AMY WALLER: Giant Dick Eagle

Waller in action at Current Gallery, 2007

Oklahoma-born, Baltimore-bred Amy Waller is a true and naked frontier spirit, blessed with a swift mind carried by anti-establishment wings. As member of Lexie Mountain Boys, fearlessly adventuring into realms of expansive embarrassment experimentation remains her particular hallmark. As band costumer and seamstress, she is responsible for Petals the Party Dress, a gigantic pink maypole-cum-parachute dress machine requiring no less than 12 people to operate. As a resident of Austin TX since 2009, she is a pet-sitting pedicabber on a bicycle trip to Mexico with a plan to teach English in South America. She is vulgar yet adorable, and she likes to make her own fun.

What do you do? What are you doing the most lately?

I make people perform in situational plays.

How long have you done these things? How have the things changed?

Since my little sister was born. I made her dance while I played the piano. Made and directed plays and dances in the neighbors’ basement. Took over large scale productions of pep rallies in high school, getting away with a lot and casting people in different roles. The volleyball team was Ewoks in the Star Wars pep rally. I spent my entire night of my 16th birthday constructing a giant shark to eat the entire basketball team for the Jaws pep rally. The most memorable pep rally idea that I got away with (I have no idea why)? The premise was that the opposing team’s gym sock had been left in the locker room and rotted so much that it turned into a giant mutant gym sock. The cheerleaders were some how then a box of Cheer detergent that the sock was washed in and destroyed. I constructed a giant sock and cast Nathan Stambaugh as the sock. Aaron Huth, my best friend and creative rival, was casted as the wimpy gay runner who after running a bunch of laps around the gym ran into the gym locker room and was then attacked by the mutant sock. The sock comes out and of course looks like a giant condom, and then my best cheerleader friend Tiffany comes out to save him in the eagle mascot outfit but puts it on backwards and the tail ends up in front like a giant dick. So the giant dick eagle is fighting a giant condom at Harford Christian School. Luckily I did not get in trouble and they did not start harassing me until the end of my senior year, but did they think we staged this on purpose? Probably we were all in drama class together that year and had a great time.

Amy Harmon, left, and Waller in Bremen, Germany, 2009

Why do you do these things?

It makes me feel happy, and helps keep the imagination cooking. Luckily I haven't been in a situation where it’s been completely impossible not too.

When was That Moment in your life that told you you would become what you are?

I never had that moment. I would say if I started making films or working in plays I would say, oh okay looking back I've always been meant to do this, but I really feel like I enjoy doing things on such a low budget level that its a hobby that I've been lucky enough to always find people to collaborate with.

How has your life changed to accommodate That Moment's effect on you?

I don't know that my life has ever changed, but if I can talk most directly about our relationship. When I met you I knew we were going to be a band together. I remember reading the Friendster “roomate wanted” [post] and I think at that time we had already sung Marilyn Manson's "Tainted Love" at a Valentine’s Day party. And I knew when I moved in that it was going to happen. For some reason I pictured us like covering bible hymns and actually playing instruments. But I'm really glad the "Lexie Mountain Boys" project has turned out like it has.

Bob Weir's Rat Dog jamming beneath Waller's American Flag, made for the cover of Akron/ Family's 2009 album "Set 'Em Wild Set 'Em Free"

How has your work affected your life in return?

Well it’s made me pretty confused as to what I "should" be doing job/career wise but I think I'm slowly figuring it out. Your advice of "Yeah, but there are so many normal people to do normal stuff for you” has really been helpful. But I have found doing something that is sort of technical and dry does help the art come out in short of a rage.

How does your location affect what you do and who you are these days?

Yesterday my friend Grant and I wrote a script for "The Bonafied Gentleman," Austin's original male fantasy cooperative. Basically a strip-club run by insane feminists. The gist of my character is that I get up and say really sassy like a phone sex operator "I'm the ultimate enlightened male fantasy, I do whatever I want." There is going to be a lot of making boys do things that are "what I want to see" sort of like a tit for tat ridiculousness. Like straddle them but then eat a bag of cheetos and get offended if they are not turned on, but offended if they are. Just ridiculousness.

Harmon & Waller prepare for a rare live stage appearance with Akron/Family somewhere in fucking Texas

What do you think of the future?

I'm a huge fan of the future, and could not be more happy to be living in the era that we are in, and also could not be more pleased with my generation most specifically the "class of 2000". I do find it interesting that when we met America was sort of at the height of having the dumbest of things, and it’s been really crazy how fast its taken a dive.

What do you feel you have in common with David Lee Roth?

Well in all honesty. I find that when I go out I am not entertained unless being some sort of a hole. An evening ago I danced topless all night just to see what would happen with the frat dudes. One dude approached me and said you are "crazy wild bitch, lets go right now me and you lets get our fuck on. " I was laughing hysterically the whole time. I figured he was about 19. Roseanna my roomate then came to save me as he was grabbing my hair. He said "okay, you two my house. I want to see one of you gagging on my balls and another one on my dick." I got to work on the stripper character so I said, "okay, okay whip it out, whip it out. Let me see this pathetic thing." It came out and then Roseanna poured a beer on it. He got angry and of course was yelling. "That went too far, that went too far." I looked at him and I said "really?" And he was in the same minute said "okay, I guess it was funny."

AMY WALLER IS DEFINITELY ON FACEBOOK