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With an album, EP and tour on the way, New York based electro-pop band Iggy and The German Kids have been on the move with upbeat grooves.
Their latest single “Mary Jane” caught our earbuds right away and has us eagerly awaiting more tracks.
GroundSounds recently caught up with Iggy to find out what’s next and more, check out our exclusive interview below.
For those just discovering Iggy & the German Kids, can you tell us how you guys formed the group and a little bit about the chance encounter at Munich’s Oktoberfest?
I spent a year of college in Rome where I met Freddy’s sister, Valerie. While I was living there, Freddy was living in New York. Valerie invited me to go to Oktoberfest with her, we went to Munich and I met Freddy at one of those long beer-tables you sit at during the festival. I think around three years later I was back in New York and Freddy was back in Munich. One night I had a show at Mercury Lounge, I was outside the club waiting to perform and I saw Freddy walk by. He caught the show, said he’d be in touch and flew back to Munich. A couple months later he sent me the music he and Hubi had written, asking if I would write a melody and words over it. That song became our first single “So Hard”
What was the inspiration for your track “Mary Jane”?
It’s a feel good song that perhaps lyrically has a bit of a darker message. Mary Jane can represent an obsession that becomes all-encompassing, to the point where you’re ‘twisted in the brain” to quote the song. Whether its love, a girl, a boy, an addiction. Eventually, it not only consumes your life but acts as a crutch, you rely on it to essentially cope with your daily-life. But that might be a little too deep, because at the same time it sort of pokes fun of the fact that something as seemingly trivial as an obsession with a girl or a natural-substance is just as easily celebratory as it is destructive. You can’t behave all the time. Gotta enjoy the ride.
Can you tell us about the day you filmed the music video for “Mary Jane?” What was this shoot like?
It was a blast. Everything made possible by the mad-creative-genius that is Harris Hodovic. Basically, the day before Julian (the cinematographer and camera-man), Harris and I, drove around Brooklyn scouting some good spots to shoot. Harris already had the whole vision for the video in his head. The next day, with the cast, we started filming at the Williamsburg Bridge and continued throughout the day over into Buswick, until we arrived at our friend Samantha Rex’s apartment at Castle Braid. Once we got there, we finished filming and threw a party, some of which I think, made it onto the video.
What is it about electro pop/rock that attracts you to this sound?
I think it describes our influences. I was in bands for so many years playing rock music, or post-punk or garage or whatever you want to call it. The three of us love pop music, whether its a rap song, indie-pop or bubble-gum Pop. We are all into electronic music, especially the variety of drum and synth sounds; so being able to incorporate the wild sounds we hear in electronic music with a pop song structure and some guitars or other more “traditional” four piece sounds; is what we are aiming for. That’s perhaps why the music we have released, so far, has been branded electro-pop-rock.
What do you enjoy most about NYC? What is one thing every visitor should see or do?
The culture explosion; how there is somebody from every part of the world, every religion, color and creed; living in relative harmony. Don’t go to Times Square during the day, ever. If you have to go, then go at 4 or 5 in the morning after a long night out.
When you are on stage performing what typically goes through your mind?
the music mannnn, the music.
Can you tell us about the writing and creative process for “Follow the Sun?”
I went into the studio one day and Hubi had written the chord progression and was playing around with the sound in the beginning of the song that sounds like a guitar being played backwards. It had recently snowed, I was wearing a pair of leather-boots that were all wet and Hubi told me to take them off because I was making a mess. I felt inspired, went up to the microphone and sang, “The snow is soaking through my leather boots” That was the impetus for the melody, once we had that established, I think rather unconsciously I wrote the song about my previous girlfriend who had cheated on me; and how it was time to move on with my life. Run like da wind so to speak.
What advice would you give to up-and-coming musicians and artists?
Don’t go on The Voice. Practice with a metronome. Don’t worry if you suck at first, everyone sucks at first.
What are Iggy and the German Kids currently working on what can fans expect in the future?
Mary Jane comes out on August 22d for sale along with a re-mix and “Follow the Sun”. We are set to do a 15 Date-Tour of Germany in November to promote our upcoming EP release. After that we’ll put the finishing touches on the album and finally release our first full-length.
