OMC: Obviously you're still having fun and remain committed to the band.

GK: Yeah. We're all about having a good time. It's been harder to keep things together because we have band members living in different cities. It's not as easy to just say "Hey, come over. Let's work on a new song."

It's been fun and I've learned a lot about myself and songwriting this year. It feels so good to be practicing and playing our songs. It's funny, because when we get together we don't miss a beat. Summerfest this year was great. People are still really into us and it means a lot. That's a main reason we're still wanting to make The Gufs really happen.

Believe it or not, our Summerfest concert was more packed this year than last year. Part of the reason is the band has been lying low and trying to figure some stuff out, so people hadn't seen us in a while.

We want to still keep people wanting to see us. We only played a couple times this year, but we want the fans to stay strong. That's why the acoustic shows have been awesome because it gives people the chance to come and see us and be a part of our music.

OMC: What are your thoughts on the local band scene?

GK: From a pop music perspective, if you look, Milwaukee has many local bands that are really coming out. I don't know much about the Buzzhorn, but I hear they have a record deal and they're looking to record (The Buzzhorn recently signed to Atlantic Records -ed.).

Other bands like Pet Engine have been around for a while, and get radio play on LAZER. They're still ... trying to make something happen. I don't know of many other bands in Milwaukee in that emotional pop rock category (Matchbox 20, Third Eye Blind). Bender is another good local band.

OMC: What about radio play? Is it tough for local artists to get Milwaukee radio to play their stuff?

GK: I think for most bands, it's been really hard. For us, when things took off it was because local radio was behind us. The timing was awesome. The Point (the old 106.9 FM) was awesome, I wish that station was still here. In general it's been hard for a lot of bands to get radio support. There are not many bands in town that fit the major national ‘sounds' that stations are looking for.

It was tough for our last album, because there wasn't really a Lazer 103 song. But Lazer got behind us and played stuff that didn't really fit their format. I couldn't see KISS FM playing anything local, unless it was really taking off.

OMC: How did The Gufs' inclusion in the Aware Records compilation do for you?

GK: It was good. It opened up some doors. They're getting ready to put together an Aware Records greatest hits compilation. It's still in the works, but it will be really cool. They want to use a song of ours as a "future band -- still unsigned with hopes for being big superstars." They plan to take the disc to radio and it will feature bands like The Verve Pipe, Train, Matchbox 20 and other cool well-known bands that Aware Records has helped.

Watch for Goran and Morgan's acoustic shows throughout the rest of the summer. For a sample of new Gufs' tunes click here.