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Interview by Karla Ash

San Francisco's the Gun & Doll Show will either be the most confused band you'll ever hear - or among the most creative. It all depends on your perspective. If you feel that rock & roll should be tightly focused, sticking to a simple, proven formula a la the Ramones, then you'll be perplexed by the Gun & Doll Show's anarchic genre shifts. For those who greatly admired how adventuresome the Beatles were, then seek out the Gun & Doll Show immediately. The brains of the Gun & Doll Show belongs to one person, ringleader Killian MacGeraghty.

Karla Ash: When somebody decides to form a band, it's usually a group in the traditional sense - a vocalist, a guitarist, a bassist, and a drummer. Who came up with the idea of basically forming a sort of musical circus?

Killian MacGeraghty: The normal bands were getting more and more normal. And the performance bands couldn't sing or write. Too much emphasis on the "we're more shocking than you" kind of show. It's also hard to understand the lyrics when listening to loud music. But the words are really important to me. So I would come up with different ways to get the fans to focus on what we are singing about; theatrics fills that roll. We have a song about the first female quarterback in the NFL. We come out in full football gear, pads and helmets. It gets your attention.

Ash: Who is the creative force in the group, the decision maker?

MacGeraghty: You mean choices. Who makes the choices? All artists live for choices. We want to make as many creative choices as possible before we dye. That's the fun part. The hard part is making that possible. Paying the bills, scheduling seven people, managing and booking. And mostly having new ideas with songs to go with it. So I have the vision, but I'm in love with the band sound. I make sure not to write what someone else should (drum beat, bass line, etc). It's also my job to know the players, and highlight their specific talent.

Ash: How has the Gun & Doll Show evolved over the years?

MacGeraghty: Well we started as a four-piece; now we are seven. That changes things just by sound and voices. Working on the Bomb, our first CD, was indie rock. New Blood, our live album, was more classic rock. American Radio is our version of American music. It's as diverse as the country. It's my version of flippin' the dial.

Ash: The band's latest album is pretty schizophrenic. Is everybody in the group as eclectic as the CD suggests?

MacGeraghty: Like most people we are creatures of variety. We live for new songs and ways to tell our stories.

Ash: What was the best - and worst - concert experience you've ever had and why?

MacGeraghty: First Fillmore show we ever did. I wanted it to be remembered. We brought a seven foot pie which we popped out of and a 50-guitar orchestra to play with us. It was a lot of work, and I was barking orders at everyone. I remember saying, "Use the stage - it's way bigger than we are use to. Don't just stand there." Those words came back to haunt me. Second to last song I climb on the drum riser, waiting for the moment to jump as high as I could. The drum riser was already three feet above of the stage. Plus the distance I can jump, I thought would be dramatic. Just as I left jumped off the riser, the bass player was thinking about using the stage, not standing in the same place. He swung around at that same moment. When I was a kid I got hit in the head with a baseball bat as a catcher. This was a lot worse. The head stock of the bass hit me square in the face before my feet touched the ground. I was completely dazed .At first I didn't know where I was, or what had happened. I was really scared because it didn't hurt. Just blood every where. So I turned my face away from the audience. I thought I had a chunk of cheek hanging off, but we all kept playing.) I got close to the singer and showed her my face. To check her reaction. She didn't gag so I knew I was alright. No broken nose, just a towel full of blood. It's rock justice that it happen to me and not the people I was barking at.