Q&A: Jamie Granato

EM: Occupation and Position.
DJ (Rezound) and Band Member (Men & Women)

EM: What neighborhood do you closely identify with? What makes your community so unique?
I don’t really closely identify with any one neighborhood in NYC in particular. I’m originally from an island near Seattle, so I would say I identify with the natural surroundings of the Pacific Northwest on a major vibes level. I think NYC is a pretty rad place for motivated creative people in general though. It demands a certain level of hard work and determination in order to succeed and it weeds out the floaters. It also kind of sucks you in though. I know it’s not a super original sentiment but I’ve been thinking of moving recently and I can’t really think of anywhere I could go and still be able to do all the things I want to do. Oh, except for Boston (HA!)

EM: What’s the greatest item that you found at your local garage/estate sale?
Dang, I haven’t found may gems the past couple years. I did find a super rad Yamaha electronic drum kit at this house I was living in in Olympia in college that I still use. I’ll go with that…

EM: If you could interview one unsung hero, who would it be?
My old buddy Brad Johnson who is pretty much the funniest, most genuinely creative person I have ever met in my entire life. In high school he ran a gypsy cab service around our island and was generally just fully off the wall at all times. He just opened a moped repair shop and “amusement park” in Seattle that will also double as a DIY show space if I can ever get him to return my emails.

EM: What’s your favorite youtube video.
Oh man, I watched this you tube video probably 183 times in college, for real.You Tube classic material right here.

EM: Where are your favorite local spots to eat?
Well, considering that I never cook (I will return to that at a different stage in my life) I should have a pretty good list. Greenpoint: Five Leaves and Papacitos; Williamsburg: Dumont Burger, Fette Sau, Driggs Pizza, Carmine’s Pizza; SoHo: Tomoe and Blue Ribbon and Super Taste Noodle in Chinatown. BAM! R.I.P. Mighty Diamond

EM: What songs are at the top of your playlist at this very moment?
Kurt Vile – Freeway
Twin Lion – Creeps In The Sun
Crystal Stilts – Love is a Wave
Intelligence – The Beetles
Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti – Alisa
Abe Vigoda – House
Woods – Gypsy Hands
Nite Jewel – Let’s Go (The Two of us Together)
The Lee Harvey Oswald Band – Lightning Strikes
Mayfair Set – Already Warm
Argy & Martinez Brothers – Debbie Downer
Gary War – Anhedonic Man
And the first Strokes album!

EM: What is your current bedside read?
Some New Yorkers that I find around our house and I was reading the Best American Essays of 2006 and the last David Sedaris book.

EM: What is your favorite city to visit when you travel abroad? And why?
Barcelona is an awesome city that I’ve always found super fun to explore, except for that one time I got food poisoning and projectile vomited in my hotel room all night. I haven’t been abroad since 2004 though, I’ve been getting that itch recently.

EM: What new projects you are building on right now?
Aside from the Summer Of Love 2009, which is about to hit full swing in a couple of weeks here, I just completed a promotional mixtape of new disco, house and some electro that should be around with some wild artowrk from my friend Benny P (http://numberoneblogdog.blogspot.com/) out in Portland. For the upcoming year, I’m currently working on a mixtape of lo-fi and weirder rock stuff with Cousin Cole (myspace.com/cousincole). Cole and I also do a monthly House and Disco party called Working The Knobs, that has been going on for about a year now – we just got a brand new space and it has been jam city the last couple months – looking forward to the summer! I also do my weekly radio show on East Village Radio called War Time. Men and Women are editing and recording material for a split 7″ with the band Twin Lion, and a new EP, as well as scoring a short film that is just entering production. I’m also putting out the Twin Lion full length on my label, War & Moon, which I am super stoked about! TWOO THOUSAAAND NIIIIIINE! PEACE OVER.

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