THE HYBRIS is an international alternative rock act consisting of three members who go by the names of Ringo Rabbit, Beanie Bison, and Malcolm Mandrill. Based in France, Germany, and the USA, we are proud to say that we’ve been firm fans of theirs since the very beginning!
Finally finding some time to sit down and chat with us, I was thrilled when none other than Ringo Rabbit agreed to an interview! Filling us in on the act’s brand new single ‘Hey, Death!’, what it’s like to work completely virtually, and what the band have in store for the future, please give a big welcome to our friend Ringo Rabbit from THE HYBRIS!
Welcome aboard Ringo! It’s so great to finally have the opportunity to chat with you! I’m proud to say that we at Mesmerized have been following the band since the very beginning but, for those who aren’t quite as familiar, who are THE HYBRIS and how did you all find one another?
Thanks for having us! All three of us have known each other for many, many years, and have already played together in various bands. Now we all live in different countries but have found a great way for us to continue to produce music together – virtually this time.
You’ve done it again with your latest single ‘Hey, Death!’! It’s another bold and cracking piece of music that I’ve fallen in love with. What does the song mean to you?
This time we wanted to try a slightly different kind of song stylistically. Less direct and punky – a slower song that builds gently. That fits better with the lyrical idea of a dialogue with death. Everyone has their own way of dealing with the subject of death. I’ve dealt with it very little so far. But in the end, there is no escape.
Now, I know this is a toughie, and possibly like asking you to pick a favourite child, but which tune of yours are you most proud of to date, and why?
Oh, that’s really a tough one…and that also changes every now and then. But I think for me it’s ‘Impostor Syndrome’ because of the overall sound and the power that’s in it.
Your overall sound is such a melting pot of genre-blending ideas and sounds. Who are some of your biggest influences?
Another tough one! All three of us have very different musical preferences, and you can feel and hear that, I think. Sure, there are influences in the rock area that all three of us can agree on, but even in rock or punk the preferences are clearly different. And what these dudes celebrate in blues or jazz is not my cup of tea – crazy guys! But maybe that’s why we never get bored.
We are always intrigued by the different approaches that bands take when it comes to their creative process. Can you tell our readers a bit about yours? How do you take an idea and transform it into a song?
Our purely virtual way of working has advantages and disadvantages and is sometimes quite different from live collaboration. Like in the rehearsal room, there is of course a starting point (a guitar riff, a melody, a beat), but from there on the process differs, we can’t jam. Someone takes an idea and builds on it, gives a different direction, adds to it, and starts over. Sometimes we have three bass lines from three different people. Then the discussion starts! Often we build on many ideas and songs at the same time, which is great fun!
I’m a sucker for having to know the origins of a band’s name. How exactly did THE HYBRIS come about? And, why all caps?
It was clear to us from the beginning that we would do lyrics with mostly political or social references. We wanted to see this reflected in the name of the band as well. And THE HYBRIS is simply a very fitting term for the behaviour of most societies and nations. The additional level of this name is about ourselves. We thought it has something of hubris to transfer our real-life way of working into the virtual world. But fortunately, it works better for us than expected. And a term like hubris MUST BE WRITTEN BIG!
Which of your lyrics would you like to see printed on a T-shirt?
I guess they’d be from ‘What if’ or ‘The Other Side’. These are more positive and encouraging lyrics. I might like them better on T-shirts than the resigned stuff.
Thanks so much for chatting with us! It’s been great having you here! I know that your sophomore album is scheduled to be released sometime later this year but I guess, in a broader sense, what do you hope for in your musical future?
First of all, we want to bring the second album to a good result. I like the songs on it very much. And then we will start with the third album, where we will try to incorporate more new musical influences and continue to find and define “our” style. There is still a lot for us to discover. The first 4-5 song ideas are already on our servers!
