Whether or not they’d recognize it, Mixel Pixel are bona fide Brooklyn bohemians. A collective of visual artists, beauty-product artisans, and of course, musicians, their day jobs also include being a part-time assistant to a dermatologist and freelance designer. But when they’re not busy with an endless list of offbeat endeavors, members Rob Corradetti, Kaia Wong, and Matty Kaukeinen practice in a Park Slope studio, working on albums like their soon-to-come fourth release, Let’s Be Friends.

Who better to test Lucid, the first legal absinthe in America after 95 years of prohibition, than the trio that produces addictive, psychedelic pop tunes and hallucinogenic videos? As Wong has even been known to brew her own absinthe at home, not to mention making a line of lip balms and soaps— Lips by Wong— the three were more than happy to lend their lips to the challenge.

In true bohemian fashion, psychoPEDIA joined the band to savor absinthe on the floor of Corradetti’s apartment and ponder over the historically mystical potion:

Any previous experiences with absinthe?
RC: We drank it in San Francisco once at a house party. My friend and I were walking around feeling like we were floating. That was the only absinthe I’ve had that felt like it was actually doing something. Maybe they’ve improved it [the formula]. I’m still skeptical.
MK: I think Kaia’s given me some before.
RC: There’s such a cloud of mystery around it that we don’t know what we’ve had. I guess it’s the kind of thing where you’ll never know if you get the real deal. It almost has to be reinvented.

Kaia prepares the drinks by putting sugar cubes in a tea strainer and pouring shots of absinthe over the cubes. Next, she pours cold water over the cube, which creates a “loosh” effect making a cloudy liquid that releases an anise-fused perfume into the air.

Initial reactions?
KW: It’s very mild. It tastes very anise-y and sweet— but not syrupy.
RC: It tastes like New York City tap water. It’s pretty green, too.
MK: It’s almost like the alcohol and the other ingredients are two separate entities twirling about in my mouth. It’s a hootenanny! It’s delicious, though.

What would you pair it with?
RC: It would go well with opium.
MK: I could definitely use a cigarette with this. It would make any American cigarette taste like Gauloises.
RC: It seems like you should be able to sit at a bar, drink it, and smoke for hours and talk to your friends, or “bohemian cohorts.” But if you can’t smoke in bars in NYC, it sort of ruins the whole effect of the absinthe bar.

Why do you think absinthe is such a cult-classic beverage with artists?
RC: I think a lot of the allure was how it was prepared. It’s this big “to-do” and seems very glamorous to drink. And the effect— how it makes people actually feel is a big part of it.
MK: It’s known as one of the best aphrodisiacs. Back when it was first made, it was like the “liquor of love.” Remember in Bram Stoker’s Dracula when Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves go into a club and he pours her absinthe over a sugar cube, then Winona sucks on the cube…

Most of your videos are pretty trippy. Were you under the influence of something at the time?
RC: We all did our share of psychotropic, hallucinogenic drugs. We don’t consider ourselves a “drug band,” though, because we don’t do a lot of drugs. I like the idea of playing with drug culture and people’s perceptions of it. But we’re more spiritual than we maybe come across. It’s OK, because in pop culture, you have two seconds to impress a person. Someone will scan through songs, and critics won’t even listen to your album. So, I like that we almost project this hyper-media, hyper-reality— and drugs is one of those things.

What is your vice of choice then?
RC: Law and Order—because I have three channels on my TV.
KW: French onion soup.

What is the process brewing homemade absinthe?
KW: I use strong vodka with herbs, including wormwood. It tastes different than this— maybe I didn’t put in so much anise. I use kits and infuse the alcohol with herbs.

How did you get into making lip balms?
KW: About eight years ago, I looked online and found a lip balm that was made of all ingredients you can eat. It seemed nice to be able to make your own homemade lip balms and give them to friends. I made an absinthe balm once, actually, using the leftover herbs from brewing in the mix. I make them for bands, and I’m releasing a vegan organic one soon— not using palm oils, because palms are harvested from areas where orangutans live, and it’s threatening their habitat. I’m trying to keep it environmentally good also.

How “green” of you. Speaking of which, what do you think of the bottle?
KW: It’s kind of like that guy in Looney Tunes.
RC: They could have a cut-away head with a transparent green brain inside of it, glowing.

Is it making you feel lucid?
RC: I feel a bit looser, a little cloudy. It looks cloudy. I get it.
KW: It’s just nice to focus on what you’re consuming and your company.

What are you working on musically right now?
RC: We have an album coming out in late May. It’s sort of a return to old Mixel Pixel, like Casio-style.
KW: It’s sweeter. We wrote a lot of the songs together, and they were directly influenced by whatever was going on in our lives. You’ll have us singing and playing with guitar to some new synth incarnation.

Like absinthe has been previously, what would you want to ban in the US if you had the power?
RC: They should ban all complaining "diet talk" in the workplace. If there's a delicious ice cream cake on the table for someone’s birthday, people can’t enjoy it. Someone’s always got to say something like, “But I’m so fat, I’ve got to go on a diet.” Let’s just have cake and have some fun!

Any last impressions?
KW: I feel calmer drinking this as opposed to drinking two shots of whiskey. I feel like taking a warm bath.
RC: It’s not that bad. Once you get it going, it’s pretty delicious.

How do you think they could bring this back in fashion?
RC: There should be a line of them, like Vitamin Water. 50 Cent flavor absinthe. These companies need to get rappers to endorse their product— some rappers in vintage 1910 dandy costumes.
KW: With feather hats.

Maybe bringing “green hour” to replace “happy hour?”
RC: Absinthe green hour, why not? Between 9 and 10 in the morning, before work— the “Green Hour,” after breakfast. It’s [absinthe] optional— you can eat lettuce too.

~Leann Peterson


First & second photo by James Ryang for paperrad
Third photo by Twon via Flickr
Fourth through ninth photos by Leann Peterson
Tenth photo by Lori Baily via Flickr
Eleventh photo by Nevbrown via Flickr
Twelfth photo by Amber Meairs