This week we are joined by Eddie Regan. He has created a rich and dangerous, yet beautiful world as Effword. I was lucky enough to see Eddie perform with Taint Misbehavin (I hope to have an interview with them in the future). This guy as a lot of energy and it is intense. Some artists talk about being forced to create and Eddie/Effword is one of those artists. Let’s jump into the bizarre, magical, and often unsettling world of Effword.
Give me a little background on yourself. How did you get into music and video production and what projects do you have going right now?
ER: I was born on October 28th, 1983 – three days before Halloween, something I’ve always been influenced by. Growing up I was obsessed with music, horror films, and ghost stories.
During college I studied classical music and also got heavy into electronic music such as Kraftwerk and Walter Carlos. I finished school in 2006, did some traveling and continued to perform as a theater musician. In 2008 I decided to become an electronic solo artist after listening to the album ‘Silent Shout’ by The Knife.
Tell me more about Effword. How did that start and what is your goal with it?
ER: I named myself Effword after a nickname a college friend had given me. The costumes and makeup I wear as Effword add more to the show and the creative process. A lot of my favorite artists perform in makeup, masks, or fucked-up costumes. I’ve always appreciated musical performances that were more than just a band in their everyday clothes playing their songs.
Currently, I have almost enough music video content to release an audiovisual album. Like my live performance, I think it’s very powerful to have a video element for the whole entire thing, start to finish. So, my plan has been to release the album only on DVD and VHS formats.
Another short-term goal is to produce and direct my first short horror film, under my everyday name. The script is almost done, then I’ll move on to casting and coming up with the money… planning to shoot it in springtime!
How do the concepts come about? What is your writing/creative process?
ER: Some ideas just unfold naturally for me, like a dream does when sleeping – it just happens. I also find a lot of energy/motivation from getting inspired by the work of other artists; musicians, filmmakers, and visual artists.
For both writing music and creating film, I usually start out with something very simple – and more ideas come around in the process.
When my friends and I made the most recent music video for an Effword song ‘Zenith Magic’ – the process was a blast. The concept was based around a guy who takes a walk in the graveyard and follows a ghost who leads him to a briefcase which contains his funeral clothes. He puts them on and begins dancing on the ground which will soon become his cold grave. Once we had the idea for that, all kinds of crazy shit started happening! We incorporated little kids, a voodoo doll, a dead mouse, a girl playing Ouija board, a book called ‘Diseases of the Horse’, and a creepy talking genie toy named ‘Zultan’. We filmed almost the entire thing on Super 8 mm in one day, and everyone was really happy with how it turned out. It looks vintage and grainy… the colors turned out very rich.
Why did you choose to synthesize the vocals?
ER: I had been listening to lots of music with vocoder when I started doing that. Once I discovered I could sing polyphonically with a monster voice… I was hooked.
What do you want people to take away from Effword?
ER: More than anything, I want people to be inspired by my work. I want them to feel like they are on a journey, in a trance, when they watch my videos. I want my art to be an escape from reality, and I want people to explore their dark side with me. And for everyone to smash the shit out of their flat screens and get a tube TV.
Are you playing a character when you do Effword or is it just another part of Eddie Regan?
ER: I’ve always thought of Effword as a subconscious entity who wants me to do absolutely nothing but create. He doesn’t give a fuck about a single aspect of my personal life, he doesn’t want me to have one. Sounds crazy, but it’s true!
What has been the overall reaction to Effword?
ER: It’s usually been positive! Especially since I started performing live to my music videos on a projection screen, people really respond to that. Not everyone knows what there getting into when they walk into a show… it’s awesome having the visuals, I’m never going back. People who would normally be out of the room to smoke a fag every three minutes get glued to the screen! I’ve been very lucky to find venues that suit my style as well. The Lovecraft Bar has always been my favorite venue to play, and I’m looking forward to my first show at The Jack London, also the perfect kind of joint for me. At the end of September I’ll go to Astoria to play at The Voodoo Room. It’s decorated with New Orleans Voodoo posters, devils, and other varieties of wierd cool shit! They have a giant Ouija board as one of their seating tables.
The videos all seem to be taking place in the same world. What can you tell me about that world?
ER: I like to explore the gates that lie between the individual’s dream world, the reality-world that we all live in together, and the unknown. I like the experience of exploring those worlds to be timeless. The video for ‘Rotto Cuppo’ was my first expression of that journey. ‘Warm Like Summer’ and ‘Zenith Magic’, while different in many ways, share a similar vibe.
What are you plans for the future with Effword?
ER: On the shorter term, I’ll be playing that show at The Jack London Bar on September 1st, also at the Voodoo Room on September 29th. Probably an October show somewhere back here in Portland. This fall I will shoot a music video soon for my newest song, ‘Murder’. Once I get that done, I should be ready to launch that DVD as a music video album.
As far as longer term goes, concerning Effword – I will probably continue to do more of the same, bring the act to new places, expand my audience. I really want to be an independent film maker, especially in the horror genre. Some people say everything that can be done with horror has been done already. I don’t agree nor do I really give a shit even if it’s true. I’ve always been a Halloween baby and a lifelong fan of horror films… so I want to live and work and play in that world. I want to create a horror sanctuary for both grown-ups and children.
I think a lot of horror filmmakers nowadays try to go for shock value, to push the boundaries further than ever, I would never discourage them! As much as I like that stuff, and I want to do it, I’m more interested in the feel we get from horror, in the world we can create with it. It really is a fantastic and warm place!
If you could be a squash, what kind of squash would it be and why?
ER: A pumpkin of course! Since they get faces carved into them they are by far the most expressive squash 😉
Big thanks to Eddie for his time and sharing. You can see more of his videos at Effword on Youtube
Some Kind Of Muffin 
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