Category Archives: Interviews

Interviews, Various

(interview)TRIGGER 13

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Trigger 13  mixes horrorpunk and melodic hardcore punk so good that it was really only a matter of time when I will talk to them for my zine. Here is the interview. Enjoy!

WHAT IS SO BEAUTIFUL IN HORRORPUNK? COULD YOU DESCRIBE HOW YOU CAME TO TOUCH WITH IT AND WITH UNDERGROUND SCENE IN GENERAL?

We like Horror movies, serial killers, and sci-fi movies so it seemed like a natural fit. Getting into the mind of a killer is just really interesting, seeing what makes them tick.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR BAND TO THE PEOPLE THAT ARE READING THIS AND NEVER HEARD OF YOU?

A rock-n-roll band with sci-fi undertones and horror overtones. Just a mash up of all the bands we grew up listening to.

A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT I KNOW SAY THAT REAL HORRORPUNK SCENE DONT EXIST, THAT EVERY BAND IS JUST A MISFITS RIPOFF! WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THAT? HOW COULD THEY BE PROVEN WRONG?

Well, look at us! Do we sound like The Misfits? I mean we sound pretty unique in the horrorpunk scene so there’s definitely some room for the scene to grow. You do run across a lot of bands who sound like The Misfits, but we try to stray away from that and make our own sound, and we think it shows.

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HAVE YOU EVER PLAYED IN EUROPE? WHAT DO YOU THINK ARE THE CULTURAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN EUROPEAN AND THE U.S.CROWDS?

Unfortunately, we haven’t had the chance to play in Europe yet. It would be incredible to come play there, the European crowds seems to be much more intense, and passionate, and that’s awesome.

HOW WERE YOU SATISFIED WITH THE FEEDBACK ON YOUR LAST ALBUM, WHEN YOU LOOK AND LISTEN TO IT NOW, WOULD YOU CHANGE SOMETHING?

The last album we made was 13 years ago, so obviously we were coming into our sound, but at the time it was made, it holds up pretty well. We’re going to record our new album in December and it’s gonna kick ass! So keep an eye out for that!

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LETS TALK HORROR. ANY PREFERENCES IN THE MANY SUBGENRES OF THE HORROR? MINE ARE SLASHER AND HAMMER HORROR BUT ALSO I AM A SUCKER FOR FOUND FOOTAGE!

Dayve prefers the old school Romero stuff, House of 1000 corpses, and things like that.

Alan and Kevin like Tom Savini and good old fashion zombie/slasher stuff with practical effects.

Ryan likes psychological horror, things that get in your head and makes you question reality and your own moral system. Like the premise behind SAW, but not awful.

HOW IS LIFE AND SCENE IN YOUR HOMETOWN? WHAT DO YOU DO FOR LIVING? ANY BANDS, VENUES, ZINES…?

The scene around here is unfortunately pretty dead in comparison to 10 years ago. Everyone wants to stay at home and not come out to shows anymore. Dayve is a stay at home dad, Ryan is going to college, Kevin is a handyman, and Alan does landscaping. And on Tuesdays we get together and make badass music!

WHAT IS BETTER IN YOUR OPINION-GREAT HORROR MOVIE OR NICELY WRITTEN HORROR BOOK? I MEAN IT IS REALLY HARD TO DECIDE ISNT IT?

Movies for sure. It takes a really special author to capture the tone of horror and movies just have more to offer.

WHAT IS THE FUTURE HOLDING IN STORE FOR TRIGGER 13?

We’re going into the studio this December to record our new album and we have a single that we just recorded called «Reasons (Haunted)» After our record comes out we’ll be looking to play as much as we can and promote our music everywhere that’ll listen.

https://trigger13.bandcamp.com/

 

Interviews, Various

(interview)STRONGHOLD:”Ljudi nisu svjesni snage koju imaju!”

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Zagrebački Stronghold su u dugo godina postojanja postali hardcore institucija na hrvatskoj sceni. Čast mi je bilo ugostiti bend u interviewu za moj zine.

Dobrodošli u moj webzine. Kako se osjećate nakon svih tih godina postojanja benda, jeste li umorni?

Hvala lijepa, umorni nismo, ali su se u preko 15 godina postojanja benda prioriteti sigurno promijenili, došli su klinci, tu je obitelj itd… život nosi svoje pa nismo toliko aktivni kao prije, nama je bend prvenstveno velika ljubav i gušt i ne želimo išta forirati niti smo si postavljati nerealne ciljeve, radimo to za sebe i ljude koji poštuju naš rad, nešto sitno ih se i nađe.

Koliko sam imao prilike čuti, novi materijal je odličan, što možete reći, o čemu govore nove stvari? Ima li 2017.prostora za bijes i kritiku društva u kojem živimo? Hoće li izaći fizički novi album ili samo u digitalnoj verziji? Jeste li na nekom labelu?

Novi materijal je snimljen u Chicken studiju kod Belog, 6 novih pjesama i ponovo smo snimili stvar Ovdje Kod Nas s Edom Maajkom i sada pjesma napokon zvuči kako je trebala.

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photo taken from band FB page

U 2017. ima itekako prostora za bijes i kritiku društva, da li je gore nego prije ili mi samo kužimo neke stvari bolje to ne znam, u planu je mali broj cd-a tako da će biti uskoro i fizičko izdanje… Nismo na niti jednom labelu niti bi sad prešli na bilo koji, gdje su bili kad je grmilo, samo DIY!

 

Prošli ste i vidjeli svašta. Kada pogledaš početke benda, kako usporediti današnju scenu i ljude na njoj sa onim uvjetima i ljudima na sceni kada ste počinjali, je li se puno promijenilo?

Kada smo počinjali mislim da je scena bila više ujedinjena i ljudi su išli na sve koncerte, istina da ih je onda bilo bar 5 puta manje nego danas, ali tako je bilo. Mislim da danas na sceni fali klinaca, danas je na HC koncertima u ZG-u najmlađa publika preko 20 godina, fali “svježe krvi”, novih bendova u žanru koji sviramo itd… A i imate uvijek par ljudi na sceni koji si uzimaju za pravo biti moralna vertikala pa onda ako je netko drugačiji od njih ili njihovih stavova ne valja, ne bi ulazio u razloge takvog ponašanja, ali drago mi je da rijetki duže opstanu i truju to malo od scene što je ostalo…

Svirali ste na dosta mjesta i sa dosta bendova, koji bi bili recimo top 3 Stronghold gigova koje ste odsvirali, a da su ostali onako jako u pamćenju? Koliko ste ih uopće odsvirali?

Do prije par godina sam vodio popis gigova i bendova s kojima smo svirali, ali onda sam prestao, tako da ne znam neku brojku koliko bi ih bilo, neki su ostali u lijepom sjećanju, neki u malo manjem, a ima i onih kojih se ne sjećamo hehe.

Top 3 giga, pa sigurno bi to bila zadnja dva nastupa u Vintage Industrial  Baru kao predgrupa Sick Of It All-u i Agnostic Front-u, ipak su to bendovi koji su nam kao klincima bili uzori i onda kad dijeliš stage s njima ima neki poseban osjećaj, a i ekipa iz VIB-a jako dobro radi svoj posao. I svaki odlazak u Sarajevo i Vojvodinu bude odlična avantura i dobar provod, tamo smo uvijek bili odlično prihvaćeni…

Vjerojatno vas je puno zineova to pitalo, ali eto opet, kako je došlo do suradnje sa Edo Maajkom, i jeste li surađivali sa još kojim muzičarima?

Edu smo upoznali negdje 2000e godine preko našeg dobrog prijatelja i tattoo artista Filipa Cigarčića, prvu suradnju smo imali na pjesmi Differences na našoj demo snimci koju smo snimili početkom 2002 godine, a mislim da je i Edo imao prvi nastup u Zagrebu kao naš gost u KSET-u, to je bio travanj 2002 godine, ubrzo nakon toga je izbacio album Slušaj mater i postao ikona balkanskog repa… Surađivali smo još s Krmpom iz DBN-a, Karlo Pleteš nam je snimio trubu na pjesmi s Edom “Ovdje kod nas”, ja sam gostovao na pjesmi Pure Stems Packa  Balls itd…

Pjevanje na engleskom vs pjevanje na materinjem. Pjevate na oba. Koje je bolje? Na kojem je lakše napisati tekst za pjesmu?

Sigurno se lakše izraziti na materinjom jeziku, a engleski dopire do šire publike, do nedavno smo sve pjesme radili na engleskom, ali mislim da ćemo od sad više na hrvatskom…

Kako živite van benda? Jeste li svi zaposleni? Jel se može preživjeti u današnjem stanju u kakvom je naša zemlja?

Svi radimo osim gitarista Tafre, on je trenutno u potrazi za poslom, preživjeti se može, ali živjeti malo teže, uz poslove neki od nas se bave svim i svačim kako bi živjeli, a ne preživljavali… a mislim da je u našoj zemlji jako puno toga postavljeno na krive temelje pa ćemo vidjeti što nas čeka u skoroj budućnosti, mislim da bi moglo biti svega…

Vjerujete li u street justice? Ovo pitam u svjetlu nedavnih događaja u zemlji, netko ubije/siluje unakazi nekog tebi dragog i hoda slobodan, ima li smisla u street justiceu? Ja nekako mislim da ima.

Pa ne znam tko više vjeruje u institucije i da smo svi jednaki pred zakonom, nažalost koliko imaš toliko vrijediš, sami smo svjedoci da možeš ubiti i nekoliko puta i ne biti niti dana u zatvora, a neki zbog sitnih prekršaja pune zatvorske ćelije…

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photo taken from band FB page

E sad ne vidim razloga zašto bi netko bio žrtva samo zato što u obitelji nema nikoga tko je uhljeb, političar, ratni profiter ili bilo koji oblik primitivnog života na zemlji, jedini način koji ja vidim da se obranimo od njihovog bahatog ponašanja je upravo kako kažeš “street justice”, ljudi nisu svjesni snage koju imaju, zato bi preporučio trenirajte i naoružajte se :)

U čemu je ljepota hardcore muzike i scene da nas drži i šiba sve ove godine?

U poštovanju, čišćenju od negativne energije na pozitivan način, upoznavanju novih gradova i  ljudi sa sličnim pogledima na život, putovanju i druženju, iako se na nekim mjestima i situacijama osjećaš kao outsider, tu si kod kuće…

Ovo je sve za prvi puta. Hvala puno. Za kraj, ima li nešto što želite reći, izreklamirati možda neki merch ili nešto drugo što vas nisam pitao?

Hvala vama, evo pozivamo sve na pravu HC poslasticu 18.10. u Grey roomu, Spidercrew, Only Attitude Counts i Stronghold, znači srijeda, špajza, krv, znoj i pive… vidimo se, živjeli!

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Interviews

(interview)REACH:”The basic principle isn’t a dress code, a hair style or some slang – it’s the attitude, the mentality.”

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Reach from Slovenia, Prekmurje region, are a relatively new band in the scene. They were already featured in this zine when I reviewed their debut demo. Now was the perfect time to talk with the guys about their band, music scene and state of hardcore in general and many other themes.

HI GUYS, WELCOME TO MY WEBZINE. IT HAS BEEN A WHILE REACH EXISTS AS A BAND, SO FIRST OFF, ARE YOU HAPPY WITH THE THINGS YOUVE DONE UNTIL NOW?

JAN: Our guitarist Luka and drummer Benjamin started the band back in spring 2016 and later I joined the band as vocalist at the end of the year. During our first months we had our friend Tomaž on bass as a session player, but then this year in April, Jože joined as a full time bass player. So if we consider that I’m studying in Ljubljana and other guys all have full time jobs, we can definitely say that we are very happy with what we have accomplished so far.

YOU RECORDED ON DEMO E.P.AND I GUESS YOU HAVE MORE MATERIAL THAT DID NOT FIND PLACE ON THE E.P.SO WHEN IS THE NEXT E.P. OR FULL LENGTH ALBUM COMING OUT?

LUKA: Yes, of course. For the demo we just picked three of the best songs we had at a time, but we still have a lot of material. Currently we’re working on new songs and we’re planning to record a split with fellow Slovenian hardcore band Laid To Rest sometime in early of 2018. And after that we will focus on making our first EP.

YOU DID SOME GIGS IN SLOVENIA AND I THINK ONE IN CROATIA, SO DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY SPECIAL RITUALS OR PREPARATIONS BEFORE THE GIG?

JAN: Well, I think there is nothing special… yet! Everyone is just chilling, hanging out with other bands or just drinking beer. We warm up in the backstage, I also stretch a bit just to be ready for all the moving on the stage, but otherwise nothing special. We are still a bit nervous before going on stage and I think that with more and more gigs a routine will come by itself.

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photo by:Andreja Barbarič, taken from Reach FB page

YOUR LYRICS ARE PERSONAL BUT DEAL WITH SOME THEMES KNOWN IN THE HARDCORE SCENE. WHERE DO YOU GET INSPIRATION FOR THE LYRICS?

JAN: Most of the lyrics I wrote on the bus ride back home from Ljubljana. I guess, that was a good place to reflect back on what happened through the week, what I saw, heard, what bothered me and I just put it on the paper. Sometimes when me and my girlfriend go for a walk we try to “save” the world and some inspiration comes from these long talks and then sometimes I am listening more closely to some music and feel the same way as the band I listened to felt, and just try to write my own opinion about that.

PREKMURJE WAS KNOWN TO BE PRETTY BARREN AND POOR AREA, DOES THIS ALSO EFFECT YOUR INSPIRATION AND FEEDS YOUR ANGER AND FRUSTRATIONS? IS IT EASY TO GET A JOB IN YOUR AREA? HOW IS THE LIVING ON THE EVERYDAY BASIS?

LUKA: I think that at this time it is hard to get job anywhere in general, not just in Slovenia. You really have to be patient and you have to try many times. It’s true that Pomurje doesn’t offer many options so that’s why so many young people go to work in Maribor, Ljubljana or even abroad (Austria, Germany…). So there are two aspects that come out of it. Anger – because of the state of the country (or even the whole world) is in right now and gratitude – respect for people who helped us to be the people we are now, that sure was not easy.

DO YOU GUYS BELIEVE IN STREET JUSTICE? WHEN SOMEONE DOES HARM TO YOUR LOVED ONE AND THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM FAILS, DO YOU BELIEVE IN TAKING MATTERS IN YOUR OWN HANDS?

LUKA: Well, the whole ‘eye for an eye’ principle is really flawed. It’s an never ending cycle of aggression and pain. Life always finds a way to punish those who are exploiting other people for their own self-gain. Even if we don’t see it somewhere something isn’t going like they wanted it and they are just left with paying their dues.

WHAT ABOUT TOO VIOLENT DANCING? I KNOW THAT HARDCORE GIGS ARE NOT POETRY EVENINGS BUT I FEEL KINDA STUPID WHEN TWO OR THREE ASSHOLES DO KARATE DANCING AND YOU CANNOT COME CLOSE TO THE STAGE AND ENJOY THE GIG AND IN A WAY PARTICIPATE IN A SHOW.

BENJAMIN: We are all those type of listeners who want to participate on a show to the fullest – sing-along, dance, stage dive, mosh. But we don’t really like crowd killing. Don’t get us wrong – we like hardcore dancing, good old mosh pit and circle pit but there is a difference between swinging your arms and kicking in the air or intentionally punching people around you.

DO YOU GUYS HAVE YOUR OWN REHEARSAL SPACE OR DO YOU PAY FOR THE SPACE?

LUKA: We share our space with two other bands from Pomurje (Odpisani, Cyphre Louis) but we don’t see them too often so it’s almost like we’re the only ones there. Other than that it’s nothing special. The rehearsal space is in Ljutomer.

YOU PLAY MODERN VERSION OF HARDCORE. DO YOU BELIEVE HARDCORE IS LIKE A LIVING BEING CONSTANTLY EVOLVING AND CHANGING? THE SCENE PURISTS CERTAINLY HATE THAT. WHAT IS THE STATE OF SLOVENIAN AND WORLD HARDCORE SCENE IN 2017.FROM YOUR POINT OF VIEW?

LUKA: We think that it really is changing and evolving all the time, just like us. There is always something new in the scene, something fresh and that’s what I love about it. I’m always surprised by the new things some of bands can come up with.

I really love what a small, underground scene like hardcore can accomplish and the most important part of this scene is the attitude, the view on the state of the world, that you can share and find a way to overcome obstacles in life.

I constantly hear people argue over what is and what isn’t “true” or “real”. Not just in hardcore but in every genre of music. And this is really where the hardcore stands out for me, because the basic principle isn’t a dress code, a hair style or some slang – it’s the attitude, the mentality. It’s about solidarity and accepting anyone and everyone for what he or she is, and also for you to stay true to yourself.

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photo taken from Reach FB page

WE HAVE COME TO THE END OF THE INTERVIEW, SO FEEL FREE TO STATE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE, MAYBE ANNOUNCE SOME GIGS YOU PLAY OR HOW CAN KIDS KEEP CONTACT WITH YOU? THANKS FOR THE ANSWERS.

LUKA: The main thing in the near future is going to be putting together a debut EP and of course, to play as many shows as we possibly can. The first one is on 14.10. in Gornja Radgona, then we’re playing in Kranj on 28.10., Ljubljana on 17.11. and later in 2.12. we’re playing again in Lendava with Slander and Hawser.

You can find all our show dates and news about the band on our FB and Instagram pages. If you’d like to get in touch with us just drop us a message.

Thank you for showing interest in us and doing this interview. Cheers from Pomurje.

http://www.reach-hc.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/reachhc

https://www.instagram.com/reach_hardcore