After some troubles getting backstage to catch the band for my interview, I finally met a couple of guys who looked a lot younger than the pictures and clips I watched. Both the band and I were earlier than our scheduled appointment, but that was no problem for the band, so these very sympathetic guys had more time for me than I expected. Also this became one of my few interviews with a whole band. We made ourselves comfortable in a small tent backstage, and sat down for a very relaxed conversation.
You played in Den Helder yesterday, how was the show? The show was great. We played a pretty small venue, which was almost empty when we started, but after a little time it was really packed. The people were great! We got a lot of good response from the crowd, and than it’s always fun to play, that’s why we are doing what we’re doing.
Personally I think the Dutch audience is pretty much like sitting on the fence; not too enthusiastic at fist, with an attitude of “let us see what you got”. Isn’t that difficult to play? That’s not how we experienced it. Mostly the audience of our shows give us good response. There is one thing we really hate during our shows, and that’s aggression, we hate violence. Once when we were doing a show somewhere in Germany, the crowd was very well into it, digging our music, having a good time. Just two guys were really messing up the party; they were so called slam dancing, but it looked more like they were annoying other people, with their aggressive attitude, looking for a fight. One girl in particular was constantly bumped into very roughly and on purpose. Chris got very angry with those guys, and told them to stop that immediately. Fortunately they did so.
Are there any exiting stories, or memorable moments from last night in Den Helder? Well, we stayed at a place above the club we played, and one of the owners kept on drinking and babbling all through the night, which was quite funny. The next morning, this morning, he was not feeling too well though. Don’t think the other owner who came in early this morning was too pleased with it either; he didn’t look like he was.
What do you think of The Netherlands anyway? It’s almost like being on a holiday, driving around these surroundings with lots of open spaces. The same with the people, they are so relaxed.
The Dutch relaxed? How are folks in Sweden compared to over here? In Sweden the people are stressed, much more stressed than over here, but maybe it has got something to do with the people we meet. When you’re on the road and doing shows you maybe meet a lot of people going out, having a good time.
Touring can be pretty tiring. Can you guys keep it up? For example for today you got two shows scheduled on one day? Actually we had three shows scheduled earlier, but one got cancelled. But anyway, we just have to keep hangin’ in, and it’s also a lot of fun. It’s what we do, so we have to do it.
Will the set for later tonight in Venlo be the same as here in Nijmegen, or will it be completely different? For starters, the show in Venlo will be a longer show, so we’ll add a couple of songs. We only have about forty-five minutes over here, so this one will be pretty short. We will play some new songs also, and in Venlo we will shift and add some in our set list. Will you come to Venlo also, to see the other set?
I am sorry, I cannot manage to get that arranged, but speaking of live gigs, what was the best show you ever played? That is definitely going to be tonight, over here. We got a short set to give all energy we got and make it into one big explosion of good music.
Not one gig from the past that you remember as being your ultimate concert? Every time on stage has its precious moments. Every concert is different and fortunately almost every gig has something to keep you doing what you do. That is why we like what we do. Besides that, the ultimate gig is always one that has yet to come.
What do you prefer: touring or recording? (Everyone:) Touring! That’s when you get to meet the people who keep you doing this, you get interaction with your audience, and you get instant response. It’s always fun to see people enjoying the music you make. It gives a lot of energy. That’s what keeps us going when your body says it’s tired. (Chris:) Sometimes working in the studio can be very satisfying also. When everything fits and when you get a fast result exactly how you want it. On the other hand, playing live is always better for the money.
Can you guys make a living with making music? When we are on tour we can make a living out of it, we will have to. In between tours we do other things. Some of us have regular jobs for those parts of the year. Others just try to get by in any way they can, by doing this and that. Every day is a balance. (One more reason to buy the music you really like instead of downloading. This international touring band with three albums released is travelling in a small van, without crew, driving themselves, and still hardly earning a living; Cor)
On your records you have a pretty old fashioned authentic sound. What is the equipment you use in the studio? The former albums were more analogue recorded. The latest one is recorded in a real modern studio. The latest one ‘Rock ‘n’Roll Revival’ is recorded digitally and later on it has been mastered through some analogue recorders.
And what instruments do you use in the studio and on stage? (Chris:) I used a Marshall GMP in the studio and now on stage I use a Fender Bassman, yes it’s actually a bass amp, and a Rickenbacker 450 guitar. (Carl:) In the studio I used a Telecaster ’70, because it had a fuzzier sound than the Stratocaster I usually have on stage. (Marcus:) The kit is a Ludwig Black Oyster ’70. ( Johan:) I used a Fender Jazz Bass 68 in the studio and on stage it’s a 67 Precision Bass.
How were the first reactions to the new record? They were very different. A lot of fans who had a “Wow” experience with our former albums just by listening it for the first time, had a bit of doubts at first. Fortunately a lot of them thought the album got better and better, the more they listened to it. So to all the people who are a bit negative towards the new album: give it a second chance and play it three or four times more, it will grow on you. The press by the way was pretty pleased with ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Revival’. We got quite some good reviews.
I can imagine that. The new album is more suitable for a bigger audience. It’s not as massive and complex in the use of instruments, and the sound is thinner and simpler. It might even go in the direction of The White Stripes who are also pretty successful. That is something that just happened; we did not have that in mind when we started out. We don’t want to sound like this or that, or like anyone, we just want to make our music. Also the sound engineer did not always understand us instantly every time, so there sometimes was a bit of a hassle.
With your former albums Nicke Andersson from The Hellacopters was involved; did he also participate in this recording? No, Nicke was not part of this new album. He is a man who completely understands us; he knows exactly how we want to sound. We would love to work with him again in the future. He also knows how to make good use of analogue techniques. It’s hard to find people like that. It is as if there are two different kinds of schools for recording. A lot of people in recording only know how to work with digital techniques.
Do you work with a lot of overdubs in recording, or is most of it done “live”? We don’t like to work separately, first recording drums and bass, and building around it. We have to be in one room, feeling the energy and feeding each other, so we can kick ass and put it onto tape with the power that we play with live. Actually we don’t like to record digitally at all. Than for example a sound engineer does not even take the trouble to tune the microphones for the drums correctly, they can add and correct everything afterwards as they say, but it’s not the same.
You describe your music as “high energy rock ‘n’ soul”. Who came up with that? At first we described our music as acid rock, but we had a feeling it did not cover our music. It might have been when we were just together one time, just hanging round, sitting and having fun, with a couple of drinks, just brainstorming how we would call our music. (Chris:) I think it was me who eventually came up with; why don’t we call it “high energy rock ‘n’ soul”. I am actually influenced a lot by Ray Charles, especially in writing songs. (This would not be my first example of influences, listening to the bands material, but knowing this, I can understand; Cor)
Speaking of influences, you have Bands like MC5, John Lee Hooker, and Wilson Picket on top your list of influences on your site. Listening especially to the earlier albums, I hear a lot of Jimi Hendrix, not only in guitars, but also the parts from drums and bass are a lot like Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding. That is true, we are influenced by Hendrix. But not only was the sound of Hendrix a source of inspiration, also the song writing. Hendrix was a master in song writing. A lot of people know of his guitar solos and the change he made in the sound of the guitar, but he is an excellent and underestimated songwriter.
Your ‘Dead Mans Hand’ has a lot in common with ‘Fire’, a song of Hendrix. Is that on purpose? No, it’s absolutely not on purpose. Sometimes you write something, and when it’s completely finished you think; hey, it sounds like this, and it was not planned to be like that. The fact that we are inspired by Hendrix is of influence of course, and sometimes it’s difficult to create something completely new. Besides that there is nothing wrong with the fact that people can recognise your musical roots.
Your earlier work is pretty hard to find (especially on vinyl). Any chance this stuff will be put on the market again? We know some albums are pretty hard to get because of the limited amount that is made, and this is also mainly a distribution thing. We are trying to do so, our current label is not planning to re-release our former albums yet, but who knows what the future will bring.
You were “discovered” by Michael Davis of MC5, a band who is of great influence to your music. That’s good for marketing isn’t it? Is this also a reason to put MC5 on top of your list of influences? And is he still involved in the bands daily routine? Certainly it’s good for marketing if someone from a famous band says you sound like he always wanted to sound, and wants to support you. Being appreciated by such a well known musician is of course a reason to put that band on top of your list of influences, and yes it’s very good for marketing. But nevertheless, we also still learn a lot from Michael. He has been around for a long time and we are actually still pretty new around the block. We still speak to him from time to time, but not as often anymore as before.
Despite the fact you are no worldwide famous and rich band (yet), are you happy and satisfied with what you have accomplished until now? We don’t complain, we are happy with what we do. Especially being on tour is very satisfying, when you get the energy from the audience and we can still do what we love doing most; playing the music we like. Of course there is always a higher goal; we hope to make a good living by making our own music one day. Still we are very happy for the moment, and glad to be here this moment.
I wish you a very good gig here in Nijmegen, and a good trip and show for later this evening. Thank you for the time and answering my questions. Is there anything else you would like to say to our readers? Come to our shows, we love the Dutch audience, and buy our records. And when you buy the latest one, please listen to it two or three times. It gets better every time.
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