interview with Red Ligh † Angels
Have any of you played in other bands? Yes, we all have played in other projects. Bob and Jöel have solo projects on the side, Adam and Viktör are both freelance musicians.
What are your names? / Who plays what?
Jöel David - Vocals/Guitar/Harmonica
Adam Light - Guitar/Backing Vocals
Viktör Vön - Bass/Backing Vocals
Bob Crisp (B-o-B) - Drums/Backing Vocals
Have you had other previous members? Clint Richardson on guitar, Sebastian Baltes on guitar, and Ryan Maker on Drums
Did you make music even when you were young?
"I've been performing on stage since I was four years old" - Jöel
"Since I was in third grade" - Bob
"In fourth grade my best friend turned me on to three bands that made me stick with music for life: Metallica, Pearl Jam, and Weird Al" - Viktör
"I've been playing guitar since I was 12" - Adam
Where are you from? The band is based out of Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
What year did the band form? Fall of 2013
What's your style of genre? Hard Rock
What inspires you?
Rock and Roll has always been a genre for outsiders, so we draw on our personal experiences to bring people together.
"Girls" - Jöel
"Unleashing the Rock and Roll savagery upon the populace" - Adam
"Music’s the only thing that makes sense. Play loud enough, it keeps the demons at bay" - Viktör
"Being able to count past four" – Bob
How often and where do you rehearse? We rehearse as much as we can at Adam's music studio.
How have you developed since you started with the music? When we first started out, we were just four guys who wanted to play as loud and fast as possible. Through the recording process and live shows, we have refined our music to a much tighter sound by implenting new instrumentation, different vocal layering techniques, and more dynamic guitar and bass parts. Through regular live shows we've also grown as performers putting on the best show we can each night.
Do you have other interests of work outside the band? Viktör is a voice actor, Jöel runs a night club, Adam does recording and mixing, Bob occasionally co-hosts as a radio personality across the country. All four of us are fans of the local music scene, and enjoy as many shows as we can.
Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? We're looking to expand our network, and any booking is always welcome.
Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that?
We're always open to a label, though we have been establishing ourselves independently.
We self produced and recorded our debut EP using our combined skills.
What made you decide to make this music? We all grew up loving this style of music, and felt that we could bring that music to the modern day.
What are your songs about?
"Blood and booze, girls and gore" - Jöel David
Our songs are about what we've seen, everything from being in one night stands to being in love, from being the life of the party to losing a life. Our songs are about things we can all relate to but through our own perhaps twisted perspectives.
Who does the composing and writes the lyrics? Jöel does the primary lyric work with everyone else coming together on the music.
Do you start with the music or the lyrics? It can start out either way, but most songs are fleshed out with us jamming together.
Have you done any covers live? Looks That Kill by Motley Crue, Paradise City by Guns 'n' Roses, and Superstition by Stevie Wonder. We occasionally throw in covers, but usually stick to original material.
What language do you sing in? English (really really slurred English).
What ages are most of your concert attendants? Our main demographic is 20 to 40 year olds, but we also have teenagers 16 and up just discovering the music as well as the 40 plus crowd who still loves the style.
Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? We try our best to vary our setlist from show to show to keep our fans engaged.
Do you have a regular place you play live often? For the past two years, we have been a staple at the Nashville Rock club Daisy Duke's.
What was your first gig like? It was awesome. It was great to play for the first time, and share the stage with some great bands like The Tip.
What was your latest gig? New Year's Eve 2016, in downtown Nashville, TN USA.
Have you had to cancel a gig? Never.
Where have you played live this year? Since it's only early January it's only been Daisy Duke's in Nashville, TN USA but we've got a lot more coming.
Where do you plan to gig the coming year? We have a lot in the works, both nationally and internationally.
When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale? We've had merch from the beginning, everything from stickers, pins, and some great new T-Shirts with plans to expand our merchandise from there!
Where can people buy your merchandise? At our shows, messaging us through our Facebook Page, and coming soon through our website. Our single is available at whiskeykills.bandcamp.com
What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days? Being able to buy music online is a great way for us to spread our music to new fans worldwide, but we always love having an album we can hold in our hands.
How do you think the music industry have changed because of this? The music industry has always been a tough one to get into, but there is a certain accessabilty now between both bands and their fans, which could lead to an untapped part of an always changing industry. We look forward to exploring the new possibilities.
What do you think of my work?
"I think it's totally rad that you create a platform for bands to reach new audiences" -Adam
We appreciate the opportunity for unknown bands to expand their fan bases. We're really impressed with the community you've built, and are honored to be a part of it.
How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? Getting the opportunity to be interviewed by a reputable source will help get our name out there.
Do you have any role models or idols?
"Buddy Rich - he's just amazing" - Bob
"In terms of bass playing and songwriting Iron Maiden and Rush have been two of my biggest influences" - Viktör
"There would be no Jöel David without Alice Cooper" - Joel David
"Jimmy Page from Led Zeppelin taught me a lot on how to be a guitar player in a total band context" - Adam
Why do you think that they exist? They were leaders to set examples.
Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? We think it's easier to find inpsiration from older bands because they have withstood the test of time.
What advice would you give other bands or artists? Promotion is key, and find something that nobody else is doing.
How do you get psyched for a gig? Bob and Jöel jump up and down, Jöel screams a lot. Viktör and Adam are just ready to start playing.
Do you have any new material? Yes, we have a brand new EP that will be released soon, with a followup already being recorded.
What are your web sites?
Facebook.com/redlightangels
Instagram.com/redlightangels
Twitter.com/redlightangels
Redlightangelsband.com
How can people reach you? [email protected] Or via our Facebook page
What are your plans for the future? Same thing we do every night; try to take over the world!
Do you have something to add? Thank you again for having this interview with us, we think you rock!
