Interview by Kris Peters
Forged from the survivors of Long Beach bands Damned Age, Black Velvet Brigade and Red River Massacre in 2018, Carsex pull no punches when they come to their sound, name or influences.
After crossing paths many a time on the local circuit in Orange County, the five music veterans gradually built a sonic relationship that has become a live force, with Carsex releasing their self-titled effort in 2019 and the EP 2020 the following year.
It has been a long five-year wait for fans of the band to hear a new body of work, which has now been rectified with the release of the seven-track EP Human Interest last week.
HEAVY caught up with frontman Nigel Burk to talk more.
"This one is our third EP," he offered, "and is definitely our strongest effort I feel, just out of the development of the band over the years and everything. I feel like we're as much a part of each other as we can be."
"So I feel like this one is probably the first one that is 100 per cent genuine, just straight from all of us as a unit. And yeah, we're super stoked on it. The basic idea… a lot of our material goes through a pretty wide variety of subjects - and lightly touches on politics to a certain degree - but I wouldn't say that much. Just really like the human condition as a broad explanation. Sometimes it's a little difficult for me to explain exactly what certain songs or the idea of the band is about, because I like for the audience to experience it for themselves. I feel like our presentation is more up for perception or subjective to the listener, because it is for us as well. It means something different to all of the band members individually as well."
In the full interview, Nigel highlighted several tracks, including Sitting Ducks, addressing societal issues, and Fuck This, which explores personal struggles. He shared the inspiration behind Landmine, stemming from a personal tragedy, and discussed DKC, which reflects on school shootings.
He also mentioned Stella, a hopeful song that encapsulates a journey of acceptance. The band’s live performance style has developed over their years together, and they are preparing for their EP launch at The Vine in Long Beach, while also planning a small tour later in the year after a brief hiatus for their drummer's surgery. We ran through the seven EP tracks individually and found out their intended meaning and more.
Become a supporter of this podcast:
https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.