Interviews About Albums: Screaming Bones - And It'll All Be Good (2022)

In this new interview, we sat down with the Germany Rock project Screaming Bones to ask some questions about his new album "And It'll All Be Good". 

1. What can you say about this new EP/CD?

The new album ‚And it’ll all be good‘ dives even further into sound exploration than the previous ones. Even though some of the tracks like the opener ‘Ghost Ride’ are similar in sound and setup and equally guitar-focused like some earlier tracks, I kind of had exhausted my range of regular guitar pedals and got a bit frustrated that I couldn’t seem to find more extraordinary sounds, no matter how many different combinations I chose. So I dug a bit deeper into sound creation and borrowed some equipment from my side project Bones:Dreaming, which is pure modular sound synthesis. The outcome is an album in which many of the songs combine warped and twisted synth voices with regular guitar and bass sounds. I’m a fan of drones and I never really followed classic song structures that much, but the combination of these two sound worlds changed the structure of my tracks even further. Titles like ‘A Space Opera Pt. 1 and Pt. 2’ or ‘A psychedelic Tune for your Afternoon Tea’ are more a journey, a story that unfolds behind the listener’s closed eyes when hearing the tracks.

When creating the music, I try to ban all thoughts from my head. I have a general idea about what I want to create but most of the times no clue how to get there. The most difficult thing is to find a starting point for my journey when I begin recording the first sounds. ‘And it’ll all be good’ is difficult to fit into a category, the most interesting labels I received recently is ‘Avantgarde-Futuristic Alternative Rock’ or simply ‘Pink Floyd for Psychopaths’. The latter made me smile when I read that.

When I listen to the tracks myself, I find that the tracks can be relaxing and full of tension at the same time. For the track ‘Hive Song’ for example, I was simply messing around with a new effect, the outcome is a buzzing piece of sound that reminded me of thousands of bees buzzing about in their hive, while at the same time the faint guitar in the background soothes your soul.

Most of the Screaming Bones tracks don’t work in the fast-forward fashion our lives have become. Music is for me a way to deal with my inner demons and find a way back to a more present-centered lifestyle which shuts out the bitter state the world is in at the moment, at least until the last reverb faded away.

2. What is the meaning of the EP/CD name?

When I started making music a few years back, I had set myself the challenge to create four albums that describe my musical journey. The albums are ‘Be patient, ‘With Yourself’, ‘It’ll all come in time, ‘And it’ll all be good. I kind of needed a reminder that music is a path and it takes time to explore it. And you make mistakes while going that way, you try out stuff and develop your style. The most important part for me is to love what I’m doing. The very first album is on Bandcamp only, early days, I was lacking experience and skills but I love it as much as the latest one. Now that I have finished these four albums, I will set myself a new target, I’m spending time at the moment to find out what that would be.

3. Which one is the composer of the CD/EP?

All the tracks and sounds have been created by me. I still work alone and I am happiest when I can lock myself into my bedroom studio all day and play with sounds and electricity, my dog lazily lying in a corner, watching me. I’m not sure whether this method will ever change, I don’t think I’d be good at making compromises with other people when it comes to my sound and musical vision.

4. If you had to pick one song, which one would you pick?

Well, I love all of them, but if you twisted my arm, I would pick ‘Dragonfly’. I love the way the shivering guitar sound at the beginning vibrates against the sonic background and then gets accompanied by this stuttering modulated synth voice which sounds as it was trying to say something but is trapped and only manages to create fragmented outputs. Above all, the rusty and hazy lead guitar kicks in with a few slow and lazy phrases. I think this track earned me the ‘Pink Floyd for Psychopaths’ label I mentioned earlier.

5. Is there a special message in this EP/CD? If there is what it is?

I didn’t intend to deliver a message in this album. If anything, I would say… if you’re into arts, whether it’s making music, painting, writing or whatever you do…. don’t do it because you expect praise from others, don’t change your art because you think you need to make something that people expect. Do what only you can do, love what you are doing, and get it out into the world!

6. Are there some lyrics that you'd love to share?

I’m afraid my tracks are purely instrumental except for the titles. The ideas for the titles are associations I see behind my closed eyes when I listen to the tracks. Images of the film I’m seeing when hearing my own sounds. For example, the vibrating guitar sound at the start of ‘Dragonfly’ always painted a dragonfly in my head, with its delicate wings vibrating when zig-zagging through the air. ‘Leave me alone’ was my mantra in a phase this year when I was extremely pissed off with my life. ‘Sleep well, my friend, sweet dreams’ awaits at the end of this psychedelic journey and releases the listener into their own dreams.

7. Which inspirations have been important for this album? Like musically or friends, family, someone you'd love to thank especially?

My special thanks will always go out to these people:

My wife (she gives me the space I need to make my music and keep my sanity in my life)

My dog (she always picks me up when I’m down)

My music teacher Billy Tsounis (is a wealth of knowledge and most importantly teaches in a way that always encourages me to develop my own style)

Ross Beattie (his monthly psychedelicbabymag podcasts on Mixcloud are always a great source of new and inspiring music)

Clint Beed (his Stoned Meadow of Doom YouTube channel is a great source for mighty guitar sounds)

8. Something to add?

Yes. I’m hungry now :)