Marc, Dominique, Thorsten, Hathors

0:05HathorsOne, two, three, four.

0:08HostWelcome to Interceptor Beyond Podcast. My name is Arthur and today I talk to the Swiss rock band Hethers.

0:15MarkFirst of all, thanks to everybody who joined this podcast and thank you Arthur for having us for this interview. It's well appreciated. My name is Mark. I'm the singer and guitarist from the band Hethers from Winterthur and Zurich.

0:30ThorsenYeah. Me, it's Dominic. I'm the drummer of Hethers. I'm Thorsen and I'm a bass player.

0:39HostA quick reminder. Don't forget to follow the show on Spotify or any other podcast platform that you prefer. And if you really dig the show, please consider donating a small amount. You can find the link in the show notes. Thanks. First of all, thank you very much for sending me the music video. That's because this episode will come out on 9th of March. And as I understand, the video comes out on 11th of Friday.

1:05MarkThat's right. That's right.

1:06HostCan we discuss it like a little bit?

1:09ThorstenYeah, of course. It's actually a funny story.

1:12HostI had a chance to see it before everybody else. And it's a really cool video. How did it all start?

1:18ThorstenWell, it all started because of the lockdown, because during the lockdown, we weren't able to play live shows. And we just released an album right in the beginning of the lockdown. So we decided to make one more video for one song of our latest release. That release is called Grief, Roses and Gasoline. And we decided to make a video for The Stone of the Valley. And Thorsten came with this idea. We could do it with an agency called Zweihund, which means like two dogs. Then we sat down with these guys and they had a fantastic idea. So probably Dominik can talk further about the idea.

2:01ThorsenYeah, the idea was just to stand in the video and do no moves. So just stand still and look into the air.

2:09ThorstenIt's like an anti-performance.

2:12HostSuper rock and roll.

2:14HathorsExactly, exactly. And I think it's perfect for the lyrics as well.

2:21ThorstenYeah, I mean, like the whole environment. It was a hotel. So we've been shooting the video in Egypt, in Hurghada, in a big hotel complex. And there were quite a few good spots to capture a few nice pictures.

2:40HostHow long was the shoot?

2:42?For a week. Yeah. Shooting was like... Every day? Yes.

2:46MarkYeah, it was like crazy.

2:48ThorsenFrom six in the morning every day.

2:50HathorsSometimes six in the morning till nine in the evening.

2:54HostThere are a lot of locations. Special effects, let's say special effects. What I mean is the submarine.

3:01ThorstenYeah, there are a few special effects. But I think it's a submarine and it's a dolphin. Yeah.

3:09HathorsThe dolphins jumping out of the water.

3:11HostHow big was the team?

3:13HathorsOh, we were just five persons.

3:16ThorstenYeah, only five people. It was like the producer team, including two people. It's Jonas and Mike, the three of us.

3:24?Yes.

3:24HostAnd these guys, Zweihund, they organized everything? Did you have to do anything or just stand there as originally planned?

3:31ThorsenWe just stood there, actually.

3:33ThorstenBasically, it was just about standing there and following them.

3:38HathorsAnd we weren't allowed to talk.

3:41MarkExactly. We're not allowed to talk. We're not allowed to move.

3:45HostAnd not allowed to laugh.

3:47MarkExactly. Exactly. Except one time in the video. One time. Yeah, I know.

3:51?Because I make music videos myself. So I can imagine how it's like. Okay.

3:55HostDid anyone get sunburned?

3:57?Yes.

3:57MarkLike all of us. It was like hot as fuck. It was like each day it was like 40 degrees in the heating sun. And yeah, we had to protect ourselves with towels.

4:10HathorsAnd plenty of sunscreen. Yeah. Yeah. Everything was light. Yeah, exactly.

4:15HostAnd what was the hardest scene to shoot?

4:19HathorsLittle Egypt, probably.

4:20ThorstenProbably Little Egypt because it was hot as crazy.

4:24?Yeah.

4:24MarkReally. Like it was in the middle of the afternoon.

4:27ThorsenAnd in the desert.

4:29MarkAnd in the desert. In the middle of the desert.

4:31?Super hot.

4:31ThorstenYeah. That was like.

4:33HathorsThere is a scene you don't see because there was a broken boat and it was horrible.

4:39?Yes.

4:40HathorsTo catch a scene, but it was not possible.

4:44ThorstenYou had to control the boat. It was like. How do you say it in English?

4:49HathorsIt was out of order. It was broken.

4:51?Yeah. Right.

4:52HathorsIt was not so stable. You could turn left and right.

4:56HostAll right. All right. All right. Or just accept it that you broke a boat.

5:00ThorsenIt was broken. We didn't break it.

5:04ThorstenThat's what we said to the staff.

5:06HostHow did the staff actually react to all this? Were they prepared?

5:10ThorstenKind of. Kind of.

5:14ThorsenWe had some license for filming. It is super important in Egypt. Also, the police came sometimes and stopped us.

5:23HostDo you have some behind the scenes footage?

5:26ThorstenWithout the police, unfortunately. No. No. It was organized by Zweihund, by this agency. And they had contacted the travel agency who booked this whole trip to Egypt. And he kind of asked for permission to shoot the video over there. And he asked also for a local contact. But when he arrived three days earlier before the shooting started, he came to the hotel manager and he asked for this guy. And this guy was fired like 10 days earlier. So nobody actually knew that we are coming to shoot this video. So he had to sort it out like from scratch once again.

6:12ThorsenBut we just always said the manager knows about it. And then most of the time it was okay.

6:16ThorstenYeah. No. In the end, like, the staff was very lovely and supportive. So they also helped us with a few scenes. They sometimes also joined us as a background actor.

6:30HathorsYeah.

6:31HostYeah. There were local people somewhere in the middle. And in the end, also in talking also in a local language, right?

6:38ThorstenNo, it wasn't a local language. It was a guy from Poland.

6:42?Ah, right.

6:43ThorstenAnd, yeah. So.

6:45HostYeah. Because of this, it was hard to understand where the location was. Because it could be like Croatia or something like this. Because it makes of all the people of everything, you know? So it gives extra, I don't know, like, it's interesting, you know?

7:01?Yeah.

7:02MarkI mean, if you look at the architecture in this environment, then you can see that it must be somewhere oriental, of course.

7:12HostYeah. But it's a classic problem when somebody negotiates a deal with somebody and that somebody is not there. This is the classic story of music videos. And, in general, entertainment industry.

7:24HathorsYeah. Happened before. But it worked, actually.

7:28MarkYeah. In the end, it worked out. So we are very happy with the result. And, yeah. So looking forward to release it on the 11th of March.

7:38HostIs it a specific day that you decided it? Like, why 11th of March?

7:43?No. It's not for a specific reason.

7:47ThorstenIt's just because we will be playing a few shows. Finally, after lockdown, we will be playing a few shows in Switzerland. Also a show in Luxembourg, Germany. We thought we will release it with the announcement of the tour.

8:03HostYeah, it's going to be in March, right?

8:06HathorsFirst shows are in March.

8:07HostDid you manage to tour recently a lot? Or, like, last year?

8:12ThorsenWe had a few concerts, but not really a tour.

8:15?Yeah.

8:15ThorsenWe played in Berlin and in Switzerland, actually.

8:19HathorsBut not much.

8:20ThorstenYeah, not much. It was also very hard for our booker, because he's been booking stuff. Then he had to cancel the whole tour again because of another lockdown. Then he had to move the dates again and stuff like that.

8:33MarkSo it was very hard to plan a tour, like, lately.

8:36ThorsenAnd it's still hard, actually, because everything is booked already and postponed. So they can't do new shows. So this is really hard at the moment.

8:44HostSo you don't do your own booking. You have a booker.

8:46ThorstenYeah, we've got a booker based in Berlin, who is taking care of Europe. And we also have a booking agency in Switzerland for Swiss shows only.

8:57HostSo I guess you're on the next level, because many people, like bands, want to get to the level when they don't need to book all the shows themselves. You have the agency to do this, or two agencies, or something.

9:08ThorstenYeah, but I must add that we also book shows by ourselves.

9:12MarkStill.

9:14ThorstenSometimes we also know, like, the bookers from a venue, and they became friends over the years. And then it's easier to make a call like, hey, how is it going? We would like to play again. Do you have an open slot?

9:29MarkThen, like, sending our booker to this guy, and then there is somebody in between.

9:34HathorsSo, yeah, it's both.

9:36ThorstenBut, yeah, most of the shows are coming from the booker nation scene.

9:42HostAnd you're my first band from Switzerland on this show. How's the scene, the rock music scene, at your location?

9:51HathorsIn this town where we live or in this county?

9:55HostStart with the town, if there's a difference, you know.

9:58HathorsYeah, we've got a very good rock scene over here.

10:01MarkWe've got plenty of bands. We also have, like, projects where we try to support each other, to create synergies within the scene.

10:11ThorstenLike, where should I start? I mean, we've got, like, the four main venues in the winter tour, which is the Gasswerk, which is focused on rock music only. And we've got the Salzhaus, Kraftfeld, and Albani, who are booking, like, every kind of music. We also have a two-week-long festival called Musikfestwochen in winter tour, where, like, most of the concerts are for free. So everybody can come.

10:44ThorstenWhat are you reading there? We just made some notes to mention everybody we want to mention in our scene. We also organize our band's-owned festival in winter tour. It's called Noise Fest. We try to invite young bands, support, like, young artists.

11:03HostLike, let's stop a little bit on the Noise Fest. I saw that you have a lot of cool bands. I checked them out, you know, because I saw it on Facebook. And it's mostly local people, right?

11:11ThorstenYeah. Like, most of the bands were from Switzerland. We also invited two bands from Germany. One band is called Zahn, and the other band is called 24-7-D-O-Haven.

11:22MarkThey are also on the same label called Noiseolution.

11:25ThorstenAnd, yeah, we try to invite, like, friends, bands.

11:29MarkWe've met on tour. We had a great time with...

11:32HostIs it this fest where you have Monkey 3 also?

11:35?Yeah.

11:36MarkYeah. They headlined it the last show.

11:39?Yeah. That's a cool fest.

11:41HostThe lineup is really cool. You mentioned, like, Noiseolution, right? It's your label. When did you get signed to this label?

11:47ThorstenBack in 2015.

11:50HostSo you're, like, already, like, in the system for a long time. You have a booking agent. You have a label. Dream come true, almost.

11:57ThorstenYeah. We found the first label in 2011. We released our debut album on this label called Headstrong. And then we changed to Noiseolution, like, for three albums.

12:13HostAnd I read that the label is not dictating the music, right? They just help you with the promotion. Like, can you just tell the people what they do for you? What's the point of the label for you, in your case?

12:29MarkIn our case, we write the songs by ourselves. We produce it by ourselves. Finally, the label will get the master. Of course, before we plan a release, we have meetings together. We will show a few demo versions of the songs. So they can get a picture of what's coming up. Yeah. Then afterwards, their job is to make promotion for the whole stuff, which includes, like, print media, online media, and the radio, and the distribution, digital and physical. So which means they produce the vinyl and CDs, and they deliver the music to all their streaming platforms and their MP3 downloads.

13:11HostSo basically, you just need to make the music and relax, and they do the rest.

13:17HathorsNot really. Not a true story. Not a true story.

13:21MarkNo, it means, like, we are working very hard. Like, every one of us is really working hard in this project. So that's why it's running well at the moment. If you don't work hard as an artist by yourself, it's going to be hard. I think it's an utopia to think you will get a label release, and the label then will manage everything for you. There are also very many things to manage as well, besides, like, promotion and distribution stuff.

13:53HostDo you do your own social media?

13:55?Yeah.

13:56HostI saw you have TikTok.

13:57ThorstenWe also have TikTok, yeah. Since a few months, we joined TikTok.

14:02HostYeah, but it's going pretty well. I mean, you're slowly experimenting with it. I'm asking about TikTok because I'm telling bands that they should be on TikTok, even though most of them don't like it. I don't like it. Of course, I don't want to be there. Nobody wants to be there. But because how it works for now, it's just a chance for now while it's still fresh so that something can go viral, like in old school days when videos would get viral, when it's not so much controlled by algorithms.

14:30ThorstenYeah, and it's also like people are moving away from Facebook more often, and it sometimes really feels like Facebook is the new MySpace who is slowly dying.

14:42HathorsIt's also a generation thing, I guess.

14:44ThorstenYeah, on the other hand, the audience on TikTok is growing. I also noticed that lots of US bands, not only US bands, but quite a lot of bands join TikTok, also the labels. Yeah, I mean, it's also a good tool to reach people. It's for free. You can do promotion by yourself. You can also decide how you want to present yourself to the audience and stuff like that.

15:09HostLet's continue with the local scene. I see that you still have stuff on the list.

15:16HostLet's mention more. What else is going on there?

15:19ThorstenYeah, the three of us are also part of a project which is called Flexi Recording Session. So I try to explain it in a few sentences. It's like we invite five bands or four bands. We mix them up in four new formations.

15:36MarkThis happens on a Friday evening. So the day after, on Saturday, they got one day to write a song. And then the day after, they must enter the studio and they will get only two hours to record this song.

15:51ThorstenSo in the end, this will be pressed on a flexi disc, which is like a flexible disc.

15:59HostYou mean like flexible vinyl or flexible disc?

16:03ThorstenYeah, it's called Flexi Disc. It's a format they used back in the days to add to music magazines and stuff like that.

16:12HostYeah, it's a vinyl on soft material that you can bend a little bit.

16:17HathorsSeven inch format.

16:19HostSeven inch format. So you have the machine, you have everything. It's a studio, right?

16:23MarkNo, like the story goes further. So we don't only invite the bands. We also invite like labels from Winter Tour. We invite music producers, artists who are responsible for the artwork, radio stations, also clubs.

16:43HostAnd how often do you do this?

16:45MarkEvery second year.

16:47HostAh, all right. So how many people are there for bands, I mean?

16:52ThorstenHow many bands? So we just finished the third edition. We had a release party at Kofffeld in Winter Tour.

17:00HostAnd how many copies did you make?

17:02Thorsten250, yeah.

17:04HostAnd how many songs are there on seven inch? Like four songs?

17:09ThorstenYeah, four songs. So like on each side, you've got six minutes.

17:13?All right.

17:14ThorstenSo everybody must write a song that is less than three minutes.

17:18HathorsAnd Mark and Domi recorded it in a recording studio where Mark works.

17:23ThorstenYeah, so like the last edition has been recorded by Dominic and me. We also mixed the four tracks. We also mastered the four tracks. Thorsten made the artwork for the second edition. He's now responsible finding like a new artist for the next edition.

17:41HathorsAlso local artists. This is really important.

17:45HostThis is more for people for local, right? For the people in the area.

17:49MarkThis is like for the local music scene and art scenes. Like to connect the people, like the bands with the radio station, with the clubs, with the producers.

17:58HostYeah, so it's a creative project for everybody to participate. In the end, you get the product. It's a good network.

18:04MarkIt's a networking event as well. So like they get to know each other. Probably they will start new projects. That happened also.

18:12HostAnd people can buy this Flexedix online, right? Where?

18:16ThorstenIt's on the label's website. The Yelling Light. But basically we sell them at the release show. And we also split the leftovers of the Flexedix to the band. So they can bring those Flexedix on their next tour and sell it.

18:35HostAnd how is it funded? It's all an initiative?

18:38ThorstenYeah, it's funded by a few sponsors. There's like an alternative restaurant called Vito in Vito Tour. They gave a little money. Then the tattoo shop where Thorsen is working is called Freiboyter Tattoo. Then also the local music shop called Backstage Music contributed a few Swiss francs to this project. Yeah, otherwise it's funded by the money that comes in with the release show.

19:08HostSo in the end there's also like a gig, like a release show.

19:13MarkExactly, there's a release show. There's a gig in one location in Vito Tour.

19:17HostAnd when is the next release show?

19:21MarkYeah, the next project will be next year.

19:24HostAha, so the previous project happened recently.

19:28?Exactly, yeah. It just ended last year.

19:32HostAll right, any funny stories?

19:33?From that night? Yeah.

19:35HathorsIf I was at home with my kid, I couldn't come.

19:41?That's reality. Yes.

19:45ThorsenThe whole project actually almost fell apart because two bands couldn't play that night.

19:50ThorstenYeah, actually it's not a funny story. Because of Corona it was very hard to manage the release show and to make it happen in the end.

19:58HathorsBut yeah, we did it in the end, like with half of the bands.

20:02MarkDidn't came out that well as we expected. But hopefully this whole COVID thing will be better next year.

20:09HostHow is it with COVID at the moment in Switzerland?

20:12?It's getting better.

20:13HathorsWe have no COVID anymore.

20:17ThorsenThe cases are going down.

20:19HathorsSo it looks good actually.

20:20HostSo the shows are, that's why you have the upcoming shows.

20:25ThorsenYeah, we can do these shows. We don't have to use masks anymore.

20:30ThorstenYeah, like the restrictions are not as hard as they were anymore. You can also go to a supermarket and buy stuff without a mask at the moment. The only thing that stays is like wearing masks in public transportation.

20:44HostAny plans to add more shows if everything going well, you know, like spontaneously? Or maybe going outside of the country and...

20:53HathorsYeah, we plan actually to play some shows in the US next year. This is two newcomer festivals.

21:01ThorsenOne is called New Colossus Festival and the other one is South by Southwest.

21:06HathorsSo we have an agency in LA which helps us to get these slots.

21:10ThorsenAnd we try to plan this as the big goal of 2023 in March. So actually, we also want to play some shows in Europe before when it's possible with COVID then.

21:23HostYeah, I was just interviewing a band from London and they were telling me about their experience playing at South by Southwest. In their case, it was Everything's Fine. I mean, the episode is not yet released. The episode will come out next week, I think. But they said... What did they say? They said everything was fine. But in their case, they put them... It was their case. They put their show somewhere outside and it was really hard to get there for them. And they said, if it's so hard for them, it's so hard for all the fans. So... But in the end, it all worked out. Everything was fine. So I wish it works out for you.

22:02?Thank you.

22:02MarkYeah, no, that's exactly why we are working with an agency. And we try to plan this carefully.

22:08ThorstenAlso with a few radio promotion campaigns coming up within the next whole year, like with a time gap of approximately four months. So there will be three radio promotion campaigns as well as an online medium.

22:25MarkWe try this...

22:27ThorstenYeah, we hope that this will help us finding a good spot at the festival. And hopefully not outside. Hopefully in the middle.

22:36HostI saw that you are working right now on the new material. You were at the studio... What was it? 48? What's the name of the studio? Like recently.

22:46HathorsStudio 45.

22:47Host45. 45, yeah. So it's like a new material?

22:50HathorsYes, we recorded three new songs. I don't know if you heard it already.

22:55MarkNo, I haven't sent in the link, no. I haven't.

22:58HostAll right. No, it's not yet released. It's too much new information for me, you know? Let me be like most of the fans. Otherwise, you're going to put me under pressure to review them, you know?

23:10?Yeah.

23:12ThorstenWe started the studio. It's the studio of a German producer, Kurt Ebelhäuser. He also played in a band that me personally like a lot called Blackmail. Yeah. He also produced many great albums. Some of them are my favorites.

23:30MarkLike one is called The Royal Ganner from Union Youth. And we just thought that we will go over and record three songs to see how it works.

23:40HostYeah. I checked out the studio. There are like many cool bands were there and worked with him. How did you get in touch with this? How did you find this person and this studio? Is it personal connections or you're looking for somebody?

23:52HathorsOf course. Yeah.

23:53ThorsenI recorded back in the days one 7-inch and two albums with him. And he's a friend of mine as well. And so it fits together because Mark's favorite album was recorded there.

24:09HathorsAnd maybe we have the same humor. And we have a similar wavelength.

24:15MarkIt came out very well. So we're very happy with the result. We also decided to record the whole album later this year with him. So we will join the studio again in November to finish some more tracks.

24:30HostThese three songs are from the new album or is it completely different stuff?

24:35MarkNo, it's part of the new album.

24:37HostAnd we need to mention that this studio is in Germany.

24:41?Yes.

24:41ThorstenIt's in Koblenz. Yeah.

24:43?It's in Germany.

24:44HathorsClose to Cologne.

24:45HostSo I see that most of the time it's all based, in your case, on personal connections. And most of it are Torsten's.

24:53ThorsenYeah, I don't know. We are all from the DIY scene. And you know how it works. It's also friendship. And it's nice to work with friends together and set something nice up.

25:04HathorsExactly.

25:05HostThis is going to be your fourth album of the band, not like the new album.

25:12?It's the fifth. It's the fifth.

25:14HostOr the fifth. I missed one. How does the new material is different from, for example, from the previous album, Grief, Roses and Gasoline?

25:23?Ooh, tough question.

25:24HathorsThe main difference is that the last album, we produced it completely by ourselves.

25:32MarkSo we recorded it in our studio.

25:35HathorsWe did the editing.

25:37ThorstenYeah, we did the editing.

25:38HathorsAnd yeah, it was like tons of work for us.

25:42MarkAnd this time we decided to work with the producer so we can more focus on the music and on our performance on the recording.

25:51HathorsAnd this is what you actually hear because everything sounds really fresh because we

25:56Thorsenare in the studio and they're doing just some little changes and then we record it. And this is not possible actually when we do everything by ourselves.

26:04HostYou have more energy to actually create and not to bother of actually the production.

26:10ThorstenYeah. It's also when you do it by yourself, then probably play a take. Then you go through, you have to run to the computer.

26:17MarkThen there is a technical issue.

26:19ThorstenThen you have to solve this issue. Then you're completely out of the mood of playing the song. And then, yeah. Yeah.

26:24HostWhat about the feel of the music? Is it... Because I read somewhere in the interview that the last album, the Gasoline album, this one was more personal for Mark, I'm not sure. It's like more to bring out the inner stuff. And what about the new material? How is it in comparison to that album?

26:47HathorsI think the music hasn't changed like big time.

26:51MarkYou know, it's like the concept is almost the same.

26:56ThorstenIt's like writing songs about life, about love, about also sometimes like political stuff that bothers. It's like, I always say it's like basically it's about love, but there are like always

27:10Marktwo sides. You always have the bright side and the dark side. So we are like singing still about both sides.

27:16HostYou know, I read, I think you have it somewhere in your biography somewhere, that the first album was too polished. Then the second album and the third were more rough. Okay. The second was more rough. And then the third one was a mix. And then number four, their gasoline one, that's what I wrote in my notes, is back to the first album, like a little bit more polished. So how is the new material different from that? Is it also like polished or is it going to the raw stuff?

27:47ThorsenA little bit dirtier, I think, again.

27:51?Yeah.

27:51HathorsNot that polished.

27:53?Yeah.

27:53HostI read that the problem with the first album was that it was so polished that when you played live, people did not expect, they were expecting one thing and you got, and they were getting another thing.

28:06MarkYeah, that's right. So we were, we had like much more energy on stage than on the album, even though the album was well produced. And I don't even think that it's like too polished, but it's like really well produced. You know, it's like we had a big team producing this album. We took lots of time to, yeah, to work it out also in details. You know, the second time we just wanted to play it live. So basically on Brainwash, we recorded the whole album in a live session. We did not add too many overdubs or too many backing vocals or like keys or horns or whatever. It was just like we wanted to keep it simple. On the third one, we also worked with a producer from England. So the second one we recorded by ourselves and the third one we also recorded with a producer. So that was like another influence also in the way of producing the album. And now on the brief Roses and Gasoline album, we decided to put more energy in the production again. And just because we wanted, because we were like, okay, we want to find out how it sounds if you add like keys or if you add horns, if you add like tons of backing vocals and a few more guitar tracks and stuff like that.

29:29HostSo I guess the listeners should expect something completely different or just a bit, how different is it?

29:37HathorsI think it's really close to the live energy.

29:41ThorstenYeah.

29:42HathorsWhen we had the rehearsal yesterday, I thought it's more connected to the album, live performance and the album.

29:53ThorstenI think Kurt Ebelhäuser is doing a very good job and it really sounds like a trio on this. It's not like an orchestra playing.

30:02MarkThe last album was more an orchestra and this time it's more like a trio, but it sounds fat. You know, it's like, it sounds huge.

30:10HostSo it's fuzzier, maybe.

30:14?Yeah.

30:15HathorsMaybe it can be a Sepadot style or something. I don't know.

30:20?Yeah.

30:20ThorstenI mean, if you listen to a few of Kurt Ebelhäuser's productions, then probably might get a taste of how it sounds like.

30:29HostThe production process changed with each album, right? And with this one, it's also different.

30:35ThorstenYeah, it's also different. I mean, it's also like, it also depends on how much money do you have to produce an album. That was also a reason why we produced the second album completely by our own, like to save money because we didn't have a lot.

30:54HostSo the plan now is to go on tour, right? And record the material later this year.

31:00?Yes.

31:01HathorsThat's the plan. Exactly.

31:03HostHave you tried live streaming? I read somewhere that in the beginning of the pandemic, you did some live streams. Yeah.

31:10ThorsenWe did one show, which we streamed live, actually with all the songs from Grief Roses and Gasoline.

31:16?Yeah.

31:17HostIt was, you, you made it yourself or was it like a, from a, like a TV channel or something, or you decided to do it on YouTube or Twitch on your own?

31:27HathorsYeah. It was DIY. Yeah. It was completely DIY.

31:30ThorstenWe also made a few streaming concerts at radio shows.

31:34HostI don't remember if I asked this question. How do you get signed? So in your case, how did you get picked up by a record label?

31:41MarkWell, first of all, I think you have to play as much as you can.

31:45ThorstenSo you have to become a good live band. You have to...

31:48HostHow do you get the first shows?

31:50?The first shows? Yeah.

31:52HostWhat I mean is like many young bands that I talk to, for them in the beginning, it's a struggle to get a response from promoters and venues.

32:01MarkYeah. Sometimes when you, when you begin, you should not think too much about like only playing

32:08Thorstenvenues. You, you can also play birthday parties of your friends, you know, you can also play in

32:14Markschool or you, you can play wherever you want.

32:18ThorstenYou can also ask your favorite bar if you can bring your gear and play for free, you know, and like, first of all, you have to, you have to organize a lot by yourselves.

32:27HostWhat was, uh, in your case, do you remember your first shows? I mean, it doesn't have to be with, with Heather's band in, in, in general.

32:35MarkMy very first show I played, like I was 13 and it was in school.

32:40HathorsMy, my first, uh, was in a garden party.

32:43?We set up to have a concert.

32:45HathorsSo we had a concert venue.

32:48ThorsenI actually don't remember which was my first show. I always played concerts since I was eight years old. I played in this, uh, child orchestra. So this kind of stuff, I played a lot of shows, but didn't, didn't have to organize it because this was organized by this orchestra. When we formed the band, I actually don't remember what, what was the first show.

33:09HostSo I guess it's just, uh, with this band, it's like everything kind of happened organically. You know, I don't think you were like on purpose looking for a label sending out demos or, or did you?

33:22MarkUh, no, like the first record deal, uh, we got because we, we played a show in the, um,

33:28ThorstenFrench speaking part of Switzerland. Then it was like the classic story. Uh, the label manager was in the audience. Uh, he thought, uh, we were a good, a good band. And then, uh, then we met and then the, the first label, you came in like this.

33:42HostAre you planning to do more music videos for the new material?

33:45MarkSo yeah, at the moment we are planning, uh, new videos for the, for the next album, try

33:51Thorstento, to gather ideas, how we should do it and, uh, which show it should be and stuff like that.

33:57MarkSo of course there will be like two or three music videos for the next release as well.

34:02ThorsenBut it's also important that you can get some money again because we couldn't play much and finance everything is, is hard.

34:10HostHave you ever tried to the crowdfunding?

34:12ThorstenYeah, we did a crowdfunding campaign like with the second album.

34:17HostAnd how was it? I mean, I guess it was successful.

34:19ThorstenIt was successful. Yeah.

34:21MarkIt really covered the costs for, for the second album.

34:23HostAnd what did you like, uh, what did you learn like the most important thing from that campaign?

34:28MarkYeah.

34:29ThorstenFirst of all, we were very thankful that we, we have such great fans who are supporting us financial wise. Of course, it was a lot of work to organize, uh, this campaign because you also have them

34:40Markto prepare goodies. You have to prepare like different packages, different sizes of, of packages. Therefore, uh, like you have to offer a little more or a little less depending on the package.

34:54ThorstenAnd yeah, that included like, uh, organizing shows, uh, playing living rooms, uh, of contributors.

35:02HostAnd, uh, uh, so you, you even had, uh, like this tears, uh, where you have to play a live show at, with the fans or, or what was it?

35:13MarkYeah.

35:13ThorstenIt was like, uh, there were like different packages, uh, like, uh, the most expensive package

35:18Markwas like around 800 Swiss francs.

35:21ThorstenAnd like the cheapest was, uh, around like 20. Yeah. It was like, um, if you buy a package for 20 Swiss francs, you will get the MP3s for free.

35:33HostYeah. But what about the most expensive ones? What do they get for the most expensive? Do you remember?

35:37MarkNot remember exactly, but I just know it was a, it was a show in their living room.

35:42HostYeah. That's what I mean. You know, this is something like extreme to have a show. So usually with the crowdfunding, you, yeah, you have these packages and the, one of the most expensive ones are like a t-shirt, the bundle, the t-shirts, vinyls, everything together. But to play a show is a bit different thing. Did you actually manage to play a show? You have to?

36:03MarkYeah. We played those shows. Of course.

36:05HostSo somebody paid at 800 Swiss francs. Yes. Was it on Kickstarter?

36:10MarkNo, no, it wasn't on Kickstarter. It was a Swiss based, um, crowdfunding platform. It's called, we make it.

36:18HostAh, yes, I know it.

36:19?Yeah.

36:19HostI was talking to a French band and they had their own platform called Lulu, Leloo, Lalu, Leloo, something, Ulu, or something like this. I don't know. Everybody's using their local platform. Yeah. It doesn't matter actually which platform, as long as you get the money from the fans, contributors, donations.

36:37HathorsBut it's also a mirror. You see how much people like you and your band.

36:42?Yeah.

36:43HathorsYeah. It's awesome. You give, you give a lot of, you, without expectations, you get a lot back.

36:49HostAre you planning or have you done, like, uh, for example, uh, Thurston, you have a tattoo, like, uh, you work as a tattooer or what is it? You mentioned tattoos.

37:00HathorsYes. So I work as a tattooer and I also do, uh, illustrations.

37:04HostYeah. Have you tried to combine that with the band, like for the merch?

37:09ThorsenNo, not now, not now. Yeah. We wanted ones to do live tattooing after the show, but then we dismissed the idea.

37:19?It would be cool.

37:20HathorsBut I have a, but I have a portable, a tattoo machine and I can, uh, use it while they sleep,

37:25?drunk.

37:27HostDid, did some, did you have some, did you have stories like that during the tour with this machine? Yeah.

37:33HathorsI have his name here on my butt.

37:37HostHow was your tours actually? You know, uh, for example, last year, what was the craziest tour you had together?

37:43ThorsenIn my case, it was, uh, the, my first show on the radio and I was super nervous and you can hear everything if you play.

37:51?Yeah.

37:52HathorsBut it was awesome.

37:54ThorstenYeah. Also like the best show in, in Berlin that we, we, we played.

37:57HathorsOh, oh.

37:58ThorstenWe played, uh, the Lido that's in, uh, uh, Kreuzberg district in, in Berlin and we played with our buddies 24 seven Diva heaven. It was like, uh, new restrictions came up, like only half of, uh, of the year. The people, uh, or on the half of the capacity, capacity of the venue, uh, is allowed to enter and stuff like that. So that was quite tricky. We also had to fly to Germany, uh, without knowing if we are like positive or negative tested. So first we had to fly over, then make the tests, uh, then wait if, uh, everybody's negative. And yeah, that was, uh, kind of a bit stressful, but in the end we had a nice show and, uh, a very good evening.

38:45HostSo yeah, I saw the photos I haven't seen, uh, I'm not sure if there are videos, but I saw the photos from the gig in Berlin, in Lido. It looks really cool. And it was funny because in the crowd, I can see people from other bands that I know. Yeah, I know.

38:59?Me too.

39:01HathorsYeah.

39:02HostBut for me, it was like, like, Whoa, I know such, these people. Who was there? Uh, there was, uh, there was, uh, there was a band, some members from the band Lobster Bomb.

39:12?Yeah.

39:13HathorsYeah.

39:14HostYeah. Cool band. Uh, and somebody else I don't remember, but Lobster Bomb deserves a shout out.

39:21HathorsIt was a nice concert. It was a nice concert. Yeah. And, uh, later it was a nice, uh, label, label, um, label after show party because, uh, lots

39:32Thorstenof bands, uh, that are also on the same label on Noisolution, uh, came to the show. And, uh, when they threw us out of the, of the backstage, we all went over to the bar of, uh, one guy from the band Vok.

39:46MarkYeah. We had a really nice after show party over there. So that was very nice.

39:50HostAny funny stories that you can tell?

39:53HathorsIt wasn't that funny. It was only nice.

39:57HathorsOne person, uh, called us, we, that I have a new haircut, that I have long hair. It was super strange. I don't know how to explain it. Okay.

40:08MarkNo, it was a very nice evening. Like, uh, we connected with, uh, new bands.

40:13HathorsWe, it was nice to meet, uh, a couple of bands on this label.

40:17HostIt was the first time you met these bands, uh, or it's like, you know, some, I mean, you should probably know some bands local on this label.

40:25HathorsIn my case, it was the first time I, I've been also on this label back in the days, but

40:32ThorstenWith the former band, Bubonix. Yeah.

40:35HathorsI've been there also with two releases and it was nice to see all the new bands and new generations and, uh, talk to them.

40:43HostAre there completely different? You said generations, you know, so you probably look at them differently.

40:49HathorsI was there on maybe 2007 or 2008 and, uh, it's a bit different now.

40:56HostSo, and what's, what's the difference too much, too many Tik Tokers?

41:00?Yes.

41:01MarkNo, I guess the, the bands, uh, have changed, uh, on the roster of the label. Of course, there are also a few newcomer bands now, uh, on that label, which is great to see, you know, it's like, uh, still growing.

41:16HostDo you have some stuff more on the list that we need to mention? And then as a topic on your list that you have now, do you know, the band Peacocks?

41:27?Not sure.

41:29HathorsIt's an international, uh, rockabilly band.

41:31HostWhat's the story with them? Did you play with them?

41:33HathorsMaybe the famous, uh, rock band here in our town. Also, Howlong Wolf and the Peacocks, they lent us their band bus.

41:41ThorstenExactly, so, uh, because we don't own our own van, we can also have, uh, their van.

41:48MarkNo, just, do you know another band from Winter Tour?

41:50HostNo, please tell me.

41:52?No, okay.

41:53ThorstenYou should definitely check out the Death of a Cheerleader. It's, uh, where Domi and I met.

41:59?Uh-huh.

42:00ThorstenI used to play guitar, uh, live shows, uh, with Death of a Cheerleader. And it's also a band where Domi is playing still.

42:09?Yes.

42:09ThorstenAnd, of course, you should, uh, check out, uh, Rueda Cascade, if you like experimental rock music.

42:16?He produced it.

42:17MarkExactly.

42:18ThorstenI'm also working as a music producer in the, in the band studio, so sometimes I also record bands.

42:23HostSo you're basically, on the list, you wrote everybody who helped you, or with whom you worked, or who helped, or you helped, right?

42:31?No.

42:32HathorsNo, every, every band we like, there are many people in these bands, they're friends as well.

42:38MarkJust dropping a few names from the scene.

42:41?Yeah, I know, I know, I know. I mean, I asked you that you should mention it, like, in my email, so you, you came prepared. Well, you, you're my first, uh, Swiss band.

42:50HostYou're the first band that there are three people for the interview, and the one that has, uh, a list of, of names. And I guess, uh, the local, the Austrian, because I'm recording from Austria, uh, the local promoters and bookers can contact all those people for the show.

43:06MarkOf course, of course, they should. Highly recommend it.

43:09HostIs it okay if they contact you for a recommendation or something like this?

43:13ThorstenYeah, of course. Of course. Because on our, um, release tour that, uh, went straight down the drain because of Corona, um, we, we would have played in, uh, Vienna as well, at the Flux, as well as a few other shows in Austria. So, hopefully, we can, uh, come over to Austria next year to play a few more shows. That would be very nice.

43:35HostOr maybe earlier, if everything goes so well, that maybe you have space to make a detour and go to Austria. Yeah, it would be nice.

43:44MarkYeah, I've never been to Vienna.

43:46?No? No. No, me neither.

43:48ThorstenWe definitely should.

43:50HostAh, all right. So, I saw on Facebook that, okay, so that gig never happened. I saw that you have, ah, socks, balls. Yeah, you should come.

44:02MarkIt's on our list. It's on our bucket list.

44:04HostSo, where can people follow, uh, the Hethers band? Where should they check you out? Do you have a specific, uh, website?

44:13ThorstenYeah, they can join us, uh, on, uh, www.hethers.info. This is our website. And, of course, they can join us on Instagram. Uh, our Instagram name is called Hethers Official. And, of course, on TikTok now, uh, our username is called, uh, Hethers Noise. And if you're still on Facebook, you can also choose, uh, join us on, uh, Hethers Noise. It's the user of Facebook. Of course, yeah, you should join us on, on Spotify, Bandcamp, SoundCloud, Tidal, whatever.

44:47?Whatever, yes.

44:49HathorsOr buy our records on Bandcamp.

44:51?Exactly.

44:52HostYes, yes, yes, yes. And also, you have, uh, you have really cool merch.

44:56?Thank you very much.

44:57HostYou have cool designs. You have designs on T-shirts. Visually, I think, uh, actually, that's how I discovered your band. I discover most of the bands these days on Instagram. And I see how professional they are in a visual presentation. And if they're, like, cool-looking, it means that maybe they're serious also about the music. You know, if they're serious about the visuals, maybe the, the, the music is also good. And that's how I discovered you. Most probably, I don't remember. But what are we listening at the end of the episode?

45:28ThorstenYeah, the question is more, is it, uh, should it be one song from our band? Or should it be, like, in general?

45:34HostIt can be anything.

45:36MarkYeah, I think we would like to, to play a song from Mark Lennigan.

45:39?Yes.

45:40MarkHe just died.

45:41?That's a good decision.

45:43HathorsWhich is, uh, terrible news and, yeah.

45:46?Which song?

45:46MarkGood question. I'd say Hit the City.

45:49HostMaybe actually we can put two songs. His first and then second yours.

45:53MarkYeah, then I would recommend we play The Valley. Because our video clip will be coming out soon.

45:58HostAll right. In honor of, of Mark Lennigan, we're going to play his song. And then we're going to play your song.

46:03ThorstenPlease. Thank you. Cool. Thank you very much.

46:06HostYeah, it's my show. I can do whatever I want.

46:09HathorsPerfect.

46:09HostAll right, guys. Thank you very much for this interview.

46:12MarkHey, thank you for having us. Thank you. It was a pleasure to talk to you.

49:00?Heathers.

49:01HathorsThank you for listening to Interceptor Beyond Podcast.

52:36HostDon't forget to follow the show wherever you listen to podcasts. And if you like what you're hearing, rate the show on Spotify or any other podcast platform that you prefer.