Interview with Grass Is Green

• July 9, 2011 - Saturday
• Interview with Grass Is Green
• http://www.myspace.com/grassisgreenband

 1. What is your name and what do you play ?

My name is Werner -Cosh- Benson and I play the guitar, do the recordings with the band and write the lyrics together with Lars, our vocalist.

2. Describe your music for anyone who has not heard it yet?

Our music is a mixed style from grunge, 70ies rock, indie- and alternative rock with funk elements ect and blablabla... We are tired of all those unimportant music-sub-genres and prefer to call our stuff just as handmade, pure rock music.

3. Share with us a brief history of the band?

Grass is Green has a long history. We started back early in the 90ies under the name "Clandestine".

The young band started with Lars as vocalist, Christian as guitar player, David on the drums, Patrick on the bass and Tobias for the keyboards.

After a few musical differences Tobias left the young band, but he's still a friend of us, it had been just musical differences, as I've said. David had to go as well. We than got a really young guy on the drums, but as young as he was, Marc played his instrument better as each of us and was a big step forward for the band. We also got a second guitar player, Werner -Cosh- Benson. The music was getting louder and a bit harder with the two guitars and the style changed a bit.

This was a new start for the band. We needed a new name and so "Embrace" was born, our second bandname. At this time we had some good success with our band, did many gigs and recorded some stuff in a studio. Pretty wild time, but we don't wanna miss it. Alas, Werner -Cosh- had to quit the band, because of a massive drug problem. He vanished for a couple of years. Around the year 2000 "Grass is Green" was born. Many changes over the years, but the band still exist and was getting better. Christian still played guitar and was joined by the earlier bass player Patrick, who now played the second guitar. Our new young bandmember was Joe- Johannes- who took care for the bass part, what he did very well, still today.

It was 2004 as Werner -Cosh- Benson suddenly reappeard and started to get in contact with his former bandmembers and friends.

Now he was far away from drugs and in a good condition. He started with a "job" in the background, wrote lyrics, did the recordings and was there for criticism and bad jokes. We started to record a new album which was a great success.  We had pretty good feedback from the song "Zora", which stayed on number one on ww.myownmusic.de for  over three month.  After the recordings of our album "to be continued...", we did gigs as ever. Patrick had to leave us in the meantime, due to differences.

After a few years with just one guitar player, Patrick had to leave us, we decided to get another, second guitar player again. So Timo joined the band. The recordings for a new album started, but the more guys in a band, the more the problems. Grass is Green had six bandmembers theses days, each with different views about music ect. Although we had some good times, the problems in the band were getting bigger and bigger. The recordings weren't getting any further and new songs were very rare. Everyone was getting more and more frustrated.

2010 Timo left the band, due to what....... of course differences of all sorts. Cosh -Werner- got his old job on the guitar and now we start to get the band back on course, with new songs and a finally almost finished new album.

The year 2011 will be a bit quiter for the band, because we overwork our old set, sort some stuff out and create new stuff, before we go out there and make gigs.

4. How did you come up with the song "Zora"?

"Zora" was the unborn child of our singer Lars Winde. The little girl unfortunately died due birth complications. Lars tried to manage his own desperation and depression over the loss. It was a really hard time for him and his wife. But what is better for a musician as pure music to express the feelings and to get rid of all those preasure and sadness?  As Lars and Werner meets really often, we did a accoustic song, nothing special but with pure emotions. This was the magic of the song, feelings, not big technical abilities nor a pro-recording. Just the vocals a very, very easy guitar and a few percussion instruments. I'm sure this song was the best Lars could do, to help himself handle the sad situation during this part of his and his wives life. The song is an honor to "Zora".

5. Does the band still have all of its original members?

No, there had been some changes during all those years, as I mentioned above. At this point we are almost the same combo as we had been back in the early 90ies, as the band was born.

6. How did you come up with the name of the band?

We had some different names during all those years from "Clandestine", "Embrace", to "Right Hand Left".
Around the year 2000 we decided to get another but constant name this time. Finding a cool band name is never easy and we did some hard mental work, but as always as it comes to somthing simple as a bandname, we couldn't decide. Suddenly Lars made the bad joke about calling the name just "Grass is Green" or some crap like this. We fell in love with this name right away and said "That's it!" That's the story and the name is still with us.

7. How has your music changed since the start of the band?

Yeah, it changed, we developed our talent further and further from year to year. We began with alternative-rock music, with a pretty dark touch sometimes, at other times we were more on the punky or grunge
side. Then we began to create more songs with funk and blues influences, but never left the path of rockmusic in general. We devoloped also a love to acoustic music. We always kept the grungestyle in some songs, because it was a great and unforgettable era for us and something we can't get out of our roots.

8. What are your influences?

That's a difficult question. Lars and Werner are more on the grunge and alternative side. We like quite stuff but also the really hard ones. Christian (guitar) is more into funk, jazz and 70ies style. He prefers faster songs with a good rythm.
Mark (drums) and Johannes (bass guitar) are both a middlepart of the rest, but the songs don't have to be too hard in their opinion.  Rather with feeling and style instead of simple and loud.

9. Tell us about your current album titled "......to be continued?

It' has somthing to do with the return of Werner-Cosh 2004. We hadn't seen us for many years due to my problems. As we as old friend suddenly start to get in contact again, it was as if I wasn't gone at all for all those years. I visited the band each week and started to help my old friends with new recordings started to write lyrics and made songs with Lars (Zora or Grass is Green).  So our work was going on and on. Therefore the title "....to be continued"

10. What is your favorite track?

Definitely Zora, because of the easieness and the strong emotions in this song. I also love the song "Isolation" and "Hollow Man".

11. Are you currently working on any new material?

Yeah, our next album is almost finished. We're somehow back to the roots with pure rock....

12. What kind of people are usually drawn to your music?

All kind of people, as I've said before, we have a got mix of different styles and that reflects on our listeners.

13. What was the last thing you eat?

Funny question. The last thing I ate was a few slices of bread and a small ice.

14. Can you daydream at night?

Man, I dream all the time, please never-ever wake me

15. Where are some of your next shows?

At first we took all efforts into our new album and new set. We plan gigs around the end of the year, or with the begin of 2012. Usually you can see us in Lembeck, Recklinghausen, Dorsten, Borken.

16. What is your favorite song to perform?

I like our very new stuff, especially "Dawn", "Carry em like Parasites", "Butterflies", or "I can't cease the sadness", but on the top is still "Zora".

17. How can people get in touch with you?

Always over our email adress  band@grassisgreen.de or over our website  http://www.grassisgreen.de/ You can also listen to our brand new stuff over this website  http://www.myownmusic.de/ just enter Grass is Green in the search field and enjoy.

18. Do you use any social media and if so where can people find you?

Besides http://www.myspace.com/ We just use http://www.myownmusic.de/ it's a community for musicians and people who are interested into music.

19. Do you have a website?

Of course, you can find our small website under  http://www.grassisgreen.de/

20. Is there anything you would like to add?

Just keep on rockin'....