SLEEPYTIME GORILLA MUSEUM

SLEEPYTIME GORILLA MUSEUM is an avant-garde performance art prog-rock band from the San Francisco Bay Area. The museum concluded their 32 date tour of the U.S.A by showcasing a special exhibit at the Oakland Metro. Staff members include violinist/vocalist Carla Kihlstedt (Tin Hat Trio, Charming Hostess), guitarist/vocalist Nils Frykdahl (Idiot Flesh), bassist/instrument builder Dan Rathbun, drummer Frank Grau & multi-percussionist Moe! Staiano. Included is a fully equipped arsenal of home-made instruments and percussion based weaponry. The terrifying assault performed by these highly talented musicians is not for the faint-hearted.

The grand opening featured a deafening siren which was a suitable cue for everyone to secure their ear plugs. Spotlights searched the crowd until they landed upon various members of the band wearing farmyard animal masks. Slowly they made their way through the audience and onto the stage. The siren faded and the theatrical group kicked into their first song. Everybody seemed to get straight into the darkly beautiful vibe of this theatrical group. After their first tune, the band removed their face masks to reveal abstractly painted faces which were as disturbing as they were appealing. Throughout the night, Sleepytime continued to perform an extreme combination of sonic dreamscapes and interwoven artistic melodies.

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum will happily provide the soundtrack to your worst nightmare or that favourite bedtime story. Sweet lullabys and auditory orgasms are combined to explore haunting themes of insomnia, life, death and history in a conceptual dream context. A band truly worthy of more than the cult status they have already achieved. Sleepytime Gorilla Museum’s debut album “Grand Opening And Closing” is co-released on Seeland and Chaosophy Recordings. Their next album will be released on Trey Spruance’s Mimicry Records.

Selected Discography

Exclusive Interview

Justin St. Vincent from Xtreme Music interviewed Matthias Bossi of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum on August 12, 2004 New York (NY), The Tonic.

Xtreme Music: I’m here with Matthias, the drummer of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, outside The Tonic in New York City. I’d like to start the interview by asking about your work with Skeleton Key, how did that finish?

Matthias Bossi: It was a bad breakup and not necessarily acrimonious, but it was pretty bad. A terrible divorce in which both sides felt they were justified in their positions. I was offered the drummer’s chair in Sleepytime and they were very clear that they didn’t want to disturb my band. We would all sit down and think about a way to work things out for a schedule.. rally back and forth with a band touring a month here, and then me touring with the other band. I was willing to do that and they just freaked out! They really did!

Xtreme Music: How do you feel the music from Skeleton Key differs from that of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum?

Matthias Bossi: Well, Skeleton Key was popular.. really edgy pop music! It had time-signatures, pretty consistant meters and tempos. It was rock music with a major punch! They had the two drummer thing going on, in a way my role is the same but it is a lot more involved with this band (Sleepytime Gorilla Museum).

Xtreme Music: Who would you say have been your main musical influences and how have they shaped your musical direction?

Matthias Bossi: These days.. The Swans! They are the end all be all for me right now in terms of where I want to go, how my writing is going, my contributions to the band and what I’ve been hearing.

Xtreme Music: Where do you find your inspiration musically for Sleepytime Gorilla Museum.. what empowers you to compose?

Matthias Bossi: Well, twentieth-century classical music.. guys like Messian and bands like The Swans. I would love to think I’m thinking about really minimalist bashing, world-ending sludge-rock and also really involved classical music. Pretty melodies stacked on top of sludge.

Xtreme Music: What’s your feeling about Sleepytime Gorilla Museum live performances and what has the crowd reaction been like?

Matthias Bossi: It’s the place to see the band! Certainly with the costumes, the banter from stage and the inevitable spare of the moment train wrecks and recoveries.. it’s a fearsome energy! Often there are first time listeners or viewers, there’s a totally “deer in the headlights” thing where they don’t know what hit them. It gets easier with age.. it’s like a nice wine!

Xtreme Music: What would you say has been the most memorable, or favourite experience in your music career to date?

Matthias Bossi: To date.. Oh gosh! Well, there have been so many endless incredible times on stage with Sleepytime. I did a tour with Skeleton Key and Sleepytime. I would have to say, it was the rescuing of me from the desert after quitting my band with Skeleton Key, and being enveloped in the womb of the Sleepytime bus and having them shelter us back to the East Coast.

Xtreme Music: And for my final question, I’d like to ask.. what could you tell us about the release that’s gonna be on Trey Spruance’s Web Of Mimicry record label from Sleepytime?

Matthias Bossi: It is a complete package.. spiritually and theoretically this record holds together. It is a continuation of the saga of John Cain and Lalan Rollo. “The Sleepytime Gorilla Museum Of Natural History” and it is gonna be an incredible record and I hope people really enjoy it! Dan (Rathbun) worked his ass off on this record, he really outdid himself. I’m really proud of what’s happened with it.

Xtreme Music: Certainly plenty more to look forward to from the Sleepytime camp, it’s been wonderful to meet you.