Interview with Liquid Earth
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Interview with Liquid Earth
Hello guys, what got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music, what would you be doing today?
We three learned our instruments already at a young age, but it all started as a school band during our school days (we all went to the same school). We had different bands but at one point we started jamming together and the three of us had a special musically connection. Since then, we’ve made music together.
What do you like to do when you are not playing music, and how does that influence your creativity?
As a balance to rehearsing, playing gigs, and making music we all have different strategies. Our drummer started baking his own bread during the pandemic, we all play different types of video games and sometimes we just go to a bar to have a few beers and a good chat. We also love to check out the various great bands that the Viennese underground scene has to offer. It’s important to clear your mind to get creative again! Apart from that we study and/or work.
How long has your band been around?
Even if it all started as a school band a long time ago, Liquid Earth was officially founded in 2015.
Where are you based and how did that influence your music?
Vienna has a lot to offer when it comes to the underground music scene. We have many good friends and bands which inspire us day by day. Also, with locations like the Arena, ViperRoom, or Chelsea there are many great locations which are willing to support newcomer bands to get on stage. You have to check out the Austrian/Viennese music scene. There are a lot of gems to find!
Apart from that, the 16th district of Vienna has the best beer to offer: Ottakringer.
How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?
The name combines the wide variety of genres and atmospheres that we try to cover with our music. While Liquid stands for the more psychedelic, fluid, and calmer parts of our songs, Earth describes the grounded, long-lasting, and recurring doom sections.
Tell me about your most memorable shows.
We played a lot of special shows during the last few years but if we had to pick the most memorable one it would either be the show at Arena Vienna (big hall) or our first gig outside of Austria where we played at the Cross Club in Prague.
The gig at Arena was probably our biggest one where we had the pleasure to support another magnificent Viennese band – Triptonus. In Prague, we shared the stage with our good friends from Speck and Salami Recorder and we had the honor to close the Snow Stone Smoker fest with our set.
What is your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already?
Vienna has a lot of great venues to offer when it comes to playing live, but our favorite one has to be the Arena. With its many different halls (big hall, small hall, DreiRaum, Arena Beisl) and even an open-air stage, it allows to host a lot of different acts at one big location. From well-known bands to smaller local bands or even art exhibitions, you can find everything at the Arena. It’s an important location for alternative (youth) culture.
On the other side, there are a lot of beautiful summer open-air festivals in Austria. First and foremost the lovely Lake on Fire. It holds a special place for us because it was the first stoner/doom/psych festival we three visited together. Apart from that, the stage is located on a small lake, so it doesn’t get any cooler than that. We never had the chance to play there, but it would be a dream come true.
If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket?
It would be an honor to play with stoner/doom legends like Sleep, OM or Elder. And for my inner metalhead Lamb of God or Iron Maiden would get a special set.
What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self?
The most important thing is to keep it real, just be yourself and be authentic. Make the music you love and are passionate about. Don’t let anybody bring you down and don’t be influenced by anybody in a negative way. But stay humble at the same time and don’t get arrogant or cocky.
If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?
Keep it going, stay motivated and practice more (yes even technical stuff like rudiments on the drums…)! And probably the best advice for playing live: only 2 beers before the show, not 5+!
Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?
It’s hard to say because many songs mean a lot to us. But one of our favorites is Wall of Love from our first demo album Slow Grown. It’s a rather slow track, but over time our friends started to dance during it and now they have a choreography which they perform every time we play it live. Also, Katerfrühstück has a special place for us because it was the single of our new album Teufelskreis. We also made a weird video for it, so check it out!
Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most?
One of our favorites to play and most requested is Floating Mind from our first album. It’s always a pleasure to play it live because our friends and fans know it inside and out. It also combines a lot of fun parts to play.
What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?
It’s simple: most of our songs are a result of long jam sessions. Either our bass or guitar player come up with a riff or a part of a new song and we start to play together until we’re happy with the outcome.
This can be a pretty long process, but it’s important to stay creative so that’s possible to change parts we’re not happy with.
What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?
We don’t have an explicit message we want to spread, but it’s the most important thing to do whatever you are passionate about. Passion and fun should be the reasons to make music, not fame or money.
Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?
Yes of course there can be some smaller arguments or disagreements regarding our songs, our rehearsal room, or whatsoever. But most of the time we can sort them out while having a few beers and a conversation.
What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?
Since we released our new album, we want to get back to playing live and make up for everything that wasn’t possible during the pandemic. At the moment we try to promote our new album and organize a lot of shows (hopefully some summer festivals in 2023!). Our plan for the upcoming summer is to organize a small tour in and outside of Vienna/Austria!
We also have some live videos from our gig at Arena that we want to release in the near future.
How can your fans best keep up to date with you, any socials you want people to check out?
The best way to keep up to date with us is by following our socials like Instagram, Facebook, or Bandcamp. You also can listen to our new album “Teufelskreis” on Spotify, Tidal, and all other streaming platforms!