SEVEN SERAPHIM

It is a common knowledge, I believe, that Progressive and Neoclassical metal are the most demanding genres in Heavy Metal Music. They demand a perfect knowledge of the instruments tou play. SEVEN SERAPHIM from U.S. are bold enough to combine these 2 genres and surprise us with the quality of their debut album. Andrew Szucs is one of the coolest and very kind guitar virtuosos. A guy that we could talk for hours cause he has many to say. By the way He also earn our respect cause he knows many things about heavy metal music. Well ladies and gentlemen here is Andrew from SEVEN SERAPHIM...

1. Hello! First of all point out the most important moments of the band's history and introduce yourselves...
  • Hello! Well, I'd have to say that both recording the debut CD,and Signing with Scarlet Records have been the major points so far for Seven Seraphim. Stefano and Filippo at the record label have been really great to work with. The CD features Greg Hupp (vocals), Christian Simpson (bass), Brian Harris (drums) and myself, Andrew Szucs (guitars).
2. Is the genre of neoclassical metal well known in the U.S. or do you think that it is the fate of every great guitarist to have one band of that kind in his career?
  • Neoclassical and prog music is still pretty underground in the US -not too many people here are aware that those styles of music exist. Dream Theater is probably the main exception--they do really well in the US, tour-wise, however most actual neoclassical bands are very new to audiences here, and haven't developed a strong fan base that will pay money to go see them perform. I think if there could be some sort of TV promotion for neoclassical bands, we might start to see the fan base grow here in the States. As it stands right now, though, most people here don't know much about them. For example, I recently saw Symphony-X headline a show at a club that normally holds about 400 people, and about 60 kids showed up. The band was very professional about it, but, I think Symphony-X and other neoclassical bands realize that they're going to have to do tours a few more times here in the US in order to get a scene going for themselves like they have in Europe. As it stands now, people really just don't know too much about this type of music. I think if more Americans were informed about it, there would be a much larger fan base.
3. You seem to have many euro-power influences in your music from bands like Stratovarius and of course the neoclassical hero of all Yngwie Malmsteen. Who would you say influenced you the most? I would say euro-power in riffs and Malmsteen in soloing.
  • Wow. Influences are always tough for me to talk about because I have so many. As far as European metal goes, I grew up playing Yngwie-style stuff (age 12-14), and then later got into Helloween, Gamma Ray, and other European metal bands. As for who influenced me the most, well, it's tough for me to say. Early on, when I was about 12-13 years old, I did spend about a year of only listening to Yngwie--nothing else, so that really made a strong impression on me as far as how I like to play metal. At that time, no other bands or musicians that I knew of were playing classically influenced metal, so instead of listening to grunge, I just listened to Yngwie until I heard some other bands doing similar stuff. Since then, I have been influenced by so many bands, players, composers and genres--it's difficult for me to say who has influenced me the most. It might help me to answer your question by listing some of my influences:

    •           Euro Bands and general rock/metal bands: Yngwie, Conception, Crimson Glory, Loudness, TNT, Masquerade, Royal Hunt, Gamma Ray, Angra, Helloween, Glory, Kamleot, Elegy, Blue Murder, Whitesnake, Blind Guardian, Queensryche, Symphony-X, Meshuggah, Uli John Roth, T-Ride, Extreme, Journey, Lincoln Brewster, Judas Priest, Eric Johnson, Jason Becker, and Ozzy 
              Classical: F. Schubert, J. Sibelius, G.F. Handel, J.S. Bach, N. Paganini, A. Schoenberg 
              Jazz: Django Reinhardt, Eric Dolphy, Charlie Parker, Johnny Smith, Howard Roberts, Hank Garland, Pat Martino, Herb Ellis, Ben Monder, Kurt Rosenwinkle, Adam Rogers, Maria Schneider, David Fiuczynski, Josh Roseman, Art Tatum, Wes Montgomery, George Benson, Nat King Cole, Scott Henderson/Tribal Tech, and Gonzalo Rubalcaba
4. Of course the solos are extraordinary but you also have very good ideas for riffs that leave the non-guitarist listener to "breathe" and enjoy the music. Do you think that solos alone can save the day for an album with mediocre riffs?
  • Thank you very much for your nice compliments--I really appreciate them! As far as soloing goes, and as much as I like to do it, I have to say that I think even the best guitar solo in the world can't save a bad song. Really, I enjoy soloing, but I don't put as much work into that, as I do with trying to come up with strong chord progressions, melodies, orchestrations, riffs, and lyrics that I like. To me, that's what makes a good album. Really, I think most people are listening to the songs--musicians and non-musicians alike. The solo can be a nice diversion; almost like an interesting subplot in a story, but in the end, it's always the main plot, or in this case, the actual song that drives the work of art home in peoples minds.
5. The guitar playing although being based on the Malmsteen model, also has many other elements in it from jazz, power metal, poser, traditional heavy metal, progressive etc. Is this done to create a bigger variety of sounds within an already set way of playing?
  • Hm, I don't know, really. I didn't set out to consciously combine all of those styles--basically, I just tried to write/record the sounds that I heard in my head. Growing up, I listened to recordings from most of those genres (I don't think I listened to much "Poser," though), and after a long time of having those influences swimming around in my mind, this is what came out.
6. Are you a classic music fan as well? Songs like "Song Blaque" show that you are!
  • Wow, thanks! I consider that a very high complement. Yeah, I've always loved classical music: almost every style and genre from symphonies, to chamber music, opera, and even 12 tone/atonal music.
7. The singer has an excellent voice but not really different from what we usually hear (not necessarily a bad fact) for that type of music. This type of vocals really match with the music and is already successfully tested but do you think that there should be some experimentations in that sector as well?
  • Hm, well, I think Greg actually sounds pretty unique in terms of singers of classically influenced metal. To me, he has some bluesier/dirtier qualities, as well as some AOR qualities to his voice that singers in this genre tend not to explore too much. As far as experimentations go, I'm always in support of that. I think there is actually a lot of unexplored territory in this genre that's still waiting to be discovered.
8. Jazz seems to also have a special role in your music! Why do you have those pure jazz parts in your songs?
  • Wow, I'm glad you picked up on that. Yeah, I actually graduated from college with my performance degree in Jazz/Studio Guitar. Up until I decided to pursue my dream of just playing metal, the majority of gigs I had played were either traditional jazz or jazz-fusion gigs, so some of those experiences naturally filter their way into my music.
9. The production sounds a bit old fashioned. Was it something you pursued in order to make the hearing more classic?
  • Hm, well, it probably sounds that way to you, because that's how we recorded it. We didn't use computers for recording and mixing, which is the norm nowadays. Since those resources weren't available to us at the studio, we ended up recording and mixing the old fashioned way: just riding the faders on a mixing console.
10. Is your name showing a religious state-of-mind for the band? The album name also does! (Believe In Angels). Do you believe in angels?
  • In my own life, my spiritual beliefs have definitely helped me out a lot, but I wouldn't say that the songs on the album are very religious. I mainly chose the name "Seven Seraphim" because I liked the positive connotations of the name, as well as its mystical qualities. Not much is known about Seraphim angels, but they are traditionally associated with music, so I really liked that combination of positivity, mysticism, and music. I mainly chose the album title because I liked how it worked with the band name, but I think that God does make use of helpers, so, yeah I would say that I believe that angels exist.
11. What does the cover exactly show? A bound angel? Will he be free if we believe in him?
  • Hehehehehe!!!! That's some funny stuff--I like that a lot. Actually, to be honest, I don't really know what the cover is about. An Irish artist named Niall Parkinson designed it. Even though I'm not too sure, myself, of what everything represents, I think he did a really good job.
12. Which song would you dedicate to the woman of your dreams?
  • Wow, what a question! For now, I'd have to say musically, but not lyrically, I'd dedicate "The Rain Keeps Falling (Thru Rose Coloured Glass)."
13. Which is your top 5 cd list for this year?
  • Top 5, wow. I haven't really bought that many CDs that came out this year, but here are some that I have heard and think are good 
  •                                      
  •                                      Dream Theater - Train of Thought
  •                                      TNT - Give Me a Sign
  •                                      Helloween - Rabbit Don't Come Easy
  •                                      Stimulator - S/T
  •                                      The Darkness - Permission to Land
14. If your music were an emotion, what would it be? If it were a painting, what would it show?
  • Woah, tough questions. Well, I try to cover as many different emotions as I can in my music, so I don't think I could pick just one to describe it. As for a painting, well, I don't know what it would look like, exactly, but I can tell you that it would definitely have to be something that was painted at night and would show us how to find "hidden treasures" . . . (--"Song Blaque") : )
15. Thank you! Have I forgotten to ask you anything and you'd like to mention?
    Well, thanks a lot for asking such challenging and well thought out questions. I really appreciate your interest, and many thanks to the Greek fans of Seven Seraphim. I really appreciate all of your support, and hopefully one day we will see each other at a Seven Seraphim gig in Greece. My kindest regards to everyone at Behind The Veil and its loyal  readers. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
George "Volt" Tasis
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