Alan Molano:So how are you Matthew?

Matt Parker:Pretty good, thanks. How are you?

A:Real good, yes. So, what have you been up to the past few weeks?

M:Well, right now we're hanging around recording and demoing new stuff, and playing every now and then. I think we haven't even even had a show this month, but then we're trying to keep busy with all our other hobbies and everything. Adam's learning to master the whole parallel waterski thing, and Matt Richmond's been getting pretty hefty into municipal politics. But um, no seriously, we're playing in the band and working too. Matty works at an ice cream place downtown, so that keeps him busy.

A: Alright, so have you anything else in mind about another band member at all?

M: What, like a fourth fellow?

A: Yes, a fourth and final member to the group.

M: Yeah, a fourth member would be nice. It would be a good and bad thing at the same time I think. There's a real difference between four piece and three piece bands. Right now I think I like things basically just the way they are, so I doubt things would change anytime soon, but at the same time it's always kind of nice to have another rocker with you to play piano or organ or maybe a guitar in there. It's sort of hard to duplicate sounds made on record live, with a three piece band, but at the same time it makes things a little easier too, so...

A: Alright, so the music of the Moonship Beams really reflects a lot of social things, real problems among the screaming youth of today, so what do you have to say about these topics?

M: Well I think our band is really into sending messages out there, actually I got a call from Bruce Cockburn recenetly and we're thinking about collaborating on doing another 'tears are not enough' type thing all over again. So...I guess when you ask smarto questions you get smarto answers!

A: So your influeneces these days, tell me about them.

M: Um, I think my influences tend to be bands that really don't sound like our band at all, I feel like I sometimes get a lot of ideas from bands like Stereolab and Sebadoh, but the beams isn't really like those at all. I think bands I listen to, and bands I'm influenced by are sometimes really different. I like, say, Sloan a lot...but I don't think we're really in that vein. Sorry did I even answer your question?

A: Yes, Sloan, so are you into the whole east coast thing?

M: Well I try and stay out of the wars, but yeah I like a lot of bands out there...

A: All of murderecords

M: Yeah, and you know, Great Big Sea and the Rankins

A: How about Ashely McIssac?

M: Well, he's okay, but his sister Lucy McIssac is even cooler, she plays the clarinet, but in a real hardcore kind of way. It's genius.

A: So where did you pick those influences up from?

M: Um, I guess a few years ago now, I was really into the whole Sonic Youth, Nirvana, My Bloody Valentine kind of thing, so maybe it all started from that hardcore stuff. And I also heard a song once called, You Outta Know and the rest is history.

A: So how are the Moonship Beams shows these days?

M: Good...we're really out of practice now so I think we'd be rusty, but all in all it's been really fun. Our last show was kind of weird, we didn't get all too glorious a sound check and the bass ended up sounding really funny, but it was all in good fun. So, yeah, shows are good. October is a good month for us, and there's stuff like autumnfest and...

A: And the infamous Parker hoedowns

M: Indeed sir.

A: Tell us a little bit about those.

M: The hoedowns, the hoedown is a concert that I have at my house twice a year, just with all our friends. All our friends play and you know, anyone who's anyone shows up. So, it's like a party open to the public where I open my doors and all my favourite bands play, so it's always fun. It started two years ago with Pare and My Espisito and bands like Skippy and Nova Scooter.

A: Didn't the Outskirts play there too?

M: Oh yeah, The Outskirts, that was the highlight of the show for me! So the next one is later this month. Secret Seven, Seventen Split, Spring, Eve's Drop, Ourselves and maybe some other bands too will be playing. Hoedown supreme!

A: So when you're thinking of issues these days such as, let's say tree cutting, plastic recycling or even pants recycling, what are your views on the government action that should be taken on those?

M: (laughing) It's those right wing bastards that got us into the pant recycling mess we have in the first place! I mean, the fact of the matter is without pabt recycling we're going nowhere. It's all spend spend spend man, it's just not fair to the little guy.

A: Okay, so when writing your music, what is the main thing that you sing about?

M: Whoa...the mic just went all weird on me!

A: I think it's okay now, so when you're writing your music, what are you thinking? What is Matthew Parker thinking when he sits down and writes a song?

M: It's usually induced by a combination of booze and chicks, I find it much easier to write late that way, and of course I like to have a lady with me. Probably 99% of the time I sit down at...the old piano (laughs) and write a song about whatever girl I happen to be with at the time.

A: Oh yeah, well you're not alone, most rock and roll stars such as yourself like to live the rock lifestyle, you know?

M: It's just something I like to do.

A: Well yeah, of course, who wouldn't!?

M: Not I brutha!

A: So, it's back to school time across the nation, yeah yeah! What is your advice to all the scholars out there heading back to the books, and what are your plans for this year both musically, and um...sexually?

M: (laughs) Well, I plan on buying some new drums, and getting the third base!

A: What's up for Moonship Beams this year then?

M: Um, I'd like to go back to the studio in the next little while. I demoed two new songs called 'the road' and 'maple trees' this summer, and I'd like to keep going with that. Other than that I think our band will just keep on rollin' around. I wanted to paint all our equipment gold, but the Pin-Ups beat us to that gimick!(laughs)

A: Okay, so I'm here with Matt Parker. The very foundation of all our lives, and I'd like to ask you, you seem to be a busy man these days, I'd like to ask you about all the other stuff you're up to musically, other bands you've been in, old...projects, or musical type events or people or coffee or whatever.

M: Yeah, um, I play bass in Craig Coles' band Lewis, and he's writing really really good songs these days. He should be selling his songs to Yo La Tengo or Half Japanese, he could be making some serious cash, but anyways...um, I play bass in Lewis, and I play drums in Diango, which is a really fast rocky band. As far as pure energy goes Chris Sheppard has nothing on this band. Um...I'm somewhat a permiscuous drummer, I pretty much drum in a whole bunch of bands, but none of those things ever last too long.

A: How about bands in the past?

M: Um, I played in a band called Pare for a few years, and of course the Outskirts (laughs), um then there were the classic bands; uplift, scapegoat, pulp wrath, justine ptisiacc...whoa fella!

A: Some pretty shitty bands!

M: indeed! It was all in good fun. Other projects, I don't know... I tried to start a cassette label when I was 15, and it worked on a really small local scale. I think I got way ahead of myself, I registered it and everything, and then next thing I knew I had all kinds of mail coming in to me, and I was like 'why would anyone care about this?' so what started as a project for fun suddenly began getting real weird and there were some people who didn't feel comfortable with whole things and who mis-understood my intentions, and so to avoid any un-easyness between friends it was just sort of decided that Lost Sweater Records had it's day, so as of now it's no more than a simple name given to a scene or whatever of music. It really has nothing to do with being a label anymore, but there's this huge collection of old bands and releases and this huge little thing that's been happening for years now where I live, so...I don't know. There was that, and I always try and organize concerts and such for all our bands here.

A: So when we're discussing things such as carpet making, or maybe even toad throwing, what do you do when you come across the broken rule of 48?

M: I think what 48 means to the people and what it means to me is that, there are rules here, and rules are set up to keep things in order. When things like 48 get broken, it just says a lot about where we're going as a species

A: And I think another topic which is really important in the music business is gross old chocolate milk, sitting in people's rooms, it's pretty tough sometimes when you smell it, or you spill it on yourself, it's just horrible.

M: I remember once in 1988, I was going on a date...but I was late! (laughs) ah rhymey! No seriously, it was 1988 and I was going on a date, and just before my date came and picked me up I was putting on my Levis orange tag jeans, and in the process of which I spilt some really old moldy chocolate milk ...that date was horrible. I was hoping she wouldn't notice, but it just didn't go my way friend!

A: What do you think of Teenage Fanclub, and rabbits, and fans?

M: Rabbit fans are actually the most devoted Teenage Fanclub fans.

A: I think it's the bassy octives that come from the fourth arm when dancing on one leg, right?

M: Yes.

A: So what was the difinative moment in your life where you realised that you wanted to be a rock and roll superstar?

M: I bought Bon Jovi's 'slippery when wet' and also The Beach Boys 'pet sounds' and I was set...I knew right then and there that's what I wanted to be.

A: Well thank you very much, is there anything else you want me to ask you?

M: um, no.