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Gerlinda Grimes of weaklazyliar

By Elizabeth Nitz

FEMMUSIC: Give me a quick rundown of your musical evolution, i.e. when you started, what motivated you down this path, which bands you were in, and how weaklazyliar got together.

GERLINDA: I got my 1st guitar when I was 15 (motivated by campfire singalongs at a camp for aspiring Young Writers,) but didn't learn to play anything but "Landslide" on it for years. For a lark, I took a gang-bang style beginning guitar class in college & learned to play "Greensleeves." Because I was too lazy to figure out how to play anyone else's music, I started writing my own crappy songs.

Eventually, I wrote a song called "Pretty" that maybe didn't totally suck. I recorded it on a boombox & played it for my coworker, Chris Mathewson, who was a bona fide RockStar®--guitar player for a wildly popular local band called Funmud. He encouraged me, and brought Funmud's drummer, Jeff Frazier over to my house so that we could all jam. I was astoundingly terrible, but they overlooked it.

I played a couple terrifying open mic nights at Eddie's Attic, and eventually started doing the occasional solo show. But I always felt like I was faking it--that a dork like me was nowhere near cool enough to be a RockStar®. I am certain that I would've given up on performing, had it not been for Chris pushing me, and showing me how to be a better songwriter, a better guitar player.

Eventually, Funmud broke up and Chris forced me & Jeff Frazier into the studio to record a demo as "gerlinda with weaklazyliar". Eventually, I convinced them to drop the "gerlinda" part and just let me be part of the band. Jeff Frazier left the group (amicably) in 1998, and Joe Knoll took his place on drums. In 1999 we recorded Yesterday Night. In 2000, Ryan Taylor joined us on keyboards. In 2001, we started recording our most recent record, The November Diaries, which finally got finished & released in May, 2002.

FEMMUSIC: Can you describe your songwriting technique?

GERLINDA: I've always thought of songwriting as the Lazy Person's Poetry. If you aren't visual and succinct enough to write good poems, you can always resort to lyrics. For me, a song can start with anything-a guitar chord, something I see on my way to the bank, a melody I wake up humming. If something sticks in my head for enough days, I eventually write it down, work out some chords and some words. Chris and I write together a lot-either I'll play him something I'm working on, or he'll give me a tape of guitar riffs he's made up.

FEMMUSIC: What are the pros & cons of the Atlanta music scene?

GERLINDA: Honestly, I think Atlanta lacks a "scene." I don't think bands really champion or support each other-not because we're competitive about music, but more because the clubs are so hard to get into. Everyone's trying to latch onto bands with bigger crowds, so that they can parlay their way into better venues. Meanwhile, venues are starving and can't afford to support bands that don't put butts in the seats. It's a catch 22. I think everyone in this town is trying really hard, but we're all just spinning wheels. I wish I had a "vision" of how to harness all the energy, get everyone to work together-but I don't. I'm not hopeless about it, though. Things always come around. Atlanta is bursting with beautiful music; Somebody out there will put all the pieces together one day.

FEMMUSIC: What are your accomplishments thus far?

GERLINDA: 1. Not breaking up 2. Being so lucky with Film & TV licensing: we've had songs on Felicity [WB], Just Deal [NBC], The Education Of Max Bickford [CBS], as well as a couple movies--100 Girls and A Perfect You. 3. Being elected reader's choice for "Best Acoustic Band" in the Creative Loafing 2000 & 2001 polls.

FEMMUSIC: Are you pursuing a major label or do you prefer to stay indie?

GERLINDA: We've given up on labels both major and independent. We're lucky to have an amazing manager, Gina Henschen ("M Records"), who has helped us find alternative ways to finance our recordings-mainly through licensing to Film & Television. Don't get me wrong-if somebody (Major or Indie) gave us a tour bus, promotion and national distribution, we would all quit our day jobs immediately. But, in our case, it makes no sense at all to get in a van and live off $3/day, when we have no support or promotion-we'd kill each other within a week. No one's ever wanted to sign us, so our choices are: a) Give Up b) Continue. Making the choice to continue as an "unsigned" band might mean that 99.99% of the world will never know we exist, but it doesn't make the act of creating something any less worthwhile, for us.

FEMMUSIC: How do you acquire and nurture a supportive, enthusiastic fan base? How do you promote the band?

GERLINDA: If an outsider were to visit our message board, I think they'd get the impression that we have a big, active fan base. In reality, we're nearly anonymous in Atlanta. Midtown Music, Atlantis, Athfest, & Big Day Out have all rejected us. It's still hard for us to get shows because our audiences are small. Thanks to success at college radio, movie/tv licensing and websites like MP3.Com, FEMMUSIC.Com, GoGirlsMusic.Com & Garageband.Com, we've acquired a handful of fantastically amazing, frightfully intelligent fans who-almost universally-live far away from
Atlanta. We keep in touch with them daily, through our message board, and they promote us...by sharing our music with their friends, by making us *appear* cooler/more popular than we are. Honestly, the people who post on our message board are the coolest thing about us; we're completely grateful to them for seeking us out.

FEMMUSIC: What were the best and worst parts of making The November Diaries?

GERLINDA: The whole experience, from writing the first song to laying down the last track was a classic case of "It was the best of times; It was the worst of times." We just pushed ourselves so hard. We made gigantic leaps in terms of what we were capable of musically-which had everything to do with Chris & Joe settling into that karmic connection that bassists & drummers find together. It also had to do with adding Ryan Taylor's sheer musicianship into the mix. But it wasn't like we just transcended ourselves and landed in a beautiful, new place. It took a lot of hard work, and arguments, and doubting ourselves to make those leaps. For me, lyrically, TND has everything to do with our band--me worrying that we would fall apart one day & I would be left wondering what might have been. The worst part for me, was getting way inside that doubt, letting myself actually feel like giving up. And the best part was coming out on the other side, realizing that I just don't have it in me to give up, that I'm stuck with who I am as I am. I will be 80 years old one day and I'll still be a total freak, but I'm not going to be wondering what might have been.

FEMMUSIC: As a woman in the music industry, have you been discriminated against?

GERLINDA: Definitely not. I actually think the fact that I'm a woman has helped my band in all kinds of ways. Eddie's Attic has always been totally supportive of female musicians, and I feel like we've found a sort of musical home base there. We've had lots of opportunities because I'm a woman (like trying out for a "local" spot on the Lillith Fair & Women of MP3.Com Tours) that we wouldn't have had otherwise.

FEMMUSIC: What advice would you give to someone wanting to start in this business?

GERLINDA: Don't do it expecting to become a RockStar®. Be yourself. Don't give up. Finding people who believe in you is more important than aligning yourself with people who are famous or connected.

FEMMUSIC: Where would you like your musical career to go from here?

GERLINDA: I'd love for people in Atlanta to want to come to the occasional show. I'd love to learn how to play electric guitar and piano. I want to make enough $$ to buy an upright bass for Chris, a Clavinet and Moog for Ryan, and some DW Drums for Joe. I want Gina Henschen to be elected President, and make us Band Laureate. I want Rob Del Bueno to join the band, playing space echo & invented instruments. I want to write songs as good as Ben Folds.
Mostly, I want to make another record. No, most of all, I'm just grateful to have made it this far. I've been really lucky.

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