Running with the sounds of VAGH

VAGH

VAGH IS A TRUE EXAMPLE OF WHAT YOU CAN DO IF YOU HAVE DREAMS AND BELIEVE IN YOUR OWN POWERS AND TALENT. THIS IS THEIR FIRST OFFICIAL ALBUM AND THE DELIVER US A WELL PLAYED AND PERFORMED HAR DROCK/HEAVY METAL. THEIR MUSIC IS ROOTED TO THE PAST, BUT ALSO CARRIES INSIDE A BREATH OF FRESHNESS. IT'S REALLY STRANGE THAT SUCH A BAND HASN'T FOUND A CONTRACT YET.

1.GIVE US A SHORT BAND BIO AND NAME THE CURRENT LINE UP. WHICH DO YOU THINK IS THE BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT IN YOUR CAREER?

The project VAGH was born september 2000. I was fed up with the fact that AOR –music and heavy metal was totally neglected in Swedish media. I decided to make a statement in favour for the music I loved. I recorded some demosongs that I got great response on urging me to record a CD. On the demo I did everything myself. I sang and I played the guitar and keyboards. Bass and drums were programmed on the computer. So for the CD I started to gather great musicians around me. This lineup was put together summer 2001. Jan-Åke Jönsson ( bass ) and Anders Rosell ( drums ) is a real tight backline and Tom Rask is a very talented keyboardplayer. The vocals are amazingly handled by Jonas Blum and Noomi Strågefors. I´m glad I had the chance to work with them. Of course, “Sands of time “ is the peak of the career. So far J.

2.WHY DID YOU USE YOUR LAST NAME AS A MONICKER FOR THE BAND? MAYBE IS THIS A WAY OF TELLING THE FANS THAT THIS IS YOUR OWN BAND / YOUR OWN WORK? DON’T YOU THINK THIS IS A BOT EGOISTIC, CAUSE THIS WAY YOU ARE PRESENTING ONLY YOURSELF WITHOUT GIVING ANY RECOGNITION TO THE REST? DON’T THEY MIND?

Well, VAGH is actually a project. The truth is that I have invested almost 15 000 Euros to record and promote “Sands of time”. Since all the songs on the CD was already written I hired some great musicians to make this dream come true. Maybe it´s a bit egoistic to call the project VAGH, but that´s a name as good as anything I thinkJ. Besides that I don´t agree with you saying I´m not giving the others recognition. I`m always telling everyone who wants to listen how talented these guys are. Visit www.vagh.net and you´ll find shorter bios on everyone in the project. In the future I´m going to add more people to the project in order to make it even more exciting. Of course we would like to feel as a real band, but since I´m the one paying for everything I call the shots. Hopefully we can interest a label for the future work. Then the situation would change a bit.

3.THE ALBUM IS VERY GOOD AND IT’S SOMETHING THAT WE DON’T GET OFTEN THE CHANCE TO LISTEN TO FROM SWEDEN. I THINK THAT EUROPE MUST BE A GREAT INFLUENCE IN YOUR MUSIC. WHICH OTHER BANDS INFLUENCED YOUR MUSIC?

Good thing you like the CD. Of course Europe and Treat has influenced my songwriting. I really like the Scandi style of melodic hardrock and the way the melodies are used. I love catchy hooks to sing along with. In the earlier days I listened to all kinds of hardrock and AOR. All the guys in the project really grew up with NWoBHM, American AOR, German metal and Scandi typed metal / hardrock. And everything started with Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath.

4.YOUR TECHNICAL SKILLS ARE VERY GOOD. HAVE YOU DONE ANY STUDIES ON YOUR INSTRUMENTS? WHICH GREAT GUITARISTS MADE YOU REALIZE THAT YOU WANTED TO LEARN TO PLAY THE GUITAR?

The other guys in the project are well trained on their instruments, but I´m all self learned. Learning how to play the guitar was simply essential to be able to write songs. I have always wanted to write songs. I started in my younger years. I´ve listened to all the great guitarists throughout the years, and probably I ´ve been influenced by all of them. Blackmore, Iommi, Vandenberg, Gary Moore etc, etc. Eddie Van Halen and Yngwie Malmsteen, for example, are so extremely skilled they just give you a complex, ha ha…

5.HOW DO YOU COMPOSE YOUR SONGS? DOES YOUR MIND OR YOUR PASSION LEADS YOU AND GUIDES YOU WHILST COMPOSING? GIVE US SOME INFO ON THAT.

I think it´s my mind leading me when I write a song. But I would like to think that it is passion driving me to keep composing songs. I love writing a good song ! There´s got to be a kind of catchy hook somewhere in the song. Often it´s in the chorus, but sometimes the bridge is an even stronger part of the song. I´m not into music you have to listen to for three or four weeks to discover what´s really there. I like the music to be direct. Of course there´s exceptions from the rule, but that´s just bonus.

6.NOW TELL ME A FEW THINGS REGARDING YOUR NEW ALBUM. IS THIS YOUR DEBUT? WHAT KIND OF THEMES DO YOU LIKE TO “HURT” THROUGH YOUR LYRICS?

Yes, this is the real debut. I have only done some demorecordings in the past. Regarding the lyrics there´s of course a fair share of “heartache and pain” but I´m really into anti-drugs, anti-racism, and anti-capitalism. We´re currently working on a new demo and I really think the lyrics have improved a lot. Mainly thanks to the great lyricist Björn Ledelius.

7.HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE VAGH, AS A TEAM OF MUSICIANS THAT RECOLLECT THE PAST OR AS AN ACTIVE FORCE THAT TRIES TO GIVE THE METALHEADS A PUSH TO DISCOVER THE HARD ROCK AND HEAVY METAL LEGENDS OF THE ‘70S AND ‘80S?

Basically we´re just composing and playing the music we all love. If that will help people discover the legends from earlier days that would be great. Many of them are touring again, and they deserve all the credit they can get for bringing this good music to us in the past. I also think that there´s a lot of people our age who have been missing this kind of music the last 10 or 15 years.

8.YOUR COVER ARTWORK IS GOOD, THOUGH IT’S A LITTLE BIT DARK FOR THE KIND OF MUSIC YOU ARE PLAYING. WHO IS THE DESIGNER? DOES IT HAVE ANY CONNECTION WITH THE MUSIC OR THE LYRICS OF THIS ALBUM?

The artwork is done by Mattias Norén at www.progart.com and he´s very talented. I think the cover symbolizes “Sands of time”. Time is constantly running and there´s nothing you can do about it. Time flies and you get older, but good old hard rock will always be out there.

9.WHICH ARE THE THINGS THAT YOU LIKE AND WHICH ARE THE THINGS YOU HATE IN THE SWEDISH METAL SCENE AND WHY?

The Swedish metal scene is getting better and better every day as a matter of fact. In these last 2 or 3 years many band has getting more attention in media in general. Bands like IN FLAMES, EVERGREY, HAMMERFALL, DREAM EVIL and LOST HORIZON. Also the AOR scene is getting some attention and that´s great. So I´m confident for the future of Swedish metal. I´m not into that hate thing, but of course I was frustrated some years ago when there was a dark period for my kind of music. I think that new stuff is good for the younger generations. I think you have to got a kind of music to call your own.

10.LET’S PLAY A GAME. I WANT YOU TO TELL ME HOW YOU IMAGINE GOD AND DEVIL TO BE. WHICH SONG OF YOURS WOULD YOU DEDICATE TO GOD AND WHICH TO THE DEVIL?

Ah, that´s a tricky one. I never think in those terms. I really don´t like that religious stuff. Religion has often been a burden for people. I think that many things within the fantasy-genre is just a joke on religion.I think that money is the image of evil for me.

11.IF YOUR MUSIC WAS AN EMOTION, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

I hope it´s inspiration. Inspiration to sing along, to take up guitarplaying or composing. Maybe even gigging. You ´re never too old, you know... For me it´s mostly relaxation. I think it´s great to be down in my demo-studio composing or recording songs.

12.YOU ARE GRANTED ONE WISH. WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE IN THE WORLD?

Of course I would try to make things easier for people to get along with each other.I think music could bring people closer together.

13.WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU WEREN’T ABLE TO INVOLVE IN ANY WAY WITH MUSIC?

I´m working in a factory producing foodwrappings , so I would probably do the same thing without the music.

14.WHAT TITLE WOULD YOU LIKE THIS INTERVIEW TO HAVE?

Running with the sounds of VAGH, maybe….

15.THANK YOU! HAVE I FORGOTTEN TO ASK YOU ANYTHING AND YOU’D LIKE TO MENTION?

Thanks to you too. I only want to inform that we are recording a new demo / promo right now and it´s gonna be great ! I Also want to invite everyone to our website www.vagh.net Feel free to leave a mess in our guestbook !

NIKOS "William_Kidd" PARASTATIDIS

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