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IE: How do you consume your news? Even MSNBC is becoming rather shrill. JC: No. No MSNBC. You can only trust independent media. And you have to go all over the place because even independent media will have its agenda. So I like to glean stuff from a collective that isn’ t fed scripts or aren’ t in someone’ s pocket. That way I think you can get a broad picture of what’ s going on. Websites like Alternet, Truthdig, Truthout, I’ m forgetting a couple right now. But just look for something that’ s not trying to sell you drugs or gasoline or cars. But it’ s not just as simple as advertising. We’ re in a deep mess, and an important element of a solution will be when all media is either clearly labeled or there’ s a clarity about the funding. Until
IE: Do you read the New York Times? JC: Oh, God You can’ t do that! If you look at every American pirate invasion, they’ re always giving it a thumbs-up. Even though there might be some journalists or some articles there that are completely independent, or true and moral, as a whole you know, it’ s skewed. You know on some level they’ re going to lie o you about something, so why trust them on anything?
IE: Are you a collector of anything? Where you’ re always on the hunt for a vintage blank? JC: I’ m always on the lookout for a vintage blank! It’ s true! I like cool things, knickknacks and paddy whacks. But I’ m a hoarder, basically.
IE: Favorite keepsakes? JC: In San Francisco, there was this 1979 arch-top Gretsch – [ guitar ] it looks like a violin. And then there’ s my car, an’ 86 [ Chevrolet ] Monte Carlo. I feel like it’ s been the best of all possible worlds. I pretty much can stay under the radar easily if I want to. Anyone can. But I feel very lucky.
26 illinoisentertainer. com september 2018 then, you really have to look for independent media.
IE: As a dad, you’ ve got to feel concern over where humanity is headed. Basically 12 Monkeys level extinction. JC: I do. And I’ ve been doing that for a long time now. In a sense, we are designed to be in relatively small groups, with somewhere between 30 to 1,000 people. But as soon as they broaden out to these large cities – as much as they have their benefits – I think the more negative traits of humankind tend to ascend to power. So there’ s always been some kind of warlord / pirate / king at the top. So I do feel hopeful, because there are things like the internet, and you can get the information out there. So maybe our intelligence could circumvent our instinctual patterns. I think that ' s still is possible.
If I really wanted to go to a baseball game, I could call someone up. If a concert was sold out, I could get tickets.... whatever the things are that people covet. But also, yeah – I get pretty much left alone.
IE: What do The Voidz do for you, artistically, that The Strokes didn’ t? JC: Well, I’ ve been on a journey that I see as linear. And I was unable to continue that journey I had set out on – work-wise, relationship-wise, it just wasn’ t available to me. So I was able to follow some of the ideas that I was interested in. So I don’ t want to say anything that could be misconstrued as insulting. I just want to be respectful o everyone, so I’ ll just keep going with what I’ m doing, and people can decide what they want.
IE: But you’ ve actually got your own label, Cult Records, to issue music you care about Like one of last year’ s greatest new bands, INHEAVEN. You discovered them. JC: There’ s a lot of cool stuff out there. One of my favorite technological developments in the past ten years is [ phone app ] Shazam. I know it’ s not like the newest thing, but it’ s so amazing. I have a rule – I
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