Circus of Dead Squirrels, the name is the first thing that caught my attention and then the music drew me in. Can you give us the details about the origin of the name?

The name was first Squirrelbait, after we decided to change the original name Toilet Duck, which we used for years. Shortly after settling with that name, we were disappointed to learn that it had already been used before (sometime in the 80's). So, being fascinated by squirrels, I decided to try and keep that part in whatever came next. The title was completely random, at first I thought of calling it The Cirle of Dead Squirrels. It just seemed to fit. While recording "Indoor Recess" we discussed the band Circle of Dead Children and how similar our name was to theirs. So taking into consideration the many circus-like sounds that appear in our songs, we then made the final change. I'm glad we did, I really think Circus of Dead Squirrels works very well to describe our music. Silly, yet morbid.

                                 

I hear a ton of influences in your songs from Ministry, Mike Patton, Saturday morning cartoons and McDonald’s jingles. As a product of the TV and Nintendo generation, how would you describe what Circus of Dead Squirrels sounds like to the uninitiated?
Wow, you must have really good ears. All of those people and things were definitely a huge influence on this band. We grew up listening to Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Ministry, NIN, Skinny Puppy, KMFDM (among others) and we really wanted to create a new industrial sound that no one has quite heard before. I would describe the band as a mix of Faith No More, Ministry, Fear Factory, and GWAR spilled all over your favorite action figures from the 80's and early 90's. We definitely have a childhood theme going on in many of our songs. To me there is nothing like someone hearing one of our songs and saying, "Holy shit, I remember that!" Then there's also the songs that are completely pissed off at the every day frustrations and bullshit we all encounter. That's CODS in a nutshell.

                                            

Hailing from Hartford, what kind of music scene exists there?
The Hartford music scene sucks dick. A huge, throbbing, vomit inducing dick. There is very little support for this type of music and it's really sad because a lot of good stuff is being made right here.

Remix album? Give us the dirt and details!
Well all I can confirm right now is that the album is to be called TPCM2: Judgment Day (The Pop Culture Massacre 2) and we are shooting for an April release. Travis Falligant will once again be doing the artwork and we have some great artists/bands involved. Mushroomhead, Ventana, As Summer Dies, Out Out, our friend Dr. Daze and many others have confirmed remixes. We have plenty of other surprise artists that we will be able to announce shortly. This is going to be an incredible record.

Empire being based in Pittsburgh, and having our “mistake by the lake” neighbors to the north in Cleveland, makes me obligated to ask what is the bands connection to Mushroomhead & VentanA?
There is actually a huge connection, I am now the vocalist for Ventana (which features St1tch from Mushroomhead). After their previous vocalist left I was asked to try out and got the job. We (Ventana) are currently in the studio recording the debut album which will be released in just a few months from now. This album is coming out great, I'm very excited to be part of it.

                                
The “Elmo’s Last Laugh” video, how did that concept develop and who did the video?
The "Elmo's Last Laugh" video was a trial run by artist Travis Falligant (who did the album artwork for "The Pop Culture Massacre..."). He had never done any form of animation before but was up for the challenge when we asked him. If you ask me, he did an outstanding job and we got a fucking kick out of it. We felt that this song was so animated as it was already with the many Sesame Street samples and lyrical mentions of so many characters. We really wanted to see it come to life. We just followed the lyrics when developing the script. When Jim Henson pulls down Elmo's ballsack and it swings up to hit his nose, I nearly shit myself. Good job Travis.
                                                     

As a band, how does the creative dynamic work? I mean how do the ideas and writing come together. Is there a riff, a lyric or even a sample that spawns the inspiration?
It usually starts one of two ways. Either a guitar riff that is expanded upon or from keyboard programming. Once a song reaches a certain point of clarity and definition, I usually start to make the decision of whether the song will be serious or not. Sometimes I will just think of the theme when I hear the keyboard sounds blending together. That happened with songs like "8-Bit Piece of Shit" and "Elmo's Last Laugh". The keyboard sounds on "8-Bit" just sounded so cheesy, like a Nintendo game would sound. I knew that it HAD to be about Nintendo or it just wouldn't work.

What did you grow up listening to and what are you listening to now?
I personally grew up listening to mostly KMFDM, Front Line Assembly, Faith No More, GWAR, Mr. Bungle, and Crash Test Dummies. There is so many that I'd like to mention but those were definitely some of my most favorites. Believe it or not, lately I've been listening mostly to Aaron Neville. His voice is absolutely brilliant. I find his singing very soothing (maybe it's just nice to hear something so different than what I actually do). He seems like a really good person too, which is the kind of impression I don't usually get from most celebrities. I have been listening to a lot of PIG, Stabbing Westward and Billy Idol as well.

Would the 16 year version of you like the current version of yourself?
Yes and no. He would never believe that I actually kept doing music and I'm not sitting lifeless behind some desk. He would be very happy about that. But I have definitely matured and a lot of the things I think now he just would have never understood. Back then I hated everything and everyone. Now I try very hard to only hate those who truly deserve it.
                                   
You have some very eye catching artwork on your web site, I understand you had Travis Falligant do some of your CD art work. How did you hook up with him?
We found Travis through an extensive search online for professional illustrators. His work was easily the best we had seen and when we asked him he was all about it. He has done work for the magazine "Horrorhound", DVD special features artwork for "The Monster Squad" and much more. He has a very bright future ahead of him and I can't think of anyone who is more deserving.

The Pop Culture Massacre CD won album of the year? Tell us about that.
Yes, the Florida based radio show "Rock Solid Pressure" gave us the award as they did with "Indoor Recess" the year before. J-Rock and Patty are two of the coolest and most down to earth fucks you could ever meet. We thank them so much for the honors and for all that they have done to help us.

                                               

Any other project or things we should all know about?
Besides the remix album we are also working on our next full length album which will be called "Operation Satan". The songs that we are working on sound better than anything you've ever heard from CODS. The album is going to be heavier and scarier than our previous albums. It's going to be fucking brutal and hilarious. We are hoping to have that out by the end of the year. Please check www.circusofdeadsquirrels.com and myspace.com/circusofdeadsquirrels for updates on both albums and everything involved with the world of Circus of Dead Squirrels. Thank you very much for this interview, it's been fun.