Getting to Know… Søndag

Reading Time: 4 min read

For the 114^th interview on The Musical Hype, we get the scoop from Italian alternative rock band, Søndag.

“Probably our ‘thing’ [that makes us distinct] is the fact that we basically use three bass guitars in our song.” Three bass guitars, ay? Yep, that’ll definitely set you apart from the crowd. Søndag clarifies the bass situation, and goes on to say, “…our riffs, especially live sound quite heavy.” The heavier the better – well – in most cases! The Italian alternative rock collective is comprised of Marcello Lega (guitars), Riccardo Lovotti (drums), Marco Benedetti (guitars), and Riccardo Demarosi (voice / bass guitar). So, just one true bass, he he. As is always the case with this Q&A, introduction interviews, we leave educated about the band’s ambitions, beginnings, and overall brand. So, with that said, let’s cut the extra BS and jump right into Getting to Know… Søndag: Interview #115.

Let’s get this started off right. For those who may not be familiar with your band, what would you say makes Søndag distinct or unique? How do you rock the audience’s socks off?

We are an Alternative Rock band from Italy. Probably our “thing” is the fact that we basically use three bass guitars in our songs: on actual bass, a Fender VI and an 8 guitar. So our riffs, especially live sound quite heavy.

HEAVY! Okay – let’s explore some juicy backstories. How did Søndag form and what were some of the goals or the visions you had as a band early on?

Before Søndag there was another band called Edema, in which Marcello, Marco and Riccardo used to play. Then from that band they started a new project, but they needed a new singer, so they called Ric. We all love heavy stuff, but this project was meant to be lighter than Edema.

Let’s talk more about goals. Have your goals or your perspectives changed since first starting out? What do your aspirations or goals look like now?

Our main goal is to be able to tour, get to know new bands and see new places. Obviously for sometime we can’t tour so we’re focused on writing new music.

Everybody is influenced by somebody else. Who would you consider some of your biggest musical influences and how are they influential?

For me (Ric) I would say bands like Soundgarden and QOTSA, and I’m sure we are influenced from bands like NIN, Alice in Chains, Type 0 Negative. But we are also influenced from movies and books. All of this helps us sets a mood and write new stuff.

Ah, the fun stuff. What’s your craziest tour story or the wackiest thing that’s happened during a performance? Feel free to be creative.

There was a time when we played in some sort of a recreational space for young people, we didn’t expect a lot of people actually. But suddenly a bunch of teenagers came out of nowhere and they were crazy! They start to doing circle pits and stuff like that, and a group of them even invite us to sleep at their place. This are the situations that I (Ric) miss the most.

Up until this point in your career, what would you describe as your favorite song you’ve recorded or performed live? What makes that song special?

I should say I love to play the new songs, but in reality, I really like to play our first songs because that brings me to the beginning of the band.

Is there anything else awesome, cool, or left of center the world should know about you? Secret talents or surprising tidbits?

We do almost everything by ourselves and that could be very challenging. I know many bands do this, and I think sometimes this way of doing things could be disheartening but the other times is very encouraging.

Closing this thing out, what is Søndag currently working on, promoting that you can share with us or want us to know about? We love secrets, but there’s no pressure.

We are always working on something; I can only say for now that there will be new releases very soon.