…after 414 gigs and three years on the road

London is full of opportunities, surprises and interesting people. Arni Arnason (or Hjorvar), the bass player of The Vaccines, is not only one of London’s interesting people but someone who grabbed London’s opportunities and surprised the world with studio albums and live appearances. London is home for Arni, to which he had just returned after a three year long absence. Only because during the past three years, The Vaccines were busy touring across Europe and America, recording two and a half studio albums and becoming famous.

-You have been on the road for three years. So how does it feel to be back home? I just came back last week and immediately after I came down with a terrible flu. Today is the first day I am out of bed, so didn’t have the time to do much yet.

–What have you gained or lost during the past three years? I’ve lost a lot of acquaintances unfortunately, as it is very difficult to keep relationships when you are on the road for three years. The friends that are close become closer, but those who are on the perimeter – it’s difficult. I’ve gained an extortionate amount of experiences and I’ve been to every single imaginable place and, yeah, that’s the upside to the whole experience

-You had the chance to be the opening act for the Rolling Stones. Is there any story you want to share? I’ve got a picture with all of the Rolling Stones. But it came with a disclaimer saying if you ever share the picture with anybody then you’ll get sued to fuck. So unfortunately the only story I can share is that I admit having a picture with the Stones.

-What do you think when reviewers draw comparisons to the Ramones? Ramones is one of the most important bands in history of music and just being mentioned in the same sentence is quite an honour. But you know, people need attachments when it comes to music. They need to be able to put something down to a very tangible idea in a very simple sentence. The Ramones? Yeah, I can’t really complain about that.

-Will you be doing 414 gigs over the next 3 years? It has been a great experience and amazing three years, but I am planning to stay still for a while.