Tack: What's up man...how you been?
Cousin: Astonishingly sober given the proximity of the "New Year." Anyway, I am well, and looking forward to the students returning from break.
Tack: I-ight, so anyways...the name you go under in the Bad Fathers is Cousin...why did you choose that name?
Cousin: We [Bad Fathers] were at Gabes one night, I think you were there, anyways, we were discussing the name thing and Auto [my cousin] was like, "I think we should just call you Cousin." So it was.
Auto & Cousin of Bad Fathers
Tack: That's right...I remember that now! When you drink 3 pitchers of brew and a couple of Jager's at Gabe's, the recall memory gets a little fuzzy. So how is "Cousin the Bad Fathers lyricist" different from "Justin Cox the spoken word poet."
Cousin: The main difference addressed here is that I perform and write using a variety of methods, including but not limited to spoken word. I write mostly "page poetry"; I simply have more opportunities to perform spoken word. On your album I've got contributions that range from a tag team rap with Juan to solo acid jazz singing. Lyricist seems to cover all the bases.
Tack: Fair enough, of all the bases covered, which is your favorite? The traditional rap? The spoken word? Or the singing?
Cousin: That's tough, even from a standpoint of designation, I tend to sing a lot of the rhymes I write, but uhh, I enjoy them all for various reasons. Rapping is very entertaining to me. Four years ago I didn't even realize it was an option. I was very uneducated regarding the independent music scene; there were not a lot of outlets for that type of stuff where I am from. So, doing something like writing a tag team rhyme and delivering it over a beat that was composed halfway across the world, that is a very enlightening experience for me. I've met a ton of dope cats because of spoken word. Buddy Wakefield sort of took me under his wing and from there I was continually introduced to some of the most amazing performers in the world, including the brilliant and lovely, Rachel Kann.
Tack: Seems to me the whole spoken word scene is very close knit, both fans and artists support each other, and you've moved up pretty quickly in ranks because of that...and heck, you've been doing it for what? A couple of years? What is your take on that whole slam poetry vibe.
Cousin: Yeah, It's been a little over two years now. The first time I ever performed was at Gabe's with Ten Grand, Kita, and Bad Fathers; the show was packed and eclectic, it was a great time. Most everyone I've met through Slam actively participates in various other art forms. So really, what the scene boils down to is a community of artists. Sooo, that vibe? I love it.
Tack: As far as your poetry subject matter...what are some of the topics you like to address? What gets that creative juice flowing?
Cousin: Topics? (smiling) Well, I write a lot about a woman that I fell in love with. I have to be honest man! If I wasn't, Joe Mirabella, the host of Iowa City Slam, would forever accuse me of being full of it.
Tack: Elaborate of this women, who is she?
Cousin: She's a painter, we fit well together. If she seems mysterious that's fine, she confounds me endlessly.
More topics- Progression. Movement is a constant consideration. I am very concerned with the idea of establishing new connections. I like to explore the opportunities afforded by the idea of definition. Lyn Hejinian wrecks me. Reading her is exercising, I always feel stronger for having done so. She inspires me. I have come to a point where I feel like, o.k., everything is, and somehow somewhere there is this goodness, a skew that might be life, movement, or honesty; maybe those are the same, who knows? Anyway, even if I can't pinpoint this goodness, like "Oh, there she goes," I can still feel it, sense it, and know it in the deepest and most primal manner. Communicating that goodness is most important activity in which I can participate.
Tack: Whoa dude...can we get any deeper there? You're making my brain cells work overtime! So we've established that you're a poet...you can flow with singing or rapping...which makes you a triple threat...how does that translate to your approach in the hip-hop genre?
Cousin: I'm into a lot of different sounds, so I make a lot of different sounds. I often end up somewhere in the realm of trip hop. I really dig looking at how our surroundings manifest in our artwork. Lately I have had Arvo Part and Denali in heavy rotation. Ha, you should hear me "listen" to Denali, I don't quite have the range Maura does, but I try. Ever heard a good catfight? I play both cats. Anyway.... my approach to hip hop. I'm a Bad Father.
"If I have seen farther it is because I stood on the shoulders of giants."
- Isaac Newton
"I would of liked to have been f#*%!d a litter harder."
- Alisha Klass
Tack: A Bad Father without seeds! And you quote a porn star? Good God almighty. Let's talk about the future... Streamlining the triple threat? That means something different. What can the fans expect? A hint of things to come?
Cousin: I am getting louder. A lot of the things I've done in the past have had this sort of ghost like quality about them, I don't ever want to loose that, but, I'm finding that I really like the way louder more aggressive ideas translate into our live show. Take the song "Dumb Talkers" [a track on the "Tack-Fu Presents the Production Team: 85 decibel Monks"] for instance, the studio version definitely has some of that distant hollow feel to it, but I perform it differently, much louder and more aggressive, it is one of my favorite songs that we do. It has ridiculous energy and we open our shows with it, it's a total mouth shot.
As far as spoken word goes, I need to write more. At my current pace I end up with approximately one stage worthy piece a year, although that has not stopped me from performing some others! Lately my focus has been geared more toward "page" poetry, probably because of school. I've taken 3 workshops and a poetry reading course in the last year. I keep running into ideas that I want to address, and they are largely issues with medium and audience. For instance, a nice young lady asked me to submit to a publication she is overseeing, I got the measurements for the size of the page she was printing on, and then began considering what to do. I'm a freak about page breaks and whatnot. It's like, what exactly can I do with this 4.25 x 5.5 that is unique from what I can do with an 8.5 x 11. That's were I'm at right now.
Tack: Any last words before we wrap this up?
Cousin: My eternal thanks to Shawn Fanning and Azure Ray, two entities that really drove me to pursue music, also thanks to the rest of the Bad Fathers for fostering that ambition.
Check out an unreleased track produced by Tack-Fu (feat. cousin)
"Cousin Live @ Gabes"
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