(Photo Credit: Josh Beavers)
We had an opportunity to speak with up-and-comers Goon! They're making waves with their newest release 'Hour of Green Evening' which dropped today! Check out what they had to say about the record and more in our feature with them.
1. Goon is an encapsulating artistic experience. You all do all of the art for your music. What does it mean to you to have this amount of creative control over your work?
"It all came from my love of Radiohead. Them having an additionally member of Stanley Donwood who didn't contribute music but contributed aesthetically. This was my way of contributing to the overall experience."
2. Hour of Green Evening sees you at your best with fully realized soundscapes, lyrics, and vocals. Was there anything different or that stood out to you as you were recording this record versus previous music you've done.
"I feel like everything we do is very reactionary. It feels like it's always a learning experience every time. It feels like this album is a fully realized version of things that we have been reaching for in the past. Not that our past work was failures, but it feels graduated forms of all that past work."
"This is the first time we have done a creative process that was cohesive where we went in and live tracked. But we had it sort of pinned down before we came in."
3. I'm not alone in thinking you're on your way to big things in indie music. What has it meant to have the backing of artists like Lucy Dacus and Spoon's Alex Fischel?
I"t's humbling for sure. It's really cool and encouraging and empowering.
4. You drew a lot of influence from your Uncle Russell Minnich who passed away from COVID. Can you tell us a little about his influence on you musically and as a person?"
"That was a shock for sure and he was not treated fairly in his lifetime. I can definitely sympathize with. His passing made COVID feel more real. I've always had a tendency to ruminate on mortality, but that really opened it up a bit."
5. The band started as a solo Bandcamp venture for Kenny. How has it evolved as the band has grown?
"It has changed a lot. I feel like we're definitely in chapter two for the band. chapter one was solo with sounds that sounded like it was a band. Then I found some people to do it with, we did two EP's and the first record and signed the record deal. There was a lot of stuff that went like your typical record experience. Then we got dropped, all new members joined in 2019, then COVID hit, then we paused for a bit. Then we began rehearsing. We did an EP called Paint By Numbers Vol. 1 in February. There's just been more of a focus on doing what we really want to do with the new lineup. While I loved my old band we had an amicable split, I feel like we're pursuing the things with the new lineup."
6. What's next for Goon?
"We definitely want to tour, we have had a lot of time to reflect on Hour of Green Evening and can't wait to share it with everyone. Can't wait to do it again, but maybe a bit different the next time around. We're definitely not done."