(interview)LATEX MY ASS o muzici, prošlosti, budućnosti i sceni!

LATEX MY ASS je novi zagrebački bend osnovan na pepelu legendarnog psychobilly benda Latex Willer. Nedavno smo bili u Ormožu, Slovenija gdje je Latex My Ass svirao svoj tek drugi koncert kao predgrupa Koffin Kats. Bio je to idealan trenutak da malo popričam sa vokalom/gitaristom Peppersom o nekim stvarima.

Kakav je osjećaj vratiti se na binu nakon nekoliko godina? Koliko je prošlo od zadnjeg giga, 6-7 godina?

-Rekao bih da je super osjećaj, samo jako drugačiji nego kada smo prestali svirati. Nismo puno svirali, koliko je prošlo, osam godina, tada smo svirali možda dva tri giga mjesečno i nekakvo zasićenje se dogodilo, možda najviše autorsko. Par godina smo vrtili iste stvari, a nije dolazila inspiracija za nešto novo i onda nam je to, blago rečeno dosadilo, pa smo prestali svirati. Nakon jedno osam godina se pojavila neka inspiracija, pa su nastale nove stvari i uglavnom sam ih ja sam snimio na kućnom računalu i koristio neku svoju kućnu opremu i dodavao digitalne efekte da zvuči što uništenije pjesma. Slučajno smo se na jednoj probi našli bubnjar iz Latexa, njegov sin i ja i shvatili da zapravo to možemo izvesti onako kako nam se sviđa. Nešto je drugačije od onog prije, ali u tri mjeseca smo uspjeli posložiti pet-šest novih stvari, sviramo pet ili šest starih Latex stvari sa albuma i još toliko stvari koje smo napravili tada, ali nisu nikada bile snimljene. Sada imamo polusatni zabavljački repertoar. Da se vratimo na tvoje pitanje, osjećaj je drugačiji utoliko što smo stariji deset godina, nema više toliko adrenalina koji nas vodi, nego nas više nosi dijeljenje stvorenoga sa najbližim prijateljima. Uglavnom nam je publika sastavljena od dugogodišnjih prijatelja koji su na toj sceni u raznoraznim bendovima, ali povezani sa scenom na različite načine, primjerice kroz fanzine ili obožavanje garage/rocknroll/psycho/punk muzike.

Zanimljivo ime, Latex My Ass, ja sam sebi to protumačio na ovakav način: Latex, na neki način pogled u prošlost, znači prijašnji bend, jer ovo gledamo kao novi bend, a My Ass, okrenuli ste dupence prošlosti i gledate budućnost. Jesam li dobro shvatio?

-Zanimljiv pogled. Volim koristiti u pjesmama i nazivlju višesmislene kovanice, pa tako i ovu. Priča je vrlo jednostavna. Kada je Ivek(bubnjar) radio majice za prošli bend je, bez da se konzultirao sa bilo kim od nas, kao što to i inače radi, stavio na leđa Latex My Ass. Ne znam koja mu je inspiracija bila za to. Htjeli smo produžiti stvaralaštvo Latexa. Imali smo sto različitih imena koji su morali sadržavati Latex u sebi. Jednostavno, zato što i sviramo stare stvari, morao je biti vidljiv taj nekakav nastavak proizvodnje na sličan način, iako je muzika nešto drugačija, iako nemamo kontrabas koji nam je bio prije zaštitni znak kao i većini psycho bendova. Zadržali smo te stare pjesme, sviramo ih na sličan, ali drugačiji način i možda će nam biti lakše vratiti se staroj publici kroz zadržavanje dijela imena, pa smo se zato tako odlučili. Latex My Ass si i ti na neki način dobro skužio, ali nije okretanje guzice onome što smo prije radili. Mi smo na neki način krnji Latex, pa se može reči da nismo zapravo Latex, jer nam nedostaju vrijedni članovi kao Irina, Damir i Markoč, kao i dva kontrabasista koje smo mijenjali, Srki i Felker. Ta cijela ekipa je sudjelovala u stvaralaštvu tako da nismo zapravo Latex i zato smo Latex My Ass.

Slušao sam ova dva singla koje ste izbacili, Pjesma me jako podsjeća na Coffinshakers, možda samo ja to tako čujem, puno je mračnija nego drugi single koji je na engleskom. Zanimljivo, više nije toliko psycho koliko je neki garage punk rock, usudio bih se reči dark rock. Ima li u planu novo izdanje, baš novi album?

-Na jesen ili ove zime, ako ćemo se malo trebati još dodatno uvježbavati, planiramo snimati svakako, imamo dosta materijala za album ili e.p., ali ja bi radije da napravimo cijeli album. Žanrovski smo se probali osloboditi psychobilly-a, prije smo ga forsirali, u to vrijeme u Zagrebu toga baš i nije bilo na način kako se nama sviđalo i na neki način smo i kroz festival koji smo radili i kroz bend pokušali promovirati ono što u psychobillyu mi volimo. Uvijek je bilo miješano sa garažom, punkom i drugim stilovima, jedino nismo išli u metal, to nam nikada nije bilo drago, iako nemam ništa protiv metala i volim otići na metal koncerte, no to nije ono što volim stvarati. Ove nove pjesme su nastajale pod različitim utjecajima, prijatelja i psihičkog stanja što se možda može i čuti. To je horror, ali malo realističniji od onog prije, cijelo vrijeme je u tim pjesmama zapravo bilo izbacivanje smeća iz sebe, a žanrovski se zaista mijenjalo kroz zadnjih godinu dvije pod utjecajem scene i prijatelja među kojima sam se kretao i jako dopuštam da prijatelji imaju utjecaja na mene. Dosta pronalazim nove bendove kroz prijatelje, tako mi je potpuniji doživljaj muzike kada slušam neku muziku koju mi je netko preporučio, ili sam vidio da netko uživa u njoj, to mi je potpuno drugačiji osjećaj od nečeg što sam solo otkrio, nekako je potpuniji osjećaj.

Ovo vam je tek drugi koncert danas, ako se ne varam…

-Ovo je sad drugi gig danas, samo bih htio još, ako smijem dopuniti prošlo pitanje, spomenuo bih da nisam ja jedini stvaraoc u bendu, tu su Ivek i njegov sin Fićo…

Kakva je sinergija između vas dvojice, stare garde i njega tako mladog?

-Fićo je nevjerojatno nadaren mladi dečko koji je počeo svirati prije samo dvije godine i sve nas je već prestigao u nekakvoj kvaliteti svirke, naravno još je jako mlad, tek mu je 16 godina i još puno uči, kakav li će tek biti za godinu ili više dana, to možemo samo zamišljati. Stvarno je nadaren, nekoliko pjesama je i on napravio. Sviđa nam se što on naginje žešćoj strani punk muzike i tjera nas da sviramo što brže i tjera nas da radimo što žešće stvari. Koliko će postići pokazati će vrijeme, ali on nam je sigurno najveći potencijal.

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Vidim da na gigovima koristiš neku vrstu corpse painta, šminke na licu, je li ti to ostalo iz starih dana, je li to neko drugo ja na bini ili umjetnički izražaj ili samo dio showa bez dubljeg značenja?

-Što se tiče scenskog nastupa ja sam uvijek bio nekako ambiciozniji od ostatka ekipe i htio jesam da imamo nekakav dodatan scenski nastup uz muziku. Nisam muzičar, volim i cijenim muzičare, no ja ovo radim iz hobija, volim također različite druge tipove umjetnosti. Jako volim Hansovo slikarstvo i pop art općenito, ali uvijek sam htio da na bini postignemo nekakav dodatni efekt uz muziku. U zadnje vrijeme sve više vidim da nije nužno imati scenski efekat, već postići energiju, a šminka na licu je zaostatak iz starih dana, hoće li biti kontinuirano vrijeme će pokazati. Obično neposredno prije nastupa odlučim što i kako se našminkati. Do sada sam se uvijek nekako našminkao, ali da li ću biti koji puta i bez vidjeti ću. Definitivno je drugačije kada se našminkaš, to malo mijenja, napravi neki odmak od tebe, možda si istovremeno, neću reči iskreniji, ali daje ti nekakav prostor da napraviš neke stvari drugačije nego da si to ti.

Što ti misliš, u čemu je sva ta ljepota undergrounda, DIY, te scene, koja nas je sve privukla zajedno u neku mrežu?

-Ljudi koje sam upoznao kroz godine imaju tisuće priča kako ljudi ulaze i izlaze iz scene, ali opet postoji to neko zajedništvo kao druga obitelj. Punkrock nije samo zabava, punkrock je i način života. Dosta je i angažirana scena i muzika. Mi, iako jesmo svirali psychobilly koji pokušava biti apolitičan, ne možeš biti apolitičan, a da nisi desno, pa onda smo mi dio antifašističke struje, iako ne eksplicitno u tekstovima. Tako da smo cijelo vrijeme dio te punkrock obitelji i mislim da to povezuje ljude. Na mjestima gdje se okupljaju rade to što bi inače željeli raditi, a društveni konstrukt im to ne dozvoljava i možda su zapravo u tim trenucima ljudi najiskreniji, nažalost nekada često pod utjecajem alkohola i droga se ljudi otvaraju, ali mislim da ta vrsta zabave koja je kombinirana sa angažmanom mijenja ljude na bolje, ako ne pretjeruju sa opijatima, mislim da to sve zajedno povezuje ljude. To je moj odgovor. Postoji tisuću priča, svaki čovjek ima svoje razloge kako uđe i kako izađe sa scene.

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Da, postane toliko dio tebe da postane jedno s tobom, poveže se sa tobom ta scena u jednu veliku cjelinu…

-Kod mene je to išlo malo drugačije, muzika je bila jako prisutna u obitelji. Obitelj je doživjela određene promjene, onda se i u meni dogodila značajna promjena, muzika mi je prije predstavljala nekakvo rekao bih dodatno uljepšavanje života, a sada me muzika spašava od često dosadne svakodnevnice i ja u ovim godinama vidim sada da bi život bez muzike bio potpuno drugačiji.

Hvala ti puno na prvom interviewu za naš zine i želim sreću na gigu večeras, svi ćemo se dobro zabaviti.

-Hvala ti!

 

 

 

 

 

(gig report) KOFFIN KATS(USA)+LATEX MY ASS(CRO)-Unterhund, Ormoz, Slovenia-24.06.2019.

Yes! Only two days after great set at Trash N Burn festival, we went so see Koffin Kats again, this time in legendary Unterhund club, Ormož, Slovenia.

This beautiful club is situated in the basement of the town old castle, great venue and it is only circa 20 kilometers from our hometown so when the heat gave in a bit, the three of us went there. Upon arriving, the cops redirected us to the club because some kind of marathon was taking place in the pretty little Ormož town. In front of the club some of us had beer, some water and soon Eric, Tommy and Zac were there and we all hung around and talked and joked one bit, also Simon, the roadie/merch guy/driver was there and I am still awed how great and friendly those guys are. Also, our buddys from Latex My Ass from Zagreb were there and fun could start. After I did an interview with Peppers from Latex for this zine, which you will read soon, we had some more beer and greeted Tjaša, Sara and all other girls and boys who do such a great job with gigs and events over there.

Night fell, fun was at its peak and LATEX MY ASS took their place on stage. This is a new band from Zagreb, Croatia, which was born upon ashes of psychobilly band Latex Willer which was active in the last decade. Peppers, the singer and guitarist of Latex Willer is now joined with former LW drummer and his son Filip on bass. The new material is more garage punk and rock oriented, not so much psychobilly anymore, but they also play some old Latex Willer classics and unreleased songs. The difference is also they don´t have upright bass anymore but I was impressed with how Filip plays his bass and brings new energy to the old guard and he is only 16 years old. Peppers still plays with his intimidating black make up on his face and it looks impressive how some mask changes man into a kind of alter ego on stage. Their set was great and we really had fun listening and watching them play.

KOFFIN KATS were next. The venue was not full, not nearly, but all of us there gave our best with hearts, minds and ears and voices to the band and I could see they really appreciated. I am still impressed how tight this band is, how beautiful Zac´s voice sounds and how skillful they are with the upright bass, drums, and guitar. The show included mainly the same setlist as two days ago, plus Vampire´s Curse and all the favorites were there: Splatterhouse, Chaos, Giving Blood, For Hire, V8 Nightmare, Witch In The Woods, Nostrovia….Also, the people in the crowd really liked all the stunts with guitar/bass change between Tommy and Zac and jumping around. I love how all of them smile to each other and are happy when playing their set, still loving what they do after all these years! I think the show was a bit better than the one two days ago, we all put our energy, hearts and minds into that and the band gave us back that hundred times more. After approximately one hour the band finished their regular set, but they continued playing because we wouldn´t let them go off stage, so they played couple of songs more and triumphally ended the gig after almost hour and a half.

We were tired but also happy and kinda sad that those two shows are now over and we have to say goodbye to our new friends for a while until next year and another European tour. We also hung around with our friends from Zagreb for a time eating some delicious pastry and finishing our drinks. Then, it was time to go home and rest a bit. Thank you Unterhund for hospitality, thank you Koffin Kats and Latex My Ass for an awesome night,  see you all very soon!

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(festival report)TRASH&BURN meeting 11-21.06./22.06.2019.

What would end of June every year be without Trash&Burn American cars meeting and music festival? The answer is I can˙t imagine it without this event. For the eleventh year in a row, thanks to Neven and his crew, this fine meeting goes on. We were there.

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It all started on Friday, so we went there in the afternoon hours, to check out the atmosphere and feel the beat and smell the rubbers burning and motors running and listen to some great bands. When we arrived there we were awed how much people were there for the first day, how many cars were already there. I don´t remember that many people on Friday last couple of years. We mingled around, greeted some friends, drank a beer or two and checked out all the mighty American cars on display parked around and enjoying burning rubber and motors running loud.

Also, there was an awesome tattoo shop there and vintage stuff, like jewelry, clothing, handmade bags, great barber shop too, so the festival wouldn´t be complete without those things. The mosquitos were biting and drinking our blood like crazy because of the river Mura nearby and all the moist in the air. Fortunately for us, darkness fell upon the land and they were not so active anymore haha. The musical part of the festival started and we checked out great Hungarian band King Cat Rhythm. These guys play energetic rockabilly and I was very impressed with the guitarist/vocalist because he quickly changed guitar for piano during songs and he reminded me a lot of Jerry Lee Lewis. They played around one hour or more and the interaction with the crowd was great. People were dancing, cheering along and singing, enjoying themselves.

We were tired so we went to sleep and unfortunately we missed Irish The Bonnevilles but the people who watched them play their set told us that they rocked and were absolutely one of the festival highlights. We will definitely check ´em out next time when the opportunity arises.

Day two, Saturday is always the best one and most of the people arrive on Saturday from Austria, Slovenia, Hungary, Croatia and other countries. We waited for our friend to arrive from Zagreb and then ugly storm broke out and after it was finished we went to the festival, fearing that something was damaged by the storm, but fortunately the gods of rock n´roll were with us and everything was in order, no damage, even Sun showed its face again. We met with our friends from Monsterbilly Records crew there, who were preparing to install their merch there. Also, American psychobilly legends Koffin Kats were headlining that day, we met the guys did an interview with them for our zine and they are one of the most friendly and down to earth guys I have ever met. For musical part of the festival the stage was moved inside the tent due to rain. Pin up girl photo contest was held like every year for the annual Trash & Burn calender and all the girls were just stunning. Time flies when you have fun, so the gigs started and first to play Saturday were The Same Old Shoes from Italy. The guys rocked the stage with their rockabilly/old school rock n roll and the crowd danced and just wouldn´t let them off stage. Their set was really nice, bringing smiles and fun to everyone.

The headliners, psychobilly legends Koffin Kats from Detroit are in the middle of their European tour and we were very happy when Neven announced that they will play this year´s edition of the festival. Their set included all the oldies hits and with guitarist Tommy now again a permanent part of the band they returned somehow to their old school more faster stuff. Hits like Graveyard Tree, Chaos, For Hire, A Bottle Called, Giving Blood, V8 Nightmare, Witch In The Woods were making all sing along and dancing to their songs and they proved again being one of the best bands of this genre on this planet. Their set lasted for about one hour and time flies when you are having fun and all good things come to an end.

The fun was at its peak and Paisley Powder from Croatia closed the festival in style performing their garage set of rock n roll paying respect to the rock n roll of 60-ies delivering smiles, dancing, singing along and all the people in the crowd just rocked till early morning hours.

What is left to say? Thank you Neven and all the crew for making this year happen again and for bringing epic good times and memories for 11 years now. Keep up the good work and see you at number 12. Also, winter Trash will be the place we see each other again this year.