1. First of all I’d like you to fill us in on
what’s happening in the ACID DEATH camp at the moment.
Hello and thank you for this presentation! Yes,
ACID DEATH are back after 11 years without an official release. “Eidolon” CD is
out since June 1st. At the moment we are preparing the live appearances in
Greece for next season. Things seem to be in a right way and a lot of work has
to be done.
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2. Please point out the most important moments
and experiences you’ve had with the band thus far, be them good or bad. What
made you form a band of your own? What was your driving force and which were
your influences?
There are many good moments to remember all
these years and bad of course… At first when the band stopped back in 2001 was
a really bad moment, on the other hand, the 2011 resurrection was a really good
one! Forming a band means a lot of things but most important reason is one;
Music! We love the music we play, we love it as fans and then we try to give
our 100% on it using our soul. Influenced by American death metal, progressive
rock, and even jazz and fusion, we try to give a personal point at what we do…
3. Can you present “Eidolon” to our readers in
a few words? Give them reasons to check your work out. What will they find in
it?
“Eidolon” is ACID DEATH’s 5th official release.
It took about one year to be processed and about five months for its
recordings. For those that have never heard anything from us I dare say that
“Eidolon” is a technical death metal record that follows the paths of DEATH,
CARCASS, CYNIC or ATHEIST. For those that know our past, “Eidolon” is a more
“angry” “Random’s Manifest” of 2000. It is a recording that was made by four
people that worked really hard as a team and it includes all our love for the
music we like to play.
4. Which are the elements you are most proud of
in your music and which are the things you think you need to work more on?
That’s a difficult question! We are proud of
giving this recording “in time” let’s say, with all the elements that it includes.
The audience will judge whether there would be a different approach to some of
them. From our side this recording comes from the heart and that was our
compass when we processed its songs. For some musicians this process has to be
on the way that today orders, you know, what the fans prefer to have today… In
our case there was the thought “OK, guys, just one thing! We have to be
ourselves!”. I think this is clear in “Eidolon”.
5. In which ways does “Eidolon” differ from
your previous work, “Random’s Manifest”? How and in which ways has the band’s
sound evolved and progressed all these years? Why did it take you 12 years to
release a new album?
Of course “Eidolon” is different from “Random’s
Manifest” and even “Pieces Of Mankind”. No words for band’s earlier releases.
“Eidolon” is more direct, more angry and it comes from the band’s 3rd period,
having in mind that ACID DEATH’s first one, “The Death/Trash Days” was from
1989 till 1995, the second “Progressive Death Metal” was from 1996 till 2001 when
the band stopped and this is the 3rd period “(still)Progressive (but more)
Death Metal”. For first time we left the inner anger to be so strong in the
music. That’s the way the album is heard so “angry” and aggressive. It took us
12 years to release a new album, yes but the band had stopped in 2001 in just
one night. ACID DEATH are back since January/2011.
6. Why do you think you stand out from most
death/thrash metal bands out there? What do you believe you can offer to the
metal scene?
We have never had such a thought! We have never
had in mind the thought of “yeah, guys, ok, we are better than everyone out
there!” No! Every band has its own value and at many cases we were in the top
of the edge because of our musical choices. There were many fans, especially in
Greece, that had the thought “no man I hate this band! They don’t know what the
want to do!”. ACID DEATH were never a “trendy band”. In all the years we
existed and still exist we try one thing; play the music we like. If there are
some out there that think we deserve to be heard and they like our work this is
the biggest paying for us.
7. What kind of procedure do you follow when
you compose songs? Do you have to be in a certain state of mind in order to
perform the songs as you want?
Usually one of us comes with the basic idea of
a new song and all the others put their elements and ideas on it. We prefer to
work like a team and I think this give us the capability of putting the
personal influences in the music we make. It is totally different of playing
the songs that the one that is the main composer creates.
8. Which song or songs do you think are the
most ideal to represent the whole album’s essence?
Of course the “Eidolon” song. It includes all
ACID DEATH’s elements that someone could find in the previous albums. And one
more “Inside My Walls”. All the songs in this album have a special character
that makes the one different than the other but these two ones are the most
characteristic ones.
9. Which are your sources of inspiration when
it comes to the lyrics? Which are the main topics you deal with?
The horrible side of life is the main theme in
our lyrics, by describing true or fantasty stories. It the past there was a
strong influence by Stephen King and there was a more lyrical style but now we
prefer more “direct” themes…
10. Why did you name the album “Eidolon”? What
do you want to say with the album’s title?
“Eidolon” is a story of a commander that was
loved like a God from his soldiers and the decay that they faced because of his
perverse character. It is like a novel but it could be a real story. It could
be the personal image that anyone worships and shows respect…
11. Who created the cover artwork? It like it!
How was it inspired and how is it connected to the album title and lyrics?
The cover and the entire layout were designed
by John “RemedyArt” Nacos, MORTAL TORMENT’s singer. Of course he was inspired
by the lyrics and the entire work. It presents the entire spirit and atmosphere
that the album has.
12. Have you got any plans for live shows? How
easy is it for you to play your songs live? Do you have to be in a certain
state of mind in order to create the right atmosphere and feeling?
We are on the way to arrange the appearances in
Greece, the “Eidolon-Greek tour”, starting in October and the same time we are
on the way to hit some doors for having a slot to a European tour or to some
festivals. Fortunately our label, NoiseHead recs, is on the way to create its
own touring agency and this will be a good help for all its bands. Playing the
new songs live is easy because the entire album is made for being played live.
Of course we use almost all the sound effects that are included in the album
and the entire atmosphere that the album has is the same at a live show.
13. Have you made any video clips? With YouTube
I think videos have started becoming a necessity for bands again. How helpful
is the Internet?
We didn’t make any official video clip for the
album, since we have 6 songs with multicamera filming from our show, supporting
CORONER in Athens. They are a complete DVD that we use for promotional reasons.
Of course YouTube and the Internet generally are useful “tools” for all bands.
If we didn’t have that material we would make an official video clip but this
is a complete promotional pack that shows also how the band is on stage.
14. What kind of feedback have you received
thus far? Can you mention a comment, be it positive or negative, serious or
funny, that impressed you?
We are on the 3rd month that the album is out
and the comments/reviews we have collected are really interesting. There are
really positive ones like “I give them 10/10!” and of course negative ones,
like “ok…I don’t like it…5/10”. Of course all opinions are acceptable and this
is part of the game!
15. Do you think that the contemporary metal
scene has a place for record labels? I mean more and more bands do everything
on their own and more and more labels don’t support the bands or pay them any
money… What’s your view on this phenomenon?
Today’s discography is bleeding… This is no
secret. The labels are stopping day-by-day, the bands undertake everything by
their own… Things are really hard. Yes, we know that there are many labels that
don’t support the bands they sign, they don’t offer anything to them and
finally being in such a label is bad for you. I don’t know if this will change,
personally I believe that things will be harder as time passes. This is today’s
game… On the other hand there are some labels that pay enough attention to the
bands they sign. Of course money is a big problem for both sides, but at least
if things work fine and there is another hand that helps, label’s hand, the
band can work more easily.
16. What do you want people to think when they
listen to ACID DEATH?
…That they listen to something that was made by
four people who worked really hard with just one view; the love for this kind
of music.
17. The band exists for so many years… So, if
you could put a title to your career so far, what would it be?
Career??? What is it? Hehehe! I am just a
soldier and nothing more! This could be a really good title; “Soldier’s life”…
18. How are things in the underground Greek
metal scene? How difficult is it for a band to stand out not only here, but
also become famous abroad too?
Things are going better day-by-day. There are
really good bands in the Greek underground scene, very good musicians and some
things seem to be on the right way. Of course Greece isn’t very popular this
period, the bad political situation has inspired everyone against us, so things
are hard for the Greek bands to become famous abroad. But I am sure this will
change some day! There is a quality in our scene that won’t be unobserved.
19. Thank you! Is there anything else you’d
like to add?
Thank you for this opportunity! Yes, ACID DEATH
are back with a new album! Listen to it and you will find many interesting
things!! All the best to everyone!
Christine
Parastatidou
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