Twenty years is a long time to do anything, much less play in a band. But The Queers are not just any band. As their new DVD, The Queers Are Here, makes perfectly clear, this group has forged a loyal following since it first strummed the opening chords of “We’d Have a Riot Doing Heroin.” Joe Queer broke away from the group’s relentless touring schedule to answer questions about punk rock, the next president and his love for Jesus and Mary Chain. —Mat Herron
Twenty years later, what does being punk rock mean to you?
It doesn’t have the same impact for me it did, cause I think morons control so much of the punk scene nowadays. It’s all about the money and the image, and there is no integrity in the punk scene now.
Who do you want to run for president and why?
Hillary Clinton I guess is running. We need a woman to shake stuff up and get us out of the war.
MySpace and YouTube: Useful tools or the bane of pop culture?
A little bit of both really. I don’t watch Youtube really, but MySpace is a great website for the band.
What does the term success mean to you?
Being able to wake up in the morning and be happy who I am and have a good day, whether I have a ton of money in the bank or none at all.
The stage or the studio: Which do you prefer?
I think the studio now. I am getting sick of touring, cause I am doing so much of it. Plus, there are a lot of idiots at shows.
What do you hate most about rock journalists?
I don’t hate any of them really. If there was one thing, I’d say that a lot of these guys are just frustrated musicians and wanna say nasty things about bands because they are just jealous.
What bands do you listen to a lot?
Jesus and Mary Chain hands down is my fave and has been for a while. Jim Reid is doing solo stuff that is amazing and inspires me to write better stuff.
When I was watching the DVD, I couldn’t help but feel like the band might be coming to an end. Will you guys keep going?
Well, I have a few more projects I want to do, and then someday I want to get off the road, so I can see and end in sight in the next few years.
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