country rock
“Like birth of a child” – The BossHoss keep rocking
Alec Völkel (l) and Sascha Vollmer remain true to themselves. photo
© Britta Pedersen/dpa
The BossHoss last released an album in 2018. The new one should have appeared long ago. Now the wait is over. Is the band staying true to themselves with the new record?
The country rockers from The BossHoss didn’t want to wait that long with their new album. But the corona pandemic thwarted the band’s plans. “Since we weren’t allowed to go out, we thought: Then we’ll stay in there with the album and work on it,” says Sascha Vollmer (51) of the German Press Agency in Berlin.
He and his band partner Alec Völkel (51) have long since started again. But one thing was still missing: After about five years, they are now releasing their tenth album “Electric Horsemen” (May 5).
The two are thoroughbred musicians who know how to carry their fans away on stage. Nonetheless, there is a certain amount of excitement ahead of the album’s release. “It’s like the birth of a new child. Of course you’re excited, especially when it’s been such a long time,” says Vollmer.
More time than usual
At the same time, the musicians see it as a “luxury situation” that they have been able to tinker with their new album longer than usual, as they explain during a conversation in their rooms on the outskirts of Berlin’s city center. Sitting over a song for too long isn’t always a good thing.
The result should not disappoint the fans and promise energetic concerts. With “Dance The Boogie”, Völkel and Vollmer have already given a foretaste of what is in the new work with their distinctive voices. In the preliminary decision for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, they could also be heard with another song from the album in March – as guests, not as candidates.
“You” is the name of the number suitable for radio, for which the two brought the musician Ilse DeLange to the microphone to amplify. The 45-year-old Dutchwoman isn’t the only one with a guest appearance on the twelve-song album: Michael Patrick Kelly and the metalcore band Electric Callboy are also there.
With “Electric Horsemen”, which translates as electric horsemen, Völkel and Vollmer remain true to themselves and rely on country rock – the trademark of the singers, who like to appear in cowboy hats and are celebrated and praised by their fans at live performances because they have remained authentic and down-to-earth. Völkel says: “We also chat a lot. It’s not just about the music, but also how we convey it.”
Everything in English
“Electric Horsemen” is also the name of the first title of the album of the same name, which according to Völkel has “a completely new musical energy and color”. Songs like “Ride With Us”, “Never Say Never” and “Electric” with catchy rhythms promise a good mood, “Three Little Words”, on the other hand, is calmer. All songs are in English – as was the case with the last album by the Berliners in 2018.
The new album is something special, not just because it’s the tenth. “There’s a lot of simmering inside. How are the fans reacting?” said Völkel, looking at the reactions. A chart entry is something for the gallery. “What’s really important is whether the fans celebrate the album in front of the stage. That’s the best indicator.”
Because The BossHoss always link an album to a tour and vice versa, the country rockers want to be on stages in Germany, Austria and Switzerland with their songs in September and October. It is also the prelude to the band’s birthday.
The BossHoss have been playing for around 20 years. “We’re very proud of it because it’s not a matter of course,” says Vollmer. “There is no end in sight for us. I would say: never.” However, there is no fixed founding date for the band.
“We got to know each other in 2000. That could also be the origin,” recalls Alec Völkel. The two made their first song in 2002, and their first appearance followed a year later. That’s when the idea of forming a band came up. The record deal came in 2004. Because there is no fixed founding date, Vollmer suggests: “We’ll be celebrating our 20th anniversary for the next two years. We’re going to celebrate all the way through.”