Majeste
Simphonia
Majeste Simphonia is a
new Greek black/gothic band that has recently released a two track promo
CD, preparing us for the best there is in this genre. The band has both
future goals and potential, so read below the chat I had with Pantelis
(synths) and Panos (vocals) and make sure you support these newcomers!
1. HELLO THERE AND CONGRATULATIONS ON “TRAGENDA
DRAMATICA! IT’S UNBELIEVABLY PROFESSIONAL AND GREAT!!!
Panos: Hello Christine, first of all thank
you for your kind words. Well, this promo is the result of our hard work
and our never ending devotion to music that we like.
2. SO, MAJESTE SIMPHONIA DERIVED FROM BLACK WINTER,
HOWEVER SINCE THESE ARE TWO TOTALLY DIFFERENT BANDS, I’D LIKE YOU TO GIVE
US A SHORT BAND BIO OF MAJESTE SIMPHONIA. PLEASE ALSO INTRODUCE THE CURRENT
LINE UP TO THE READERS.
Panos: After deciding to put Black Winter
on ice, two other members of Black Winter and I decided to form a gothic/black
metal band. Three more people joined the band, adding the finishing touches
to what is known as Majeste Simphonia. After the recordings of “Tragenda
Dramatica” Haris (guitar) and George (synths) left the band, and a new
member Pantelis (synths) joined. So the current line-up is:
Panos ~ vocals
Aris ~ guitar
Leandros ~ bass
Pantelis ~ synths
Spyros ~ drums
3. SO, WHICH ARE THE MAIN DIFFERENCES AND SIMILARITIES
BETWEEN MAJESTE SIMPHONIA AND BLACK WINTER? WHAT I MEAN IS WHY DID YOU
FORM ANOTHER BAND? WHICH DIFFERENT ARTISTIC NEEDS DOES EACH BAND FULFILL
TO YOU?
Panos: First of all, it needs to be cleared
that Majeste Simphonia is a totally different band from Black Winter. Of
course, the three out of five members of Black Winter play in Majeste Simphonia
thus the musical, lyrical, and generally the whole concept of Majeste Simphonia
is different. The main reason, Majeste Simphonia was formed, was
to fulfill other parts of our musical preferences and needs. Black Winter
is totally a black metal band, while Majeste Simphonia represent other
elements filled with gothic aesthetics.
4. IF YOU WERE ASKED TO WRITE A REVIEW FOR “TRAGENDA
DRAMATICA”, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TRYING TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS POSSIBLE? IN
OTHER WORDS, WHY SHOULD THE METALLERS CHECK YOU OUT? WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO
OFFER TO THEM?
Pantelis: I would say that it’s a very good
first work, leaving many promises for an even better future. The two pieces
of “Tragenda Dramatica” harmonize beautifully the anger of black metal
with the sadness and the dark emotional themes of the gothic culture. The
production and the artwork of “Tragenda Dramatica” can only be described
as professional. Everyone who likes this kind of music should give us a
listen.
5. WHY DID YOU NAME YOUR PROMO CD “TRAGENDA DRAMATICA”?
ISN’T IT A BIT OF AN EXAGGERATION SINCE THAT BOTH TRAGEDY AND DRAMA HAVE
A QUITE SIMILAR MEANING? WHAT’S ITS PURPOSE?
Panos: I do not really think that it’s an
exaggeration. People who have not experienced both drama and tragedy, cannot
fully comprehend the difference... It is a vast personal meaning that a
few can comprehend…
6. GIVE US SOME INFO ON YOUR RECORDING SESSIONS.
ARE YOU SATISFIED BY THE FINAL RESULT OR IS THERE ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO
CHANGE? ACTUALLY IF YOU ASK ME, I THINK THAT EVERYTHING WAS DONE IN AN
EXTREMELY PROFESSIONAL WAY THAT DOESN’T “GIVE AWAY” NOT FOR A SECOND THAT
YOU ARE A GREEK UNDERGROUND BAND. HOW DID YOU ACHIEVE THIS?
Panos: “Tragenda Dramatica” was recorded at
Rock Sound Studios in Thessaloniki, with sound engineer George Brigos,
and producer Miltos Delibaldas. At the time, I would not like to see our
sound change, because the quality is already very high. I don’t really
think that a Greek underground band should definitely have good sound quality.
For me the word underground represents more of a movement and a way of
life and not the sound quality of a specific release. To sum up, we achieved
this result with our hard work and our devotion, instead of plain big words
like other bands do.
7. WHAT’S THE BEST AND WHAT’S THE WORST PART IN
YOUR MUSIC, ACCORDING TO YOU? ARE THERE ANY THINGS YOU’D LIKE TO IMPROVE
IN THE FUTURE?
Pantelis: I think the best part of our music
is the atmosphere and the unique way it unites raging black metal parts
with charming and melancholic elements. Thus this also works as a double
edged knife… The whole attempt is not something completely new, and I think
that is the worst part of our music. And, the things I would like to improve…
Well, we may be pretty satisfied with the overall result, but this definitely
does not mean we should stop here. I would like to improve pretty much
everything, so that the next release would be really groundbreaking!
8. HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT OF ADDING ANY NEW ELEMENTS
OR EXPERIMENTING WITH YOUR SOUND? IF YES, WHAT KIND OF SOUNDS/IDEAS WOULD
YOU LIKE TO ADD?
Pantelis: We are discussing a lot about adding
new elements. But at the time, even we don’t know if a new element will
be added to our musical direction. All depend on our inspiration.
I personally would like to add more orchestrations… not instrumental tracks
but more symphonic elements during the flow of the mains tracks.
9. TELL US A FEW THINGS ABOUT YOUR LYRICS. THE
PROMO CD CONTAINS 2 SONGS, “LOVE CRAFT” AND “HYMN”. WHICH BOTH REFER TO
TWO OF THE GREATEST DARK AND HORROR AUTHORS OF ALL TIME, LOVECRAFT AND
EDGAR ALAN POE. HOW DID YOU DECIDE TO DEAL WITH THEM?
Panos: Sorry, but it looks like you have made
a mistake. “Love Craft” has nothing to do with H.P. Lovecraft. It’s only
a union of these 2 words. Specifically the song “Love Craft” refers to
a woman’s death and to the lamentations and crafts of her lover.
“Hymn” is a narration of Edgar Allan Poe’s
poem (hymn). E.A. Poe is a poet that influenced us in one or another way…
10. MORE SPECIFICALLY “HYMN” IS A POEM THAT POE
WROTE. WITH WHAT CRITERIA DID YOU CHOOSE THIS SPECIFIC POEM? WHAT DOES
IT SAY AND WHAT DOES IT STAND FOR TO YOU?
Pantelis: In the beginning, the music of “Hymn”
was composed as an instrumental track. But the melody reminded us of E.A.
Poe’s work, so it was a challenge and a desire to name this track “Hymn”,
and actually make it the narration of “Hymn” by Edgar Allan Poe. It’s up
to the listeners to judge whether the narration is successful or not.
11. HAVE YOU SENT YOUR DEMO TO ANY LABELS? ARE
YOU UNDER NEGOTIATION WITH ANY OF THEM? I’M PRETTY SURE THAT YOU’LL FIND
SOON ENOUGH A DEAL, HOWEVER DO YOU SEARCH FOR CERTAIN THINGS IN ORDER TO
SIGN WITH A LABEL?
Pantelis: So far we are mostly interested
in reviews. Of course in the near future we are planning to start sending
it to labels, we just want some reviews in order to gain some recognition.
After that we shall start sending our promo to various labels.
12. WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK HAVE YOU RECEIVED TILL
NOW? WHAT WAS THE MOST FLATTERING AND WHAT THE WORST COMMENT YOU’VE RECEIVED?
Pantelis: Most of the feedback we received
till now was positive. We cannot really find a negative point to the reviews…
only that it’s duration is kind of short.
13. HAVE YOU GOT ANY PLANS FOR LIVE SHOWS? WHAT
SHOULD THOSE ATTENDING YOUR LIVE SHOWS EXPECT TO SEE?
Panos: I believe that the time for live shows
is yet to come. Our main target is to work on the tracks of our first full
length release. So, it’s generally too early to start speaking about our
live shows and what to expect to see. But we promise that it will definitely
be something dark and eerie…
14. WHAT DOES YOUR MUSIC STAND FOR? WHAT KIND
OF EMOTIONS OR THOUGHTS DO YOU WANT TO CREATE TO YOUR LISTENERS?
Pantelis: The name of our promo CD, “Tragenda
Dramatica” implies it all… Drama and Tragedy, melancholy and despair, are
some of the emotions our music represents…. Everything else is up to the
listeners everyone can always give a different meaning to our music and
feel something else... After all it’s not all about drama and tragedy don’t
forget that most of all it’s metal!
15. LET’S SUPPOSE THAT YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO INVITE
FAMOUS MUSICIANS TO PARTICIPATE IN YOUR LIVE SHOWS. WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE
AND WHY?
Panos: Tristania, Moonspell, Cradle of filth,
those are some bands that we would love to share the same stage with. The
reason is simple, our musical direction is close to theirs…
16. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF THERE WAS NO MUSIC IN
THE WORLD? HOW WOULD YOU CHANNEL ALL YOUR CREATIVE ENERGY?
Pantelis: That sounds like a nightmare to
me… Maybe I’d be drawing or sculpting or…. Inventing music!!! Or
there would be no sound at all?
17. BY THE WAY, TELL US YOUR FUTURE PLANS WITH
BLACK WINTER…
Panos: In the middle of February we are planning
to record one track which shall be called “In Cosmic Installation” and
it will be released in a split 7’ with Nethescerial. And we also have two
live shows in our plans, one in Athens on 10th March and the other in Sofia,
Bulgaria on 14th April.
18. THANK YOU! THESE LINES ARE YOURS SO LEAVE
YOUR MESSAGE TO OUR READERS…
Christine Parastatidou
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