Robex Lundgren virkblogg.

Have any of you played in other bands? Yes we all have played in various punk bands over the years. Our drummer currently also plays in A Mammoth Task and our guitar player also plays in a band called Eugene Gray and the Bad Habits.

How is it that you started playing music? Our singer Adam moved to Chicago from the Northeast US in 2011 and formed the band with ex guitarist, Karl. Over the years the lineup has changed a bit but the band was built from the ground up really with no connections, members or clout.

What are your names? / Who plays what? / How old are you? Adam is our singer he is currently 29. Jack is our bassist, 34. Patrick is our guitarist also 29 and Logan our drummer is 22. 

Have you had other previous members? Yes in the early years of the band there were a lot of members that didn’t stick around long until we found the right fit. Our ex guitarist Karl founded the band with Adam and helped with a lot of the songwriting until he left in 2018.

Did you make music even when you were young? Yes, we all started playing music to different degrees at a young age. Mostly as early teenagers. 

Where are you from? The band is from Chicago, Illinois USA

What year did the band form? 2011

What's your style of genre? We are a hardcore punk band. Influenced by street punk and hardcore as well as other styles outside the punk spectrum.

How have you developed since you started with the music? The first demo we made was a straightforward punk rock EP. Since then we have explored a number of different sounds from more melodic to fast paced heavier hardcore punk to street punk style songs and on our newer record even some slower more somber material. We have developed enough of our own style and sound now that we are not afraid to think outside the box for our genre as we can still confidently make the music our own.

We all work full time as well. Adam works security and bartending in the service industry, Jack is a full time trucker, Patrick works at a sign shop and Logan works in pet care with dogs and cats. 

Aside from music literature and movies are an influence to the band.

Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? We are open to that sort of thing but right now we might not be big enough of a band though we do tour. Either way we have not been actively looking.

Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that? Most of the records we have put out have been on Indie/DIY labels. In the future we would be interested in moving on to something bigger to a wider audience. We are not opposed to punk bands doing cool things with their music. There seems to be a stigma about that in the punk scene. But there seems to be nothing cooler especially after working full time for years than playing music as a full time thing. But it takes work and perseverance and doesn’t happen overnight if ever. Right now we are paying our dues and having a good time.

What are your songs about? A lot of our music is made to tell a story or slice of our lives to the listener. A lot of bands write very vague lyrics and don’t go into too much depth. We have been trying to go a little more in depth to create a more solid image lately. Mostly it’s about stories of city life and existentialism, and the occasional political song.

Who does the composing and writes the lyrics? It used to be a mix of Adam and Karl writing the songs with Adam writing the lyrics. After Karl left the band Adam and Jack get together and demo tracks before bringing the pieces to the band to work on together.

Do you start with the music or the lyrics? It varies from song to song.

Do you compose in a certain environment? Songs are usually composed by one person at home before being tracked as a demo then expanded on with the full band at the practice space.

What language do you sing in? English 

What are the least and most people to attend one of your gigs? We have played to empty rooms and packed houses and festivals. The important thing is to play a good set no matter what and have passion.

What ages are most of your concert attendants? Most of them range from teenager to people in their twenties and thirties but there are also older and younger people in attendance often.

Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? We usually play mostly songs from the most recent record we have released at the time with other releases songs thrown in. We have a lot of material to choose from.

Do you have a regular place you play live often? We play a lot at Liars Club in Chicago.

What was your first gig like? There was barely anyone there and we played as a two piece with Adam on guitar and Karl on drums. It was not very well received for a long time.

What was your latest gig? We played The Comet in Cincinnati, Ohio this past weekend.

Where have you played live this year? We played some dates in Canada as well as around New England and the New York area, and have done a bunch of shows since around the Midwest USA.

Where do you plan to gig the comming year? Hopefully we will hit up the West Coast US soon but we are trying to hit the Midwest hard this year.

When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale? We have records and shirts mostly. We had played for probably a year or two before we had merchandise.

Where can people buy your merchandise? www.thekreutzersonat.bigcartel.com

What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days? / How do you think the music industry have changed because of this? The music industry we knew of growing up has greatly changed because of downloads and free digital music in some good and bad ways. It has definitely changed what it means to “make it” as a band and given more bands the chance for a platform but it also devalued music monetarily to listeners.

What do you think of my work? It’s great to see music journalists working independently to cover bands and you are very thorough about it.

How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? At the very least we appreciate the press you provided us. And it is fun to do interviews with people from other countries.

Do you have any role models or idols? Some role models we saw growing up were bands like Monster Squad, The Unseen and A Global Threat, Wednesday Night Heroes, as well as a lot of other underground punk rock bands touring around the US and sometimes other parts of the world on their own terms and making music we love. They inspired us to live life on our own terms and not give up.

Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? I think the easiest place to find inspiration is in your younger years because of nostalgia reasons tied to the wonder of new experiences. But these days our inspiration is found in the artists and musicians and friends around us doing the things we only dreamed of as kids. It’s a generational cycle.

What have been your biggest obstacles? Lack of connections, money, time off from work, press.

What advice would you give other bands or artists? Don’t give up, no matter how much you are struggling to maintain your passion. If you are true it will be worth it on your own terms.

Do you have any new material? Yes, we have an album coming out on Don’t Panic Records and No Time Records called “The Rosehill Gates.” 

Instagram @tks_ftw

How can people reach? Facebook or our listed contact email. 

What are your plans for the future? Put out records and explore places on tour/meet new cool bands and people!

Do you have something to add? Thank you for the interview we appreciate you shooting us a message about it!