INTERVIEW: Pale Grey — Music Musings & Such

INTERVIEW:

ALL BAND PHOTOS: Bettina Gente

Pale Grey

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MY blog is getting rather international…

as, today, I talk to a Belgian band! They are not any old Belgian band: I have been getting to know the guys of Pale Grey. They talk about their new single, Late Night, and working (on it) with Serengeti. I ask them about the music scene in Belgium; what we can expect from the forthcoming album, Waves; the music/artists they are inspired by; what tour dates are coming up – and how they managed to make such a big change since previous single Billy.

I ask them about new acts to recommend; whether music was a bit part of their upbringing; how they all got together; whether the band have formulated any resolutions; how they enjoy any downtime – any advice they would give to new artists.

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Hi, guys. How are you? How has your week been?

Hi, we’re fine. We had a busy week and are really excited to play Eurosonic Noordeslag festival in Groningen.

For those new to your work; can you introduce yourself, please?

We are a Belgian band and we are doing a kind of Indie-Hop-Pop music thing; mixing Rock, Folk; Hip-Hop and Electronic stuff together.

Tell me about the song, Late Night. What is the tale behind that song?

We wrote a song for an artist we really love (Serengeti). We’re in contact with his mgmt. and we had the opportunity to propose the song. He was really into and he sent us his part.

We wrote a chorus after that and the song was finished.

It features Serengeti. What was it like working with him?

It was like a dream becoming true...

There are big differences between the song and your previous track, Billy. It seems like you keep fresh and mobile! Do you think it is important to remain nimble and changeable?

We don’t like to limit ourselves.

We like to have the opportunity to do what we want...and that’s the reason. We’re also really into a lot of different music - it’s the reason we like to do different stuff as well.

Waves, your forthcoming album, is out on 2nd March. What kind of stories/subjects are addressed on the album?

We like to write stories about what we hear around us. Our lives are quite easy but, around us, we have some people who are really ‘daily’ heroes: you know; people who suffer but find solutions.

So incredible.

Tell me how Pale Grey got together. Did you guys all know one another from way back?

At the beginning, we were only two (Gilles and Max). We were not in the same school but our road crossed every morning. We were staring at each other with some questions like: “Who is this guy with band T-shirts?” Then, one day, we spoke together and we found out that we’re listening to the same kind of bands. We started the band and then the two others joined us after that.

You are based in Belgium. Are there quite a lot of new artists playing in the country? Which areas are producing the best work would you say?

Yes. Belgium is a small country but there is really a lot of bands. We are based in Liège - and there are a lot of good bands there.

We are used to playing with them at lots of good festivals.

Tell me about the music you each grew up on. Which artists have played the biggest role?

Since we were teenagers; we always have been into Indie-Rock music: bands like Radiohead, The Notwist; Why and Explosions in the Sky had a lot of influence on us.