Mika Miko

With We Be Xuxa, LA five-piece Mika Miko's second album just released and the band about to his our shores, vocalist/saxaphonist Jenna Thornhill (aka Jet Blanca) talks So Cal punk, telephone mics and songs about sex.

The so-called Smell Scene seemed to explode last year - or certainly in Europe bands like No Age and Abe Vigoda really came onto people's radars. Was it a little frustrating to be stuck recording while your friends were playing to bigger and bigger audiences abroad? Did you ever think, hey we were here first!?

Jenna: Hey, that's not true! From the very first of our shows in the UK and Europe we've always had really amazing shows with great crowds. When we were recording, Abe Vigoda were home, recording around the same time. And then we were there with them on their first trip there. No Age probably were on tour, but far from frustrating, the good stuff that happens to them is awesome. It was frustrating, though, to go tour there without a new record for so long. So it was relieving to take a break from touring and write and record again.

One thing this current crop of LA bands seem to share is a real hunger for touring. No Age and they reckoned they played something like 400 gigs last year alone! You guys tour a hell of a lot too. Is there something in the west coast water that keeps you all going?

Jenna: How is that shit even possible!! 400 shows in 365 days sounds pretty wild. I'd say it must be GT's Organic Raw Kombucha which is manufactured in Southern California.   

Last question on LA for the time being, honest but you’re known as serious connoisseurs of the classic So Cal punk. For the only slightly initiated, can you give us a few tips?

Descendents, Christian Death, Redd Kross, every Dangerhouse release, Dickies, Adolescents, TSOL, D.I., Middle Class, Surf Punks, Agent Orange, Nervous Gender, the Screamers, X, Catholic Discipline, Germs, Black Flag, The Crowd, the Simpletons, Gun Club, 45 Grave, Vox Pop, The Bags, Dead Beats, Black Randy and the Metro Squad, Circle Jerks, Los Plugz, Ayes, Weirdos, Zeros, The Dils, Channel 3, Fear, Bad Religion, Youth Brigade, Social Distortion, Suicidal Tendencies, etc.

The album title - We Be Xuxa - is a little cryptic. Can you shed light on it for us? Wikipedia tells us Xuxa is either the nickname of a Brazilian Olympic swimmer, the name of a Brazilian celebrity and Grammy Award winning singer or simply Latin for Susan. Do they need a fourth entry?

Jenna: No. What they ought to have is one and only entrant in that category and that is of Xuxa the famous celebrity, last name Meneghel.

You recorded it with Mike McHugh who has previously worked with The Black Lips. How was he to work with?

Jenna: I recorded with him once before with my other band Silver Daggers. I was a big supporter for recording Xuxa with him. Everyone was very into his methods and his living snake accessorizing. I would say I love him.

On the face of it, like C.Y.S.L.A.B.F., it's to-the-point punk rock with lots of smart riffs. How would you describe its differences though? There's more sax for one, right?

Jenna: For CYSLABF we recorded every single song we knew and then picked from those. Some of them we'd written at the very beginning, others we finished figuring out as we recorded. So it was definitely more scattered in that way. With We Be Xuxa we wrote almost the entire thing in one month of playing together, and they weren't given the chance to be mutated by playing them live as the older songs were. I think there is just the same mount of sax in this one, but it's more concentrated! Less flourishes, more constant in it's few songs.

And more sex too, no? 'Sex Jazz' and 'Sex' are two tunes on there this time round…

Jenna: One song that didn't make it onto CYSLABF was Sex Is Gross. So we've always found it to be a good title word.

The record’s out on Dean Spunt's PPM label and we just wondered given, as pointed out earlier, No Age are almost always on the road, how much day to day contact does he have with the label and with you guys?

Jenna: We are in very regular contact with Dean. Jennifer helps Dean out, so I'd say we have an inside man. It's our ideal record label situation.

The last time Ragged Words caught you guys live- with Abe Vigoda in London last December - Jennifer was using a red telephone as a microphone. Was that something you put together yourself or is there a red telephone microphone store we don't know about...

Jenna: You're interested in buying one? Make us an offer.

The upcoming tour takes will almost see you into July - are there any dates or cities you're particularly looking forward to playing? Anywhere you're going to for the first time?

Jenna: I'm looking forward to Dublin.

Some of the dates are with The Black Lips so lots of quiet nights in with a good book there then, right!?

Jenna: Hopefully a couple of them!