9+1 Q&A with Weal

What inspired you to first start making music? And how did you come to be in your current incarnation? Or if you prefer, a brief bio about you.

Weal was formed in 2016. After a small change in the line up, from the first EP, we have really found each other and our sound. During the first year, we experimenting a little more with styles from track to track, always getting a few steps closer to our sound today, a sound that we want to explore further. After the EP Melt (2019), which introduced Weal on the Scandinavian alternative rock scene, especially the noisy duet Night Drive featuring lovely Tanja Simonsen (Superheroes, ONBC). Night Drive quickly found its way to Danish national radio which paved the way for a number of cool Spotify playlists with great publicity as a result in Denmark, Germany, England and the USA.

Provide us with some info about your latest release…

On January 8, 2021, our first full album ‘Calm’ was released and we are really looking forward to its reception. New York Noise is the first single from the album, which also has Night Drive on the track list. We are currently working on vinyl production in the Netherlands at the world’s most environmentally friendly vinyl pressing plant. No compromises. But of course the album is also available on all digital platforms.

New York Noise and Night Drive gives a good idea of what to expect from the album. It’s with the guitars in front, profound vocals and catchy melodies – from the very delicate to raw noise. The response to the first single has been phenomenal. We are very excited and can only hope that the album gets the same great reception.

Which ones would you consider your main influences both music-wise & non-music-wise?

We are four individuals who all bring something to the table. We are inspired by different artists, so it can be anything from Mogwai, Mono and Caspian, to Sonic Youth, The National and Neil Young. The EPs Diving In and Melt have developed our sound to where we are today. Our creative process is a lot of jamming and being in the moment, almost letting the song create itself. Especially in our genre, it is easy to kill an idea and completely pull all energy out of by overplanning and overthinking. The beauty often lies in the imperfection, and the imperfect can’t be put into formula. It just happens. The exercise then lies in being able to recreate those moments. We like to keep things fresh and so we record all ideas immediately, without overthinking them. So that the immediate raw ideas survive. It just feels real that way.

In what way does your sound differ from the rest genre-related artists/bands and why should we listen to your music? In other words, how would you describe your sound?

Our philosophy is; if we can feel it, there is a pretty good chances that someone else out there somewhere can feel it too. The world is so big and it is easy today to get the music out to a lot of people. It’s just about finding your audience, because they are out there somewhere. Keep believing in it. Keep it personal. Tell the truth. It’s not alway pretty, but it’s real. And there is always somekind of beauty in reality.

Please name your 3 desert islands albums, movies & books…

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Do you prefer studio or performing live and why?

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Is there any funny-unique story you would like to share with us, always in relation to your music ‘career’?

We all have families and children to support. And we can’t make a living from our music right now, so we all have full-time jobs. Actually we have very different jobs. So in fact, it’s never about work when we’re together. It’s about our music. ..and our children …and our lack of sleep. In fact, we would like our music to reflect us as whole people who live whole lives. We are not ’just’ musicians, we are human beings living in the real world with everything that goes with that, and we believe this is a strength. Music isn’t everything in life, in fact it’s just a mirror of life.

Which track of your own would you point out as the most unique and why?

Night Drive was our radio debut. It’s always special to hear your own songs on the radio for the first time.

Would you like to share with our readers your future plans?

We can hardly wait to play live again. We have just finished the recordings of our debut album, so we are of course looking forward to playing all the new songs live.

Free question!!! (Ask yourself a question) you wish to answer and haven’t been given the opportunity…

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Curated by: Christos Doukakis

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