Please give our readers a little self-introduction
Where you`re at right now?

self-introduction …well …my name (which is really of minor importance anyway) is brad hamers …i make up one half of the group phlegm (the vocal half) …i live in new york … with a broken stomach …faulty parts …and a head ripping at all its seams …self indulgence tastes the way you'd expect …loathing is perfect for special nights in comfortable clothes …altruism is completely non-existent …except maybe in some poetic form …a 9.5 score for the proper diving and drowning technique
…i write …i make music …i'm just some creature walking around on a giant ball of matter that's floating through an "endless" mass of nothing …just living …recording what i see how i see it through my lens …great aspirations …a beautiful world …so amazing in all its disgust and repulsiveness …the word "art" needs to be changed …apathy is the new kind of cancer …and i have a new solo album coming out shortly …just some music and writings …but different (i think) from the phlegm work

In 2002 you and Slomoshun, under the name "Phlegm", dropped "One night stands with out of tune instruments in a room with blue wallpaper", a classic, for those who know. How long did you work on this piece?

this project was started sometime around october 2001 and was completed in march of 2002 …it was our first full length album

The mentioned album contains a lot of personal thoughts. What do you feel when you know that a lot of people are listening to things that come from the bottom of your heart and mind?

yes …personal thoughts seem to come out in everything …i think its wonderful ..and strange that so many people are listening to the things that fall from my head …and if i have the ability to take someone out of their current state of being and put them somewhere else entirely ..then that is beautiful …if i can affect someone emotionally ..then i feel that i've accomplished something …even if my words aren't completely understood …but i'm able to create a specific tone ..and have a real effect on the space around someone …then i'm satisfied …and ultimately it doesn't even matter …i make music the way i know how …and personal _expression …regardless of whether or not people are listening …is something i have to do

One thing that`s very special with the songs on "One night stands..." is that the regular guy can identify itself with the topics. There are songs like "Undersit" or "Home Suite Home" that just can`t be listened to without thinking "Yes, i know exactly what he means". Do you think that this is the reason why every person`s statement to the Phlegm Album is, that it can rotate forever in their stereo`s without getting boring, since the topics in these songs are always repeating in real life?

yes …that could definitely be the reason why people like it so much …they are all real feelings …and everybody's got them
…basic human connection …to feel truly understood by another person …to relate to someone on a real and intimate level …i think that's what we're all here for …that's what we all strive for …and "art" is one way to accomplish such a thing

Are all of your songs reflections of actually experienced feelings and situations?

yes…almost everything i write is a direct reflection of my feelings and real experiences..
..i do sometimes write persona pieces …where i attempt to write from someone else's perspective …but even persona writing is a result of how i feel …i pull from personal experiences …and everything i do has me in it ..whether or not its intended to …from the way i shake a hand to the way i write a poem ..everything is a reflection of my feelings

Talking again about "Home Suite Home". Congratulations for this song, it`s almost as beautiful as love itself. Slomoshun put down a carpet of music that`s perfect for your words to lay on. I think that the lyrics can compete with every love poem written in the 20th century. If you allow this question, made a girl wrote you this or made the absence of a girl?

thank you for your compliments …i'm hypercritical of my own work …and your words are too kind …home suite home was initially written as a stream of consciousness piece about the beauty of sex …then when i decided to make it into a song i tightened it up a bit …added some subtle refrain to make it more cohesive or something …and it ended up being a song ..still mostly about sex …but with an underlying theme of "love" i guess
…and as for your question …i would say it is really about …BOTH … a girl ..and the absence of the same girl …simultaneously …its about being with the girl physically ..but also fully aware of her absence somewhere in the back of my brain while the whole thing is taking place ..but i think what's in the forefront …as far as theme … is sex

A question that always knocks me out when asked is "What kind of music do you hear?". The best answer is to let them listen to the music but it`s not always possible. How would you describe your music to someone who can`t listen to it right now?

that's a hard one …as much as i find myself using all those fragile genre terms for the sake of argument or something …i denounce them somewhere inside me …i don't really care …i just make music ..it's just "poetry" and music …that's the best explanation i can supply anyone with ..without feeling like i've misled someone …i'd just like people to listen from a blank premise …not comparing it to how hip hop or un-hip-hop it is …if its going to be judged then judge it as music …just something created by someone else

…i don't set out to create any specific type of sound …i just do what seems natural

….i don't want this new album to be promoted as a hip hop album at all …if you think its hip-hop…then that's fine …that's what it is because that's what it is to you ….but i believe i'd be hindering myself by promoting it as such …this is a long and in depth conversation …and i'm not sure you're asking for my overall views on music and shit …but allow me to just say …that "art" progresses ….music progresses …it all derives from the same basic place …and if you're able to see it this way …it is absolutely wonderful how many different styles and personal testaments to sound there are out there

…each a unique glimpse into that specific person or group's mind …it is what it is

….and to look at how ragtime somehow somewhere along the line transformed into say what Godspeed! You Black Emperor do ..is amazing …and who cares how rock n roll it is

Let`s talk about the label 3SC (Three Sides of a Circle), who founded it? And when?

it was founded by 3 people originally …slomoshun (producer in phlegm) …big moses (just an avid music lover who appreciates music and "art" ….but doesn't necessarily make music or "art" per-say…) ..and myself …it started in 1999 or 2000 when i was preparing to release my first book …we began as a production company ..we put on a couple poetry shows …and planned on doing things like that …we just wanted create an outlet for people to express themselves (cliché cliché) …but then slomoshun got music equipment …and we started making music together.. as we had been wanting to for sometime …i met nobs at our first 3SC poetry show …and we all began creating music

…that's basically when it became a record label or whatever …with the release of the initial phlegm ep

The artist section on the label`s website says that you and Nobs are the only ones signed but when you watch the photo`s of your gigs, there`s a Greg Purnell. Who is this?

greg purnell is a friend …a fellow writer …and musician …someone who is extremely hard to get in contact with …and a very important person with a lot to say …a nomad of sorts …sure he's on 3SC ..or not …i don't know … if he has anything he'd like us to release ..then i'm sure we'd be glad to …but he does his own thing …and we've performed together a bunch of times ….that's why you see pictures of him on the 3SC site

How far are you involved with the label? Are you just a signing or can we imagine 3SC as a bunch of friends loving to make music?

you can imagine 3SC as just a bunch of friends creating things

Your new album is coming out soon, "The Cut-Ups of a paper woman". It`s basically your first solo effort since it`s a Brad Hamers release and not a Phlegm record. What`s going on with Slomoshun, did he participate creating the record since all of the production is handled by yourself?

this is my first solo effort …also the first time i've made beats …almost the entire thing is done by me alone …there is one older track that slomoshun produced that is going on the album …nobs produced two tracks …and a band from Australia called Just Like Us did a beat for me ….slomoshun did lend me his studio and living space to help record this record …and he is the one doing the mix downs

What can we expect from the "Cut-Ups"? Is it as long as the Phlegm Album? Maybe you even have a tracklist?

i feel it's very different than my older stuff and the phlegm stuff…..i was trying to make this album shorter than the "one night nights…" lp..and it is i believe …but everything always ends up being longer than i anticipate ....but this one is shorter in track quantity …the last phlegm album had 19 tracks..and this album has 14 …here is the tracklisting:

the cut-ups a paper woman

01. one bedroom apt.
02. mechanical …and stuck in a downpour
03. a. i play dead / b. return rewound
04. black & white
05. half world
06. a. sinking summer boat / b. water drops and record pops
07. cliff notes
08. a. lookbehindu …and the pregnant way to carry an art textbook / b. psychedelic scarecrows
09. footstep (a smile in script)
10. a. pickpocketed memory clip / b. hiking kit
11. arms made 4 hugs like wrenchmetal
12. hic-cup
13. a. loose brain thread / b. from a hole in my dining room
14. one bedroom apt. (fully furnished)

Many people are awaiting the new record like it`s the relevation (for most it actually IS!). When looking at the members of the 3SC forum, you can see many people located outside of the US. I`ve seen Australia, Japan, Canada, Germany and more. Did you ever think that someone in Melbourne or Tokyo is sitting there with headphones and listens to every word you got to say?

it is a strange feeling …but a good one nonetheless …i seem to receive more response from people outside the US …which is fine …i'd like to go to these places and perform

Talking about Canada, how close are you bounded to the Canadian Music Scene? The Phlegm CD was made in Canada and a lot of Canadians know you.

i'm actually not that closely connected to the canadian music scene at all ….the cd was printed there because that was the cheapest place we could find that did a sufficient job …

I think the artist scene over there is one of the most creative in the world. Think about Buck 65, Epic, Noah23 and so on. What do you think about these guys?

yes…i agree …the canadian music scene has a lot of very creative and promising artists coming out of it …i love buck65 …i actually just collaborated with noah 23 and losaka (of H2a) for a fingerprint records comp… the track turned out nice …godspeed and them are all from canada as well …and i love their music

Back to your own music. How must we imagine the creation of your lyrics? Do you sit down, make a brainstorming, write the results down and make a song out of it? Or do you have your notepad ready for when-and whereever a poem is forming in your head?

it is really both ways …i always do have a pen and pad ….and i jot things down as they come into my head …and i also write a lot of stream of consciousness …and either leave it exactly how it came out ..unrefined ..not revised …or i mess with it to make it work better as a song …sometimes i'll write in like a stream of consciousness style with some sort of boundaries ..like a loose theme or subject ..and everything written will be a stream of thoughts surrounding one specific situation or feeling ….i strongly believe in preserving raw and untainted thoughts ..

i am fascinated with words and free-flowing ideas …ramblings and such

..but i have been doing a bit of changing things in my pieces …which is something i never would do before …and for a couple songs on this upcoming album i pasted pieces of already existing poems together to make them one …(being that the album is titled: the cut-ups of a paper woman) …

You`re also writing poetry books that can be purchased through the 3SC online shop. Are there gonna be a new book after the "Cut-Ups" dropped?

my latest book (the unfinished pieces book …the one with multiple titles and covers) which came out last may 2003 …will be re-released in limited quantity just after the release of my new album ..they were all hand-made and time consuming …and i've been getting a lot of requests for the book to be reprinted ..so i'm going to do that around the time my new album drops

…and other than that ..yes there will be brand new books coming out after the cut-ups album …when.. i don't know …but i've got a lot of book ideas

Do you have some last words or news for us? Like any planned collaborations?

…my new solo full length project entitled: "the cut-ups of a paper woman" will be available soon …hopefully late Sept. 2004 ….it will include a booklet with all the lyrics

…and some wonderful artwork by Jen Griffo (the person who did the cover art on both phlegm releases …nobs' musicide release …and like 16 of the covers from my newer book)

…Jen Griffo and i also plan on releasing a book together …poems and drawn interpretations of my writings

…i am also doing an ep with DJ Panzah Zandahz …so look out for that

..and i've got plans for my next solo project…and some other things as well

Thank you for the interview