Features

- by Tom Dumarey

LYGO doesn't really give away a lot of information about themselves on their website or social media. They play punkrock and sing in German. That's pretty much it. But there's a lot more to the trio out of Bonn. All you need to do really is listen to their new album 'Schwerkraft,' which will be out Sep 7th via Kidnap Music. All of the songs come with dual vocals, a real sense of urgency and are as angst-y as they are melodic. You could even call them catchy if you were so inclined, yet the songs still pack more than enough grit for you to grind your teeth on. We caught up with vocalist/guitarist Simon Meier hoping to extract some more information abouut the band and the new album.

PRT: Let’s kick this off with some cliché questions… Who are you? And when and why did you start Lygo?

Simon: We are three guys in their mid-twenties who decided to form a punk rock band in early youth age. So we bought some instruments and started playing shows in 2009. It took us a few years to release our first album in 2014, but since then we have started doing more with the band.

PRT: Your bio simply says ‘Lygo, deutschsprachiger Punkrock aus Bonn’ and there isn’t a whole lot of background information to be found on your Facebook, Tumblr,… Is that because you want to let the music speak for itself or are you just not that occupied with your online presence?

Simon: We try to keep all our social media channels up to date. But we don’t spend too much time on discussing posts and online content. And of course we hope that the music speaks for itself, as well.

PRT: There’s three of you… maybe a dumb question… but how do you decide that three is enough?

Simon: It was not really an active decision. We just started as a trio and never questioned it or tried to work with a second guitarist. Also it became characteristic for us that we are only three on stage and people from the audience told us that they liked our energy as a trio.

PRT: Any other trios you were particularly inspired by?

Simon: There are several three-piece bands that we like. Two bands from Germany, that we had the chance to play with, are Frau Potz and FJØRT. They have been an inspiration for us, and good examples that you can have a full sound and stage presence with only three band members.

PRT: Was it a logical decision to sing in German rather than English?

Simon: In the beginning, we started singing in English for a very short time. But soon we realized that our English pronunciation is not the best and that we were more comfortable with writing German lyrics. We also listened to lots of other German bands and so we just tried it.

PRT: I get how it’s easier to express yourself in your mother tongue, but aren’t you worried about limiting yourself to where you can play?

Simon: We have now played more than 150 shows and there are still so many cities and festivals in German-speaking countries that we haven’t played. So we can’t say that we feel limited. We’ve had the opportunity to play lots of cool places and we think that it is rather because we are singing in German and not despite it. There is a very nice music scene for German language punk rock and hardcore music and good options for bands to start on a DIY level and play small shows. Anyway, it would be interesting to tour in other-language countries and see how people react to the music.

PRT: ‘Schwerkraft’, your second album is coming out in September. Were you worried about the dreaded sophomore slump or was it an easy album to write and record?

Simon: We knew that writing a second album probably wouldn’t be easy. Our expectations were high after our previous record “Misere” which was only a 6-track EP. And we were right. It was hard at some points both regarding creative and personal aspects. The recording was easier though, at least for us. We recorded everything in 10 long days in January this year without any day offs. That was a very intensive experience, but also quiet hard for our extremely patient friend and producer Nico Vetter.

PRT: Schwerkraft means gravity if I’m not mistaken. What made you go for that title?

Simon: Yes, you are right with the translation and you can read it in two ways. One would be the physical meaning of gravity. The other one would be a more metaphorical one, like heaviness or severity. This ambiguity is a main reason for choosing the title. It also fits in line with our first album title “Sturzflug”, which means nosedive.

PRT: My German isn’t very good but am I right in saying that your songs aren’t overtly political, but that they deal more with your personal fears and anxieties that are inspired by today’s political climate?

Simon: Yes, we think that our personal experience is linked with the political system and social climate we live in. Also, there are also a political components in songs that don’t use explicit political phrases. In our opinion every band in the public, no matter what they sing about, has a certain responsibility to show attitude in critical situations. And we think that it’s also great to have bands that are very concrete with political messages. You can share values with someone but have a different creative approach in your music. That’s of course not a contradiction.

PRT: And if so, is it simply easier for you to write more personal lyrics rather than make political statements?

Simon: Compared to explicit political lyrics, it’s usually easier for us. And it is also a matter of personal taste. But, as I said, there can still be a political component. If I criticize a certain political party in a song that is a political statement. But for example creating acceptance for psychic problems by singing about personal thoughts and feelings could also be considered political in a way.

PRT: The new album has an anvil on the cover, which also makes a cameo in the video for ‘Festgefahren’. What does the anvil symbolize?

Simon: We worked together with Yvonne Domava, because we liked her previous artworks and paintings. She came up with the anvil idea. We really liked it because it fits together with the album title in a very simple way. As you say, we have bought an anvil for our music video, so we now know that it is an extremely heavy thing. Because of its weight we have seen it as a symbol for a burden and used that picture in the video. “Festgefahren”, the song title, means something like deadlocked or stuck. In the anvil’s actual function, as a tool for smiths, we also see it as a symbol for creativity, which is a nice paradox.

PRT: Last year you did your first headliner tour. Any lessons learned from that first time around as a headliner that will come in handy for your next tour in October?

Simon: Before our first headliner tour we wondered whether we would physically be able to play a full set so many days in a row. But we learned that it’s possible for us to play 11 shows in 12 days so we concluded that for the next tour 15 shows in 17 days will also work out. We also learned to be confident that there are people coming to the shows. It is somehow incredible to see, that after years of playing there are now people who buy tickets for our own shows and come there, know the songs and sing along. And finally we learned that touring is a great opportunity to just have a good time with nice people and escape from annoying everyday problems.

PRT: I’m not very at home in the German music scene… which other bands should I check out and why?

Simon: That’s hard to chose but here are some active bands that come into my mind: Listen to Pascow or for great German-lyric punkrock. F*cking Angry play hardcore punk and also come from Bonn. LIRR are singing in English, released a great post-hardcore EP and a debut album with lots of different style influences. Grimeny, the trio of our producer, play experimental instrumental music and switch instruments on stage. And more German-lyric examples that will be interesting to listen to, also without understanding the lyrics, are Turbostaat, Havarii, Die Nerven and FJØRT.