Though Fen Ikner’s been a Tucson resident for only a little more
than a year, even the casual local music fan has probably seen him
perform, be it in his indie-pop solo project Hero Alligator, as The
Otterssey’s bassist, or drumming for Seashell Radio, Leila Lopez or
Michael P.
What was the first concert you ever saw?
Definitely something at the West Virginia State Fair—I think
it was the Jets.
What CDs are in your changer right now?
I kinda gave up on CDs a while back, but the last-played records on
my iPod are a box set of ’60s soul called Beg, Scream and
Shout!; Carole King, Tapestry; The Emergency, Doo-Lang
Doo-Lang; The Teeth, You’re My Lover Now; and The Subjects,
With the Ease Grace Precision and Cleverness of Human
Beings.
How many total albums do you own (CDs, vinyl, cassettes,
8-tracks)?
About 1,000 LPs, gigs upon gigs of MP3s, and a disheveled foison of
CDs.
Do you download music, and if so, legally or illegally?
Legally these days, though I’ve only recently gone straight. Sorry,
Lars.
What was the first album you owned?
Kiss’ Alive! and Alive II, procured from an uncle’s
leftovers at my grandmother’s house. Perfect for a 5-year-old.
What song would you like to have played at your funeral?
Whatever comforts the person playing it the most. Hopefully, it’d be
“Spanish Flea.”
Musically speaking, what do you love that your friends don’t know
about? What’s your favorite guilty pleasure?
Nothing. I’m the very picture of good taste. Pay no mind to the
Autograph records.
What band or artist changed your life, and how?
There’s been one of those every five years or so, but the first one
was definitely Kiss, as that’s when I decided to go ahead and rock.
Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all
time?
Impossible. How about this: I’ll do a mash-up with Marvin Gaye’s
What’s Going On versus the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds; call
it What’s Going On With Your Pets?, and THAT’LL be my favorite
album of all time.
This article appears in Jul 23-29, 2009.
