THE GONERS

#interview THE GONERS 💿 Hi, it's a pleasure for us to have on Hardrockheavymetal THE GONERS!! Welcome!! The Goners - Hi, thank's for having us. Salam aleikum. 💿 Can you tell us somethin'about the birth and the name of your band? Which artists or bands impressed you the most as musician? Mick - For me it's always been bands who make up for their lack och technical proficiency with heart & soul. On the top of my hand I'm thinking Dead Moon, Cheater Slicks, The Hunches (BEST FUCKING BAND ON THIS SIDE OF THE MILLENIUM). Also, Velvet Underground (Always Velvets, that kind of rhytm guitar-playing is what it's all about), Hawkwind, Rocket From The Tombs. I Could go on forever... As for the band name, I did a quick google for the definition and it could be "a person or thing that is doomed or cannot be saved" or "a person or thing that has no chance of continuing to love" and I think that pretty much sums up the feeling that keeps on looming in all of our heads, even though things right now are looking at least somewhat bright for this lovely bunch. Oh, and regarding which band we've all been playing in, I've been reading that we as a group consist of one member from Salem's Pot and members (plural) from Yvonne, not really true. It's only David who has played in Yvonne, just so we have that sorted out. I myself have only played in bands that never made it past Eskilstuna. Nate - Well, it all started in a pretty big mess but to make a long story short I used to play in another band and simply fucked up. I did barely see it at the time but I had all these songs for a new album that I wanted to record so I called up my good friend (and music teacher at the time) David and asked if he wanted to play guitar. He had been in similar dark places in life and has been extremely helpful and supportive. We have had some members come and go but landed in what I would call a healthier and much more stable formation than ever. Mick has been through hell with me and I am grateful that I can still call him my friend and now band member. I have known Viktor and Timmy for a really long time and Viktor played drums in the first formation of Pot. They also have a kick-ass band called Doppälgängär that you have to check out. When it comes to influences I think Mick puts it pretty good although he forgot Lizzy, Townes, Cortex and Pat Benatar. Also, I'm pretty sure that all of us can dig black metal. Viktor - I come more or less from the punk scene and have been stuck there before. Me and Timmy have played together for a great many years in different bands, and over the years I have become a very good friend with Mick. However, Nate and I have played together many years ago, and have among other things started up the band he previously had. Since then we have really talked about for years about playing together again, and I quickly found inspiration from Dead Moon but also bands like Motörhead, The Hellacopters, Thin Lizzy etc. Timpa - Me and Viktor (drums) have been playing together in bands since time immemorial, and we used to share rehearsal space with the early Salems pot incarnation, so we have known each other for quite some time. When this band was formed I got stuck with, for better or for worse, the bass, an instrument i'm not too familiar with prior to this. I've played guitar before so I know my way around a bass, but I don't consider myself a bass player of any skill It wasn't until I rediscovered Weedeater that I finally found some appreciation and inspiration to play that thing like there's no tomorrow, haha. All jokes aside, though, I don't like to bring bring too much "influences" to the creative process, what comes out should either be good or bad, and if, by any chance, it sounds like something else, I hope it's more subconscious than anything else. I would hate to be playing in a band where everyone was saying: "If you like that band, check out The Goners, they sound just like them". 💿 GOOD MOURNING, your debut album, will be out on March 13th . We have the chance to listening to in preview and we were really impressed . Can you tell us somethin'about its composition process and style? Mick - I would say it's some kind of cosmic garage/proto metal with hints of western and maybe black metal? We know we are on a label with many heavier, doomier kinds of bands but i think none us feels much kinship with the stoner/doom-scene although we all have indulged in the DOOM from time to time. Nate - Again I have to agree with Mick. We are heading more towards the sound we always wanted a record to have. It's pretty raw in terms of production as we just played through all the songs in the studio and used the first or second take of every song, then the tape took care of the rest. I don't really remember the composition too well but I usually finish a song on a guitar before I bring it to the practice space and let the band put their mark on it. I am really happy with the rhythm-section we have and the bass has probably got the dirtiest tone on the album. As for the lyrics I would say they are mostly therapeutic but hopefully we will get to write about other stuff than mental illness and burned bridges in the future, I can just hope that it won't be about another war.. Viktor- Just this album Nate had already finished when we started playing, so once we became a quintet we started rehearsing for the recording right away. Now we write things more together, and that will also be heard in the future I think. Timpa - Well, there's no idea to beat around the bush here, all the songs on this album are of Nate's creative mind, though some songs have been more collectively rearranged than others. When it comes to the actual recording process, I believe the vision was for it to be as organic as possible, no unnecessary processing or digital shortcuts. Everything was cut live in the studio, with the exception of the vocals and guitar-solos, and even re-amped through a tape recorder. Keeping in mind the tight deadline we had in the studio, I think we're all very happy with the result. As a side note, I've always loved distorted bass together with "clean"-ish guitar and I'm stoked that I'm able to fulfill that wet dream of mine. 💿 There's a great return of format such as vinyl and cassette. What's your thinking about these classic format..love for vintage or is it impossible a future for music outside digital? Mick - Well, don't get me started on the whole vinyl/records discussion. I have been buying records and tapes since my teens and i don't think much has changed from then more than my income, which allows me to consume more. You like digital, that's fine, you want the real deal physical edition - go ahead. And the whole vintage thing...i don't know how "vintage" a song recorded on a computer then pressed to a record can ever be. Sounds are sounds and so on. Nate - True. I used to have a very expensive habit so I haven't bought records in years but I can see clearly now, the light.. Viktor - I personally think a physical format is preferable and above all vinyl, as they make me listen more in-depth. The fact that it's "vintage" doesn't make it any remarkable to me, but the soundscapes that tape recording and vinyl give are irreplaceable. Keep it simple and get it right from the start. However, I have not been a collector like Mick and im half-deaf, but I think it is very important to support the bands you like and buy their merchandise.I myself have always been a t-shirt guy and have the wardrobe full of band shirts. Haha. Timpa - My vinyl collection is very modest and I can't remember the last time I put on a record at home. Growing up, I never went anywhere without my walkman, though. I made my own mixtapes and always "taped" my dad's fairly extensive vinyl collection. That being said, I have no sentimental attachment to those tapes today, or cassette tapes in general, for that matter. I used to love the process of putting on a record, sitting down with the booklet and wholeheartedly give myself to the music, but nowadays I rarely have the patience anymore. It's a shame.

💿 GOOD MOURNING will be out on RidingEasy Records. Can you tell us somethin'about relationships with them? Nate - I sure can. It all started with the Pot-demo and an e-mail from Daniel asking if we had any vinyl, which we of course didn't, so he took care of it. We have known eachother since the beginning and have become really close friends. Let's just say that I have gotten a new chance and we are all looking forward to new beginnings.. 💿 Inside your songs what's the role of lyrics in the composition process? Words follow music or vice versa? Nate - It depends. Usually I just write words and put them over an already existing-riff but sometimes it's the other way around. I write a lot of stuff with an acoustic guitar as well, like the ballads etc. I hear tons of stuff in my head but you guys can only hear parts of it since I'm pretty lazy. I envy guys like Trevor in Haunt and the guy behind Danava, their creativity goes beyond anything I could relate to.. However, I am really looking forward to the writing process of the next record since we have started to arrange more stuff together as a band. Also, the credits will definitely be more diverse. 💿 We love the cover of GOOD MOURNING! Can you tell us somethin'about ? Mick - I suppose it has some kind of meaning. One hand you can see the skeleton as someone slowly coming back to life, returning to all the bliss bliss that goes with it, one the other hand it could just be a cool skeleton and a hot babe. It's up to you how much you wanna' put into it. The guy who made it is named Ollie, you should check out his insta-account "artofolly" if you haven't already. Nate - Yeah.. I guess the whole record is about some form of reconciliation so what Mick said makes sense. We will be strong! 💿 Thank you so much for your time! See you soon on Hardrockheavymetal! The Goners - Grazie mille! #pressagent Palmer Turner Overdrive The Goners