Birth of Joy

Dutch rockers Birth Of Joy have returned with their psychedelic blues inflected latest studio album Get Well. Not only that but the trio are now back on tour despite racking up an impressive 450 shows in three-years. Music News took the opportunity to find out all things Birth Of Joy courtesy of front man Kevin Stunnenberg.

Now that your album’s out for the world to enjoy, how satisfied are you with the results and what are the key highlights [or low lights] for you as a band?

Right now we are touring across Europe with a lot of sold out shows, so things are going pretty well and we are definitely satisfied with the results. The shows are not only sold out, but the audiences have been insane. People have been jumping up on the stage to dance, but also falling off pretty hard – that happened three times in a row! Luckily no one was injured. It was wild. Pure rock and roll.

One of the things that stood out when reviewing the album was the flavor of different genres. How much of a deliberate choice was it when planning the album? Did you have a particular sound or influence in mind when putting together the LP? Or was it simply something that came together during the recording process?

We didn't deliberately plan to make a diverse album. We just made the music we like to play and approached every song as its own, singular beast in the studio. Eventually, Get Well came out as a whole.

In regards to the themes of your album, I would be interested to hear about the opinions/views you were looking to put forward within your work. As I alluded to in my review, I got the impression that there was a feeling of discontentment from the band about a self-absorbed world. Your energetic songs seemed desperate to both wake people up to that fact and to change the situation.

Well there are a lot of bad things happening right now, and at the same time there are so many forms of distraction. History tells us that it is important to be aware of what is going on. Consciousness is key for progress. Oblivion gains momentum for evil.

For previous albums like Prisoner, you have said in the past that you recorded it over a short space of time. Was that the case with Get Well, and how does it affect the writing process?

The music for Get Well was written within three months. The lyrics and vocals were written two weeks before we went into the studio. The time pressure was way higher than it was with ‘Prisoner’. Because of this, we have created the “this is it” attitude. We had no time for endless refining and wanted to keep it raw and spontaneous.

Get Well’s songs seemed packed with energy and fire, do you do anything special to keep things going in the studio, or is it simply the love of the work that keeps the band fired up?

We don't need anything special to keep up the energy and fire. It's pumping through our veins. We believe in what we do and it feels good.

Because streaming is quickly shifting the way the music industry does business I always enjoy finding out where artists stand on the issue. Is streaming the gateway for fans to check out the music, and then spend their hard-earned money on other things like seeing a band live? Alternatively, is it taking away deserved revenue from hard-working artists?

We don't have anything to complain about with the shifting environment of the music business. I actually think [it] is an honor to be on Pirate Bay, because it is the biggest media library that’s ever existed. People from all over the world can check out our music and if they like it, they will come to our shows and maybe buy a record. I am not promoting illegal downloading, but it is how it goes today.

Your touring is still going strong even after a previous monster touring schedule. It’s said that touring is the main source of revenue for the music industry but is it something you love or is the studio your first love?

Touring and recording are both different disciplines that we love to do. But at the core, we definitely are a live band. In the studio we want to catch that vibe and crystallize it.

How hard is it for you guys to put on a consistently great show each night, especially with all the travel not to mention the stresses and strains of touring? What’s the secret to putting on a successful tour in your opinion?

Finding a good balance between staying healthy and having a good time. We work as a team and we support each other when [we] need to. We also get a lot of great energy from the audience and people we meet.

What are your plans for the future, taking some time off, continue touring, or back in the studio?

We will continue rocking around the globe with our latest album, Get Well. In the meantime, we’ll be working on some new material. But there are no actual plans for new studio sessions, yet. Maybe next year.

Do you have an idea of the musical direction you would like to take in the future? Has the writing process started already?

Not really, we just finished an album. But it does no harm to play around with ideas. We have no certain musical direction for it. We never worked like that. We will keep pursuing what we always did and doing what we like to do. No strings attached, just enjoy the rock and roll!

Get Well is also available to purchase below.
https://itunes.apple.com/nl/album/get-well/id1070619080?l=en


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