Hollywood Music Magazine Interview The Donots
Hollywood Music Magazine interviewed the Donots right in time before they embark on their month long tour in the US in March! In the interview, Ingo Donot talks about touring in the US, playing with big name bands like Green Day and Anti-Flag, what goes into making a Donots album, and future plans! You can check out the interview below, and can find the original interview here.
HMTV: Is this your 1st tour in the states?
Ingo Donot: Well, not quite… We did the CMJ in New York once which was a
big deal of fun! But we’ve been sort of biding our time all these years for
the perfect occasion to come over and do the States decently. I know it took
us forever but rest assured we are even more excited now that we have a
month long journey ahead of us with great bands and friends such as Flogging
Molly, Anti-Flag, Mariachi El Bronx, Nations Afire, Dead To Me and more!
This time around everything’s just perfect: We have our new album “Wake The
Dogs” out on Ok!Good Records in the US, we’re gonna play amazing clubs PLUS
it’s supposedly a lot warmer on the West Coast than in Germany right now –
I’m sick of seeing snow.
HMTV: You are no strangers to playing alongside heavy hitting bands like
Green Day & Blink 182, what are your thoughts on playing alongside
Anti-Flag?
Ingo Donot: Anti-Flag are family to us! They’re an amazing band, they’re
great people and we’ve known each other for more than 10 years now. We did
Europe together with them and Millencolin, have recorded two songs together
(“Toast To Freedom”, the Amnesty International Charity Single has just been
released!) and it’s a true honor to get invited for their 20th anniversary
in Hollywood. In fact that’s one of the best parts about being in the
Donots: We get to play the best of both worlds – stadium rock shows with the
likes of Green Day in Europe but also sweaty, cosy places like the
Troubadour!
HMTV: This year marks the 20th anniversary of the band being formed, what
is your secret to keeping the music dream alive for so long?
Ingo Donot: Actually our 20th anniversary is April 2014 but we are all very
aware of the fact that being in this band is a true gift! It’s like we don’t
take all this for granted and perhaps that’s the secret (if there is one):
We still manage to surprise ourselves both in the studio and onstage and
every new tour is absolutely exciting to us! We try and set ourselves new
goals every year and we’re just thankful for all the experiences we get to
make. I mean, this band makes us travel the world, meet new friends and live
a zillion priceless moments. What more could we want?
HMTV: All your albums maintain the signature Donots sound your fans have
gotten to know and love. ‘Wake The Dogs’ was no different. Was there a
specific concept behind this album?
Ingo Donot: I suppose we do have our certain Donots trademarks in our sound
but we didn’t try and make “just another Donots album”. This time around we
basically entered the studio with only tiny demos. We let ourselves get
inspired by all those bits and pieces, wrote everything anew in the studio
and recorded the very moment when finishing new ideas. We didn’t focus on an
overall concept or sound aesthetic. We were more like “What does every
single song need to be a perfect song”? Hence there are stripped down
old-school songs inspired by old heroes such as The Clash but also 80s indie
related tunes like “All You Ever Wanted”. It’s safe to say “Wake The Dogs”
is the most diverse Donots album to date! It almost feels like a mixtape
made by one band.
HMTV: Last but not least, any future plans for doing more touring in the
states?
Ingo Donot: We’d LOVE to! I’m keeping my fingers crossed we get to come back
soon after this tour. So please make sure you drop by this time around and
invite us for the next tour, folks! We can’t wait!
You can also stream/purchase Wake The Dogs right now by click on the artwork below.
Donots – Wake The Dogs
