I Wanna Buy You a Ring: A Chat with Craig Elkins of Huffamoose

Discography:

Huffamoose (7 Records, 1993)

We’ve Been Had Again (Interscope, 1997)

I Wanna Be Your Pants (Shanachie, 2000)

…and that’s when the golf ball hit me in the head (Winding Way Records, 2018)

Huffamoose were one of those alt rock bands that broke through at the tail end of the alterna rock boom. Their song "Wait" hit the radio in 1997 and garnered them some modest attention but they became known for the storytelling aspect of their songwriting and that endeared them to a certain ratio of music critics. They had a documentary made about them in the early 2000's that was heralded by Cameron Crowe, they got a song in a JC Penney commercial but they just weren't able to break through in the way their peers had. After releasing a fantastic comeback album in 2018, frontman/guitarist Craig Elkins was cool to chat about their history.

Pete Crigler: What got you interested in music?

Craig Elkins: The song "Guitar Man" by Bread. Also, my dad used to play guitar and sing when he got drunk but I'm not sure if that scared or inspired me.

Pete: How did Huffamoose come together and where the hell did the name come from?

Craig: We were all students at the Esther Boyer College of Music at Temple University at different times. The band came together shortly after I got my first solo gig and the only audience member was the bartender. The bar manager suggested I put a band together to get more people out. "Huffamoose" was a word a mutual friend was using at the time in some context and it made us laugh so we used it.

Pete: How would you describe the band's sound?

Craig: Led Zeppelin on steroids is probably the worst answer I can think of. I wonder if anyone really thinks that about their own band? There has to be at least one band that does. Oasis is a contender. I'll reach out to Noel.

Pete: What was the scene in Philadelphia like at the time?

Craig: Fun question. We were part of the Manayunk scene in the early 90s. Ben Arnold gave us one of our first good gigs at the Northstar Bar (not in Manayunk). One of our favorite places to play was the Grape Street Pub - quite a music community there. Leroy Montana comes to mind - one of my favorite singer/songwriters/performance artists of all time. Also John Vuotto - very unique guitar player and songwriter. You can still see him playing on Facebook. Iota! She was fantastic and sort of scary. A ton of super talented bands and singer-songwriters. We were the best looking though and our overall group weight was a bit higher which allowed us to go longer without food.

Pete: What was it like recording the indie debut?

Craig: A shit ton of fun recording and also a rude awakening to how mindblowingly boring the studio can and will be.

Pete: How did the band come to sign with Interscope and how do you feel about it now?

Craig: Our first manager, Dean Sciarra, was with us through our first record. He was a genius of a manager in many ways and LOVED music - still does. He also had an INCREDIBLE arm which was shocking because he didn't look the part. He could launch a football a mile with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. He got us to the point where record labels started to come sniffing around but he was more interested in the long game and wanted us to stay independent as long as possible. Very sound advice. Unfortunately, we didn't see it like that, parted ways and started working with our second manager - Doron Segal. He'd already got a band signed to Giant or A&M, seemed to love our music and was quite a hustler. He was instrumental in getting us signed to Interscope. We signed with them because we thought they'd allow us the most artistic freedom. Two years later we were still trying to write a single they'd approve of and we had no producer and were close to getting dropped before we released anything. That's not just Interscope - that's all major labels - at least it seemed to be back then. And to be fair -they probably knew better than a bunch of super attractive future stars who didn't know how to write a bridge.

Pete: How did Wait come about?

Craig: Kevin wrote Wait. He brought it to the band just before or while we were recording We've Been Had Again at the Chill Factor in Ardmore. I'm not sure what it's about but I do remember the first time we rehearsed it. I think we played it 50 times in a row because it was so satisfying to play the chorus.  Great song but Kevin will agree that James is superior.

Pete: What was success like and how did everyone react to it?

Craig: You must've come up with these questions before our recent performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. I'm not sure "success" is the word I'd use but I'm not asking the question. I can only answer for myself. It made me a huge jackass most of the time but I may have been headed in that direction before my music career. Oh, and I got a tattoo. Luckily, we're all still great friends.

Pete: What caused the relationship with Interscope to end; was it mutual?

Craig: They built a new website and didn't add us to the current artists page - they went with Gwen Stefani. It wasn't mutual but the road was tough!

Pete: What was it like touring on HORDE and was it surprising when Erik quit?

Craig: We only did a few HORDE shows. They were exhilarating. Two rock star stories: Billy Corgan stole my massage appointment in Oklahoma City.  Same town - the BareNaked Ladies played before us on the main stage. We went on right after them on the adjacent smaller, side stage and thanked them for opening for us. This pissed off their crew and pushed Billy over the fence regarding his decision to steal my massage. Regarding Erik, I'm surprised anyone doesn't quit! Sleeping in Motel 6s, driving in a leaky van from Philadelphia to Phoenix with no stops, sound checking at TJ McSportsBar's in a suburb of Columbus at 2pm then playing the gig at 11pm. Yuck.

Pete: What was it like bringing Chuck Treece in?

Craig: Chuck is a different horizontal gear. Amazingly talented with a bit more of a punk aesthetic than we were used to. He introduced us to the drug marijuana and only brought his skateboard on the road. We also played with another super talented Phila area drummer: Tom Walling. We let him think he was introducing us to marijuana although we'd already experimented with Chuck. Funny story about Tom. He had some pot on him while going through airport security and was super anxious about it. He got through but then somehow maneuvered himself into a position wherein he had to go through security again. He made it through both times but his underwear wasn't so lucky.

Pete: What happened in the aftermath; was it easy or difficult to secure a deal with Shanachie?

Craig: It was tough to get another deal  - luckily for us Shanachie stepped up. Probably not so lucky for them since the record tanked. I think we were just fried at that point and we didn't have a budget to tour. I still really love that record.

Pete: How did I Wanna Be Your Pants come together?

Craig: After the smoke cleared from the We've Been Had... tour, we kept recording individually with Erik Horvitz. He'd produced and engineered our Interscope record and had just opened a studio in South Philly.  We thought a few of the demos could be fleshed out and Kevin and I had written a bunch of other tunes. Recording a record with no major label interference was a refreshing experience for us. Also, Bitar's has a super tasty falafel sandwich. I think a piece of one of those sandwiches may be the food in our late road manager, Brian 'Breeze' Giles' mouth on the front cover. There's also a chance it's pizza. He was one of a kind. We both worked at Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips in high school. Then he re-emerged in my life in the form of Erik Horvitz's right hand man 15 years later. It's a strange and wonderful world!

Pete: What was the status of the band during this time?

Craig: I don't really remember too much about that time. We weren't actively playing too much. I'm pretty sure we were all ready to move on and then Kevin wrote "Laugh Lines" which ultimately didn't make the record.

Pete: What's the backstory on Kneeslappers and The Death of Cool?

Craig: Both were put together by our first manager Dean Sciarra. Collections of b-sides and demos. I like a lot of the tracks on both records. "Yes Man" is a favorite. He released both on his "It's About Music" website. We recently re-released Kneeslappers and it's available on most popular streaming services. Although it has not been remastered.

Pete: How did the documentary come about and were you pleased with it?

Craig: LOVE the documentary!! Check out the commentary version -it's priceless. That said, I struggle with watching it. Nothing worse than watching yourself on film and I'll never be that attractive again. Our friend Chris Richter followed us around off and on for the entire tour. Johnny Myers helped a lot (Johnny worked for us on the road for a while - a great guy. He works in radio. Hire him. He's already super successful but I'm sure he's willing to field legitimate offers. No pie in the sky stuff  - he's got a family to support.).  It's super funny but also manages to accurately depict what it's like to be a baby band touring the US, stuffed into a Ford Econoline Van.

Pete: Did the band ever officially call it quits?

Craig: Nope! We just played a gig a couple of months back and we should be recording a tune or two soon if the stars align.

Pete: What was it like making your solo album?

Craig: It was fun playing with some players I wouldn't have had access to had I not met Jason Karaban - a super talented singer/songwriter from Philly who's been living in LA for years. Loved playing with Pete Thomas and Dave Immergluck. My favorite solo thing I've done though is "Jim Lauderdale Has Taken My Spot." Words can't express how much fun it was to rehearse for and record that tune. Check it out: https://youtu.be/6SJBEVabGzM. I also just released an EP which I have to take down cuz they got the release date wrong.  Here's a track from that (soon to be re-released) EP: https://youtu.be/2C_uTQOutqc.

Pete: How did the band come back together to make golf ball?

Craig: A friend of the band, John Fisher, was starting a label a few years ago (Winding Way Records) and offered to help us record a new record. We were already playing a show once or twice a year and having a great time doing so. We said yes with the caveat that he would have to produce 5 pairs of custom Huffamoose women's pajama bottoms. He begrudgingly agreed and has kept his promise.

Pete: Did the songwriting approach change at all with this record?

Craig: Not really. Kevin and I usually write separately. The band recorded the basic tracks in South Jersey then we had to do some of the overdubs in LA and Philly. Our friend Shane Smith (who also plays in Pistol for Ringo with Ben Arnold and in Robert Francis's band) mixed the record in LA.

Pete: What's next for the band?

Craig: Recording now and then. Playing a show here and there. Kevin, Jim and Erik are also working on a new Fractals record which will no doubt be fantastic.

Pete: What's everybody up to?

Craig: Just playing/teaching music, paying the bills. Jim was in air traffic control until a recent mishap, the details of which are murky.

Pete: What do you hope the band's legacy will be?

Craig: The only band in History to release three different versions of the song "James" on three separate records over the course of less than 3 years. Also, I think we would like to somehow be at least partially responsible for the downfall of Trump. Oh, and maybe fix climate change with a song - a very special song.