Zolar X Interview: SXSW 2010

Before Gwar thought of being from another planet, the alien musicians of Zolar X were shocking people of the music scene in 1970s Los Angeles. Fronted by Ygarr Ygarrist, originally a man named Stephen Della Bosca from the San Francisco bay area, the band invented their own language and performed in outlandish costumes. Their dedication gained them notoriety and a residency at legendary DJ Rodney Bingenheimer's English Disco, but no love from the record industry, who never picked them up. When they split in 1981, Ygarrist self-released a record Timeless, which got re-released by Jello Biafra in 2004, thereby sparking renewed interest in the band and a second coming of Zolar X. Before heading down to SXSW, Ygarrist recently spoke (in English, thankfully) about the origins of the band, and getting a second chance .

Describe your sound in your own words.

If you had a musical blender you would add Mozart, Zeppelin, Hendrix, the Ramones. Star Trek, the Forbidden Planet and The Day the Earth Stood Still -- the original version -- to get Zolar X.

How did Zolar X form?

Well, before Zolar X, we had a band, Gilded Flesh, we played -- not heavy duty, but we played at the Fillmore on what they called "Local Band Night", Tuesday night, hen we worked at a strip club in North Beach. We worked there for over a year as house band for the strippers. Musically, Zolar X was the next progression. I went searching for a bass player in the San Francisco Bay area and I met Zany Zatovian [Bruce Allen Courtios]. We both loved Sci-Fi and we wanted to do theater rock and so we formed Zolar X. When I met [Zany] his music was, it wasn't three bar chords anymore. We started realizing what we called the cello instrument and the classical interplay. We explored the lower third inside of a chord, we would utilize that on out guitars, that note, where it's the low harmony, not the high harmony, that was what we deemed as the Zolar chord.What are your influences?

When I was playing music and stuff, starting off, there was glam. I was very influenced by the Who, Jeff Beck, Rod Stewart, the English bands and the bands wore makeup, had these outfits, with velvets, it was more glam-my than your San Francisco Grateful Dead or Jefferson Airplane kind of band. Then I read a book, a rock and roll book from years ago and somewhere in it, it said, "Don't ever look like your audience." That and we loved Star Trek.

How did Star Trek influence Zolar X?

I had seen Star Trek, but Star Trek became more popular and apparent in Zolar X about six months in to Zolar X. At first, we just had our pointed hair cuts and we started putting colors in it, and then one day, Zany, he was watching Star Trek and he called me over and he had shaved one of his eyebrows, I said, "Oh that looks really good with the pointed hair, I'll do it too!" Then all of a sudden, it was like oh, let's get some mirrors, and let's start a dialog, and let's start talking in languages! [Laughs] Some people might say that it's a total fantasy or they're on acid or something like that, but it's a theater show. It's more than that, it's a lifestyle, but it is a show.

How did you come up with your band name?

It seemed very logical that if you were claiming to be from another planet that Billy, Bruce, Craig and Stephen didn't fit, the language just evolved like a script for a movie.

You were the house band at Rodney Bingenheimer's English Disco -- what was the craziest thing that went down there?

About Rodney, he always seemed so meek, but at the same time he was right there in the middle of all the rock stars. One of the craziest things I remember was on a Sunday night and it was a jam, and I don't know why nobody, I didn't have the knowledge or foresight to record it with my cassette player or have some pictures taken by my girlfriend at the time. It was Johnny Thunders, Arthur Kane [of the New York Dolls], Nigel [Harrison] from Blondie, I remember we just jammed all night. I wish I would have had something on it, but I got witnesses.

Zolar X re-formed in 2005. What was it like to get a second chance?

My whole life is about music. When I hung 'em up, I didn't quit, I've always been playing music. But when Zolar X broke up, I never had another band in between. It was like, "OK, I'll go get a job and live normal and do my thing." Then when I heard that somebody was interested in Zolar X, in my tapes and stuff that I had saved, I said, "Well, heck, I'm going to cash in," because I still would love to play this music and people keep saying, "Well, I wish I would have seen them in their day." I had no idea that I would be writing music, but since that time, since 2005, I've written over 200 brand new songs.

What was your first gig where you felt like you were coming back?

The first big gig for us was the Knitting Factory because it was Los Angeles again, and you felt like you went somewhere. We would rehearse up in Sacramento and so when we drove down here and rented the hotel and all the kinds of things that make you feel semi-like a rock star, it's funny, you don't think when you're fifty you'll be doing the stuff most people at twenty four. [Laughs] But still, that's planet Earth. I didn't fit the criteria or the rules. I figure you are anything you want to be as long as you're breathing.



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