Pet Sounds #73: Something Is Waiting’s Guitarist/Bassist Has Three Cats That Aren’t Also Aliens (We’re Pretty Sure)
rom the Jesus Lizard to Shellac to Local H to Rod Blagojevich, Chicago has produced some of the fiercest bands of the past 30 years. On fire right now is Something Is Waiting, who released a thoroughly raucous live record, Livelick, roughly a year ago via Learning Curve Records, which appears stronger than ever in its 25th year as a label.
As we’ve come to discover over the 13 months since The Bad Penny launched Pet Sounds, the most seemingly intimidating musicians tend to have the biggest hearts, especially toward cats (and dogs too, but it appears that cats have the edge). The latest example we’ve come across is Something Is Waiting guitarist/bassist William T. Fay, who has three cats: Sega (16 years old), Ripley (8) and Newt (7).
All three cats are domestic shorthairs; Sega is a calico, Ripley a quarter-trash-bag/ raccoon and Newt a tortoiseshell. We recently clawed at Fay for more info on his beloved buddies, and here’s how our conversation went.
How did each of your three cats come into your life?
Sega was given to me by a close friend. She was moving to a new state to live with her now-husband and at the time she had three cats: Sega, Yoshi and Emmy. She wanted to take Emmy, because she was the oldest, but was looking to house the other two. I was leaving for Europe for three weeks when she asked if I’d take both cats. I told her if she couldn’t house them before I got back, I would take them. When I got back, one of her brothers took Yoshi, and Sega was mine to pick up. [It was] one of those things.
Ripley was the daughter of our first shop cats, Gordo and Gordo’s girlfriend (whatshername?). [They were] two strays that showed up and never left because someone in the building fed them. They had a litter of five kittens. People from the building all took one and left Ripley behind because she would hide when people who weren’t me or my folks were around. They wanted to fumigate the building, and obviously she was way too small to be put outside, so she came home with me and stayed.
Newt[‘s situation was] very similar to Ripley[‘s]. We got new shop cats (Mac and Cheese), and our building manager has a different meaning of what a “fixed cat” is than we did. I thought Cheese gaining weight was a good thing because she was so skinny when we got her. Turns out she was eating for five.
[That] time around, I was even more proactive with this batch and really made sure they were socialized and were going to good homes. One went to a customer of mine, two went to our drummer, Idin [Alexzander] – now named Domino and Damien – another to a close friend of mine that left Newt to come with me. Sega wasn’t as quick to warm up to her like she did with Ripley.
Are you joking about Ripley as a “quarter-trash-bag/raccoon,” or is that an actual breed?
I joke about that because her father, Gordo, barely acted like a cat. He had the physique of araccoon and came from the streets of Maywood [California]. He was our little trash cat.
I try to avoid asking about pet names, but I feel obligated to do so here. Did you name Ripley and Newt after the Aliens characters? And did you name your calico “Sega” because you’re a gamer or because Sega created an Alien video game?
She is not named after Rhea Ripley [the WWE wrestler]. Yes, Ellen Ripley! Originally I was going to call Ripley “Gizmo,” but I ran into several people who had named their pets Gizmo. The Alien franchise is one of my favorites, and Ripley is a badass. Keeping with the theme, Newt is like the adoptive daughter to my Ripley, just like the movie. As for Sega, that was the name my friend gave her, she seems to like it, so we kept it. If I were to change it, I’d go with Shaw or Vickers because – controversial take– I enjoy Prometheus.
Describe each of their personalities, if you would.
Sega is the chillest cat ever. She loves to just lay around, but she’s also very vocal. When I’m inbed, she’ll walk up and just meow in my face as if to say, “I’m here!” She’s a huge fan ofgetting brushed even though she’s a shorthair and not a lot of fur comes off her coat. Shehas a very dainty walk and tends to not knock things over when she jumps onto furniture.
Ripley is a climber. You can find her on the tops of doors, tops of cat trees, in this storage areaabove my closet. She tends to vacillate between chill and hyper. When she lays out, she’s out,but when she gets the zoomies, she’s doing cartwheels down the hallway. She can be a bit ofwrecking ball though, and we’ll knock things off if they’re in her way and sometimes when they’renot. I lost a really good French Press to her.
Newt, being the kitten, is a little psycho, but is getting more relaxed as she gets older. She lovespicking fights with Sega. I think she knows that Sega is not the biggest fan of her. Like whencats know someone is not a fan of cats, they tend to gravitate toward them. How did each of your three cats come into your life?
Sega was given to me by a close friend. She was moving to a new state to live with her now-husband and at the time she had three cats: Sega, Yoshi and Emmy. She wanted to take Emmy, because she was the oldest, but was looking to house the other two. I was leaving for Europe for three weeks when she asked if I’d take both cats. I told her if she couldn’t house them before I got back, I would take them. When I got back, one of her brothers took Yoshi, and Sega was mine to pick up. [It was] one of those things.
Ripley was the daughter of our first shop cats, Gordo and Gordo’s girlfriend (whatshername?). [They were] two strays that showed up and never left because someone in the building fed them. They had a litter of five kittens. People from the building all took one and left Ripley behind because she would hide when people who weren’t me or my folks were around. They wanted to fumigate the building, and obviously she was way too small to be put outside, so she came home with me and stayed.
Newt[‘s situation was] very similar to Ripley[‘s]. We got new shop cats (Mac and Cheese), and our building manager has a different meaning of what a “fixed cat” is than we did. I thought Cheese gaining weight was a good thing because she was so skinny when we got her. Turns out she was eating for five.
[That] time around, I was even more proactive with this batch and really made sure they were socialized and were going to good homes. One went to a customer of mine, two went to our drummer, Idin – now named Domino and Damien – another to a close friend of mine that left Newt to come with me. Sega wasn’t as quick to warm up to her like she did with Ripley.
Are you joking about Ripley as a “quarter-trash-bag/raccoon,” or is that an actual breed?
I joke about that because her father, Gordo, barely acted like a cat. He had the physique of a raccoon and came from the streets of Maywood [California]. He was our little trash cat.
I try to avoid asking about pet names, but I feel obligated to do so here. Did you name Ripley and Newt after the Aliens characters? And did you name your calico “Sega” because you’re a gamer or because Sega created an Alien video game?
She is not named after Rhea Ripley [the WWE wrestler]. Yes, Ellen Ripley! Originally I was going to call Ripley “Gizmo,” but I ran into several people who had named their pets Gizmo. The Alien franchise is one of my favorites, and Ripley is a badass. Keeping with the theme, Newt is like the adoptive daughter to my Ripley, just like the movie. As for Sega, that was the name my friend gave her, she seems to like it, so we kept it. If I were to change it, I’d go with Shaw or Vickers because – controversial take – I enjoy Prometheus.
Describe each of their personalities, if you would.
Sega is the chillest cat ever. She loves to just lay around, but she’s also very vocal. When I’m in bed, she’ll walk up and just meow in my face as if to to say “I’m here!” She’s also a huge fan of getting brushed even though she’s a short hair and not a lot of fur comes off her coat. She’s also has a very dainty walk and tends to not knock things over when she jumps onto furniture.
Ripley is a climber. You can find her on the tops of doors, tops of cat trees, in this storage area above my closet. She tends to vacillate between chill and hyper. When she lays out, she’s out, but when she gets the zoomies, she’s doing cartwheels down the hallway. She can be a bit of wrecking ball though, and we’ll knock things off if they’re in her way and sometimes when they’re not. I lost a really good French Press to her.
Newt, being the kitten, is a little psycho, but is getting more relaxed as she gets older. She loves picking fights with Sega. I think she knows that Sega is not the biggest fan of her. Like when cats know someone is not a fan of cats, they tend to gravitate toward them.
What’s the worst scuffle any of them have gotten into?
For the most part, everyone gets along. But once in a while, Newt goes after Sega, who runs,which causes Ripley to go after Sega, who eventually ends up under my bed, followed bysome hissing and thudding of heads on the bed frame. No one’s drawn blood, thankfully.
What’s the most amusing anecdote you can recall involving at least a couple of them?
Just the other day, I was on the computer working. Sega was peacefully sleeping in the bed,Ripley in the cat tree, and Newt was M.I.A. A few minutes [went] by, and I heard growling. I look overto see Newt has Sega in a half nelson and with a very displeased look on her face. Ripleylooked relieved that it wasn’t her.
Do all three cats lie on top of you in bed?
Everybody has their spots. For as long as I have had Ripley, she always wants to lay in my lapwhenever I’m under blankets. If I’m sitting above them, she’ll wait in her tree until she sees mego under. I have to lay on my back otherwise she’ll tug on the blanket until I roll over. Sega switches it up between my right side and arm or right on top of my head. Newt likes to lay on my right as close to Sega as she can get before she gets upset. Every dayshe gets closer, and if Sega is tired enough, she’ll actually let Newt touch her.
Eight years is a very long time between acquiring cats. What’s the story behind the timeline?
I don’t think my story is much different from other crazy cat people. I’ve never sought out a cat, they just come into my life via the great cat distribution system. My first cat ever, Duchess, was found under my aunt’s porch. After her, Halo, I found on my front steps when I was coming home from hanging with friends. Me and Idin joke when we see strays on tour, we’d take them home. Our singer, Eddie [Gobbo], is pretty allergic, so I don’t know if he’d appreciate that.
If each cat were to be able to ask you one question, what do you think it would be?
Sega: “Where’s the food?”
Ripley: “Why aren’t you under the covers yet?”
Newt: “Can I bite your hand one more time?”
All three: “When is that auto feeder going to distribute food?”
For more on Something Is Waiting, go to their Bandcamp page.
Go to the Pet Sounds archive – which features installments with The Locust, Deaf Club and Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – right here.
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