Interview: The Arkanes


A day at the beach: the waves crash against the rocks,
the sky colours the water light blue,
people lay in the sun and relax,
children run around and collect sea shells,
couples walk along the beach,
a family takes pictures for the family albums,

and a few people build a house.
A house in the sand.
And as they build it, they talk about things,
things that go on in their lives.
And you are invited to listen to them.



Hey guys,

whoop. It's time for the third part of my interview series. 
And guess what? Yes, I'm very excited to present you the questions and answers. 
Of course I asked the questions - but who answered them?
The Arkanes. Well, actually Chris did, the lead singer. 

The band consists of: 
Chris Pate (vocals + guitar)
 Lee Dummett (bass + background vocals)
 Dylan Cassin (guitar)
 Andy Long (drums)

To describe their music I would use the words rock, great lyrics, great melodies. 

Get to know how they roll in the interview:




house in the sand: Let’s start this interview by talking about your influences: the Beatles, Nirvana and the Foo-Fighters – in which way do they inspire you and your music? Were they the reasons you started making music?

 The Arkanes: Nirvana, or more specifically Kurt Cobain was the reason i got 'into' music, but the reason i started 'playing' was because i loved it. Listening, writing, Playing, the whole lot. I find Its the only way i can express myself, and to be honest its the only thing i am actually good at, other than being an idiot of course. I do stupid things all the time like set myself on fire or get ran over or let Dylan shave his initials into my ass hair and things, so its good to escape from the torture of every day life (lol).


house in the sand:  If you could choose any singer or band to work with – who would it be, and why?

The Arkanes: Definitely Dave Grohl. I know i'm in danger of sounding like a Nirvana freak here, but he is awesome. Drums, bass, guitar, screaming vocals, dressing up as satan, he's got it all musically. PLus i think he would make me laugh til my lungs caved in. I would tell to ease up on the ''Just another...'' Lyric though. He uses that term in pretty much every song, which has to stop. Or Jack White, oooh, i forgot about him. Hes ace too... I cant choose, dont make me choose!!



house in the sand:  I found a quote by John Lennon which kind of is the oppossite of what you like to say. It goes like this: “I always like the studio best, once I got the hang of it and the control. I like it because it’s complete control.”
What do you think about it? You prefer being on stage, don’t you?

The Arkanes: To me there is not drug like being on a stage. Its an addiction that you cant shake. Having hundreds of people chant the words to a song that you wrote 6 months earlier in your bedroom is unbelievable. The studio is great, but its pretty strict. Regimented. Sorry, i will rephrase that.. I AM pretty strict and regimented. I want everything perfect, or better. I am never happy with my vocal takes and i always want to start songs from scratch after we have recorded them. On a stage there are no rules or boundaries. You are free.



house in the sand:  Out of all songs you wrote yet, which one is the one you’re most proud of?

  The Arkanes: There are a couple of songs that i am very proud of for different reasons. 'Skeletons' from our Don't act like you know me EP is great because i really got the message across in the lyrics and said exactly what i wanted to say, to whome i wanted to say it to. I am also proud of a song called W.A.R (Which is on our forth coming album) because it depicts society as we know it today, and makes you question the very meaning of the word 'free'. However My ultimate favourite is a song called 'Nuclear', (also on our up coming album). I wont tell you what it is about though, i want you and your readers to tell me what they think the lyrics mean. Its more interesting that way. 


house in the sand:  You were on tour with Jim Kroft in May. What was that like?
And if you’re going on your own headliner tour – who would you want to open up for you?

The Arkanes: Jim was an amazing character. So Benevolent and full of life. I think we taught him a few things about hanging with the British boys though, especially ones of the Liverpool variety! The Arkanes and the JK crew spent 24 hours a day with each other and we absolutely loved it. Brilliant guys. Especially Ondrej, he was my favourite because he was insane. I would love Black Rebel Motorcycle Club to support Us on tour because theyre cooler than Jack Frost eating ice cubes in Alaska, but i suppose it would be the other way round... for now!



house in the sand:  Since you’re working on new tunes right now I just have to ask you if you can tell us anything about them. What are the songs going to sound like?

The Arkanes: The new material is pretty full on.The new album (Still to be christened with a name) packs more punch than the EP did, a lot more in fact. A critic once described us as "Oasis being punched in the face by Queens of the stone age." I think that says it all really. We are recording it in Liverpool with a guy named Mark wainwright who is an extraordinary producer. He has an uncanny ability to parallel our Live sound with the recordings and make us sound like THE ARKANES, not some half assed wannabe's from the London scene. He also has the patience of a saint. Last time we where in his studio (3 days ago) we got drunk and had a huge band brawl over what songs where going on the album, ''Well at least your passionate.'' Mark said as he cleaned up the broken bottles. Anyway, we have a short list that we are going to record, and then choose the album from there. Your going to love it!


house in the sand:  It’s pretty obvious that you love Liverpool, the city you’re from. Why should everyone go there at least once?

The Arkanes: Liverpool is unbelievable. Such an enchanting place for new arrivals. It is historic in more senses than just music. But I think its the people that make a city what it is. Each city has its own personifications that its citizens seem to adopt. For instance: people from Manchester take on the Gallagher persona, acting like Liam and Noel and getting up to some 'in your face' no good antics. People from Liverpool act like Lennon and Mccartney, and what wasn't to love about those guys?! We love Liverpool with a passion, and we are all huge Liverpool FC fans too, although we're not doing so well at the moment. But like the badge says, "we will never walk alone".


house in the sand:  Please complete the following sentence: We are The Arkanes and we …

The Arkanes: WILL STICK IN YOUR BRAIN LIKE AN AUDIO SPLINTER. GET AMONGST IT.



house in the sand:  Is there anything else you want the houseinthesand readers to know?

The Arkanes: Only that i am so tired whilst i am writing this and most of it may not make sense, so i apologise in advance for that. Also that we are coming to Germany early next year to promote our new album release, so keep a close eye on our facebook for dates/releases etc. www.facebook.com/thearkanes... i think thats it??? is it?? Who cares.



Big big thanks to Chris who answered all the questions while being tired. Thank you a lot for helping me taking this blog to the next level,  I owe you something! 





Link party time:


Help me with a click! ;)


Little note: I just want to let you know again that everyone can leave a comment and I'd love you to do that! :)



I hope you enjoyed it, stay tuned for the next interview.



x Vanessa.

6 comments:

  1. zu dem gegenseitigem folgen sage ich nicht nein. Wenn du mir folgst, folge ich dir auch gerne :)
    http://leuglyme.blogspot.de/

    ReplyDelete
  2. i don't know them, but they look amazing :) great post! xo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They don't only look amazing, they are amazing! :) They're really worth a listen (yes, one listen is enough to fall in love with their songs) x

      Delete
  3. following you now!feel free to follow back!

    L

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thank you for sweet comment. Sure, let's follow each other :)

    minimalistic me

    ReplyDelete

Let me know what you think! :)