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Danish three piece Before Fire recently upped sticks and relocated to London, here drummer Tobias Hahn Madsen gives us the lowdown on the band and what makes them tick.
What are the origins of the band, how long have you been playing together?
The band is the product of a decade long friendship between drummer Tobias and guitarist Konrad, who decided to join forces and form an honest, old school rock n’ roll band. We formed the band in 2016 and had the final lineup in 2018.
How did you feel performing your first gig? And how was it?!
It was in a rock club in Copenhagen and we we’re opening for another Danish rock band. It was great fun but I guess you’re always a bit more nervous going in to a first gig.
You recently relocated to London from Copenhagen, that couldn’t have been a decision taken lightly, and how much of an upheaval was that?
We had been talking about it for a couple of years actually but it wasn’t until spring ’19 that we got a bit more serious in our talks. It felt like a massive change before doing it but now that we’re here it feels natural and we’re having great fun.
What should people expect when they check the band out? How would you describe Before Fire?
Old school rock n roll mixed with a modern production. Honest songs about love, lust and the ups and downs of life.
The new music scene is bursting at the seams with fresh talent, in what ways do you feel that you stand out from the others trying to build a name?
Hmmm. Good question. We try to focus all around so no areas are forgotten. We focus on improving our live performance, our songs, our recordings, our look etc. all the time – we don’t just focus on writing songs as there is way more to it than that. We have a very structured approach to “running” the band. I guess that’s it.
What are you working on at the minute that people can check out?
Our latest release is a cover of Helter Skelter and apart from that we are doing something called Stripped Sessions every two weeks. We do stripped down versions of mostly covers but from time to time also our own stuff – definitely go check that out! And also we’re doing loads of shows around London at the moment.
What band out there at the minute do you feel that you would be best suited to open for?
Frank Carter, The Last Internationale, Queens of The Stone Age, Billie Eilish
Who do you feel is the next band to break out in the way that Massive Wagons recently have?
Saytr Play and The Naked Feedback
What are your first musical memories? And what was the light-bulb moment that made you go “I want to do that”?
There wasn’t really one moment that made it because we’ve all had music as a big part of our lives since we we’re very young so its always been there. But our first few gigs definitely sparked a flame inside us.
What was the last gig that you attended as a fan?
We all went to see Badflower together a couple months back here in London – that was a blast!
The album that you have in your album collection/spotify playlist that would surprise most people?
Here are our individual answers:
Konrad: Gus Viseur – De Clichy A Broadway
Mathias: The Milk Carton Kids – Monterey
Tobias: Earl Sweatshirt – Some Rap Songs
How active are you on social media and where can people connect with you?
Instagram is definitely where we’re most active and is also where we communicate most with our fans. We answer every message we get and generally get quite personal with our fans. That’s one of the really cool things about social media is that you can get way more personal with people even though they might be on the other side of the world.
What are your plans for 2020?
Release music, play shows, take over the world.
Connect with Before Fire here.
