Interview w/ Emily Kokal Of Warpaint

I wouldn't be able to tell you how I felt while still in the midst of hearing Warpaint for the first time. And I don't think it's that I wasn't feeling anything - It's just, I was stuck in a trance for somewhere near five minutes. The culprit: Burgundy. Silky Voices and burlap rhythms....all fastened by thread-like reverb laden guitars to amount to a perfectly orchestrated sonic garment for me to get lost in, wear everyday and lend to all my friends so that they too can experience the amazingness. Don't forget to pick up Exquisite Corpse. Here are a few words from singer and guitarist Emily Kokal - by Keba Robinson Photo by Takayuki Okada

Are there any other creative things that you guys are involved in?

emily kokal: The art of living on the edge..just kidding, kind of.. we are all dancers, clothes makers, drawing and painting-ers, actresses, comedians.. Theresa has a pretty cool full time fantasy world she lives in with her son Sirius B..


What are the last records you bought and who are you listening to right now?
emily: sybille Baier is amazing... kind of a semi-happier Nico.. Rainbow Arabia's new record, Mind Raft ep from Deradoorian (one of the ladies from Dirty Projectors, Wu-Tang and Aphex Twin0, definitely more into Bowie than usual these days..


What do you guys pull your inspiration from?
emily: every little thing.. really. we come into our practice space and work it out.. i think we inspire each other quite a lot.


Whats your most vivid memory revolving around music.
emily: dancing hippies to festival music up and down the west coast selling tye-dyes with me mama.. also playing my grandmothers piano for hours a day when visiting her for the summer, learning how to make up songs.


Vinyl or CD?
emily: vinyl is alive


I love how far out your music sounds… What does your pedal board look like?
emily: i've got an old blue boss vibrato pedal, an echo park echo pedal, an EQ..sometimes an electro-harmonix chorus pedal or holy grail reverb..


Best show you've ever been to...and why?
emily: midnight show at the Oregon Country Fair...psychedelics and Pink Floyds 'dark side of the moon' show.