An interview with Monty Colvin bass player from the 90s band Galactic Cowboys who is currently working on a solo project CRUNCHY painting and being conservative. Im a pretty hard core conservative. Politically and in life. I love metal and rock and roll but my views remain right wing. - Monty
Everyone has one or two artists whether it be music art literature etc. with whom they feel a certain kinship. Its almost as if through their art they are not only speaking directly to you but are actually speaking for you.
For me that artist is Monty Colvin and I was really stoked when he agreed to take a few moments to offer his insights on a handful of the tunes that have touched me the most.
Monty confesses right from the onset
I have changed a lot since writing those songs. They were statements about how I felt at the time or how I believed. Since then Ive done much soul searching and contemplating about life. Ive also dug deeper into how things in our world work politically. My lyrics would probably be very different today and I probably wouldnt even have written some of those songs now.
Here are the songs (lyrical excerpts included) that Ive identified to Monty as having a special emotional almost spiritual impact.
Evil Twin" (From the album _Horse That Bud Bought_ 1997)
Cheatin at the game / Not responsible for your pain / Blame it on my evil twin / Well I know hes got my name / But I swear were not the same / Blame it on my evil twin…
That was basically about blaming others for your own faults or NOT taking responsibility for your own actions. I wrote that back when the OJ trail was going on and the lawyers wanted to focus on race or anything other than the FACTS."
Media Slant" (From the album _Horse That Bud Bought_ 1997)
Rousseau and Stalin must be cheering in their graves / I hear their rhetoric in everything they say.
This song still rings true today. The television and news media here in the US is so liberally biased that they are able to sway political elections. Its a disgrace. I think we touched on it somewhat in this Galactic Cowboys song."
T.I.M." (From the album _Let It Go_ 2000)
Hey! Could ya help Jenny J.? / Gotta problem at home / And I dont really know what to do / Oh! The kids outta control / And the ring in the nose / And the terrible clothes gotta go / And he wont listen to me / Is he just too blind to see? / See! That hes angry with me / And he doesnt feel love / As I give him the shove out the door / And his problem is with me / Am I just to blind to see? / And its what you need…Total Inside Makeover
It stands for Total Inside Makeover. I was watching shows like Jenny Jones at the time. They would bring troubled kids on and give them makeovers for their clothes and outward appearances. The words were my way of saying they needed to change things inside themselves first. I would still agree with that.
A Different Way (From the album _Let It Go_ 2000)
Looked at as one peculiar soul / Who prayed that God would not let go.
This was a song about being a Christian. I struggled with that lifestyle my entire life. The mental torture of trying to please God please other Christians was too much for me. It probably had a lot to do with my up-bringing but it always made me feel like a complete failure. But there was also some kind of comfort in feeling like you were part of a club. And there was great fear involved if I ever even thought about leaving the club. I finally did and those people who used to view me as a brother now look down on me and pity me."
Disneys Spinning (From the album _Let It Go_ 2000)
Looks like now the Beatles werent so bad / Mr. Manson makes the Four look fab / Cause death and evil is what sells today / And Walter Disneys spinnin in his grave / Grandpas Woodstock acid wasnt brown / President lit up and passed it down / The days of outrage have all gone away / bet that Disneys spinnin in his grave / Remember back to days when kids were kids and it was fun / And the kids didnt carry guns / While we were pleasure hunting we got tricked like Elmer Fudd / Brainwashed by the media / Inconvenienced by a small mistake / Mother chooses to exterminate / I wonder what the forefathers would say / The land of the free home of the depraved / I bet that Disneys spinnin / I bet that Disneys spinnin round / I bet that Disneys spinnin in his grave
A song about how messed up the world had gotten. As things evolve in society our tolerance for certain things tends to expand and morals tend to decay. It was really just a statement about that. Theres so much I could say about it but the words pretty much speak for themselves.
Another Hill (From the album _Let It Go_ 2000)
Another hill / Another monster we can kill / A broken will / That tells me we are not alone / And its comforting to know / Another hill / Another hard to swallow pill / A void to fill / That tells me we are not alone / And its comforting to know / You never leave me / Were not alone
I wrote this at a really hard time in my life when I was very down and discouraged. And yet things only got worse after I wrote the song. Its about getting through the trails in life. I wanted to believe God was there with me. These days Im not sure if those are mind games that people play to help them get through things or if it really IS GOD. I still try to hold onto the hope that there is a God who can help us or watches over us. But most of what I believed in has been shaken. I know that disappoints people and I understand. I used to stand back and judge others who didnt think and believe like I did. But I am just searching.
I respect the stance you took and I understand your current doubts. Obviously we all have our own unique challenges that shake our faith. I think its hard to straddle the fence. Youre either all in or your faith takes a back seat. Right now Im all in but historically I havent been. Can I get a link for your Podcast?
Yes Anthony there is a page on my website for the podcast at MontyColvin.net OR you could link montysrockcast.com. Thanks so much for the plug and for understanding!"
Monty one last thing do you still lean fairly conservative?
Im a pretty hard core conservative. Politically and in life. I love metal and rock and roll but my views remain right wing.
Thanks Monty and God Bless!
AC
About Monty Colvin:
Musician painter satirist creative genius all around good guy...hmmm....maybe I should just let Monty introduce himself
Im Monty Colvin. Some of you may know me as the bass player from the 90s band Galactic Cowboys. Others will know me from my solo project CRUNCHY while still others know me as a guy who does artwork and makes paintings. These days people are getting to know me as a podcaster from my show Montys Rockcast. However you know me or whatever brought you here thanks!
late De De Ramone
About Galactic Cowboys:
Galactic Cowboys almost hit it big in the early nineties but soon after signing a huge recording contract with Geffen were unceremoniously discarded in favor of grunge pioneers Nirvana.
An extremely colorful immensely talented spiritually conscious politically astute deliriously cynical band of righteous brothers Galactic Cowboys have quietly achieved a rabid cult-like status amongst melodic-prog-thrash-pop-metal enthusiasts.
After I got my hands on their first two major label releases it was evident to me anyway that Galactic Cowboys were a band destined for greatness. Ultimately major label success proved allusive for a band that defied categorization and were arguably ahead of their time. On their last album 2000′s unpromoted Let It Go the group expanded its social commentaries to include the loss of innocence teen angst moral decay political bias the gun culture and glorification of violence in the media. I highly recommend exploring their rich and relevant catalog of music!