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The Trousers are a four-piece garage rock/hard rock band from Budapest, Hungary, EU, mixing vintage hard rock n roll (The Rolling Stones, Iggy and The Stooges, AC/DC, Motörhead) with modern song-oriented garage rock (The Hellacopters, BRMC). Vocalist/guitarist Zoltan “Dr Buffalo” Kovary talks us through the evolution of the band.
What are the origins of The Trousers? How long have you been playing together?
The band was formed in 2005 by me. Peter, our guitarist, joined in 2011, bassist Bandi in 2016, and drummer Sam in 2017. This is our strongest lineup ever.
What should people expect when they check the band out? How would you describe The Trousers?
We are trying to create a balance between heaviness and song-orientation. Our roots are in the 70’s: Stones, Stooges, Sabbath, AC/DC, Motörhead, etc, but on the one hand it is mixed with 21st century influences: The Hellacopters, Queens of the Stone Age, etc. and on the other the songs are always composed as “singles”, so melodies and catchy hooks are always included.
How did you feel performing your first gig as a band, and how was it?!
It was a very long time ago, hard to recall. Although we were not bad musicians but being a frontman and singing was new for me, so it took some years until we became who we wanted to be. We played some original material and some covers like Creedence Clearwater’s “Bad Moon Rising” in a Ramones-style 😊
In terms of a similar audience, which band out there at the minute do you feel The Trousers would be best suited to open for?
For The Hellacopters, or Alice in Chains, maybe Rival Sons.
Excluding yourself, which new band would you like to see break out and become a success?
For example, Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol.. I saw them in Budapest a few months ago, and they were very cool. The Damn Truth is also fine, but I also like Anthony Gomes.
What frustrates you about the music business?
There is an almost unbreakable vicious circle: you can’t participate at a festival as an artist because you are not successful enough or well known, but in order to get better known, you have to play at these venues. The same is with booking agencies.
What are your first musical memories? And what was the lightbulb moment that made you go “I want to do that”?
The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, my daddy showed them to me and my late brother. I also remember watching Pink Floyd’s “One of these days”, the Pompeii version with Nick Mason on drums, which astonished me. When I was 13 me my brother and I went to the cinema to watch “Let There Be Rock” by AC/DC. It was like an initiation, a totally transformative experience. Our fate was determined from that moment.
What was the last gig that you attended as a fan?
Brant Bjork Trio and Exodus.
What current social issue are you particularly passionate about?
Climate change and nature conservation. I think it’s the most important thing in the world to protect nature, animals, plants, and landscapes.
The album that you have in your album collection/Spotify playlist that would surprise most people?
I have the first eleven albums by Chicago, and all the ’70s albums by Steely Dan. Both of them were amazing in their time. I also have a lot of Myles Davis and John Coltrane LPs, I love them.
Everybody is a fan of something. Who or what are you a fan of?
Bird watching. When I was a child, I wanted to become an ornithologist. I am a psychologist and a philosophy phd student, so besides musi,c I have my heroes in human sciences and arts, for example, philosopher Kierkegaard.
What new music have you been enjoying so far this year?
The Hellacopters’ “Overdriver” and the new albums of two German thrash legends, Destruction and Sodom.
What does the rest of 2025 hold for The Trousers?
We have to finish our seventh album, “Necessary Evil”. We will have an album release show in December. I really hope we can return to some central European cities where we love to play, Vienna, Prague, Ljubljana…
How active are you on social media, and where can people connect with you?
We are on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram, and all of the streaming surfaces. More information, HERE.
