboard Chaz, and Roberto Luti. You do gather an interesting artist’s perspective performing in New Orleans. Music becomes something that is shared within the community. Something that’s free, that’s in the air. I feel living in New Orleans gave me a sense of responsibility towards my audience. To be entertaining, authentic, and original.

TrunkSpace: Your new album “Blue Mesa” is a really beautiful blend of so many various genres. So often we hear about actors not wanting to get pigeonholed into any one genre of film or television, but can the same be said for a songwriter? Is it important for you to be able to write from a space of creative diversity?
Winslow-King: Yes, for me personally it’s very important to have the freedom to explore different genres, sounds, and traditions. Over my career I’ve been careful to not get pigeonholed as any one kind of artist, but also not to be known for being a “mixed bag” artist who doesn’t know the depths of any one tradition. I feel like all of the sounds explored on the album are ones that I’ve lived with. I feel justified in my abilities to perform within them.

TrunkSpace: What do you think “Blue Mesa” says about you as an artist and do you believe that it’s reflective of a continuous journey of discovering your voice as a songwriter?
Winslow-King: It’s definitely a stop along the way in my journey as an artist. I am continually exploring and discovering my voice as a singer and songwriter. I feel that “Blue Mesa” is definitely an arrival at a new height. I feel more confident in my writing and singing than I ever have before. I feel like my band is hitting on all cylinders and supporting the songs better than ever as well. I’m proud of it and am looking forward to seeing how audiences respond to the entire album.

TrunkSpace: If you could sit down and have a conversation with your 16-year-old self, would he be happy with the artist you have become today? Would he be surprised?
Winslow-King: I think so. The music I’m playing now is surprisingly similar to the music I was making when I was 16. I’ve gone on different tangents in my musical life exploring jazz, folk, dixieland and songwriting. Now I have come full circle in away. I was performing at clubs, festivals, and talent shows with the Winslow-King Blues Band in the mid to late ’90s playing blues rock covers. The only difference is that now I’m performing all original songs and have a lot more experience behind me. At that age, I just was excited about performing. I didn’t have aspirations of being a career musician. I think if 16-year-old me could see me now, he would be pleasantly surprised and excited. In the same way, I’m looking forward and encouraging 50-year-old me down the path.

TrunkSpace: The process of recording the album was a bit of a worldwide adventure. How important was that to you in making sure that the vibe and focus of the album supported the vision you had for it? Would the album have been the same had you recorded it at a single location here in the States?
Winslow-King: I don’t think the location of recording really makes that much difference. It’s more about the songs in the mental headspace of the performers. We have recorded some of my prior albums in Europe as well. “Blue Mesa” was recorded in the fortress village of Lari, nestled in the mountains of Tuscany. The setting was ideal and relaxing which had my band and I in a good headspace to relax and have fun with the songs. When you get to the studio, the songs and sounds have already been developed. I’ve found it’s best, once the red light is on, to sit back and enjoy the ride.

TrunkSpace: There are some amazing guest musicians on the album, including Roberto Luti and Chris Davis. Are you someone who finds creative inspiration in the creativity of others? Does being around those other musicians make you a better musician?
Winslow-King: Definitely, Roberto has been an inspiration, partner and maestro for more than a decade. He has greatly influenced my slide guitar playing and approach to music generally. Chris Davis, and bassist Christian Carpenter, really went the extra mile on this album to play simple and articulated parts. They really elevated the songs by playing selflessly and being dedicated to the greater sound.

TrunkSpace: You have numerous records under your belt now. Has the songwriting process changed for you at all from those early days when you first began your career to where you are today with “Blue Mesa?”
Winslow-King: Yes, “Blue Mesa” is my sixth album. The biggest change since the early albums is that song craft has become more a part of my daily life. I used to assign myself homework and feel a nagging responsibility to sit down and produce more. These days song writing is a part of daily life. I just try to be ready when lightning strikes. To be a conduit. To pay attention to the sounds, phrases, emotions and ideas that are in the ether. I’m just trying to bring these down to solid ground and make songs that people can relate to and see themselves in, songs that people feel comfortable with. This approach has proved much more fruitful for me.

TrunkSpace: Is it possible to overthink a song? Can a songwriter tinker so much that the creative spark that first made a song great ends up dimming a bit?
Winslow-King: Definitely. The same can be true with performance in production. I think that proves a true maturity in an artist. To be sensitive to that balance. You definitely have to have a certain technical proficiency whether it be instrumentation, production, or songwriting. That has to be balanced with the human visceral nature of music. Roberto is kind of our spirit guide in the band, helping find this balance.

TrunkSpace: Where are you hardest on yourself as an artist?
Winslow-King: I would say in the department of authenticity. I have very little tolerance for anything less. I have to be true to myself on stage and when I’m writing, or else I just can’t do it. Not necessarily being authentic to a certain style, culture, or genre so much as being authentic to my own true self; my own likes and honest tendencies. I make music that I love first. If audiences like it, even better!

TrunkSpace: When all is said and done and you hang up your guitar for good, what do you hope you’re remembered for? What do you want your legacy as a songwriter to be?
Winslow-King: I guess I want to be remembered for songs that made a difference in peoples lives. Not necessarily that saved the world, but songs that were there for people in times of need. I’ve written a few songs that I feel an obligation to live up to. Those songs have made a difference in my own life and I hope others find them useful as well.

“Blue Mesa” is available May 11 from Bloodshot Records.

Imagine yourself pursuing a career as an actor, seeking out interesting characters and projects, and then landing a pivotal role on one of your favorite television shows. That’s exactly what happened to Patrick Cage who joined the cast of “Westworld” in Season 2 as Phil, a technician at the Sector 19 Remote Refurbishment Facility. Performing since he was a kid, the Los Angeles native describes the job as a dream come true, and it’s one he’ll never take for granted.

We recently sat down with Cage to discuss how being on the show doesn’t shed any additional insight on the plot, why that is important to him as a fan, and the reason he and his character Phil are both discovering the ongoing “Westworld” storyline at the same time.

TrunkSpace: How does one celebrate landing a gig on one of the hottest shows on TV?
Cage: I haven’t really celebrated, I guess. I mean, I celebrated that day that I found out. I had just moved into my apartment, and then I got the news that I booked the job as well. So I just kind of went on my roof, watched the sunset and cried. Tears of joy, you know? I think that was the best celebration I could have had.

TrunkSpace: What a crazy time to get the job, when you’re also in the middle of a transitional life moment like moving?
Cage: Yeah, it was actually just crazy timing as well. I was trying to move while planning a trip to Ibiza, and then it was just too much was happening. That call just kind of made everything slow down, which was great.

TrunkSpace: What kind of emotions have you been juggling with leading up to your run on the series?
Cage: I’m just hoping that the response to Phil is very positive. People can see themselves in Phil, and kind of attach themselves to him, and see themselves in the world with him a bit more. I feel like he’s kind of everybody else – he’s one of us. Westworld is made for the 1 percent elite, the people that have a ton of money, or $15,000 a day to spend at this park. Phil can’t afford to go to the park. He works in the park. I think his mindset is just someone that’s just more normal – just one of the average people in the world going through this experience.

TrunkSpace: You were a fan of the series before you landed the part. Does that make the gig all the more sweeter for you personally?
Cage: 100 percent. It’s one of those, kind of, pinch yourself moments, because it’s things you always dream up. You dream of those ideal situations where it’s like, “I’m going to be on my favorite show.” Then, when it happens, it’s like, “OK, don’t mess up, and add something great to this show. Add something, an element, that wasn’t here before, and really, just help serve the overall story.” Because the world and the intricacy that Lisa (Joy) and John (Nolan) have put into this show is so amazing, and it’s like I just want to help them tell their story.

TrunkSpace: We have to ask… being on the show, does it help it all make a bit more sense? (Laughter)
Cage: It’s actually, it’s so interesting, because… no. It really doesn’t. (Laughter) I think there’s a ton of secrecy within the show and on set, and so it was very need-to-know based. I never got a full script, I only got pages. So as I was filming, I was learning everything Phil learned, as he learned it. It was such an interesting way to go through it. It was almost better, in a way, because I’m realizing when you have the influence of knowing the plot points and where the story’s headed, it can tend to get in your head. And you can kind of put something in there, a bit of foreshadowing that shouldn’t be in there. When you’re confused, and on the same level as your character, if you don’t understand something as Patrick, Phil won’t understand it either. And that will show. They’re just very smart with the way that they play their own game on set.

TrunkSpace: Not knowing much about the future of your character, does it then make it more difficult to make those early choices with Phil?
Cage: Well, I think that was the fun about it. The introduction scene for Phil, they laid out his essence very well for me. So I got the sense of who Phil was, and so it was just about that person going through these experiences and how they would react, really. Just, what it would be like. It was really just a fun, true game of exploration with Phil.

TrunkSpace: Because the series is shrouded in spoiler alert secrecy, does it make it kind of nerve wracking talking about and making sure not to slip up and say something that you shouldn’t?
Cage: I don’t want to slip up, but more so, I don’t want to give anything away because I think it’s so fun when we all get to figure it out as a community. I think the “Westworld” community is so large, and even with the Reddit forums and all the Twitter pages that have been made, I think there’s such a great community, and such a great connected feeling when we all figure out these big puzzle pieces together. I don’t want to ruin that. Because I feel like they’ve created a lot of those throughout this season. There’s so many things I didn’t even know, so it’s fun to find things out. Episode 1 was a trip for me. I knew nothing. I knew nothing about what went on in that, so that was all crazy.

TrunkSpace: That’s what’s kind of cool about it from your perspective. You’re involved, but your viewer side isn’t having anything ruined. You still get to be the fan.
Cage: Yeah, and that’s really the best part. It’s like I do start to see, like with Episode 1, I’m like, “Oh! I see how that’s going to tie in!” I’m starting to connect my own dots. But I still don’t see the whole storyline, and I really love that because being a fan of Season 1, I get to continue to be a fan of the show.

“Westworld” airs Sundays on HBO.

Artist: Guns N’ Roses

Single: “Shadow Of Your Love” from the upcoming Appetite for Destruction: Locked N’ Loaded box set, due June 29.

Reason We’re Cranking It: If you cut us, we bleed leopard spotted GNR blood. So, when we heard about the new “Ultimate F’n Box” set, we tightened our bandanas and prepared to rock. It’s always great to hear the classic tracks that have been remastered, but what we’re really throwing up the devil horns for is the 49 previously unreleased songs that were recorded during the “Appetite for Destruction” era.

What The Single Tells Us About Them: Guns N’ Roses are iconic rock gods, and it was all cemented with the release of “Appetite for Destruction,” which had hit after hit after hit. To now find out they had 49 more potential classics in the can during this time, waiting for their moment to play, it seems unfathomable. It tells us that the band deserves their spot in music history, and that they will be talked about (if not already) in the same way people talk about The Rolling Stones or The Beatles.

Track Stuck On Repeat: “Shadow Of Your Love” is the first single to come out of the new box set, and if the rest of the songs are as on point as this pinnacle, we are all in for a treat. The song feels like a GNR take on a classic ‘80s hair band song, which brings things to whole other level. It’s the kind of track that will help you get the last reps in at the gym, be able to jump a little higher and maybe, just maybe, make you bulletproof for a moment. (But seriously, don’t test that theory!)

Coming To A City Near You: Guns N’ Roses tour dates can be found here.

And that means…

The latest album from Cut Worms, the brainchild of Brooklyn-based Max Clarke, has been finished for some time, so unleashing it into the world is a creative win for the singer/songwriter, one that formally signals that it’s time to move on to new 8-track endeavors. While Clarke says he has been actively writing quite a bit lately, for the listener it is important that we not get ahead of ourselves, or in this case, the music. Released today on Jagjaguwar, “Hollow Ground” is a sonic time traveler – influenced by the past, made in the present, and enjoyed in the future. (Check out our review here.)

We recently sat down with Clarke to discuss his songwriting process, guitar garage sale adoption, and why a strong desire to do something well trumps natural talent.

TrunkSpace: As you gear up to release new material to the world, what kind of emotions do you juggle with?
Clarke: This record’s been done for a while, so I just want it to be out there at this point. But yeah, sometimes with putting stuff out there, there’s some hesitancy as far as, “Are people going to like it?” or whatever, but… I don’t even really care that much anymore. (Laughter)

TrunkSpace: A number of the songs off of the album have been with you for some time now. Do they feel like old friends or do you want to move beyond them at this point and make new friends?
Clarke: Yeah, I want to focus on writing new stuff. I’ve been writing a bunch lately, but I’m not totally sick of the songs on the record yet, which considering how many times I’ve played them in the past couple of years, I guess is probably a good thing.

TrunkSpace: Are they still reflective of who you are today, in 2018, as an artist?
Clarke: I think they still translate. I think about them differently now, probably, than when I wrote them, but it’s hard to… I don’t know. I guess, just time goes on. You write something in a certain moment, and then it just keeps going. I can still kind of go back to, I guess, especially the home demos that I’ve done, and remember more where I was at at that time by listening to it.

TrunkSpace: As you mentioned, you have a desire to work on new material, but what does that process look like for you in terms of core inception to a finished track?
Clarke: It’s different every time. There’s not really any formula I’ve come up with that allows me to just put it all down and go from start to finish in a timely manner. It’s a lot of meandering around, seeing what works and what doesn’t, recording a version of something, and then seeing how it sits over a couple days – and if it doesn’t, then changing it.

TrunkSpace: Can a song live inside your head for a long time before you put your stamp of approval on it?
Clarke: I would say so, yeah.

TrunkSpace: We read that you picked up your first guitar from a garage sale and then you nursed it back to life. Did that process help you establish an appreciation for the instrument beyond just the desire to play it? It’s almost like that whole, you pay for your own car and you treat it better kind of thing.
Clarke: Yeah, kind of. At the time, I was 12 or something, I didn’t personally fix it up. My mom brought it to a local music store, and they put strings on it and fixed some of the other pieces – put a new bridge on it and stuff. But yeah, it definitely became something that I cared about and took care of, but I’ve never been that much of a gear head as far as guitars and stuff. I tend to not treat my instruments that well. They get banged around.

TrunkSpace: It’s just fascinating to think about an instrument’s journey in that regard. Like, what did that particular guitar experience before it found its way to you?
Clarke: For sure. When my mom got me the guitar from the garage sale, it had this embroidered, weird rainbow strap that looked like it was from some ‘70s church group or something, which, I wish I still had that strap. It’s gone now. It’s lost. But yeah, who knows who owned that thing, and how many times somebody played it and went through all kinds of emotional things with it, probably.

TrunkSpace: For you, what is it that you get from writing and performing music that you can’t get from being a listener alone? What does the process give you?
Clarke: I don’t know. I’ve just always had, ever since I was pretty young, an itch that I’ve felt like… I remember going to, any time there was a band or something, from the time I was 12 or 13, to see a live band. I remember once going to – I grew up in Cleveland – going to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. They had this high school Battle of the Bands thing, and seeing some of those people playing, and just feeling like I could do that, and do it better. But it took me a really long time to actually do that.

TrunkSpace: Did the instrumentation side of things come easy to you? Was it natural or was it something you had to work at?
Clarke: I worked at it a lot, but I wanted to work at it. Natural talent… I feel like it’s more of just whether or not you want to do it, or want to do the work, or if there’s something that drives that. It’s like working on a puzzle or something.

TrunkSpace: Going back to that 12-year-old you that got that guitar for the first time. If you could sit down with him now, would he be surprised by the artist you have became?
Clarke: Maybe. I don’t know. There’s no way that I could have known how things would pan out, but I did want to eventually get to this point.

TrunkSpace: But were you listening to music in that time period that you would say directly influenced what your sound is today?
Clarke: I listened to, I guess, whatever was around at that time. I listened to all kinds of stuff when I was younger. I listened to boy bands, and Britney Spears, and all that stuff of the late ‘90s and early 2000s, which I think all that stuff is somewhere in the music that I’m still playing. It’s all pop music to me.

TrunkSpace: Do you think the next record will be far removed from “Hollow Ground,” or will it still feel close to what that album represents?
Clarke: I think it will be somewhat close. I’ve just been going after a certain sound, I guess, for a while now. That’s the closest I’ve gotten so far, but the next thing will probably just feel like another attempt at that, but maybe from a different angle.

“Hollow Ground” is available now on Jagjaguwar.

Generally those with a fear of flying don’t become pilots, or those who shy away from crowds aren’t known for standing calmly in a sea of people, so it’s a surprise to learn that someone who doesn’t like fish has landed in a show about them. Well, sort of about them.

In the Freeform drama series “Siren,” a dark tale about mermaids and their impact on a small town, David Kaye plays a laid-back employee at the local marine research center who he describes as a “loyal” and “affectionate” friend. And although the mermaid Ryn (played by Eline Powell) at the center of the series is part fish, she wasn’t Kaye’s source of seafood discomfort.

We recently sat down with the Canadian-born actor to discuss why he loves working on the series, playing his character like a dog, and how his fishy fears were stoked being elbow deep in a bucket of bait.

TrunkSpace: How are you enjoying your “Siren” journey thus far?
Kaye: It has been such a wild ride. I’m having a blast.

TrunkSpace: What have you taken from your experience that you’re going to carry with you through the rest of your life?
Kaye: That’s a great question. Firstly, some of the relationships with the other actors and some of the crew members is something that has really blossomed for me. I’ve met some amazing people – super talented, super passionate – who really want to be there. And one of the things that I love about going to set, for “Siren” specifically is, everyone is so happy to be there. It’s just such a wonderful energy. And on top of that, just learning from some of the other actors and just watching them work. I talked quite a few times about how Eline Powell, who plays Ryn, is just such a powerful actor. But also Alex Roe, who plays Ben and Fola (Evans-Akingbola), they have been such a pleasure to work with and it’s really interesting watching them just kind of do their thing. I love watching them do their American dialect warmup, which is always highly entertaining. (Laughter) I’ve had the opportunity to work with just so many amazing actors, like Ian Verdun. His performance last week in episode 106, it was just mesmerizing. I hope that the series gets picked up and I get the opportunity to work with more of these amazing actors.

TrunkSpace: In a lot of ways the show has the elements of a series that could stick around for a really long time. You look at a show like “Supernatural,” which we know you guested on, and while tonally different, that’s a show that has been on the air 13 years. Are you someone who could play the same character for that long? Could you be Jerry for 13 years?
Kaye: I mean, it depends on the show… as a viewer for me anyways, it depends on the show. I’ve definitely binge-watched shows that have more than 10 seasons and I love playing Jerry… I think he’s such a fantastic character and just such a loving person, so if I have the opportunity to step into Jerry’s shoes for a decade or more, I would be thrilled.

TrunkSpace: It terms of finding him as a character, was he somebody that was easy for you to tap into or did it take some discovery?
Kaye: A little bit of both. There’s a lot of myself, I’d like to think, part of Jerry, but there were definitely some things that I had to amp up. One of the things that I really try to do, when I’m playing Jerry, is treat him like a dog – just like his presence. He’s very in the moment. He’s very loving and affectionate and loyal and he’s just always happy to see his people.

TrunkSpace: So he’s man’s best friend in human form?
Kaye: Yeah! Just a little scruffy guy, that you wanna take home.

TrunkSpace: In terms of the mermaid focus of the series, that isn’t a subject that Hollywood has really tapped into on a large scale. In an industry where it seems like everything has been done and done again, why haven’t we seen much of mermaids on screen?
Kaye: This is purely speculative on my part, but I think when you say mermaids to somebody, today, most people, their immediate response, their immediate image in their head is Ariel from Disney’s “Little Mermaid.” Some people might go straight to “Splash,” but there are some really, really iconic mermaid characters that I think immediately come to mind when people talk about mermaids. So for a show like “Siren” to come out, where it just completely turns everything on its head, like mermaids are not these wonderful, singing creatures, they’re there for adventure and exploration, they are apex predators, they are viscous, they are strong, they are highly intelligent, they have a dark, green take on it that is really fascinating, so I think there was definitely a niche to be explored and I think Freeform just hit the nail on the head with it.

TrunkSpace: We know you’re also a voice actor. Do you view both aspects of performance as separate career paths or do they both lead towards the same end goal?
Kaye: To me it’s just about telling stories. One of the reasons I’ve kept on doing this for so long is because I love telling stories. I don’t particularly care about the format if it’s on screen or if it’s on the microphone, in front of the camera, behind the camera even – I’ve done some producing myself – or theater, I just love being part of telling a story.

TrunkSpace: You have your own production company, Whiskaye Films. Where does that fit into your focus these days?
Kaye: Currently I am just working on the last, final touches on the distribution of my first feature that I produced, which is called “Prodigals.” That will be hitting theaters in June, so look out for that. That’s a project that I’ve been working on since 2013 and so it’s been a labor of love and there’s some fantastic actors in it. It’s a great story. You’ll see Sara Canning is one of the leads. She’s on “A Series Of Unfortunate Events” and in “War for the Planet of the Apes.” Kaniehtiio Horn, who’s in “Letterkenny” and “Man in the High Castle,” and David Alpay. It’s just some really, really talented people and it’s a story that I think is incredibly relatable about second chances and whether or not anyone actually deserves a second chance.

And other than that my other passion project… Season 2 is coming out shortly of “White Ninja.” That will be released on Toonstar, so you can check out the Toonstar app because that will be coming out end of May.

TrunkSpace: So does one scratch the back of the other? For example, does a high profile acting gig help on the producing side, and vice versa?
Kaye: I’m not sure yet, to be perfectly honest. I think it’s been a really interesting ride. I’ve been acting since I was a child, so I’ve got 25, almost 26 years, in the industry now. I started producing because I’ve grown up on set and in the studio and seeing all these people doing all these jobs, not really knowing how those parts fit into the overall machine, and so I took an intro to film production course in 2008, as part of my undergrad, and I was like, “Oh, this is what everyone’s doing.” And I just had a deeper appreciation for everyone on set and how hard everyone works and how integral everybody really is to the final product. So production gave me a whole new appreciation for the industry.

TrunkSpace: Finally, David, we read that you have a fear of fish, which made us wonder… was a show about a half woman/half fish really the way to go?
Kaye: (Laughter) Well, I was less scared of her, because of the whole human aspect and knowing that Eline is, in fact a human. However, Jerry feeds the sea lions and in order to feed sea lions, you need to go elbow deep in a bucket of fish, and so that for me, that was probably the most challenging thing I had to do on set and it has actually helped my fear, in a big, bad way. So I’m grateful to “Siren” for that.

TrunkSpace: But still, no 100-gallon aquariums showing up at your house anytime soon, right?
Kaye: You know what, I think I would probably avoid it if it was offered to me. (Laughter)

“Siren” airs Thursdays on Freeform.

Featured image by: Taseda Knight 

Artist: Cut Worms

Album: “Hollow Ground”

Label: Jagjaguwar

Reason We’re Cranking It: Like an old dusty LP passed down to us from our mother’s prized record collection, “Hollow Ground” is a trip of a trip, a callback to a prior generation’s definitive rock vibe when 60s-era pop ballads served as the dawn of the commercial music industry. All artists pull from what came before them, some without realizing it, but Max Clarke, aka Cut Worms, proudly stands arm in arm with his rock ‘n’ roll predecessors.

What The Album Tells Us About Him: Although a vintage approach was taken in the production of “Hollow Ground,” the lyrical positioning of Clarke is very contemporary, making him the Marty McFly of modern music – existing in the present but perfectly comfortable in the past. We can’t wait to experience what comes next.

Track Stuck On Repeat: Wedged somewhere between the song stylings of The Every Brothers and The Hollies, “Don’t Want To Say Good-bye” feels like a long lost track, at one time destined for Billboard greatness, rediscovered after being tucked inside an old vault for 50 years. If our childhood time capsule came with a soundtrack, this song would be on it.

Coming To A City Near You: Cut Worms tour dates can be found here.

And that means…