Cut City is not seldom mentioned in the same breath as well known bands such as Joy Division and Echo & The Bunnymen and sure, it is hard not to see the connection. But on the latest and almost shamefully overlooked EP Narcissus can wait the frames of reference are broadened and they go near another soundscape.

                – It is a little slower and more flowing you could say. I don’t really know where the hell it came from but it had to come out in some way. Without sounding too pretentious I believe we were thinking more thematically when we tried to graft it. That it should be an entity, says singer and guitar player Max J Hansson.
Are you fed up with constantly being compared to Joy Division and similar bands?

                – I don’t know, it’s not something we can do anything about... like, some of the music does indeed sound post punky. But yeah, sometimes it’s maybe not the most obvious that are your influences. We all love the forgotten band The Sound and I much rather listen to that than to Joy Division.

                Cut City has for various reasons had difficulty finding time for rehearsals and gigs. But since last winter they have put in a serious effort to record demos for a full length album which they will take to the studio this summer.

                – Yes, we are building some kind of embryo for the next album and we are meant to start recording it for real in July or August. It would have been bloody nice to have it released by autumn but quality goes before everything else. We are aiming for October anyway.
What does the new material sound like?

                – Maybe like a mix between the last full length and the EP... or something new. One thing I can say for sure is that it is a hell of a lot more messy. More punk in other words, without sounding like Sex Pistols but punk in the heart and punk in the performance. Haha, there is a song where I have nicked a riff from Guns’N Roses as well. But everything is moulded from us.

                Cut City has a habit of releasing their material on vinyl first and the upcoming album will probably not be an exception to this rule. Even though Max himself thinks that there is a certain elitism in that.

                – Yeah, it feels like there is a minority of people who has record players nowadays, but we really like the format. Fuck, I feel old and conservative now but I mean that the material will find its way to the internet sooner or later anyway through CDs to friends and promoters. In the end it’s just sweet if people want to listen to it.

                Since the American record company who released the last album went bankrupt they haven’t signed to a new one. Something that isn’t as down putting as you might think.

                – 90 percent of all small bands have to release their own stuff nowadays, and we will probably have to do that as well. I am more concerned about whether people come to our gigs or not. Will four or 400 show? You can’t fucking know. But what the hell, we will play anyway.

Translation: Marie Lindström