vo
l.
3
INTRO Six months ago I wouldn’t have thought that LOST will have more than 100 likes on it’s fanpage, so releasing #3 of the zine in English and trying to reach to people abroad is such a weird, but amazing feeling for me. People around here seem to (mostly) enjoy what I do and I’ve heard so many kind words recently on shows or via facebook, that right here, right now I feel that I’m doing something important, something to develop local scene. Something to help bands and labels somehow, and support amazing people. Something to support people who do what they love, and finally - do what I love. I don’t want to bore you to death, so here you have issue #3 of LOST iZine, the first international one, and I hope you’ll enjoy it at least half as much as I enjoy doing it. If you like what I do, you can check out my fanpage and youtube channel, where you’ll find great bands performing their songs unplugged. So - enjoy and thanks for any kind of support! For helping me with this issue I would like to thank Wojtek Augustyniak, Gosia Maternik, Kasia Foksińska, Jakubow Lula, Tomek Masłowski, Piotrek Siwicki, Daniel Koban, Igor Prusakowski, my translators:Andrzej Kuliński and Zuza Grońska, all other photographers and people who supported me...I wouldn’t be able to do it without you :) fot. W. Augustyniak // piataesencja.pl
CONTENT 8 - 2ND WIND - INTERVIEW 14 - IRIS - INTERVIEW 20 - “(...) GOING” - FEUILLETON 22 - SOUNDCHECK - MARCIN BUŹNIAK (SETTING THE WOODS ON FIRE) 26 - “(...) JUST PURE PASSION” - INTERVIEW AND GALLERY 42 - MILK TEETH - INTERVIEW 50 - NAI HARVEST - INTERVIEW 60 - THE KID’S CRUSADE - INTERVIEW 65 - CLASSICS - AT THE DRIVE-IN “RELATIONSHIP OF COMMAND” 68 - REVIEWS
Milk Teeth fot. Tom Fry // tom-fry.tumblr.com
Among the Poznan hc/punk scene you can often hear catchphrases such as “friends come first” and “you don’t choose your friends”. I cannot leave that aside, since I’d known some members of 2nd Wind before this band was founded. I won’t even try to remain unbiased when it comes to judging their music. As I look at what they have been doing since the very beginning of the band, I’m astonished how consistent they are. I can’t help but smile when I look at those totally different guys playing hardcore together, the kind of hardcore I knew and the hardcore I fell in love with. I’m curious if someday kids will consider 2nd Wind to be a band as prominent as Coalition or Seven Day Lie are for me. Bastian knows them a little bit shorter than me. I wonder what they told him in an interview after recording their first material, which I used to listen to when it wasn’t mastered yet.
intro and photos: Wojtek (piątaesencja.pl) interview: Bastian
You’ve recently published a new album – what are the comments so far? Are you satisfied with your new recordings? Wiciu: The comments are rather symphatetic, I would even say that I didn’t expect them to be that positive. Some people had some reservations about the guitar sound. And here’s the answer to your second question: yes we are satisfied with our sound. Żaku: I’m totally surprised with the reception of this album. Of course, there are always those, who will call it trash or make a remark about some shortcomings – that’s OK too. We know what to pay attention to next time. While posting it in the Internet, I wrote that we recorded the music we’d like to listen to ourselves, and I still think that way. The tracks on your new record are very diversified when it comes to the kind of emotions you express. From very positive/motivating message, through anger to sadness. I reckon these are very personal songs? Who is chiefly responsible for composing? What were your inspirations? W:In my opinion this record seems to be coherent in terms of lyrics: even the most angry tracks have some positive message, for example the track„Jebać ten świat” („Fuck this World”) ends with declaration of severing the ties with what we consider as shitty and bad. The same with „Zerowa Treść” („Zero-content”) - that’s not just empty anger. The lyrics are written mainly by Żaku, so he’s the right person to be asked. I wrote the lyrics for one track and I can admit they are very personal. Żaku:At the beginning we thought about naming our album the same way as one of our songs: „Pozytywnie Negatywny” („Positively Negative”) - it is just like that. The last year was very strange for me: first depression, then total euphory, maybe that’s the reason for moving between those two extremes. Quoting one of the hip-hop artists: „to live with me is like to travel through a sine wave.” I think it’s the best description of the everyday life. And when it comes to inspirations, speaking shortly: we are inspired by both depressing and positive things. What
music
do
you
listen
to?
W: This is a lenghty topic, we all have very eclectic tastes in music. I listen to virtually everything, from rap to post rock. Regarding typically hardcore bands I like the bands playing in style of Arkangel and Lenght of Time. When it comes to hardcore punk, our guitar players listen to it a lot, especially Piotrek. Frodo has been recently keen on modern hardcore. I think it’s high time Żaku reccomended some hip-hop. Ż: Yep, after hc/punk, rap is the most important music for me,
but I try not to restrict myself – you can also find a electronics and even pop shit such as Lorde and MØ on my playlist. Imo, the best record of the last year isn’t neither Defeater, nor MLIW, but the debut album by Chvrches – strange, but this is the way it is.. Żaku, you have a unique kind of vocals, one can hear that especially on the new recordings. How do people find it? Ż: They have two different opinions – either they mock it (hello Goblin), or they call it „fuckin’ awesome”, as I read in one of the comments on facebook. I think it’s alright: I’d rather my vocals caused different feelings, I do Judging by the number of featurings on your record, the slogan „friends are the most important” comes to my mind. Am I right? Do you follow this rule in your life? W: The vast amount of featurings stems from our interst in rap music. You have to distinguish between friends and familiar faces, and care about the former. Ż: Just a sales pitch :) Seriously, we had our friend Stjup ( <3 ) accidentally recorded on our demo, and we came to conclusion that it’s cool to have featurings, just like rappers do. What are your touring plans? Do you wait for invitations, or do you try to play wherever possible? Somebody in the Internet wrote that you deserve as many gigs as possible – I totally agree. W: We played a few cool gigs, also, we couldn’t play a few due to some personal issues. We aren’t invited that often – maybe our faces are little known, maybe the music we play is no longer cool, maybe we’re not a good band – I don’t know. But we have some plans for the nearest future... Ż: We don’t receive many requests and if we do, we are mostly invited to play local gigs. We’ll play before Turnover – personally, I’m honored. We also wait for some other organizers to announce their gigs. We’re happy with good opinions about our band, but we wish it had a bearing on us being able to perform live. Why
didn’t
you
post
the
lyrics
on
bandcamp?
:)
W: There’s no lyrics, because Żaku is lazy and, what’s more, he forgot the password to bandcamp because he has it remembered by his browser, so I cannot do anything with it. Ż: But you can hear the lyrics clearly! I will upload them someday, I promise. Regarding publishing the record on a cassette, vinyl, whatever: we don’t have money and time at the moment.
It is a widely known fact that taking has been very popular recently. Insp ternative and 90s grunge as well as sh got smashed together? We can seek t band called Iris ;) Enjoy the short co the gui
inspiration from the 80s and the 90s piration from genres such as emo, alhoegaze... what would happen if it all the answer in the music of a Canadian onversation with the lead singer and itarist! intro+interview: Bastian
Hi guys! Can you give us some background about your band? I know that Brad plays also in STS and UFO, what about the other band members? Scott: Danielle and I (Scott) started off writing acoustic music in mine and her basement. Matt (drummer) asked her if she wanted to record some acoustic stuff in his studio, so her and I decided that we wanted to do something bigger than our solo projects when we recorded with him. When May rolled around we started writing some songs that were different from what we were used to. Those songs ended up being Blossom. Matt recorded the drums for us, but never expected to join because he’s in like a hundred bands (Altona, Burnt Out, Safe to Say, UFO and Straight Truth). We ended up releasing Blossom thinking no one would really care that much, but people did, so we thought it would be cool to make this a full band. Brad contacted me saying he’d be interested in jamming with us, so we jammed with Matt and Brad one day and everything fell into place. I have this feeling that a few great bands which are mixing shoegaze with emo and other genres came out of nowhere recently… Am I wrong or this ‘going back to 90s’ trend is just getting stronger? S: It’s definitely a growing trend, but we all support the bands following it. It’s almost like they’re taking everything good about 90’s music and adding a modern twist to it. I feel like we’re a part of this movement, but at the same time I feel like we have a sound we can call our own. I can’t stop listening to your latest 2 songs on bandcamp…is this the whole release or just a sneak peek of something bigger? Danielle: Thanks, that means so much for us to hear! It’s definitely a sneak peak to something bigger. There are still three more songs coming out as part of the our EP, Haunt Me, and I feel like it shows how we’ve grown over the past year and versatile we can be. We finally found a sound we really like with this new EP, but I’m sure we’ll just keep growing from here. What were your inspirations while making new material?
D: We all have our different styles, and we all listen to different bands, but when it comes down to it, we really write what we think sounds good to us. For the new material specifically we were influenced by some shoegaze bands like My Bloody Valentine and Whirr, and Scott and I were listening to a lot of Tigers Jaw and White Lodge and some New Wave bands. We’re influenced by anything new and old. Can you recommend me some Canadian bands? S: Straight Truth is best punk band in the world. S.H.I.T. rules a lot too. Lifestory:Monolgue are amazing but they broke up. Fucked Up, and PUP are basically taking over the world. Alvvays is going to get really big as well. If you’re looking for a good shoegaze band from Canada listen to AIM LOW. Also, our friend Nicole Dollanganger makes some amazing music. Do you have any particular dreams about playing gig somewhere? Where would you like to play the most and with who if you could pick any city and any band? D: We definitely wanna tour. I personally would love to hit up the west coast of Canada, if ever possible, along with the states, and we plan to do it this summer if all goes as planed. If we were to tour with any band, I’d absolutely want to tour with Alvvays, they are currently my favourite local band. S: I’ve always had dreams of touring Europe, I’ve been that way since I was little, watching Green Day DVD’s in my basement. If we were to go to Europe I’d really wanna tour with our friend, Valentin’s band, Man Is Not A Bird. Any interesting/weird stuff you heard about Europe ? S: Danielle and I went to Europe in September last year. It’s completely different from Canada, and it was a great experience for us. I don’t remember hearing anything weird though. Cool continent.
SHIVERY PRODUCTIONS: Record Label / Shows / Booking / Distro From W端rzburg, Germany shivery.productions@web.de facebook.com/shivery.productions/ shiveryproductions.tumblr.com/ shiveryproductions.tictail.com/ shiveryproductions.bandcamp.com/ PAST RELEASES: Sending Lights, Hindsights, Minus Tree, Crooks, Old Gray, Cvlt of Grace, Shizune, Dearest, The Cold Harbour, Always Wanted War, 52 Hertz, short story sports, Eaglehaslanded, Wherebirdsmeettodie UPCOMING RELEASES: New Native - Twisting 12" - May '14 Pastel / Merridew - Split 12" - May '14 The Caulfield Cult / Godard - Split 7" - June '14 52 Hertz - 10" - July/August '14
Beaver
“Going”
feuilleton by K. Foksińska Tickets for 10 euro? Why so expensive? They are playing a gig in Berlin tomorrow, it’ll suit me better. Wait... It’s two hours by train, way to long... You can go on like this for a long time. Too expensive? Don’t come then. Simple. Don’t shed your tears that another big tour is not coming to Poland, while the same bands are playing in the neighboring countries several times a year. In other countries people realized how important the support for the local scene and the actual attendance at the shows are. Let’s face the truth. If an organiser loses on a gig, he won’t arrange any new shows for a longer time. Before you write a comment that the tickets are too expensive, take into consideration all the costs. You have to pay the band - I mean not only musicians but also tech team and managers. You also have to pay off the accomodation and catering. You don’t have to be a math genius to realize what the actual profit for the organizer is. The organisers usually belong to the hardcore scene and they are fans as much as we are. I don’t go to every hardcore gig. School and work are time-consuming and what’s more, you have to make it by the end of the month. I don’t go to shows to another towns, but I have seen a lot of great bands and I live in Poznan only for three years. I propose a simple rule to apply from now on. Before you click „Join” next time, make sure that you are really coming to the show.
SOUNDCHECK Marcin Buźniak (Setting The Woods On Fire) 1. Which guitars do you use and which one is your favourite? 2011 Gibson Firebird Non Reverse is my main and dream guitar. It has a lot of wood and 3x P90. My second fav guitar is Fender Jazzmaster from the late 90’s. Another dream came true. I use Ibanez AS-73 hollow body for practising and writing new stuff at home because it’s loud enough to play without amp but not as loud as an acoustic guitar. Just perfect. 2. What was your first guitar? It was a Hohner Rockwood - ‘fake strat’. 3. Which effects do you use? Xotic BB preamp for kinda fuzzy sounds, Fulltone OCD for stronger overdrive, Line6 Echo Park Delay and TC Electronic Polytune in addition. All of these are routed by Octa Switch and powered by VooDoo Labs’ box.
fot.K. Raban // rabpop.blogspot.com
4. What are your fav EQ settings on your amp/effects? It depends on a guitar, amp, circumstances and many other things . My aim is not to take the bassist’s place and break through the mix. Also, I don’t like cut mids (which are popular nowadays). I cut the lows by playing with additional cab 4x12 (at bigger clubs). 5. What is your dream guitar equipment by now? Heh, it’s never too much equipment! I admit I’m very glad with my present stuff, though it’s probably the simplest setup I’ve ever played – it is said that sooner or later every guitarist ends up with guitar, cable and amp.... I have played on a few guitars, amps and effects and I think that I finally found a gear which satisfies me, but apparently there is no such thing as too much guitars. Gretsch White Falcon and Nash Guitars Tele are on my wishlist for sure. And a small amp like Gibson Ga-5 or old Champ.
“(...) just pure passion” I had the pleasure of meeting Poziom in person last summer during my stay in Zakopane. We recorded some stuff together, I shot some pictures, we talked and I thought we developed an understanding. I’m impressed by how many things he’s dealing with, having time for skateboarding at the same time and how good he is at it - a true reneissance man ;) In our interview you can read about who Poziom is, what does he do and what does he like to listen to while skateboarding in the bowl. intro + interview: Bastian fot. Poziom
Hi,
how
are
you?
Working
hard
lately?
Hello! I’m totally ok, it’s been my first season without any injury, so far, so good. When it comes to work – there’s a lot of it. The Fishaj Festival which I co-organize has just ended. In addition to this, graphics and illustrating are absorbing tasks and you also need time for other passions. But I cannot complain – it’s ok. Yeah, you are a man of many talents and passions. Let’s start with the most important one – skateboarding. How did your passion begin and how do you fulfil it in your daily life? It was something like 11 years ago. As many kids in those times, I started to skate under the influence of the game Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. Those were the times, when kids used to read INFO or Dizaster and were happy with everything they had. No complaining, just pure passion. My passion is still the same, even bigger. I’m happy I personally know the people I used to admire in zines years. What’s more, I’m happy that I can be a part of Polish scene, whether I do it by organizing or graphic designing. Generally speaking, skating brought a lot to my life and became a part of it. I have to underline that without people who helped me a lot I wouldn’t accomplish anything. I will always remember about that. Referring to those people – do you receive any support currently? I don’t feel a particular need for sponsoring, competition, recordings. What’s important for me is the pleasure of having the board under my feet. However, this year I rejoined the Trash Skate team and I started to work with Overmax, a brand which produces sport video cameras. This is everything I do for now. For a longer time, I’ve been supported by Fish Skateboards.
fot. Poziom
What are your skateboarding inspirations? What brands, people and movies are you keen on? From what I know, we both are fans of oldschool skateboarding. I don’t have much time to follow all the new stuff. Still, oldschool is the gist of it all, so before I go out to skate, I sometimes watch old productions of e.g. Santa Cruz, Toy Machine, Black Label, Powell or Plan B. And of course Polish Pogo Jutro, which influenced me very much. I have the impression that most of the things you do is linked with skating. Let’s move on to graphics. How did you got interested in it and when did you started to design? Tell something about you last collaboration with Nervous. Regarding graphics and illustration, I’ve been drawing since I was a kid, I’m an autodidact but three years ago I didn’t expect that I would do this for a living, that I would have the opportunity to take part in many projects and work with various companies. When it comes to Nervous – I and Bartek Milczarek have been thinking about doing something together for a long time and this season it succeeded. I received a proposal of designing boards and clothing from the new owner and this is how I created some designs.
fot: Adam Kokot
Very good designs, we talked about that some time ago. Next thing: Fiszaj Festival – what is it? What do you do there, what do you do there, how did you get that idea? Fishaj Festival is an extreme sports photography fest. My friends came up with the very idea, later on I joined the project as a co-organizer and graphic designer. So I do everything to make people happy : ) That’s a hard task! Speaking of your next passion – you were supposed to make me a tattoo, when do we meet? Unfortunately, I can’t always find time. I have a lot of work to do and a tattoo is a time-consuming thing and you have to be focused, contrary to photography or skateboarding, which you can take care of during a break at your workplace. But don’t worry, soon I will have more time and I’m coming back to tattooing, happily. Great! To change the subject a little bit: as you know LOST is a zine about hardcore and skateboarding, more about the former. And you are into your local HC scene, aren’t you? Maybe I don’t play in a band but I try to help as much as I can. You will be able to verify it soon in Zakopane on a charity gig for our friend – Pinar, the bass player of Omerta SF and a former member of Blindside.
Great. What can you tell about the hardcore scene in Podhale (southern region of Poland). Your t-shirts “Zakopane HC” are great! I think that the people who are supposed to talk about our scene are those, who created it, I mean Matt, Pinak, Japcok and others. They know the topic inside out. Let’s go back to the subject of the skating. This scene has been rapidly developing, what are your reflections about that? It’s too much to call it reflections… I’m just happy that more skate parks are created, this sport is developing and people start to accept us and don’t consider as something detrimental, not as it used to be. I’d add that even younger kids are on higher level nowadays, not speaking about girls! According to you, what are the links between hardcore and skating? It’s all about ’80, this music used to be connected with skateboarding, mainly in California. Black Flag, the same with Venice and bands like No Mercy or Suicidal Tendencies. And of course bands like T.I.T.S. and so on, and so forth. I recommend to listen to the first part of Thrasher Skate Rock Compilation, where you can find a lot of cool stuff, not only SNUF or Gang Green. Another example is Minor Threat and Ian who also used to skate. That’s a lengthy subject, perfect for another article.
I hope you will take up writing it – you seem to be the right person. Last thing: your favorite music for skating and drawing? Hard to say. I listen to HC, SxE, thrash, Oi!. But I don’t know any limits when it comes to music – I listen to what I like. I’m not able to name all my favorite bands, there is so much of them. I believe you. terview and
Ok, thank hopefully
you see
Thank you too! Regards!
for the inyou soon.
fot. Miłosz Rebeś RBS Photo
fot. Bastian
fot. Poziom
MILK TEETH It has become hard to find anything original or at least interesting in this whole emo revival and grunge trend... The truth is, lately weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re only watching bands who sound the same so it brings me great joy that we can still find bands like Milk Teeth in this turmoil. Inspirations of these bands going 20/30 years back can still be presented in a fresh, interesting and catchy way. Enjoy reading a conversation with the quartetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guitarist.
intro+interview: Bastian
Hi man! How are you some background about
doing? origins
Can you of Milk
give me Teeth ?
Hey mate! I’m all good thanks, we all went to Hit The Deck festival and a cry at how good Brand New are. Milk Teeth started about a year ago, me (Chris) and josh wanted to start a band so we did. Josh went to college with Becky and Oli and got them on board and we just started jamming song ideas Cool! Spontaneous acts are the best. So maybe tell me about your influences? I hear a lot of grunge or 90s in general here, but more important is how you would describe it, so? Yeah man, pretty much spot on with our influences, the late 80s early 90s but i would say we write angry noisey pop songs! We don’t set out to make a certain sound, we just write what comes naturally and hope other people like it And I guess it’s the best way! Focusing on certain genre is such a limitation! But tell me honestly...do you listen a lot to Nirvana? haha Ha, spotted that influence did you? But yeah I guess! I listened to a lot when I first started playing guitar so that has probably crept into my song writing style but I’ll listen to anything. It’s catchy then it’s got my vote! Haha yeah, I’m a Nirvanoholic so I spotted it really fast. But staying with Nirvana...I saw something what I really liked - both guitarist play on Mustangs! It’s one of my favorite guitars, just after jaguars and jazzmasters, what’s more I heard few good guitar effects in your songs, especially noticeable in your latest full set on youtube...can you tell us something about gear you use? Good man! Almost! I play a Fender Jag-Stang, which is a kind of Jaguar Muatang hybrid, but I also use a Gibson Les Paul Junior. Josh uses a Fender Sonic Duo, which is like a lil stratocaster, and Fender Blacktop jaguar (I think). We both use a range of fuzz, distortion, and other effects pedals. But my favourite is small clone chorus! It’s my baby Aaaaah, now I feel ashamed with mistaking them for mustangs. Jag-stang was designed by Cobain, right? I heard a few opin
ions that it doesn’t sound so good but after hearing your record I really doubt this opinion. And about record: tell me something about process of writing and recording of ‘smiling politely’ Aha don’t worry man! They do look very similar. And yeah man, it was. I’ve heard that a few times as well but mine is a babe, it was modified by the previous owner with different pick ups so it may sound a little different. Though I have no idea what they are! It was pretty straight forward man, all really natural with no pressure. A lot of the songs were written between me and josh but as a band we always write together, bounce ideas around and see what happens. We recoded with our friend Alden over a few weeks, he knew exactly the sound we wanted and he helped us get it! And it came out great! I heard similiar opinions to mine around here in Poland, but what opinions do you get there in UK? Yeah man. I mean I like it, but that doesn’t mean other people would. But yeah we hear a lot of things about people digging it, which is lovely ! Grats by the way - have you thought about touring Europe so far? I mean mainland. We would love too, I love Europe. We don’t have any plans to this year but I’m hoping that maybe next year we can sort it out. Would be ace ! Last one - how is it to be in a band with such a pretty woman haha ? Errrm pretty good I guess ha. We’re all real good mates so I guess gender doesn’t really come into it, we’re all bros ! Haha just joking around, she just makes your band stands out even more, in a good way! So thanks for the interview and be safe mate! Thanks Thanks
man, she has an excellent voice and all. for the interview. Good talking to you !
fot. O. Heleniak // facebook.com/OskarHeleniakfoto
N A I H A R V E S T
Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been loud about Nai Harvest in the alternative scene lately. Together with Gnarwolves and Moose Blood they won the hearts of the British and started gaining fans not only in the UK, but worldwide, they joined an American label and their records have been selling out fast... and in May they will perform in Poland with Turnover! I managed to talk to them about all that so enjoy the interview and I hope weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll see each other on May 26th in PoznaĹ&#x201E;!
intro + interview: Bastian
How are you? It seems you’re touring a lot, so I guess pretty tired? Work
hard,
play
hard!
Can you give us a little background about the band origins etc? I was always curious where the name came from :) We’re about 3 years old and we started in a bedroom/basement, the name came from my head with the help of some reading. You toured recently with Seahaven and you are going to tour mainland soon with Turnover. Are you excited? Seahaven are the best, and we’re stoked to hit Europe again, we love that Turnover record. You have been on eurotour before with Hindsights, right? How do you think, it will be different this time? We’ve been twice! Once with Hindsights and once with You’ll Live. They were both real fun so I’m hoping this one is too. We’re excited for euro riders, so much food! You are progressing pretty fast, your first LP (which was #2 in TOP5 records of 2013 in latest issue of my zine) and latest EP gained you many fans in UK and abroad, you got signed by great US label [topshelf records]...How do you feel about the whole thing? Do you think this whole hype affects you as people or are you the same boys as when you started your adventure with Nai? Thanks! I guess we’re the same, just a little more confident in what we do, which is never a bad thing. In the internet you can find whole bunch of terms describing your
music by bloggers, fans or reviewers, but what is more important for me - how would YOU describe it? What are your inspirations? We’re ple.
an Two
indie punk
rock kids
band. Plain and playing poppy
simindie.
What are you listening to recently in the bus and personally? Oasis, The Hotelier, The Streets, Special Explosion and Ride Lew - make illustrations, right? I saw your work on tumblr and on a few covers - I love your stuff! You also took care of your records layout, how long have you been drawing and how did it start? Yeah, thanks a lot man! I’ve been drawing as an illustrator in my style for around 5 years, and it just started through being involved in the music scene really. Making art for my favourite bands was a dream situation for me To Ben - what gear do you use at the moment, what defines your sound? (guitars, pedals etc) FUZZ
DELAY
Have you ever ing your band (I
thought about mean more band
A little, have a
it lot
What’s
next?
A
M
may of
happen at friends we
CHORUS
some could
Any
concrete
plans
E
R
I
expandmembers) point, we call upon.
for
future?
C
A
12. Thanks for interview and see you in Poznan, I hope you’re pretty excited about visiting Poland, cause Poland is excited to see you :) THANKS
come
say
hi!
The Kid’s Crusade Last year the members of the hardcore band called This Routine is Hell prepared quite a surprise for us - some of them started a side project with more of an emo/punk influence. On the occasion of the release of “Sway” EP we decided to talk to the lead singer of the group about lyrics, the background the band’s origin and upcoming tour with TRiH. Enjoy!
intro: Bastian interview: J. Lula
Who came up with the idea of forming TKC? Any particular reason? At first me and Erik just wanted to start a new band, because being in one band wasn’t enough for me anymore, I guess. After practicing a few times and playing a bunch of covers I started writing some songs, and we turned them into the demo we released last summer. Could you explain the meaning of bands name? We took it from a Kurt Vonnegut novel called Slaughterhouse 5, or the Children’s Crusade. Lyrics on Sway are very sad, depressing… why? I had a chance to meet some of you in Cracow last summer. You were a bunch of happy, maybe a bit crazy fellows, so I didn’t expect so much sadness. Because I just write about whatever I feel. Writing these songs is the only way for me to deal with certain feelings that I find hard to explain or express otherwise. I am not a happy person. I certainly hope I will be, one day. You’re mer -
touring what is
Europe the most
with TRIH this anticipated venue for
sumyou?
We’re all excited to finally play fluff fest after all these years. Hanover has always been good for us, and Berlin and Vienna too. It’s also cool that I get to see a lot of people that I don’t get to see all that often. Let’s stay on the topic of the tour, would you play any TKC songs on it, and if not, is there any chance of another tour in the near future, this time as TKC ? No, TRIH is a different band. We’re trying to figure out tour plans right now for this summer, or shortly after. I’m hopefully graduating in June so for now it’s hard to play a lot of shows, but after that we’re gonna try to play as much as we can. When
we
can
expect
an
LP?
Not for a while I think. We’re writing new songs right now, but we’re probably gonna put those on another 7” first. I guess we’re not ready to record an LP yet.
flickr.com/photos/nous_davidse/
You spend many hours/days in a van during tours, do you have your own ways to deal with time? Maybe you could recommend me some books? I spend most of my time sleeping when we’re on the road. When I’m not, I’m mostly reading or staring out the window. I don’t know what kind of stuff you like, but I could recommend you to read anything by John Fante, Charles Bukowski, Kurt Vonnegut, Albert Camus, Jack Kerouac, Alan Sillitoe, I don’t know, I’m reading Bret Easton Ellis right now. And a last one, my friend always asks me weird questions, last time he asked me about my favorite monster. What is yours? I
don’t
know,
one
of
the
wild
things
maybe?
CLASSICS: At the Drive-In “Relationship of Command”
Gosia Maternik and Igor Prusakowski
In a bad time for young guitar bands, including many barely forgettable ones lumped under the trade name “emo,” these ambitious yowlers are reason for hope. Village Voice, Consumer Guide One of the most vital albums of the first decade of this millennium according to NME, and one of the most important rock records of all time to the ears of Kerrang! BBC They are not punk rock muppet chancers out for a fast buck. For At The Drive-In, rock’n’roll is much more important than that. New Musical Express
Igor: Each word in every magazine is a word of delight. Five gentlemen from Texas made something amazing. Something. I have always considered this album as something that’s above ordinary music. With his Cobain-like Fender, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez influenced many guitar players from the newer bands, for example Hot Cross or The Fall of Troy. Some parts in “Turncoat Revolution” or “F.C.P. remix” could be written by him as well. This band introduced me to this hardcore thing. For me it began as it began for most of the people – At the Drive In’s live performances. It is one of the best bands when it comes to live shows. The duet of Cedric and Omar, with a little bit of Jim Ward is comparable to the duet of McCartney and Lennon with the support of Harrison. Gosia: But first things first: In 1993 in El Paso, Texas, Cedrik Bixler and Jim Ward founded a band. They started, as one can easily guess, by playing gigs at school, small clubs in front of few fans. They gained the fan base by shows which were full of energy
(looking at Cedrik almost in his 40’s being full of energy, one can imagine his scenic behavior when he was young). At first touring in Texas, later in around the whole country. Initially they were gaining popularity thanks to some lip-service. Nobody realized they were to become popular in mainstream a few years later. In 2000 their started to work with Ross Robinson – a producer (Korn, Deftones, Slipknot) who polished their raw, garage sound. I: After a punk debut, after In/Casino/Out and some EPs (phenomenal Vaya!) which where milestones in development of this band, ATDI released their opus magnum. G: There’s a lot of melodic parts, recitation, rapid tempo changes, screaming. Despite all this chaos, there is some structure in it. Maybe I’m biased here but I can’t deny that One Armed Scissors is the best track on the album. I: I will disagree: I have my personal TOP 3 songs on this record. Arcarsenal – there’s no other song that pumps me up so much. Omar’s guitar part, great lyrics by Cedric. Epic. From the very first sound this record is perfect. Quarantined – I have a sentiment for this song. Again – great lyrics, terrific music and prediction of future accomplishments (The Mars Volta). Enfilade – this track consists of some electronic, drum’n’bass parts. It’s an obvious inspiration for Enter Shikari or The Qumists. “Meltdown” is very similar to this track. And great post-rock riffs. It’s just great. There’s just one “but”. It’s hard to choose TOP3 because all of them are great. G: On the former albums Cedrik’s pronunciation was a little bit unclear, sometimes he was singing out of tune. Now, despite some apparent crudeness and ever-trembling voice, we witness a developed skill which doesn’t exclude freshness which we experience on every track of this record. One can argue what had a bearing on the positive outcry of the audience (for example -9/10 by NME) or if it made the band fall apart into Sparta and The Mars Volta. But leaves no doubt that Relationship in Command had a great influence on post-hardcore scene. The band preserved their credibility amongst the fans and inspired new bands.
WORTH LISTENING
1. La Dispute “Rooms of the House” The Michigan band proved more than once that in the modern music the melody doesn’t have to be overly complicated or trivial, the rhythm simple and the lyrics only about love. Because La Dispute is mostly the written word, skillfully, melodically declamated and screamed out by Jordan Dreyer. On “Rooms of the House” he was probably in his best condition. What captivates is the form in which Jordan tells stories. Musically, it is also a record surpassing the previous ones - it is more mature, not childish as for example “Somewhere At The Bottom...” anymore, the stronger parts blend nicely with the more melodic and calm ones. In comparison to their previous works, “Rooms of the House” is a quite calm, but more consistent record. The compositions are more thought-of and not forgotten easily. My personal favourite - the opening song (HUDSONVILLE MI, 1956). This album is definitely my personal top release of the year 2014.// P. Siwicki. 2. More Than Life – “What’s Left of Me” is the newest record of the Brits. It was released not until four years from the previous one, “Love Let Me Go”. The band, being in Hiatus for some time, kept their fans waiting. What can we expect of their newest album? We will hear everything that is typical for More Than Life. Melancholic riffs and depressive, catchy lyrics. From the very beginning of the album, the tracks “Asleep” and “Weight of the World” present the listener with a great deal of melancholy and prepare for what comes next. However, it’s not all. MTL added some new musical elements, e.g. the use of keyboard, that is present in the single “Do You Remember?”. A new feature is also the vocals arrangement, melodic, sometimes “tearful” verses mixed with, typical of John Matthew, screams. There are both moments of calmness and beautiful guitar arrangements. There is also place for rage and fast hardcore/punk riffs of course. Having listened to the longplay, one can say that this isn’t the same band as four years before. It seems that those guys have found their way and they are a way more experienced band now.//T.Masłowski 3. Comeback Kid – “Die Knowing” The newest work of the Canadians is full of energy, fast riffs and, as always, a lot of catchy choruses. The lyrics of the songs “Loosing Sleep” and “Didn’t Even Know” stick in your mind just the moment you hear them. Both die-hard fans of Comeback Kid and people new to this band won’t be disappointed. This LP is a great thing for every hardcore kid, even though it might be not that innovative when it comes to riffs and so on. It’s not so easy to be innovative in hardcore. CBK managed, however, to put the best and the most catchy elements of hardcore on this record. //T.Masłowski 52 Hertz “Demo” The german emo/punk scene is developing rapidly and I have a strong feeling, that Wurzburg trio is about to step out soon only basing on their demo tape. Two honest but not so “straight forward” songs, full of catchy melodies and twinkly riffs are, I guess, just a small introduction into the 52 Hertz story, and I can’t wait to check out more. And even though the guys seem to transmit their songs at the loneliest frequency, they are not depressive, but perfectly balanced. And remember – cats don’t live as long as desired, so go check out their songs now, and wait with me for upcoming EP!
4. Muskets “Pollyseed” The continuation of the flood of mixed emo, punk and tunes straight from 90s Seattle. After just a couple of months the young band from Brighton presents three new, pleasant and melodic tracks on their debut casette. The influence of such bands as Title Fight, Basement or Daylight is blatantly visible. On one hand - nothing new, although it’s pleasant to listen to. Some will probably complain about trite themes and imitativeness of such music nowadays, although for me it is a pretty good start and I’m impatiently waiting for what the band will show in the future.//Bastian 5. Hindsights “Thoughts That Weight Me Down” The British quartet’s last EP differs quite a bit from the older works. The new material seems lighter, however generally it is an advantage. It seems to be the band’s natural development direction; they decided to explore the more alternative areas of emo/punk (sometimes you can even hear the 90s). The screams got mostly replaced by melodic singing (but the screaming hasn’t been given up on though!), however the massive emotional load (=sadness) is still the band’s trademark. For me, “Thoughts That Weigh Me Down” is a huge step forward for the band, who are getting a bigger and bigger fanbase in the UK, as well as abroad. They have a great future ahead of them, especially considering that they have plans of a new material, which, if they keep their high standards, has a chance of causing quite a fuss on the emo scene. P.S. In “Grey” you can hear Thom from Gnarwolves featuring.//Bastian 6. 2nd Wind „Na wagę złota” After interesting and promising demo, the 2nd Wind guys from Poznań finally attacked with a larger material. And it’s not just any attack - it’s a fast hc/punk interspersed with slow downs and enchanced with a bit of modern hc as well as warm melodies. What stands out is honesty noticeable in all screamed out words making up the remarkable lyrics. Anger and doubt mix with motivation to act and hope. I don’t know if it’s just me, but 2nd Wind’s spirit reminds me of Regres. And such bands are worth their weight in gold. // Marcin
7. mojapołowa “mojapołowa” It is yet another band to join the emotional scene in Poland, by no means established by amateurs. The raw sound of the Piła boys seems to stand in opposition to the still exploited fusion of screamo with indie and post-rock. The simplified compositions smoothly blend with the lyrics, giving them clarity. The lyrics immediately stand out because of their poetic quality. Sometimes enigmatic, sometimes more straightforward, they interestingly present relationships among people and human nature itself. The whole thing is complemented by the artwork. Just check out the first song on the album to see what this band is capable of. Shivers! // Marcin
fot. Daniel Koban//danielkoban.blogspot.com