Track Marks is a weekly questionnaire for people who make music or just love listening to it. The people change but the questions remain the same.
This week the dirty deed is done dirt cheap by bass player extraordinaire David Gregorski, who is currently holding down the low end for the explosively dissonant punk outfit Death Dream which draws from acts like Flipper and the Melvins. You may also know him from his time in Milwaukee garage rock legends The Mistreaters, his former DJ duties at WMSE, or from his continued presence behind turntables at a bar near you.
In this weeks Track Marks Gregorski admits to playing with Barbie,loving Portland garage rock band The Hunches, ignoring real rock n' roll guys and wanting to make it with Katy Perry.
OnMilwaukee.com: What was the first tape/CD/record/8-track you ever owned?
David Gregorski: My first record was a 45 of "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" by Elton John and Kiki Dee that my parents bought for me at K-Mart. The second? "Dancing Queen" by ABBA. I still remember both occasions, though I was very young. I was two or three years old, I think. My obsession goes way back. Also, I guess I should admit that those are, in retrospect, two very gay choices. No shame.
OMC: What was the first concert you attended?
DG: My first concert was Dolly Parton at the Pabst Theater when I was roughly the same age. I was very excited to go see live music, but I fell asleep about two songs in and didn't wake up until the very last song, "I Will Always Love You." I cried hysterically the whole way home. I blew it! On a positive note, my parents bought my sister a Dolly Parton doll that was sort of one-and-a-half times bigger than a regular Barbie doll that we used to terrorize Barbie and Co. for years. I remember the Dolly Parton Barbie Doll being very cruel and unforgiving.
OMC: What was the last concert you attended?
DG: I just saw Davila 666 last week. That was more of a 'show' than a 'concert.' It was almost hard to believe how awesome that was, mostly because the guy doing sound for it actually did his job, unlike the unnamed f*ck-up who butchered the band's last Milwaukee appearance. But really, Davila is the sh!t. Drop what you're doing and go buy all of their records right now!
OMC: Who is one popular musician or music act you just can't understand?
DG: I'm not going to call out just one person, but the entire genre of 'pop-punk' needs to f*cking go already. Just because your taste in music receded into your colon while you were in high school doesn't mean you need to live the rest of your life that way.
OMC: Musically what are you into that you're embarrassed to admit to?
DG: I'm not embarrassed to admit to liking anything, but there are things I listen to that I know will rile up all the He-man tough guy defenders of "real" rock n' roll that I know. Anything with acoustic guitar or a woman singing, or hip-hop, or any dance music, or anything expressing any kind of sadness. Lots of "real" rock n' roll dudes just can't get down with none of that. F*ck 'em. I will not be confined!
OMC: What are you listening to right now?
DG: The Masta Ace "Sittin' On Chrome" LP. An outstanding record. It's too bad he couldn't work in a few shout-outs to his crew, The I.N.C, though.
OMC: What song do you want played at your funeral?
DG: "Not Invited" by The Hunches. It's sad and pretty, with an undercurrent of anger. Just like me!
OMC: What artist changed your life and how?
DG: There are a lot of potential answers to this question, but I'm going to go with the time I took a bunch of Ritalin and listened to Einstürzende Neubauten and blew apart my very mind, true story. After that, it seemed like you could make music using pretty much anything.
OMC: If you could see anyone perform past or present who would it be?
DG: "Superstition"-era Stevie Wonder. The band he had going at that time was f*cking insane. Look up that footage of him playing on German TV around that time if you don't believe me.
OMC: If you could spend one day with any artist living or dead who would it be?
DG: I know everyone reading this is going to be very disappointed, but I would spend that day trying to get Katy Perry to f*ck me. I'm not going to lie to you people. She's hot.
OMC: If you were stranded on an island with one record for the rest of your life what would it be?
DG: "Exit Dreams" by The Hunches. Hands down, the greatest record ever made.
