Willycranes

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Interview : Billy Hill from Willycranes

When and how was your band created?
The bunch of loons that was to become Willycranes started in 1994 by Dixon, The Rev. and me under the name Spud because we were bored I guess.

In 1999 we changed the name to Willycranes for some reason and Cohones joined us in the summer of 2000 to make the line-up complete.

Where is the name of the band coming from?
I actually don't remember but I think it had something to do with the movie ''Free Willy'' in which they lifted Willy with cranes... or not, I really don't know...

What musicians or artists did have a major influence in your life / work?
The biggest influence of all comes from bands like The Ramones, Motörhead and AC/DC because they made me see that good rock 'n' roll is not complicated.

Also every band who do what they do with a smile on their face, bands like Supersuckers, Dropkick Murphy's and Turbonegro gives me inspiration .

What are the positive and negative aspects of being a musician in Finland?
One big positive aspect is the fans, Finland has great rock 'n' roll fans who really knows how to get down. The negative aspect for us islanders (The Aland Islands) is the time consuming and costly distance to the mainland.

How could you define your style of music?
It's been called a lot of things, but I think punk 'n' roll is closest to the truth.

During the years how has your musical style changed?
It hasn't changed a lot actually and I hope it never will. We have made our own brew of musical styles that we really dig, so why would we change? There's a lot of bands that loses the things that made them good in the first place when they change and ''evolve''.

What are topics you treat in your songs?
Anything and everything, from house paint to China Town, from rockets to relations, anything goes.

What is your favorite song in your repertoire and why?
They're all my favorite songs, if a song loses our affection it's off the list!

Do you actually prefer performing your music live or in a studio?
Live! Even when we record in the studio we do as much as possible live.

During the process of making a song, what is the moment that you prefer?
Making the final adjustments and hear them become Willycranes songs during rehearsal with the boys is always a treat.

A stupid question but... what is among all the songs you've been listening in your life the BEST song?
Today I'd have to go with ''Riff Raff'' with AC/DC, but ask me again tomorrow and it's most certainly a completely different song.

What is your opinion, as a musician, regarding internet?
Internet is a great tool for spreading information easy and fast to a lot of people. When it comes to the downloading issue...I don't know, maybe I'm an old fashioned country boy but to me it's with music as it is with booze you either make it yourself or you buy it.

On the other hand I don't think that people who download illegally do it out of cheapness, they're just lazy and the laziness of the world is a bigger problem then illegal downloads.

What are your projects?
Right now we're in the middle of recording our third album and that takes up most of our time at the moment.

What "image" do you have of French music?
My image of French music is based on the successfull electronic bands that comes from France, like Air and Daft Punk... not my cup of tea really. I sadly have no clue how the rock 'n' roll scene is in France.

Is there one French song that you prefer? If so, what song is it?
Nope, no one that springs to mind...

Interview by Vincent Lefrançois - 2006