Karla Pundit

Interviewed For The Continental Magazine, Issue #2

Sean: Tell me a bit about the recording of your first album?

Karla: My first album? You found it? Please, you must believe me, I

didn't know when I started that they were going to...Oh, THAT first album! Oh, yes,

that's much better. But, you see, my friend, I have recorded many albums,

many, MANY albums. So many that I cannot possibly remember them. So many

that the record companies cannot possibly remember them. But they are all...long

unavailable, out of print. But VERY rare. I believe I heard that an original

unsealed copy of "Legend of the Forbidden Desert" was sold at at an auction

in London for $10,000! Yes, very, very hard to find. I suppose you mean my

new album, "Journey to the Ancient City". Well, it was recorded under great

difficulties. You see, it must be pitch black when I record;no light

anywhere. That includes the engineer's booth, the bathroom, everywhere. It

made things very difficult on the engineer as you can imagine, not to mention

myself. But, once I found the organ, things started to go a little better.

Another problem though were the organ foot pedals. You see, my parents wanted

me to be a concert pianist so I actually studied at great length -the piano,

not the organ. And so I never learned to play the foot pedals. So, in order

to record the organ foot pedals, we had to record a separate track & I had to

get down on my hands & knees & play the pedals with my hands. You can imagine

the difficulty - particulary when the music's pace gets faster & faster as in

the "Dance of the Virgins". My back was very sore & I kept hitting my head on

the keyboard above. But, in the end, all was overcome.

Sean: Besides the obvious, what musicians have influenced your work?

Karla: I think I am more influenced by the sounds of nature, all

things around me - the babbling brook, the singing birds, the wind

whispering, sounds of the city, the people in the next apartment screaming at

each other, even Nitz farting. You see...it's rather embarassing, but when my

wife, Nitz, gets going on that new birdseed I found for her at Walmart, she

is like a rapid fire machine gun. And the smell. Whooey!!

Sean: What was the first song you came up with?

Karla: I think it was called "Freddie the Mongoose". I wrote it for

my little pet when I was three. Oh, on my album? Well, after putting in days

of research on the village, I wrote down what I felt people might be most

interested in learning about this unique civilization &, with the exception

of "Song of Celebration", which I transcribed from the ancient ruins,

themselves, wrote them in the order as they appear on the album.

Sean: Describe the equipment you use.

Karla: Oh no! I can't possibly talk about such a thing! Nitz would

never permit it. But, for music, well, when you're playing those strip clubs,

you must pretty much be resigned to playing what's there - the old beat-up

piano. Besides, customers don't really care about the music & all the girls

want is a good strong beat. Oh...MY music...well, I use the Hammond B-3 organ

with a leslie speaker except for my "snake' sounds on "Hall of Snakes" for

which I have my own very special little "snake" keyboard to make that sound.

On the album, I played a Gulbransen organ & used many different & exotic

percussion instruments:tabla, bongos, congas, Nepalese & Tibetan chimes,

drums & gongs. You understand, I am not really a percussionist. I sort of

just banged away on everything & hoped for the best.

Sean: You performed all of the music on your first album. Would you

like to work with a group in the future? If so, who would you like to work

with?

Karla: Actually, I am already working with a group (mainly because I

am incapable of doing everything myself). It is a 6-piece group consisting of

myself, a bass player & 5 percussionists. Wait, that's 7! Maybe it

is...um...,well it is a very BIG group with many turbans! But I would really

like to have Karla Pundit & His All-Girl Band! All real-no implants!

Sean: You are currently living in Cleveland. What are some of your

favorite haunts there?

Karla: Well...I'm not really living in Cleveland at the moment. You

see, this meddling relative of mine has succeeded in getting me sent to this

horrid place in the middle of the Arizona desert! It's called the Happy

Saguaro Guest Ranch & Mental Institution but let me tell you, it is not a

nice place. I am kept locked up & constantly watched & they''ve taken away my

shoes so that, when I've tried to escape, I don't go very far because of all

the cactus needles & rocks. These evil people are determined to convince me

that I am NOT Karla Pundit & that I do bad things & that I am really someone

called Lance Kaufman. I assure you, I have never even met someone with such a

name. And, to say I do bad things, Karla is not bad. All he does is play

lovely music on the organ & pinch ladies' buttocks. But...ah, yes, Cleveland.

It is a lovely place. When I was there, my favorite places to go were the

Follies Burlesque Theatre (5 Shows Daily! All real-no implants!). And I liked

the Central Bowling Lanes. It reminded me of my days as a pin boy. And the

staff at the City Drunk Tank were always easy to talk into a rowsing game of

Parcheesi. But now, I have only a horrible old piano to play and the people

here, they want me to play this cowboy-western music, I think they call it.

What is to become of poor Karla!

Sean: What is your favorite cocktail?

Karla: Well...as you may know from reading my album notes, as I

respect all living things, I neither eat nor drink. But when I did, it was

the Scorpion! Yes, but not like the ones you have here. This was made with

real scorpions! They were ground up & mixed with some tamarind chutney &

yogurt &, whooey, what a buzz!

Sean: Do you perform live shows? If so, what are your favorite songs

to perform live?

Karla: Yes, I'm happy to say that these beastly people are letting

me out (under close guard, I might add), to perform live. With my band (I

like to call them The Pundites), we played in Los Angeles in November at

something called "Psycho Exotica" and, if they let me out, we are scheduled

to play the Rhythm Room in Phoenix on February 4th. There is also some talk

about San Diego so we shall see.

Sean: What is your favorite Frank Sinatra song?

Karla: Oh, most definitely his 4th Symphony! The musical dialogue

between the bassoon & the tuba during the Bowel Movement is exquisite!

Sean: What are your plans for 1997?

Karla: I would like to record another album or at least rerecord one

of the "lost" ones such as "Legend of the Forbidden Desert". I would also

like to perform more for my many fans & perform sex with Doris Day.

Sean: Do you have any final words for the readers of The Continental?

Karla: Yes, death. Death is the final word, my friend, for whatelse

do we all have in common? But, in addition to that, I'd like to ask people to

please buy my record. Also, if enough people order my out-of-print albums,

maybe they will come back into print. And, PLEASE tell them to write me at

this infernal "prison" I'm currently living in. The address is located on my

album. They could also write the director of the institution, assuring him

that I AM Karla & to please let me go. I wish only the best to you & all of

your readers & hope they enjoy my humble but sincere music. Shalom Alachem.

Click here to go to the Lance Kaufman interview.