Interview with Mudville 56
What´s the name of your band? Mudville 56
How was the band formed? It´s basically a duo, both of us had been freelance musicians for years, now we wanted to do something different.
Can you tell about your band? This is an "old school" roots music duo frm Finland, established 2012.
Where are all band members from?/Who does what in the band? We´re from Helsinki, Finland. Andy Hilland: vocals, Gretsch/acoustic guitar, Topi karvonen: double bass
What was the ambitions of the band when you started? We just wanted to play.
Could you explain your music to someone that haven't heard you? We play "vintage" country & rockabilly with a 50´s flavour
Where was your first gig? In a local pub in Helsinki.
Where was the latest gig? @ Albertin Kellari, Hämeenlinna (FI)
Who writes your songs?/Who writes the music who writes lyrics? Andy Hilland, well we´ve just released to singles. Mostly we play old songs from the 50´s.
Who has the best since of humor in the band? Maybe You mean "sense".
What's good/bad with the band?/What genre do you feel you are? There´s just benefits with us. Absolutely no drawbacks! Just the two of us, no worries, Yippee!! We´re just some cowboys from the North.
Why did you pick that particular style?/What are your songs about? We love those old songs. They are mostly about broken hearts, gettin in jail etc. Bad stories ;)
Do you write your own material or mainly covers? Both
Have you made any albums?/If yes what are they? Two singles: Hound dog (iTunes) and Skatin´on very thin ice/Dear old Jessie 7" vinyl.
Do you have any clips on YouTube?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXZWjxqIEOg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OuKzHWkM-C0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYsbHWk1WPY
How old are you?/What got you started in music? 43 (Andy)
At what age did you start playing? Five (Andy)
How old were you guys when you first stood on stage? I was about seven (Andy)
What year was the band started? 2012
Best/worst gig you've played? The best...hmm not that sure but once I had an opportunity to be on tour through European Capitals. Our band back then was the opening act for Roxy Music. That was fun (Andy).
What places will you be playing in in the imidate future? Some clubs and concert places all over the Finland.
Where have you played from then till now? With this band just in Finland and Estonia.
Witch band is the best you´ve seen? Los Lobos
What has been the best/most promising gig so far? Hilland Music Club #1 with Anna Puu @ Korjaamo (there´s a Youtube link)
Have you had any bigger tours from start to now? Not really, about 50 gigs in two Years. That´s not bad at all I think.
How big crowds do you usually play for? From 50 to 300.
What are the plans for the rest of the year? Just giggin´
Where do you usually play? Pubs, festivals, concert places, clubs.
How do you get psyched up for a gig? Usually we don´t have time to do anything, just set the thing up and play!
What are your goals with your music? To be a bit better every day.
When did you decide to go all in for the music? Oh, it´s been quite a long time from those days...can´t really recall.
Is it easier to get your inspiration from older bands or from bands more modern? Wow! In our case it´s quite clear :) Well, actually there are a lot of good retro style bands also, J.D. McPherson is one of my favourites.
What are your sources of inspiration? Heaven & hell & everything in between
What's the first step when making a new song? To sit down
How do you feel about the downloading of music instead of buying albums? I´m into vinyls. Not really downloading that much.
What would be your dreams for the band? To be able to do some international touring, also.
Besides your own music, what genres and bands do you listen to? jazz, country, bluegrass, rocknroll, oh too many..
What do you hold most dear? Depends on the day and the mood I´m in.
What would be your greatest fears for the future? No fears!
When you are on stage, what do you fear most then? Well, don´t have any fears nowadays. We´ve been professional players for at least two decades, so...
What songs and what years were they released? Hound Dog 2012, Skatin´on very thin ice/Dear old Jessie 7" 2014
Have you been part of any other projects? Yes, and doing many things all the time.
Have you been in any other bands? Yep.
What do you work with outside of the band and the music? Nothing, I´m a musician. We both are.
What would you do if there was no music? Fishing
How important are your fans? Very important
What's the funniest/most memorable thing a fan has done for you? It´s a secret.
How often do you rehearse? Depends, sometimes daily, sometimes there may be a couple of months break.
Where do you rehearse? @ Kaapelitehdas, Helsinki.
Name 2 of your own songs you like at the moment? Skatin´on very thin ice/Dear old Jessie
What do you feel is the best live band you've seen? Daniel Lanois Black Dub or Los Lobos
Do you have any webpages? www.facebook.com/mudvilleband
Any pearls of wisdom for all other bands out there? Keep Your wheels rolling on the road.
Describe your show, visually and musically It´s a time travelling trip.
How do you view the musicindurty of today? Not easy.
What advice would you like to give other bands? Come to see us playing!
What are the biggest obstacles for a band? We don´t think of the obstacles. We concentrate on the opportunities.
What is best/worst with playing the clubs? Can´t see any bad things. Usually it works really fine.
Tell us about upcomming gigs and why we should be at them? We do "bigger" sound with just the two of us on stage. Vocal harmonies...slap tha bass!!
How would you describe your sound in one sentence GROOVY old school rocknroll!
What is your favorite crappy instrument? open back banjo
What was one of the most quarrelsome times for you in the band?In a sence sometimes we´re like an old married couple. But not really arguing. You know what I´m talkin´about.