Pitchfork

Last week, we caught a mention of Portland punkers the Thermals on MTV.com. In addition to dropping the name of the band's forthcoming fourth LP (Now We Can See), the article suggested that said album might not be released by the band's longtime label, Sub Pop. Curious, we shot an e-mail to the band. Thermals mouthpiece Hutch Harris shot us back a funny, generous e-mail about the current state of the band and taught us some things about Hello Kitty we were unaware of until now.

Pitchfork: MTV.com's report mentioned that your new album's release will be on "a still TBD label." Can you fill us in on the situation?

Hutch Harris: Nothing is for sure right now for us. Sub Pop offered us a contract for two more records which we ended up turning down, this was a little while ago. We had no problems with Sub Pop and we absolutely loved working with them, Kathy [Foster] and I just felt that we needed to go it alone again, for ourselves, for our "art", if even for just a short while. We've considered releasing the record ourselves, or licensing it ourselves to different territories. We are currently talking to many great labels, one of them being Sub Pop. It's still my favorite label.

Pitchfork: So is the album definitely called Now We Can See? Will "I Let It Go" and "You Dissolve", the demos MTV posted along with the story, be on the album? Got any other song titles to bandy about?

HH: Oh hell yeah. The record is called Now We Can See. It'll be our first record with a title track. Here is an almost complete track listing:

When I Died
I Called Out Your Name
When I Was Afraid
Liquid In, Liquid Out
I Let It Go
At the Bottom of the Sea
When We Were Alive
Now We Can See
Dreaming of You (And How We Fade)
You Dissolve

Pitchfork: Since your drummer Lorin Coleman left, are you and Kathy Foster still handling the drums yourselves? Do you plan on adding more members for the touring band?

HH: Kathy Foster will be playing all drums and bass, and singing a little. I will play electric guitar and rant. Basically business as usual. John Congleton is indeed recording and mixing the entire record, so yes it will be hi(gh as hell)-fi(re). We are tracking it in August at Supernatural Sound, where we recorded TBTBTM in the O.C. (Oregon City), then mixing it at John's place in Dallas, in September. We will return as a three or four piece, in December of this year. It's gonna be terrific.

Pitchfork: Do you still have plans to make a video with those awesome dolls? Or were you just pulling everybody's leg? Either way, if those go missing at some point, I, uh, don't know anything about it.

HH: Yes for sure. Like I said before, the dolls will be doing as much work as we can get them to do for us. Press shots, videos, in fact the next interview we do with Pitchfork will be done by the dolls, so I apologize in advance for the fact that they don't answer questions, 'cause they can't speak. About them going missing, don't even fuck with it dude! They got bodyguards... I think Cookie Monster is protecting the Kathy doll right now. I think I saw my doll hitting on Hello Kitty, she's such a hot slut...

Pitchfork: That's it! Thanks for answering our questions!

HH: Hopefully yr headline won't be "Hutch Harris Calls Hello Kitty a Hot Slut".