That's actually a good analogy. Everything's upfront. I don't think we hide behind distortion. We use grittiness to get the point across.
Is there much camaraderie among New York bands or is it every band for itself?
There's a bunch of cliques. We get along with other bands but there's definitely not a scene there. The only other band I really relate to in New York City is the Moldy Peaches. They do something that is just so weird, different and good and I really love that. They're cool people. But so many bands are more into the whole rock & roll thing, than the music. I can't relate to that. That's what's so weird about that whole late '70s New York thing. We're totally not going for this thing with trendy people hanging off each other. I'm the opposite. My whole life I've felt that trendy people make me ill.
It's strange you mention that, because apart from the Velvet Underground references, the comparison you always cop is to '70s New York bands like Television and the Ramones.
We're more influenced by the Velvet Underground than the '70s punk thing. I'll be honest and say this for the first time on tape - I think the Velvet Underground blow all those late '70s bands away. That's my opinion. No offence to anyone who likes those bands. That's cool. But people keep telling us we sound like that and I'm not going for that.