20 Questions: Best Coast
With her band Best Coast, Bethany Cosentino has spent the last six years drawing a hazy, idealised picture. A dreamy beach world populated by kittens, weed and TV. Her first two albums were fuelled by sunshine and post-teenage angst, and with album number three, titled California Nights, on the way we thought now would be a great time to check in.
When we caught up with a slightly dazed Beth she’d just woken up, and all the signals suggest she’d been up until the early hours watching Seinfeld re-runs with a cat on her lap. Despite being disturbed from her slumber, she took pretty well to being bombarded with 20 of the silliest questions we could muster.
What was your favourite cartoon when you were a kid?
Rugrats
Who’s your favourite Wu-Tang Clan member?
Ghostface Killah.
Who’s your favourite character in The Simpsons?
Lisa.
What’s your signature recipe?
I make really good baked salmon with a pesto sauce and an arugula and baby kale salad with a homemade dressing that’s just olive oil, mustard, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
If you were trying to seduce a potential lover, what music would you play?
Sade.
Why?
I would never actually do that. But if you were going to go that route, Sade is very sensual and it’s also just really good.
Have you ever been arrested?
No.
If you could pick surrogate grandparents, who would it be?
I would want George Costanza’s parents on Seinfeld. The actual characters of each of them.
Do you play video games?
Mario Kart for N64! I play Call of Duty on Xbox but with newer games the graphics are too confusing and realistic for me.
When is the last time you sprinted as fast as you can?
I can’t remember. I hate running so I don’t do it.
Have you ever taken acid?
Nope.
What’s your worst habit?
I chomp on ice. When I have a drink with ice in it, I chew the ice. It’s loud and rude and it drives everyone around me nuts!
Who’s the most famous person you’ve ever met?
I recently met Julia Louis-Dreyfus. She plays Elaine Benes so that was like meeting, y’know, God.
What’s the last book you read?
Gone Girl
Out of all the songs that you’ve recorded, which is your least favourite?
I’m very sick of playing Boyfriend, every time we play it’s the one people yell out right at the beginning. It’s like … yeah … obviously we’re gonna play Boyfriend!
What’s your favourite stoned snack?
Del Taco. A drive thru Mexican place. It’s a step – many steps – above Taco Bell.
Have you ever shoplifted?
I remember specifically stealing polaroid film from K-Mart. Me and my friends used to go and swipe it, thinking we were like, really punk. Now it’s something that I think is really, really bad.
What’s the worst job you’ve ever had?
It lasted three days. I was an assistant to a fashion designer, I had to pay like $25 a day to park and the first thing I had to do was wash her dog bedding which had dog shit and piss all over it.
Do you have a number 1 fan?
There’s these two sisters and their best friends. They’re all really young, they’re like 16, 17, 18 and 21. They come to every show and run a Best Coast Twitter fan account. I saw them at Disneyland once and went on a ride with them! They’re so sweet and nice!
What would you want written on your tombstone?
‘Serenity Now!’
California Nights is released 4 May via Virgin EMI
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