music: Tom Windish

The Windish Agency is always on the forefront of live entertainment. A booking agency started by Tom Windish (pictured above) in 2004 their roster is teeming with the best of new music and their approach toward the seriously changing music industry seems to benefit everybody; artist, promoter & audience. I think most people can recall memorable concerts but I think Windish really makes these memories into full on experiences.

http://www.windishagency.com/

Q: What kind of music do you listen to at home?
A: I listen to NPR a lot in my spare time. I listen to the music by my clients constantly when I'm driving, running, working and also at home.


Q: Have you seen an act do anything that made you really want to leave a performance? Most of the time lead guitarists faces make me really want to get the hell out of wherever I am.
A: LOL, I can't think of anything. I've seen some crazy things. I was once wrestled to the ground by David Yow of The Jesus Lizard during one of their shows. I was standing on the side of the stage behind a curtain and he came over and grabbed me and shoved me onto the ground and kept me there for a few minutes. This was in the middle of their set while he was singing one of their songs! The only other thing that would make me leave a show was if I didn't enjoy the band!


Q: What is it you look for in a band/act you book? What makes someone "Windish Worthy," I think I just coined that, you can have it for $50. (that is a joke)
A: First off, I have to love the music. I have very broad tastes which explains the diversity of our roster. I don't enjoy much mainstream music. A lot of the artists we represent are pushing boundaries in their song writing. I really like that. For example Animal Collective or Dirty Projectors.

music: Bill Callahan

Bill Callahan, Smog, or (smog) is an amazing musician. I think he is one of the greatest lyricists of the times- funny and true, narrative and precise. I remember the first time I heard him in high school, on the local college radio, a crescendo of strings, reaching the line "I'm gonna be drunk, so drunk at your wedding" and I knew exactly what he meant, just like I always feel I do with his music.

http://www.dragcity.com/artists/bill-callahan

http://www.dragcity.com/artists/smog

Q: So…what have you done today so far?

A: I drove home from Dallas today where I was mixing a live LP with John Congleton. I stopped at Starbucks about 45 mins. into the trip and got a coffee and a Power Protein Meal or something like that. One free range hard boiled egg, a cute little whole wheat bagel that didn't taste very good, a bit of cheese, 9 grapes, two slices of apple and a packet of peanut butter. I ate it all but the peanut butter. Peanut butter is for kids.

Q: Was being a musician always what you wanted to do? Always what you were aiming for?

A:When I was a little kid I wanted to be a record producer, although I wasn't sure what one did. I thought you just organized people and told them what to do. Which is fairly correct but I wasn't sure what sort of things I would be telling them to do. Being a musician is a way to be on the outside of society and right in the heart of it at the same time. I wanted to do it since I was 16 or so.

music: Michel Gondry

I think the list of musicians Michel Gondry has made videos for is like a who's who of pop music over the last decade or so: Bjork, The White Stripes, Beck, Paul McCartney, Kylie Minogue and so on. He seems to have grown up on music and then grown into film making like a kid who keeps wearing his favorite t-shirt well into adulthood.
http://www.michelgondry.com/

Q: When did you start playing drums and why did you pick the drums? I’m always interested in what makes someone pick which instrument they want to play- who sees an oboe and says “Yes! That’s me! Double reed!”
A: It was like driving a motorbike, in terms of the testosterone's enhancement, only way safer.


Q:What drummers do you like or have learned from? I never thought of drums as a solo instrument until I wrote that question. I could listen to Jim White play by himself for hours I think…
A: I learned listening to the  Charlie Watts, which is pretty much the easiest thing to do. Later I became a huge fan of the band Booker T and the MG's and their drummer Al Jackson.


Q: Do you ever find your experience in music helpful in film? Does it affect the way you edit at all? Like in Daft Punk’s "Around the World" video where each character is a different sound- it’s very rhythmic, very percussive in visuals. (almost like those German Expressionists and their biorhythmic stuff)
A: I started by editing myself my first videos. But my drumming background was an obstacle. I HAD to cut on the beat each shot. I had to work with proper editors and learn to forget the beat. The music background came to be helpful in my understanding of the artists I was working with.