LomoAmigos, Sex Jams and Mile Me Deaf rock the Balkans

Armed with a golden Fisheye No. 2 and a brightly colored La Sardina, we sent off the Austrian bands, our new LomoAmigos Sex Jams and Mile Me Deaf, on a little tour through the Balkans. Here you can hear the funny stories and see the photos the bands came back with. Band member Wolfgang Möstl lets us in on the turn of events.

Hey Wolfgang! Tell us something about yourself and your bands Sex Jams and Mile Me Deaf.

I’ve been making music for about 12 years, played in various bands up until now, ridden through Europe many-a-times, and do it all out of passion, as you could probably tell. I also enjoy, by the way, interesting discussions and romantic walks along the beach.

Sex Jams evolved from the ruins of the Hardcore band Dimitrij and the recently revived Riot-band Leloo. The first LP, “Post Teenage Shine,” came out in 2010. After that release I really got into the band. Last year we released the album “Trouble Honey” and have been touring incessantly through Europe since. I think our shows could be described as a blow to the face, which I mean in the most endearing way.

Mile Me Deaf has been a solo project for me since 2002, where I’ve been able to pursue song ideas that didn’t work out with my bands. At first it was all very experimental and couldn’t have been too easily categorized except for maybe as Lo-Fi. Since then, the project’s caught fire. Songs are written specifically for Mile Me Deaf and we’ve rounded up a solid set of band members.The tenth Mile Me Deaf album, “Holography” comes out in May.

What kind of music do you guys make?

Sex Jams plays loud, poppy ’90s Noise-Rock.
Mile Me Deaf makes dreamy, sometimes in-your-face Chillwave Grunge.

You guys just got back from your Balkan tour. What did you experience along the way?

The car broke down three times, we experienced once-in-a-lifetime shows, hearty grub, an average of 6.5 beers an evening per person, unbelievably kind people, pretty landscapes, annoying border patrols, promoters that made up for it, door-deals and waiting, chilling, and waiting again. Business as usual.

Along with the group was a Fisheye No. 2 and a La Sardina. How did you guys enjoy Lomography?

Great, but it was kind of a shot in the dark, if you will, because none of us really had experience with analogue photography. Things like lighting indoors just don’t come to mind for most citizens of the digital era. But after I saw the prints, I must say, they turned out really well! Of course, we had to deal with manually adjusted exposures times, and all of our experiments ended up great in the end.

Which camera was your favorite and why?

I especially loved the Fisheye No.2. We had the gold version with the chain, which goes with my style very well. I have always been a wide-angle fan anyways, and the Fisheye look reminds me of early MTV.

Was that the first time you came into contact with Lomography? Or were you already familiar with the movement?

I actually never had a Lomography camera, but my sister totally nerds out with stuff like that. She collects cameras, special Lomography cameras, and I’ve used some of the photos from her portfolio (like the Mile Me Deaf- Eat Skull album cover).

What should one be careful of when taking photos with Lomography cameras? Any tips for newbies?

All that comes to mind is the classic: Just do it! I have to say, the best photos are the ones that are taken in spontaneous randomness, or simply with double exposures and playing with the bulb setting. That’s what’s good about analog photography: whether you’re a professional or amateur- you see if it really worked out when you get the developed photos back.

Did anything funny or flat out weird happen on tour? Where you approached about the cameras?

I was approached about the La Sardina by some older promoters in Serbia. They just couldn’t believe that anyone still shoots in analog. The lens also impressed them so much that they asked “Are you from Austria or from outer space?”

Who or what would you love to photograph?

A Butthole Surfers show in 1987.

What can we look forward to from Mile Me Deaf and Sex Jams in the near future?

Mile Me Deaf’s next European tour for the new album (which comes out on May 2, 2014) starts on May 7th. Sex Jams is going to be making new songs this summer before we pack our bags for the USA!

Thanks for the great interview, Wolfgang!

Find out more about Mile Me Deaf at their website, follow them on Twitter, and like them on Facebook. Of course, the same goes for Sex Jams! Check out their website, Twitter, and Facebook page!

written by zonderbar on 2014-05-09 #people #videos #music #rock #tour #fisheye #musik #lomoamigos #lomoamigo #fisheye-no-2 #la-sardina #sex-jams #mile-me-deaf