INTERVIEW DECEMBER 2021
1. Hello, how are you? What's new with The Guru Guru?
Hello. We're OK. We're stuck at home again. So we're writing and recording some new stuff at the moment. We also have some new merchandising coming up!
2. If you had to introduce the band to the manager during a job interview, how would you proceed and which angle would you use to be convincing?
Open up your mind man (or woman) DO IT NOW. Something like that.
3. We learnt from sure managerial sources that you released a new Ep in 2021... But I didn't hear it. For those who are, like me, late to the "job party", can you tell more about this Ep? How does it compare to the previous recordings?
We couldn't go out and play because of COVID so we stayed inside and recorded some songs about our feelings. We recorded, produced and mixed everything ourselves for the first time. We're pretty happy with the result.
You can listen here: https://open.spotify.com/album/4UKQLWtH6iHkuJlbG8x0EX?si=urng10cmRnOMU-cbrzsHGA
4. Which of these feelings or impressions would represent your music the best, from your point of view? Fear, happiness, paranoia, nostalgia, liberation, liquid, luminous, screwy, crazy, xanaxed, tranquilizer, discrete madness...
Yes, all that!
5. I also heard from managerial sources that you played in Lille (Aeronef) last month. How was the gig? How was the crowd? Did you have to play with masks?
We had a great time. We knew that there were a lot of tickets sold, but we were the last-minute replacement for another band, so we thought many people wouldn't show up. They just booked us the day before the show. MANY people came. Not many people in the audience knew our music, which is great. We met a lot of new and excited music-lovers that evening.
6. Your music has a quite technical edge. If the manager requested you to define, or draw these influences closer to other existing genres, would you say you rather take from old prog rock (King Crimson?), 90's noise rock, post hardcore (Fugazi?), perhaps some jazz recordings... Or would you love to throw the hydroalcoholic gel flask in the head of the manager, because... "Sorry, these are too old bands"? :-)
We all have different tastes in music. Our influences go from prog to rock to post-hardcore to R&B to soul to jazz, old & new bands, etc. If we had to choose we think it would be 90's noise rock?
7. Could I say your singer has a lot of cartoons in his mind? Or is there a teddy bear dancing in his brain? A big teddy bear with drugs hidden in the belly? And perhaps the white powder is leaking from the bear's belly? AhAh... So, perhaps the vocalist manages the teddy bear very well?
No white powders have been involved. I do like teddy bears.
8. Why are there two "gurus" in your band name? Does it mean there are two gurus leading the sect? Or perhaps there is only one, but this Guru has more control and power over his victims? (So the Guru would be the great sect manager?) And is The Guru Guru a rather democratic band, or perhaps one of the musicians is somewhat the leader who decides while other musicians are his victims? uhuh
Those are some nice theories. Jean (guitar, vocals) founded the band and thought it would be a cool name for it. We work very democratically, though we all have a different field of expertise, so decisions are made with trust and admiration for each other.
9. If an external manager requested that the band covered 3 songs during your next gigs, which could you choose and why? Would you try to inject something "out of context" to surprise the manager in a good, or bad way? (Perhaps Edith Piaf, 2 Unlimited, Claude François or Napalm death... I'm just searching)
Phill Collins, Jacques Brel, 2Fabiola.
We would for sure make the songs our own ;-)
10. The Belgian rock/ metal scene seems to be very active, at least more than in the north of France. You seem to have more places for gigs, and more international bands coming to play live there... How come Belgium is more active at this level? Would you say the Belgian government brings more financial help for the music related projects? Perhaps it's legally easier to open a bar and make some noise during the night? Or do the average Belgian peoples have a better rock culture? (Or maybe the bars in “Belgique” have better managers? :) )
I would say, even though Flemish culture budgets have been cut back to 60% a few years ago, we can be grateful for our culture budgets if we compare it to France or especially the UK. Government promotion and funding of live events, free music education, academies, culture houses, ... such things inspire people to find their own unique way of expressing themselves.
11. We are in the middle of the Covid since almost two years now, but apparently this situation hasn't affected every musicians the same way: While some bands were slowed down, discouraged, and almost stopped... Others became very active at other levels, such has music composition, online promotion... How did this affect The Guru Guru? Did you manage to counterbalance the absence of gigs and the more sparse rehearsals?
Covid for sure slowed us down because we had just released our 2nd album 'Point Fingers' before the first lockdown happened. It was a bummer. But on the other hand because of the lockdowns we also became very active in writing new music. We started writing as soon as we found out we wouldn't be able to play for a long time. Music has always been a way for us to channel frustrations, bad experiences, struggles, ... Of course, we would rather be touring the whole time!
12. If you had to choose between: You can win 10 millions of euros and the Covid still exists, or you don't win any money at all but the covid disappears forever... What would you manage to choose?
We hate the pandemic. Without it we could play gigs and make 10 million biiiiiitch :-o
13. Do you have other musical projects besides The Guru Guru? Perhaps the musicians have played in other bands before? So a little name-dropping list could be nice (Don't tell me you used to play in the band "The manager"... It was italo-disco from 1984... ahah)
Statue, Viggria, Ndugu, Soapstarter, Neon Cardboard, Woolly, ...
14. What would you like to say to the manager to conclude this interview? Do you think you will get the job?
I don't wanna work for your company, I just wanna be happy.
https://www.facebook.com/THEGURUGURU
https://theguruguru.bandcamp.com
