Equipped with curiosity, decorum, a tape recorder, and an archaic blogspot website, over the past decade and a half Eric Swisher (“Chops”) of The Chrome Ball Incident has become perhaps skateboarding’s most notable interviewer.
Inspired by a skit from Alien Workshop’s Memory Screen, the interviewee list of the cult blog reads like a hall of fame for post-1990s skateboarding peppered with hits of, “Wow, I haven’t heard that name in years,” and the occasional modern great.
Swisher spoke to Skate Bylines for our first published feature where he explored the practice of interviewing and the cultural significance of interviews as a format to skateboarding media.
“[They are] important because skateboarding is based almost entirely on interpretation and personality. It’s what that person decides to do with their board and how that coexists with other ideas and preferences … It’s that, married with physical talent, which makes a good skateboarder. But I do think it’s the personality bit that’s more crucial. That’s where the interview comes in. It explores that very thing,” said Chops.
As a nightcap on that conversation, Swisher rounded up ten of his favourite Chrome Ball interviews accompanied with a line on each.
Chrome Ball Interview #164: Randy Colvin
“Oh, sure… He’s a real nice guy.”
c/o Thunder Trucks / DLXSF
I had no idea what to expect when I finally got the gold standard of ’90s underground elusiveness on the phone. Luckily, I found Randy to be refreshingly upbeat, brutally honest about his past struggles, and incredibly funny. — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #168: Ben Raybourn
“That’ll do, son.”
Matt Price
An amazing skater who apparently fell into some type of mysterious Texas time warp in the mid-1980s, landing him here with us. Modern skateboarding is so much better with Ben in it. — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #153: Frank Gerwer
“Chops and Frank sit down for a little conversation.
c/o Spitfire Wheels / DLXSF
Frank is so funny that people often forget about all of the legendary stuff he’s done on his board over the years. Also, one of my most quotable interviews: “No freeform jazz for this guy!” — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #143: Joey Bast
Joey Bast and Coco Santiago by Greg Hunt
Another funny one. His little bit about Starship’s “We Built This City” remains one of my all-time favorite CBI answers. A super slept-on mid-’90s ripper who deserved more. — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #128: Ed Templeton
“chops and ed sit down for smoothies.“
Ed Templeton by Spike Jonze for Big Brother Issue 3, 1992
“Regardless of fashion or trend, Ed has always been Ed and that’s what makes him the best. Such a huge influence and inspiration for me. ” — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #94: Ryan Hickey
“chops sits down with the king of new york
Stereo Skateboards
Ryan Hickey is never short on opinions, nor shy about expressing them. Apparently, Hickey and Ricky Oyola almost came to blows over this interview. — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #90: Chris Carter
“Chops and Sarge discuss the Sovereign Sect and beyond.“
Not actually Chris Carter. Photosynthesis, Alien Workshop, 2000
As an unapologetic Alien Workshop devotee, I tried to jam as much into this as I possibly could. Thanks, Sarge. I still want to do that book. — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #101: Eric Koston
“Chops and Frosty sit down for conversation.“
Girl Skateboards, 2003
Every time I’ve ran into Koston over the last 10 years, I can’t help but pelt him with interview-style questions for hours. It was nice to finally get one of our conversations on record. — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #129: Ronnie Bertino (2019)
“Chops sits down with mr. butts for more conversation.“
Droors Clothing
“The most underrated skateboarder of the 1990s, this is actually the second time I interviewed Ronnie for the site and it was totally worth the redo.” — Chops
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Chrome Ball Interview #150: Max Schaaf
“Just a couple of blog dudes trying to get attention.”
Max Schaaf by (Sir) Wig Worland for Transworld
If you don’t love Max Schaaf, you’re wrong. Fun fact: One of my childhood heroes unfollowed me on Instagram after this interview came out. — Chops