5 Questions with... The Red Paintings! October 15, 2008
Posted by Shannon Phillips at October 15, 2008 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 3 ) | TrackBack
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I'm back with another installment of our "5 Questions With" blogs! This time, it's with the up and coming art-rock band, The Red Paintings, a new personal favorite of mine! Check them out, and if you want a great place to talk about all aspects of animal rights, visit their message board! - xo, shan
NAME OF BAND: The Red Paintings
BAND MEMBERS: Trash McSweeney
SOUNDS LIKE: Orchestral Art Rock
How long have you been vegetarian/ vegan and what made you start? I have only been a full-time vegetarian for the last six months, although I have been challenging myself to adopt a vegan lifestyle. I have found that veganism is a lot harder to maintain in Australia due to a lack of vegan restaurants and products.
I have been holding "Animal Rebellion Marches" in Australia over the past two years but it was not until our recent U.S.A. tour that I realized how important it was for everyone to stop eating animals. On that tour I met a lovely lady named Susan Weingartner who is actually on the Board of Directors for the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. They are well-known for their work with rescuing whales from slaughter. I spent a few weeks with Susan in L.A. watching many animal rights films including "Earthlings" and "Lolita". We went to a farm sanctuary called "Animal Acres" to meet animals that had been rescued from cruel farming conditions or had been dumped on the streets.
Since those experiences my life has never been the same. Through Susan I was able to meet many animal activists and they helped me to see the animal holocaust around us and it is a very frightening realization.
Now, I feel it is my duty to speak up for all animals as they can not speak for themselves. The most effective and simple way to stand up for animals, I believe, is to stop eating them.
What's your favorite vegetarian/vegan meal? I was taken to some amazing vegan restaurants in L.A. I recall eating an incredible vegan pizza, but my favorite vegan food would have to be vegan burritos. I was lucky enough to have one recently, when I was invited onto the "Steve Irwin" Sea Shepherd ship for a vegan meal. It was great to spend quailty time with the crew on board and they seemed like such lovely, hardworking people who dedicate their lives to such a great cause.
Everyone involved in animal rights has an issue that really sticks out for them. What is that issue for you? I feel strongly about all of those issues, but the issue of factory farming has probably created the most impact on my lifestyle choices to date because it has made me stop eating animals for good. Of course, I am still learning so much every day about all of these issues and hopefully, in due time, I can help others understand these problems as well. It is important for us all to be more conscience of the effects of animal cruelty - not only on animals, but on people and the environment as well.
If a fan came to you with advice on how to get involved with animal rights, what would you tell them? Engaging in conversations with people about animal rights issues is so important for any action to occur. Whether a person is a highly experienced animal rights activist, or is thinking about these issues for the first time, it is through the exchange of their own knowledge, experience and ideas with others that instigates them to do something more.
Therefore, if a fan came to me with advice on becoming more active, or I was to give a fan advice, the best place to begin would be to share our thoughts. This is something I have hoped to achieve on my band website's forum where we have begun discussing animal rights issues with fans. The discussions have been quite productive with people sharing viewpoints from both sides and has also given the forum a lot of new energy and purpose. We are always looking for new people to join the discussions so please come take a look: http://trpboard.proboards24.com/
What's next for The Red Paintings? For the remainder of 2008, I have just locked the band in to playing our first animal rights festivals around Australia. But, I think our biggest achievement will be the Sea Shepherd benefit/farewell show in Brisbane, Australia. It is taking place a few days before they take off to tackle the Japanesse whaling ships. I'm a big supporter of what Captain Paul Watson and his crew have achieved in the oceans over the last 30 years, saving the lives of many whales. I am disgusted, however, that our Australian Government is charging the boat over $400 a day in berthing fees during its time in Brisbane before they leave on their next campaign against Japanese whalers. My aim is to hold a free event for the Sea Shepherd to help raise public awareness of the fees imposed on them and to raise funds for their cause.
Come 2009, we will be releasing our new album, "The Revolution is Never Coming", with many surprises in store.
www.theredpaintings.com
www.myspace.com/theredpaintings
5 Questions with... Teen Hearts! October 9, 2008
Posted by Shannon Phillips at October 9, 2008 6:06 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 7 ) | TrackBackHave you ever read one of those quick "5 Questions With" features in a music magazine with an up and coming band? Whenever I read music magazines, these are usually the first things I look for. I'm always really excited to stock my iPod with new music, and I'm sure you are too. Imagine though, if... (drumroll please) you could read one of these features and know that every band you read about is involved with animal rights? Well, now you can! Check out peta2's new "5 Questions With" blog, featuring Teen Hearts, and let me know what you think! (be sure to check out their sweet video too!) - xo, shan
NAME OF BAND: TEEN HEARTS
MEMBERS: Kelly Orr, Matt Moody, Charity Gant, Max Cuzor
SOUNDS LIKE: Metro Station, Cobra Starship, Hellogoodbye
How long have you been vegetarian, and what made you start? I've been vegetarian for 8 years now. To be completely honest, I was persuaded by some of my favorite bands back in the day. Alkaline Trio, Goldfinger etc. I remember going to Goldfinger shows and hearing all about vegetarianism and how you can be just as healthy without eating any sort of meat. I did a little research and found out about SOOOOOOO many alternatives to eating meat. I was shocked at how many companies were out there that provided meat substitutes for vegetarians and vegans. Some products at first were a little weird and chewy but after a week I seriously grew to like the substitutes more than actual meat. And sadly I found out about all the awful things that happened to these poor little animals behind closed doors. I will NEVER go back!! YUCK!!!
What's your favorite vegetarian meal? Hands down my favorite vegetarian meal is the salisbury seitan meal from Real Food Daily but instead of the vegan caesar salad I substitute the salad for black beans!! OH MAN!!! I'm so going there for lunch :)
Everyone involved in animal rights has an issue that really sticks out for them. What is that issue for you? Ya know, there are a lot of issues that really stand out to me, but I really don't like to bash people over the head with my beliefs and tell them what's right or wrong. I have friends that wear clothing made of animals or eat meat on a daily basis but I can't control them. I think it's something you need to figure out for yourself and realize that eating meat is not the best thing for you. I think the main reason people eat meat is because it's simple and always everywhere you go "convenient". So many people are lazy and don't want to put any effort into eating healthy.
If a fan came to you with advice on how to get involved with animal rights, what would you tell them? First off I would tell them that it is the best decision I ever made. Secondly, I would tell them to make sure it's right for you and find out for yourself. There are some awesome books (Diet for a New America) and I would also suggest some organizations to check out (PETA) but most importantly find out for yourself and do the research.
What's next for Teen Hearts? Our debut EP "The Heart Beat EP" will be released digitally October 21st. November 3rd - 21st we will be touring with Jeffree Star and Brokencyde. So come and hang out with us!!!! We also printed 1,000 copies of our EP to sell on our online merch store, so you should probably head on over there and pick up some awesome t-shirts and some sweet tunes!!! WWW.WESTASPENMERCH.COM/TEENHEARTS
<3 Kelly and TEEN HEARTS!!!
