Cristina Williams of The Modeens is originally from Jacksonville, Fla., and lived in New York and Los Angeles before moving to Tucson with partner and bandmate, Jamie Laboz. She works as a documentation specialist and web consultant for the USC Information Sciences Institute.
What was the first concert you ever saw?
Hall and Oates in Jacksonville when I was 12. ... I smelled some strange smoke coming from the couple next to us, but my parents wouldn't say much about it.
What are you listening to these days?
Lots of KXCI! Honestly, it was one of the factors when we decided to move here. Also, the new Charlotte Gainsbourg album, IRM.
What was the first album you owned?
A 45 of Linda Ronstadt's "Blue Bayou." I'd sit there for hours in my room with my Fisher Price turntable, singing along at the top of my little lungs.
What artist, genre or musical trend does everyone seem to love, but you just don't get?
Lady Gaga—haven't heard a lot, but it just doesn't do it for me. Fascinating costumes, though.
What musical act, current or defunct, would you most like to see perform live?
Small Faces. To see Steve Marriott rock the shit out of the guitar and sing the hell out of those songs live would knock me over.
Musically speaking, what is your favorite guilty pleasure?
Sappy '60s bachelor pad music or '50s exotica.
What song would you like to have played at your funeral?
The Flaming Lips, "Do You Realize??"
What band or artist changed your life, and how?
My dad. He was a singer-songwriter in Jacksonville and brought me up on folk music and '60s rock. He's the one who taught me guitar and encouraged me to perform. If it wasn't for him, I probably would have just been a singer—and I'm so grateful to have this whole other side to my musicality.
Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all time?
Fleetwood Mac, Rumours. As soon as I hear those dry drums going into "The Chain," I get goosebumps.
