Doomed Confessionary: Coco, Lew, Nico & Pepi (Gavial Haze)
Gavial Haze is an instrumental psych stoner rock band from La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. The band consists of Coco (guitar), Lew (guitar), Nico (drums) and Pepi (bass).
Originally formed as a trio in 2017, they expended as a quartet for their first international gigs in Italy in the summer of 2018. Since then, they sharpened their teeth in the swiss underground scene with many artists, such as Nick Oliveri, Monkey 3, Dirty Sound Magnet, Ananda Mida, Red Sun, Elepharmers, Flying Disk, Desert Smoke & more.
Gavial Haze offers a dynamic blend of heavy riff based stoner grooves , heavily colored by the melodic psychedelia of twin guitar harmonies. This beast was mostly fed with 70’s heavy rock, so you can expect some smoother, calmer moments too! When asked to describe this blues-tainted progressive fuzz fest, you’ll often hear the line: “The guitars are the singers.”
Summer 2024 marks the release of Gavial Haze’s eponymous first self-titled album. They intend to appear on as many stages as possible near you!
Can you say a few words about your band?
We are 4 guys from Switzerland who play instrumental heavy psych stoner. Drums, bass, and two lead guitars!
What was the biggest challenge for the band?
Releasing our first album was a challenge in itself since everything is DIY except the mastering. Keeping the band rolling (without killing each other lol) and trying to book tours here and there is not really a “challenge” per say because we live for it and always have fun on stage but you know the deal: dayjobs man… Dayjobs.
What can you be most proud of so far?
Beside the album, definitely sharing the stage with legends of the genre that we listened to for years and still do on the daily basis! Nick Oliveri, The Obsessed, Sacri Monti… To name a few!
What was your biggest regret?
We thought about this one for a while but honestly, nothing comes to mind!
What was the best concert/tour so far and why?
The Fuzzilli Tour 2024 in Italy was an awesome time. Playing right after Sacri Monti and The Obsessed in front of a sold-out crowd (and a great one!) at the Pietra Sonica Festival was surreal and definitely a highlight of our live career so far!
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
We played with so many different bands who play so many different styles, from grindcore to acoustic folk, hip-hop groups, everything ! So the scene is hard to define, the common link is the struggle we all face to be respected as artists and get a little more than two “drink coupons” and a cold pizza when we perform, whatever the style!
What is currently in your heavy musical rotation?
Coco: Thin Lizzy and Wishbone Ash.
Lew: King Buffalo and Delving.
Nico: Fu Manchu and Spiral Drive.
Pepi: Truckfighters and Dozer.
What was the best advice you’ve ever been given as a musician?
“Tap your foot!” was a game-changer as young musicians for most of our members, but there are million great advices out there, “be open to advice” could be another one!
What are your guilty pleasures?
We’ll respond musically even though the notion of “guilty pleasure” is more of a joke to us. For Coco it’s Justin Timberlake, for Nico it’s Beyoncé, for Lew it’s Platon Karataev and Pepi says Jennifer Aniston(?).
Can you say something more about current music scene in La Chaux-de-Fonds / Switzerland?
Very alternative scene around us (North-West Switzerland), quite big considering the size of the city actually. Some great original bands were formed here and still walk the walk today.
Where can we see you live this year (concerts/tours)?
On the 12th of October 2024 at the SAS in Delémont (CH) where we’ll perform our new album in its entirety!
What are your plans for the future as a band?
First on the table is the recording of the next album, working on rad merch (vinyls, cassettes, grinders, hoodies and more!) and of course as much live shows as we can!
How can people best support your band?
Come see us live, buy the album, buy merch! Classic shit!
Do you have any message for your listeners?
Lew: Thanks for listening and for the support!
Pepi: Stay cool and keep on rollin’!
Nico: Finish your plate!
Coco: Don’t do crack!
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well