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T: Whenever you send out your CD for review, all you can hope for is that someone actually gives it a good listen. You not only listened but also liked it. Yahoooo!!!!!!
Before we talk about the new album can you tell me why did you call the band Blackmaker and who’s idea was? T:
We were just searching for two powerful words that were intriguing and
rock and roll. Jeff came up with the actual name. Since
this is your debut album are you completely satisfied with it? T:
We are very satisfied with it. We are always changing as artists, and if
we made a new CD now… it would be different than “Staggering”, but
it is an excellent representation of us as a band. How
was the reaction of the press/fans till now? T:
So far we have had almost exclusively positive feedback. Ok. So, why is “Staggering To The Surface”? What exactly do you mean with this title? T:
It’s just basically about the struggle to succeed. You take such a
beating along the way it feels as if you can barely make it to the finish. What’s
the connection between the artwork and the album’s title? T:
The collection of images that make up the bottom of the artwork is
representation of our lives and the people that are our lives. We are just
trying to rise above it and get noticed for who we are. Can you make a comment about each one of the songs of the album… just a line or two? T:
I did not write all the lyrics… so this is just my inside opinion of the
content... 1.
“Revolution”- The frustration of feeling like you can’t change
things 2.
“Good Day”- The day when
you feel like you can make things happen. 3.
“Spiraling”- Feeling like others control your destiny more than you
would like 4.
“Let It Go”-Just like the title…let go of the bad and move on. 5.
“All About A Girl”- When you meet the right person she can be your
motivator, lover, partner and friend. 6.
“Wicked Tongue”- The damage words can cause to others. 7.
“Not Impressed”- Feeling
like you can kick everyones ass. Everyones!!!! 8.
“Break”- How much
longer before I break from carrying this weight. 9.
“Novocain”- Being
so numb from pain that you no longer think that you can feel. 10.
“Things Get Any Worse”- Story about life regrets. 11.
“Still Waiting- The other person in your relationship not giving as much
as you are. 12.
“Crying Out Loud”- Sometimes you need to be thankful for what you have. 13.
“Few And Far Between”- loneliness. Which
tracks of the album are your personal favorites and why? T:
My personal favorite is “Few and far between”. Writing music and
recording it, for me, is all about capturing moments. That song was an
amazing moment for our band. How
would you characterize the music style of your band? T:
If any band ever personified American rock music… this band does.
Hard.Sweaty.Sexy.Rough. Which
are the influences of Blackmaker? T:
Life. Love. Soul. Escape. Power. The Bay City Rollers. Do
you already have plans for the next album and what direction you will go
in? T:
We have already begun writing, but this album and its movement has only
just begun, We have much work to do before we can enjoy making a new
record. Are
you totally satisfied with your label? T:
Our label has limited recourses, but they have had nothing but unlimited
support of us. What’s
the next step of the band in order to become more popular? T:
Our label is in the process of launching a very large marketing campaign
for our CD. It’s kind of stressful because of the dollars we are talking
about… but we really feel that the only thing holding us back is just
that enough people don’t know about us yet. When they know… they will
listen and hopefully love. How
far do you think that you can go with Blackmaker? T:
Honestly, I feel that there is no other band with the crossover potential
that we have. We really do have songs that cover many moods and
situations. I think there are a lot of possibilities. Do
you believe that is so easy for a band to differ in today’s music
industry than in the past? And if yes what shall it do in order to achieve
it? T:
There are modern standards that have been set. You do need to at least
meet these, but in the end, you need to sound and be what ever makes you
feel good about yourselves. Basically you have to have the balls to be
yourself and be ready for the reaction you might get. Is
it so easy to become popular but also easy to fall from the top especially
today? Do you agree with that? T:
Popular and successful are not the same thing these days. Many bands that
are signed are broke and many bands doing their own thing are happy and
successful. With the advent of the internet, it’s much easier to reach
people. You don’t huge money or press to spread the word about your
music. Which are those missteps that hold back a band and Blackmaker are trying to avoid? T:
We have already made every mistake that there is .Too late Thanos. Do you believe that a sudden success of Blackmaker could make you change your point of view about things in music and your life in general? T:
I really don’t think that I could even make that guess. I know that we
have worked too hard for everything that we have to think very highly of
ourselves. What do you think that is the greatest problem for musicians that are making their first steps in music and what is your advice to them? Have you faced several problems in your beginning? T:
It’s so hard to do everything yourself. You suddenly find that music is
taking a back seat. When that happens… you have to re-group and get your
priorities straight. And some Weird Questions now, to relax somehow!!! Which are the things that piss you off from today’s music industry? T:
So much fake attitude. Fake voices. Fake drums. Fake everything. What would you tell to someone to convince him to buy your album instead of hundreds others that are being released every month? T:
It is real in every way. If you were a God’s messenger what would you tell Him to do for the good of humanity? T:
Give us empathy. If you were obliged to give just one album to extraterrestrials that which would represent the whole human music… which album would it be and from which band? T:
“Staggering To The Surface”. Seriously, our record represents real
life. Which band do you believe that can take a leading part in the rock scene in the future? T:
Black fucking Maker! Imagine
that your wife is selling your whole album-collection just to buy for
herself an expensive ring. How would you react? J T: There better be an incredible amount of oral sex coming my way. Yeooww! I can buy new CDs, but I can’t afford good oral sex!!
by Thanos Aggelakis |
