Magic Drum by Sun+Dead

In today's world, where music is a bridge between generations, the Havelka family embodies a unique musical journey of father and son. Sun+Dead is the duo of the father, musician Vaclav Havelka (Please The Trees) and his son Simon Havelka (born in 2008). From Simon's 5th to his 15th birthday, the duo played dozens of concerts together in their home country of the Czech Republic as well as abroad, and more are to come.

"Simon was literally born with drumsticks in his hands," says Vaclav Havelka. "Almost from birth, he was obsessed with rhythm, which he was constantly tapping out on the objects around him, until we bought him a drum kit for his 3rd birthday. He’s been virtually inseparable from the drums ever since."

"Ever since I was a kid, I loved listening to music from my dad's vinyl record collection. I used to study album covers and ask my dad what he liked best and why," says Simon. "I preferred watching recordings of Rock 'n' Roll concerts to the cartoons. With bands like The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana and Sonic Youth, I saw that the musicians sometimes destroyed their instruments. So when I was about four, I destroyed my plastic toy guitar, which my parents weren’t too thrilled about. Even worse, when I was watching a concert by My Morning Jacket, I was waving around my toy guitar so wildly that I smashed the TV with it." Václav adds, "Although Simon is normally right-handed, as he watched musicians on TV from a young age, he plays the guitar and drums like a lefty."

As a gift for Simon's 10th birthday in 2018, the duo released their first recording, a collection of cover versions of their most favorite songs by bands like The Stooges, Wilco, Pearl Jam and The Beatles. On the occasion of the celebration of Simon’s 13th birthday in 2022, the duo recorded an EP, once again in the Golden Hive studio in Prague. This time, it's three original songs. One of them is called Magic Drum, which is Simon's nickname given to him by his grandfather, director and actor Miroslav Krobot. The song Candle is an ode to a meditation technique where the meditator calms his mind by observing the flame of a candle. The final improvised piece is called How To Make It Big In Macedonia. It is inspired by the humorous story of musician Jan P. Muchow (Ecstasy Of Saint Theresa) from the early 1990s, when he was invited by shoegaze band Here which he had never played with to play the drums, which he has never played, at a huge concert in Macedonia.
"I was listening to Black Flag and Minutemen a lot while recording the EP," says Simon. "I really liked Minutemen bassist Mike Watt's solo record Ball-Hog or Tugboat? from 1995. When my dad asked me whom I wanted to record bass guitar for our record, I said, 'Well, Mike Watt'." Václav continues, "At first I was amused by Simon's idea and thought it was impossible, but then I said to myself that hope never dies. I wrote an email to Mike saying that he has a 13 year old fan here in Prague who is passionate about playing drums and asked him if he would record the bass for us. I had no idea what a kind soul he is. He responded very quickly and recorded the bass for two of the three songs on the record."
Other guests on the record include guitarist Paul Leary of The Butthole Surfers, vocalist Slim Cessna of Slim Cessna's Auto Club, multi-instrumentalist Thor Harris, and studio engineer and producer Chris Koltay, who mixed the entire record at his High Bias studio in Detroit and contributed with synthesizers.

“I am so proud to have been asked to sing for the Sun+Dead song, Magic Drum. I have been working with Vaclav for many years. Our working relationship has grown into a lasting friendship. Now, here I am singing along with him and his magic drumming son, Simon. This is family. This is important. It is an honor to be included. Also, because of these guys, I get to sing a song with one of my all time heroes, Mike Watt! Magic indeed!” Slim Cessna

"I find it very kind to be asked by Sun+Dead to bring bass to their two tunes. I have done many collabs with people sending me files and then trying to help with bass and sending files back to them... you never know how they're gonna turn out but that's not why I think it's good I take part, I feel having the opportunity to contribute also can contribute to what I can learn myself, a kind of "learning by doing" type of trip. You do these things to help others and, in turn, you help yourself, which I think is a good thing." Mike Watt

The recording is coming out digitally on May 22nd through the record label Polí5.

The band will launch the EP at two joint concerts with Mike Watt: on May 28 at the Kabinet Múz in Brno and on May 29 at the MeetFactory in Prague, where they will be guests of Il Sogno del Marinaio feat. Mike Watt.

Simon Havelka is also planning to release his debut solo record under the pseudonym BearCloud this year. Vaclav Havelka is currently working on a new solo album, his first after a seventeen-year hiatus since his last album, which was released under the pseudonym “selFbrush”.

Sun+Dead are Simon and Vaclav Havelka