interview by Guitar Doug - photo by Carrie Landers

As leader of The Seattle based Space Cretins, Paul Ace Diamond Blow is one of Seattle’s most respected performers in the Seattle underground rock scene. He is also one of its most complex and perhaps one of its most self-destructive.

Finally, Paul comes clean about his heroin addiction, dealing, drug busts and prison time. He also gives his controversial views on everything from music, to groupies, to cross-dressing.

Most would agree that Paul Ace Diamond Blow wears his public image like a coat of metal armor. His fans know only what Paul wants them to know for the most part. Very few know the tragic personal events that made the charismatic bandleader a man thankful to be alive. His life has been a roller coaster ride since he first picked up an electric guitar. It’s been a ride most would never dare to take and few live to talk about.

Thankfully, Paul is heroin free these days. He is at the top of his game in the Seattle underground music scene. Space Cretins are booked regularly at large venues, he hosts his own cable access television show and he is involved in countless other artistic projects. Today, Paul is considered one of the hardest working men in the Seattle music scene. This was not always the case. At one time, heroin nearly destroyed him and his musical aspirations, once and for all.

I interviewed Paul about those dark years, and what his life has become since freeing himself from heroin. In this brutally honest interview, the Space Cretins founder is unmasked. Paul sets aside his public image and lets his countless fans know who he is as a person. The good, the bad, and the ugly are set forth for all to see. Paul Ace Diamond Blow makes no apologies or excuses for anything he has gone through in the past. Fasten your seatbelts for a wild ride into the life of one of Seattle’s most intriguing cult celebrities. Space Cretin’s own, Paul Ace Diamond Blow.

Interview with Paul Ace Diamond Blow
Unmasked December 23 2006.

Paul, Thanks for being the first to be unmasked in my column.
The pleasure’s mine, my man. I’m genuinely excited to be here.

Paul, let’s be blunt. You had some dark years during your musical career battling heroin addiction. How long were you on heroin exactly?
I spent six years of my life as a heroin addict in the late 80’s. I’d say at least half of the punk rockers and musicians I was affiliated with back then became junkies, at some time or another.

Then you moved on to dealing heroin. What was that all about for you? How did you fall into that life?
I met some Mexicans, and worked for them for a while selling dope. I would drive around nonstop with a beeper making deals. I would usually meet junkies at the K-mart parking lots and around town. The reason I was offered the job is because I was the only trustworthy junkie who had a car.

How much time did you devote to dealing and how was the pay?
I worked roughly 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. I was paid a quarter gram of black tar and $50.00 cash a day. The nice thing was that my suppliers paid all of my expenses. They even supplied me a place to live. Not bad for a junkie.

You mentioned on the phone that you were busted on heroin charges and served some time. Tell me about that?
We were set up and busted by Snohomish County narcotics officers. I was in the parking lot of the Alderwood Mall at the time. It was completely crazy. In an instant, undercover cops surrounded us. There were drawn guns everywhere, as I was dragged from my car. It was a nightmare.

Sounds pretty scary. What was going through your mind?
I did not even know at first they were cops! I thought they people who were going to kill us for the drugs. It was actually a relief when they put the cuffs on me.

So you were caught with the heroin red handed. Did you serve any time?
I did some time in the County jail followed by a stint in drug rehab. I stayed clean for about eight months. The Mexicans I worked for eventually got busted for a federal rap in Yakima. They are doing some serious time right now. The sentence is something like 20 years. So, I quit working for them just at the right time.

Once the heroin monkey was off your back, did your life turn around?
Well, I managed to stay clean for a while. Eventually, I started using again. I got totally strung out again. With a $100 unemployment check, I started my own heroin business. I actually made some serious cash for a while. The only problem was that I was a strung out dope addict with a gram-a-day habit, I had abscesses all over my ass from shooting dope, and the cops were all over me like flies on crap.

How did your stint as a dealer work out the second time around?
Not very well in the long run. My best friend from high school had become a cop. He raided my apartment with the North End Drug unit. They arrested my girlfriend and took $500 from my wallet. Good times! Eventually, I got busted again and did more time in the King County Jail. It was in jail that I finally kicked heroin for good and that was the worst month of my life. Kicking the dope.

What was it like detoxing cold turkey inside King County Jail?
It was ugly man, real ugly. I’m talking the cold turkey with vomiting, diarrhea, cramps, the whole shebang. I got out of jail determined to stay clean and get back into music. I’ve been clean ever since.

What would you say to anyone thinking of trying heroin?
I would not recommend that lifestyle to anybody. I’m just glad I got out of it with all my teeth!

What projects are you focusing on in 2007?
My main focus in music right now is the Space Cretins, which is a band we’ve been doing for three years now.

How would you describe the Space Cretins?
The Space Cretins takes the energy of punk, the snottiness of glam, and the groove of 80’s L.A. sleaze rock. We turns those into a sort of spaced out, mega-freakin high-octane, righteous rock sound. Imagine if the Ramones had been a buttrock band, that’s us!

It’s much less complex musically than some of your George Benson and Chuck Mangione influenced smooth jazz tunes that you post on Myspace.com. Why is that?
(laughs) The smooth jazz stuff is a sneak peek into what I’ll be doing when I’m an old man. Smooth jazz is the first music I ever got into as a youth, before rock n roll. But for now I’m happy playing Ramones-style bar chords with my Les Paul and Marshall stack. I like to keep my rock simple, stupid, and fun. We’re not trying to impress anyone with fancified riffage or to stimulate any brain cells. We are just trying to put the swagger back into the rock n roll leather pants.

What other Paul Ace Diamond Blow musical projects are going on at the moment?
I do some solo, acoustic gigs occasionally. They are in the guitar and vocal style of Johnny Thunders and Keith Richards. I also throw in a little Axl Rose for good measure (laughs). The women really eat it up man. There are a lot of wet panties at my acoustic shows (laughs). It’s groovy, man, real groovy.

Your band promo shots and public image are very flashy. Image is a huge part of your public presentation. Why?
I like to see a band dress up a little bit. It’s so that you know without question, they’re a band, whenever they enter a room or a club. When the Space Cretins enter a room, you can tell by looking at us that it’s gonna be a party. As far as my own image is concerned, I’ve got my own style; I call it “rock n roll hybrid” - a mix of several styles. Sometimes I dress in leather, sometimes it’s fur, and other times I just wear a black & white tracksuit. I do have a thing for furry hats, goggles, and dog collars. Of course, I’m a man of style so I look good no matter what I wear. (laughs)

Now for a real technical musical question. Cross-dressing, how important is it to you? Can one escape it and still be considered a legitimate glam rocker?
Ha ha, I’m not really sure how I incorporate cross-dressing into my image. I do not wear eyeliner, dresses, or woman’s underwear. I might wear a little black lipstick from time to time however. I believe that a man can be just as beautiful as a woman, and why not?

Any personal favorite rock n roll cross-dressers or gender benders Paul?
I will say that in the 1970’s, Mick Jagger and David Bowie pulled it off the best. Johnny Thunders also looked very cool. Of course, not everyone can pull it off. Early KISS would be my number one choice in this regard. Even above Jagger, Bowie and Thunders. Paul Stanley is a big influence of mine.

Paul, let’s not pussyfoot around anymore. You are a well known ladies man on the Seattle nightclub scene. Let’s hear an interesting Paul Ace Diamond Blow groupie tale.
Well, this one time a groupie kept calling her boyfriend right in the middle of sex, to make him jealous. (laughs) Another time a beautiful young woman was giving me oral pleasure in the bathroom stall at the Funhouse. Five minutes later, she was actually making out with our other guitar player. I thought that was pretty funny! (laughs uncontrollably)

Thanks for coming in Paul and being the first to be unmasked for our readers and your fans. Stay clean, and good luck with the Space Cretins in 2007.
No problem man. Thanks for having me unmask. It’s been liberating. Good luck to you as well, Guitar Doug. I Love The Seattle Sinner by the way.