Formula Indie Sessions – Interview with Galactic Lepus
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
Kathi: Listening to my dad’s records in the family living room. He had a huge collection featuring artists such as Pink Floyd, Aquarium, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, and PJ Harvey. My parents didn’t have an authoritarian style of raising me, but my dad was especially strict with the records—I was never allowed to touch them. I remember fondly how carefully he placed them underneath the needle of his player. My parents had to get Western music on the black market from people who sold records in certain parks in East Berlin. There’s a certain appreciation for music and art that comes from a scarcity we never had to face.
Colin: My parents both listened to lots of music when I was young and we had huge collection of vinyls and CD´s at home and there was almost always music playing in the background. I spent a lot of time going through all the records and I can´t really remember a time when music wasn´t a thing in my life.
Kerstin: My dad was a music enthusiast and was always very excited to show me and my brothers his favourite artists like Dire Straits, The Beatles and lots more.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
Kathi: As kids, my best friend Sabi and I used to sing along to music we liked, looking up the lyrics on our computer. The first lyrics and vocal harmonies I wrote were with Colin when we were living together in our early 20s. We had discovered stoner and psych rock as our common ground and wanted to start an acoustic project. He later did exactly what we had envisioned with another vocalist while I was living in the U.S. about ten years ago. I later took up the drums, and we reconnected in 2023. I’ve always loved Colin’s guitar playing and his cheerful energy when it comes to songwriting.
Colin: My mom had an old guitar of hers in the attic of our house, one day I found it and it was pretty much love on first sight and is my favourite thing to do ever since. I played in some crappy bands in my teens and when I moved into my first shared flat and met Kathi we started to write some not so crappy music togehter and this really sparked the passion for me.
Andi: A couple of friends started a Thrash Metal bands but couldn´t hold a bass player so I started to play. After some time I played in their band. Not the easiest start with this kind of fucking fast music genre, but maybe also not the worst. The journey took me playing in psychedelic and punk bands zbtil I stelled with Galactic Lepus to statisfy my all time love for Stoner Rock.
Kerstin: Funfact: I have ADHD and I was always singing and swimming as a way of stress relief since I was a child. It always made me feel happier than before.
What’s the story behind your current music project?
Andi and Kathi met about seven years ago and quickly discovered that they shared a similar taste in music. When they learned that the other one is playing an instrument both had the idea of starting a band. Colin rejoined our friend group after we haven´t hung out for a while and one day, the three of us decided to jam together. Kerstin is the second vocalist we found after the first one – a very talented singer who also drew our cover art – had to drop out. Kerstin was the best addition to the band we could have hoped for. We formed Galactic Lepus two and a half years ago and are inseperable ever since.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
Riot grrrl grunge evolved into heavy psych rock, with female vocals and perspectives at the forefront. We combine heavy with light-footed riffs and rhythms, always with a certain emotional state in mind. Most stoner rock bands don’t put as much emphasis on vocals— many have male singers or no singers at all—so it makes our sound and energy more recognizable.
What is one thing that completely changed the way you make music?
The idea of serving the song in any way possible. We think the most important thing in writing music is to see how you can support the idea of the song and add to it rather than trying to show off skill and whatever new technique one just learned.
What tools, instruments or software are essential in your creative process?
Usually someone comes up with an idea, which can be a riff, a theme, some lyrics or just a mood. From there we jam together and talk a lot about where we want to go with this song. We use Pro Tools to make some practice recordings so everyone can work on the stuff at home, but getting together regularly is what helps the four of us evolve the most.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
Kathi: After I had to make a very tough major life decision, I had a big moment of relief this spring. In that particular mood—feeling this huge wave of weight lifted off my shoulders, going up an escalator with the sun hitting my face—I listened to the song “I Feel Free” by the Canadian alt-rock band Dilly Dally for the first time. Besides capturing my mood perfectly, I adore the rawness and flexibility of the singer’s voice and technique. I will always remember listening to this song on heavy rotation in 2025.
Colin: I have to go with Khazadoom, we played a show with them recently and I love the music and the people <3
Andi: Not sure if it counts as Indie but the songs of the Belgium band Gnome.
Kerstin: I´m not quite sure if Ashes to Amber is an Indie artist but I love the sound and music he makes. It´s completly different to our kind of music.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
Well, every time something intense happens to one of us, we cope with it creatively. And the past few years have indeed been challenging for everyone. We’re collectively going through crisis after crisis, and we feel very thankful for our friends—especially the ones we can share hobbies with. We believe in the therapeutic and mood-enhancing power of music and community.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
We appreciate all kinds of positive reciprocity. We love it when people give us creative feedback and when our music gets them dancing. We love playing the most when we create an atmosphere that makes music an immersive experience.
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
Being patient with ourselves. Oh, and screw perfectionism.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
Kathi: I love playing shows at DIY, self-run places for people who are interested in us as representatives of a certain genre rather than a mix of certain genders. I love playing anywhere I’m taken seriously as a musician. There’s no specific goal I want to achieve or a certain size of stage that thrills me.
Colin: When we founded Galactic Lepus I declared it my personal goal to play on the Stoned From The Underground festival in Thüringen, idealy in a year when they also book Stoned Jesus 😀
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Kathi: Anyone who can play some crazy, unusual instrument would be a great fit for a collaboration in my opinion. I’m always open to experimenting and jamming with anyone. One of my favourite bands is Warpaint—I love their creativity and the way they carry themselves.
Colin: For me that would be Adam Jones because I love the way he plays guitar and I could never come up with what he´s doing so I hope I could take a lot from that.
Kerstin: Same as Kathi, but I would love to collaborate with some kind of choir or voilinist.
Where can listeners follow and support your music?
Bandcamp: https://galacticlepus.bandcamp.com/
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/artist/3jOEe39rVxiAY4oRexiJIT? si=Ki5axFY1RuXKEc7Ys9D6Q
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/galacticlepus/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@GalacticLepus
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
We’d love to grow further as musicians and keep learning every day. We feel very privileged to be part of a band that naturally forms an intense bond between its members. In many music projects, one musician dictates the course for the rest—but we are, on the contrary, all equally engaged and co-create something that evolves naturally and kindly. That’s already all we could ask for and we hope to keep doing it forever.
What is your hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
Kathi: We’re four friends – and I think that’s really all one needs to know. I get bored when musicians try to appear as masterminds or musical geniuses. I am very humbled when I can inspire other women or girls to pick up the drums, though—you have to acknowledge that our gender is still terribly underrepresented when it comes to certain instruments and genres.
Representative music video:
