If you like your rock and roll with a melodic sensibility, then rockers CENTRIFUGE could be for you! Their track The Spell sounds fantastic – you can find a full stream at the end of this interview if you’ve not heard it yet.
By Jane Howkins
You recently released a new single titled The Spell. What can you tell us about the song?
Can you imagine death as a kind of jump into another dimension, outside of your perception of the world you were living in before, but still sharing the same streets, rooms and even beds, like an invisible revenant? The Spell deals with all the difficulties and complications that occur for our poor protagonist, who unexpectedly is thrown into the situation of realising his own death, by reading about it in the newspaper. Failing to get in contact with people he knew before, he runs into other revenants, who explain the situation to him. And he finally apprehends being stranded in some kind of hell.
How has the reception to The Spell been so far, and where can it be purchased?
Oh, the reception is overwhelming. The Spell is our third single and suddenly people have really started streaming our music now. We had a lot of positive reactions on The Spell. Lots of blogs and some radio stations from all over the world reacted on the release. You can stream it on your platform of choice and it also possible download the track via Bandcamp, Soundcloud, Amazon etc..
Do you have any more singles planned for release soon?
No, we now concentrate on the release of our EP.
You have an EP coming out soon titled Daydreams & Breakdowns. What can you tell us about the record and when will it be released?
As mentioned before, the release of Daydreams & Breakdowns will be our next big step. It will be out this summer. Besides the three singles we have released so far, it also includes two more songs. As you may have realised, I tend to write songs about the darker, more pensive aspects of being. But I always try to work out something forgiving or funny underneath all the dark thoughts, because I am convinced that we all sit in the same boat and have to get along with almost the same struggles, and it’s most often the best decision to face them with a grin or some gallows humor. That’s why the EP is called Daydreams & Breakdowns. And the five songs on Daydreams & Breakdowns build a colourful bouquet of various indie rock styles that are meant to help our listeners through their days.
Do you have any plans to release a full-length album anytime soon?
Of course we have. The album is already recorded and mixed and is ready to be mastered. It contains 12 incredible alt-rock/power-pop songs. At the moment, we are looking for nice people and a nice record label to work together with.
Your music has an alt-rock sound. What/who are you most influenced by? What have you been listening to recently?
The first band I really admired were The Beatles. It was when I was about 12-14 years old, I was already playing the guitar and had started to write my own music. And even nowadays, I sometimes ask myself, “how would the Beatles have done that…” while working on a new song. After the Beatles I discovered some 90’s Bands like Oasis, Pixies and the wonderful Teenage Fanclub, and of course Nirvana and the incredible Stone Temple Pilots. I guess this is where the alt rock sound of the songs is coming from.
Recently I had kind of a Wet Leg crush, I love a lot of their songs. And there is The Last Dinner Party and of course, Emma Ruth Rundle and lots more. It’s great that there are more and more female artists influencing the alt rock music scene in such a massive way.
Where are you based? What is the local music scene like in your area?
Our hometown is Stuttgart, a town with about 650.000 inhabitants and a lot of industries. Stuttgart is best known as the hometown of brands like Mercedes Benz, Bosch, Porsche. Lots of people here are very wealthy and conservative. But there is a small, innovative and creative indie music scene in Stuttgart.
Do you have anything else exciting coming up over the next few months?
We just started working on a music video to The Spell. And the of course the release of the EP, as said before.
Do you have any tour dates lined up for the UK?
We’re not touring at the moment. For indie artists like us, preparing the release of the EP and working on the full-length album takes a lot of time and resources, so we’ll focus on that for a while. But we miss being out on stage and hopefully we will be in the UK with the release of the album. That would be great!
Any last words for the fans?
As I mentioned before, being an indie artist often means being musician, record and PR company at the same time. This can be really hard sometimes. But all these wonderful reactions of people, who like The Spell, felt so healing. They have been sending us positive and encouraging messages and shared our song all over the world. This is incredible! And of course, the words for the fans are: Thank you.