An interview with Cava  “Punk has become a really broad umbrella term these days”

As part of the ‘Alle Gegen Alles – Punk@50’ tour, the Berlin garage rock/punk duo Cava toured the USA and Mexico at the invitation of the Goethe-Institut. Eight stops, from Los Angeles to New York City and from Chicago to Houston, brought the band together with local female musicians, artists and audiences. At their final stop in Mexico City in October 2026, we met Peppi Ahrens (vocals, guitar) and Mela Schulz (drums, vocals), along with guitarist Lars Paprotta, who had travelled with them, for a chat.

Concerts, conversations, encounters: the tour offered the band, local musicians, artists and the audience plenty of opportunities to get to know one another, listen and exchange ideas. We spoke to Cava about what they encountered on this journey, what impressions have stayed with them and what punk means to them after 50 years.

Punk has been around for 50 years. How has the term and its meaning changed for you? Is the label even relevant to you as a band?

Mela: For me personally, punk has changed a great deal. In the past, it was perhaps more of a clear rejection of social norms or conformism. Today, it’s more of an attitude: questioning things and getting things off the ground yourself – in the spirit of DIY culture.

I do feel, though, that punk has become more relevant for marginalised groups. There’s much more focus on intersectional feminism and queer issues. In the past, the music scene was more male-dominated. We don’t necessarily get spat at on stage these days, but issues like sexism and discrimination are still relevant. It’s also about who’s given space and who has to fight for it.

Peppi: Punk has now become a really broad umbrella term. Many people think straight away of music, but it’s also a political stance and an attitude against the mainstream. The term is still relevant today; it’s just that its definition has broadened.

Musically speaking, we might not have said in the past that we were necessarily playing punk. But our attitude and the issues we address fit the bill. At the start, we did wonder whether you could call yourself punk if you weren’t playing hardcore punk like in the eighties. You come from a European punk scene and have now experienced American punk. The scenes used to be quite different, didn’t they? Are these differences still noticeable, or has punk become more universal?

Peppi: I get the feeling that the different punk subgenres have grown closer together because the issues are very similar. We’ve spoken to lots of people about politics, the rise of the far right, queerness and marginalised groups. There’s a real sense of unity on these issues.
In Washington, D.C., we visited an exhibition on the origins of punk. Even then, I got the impression that things used to be different. Today, however, the issues that concern people in music and on the scene are very similar.

Mela: When I think of the differences, the first thing that springs to mind is the music. It’s become more universal there too. Thanks to the internet, streaming and the availability of music, there aren’t such clear regional trends anymore. You often can’t tell whether a band is from Germany, England or the US.

Was there an experience on the tour that particularly sticks in your memory?

Lars: I can’t think of a single experience off the top of my head. But I found it mind-blowing to be touring the US again after nearly 20 years. I’d been following the political developments in the media – the second Trump administration, the ICE raids and the rise of fascism in society. Once there, I noticed surprisingly little of that in everyday life. Everything seemed normal, even though the country is currently undergoing a drastic shift. I found that almost frightening.

In a way, we only got to know one half of society. In the shops where we bought records or second-hand clothes, there were signs saying ‘ICE Out’, ‘ICE Free Zone’, ‘Fuck Trump’ or ‘Free Palestine’. Those were people from our bubble. I didn’t speak to a single person who’d voted for Trump, simply because we didn’t come across any.

Peppi: For me, the community was the key experience of the tour. Beforehand, there was always the question of how different touring in the US is compared to Germany. But it really depends entirely on the people and the community. When you meet like-minded people and share political views, you feel understood – no matter where you are.

We were welcomed with open arms by the Goethe-Institut, by venues and by other bands. Community is also a central theme of our next album. Experiencing this mutual support here was absolutely lovely.

If you had to describe the experience in three words – what would they be?

Peppi: Community.
Lars: Amazing. We quickly picked up on that over-the-top American positivity and were always saying: “Everything is amazing.”
Mela: Downtown. Every city had a downtown with skyscrapers – and they looked remarkably similar.

Did you feel particularly at home anywhere? Did you have a favourite city?

Peppi: For me, it was probably Austin. The city felt very American – just as America is portrayed in European media, films and on TV – yet at the same time it was hip and cool. As a music city, I really liked it. New York was brilliant too, of course.

Lars: I thought Baltimore was really cool. The city felt like a genuine place: a bit run-down, imperfect, but authentic. It was also really lovely with the harbour. I’m from the Ruhr region and perhaps I just have a soft spot for places like that.

Mela: For me, it was, unexpectedly, Chicago. I hadn’t even had the city on my radar before. But Lake Michigan, the city centre and the encounters with the Goethe-Institut and the local community were truly amazing.

You can’t really talk about music these days without at least touching on the subject. How do you feel about the use of artificial intelligence in music, particularly in traditionally analogue scenes like punk? Is it a threat?

Mela: I’d say: yes. Everything is becoming AI territory. When bands are successful globally, they’re also part of the mainstream. And everything that’s in the mainstream is, to a large extent, under threat from AI.

Peppi: I do hope, though, that punk is a bit more protected. On Instagram in particular, there’s this attitude: I’d rather go to your gig with a homemade flyer that might look absolutely rubbish than to a gig with an AI flyer. I hope the punk scene will resist this for the time being. It’s important to us to preserve that live feel rather than produce a perfect album. We’d rather capture the live dynamic. Of course, in other genres, a lot is straightened out or quantised. But that’s not our approach.

Lars: I can imagine that AI will mainly be used where music sounds very generic and listeners don’t even realise they’re hearing AI. I hope the punk scene is aware enough to recognise that.