Belyerath
Belyerath is a young band
from Spain with a clever and thought provoking philosophy behind them.
Although the band members are of a young age it's obvious that they have
a lot to offer to the metal scene. The only thing they should do, however,
is clear out the musical direction they want to follow... Russel, the band's
main man and keyboard player had a lot of interesting things to tell us...
1. HELLO, FIRST OF ALL SINCE YOU ARE A
NEW BAND, I WOULD LIKE YOU TO GIVE US IN A FEW WORDS THE STORY OF THE BAND
SO FAR. WHICH DO YOU THINK ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS OF THE GROUP
AND WHY?
WELL, BELYERATH WERE BORN ABOUT 4 YEARS AGO.
OUR FIRST CD IS “THE ETERNAL FIGHT”. WE WANT TO MAKE THE MAXIMUM PROMOTION
FOR THIS CD. THE MOST IMPORTANT MOMENT OF BELYERATH IS WHEN WE PLAYED AT
THE CONCERT “BURGOS EN VIVO” IN OUR CITY.
2. RUSSELL, YOU ARE THE MAIN MAN BEHIND BELYERATH.
SO HOW DIFFICULT WAS IT FOR YOU TO GATHER MUSICIANS? DID YOU KNOW THE GUYS
THAT ARE NOW IN THE BAND BEFORE AS FRIENDS? WAS THERE A MOMENT THAT YOU
WERE ABOUT TO QUIT YOUR DREAM BEFORE EVEN STARTING IT?
IT’S VERY, VERY DIFFICULT TO GET MUSICIANS
IN BURGOS. BURGOS IS A LITTLE CITY AND THERE ARE A FEW PEOPLE. I KNEW DANI
AND MIRIAN BEFORE FORMING BELYERATH, BUT NOT ROBERTO AND SERGIO. MY DREAM
WAS TO RECORD “THE ETERNAL FIGHT” AND I WOULD NEVER STOP UNTIL I COULD
MAKE IT HAPPEN.
3. YOUR ALBUM “THE ETERNAL FIGHT” IS YOUR FIRST
WORK AND ALSO SELF FINANCED. WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO DO SUCH A RISKY THING
AND NOT FOLLOW THE USUAL WAY, WHICH IS THE RELEASING OF A DEMO? IS IT POSSIBLE
TO ATTRACT EASIER THE ATTENTION OF THE LABELS THAT WAY?
IF YOU LIVED IN SPAIN, YOU’D DO THE SAME.
IN SPAIN EVERYTHING’S VERY DIFFICULT FOR AN UNDERGROUND BAND. THIS IS NOT
LIKE HOLLAND OR GERMANY…..IT IS DIFFICULT TO ATTRACT THE ATTENTION OF PEOPLE
BUT I TRY TO MAKE THE MAXIMUM PROMOTION FOR MY BAND, BUT IT’S NOT EASY
IN SPAIN.
4. NOW I WANT YOU TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS YOU
CAN AND TELL ME WHICH THE THINGS YOU LIKE ON YOUR ALBUM ARE AND WHICH THINGS
YOU THINK NEED IMPROVEMENT? WHICH IS THE MAIN ELEMENT THAT YOUR MUSIC HAS
AND CAN MAKE THE METAL FANS LISTEN TO YOU?
THE THINGS I LIKE A LOT IN MY BAND IS THE
SOUND OF MY KEYBOARDS, HAHAHAHAHA! I THINK THE SOUND OF GUITARS MUST IMPROVE.
THE MAIN ELEMENTS? …..THE KEYBOARDS AND THE FEMALE VOICE, OF COURSE.
5. YOU NAME YOUR STYLE AS GOTHIC METAL, HOWEVER
I DON’T TOTALLY AGREE WITH THAT DESCRIPTION. IN MY OPINION YOUR MUSIC IS
MORE COMPLICATED AND IS CLOSER TO HEAVY/POWER METAL. WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO
SAY ABOUT IT?
YES, IT’S TRUE. WELL, MIRIAN AND ME ARE VERY
INFLUENCED BY BANDS LIKE PARADISE LOST, WITHIN TEMPTATION, ELIS, THE GATHERING…
AND THIS IS THE SOUND THAT WE MAINLY TRY TO MAKE, BUT THERE ARE MORE MEMBERS
IN THE BAND AND WE TRY TO PLEASE EVERYONE.
6. WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE MP3’S? IF
YOU SAW SOME PEOPLE DOWNLOADING YOUR ALBUM FROM THE INTERNET HOW WOULD
YOU FEEL? DO YOU THINK THAT THIS ALTHOUGH IT MIGHT SEEM BAD, IN THE END
MIGHT HELP YOU WIN MORE FANS?
UMMMM… IT’S GOOD AND BAD AT THE SAME TIME.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF I KNOW THAT SOMEONE IS DOWNLOADING MY MUSIC, I´M
VERY GLAD ABOUT IT! (THERE ARE A FEW WAYS TO PROMOTE MY BAND) BUT IF I
LIVED OF MY MUSIC, I’D HATE IT, I’D LOSE MONEY. FOR BANDS LIKE METALLICA
OR AC/DC REALITY IS NOT A GREAT PROBLEM, THEY ARE VERY RICH, BUT INTERNET
AND THE DOWNLOADING CAN MAKE BANDS LIKE NOCTURNAL RITES OR NEVERMORE DIE.
7. IS MIRIAN, YOUR SINGER, A CONSTANT MEMBER
OF THE BAND OR JUST A SESSION MUSICIAN? HAS SHE DONE ANY MUSICAL STUDIES?
YES, MIRIAN IS A CONSTANT MEMBER OF THE BAND
AND SHE SINGS IN UNICORNIA TOO. YES, SHE HAS DONE VOCAL STUDIES WITH THE
BEST TEACHER IN BURGOS.
8. MIRIAN IS ALSO MEMBER OF A BAND CALLED UNICORNIA.
WHAT KIND OF MUSIC DO THEY PLAY? IF SHE HAS TO CHOOSE BETWEEN UNICORNIA
AND BELYERATH WHICH WILL BE HER PRIORITY? WHAT DO BELYERATH OFFER TO HER
THAT SHE CANNOT FIND IN UNICORNIA? A DIFFERENT WAY TO EXPRESS HERSELF MAYBE?
I THINK UNICORNIA CREATE GOTHIC METAL, BUT
IT’S IN SPANISH. IT’S SWEETER THAT BELYERATH AND WITHOUT MALE VOCALS. SHE
IS A CONSTANT MEMBER OF BELYERATH BUT HER PRIORITY IS UNICORNIA. I THINK
THAT SHE FORMED UNICORNIA SOME YEARS BEFORE BELYERATH WERE BORN. UNICORNIA
IS HER BAND. BELYERATH DOESN’T OFFER TO MIRIAN ANYTHING THAT SHE DOESN’T
HAVE IN UNICORNIA, BUT WHEN YOU PLAY WITH MANY PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT INFLUENCES,
IT’S BETTER FOR YOU, YOU EARN MORE EXPERIENCE. IN BELYERATH THE MUSIC IS
MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN UNICORNIA, IN BELYERATH SHE SINGS IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE,
ETC. SHE LIKES VERY VERY MUCH THE WORLD OF BANDS, PLAYING, CONCERTS… AND
SHE PERFORMS VERY WELL WITH THE 2 BANDS. SHE IS THE BRAVEST GIRL I’VE EVER
KNOWN, BRAVER THAN MOST MEN.
9. YOU NAMED YOUR ALBUM “THE ETERNAL FIGHT”
WHICH REMINDS ME OF THE WRITER MICHAEL MOORCOCK. SO DID THIS WRITER AND
HIS BOOKS INSPIRE YOU IN A WAY?
NO, NO NO, MICHAEL MOORCOCK NEVER INSPIRED
ME. THE ETERNAL FIGHT SPEAKS ABOUT THE ETERNAL FIGTH BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL.
IT WAS THE CONCEPT WHICH CHISTOPHER VAN BELYERATH SPOKE ABOUT IN HIS DAYS.
HE REALLY INSPIRES ME.
10. THE ORIGINAL THING WITH YOU IS THAT YOU
NAMED THE BAND AFTER A FAMOUS PHILOSOPHER, BELYERATH. WHY DID YOU DO THAT?
CAN YOU TELL US A FEW THINGS ABOUT HIM? WHICH THINGS BELYERATH SAID, EXPRESS
YOU THE MOST?
I NAMED MY BAND “BELYERATH” BECAUSE I FEEL
TOTALLY IDENTIFYING MYSELF WITH HIS PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE. HE WAS A GREAT
MASTER OF OCCULTISM AND ESOTERICISM, OF WHITE AND BLACK MAGIC. YES, HE
USED DIFFERENT FORCES OF THE UNIVERSE. ON THIS TIMES, SAMAEL AUN WEOR CONTINUES
HIS LEGACY. HE WAS A WIZARD, A PHILOSOPHER….AND LIKE ALL THE PHILOSOPHERS,
HE WAS A BIT CRAZY…… SOMETIMES IT’S VERY DIFFICULT TO READ HIS WORDS BECAUSE
THERE ARE A GREAT SYMBOLS HIDDEN, LIKE IN THE BIBLE AND HIS WORDS ABOUT
THE FUTURE OF MANKIND AND THE ETERNAL FIGHT BETWEEN THE FORCES OF GOOD
AND EVIL IN HUMANS ARE MY FAVOURITES. THAT’S WHY THE FIRST ALBUM OF BELYERATH
WAS NAMED “THE ETERNAL FIGHT”. FOR ME HE IS A MASTER OF LIFE, MORE THAN
A GOD!!!
11. THE COVER ARTWORK OF YOUR ALBUM IS FANTASTIC.
WHO IS THE ARTIST THAT PAINTED IT? HOW IS THE ARTWORK CONNECTED WITH YOUR
MUSIC?
THE ARTWORK IS BY MICHAEL SCHINDLER (MOTORHEAD,
MYSTIC CIRCLE, GRAVEWORM….). WELL, WHEN WE DECIDED WE WANTED MICHAEL TO
DO OUR ARTWORK, WE VISITED HIS WEB AND WE CHOSE THIS PICTURE BECAUSE IT’S
OF ALL THE PICTURES WE SAW THE MOST CHARACTERISTIC AND THE CLOSEST TO THE
NAME OF THE ALBUM (YOU CAN SEE A WARRIOR FIGHTING) AND IT WAS FANTACTIC
PICTURE FOR US.
12. SAVVAS OF KINETIC SENT ME A PROMO COPY
OF YOUR ALBUM, SO CAN YOU TELL ME WHICH THE RELATIONS BETWEEN YOU ARE?
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT KINETIC’S MUSIC?
WELL, WE TRADED COPIES WITH KINETIC. NOW I´M
TRYING TO PROMOTE KINETIC IN SPAIN. I THINK KINETIC IS A FANTACTIC AND
VERY, VERY GOOD BAND. THEIR SOUND IS LIKE DARK TRANQUILLITY AND IN FLAMES
AND I LIKE VERY MUCH THIS SOUND.
13. SO, HOW DID THE PRESS AND PEOPLE RECEIVE
YOUR ALBUM? WHAT WAS THE BEST AND WHAT THE WORST REVIEW THAT YOU READ?
TO RECEIVE MY ALBUM OR KNOW MORE ABOUT BELYERATH
CONTACT ME: “RUSSELL” RAÚL GUERRERO ORTIZ APARTADO DE CORREOS 226-09080
BURGOS-SPAIN, OR BY E-MAIL: [email protected].
GENERALLY, THE REVIEWS ARE GOOD: GOOD CD, BAND WITH FUTURE POTENTIAL,ETC.
BUT THE WORDS OF ONE ZINE OF ITALY ABOUT US…….AARRRGGHH, BUT THE REVIEWS
OF THIS ZINE FOR ALL BANDS ARE BAD, SO..
14. WHAT KIND OF EMOTIONS AND THOUGHTS DO YOU
LIKE TO PROVOKE TO THE LISTENER WITH YOUR MUSIC?
WELL, THE BEST EMOTIONS POSSIBLE, SADNESS
AND HAPPINESS AT THE SAME TIME, MORE HAPPY THAN SAD AND OF COURSE, PHILOSOPHIC
THOUGHTS ABOUT OUR DESTINY, OUR MISTAKES, ABOUT THE POSSIBLE FATE OF THIS
MANKIND….ABOUT THE HIDDEN ETERNAL FIGHT INSIDE US DAY BY DAY…
15. DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR LIVE SHOWS? WILL
YOU TOUR OUTSIDE SPAIN?
WELL, A YEAR AGO WE WERE OFFERED 3 CONCERTS
IN PORTUGAL AND I REFUSED. MOST OF BELYERATH ARE STUDENTS AND ONLY 2 HAVE
THE DRIVING LICENSE. WHEN IN A BAND MOST MEMBERS ARE STUDENTS, ISSUES LIKE
MONEY, DRIVING, GETTING A CAR, ETC ARE VERY DIFFICULT, MAYBE EVEN IMPOSSIBLE.
FOR THE MOMENT THERE AREN´T PLANS TO PLAY OUTSIDE SPAIN.
16. THANK YOU FOR THE INTERVIEW. SO LEAVE A
MESSAGE TO THE READERS OF BEHIND THE VEIL AND SAY WHATEVER YOU LIKE…
THANK YOU NIKOS FOR THIS INTERVIEW. I WANT
TO INVITE EVERYBODY TO LISTEN TO OUR MUSIC. IN THIS INTERVIEW YOU CAN SEE
HOW YOU CAN CONTACT ME AND GET THE CD. IF I CAN HELP SOMEONE OR ANY BAND,
YOU KNOW WHERE I AM AND THANK YOU FOR READING THIS BELYERATH INTERVIEW.
Nick "William_Kidd"
Parastatidis
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