Ahead of their UK tour, Original Rock talk with Ask Carol!
So, touring wise, what have you been up to this year, and can you give us a couple of highlights from your time on the road?
This year we have finally started touring a bit again, after a few years of downtime during Covid. So far, we have toured around Norway, from East to West, and South to not so far North (Norway is stretched very far North, so the furthest north we went this time was Trondheim). Also, we did a trip in the US, playing at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, and driving around and playing outside in the nature, like we do in Norway, taking our “Backyard Jam” series abroad.
The highlights were the Pstereo festival in Trondheim, one of Norway’s biggest and best festivals, it was such an amazing crowd, and of course the SXSW gig. It is always so much fun to play in Austin, especially the gig we did at Hippie Church, where we played for a bunch of old hippies, who grew up in the 60s and 70s. We also love music from that era, and they were the perfect crowd.
What are your top tips for surviving life on the road?
Well, in this day and age things are changing fast, and Covid has certainly left its mark on the touring experience and the touring industry. For our part, we are only two people, which makes a lot of things easier, but also many things harder. It very much depends on which country you are touring in.
So tip number one is, remember to eat! The days on tour can get very hectic and stressful, especially when you are only two people, as we are. It is easy to forget to eat when you are running here and there, fixing stuff, while also driving, having to figure out parking, dealing with people, rigging, loading and unloading. Take a moment in all that craziness to cool down and have a bite of food.
How excited are you for your upcoming UK tour, and what can attending fans expect?
Very excited!! We have been waiting for this moment for a long time. After having toured in Asia for a while, and also done a few concerts in the US, it’s almost a bit weird that we still haven’t been to the UK. So much of our favourite music is from the UK, it’s kind of close to Norway, people from the UK who we have met around the world have always liked our music, so there is no reason to not go there. We really can’t wait!
Fans can expect the real Ask Carol experience, we plan to get all our stuff on the plane to bring with us our full duo rig. There will be guitar solos, there will be looping, there will be multitasking and there might even be some trombone! People have told us they don’t understand how two people can make such a huge sound, and that is lovely to hear. Can’t wait to show you guys this.
What can Ask Carol fans expect from your setlist, and is there something in particular that you’ll be promoting while you’re in the UK?
We have a good set prepared, with a few songs from our debut album, and a few others. A couple aren’t recorded at all yet, and we might also throw in a cover here and there, just for fun. And yes, we might actually do one brand new song on this tour as well. It will be released at the end of October, but the UK tour will be its maiden voyage, so to speak! We are very excited to show you guys this song.
What are some of your favourite UK bands/acts and why?
Oh, there are so many.
To take some older ones first:
Asks favourite band is The Clash, love their songs and the way they blend and play with genres.
We both love what Jimi Hendrix did with the Jimi Hendrix Experience, which thanks to Mitch and Noel was a meeting between the American bluesy guitar of Jimi and the British rock sound. It was (is) amazing. Other favourites are Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and many others.
And a couple of newer ones.
We love the band Moriaty, who we are playing a couple of concerts with on the upcoming tour. They’re also a duo, and they are awesome. Another one is Wolf Alice. We saw them live at Øya in Norway, they are great. And we love The XX too, they’re awesome.
What else can we expect to see from Ask Carol in 2023 (Going into 2024!)?
Well, as mentioned, there are upcoming singles this Fall, and they are a taste of our upcoming second album, which we will be working on the rest of the year. Apart from that, after the UK Tour, we will tour some more in Norway, as well as plan our very first full US Tour for 2024.
So, a lot is happening, stay tuned! And can’t wait to meet you guys on the road in the UK!
https://www.askcarolmusic.com/on-tour
https://www.facebook.com/askcarol
