HOME INTERVIEWS COLUMNS ARTICLES FRANTIK GIRL ABOUT CONTACT
An Interview with a Vampire. We talk to the King of the Coffin Case empire about future plans, new products, Dee Dee Ramone, and requirements on how to become a Coffin Girl.
By: Gian Erguiza
Gian: Who is Jonny Coffin?
Jonny: Artist, designer, musician
Gian: What was the idea behind making Coffin Cases?
Jonny: To create a darker theme for a guitar case. I started making "custom" coffins in my garage in the early 90's and the demand began to grow.
Gian: Are you at all surprised at the success of Coffin Case?
Jonny: No, I always knew it was a good idea. When I first started making Coffin's I used one myself in bands that I was in. Every time I walking into a club or a studio session guitar players would always ask "where did you get that case"? After I heard that I knew I was onto something.
Gian: The Coffin Blood Drive Distortion Pedal is awesome. What was the primary sound that you were aiming for?
Jonny: This is a distortion pedal manufactured by Dunlop/MXR in the US. I worked for 5 months on that sound to create something that would work for our wide demographic of guitar players. We work with so many bands with so many styles. I wanted this to work for our Rock, Metal, Psychobilly, Punk, Garage guitar players. We accomplished this and the response is killer!! It's 100% analog, true bypass and has plenty of crunch. It's a really warm pedal and we have a ton of artist support. We're developing two new pedals for 2007. Here is some info on the pedal: Look Below.
Gian: What was the concept for Coffin Clothing?
Jonny: We started developing t-shirts for our artist to wear and we got a positive response from the public. With the success of the "rock t-shirt" line we shifted our focus on our Coffin Girl line. Coffin is known for it's high profile model campaign working with some of the best models in LA. Our girl line is our fastest growing clothing line and we'll be pushing that hard in 2007.
Gian: Which artist or musician, dead or alive, would you (have) love to see(n) sporting Coffin Case products?
Jonny: Well.... I've been pretty lucky to work with some of the best. I've spent nights in the studio with Keith Richards, made cases for Johnny Cash and Dee Dee Ramone. As for the live guys, Slash, Steve Stevens, Doyle, Navarro and SO many more. Although, I really like to discover new talent. We support over 5000 bands world wide and we'll focus on the little guys as much as the big guys.
Gian: Will there be another Death Riders Installment anytime soon?
Jonny: Yes! We are currently in the studio recording our second CD. Blasko is playing bass in Ozzy so we need to pull him in to record between rehearsals. The new stuff sounds KILLER!! Our song "God Hates The Dirty Ones" is featured in the new Crispin Glover movie "Wizard of Gore" scheduled to come out next year. We got to be in the movie as the band performing our own song.
Gian: What does Mr. Coffin do on his spare time?
Jonny: Sleep (only in the day). We've been working around the clock and have a lot up our sleeve.
Gian: The Coffin Girls are extremely hot. What are the requirements of becoming one?
Jonny: We are really lucky to be working with the girls we have. To be a Coffin Girl you must LOVE music. All of our girls are big fans of music and horror and we have a lot of fun blending the two elements. This year we have done 4 fashion shows in LA and they have been a real success. We also have Coffin Girl promotions in all 50 states. Contact us at coffingirls@coffincase.com and request to be a part of our "killing crew". Also, check out the fashion show footage at www.myspace.com/coffincase
Gian: Does Coffin Case have plans of taking their operations on a global state? Worldwide?
Jonny: Coffin is already in most parts of the world. We have a great distributor in the UK and we send product all over the world. In the states we are in the major chains like Guitar Center, Sam Ash and Hot Topic. We also cater to over 500 local mom and pop shops. Support you local music store!
Gian: What can we expect from Coffin Case for 2007?
Jonny: We are developing a new high gloss fiberglass Coffin Case that looks like something out of a Batman movie. Coffin plans to work very closely with our artist on ad campaigns. We have a cartoonist in Belgium named Pigsnoot doing animated versions of our high profile artist and Zombie cartoons. Our model Masuimi Max will launch her clothing line through Coffin. We just put out our first CD on Coffin Records with an artist named Unknown Hinson and we're working closely with John 5 promoting his new solo release. We are up to our neck in project for next year..... but we love it!
Gian: Any additional comments?
Jonny: I want to THANK EVERYBODY that supports Coffin and understand what we're trying to do. We support ALL types of music and we will continue to create product that reflects our lifestyle. Coffin is a company consisting of musicians and artist and we support it all. Check us out at www.coffincase.com or www.myspace.com/coffincase
Jonny, you are a gentleman and a scholar! best of luck in 2007!
Footnote: COFFIN CASE enters the effects-pedal market with the BDFX-1 Blood Drive, a suprisingly warm and versatile true-bypass, all analog distortion unit with killer cosmetics to boot. Like many dirt pedals, the Blood Drive has three knobs (each has glow-in-the-dark indicator): Inject (level), Bleed (tone), and Filth (drive). Setting the "filth" around ten o'clock gives you breakup ideal for straight ahead rock chording; cranking it gives a viscous crunch with tight bass response and clear tone definition that cleans up nicely when you roll back the guitars volume. GUITAR ONE MAGAZINE gives the Coffin Blood Drive pedal a "ONE AWARD" in the January 2007 issue. In Stores NOW!!
©Copyright 2007 Frantik Magazine.
All rights reserved.