JOHANNES CARLSSON - THE HAWKINS

#interview

The Hawkins / JOHANNES CARLSSON

💿 Hi, it's a pleasure for us to have on Hardrockheavymetal JOHANNES CARLSSON of THE HAWKINS! Welcome!

Hi! Thank you for having us!

💿 Can you introduce us the current line-up of the band?

It's Albin Grill on the drums, Martin Larsson on bass and synth, Mikael Thunborg on guitar and Johannes Carlsson(me) on guitar and lead vocals.

💿 On Oct 15th will be out your new EP AFTERMATH positive received on our pages. Can you tell us somethin'about its composition process and style?

We wanted to create something that was almost like an appendix to 'Silence is a Bomb'. 'Aftermath' was written and recorded during the period when we did Silence is a Bomb, so there is timewise connectivity haha

It's a bit darker than previous albums we've made. 'Aftermath' is built kind of like a messed up version of the five stages of grief and we wanted to do something that darkened that even further.

💿 In your early times which artists influenced you the most?

Tough question! Hard to say any specific, but early on for me it started with Propagandhi and specifically their interesting and varying song forms, tonal language and DIY spirit.

💿 Where does the band name come from?

Me and Martin were on a trip in Mexico. First few days we had a peaceful and calm time together Then all of a sudden, on the fourth day, there was a fire inside the hotel, and everyone had to evacuate. Standing outside, we witnessed the fire grow bigger and bigger. Then Martin realized that there had been a small child in the room next to us. He ran back in through the fire and the flames and managed to get inside the little childs room. BUT the smoke had grown thick. Martin's body gave up and he collapsed inside the hotel room, leaving both himself and the child to die. That's when another hotel resident came to rescue. Jorge. And what Jorge did is the most remarkable thing that I have ever seen. He had a group of huge birds that he had domesticated and trained for over 17 years. His ability to communicate with this flock was like nothing else.

So Jorge told(in some weird way) the birds to fly in the hotel room and drag Martin and the small child out. And so they did.

My jaw dropped. It was the most amazing thing ever.

So therefore we decided to name the band The Hawkins, because of this pivotal moment of our lives when "HAWKS flew IN".

💿 AFTERMATH too will be out on THE SIGN RECORDS. Can you tell us somethin'about relationships with them?

Our relationship thus far has been very good. The Sign Records is a small group of people that love music. And that shines through in their work; they always put the art first and they want to make fun and interesting things together. Great people!

💿 Here at HARDROCKHEAVYMETAL we are strong defender of classic format Love for vintage or isn't there a future outside digital?

I get the vinyl vibe, and I like it too! I think it especially has something to do with the records being physically big. Tangibility is really tangible! Although 99.9% of my music listening is streaming, it is not as tangible as a physical thing.

💿 In absence of live music many bands provided streaming concerts..You agree or disagree? What's your opinion about?

Well, I'm not sure what more to think about it. We all got served a shit sandwich with the pandemic, but so many people came up with creative projects to keep their artistry alive. We recorded a live album in the middle of the woods, then in a brewery followed by one song being played in a barn. It's called "Live in the Woods", you should check it out!

💿 Can you tell us something about your next projects?

We are going on tour! We are touring Spain October 27th till November 7th. And more tour schedules are to be announced pretty soon. Stay tuned by following our Instagram, @thehawkinsband.

💿 Thank you so much for your time! See you soon on Hardrockheavymetal!

Thank you too! See you!

Palmer Turner Overdrive