Time to Get Ill

Anyone who has partaken in the trails and tribulations of playing in a full time band will tell you that the most important aspect is to get along with each other. The most beautiful songs in the world can be forlorn tales of inner-band squabbling or turmoil and we would never know it. This is not to say that every band that has survived longer than a decade is putting up a front, it’s just that I’m certain they wouldn’t say they’ve had 100% fun the entirety of their run. Ill Gotten GainZ (formerly Mykee Hates Life) is a group who has had their share of ups and downs with lineup changes. Their Web site biography is a veritable graveyard of bass players, and drummers past who, for one reason or another, have gone on to greener pastures. I recently spoke with IGG’s frontman Mykee and discussed their ever-changing lineup, the Richmond punk rock scene and what’s wrong with rock music in today’s world.
Mykee (no last name given) started Mykee Hates Life in the booming Bay Area rock scene of the early ‘90s. “It was just me and a four track…and some chemical inspiration,” according to Mykee. As time went on, other members were added, which in turn brought the proverbial drama that ensues with clashing personalities and financial trouble on tour.
“There used to be another Mike in the band as well. We went on tour with him and, I guess he was spending all his money on cigarettes, he was starving on tour,” Mykee explains. “As soon as we got back from tour, he grabbed his stuff and he just took off. I got an e-mail from him later on that day saying how I had starved him on tour. Then he told everyone we kicked him out,” adds Mykee.
The group’s lineup now consists of Erik, George and Mykee. “Erik from the Angry Amputees joined. He agreed to play bass with us and so we kind of decided to change our name at New Year’s because it was more of a band than it was my solo project,” states Mykee.
Perhaps the most striking facet of the band is their virtual denouncement of conventional punk rock. IGG is on Richmond punk label Burnt Ramen, where Mykee works, and are featured in numerous punk rock shows, but don’t call this group punk.
“There are a lot of punks who are more hardcore than we are. When you say that you’re punk, it’s like a lot of the bands that are getting national exposure that call themselves punks, no one in the punk scene would refer to them as punk,” explains Mykee. In fact, the first line of the group’s bio reads “Ill Gotten GainZ plays rock ‘n’ roll.” Setting up camp in what is likely the most critical, crusty punk rock scene in the world seems a bit of an odd choice, though Mykee freely admits: “We do some songs that might even be more country or rockabilly or straight ahead rock ‘n’ roll. I think it’s good to have a mixture of a bunch of different influences.”
Existing in the belly of the neo-counter culturalism that defines Berkeley, CA, one could assume that traditional rock music would be somewhat hard to find. Mykee seems to find comfort in the mythology and Behind The Music style rock ‘n’ roll stories that exemplify rocks early days.
“If you look back at the history of rock ‘n’ roll, in the beginning, most of the early rockabilly types and the pioneers, they burned out really early and they died off really young. As far as a legacy of, you know, being able to last for a while, to last long enough to get popular, it’s very difficult,” states Mykee. In fact, from what I can tell from a phone interview, Mykee seems to possess probably the most level-headed ethics on rock music of anyone I have spoken with on the subject. “The same things that make bands great are the same things that tear them apart,” according to Mykee, and I couldn’t agree more.
The Richmond, CA, scene has had its share of ups and downs, especially in the ostentatious task of securing a venue that will consistently hold shows without the fear of offending local law dogs.
“We recently had to stop having shows here at Burnt Ramen because there was a fire marshall inspection, and there’s a new police sergeant who seems to have it in for us,” states Mykee. As my discussion progresses with Mykee, I mention some of the more lewd tales that have made shows at Burnt Ramen as infamous as some shows at the rivaling Gilman St. venue in Berkeley. Mykee elaborates on a recent event that was held at Burnt Ramen and Gilman over a span of three days: “Well, one of the last shows we had here was called ‘Super Sabado Gigante’ and people came from all over the country. Some people even came from overseas. The show here was a lot better than the show at Gilman just because we allow people to drink here and there really aren’t any rules. It’s a lot easier to hang out. I think there was over 250 people there that night. Two days later, everyone caught this raging flu. Everyone got sick who had been at that show. We decided to blame it on this band Guyana Punchline, which might not be true but…”
Ill Gotten GainZ recently released a full-length album titled Shadows Rise that showcases the group’s psychobilly tendencies, as well as their punk rock roots. “Right now I think we’re pretty tight as a three-piece. We’ve got enough material together for another album. We’ll probably record another album in June,” states Mykee.
The future of the band now seems more secure than it has ever been. Though IGG’s hometown may be where the likes of Green Day and Rancid were spawned, this group’s sound lies in a perfect little niche of rock that speaks for itself and should help dispel any criticisms from local police sergeants, disease-carrying touring bands, or crusty punk rockers for a long time to come.

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