Greta Van Fleet’s Sam Kiszka says the band stays “unplugged from the source” when it comes to online haters

Greta Van Fleet’s bassist and keyboardist Sam Kiska has spoken about how the band respond to online negativity, and the impact of social media on music.

• READ MORE: Greta Van Fleet – The Battle At Garden’s Gate Review: Audacious musicianship but lacking in subtlety

Speaking to Wikimetal, Kiszka was asked how the band responds to the negativity online, especially given their biggest influences, who hail from the 1970s to the 1990s, never really had to deal with comments sections. “We like to stay unplugged from the source if you will because that can definitely get in your head, and I think that’s a really important thing,” Kiszka responded.

“We have this technology where anybody can say whatever they want at any time, and that’s not fair to anybody to be able to have this very innate, quick, unrefined reaction to something. That’s one of the things about the internet that we haven’t figured out yet because it’s a baby.

“This technology that we have is a baby… our generation really faces this, we’re looking this right in the eyes. This is something that’s going to land in our court, this is something that we’re going to have to unite, fix, and figure out what our priorities are as a generation, as a new world.”

While Greta Van Fleet have been at the receiving end of their fair share of online trolls, it’s of course not a phenomenon unique to them. Social media platforms have been under fire from activists and regulators for a perceived failure to moderate and prevent abuse. Even regarding negativity that’s not necessarily abusive, as Kizska points out, social media has a reputation for cultivating overly negative, unfiltered opinions.

On a more positive note, Kiszka was also asked about his response to the band’s meteoric rise over the last few years, and whether that will inspire other younger musicians to start rock bands. “Absolutely, yes, I do think that,” Kiszka responded. “I’ve seen a few bands that dress like us, they’ll be playing similar stuff musically, and it’s really cool to see because it’s kind of awakening from a different perspective to be here now and look back on how we probably looked four years ago. So that’s really cool, and I’m really glad to feel that there’s a difference being made, that people are being inspired because that’s half of what we do.”

Greta Van Fleet’s latest record, The Battle At Garden’s Gate, was released on 16 April this year.