Brain Candy is a trio punk rock band that’s considered by fans to be Egypt’s leading punk band. They started out in 2004 and have great expectations for the future. Read more and discover the real punk rock scene in Cairo.
How and when did the band start?
BC: It started sometime in 2004, just two friends who love playing music getting together.
Does the name stand for anything?
BC: The name is whatever you want it to be, that’s what music is about. Honestly, to us it doesn’t mean a thing!
What are your lyrical themes? Were they based on inner social struggles facing the band members?
BC: We basically just write about what we feel and what’s going on around us. Sometimes we just make up a story and write it up, so it’s just art in general.
How do you guys categorize your music? And what is your opinion on many of the rising subgenres?
BC: We play Punk Rock but with a lot of different influences, ranging from jazz to blues to hardcore. A lot of bands are doing different things and we think that’s a cool idea to develop new music styles.
As a punk rock band, how do you see the Egyptian society?
BC: As a punk rock band in Egypt we have always been struggling with critics because no one understands our message except maybe a few people that I always see at our shows, but it’s something that we love playing and will always play, the punk scene in Cairo just fluctuates, but nobody knows what the future holds!
Have you guys signed with any major label yet?
BC: We’re still not signed to any major label, only independent labels, but we have big goals for the band and we do not want to ruin it with major corporate labels, they will suck the soul out of it!
May I ask about the discography of the band?
BC: We have two released albums that we recorded a while back, one’s called “Shmegegi” and has 9 tracks. The other is called “Brain Dead” and has 6 tracks. We just gave them out to people for free. We are recording a new album now that we have been working on for some time.
How many concerts and tours have you guys performed in? And what are the highlights of these concerts and tours?
BC: Frankly, the last 6 years with the band have been a blur of shows, fun and work, I can never remember how many shows we played, but I guess a lot.
Can you tell me names of bands you guys played with? In your opinion, what are the best punk bands now? What are your music influences?
BC: We played with a bunch of local bands over the years but the only stage we shared with an international band was “Fishing With Guns”. We listen to a lot of punk bands but mainly our punk influences are all legends; starting from Dead Kennedy’s, The Misfits, NOFX, Rancid, Alkaline Trio and many more, so just basically punk rock.
Is there any album release date on the horizon? And is there any official video for the band yet?
BC: We have no release date yet because we’re still recording and working on songs. As for the music video part, we’re actually talking about one but we’re still mulling it over. The band is in an experimental stage so we were just taking it easy.
Who are the bands you wish to play with in the future?
BC: We have a lot of idols and we hope to share the stage with all of them but no specific bands.
What are your future plans for tours and concerts?
BC: We’ll actually when we’re done with our new album we will start organizing shows with bands in Europe and definitely hit Japan.
What would you like to say to your fans out there?
BC: Well, if there are any out there! Hope you guys enjoy the music and thanks for the support. And to all the real punk rockers in Egypt, don’t you die out because if you do we do too. Cheers!
