Tell us about yourself and your music
We are The SKYS a rock band from Lithuania. And most probably the first rock band from Lithuania you’ve ever heard of. Nevertheless, we’ve existed for years and toured half the world. We’re four people: Jonas (guitar, vocals), Bo (keys, vocals), Justas (bass), Ilja (drums) but we also love to collaborate with other musicians. So, you’d often find sax, or bvs or other musicians playing with us. We play a kind of progressive rock mixed with classic rock and even pop. If you think Pink Floyd meets Led Zeppelin and Eloy meets Deep Purple – that is a bit close to what we sound like. However, we truly believe we have our own unique sound.
Talk to us more about your latest release
Our latest release is sixth studio album “Automatic Minds”. The album has 9 songs everything from short pop ballads to epic progressive rock 9 minutes opus. The latest album features many guest musicians:
Snowy WHITE (Pink Floyd, Thin Lizzy), Neil Taylor (Robbie Williams band), Justin Klunk (Ariana Grande band), Durga McBroom (Pink Floyd), Rob Townsend (St. Hackett band), India Carney – semi-finalist of The Voice (USA) just to name a few.
“Automatic Minds” was produced by Grammy Winning producer Dom Morley (Amy Winehouse).
Mastered at Abbey Road Studio by Miles Showell
What inspired you to write this release?
The inspiration comes from Cosmos and Life. “Automatic Minds” speaks about people, societies, governments that lack critical thinking. Their minds work like automated machines where lack of communication creates a lot of global problems which lead to a political, economic, social, religious, a moral crisis. Stupidity and fanaticism prevail creating wars. So, the album criticizes self-destructing path humanity often chooses.
At the same time, there is a lot of symbolism in the album. And many things stay hidden behind the lines.
Describe the writing and recording process
It took us a year to create and record “Automatic Minds”. Drums and bass were recorded in L.A., fantastic NRG studio with a great live room. We worked with producer Rocco Guarino who was responsible for the USA recording part. Then we moved the project closer to Lithuania and had a couple of recording sessions in the UK. That is where we recorded vocals, guitars and the rest of tracks with Grammy-winning producer Dom Morley. And the final stage of mastering was done in London at Abbey Road Studios by Miles Showell.
Any plans to release a video?
Any plans to hit the road?
We’ve just got back from 2 months USA East Coast Tour. And we have already some European dates coming next year. Two great shows at O2 Arenas in Sheffield and London together with Rick Wakeman, Focus, Dave Brock and others at HRH Prog Festival. We also have some dates planned in Lithuania and later on next year Japan.
As an indie artist, how do you brand yourself and your music to stand out from the rest of the artists out there?
Well, that is a tough one. The very first thing we are unique. And we try to show this uniqueness every time. Also, we’re trying to reach excellence in our performance skills. And of course, the main thing is to promote the music. That’s why we’re using Artist PR services :)
Who have you been listening to lately?
Not too many artists. Most of the time some indie artists. However, we try to stay away from other music in order to develop our own and not to be influenced by others. Therefore, we often choose to listen to silence.
Who are your biggest influences?
Classic rock especially of 60s-70s. Pink Floyd, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Dire Straits, Free, Eloy, and many others.
Tell us about your passions
We love a lot of things. Despite music, it is philosophy, art, science, nature, good red wine, beauty, love, life. All the good things in the Universe.
Thanks for an awesome interview, The SKYS
Connect with The SKYS
Website: http://www.theskys.comFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/theskysInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.skys/Twitter: https://twitter.com/theskysltLastFM: https://www.last.fm/music/The+SkysYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/user/lietausuzdangaSoundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/the_skysReverbnation: https://www.reverbnation.com/theskys
