Diecast
Diecast is a band that
impressed me a lot with their latest studio effort “Tearing Down Your Blue
Skies” and being honest here I really think that with the right promotion
they can accomplish great things! I think it's a name that should be carved
in your minds, cause we will hear of them a lot in the future. Why not
after all? They surely deserve it! So, Behind The Veil couldn't lose the
opportunity to ask them a couple of things and here we have the answers
of Jeremy, the band's bassist!
1.CONGRATULATIONS FOR "TEARING DOWN YOUR BLUE
SKIES"! IT'S A GREAT ALBUM FROM EVERY ASPECT, BUT I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT
YOU, THE CREATORS, THINK ABOUT IT NOW...
We have finished the recording and now we
are ready to tour with the new material. We are very proud of the recording
and the songs and can't wait for the world to hear it. But in order to
grow as a band you also need to be critical and learn from any mistakes.
As we start to tour and listen to the record more and more, I'm sure we'll
think of stuff we'd like to improve on next time.
2.WHICH ARE YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENTS AS A BAND?
WHAT HAPPENED TO DIECAST ALL THESE YEARS? BY THE WAY WHY WAS IT SO DIFFICULT
FOR YOU TO FIND A STABLE LINE UP? YOU SUFFERED TILL YOU FIND THE RIGHT
GUITARISTS...
All the lineup changes were tough but this
is the first time we've felt like a fully solid band. Everyone is
on exactly the same page and we are ready to destroy. We had a lot of guitarists
that were great but were not willing to tour, had other bands, or wanted
to make a lot more $$$$$. After they were weeded out we were ready to move
forward.....
3.NOW, LET'S TALK ABOUT THE MUSIC... YOUR SOUND
IS A COMBINATION OF CROSSOVER AND DEATH METAL, ESPECIALLY THE MELODIC ONE.
SO, YOUR MUSIC IS FORGED BY BANDS LIKE PANTERA, SLAYER, AT THE GATES AND
THE HAUNTED. IN FACT, AS I WROTE IN MY REVIEW, WE ARE VERY LUCKY TO HAVE
YOU IN THE METAL SCENE AFTER THE DISBANDING OF PANTERA! ARE YOU AFRAID
OF THE COMPARISON? HOW CAN ALL THESE ELEMENTS BE BLENDED IN YOUR MUSIC
AND YET CREATE A RESULT THAT SOUNDS SO HOMOGENEOUS AND UNIQUE?
It would be impossible to be offended with
any comparison to Pantera. They are our heroes in this band and we are
very flattered you made that comparison. We don't write any of our songs
trying to fit one specific style. We try and make the songs as dynamic
as possible and we match the vocal style to the feel of the riff.
4.I THINK THAT YOU HAVE QUITE A PERSONAL TOUCH
AND YOUR MUSIC IS EASILY RECOGNIZABLE! HOW DID YOU ACHIEVE THIS? WHY DO
YOU THINK SOME BANDS CAN AND OTHERS CAN'T CREATE A PERSONAL PERCEPTION
IN THEIR MUSIC?
Like I said above, I think a lot of bands
try and write songs to fit into one style or label. A lot of bands
are afraid to put melodic singing in songs and are afraid to take a chance
with anything different. We've never been afraid to write a melodic song.
If we like a riff we'll build on it and if it calls for all singing then
we go for it. We also write songs that have no singing in them if that's
what we feel. We go into the song-writing process with an open mind and
I think others may be afraid to do so.
5.WHY DO YOU HAVE A VARIETY OF VOCALS, A WHOLE
RANGE OF VOCAL STYLES IN YOUR MUSIC? WH?? DOES EACH OF THEM OFFER TO THE
MUSIC? WHAT DO THEY EXPRESS? WHEN DO YOU USE THE CLEAN AND WHEN THE BRUTAL
VOCALS? WHAT DO YOU THINK DERIVES AND WHAT DO THE LISTENERS “GET” FROM
THIS CONTRADICTION OF THESE 2 COLLIDING INTERPRETATIONS? BY THE WAY CONGRATULATIONS
TO PAUL, YOUR SINGER, WHO MANAGED TO REMIND US TO THE GOOD OLD ANSELMO
KIND OF VOCALS!
Like I said above we like to make things as
dynamic as possible and we always write the music first then see whether
the riff calls for melodic singing or brutal screaming. I like songs that
bring you through a gamut of emotions.
6.NOW THE LYRICS...I THINK THAT THE ISSUES YOU
DEAL WITH ARE TAKEN FROM REAL LIFE. WHERE DO YOU PLACE YOURSELVES? ARE
YOU PESSIMISTS, OPTIMISTS OR REALISTS? WHY DO YOU THINK ARE HUMANS SO HOSTILE
AND BELLICOSE? THE ALBUM CLOSES WITH THE SONG “REBIRTH”. DID YOU DO THIS
ON PURPOSE, TO PASS A MEANING OF HOPE PERHAPS?
Our singer Paul could better field this question
but I'll do my best. I am actually a pessimist and always seem to assume
the worst in people and in life. I would love to see things get better
but I believe things will get worse and worse. Paul writes his lyrics about
things in our lives that we feel are wrong and also from his own personal
experience.
7.BY THE WAY, WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY ON THE RECENT
HIDEOUS AND ATROCIOUS TERRORIST EVENTS THAT TOOK PLACE IN RUSSIA? DO YOU
THINK THAT FROM NOW ON PEOPLE SHOULD LEARN TO LIVE WITH THE FEAR OF TERRORIST
ATTACKS EVERYWHERE, EVERY MOMENT?
I don't believe that there is anyway to get
rid of terrorism. It's everywhere and there is such a scattered enemy that
it would be a naive statement to say anyone can get rid of it. I just wish
the best for all of our troops and want to see them returned safely. I
also feel for all those who are innocent and who have lost their lives.
8.YOU PLAY A KIND OF MUSIC THAT NEEDS, IN FACT
REQUIRES STABLE RHYTHMS AND A CONCRETE SOUND. YOUR RHYTHM SECTION IS EXCEPTIONAL
INDEED WITH THE DRUMS AND BASS BUILDING A STONE WALL. I AM ALSO AWARE OF
THE FACT THAT YOUR DRUMMER IS GREEK :) AND PREFERS PLAYING BAREFOOTED.
SO, I SUPPOSE HE FEELS WHAT HE PLAYS BETTER. HOW IMPORTANT DO YOU THINK
IT'S FOR A BAND TO REALLY AND TRULY FEEL WHAT THEY PLAY? WOULD YOU SACRIFICE
YOUR INTENSITY AND BRUTALITY IN ORDER TO BECOME MORE FAMOUS?
We all love what we do and devote almost all
our time to this band. If you don't love what you do it will show and you
may as well look for something else. Jason has been playing for almost
20 years and is an amazing musician. He does play barefoot and he also
plays with traditional grip which amazes most people who watch him play.
We would purposely write a song just to become famous. We write songs that
we love and we put the same amount of work into each song. We will always
write brutal music and we will always write melodic parts in our music.
If one of our songs were to make it to the next level it would be song
we were proud of. We have no problem with becoming a larger band, the more
people who hear our music and come out to our shows and hang out, the better.
This is not a hobby, it is our passion and our job.
9.THE COVER ARTWORK IS BEAUTIFUL! WHO CREATED
IT? DID HE LISTEN TO YOUR MUSIC TO DRAW INSPIRATION? WHICH IS THE CONNECTION
BETWEEN THE COVER ARTWORK AND THE ALBUM'S TITLE “TEARING DOWN YOUR BLUE
SKIES”?
Our guitarist Jon designed the U.S. cover.
We wanted something eerie that tied into the album title. I think he captured
this beautifully and we are very proud of the artwork he has done. The
European cover has different artwork that is just as amazing. We are actually
talking about possibly switching it up a bit for the next repress in the
U.S. and using the European artwork over here as well.
10.DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR LIVE SHOWS? WHAT
DO YOU HAVE TO OFFER TO THOSE WHO WILL ATTEND TO YOUR SHOWS? YOU HAVE TOURED
WITH SOME COLOSSAL NAMES OF THE HARD MUSIC. WHO WAS THE FRIENDLIEST AND
MOST HELPFUL TO YOU? WHAT DID YOU EARN FROM ALL OF THEM?
We finally got a banner and stage scrim. They
look amazing and we look forward to getting on stage that much more. We
always put everything we have into our live show and fans should definitely
come and see us. As far as bands we've enjoyed touring with there are so
many. Just to name a few, God Forbid, 36Crazyfists, Hatebreed and Cannae
have all treated us well.
11.IF YOU COULD ADD SOME ELEMENTS AND EMOTIONS
IN YOUR MUSIC, WHICH WOULD THESE BE? IF YOU COULD REDUCE SOME, WHICH WOULD
THEY BE?
I wouldn't change a thing.
12.IF YOU COULD INVITE FAMOUS MUSICIANS TO PARTICIPATE
IN YOUR MUSIC, WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?
I'm not really a big fan of the whole guest
appearance on cd's but some of the guys in my band disagree. I don't like
recording things you can't always reproduce live.
13.IF YOUR MUSIC WERE AN EMOTION, WHAT WOULD IT
BE? IF IT WERE A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD IT SHOW?
I think it would be a whole mixture of things.
Sometimes it would be rage and despair, other times hope. The painting
would actually look like a combination of the European and U.S. album covers.
14.IF YOU COULD BE OR AT LEAST MEET AN IMPORTANT
PERSONALITY FOR A DAY, WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHICH PERIOD OF HIS/HER
LIFE WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE A TASTE OF?
I would have wanted to sit in the vip section
at a Frank Sinatra concert.
15.WHICH WORDS DO YOU THINK CAN DESCRIBE YOUR
MUSIC BETTER? WHAT PHRASE CAN SUM UP IDEALLY THE BAND'S HISTORY AND ESSENCE?
"That which does not kill us only makes us
stronger". We've lost a lot of close friends over the years and it always
seem to be an uphill battle for us. It seems like things are finally starting
to look up but we still have a lot of work to do.
16.THANK YOU! THESE LINES ARE YOURS...
To all our European fans we can't wait to
come over and finally meet you. If you haven't heard our music or seen
us live, don't take my word or anyone else's, just come out and see us
live.....you won't be disappointed.
Christine Parastatidou
|