Winds1

Hi Andy… it’s so nice talking to you again. How are you my friend? Well after the 2002’s debut here we are with the second full-length album of the band. How do you feel about that?

Andy: We are very excited about the new full – length album, I think what we are trying to do is to continue the sound of the band and also to bring something new and to develop more our style. I feel that we managed to do what we like most and we are happy about that.

I’m also happy Andy. You’ve got a new album and a contract with a new Label… what happened to the band during the period of your debut album and the release of the new one?

A: Basically we had a contract with Avantgarde for the mini CD plus one more album and after our contract was finished we decided to search for a new and better Label for the band. We knew the man behind The End records cause he had licensed our first CD “The Reflections Of The I” in America and we have good relations with him… so we didn’t shop around or anything like that but we had a very good offer from the Label and we decided to sign for them. I think that Avantgarde at that point wasn’t really ready to commit as much as the End Records was… and we decided to go to The End.

So do you think that this change will help the promotion of the band in the future?

A: I definitely think so. Maybe the End Records is a little bit unknown in Europe but in the U.S. they are regarded as a big label. I think that they are starting their way up also in Europe from, now on.

The U.S. market is much bigger than the European one…

A: Yes and no… there is a big market over here potentially, but is so difficult to find the needs, cause there are too many different releases all the time. It’s really hard then.

Ok let’s talk about the new album now. To tell you the truth “The Imaginary Direction Of Time” is as emotional and prog heavy as your debut… what are the differences between those two albums?

Carl: Well I think that the new album is definitely a little bit more progressive in the arrangements and that has to do with the more collective effort in the song-writing process. We spent a lot more time around to getting all the arrangements exactly the way we wanted to make them and the sound just turned out to be a little different but you can still tell it’s Winds… it has the signature of Winds even though this time it’s more technical and more progressive. I really do not thing that is far away from the music style of our debut album but the new one is more fresh and progressive.

Are you totally satisfied by the making of “The Imaginary Direction Of Time”?

C: Yes, I am. Of course there are always things that you want to do afterwards, but I believe that this is the most complete work that we have done to date and I’m really satisfied with that.
A: I am also satisfied with the new album. But the good thing is that this time we worked a little different that we’ve done in “The Reflections OF The I”. I mean that our debut was recorded within a month. This time we were able to record one thing and then wait and do the next thing. So, just made us more happy cause we felt that we have more control of the situation at this point of time. Thus, things turn out the way that we have finally in mind.

Can you see that satisfaction in the reaction of the press and fans till now?

A: We are happy from the reaction of the press and till now we have many good reviews for the album.C: Most of the reviews are very good and of course there are a few people that still complain about some production matters but basically most of the reviews are really good and we are very satisfied with that. A lot of people that reviewed the album this time didn’t really know what he had done before and since the new album is a little more progressive they categorized Winds as a progressive metal band, which is not the most appropriate way to categorize the new album.
A: I think that is part of the challenge for us too. When the magazines get the promos for a review it’s really difficult to classify the album. So there is a mix of things… should we give it to the prog metal guy or to the black metal one? (laughs)
C: It’s kind of cool to see all the people that have reviewed the album so far, and they like bands like Opeth they totally liked it. But people who are more into the typical prog metal music they do not except to listen to this kind of music.
A: By 99% the reviews are really great. We get about 9 points out of 10 or 9,5 points out of ten and that’s really cool. Of course sometimes the reviews are lower cause they are always such kind of persons who believe no matter what you are doing now, your first album is always the better.

So, you will see also my review about the new album in a couple of days… and then you would tell me what do you think about it.

A: Ok… Should we be scared now? (laughs)…

No, if there were such possibility I would not arrange an interview with you.

A: Oh… ok… your rate will be high then! (laughs from all of us).

Which is “The Imaginary Direction Of Time”? Tell us some things about the concept idea of the album.

A: Basically it is a concept about time, which is limier and goes into a different direction. The way that we think of time does not really exist… cause you never know what will happen cause there’s always gonna be the progression of time which causes things to fate. So it’s about the possibility of time going in a different direction. It’s truly hard to explain it any better. The concept was inspired by Steven Hawking.

So, do you believe that time exists or no?

A: Well… it’s difficult to say cause time exists in the rational form of the world and time exists for people who allow it to exist. You know, when you look at the clock and say it’s 3 o’clock… and they say yes time definitely exists. But in the physical scale this thing it’s a little more complicated. Personally I think that time does exist… probably.

Do you believe that in space, time is the same as it is on earth?

A: No actually… not at all. I think that it is different everywhere.

Therefore time does not exist…

A: I can’t say that ... you know.

Ok then. I noticed that the lyrics of the album are very inward looking and there are times that they become very depressing. Do you intend to do that?

A: I think that this is my style and I do not sit down intentionally to write depressive or dark lyrics. When you read the lyrics you can understand that they are happy and sad at the same time. It’s like you read something that is very sad but there is a hope somewhere… and at the same time you may read something that seems happy but if you read between the lines then it’s kind of depressing. I believe that although things seem very depressing and sad there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.

In “Time Without End” says: “When you walk with me your fate has been sealed until time without end, desiring to be enlightened at every cost, no matter the consequence”. Who is saying those words? Is he a fantastic person or a historical one?

A: Essentially he is a fantastic person from my imagination. Does a historical person have said words like that?

When I red the lyrics I brought on my mind Jesus Christ.

A: I didn’t make that confession myself. Well I didn’t have that person on my mind.

As it concerns the deeper meaning of those lyrics my mind goes to Plato.

A: Ok then maybe it’s my comparison to that, cause I think that Plato is very interesting and all those that he has written are in fact very fascinating. But during the writing process I haven’t any of those two persons on my mind. I have read Plato in my earlier years but not very recently. It’s quite interesting though that you bring that up cause it will make me also look at it in a different way now.

By the way what is beauty for you?

A: It’s really hard to describe it with words. I think that beauty is something deeper and something that we can see with our eyes. And as it concerns the lyrics of the songs says that beauty is necessarily something obvious.

Thus, where is that home where nothing ever ends?

A: Basically this is a place where nothing ever ends. It’s a place that we all dreamed of sometimes in our life… a place that is timeless.

Couldn’t it be somewhere else in space far beyond our galaxy?

A: Possibly. If you look at our artwork it is inspired by cosmic elements.

So, is there anything under the stars and beneath the sun?

A: Well… not really… (laughs)… That song talks about everything that we conceived being what it is. It’s quite insignificant in the big picture.

As a result, is there a chance left to save the world?

A: From the politically point of view at least it looks pretty hard at the moment… (laughs)… but then there is always that small chance that there is hope in the end. I think that no one should ever give up hope. Even when it is very small… there is always the possibility to succeed in the end.

Just like the box of Pandora… do you know that story?

A: Oh yes definitely… she opens the box and all hell break loose!

Yes, that’s right. Ok let’s talk about the musical part of the album. Do you believe that this is the most mature work of Winds?

C: Yes, absolutely. All this time we have grown together as a band and we became better as individuals since we have more time to practice and to compose. So, I think that this is definitely the best and the most mature album that we have done to date.

Do you like Mozart and Beethoven?

C: Yes of course. We are pretty much into a lot of different classical composers both Andy and I.

How difficult is for you to combine classical parts with heavy guitars and depressing lyrics?

C: It’s pretty kind of natural cause we spent most of our time playing both classical music and listening to it and obviously we are playing and listening to metal music as well. This is our third album so we pretty much knew how to do the arrangements without being cliché. It’s just natural for us. I do not know if Andy wants to add something to that.
A: No I totally agree with you. We are just writing the music that comes naturally to us and that’s all.

I’ve noticed some changes in the members that you had hired from The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra… in you previous album.

A: Two of those members are the same that we had in our previous album. The last time we only used three members but this time we wanted to use four so basically ended up using those four people who also are frequently playing together in concerts as well.

Is there a chance is the future to record an album with the help of a full orchestra?

A: Well maybe… we like that idea but it will surely be in a different basis (setting). You know many bands area recording with a whole orchestra these days. So, if you record with a full orchestra you have to take that sound and put it in an equal level with the band, and that’s kind of difficult. I mean the way that the production should be made afterwards. Personally I’m not the biggest fan of this idea… I like the more individual instrument feeling.

The production of the album is once again amazing… Who is responsible for it this time?

A: Well thank you very much…
C: Yeah thank you.
A: Carl and I are responsible for the production. This time Carl was helping me in the production in opposition with our previous album that I made the most of the production myself. I believe that finally it turned out great. A great mind thinks alike they say… (laughs from all of us).
C: We are improving very much from album to album and we are creating our own personal sound as a band, I believe.
A: The last album has a kind of different production but this time I think that the production is a little bit more in your face and honest in a way that everything it speaks for itself.

How better can the production of the next album be, then?

A: …(laughs)… I think that there are always ways to improve. We already have some ideas about the next album and we will also wanna do a different kind of production in the next album and not to reaping ourselves.

Do you think that the artwork is related totally with the music of the album?

A: We always try to keep that in mind. We like to have an artwork that will represent the atmosphere of the album and the image of the band. I like very much the new artwork. Basically our previous artwork was a little bit darker and when we were discussing the ideas from the new artwork along with Travis Smith, I told him that we can go the opposite direction with the artwork, cause music is a bit darker again and make it lighter. Travis answered me that he has exactly the same idea with me.

How far do you think that you can go with Winds?

C: We are not thinking so much of how far we can go as it concerns the recognition of the band. We think that we can go very far in creating good qualitative music that will be remembered just for being good, qualitative music. We still think that we have a lot to give in the world and we will continue creating better albums with each release for a long period of time and as far as commercial success we have absolutely no idea. We did very good with the previous album and we hope that the new one will do even better. But that’s the driving force in order to satisfy ourselves and to create qualitative music and satisfy with that other people too. I do not know if Andy wants to add something to that.
A: No, really you told everything that I had in my mind.

The reason that I asked you that is that you do not make easy-listening music… you do not have any hits and your music is addressed to a more intellectual audience.

A: With Winds we do not create a song in the typical way… for example verse-chorus-verse-chorus… we are trying to make music in the way that classical music is being arranged.
C: It depends on the song. If we end up writing not in the basic form that all songs are being written is not like that we despite doing that but when we write a more complex music we are doing that cause we fell the element of its song better.

This is what I call the art of making music… So, what do you prefer… music for the art or art for the music?

A: Oh that is a difficult one! (laughs from all of us). Well it doesn’t really matter which one of those two cause they are kind of the same anyway. If we think about it in an analytical way, it is far away from the way that we work.
C: We just write music. We are not sitting down and thinking that a song will be really arty or the other will be more commercial. We just write music and whatever comes out is simply Winds. That’s the way we work. Due to the different musical background in the band, some songs end up being more progressive, and some others closer to classical music.
A: I just wanna say that we only have about ten minutes before our next interview…

Ok then. Honestly tell me which album do you prefer the most? Your debut or the new one?

A: I think that there’s no question to that. We are all very happy with the new album. It’s the most accomplished and it’s the one that we feel like that we have the chance to show our musical development as a band and as individuals.

Do you any have plans for the next album and in which direction will you move to?

C: We always write music and we have many ideas. But unfortunately we do not have much time.

So, are there any plans for a tour?

C: We wish but it’s not an easy thing to do. All of us have day works and also other bands to tour. Is not a very easy thing to get going.

There is no chance then to see you here in Greece for a live show?

C: We would love to do it. We definitely like going out and playing to all our dedicated fans who have supported us a lot. But also is financially difficult when we are located in all the different parts of the world. As soon as we get the financial opportunity we will certainly do it.
A: As long as we do not have a big audience to support us, this is not very realistic.
C: But I can promise you one thing though. There will be a live show and it most likely would be in Norway and we will record it and release it on DVD.

Well that is something of course… from nothing at all…

A: Do you know Andreas from the End Records?

No, unfortunately.

A: He is from Greece… actually from Cyprus but it’s the same. So if we are going to play live anywhere it would be most likely in the U.S., Norway or in Greece. (Interviewers note: that’s an exclusive new!)
C: Maybe we should do a mini tour in all of three countries… (laughs from all of us).

Now let me ask you some more general questions. Which is the news from your other band Age Of Silence?

A: Age Of Silence has finished recording the new CD and it is going to be released on late August or early September.

Does Jan Axel tell anything about the new Arcturus album? Are they going to release an album soon?

A: All that I have heard is that they are planning to record a mini album with their new singer. But I do not think that they have started anything yet. I really do not know anything else.

Weird Questions… If you were living in Middle Earth which character would you choose to be and why?

A: I always liked Gandalf personally.

What about you Carl?

C: Basically I have no idea! (laughs)

Maybe Saruman?

K: (laughs)… no I would probably be a hobbit! (more laughs).

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?

A: Oh that’s also a difficult one…C: Yeah…
A: I really can’t tell… I cannot think of anything right now.
C: Mainly it would have been the same thing for me if you were asked me to mention my very best album of all time. And that is Dream Theater’s “Images And Words”. (Interviewers note: Alex please; do not start talking about Dream Theater again…!) - (Alex’s note: Hah! You wish!!)

Maybe an album from Winds would be much better? Huh?

A: Yes… that’s pretty good… but I do not wanna say it! (laughs)

Do you consider yourself as a rock star?

A: No, not at all. We are far away from the rock stars reality.
C: We are living just an ordinary life… go to work, I have also kids… and also those family things.

Which band do you believe that can take a leading part in the metal scene in the future?

C: I never buy albums so it’s difficult for me to say.
A: I would truly like to pay more attention to what goes on in the music.
C: I would say again that I’m really astonished by the commercial success of Dream Theater even though their music is very complex… at least at the beginning. (Interviewers note: No comments pleaseeeeeee!!!)
(Alex’s note: Well, not here, but face to face….)
A: If I was asked this question in another day maybe I would say bands like Opeth… it’s the first band that comes on my mind. (Interviewers note: What more can I say??!!!)

Which are the biggest life lessons you’ve learned over the course of your career?

A: The most important I believe is that we should not take anything for granted.
C: Another thing that is also important is to have always on your mind that everything is possible as long as you work for it and make an effort. I mean if I was asked some years ago if Winds were about to have a lot of recognition and respect from people I would never imagine that we could get to this point.

Ok Andy and Karl I wish you the best for that album, cause you truly deserve it. The last words of this interview belong to you.

C: We are looking forward to read the review and the interview.
A: I think we covered all the basics… finally we like to thank all our fans that keep supporting us all these years and of course you Thanos,
C: Yeah we thank very much for everything.

by Thanos Aggelakis