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Here at Paperface, we're always trying to turn readers onto what we're currently digging or what pretentious listeners and the men in suits like to call, "the next big thing." While I'm not sure if we've accomplished that, emerging from the industrial, "Rust Belt" city of Buffalo, New York, there's a garage rocker by the name of Jacob King, who pens crackling, razor-sharp rock 'n' roll tunes with anarchic lyrics and blistering guitar attacks in his band T.T.T.T., who recently released a new 7" titled I Saw You on the Bloody Floor. The single's three tracks all set off at a blistering pace of well-blown-out urban punk with jagged, feed-back wailing guitars, snotty howls, and wide-eyed amphetamine grooves that recall cult favorites like The Velvets, Simply Saucer, Nod, and Ty Segall. To dig deeper, we chatted with King all about the new release, his primitive pulse to improvisation, and what's new at The New Disposable zine and label.
First tell me what you've been up to lately? What have you been listening to, reading, watching, or spending a lot of time doing?
Jacob King: I recently moved into a new place, so I'm slowly settling in here while the seasons change. Lately my favorite album is Oar by Skip Spence. So many things: Patti Smith, Sharpie Smile was really great to see live, John Fahey, Lydia Lunch, lots of old blues and folk artists too. The Alien movies. I also just finished reading A Season in Hell by Arthur Rimbaud.
Thanks again for supporting Private Lives last summer for their U.S. weekend tour. What were some of the highlights for you? You played a more spur-of-the-moment set mostly of covers, which is unusual than you're used to, but was amazing!
Totally, that was a fun scramble. We played a really fun show in Ithaca NY at this kava bar with Microbes Mostly, a great band. My bandmates moved to Philly and we just played there for the first time too. Getting to play out of town and meet new people is always amazing.
Where did you grow up and what was your childhood like? What kind of records and fanzines would we find if we would travel back in time in your teenage room?
I grew up just outside of Buffalo in Amherst NY, and I'd say I had a pretty nice childhood. Parents, three siblings, dog. I was a goofball, drawn to comedy and nerdy type stuff until guitar really took over. There were Anchorman and Beavis and Butthead posters on the wall. I remember the first records I bought myself were Rubber Soul, Zeppelin IV, and Agents of Fortune by BÖC.
So what exactly are the origins of T.T.T.T.? Was this your first dive into recording music on your own?
T.T.T.T. is like the sort of band I've always wanted to be in, I feel. In college I got a 4-track and that opened the door to a lot. Before, I'd been recording myself with whatever tools I had along the way, ever since starting to play guitar. Something clicked and it felt like I was finally doing it "for real," or something. All my favorite bands have rough recordings so it’s been more than worth it to me learning and experimenting under that influence. This band sort of came out of an older band I was in with Cam [Bunch] on the drums, and we’ve added Meg [Munro] on bass.
I think what attracted me so much to T.T.T.T. was the deeply rooted Rust Belt primitive guitar playing and impulse to improv. What kind of role does improvisation have when it comes to creating a song?
Thank you! At least for me, improv feels pretty essential for the live show. I get a lot out of it. When writing too, I like to leave space for something unpredictable to get caught on tape. A friend of mine plays bass and says he never wants to play a song the same. I latched onto that along with Zappa's ideas about always improvising solos, and so it makes for a really unique and rewarding time.
What kind of gear do you enjoy using? Tell us about effects, pedals, etc.
My current setup is a Squier Mustang and a Music Man 100RD ran into an unlabeled mystery cab. I like reverb on my guitar most always. Besides a tuner, the only pedal I like to play with now is the DBA Fuzz War.
What insight can you share about your new 7" and how exactly it all came together during the summer '23. You said online, "I remember screaming into the telephone mic all day."
A bunch of T.T.T.T. recordings come from that summer, maybe like ten or so tracks. I'd just finished college and moved back home, frankly without much of a plan for what was next. Luckily I had the space to play loud and freak out a bit. These specific tracks that we chose for the 7" definitely feel the most aggressive out of the batch.
How exactly did the opening cut "I Saw You On The Bloody Floor" come about?
There were a couple shows I played during school as a one-man band. Just guitar, bass drum, tambourine, and telephone mic. So with that setup I wrote some tunes that kept the beat simple enough and were extra raw. That was one of them, and it was fun to fill it out a bit on the recording plus now live with the band.
I also really like the meandering freakout toon "Mountain King Killed My Car." What was it like putting that one together?
I love a song with a good switch halfway through. I've had that one for a long time but kind of reimagined it for this recording, raw power style.
What were the inspirations behind the cover art?
Can't say for sure exactly. But I wanted Cam and Meg to put their touch on this record somehow, so one night we got together to drink wine and paint. We stitched together our favorite creations and sent it over to Patrick who put the final touches on it.
These three new songs match the style perfectly with last year's 7" Pig b/w Eat Tomatoes or Eat Shit. Can we expect a full-length record in the near future with these songs or are they going to stay their own thing?
I would love to put together an LP someday, whether it's compiling everything so far, or new stuff! Putting songs out in small chunks seemed to happen gradually as time passed, but I totally feel ambitious for even bigger things. Still foggy, but yeah! Maybe an LP in the near future.
How would you compare this 7" to your previous releases like the Everyone Loves My Friends EP and the Folk Song Killer cassette?
This definitely feels different than the Friends EP, mostly because that one was actually recorded with the band live, without overdubs. The new 7" and Folk Song Killer come from those summer recordings, which were all just me multitracking. I love recording both ways.
Before linking up with Patrick of Record Beach/Eyes and Flys, you were releasing music on your own label, The New Disposable. What's that been like and what do you have on deck for the near future?
It's been a fun project! The New Disposable was originally a zine, but recently it's become the name I use for making physical releases. Only my own projects so far, but hopefully others' in the future. Next up I'm putting out a tape single of my solo songs. There's like an album's worth of solo recordings that I want to put out too, so I'm currently figuring that out.
What are your thoughts on the current music scene in Buffalo, New York? It's been a lot of hardcore over the last couple decades, but do you think there's room for different sounds?
Buffalo has been super kind and receptive to us since we started playing. People are so friendly here. I feel like I've wandered into different scenes and rooms in this city ever since I was a teenager, and so while it feels small, there's so much that's maybe just splintered off and uncentralized. Coming back after college, I really discovered punk rock in Buffalo for the first time because I guess I just wasn't exposed to that while in high school. Maybe I was nervous at first that the band wouldn’t be "hard enough" or something, but we've only made friends and had good times to be honest. I do think in local music you should just make the type of stuff you wanna hear! My favorite artists here are the type who are kind of in their own corner and up to their freaky ways.
What are some future plans for you and T.T.T.T.?
I want to play more out of town shows next year. I'm itching for travel. Let us play your party! I'm always writing too.
Thank you for your time. Any advice or last words you'd like to share with our readers?
Be well! Trust your gut and figure out what you enjoy, what you're grateful for!
I Saw You on the Bloody Floor is out now on Record Beach.