Swiss metal act Bolzer are more than just your every day extreme heavy band, they are an enigma all on their own who don’t subscribe to the many labels that have attached itself to the metal genre over the years. Combining elements of gutteral and harsh music together with progressive and psychedelic aspects along with eclectic influences ranging from classic rock to contemporary metal, Bolzer set forth the idea that music should always be open and not constrained. The Swiss duo are set to return to Australia for a run of headline shows so we chatted to vocalist/guitarist Okoi Jones ahead of the tour to discuss what they plan to bring to the fans as well as news on new music.
Andrew: Thanks for your time, really appreciated! It’s exciting to see you come back to Australia, how are you guys feeling about it?
Okoi: Great, we look forward to it of course. It’s always been a fantastic experience for us and the rapport has been quite…we’ve been taken aback by it so we look forward to coming back for sure.
Andrew: For sure! I caught you at the last run I think which may have been 3 or 4 years ago with Behemoth and Watain which was a fantastic tour. Do you remember much from those run of shows at all?
Okoi: Do I remember much? Yeah [laughs] we weren’t that messed up, I remember most of it of course. It was great, they treated us very well, Watain and Behemoth and we had a great time and as I recall that was where we first realized obviously we have some fans there which was really rewarding. Last time with Mayhem it was also a step up so we’re looking forward to this time very much.
Andrew: What can fans expect this time? Have you guys been busy on the road so far this year?
Okoi: No this year we haven’t, we’re in the studio and writing and recorded the next release. We’ve had a few shows and this will be the first run of quite a few until the end of the year, it’s a busy one for us.
Andrew: I was going to ask if you were writing some new material and as you’ve mentioned you are so can we expect any new songs at the shows at all?
Okoi: We should be playing at least one I think. It’s a mini-release this one, like a mini album so we can’t exactly just play all of it as that would defeat the purpose a little. But to be honest this is also a situation where we’ve had short notice to fill in headline position which is something we very gladly do of course despite the unfortunate circumstances and whatnot but it’s unfortunate in itself that we couldn’t organise the tour around a new release for example but that is something that will surely take place in the future.
Andrew: Definitely and looking forward to hearing these new songs live in the future as well. But coming back and picking out another setlist for the fans, is that a difficult process for you guys at all or does it come easy and you know which songs you want to play live?
Okoi: Yeah you have songs that you don’t like to play live I guess and depending on the set length requires that you can then also juggle in some new stuff you haven’t played for quite some time and often mix and match according to the crowds based on prior experience or what they would like to hear or a number of factors. So I think there’s different ways of creating an ideal set but we’re just going to focus on bringing stuff from all of our releases to the hour or more that we’re going to play.
Andrew: I was going to ask as well how Aussie audiences respond to your music compared to other countries. I mean is there much of a difference? Do they respond differently to other songs than say places that you play to more regularly over the years?
Okoi: Yeah countries and regions vary quite differently. It’s hard to say in what way exactly but once you see it a few times and you kind of know, they just react differently to the music and I guess they display that in their own way. Sometimes you must not be distracted or take it in the wrong sense because they may be enjoying themselves highly but may not show it as much as some others.
Andrew: What’s the craziest thing you have ever seen at a live show then?
Okoi: We had a pretty crazy show once in Instanbul, Turkey that I think was after a tour and we flew directly to Istanbul in late Sunday night. It was a long flight, we were really tired and we got there at 1 or 2 in the morning, they picked us up and we went to play a show at about 3 in the morning and the crowd was just totally rabid. Like hanging off the ceiling and girls were bleeding in the crowd from moshing and stuff, it was quite a surprise. A pleasant one at that, it woke us up that’s for sure!
Andrew: Wow yeah definitely and 3 o’clock in the morning? What sort of show was that, must have been a festival or something was it?
Okoi: No it was just a club show with local bands and they knew we were arriving late so they just waited, planned everything late. It was pretty cool!
Andrew: Travelling around the world and seeing different cultures and seeing all the crazy things like that for example, it must be an interesting experience and one of the perks of being in a band I guess.
Okoi: Yeah for sure, it’s nice. You don’t always have the opportunity to lengthen your stay and see as much as you’d like or get outside of the city. You often rely on the logistics on hand but we definitely try to make the most of it and stay a day or 2 extra and check out things, it’s a shame if you turn that down for sure.
Andrew: Have you had much chance to see much of Australia at all over the years?
Okoi: No that’s exactly one of the territories I’m hoping to check out a little more extensively at some point. But we’ve seen at least the cities we’ve been to quite thoroughly which is nice but it’s more about the countryside that I’d like to see, I’ll have to organise some extra holidays at some point.
Andrew: Yeah exactly! I know you are also coming over to the west side of the country to Perth, I think it’s either the first or last show of the tour and compared to a lot of cities in Australia it’s more of a country feel as well so I guess you’ll get that sort of stuff. I think you’ve been over to this side of the country I believe in the past.
Okoi: Yes been to Perth before.
Andrew: What’s your thoughts on Australia? Is it exactly what you thought it would be or is it maybe different to what you may have pre-conceived?
Okoi: No it’s kind of what I figured. I grew up in New Zealand, a large portion of my life. I actually spent about a year I think in Sydney when I was a really small boy so my parents were there for a while but first time in Oz I guess I was kind of struck at some of the European influences, obviously the colonial aspect in some of the cities which is really nice but you have that in New Zealand too. But very pleasant people and as I said I would like to see more of the rural areas, I think that would make more of an impression on me.
Andrew: So how did you get into music? And obviously this form of music, the extreme sort of metal which I can obviously hear the black metal and death metal influence but I also hear a bit of psychedelic kind of stuff in your music as well. So I’m interested to see how you got into this kind of music and what were some of your influences when you first started to get into it?
Okoi: I grew up with music, lots of different types of music and I’ve always been a fan of heavy stuff, rock and 60’s and 70’s rock and things. As a teenager I got into more heavier, contemporary bands and then that sort of led me to more underground extreme stuff so I think it was just a gradual process that everyone goes through. Discovering it, seeing a guy with a shirt or you hear it somewhere at some guys place or whatnot and it becomes a part of your life or not and it has but it has a different meaning for me now. It has nothing to do with the metal scene or an identity as such but it’s more of the finer aspects of the philosophy that have become a part of my life and obviously making music is very important to me. But being a metalhead or anything like that is not something I necessary describe myself as being a major trait, it’s just I enjoy heavy music but I enjoy many different types of music.
Andrew: Was there anything in particular that sparked the idea of wanting to play music as well for a career or was it just something you fell into by accident or a gradual process?
Okoi: As a career it wasn’t necessarily a plan but I definitely had an inclination to play music. My father’s a musician and I just had the need to do that and the more you do it, the more important it becomes to you I guess and dominates your every day and a lot of your time. You start making sacrifices to play music instead of earning money at a normal job or you try and juggle the two and see how that goes and that’s kind of the pathway to it and I’m happy with what I’m doing.
Andrew: Yeah that’s what it’s all about, is enjoying what you are doing and being passionate about it and making a living out of it is I guess one of the perks of what people try and do as much as they can.
Okoi: Yeah for sure. I think it’s nice if you can optimise your situation and obviously it would be nice to be able to earn some money off of it to put towards your lifestyle or what your needs and what you would like to achieve. But making music is not about making money for us, but it definitely becomes an aspect, the financial aspect becomes important if you sacrifice your time to do so.
Andrew: Well we are looking forward to seeing you in Australia, it’s great to see you back in the country and we will definitely be catching you on the west coast of the country in Perth as well. Looking forward to the new album as well, any idea on when that might come out?
Okoi: We should be releasing relevant info quite soon but it will be towards Autumn I would say.
Andrew: OK cool looking forward to it! Anyway enjoy your stay in Australia when you get here and we will catch you in Perth and hopefully it all goes well as it always has been for you guys so thanks again for your time.
Okoi: Thank you Andrew, I appreciate that. Thanks a lot.
BÖLZER Headline Shows:
May 28th – Auckland, Whammy Bar
May 29th – Wellington, Valhalla
May 30th – Brisbane, Woolly Mammoth
May 31st – Sydney, The Factory
June 1st – Melbourne, Max Watt’s
June 7th – Hobart, The Brisbane Hotel
June 8th – Enigma Bar, Adelaide
June 9th – Amplifier Bar, Perth
TICKETS ON SALE NOW FROM:
ALL SHOWS – http://soundworksdirect.eventbrite.com
HOBART & PERTH – www.oztix.com.au
ADELAIDE – www.moshtix.com.au
BRISBANE & MELBOURNE – www.oztix.com.au
SYDNEY – www.factorytheatre.com.au
