by Brad Rose

Norm Fetter: Honeymoon was started by Jeff Carpineta and I in early 2005. There was, and is, a blossoming music scene happening around us in Philadelphia, and we wanted to document the sounds being created by our family. The initial round of releases were centered around what was happening in our backyard, but we’re now branching outward into the greater world.

NF: The name is a play on our sister label, Marriage Records who are based in Portland, OR. They’re family and we love the same things, helping people put out their own sounds, inspiring new friendships, and growing the music community in our respected cities. It’s also about the honeymoon as a celebratory ritual. “Honeymoon” ties us in to our family on the west coast, but “honeymoon” is just the symbol for the celebration, not the literal reason for it. We gravitate towards music and sound that has a certain ritual quality to it, a real searching, breathing life.

Jeff Carpineta: A girl from Nashville just came to Philadelphia. She called us and said “I just realized Honeymoon is here, I love your stuff!” She had a burned copy of the Honeymoon Compilation and was nervous that we would mind. We thought it was great. We don’t know anyone in Nashville, or so we thought. Music is an inspiration that moves in ways that you can’t track. We have faith that the sounds are circulating and that’s inspiring.

NF: There’s nothing harder than just doing it. Sure, there is always tedium involved, but that all pays off when we get cds back from the plant, or glue that last cover that was silk screened by us or good friends. There’s really no bottom line at the level where we are, and that’s hugely freeing for us and the artists that we’re lucky enough to work with. We’re inspired by the people whom we’ve chosen to exist with, and so long as we are here, surrounded and involved in this community, Honeymoon will continue to exist along side of it.

NF: Wow, I’d like to work with Frank. Frank is a human vulture who wheels a shopping cart around Fishtown collecting scrap metal to cash in at the scrap metal dealers down the street. I’d love to rig up some post-industrial waste of a percussion structure, saw blades, copper pipe, roof flashing and have at it with Frank and some drum sticks. Using materials in a context outside of the everyday, fresh insight, beginner’s zen mind.

NF: Come challenge us to a game of cribbage, followed by a recording session based on the congruencies within a game of Monopoly and Hangman. Because the world is round. If you’re confident about what you do and you understand what we do, send ‘em in. If you found us on myspace and you play rock-n-roll, we probably ain’t interested. OR, maybe you should just release your own record!

NF: We’ve just finished planting our vegetable and herb garden at the Honeymoon Compound. This year is our most ambitious crop yet, wildly scented herbs, beans, squash, raspberries, eggplant, and so much more. We’ll surely have a harvest party in the fall. Along with that, we’ve been getting the backyard and gardens set up for many intimate outdoor shows this summer and fall. Generally stockpiling ammunition.

Chris Bozzone’s debut release on Honeymoon is very fine. Mike Tamburo has a new project with Matt McDowell called “The Amazing Trapeze”. They’ll be hitting the scene sometime this summer, and that disc is also so so good. A new Golden Ball disc will be here in late Summer/early Fall, and a new Niagara Falls disc on Honeymoon in Fall, and a split cdr with The Clear Spots on Deep Water Acres sometime this Summer. Niagara Falls and Chris Bozzone will also be playing a few dates on the road in June, and Golden Ball should also be taking to the road in the near future. If you want to host any of us in your town, give a call…. We will surely host you in Phillytown.

JC: I’m forever and ever spinning the Thanksgiving “Welcome Nowhere” 12”
NF: It’s a split between the new WWVV “Gipsy Freedom”, and a record of Balinese Gamelan called “Music From The Morning of the World”.

JC: Check movetophilly.com and come stay over.
NF: Worlds within worlds. Create yours. Be kind, grow vegetables. Thanks Brad, keep up the excellent work!