With a dark irony and subtle humour, this alternative rock tune, pokes fun at the elite few, those with unimaginable wealth, who sits on "Mountains Of Cash". Ask Carol's new song comes with a lot of energy and punk attitude. Trombones and delayed space guitars makes for a cinematic backdrop, while a mean fuzzy guitar and punchy drums hits you in the face. All in contrast to the intimate vocals. This is Ask Carol's third single from the upcoming debut album (To be released August 26th).
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
What strengths do you have that you believe make you a great musician?
Ask: Hm, well, this is a tricky question. I think it is dedication and endurance/patience. Cause that’s what it takes to sit in your room and practice for hours, every day, and get good at music. So many people can be better than you, better instrumentalists, better musicians, better whatever, but if they end up giving up, and you keep going, never giving up, you’ll end up winning in the end.
Who inspired you to make music?
Ask: For me I think it was some time after listening to The Clash a few years, when I was a teenager, and then reading their biography, that inspired me to get into music in the beginning. That’s what made me want to be in a band. Also Jimi Hendrix and his groundbreaking guitar playing really resonated with me, and was (still is) a great inspiration.
Your latest track is 'Mountains Of Cash'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
Actually we wrote this song a few years ago, it was pretty early on after we had started our. It was some time after Trump had been elected in the US, and we thought about how there are some very few people, with lots of money, who rule over the rest. They sit around on their mountains of cash, and the last couple of years, they are literally feeding off of a disease (think for example Pfizer and Covid). It is more of a fun, humorous and ironic take on it, but with a serious backdrop.
What is your creative process like?
Ask: We usually start out with the ideas separately, and then later on in the process we get together to finish up the songs. We often do the songwriting and production process in parallell, but it all varies very much. At the moment we are in two separate locations, so we use the internet and the cloud to send ideas back and forth. The most important thing is to get the initial ideas down as fast as possible, cause those often tend to slip away if you don’t get them our of your head and down on paper/computer/phone/recorder.
What is the most surprising fact you’ve learnt about yourself?
Ask: That I like to play drums. I’m really a guitar player, but when we decided to go duo, we needed someone to play drums. So it was me. I never thought that I would like it really, and I didn’t like it very much in the beginning, but now I’m actually starting to enjoy it, haha.
Do you think that education is important?
Yes, good education is very important. But that doesn’t mean that the education system as it is is the best way to do it. Much could be said about this, but let’s not go into all that now, haha.
What is one message you would give to your fans?
See you soon! After two years of covid, we can’t wait to get touring, and to meet you and play for you all!
How do you feel the Internet has impacted the music business?
The internet has impacted the music business very much, for good and bad. This could be a very long answer, but let’s keep it short.
-A good thing is that more people have the opportunity to release music, and get their music out there.
-The bad is that it ends up being so ridiculously many releases that you drown in the pool, so those who stand out are often those with enough money to pay for advertising (aka the majors).
Of course, it is not as simple as that, and lots more could be said about that, but is one aspect of it to be aware of.
Another aspect of music and internet is the fact that all artists these days have to be on social media (or else you become totally irrelevant, if you’re a new artist), and I think this influences the creative process of actually making music in ways that are not always that good. The direct contact with fans is good, but you also get the haters,
What do you think is the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen or experienced?
Ask: I’ve seen and experienced many beautiful things, picking one is impossible. From beautiful landscapes in the Himalayas and here in Norway, to the beautiful and magical experience of a really good concert, like Leonard Cohen at the Molde Jazzfestival. Just to name a few examples, there are many other things as well.
What are your plans for the future?
This summer we will be playing around in Norway, while preparing for our very first full length album release! The Album is coming on August 26th. Later this year we’re working on setting up tours in Europe, including the UK and Germany. After two years of almost no live gigs at all, we are really really looking forward to do some touring again!! :D