Metalcore outfit Eskimo Callboy got their start in 2010, releasing a debut album that would lead on to them playing at festivals, showcases, and touring all over the place. Through the years they would continue to perform, releasing more material including their third album to date, "Crystals". One of two vocalists Kevin who does the screaming portion and backing vocals partook in discussing the band's latest album and their bunny rabbit mascot!
1. Who are you and what do you do in the band?
Kevin: My name is Kevin and I’m one of the vocalists of Eskimo Callboy. I mostly scream or do the backing vocals... but my dancing skills are the real deal!
2. You went with calling yourselves Eskimo Callboy, who is this so called Eskimo and what is a Callboy?
Kevin: So as long as we exist as a band, it has never been a good idea to pick features of our band to pieces because things may get out of context. We are Eskimo Callboy and indeed, this is a very shitty band name. And this again, is exactly why we chose it. We are a fun group, that’s what our whole band is based on. The good times in life. And when we chose that name we just liked it when our bass player came up with it.
3. How do you describe your sound to people who ask you what your band sounds like?
Kevin: Depends on who’s asking... so when we started the band and my relatives asked me what I’m doing with my life now that I obviously haven’t become an accountant, the second critical question always is and what style? The most important thing is, it’s danceable! Sure, we scream, and it’s also pretty hard but even your granny and auntie can sing along the choruses.
4. Who would you say are the musical influences you look up too the most?
Kevin: That’s tough... there are so many good artists out there. We most look up to artists, not only performers but also the producers, that manage to create songs that get stuck in your head like forever. These songs that you whistle in your car on your way to work, and you don’t even know where you got that melody from. We love catchy hooklines... but it’s also very important to put on a great show on stage. We love Katy Perry or Lady Gaga.
5. What are your songs about? Do they cover a certain theme?
Kevin: As I said, we like to celebrate the good times in life. We know that there is some really bad shit going on in the world. But we don’t see us as a band treating those topics. We wanna provide our listeners with a good mood instead. Every problem you’re facing, no matter if it’s a big or a small one is easier to handle with a positive attitude. So our songs either are about good times like vacation, parties and celebrations, or they tell a funny story... but we began to deal with some more serious topics for our latest album "Crystals", but again, with a positive message.
6. Do you write your own songs?
Kevin: Yes we do. So most of the times we write our songs together, it starts with a cool synth melody or a guitar riff and from there it evolves... after that Sushi and me do the lyric work and maybe change some parts for a better flow. For one song on "Crystals" we worked together with 2 producers and wrote a new chorus, because we didn’t like the old one.
7. Where did the idea for the song and video of "Crystals" come into the picture?
Kevin: First there were the lyrics for "Crystals". We are using a lot of metaphorical language in that one. It deals with the very sad topic of drug abuse, and the downfall of a person that usually comes with it. We tried to personify the drug in that song, as someone you can’t let go although it drags you into a deep misery. We thought that this time it would be a cool idea to shoot a more artistic video with a lot of metaphors and symbols. And in fact, the song has a great potential for that. We are very satisfied with the results.
8. In a lot of your merchandise and performances you have a Bunny Rabbit mascot, why go with a Bunny Rabbit? Is it a boy or girl? What's it's name? What does it symbolize for the band?
Kevin: We first chose that bunny to be on our cover. For us this bunny looks funny, but still a bit creepy. And we liked that for the general image of "Crystals". To be honest, we thought so freakin long about a potential cover for "Crystals" that we almost put a huge pile of shit on the cover. And I’m not kidding. But the rabbit won, and we made him part of the whole tour. The rabbit has no name, and no sex. If it was a girl, it would have had sex!;)9. What was the recording process like this time around? Was there anything different that happened or was it the same old studio thing?
Kevin: It was pretty intense this time. After "We Are The Mess" we didn’t want to wait too long to release a new album, and so we pretty soon began to write new songs. This time we even rent a cozy house in the Netherlands to be safe from any form of distraction. And it worked. I mean, we drank more than usual, and we also had more BBQ than usual. But we also wrote some new songs. It didn't matter what time it was, the only important thing was that the working process never stopped. Most of "Crystals" was written within these 2 weeks, full of sun and booze. And we think you can hear that in the songs.
10. Can you tell us how this album differs from the previous ones? What can we expect and what is the message behind it?
Kevin: An album always reflects the feelings and experiences of its writers during the time of songwriting. We had an awesome time, and I hope you can hear it. I don’t wanna sound pregnant with meaning... There’s no life-changing message in that album. We just love making music, we love being friends and spending time together. Our music is our form of appreciating all the good things in life that happened to us. And we wanna encourage our listeners to do the same. Preferably with us being on stage. But I can tell you, for me "Crystals" is an absolute summer album. Good for a drive to the beach, no need to skip a song.
11. This album will be marked as album number three, what comes to mind when you hear such a thing? Thinking back to when you guys first started, did you ever doubt that you would have gotten to this mark?
Kevin: That’s a good question. Time seems to be always running. The more you experience, the faster it goes. "Snow Covered Polaroids", an old song of us deals with that topic. We believe that hard work combined with enthusiasm always pays off. We gave our very best, but still you need a lot more... you need many good people around you, some luck... We never took for granted what happened to us the past years. We always tried to achieve small goals, one after another. We always think positive, that's not the secret, but it helps a lot. We’re close to our band’s 5th anniversary. We hope that we can carry on for another 5 years!
12. What are your expectations for the CD?
Kevin: I know it sounds a bit crazy... but I’d like to see it spinning in a player sometimes... :P So everything went pretty good with our former album "We are the mess", and we wish that with "Crystals" we can link to that success.
13. How would you describe the sound of your new CD to any potential new fan?
Kevin: Mmh.... I would say it connects the best of every genre. Like good sex! It surrounds you with some catchy melodies, pushes you hard when you need it, and goes down your throat very smooth and gentle. But whenever I’m asked this question, I advise people to come to one of our shows. Eskimo Callboy works as a whole, and our stage performance is an important feature of what makes us special.
14. What will the setlist look like for this upcoming tour, what can we expect to hear a lot of the new stuff, old stuff, or a combination of both?
Kevin: That's still a secret. We never reveal our setlist. But I can tell we always play our favorites from every one of our records.
15. Would you ever consider performing any of your releases in it's entirety?
Kevin: We always did on our release tours, we never left out more than one song. The people that visit us on our release shows wanna hear the songs of the new album performed live... and we can get a feeling for the songs. Sometimes songs work perfectly on CD but not live, and vice versa.
16. Will the Bunny Rabbit mascot be making appearances at any of these performances? Can the fans meet and greet with it?
Kevin: No, after that gender question above we found out that the rabbit is female. From now on it stays in the backstage and gives massages to the band. :)
Kevin: We’re gonna have a sweet festival summer in Europe. So basically, festivals are the holiday of touring. Most of the times you have sunny weather, you meet a lot of friends or make new ones, its this time of the year, everybody is looking forward to.
18. How about 2015, what does Eskimo Callboy have in-store, that the previous years wouldn't even expect?
Kevin: There’s one thing we are quite proud of. All the last years on the big German festivals we played the smaller stages (which still were attended by up to 10k people, so it was pretty big for us though), but this year we are allowed to play some really big stages. That's one of the small goals I talked about before. Pretty big thing for us. And there’s another thing, that might not sound too special, but since we started Eskimo Callboy we never had real vacations... so this year unlike the years before, we’re gonna take some time for a nice vacation on the beach. Don’t know when exactly, but we’re gonna recharge our batteries for a new year full of song writing and awesome shows.
19. Is there anything else you'd like to add?
Kevin: After we played our first US tour in 2013 we were so fascinated by everything we experienced, the people, the country... we spent some of the best weeks of our lives over there. And since then, it has always been our wish to come back for a new tour. But as always, it’s really hard in so many ways for European bands to come over to the states.We are very thankful for all the great support that we get from you guys. Keep it going, enjoy our new album and soon we will be back in the states again. Sending love from Germany!
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