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After Death Of Samantha's untimely passing, Cleveland guitarist John Petkovic formed Cobra Verde to give his vision of rock and roll a little bit more bite. "Easy Listening" is the next step in that evolution of the band's sound and OhioOnline music correspondent Peanuts finally got the hyperactive band leader to sit still long enough to talk about Cobra Verde's adventures and their latest studio effort.
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| OO: |
In that case, how would you describe Breaker's music? |
| JP: |
"Big guitars, jungle beats, strong melodies, cool atmospheres and minimum wanking." |
| OO: |
What first got you interested in playing music? |
| JP: |
"There wasn't one person or thing that got me interested in music. Rather, a ton of people or things. My cousin in Yugoslavia turned me onto Jimi Hendrix and Rolling Stones during a visit to that country as a kid. Seeing the cover of the Iggy and the Stooges 'Raw Power' album. Man, I can think of a million things." |
| OO: |
Is the guitar your main instrument? |
| JP: |
"Live, I'm the guy with the microphone and tambourine. In the studio, I sing and play guitar. Actually, we switch instruments around a lot in the studio. And Don Depew, the owner of 609 Recording, where we record, also plays on our records. He use to be in the band, but is now like our stay-at-home fifth member." |
| OO: |
What part of Ohio were you born in? |
| JP: |
"I was born in international waters, on a ship, while my parents migrated to the United States from France. I keep my summer home in Cleveland. Otherwise, I go back to Yugoslavia a part of the year to visit my relatives back there." |
| OO: |
The one thing about Cobra Verde is the rich rock history of the line-up. |
| JP: |
"Everyone in Cobra Verde has been in some pretty well known bands around the state, like Breaker, Quazimodo, Death Of Samantha and Proletarian Art Threat." |
| OO: |
Is there a national band you'd match up with in concert and have you ever played with them? |
| JP: |
"No, we didn't get to play with the Rolling Stones in 1968." |
| OO: |
Okay, then how about an Ohio band to split a bill with? |
| JP: |
"Devo in 1977, but we weren't around then either." |
| OO: |
In that case, describe the band's music? |
| JP: |
JP: "Jumpy and jagged. Immediate and distant. Too unreal to be true." |
| OO: |
Favorite Ohio venue to play?
"I can't think of one at this time." |
| OO: |
How did the band get it's name? |
| JP: |
"The band started out as a studio project. I was about to send the record off to the label and needed a name. Werner Herzog suggested Cobra Verde after his last movie with Klaus Kinski." |
| OO: |
What artists have influenced your songwriting? |
| JP: |
"That's impossible to answer. I can think of a million influences and most probably wouldn't even be songwriters per se." |
| OO: |
Give me a handful of examples then. |
| JP: |
"Bob Dylan, Velvet Underground, Love, The Stooges, Gang Of Four, Nick Cave, Teardrop Explodes, Joy Division, Small Faces, Leonard Cohen, Dolemite, Ennio Moricone, Serge Gainsbourg, Curtis Mayfield, Jimmy Webb. Where does it end?" |
| OO: |
It ends right now. Long term plans? |
| JP: |
"We're so preoccupied with short-term things, like touring, recording and making videos that long-term plans never enter the picture. Hence, I can't say we have any." |
