The suggestion that circumstance had as much to do with the development of the Minus 5 as any real musical divergence from the Fellows seems supported by the degree to which the Minus 5 has evolved into more of a rock band. This is particularly evident on Minus 5 In Rock, an album recorded in March 2000 that the band has been selling solely at shows and via mail-order.
“The Minus 5 maybe started out as an outlet for the more psychedelic, psychotic pieces of music Scott may have been working on,” Block allows. But “The Minus 5 In Rock, I cannot see any reason that all of those songs could not have been a Young Fresh Fellows record.
“But you don’t really know what you’re gonna be doing. And if the Young Fresh Fellows were there at that time to receive music, that would have been fine. And, you know, that Minus 5 In Rock record is just excellent. I think it’s just a killer pop record….There is definitely a good side to Scott having a more instant way of making music — you know, ‘Here’s the song, we’re getting together with this group of people tomorrow, we’re gonna record all these songs next week.’ That’s great.”
In the meantime, McCaughey continues to pile up the numbers like a Nebraska running back. There’s the New Original Sonic Sound, a Sonics tribute band with Mudhoney’s Mark Arm and Steve Turner, among others, whose record has been released “in my basement!”, he jokes (though it may soon be available through Sub Pop or Estrus). There’s a Minus 5 cover of “Get Back In Line” for a Kinks tribute produced by Conan O’Brien music booker Jim Pitt, plus a Fellows contribution to an all-Northwest Kinks tribute due on Sub Pop. There’s a new Model Rockets album co-produced by McCaughey and Bloch. There’s a Minus 5 song on a “concept-album rock-opera thing called Colonel Jeffrey Pumpernickel, or something like that,” produced by former Sprinkler frontman Chris Slusarenko. There’s another record in the can by Tuatara, the instrumental collective Buck and McCaughey partake in with Screaming Trees’ Barrett Martin, Luna’s Justin Harwood and saxophonist Skerik.
“And of course, the Scott & Jeff record is still being bandied about — you know, the Tweedy & Popp record — but who knows when it’ll ever happen, timing-wise,” he says. “We did make a good start; we got some songs together and everything.” Oh, and there’s a new R.E.M. record due out in May that likely will spur some worldwide touring.
In addition to the West Coast dual M5/YFF tour in early March, the Minus 5 will play New York and “Late Night With Conan O’Brien”, plus the possibility of the Fellows following up with a few East Coast dates — which would be their first in that area in nearly a decade.
Thus, in the battle of the Young Fresh Fellows vs. the Minus 5, the victor remains uncertain. Oddsmakers favor the Minus 5 by, say, plus 5. But longtime observers know better than to count the Fellows out.
“The fact that we really should have quit a long long time ago kind of makes it that much more enjoyable,” McCaughey concludes. “It’s either enjoyable, irritating, or embarrassing. Or maybe a little bit of all those.”
With his performance on sleigh bells on the song “Twilight Distillery” at the Crocodile Cafe on December 8, 2000, ND co-editor Peter Blackstock secured his rightful place as the worst musician ever to appear onstage with the Minus 5.
