old dig news and past updates..
1/31/03-- Wow, long time no update. Sorry, but I didn't have much news to report.
Haven't heard from Scott in a while. Wild
Gift is still going strong.
And I just received this message from Johnny Cornwell:
Just a little update on my self and Jon Morris. We currently have a new band called "THE BARONS". It has alot of the guitar attack that the first dig album had which feels good to play with Jon again. If you're into 70's guitar rock ie: THIN LIZZY, UFO ect. or the latest wave of that ie: QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, FU MANCHU and so on, you'll like what were up to. We actually just did some shows with FU MANCHU that meet with great reception. Our next shows will be Feb. 12th and 19th, 9pm at the DRAGONFLY in Hollywood. Hopefully we'll have our web page up soon.
7/5/02-- An update from Scott: "glassy is now a project that has a girl from san diego singing. brent, jimmy tamborello (dntel) and i are writing and producing music for the project. brent and i are still finishing up our recordings and we yet to have a name for the group. the new beachwood ep is out in the stores. its the one we recorded at my studio. its called make the cowboy robots cry."
Also, you may want to check out WiLD GiFT, a band featuring ex-dig guitarist Joel Graves. You should download the mp3s and catch the band when they come through your town. Good stuff.
2/12/02-- The site has moved.. note the new URL. Thanks for stopping by the
new address. Here is a very short, but very cool little jam that dig played
at a soundcheck in '94: digjam.mp3
Scott Hackwith was nice enough to check in and here's what he had to say:
"things are going great lots of music being made. my studio is together and i had a really busy year doing commercials and producing. my new band is called Glassy which includes Brent Rademaker (brent wrote songs with me on the first and last dig record he also has a band called beachwood sparks on sub-pop you should check out.) we have been working on our record for the last month i will send you some samples soon . "
7/22/01-- I had some time to kill so I did a bit of Internet searching for dig.. and I found a bunch of old articles and stuff, so I added them to the site. Also did some minor work on the discography.
5/31/01-- I've recently been informed of another happenin' band with Dig lineage making noise in L.A. called Teen Machine. Johnny Cornwell plays bass, and Jim Bacchi (also in the Puppies) plays guitar. Anthony Smedile was their original drummer when they started in October of 99. They released an album called "After School Special" on PopSquad records last fall, which has gotten some good reviews (Here's one.) Their website is teenmachine.net. They're playing July 12 at the Knitting Factory in L.A., and July 29 at the Galaxy Theater in Anaheim. So check em out if you can.
4/25/01-- Dig fans may want to check out a rockin' new band called The Puppies. Three original members of Dig are in the band: Anthony Smedile, Phil Friedmann, and Johnny Cornwell. They have been playing around L.A. and also in the studio working on an album. Check out their website for more: thepuppies.com
1/20/01-- hey there. Some minor updates in the world of dig to report.. Scott
has been busy working and building a new studio, plus practicing with his new
band, the Mog Frequency. Some mp3s might be available one of these days,
I'll let you know if I hear anything. The dig cd-rom is still on the back burner
for now.
Dig's original drummer, Anthony Smedile has been having fun touring with Dee
Dee Ramone of the Ramones. They went to Argentina last month and are going to
Japan in a few days for two weeks. Johnny Cornwell, an original Dig guitarist,
is the road manager/ guitar tech.
9/1/00-- Added a promo compilation to the discography that includes a rough
mix of "the fuzz".
7/26/00-- Nothing major going on in the world of dig these days. Scott says
he's been working like crazy. He has all the elements for the CD-Rom, but just
needs to find some time to put it all together. He has also been working on
his new record, as well as writing with a few people.
I checked in with former dig guitarist Joel Graves and he said he's working
on getting his new band off and running. He also reports that Gene Trautman
is out on Ozzfest drumming for Queens of the Stoneage, and Rob Redick is in
a new rock band with J. from White Zombie, the drummer from Local H, and the
singer from Gordon.
5/15/00-- I've discontinued the MP3 of the month feature due to lack of webspace,
etc. But if you're subscribed to the nearly-dormant dig
mailing list, click "Files" on the left.. I'll put some tracks in there.
3/14/00-- The dig cdrom and Scott's new (internet-only) album have been put
on hold due to his busy schedule. He's been doing music and sound design for
commercials (including the Tony Hawk 'Tarzan' ad which played during the Super
Bowl). He's also working with a band called Irving, doing some recording and
mixing. Check them out at mp3.com
2/13/00-- Discography update: Thanks to Chris Gallagher for letting me know
about a promo-only compilation CD with an unreleased Dig song called "Down".
2/8/00-- happy new year (a little late, sorry). not much new to report right
now. last time I heard from Scott he told me the cd rom is almost done. so hopefully
that'll be ready soon. I'll keep you posted if I hear anything.
12/18/99-- New & improved lyrics section.
Also added the "Unlucky Friend" 2cd uk cd single set to the discography.
12/4/99-- Exclusive li'l interview with Scott...
Thanks to everybody who submitted questions.
Q: What are your future plans?
Scott: I'm in the process of making an album. I'm calling it "Scott Free
and the Mog Frequency" it's going to be an Internet only release. I will release
it march 2000.
Q: Regarding the song Believe - in a recent interview Scott says it is about
the LA riots, but at that first show I saw I distinctly remember him saying
it was about his fathers experience in Vietnam, or something like that.
Scott: Believe is about the L.A. riots, I've been known to blurt all
kinds of weird shit on stage.
Q: Is there any way to get complete lyrics to the albums (with the exception
to Defenders which already includes lyrics)?
Scott: I can dig them up, remind me.
Q: Is there a new snailmail address to send mail to Scott? (the one listed on
Life Like gets mail returned)
Scott: e-mail me digtheband@aol.com, i check at least once a week.
Q: what's your birthday?
Scott: 9-3-99
Q: What videos has Dig made besides "Believe"? Is there any chance of any video
compilation in the future?
Scott: i have videos for "I'll stay high", "green room", "we dont care",
and "unlucky friend". I'm thinking of making them available.
Also, Scott let me know that he has CDs and tapes of "runt", some "dig" LPs,
and some "fuck you" 7inch white vinyl. The record company has given him permission
to sell, so if anyone is interested they can e-mail Scott directly at digtheband@aol.com
for more info so you can pay him instead of some fat ass behind a desk.
Additionally, Scott says he may put together a Dig CD-ROM with videos, live
footage, unreleased music, demos and stuff. So feel free to let him know you'd
be interested in something like that and maybe it'll encourage him to get it
done and make it available.
In other news, Jon Morris and Anthony Smedile are no longer playing with Bijou
Phillips; she got dropped from her label.
10/5/99-- darn... The band dig is done digging.
I just got the official word from Scott. This seems like awful news for fans
of the band, but Scott said it's a great feeling to finally be free from his
contract with Radioactive Records. He's currently scoring a film, producing
some bands, and writing new songs. So we'll hopefully be hearing lots more from
him in the future.
Even though the band has broken up, I'll still try to keep this webpage updated
with news on the ex-members' current projects.
8/2/99-- Well, unfortunately, it seems dig got dropped from Radioactive last
month. Scott was the only remaining original member of the band, as Jon Morris
(guitar) recently left. He and Anthony Smedile (dig's original drummer) have
been on tour playing with Bijou Phillips.. (She's on Almo records, the label
Garbage is on).
So I'm not sure what the future plans are for dig, if there even are any. I
haven't had much luck trying to get in contact with Scott. but I'll let you
know if I hear anything.
And by the way, Gene Trautman, the drummer who played on Life Like is
now playing for Queens of the Stone Age and just returned from playing the festivals
in Europe. They will be touring with Ween this month.
Site updates.. added "Live in Sound" promo to discography (thanks William).
7/3/99-- Just to let you know, Joel Graves (guitar) and Rob Redick (bass) have
officially left the band. Rob is in Candlebox now (they're supposed to start
recording a new album in August), and I think Joel is going to work on his own
music.
6/17/99-- after a month or so down, the Dig site is back and in a new location.
I added a couple photos,
a bio from '93, and started an 'MP3 of the Month'
feature.
3/28/99-- Radioactive put their dig
page back up. There's some new stuff there too. http://www.radioactive.net/BANDS/DIG/index.html
3/22/99-- Dig may tour with Collective Soul back east as a 4 piece at the end
of March (very tentative). They are re-mixing the second single "All Over You"
for release to radio next month.
3/2/99-- I just found this. It's Scott Hackwith's Top 10 list of '98...
1. Air, Moon Safari
2. Propellerheads, decksandrums androckandroll
3. Buffalo Daughter, New Rock
4. Massive Attack, Mezzanine
5. Beck, Mutations
6. Cornelius, Fantasma
7. Money Mark, Push the Button
8. Walt Disney Records Presents Disney's Greatest Pop Hits: A Decade of Radio
Singles
9. Local H, Pack Up the Cats
10. Pulp, This Is Hardcore
2/28/99-- Added "unlucky friend" and "whose side you on?" promos to the discography.
I noticed that CDnow has a few reviews of their 3 main albums. (Update 2000:
now there are only reviews for Life Like)
Somebody asked me if I knew anything about a recent show.. nope, I don't. If
anybody has any news or tour dates, please pass them my way.
2/17/99-- Not much news lately. I think they're done touring for the time being...
Hot off the wire: Bardi Martin, who played bass in Candlebox since the Seattle
rock band's inception in 1992, announced Wednesday (Feb. 17) that he is leaving
the band. Martin will be replaced for the group's upcoming two-month U.S. tour
by Rob Redick, a touring musician and friend of the band who recently toured
with Dig. The tour kicks off Friday (Feb. 19) in Missoula, Mont. at the University
Theatre.
1/18/99--- Life Like is out now... so go pick it up if you haven't yet.
I saw them play the other night at the Casbah.. great show! The set consisted
of (not in order) I'll Stay High, Coming Down, Believe, Life Like, Bumpkin,
Live In Sound, Fearless, Tight Brain, Mothership.. and I think I'm leaving out
one or two. I got to meet most of the band too.. very nice guys. Anyways, check
them out if you get a chance. I think they're playing a couple shows in S.F.
soon.
Oh... and I just found some pages from an old Guitar magazine I had lying around
that had the lyrics to Believe, so I typed them up. click
here for 'em.
1/6/99--- Check out Swizzlestick webzine for a great interview with Scott. (Update
2000: Scott's interview has been taken down.)
Also, look for Dig to play the opening night post-screening party of the Slamdance
independent film festival in Park City, Utah on January 23rd.
12/27/98--- Life Like Info, Upcoming Show
I added the info [track list, etc.] for the new album. You can now order Life
Like from CDnow.
I heard Dig is going to play a show at the Viper Room in L.A. on January
14th as sort of a record release party before embarking on a west coast
tour.
I've also recently added another small article (BAM
'96) and the cover art for Soft Pretzel.
12/14/98--- I added the 'fuck you' 7'' cover (thanks to Chris for sending the
scan).
Be sure to check out this nice little article/interview from the band's stop
at UCLA last month. (thanks again go to Chris for pointing it out to me...)
"Dig
fills niche with unique rock, punk sounds on album" (Daily Bruin)
12/2/98--- New Album! (thanks to anonymous for this..)
The new record, Life Like, is coming out on RadioUniverse, which is a
split release between Radioactive and Universal. Radioactive is still very much
involved. It will be released on January 12th. The core of the band, Scott Hackwith
and John Morris, is still intact, but the rest of the band is new. The album
was recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Neil Perry (Smashing Pumpkins) and
Scott. The first single "Live In Sound" is going to radio on Dec. 15th, so call
up your local radio station and ask them to play it! Dig will play a few shows
in L.A. over the next week, then head out to play NYC on the 10th as well as
a couple of other East Coast dates.
12/2/98--- New Album Review (thanks to Chip for pointing this out..)
www.babysue.com Look in the December reviews and you'll find a review of the
new DIG CD. Here is what it says:
DIG - Life Like (CD, Radiouniverse/Universal, Pop)
A few years ago I reviewed a CD by Dig which sounded pretty damn good. I'm glad
this band is still at it, as their latest disc has a nice, likable polished
sound. The main emphasis is still on multi-layered guitars...and the band's
songs are more hummable than ever. Dig is a band that is unafraid to sound commercial.
When most bands take such an approach, it is the kiss of death. With Dig, the
extreme accessibility only makes the music more endearing. Radio friendly tunes
like "Live In Sound," "Life Like," "All Over You," and "Comfortable" make me
feel like I'm back in high school digging the tunes I heard on the radio. Neat.
(Rating: 4 out of 6)
11/13/98--- Finally some news! (thanks to William for sending this in..)
"They left Radioactive for RadioUniverse. I sent an email to Radioactive asking
what was up and that's what the response was, that they'd switched labels and
we supposed having an album come out in the fall. A few years ago, they also
made the Guiness Book of World Records. Not sure if you heard this but a medley
of Dig songs were played during some kinda of X-treme sports 3D video and they
were put in the books cause it was the largest group of people ever to watch
a 3D film at once."
dig