A little earlier this month ROTR had the pleasure of previewing one of this year’s finest and most frantic of records. It’s fair to say it caused a stirring and made something of an impact with its hot fuzz and scram of electropunk and psychedelic garage. Well, needless to say we wanted more. And damn we got it with a Q and A and get to know… along with copy of it’s sultry sweet vinyl.

So consider this a deep dive into ‘Deep Drives’ and more in a back and forth with Big Mountain County.

ROTR: Big Mountain County, how are you? Please introduce yourselves and tell us a little something about you….

BMC: Fine, thanks! We’re totally pumped and counting down to the release of Deep Drives! Want to know about us? Well, how much time do you have? We’re a band straight out of Rome, starting as two, then three, then four, and now five guys (but hey, maybe six soon—any takers?). We write, produce, and play our music with every ounce of passion we’ve got. Honestly, with all the wild adventures we’ve had, we could fill a book with tales from our shows and life on the road—because first and foremost, we’re best friends. 

BMC: As for our music, we’re all about breaking free from the usual labels, always pushing boundaries. We’re big believers in the magic of live performances—it’s where we thrive and where we leave it all on stage. Since day one, we’ve been hitting the road, taking our sound from Eastern Europe—Croatia, Hungary, Poland, Serbia, Bosnia—you name it! It all started back in 2013, and if we ever write that book, chapter one begins right there…

ROTR: So we’re here to mark your new album ‘Deep Drives’, and I’ll confess, it’s this release that introduced me to you. I don’t mind saying that it lit up every one of my tastebuds with its electroclash noise and hot-heat garage trash, but enough of me… How would you describe the album?

BMC: Deep Drives is the natural next step in our musical journey. We wrote it to capture our shared experiences and visions, but even more, to bottle up the sweat, grit, and raw energy we put into every live show. Musically, this album dives into new territory. We cranked up the electronic influences but took things in a more punk direction than the dreamy, new-psych vibes of the past. It’s raw, in-your-face, less floaty, and more fierce.

We’re really stoked with how it turned out! You’ve got tracks like ‘Going Down,’ ‘Don’t Know Why,’ and ‘No Time To Lose’—pure punk bombs, brash and straight to the point. Then there’s ‘Follow Me’ and ‘Last Call,’ slower, relentless, with a steady electronic pulse layered with tribal rhythms, edgy guitars, and a deep, sultry vocal line. And yeah, we didn’t forget the groove! You’ll feel it in ‘Electric Church’ and ‘No Solution,’ while the electronic vibe hits its peak in ‘Bright Black Hole’ and ‘Last Call,’ where Deep Drives really lets loose and tells the story of a true experiential catharsis

ROTR: Your last album was ‘Somewhere Else’, from back in 2020, with the EP of ‘Klaus’ in between. How long have these new songs been sitting with you? How was the process of writing and recording?

BMC: “We started writing Deep Drives in 2022, right after dropping Klaus. Yeah, it was a long process! We wrote and produced the songs in our rehearsal space—a glorious garage in East Rome—with our own gear. Usually, we kick things off by jamming around a starting idea, maybe a drum beat, a bass groove, or a guitar or synth riff. From there, we build a rough structure, write the lyrics, and record a demo. Then the fun starts, with experimenting on structure, swapping sounds, and polishing every detail.

We’re super proud to say we produced this record entirely ourselves, right down to the smallest detail. Once production was wrapped, we recorded it at Jedi Sound Studio in Rome—big shoutout to our friend Jesse Germanò, who recorded and mixed Klaus too. The mix was handled by David Glover at Tesla Studios in Sheffield, UK, and Rhys Bloodjoy from our label, Sister 9, did the mastering in Manchester. We didn’t make it to Sheffield for the mix this time (we’ll fix that!), so remote mixing was a new challenge, but we’re thrilled with how it turned out!”

ROTR: Since your first LP in 2015, the noise you make and produce has changed wildly. That first album is almost sweet in comparison with its looser psychedelics and lean into sprawling 60’s garage. As that sound has tightened and shifted with each release, what can you tell us about those shifts in direction?

BMC: As we mentioned, we’re all about challenging ourselves. And yeah, you nailed it—Breaking Sound, our first LP, had a way ‘sweeter’ vibe, a more laid-back, psychedelic feel that leaned into garage rock. That made sense back then; garage rock was, and still is, a big common root for us, so starting from there felt natural. But it’s been ten years since we wrote our first songs. We’ve changed, and we’ve listened to tons of music, both together and on our own. Bruno, Bob, and Alessandro are DJs, too, and they’ve been exploring a lot there as well. So, of course, all this experience had to come out in the music. The main goal now is to sound on record how we are live—raw, direct, sweaty—and we hope that’s what you feel in Deep Drives.

ROTR: And do you see yourselves as leaving those sounds behind, or do you see it as a constant evolution?

BMC: Definitely constant evolution. Those sounds are a part of us. We’d never say we’ve left them behind. We’ve reimagined them, framed them in a new way, but some things stick around… let’s just say there are still plenty of tremolo and reverb-soaked guitar riffs in the mix. As for what the next record will sound like, we honestly have no idea yet…certainly cool! 

ROTR: There’s been a slew of new (ish) and very cool bands that seem to embrace the same touchstones as you. Viagra Boys, Thee Oh Sees, Warmduscher, Yr Mum, King Gizzard… to name a few. Would you say that you share the same influences? And what would you say has brought this noise back to prominence?

BMC: All those bands are regulars on our van stereo! We actually know Warmduscher—we opened for them in Florence last year, then caught up again at SXSW in Austin. We also got to meet Thee Oh Sees after opening for them in Rome this year. Whether we share the same influences? Hard to say… though, yeah, there are definitely some common roots. We hope no one’s offended if we say we’re all children of Iggy.

As for why this sound’s making a comeback? Tough to say… wanna hear our serious answer? History has its cycles, certain sounds resurface, reimagined and embedded in the present. So sometimes things just happen. That said, punk and noise never really disappeared; they’ve always had a place in the underground. There are venues and bands that kept playing and touring this music all along, which means there’s a real culture behind it, a community. And when that’s the case, it always finds its way back up to the surface

ROTR: I’ve heard good things about your live shows and you’ve had some damn impressive gigs. What’s been the highlights? And what should we expect when we get a chance to catch you?

BMC: Glad to hear the word on our live shows is good! Highlights, you say? Hard to pick, but let’s give it a shot. Catania, Italy—playing at Lomax Club was one of the coolest spots we’ve ever been to. Then there’s Subotica, Serbia, where Count Dracula himself seemed to haunt the venue and was even lurking behind the couch we slept on. In Osijek, Croatia, we ended up playing the same song six times in one set—ever tried that? Binic Folk Blues Festival in France was hands down one of the best experiences of our lives, with amazing people, a true music culture, and an unforgettable atmosphere. SXSW in Austin gave us ‘Electric Church’ on the album. And Fusion Festival in Germany? That was like a trip into a ‘Bright Black Hole.’

As for what’s coming up? We’re working on it! Playing the new tracks live is going to be incredible—we won’t give too much away, but there’s a lot to look forward to. You’ll find us in Italy, Germany, France, the UK, Portugal, Spain, and who knows where else!

ROTR: And finally, tell us something you love and something that you really can’t stand…

BMC: We love people, we love noise, we love sincerity. We just can’t stand standing still.

‘Deep Drives‘ is out now and is ready to consume on steaming services and ltd. edition black vinyl.