the new sanity: the inner workings of Bastardane’s brain
october 2024 • los angeles, california
more photos can be found here.
"Anything that can induce a feeling in me, can make me hear or feel a rhythm, melody or story that I want to tell inspires me."
Starting in the hot and humid college basements of Savannah, Georgia, Bastardane was born following the members meeting back in 2019. At their college a group of guys would often get together and jam in the basement of one of the school buildings. The group started to do this themselves and shortly after they started to call themselves a band. Specifically Bastardane, a name that came organically to the guys due to them using the term to refer to what they would do as a group together. "Humans need labels to put on things, so we can't be a nameless band," says drummer and singer Castor.
Currently, the group is based in Los Angeles, California and is made up of drummer & vocalist Castor Hetfield, bassist & vocalist Luca Badan and guitarist Ethan Sirotski. To wrap up the summer of 2024, Bastardane joined good friends OTTTO on the Reconquest Tour, traveling across the United States. I got the opportunity to reconvene with the boys after the tour ended and got to take a bit of a look into their brains.
Hunter: If someone were to ask what 'type' of music the band makes...what would you say?
Luca: I would most likely say hard rock with metal and prog influences.
Castor: I don't like categorizing my music because it puts me in a corner saying what I am and what I do. Because it may change. I want the freedom of figuring it out for myself and also for the people experiencing the music.
H: What would you say your goals for the rest of 2024 are in relation to Bastardane?
L: To play as many shows as possible in the remainder of the year.
C: Development and progress are important for me to maintain my sanity. I guess my main goal is not become insane
H: Is there a specific song writing process?
C: It's never the same. There is no formula that we stick to when it comes to creating something because it always comes from different places. But I do always look forward to working through the songs with the guys when we are in the same room and when we get in that creative groove. That always feels good.
H: What song are you most proud of? What song do you like performing the most?
L: I like to perform "Sweet and Cheap." "Temporary Lies" and "Grand Slam" the most.
C: I'd have to say I am proud of everything we have done as a band. But for a specific song I would say "Lose My Brain" stands out because of the amount of creative collaboration the band was having at the moment of writing that piece. "Slow Decay" and "Above All" have to be my favorites.
H: What gets you out of artist block?
L: I write down whatever I see around me or try to recall my day in writing form.
C: Going to a show really helps me with that. Experiencing the product of someone else's creativity is a very refreshing experience within myself and it usually helps grease up some of the 'ol cogs in my brain.
H: If you had to pick, what song do you wish you personally had written and why?
L: Probably "Lazarus" by David Bowie. I wouldn't say I wish I had written it, but I definitely would've loved to have been present in the studio in the construction of that song. The sheer eerie essence of the lyrics followed by the saxophones swaying into a dance of an almost paradoxical state of being...to me, the thing that holds the listener in orbit is the drum and bass, but Bowie's vocal melodies give nothing but a way into his absolute vulnerability during his journey into the realm of Death, By far one of the greatest odes ever written in history
C: That's a tough question because there are so many songs out there that are so amazing that ! get goosebumps every time I hear it often. One song that has been a favorite of mine for a long time, however, is "Róisín Dubh (Black Rose): A Rock Legend" by Thin Lizzy.
H: Does other media inspire your music? If so, what?
C: Of course, so many things do. Anything that can induce a feeling in me can make me hear or feel a rhythm, melody or story that I would want to tell.
L: Yes, definitely. I'm heavily inspired by paintings, books and movies. They are important inputs in to my creative process and motivation to wonder and write about.
H: What is something you haven't done yet that you would like to experience in life?
L: To leave the Earth's atmosphere in my lifetime.
C: Ascension.
H: If you could spend 24 hours with three musicians, dead or alive, who would it be?
C: Tom Waits, Mikael Åkerfeldt and Chris Thile.
L: It's really hard to pick only three...but David Bowie, Jaco Pastorious and Hermeto Pascoal. I've listened to Bowie all of my life. My mom introduced me to him when I was still a baby and his music has always been a comfort blanket for me no matter what iteration of his persona or the genre he decided to bend next. Timeless and alien. Jaco was the building block to my bass learning. I had lessons for years from his son Felix and although I do believe I have gained some intense knowledge and insight into the deepest parts of music, I still feel like my learning process will never end. Jaco's approach to the bass guitar is both Punk and Jazz. He's a true master and virtuoso of humanity. Lastly, Hermeto Pascoal. A father figure of music who's thankfully still alive when I say this. He's a pioneer of not only music but a pioneer of being human. When I was a kid I would hear his music all throughout my hometown in the shape of school choirs or music classes. Virtuosic in spirit, his music speaks through the soul, a master of all instruments and prisoner of no genre. He's truly a treasure of our time.
H: If you were dropped off on a desert island right now and could only listen to one artist when there, who would it be?
C: Definitely Thin Lizzy.
L: I believe it would be my dad (Rodrigo Cerqueira). He's an all around incredible musician and always has been an inspiration for me.
H: Any last words or statements or anything you would like to drop?
C: Yes.
L: Have fun and make friends!
