Rock Monsters Romania

There are always bands to remember from festivals that captivate the public and remain fan favorites for a long time. One such moment occurred at Electric Castle with the amazing JoyCut.

But what’s the history of the band?

JOYCUT is a creative musical outpost born in Bologna. The project is named after the songs “Joey” from Nick Drake’s album “Time of No Reply” and “The Final Cut” by Pink Floyd. Founded in 2003, JOYCUT has visited 3 continents, 74 countries, 216 cities, 75 festivals, and headlined 48 concerts just in the USA. On July 19th, they performed for the first time at Electric Castle on the Backyard stage.

In 2014, JOYCUT was selected by MTV Iggy as one of the most interesting bands at SXSW; Nic Harcourt supported them through KCSN radio in Los Angeles, and they were invited by VISA to compose music for Italy’s team at the FIFA World Cup in Brazil. In 2016, JOYCUT joined The Chemical Brothers on tour in Italy. After an electrifying speech and concert at TEDx Verona, the Italian trio made their debut at the Venice Biennale in 2017 with their “opera” K O M O R E B I, a six-act tribute to Japan. The sold-out show was a fusion of their dramatic music and visual art chapters.

While recording a new album, they were invited by Robert Smith of The Cure to the 25th anniversary of the Meltdown Festival in London, where Mr. Smith himself was the artistic curator. The concert, where they headlined at the Purcell Room in Southbank Center, was filmed and recorded, becoming the documentary “JOYCUT | Robert Smith’s Meltdown – OneStepCloserToTheMoon,” which was screened at international film festivals throughout 2020 and won awards at the “Wales International Film Festival,” “Doc’n’Roll Film Festival,” and “Seattle True International Film Festival.”

In January 2020, just a few weeks before the pandemic, the band held one of their most memorable concerts, performing in Bologna in front of 40,000 people in support of four activists called “The Sardines,” who had built a real and conscious opposition against right-wing populism in the country since the previous summer. The band’s philosophy has always been connected to environmental issues, and they celebrated #Clash4Climate, the international day dedicated to the Climate Crisis, on February 7, 2020, through KEXP Radio in Seattle: 24 hours on-air including an interview with legendary DJ Kevin Cole and the creation of an exclusive podcast, whose ecological statement became yet another poetic manifesto of the band’s sensitivity.

Brian Eno selected a track from JOYCUT’s new album to be included in his EARTH/PERCENT project, which contains a compilation album released on April 22, 2022. In May 2022, at the Museum of Modern Art (MAMBO) in Bologna, JOYCUT premiered a multi-perceptual installation, allowing visitors to listen to the BLU JOYCUT album for the first time up close, along with mapping and images.

We had the pleasure to talk to them about Electric Castle and more in an exclusive interview.

Before kicking off this interview, what’s one important thing people need to know about you as a band and your music?

We are a Darwinian selection of people who have found each other, welcomed, and chosen. We spend deep parts of our existence together. The band is therapy—a place to rid ourselves of the unnecessary, to express ourselves without judgment. Through our sound, we give voice to violated nature. We scream its pain. We have no protection. The impact of fragility demands a visceral effort. Our music doesn’t lie.

It’s your first time at Electric Castle and your first show in Romania. What were you most excited about? Did you have any fears regarding the show?

Nowadays, it is a privilege to be able to get on stage and play. Doing it here, at Electric Castle, is all the more significant. No fear, just the immense honour of being able to offer our perspective to an audience that, who knows, might welcome and “see” us.

If you could describe the preparations for this show in one word, what would it be?

Komorebi.

Festivals are always about expectations. What did you expect from the audience at your performance, and what should the audience have expected from your set?

We couldn’t know what to expect, and that was the beauty of it. We knew that from our side, we would give everything we were; we didn’t know how to do otherwise. And at the end of the day, that was all that mattered. To show ourselves without pretense. To feel emotion in order to evoke emotion.

Some people I talked to when you were announced for EC mentioned your project from MAMbo. In this era of rapid technological development, how important do you think the use of technology is in special music projects?

Technique should be linked to know-how, to the achievement of a unique autonomy, the result of skill, repetition, method, and research. Poetic creation allows us to be guided by the spirit, by emotions, by the heart. Poiesis and Techne must go together. When separated, they result in fragmented experiences. Technology in art makes absolute sense when it leads to the exploration of the depths of the human soul. If it becomes an “accelerator” of experience, to the point of depriving us of the ability to understand its stages, then we are reduced to its instrument, and everything takes on another spectral meaning. Openness to the new has always been a controversial dispute between the “ancients” and the “moderns.” Technology itself is controversial because technological does not mean better, just as new does not mean better, and progress does not necessarily mean evolution or development. Today, technology is neither a service nor a tool. It is an ideology that crushes us, from which there is no escape. We can never go back. Reality would collapse, as would our relational systems and educational methods. Personally, I am watching and expecting great things from those who take advantage of it… homes for the homeless, poverty defeated, water for all the children of the world, perpetual peace, freedom of thought and opinion… Let’s wait and see, and if this is not the case… then perhaps it should be given another name, another code, another meaning.

In addition to the last question, what advice do you have for bands that want to embrace new ways of sharing and experiencing their music?

We have never sought shortcuts; we continue to follow unconventional paths. One must become oneself, and thus become an alien. One must ask why they are doing it. What is the reason, the motivation, the goal they want to pursue? In our case, what interests us is escaping from the world, distancing ourselves from the system, playing while crying, giving back all of life to learn how to die.

As artists and music enthusiasts, which band would you have loved to see live at this year’s edition?

The most intriguing experience was discovering new music, especially local music, and being fascinated and struck by something unknown. The rest could be seen always, continuously, everywhere. Among the dominant artists, I was interested in Massive Attack’s anti-system narrative and I liked to listen to “Song to the Siren” sung by Elizabeth Fraser. One of the most significant moments for those like me, who had overcome abysses and collapses with that song.

Is there any Romanian band from the lineup that particularly caught your eye (and ears) and that you would like to collaborate with in the future?

We did not know all those who would play at this edition, but we knew and appreciated some Romanian artists, just to name a few, Zimbru, Mischa Blanos, Golan. Through the Europavox media and Control Club, we discover a lot of Romanian music. We hope to play again soon, also in the fall/winter time.

With half of 2024 still ahead, what plans do you have for the rest of the year?

To keep playing, to continue being able to invest our time in research and writing. To explore. To find new expressive syntheses. To investigate ourselves as much as possible to discover who we are. We will be in Seattle for the KEXP Festival right after Electric Castle, followed by some other shows until mid-September.

Do you have a message for the people who attended your performance at EC? How about for those reading this interview?

It is difficult in interviews to truly convey passion and truth. Tones can be misunderstood; arrogance or excessive humility can distort the message. Forming an opinion about a band by merely reading hastily written thoughts is not the best way. I am grateful for these questions that allow us to feel at ease… but I believe the best medium is always the same: closing our eyes and letting ourselves be guided by the sound. It is only through it that we can understand and see who is before us.

Thank you for inviting us, thank you to Electric Castle, and thanks to everyone who came to support us, help us, and embrace us.

We look forward to seeing you. Yours, P.

It’s been a wonderful experience talking to the band, and we would like to thank them and Overground Music for this amazing opportunity.

Interview by Radu Mihai