Lidske Zdroje gave me a really long interview. Please check them out…you will love them. This interview was done in January 2024.

Please tell me a little about every member and the history of the band? Tell me a little about every member, previous bands and band on the side of Lidske Zdroje, work, age and what do you work with besides of the music?

GO476910YB: My civil name is Pavel, but everyone calls me Paaya. I do guitar and vocals. I`m 38 and I teach English, history and music at a lower secondary school in Vienna, where I live. But I come from Brno, where the rest of the band lives. In the past, my main band was FESTA DESPERATO (2002-2012), we played raw hc/crust/punk and we actually covered BOMBANFALL from Sweden too. My first band with 16 was DĚTI SNĚTI (2001-2002). Just teenage punk rock. Our guitarist Klobi was the bass player. I also played drums in PRIPYAT (2006-2007) and REPUBLIC OF WASTE (2014-2017). I used to write a zine (Drunk Nach Osten, all about East European punk), organise shows etc. but since a couple of years I have reduced all my scene activities to LIDSKÉ ZDROJE and gig photos (look them up at instagram.com/paayarazzi). I wrote the first songs for the band between 2014 and 2015. At first I thought it would be just a studio project. I started practicing with a drummer from Brno, but things only started to take shape after he had moved to Vienna as well. We found an Austrian bass player (Marco from ASTPAI), recorded a demo tape and played our first gigs in 2019. 2022 the original line up went apart so I asked my friends from Brno if they wanted to rehearse together for a few gigs. But it worked so well, both musically and personally, that we decided to keep going like this and moved the practice room to Brno.

CI485980YB: My name is Honza, I’m 28 years old and I play drums in LIDSKÉ ZDROJE. I live in Brno but I originally come from Kolín. I work as an assistant educator in the children’s diagnostic institute in Brno. Besides LIDSKÉ ZDROJE I play with BLANK OUT (bass & lead vocal) and KOMPLEX VINY (drums) and several unnamed other projects. Sometimes I organise shows in Brno and Kolín. I also organise two DIY festivals – GARAGEFEST and PUNX PIKNIK in Kolín region (central Bohemia). How I got into this band is quite a story. In january 2020 they went on a small tour with a band called VOLE and played a show in Graz, Austria. At that time, I was still studying in Maribor, Slovenia which is about 70km from Graz so I went to the show. That has been my first time seeing them live. The next day they were playing in Zagreb, Croatia. Maribor is halfway there, so I asked them if they can take me with them. Well, they took me but didn’t stop in Maribor saying: ”If you want to go with us, you have to experience the whole trip”. So I was kidnaped and on the way to Zagreb, where I experienced a wonderful party with both bands. On the way back I was playing guitar and singing their favourite songs in the van, when suddenly drunk as fuck Paaya- GO476910YB (more like his drunk alterego named Igor) came up to me saying: “You are moving to Vienna and joining our band on rhythm guitar!”. A few months later I joined the band as a roadie on their summer tour in Czech Republic and Slovakia. In 2022 I got a call from Paaya that the former lineup was splitting up and he’s looking for new members. Well, I couldn’t refuse, so I took the drummer position.

Your music is a style which came forward many years ago, old favourites which you like today?

GO476910YB: I grew up on mainly British guitar music from the 1960’s on and my huge passion before I discovered punk was Britpop, especially OASIS. Which probably explains why I enjoy the first wave of punk that much. To name a few classics that left a mark on our music… SONNY VINCENT (the biggest inspiration for our first songs!), STIFF LITTLE FINGERS, UK SUBS, TV SMITH, COCK SPARRER, SOCIAL DISTORTION, RAMONES but also EBBA GRÖN, GRAZHDANSKAYA OBORONA, SLOBODNÁ EURÓPA, HRDINOVÉ NOVÉ FRONY, early PRLJAVO KAZALIŠTE etc…

CI485980YB: Because of my parents I grew up mostly  on hard rock and heavy metal. My ticket into punk music were GREEN DAY and OFFSPRING. Then I discovered classics like RAMONES, SEX PISTOLS and of course Czech bands like VISACÍ ZÁMEK, HOUBA, E!E… Those bands shaped me in my early teenage years. If I had to mention any bands that inspire my drumming in Lidské Zdroje then it would’ve been THE RAMONES, BAD RELIGION, DEECRACKS, DARK THOUGHTS, THE HIVES, DIRECT HIT, THE CLASH, DESCENDENTS, GREEN DAY and BLINK 182....

The name Lidske Zdroje where did it came from? You weren´t afraid that not any other would be named so before? It means Human resources, doesn´t it? Your absolute favourite band name?

GO476910YB: Yeah the translation is correct. The name had been on my mind before I even wrote a single song. It just perfectly sums up what our role as individuals in a capitalist society is, doesn’t it? A pretty Orwellian term. Well it’s also a bit of a sarcastic hint at the fact that from the very beginning it’s been a project where I’d usurp a lot of the “artistic control” and sort of surround myself with capable “human resources”, friends who’d be willing to join me on the journey. But you can also understand the name in a much more positive way – the band, the songs, the music… it’s all something that connects people. I, personally, can definitely say that the best way for me to connect with other people is through music. So - the songs themselves become humane (the ‘e’ intended) resources. I researched and  surprisingly, I haven’t found any other band with that name. Some animated show with the same name showed up on Netflix recently, haha. They haven’t sued us yet. Our goal is that every fucking corporate git who googles those two words, first has to go through fifty pages referring to our band. Favourite band names? Can’t think of any at the moment. Most band names are just uncreative, meaningless rubbish, aren’t they?

CI485980YB: Don’t have any favourite band name. I don’t care much about their names as about the music and the message. LIDSKÉ ZDROJE is pretty neat name tho! Good job GO476910YB!

Is it important to release physical things? Or can you feel that you have done a record if you only release it digitally? You did a flexi not so usual nowadays, how come?

GO476910YB: It definitely is important to us. A digital release is only half the thing. A proper release must have an artwork, lyrics, sleeve notes and all that. I’m very conservative when it comes to that. It’s hard to reach younger people nowadays without putting the stuff out there digitally, but we’ll always put our stuff out on vinyl too. Somehow I feel like that’s where the real deal is. Anyone can stream your record but if they really dig it, they should have the chance to get a complete physical release too. As for the flexi – the prices for pressing a 7”record have reached ridiculous highs recently and we’ve been too slow with rehearsing and releasing a full LP anytime soon. But we needed to get something out there since our demo tape is 4 years old and doesn’t really represent the band anymore. It seems like a cheap and practical way to get a single out, before the album is finished. We might put out a few more until then, let’s see.

CI485980YB: It has always been my dream to have my own band’s records in my record collection. The dream comes true. It is not only about the music on the record. I want to hold, read and simply feel it while listening. So yes, it is important to me. It is a passion.

You have never been to Sweden and played or been here as tourists? With this band or any other band you have been in? If you not have when do you come?

GO476910YB: No, never! Even though FESTA DESPERATO had very friendly relations with Kaj from Wasted Sounds back in the mid-2000’s, there was even the plan to release our 12” on his label and I think we fantasised about touring Sweden back then, but nothing of it ever came to life. I’d love to visit Sweden some day, with or without the band. If we get invited, I’m sure we’d accept the challenge!

CI485980YB: Never been to Scandinavia at all! I’d love to visit! Hopefully one day…

Which countries have had the pleasure to be hearing the band live?

GO476910YB: So far it’s been 8 countries – Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia, Germany, Poland, Croatia, Luxembourg and Belgium. Looking forward to more this year! I’m definitely not interested in playing the same Czech venues every weekend year in year out.

Please tell me a little about the following lyrics….and who wrote it and why?

GO476910YB: So far, I have written – or as I prefer to put it – stolen and compiled all our music and lyrics.
Ich erwarte nicht mehr

was written in the summer of 2015 at my friend’s house in Split, Croatia. I was quite a mess then. Broken hearted, struggling with low self-esteem and lack of self-respect, had lost my job, spent my time with drugs, booze and hooking up in order not to feel alone. The lyrics are as nihilistic as could be. Looking back at it now, I kind of struggle with the message of it. But that’s how I saw the world back then… And it’s also a bit of a tribute to the 80´s German punk.

Right to choose

I remember writing this one in spring 2020, in the early days of the pandemic, when my partner and me were taking a walk through the woods outside of Vienna (later I found out that Beethoven had been looking for inspiration while walking through the same forest, haha). I saw how miserable everyone around me was at the time so I tried to write something uplifting for once in my life. Well, I’m not too sure whether I succeeded haha…

Špatnej vtip

Most punks in our country grew up listening to ZÓNA A from Bratislava, Slovakia. If I should choose one song from the 1980’s Czechoslovak scene that I would love to cover, it would surely be their “Chceš si žiť po svojom”. For the guitar riff alone. One of the best ones ever! Unfortunately, their vocalist has long been on a dubious racist path until he finally became an outright advocate of neonazis. Thus, covering any of their songs was out of question. Instead, I nicked the riff, changed it a bit and wrote a new song around it, but with lyrics that their vocalist would barely like. It’s a story of a middle aged man, your average Joe, who is a loser with no control of his life and who takes it out on the minorities.

You do songs in many different languages, which is best to sing in?

GO476910YB: I write all the songs, the lyrics usually arrive first with a brief piece of a melody and I finish them as the melody unfolds in my head. Depending on my mood or the topic, I either write in English or in Czech. There’s no master plan behind it. It all comes to me naturally. English suits me better for personal lyrics while Czech tends to work better for, say, social topics. But it’s not a rule set in stone. I also wrote one German song and even have two old songs in Romanian. I love languages in general. Each has its special way of expressing things and each sounds a bit different in music.

Is there any subject you never will sing about?

GO476910YB: Never say never to anything. I can’t imagine writing fun lyrics though... Very few people can do it in a way that does not sound pathetic to me, and I know I’m not one of them. Moreover, most fun lyrics are only funny the first time you hear them, if at all. Not my thing…

How is it to live in Czech Republic nowadays, racists, politic?

GO476910YB: I’ve been living in Austria since 2012 so my perspective is a bit limited. Since the fall of Bolshevism in 1989, there has been this toxic narrative in the Czech political landscape, that links any pro-social idea to the totalitarianism of the pre-1989 regime. A false dichotomy is presented before every election, that there are only two ways to go – either the country votes for conservative liberal parties who are going to dismantle all leftovers of social security to allegedly save the country from bankruptcy, or we will become a debt-ridden failed state where nobody wants to work anymore and we will head straight back before 1989. So you either have these antisocial Thatcherist neoliberal scum in the government or the social democrats, who are a fucking farce and have actually barely anything “social” left to offer. In the last decade this has turned even crazier with the rise of Trump-style populist parties like ANO and SPD who try to gain power by harnessing the fear and anger of the people and redirecting this rage towards minorities, refugees, LGBTQI movement, climate activists, or whoever else fits their enemy profile. This cultural conflict between liberals and conservatives gets even nastier with time and many things that would have been a no-go only a couple years earlier, have become accepted meanwhile. But that is a thing that is common for most western countries and in my opinion is closely linked to the rise of social media.

CI485980YB: GO476910YB described it exactly. Racism, homophobia, xenophobia... Stupid misinformers spread their pro-Russian propaganda at every step. What is even more sad is that you can find people who share these ideas in the punk scene. So, you want to leave this everyday bullshit, go to a show or a festival to be in safe place where people understand you and share same or similar political ideas and sometimes you run into these idiots. Luckily, you barely see them at small DIY shows or venues but still…they’re everywhere.

Is it better to live in Czech republic nowadays if you compare for say about 25 years ago??

GO476910YB: So we’re talking late 90’s? Wow… not a simple question to answer, because you cannot isolate the good and bad things. Some things got better, some got worse. When I was a teenager, visiting Austria for example meant that everything would be five times the price. Now when you leave the country, the prices are often the same, or at most double, even though you still get half the salary than in Western Europe. Neonazi street violence has declined, but on the other hand, racist agenda has become widely accepted across the political spectrum and has left the underground. But so did also many progressive ideas, that were back then only pushed by the anarchists, punks and other alternative youth. As for the punk scene, it grew larger, but also lazier and older. Honestly, if I should choose between living now and 25 years ago, I couldn’t decide. But if you asked me to choose between 1980’s Czechoslovakia and now, I’d not hesitate a second. I’d stay where I am. That’s for sure.

Do you have any favorite football team(I support Arsenal and a Swedish team called GAIS myself)? Or any sport favorites at all?

GO476910: No, not really. When I was a kid, I had a phase when I would passively support Brno’s football team (called Boby Brno in the 90’s, now Zbrojovka) and I also watched ice hockey a bit, the Czech team in the late 90’s was top class. But it wasn’t much more than peer pressure and my search for something to live for. Music has won, obviously. I like to keep my body active, but I prefer doing it by myself (weight lifting, running etc.) to collective sports. I had to drop Muay Thai because of a knee injury, that sucks.

CI485980YB: I always preferred ice hockey over football. My favourites in NHL are Edmonton Oilers. In Czech league it’s HC Dynamo Pardubice. But I don’t care much anymore. When we were teenage punx, we were used to go to hockey matches a lot. HC Blue Blucks Kolín was a team in my hometown which played in a second national league. But the crowd was frequented by nazis a lot. So we stopped going there after some incidents, of course. In football I’d say St.Pauli because of its antifascist fanclub. In Czechia it would be Bohemians1906 although I found out there are also some greyzone/nazi ultras among their fans… Only sport I’ve ever been involved in was shooting when I was like 10 years old or so I’m not really a sport guy. Passively, I play squash sometimes or go hiking, biking or swimming.

Beer is expensive in Sweden. I have a very big interest in beer and brew myself? Your favourite beerstyle ? You don´t have an own Lidske Zdroje-beer? If you do that or will do that what is it going to be called? Or maybe you are straightedge?

GO476910YB: We’re definitely not straight edge. Even though some of us could profit from the idea, haha… Personally, my hardcore party days are over. I prefer sipping a couple of beers and chilling. So yeah, we’re all beer lovers, but quite polarised when it comes to taste and style. Klobi and me are the picky posh divas, notoriously hard to please. That’s what living abroad does to you, I guess. Lately, I mostly prefer ales (especially IPA) and stouts, I mostly also like wheat beer and Zwickel. I don’t like Märzen beer (which unfortunately is the most common beer style in Austria…) and sour beers. But a good beer is a good beer and I won’t say no to a good lager either. And when you’re on tour, you drink what they give you anyway. Who has survived a night on warm cans of Ottakringer Helles, will survive anything.

CI485980YB: I guess GO476910YB means me with the sXe idea, fuck off, haha.. I love beer. Beer is probably the only think I can be proud to be Czech because we literally have the best beer in the world, don’t we? I prefer lagers (mostly Pils) and pale ales mainly from small breweries. I don’t like wheat beer and I usually struggle in Germany, because most of their beers taste like piss. Sorry, not sorry.

Is there any good bands from Czech republic worth to mention? And how is the punk/hardcore/oi scene living on in Czech republic right now?

GO476910YB: Having had the luck to witness the rise and fall of many amazing Czech bands in the 2000’s (COMPLICITE CANDIDE, DREAD 101, EVIDENCE SMRTI, VYBOR VEREJNEHO BLAHA, AD CALENDAS GRAECAS, HOMOCONSUMENS, TELEFON, V.I.R., GRIDE, SHEEVA YOGA, MAD PIGS, MAC GYVER, FOOLOCRACY, BALACLAVA, GUIDED CRADLE, CUNTACENTACLAMANT… to name a few that have already called it a day), I kind of struggle to find today’s bands interesting. Those that I really like have mostly either been around since 20+ years (INNOXIA CORPORA, THALIDOMIDE, SEE YOU IN HELL, LAHAR), or they are newer bands of the same people, like for example LUCIFER EFEKT who are probably my favourite current Czech band. New bands mostly lack ideas or skills or both, or they experiment with some style fusions that just don’t speak to me. Or maybe I’m just being grumpy, picky and lazy to let myself go, I don’t know. Well the only relatively younger bands that I can think of now are VOLE (very metallic and chaotic chain punk from Prague, the recordings are a mess but they kill it live!) and INTERPUNKCE (raw hc punk, also from Prague). Also LICKSPIT (thrashcore) and SKIPLIFE are great. And DEATH CULTURE DEPRIVATION – noisy raw punk with Marek from FESTA DESPERATO on guitar.

CI485980YB: There’s a lot! I agree with most of the bands that GO476910YB mentioned. For myself I’d add DEATH WISH KIDS (hc-punk), ANTISOCIAL SKILLS (hc-punk/postpunk), HOUBA(punkrock), GREEN SMÅTROL(ska/rocksteady), ŠVINDL(punkrock/ramonescore), THE CRUSHERS(garage rocknroll), KRANG(skatepunk), RABIES(skatepunk), TRHAN (punk), BRÜNNER TODESMARCH (raw punk), THE ROCKET DOGZ (psychobilly), ROZRUCH (Oi!), RV-4(hc-punk), EMPTY HALL OF FAME (hc-punk), ACID ROW (stoner-punk), MORDLOCH (death metal punks), SØLITÄR(crust)…and there’s many more.. How is the scene living here…I must say it really depends on a region. Some locations are totally dead and nothing really happens there, or there is a small group of active people who try to put on some shows but no one around cares much. Respect to these people who keep trying! On the other hand, scenes in bigger towns or cities are usually pretty much alive but divided, which feels kinda sad to me. I grew up in a small town where we were united as a scene with bands that play different genres like emo, funky, grindcore or metal and we supported each other. It doesn’t work much like that in bigger cities and I miss it. As a promoter of shows for mostly foreign bands on tour I must say that those bands always love to come back to Czech Republic though.

What is your strength when you play live? What is the most difference between playing nowadays and if you compare when you started to play?

GO476910YB: We have a tight drummer who always pushes the speed of the songs to the edge of our possibilities. I guess we’ve also a better understanding of how to set up a good sound, and when I compare us to my previous bands or even with our original line up, I’d say this is the tightest band I had ever been a part of. And we’re having fun on stage. I’d say the fact that each of our songs is a bit different and that our live set sort of increases in energy within those 30-40 minutes, really helps us to keep people interested. I played my first gig in 2001, aged 16, and it’s a very different experience now. I rarely get nervous anymore, I know what I do and do not want, I can better deal with unexpected things without stopping the song, pretty much everything goes easier. Well, gigs have also changed since then. Getting a decent audience these days is much more of a challenge, there’s heaps of touring bands, but also more venues are run by people from within the scene nowadays. Czech people have more money than before so you often have better sound at shows and what is great is that no one smokes in your face anymore. Having to deal with some nazi boneheads attacking the gig is also extremely rare now. But you can also notice that the audience has become  lazier and more picky.

CI485980YB: Yes, he’s right. Before I joined LIDSKÉ ZDROJE I was used to play with faster and heavier bands like FICKEN LEBEN (something like grind/crust with some stoner elements) or KOMPLEX VINY(fast hardcore punk band which I’m still member of). Almost all the songs of LIDSKÉ ZDROJE are in middle tempo which I fucking enjoy to play and I try to put as much energy as I can, so sometimes it’s on the edge of possibilities as GO476910YB says. I feel like a different person when I’m on stage. I think differently and I see things in a different point of view. I started my first band when I was about 13 years old and I played drums. I was a complete beginner then but I still loved every second of playing with a band. It has always been a dream of mine – to be in a band. The dream came true, again. Nowadays, I wouldn’t share a stage with certain bands and people that I’ve shared before when I was younger, more naïve and less experienced. I care more about both stuff around scene and music and music itself. Well, “I guess this is growing up” (Blink-182), haha.

Which type of people comes to your concerts? Which type of people do you miss?

GO476910YB: I feel as if we were kind of floating outside of all those scene cliques and trendy splitter groups, just doing our own thing and not really fitting anywhere 100%. So as a result we get a great variety of people. From alternative teenagers through 30 year old crust punks, hc kids and skinheads, to 60+ old punk rockers and random “normal” people. I really like the mixture, I must say. Even though there are shows and audiences that I might feel more comfortable with than others. Especially in the 77/street punk milieu there are many people who have opinions and attitudes that I do not necessarily share, there’s a lot of unchallenged sexism and some general redneck mentality is more widespread than let’s say, when we play for a more ‘political’ audience etc. But most of the time our audience and the bands we play with are pretty cool. Whom do I miss at our shows? Young, active punks who are enthusiastic and who kick our ass with their attitude. Most young kids are either not interested in this kind of music or they are just passive consumers and that is the saddest thing about today’s punk rock for me. Let me know which local scenes are different and put on a show for us there! I’m tired of playing at 30+ parties, haha…

CI485980YB: Again, it depends on a kind of show and its certain location. But yeah, you barely see teenagers at punk shows. Most of people are my age or older. Let’s hope it’s going to change one day!

Do you buy much records, or is it only Spotify and those type of things to listen to music? Any good record store in your town?

GO476910YB: Way too many! I grew up on vinyl records and tapes as a kid and never really stopped listening to them. When you’re in Vienna you should definitely visit Musikversorgung Steiner, a new hc/punk record shop with a great selection. My other favourite record shops are Record Bag, Schallter, Rave Up and Substance. MP3´s and streaming services are practical but they can never replace a physical format with a sleeve, lyrics, photos and all that. Not for me at least.

CI485980YB: Both! I got to know a lot of good bands on those music platforms. But, of course I prefer physical copies. There are some good record stores in Brno like Kabinet records, Vinyl records etc. Sometimes I just browse in second-hand records and find some good stuff. In my opinion, the best is to buy records directly from the artist or the label they release under. 

Are you selling any merch on your gigs, do people buy it? What sells best?

GO476910YB: Yeah, we do. We never put much emphasis on that with my previous bands, but now we do it quite a bit. I enjoy designing it, people enjoy having the chance to bring something home from our show, and it keeps the band budget always one step away from drying out completely. Win-win situation. We’re trying to do just nice, quality stuff. I don’t want to see kids running around with some tasteless shit with our name on it. T-shirts sell best, of course. We basically do new designs every now and then, no reprints.

CI485980YB: Sometimes I feel like it’s a pity that I’m a member of this band. I would buy all the merch we have! But I don’t wear merch of my own band, soooo.

Which is your own favorite song among your own songs? And which song is the people choice?

GO476910YB: Usually the newest one, so now it would be a song called “Mokry sen” that I wrote last summer. I really like “Ten-Meter Fence” too, an old one from our demo. We’ll be playing both of them live pretty soon. But I like them all, though I’ve been playing some of them for almost 10 years now and I’m looking forward to updating our set list. People’s favourite… I guess it must be “Ich erwarte nix mehr”?

CI485980YB: I enjoy to play “No borders, no oceans” the most. Although, it was probably the most difficult song to learn and the longest too. Czechs love “Špatnej vtip”, German speaking people prefer “Ich erwarte nix mehr”..Maybe..I don’t know. Our repertoire is diverse. Each song has something special, I think.

You have release records on your label but now on Papagajuv Hlasatel, how is it??`

GO476910YB: When we put out our demo tape or a Flexi disc, it was a logical thing to do. You want to get something out, you do it yourself, right? Especially when most of it gets sold at our shows anyway. The same thing goes for all our digital releases - I don’t see a reason why someone else should do it for us, when we can easily handle that by ourselves. But releasing and distributing a vinyl record is a different thing. I couldn’t be arsed to take care of the whole distribution and stuff. No time for that. In 2022 I ran into Pavel from PHR at Rebellion Fest in Blackpool. As we were watching THE BOYS, he came up with the proposal of releasing our band and it sounded like a great idea. There might be quite a few things on the label that I don’t personally like, especially some bands from the Czech scene are not my cup of tea, but there are also many of our favourite bands and records that we grew up with and still keep listening to. Apart from that, Pavel is a person we’ve known since we were teenagers. We bought our first records from his distro, he put on the first shows we ever visited, he organised shows for our first bands etc. We know him, he knows us. Local label releasing a local band. Sounds just right to me!

CI485980YB: I think I know this label since I started to listen to punk. A lot of Czech bands I’ve been listening back then were under this label. Now, it’s an honour to be part of it!

Do you care about reviews? Which is the most peculiar you ever had, with this band or any other band you have been to?

GO476910YB: Yes and no. I’m curious what people think about our band, but not to an extent that I worry about it or let it really affect what we do. Reviewers are people like anyone else. Sure, it’s cool to read some praise or meaningful criticism. But at the end of the day, what matters most is whether we like it ourselves or not. The rest is just a cherry on top. You’ll never please everyone and neither should you wish to.

CI485980YB: I think I do. It’s important to accept criticism. But we do it how we like it, anyways.  Our thoughts matter first, the others’ thoughts are secondary, I feel. Already got many peculiar reviews about this band and other too. Can’t think of any specific ones now.

If you could choose five bands from the past and the history and nowadays and both dead and living bands to have a concert together with your band. Which five have you been chosen? Or have already shared stage with all these bands?

GO476910YB: OK, that’s a hard one but it’ll surely be OASIS, because I’ve been a die hard fan since I was a kid. SONNY VINCENT, because he was such a big influence to me as a songwriter and a guitarist. Especially in the early days of LIDSKÉ ZDROJE. SLOBODNÁ EURÓPA, my favourite band from Slovakia. My favourite Czech band was COMPLICITÉ CANDIDE, they don’t play anymore, unfortunately. But I was lucky to share the stage with them with my old band, FESTA DESPERATO, and we also recently went on a mini-tour with their guitarist’s new band, LUCIFER EFEKT. Damn, one more… Any of the 70’s UK punk classics I guess - THE ADVERTS, UK SUBS, STIFF LITTLE FINGERS, THE DAMNED… you name it.

CI485980YB: My dream line-up to be a part of with LIDSKÉ ZDROJE would be probably alongside THE RAMONES, UK SUBS, THE CLASH, STIFF LITTLE FINGERS, THE DEAD BOYS.

Is music a good way to get out frustration and become a nicer person outside the music?
GO476910YB: Not necessarily. Some people would do a much bigger service to humanity if they never recorded a single song. Well if you give it a chance and are open to it, of course music can help you evolve and become a better person, just as much as anything else, I guess. It depends what kind of a person you already are and what kind of people you spend time with. It’s not so much the music itself as it is the environment that surrounds it. That’s where the DIY punk scene is pretty unique, I must say. You rarely get this amazing spirit of mutual support and cooperation anywhere else. That never seizes to amaze me and inspire me. But morons are everywhere. That’s life. And no peace punk song will ever eliminate that completely.

CI485980YB: Interesting question! Some bands and their lyrics changed my point of view on this world and maybe even changed my behaviour, I must say. So, did it change my personality? Maybe. It definitely changed my life. I can’t imagine myself not being into music at all. Who could I be? No clue. I think It’s up to every single one, if they want to change and become nicer people.

Politics and music, does it belong together?? Which is your most political song or do you not want to put politics into your music?

GO476910YB: It depends on how you understand politics. We’re not necessarily a political band in the sense how you probably mean it, but we’re surely not a band without an attitude. I believe that there is hardly anything in this world that doesn’t have a political, or if you prefer - social context. There is no such thing as being apolitical. Also personal is political, as they say. When I write personal lyrics, I still remain a part of the society. The way I treat myself and my relationships still has a lot to do with social expectations, power structures etc. When people write funny songs, the jokes don’t appear in a vacuum either. Even as a purely instrumental musician, who doesn’t use any lyrics, the very way you operate in this world, the choices you make every day, they still have a political nature in a way. Whether you consciously consider it or not. Claiming to be “apolitical” is also a political choice, just a very shallow and lazy one. It means “I’m fine with the status quo, I couldn’t be arsed using my brain to imagine anything better”. Having said that, unlike with my previous bands, I don’t currently feel the need to reflect overtly political, social issues in my songs. Most of my lyrics now are more personal. Especially the ones in English. When I write in Czech language though, I still tend to comment on some political stuff, mostly this everyday xenophobia, rise of conservatism, survival of the fittest… (songs like Špatnej vtip, Běs, Mokrý sen etc.). And I believe we will have more songs like that in the future.

CI485980YB: Now, I must quote one of my favourite bands, again: “If you think that punk rock doesn’t mix with politics. YOU’RE WRONG!” (NOFX).

Any good Swedish bands you like?

GO476910YB: Definitely not ABBA. Sweden has always had some sick bands though… I love old ASTA KASK, EBBA GRÖN, SJU SVÅRA AR, BURNING KITCHEN, THE HIVES, REGULATIONS, TOTALITÄR, MOB 47, NO SECURITY, MARY’S KIDS, THE VICIOUS, MASSHYSTERI, ANTI CIMEX, DISARM, THE ACCIDENTS, VALD…

CI485980YB: THE HIVES, BOMBSHELL ROCKS, TOTALITÄR, WOLFPACK/WOLFBRIGADE, SATANIC SURFERS, NO FUN AT ALL, EBBA GRÖN, DS-13, THE HELLACOPTERS, ANTI CIMEX, SKITSYSTEM, MILLENCOLLIN, DISFEAR, THE DAHMERS… and I don’t hate ABBA tho!

Is it boring with interviews? Is it much interviews? What do you prefer Telephoneinterviews, face to face or as this one via e-mail?

GO476910YB: When the questions are interesting, interviews are great. I usually enjoy them, because they make me think of and formulate ideas. When they’re random questionnaire-style interviews, they can get pretty boring too, but that’s usually not the case. I prefer emails as it gives me more time to think of the answers and it’s easier for me to express myself in writing than talking. But both is alright.

CI485980YB: I like to read/watch/listen and to do them either! I prefer face to face, where I can express my feelings more. Anyways, big respect to you about this one! Good questions and nice structure. Keep it up!

Futureplans for the band?

GO476910YB: Step by step, we want to record all our songs and release them on vinyl. We have material for two LPs, but we’re a bit slow in getting them recorded. Recently, we went to a studio again so there will be at least some digital singles for now, maybe another flexi disc or something like that. We have about 20 gigs planned for the next few months, including a Balkans tour. More gigs, more tours! Sweden would be a blast at some point!

CI485980YB: To play with as much joy and fewer mistakes as possible!

Futureplans for yourself?

GO476910YB: I must say that I’m pretty happy with where I am in my life right now. So the plan is just to face the challenges, keep it up and gradually make it even better. Travel a bit, learn some new languages, reflect on the stupid shit that I do every now and then, not remain stuck in one place, evolve…

CI485980YB: To enjoy my life. Playing music, traveling, being with people I love, meeting new people ...everything that makes me happy.

Wisdomword?
GO476910YB: Let it be.

CI485980YB: Don’t be assholes. Go to shows and support local scenes.

Something more to add?

GO476910YB: Thanks for the space in your zine, mate! Keep it going!

CI485980YB: Skål and see ya!