Hell City Tattoo Festival ‘09: Let it Bleed
May 29th-31st, Killumbus, OH

Hell City, the tattoo festival mentioned heavily in my article on Durb Morrison recently, rolled through Columbus this past weekend. I’ve been going to the festival since its premiere back in 2002. During its early years Hell City was fresh, new, and exciting. It quite literally changed the landscape of what convention goers expected out of a tattoo convention. First and foremost, it was one of the first festivals to really capitalize on the transfer of the center of the tattoo industry from the biker community to the arts/music community.

This is a transition that had been taking place since the ‘90s, but Hell City really seemed to mark the changing of the color guard. Morrison booked punk, hardcore and rockabilly acts to play that first convention, as well as freak shows, fine art displays, tattoo memorabilia, and even live body suspensions. A bit of legendary Hell City lore: the Hyatt actually denied the request to perform the suspensions so the troupe famously performed a live human tug-of-war instead, with the rope attached to the performers via hooks in the flesh of their backs.

As years went by, more and more festivals started to implement some of the ideas first popularized by Hell City. As conventions around the country started to adapt, Hell City slowly lost some of its flare for me, culminating in my not even going onto the convention floor at the 2008 festival (you don’t have to pay to hang at the bar!!!). For the tattoo community, this adaptation is actually a good thing. While Hell City is, in my book, still the best convention in the country, not everyone can afford to come to Columbus from several states away, so it would be nice if conventions closer to home offered more. Hell City’s popularity has made this a reality.

On top of that, the past few years marked the height of the popularity of shows like Miami Ink and LA Ink, as well as artists like Kat Von D (I don’t fancy tattooists who gain fame that way, although she is getting good since I first heard of her). The sort of crowd this heightened attention drew was kind of a put off although, like most tattooed people, I want tattoos to become more and more socially acceptable so I, in turn, accept the increasing popularity.

This year, however, Hell City felt just like it did seven years ago. There was no Kat Von D, and therefore, no tele-junkies following her every move. The crowd was larger than last year, and the attendees seemed more psyched than usual. My normal tattoo convention buddies didn’t make the trip this year, but some other friends did; plus I made some wonderful, new friends throughout the weekend as well. I got to hang out with Famous Gabe, which is always something I look forward to. While I didn’t get tattooed by Gabe this year, we did plan on some pretty serious sleeve action to take place later this summer.

If the above wasn’t proof enough that this year upped the ante once again, living legends Lyle Tuttle and Philadelphia Eddie were both in attendance, solidifying the convention’s status as the place to be. Also, for the first time ever, Hell City was host to a roast of one of the industry’s own: collector, judge and MC, Chris Longo. The only man missing was Jack Rudy, who actually did take part in the roast via satellite.

As usual, a bevy of Suicide Girls were on hand to award the trophies for the tattoo competitions. These trophies are the best on the convention circuit, by the way. They are always spectacularly designed, with previous years featuring designs by artists like Don Pendleton and Joe Capobianco. Speaking of Joe, he was on hand and had a crowd surrounding his booth the entire weekend. His work truly is that seminal, and he always garners that kind of attention.

This year plenty of old collectors came out of the woodwork, as I saw more seniors with sleeves and body suits than in many of the previous years. The whole tattoo community was represented, from the bikers, the old timers, the hip hoppers, the punks, the metalheads, and indie kids right to the deviants. It sure felt like home again. The only thing left to do now is book my flight and room for Hell City’s Tattoo Vacation at the Biltmore in Phoenix. I hope to see you there!

–Luke Toney, photos by Alison Toney

Insane Clown Posse Presents: A Family Underground DVD
Psychopathic Records
0/10

Who the fuck sent this to Racket? If you and I have a solid working relationship, I am sorry for what is about to occur. But, on the other hand, I think you sent this to me because you hate me.

This has got to be one of the worst things I have ever seen in my life- but in the amazing, now-you-feel-better-about-yourself kind of way. Thousands of people in face paint, white contacts and shitty flat-tops turned into braids prevailed at the 9th annual Gathering of the Juggalos. The Psychopathic Records logo is all over the damned place, but no place made me sadder than on the arm of a chubby British dude. He and his wife forked over their life savings to come to America to attend the Gathering (not say, their children’s college fund), though they lucked out and had a very romantic wedding led by non other than face-painted soda-rapper Violent J.

Highlights (lowlights?) included juggalos hitting each other over the head with a speed limit sign as hard as they could for no good reason, a montage of people tripping something fierce, and a dude telling his very pregnant girlfriend he was going only to have her respond in tears… because she couldn’t go.

Almost as popular as Insane Clown Posse, was Faygo, the soda with one of the worst possible names to have around malicious school-aged children. There was juggalette Faygo wrestling (it was NOT as good as I had hoped. Chubby chicks choking each other is not so sexy), Faygo squirt guns, and even a triumphant Faygo montage of ICP’s hype-clowns spraying down the crowd.

The acts included actually legit rap artist Ice-T, lisping Psychopathic artist Any Body Killer, handkerchief mafiaosos The Rydas, and of course, the Insane Clown Posse. I will apologize to my friends, loved ones and God right now: I used to listen to Insane Clown Posse in 9th grade. Then again I was a little douchebag in 9th grade. I have reformed, and now understand the gravity of my errors.

The juggalos were out in full force, yelling “Whoop whoop,” throwing up “Wicked Clown” gang signs and drinking shitty beer. I don’t think I saw anything higher up the beer scale than a King Cobra 40 being consumed by One Hit Wonder Afro-Man. Some choice quotes from juggalos throughout the film:

“I’m crazy, take your panties off and throw them at me.”
“We’re laying it down clown style, fuck your face, fuck your mom.”
“I want that autograph so bad and shit.”

So, between the metal midget, his retarded henchman brother, and the golf cart jumping a pile of dirt into a juggalo’s car and juggalo jail, I can guarantee that I never want to go to the Gathering of the Juggalos. Except for one of the state troopers- Officer Nice- they interviewed was hot. We did end up changing my dumb cat’s name for the night from Bragnadarr the Troll Eater, to something that showed a bit more “clown love”: Tubbee 2 Short.

–Jonathan Yost, with additional mockery/excitement by Brandon Kelley.

Nico Vega and Gavin Rossdale Live
June 7th House of Blues, Anaheim CA

Gavin Rossdale and opening act Nico Vega turned the House of Blues into a red-hot firestorm. The former Bush frontman brought back their 90’s hits and even covered an acoustic version of a Stevie Nicks classic. Rossdale and company made their final stop on tour in Orange County to a raucous crowd in Anaheim who witnessed downright rock n’ roll drum-kit destroying mayhem.

Los Angeles trio Nico Vega kicked off the festivities. Lead singer Aja’s vocal chops pierced the ears of everyone in attendance and even those peering over the balcony heard her loud and clear. The live performance of Vega’s single “Beast” was massive and Aja sung her ass off. The intense lead singer channeled the legendary Janis Joplin and even their songs sounded like jams from the late 1960s-early 70s. At one point, Aja laid flat on her back for a good two to three minutes during a killer instrumental solo. She wore a long regal coat, channeling her inner rock goddess. If that were not enough, Aja brought a girl up on stage to dance with her like hippies on acid. Nico Vega performed a memorable set that got the crowd pumped and ready to rock.

Before the main event, the initials, “GR” appeared in the backdrop of the small stage. The crowd anxiously awaited the charismatic English frontman and their wish was granted in a very dramatic fashion. The venue fell into darkness and an electronic voice summoned the band on stage. Once the spotlight came on, the ladies made their presence known with their screaming and swooning for the ridiculously good-looking Gavin Rossdale. Wearing a leather jacket, his brooding stare captured the naughty imaginations of women, but he was more than just a pretty face- he played the guitar and sang his heart out. In fact, his voice sounded just like the record.

However, the first song of the night had technical difficulties. The microphone cut in and out at one point but the problem disappeared toward the end of the song. Rossdale oozed sex appeal and it felt like every girl was undressing him with their eyes. Not to mention, the lighting effects were incredible and it matched the energy of each song perfectly. For instance, the Bush classic, “Machinehead” had a terrific lightshow and the crowd lit up as well as they sang along to every word. The performance of “Chemicals Between Us” matched the same energy as well.

During one point in between songs, Rossdale acknowledged a couples’ quarrel in the pit and in the most polite English sentiment, he pleaded that they make up. The diverse crowd clapped and the show continued to rock the house. Even Rossdale confessed much to the delight of his fans, “[I’m] fresh and ready and I could play for hours.” This enthusiasm included singing covers such as “Landslide” by Stevie Nicks. He stripped it down with an acoustic guitar and everyone sang along like it was a beach bonfire. This was the first of many great performances that night. The first smash hit by Bush “Everything Zen” was the second highlight. In fact, Rossdale made a real show of it- he jumped off stage and ran his guitar against a wooden column. Somehow he managed to balance on to something and then hold on to the side of that column. Regardless of the execution, it was a beautiful thing.

Rossdale was the consummate performer in every sense of the word. Not only did he look the part, he played it. The way he interacted with his band mates and moved around the stage with Mick Jaggar swagger won the crowd over. It was sensory overload during the song “Adrenaline” and it definitely got the blood-pumping. Not only did the song jack up the crowd, the performance even caused Rossdale to have his very own clichéd rock star moment, falling on the drummer and destroying the drum set. But that did not signal the end of the show because Rossdale came back for more. Alone on stage with his electric guitar, the showman sang “Glycerine,” arguably one of the defining songs of the 90s grunge era. Speaking of that decade, Rossdale was a visual feast singing Bush song “Comedown” for the last performance of the night.

Being a part of the British post-grunge movement during the 90s, Rossdale cannot escape his past or the lens of the paparazzi with his superstar wife Gwen Stefani. However, he is capable of having a damn good solo career. The proof was in the pudding or in the performance of “Love Remains the Same” from his current album Wanderlust. In the end, it was a marriage of the old and new stuff; yet another exciting chapter in the life of an true artist.

–Gail Navarro

Miss Leota
May 29, 2009
Slidebar
Fullerton, CA

I didn’t know what to expect when I jumped in the car to see Miss Leota play at the Slidebar in Fullerton. I did know that one of the members was friends with Jimmy the Robot and Ricky Fitness from the Aquabats, but that was it. So, I bought myself some Barton Vodka and off we went. Turns out Miss Leota is a Death Metal/Hardcore band. Or, as they call themselves, “BusinessCore; the art of skipping the nonsense, gimmicks, clichés, and getting straight down to business.” Watch out folks, they coined that phrase. Not exactly my bag, but it had been a while since I’d had my eardrums blown out.

The first song was called “Rewind” and there was a verse about cutting yourself. Not sure of the context, what with all the guttural screams, but they were quite energetic nonetheless. The song did have a pretty sweet breakdown. Two of the guys even jumped off stage and started thrashing around in the semi-crowd whilst playing. The singer ended up on someone’s shoulders at one point. AcrobatCore!

All in all, they were fairly decent. I liked the enthusiasm and you could tell they were having a good time. Even though hardcore all starts sounding the same to me in the end, the crowd seemed to really like them. Mumbles, mumbles, flashing red lights…my cue to enjoy the $3 vodka specials. The verdict: a solid evening filled with heavy tunes. And vodka.

You can check out Miss Leota on their Myspace.

–Sarah Why

There are only two words to describe the past week in Hollywood: hot mess. The most shocking and astonishing event was the unfortunate break up of Paris Hilton and Doug Reinhardt. If those two can’t stay together, I just don’t believe in true love anymore. They seemed so perfect, amid all their 3 a.m. screaming fights and basically public fornication. Well, at least Doug will have something to remember Paris by-all the STDs he contracted from her. Now, those will last a lifetime. It didn’t take Paris long to move onto soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo. Wonder how many goals he scored that night…

Another achingly devastating breakup shattered the Hollywood social scene- Miley Cyrus and her awkwardly older boyfriend Justin Gaston split. I had so much hope for them. But I guess even love can’t disguise the monstrosity that is Miley Cyrus’ twang. Hannah Montana has found it in her heart to love again, and has started to reconnect with old flame Nick Jonas. Closer to her age, yes, but he definitely wears tighter pants. I don’t see this lasting. I’m saying 2 months, and even that’s pushing it.

The Brat Pratt, a.k.a. Heidi and Spencer, are stirring up more trouble, this time on NBC’s I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here. The couple quit the show about 36 times and tried to get back on it once they realized that crappy reality TV is their only source of fame. Pratt’s sister claimed they were tortured after Heidi was rushed to the hospital with an ulcer after being kept in a dark room with only water, rice, and beans…and Spencer. I agree, being locked in a room with Spencer is torture. Looks like we found the source of that ulcer. It’s her husband. The battle between Speidi and NBC rages on.

In Twitter news, Kevin Jonas is an idiot, and John Mayer is a genius. Kevin twittered “I got soap in my eyes! No fun!” Good, maybe now they’ll kick your worthless butt out of your band. If the Jonas brothers can even be considered a band, that is. And John Mayer invented “pedamundo,” which means a “drunken party world that occurs on the second weekend of June every year” He says that “On Pedamundo, urinating on a cop car isn’t just legal, it’s customary.” The most sense-ical definition of pedamundo is this: “You know that buzz you have 2.5 drinks in where everything in the world feels achievable? That is Pedamundo.” I think I may have found my soul mate.

–Cortney Long

Ooooooh! Racket received this juicy bit of hatemail. We loved it so much, we decided to reach out to our new fan and address her concerns.

On Jun 7, 2009, at 3:07 AM, heavensharlot69 wrote:

[From Racket’s About Us:] “’When we review a CD, we don’t care how much heart and soul went into it, we tell you if you should bother shelling out $15 for the thing, or if you’re better off spending that money on Drumsticks and Dr. Pepper for a week. If it gets a decent review, it’s probably worth your cash. If it gets a sucky review, don’t fucking bother. Don’t even download it.’

“What the fuck makes you so worthy of calling shots for people??? You guys are running a piece of shit online magazine interviewing shitty bands that don’t matter and you act like your the shit?????? The day you guys crank out a multi million dollar album and the day you run your own tv show with high ratings and the day you do something positive for humanity I will care what you have to say until than you guys make me want to kill myself….”

Dear Ms. 69,

Thank you for your feedback. We here at the Racket hate-mail bag would like personally address your questions and concerns.

1) I have no idea what makes us worthy to call the shots. Call it destiny or divine intervention, but here we are, “calling the shots.” We’re the Mob Boss of musical taste. If you don’t listen to our point of view, we will probably have your legs broke, or something else nasty.

2) I am not surprised you think all the bands we cover are “shitty.” We personally go out of our way to find the music and bands we know you will personally hate, making sure that a wide breadth of genres and musical acts are covered because we love nothing more than to torment you and your sensitive tastes, and you sound like a real douche bag.

3) I am not personally aware of any magazine that has put out a multimillion dollar album and maybe only a couple that have anything to do with television. I can see what you mean though, clearly only popular things able to be potentially swayed by heavy marketing financial interests can accurately tell you what is cool and what you should spend your hard-earned money on. It is very shrewd of you to distrust small publications run by creators with a strong personal investment and passion in the work they do, whose non-traditional opinions are clearly only trash-talk and the ramblings of men drunk on their own power. Would I consider a Hannah Montana CD as something positive for humanity? No. Is Miley Cyrus able to maintain a lucrative music-themed entertainment franchise on stage-presence and marketing alone? It would seem so. Does it sell well? Like hot-cakes. But you know who else was popular back in the day? Hitler.

As to your dangerous suicidal thoughts, Racket claims no responsibility for any actions you may take. Rather than lashing out at us and blaming the music may I recommend listening to some soothing ocean sounds, preferably backwards, or a heart to heart session with a community counselor. Off the record, though- we won’t miss your readership.

Thank you for your time,

The Racket Staff

Brittan’s Amebix is one of the first bands to blend anarcho-punk and heavy metal music. Formed in 1978, and split in 1987, they recently reunited as of 2008.

Crusties both young and old packed the Trocadero venues to capacity for the legendary hardcore punk band Amebix, uniting to go on tour for the first time in twenty-two years. This was a dream come true for punks young and old who have wanted to see the glory that is Amebix live.

The heavily influential sound of Amebix laid the foundation for crust punk. It’s hypnotic and haunting melodies merge the harsh cold brutality of metal with the raw punk edge of anger, calling out injustice. All over the US, punks united to witness their unforgettable shows. The venues were flooded with a sea of black leather and metal studs as the crowd sang along with Amebix singer Rob Miller, “Arise!”

We were honored enough to be able to interview vocalist, Rob Miller, from the island of Skye, after their highly anticipated US tour.

Interview with Amebix vocalist Rob Miller by Roya Butler and Hannah Wagner.

Roya Butler: Regarding your song, “Largactyl,” can you give us the background story of how that song was written? Also, how do you feel about overmedication of children today? Lastly, what does the last lyric of “Largactyl” mean: “At 21 they’ll be coming for you”?
Rob Miller: “Largactyl” was written about our first drummer Martin, who was diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic after we left his place in Devon. The medication they put him on was Largactyl, which seemed extreme for someone essentially so gentle. The lyric is: “Senility at 21…they’ll be coming for you, we were still young”- it means that the men in white coats are coming. I think there is a lot of over diagnosis of social problems that didn’t really exist when I was a kid. If you were a pain in the ass you got a punch. Sorted.
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Up
Disney/Pixar
10/10

Pixar sets a new high with its latest animated feature Up which rises to the occasion and proves to be as funny and thoughtful as it gorgeous to look at. The movie follows the adventures of a cranky old man stuck in his ways, mismatched with an over enthusiastic youngster whose intentions seem to always overshoot his abilities. Right from when the film first launches off, you know that this is going to be something different and special.

What could have been simply a light hearted kid’s adventure movie turned out to be a beautifully introspective story about letting go and finding a purpose in life, a theme that seemed to resonate even stronger with the adults in the audience. One moment the theater would be squealing with laughter and the next minute, you could almost hear the collective sound of everyone’s heart breaking, at the same time trying hard yourself to stifle back a tear. It is a rare thing to see a film that can pair tenderness & soul with giant blimps, yet Up somehow manages to pull it off.

My only thing I could take issue with in Up was that the main “buddy rescue” quest that drives of the latter half of the film is not well set up. The villain seemed to me an unusual choice, his dastardly plot coming across more convenient then evil, making the final conflict seem inflated out of proportion. For a film that has such powerful emotional impact falling short on this front is disappointing. Regardless, the movie manages to tell a beautifully moving story that engages the audience in a way that few animated films do. You are allowed to watch a man’s entire life unfold, feeling each thrill, hope, and heart-ache along with him. When you leave you feel like you have gotten to share something truly beautiful.

–Laura Gaddy

Bang Camaro rocks my balls off. And then rocks so hard I grow a new pair bigger and badder than the last. From 80’s rock riffs to lyrics that were literally made for singing along, Bang Camaro has successfully created a new spin on a genre long since established. From 12 year old gamers to my dad (who, at one time told me that White Snake was “the gods of metal”), Bang Camaro’s offer of a good time entices just about everyone. Maybe not Aunt Judy who hates anything but Bing Crosby Christmas Specials on 78s, but everyone else, for sure. Fucking Aunt Judy. That chick SUCKS. I got a chance to speak to co-founder Alex Necochea about all kinds of stupid, nerdy shit. Here goes:

Racket Jonathan: Have you ever been concerned that there are people with an Ewok fetish?

Bang Camaro Alex: Have I been concerned with it? No, not at all. Do I believe it exists? Yes, definitely. If we’re talking about weird shit, I think Bryn the other day was talking about turning our next video into a breast-feeding fetish.

RJ: Yes. I’ve seen different numbers and seen different pictures as to the amount of people in the band, but how many people are in Bang Camaro currently?

BCA: Well it really depends on the day of the week. Today it is probably three, but hopefully by the end of the week I can get that number up to twelve for our show in New York City.
RJ: Is it kind of a pain in the ass getting everyone together for shows?

BCA: Yeah, definitely. We’ve been off the road for a little while now so everybody has kind of gone back to their everyday lives. A lot of guys have day jobs, and girlfriends, and wives, and things like that. So the logistics around getting people to a rehearsal is difficult enough, getting them to shows, especially when they are out of town, tends to be a little more hairy, but usually when we get into something where we’re on the road for an extended period of time it gets a little easier because they have nothing else to do.

RJ: Who in the band would you say has the most boring life?

BCA: Probably me. I spend a lot of hours staring at my computer just trying to figure out how to get people to come to rehearsals or to get them to show up at the show. And believe me, that’s not exciting. There’s nothing glamorous about it.
RJ: Oh, no I completely agree, trying to run Racket and organize who’s doing what is a pain in the ass, too. I can only imagine getting people to do shit at the same time.

BCA: Yeah, fortunately because of our numbers those duties kind of get spread around, mostly between Bryn Bennett, who’s our co-founder and the lead guitarist and myself, as well as members of our management team. Some of our other vocalists are pretty good at corralling people and trying to get them into the same room, or at least booking hotels for us.

RJ: What would you say is the biggest misconception about Bang Camaro?

BCA: I think from the get-go it’s been that, whether or not we’re a joke. When we first started out we were playing here in Boston which was pretty heavy in the hipster/indie rock and we were bringing back this kind of this hard rock revivalist kind of sound. Not only were we doing it with like four guitarists we were packing the stage with anywhere between 12 and 20 people. For a really long time questions were like, “Are you guys fucking joking?” and the answer is, “No! We are not a joke!” We definitely take a lot of liberties in our music in terms of we having our own inside jokes and we like to have a lot of fun, but really, Bang Camaro is not a joke, we take what we do quite seriously.
RJ: I’m actually kind of surprised, are you from Boston?

BCA: Yeah I currently reside in Boston, I’m not originally from here, I grew up in central Pennsylvania.
RJ: Okay cause I was thinking that that wasn’t very much of a Boston accent.

BCA: Ha ha, no we don’t have that many tried and true Boston guys in the band, a lot of us are transplants who live here in the city for anywhere between 15 to 3 years. We had a couple of guys who were grown local but they don’t have the thick Boston accent you’d expect.

RJ: What is the biggest drawback in terms of writing songs when you have that many people in the band?

BCA: Probably getting to the eleventh hour when we’re in the recording studio and we get a couple of guys who cross their arms and refuse to sing a line or two because they think it’s too over the top or too ridiculous. Then at that point it kind of turns into this debate on whether or not we’re going to say, “She deceives me” or “lick it up”. We get into some pretty serious debates over some pretty silly lyrics.
RJ: Is it easier to divvy up all the groupies?

BCA: You mean the underage male gamers that come to our show? We haven’t had that problem in getting that worked out at all. Usually a couple of guys will just hand out and talk video games with them, and some of us will come up with elaborate schemes that involve pantsing them. But if you can come up with any great ideas that would entice more attractive, single women to come to our shows I’m all over it.
RJ: I am actually a little surprised that it would be underage dudes versus late thirties early forties women with like, White Snake shirts.

BCA: Well yeah, we can generally draw a line down the center of the crowd of people who come to see us. Mostly when we’re playing out of town, outside of the Boston/New York area, we’ll play to a younger crowd that has generally discovered us through playing games like Rock Band and Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero, and you know sometimes there tends to be this younger generation of kids who more often than not tend to fall on the male side. But then again we do have that set where you know, closer to the Boston area we do tend to get that older crowd and we start playing in the over 21 clubs. And a lot of those people want to see the band for like Motley Crue and Def Leppard and Skid Row and Warrant and Winger and wanted to see all those band in their heyday and are just coming up to us after shows and thanking us for bringing that sound back. So we’re not worried about our older set of groupies but they usually tend to be more well-behaved or married.

RJ: What mid-80’s cock-rock band is your favorite?

BCA: Like real cock-rock? I’d probably have to go with Skid Row, I mean, those guys were definitely singing about girls, drugs, booze, fucking, and being really dumb people fucking up.
RJ: Dude I’ll never forget being in like the 7th grade and jerking off to the Warrant “Cherry Pie” video.

BCA: Yeah, was Bobby Brown in the video? She’s hot.
RJ: She was so hot.

BCA: Yeah I remember her in that video. I don’t remember so much about the rest of the song, but I remember her in the video.
RJ: You should get her for your breast-feeding video.

BCA: I think she’d be into it.
Ch-check it »

[Emperor’s note: This is by far the longest interview we have ever conducted. If you are a fan of the band, you are in for a treat. - The Emperor]

It’s been murder, but after two years Julien-K finally released Death to Analog. During a media day in West Hollywood, band members Ryan Shuck and Amir Derakh sat comfortably in their London Hotel suite to talk about shooting their x-rated video, creating new material for the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen soundtrack and so much more cool shit. Let’s check in with the boys, raw and uncensored.

Racket Gail: Why did you want to premiere the video for “Kick the Bass” on playboy.com?
Ryan Shuck: It was x-rated [laughs.] What better place to debut content like that? I mean, you can’t exactly throw it on TV. To find an outlet that had a huge amount of traffic, four or five times bigger than MTV’s and debut it on that seemed like a really smart move; being an early, younger indulger of Playboy myself [laughs.]

RG: Where did you film it at? Is it in the Playboy mansion?
Ryan: [whispers] No.
Amir Derakh: I think it was the “Paramour” mansion or “Paramell?” What was it called?
Ryan: Paramour.
Amir: Paramour mansion, yeah. There’ve been other videos that have been shot there and probably some movies and things like that. It was a little tricky. I don’t think they were, even though they were completely aware of what was going on, I don’t think they were too stoked on all the naked girls. I don’t think they expected it. It’s not disgusting or anything but I think they were a little uneasy about it. We had a lot of strict rules and guidelines that had to be followed, as far as when you have naked girls around. There’s like weird rules and regulations. People had to come and inspect the filming and all kinds of stuff to make sure everything was kosher [laughs.]

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