Double Faced Eels: We want our song to be something positive, a mantra to people who are striving towards a goal, to be better

Photo: Roberts Āboltiņš

Let's start the day with a fiery interview from one of the Supernova 2019 semifinalists! Here are Reinis's (Lead singer of Double Faced Eels) answers:
Name: Reinis Straume
Birthday: October 4, 1988
Height: 192 cm
Favorite color: Black
Favorite food: I love me a bowl of ramen!
What do you do in the band? I’m the lead singer for our band’s more recent stuff and I also play guitar and samples. In terms of songwriting, I am in charge of lyrics and I co-write the music. Production is single-handedly taken care of by bandmate Mārtiņš “Marka” Gailītis.
What is the strangest thing you have in your room? I own a cast iron realistic chicken statue. I have no idea where it came from; I’ve had it forever.
What are you really bad at? Cars. I’m useless when it comes to something more than changing a tire or checking fluid levels.
Childhood idol: Billie Joe Armstrong from Green Day
Childhood memory: I remember going on a trip with my parents to some rural area when I was really small, then being left alone in the car (because I was asleep) and waking up to the whole car being full of wasps. I’m talking twenty-thirty wasps in a small car (this may be an exaggeration from my then-young mind, but it’s how I remember it). There was a gap in the window and for some reason this swarm of wasps had flown into the car. I was afraid to move an inch so I laid there until my parents came back to the car and opened the door (which was locked since I was left alone) and let all of the wasps out.
Celebrity crush: I used to be really into Jennifer Aniston (I’m a huge “Friends” nerd).
What were you afraid of when you were a child? Did you read the wasp story? ☺
Tell me something no one knows about you: I freakin’ HATE dill. It’s a big deal if you live in Latvia.
What would you do if you were invisible? Fight crime, naturally.
Favorite movie: Favorite childhood movie is “Back to the Future”. Is used to own the trilogy on VHS and I would watch them back to back.
Favorite TV series: Friends. I’ve competed in a couple of “Friends” trivia competitions with my friends, and even won one of them.
Who would you cast to play you in a movie about your life? I think Nicholas Cage has taken on stranger roles…
What would the title of that movie be? Reinis Straume and the Song that went to ESC 2019 (I’m a huge Harry Potter fan).
If you were a girl for a day, what would you do? I have absolutely no idea, but it would be an enlightening experience, I’m sure!
What is your guilty pleasure? Losing track of time on YouTube. I’ve been following some channels FOR YEARS already!
Can you recommend us a song (old or new) from a Latvian artist? Old, 2002! The Hobos – Walk All Night
Can you teach us some interesting words in Latvian? Idritvaikociņ (translates to something along the lines of “goshdarnit” – a very mild swear). A variation – idritvaimicīt.

Hello guys! Welcome to the Eurovision universe! How are you doing? Thanks
Fantastic! Very happy to be in the running. Right now, we’re in the middle of preparing for the national semi-final.

How would you describe the band?
We’re a modern rock/indie/pop outfit with roots in punkrock and poppunk.

How did you all meet?
We’ve been a band since 2009 and met through mutual friends.

Tell us about the name of the band:
Mark used to date this girl, the father of which owned a venue where Double Faced Eels were playing. For some reason the father did not like Mark and called him a two-faced eel (in Latvian). Mark liked this and it ended up being the band’s name (albeit slightly mistranslated).

You are one of the participants Supernova 2019. How did it all begin?
We had written “Liesma” for our 2018 EP and the song also had an English version (“Fire”). We figured that it would make a good contender for ESC, since it’s not typical and we could bring a more alternative vibe to the performace.

“Fire” is the title of your song, what’s the story behind it?
It’s about having a driving force inside you that doesn’t let you give up. No matter what your obstacles are, you will get over them if you keep that light inside you lit. The world is so fucking negative right now; we want our song to be something positive, a mantra to people who are striving towards a goal, to be better. “I’ve got a fire burning deep inside. It illuminates my way even when there’s no light. Whatever comes my, I’ll be alright.”

Describe the song with 4 words:
Energy, power, light, determination

What can we expect to see on stage for the performance?
Our song is fire-related, so we’re thinking of incorporating that side of it somehow. I’ll leave the specifics a secret, though ☺

Have you heard any of the other songs in the competition? Any favorite?
We’ve only heard other contenders for the national title. We love a few of them (and Mark has produced two others, Reinis wrote lyrics for one other)!

What do you like about Eurovision?
It’s such a rich experience – impossible to be bored at this show, because each performance brings something else to the table.

What do you dislike about Eurovision?
That it’s over so fast!

Tell me the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the word:
Cold shower: good morning!
Fangirling: must-have
Socks: folding
Pancakes: and maple syrup
Nightmare: forgetting the words right before you have to sing
Live music: a good time

What are your plans for 2019?
We’ll see where our Supernova (and possibly ESC) adventure takes us. We plan on releasing our English EP and going on tour.

Is there anything you want to say to close the interview?
Thank you so much for reading and we’ll see you in Tel Aviv!

Thanks to Reinis for the interview! Good luck in Supernova!

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