The artists that make up the somewhat nebulous realm of Elephant 6 aren’t known for their broad appeal – or weren’t until somewhat recently – but Paige Dearman’s project Midget and Hairs is obscure even by E6 standards. While not the most accessible of pop projects, Midget and Hairs has been a mystery to most thanks to their miniature discography and limited pressings. For a recording project that began in ’96, Dearman has had a limited output including just two 7-inches and a couple of songs on compilation albums. As we learn in the Optical Atlas interview, however, the unreleased cassette backlog of Midget and Hairs is jaw-dropping, and Dearman is now more committed than ever to recording a full-length. Here Dearman dishes on the heyday of Elephant 6 and her recording projects both old and new.
ADAM SCHRAGIN: Before we talk about the present and future, let’s discuss the past. How did you first get into music, and what are some of your earliest musical memories?
PAIGE DEARMAN: I was born in Monroe, Louisiana, which is thirty minutes east of Ruston. My mom was really big into music and had all the good old stuff on vinyl. My mom had all the Beatles records and we would listen to them constantly when I was growing up. I remember thinking I wanted to be an artist or musician. I remember that my report card was really good and they let me choose a present. I chose Elvis Presley’s Blue Hawaii. It was so cool. I started collecting vinyl when I was little but had no clue what the realm and depth of this collecting would expound upon. My first shows were Rick Springfield with ‘Till Tuesday, L.A. Guns and Cheap Trick, Stryper and White Lion. Then I got to go to Shreveport and see Metallica. I thought, “This is the life.” Only briefly did I think this was music until I ended up meeting some great and inspirational people who I will always hold deep in my heart.
Could you talk about how you ended up in Ruston, and then Denver, and how you began recording as Midget and Hairs? How did your friends from the Elephant 6 Collective, like Will Hart (Olivia Tremor Control) and Jeff Mangum (Neutral Milk Hotel), get involved?
I happened upon Ruston when I was living at the Methodist Children’s Home. A good friend of mine whom I met there was dating Will Hart and I then started to date Jeff. We dated for awhile and he moved to Austin. During that time period I was working at KLPI, which was Louisiana Tech University’s college radio station. The watts were low but we could play whatever we wanted. I then started to really get into music and began collecting vinyl and tapes. This was before the CD craze happened. I started to begin to find myself in a world I never knew existed and was mesmerized by music and what it could do to the heart. I started to goof around and play things like pots and pans and glasses of water. We would go on roofs in the city to get acoustics with just a regular tape player. I started to paint and then I came up with the band name Midget and Hairs. They were my two phobias, and this seemed appropriate during this time period in my life. I actually got fired from the radio station because I signed off the air one night as Captain Beefheart and that is totally against FCC regulations. I took the rap, though, because I wasn’t the only one involved. I thought it was sorta funny.
I then got my first 4-track, it was a shitty little gray thing and started doing some stuff and then I really got into painting. My best friend and I then decided to move to Denver. We went to a rest area on I-20 and had two smokes that we had cut at different lengths. The short one was “West,” the middle was “Mountain,” and the long one was “East.” We took the long way but drew the “Mountain” one.
We got a house on Grant Street in Denver literally across the street from Robert [Schneider] and Hilarie [Sidney, both of The Apples in Stereo]. I had met Robert in Ruston but he moved to Denver. Our house became the pit stop for many E6 bands on tour and was a middle point of Jeff’s first record as he was living in one of our closets. Will Hart and his girlfriend Laura lived a few blocks away so it was so cool. That’s when I recorded my first 7-inch, Cactus Screwballs. Robert produced it and Jeff played on it, as did Robert and Hilarie. Jeff was basically my Midget and Hairs drummer when I played live. We played tons of shows together. He was so fun and never judged me or made fun but totally let loose and played to my craziness while getting a little crazy himself. It was so much fun. While I lived in Ruston, before Denver, I met Bill Doss [Olivia Tremor Control], John D’Azzo [Gerbils], and John Fernandes [Olivia Tremor Control], and we all were friends. There wasn’t much to do in this town except go to Pete’s Donuts, or go look for mushrooms in the cow fields. I think that’s how we just all found each other and would have parties and play music and stuff. I knew Robert but he was the first to leave Ruston and go to Denver, then Will and Jeff went to Athens, Georgia, then the rest of us split to San Francisco or to Denver. I recorded Cactus Screwballs in Denver, and also recorded [the song "Stardaisy" for] the compilation for Stupid Records.
On a similar note, how did the songs come about for the Marshmallow Coast/Midget and Hairs split?
Andy [Gonzales, Marshmallow Coast] dated my best friend, and even after they split he and I continued to remain friends. Our musical styles could sorta feed off each other. Andy and I decided to move to Seattle and we lived in this tiny apartment. He slept on a futon in the living area and I slept on the floor in the bedroom. We just started recording and it all came to us. The darkness and dampness of Seattle also influenced the tone of the music. We were determined to record the split. Each one of the kids on the I’m a Big Kid Now 7-inch’s hair was colored different. It took a very long time to do (it’s from a potty training book). Then we got the calls from Parasol and Cargo that they wanted to distribute it. There were only 500 copies so it’s a pretty rare and unique record.
What prevented a Midget and Hairs full-length from ever seeing the light of day?
Well after Dominic called and wanted to do the Earworm compilation Songs for a Crimson Eggtree, I don’t really know what happened. Funds are the major issue, and I guess I stopped playing live shows. I still hope to, and will, put out a full-length album. It is definitely a goal of mine. I just want it to be right and for the right reason. I could have moved to Athens but chose not to during the big boom of the bands. Maybe I was scared, I don’t know, but I’m not anymore. I love recording. I just got a bunch of cool instruments from Lark in the Morning (my favorite site) and I got seven new pedals from Musician’s Friend. I have a digital 8-track and an analog 4-track so I’m ready to go.
Who is now recording as Midget and Hairs in addition to yourself?
It is only myself recording as Midget and Hairs. Jeff always played live and we recorded when we lived in Ruston, and in Denver. Various members of E6 have shown up and played on many songs but it’s just me.
How much material have you written?
I have tons of material. At least like 200 tapes worth of stuff.
Could you talk a little about your move to Austin, and what you’ve been up to since you came?
Well, I moved to Austin in 1999 and started working at Helping Hand Home For Children. Then I got engaged and moved to Berkeley and that didn’t work out so I moved back to Austin, which I left, but not because I didn’t like it. I just left to start a life with someone but that didn’t work either. I really love Austin except for the heat, but it’s less humid than Louisiana that’s for sure. I love the vibe here (it’s big town/small town).
What do you think of Austin compared to some of the other cities in which you’ve lived?
If the culture of Austin could be inside of Berkeley/San Francisco, that would be the ideal city. I liked Denver, but it’s somewhat conservative there. Berkeley was like everyone is too cool for school or rules. Seattle was dark and coffee and gloomy. It was a weird feeling there. So Austin takes the cake by far for me.
You’re a psychiatric nurse’s assistant here in Austin. Is it okay to talk a little about what your career is like from day-to-day?
Well, I assist nurses. This is a mental hospital and it has a lot of history behind it. I mean, Roky Erickson [The 13th Floor Elevators] and Daniel Johnston were both patients here. If you haven’t seen The Devil and Daniel Johnston, it’s a great movie. Scenes from the hospital are in it. Also there’s a good movie called Tarnation that is about the hospital also. In the late 1800’s it was like the main structure before there was Guadalupe. The strip was called “Asylum Avenue.” I love crisis and being in a moment and having to act quickly. The population is such a fun group to work with. From the homeless, to druggies, to crazy-for-real people. The quote is, “A hot, a cot, and a pot.” We have to restrain and medicate patients, but that’s not a part I really like. Plus we have a restraint chair. I guess because I had a lot of turmoil and chaos growing up, it’s something I can handle being around daily, but some people can’t handle it well.
In addition to music, what else interests you?
I love video games, comic books, art and painting. I have made my own frames and have painted tons of paintings. I go through phases where I paint when I don’t play music and vice-versa. As long as the artistic void is filled, then it can be either one. I love tennis and the outdoors. I love tubing, the beach, and the mountains. I also love to travel. I love movies; I have probably almost seen every movie in the world (not really) but I have Netflix and love it.
Tell us a little about your latest band, Exhibit B Static Shade. Who are the other ladies involved, and what do you guys sound like? How did this band get together?
I met Amber [Hamilton] at work and Christina [Kubenka] is her best friend. Christina plays bass, guitar and sings back-up; Amber sings and makes us laugh; I play lots of instruments from xylophone, keyboard, drums, la kimba, flutes, auto harp, banjo, accordion, and I don’t know, I collect instruments – so anything really. I’m also teaching both of them to play other instruments. I have a collection of pedals and love to mess with sound like with delay and reverb and distortion. The coolest part about this band is I’ve never let loose. I’ve only been able to truly open up musically and deeply with two people and that’s Jeff Mangum AKA Neutral Milk Hotel, and Andy Gonzales AKA Marshmallow Coast. To find these two bandmates who really wanna do this has been a godsend and I feel so comfortable. We already have tons of material and it’s been two months with one to—sometimes, if we are lucky—two practices a week. I wanted each of them to tell their own story, so here it goes.
CHRISTINA KUBENKA: Hmm…I am almost twenty-seven, from Victoria, Texas. My musical taste has changed so much since I was a kid, but I guess I really got into it around eleven years old. That’s when I actually met Amber. We liked grunge stuff at the time (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains). A few years later we met a guy (or young teen) like ourselves, and he got a guitar. We decided to have a band.
Amber got a drum set, I got a bass, and we practiced on Sundays…nothing really came of it, but I still played around on the guitar from time to time. I don’t know. I love music from the 90’s, like grunge and even “sell out” post-grunge. It’s still my favorite, but I like lots of indie rock now too.
AMBER HAMILTON: Christina and I have been playing on and off for over thirteen years. We had our first unsuccessful attempt at about thirteen/fourteen years with another guy with different musical tastes than our own, and he was stuck on being the singer, so…
I have been in a few bands without Chris—but again, different musical styles—and I haven’t ventured out on my own as I suck at guitar. Met Paige at work—I’m a nurse for the state—and Christina and I have known each other since we were eleven: we met at a junior high Valentine’s dance, because we were both giving the slip to two of my neighbors. Early influences were Babes in Toyland and Nirvana; over the years it’s been more Neutral Milk Hotel and recently, Sufjan Stevens: I am in awe of his musical range and prowess over different instruments. Christina is heavily influenced by anything Frank Black. I love all the indie coming out now and in the 90’s; and of course all of the Elephant 6 (that’s what started my friendship with Paige initially). I can’t really explain our musical style—random, indie, lo-fi for sure. Singing style is whatever comes to mind. When I listen to us play I here everything from a Breeders influence to Velvet Underground to Mazzy Star to Sonic Youth (or maybe that’s just wishful thinking). I hate doing that; it sounds pretentious and categorizing, and I’d like to say our music just is what it is. Plus it’s bad luck/manners to compare yourself to the greats.
I am very lyrically driven, so a lot of work goes into that: Paige writes lyrics as well and sings on some songs of course (with Christina harmonizing- she’s good at that).
Paige and Chris play different instruments and it all comes together surprisingly easy for us, except we have yet to have a steady drummer. We all work full-time and are tentatively working on an album/collaboration.
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Midget and Hairs recently established a presence in MySpace, where you can hear some of their recordings. The MySpace site for Exhibit B Static Shade can be found here. You can also sample some of Paige’s music below:
Midget and Hairs MP3s:
The Pause (from I’m a Big Kid Now)
Little Girl (from I’m a Big Kid Now)
Goodbye Ethel Malloy (from Songs for a Crimson Eggtree)
