Hi
Mike… Tell us a few words about the brand new promising band that’s called
Violent Divine.
M:
Violent Divine was formed in late August of 2005 from an idea Gus had about
bringing some friends together to play the kind of rock music that was some a
representation of the band members individual record collections. Why not play
exactly the kind of music that we ourselves have listened to for ages? It
sounds like the most easy and natural thing to do, right? Normally, being in a
band is never that easy but we are extremely fortunate to have found some sort
of personal chemistry that actually makes it just as simple as that. We plug
in and go. Just like 4 little energizer bunnies.
As
I have written on my review, I like the combination of
M:
In a way, each and every Violent Divine song is made from a riff. That’s the
foundation of rock music. Everyone loves a great riff and a good lead. After
that we try to add an interesting vocal line to carry the song a bit further.
I think you’re right referring to the vocals as a bit alternative because
I’m not really one of them typical high pitched 80’s singers, nor am I the
reincarnation of Bon Scott. I’d love to be the new David Coverdale of course
but to me the vocal parts on the album is more like Phil Lynott meets Johnny
Rotten meets Scott Weiland meets James Dean Bradfield as well as a bunch of
other vocalists I really admire and somewhere in the mix... there’s just me.
So,
let’s talk about the album but of course first of all I wanna know why did
you name the band Violent Divine?
M:
Naming your band is a bitch period. We initially thought of Violent Blue after
Gus been reading a blog by who I believe was a british prostitute calling
herself Violet Blue but Gus got her name wrong. Fortunately another band
called themselves Violent Blue so Gus quickly came up with Violent Divine and
we all felt it was the name for the band since it could mean anything from
nothing to the absolute contradiction in the idea that the Divine, meaning God
would be violent... and such speculations are great when it comes to rock
bands... what exactly does W.A.S.P or KISS stand for and all that...
Although
you are a new band (they were formed in 2005) you managed in a short time
period to write down some songs, to find a label and to release your debut
album… quite impressive huh???
M:
Yeah it is and I can’t believe we didn’t do things like this earlier in
our lives. It’s a huge cliché but we didn’t care about musical
trends or what anyone else would think of our songs or about us as a band –
we simply did what felt right and true to ourselves. Yes I agree the timing is
perfect since hard rock in all its different shapes is on its way back into
people’s hearts but that was merely a lucky coincidence.
We recorded some demos and put some songs up for download at MySpace and
web-sites like that and suddenly found ourselves being contacted by a few
labels and zines. We managed to get some good reviews but in the same time we
understood that what we really needed to do to take this band further was to
make an album or people’s interest in the band would fade away. At that
point we were contacted by Bill Chavis from
Can
you tell some things about each one of the songs?
M:
“Let’s Go”: One of the last 4 songs. Patience is not a virtue. We
want to make an album and tour the world – and we want it now...
“Love Revolution”: Again one of the last 4 songs. To me it sounds a bit Van Halen and in the lyrics I picture myself as some sort of preacher... but don’t follow me blindly. I might look pretty on the outside...
“The Morning Show”: Inspired by all the early freakshows on TV making light-weight entertainment out of real people’s lives and misfortunes, or celebrities on their way down spilling their guts for another minute of shame. I hate TV.
“Levitate”: We wanted to make a song like “Ace Of Spades” and originally the lyrics concerned the usual broken heart but then it hit me that I never ever written a love song about the bliss you feel when you are madly in love so... it moved us away from the Motorhead idea a bit but...
“Enslaved”: When love in a relationship turns ugly and all that is left is about being dependant and keeping scores... ah bitterness – something to slice your wrists to. Everyone is a little goth fan on the inside.
“Slow”: You must have a ballad. It’s a rule made up by the Scorpions. I don’t have the slightest idea of what the lyrics is all about but it fits in rather nicely.
“Rush You”: One of them last 4 songs. We are obviously of the opinion that things could go a bit faster. Full speed ahead mr Zulu.
“Apocalypse”: You as a person are defined in the perception of others. I hate that. I am a hand-grenade and I will explode. Musically I have this crush for glam. People think this is from Rob Zombie or Marilyn Manson but it’s actually from one of my all time favourite songs “Teenage Rampage” by The Sweet from 1974 or something.
“Ghost In The Machine”: The flirt with heavy metal and a tribute to all those films about a group of teenagers stuck in a small cabin in the woods and there’s a madman running around with an axe and all of a sudden a dog disappears and a girl comes up with the idea that she should go outside wearing only her panties and look for it... films like Evil Dead...
“Malfunction”: This is me in therapy. The troubled and unwanted child. Completely sane people don’t have a natural urge to go on stage and become rock stars.
“Misery”: The final song of the last 4. To me this is very much like “Still Of The Night” with Whitesnake and I even make an attempt to sing like David Coverdale ha ha... and lyrics to slice your wrists to.
“Down The
Line”: Relationship-song. Make up your mind goddammit. Leave or make
something good out of what you have – as long as you make up your mind. And
it’s a great riff to finish off the album.
Are you planning to release any video clips? And
if yes, which song will it be and when it will be released? In general are you
totally satisfied from your music company or you feel that you need more
support from them?
M:
We are about to release “Rush
You” on video. You can see a clip from it at www.violentdivine.se
or www.chavisrecords.net.
It will also be part of a “making the album – rockumentary” that will
hopefully air on swedish TV somewhere in May. We’ll try to get it subtitled
and put it on-line as well.
We are very happy with our label and the people we
work with. Everyone is very enthusiastic and work very hard to make the most
out of this release. I think this is one of the best ways there is to release
your debut album. Go with an indie label who will work 24/7 to make things
happen instead of being at the bottom of the priority list at a major label.
Besides, it’s a group effort – the band along with a team of Divine people
towards a common goal ha ha...
Do
you feel any pressure as a band that you have to be a succeeded one? You know
usually when a label has a talented and promising band put it under
pressure… in order to be succeeded and that thing many times is not so good
for the band’s future.
M:
Well we don’t, actually. We have made an album as good as we possibly could
at this point – as a band – and that’s really all that one can do.
Let’s hope it brings some success also... Still if your album should sell a
million copies I can’t see how you could do it another way... just make your
heart bleed into what you’re creating and all will be well... ha ha…
What are your expectations from this album and what should we wait from Violent Divine in the future
M:
We’d love to sell platinum of course... but basically this debut album is to
put Violent Divine on the world map of Rock, open doors for us in the music
biz and all that. We hope the album will be a solid foundation for touring, to
continue put out albums, go touring and so on... is there more to life?
Are there any details about the album that you
would like to share? Funny stuff, way of recording it?
M:
We recorded 13 songs in 8 days including mixing and mastering and probably
hold a world record in consuming most coffee during that period of time. Maybe
it’s that attempt to overdose of caffeine that is the actual energy on the
album... We actually recorded the songs live – as a band – to capture the
energy of the four of us together. Due to some technical limitations we had to
lay down all the guitar and bass tracks all over again to be able to focus on
sound quality and stuff like that. I can tell you one thing though. I will
never again put myself through doing vocals for thirteen songs including all
backing vocals in two days. I couldn’t speak for two weeks.
I know that the reaction from the press must have
been very good, till now. Have you been expecting it?
M:
No, definitely not. I even promised myself not to care about any reviews but
the truth is that ... getting good reviews means a lot to us, especially when
it comes from people that you know are passionate about rock music. Hopefully
I won’t care if someone who’s not into rock gives us a bad review but you
never know... we all just want to be loved ha ha.
Which
are those bands or music styles that have influenced you?
M:
Oh this goes way back to the early 70’s with Sabbath and Zeppelin, the glam
era with Sweet, Kiss, Alice Cooper,
Nowadays it’s still Motley Crue on the top of the
charts but I think we all have a bit different type of rock in our
cd-players... Mudvayne, Lacuna Coil, Slipknot, H.I.M... so to make a long
story short: any type of rock performed with passion.
And some weird Questions now!!! Which kind of rock
music do you prefer the most?
M:
As long as it is performed with passion I can listen to anything. It’s all
about the energy.
How
difficult is t survive and to succeed in a music world that is ruled by
irrelevant people that promote shit-wannabe-good pop music all the time…
without caring about music’s quality?
M:
I don’t even consider myself being in the same business as the commercial
music scene with American Idol and all that. They will probably make more
money than me but I don’t give a shit. I am fortunate to be able to play
with great musicians who are also my close friends, and business-wise we work
with people who are passionate about quality in every aspect, and that is a
conscious decision from our part. There will always be people in this business
approaching you with promises. No one promised us anything. Being in a band is
hard work 24/7 and we know it and we are ready to get dirty doing it.
Are you playing music just to become rock stars or
you just want to give your own messages to the people with your music and your
lyrics?
M:
ha ha... Being a rock star is an attitude. The rest is just a question of
financial means. Seriously what we want to do right now is to go on tour and
play the shit out of these songs. Pure adrenaline. I don’t consider myself
being a preacher telling people what to think or do and the main purpose of
the band is definately not political but it would obviously mean a lot if our
music should make a difference in somebody’s life. Reaching out and
communicating are some of the great things in life.
Do you believe in luck and in coincidences or do
you believe that the human mind and will can affect all the things in life?
M:
Spiritually I believe that a positive mind can make a difference. I can see
that in this band and feel the electricity in the air even in the rehearsal
room. It’s truly divine ha ha. Luck is something you get from hard work.
Coincidence is something you create by being active, moving shit forward. You
can’t do nothing but shit sitting on your ass.
What would you tell to someone to convince him to
buy your album instead of hundreds others that are being released every month?
M:
I don’t know. I’d love for everyone to be able to buy the hundreds of
albums being released every month. I’d love to be able to do that. Come to
one of our shows and I know you’ll be able to make a wise decision on how to
spend your money right... ha ha…
What would you do, if you had supernatural power?
M:
Rock stars do have supernatural powers. Rock stars touch the hearts of the
many... ha ha... As a kid I wanted to be able to fly and to be incredibly
strong so I could beat up all the bad guys and get the girl. I guess
nothing’s changed really...
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?
M:
Why not spread some love and joy by presenting them with the album that was
the first one I learned how to sing by heart: The OST from The Sound of Music
with Julie Andrews from 1964 was it?
Do you believe that internet has helped the bands to
become more popular or has caused many problems?
M:
I think the Internet is great for bands. Ever since mp3.com showed up I have
found a lot of personal favourites that I couldn’t possibly have discovered
anywhere else. They might not have made it big but at least all of us now have
the opportunity to present our music.
Which are the things that piss you off from
today’s music industry?
M:
Greed. I hate how they track down and nail kids for file sharing. It’s not
file sharing that is killing music – it’s all the top 40 junk that is
killing music. Wasn’t home taping supposed to kill music in the 70’s?
If you could go back in time in any time-period
where would you go and why?
M:
Oh lots of things... why not go back to the days of Jesus Christ and become
one of his disciples and found out if the bible is telling the truth... maybe
that’s a lot to ask for... why not go back in time to see some great
concerts... wouldn’t it be great to be able to attend any concert – any
time – any band?
Imagine that your girlfriend is selling your whole album-collection just to buy for herself an expensive ring. How would you react? J
M:
I’d get back at her by selling her old Duran Duran and Culture Club vinyls
and go get wasted in a bar. Would be hard to find buyers perhaps...
That’s
all for now Mike. Thanks for the music, please leave a note to
M:
Thanks for supporting Violent Divine and we hope to meet you all on tour this
summer. Stay beautiful!
by Thanos Aggelakis