Simon Rah

Musician — Gothenburg

01Profile

A Simon Rah Photo

03Interview

Name, where are you from?
I'm Simon Rah, and I'm from Hagfors, a small town in Sweden, but I've been living in Gothenburg for the last 10 years or so.

What do you do?
I'm working for the Swedish beer brewery Omnipollo, I play music in the band Eldstad (and a couple of new projects), and I take photos.

Describe your style in three words?
Skinny emo boy.

What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
To be honest, I think it's Miley Cyrus on her Bangerz tour. That show was f*cking wild. She was outrageous at that time, and I loved it.


If you could be on the line up with any two bands in history?

Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. They were young and obnoxious but grew up to have such an impact on so many genres.
 Blink-182. I grew up with them and worshipped everything they did. As a 10-year-old, that was the soundtrack to my youth
.

Which subcultures have influenced you?

Punk, hip-hop and skateboarding. I grew up in the '90s, the prime time of all the good stuff. Skate punk was cool, Wu-Tang owned the hip-hop scene, Larry Clark filmed 'Kids', Tony Hawks Pro Skater was released, and I was skating every day.

If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
GG Allin. Specifically an hour on his last day alive. That mythical day of June 28, 1993, in New York.


Of all the independent venues you’ve played, which is your favourite?

My favourite venue is one in my hometown Gothenburg, and it's called Skjulet. All my friends who are bookers have put up so many good DIY shows there throughout the years, but the cops have been trying to shut it down several times. Cops don't like fun. 
I've played there several times, but my best memory is when we played our last gig with my old crustpunk band Inkvisitionen, and the place was packed. I could just see smoke and people stage diving for an hour straight.

Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
Yung Lean. It's so cool to see how he just did his own weird thing and became huge. I met him at Roskilde when he was like 16 y/o, and he was tagging on tents and stealing cigarettes.


04Playlist Notes

The first track you played on repeat?
'Barbie Girl' by Aqua.

A song that defines the teenage you?
'Pump The Brakes' by Refused.

One record you would keep forever?
'Hello Nasty
' by Beastie Boys.

A song lyric that has inspired you?
The opening line of the verse in 'Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1' by Kanye West. The one about a model and bleach... you know which one I'm talking about.


A song you wished you had written?
'C.R.E.A.M.' by Wu-Tang Clan.

Best song to turn up loud?

'Awake' by Trash Talk.

A song people wouldn’t expect you to like?

'Genie In A Bottle' by Christina Aguilera. I ordered the cassette single from eBay when I was drunk.

The song that would get you straight on the dance floor?
'One More Time' by Daft Punk.

Best song to end an all-nighter?

'Fu2' by Oliver Francis.

Any new bands you are into at the moment?
I suck at finding new music, but Caustic Wound is really cool.

03Interview

Name, where are you from?
I'm Simon Rah, and I'm from Hagfors, a small town in Sweden, but I've been living in Gothenburg for the last 10 years or so.

What do you do?
I'm working for the Swedish beer brewery Omnipollo, I play music in the band Eldstad (and a couple of new projects), and I take photos.

Describe your style in three words?
Skinny emo boy.

What’s the best gig you’ve ever been to?
To be honest, I think it's Miley Cyrus on her Bangerz tour. That show was f*cking wild. She was outrageous at that time, and I loved it.


If you could be on the line up with any two bands in history?

Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. They were young and obnoxious but grew up to have such an impact on so many genres.
 Blink-182. I grew up with them and worshipped everything they did. As a 10-year-old, that was the soundtrack to my youth
.

Which subcultures have influenced you?

Punk, hip-hop and skateboarding. I grew up in the '90s, the prime time of all the good stuff. Skate punk was cool, Wu-Tang owned the hip-hop scene, Larry Clark filmed 'Kids', Tony Hawks Pro Skater was released, and I was skating every day.

If you could spend an hour with anyone from history?
GG Allin. Specifically an hour on his last day alive. That mythical day of June 28, 1993, in New York.


Of all the independent venues you’ve played, which is your favourite?

My favourite venue is one in my hometown Gothenburg, and it's called Skjulet. All my friends who are bookers have put up so many good DIY shows there throughout the years, but the cops have been trying to shut it down several times. Cops don't like fun. 
I've played there several times, but my best memory is when we played our last gig with my old crustpunk band Inkvisitionen, and the place was packed. I could just see smoke and people stage diving for an hour straight.

Your greatest unsung hero or heroine in music?
Yung Lean. It's so cool to see how he just did his own weird thing and became huge. I met him at Roskilde when he was like 16 y/o, and he was tagging on tents and stealing cigarettes.


04Playlist Notes

The first track you played on repeat?
'Barbie Girl' by Aqua.

A song that defines the teenage you?
'Pump The Brakes' by Refused.

One record you would keep forever?
'Hello Nasty
' by Beastie Boys.

A song lyric that has inspired you?
The opening line of the verse in 'Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1' by Kanye West. The one about a model and bleach... you know which one I'm talking about.


A song you wished you had written?
'C.R.E.A.M.' by Wu-Tang Clan.

Best song to turn up loud?

'Awake' by Trash Talk.

A song people wouldn’t expect you to like?

'Genie In A Bottle' by Christina Aguilera. I ordered the cassette single from eBay when I was drunk.

The song that would get you straight on the dance floor?
'One More Time' by Daft Punk.

Best song to end an all-nighter?

'Fu2' by Oliver Francis.

Any new bands you are into at the moment?
I suck at finding new music, but Caustic Wound is really cool.

 

05Videos

Eldstad | Videoband (2017)