Lagerstein Mother Junkst
TM - We are here with the keeper of the keys, the bastard of the bowstring, and proud to say my personal friend, Mother Junkst from Lagerstein! Junkst how the fuck are you!?
MJ - We are going awesome! I can't wait to have a beer together in Sydney.
TM - I am so keen for that! It's been way to long since you guys have been down to Sydney, and this will be your first Australian tour since COVID, what gives?
MJ - I think because we were in Europe for 10 months in 2019, and we basically all emigrated there for the year to the Czech Republic, and then we came back and had to put our lives back together and figure out what we were doing and how we move forward as a band. We were thinking, instead of just focusing on the live shows how can we dig into some other aspects of being in the band? We have been working on a lot of music, so I am excited to be releasing a new album and we are super pumped to get back on the road!
TM - How was the Rock This Cruise tour?
MJ - That was around 12 months ago I think, and we were just trying to do something different, and that was a lot of fun. I think the Sydney one was the crown of it because we were out in the Sydney Harbour and it was beautiful and there were fireworks, I think it was finals weekend and we were like "We organized this just for you".
TM - So you love being on a boat, but you haven't played your cover of Lonely Islands I'm On A Boat ever.
MJ - We did on that tour, and we laughter our asses off because we were really on a boat.
TM - Since this is the first time that you have done a full Australian tour since around 2019, what can fans expect?
MJ - We have been working and reworking our live show in a massive way so I am really excited to share what we have been doing with everybody and to see what all the larger Crew think, and all the new fans. For people who are coming to see the show, we are trying to perfect it and take it to another level in terms of the fun, in terms of this kind of whirl building and bringing people into this Lagerstein space, so we have all guns blazing for this run and we are pumped!
TM - You mentioned before you are working on some new music, without revealing too much, what can fans expect from your setlist?
MJ - It's got some fresh taste, it has a few of our latest songs on it, we may play something new for everyone and we have been working on the show a lot as a whole. I'm taking some of our old songs and reworking them in interesting ways, that keeps the journey going for the fans so it feels like you are on these ship with us, and we are kicking off on this adventure together so that's what I'm really pumped for. It's really fresh and that's what it feels like to me.
TM - If you could have any band play one of your songs what band would it be and what song would it be?
MJ - I have been getting into a lot of reggae music in the last couple of years. It could be fun for one of the reggae artists to do a take of Piña Colada Paradise, and here how they would do that, not in a rock sound but really reggae it up.
TM - I just sitting back thinking about Bob Marley doing it, that would be amazing.
MJ - He would have to be sitting there with his coconut.
TM - So, speaking about piña coladas, you have brought out your own line of spirits. You started with beer a couple of years ago, and that went off really well, and now you have finally delved into spirits. How did that come about, how does it taste, and how has it been perceived?
MJ - I will definitely bring you a bottle, we will have it in two weeks, I think it is amazing. We are working with a distillery called Sunshine and Sons in Nambour, they have a real passion for it and it is all Australian ingredients. They make really amazing drinks, and we are on a journey to create a whole Lager bar. We are going to be adding spirits until we have basically every alcohol, or at least the full basic spirits range, that's my vision. So, when we spoke to them they were like "we can do a gin, or a vodka, or we can do rum, do you want to do any?" and we said want to do all of those straight away! Especially because I want them myself, and that's it essentially. With Lagerstein, we really want people to feel like they are in the world, in that lagerverse, and I have really enjoyed it. I noticed this with the beer, it became not just a great product or great drink, but this extension of the experience of live shows, where you can be there. You are a pirate, you've got your lagerstein beer, and I really enjoy seeing that in the lager Crew. That's where I was like "we should have that whole Lager bar where we have a range of products" and my dream is we do a live show where we just have the larger bar at the venue, that would be epic!
TM - You can maybe do one up on Alestorm, because I remember back in the early naughties, they had the dispensary set up on the drum kit. Maybe you take it one step further?
MJ - yeah they did, that dispensary was epic! On this tour everyone will have a chance to drink, so it will be epic!
TM - You said you were in Europe for 10 months doing live shows and recording the albums and everything like that, I'm assuming you have plans to go back to Europe am I correct?
MJ - Yes that is correct. We are excited to get back on the road in a big way in 2024, but I don't want to put anything out in the universe exactly, but that is our plan. To go and see new places, and go to some places we have already been. We have had a really great experience and in general just do more shows, and release more music.
TM - If you do Europe, I know you'd like to go and do your own solo shows at bars and pubs and little clubs, but you have played the festival circuit before, do you plan on trying to get back on the festival circuit and if so, is there a particular festival that you would like to play?
TM - Yes very much, that is definitely the vision to try and get back on that festival circuit. It is the most fun place in the world, I can't wait to be back there doing it. I would really love to play Summer Breeze. I think when I was growing up I'm watching heaps of YouTube videos of bands, I was always seeing them at Summer Breeze. I'm thinking this place looks so cool and what a festival I would like to see something like that happen.
TM- Maybe you can even take the Amon Amarth route and donate a larger bar, since they donated their longship.
MJ - Exactly, that would be epic.
TM - Is there anything you want to see or do on this tour that has been different from the past?
MJ - I think the difference for this tour is just the awesome bands that will be joining us on the road. I'm really excited to work with them on these shows together, and also enjoy their shows. These are bands that you wouldn't typically get to see in Australia, so what a treat it is to get to see them play six times.
TM - I could only imagine, I assume you guys got to hang out with The Halo Effect in Europe, and all those bands over there. Is that how they came to be on the tour with you?
MJ - No, I haven't actually met any of them yet personally. I have heard of them all we played with Beyond the Black at Waken. That's the first time I saw them play, but Wacken is a very big festival, and we were on different stages. We just reached out to the bands, and put together something we thought everyone would enjoy, and in the normal Lagerstein and lagerfest way to achieve a really diverse lineup.
TM - It does look like a diverse line up, you guys are quintessential pirate metal, and have melodic death metal headlining. It's almost two sides of these same coin and complete polar opposites. I think it's going to sound incredible.
MJ - Yeah totally, and I think all these bands are amazing! They are all professionals and have some great new music, and The Halo effects album is so sick, and I love their story. I'm excited to meet them and have some fun times together.
TM - The last song you released was a bit different from your normal style, it was a little bit more swung and a little bit more progressive metal. Would you say Lagerstein is changing it up while still trying to keep that original style?
MJ - I think so, and when I look at the new songs, I think this next one is different again. When writing these songs I just try to imagine things that hit hard live, and we have this explosive energy. With the arrangement the lyrics we are just trying to have this really positive feeling where people have so much fun, and at the same time really great hooks is something we have been working on a lot, whether it's on the instruments or vocally. I am enjoying a lot working on the new music, I think it's not specifically let's mix it up but always just trying to write something different and fun.
TM - Do you think there would ever be a collaboration between you guys, Alestorm, and Rum Ahoy!?
MJ - That would be cool with all the different vocalist singing, also what a cool tour it would be it would be! When we were on the Underverse tour, we ran into some of the Rum Ahoy! guys at some shows in Europe, and we were joking about how crazy it will go off in Australia together, so I hope it happens.
TM - I did notice Rumahoy in one of their songs where they parody Alestorm, they trashed every other pirate metal band except you guys.
MJ - Best friends right?!
TM - Is there anything you want to say to your fans?
MJ - We missed you guys, and we are really pumped to come back for a tour, and get back on the road. We have worked out arses off to bring Lagerfest back to life way bigger than ever before, and I just can't wait to be there doing it. It's been something that's been going on in the background before we even announced it for months and months, so it's starting to be a bit surreal that in less than two weeks we are going to be on the road hitting those stages, so we can't wait to see everybody there!
TM - We can't wait to see you hit the stage, again thank you so much this has been an incredible interview! Lagerfest is coming up in Australia in less than two weeks, get your tickets at the Lagerstein website.
Watch ‘Rock This Ship’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNRTNd8-y0c
Watch: ‘Dig, Bury, Drink’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0QE6WOf4RE
Watch: ‘Lagerphone’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sk-6P_Ysc4
Lagerfest Press Release - https://www.twinmusix.com/lagerfest
Forth and Fury - https://www.twinmusix.com/froth-fury-fest
Lagerfest and Forth and Fury Tickets - https://lagerfest.net/
