Interview with The Vices

The turn of 2023 has naturally seen a lot of packed-out agendas for bands on the rise, and one such act is The Vices, who RW had the opportunity to catch up with…

RECORD WEEKLY’S INTERVIEW WITH THE VICES

Hi hi, how are you all?

Doing well! Preparing for the release of our album on 17th March and rehearsing our asses off for the tour.

Introduce us to The Vices — where are you from and when did you form?

We’re a band from The Netherlands. I’d like to think that, if Cage The Elephant, The Strokes and The Growlers had a threesome^, we would’ve come out. If this was the case, their baby was born in 2019!

What have been your biggest achievements as a band been to date?

I think our biggest achievement is that we manage to keep doing things our way and, in doing so, we’re able to accomplish the things that we dream of. We have our own way of working; of making things work that others find impossible or stupid. For example, we released our debut album during COVID and heard that our release show couldn’t go through because of restrictions a week before the actual show. When that happened, Simon came up with a plan: Let’s get a boat out on the sea, let it fall dry on the sea bed, build a studio on it, record our entire album live and film it with drones and cameras. Sounded impossible to organise in a week but, in the end, it worked out! We’re very happy to see that those things still really catch attention.

Then last year, Nothing But Thieves asked us to join them on their European tour. That was amazing!

Which three venues do you enjoy playing the most, and which three do you look forward to ticking off?

There are sooo many venues that we’ve loved. From huge ones such as the Dutch Ziggo Dome to very small ones such as the German Noch Besser Leben. Vera in Groningen is also amazing.

We’re looking forward to tick off Bush Hall in London, as we’re playing there with our own festival called ViceFest on 18th March. Also really looking forward to returning to Budapest. We played Sziget last year and are returning to Dürer Kert in April. Finally, we can’t wait to play the Bowery Ballroom in New York. Heading to New York in March! Exciting times.

It’s a brand-new year and you’ve already released a single in 2023. How’s that been received?

Yes, we release a new single every first Friday of the year. This year, we released ‘Never Had To Know’ and the reception has been great. Reading all the messages made our hairs stand up straight. It’s beautiful to see how so many people can relate to a song in so many different ways. We never want to push someone in a direction with our music, but seeing that it just makes people feel something is beautiful.

Can you share any other plans just yet?

YES, WE CAN! With the release of our album, we’re going to tour A LOT. We’re going to the US for the first time and all European dates will be announced very soon. Our own ViceFest is coming to Berlin and London in March, too. Would love to see everyone there!