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 CPC Gangbangs from Montreal, Quebec are quickly rising in international fame due to their interesting garage punk sound and wall of noise presentation. Oh, it also helps if your rhythm guitarist was Deaner in the hit Canadian mockumentary FUBAR.
The boys in CPC sat down with me after their stellar performance at Amigo’s Cantina and talked with me about Nardwuar the Human Serviette, Swami Records, and crazy Americans.
Who are you and what do you play?
Roy: My name is Roy. I play guitar and I sing.
Ricardo: Roller. I play bass and sing backup vocals. And Danny (CPC drummer) is drinking somewhere.
Would you explain the origin of your band name?
Roy: In a small town that’s maybe six hours from Montreal, some kid we know was on PCP and assaulted somebody. At that point he was screaming PCP in reverse and that really stuck with us. (Ricardo laughs) And then we wrote a chaos manifesto based on a lot of chaos magic, free-form thinking, the arts...trying to push the boundaries of expression, at least for ourselves, anyway. So, on that level we became the Commanding Principles of Chaos. But we began using the acronym for pretty much anything. You can switch it up depending on the mood or atmosphere. It’s gone from Chocolate Prince Charles to Constant Pouring of Ca-ca...
Ricardo: Canadian Pork Council.
Roy: I think that’s already a company.
Ricardo: Y’see, they wanted to be affiliated with us but we’re staying cold. We don’t wanna know anything about those guys.
How long has the band been in existence?
Roy: We started up as The Gangbangs, which was a while ago. We switched up the line-up a little bit maybe four or five years ago. Ricardo just joined this year after our old bass player moved away to get married and play in a band called the Night Marchers. They’re a really awesome band.
Ricardo: He’s done stuff with John Reis’ new band and Swami Records.
Roy: Yeah, he played a big part in them helping us and putting out the record. We miss him but he’s very happy out there. Anyway, so this current line-up has been around about a year. The band itself has existed for five years.
 You just mentioned Swami Records, whom released your first album “Mutilation Nation”. Would you like to talk about that? I mean, the label is renowned for releasing albums by punk bands like Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes-
Roy: -We’re just such huge fans of a lot of that stuff. Those guys, Rocket from the Crypt...it’s really cool to get a chance to work with those guys. They’ve helped us out big time. We’ve played shows with them and they recorded some of the tracks on the album. My old band opened up for Hot Snakes a couple times so we had already started building a relationship with those guys. Total sweethearts! Those guys have been really cool with us.
Ricardo: We were fans first and foremost... (Danny walks into the room and belches loudly) Danny, do you want to introduce yourself?
Danny: I’m Danny and I play drums for CPC Gangbangs.
You guys have toured a fair amount recently in both Canada and the States. How do you compare the Canadian crowds to the American crowds?
Roy: It really depends where. I mean, the middle U.S. was kind of rough but...New York was really good. People were breaking shit, which is fun sometimes. West Coast was also really good. We did four shows with Secret Fires from Edmonton. They were super good. We played with them in some place in Kelowna called Roy’s Skinning Shack, which was actually used to skin animals at one point. But overall, both countries have given us a positive response. As a result, all our instruments are totally destroyed, which isn’t very good but overall I would say that it’s a positive sign.
Danny, earlier you were talking to me about the...male tension in America. Would you elaborate?
Danny: It must be because of the central politics of the United States. She left, in her wake, a whole mad nation of repressed homosexual dudes. Just lots of gay dudes attacked me.
Ricardo: There’s nothing wrong with that.
Danny: No, nothing wrong with it. But seriously, I came back to Canada with fucking steps in my hair! (All laugh) A pink scarf...
Ricardo: You’ve been assimilated, Dan. Oh, by the way, I’m now the official hairdresser for the band. I’ve done Danny’s hair, Roy’s, which is obviously very beautiful right now...I gave him a blonde moustache but he cut it.
Danny: But yeah, they’re all gay. (Laughs)
If you can describe your band without using the word “punk”-
Danny: -Or gay. (All laugh)
Or gay. How would you describe the band?
Danny: Umm...cool.
Roy: The runs.
Ricardo: Lots of hate. Lots of hate!
Danny: And not gay. (All laugh)
Who should everyone listen to aside from CPC?
Danny: Secret Fires from Edmonton, The Spits from Seattle...ummm...
Roy: Human Eye from Detroit, Duchess Says from Montreal...
Ricardo: King Kong Barbeque and Wolf Eyes.
Got any crazy tour stories?
Danny: We had a lot of blood going at one point. Ricardo’s all about hate but Roy and I are all about love.
Roy: People were smashing tables in New York during our set. Someone threw a mannequin into a fan. In Providence, some guy slit his wrist after our show. Needless to say, that was kind of awkward.
Ricardo: Roy has a great influence on people.
Roy: But I don’t want to...
Ricardo: Condone?
Roy: Yes, condone. I do not condone wrist-slitting except if it’s for love. (All laugh) Then it’s romantic.
Ricardo: And our other guitar player, whom we haven’t heard from or seen in the last 24 hours...anyway, some dude at the show punched a light bulb so his hand was bleeding. Our other guitar player, Paul, grabbed the guy’s hands and shirt and started rubbing his face with them. He had crusted blood on the side of his head for days after that.
You mentioned your other guitarist, who is Paul Spence. How tired are you guys of the Fubar connection?
Roy: Well, I don’t mind it. I think it’s funny.
Ricardo: When we were in Kelowna, Paul was a star there. Dudes were taking pictures with him like he was fucking Brad Pitt or somebody. Girls were showing their tits to him, people were buying him drinks and giving him drugs. A terrible shame is what it turned out to be. Actually, in Kelowna, the show was basically Paul Spence featuring the CPC Gangbangs.
Danny: We actually stopped playing and he started doing an a cappella type of thing.
Roy: Yeah, we just said, “Let’s get off the stage.”
Ricardo: We don’t mind it. I’m sure Paul doesn’t mind it.
Danny: Except for when he’s in a back alley shotgunning beers with shirtless dudes. (All laugh)
When you were in British Columbia, you were interviewed by Nardwuar. What was that like?
Ricardo: He did an hour-long interview with us. It was really good. Roy did most of it, but...actually, it was weird because when he would ask us a question, he would say shit like, “Hello Paul from Fubar and CPC Gangbangs and the upcoming Richard Gere movie that has not come out yet...” And every single question would start like that.
Roy: He had a lot of questions concerning toilets, which I use, but...
Danny: Yeah, it was all about toilets. He had diarrhea stories and asked us about our most memorable times on the can.
Ricardo: Here’s something fucked: he asked us if we were honoured that our CD was in the same bathroom that Noam Chomsky had used. (All laugh) That’s the first question he asked me. And obviously, I said yes.
Danny: Wait, what? I missed what you said. Who took a shit with Noam Chomsky? (All laugh) I’m serious!
Roy: The Nardwuar interview was fun. He came to the show. We put him on the guest list.
During this tour, have you caught flack from any Americans while on stage? What’s the rudest thing anyone has yelled at you?
Roy: “Get off the stage, you fucking Canadian faggots.”
...wow. Where did you hear this?
Roy: Umm...
Ricardo: Dude, this was like, five minutes ago! (All laugh) I’m kidding. Actually, I think most people have been pretty nice to us. Throwing us compliments, condoms and Christian praise, y’know?
Danny: What did they keep yelling at us in Seattle? Fuck Canada?
Roy: They yelled, “Go back to Canada.”
Danny: Right! “Go back to Canada!” But then they would cheer for us and yell, “Yaaaaaaaay!” It was fucked. “Fuck you, Canadians! Yaaaaaaaay!” (Laughs)
Roy: But Ricardo’s right, most people have been really great. But lots of weird stuff has happened. We’ve had people spitting on us and then coming up to us afterwards and apologizing profusely.
Ricardo: (Laughs) That’s so true! In New York, some guy kept punching me and Roy while we were playing, but he would punch me and then lean up to my ear and say, “I’m so sorry. Dude, I’m sorry.”
I think we’re done. Last words?
Danny: I don’t think so.
Roy: We are CPC Gangbangs. Thank you.
Ricardo: Thanks.
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