NASTY IDOLS
Questions asked by Jon Wilde, added to Rock Realms 22nd June 2009.
Nasty Idols are a sleaze rock group from Sweden. They've been going for over 20 years now and are still pumping out new music. Their latest album, Boys Town, came out earlier this year and was, to be fair, rather good.
Bass player Dick Qwarfort answers questions on behalf of the band.
Hello Sir, is life treating you well?
DQ: Hi Jon!! Yeah, pretty good actually, right now!! But we wanna go on a big ass tour though, you know? We just headlined a Glam Rock festival in Denmark and next stop is Italy? I think, but when you do one, you just don’t want to stop and let the grass grow under your feet…!!
How and when did you originally get together?
DQ: Well, I was in and out of bands when I met Andy (Pierce – vocals), that’d be around 1987 or something, and we just decided to make the coolest hard rock band in town… I think, we pretty much succeeded!? We’ve been around for quite a while now...!
What’s life like in a band... stressful, fun, or a bit of both?
DQ: Oh God, that’s a difficult question…Everything has it’s ups and downs just like in “real” life, except you’re not really in “real life”… ha! ha! When you’re living the Rock n’ Roll way your living it in a crazy bubble all on your own and everything is a little bit surreal and hectic…. but I love it, especially when your on tour! I guess you just have to learn to separate the two sometimes, or not, ha! ha!
Who inspired your style and sound?
DQ: For us, we kinda like to sound like the Sweet, Kiss and the Sex Pistols…, but up to date, you know?... The first REAL Cool record I got was Sweet’s “Give us a Wink”, I was 10 years old and I loved every song on that album… It’s been an inspiration to me all my life.., so yeah, probably something like that one…? Then of course; Kiss, Alice Cooper and the Pistols, ‘cause they’ve got gutsy and raw Rock n’ Roll all the way!
The band took a decade-long hiatus from the mid 90’s. Do you feel that you are more mature and musically stronger than before, do you almost consider yourself almost a different band, or does it feel just like the good old days?
DQ: I think we’re a little bit harder now if anything? Back in the 80-90’s, we were the only “kids on the block”, but nowadays there are bands like us everywhere so we have to be a bit tougher...! But the response for the new record is outrageous…, it just seems like everyone has heard it and reviewed it, which is really good!
‘We just wanna fuck the girls, drink a lot of booze and play wild rock music...’ is a quote that is very proudly displayed on your website. Does that still hold true?
DQ: Yes, but nowadays we can’t remember the girls names, gotta get me a filofax for that, Ha! Ha!
What’s your favourite memory from being on the road?
DQ: Meeting all the new and the old fans, playing ‘til my fingers bleed and banging my head ‘til the whiplash kicks in…. The parties after the shows…, hey, it’s why I love the whole rock circus!
What’s the best or worst thing you’ve ever done when drunk?
DQ: My God, probably waking up in a pile of garbage in skid row, not knowing in what country I was..huga!
How does the style of the new album compare with earlier releases, and has the Nasty Idols sound changed much over the years?
DQ: Yes, the sound is much, much better and heavier than we used to be and we’ve become far more precise in our approach to our music…Sometimes it seems a little too precise and easy possibly, but what the hell; Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” has got only four chords so you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to write a good song. If you’ve got a good thing going, don’t complicate things.
What are your favourite moments on the new album “Boys Town”?
DQ: Just getting the first example from the record company and realising that I’m holding Nasty Idols’ fifth album finally, and that the chaos continues, Ha! Ha! I think we’ve got some really great songs on the table you know, but the main thing for me is that the band Andy and I first put together, can still make people stand up and do it, you know? We’re very proud how the shit turned out!
Was the recording process natural and easy, or hard work?
DQ: ...Piece of cake, actually, and I really mean that! Andy made some songs, I made some songs, then we put them all together, got in the studio, presented them for the other guys (Peter Espinoza (g) and Rikki Dahl (d), recorded it and voila...a new record was born! We had a major fistfight about the album title though, but that’s another story, ha! ha!
How would you describe the album to someone who hadn’t heard you before?
DQ: In a couple of words? Someone said it was a “Pure fucking Nasty Idols sleazemonster”, and I kinda liked that!
Any chance you are coming to the UK on a tour?
DQ: Absolutely!! You got a ticket waiting? We’d come over right now guy!! We’re dealing with booking agents and stuff right now. Hope we get on the right turns, cuz I’m eager to play...!
What is it like being at a Nasty Idols show?
DQ: Hey, I don’t know, I’ve never seen us, ha! ha! I’m always up there playing… but what I do know, is there’s a great deal of kickin-in-face-right-to-ya music and a lotta fun going on up here, so don’t miss us!
What other bands are you listening to at the moment?
DQ: Right now? Disturbed – I like that stuff…, Rob Zombie and some old Backyard Babies albums..!
What is the best band you’ve ever seen live?
DQ: Hell, I saw ABBA when I was a kid, that pretty much blew my mind! Some Rammstein concerts, possibly? It should be Marilyn Manson because I love his stuff, but the sound was really crappy last time, sad cuz I like his shows!
Any other artists you’d like to meet or work with one day?
DQ: Tell Martin Scorsese he can make our next video!
What do you think of the present state of the world music industry?
DQ: It sucks really… The big record companies are still telling the masses what they’re gonna listen to, fuckin-elevator-crap-happymeal-shit-music..I fuckin hate it! What the fuck happened to Headbanger’s Ball....Bring the shit back....NOW!
What are you up to once you finish answering these questions?
DQ: I’m gonna take my bass down to the music store so they can fix it... I trashed it on our last gig.., really badly, but they’re good guys!!
Thanks for your time!!
DQ: No Jon, thanks for the interview....see ya!” D.
The new Nasty Idols is out now. Check out the review on Rock Realms here for further details...
http://www.myspace.com/thenastyidols
