Frank: Let's start with BAMBIX.
You are releasing a split with JOHNNIE ROOK from Berlin. How did the collaboration come about and the decision to make a split together?
P: JOHNNIE ROOK is a great band, they are good friends of ours and we have played many gigs together. A split is therefore just a nice thing that expresses these things. Micha from JOHNNIE ROOK had the idea and arranged everything. It is an honor for us to be a part of it.
Frank: How did the split come about from JOHNNIE ROOK's perspective?
M: The collaboration arose from the friendship we have had with BAMBIX since 2006. We played together in Zittau back then and hit it off immediately. Of course, I must also say that at that time I was already a huge BAMBIX fan and was even more delighted that Wick and the two guys were still so down-to-earth and nice after all these years of making music. Since then, we have played more concerts together, and in 2009, Wick already sang on our last long player “Rabatz,” on the song “Gegen den Horizont.”
At some point last summer, at a joint concert in Bamberg, I just asked if BAMBIX would be interested in doing a split with us.
And they said “yes.” We then agreed on an EP.
In fact, we owe the idea of forming a band like JOHNNIE ROOK largely to BAMBIX.
It must have been in 2000 when a friend invited me to a concert at SO36. Terrorgruppe and BAMBIX played there.
I already knew Terrorgruppe, but I had only heard of BAMBIX. When I saw the band, I was immediately captivated. Wick drew me in with her charismatic voice and the great melodies.
From that day on, I told myself that I wanted to do something like that.
Until that point, I had only played in bands with male vocals and wanted to finally try something new. Said and done, after some back and forth and various lineup changes, it took almost 3 years until we could start as what we are now.
Frank: What songs are you including on the split?
P: We are putting three diverse songs on the split. One song (“Marching girls”) can be listened to on our website www.bambix.org for some time now, the other two songs we have had in our repertoire for a while but have never played live. A colorful mix of pop punk rock, Danko Jones-style rock, and fast BAMBIX. Maybe there will also be a joint song on it.
M: All songs are new and unreleased. Franziska can best tell you what they are about.
F: I once read in a review that our lyrics deal with “everyday things.” That is not true. Our lyrics are predominantly socially critical and also political. We have few love songs. On this record, the lyrics of JOHNNIE ROOK are largely about making music and writing lyrics in general. It also raises the question “What is art and what is not?” I usually hide this question because many cannot relate to it, as they do not ask themselves this question. Why do I do it this way and not differently? Because I want to discover something behind a text. Another level. Because otherwise, it would be too little for me.
Frank: Is there a joint record release party?
P: Not directly, but we are playing together with JOHNNIE ROOK on May 6, 7, 13, and 14. All shows are in the spirit of JOHNNIE ROOK, BAMBIX, and the split.
Check out our websites.
M: We are doing a small tour with BAMBIX in May, but unfortunately, we won't be able to release the record in time for it. At the latest, the record will come out in September 2011. The EP will be called “3:15 am” and will be available on vinyl and CD. I am currently trying to organize another tour with BAMBIX and hope that it will be the official release tour for the split.
Here are the May tour dates:
BAMBIX + JOHNNIE ROOK
06.05.11 Halle/Saale - VL Ludwigstrasse, Open air
07.05.11 Berlin - Tommy-Haus (Support: Shearer)
13.05.11 Stuttgart - Goldmarks
14.05.11 Dresden - Chemiefabrik
Frank: BAMBIX are playing two acoustic shows in Berlin in March. Why did you decide to present your songs unplugged live? What can the audience expect?
P: Wick was asked on the last tour in Brazil if she wanted to play acoustically. Since she didn't want to play alone, I supported her with the guitar. The gig was great, and that's where the idea came from. We have prepared a nice program of old songs that we never play and well-known songs. We will be supported by slide and steel guitar as well as a mandolin by the unique Big John.
Frank: Would that also be something for JOHNNIE ROOK?
M: At the moment, I don't see that, as the implementation would be somewhat difficult. We would have to include a few extravagant instruments because playing our songs only with an acoustic guitar and without distortion wouldn't be enough for me. I'd rather write new songs and play them in the tried-and-true punk rock style.
But who knows, if we are over 40 and still exist, it could very well happen that we play one or another acoustic show.
Frank: Micha, BAMBIX come from Holland, you from Germany, what is your stance on football and the eternal conflict between the two nations?
M:
I basically only watch football during the World Cup; otherwise, I am not very interested in it.
Last year at the World Cup final, we were clearly for Holland.
As for the football conflict between Germany and Holland; anyone who takes it seriously and cannot view it with a wink should see a doctor.
Frank: Patrick, you have played several concerts with JOHNNIE ROOK. How were the concerts? What distinguishes the concerts from those with local bands you do not know?
P: The concerts are always very nice, and our friendly relationship makes the after-show party lively. When we play with other bands, it is also nice, but you just don't know each other as well. It's like going out for drinks with your old buddies instead of being invited to a party where you don't know anyone and first have to figure out where the beer is and if there is enough beer.
Frank: Micha, as far as I know, you have also played in Holland with BAMBIX. How were the concerts for you?
M: We played a concert in Rotterdam with BAMBIX last year. The gig was okay. However, what I still don't understand is that BAMBIX does not receive much attention in Holland. I mean, almost every punk rocker in Germany knows BAMBIX, and in Brazil, they are even real stars.
Therefore, the concert in Holland was not overcrowded, but rather a normal gig with three bands. The third band was called Queenbee, an all-female band.
F: I expected it not to be that great. But it was really fantastic. The people cheered and danced as if they knew our songs.
Frank: Patrick, this year you are playing a few concerts with JOHNNIE ROOK. Why should a fan of JOHNNIE ROOK also experience your performance?
P: Because we make beautiful music, are nice, and love to rock out.
Frank: Micha, why should a fan of BAMBIX also check out your performance?
M: 1. Because we also have a woman at the front.
2. Because we also make punk rock.
3. Because we all look damn good.
Basically, I think that anyone who likes BAMBIX can surely find something in us.
F: We show what we can do; those who want to watch can do so, and those who want to join in can do that too.
Frank: To what extent do the concerts with BAMBIX increase your visibility?
M: Unfortunately, I can't tell you exactly, but if the place is full because BAMBIX is playing, we surely benefit from it.
F: Yes, we certainly benefit from BAMBIX, but there are also people who come just for us. They don't know BAMBIX. So BAMBIX also benefits from that.
Frank: From the Dutch punk scene, I only know you and De Heideroosjes. How is the scene in Holland? Are there bands from your home country that you can recommend?
P: Check out www.punx.nl
Frank: JOHNNIE ROOK calls themselves free thinkers. Why do you call yourselves free thinkers? What does this term mean to you?
M: Ultimately, it means nothing other than what we understand by punk rock.
I can no longer conform to some things that are happening in the punk rock scene today, especially this whole talk of “punk is unpolitical” really gets on my nerves.
There are now so many subdivisions and so many dogmas and rules in the punk scene. Everyone claims to be the true punk.
That is all too much childish nonsense for me; I am too old for that.
For me personally, it is about creating as much freedom as possible in my life and enforcing and pursuing what I want in my profession, life, and music as best as I can.
That's how I came up with the word free thinker.
When I looked it up on Wikipedia a short time later, I thought, damn, that fits like a glove, and since then we have called our music free thinker rock 'n' roll.
Meaning of free thinker (Wikipedia):
“Free thinkers are, in today's sense, people who orient themselves to scientific findings and profess a non-religiously influenced humanism.
Free thinkers insist on their independence from beliefs such as taboos and dogmas, but explicitly refer to ethical principles of freedom, equality, tolerance, and non-violence.”
F: It fundamentally means freeing oneself from coercive ideas. It is often said that punk must be this way or that way. I am also punk, precisely because I don't care about my clothes. And in such a way that I don't need to look particularly bad or particularly cool. Because that is also a style! I am not bourgeois just because I have no problem going to my parents for dinner on Sundays. Now one could say, then there are no more boundaries. Yes!
It is wrong to enrich oneself at the expense of others!
It is wrong to hoard millions!
It is wrong to wear diamonds that others have mined under duress!
It is wrong to place one's opinion above that of others!
It is also wrong to run around and shoot everyone who crosses your path because you don't know how to help yourself! Anyone can come home and be told, “Sorry, your family has been shot by someone who couldn't help it.” Such things can never be condoned.
Frank: Last year, the singer of the Dutch Oi band Discipline was arrested. To what extent has this affected the scene?
P: I was just busy with my orchid cultivation.
Frank: What does 2011 look like for JOHNNIE ROOK? What are your plans and what goals do you have for this year?
M: We don't have big plans and goals.
Of course, we would be very happy about an increase in visibility, and full concert halls wouldn't be bad either, but in the last 2 years, we have unfortunately noticed that people probably don't have as much money anymore and therefore only go to selected concerts. Smaller bands often get left behind.
What is important to us now is that the split EP comes out.
For 2012, we are planning our next long player, so we also have to write a few hits this year.
Otherwise, all we can say is that we will keep going as long as music still brings us joy, no matter how many people we play for.
Frank: What does 2011 look like for BAMBIX? What are your plans and what goals do you have for this year?
P: PGGL (Record, Gigs, and Good Mood)
