Funeral
Revolt
Funeral Revolt has managed
to unite in their sound classic and modern aspects of heavy metal and yet
the final result sounds too homogeneous, exactly like it should be! If
you're looking for something different and quite unique, musically speaking,
then I think you should listen to what Funeral Revolt has to offer you.
I don't think you will be disappointed! Here's what Dimitris, the band's
vocalist told us...
1. FIRST OF ALL MY CONGRATULATIONS FOR “THE
PERFECT SIN”!!
Thanks a lot Christina. It is really encouraging
to hear from others that they like our music.
2. PLEASE GIVE US A SHORT BAND BIO BY POINTING
OUT THE GREATEST MOMENTS OF THE BAND’S HISTORY TILL NOW AND INTRODUCE THE
CURRENT LINE UP TO THE READERS…
FUNERAL REVOLT formed back in 1989 in Edessa,
Greece. We used to play a kind of death metal with a gloomy feeling and
we released two demos back in 1990 and 1991, a track for the "Metal Under
Greece" LP compilation (1990), "Burial" MLP for Black Power Records (1993)
and the track "Gaia Yperfialon Athemiston" for a cassete compilation (1994).
Since then FUNERAL REVOLT took part in various underground compilations
and played a lot of gigs. At the end of 1994 the band took the decision
to split up. In the begining of 2003 me (Dimitris) and Jim Tott realised
that there was still open ground for the band along with a lot of fresh
ideas and a common new conception of how the modern metal sound should
be. So, we decided to return with the same line up, with new material,
more experience and a modern image.The band's latest issue is the first
full length album entitled "The Perfect Sin". Our current line up is the
same from the very beginning:
Dimitris: Vocals, Keyboards
Jim Tott: Guitars, Back Vocals
Panos: Bass
Spyros: Drums
Johnny X: Guitars
3. I THINK THAT YOU HAVE MANAGED TO CREATE A QUITE
PERSONAL AND MODERN SOUND. I THINK GIVEN THE RIGHT CHANCE IT WILL OFFER
YOU PLENTY OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK! SO, HOW DO YOU DESCRIBE FUNERAL REVOLT
MUSICALLY SPEAKING?
The most important thing among others is to
express yourself in your own way. Not trying to copy other bands but to
study them and take their best parts as a guide. This is always our guide
line. Believe me there is no room for originality. Everything has been
played several times before by thousands of other bands. But every band
member has to put his soul in the music he makes and that's the trick to
make something stand out of the mass. Now, regarding Funeral Revolt I would
say that our music is a mixture of typical heavy metal, with a plain style,
but decorated with refreshing sounds from the modern music scene and powered
with some really interesting tricks in the production.
4. CAN YOU POINT OUT SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE BANDS
AND ALBUMS? WHO WERE THE MUSICIANS THAT “GUIDED” YOU TOWARDS THIS MUSICAL
PATH?
Well, we started listening to heavy metal
20 years ago since we were only small boys. So, we were raised with bands
such as Iron Maiden, Metallica, Slayer etc. At the same time we listened
to bands from other musical paths such as Dead Can Dance, Depeche Mode,
Fields of the Nefilim or the Mission. The bands and albums from that era
that I really appreciate are Metallica "master of puppets", Morbid Angel
"altars of madness", Paradise Lost " gothic". In general, I could say that
we are influenced by bands such as Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein, Killing
Joke, Accept, Metallica. We always try to unite classical metal forms with
tensions from the modern scene.
5. WHAT KIND OF PROCEDURE DO YOU FOLLOW DURING
THE SONGWRITING PROCESS? ARE THE DECISIONS MADE IN A DEMOCRATIC MANNER
OR NOT? ARE YOU SATISFIED BY THE FINAL RESULT? HOW DIFFICULT IS TO FIND
THE BEST STRUCTURE AND SOUND FOR EACH SONG? ARE THERE TIMES YOU GIVE UP?
Everything starts with a single idea or riff
which has to be memorable and catchy. Then we try to find a certain structure,
different for every song. This structure should emphasize on the unexpected
but also to have a logical flow. After doing the guitar parts it's time
to find the right sounds and melodies in the keyboards. This is the part
where every song is transformed into something we didn't expect it to be.
The last stage is to write the lyrics and record the vocals. After all
we mix the whole result and try to find the best balance between organic
and electronic parts. Every member can put his ideas in the table but final
decisions are made by me and Jimmy Tott. Most of the lyrics are written
by Panos. We are completely satisfied by the final result because we fixed
every possible matter that could bother us. We worked for this album for
almost a year. There were times and that was in the beginning of this procedure,
when trying to find the right style we messed things a lot but everything
seemed a lot clearer after the passage of time. The most important thing
is to be patient in this job, and I have to say that we are.
6. LET’S SUPPOSE THAT YOU HAD TO REVIEW “THE PERFECT
SIN”. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TRYING TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS POSSIBLE? IT’S ALWAYS
INTERESTING TO KNOW THE CREATOR’S POINT OF VIEW.
It is hard to be objective when you have to
deal with soul products such as a musical album. I would say that "The
Perfect Sin" is a soul product reflecting fears or expectations hidden
in the minds of everyone of us. It might be considered as an invocation
to the black star that every man and every woman keeps hidden somewhere
really deep in their souls. It is a fair album not trying to cheat anyone,
it is full of fresh ideas, well executed and performed and it has a variety
of sounds that may astonish many listeners especially of the classic metal
domain.
7. WHAT’S THE BEST AND WHAT’S THE WORST PART IN
YOUR MUSIC, ACCORDING TO YOU? ARE THERE ANY ELEMENTS YOU’D LIKE TO ADD
OR EXPERIMENT WITH IN THE FUTURE?
I think the most important thing in our music
is variety. Variety in sounds, ways of vocal performance and of course
variety in song structures. One thing that I believe is missing from our
music is more up tempo riffs. And that's the reason some people might say
that "perfect sin" is mid tempo oriented and therefore somehow boring.
Of course there are a lot of musical domains we would like to experiment
with in the next albums. One that comes to mind right now is traditional
instruments or even ancient ones. Something like Daemonia Nymphe's way
of experimentation. A possible collaboration with that band would be great.
8. NOW, TELL US WHICH THE MAIN TOPICS IN YOUR
LYRICS ARE AND HOW IMPORTANT ARE LYRICS FOR YOU. WHICH ARE YOUR SOURCES
OF INSPIRATION?
As I mentioned earlier Panos is responsible
for lyrics and he has a very esoteric way to express himself. Every song's
music is something like a guide line for him. Every emotion generated by
each song is transformed into words in the paper. Every imaginery picture,
every rythmic pulse gives birth to a very certain syllable which in turn
is compiled to words and phrases. Everyone can think of these lyrics and
make them his or hers. Everyone can find himself struggling in every song's
story. Lyrics are a great part in Funeral Revolt's music and they function
more as a signal or a password for each song. Sources of inspiration are
movies, books, human relations and behaviours and life in general.
9. PLEASE DESCRIBE THE COVER ARTWORK, TELL US
WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR IT AND HOW IS IT CONNECTED TO THE ALBUM TITLE. DID
YOU TELL THE ARTIST HOW YOU WANTED THE COVER TO BE OR IS THIS WHAT HE “RECEIVED”
FROM YOUR MUSIC?
Responsible for the lay out is the "evil one"
Seth Siro Anton. I don't know what he had in his wicked mind when designing
the artwork. We offered him complete freedom in his way of working. I think
the whole lay out is something like an encodement of all the song titles
into one picture. It is rather a simple layout but we really like it because
it unites modern with classical forms.
10. NOW WHAT? WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR FUNERAL
REVOLT? DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR LIVE APPEARANCES?
Now we're trying to promote our work with
any possible way. We have planned some live shows starting this summer
(especially open air festivals) and some others from September and on.
We're giving as many interviews as we can in many magazines as well.
11. WHAT KIND OF FEEDBACK HAVE YOU RECEIVED UP
TO NOW? WHAT WAS THE BEST AND WHAT THE WORST COMMENT FOR YOUR MUSIC?
We receive very positive reactions, beyond
any expectation I have to confess. Many people find our music very personal
and that's really encouraging of course.
12. WHICH ARE YOUR GOALS AND AIMS? WHICH OF THESE
DO YOU THINK YOU CAN MAKE REAL WITH SLEASZY RIDER RECORDS?
Sleaszy Rider is the only label that believed
in our music as it is. Many others were complicated by the electronic parts
and were afraid to work with us. Sleaszy Rider made some very encouraging
steps forward and we are happy helping Tolis to this direction. It's rather
a mutual relation. Our aim is to establish the band's name in all European
and American fans' minds through hard work and succesfull live performances.
13. IF YOUR MUSIC WERE AN EMOTION, WHAT WOULD
IT BE? IF IT WERE A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD IT SHOW?
If I could describe our music with one and
only emotion I would definitely say that this would be pride. If our music
was a painting it would show the cover of the "perfect sin" album!
14. IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO INVITE FAMOUS MUSICIANS
TO PARTICIPATE IN YOUR ALBUM, WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?
I would love to have Lisa Gerrard from Dead
Can Dance singing some choruses in the next album. Also Carl Mc Coy of
Fields of the Nephilim would be as a dream come true. These artists have
really strong personalities and I would let them free to do whatever they
like to decorate the song.
15. THANK YOU! IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE
TO MENTION AND I FORGOT TO ASK YOU?
I think we covered a lot of interesting paths
with this conversation. Thanks a lot once again!
Christine Parastatidou
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