Dear readers we have the pleasure to offer you in this article an interview with a young Polish band with Psychedelic and Acid Blues Rock sounds. We welcome Akimbo Roots.
Hi how are you?
LM “Hello, better than good“
MP “So very good“
JM “He’s still alive and well, as Johnny Winter was singing“
Your sound incorporates elements of Psychedelia and Acid Blues, where did your passion for this music come from?
LM “It was there until the turn of the ’80s and ’90s. I grew up in a neighborhood where music lived. Many of my friends played in amateur, local bands. Common acquaintances instilled in me a love of creating music. I learned the theory by playing my grandfather’s piano and I owe him a lot.“
JM “I grew up on this music from an early age, in my house resounded: Allman Brothers, Iron Butterfly, Budgie, Free, Uriah Heep and many others, of course also the basics of blues and classic rock“
MP “Our sound is the result of our inspirations. We didn’t decide what kind of music we were going to play. It came naturally, straight from within each of us. We are musically looking in one direction.“
You have a retro touch in your sound, what are your main sources of inspiration?
JM “These are later musical discoveries in the form of albums of bands from the turn of the 1960s and 1970s, e.g.Spin (from Nederland),Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, Traffic, Ten Years After as well as early albums of super groups, e.g. Wishbone Ash, Baker Gurvitz Army, Blind Faith and of course exceptional people such as Rory Gallagher, Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Beck. A big influence on me, apart from the melodic sounds, was the melancholy rock and roll Ron Wood in each of the projects and of course the Rolling Stones with Keith Richards“
LM “My inspiration is Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy, Napalm Death, Slayer, Budgie, Candlemass and many more.“
MP “Each of us listens to similar genre of music. My favorites are definitely the Grateful Dead, Allman Brothers Band, Cream, Neil Young, Miles Davis, jam bands, a lot of jazz but also southern rock, prog, kraut, lots of that. Retro elements can be heard both in the way we play and in the recording of our songs, because we record them using the homerecording method on a multitrack.“
You have released several singlols in 2023, do you have plans for an album in the near future?
MP “We are currently working on our debut album. The material is ready, it just needs to be recorded sensibly. Due to the fact that we deal with this ourselves, it may take a while.“
JM “Of course we would like to record an album“
LM “And who doesn’t ?“
JM “We are striving for this and it should be successful soon.“
Your music is intense and engaging, will there be a chance to hear you live in the near future?
LM “Concerts are and will be“
MP “Live performances are our element. Playing together here and now. We keep a certain framework in the songs, but there are often improvised parts in them. This is the basis of our music, so often the versions of our songs differ significantly in the concert versions. However, not having a strong position on the music market and playing music non-commercial, we do not have too many concert offers so far. There are exceptions, but it could be better.“
JM “Soon we will play a performance in Cracow in an atmospheric club, which will most likely be documented in the film, we encourage those who will not be able to appear to watch the material on YT“
Music has changed a lot over time, how do you see today’s music scene in your country and the world?
LM “The music scene both in our country and in the world has changed a lot, mainly due to access to technological and musical innovations. Along with progress, unfortunately, came an excess of kitsch, plastic and pink unicorns.“
MP “Music nowadays has become a product, most of the so-called artists are not playing but producing music.“
JM “Music is everywhere and it’s hard to come up with an original idea, although we don’t play covers but openly refer to certain period in music, which has rather passed away as mainstream in this form. Each of us has our own preferences in today’s new guitar-instrumental music, but we are far from delighted with broadly understood entertainment music“
How difficult (if at all) is it for young artists to establish themselves on the scene with more refined sounds like yours?
LM “There is still a belief on the stage that whoever has more experience is in charge. Dinosaurs of the stage push young artists to the sidelines“
MP “Connections are the deciding factor. However, we believe that true art will defend itself.“
JM “Basically, we do it mainly for ourselves, and in addition, if it turns out that someone with similar tastes catches the ear, it’s electrifying for us. It’s good when music gives satisfaction to both the players and the audience. We’re not going to try to conform to the canon, because as a band we wouldn’t feel that thing, let’s just call it blues or rock’n’roll, but it’s not about genre. We like how you can hear dirt in our sound, although it doesn’t have to be a trend“
Do you have any other artistic activities or passions outside of music?
MP “We’re not professional musicians, we don’t make a living from it. Each of us has a “normal” job. I’m a bit interested in computer graphics and minimalist photography, but music takes the most important place, both in terms of its creation and reception. For years, I have been collecting albums of my favorite artists, both on CD and LP, which is also retro in the era of ubiquitous streaming.“
JM “I paint a little bit, each of us likes to use our imagination in different ways“
LM “Artistic activity apart from playing the bass guitar is playing the gas cylinder, the so-called tank drum. When it comes to passion, it is also a game, mainly on people’s nerves“
What goals have you set out to achieve with your music?
JM “Record 2-3 albums that will make themselves felt in certain circles of recipients and of course play at major festivals for alternative and progressive music. There is no shortage of cultural institutions related to music, we just have to put in a lot of work. We take as an example the pioneers of such music from our region, e.g. Silesian Blues Band, who achieved success and in the 70s played on the stages of Europe, among others in Roskilde, Denmark. We deeply hope that thanks to us new enthusiasts of the old school sound will be found. Everything is a matter of expression of a given individual in his environment, we are sure of one thing – we were shaped by the dirty sound of Soviet guitars and the smell of the opaque mining air of the Silesian Voivodeship“
LM “The goal is simple, play to play!“
JMA”nd this time the sound will not be lost in space!“
I thank Akimbo Roots for the interview and wish them the best as they continue their artistic careers.
The current composition of the team is represented by:
Jędrzej Mickiewicz / Guitar
Lukasz Michno / Bass
Marcin Pasternok / Drums
“Purchase and Stream their music… Support young artists!!!” – Jacopo from Progressive Rock Journal
