Stop! It's Family Time with "Das Risiko" - INTERVIEW

Oscar and Max - Max and Oscar. They’re the two irreplaceable halves of Family Time, an alternative -and in some ways, highly experimental- pop band whose dynamics are rooted in the multi-level intimate relationship of the two Hispano-German cousins, their flair for the dramatic, the eccentric and -as we learned in this interview- the theatrical as well.

The band just released a new promotional single and music video ahead of their upcoming record, which we can expect to have on our plates soon enough. The single is called “Das Risiko”, and not only is it their first song released fully in german, but it also leans heavily on that side of their shared heritage by adopting the sound vernacular of the equally German pop movement from the 1980s known as Neue Deutsche Welle.

In light of all this, we jumped on the opportunity to bother these two creative powerhouses a couple of eight question to learn a bit about what makes their cutting-edge music making brains tick. We think you’ll appreciate this interview almost as much as you’ll appreciate “Das Risiko”

From your inception in around 2018 to now, who or what is Family Time? how has the project evolved and how do you feel about where things are headed right now? 

Oscar: I think Family Time encompasses pretty much all Max and I do together. Sometimes we don’t do much, other times we make songs. We’ve had multiple live band incarnations, and we’re working on a brand new show at the moment, but at heart it’s still just a fitting name we gave our relationship. So if you see us crossing the street one day, or having coffee together, you can say, “today I saw Family Time”. And you will be right.

How has forming this band changed each of you personally? 

Max: It’s made us forget more about calling our parents and less available for fun weekend plans. It’s also a test on communication. Oscar and I need to be on a similar page at all times, although not necessarily the same one, that keeps it all moving too.

"Das Risiko" is your first fully german track, not only language-wise but musically as well, as it leans on a characteristically German sound. Will you be exploring more of it in your upcoming EP? 

Max: This sound is definitely something we want to play with further. I think it’s a new and exciting path that deserves to be explored. The thing is, this song was the first one we tried it out with, so we’ll have to see what happens in the future. I feel this record has planted a few seeds for us to move forward.

Why was Germany the correct place to settle down to get this song and EP done? Do you feel like there'd be a difference between London, Berlin, and Barcelona when it comes to the creative energies you use for your music? 

Max: Ja! I’ve always had a bit of a belief in the geographical influence on one’s work. With Family Time we’ve made music in mainland Spain, the UK, Germany and most importantly, Mallorca. I could almost guarantee the humid and summery feelings from Mallorca wouldn’t have allowed us to come up with the music from this record. That being said, I don’t know if Germany is the correct place.

This very same Upcoming EP will be called "The Golden Years." right? Where's that come from?

Oscar:  We were trying to come up with the ultimate sophomore album, half-genuinely believing the logical step forward was for this to be the best thing ever, Family Time at its historic peak. The title seemed to address that delusion and sort of embrace it. It also seemed fitting for the recurring theme of memory and remembrance and made it all sound like a hit compilation.

The “incestual tensions' ' are pretty front and center in the music video for "Das Risiko". Most people would shy away from personal over-exposure. Do you, as artists, feel invested in breaking boundaries between yourselves and your audience? 

Oscar: I guess you can’t ever get too close to an audience. As soon as you start singing in rhyme you’ve lost something. So for us it can be more interesting sometimes to be playful and express a nugget of real meaning by dramatizing it, expanding it and seeing where that takes you. It’s good for us too. We took our complicated intimate relationship and put it on operatic mode, and what came out was a pretty standard love story.

Let's talk about who Family Time is when there are no recording devices on you. What moves you? What keeps your attention outside of music? 

Max: I think this is where many existential questions worth a few therapy sessions pop up for me. There isn’t that much else going on besides music at the moment, I can stop being interesting rather quickly

Family Time's got some live dates coming up with a European Tour set up. You're pretty seasoned when it comes to live performance but I imagine you had a pretty long downtime from that aspect due to the pandemic. When was the last time you had the chance to do a live circuit? any anxieties or expectations coming into this new tour? 

Oscar: We had our last tour of Europe with the now disbanded Family Time Quintet in the winter. The show we’re working on now is much more theatrical, with a tight ratio of instruments to theater props. I think we’re slowly getting at what the music wanted.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Samuel Aponte is Venezuelan-born raised and based. 

I joined Rival Magazine after a few years of doing PR work for independent musicians of all stripes; understanding their struggles to be heard in a sea of constant  ADHD noise and paywalled access to platforms, I now bring a willingness to always appreciate and encourage the effort and creativity that artists put into their work . Can also find some of my writings on LADYGUNN and We Found New Music.