The new single-release Crocodile Gin by Vienna-based Band „The L.L.A.“ was released on May 24 along with a 24 page comic book by Comic Book Artist & Illustrator Rob Ayers (S.R. Ayers).
In an in-depth mail-interview with Klangskizzerei Tim Tercero, The L.L.A. mastermind, talks about the inspiration behind the song, recalls the songwriting, arranging and recording process and explains why illustrator Rob Ayers was the perfect fit for the project. Tercero also gives fans a hint on what musical direction to expect on the next L.L.A. releases.
Klangskizzerei: How would you describe the story of your single „Crocodile Gin” in a nutshell?
Tim Tercero: “Crocodile Gin” is about someone losing themselves in a relationship. Bit by bit, pieces of them start to go missing, and the storyline for “Crocodile Gin” presents this idea in the literal sense. The body parts do start disappearing.
What inspired the song lyrically?
The lyrics were inspired by a line that came to me while jamming over the bassline: “You crawled up like a crocodile, and playfully nibbled my ear.” That image sparked the story of a crocodile lady preying upon a love-hungry guy, and the rest flowed from there.
Was it inspired by a particular bar or could it be any bar?
The visual that I had when thinking over the comic had influences from a bar called, “Cap’s” (pre renovated) in Bellingham, Washington. It was one of those sticky musky heavy kinds of bars that was not very inviting from the outside, but was a good time when you went in. They had a drink there called the Peruvian Bear Fucker. That was always the start of a short night…
Can you recall the writing of the song – did melody and lyrics come at once?
I remember it started with the bass line of the verses, which was a much slower groove in the first arrangement of the song. I think I wrote the verses and choruses before I tried out the walking bassline for the chorus. So the writing process kind of went back and forth between music and lyrics and back to the music. I really enjoyed that process because it felt surprising for me when the pieces really started fitting together.
How did you come up with the crocodile „roar“ vocal trick and effect?
Pure and silly experimentation. After I reworked the bassline on the song, I thought I would mess around with my MAW microphone processor from Old Noise Blood Endeavors. I think it was one of those playful silly takes that I didn’t think would be possible for me to consider using, but then I loved it. It felt right. It felt raw. That was a fun moment of creation for me, because I took a chance to do something weird, and it led to a wonderful result that I can duplicate live as well, which I am really excited about!
To me the chorus of the song has a 60s power trio blues-vibe – especially with the swing-y drums – how has that style influenced your music?
I thought that the swinging feel was fun and playful, especially in regards to the whole dancing in a bar with the antagonist, and then finding a piece of you is missing after each chorus. So the swing is there, but in regards to drums, that is where I put my trust into the hands and skill of drummer Michi Lind and producer Alexander Lausch. We had a great time in the studio together, working through different ideas, and the final version seemed the most free and fitting. That is a big part of what I love about the creative process of this project. I write and record the demos of the songs at home, and the programmed percussive ideas are usually ok, but are pretty basic, and then Michi expands upon those ideas. It then takes on a bigger and better feeling for me as a listener. It is always a magical moment for me whenever I can experience my songs with new elements and flavors from collaborators and bandmates.
The studio version of Crocodile Gin by the L.L.A. with image outtakes from the comic released May 24
In what ways did the arrangement of the song evolve over time?
This song actually evolved the most out of any that I’ve written. The first arrangement was more groovy and bluesier. I liked the feel, but it was pretty different from anything else I was doing for The L.L.A. in regards to the studio album. So I thought I would play around with it to see if I couldn’t reign it back into the album’s sound-world a bit. I had just bought a bass amp-sim around that time, and was testing it out. Low and behold, a bit of drive on the bass and lots of saturation brought “Crocodile Gin” back into the sound of The L.L.A.. It didn’t feel forced at all, but was a totally natural development for me, and the song was rejuvenated for me at that point.
Why did you change the arrangement?
The old arrangement was always a favorite to perform live, but the feeling and feedback that I got for it, was that it stuck out from the rest of the set as its own thing, and kind of sounded like a different band. Which was ok, but when I started working on my debut album and was putting the song list together, I knew that “Crocodile Gin” didn’t fit with the rest, and so I thought to experiment with it a bit, and I feel that it ended up in a really cool place in relation to the other songs that I have. It is still its own thing, but there is more of a red line going from the album to this one, and then to the next releases.
In what musical direction are your newest unreleased L.L.A. songs developing?
I have about an EP worth of songs that I am working on right now and I would say they are more similar to the indie rock sound that I put out on my debut album, “Diminishing Returns,” than to the swinging side of “Crocodile Gin.” But there are a lot of different ideas that I am working through on these songs, more vocal experimentation (working on the low end of my vocal range), and pushing my limits for storytelling and genre blending.
How did you come up with the idea of releasing a comic to accompany the single release?
The visual was so strong for me when writing the lyrics to the song. The theme of the protagonist losing bits of himself, and this seductive older character that is playing him for a fool, felt like something that had to be presented in a vivid and violent way. A music video was never really in my mind for it, but the possibility of a comic book, that really got me excited. However, at first I had no idea where to start looking for an artist. I shelved the idea for a long time, until I was fortunate enough to come across Rob Ayer’s work.
What made the art style of comic book artist and illustrator S.R. Ayers the perfect fit for this project?
I was introduced to Rob’s art on instagram through a mutual friend. I instantly loved it and knew his mixture of dark themes, strong lines, and vivid colors would be the perfect fit. The comic needed to be realistic and fantastical, violent and playful, and was also very colorful in my mind, and after going through Rob’s socials and website, I knew he could make this happen. I was still a bit shy to reach out to him about it, but then he commented on a music video of mine. I took the chance, once I knew there was some kind of a mutual appreciation of each other’s work. It all went super smoothly after that. We met, he liked the song and the concept, we bounced ideas off of eachother, and from his first drafts, I knew that it would be one of my absolute favorite creative projects! He was amazing to work with and filled the whole project with passion and motivation. He also had a lot of freedom to work through scenes and background concepts around the main storyline, and the result is very exciting to me. Lots of tasty elements going on throughout the comic!
a gallery of image outtakes from the comic illustrated with artworks by Rob Ayers, (c) The L.L.A. band, 2024
Where can fans buy the comic and song?
- Fans can buy the song on the usual sites where The L.L.A. songs are digitally sold, e.g., Amazon, Itunes, Bandcamp, Gumroad.
- The digital download for the comic will be available on Gumroad (https://thellaband.gumroad.com/).
- When the physical comic books come in, they will be available at my Bandcamp store.
What do you love about comics?
I am a huge fan of animation, stop motion, and the drawn medium in general. I love the fact that a series of stills can be so emotionally provocative. That they can evoke humanity and tension while allowing the viewer to put their own experiences, interpretations, and feelings into the scene. That makes these mediums really impressive art forms to me.
Can you tell us about your favourite comic from your childhood?
As a child, I really enjoyed Calvin and Hobbes. The playfulness and the themes of childhood development made quite the impression on me. You have this kid that seems wild and uncouth and has an imagination that is so colorful, yet there are stories where Watterson shows the sadness and tenderness of this wild child, and his relationship with his parents, his tiger, and the world. I think that was the start of respecting the amount of emotion that can be presented through the right balance of drawing and solid storytelling.
Thank You for the Interview!
Digital Comic Download on gumroad
Illustrator Rob Ayers (S.R. Ayers) on instagram
S.R. Ayers illustrator homepage
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