Improvijazzation Nation - Issue # 51

(self)INTERVIEW with Cathleen Grado (of Dreamykreem 'zine)

Zzaj:  I know what MY driving force for starting up a 'zine was... I had to have some place to SPOUT OFF... what's YOUR motivator for DREEMYKREEM?

Dreemykreem is about cutting through lies. when I first started the zine I had a tragic loss invovling my two parents. I was inside this big old house, all by myself and I really needed an outlet which would utilize the creativity I was repressing. So at night after raiding the old liquor cabinets in the garage, I would gather together scrap pieces of paper, old
magazines and my typewriter and go at it, let it all go. Now its a collaboration project between my boyfriend and myself. We both possess tastes in culture, music and history that are a bit out of the ordinary. We thought a zine would be a great way to express those interests and communicate and/or reach out to other people. It is also a great way, possibility in a beautiful sort of delusion, in which we may create a whole other very
important world for these thoughts.

Zzaj:  I notice you've started a "music" section on the site; how extensive do you expect that to get?

My co-editor is a musician, as are many of his friends. That is where the musical section sprang off of. He likes to experiment with very old equipment and is interested in Hungarian Folk Music. In regards to how extensive we expect that section to become on the site, it all depends on the submissions we get. Interested parties can be pretty scary you know! But if anyone who is really interested in original/expressive stuff let us know, we'd love to be involved by mentioning it on the site or in the print zine via reviews or interviews.

Zzaj:  How do you decide who gets in your "LINKS" section?

We decide links based on personal judgement. Although very open minded, we would not want a link to a Star Trek site or whatever. We love offers for link trades though it seems if you don't fit into our little "fetishistic" tastes we will have to ignore you.


Zzaj:  Is New Jersey really a "great place for art"?  Or are you just pretending it is?

I don't like New Jersey for Art, the only thing about NJ I like is my post office box and even that is a stretch. New Jersey is a cultural wasteland, a vapid rotting money pit. But one does need to get their mail, and it was convenient at the time as all other Manhattan/Brooklyn post offices have a terrifying waiting list. In regards to the question again in a more direct manner, I  am not sure I have ever found where a great place for art is. Right now we are pretty happy being isolated in Bushwick Brooklyn with silence and no where to go. It is good for the creative factor as there are no distractions. I had a painting studio in New Jersey once and the idea of my art being born within such a pit as Hoboken made me want to drink and be mean.


Zzaj:  Words of wisdom for artists/poets/musicians on the nets?

Don't use the internet as a means to an end, only as a promotional/communication tool. It will rot your eyes out!


Zzaj:   Have you thought about going "totally WWW" with your 'zine, or do you just love th' smell of XEROX?

The only reason I would go www with the zine is for the sake of money. It is of course very convenient as well, but I cant help wanting to have something very permanent and physical as well as more within my control; as in a finished product within my hands I can hold and pass on and which someone may someday a long ways away, despite technology , find in a box hidden away somewhere.

Zzaj:   Will you be doing a review of my online 'zine, IMPROVIJAZZATION NATION?

Sure and in print as well, if you send me a copy!

Zzaj:   Can WWW 'zines "save the trees"?

No way......too small a part of the picture that is! Try stopping junk mail. For instance, I think this past fall we received about thirty pieces of the same mail from Mike Bloombergs' campaign.  Yikes!

Zzaj:   Did'ja get yer' dog yet?

I got my dog on my b-day, may 14 and he scares people. He weighs seven pounds and has been compared to a monkey, squirrel, and that hairy character from star wars. One really stoned lady on the subway freaked out and ran when she saw him....she started drooling.
His actual breed is a Brussels Griffon, and its very funny because the only people who know what that is are rich face lifted women on the upper west side.

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