Anthemon
Anthemon is a really special
band that is only interested in the creating process itself and in giving
birth to artistic and quality works. Anything else that deals with commerciality
and the likes, have no affect on their music. So, this fact along with
their skills and inspiration, makes them more special and distinctive I
think...
1. HELLO! ”KADAVRESKI” IS A VERY GOOD WORK
AND IF I MAY SAY A RISKY ONE. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT IT? IS SOMETHING THAT
YOU’D LIKE TO CHANGE, CAUSE YOU’RE NOT SATISFIED WITH IT ON THE NEW ALBUM?
Hi there and thank you. I’m not sure I understand
your question but what I can say about “Kadavreski” is that the album is
the achievement of an artistic challenge we had when we started to talk
about it, when it was time to think about the successor of “Dystopia”.
Well the risk with a song such as the opening track “Kadavreski” is to
draw the listener into a lot of information but I think anyone can get
into it after a few spins on the Hi-Fi. The first tries can be a bit difficult
but when you get to know the song this is a great reward because it’s a
nice trip through a lot of different atmospheres. This is obviously music
for open-minded people.
2. IN THE COMPOSITION OF THE FIRST SONG YOU USED
A METHOD KNOWN IN THE ART AS “CADAVRE EXQUIS”. CAN YOU TELL US WHO INVENTED
THIS WAY OF CREATION AND WHAT EXACTLY IT IS?
It was a game created by the Surrealists.
The principle was to write or draw something and let someone else in charge
of what’s coming next. We did it on a musical level so that means that
one of us wrote few minutes of music and then, another band member had
to continue with the song, knowing only the latest seconds of the previous
part, and so on. At the end, we had that long song moving in several directions
and combining the ideas and influences of everyone within the band. That
was great fun and a very nice artistic concept to do.
3. IN THE “KADAVRESKI” SONG, IN A WAY ALL THE
MEMBERS OF THE BAND PARTICIPATED IN THE COMPOSITION OF THE SONG. DOES THIS
HAPPEN FOR THE FIRST TIME? WHO IS USUALLY THE MAIN COMPOSER OF THE BAND?
Yeah, that was the first time we all worked
on the same song. This concept was also a way to let everyone be involved
on the same level because we all listen to different kinds of music and
have personal views on what we do. We thought that would be great to mix
all these influences in one song.
Usually I am the one who brings more material
than the others but there’s a great freedom in Anthemon so any suggested
idea is studied. And, even if, for example, I bring a finished song to
the others, they still can improve some parts or play their instrument
the way they feel. We try to do what’s best for the song.
4. IS THERE A SPECIFIC METHOD THAT YOU FOLLOW
DURING THE COMPOSITION OF THE SONGS OR A METHOD THAT HELPS YOU COMPOSE?
Like I said in the previous question, usually
one of us brings a finished song to the others and then, as far as it doesn’t
go against what the composer intended to do in the first place, any band
member can add his own touch to the song. It’s not always easy but it works
pretty well.
5. I CAN’T EXPLAIN WHY, BUT “KADAVRESKI” AS AN
ALBUM HAS AN ATMOSPHERE THAT BROUGHT TO MY MIND THE FIRST ERA OF OPETH.
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT IT?
I think it’s better to be compared to Opeth
than to Ricky Martin. Well, I don’t know. Maybe. We really like Opeth and
also the bands Opeth likes (such as Progressive Rock bands from the 70’s,
Camel for example) so we also like to write not only simple structured
songs but also musical trips or epics. Our music requires to be listened
carefully; this is not something to dance on or easygoing music to wake
you up in the morning. That’s something we share with Opeth.
6. OK SHALL WE TALK A BIT ABOUT THE LYRICS? WHICH
IS THE THEME OF EACH SONG THAT YOU HAVE INCLUDED HERE? IN GENERAL WHAT
KIND OF THINGS, INSPIRE YOU TO WRITE?
The lyrics of the song “Kadavreski” are actually
a “cadavre exquis” so I better not try to tell you what they mean as a
whole. I have my own opinion about it but it’s just mine. Get yours. As
for the other songs, “Print Of The Sand Glass” speaks about how time is
passing by, leaving only some traces of people who were there before. “All
Is Cyclical” is dealing with the cyclical nature of things, how things
are repeating endlessly and so on. “Weight Of The Feather” is inspired
from Egyptian mythology. Usually the themes of the lyrics are decided together
with the concept (or lack of concept) of an album. “Talvi” was mainly about
winter, “Arcanes” was about personal states of mind, “Dystopia” was about…
dystopia.
7. YOU HAVE ALREADY RELEASED 3 ALBUMS. HAVE YOU
EVER COMPOSED A SONG THAT YOU FELT WAS A “FILLER”, BUT TURNED OUT TO BE
A SUCCESS?
There’s a song on our debut album “Arcanes”
called “Meaningless” (which was not supposed to be a filler) that could
have been removed from the album because it’s not as good as the other
songs. Since “Dystopia” we, of course, put to trash anything that isn’t
worth featuring on an album. But this song didn’t turn out to be a success.
8. FROM THE BIO THAT I READ I REACHED TO THE CONCLUSION
THAT YOUR ARE NOT A COMMERCIAL FRIENDLY BAND. FOR EXAMPLE YOU USED TO HAVE
A FEMALE SINGER, BUT WHEN IT BECAME TOO TRENDY YOU QUIT USING FEMALE VOCALS.
DIDN’T YOU EVER HAVE PROBLEMS WITH YOUR LABEL FOR SUCH AN ATTITUDE? I MEAN
DIDN’T THEY PUSH YOU TO BECOME MORE COMMERCIAL?
Actually things didn’t really happen this
way but that doesn’t matter. The label does communicate on the fact that
we are different and that we make artistic choices and not commercial choices.
So there’s no problem on that field at all. We have no problem with selling
records, as far as the music is good and honest.
9. IMAGINE THAT YOU HAVE THE MONEY TO SHOOT AN
EXPENSIVE VIDEO–CLIP. WHICH SONG OF YOURS WOULD YOU CHOOSE TO VISUALIZE
AND HOW DO YOU IMAGINE IT?
On a personal level, I don’t like video clips.
I think it really sucks. Anyway, I guess “Weight of the feather” could
be a nice choice. It’s a straightforward song, it’s short enough and that
could maybe work to put the lyrics, which are a piece of Egyptian mythology,
into motion pictures. If you know the lyrics, this is quite easy to imagine,
isn’t it? But I’m sure it would suck in the end, just as any video
clip!
10. THERE IS A SONG ON YOUR ALBUM WITH THE TITLE
“ALL IS CYCLICAL” WHICH TALKS ABOUT HOW LIFE REPEATS ITSELF. HOWEVER A
GREEK PHILOSOPHER SAID THAT A MAN CAN’T ENTER IN THE SAME RIVER TWICE.
HOW DO YOU COMMENT THAT?
The song is about cycles, not only about life.
Night and day, seasons, birth and death, years, and so on… There are cycles
in a human life as well but, as you said, on a philosophical level one
can also say that things are never repeated twice. You can do twice the
same thing but as you do them in different moments in time, this thing
you did again is a different one. Actually these lyrics are not supposed
to teach you some kind of truth, they are only contemplative.
11. WILL YOU DO ANY LIVE SHOWS? DO YOU THINK THAT
ANTHEMON’S MUSIC CAN BE LISTENED BY A BIG AUDIENCE OR IS IT MUSIC THAT
SOMEONE HAS TO LISTEN TO AND EXPERIENCE ON HIS OWN?
We didn’t do any shows for “Kadavreski”, for
some reasons. Loïc is no longer part of the band, Ludovic fell ill
and we also decided to work quickly on the next album. Somehow it’s a bit
disappointing because we really would have liked to play the entire “Kadavreski”
song on stage. But I’m sure we’ll do it in the near future. As for the
second part of your question, my answer is: I don’t know. I think our music
works quite well on stage but in my opinion it’s better when the audience
already knows the music.
12. LET’S LIGHT UP A BIT THE INTERVIEW. LORDI
A HARD ROCK/HEAVY METAL BAND FROM FINLAND WON THE EUROVISION CONTEST. CAN
YOU IMAGINE YOURSELVES PARTICIPATING IN THE NEXT CONTEST OR IN SOMETHING
SIMILAR? WHAT KIND OF SONGS WOULD YOU WRITE?
Why not, that could be funny… On the other
hand, it’s a bit stupid… Well, ask me again when we get selected, ok? We
would play either something really complicated or something brutal; something
that would let people in front of their TV say: “I never knew such music
existed!”
13. THANKS FOR YOUR TIME REPLYING THESE QUESTIONS!
HOPE I DIDN’T TIRE YOU. YOU HAVE THE HONOR TO CLOSE THIS INTERVIEW AS YOU
WANT…
Thank you for the interview. Please check
Anthemon’s website: www.anthemon.com
Cheers!
Nick “William_Kidd”
Parastatidis
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