Rock Monsters Romania

In September, Ask Carol released their new single “Do It in LA”, along with a really cute animation lyric video.

We tried to find out more about this amazing band, so we talked to them. Here is what they said!

How hard was to record a new single this year, considering the restrictions
caused by COVID-19?

Well, things didn’t exactly go as planned, but we managed to make the most we
could of it. Traveling to a studio was obviously out of the question, so we got hold of
the absolute minimum we needed to set up a home studio. We are continuously
adding and building out our studio, and we have something that works pretty good
now. The worst part is also one of the best parts. There is a field of cows right
outside our studio window with an electric fence. This makes a lot of electrical
interference on our electrical equipment, and has ruined many guitar takes.
Sometimes we turn off the fence in the night, and gamble that none of the cows
notice, cause we promised the farmer to bring the cows back if they escape… So, it
is maybe not your regular studio workday, but we make it work 🙂

What inspired the single?

In April this year, we, Ask Carol, finally got set up for a meeting with some big
shot management in LA, which we had been working towards for a long time. We
were supposed to fly in around the middle of April, but we all know what
happened… So, with all travels out of the question, we were stuck in the middle
of nowhere, with internet-speeds from the 90s. “What do we do now?” we
thought. In need of a distraction from our frustrations, we made this song, “Do It
in LA”. Half satirical comedy about the shallow, plastic fantastic society, half an
honest testimony to us dreaming ourselves away to sunny Californ-i-a, and LA.
Everyone has an opinion about the celebrity scene, but who hasn’t dreamt of
being a Hollywood star? A contrast to our often more melancholic music, we
needed some feelgood music in our not so cheerful times. We have visited LA a
few times and have many friends there, so we have made our observations and
got a taste of the atmosphere there. It is definitely a melting pot. Those are some
of the things that inspired us to make this song.

Where does the name of the single come from?

It’s a line from the chorus which we thought had a nice vibe to it, and it describes
the whole song really. We didn’t really have to think that much about it, it was just
so obvious that that was the name of the song.

Oslo or LA? Why?

LA. We have lived in Oslo a long time, and we like variation. Probably wouldn’t
settle there for good, but staying there for a few years would be nice. There are
more people in one neighborhood in LA than in all of Oslo, so if just 0,1% of people
in LA and surroundings likes our music, that’s a lot of people. In Oslo that would be just a few people. And there’s a lot more happening in LA, concerts, events,
everything, not so much in Oslo.
Oh, and of course, Oslo is dark and cold, and usually wet, most of the year. It
doesn’t hurt with a little sun.

Are there any plans for a new album soon? If yes, will it also include this single?

Yes, we have our debut album coming up next year. Leading up to that we have
many singles. After this next one, there are a few more coming up, which will show
more sides of our music, and more of our melancholic side. Due to the Covid situation there had to be some delay, and we can’t say an exact date yet because
of that, but it most definitely will be some time next year.

What other plans do you have for the “post-COVID era”?

Oh, we have so much touring to do, all over the world. When it is possible again,
that will be the number one priority for us. Go out and meet people, play for our
fans, and travel. In the place we live, as you can see in our latest video on
Facebook, there are more cows than people in our local music scene.There are
150 people living here, so we are relying very much on traveling to have concerts.

What message do you have for your fans and people who are going to read this
article?

When all this is over, the crazy situation in the world, as we mentioned, we are
coming on tour! We love traveling, and if you have a specific city you want us to
come to, let us know!

Interview by Radu Mihai