Interview: Seewolf (Written)

Indie rockers Seewolf are celebrating the release of their debut album ‘A Bounce of Grace’ and in this interview we get to know them a little better.

1. Hello! Thank you for taking the time to chat to us. First things first, tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started.

We are all from the north part of the Netherlands a region called (Friesland) and Bram our bass guitarist from Groningen. We all actually come from other bands. Willem and I (Dolf) were together in a garage band called Melanocaster and Joop the drummer came from a hip-hop band. We ran into each other a lot in the scene and started to jam some songs/ideas and we then picked Bram from the art school, which laid the foundation of the band. We got started at our practise place and home studio on a dykhouse close to the sea. At night, we see the light of the lighthouse shining through the window of our rehearsal space. That together with the vastness gives us a lot of inspiration for our music.

The formation consists of:
Dolf Kuiken (guitar/vocals)
Willem Bijma (lead guitar/keyboards)
Bram Welbedacht (bass)
Joop Visser (drums/percussion)

2. Someone comes to you and asks you to sum up what kind of music you play – what do you tell them?

Cinematic Indie rock with a psychedelic touch.

3. What’s currently keeping you busy? A new album/EP/single release? A new video? Playing live, or planning ahead?

We just released our debut album called ‘A Bounce of Grace’ and are very busy with promoting it and playing live. Friday 2th of May we’re releasing our new music video ‘Bounce of Grace’. And in doing so, we are also looking for a party that can grow us further and help us play more abroad.

4. What is about this current period that is particularly exciting for you?

The excitement of having our first debut album on vinyl and meeting of new people who who are buying our album when we play live.

5. Tell me about the work that has gone into making it a reality and what it means to you.

Well it means a lot to us, because we bought an analog tape-recorder from the Wally Heider studio in San Franciso and shipped to the north of the Netherlands. Where we recorded our album on. And recording on tape means you have to play really well as a band as a whole. That’s a completely different process from when you record everything digitally and, say, track by track and overdub. This all because we love the sound of tape!

6. Making music and being creative can be a very positive experience and can be very good for the mind. In what way has making music had a positive impact on your mental health?

Well I think the excitement of making/discovering a new song or guitar-riff or whatsoever keeps us always looking for a new horizon. The excitement of that keeps you somehow or in some kinda way young. The pure joy of making music/art that is healing for the mind, at least for me.

7. It can also be incredibly challenging, more so in the modern times. What have been some challenging aspects of making music and how have you overcome them?

Indeed in these modern times in of selling music is quite a challenge. It’s actually a job on the side as a social media/PR content marketer. That can be quite frustrating at times, as you prefer to be involved in the creative process. But having said that, for us, creating new ideas and new songs is the drive that keeps us on the road. I think that is also the most important piece, you really have to have fun/joy in it and we still enjoy that a lot. The pure joy of making and playing new material live. That’s the main reason why we do what we do.

8. How do you handle the online aspects of being in a band? Having to put out content constantly, promoting across several different social media platforms, and having your success measured in likes and follows?

That is the most frustrating part about it, that everything seems to be about the numbers these days. But that has nothing to do with the music and the creative process. Sometimes music also needs time to mature and it sometimes seems like we live in a time where music is barely listened to at all. By that I mean it’s often all snapshots of songs what people often listen to. But if you listen to a band like Radiohead or The Who, for example, it’s sometimes like a red wine you have to learn to drink…before you discover the gems. With social media, in my view, it sometimes seems like that time is no longer there.

We record everything analogue, on a tape recorder where we want to take our time anyway, and which is a completely different process. But in of social media, we have a little help from a friend who also really enjoys doing this. We do on socials for what we can and she helps us with it to take some things off our hands. So that we can still focus as much as possible on the creative process which is what we really enjoy the most.

But like I said those socials etc, that just a job in itself.

9. How do you make this part of things enjoyable, and fulfilling, for yourself?

The pure joy of making music together is paramount for us.

10. Speaking directly to listeners – what would you ask they do to help you?

Well if they listen to our music and they enjoy/like it, it would help if we get new followers and people who buy our brand-new debut album.

11. Outside of music, what do you like to do to relax?

Read a book, Walking through the countryside and nature, watching a movie.

12. Where can people find you?

Website | Spotify | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube