Marcellus Hall first made a name for himself as the frontman of Railroad Jerk, which released four albums on Matador between 1990 and 1996 before breaking up. Hall and RJ drummer Dave Varenka went on to form White Hassle the next year, issuing a handful of records until disbanding in 2005. These days, Hall is pursuing a solo career, and he just released his debut album, The First Line, on Isaac Brock’s Glacial Pace label. Aside from the music, the 13-track LP also shows off Hall’s other big talent: illustration. Since moving to New York City in the late ’80s, Hall has seen his artwork appear in the likes of The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, and The First Line features a 44-page book showcasing his art. Not only is Hall guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week, he’s also drawing illustrations to accompany everything he writes about. Read our brand new Q&A with him.
Hall: You stood on the platform for what seemed like hours, but it was really only five minutes. The F train came and you got off. The hypochondriac wouldn’t touch the pole on the A train. Or any other train for that matter. You ordered pasta, and the waiter forgot which of you ordered it.
“I’m not a vegetarian,” you said to your dining companion. “I just don’t eat meat. There’s a difference.”
“You ate a piece of shrimp last week,” she said. “Therefore you aren’t a vegetarian.”
She ripped flesh from the bone and chewed it with her mouth open. You reached for another olive.
“People tell me I’m a failed vegetarian,” you said. “But the goal is to be a failed meat-eater, and with that I’m doing pretty good. There are a lot of reasons not to eat animals.”
“But,” she said, “there is one reason to eat them. And that is because they taste good.”
Strands of flesh fell from her lips as she spoke.
Video after the jump.
