Weekly > Interviews
Beat Steaks, The
The Beatsteaks are one of the hottest German bands this year. Their 3rd album Smacksmash reached number 11 in the German album chart while the singles ‘Hand in Hand’ and ‘I Don’t Care As Long As You Sing’ have turned out to be the soundtrack of this year’s continental festival season.
Right before their gig at Taubertal Festival, Charlotte had the chance to meet drummer Thomas, who wanted to be a drummer when he found out that Ringo, sitting on a pedestal, was looking much taller than the other Beatles.
Alright, first of all, I don’t like people…
[wearing some kind of pimp sunglasses]...wearing sunglasses while talking to you?
Oh no, not at all. You know I have to write a short introduction of what kind of music you play. I don’t like people writing things like “this band sounds like whoever” because I don’t think anybody writing a song has it in mind to sound like a certain band. So could you please tell me in your own words what your music sounds like?
We sound like a rock band or a punk band with people who can’t really play. An advantage over other bands is the fact that we’ve got three guitarists. The last band having three guitars was Linyrd Skinyrd but we don’t play their kind of music. Besides having three guitars we have the best lead singer of the world and our drummer can play in a way that nobody notices he can’t really play.
How does it feel to be on stages as big as today?
I like this festival. It’s beautiful because of the location in the valley surrounded by hills and mountains. Playing here definitely feels good. It’s a lot of fun playing songs of the new album and checking out how the crowd likes it. This festival here has quite a relaxed atmosphere.
The Taubertal Festival always reminds me of Glastonbury, because of the medieval town in the background and because of the location being a meadow in front of the city gates.
Yeah, I think it’s Glastonbury for small ones in a way. If Glastonbury was a film, Taubertal would be a smaller version shown before prime time and filmed here in Germany.
How do you write your songs?
Oh, can’t really explain that. Everything I say now sounds stupid. Personal experiences when we’re in love, when we feel bad [sticks his tongue out] and so on.
I mean being a band, it’s our job to write songs and that’s it. You often wait for a long time to get an idea and when you finally got it you have to be fast and make a song out of it. I think saying we’re waiting for divine inspirations would sound too weird. Once the idea is down, all we have to do is work on it.
Does writing music come to you naturally or do you have to work at it?
Nothing comes naturally to us. It’s tough work.
I’m just asking because I’ve heard there are people who can write a perfect song in about 10 minutes.
- Beat Steaks, The
- Interviewed by: Charlotte Heners
- Published on: 17 Sep 2004
- Comments: 0
Yes, I’ve heard about those people as well. I think there are people like that, but we still have to work hard to make good songs.
Which musical idols inspired you?
Oh, we’re inspired by every band from A to Z. From ACDC to…[can’t think of a band beginning with z], come on, give me a band with z
ZZ Top?
ZZ Top are rubbish but yes, let’s say we’re inspired by every band from ACDC to ZZ Top. Each of us has a different taste in music.
Are you going to do a few gigs in England this year?
Yes, we’re trying to go to England this autumn/winter.
List a few reasons why people have to come and see you live. What makes you special?
Well, nobody HAS to come. I think people should just come and have a listen. I want them to find out on their own what makes us being a good band.
Is there an item you don’t want to miss on tour?
?
Well, something like a teddy?
Ah, a good book and a good CD.
What was the last CD you’ve heard?
It was Fever To Tell by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. By the way, what was the name of that webzine?
The Beat Surrender.
The Beat Surrender. There is a cool word in that name, something The Beat Surrender and the Beatsteaks have in common. [Big grin]. Guess what it is and win a signed shirt!!!
Thank you very much Thomas.
As soon as we have more news on the upcoming tour dates, we’ll let everyone know. In the meantime, check out Charlotte’s review of their third album, Smacksmash.
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