The Hives join us in the Helpful Honda Sound Space to talk about their three decades as a band and their upcoming album, and to unleash a special performance for a few lucky fans.
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MusicTranscript
00:00Thank you for being here. A little early show on a Tuesday.
00:04Welcome to the Helpful Haunted Sound Space at KROQ.
00:06My name is Miles, the DJ. Thrilled to present this performance and interview.
00:11There's going to be a conversation first, beforehand.
00:13The Hives, their new record, The Hives Forever, The Hives, dropping on August 29th.
00:19There's a, yeah, make some noise. Make some noise for the new record.
00:24They're going to go on tour, Palladium, on September 25th.
00:27Make some noise, our friends from Sweden, The Hives.
00:30Nicholas, everybody.
00:49Hello, gang.
00:51Hi.
00:51Full house.
00:53Let's go.
00:55Let's go.
00:56Tuesday, a little after one o'clock. We're not screwing around here.
01:02Welcome, The Hives.
01:04To KROQ.
01:06Congrats on the new music. Congrats on just your life in general. You're a successful rock band.
01:12That's amazing.
01:13Pelle, I've heard you kind of talk about how, not to call anyone out here, but sometimes
01:18like, you know, bad bands make a lot of money and do really well. Good bands...
01:24That's like the index, most of the time.
01:26That's what I'm saying, right?
01:28And sometimes really good bands, they kind of come and go.
01:30You guys have figured out a way to be a really good band and successful somehow, just like
01:36kind of doing what you do.
01:38Thank you very much.
01:39For extended periods of time, too.
01:41This is a question I was really excited to ask you, so I wrote it down. So, here we go.
01:47How do you stay focused on quality without burning out or becoming disillusioned with the industry?
01:55You don't.
01:57Yeah, we're both burned out.
01:58You stay disillusioned and burned out.
02:00Who's not disillusioned?
02:01Well, yeah, exactly.
02:04We're constantly burned out and disillusioned by the industry, but just plowing on, basically.
02:10Well, we appreciate you being here at K-Rock today.
02:15A lot of consequential, like, K-Rock royalty involved with this upcoming album.
02:20Mike D of Beastie Boys, I understand.
02:23He flew out to Sweden just to meet with you.
02:26I know Queens of the Stone Age also involved Josh a little bit.
02:32How did their input kind of influence the music and the record that's coming out?
02:37Yeah, it was really helpful.
02:39I mean, we were thinking about who has cool-sounding records, and that's the Beastie Boys.
02:43So, we figured if our record's going to sound cool, we should get him involved.
02:48And he flew over and stuff, and also sent us some stuff, which was great.
02:52And Josh more kind of in a cheerleader capacity, like, when we were trying to work on the quality,
02:59he said, it's already good.
03:01And that was very helpful.
03:03Because we can kind of shoot above the goal sometimes.
03:06Like, you can't make it too good.
03:09It'll never be...
03:11We've got to keep a balance of popular and good, which is really hard, you know.
03:17You want to be so popular, they can keep doing it, but not so popular that the music sucks.
03:23Which is a hard balance to tread.
03:26Nicholas, do you guys ever have situations where you have a song that you hear that,
03:31whoa, this is like, this would be really popular.
03:34This could be huge on the radio.
03:35This could be...
03:36And it may not fit in line with what The Hives does, as Pelle's kind of talking about.
03:40You kind of scrap it or move on.
03:42Has that ever happened, where a song is too good that the world's not ready for it?
03:46Well, yeah, I guess.
03:49I mean, a lot of times we don't have songs that are what you describe, but rather parts.
03:56We'll have a verse that'll be the best thing that anybody's ever heard, you know.
04:00And then we'll work on that for years and years.
04:02So that's more kind of the way it goes a little bit.
04:06But yeah, I mean, every once in a while there's something that, you know, maybe doesn't fit.
04:10But for the...
04:11I mean, when we start playing stuff, it'll always kind of sound like The Hives.
04:15Once you introduce it into The Hives universe, it'll sound like The Hives.
04:18Because even, you know, you've got to go pretty far to have it not sound like The Hives.
04:24Speaking of The Hives, that's who this is.
04:29They rule.
04:31I love your presentation.
04:34We've all been such fans for so long.
04:36Pele, I heard a rumor that...
04:38And by the way, for those interested or paying attention to such things, it's WrestleMania season right now.
04:44And I heard a rumor that you kind of maybe grew up on wrestling.
04:49You're a fan a little bit.
04:50And I'm just kind of wondering, like, with regards to, like, persona, presentation, you know, just kind of how that world works.
04:56Is there any, like, correlation or similarities with what The Hives does and the world of professional wrestling?
05:04Yeah.
05:06It's like 50% WWF and 50% James Brown.
05:11Yeah.
05:12That's the sweet spot.
05:1450-50.
05:15WWF and James Brown.
05:16I heard that you were looking into being a psychologist, potentially, before The Hives kind of blew up.
05:24Yeah, it's just like I had to do...
05:26Because I figured if we're playing good music, we won't be popular enough to make a living.
05:30So I've got to make a living.
05:31And psychology was interesting to me.
05:34But, like, everybody who studies psychology, it's mostly about figuring out what's wrong with yourself.
05:38And then I realized I don't want to sit in a room and listen to people feel bad for eight hours a day.
05:43Instead, I want to be in front of a lot of happy people.
05:50Yeah, so here I am.
05:53Contributing to our happiness, so thank you for that.
05:55I'm trying, and you're contributing to ours.
05:59Adding to that, again, The Hives Forever, The Hives, the new album, coming out on August 29th.
06:05With the title, The Hives Forever, Forever The Hives.
06:09I know you guys opened for The Stones on their 40 Licks tour, like, back in, I think, the mid-2000s or so.
06:16What was it like, you know, touring with them?
06:20A forever band in their own right now.
06:21You're turning into that 30 years in.
06:23Like, what was that experience?
06:25Did you learn anything from The Stones?
06:27Any behind-the-scenes stories?
06:29Yeah, we were in Mick Jagger's dressing room, and we figured we might as well, you know, ask him a question, you know.
06:36He's there.
06:37Do you have any tips?
06:38And, yeah, I do, actually, he said.
06:41And it was, never buy your own yacht, always borrow our friends.
06:50Invaluable information.
06:51Because that was, we were just about to buy a yacht each.
06:54So, that really helped.
06:57And, no, I mean, it was the first time we saw people that were doing what we were doing and had been doing it for a very long time.
07:04I think before that, we assumed that you had to quit at a certain point in time.
07:08But, just, like, realizing that, I mean, if you're, like, an engineer, there's a lot of times you can meet people that have been engineers for 40 years.
07:15But very rarely can you meet a rock band that's been active for 40 years.
07:19And it just seemed like such a great thing to just keep going.
07:22So, thank you, Rolling Stone.
07:24A little before that time, there was that sort of, like, iconic period where, you know, you were kind of lumped in with, like, the vines and the strokes and the white stripes.
07:37There was, I think, an MTV VMA segment where you performed.
07:40There was, I think the vines were on the cover of Rolling Stone once.
07:44And you were mentioned as well.
07:45Like, did you, did it make sense for you back then to be lumped in into that?
07:50Did that, was that correct?
07:52Was there, like, friendly competition?
07:54What was that experience like for you and just being associated with those bands back then?
07:58Well, some of those bands were great, you know, and kind of became friends of ours.
08:02And it was kind of a relief that, you know, the music we love became popular.
08:07And also kind of a surprise.
08:09Like, because you got to remember, like, we weren't that similar.
08:13But I think a musical movement is usually about pants.
08:18It's like, you know, nu metal, big pants, grunge, torn pants, the quote-unquote garage rock revival, tight pants.
08:28And the sound wasn't that similar, but we did wear similar types of pants.
08:32Sure.
08:33And before that, it was like nu metal, which had very big pants.
08:36So it went from big pants to small pants.
08:38So in that way, it made a lot of sense for us to be lumped in with those other bands.
08:41We've gone away from the smaller pants now for some reason again.
08:45So we're...
08:46Well, that's dignity, I think.
08:51Was it weird?
08:52Like, you guys had been a band for, like, seven years at that point, right?
08:55It wasn't like you were this new band.
08:56So was it kind of strange to...
08:58I think it was really good for us.
09:00Like, that we had been a band for seven years.
09:02And some, like, the other bands were, like, three months into their band.
09:06And they blew up.
09:08And, like, the first thing they did was a ginormous success.
09:11And then you've got to live with a life where it's kind of like that for 20 years or whatever,
09:16which I think is way harder.
09:17Whereas our life kind of sucked as a band.
09:20And then for seven years, they kind of struggled along.
09:23And then we got really popular.
09:25So we kind of knew that that wasn't the index, which I think was really good.
09:28So we figured, oh, we're going to be popular for a couple of years.
09:30And after that, you know, we'll have more fans than we did before.
09:33But here we are, still popular.
09:38And one thing, having seen the band perform, you know, live fairly recently,
09:43Just Like Heaven, No Vacancy, you know, Velasco, I think maybe you played a few,
09:48a year or two ago.
09:49We're playing the Palladium in September.
09:53Which I think is our biggest ever LA show.
09:56September 25th, I believe.
09:58So everybody must go.
10:01One thing I noticed watching the Hives is we're reminded often,
10:05and it's a correct statement that the Hives are the greatest band on the planet.
10:09So we all know that.
10:12But outside of that band, who's right here, who do you think?
10:16Let's go down the line.
10:17The best band on the planet.
10:18Favorite band.
10:23Ramones.
10:25I wore a Ramones t-shirt today.
10:27Look at that.
10:28That's some synergy right there, my friend.
10:31Serendipity.
10:32He's just saying stuff that he can see.
10:36But I'll agree.
10:37I could go Ramones as well, or ACDC even.
10:40I thought you meant like a...
10:41Well, actually, they're kind of current, I guess.
10:44But yeah, both great bands.
10:46Couple more questions, and then they will play songs for the audience.
10:49Thanks again for being here, everybody, and coming to K-Rock at the Helpful Honda Sound Space.
10:53Enough is Enough.
10:55That's the single.
10:55That's the song we're going to hear today.
10:58It's off the upcoming record.
10:59It's been all over K-Rock since it dropped.
11:01Great.
11:02Keep it up.
11:02Thank you for the quality music that's new, that we can play for our audience.
11:07Thanks for noticing.
11:08It's chaotic.
11:10It's loud.
11:11It grabs attention from the first note, and then certainly the first lyric.
11:16How important was it to lead with a message like that, both lyrically and sonically?
11:22Because you hear it, and you're like, whoa, this is a song.
11:25Let's go.
11:26We'll hear it later.
11:27Yeah, I think it's pretty important.
11:30You want something that makes you go, startles you a little bit, and it was like as close
11:36as a kind of state of the world address, how we felt about things, basically, when writing
11:42the song.
11:43But I love an outrageous opening line in rock and roll.
11:47I think it's one of my favorite things, such as, I'm a street-walking cheetah with a heart
11:53full of napalm.
11:54Or there's a Bon Scott one of ACDs that I really love that goes, I'm hot, and when I'm not,
12:00I'm cold as ice.
12:03That's great.
12:04You know?
12:05You immediately like that stuff.
12:06It's a different subject matter, but it kind of reminds, speaking of the Ramones, like
12:11a 53rd and 3rd kind of a vibe, but just like in different context or content, rather,
12:17but just like, wow, this is cool.
12:19Yeah.
12:19This is grabbing my attention.
12:21Well, I think what we should do is, let's hear it again for the hikes.
12:27So here it came out.
12:28Thank you for the conversation.
12:31It's a pleasure to be here.
12:32The record comes out in August, and we're going to take a couple minutes to break all
12:36this down, and then you're going to come back on stage and play some songs.
12:40And grab your attention.
12:41Let's do this.
12:43Thank you, everybody.
12:44Thank you very much.
12:45See you soon.
12:46Hello, everybody.
12:47Welcome to the Helpful Honda Sound Space at K-Rock.
12:51My name is Miles the DJ.
12:52I'm the music director at the station, and we have a treat.
12:55We have a quality band.
12:56They have a new album, The Hives Forever.
12:58The Hives dropping on August 29th.
13:02It is worthy of your time.
13:04Please make some noise.
13:05Our friends, The Hives.
13:07The Hives.
13:07It is so precious.
13:22Yes.
13:24Go!
13:25Go!
16:54I enjoyed that.
16:56Did you enjoy that?
16:58Bet you did.
16:59You want to enjoy some more?
17:01Would you like to enjoy some more?
17:03The Hives.
17:06International rock sensation all the way from Sweden into your earlobes, into your radios,
17:10and on your screens, be they tiny screens or big screens, flat or curved, deep or thin, screens, everywhere, except here.
17:23You don't need screens.
17:25You can look at us.
17:27It's happening in real time.
17:28Can you feel it?
17:29Can you see it?
17:31Can you hear it?
17:33Put your phones away and enjoy reality unfiltered this time.
17:37Ladies, gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen and everybody else, I present to you one of the world's biggest rock songs by yours truly.
17:58Hello.
17:59Do all the wrong
18:26Just sit down and if I don't
18:28Because I wanna
18:29Be ignored by the stiff and the poor
18:35Because I wanna
18:36Been at a dream
18:40Just sit down and if I don't see
18:41Because I wanna
18:42I'm gonna get to your head
18:46Rockin' this dream
18:47Because I wanna
18:49Oh
18:50Say I told you so
18:55Alright
18:55Come on
18:59Can't believe I told you so
19:05Now it's all out of you
19:09No
19:09Cause I wanted to
19:13Turn my back on the rock
19:17There's a pain in the blood
19:18Cause I wanna
19:19Don't need
19:23Don't need to wait
19:25Because I wanna
19:26Don't need to
19:30Breathe too late
19:32Because I wanna
19:33They say I told you so
19:39Alright
19:39Come on
19:42Come on
19:43Do you believe I told you so
19:49Yeah
19:52Yeah
19:54You want a piece
20:22Don't affect the disease
20:23Because I wanna
20:24I'm gonna call all the shots
20:29For the nose and the nose
20:30Because I'm gonna
20:31Come on, everybody
20:39If you want to laugh
20:43That's all I know
20:44I'm gonna tell
20:44Because I wanna
20:45Well, so I need
20:49I'm gonna tell
20:49I'm gonna tell
20:50I'm gonna tell
20:50I'm gonna tell
20:51I'm gonna
20:52I'm gonna tell
20:54I'm gonna tell
20:55I'm gonna tell
20:56I'm gonna tell
20:58I'm gonna tell
20:59I'm gonna tell
21:01I'm gonna tell
21:02I'm gonna tell
21:04I'm gonna tell
21:05I'm gonna tell
21:06I'm gonna tell
21:08I'm gonna tell
21:09I'm gonna tell
21:10I'm gonna tell
21:11I'm gonna tell
21:12I'm gonna tell
21:13I'm gonna tell
21:14I'm gonna tell
21:15I'm gonna tell
21:16I'm gonna tell
21:17I'm gonna tell
21:18I'm gonna tell
21:19I'm gonna tell
21:20I'm gonna tell
21:21I'm gonna tell
21:22I'm gonna tell
21:23I'm gonna tell
21:37would you like to feel progressively even better way better than you maybe you felt before i don't
21:44know i don't even know what song we'll do next but i guess i'm gonna find out and so are you
21:50that's where we can bond and the uncertainty of what the next song is
21:55but now i know no i wasn't looking for suggestions
21:59i think they're well qualified to pick one themselves without me ladies and gentlemen
22:07the hives ladies and gentlemen the hives ladies and gentlemen and everybody else the hives
22:13big round of applause for the hives applaud for k-rock applaud for the helpful honda sound space
22:21and once again applaud for chris dangerous on the drums
22:29this is my new singer
22:37everyone's a little fucking bitch
22:48and i'm getting sick and tired of this
22:53went to the doctor
22:58just i'm sick
23:00sick of everybody's
23:02bullshit
23:03and i ain't listen
23:05not hearing anything
23:07anything no more
23:10enough is enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough enough
23:40Forever marching, in single pile
23:46You follow orders, and don't align
23:49And I ain't listening, not hearing anything
23:53Can't take my fall
23:55Nothing's enough, nothing's enough
23:59Nothing's enough, nothing's enough
24:02Nothing's enough, nothing's enough
24:06Nothing's enough, nothing's enough
24:10Do the ring, do the ring
24:19Don't go big, don't go big
24:20Anything, anything
24:22Everybody doesn't know anymore
24:24No, I just need
24:26No, I just need
24:27No, I just need
24:28And anything needs to do anything
24:36Enough is enough
24:39Enough is enough
24:42Enough is enough
24:46Enough is enough
24:49Yeah, enough is enough
24:52Enough is enough
24:54Enough is enough
24:56Enough is enough
24:58Enough is enough
25:00Enough is enough
25:02Enough is enough
25:04Love, that's enough!
25:34A song poets will be discussing till the end of the world.
25:40A song that says so much by saying so little.
25:45You will understand very soon.
25:49You cannot not understand it.
25:52It's a simple message, but so eloquently put.
25:57It starts out with drums.
26:04So come on!
26:12One, two, one, two, one, two, three!
26:16Come on, come on, come on, come on.
26:25Everybody.
26:28Come on, come on, come on.
26:32Come on, come on, everybody come on
26:58Come on, come on
27:00Come on, come on
27:02Come on
27:04Come on, come on
27:06Come on, come on
27:08Come on, come on
27:10Everybody come on
27:20The lyrical grandeur
27:22The depth
27:24The range
27:28Well, well, well, time should go fast when you're having fun with the Ives and K-Rock and Honda and everybody in here. What's your name?
27:46You're going to have to agree on one name. What's your name? Los Angeles.
27:58This will be our last song for this evening. It's not even an evening. It's the middle of the day. Hence the confusion. But everything, we'll be very clear soon. We've just got to sort out some equipment malfunctioning.
28:14And then we will leave you with this final message. Thank you very much for coming. It's been a pleasure playing for you people. Till next time. See you at the Hollywood Palladium.
28:28This one is called Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Boom. Joy Green.
28:47Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick.
29:17Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, T
29:47Everybody scream
29:54I was right, you were right
30:01I was right, you were right
30:04I was right, you were right
30:06Keep it hanging along
30:08All you anticipated made it too hard
30:12Did it stick through your hands
30:14Did you stand it to your feet
30:18And I thought that there's no second change
30:21You know, I've done it before
30:25And I can do it so long
30:27Got my eye on the floor
30:28I'm gonna go to the core
30:30Too late, it's too true
30:32No, it's a tick
30:33Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick
30:35Thank you very much
30:45K-Rock viewers, K-Rock listeners
30:48You are welcome
30:50We have been, we are, and we will always be the hives
30:55Till next time
31:03And you come crying to me
31:12It's too late
31:14The man you tried to be
31:16But it's too late
31:17You get your head out the sand
31:19But it's too late
31:20It's too late, too late
31:22Too late, too late
31:24Come on
31:27Yeah, but it's too late
31:34Yeah, but it's too late
31:37Get your head out the sand
31:39But it's too late
31:40Too late, too late
31:43You know I've done it before
31:45And I can do it so long
31:47Got my eye on the floor
31:48I'm gonna go to the floor
31:50You know I've done it before
31:52I got my eye on the floor
31:55I'm gonna go to the floor
31:57Too late, it's too true
31:58Too late, it's too true
32:00Too late, it's too true
32:02I'm all rips and tick
32:03Thank you very much
32:09We are, we have been
32:10We will always be the hives
32:12We love it late
32:15We will always be the hives
32:16We will always be the hives
32:17We will always be the hives
32:18We will always be the hives
32:19We will always be the hives
32:20We will always be the hives
32:21We will always be the hives
32:22We will always be the hives
32:23We will always be the hives
32:24We will always be the hives
32:25We will always be the hives
32:26We will always be the hives
32:27We will always be the hives
32:28We will always be the hives
32:29We will always be the hives
32:30We will always be the hives
32:31We will always be the hives
32:32We will always be the hives
32:33We will always be the hives
32:34We will always be the hives
32:35We will always be the hives
33:06That was amazing.
33:10One more time for the hives.
33:13Damn, that was great.
33:15Thank you for coming to K-Rock.
33:16Thank you for coming to the Helpful Honda Sound Space at K-Rock.
33:19One more time for the hives.
33:36Everybody come on, come on, come on.
33:39Everybody come on, come on, come on.
33:42Come on.