Interviewed by Daisy Milford
Wendy Lee Gadzuk (lead guitar/vocals): I'm a girl and I love to play dress up!I like dying my hair,vegetarian cooking, kung fu, tattoos, hockey, drinking tea, Victorian smut, & anything sparkly. I also like
Hagen Daaz El Duce...I mean Dulce de Leche ice cream. I silkscreen t-shirts, and do henna designs for a living.
Steve Wolff (lead guitar/vocals): Its all about the rock - life in The 440's is something that I've wanted since I was a little kid.Everything - girls, beer, good times, playing in different cities, rockin' and makin good friends. I work for a glass artist. We set up our work situations to tour and record, even though we might eat a financial turd every now and again. Likes: pretty girls who talk to me, good bands, buying records, beer, seeing the country and Hockey season. I'm the only 440's member who is not a vegetarian.
Jay Skwarlo (bass & yells): 6'4''- 220 pounds-brown eyes-black hair.Turn ons: Goth girls who can quote Clash and Johnny Cash lyrics.Turn offs: Club girls who can quote Jimmy Buffet lyrics.Mullets.
Dave Chamillard (drums/vocals): I'm way into old cars & trucks. Jay & I belong to the Lucky Helldrivers, an old hotrod car club started by Prof. F. C. Ouch. I drive a 65' Chevy c-10 pickup, that is named Shakes. Besides playing drums, and fixing my truck every other day, I'm into NHL hockey, especially the Philidelphia Flyers. I'm the oldest 440, and I sleep walk a lot. Ask Wendy, she lives with me. The rest of the band feels I should point out how much food I consume on a daily basis. A lot. Frequently.
Daisy: How long have you guys been around, and have you ever had any line up changes?
Wendy: The band started in the spring of '97. Dave and I were in another band called Dr. Bob's Nightmare, and I was feeling frustrated musically. We were a three piece, and I played bass. We put out a cd on our own, and our guitar player wouldn't tour, so we still have a closet full of them left. I wanted to play guitar, and I also wanted to be in a two guitar band. Our friend Ben Brower, who play in the Stuntmen, said we should start a side band. That's how the 440's started. I played guitar, ben played bass, Dave played drums, and or friend Michelle Tiberi played second guitar. She quit as soon as we actually started playing gigs, which was a few weeks later. We had another friend fill in for a little while, and then we finally found Steve, who was an old friend of Ben's. We decieded we were good enough to record, so we recorded four songs and sent the tape out to a bunch of labels. Hell Yeah/Dionysus called us within a week and
said they wanted to put out a 7' inch! This was not a side band anymore. Dr. Bob's Nightmare had broken up, and Steve's other band, Hummer, broke up shortly thereafter. So we wanted to find a bass player really commited to the 440's. Will Kill joined the bandaround December of '97, but that didn't last long. Ben was cool enough to come back, and fill in for our two week tour after being booted from the band! Obviously there were no hard feelings. When we returned, we began the search once again for a permanant bass player. We had another friend, Rob DiJoseph, fill in for a couple of shows around town, and then Rob Smentek joined the 440's army. He played with us until wegot back for a cross-country tour, and realized that the rock n' roll lifestyle was so glamourous after all. Then I remembered the tall guy with the Motorhead shirt who came into the tattoo shop were I worked, and said to give him a call if we ever neded a bass player! So I did, and, thank God, Jay's been with us ever since! He's the missing link we've been looking for all along.
Steve: Joan Jett meets Motorhead in a head-on collision. Loud, kick ass rock n' roll. A good time!
Daisy: Can you give some background on the cd you just did?
Wendy: Its available on cd and viynal. The first pressing had some mastering problems-the levels were really low, so you really had to crank it. That pressing is all sold out now, thankfullly, and the new, improved, loud, remasted version is now available for your listening pleasure!
Dave: The only thing I'd like to add about the record is why its called "Scrubbing Satan's Cadillac" . It was a dream I had where I was essentially gonna rot in Hell, but I had a toothbrush and had to clean Satan's Caddy first. I was stalling, going really slow, because I knew I was going to figure out some way fuck Satan over and get away. Then I woke up. Although it sounds like a goofball dream, it was scary!
Daisy: Do you have plans for another cd anytime soon?
Wendy: We're going into the studio at the end of January to record our next cd. We're also recording two 7' inches. One for Steel Cage Records, and one for another label called Rockin' Bones. Fulll length should be
out in May of 2000 on Hell Yeah/Dionysus Records.
Daisy: If someone was to ask why should they go to a 440's show, or buy a cd what would you tell them?
Jay: Go to a show because: A. Guys: Wendy's hot!!! B. Girls: Wendy's hot!!! Buy a cd, because we are all very poor, and it rocks.
Dave: Honey, this is essentially our life. Most people "get it" which is great, but rock n' roll isn't for everyone. The main thing is we're doing what we love doing, and people respond to it. Dig?
The 440's - P.O. Box 8203 - Philidelphia, PA 19101
or email them at: [email protected]
You can visit their website at:
http:// home.earthlink.net/~kingalcl
To order the cd write to: Dionysus Records
P.O. Box 1975 - Burbank, CA 91507
or email them at: [email protected]
or visit their website which includes 440's stuff at:
www.indieweb.com/dionysus/index.html
For other 440's merchandise info write to The 440's.