Silverchair

01-06-1997

My Record Collection, The Sounds that Stars have on their Stereos. This Week, Daniel Johns of Silverchair Shares Vital Vinyl

By Paul Elliot (Kerrang)

First record you ever bought?
"Deep Purple's In Rock. It's still one of my favourite albums. Those riffs still get me going -- I love 'em. I can't play them though, and I can't do (Purple singer) Ian Gillan's screams. I just sit there and listen."

Last record you bought?
"I haven't bought anything in a long time, but probably the last thing I got was Fugazi's Red Medicine. It's a hell of an album. But I usually try to get all my albums for free off our record company!"

Record you'd play before a night out on the razz?
"Minor Threat. The album with 21 songs on, all the good songs. It gets you hypo: 'Yeah, let's go!"

Record that you'd play after that night out on the razz?
"Some Led Zeppelin. Anything acoustic by Zeppelin. Sit there and skip all the rocking songs. There's some cool stuff on Led Zeppelin III -- that's the one I listen to a lot."

Worst record you own?
"The first White Zombie album. I like White Zombie, but I don't like that first album at all."

Three records you'd give five Ks to?
"Black Sabbath's Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. It's just got the heaviest riffs. Even when you listen to it now, it all still sounds heavy. All the bands that were heavy back then in the early '70s sound like plain rock music, except for Black Sabbath. And Led Zeppelin's first album too, because it's got all rocking songs on it. And Shellac At Action Park. I really like the intensity of it -- it's so different."

Favourite record sleeve?
"That Shellac album again. I really like how simple and stupid it is."

Record you'd love to play on?
"Anyone whose songs don't involve complex chords!"

Record you would use to seduce a member of the opposite sex?
"It depends where I met them, and it also depends whether they're drunk or not! If I met them just outside a house or something and they're straight, I'd put Jeff Buckley on -- his album Grace. And if I met them when they were really pissed, at some rock 'n' roll concert, I'd put on Minor Threat. And then she'd just be so hypo, she'd do anything! It's the album for all occasions."

Funniest record you have ever heard?
"The Jerky Boys. The first one. It's unreal."

Record you would put on to annoy the neighbors?
"That's Minor Threat as well. What if they were Minor Threat fans? F**k then Led Zeppelin."

Record that always makes you happy?
"Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath records. They're always great to listen to."

Your most hated record?
"Anything by Michael Jackson. No actually that's not my most hated record. It's stuff by Donovan ('60s English folk troubadour). I don't know the names, but Mum listens to him and I hate it!"

[Thanks to Amanda and Haylee.]