Tribe Friday is a band of guitar slinging emo kids from the woods of Sweden who marry rugged indie rock dancehall sounds of the early 2000s with Gen Z post-pandemic party vibe bliss. Upbeat songs about self deprecation, identity, confusion, love and death are anchored by satire, wit and charm. 

The band arrive on the scene armed with a hook-packed record that seeks to make sense of their chaotic recent years. A period that saw songwriter Noah Deutschmann move down from the forests of northern Sweden, build and rebuild two incarnations of Tribe Friday, catch the ear of a US management team, tour across Europe and the States, and gain home-nation acclaim that included national award nominations and primetime TV performances. All before Deutschmann saw out his 21st birthday. 

bubblegum emo is the name of the band’s upcoming debut full-length. Its title speaks to two of the most prominent elements that define Tribe Friday’s sound: the group’s knack for bright melodic earworms and their acceptance of life’s angsty underbelly. “shut me up” harnesses the energy of a young crush and kicks it up an extra level through its songwriting genesis in a late-night caffeine-fueled kitchen jam at the band’s shared home in the woods of central Sweden.

Tell us about the genesis of your project. How did you get to where you are now?

Noah: I started Tribe as an after-school thing originally. As a teen in a small Swedish town, the “having fun”-options I had were basically sports, drugs or music. So that’s what I did. Played music, that is. I think it kind of saved me, to be honest.

Isak: Robin and I joined the band a few years later, in early 2020. At that point it was a very different project though, haha.

Noah: Yeah for sure – I feel like Robin and Isak joining was the genesis of Tribe Friday as it is today.

Robin: The rest is history!

What should a song or piece of art communicate in your opinion? 

Noah: Oh – anything. I kind of dislike the notion that art “should be” or should communicate anything particular. Sometimes, you just want to write a catchy tune, and that could hold the same amount of artistic value to one listener as a 40-minute symphony about late-stage capitalism does to another. So I guess the answer would be whatever the artist or the observer wants the piece to communicate. As for my own personal preferences – I generally like songs and artistic expressions that contain contrast. Which is why all upbeat Tribe Friday songs have depressing lyrics, haha.

Who were your top 3 artists last year?

Isak: Radiohead, UPSAHL and Yungblud

Robin: Vulfpeck, Kid Vicious and Yungblud

Noah: Same as pretty much every year – My Chem, The Strokes and La Dispute. But I’ll listen to anything.

What do you do when you’re feeling uninspired?

Isak. Procrastinate!

Robin: Same. I’ll do some other thing and then go back to whatever I needed inspiration for later.

What are your 2022 projects and goals?

Noah: Well first off, we have Melfest and *fingers crossed* Eurovision if we’re really lucky. It’s kind of funny – I don’t think anyone, least of all us, expected us to go that route. But it’s really exciting. And then we’re planning for a debut album release in early summer, followed by loads and loads of touring. Oh and we want to write another record! So I think that’ll happen too.

Isak: The main goal for 2022 is to stay sane and win a Grammy. Regular, down-to-earth stuff.

Favorite movie or TV show?

Robin: The Office!

Isak: Community.. Or Predestination

Noah: I’m having a Spider-man phase currently. All time favourite TV show? I could never choose.

Tell us about your latest release and how it came about

Noah: It’s called “for real?” and it’s the third single off our debut record. I guess you could call it a pity party anthem – it’s about not really liking yourself all that much and seeking external validation. The song just appeared out of thin air after we’d finished writing sessions for the album. When everyone had gone home I sat down with a guitar and 20 minutes later, it was done. It’s weird; sometimes, writing a song could take days, but my favourite ones are always the ones I or we shell out in an hour or two. 

What is something you would want to change in the music and entertainment industry?

Noah: I think I’d just want to slow things down a bit and create a healthier environment for artists, honestly. I feel like there’s this expectation for everyone to be social media content machines while also being artists and songwriters and performers and a million other things. Which I get – it’s just the nature of how things work with the current state of the internet. But if I could change anything, it would be that. To allow more artists to be just artists.

Can you outline your creative process?

Isak: It depends! We write in so many different ways

Robin: Sometimes we just jam in the rehearsal space and it becomes a song.

Noah: Sometimes it’s a studio effort, and sometimes I’ll write something by myself and bring to the band. I think it’s healthy to vary the creative process a lot. Things tend to grow stale otherwise. Oh and as for actual production of the songs, that’s usually just me locked in a studio, growing more insane by the minute.

Who inspires your style and aesthetics?

Noah: That would be the 2011 versions of ourselves.

Isak: That and MCR. And Uta from Tokyo Ghoul on my end.

What is the achievement or moment in your career you are the most proud of and why?

Noah: 100% seeing our community grow. We have a Discord server and it’s so cool to watch our fans interact and take care of eachother. 2011 cult for life.

Isak: Seeing people mosh at our concerts really brings things full circle for me as I took part in the hardcore scene growing up. And let’s not forget seeing our first Tribe Friday tattoo!

Noah: Yep, that was a big one.

Robin: Performing at the P3 Guld awards ceremony on national TV is one of my big moments.

What do you think an artist should sing about nowadays?

Noah: Anything they want. I don’t think there should be pressure on artists to take on any specific subjects. There’s room and willingness to explore all levels of human experience within music, so I think artists should just let themselves be free to create whatever they feel like. All art is valuable.

Do you have any regrets?

Noah: Most of my teen years, yeah.

Isak: Not realising I could do stuff to improve my skills sooner. I used to be really scared of doing things wrong.

Robin: Not bringing allergy pills on tour!

What is some piece of advice you would give to yourself right now?

Robin: Don’t stress too much.

Isak: Remember to be someone you’d like to meet yourself.

Noah: Stop giving lengthy interview answers.