Blank Dogs has been a favorite of mine for the last year, so when Skyscraper Magazine asked me to talk to the man behind the project, Mike Sniper, I happily accepted.  The article is published in this month’s new issue so go check that out.  In the interim here is the Q and A version, which is more the conversation as it occurred. Enjoy.

So, about a year ago Mike Bernstein played me a copy of Diana the Herald and I loved it. So when I started investigating Blank Dogs it was kind of a revelation that there was such a flurry of releases all at once. And so many on labels that I didn’t know yet. Was it a plan? Or were things just happening all at the same time separately?

It wasn't really a plan, it kind of snowballed. I did the first 12" (First Two Weeks) almost as an experiment, which I think was interesting but not really complete, I suppose. Almost immediately I had a bunch of labels wanting to do records, which I feel pretty fortunate about. I think people were curious. I don't even know if they knew if they liked it or not. Maybe they still don't.

To me at least, The First Two Weeks, sounded more "demo"-ish then the releases that immediately followed. Did the process change at all between releases

Well, the HoZac single, the Sweet Rot single and the First Two Weeks were all recorded at the same time, those two weeks or so. I'd agree that perhaps those recordings are demos, but then again, I'd never re-record any of them, so it's the only form they'll see. I was considering doing a different version of "Yellow Mice Sleep" at some point, but then I decided not to. I did consciously go about recording for a 6-song, cohesive release when I did the Diana The Herald record...

Yeah that release struck me as very realized, the artwork as well as the songs. It’s interesting to see how the visual qualities of the releases have unfolded. I love when bands have aesthetics all their own. Like the Misfits.

What do you look for in your artwork? Is there a specific quality that relates them all so far?

Hmm, that's a good question. I think it was what I was looking for, as a person who buys record, what's something exciting to look at in the mix with everything else? I always try to make the art at least somewhat difficult to place, time wise. I don't want it to look like it came out right now, but I don't want it to look like it came out in 1979 or 1966 or 2034. I think a lot of genre-art is boring and contrived. Like, how every modern psych-folk band has a complex illustration, every noise band has a billion colors and it's just a colorful computer-spazz, garage bands have throwback fonts, etc. I want it to be identifiable as Blank Dogs, but not in a way where it's obvious, I think.

Does that same concept apply to the music as well?

Not necessarily.
I'll have an "idea" of what I'd want it to sound like, sometimes with a reference point, but it always ends up sounding like Blank Dogs.

You said earlier the First Two Weeks was somewhat of an experiment, at what point did the project develop into something more defined?

I think it's still kind of an experiment; I really have no plan other than to continue to record and release records.

Are there lyrical themes that you see repeat at all? "Poison Ivy" struck me as sounding uncomfortable whereas something like "My House is Red" to me has an implication of menace, although I may be reading it

They're almost all about the same couple of things, which I really don’t think about too much. Without saying much about them, if people can understand the words, they'll probably figure a lot of it out.

When it came time for On Two Sides album, it seemed equally themed atmospherically, you could certainly tell it was different from the singles. Do you prefer the long form vs. short? I imagine it presents a different set of obstacles

I really have no preference. But. Some songs seem more like singles than others.

Like hits? Or like complete in and of themselves?

The second thing. Hits? That's funny.

Hits in terms of yr respective project...Meneguar have hits

Oh, I see. Yeah, maybe. I am conscious of things like "A-Side"

So I’ve heard some tracks from yr In the Red LP and one thing that def stood out was the presence of some female vox...can we expect more contributors to blank dogs?

A lot of that is a pitch shifter. It's me. The Vivian Girls do backing vocals on one song on the record, there's another song with JB Townsend of Crystal Stilts on some acoustic guitar. I'm definitely open to outsiders. I don't think it will ever be a majority of songs on a release that have other people, but so far it's been good.

You’ve started playing some live shows, how’s that been?

Well, there was just the two of them. They were just ways to deflate some things, get it out of the way. When it became expected to never do a show, I did two, when it was expected to play in masks, we didn't. We were just a band. It was OK. No future plans to play.

Do you consider your material to be romantic in any way?

Not on purpose!

It’s hard for me to hear all the lyrics but I could swear there’s a love song in there
No, I don't think so. It might be from another person's perspective. Some might sound like a love song, but they aren't. Sometimes it's third person.

Do you write outside of the song format?

In what way?

Just curious if you had a background in fiction or other form of writing

Oh, no, not really. I'm more of a non-fiction reader. I wrote papers on things in school, never had an interest in fiction. A lot of the lyrics are automatic, but they do come from my brain, so it must have to do with something. I don't think about it too much.

Do you write on a particular instrument?

No, whatever's around.

How long have you been playing music before Blank Dogs, I know you were in a band before, but have you been home recording for a long time?

I began recording from home when I was around 16. Those recordings are actually not terribly far away from Blank Dogs, but they're long gone. I was in bands since middle school. A while.

Do you feel blank dogs as part of a community of musicians that are associated with the various labels you record with? Or do you feel a more isolationist point of view

Both, I think? I definitely feel good about the current state of "underground music" I tend to be associated with. Most the labels I work with have put out a lot of stuff I listen to. I don't feel like there are the sound-alike "bedroom wave" or whatever bands that everyone says there are. I listen to them and they sound nothing like Blank Dogs, save they use a synth and/or drum machine. That's like saying every band who uses a guitar sounds like Jimi Hendrix. It's a lazy grouping. That being said, I like a lot of those bands!

Going back to when you were 16 and home recording, was there any pinnacle moment when you realized..."oh I can do this too"?

You mean, back then?

Yeah

Not really. I had a 4-track and I just fumbled around with it. I wrote a pretty ok song called "Mythless" or something like that and it sounds almost identical to a song from the early Blank Dogs stuff, but I don’t remember it. I stopped recording like that for 10 years.

I just think it’s interesting that nowadays people can get exposed to DIY/home recording from so many sources from punk to indie rock to folk...

Yeah, it wasn't really happening back then. I know people were doing it all over, but there was not as much of a resource to hear it, the internet and whathaveyou...

For me it was the old Forced Exposure mags, coming up pre-internet made it a lot more like a treasure hunt

Right, yeah. I remember first getting into post-punk and seeing someone with a Screamers tie in a photo. That Gary Panter logo, and I thought, "What is THAT?" and then I heard it was a band with no guitars or bass, just keyboards and drums, and no records. I thought, "Well I'll never hear this!" Eventually through a lot of VHS taping I got a copy of some live and music-video stuff by them and I flipped out. Now Screamers are everywhere if you want to find out. There's a plus side and downside to it I suppose.

Where did you grow up?

The shore. East coast. A commercialized vacation community with surf bars, mini-golf, a boardwalk.

What did you do in the winter when the tourists were gone? Was it better?

It was pretty ideal. Abandoned parks. Abandoned rides and arcades. A lot to lose yourself in.

The seasonal dynamics are always important, totally marked passages of time growing up. I can't imagine growing up in LA

I don't think I could live anywhere where there was no fall or winter.

So do you see a progress in your work so far? Now that the year 1 tape/album is put together does it give you ideas of where you want to go next with the project?

I think it's been kind of a natural progress and I suppose I'd like to keep it that way instead of doing something for the sport of it. I'm glad everything's been released. I think it's interesting to see it all like that.

How often do you write/record? Is it a discipline, or just whenever the mood strikes?

More like a mood. I'm always set up to record, so a lot of times I find myself just playing with a little melody and suddenly I'm recording.

Have you been surprised on the reaction to the material so far? It seems like people have been collecting it pretty rabidly

I'm a little surprised. Obviously, you want people to listen to it, but I'd rather it not be a commodity. Yes, several of the records have had limited editions, but the music is generally always in print. I'd like to think if someone wanted a record they can get a single for $5.00 and an LP for $12.00.

You also have all the music on yr blog for free download

That's true. Up until the next two releases, which are the first one's where the CD is available at the same time. I have to give the labels at least a little time to try to sell the digital format before I make it free.

Speaking of your illustration work, did you go to school for visual art or are you mostly self-taught?

Went to Parsons for a year, skipped ship. I'm really not into the style of illustration I've been doing in the past, so I'm trying new things lately.

Do you see Blank Dogs as being multimedia? I know there's some video out there too...can we expect more of that?

I'd love for there to be a ton of videos. If anyone reading this wants to make one, please do. I wish I could, but I'm not Chris Knox, sadly.

Someone made a video for "Pieces" recently that's pretty fantastic. Waiting for them to upload it on the Internet somewhere.

I was totally into the idea of there being a box set for a band that existed for a only year that was still active...Will there be further editions of the Blank Dogs boxes?

No, the records that filled it up are gone! All of those songs are going to be on a Sacred Bones comp, it's Year One, like the tape. It's actually less than a year of recordings, since the On Two Sides LP was recorded in that year as well.

Year 2 box?

Probably not, this year has been the 2xLP, the Woodsist 12" and a few singles. I don't want to put that in one box.

Are you working on any other musical projects outside of Blank Dogs?

Yes, but they seem to be moving slowly. There was a band called TEETH which was myself and Spider, we finished one song, I was really happy with it. Still waiting for the B-Side. Roman Soldiers is myself with Gary War. That's gone well, and it's been my fault that it hasn't been completed yet. There also was talk of a side-project called SQUIDS, which was myself, Kevin from Pink Reason, Lars from the Intelligence and Erin from the A-Frames. Logistically, that seems pretty daunting to actually get done. So, nothing yet.

Sounds like you spend a lot of time on music. Is it hard to maintain the balance and maintain sanity amidst all the deadlines?

It's been pretty easy. I have no deadlines. If someone tries to give me one, I tell them I probably can't do a record with them.