Who says electronic can’t rock?
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
Maybe it’s not so simple! Despite all of us meeting and living in London, we are a multi-national band! Oskar (vocals) is from Svinninge, Sweden. Bassist Marco is from Turin, Italy and guitarist Jozef is from Trnava, Slovakia! Josh, the drummer, is the only Brit in the band, coming from Kent, England.
How did you meet?
To start with, we (Marco, Oskar and Josh) met at BIMM (a music college in London) at the start of our degrees. We soon started playing together, which eventually turned into a band. We had a few different line-up changes at the start, but we eventually found Jozef through a Facebook ad at the end of last year! We met up with him, and we all clicked really well, and as they say, the rest is history!
How long have you been playing as a band?
We started playing together at the end of 2015, but this current line-up has been together since November 2017!
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
The first flash of inspiration for the name came when Josh saw an advert in a tube station for a brand called ‘Heist’! We were in the process of thinking of band names at the time, and ‘Heist At Five’ seemed to just pop out from there! In the deeper meaning though, we love that Heist At Five can symbolise the need to break conventions, and creative moral ambiguity. The ultimate freedom. The name itself has the contrast between the “Heist”, the rough, potentially dangerous crime, and the planned nature of it, being “At Five”.
What are your influences?
The beauty of this band is that we actually share very few main influences, and everyone listens to different bands. However, it actually makes it very interesting when it comes to songwriting. However, some influences include: Muse, Royal Blood, Tesseract, Enter Shikari and Thirty Seconds To Mars.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We’d describe it is a perfect blend of commercial contemporary rock with electronic influences, which mixes in memorable catchy hooks, with unexpected twists and turns.
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
It’s perhaps not a particular ‘theme’, but we want to inspire our audience to see the world through their own eyes, and open up new horizons. We want you to leave our shows feeling something new, and having new ideas.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
Josh: Super high energy, and consequently very sweaty.
Jozef: I second Josh. Plus, I want to say technologically inventive to a point we can afford. So the bigger we get, the more experimental we can get too.
Oskar: If I get eye with you, you’d better make yourself comfortable with it, cause we won’t break that for a while. I want to stay personal with my audience.
Marco: Very physical, that’s why before a gig you can usually catch me during one of my warming up rituals! It’s a very liberating experience, which is what this band is about after all. We want everyone in the room to share this contagious sense of freedom.
With our current line-up, we’ve played a dozen or so shows this year. It’ll be a lot more than that next year though, so keep an eye out for us!
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
Jozef: I’m not sure if it’s the wildest, but the one thing I can think of is my mates from Swedish Death Candy using an old school overhead projector and putting a petri dish with coloured liquid on top with someone constantly stirring the water. They projected this onto the band/stage and it created a unique visual effect. Super cool!
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
Oskar: I use a Shure Beta 58A wireless mic, and play a Novation Launchkey 49 Keyboard for some synth parts.
Jozef: For this band, I play a Gibson Les Paul and a pedalboard too big to mention in full detail. But, what guitarists are going to be interested in is that I take my distortion fully from a Blackstar HT dual. When I first tried this pedal, we simply struck a chord. (I’ll walk myself out.) Amp-wise, I currently own an Ibanez Tube Screamer amp, but I’m trying to sell it (shameless plug) and go fully digital (recording through Fractal Axe FX already anyway).
Marco: I’m not too much of a geek in of gear but I’m one of those who believe the Precision Bass is a classic for a reason. I like its simplicity: two knobs, one pickup and you’re good to roll! Plus I’m in love with its nasal ”in your face” tone.
I use it together with a Boss GT-10B, quite a versatile pedalboard, although i mainly use distortion and chorus.
Josh: For most of the gigs we play, house “drum kits” are provided, which tend to be pitiful. However, I always take along a Tama 14”x8” Big Black Steel Snare Drum and my Zildjian K cymbals.
What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
We have recently announced our new single, “Finish What You Started”, which is going to be released digitally on the 26th October! We’re releasing it along with a self-produced music video – check it out on YouTube!
What are your plans for the rest of 2018 and into next year?
Jozef: Currently we are in a full swing of recording some new material so there’s plenty more to come even after “Finish…”!
Josh: Writing, promoting, and playing new songs! We will continue gigging in and around London, and hope to play at some festivals next summer!
Marco: We like to think big. Our plan is to keep the hype up with more single releases to be ed by gigs in and out of London. We want to broaden our horizons, see new places and reach new people. We’d also like to experiment more with video making since the recording of “Finish What You Started” was a lot of fun and it turned out pretty good, don’t forget to check it out and to tell us what you think! (As if we hadn’t stressed this enough!)
If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be ing and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before!
Jozef: Many spring to mind but something we would potentially fit is 30 Seconds to Mars or Tesseract.
Josh: Honestly I would love to open up for Royal Blood. Their live show is one of the best things i’ve ever witnessed, and to be a part of that would be total madness. For an opening act, I’d just pick a super high energy act, to make sure the audience was ready for us!
Marco: I second Josh and I’d shoot high adding Muse as well, their shows are crafted to the detail. I’d love to see them behind the scenes. As for bands opening for us we’re looking forward to have our friends in South Of The River playing with us.
From previous Band of the Day Elevation Falls: what is the weirdest thing a fan has said to you?
Oskar: I like your music. It freaks me out and amazes me every time.
Marco: “You made love with that bass”. Otherwise, girls asking me what do I use for my hair. Sorry to break it for you but the secret is all in nature! (Although I appreciate the interest.)
From another BotD, Raised By Wolves: if you could add another instrument into your line up that isn’t currently played what would it be and why?
Jozef: 7-string gui… ah, we’re talking about adding extra players?
Oskar: Keys players please come forward!
Marco: Vuvuzela.
And from Chasing Dragons: If you could have one artist feature on a song of yours, who would you have?
Jozef: Dan Tompkins/Russell Allen, two best vocalists on the planet. Sorry, Oskar!
Josh: So many choices!! I’m not even sure.
Heist at Five: official | facebook | twitter | instagram | youtube
