Howard Kremer Interview: SXSW 2010

Howard Kremer is a comedian, writer, and, as Dragon Boy Suede, a musician who is currently based in Los Angeles. Kremer starred in and wrote for MYV's Austin Stories and has been a voice actor and writer for Mike Judge's The Goode Family. He and his writing partner, Chip Pope, have sold several pilots to HBO, NBC, ABC, and Comedy Central, among others. Spinner spoke with Kremer from his home in Los Angeles in advance of his performance at SXSW.

At SXSW will you be performing as yourself or as Dragon Boy Suede?

I'll just be me. I'll be doing one song at a friend's show, otherwise it'll be straight stand up. Really though, there's not all that much of a difference between what I do. When I'm doing stand up I'll just be talking and I'll think of song titles. Sometimes I just make a joke about the songs I could write and how ridiculous they would be and sometimes I'll actually perform the song itself. For instance, I'll say "this is a song called Baby Hands. Baby hands are prettier than adult hands. Unless you're sitting on the toilet, and a hand reaches up, than they're way weirder." It could be a song, or it could be joke, or maybe it's just both.

Who are your influences?

You know, I'm not really sure. Life?

What's the story behind the name Dragon Boy Suede?

Oh, it's just kind of random, I guess, there's no big story behind it. It's just kind of a superhero I made up.

You were involved in the MTV series Austin Stories. What's your connection to Austin?

I'm originally from Matawan, New Jersey. I was in a bunch of bands while I was in college. The bands were always pretty funny and after a while it dawned on me that I was funnier than I was musically talented. So I headed to Austin to try my hand at stand up. I was doing really well and was playing a lot of shows. A bunch of scouts from MTV came to town looking to develop a series. I met with them and eventually we had a deal to create Austin Stories. It ran for one year and was very well received by critics. Unfortunately, there was a regime change the next year and they weren't as supportive of the show and so that came to an end.

Do you see SXSW as a homecoming?

Oh yeah, for sure. I love meeting up with old friends, getting the chance to show 'em around town. My old stomping grounds. A lot of the places they'll be performing at were the stages that I first played, it's so cool to get back there. I love South by Southwest. The chance to see great bands that you love and to see if they can live up to expectations. Maybe even better is the chance to find out about new bands you've never heard of, to see them, to love them, to buy their records, and become a fan. I love that possibility of discovery.

Have you done other TV work besides Austin Stories?

Yeah, I've had a lot of success, along with my writing partner Chip Pope. We've sold a bunch of pilots and are working on some more. We have pilot deals with HBO, ABC, NBC, FOX, and Comedy Central, among others.

Do you have any crazy tour stories?

I've never actually toured. I played in Austin and then I moved to Los Angeles. I've always just performed where I am.

Does the fact that you work in three different mediums (TV, comedy, music) help keep you fresh or do you ever feel stretched too thin?

It's fifty-fifty. That is, if three things can be fifty-fifty. Sometimes I can get too burnt out on one thing and I'm glad I have another avenue to explore. Sometimes I just get too burnt out on like everything and I wonder if I should just choose to focus on one.


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