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INTERVIEW
with
Violent Divine
How long have you
been in the music industry?
Oh that's a very long time. I think we all started our individual bands
in our early teens, so together the four of us must have some 50 years
worth of experience - and still love what we do.
What inspired you to create your type of
music?
Basically two eras of glam rock, first in the 70s with Swett, Slade,
Bowie, Kiss - later the LA glam scene with Motley Crue, Poison, Ratt and
of course the sleaze part of it with Guns'n roses and LA Guns. But I
think we're also very inspired by lots of today's rock that is more
versatile than ever because all different genres of rock is alive and
very vital all at the same time. I think the world is in the spirit of
rock this decade :)
Who are your musical influences?
Anything that rocks, basically. It's a mix of abba-esque harmonies,
glimmering pop melodies and a rhythm and guitar riff based hard rock.
And then add anything fitting these criterias from the late 60s until
today. So to mention a few bands: The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led
Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Kiss, Sex Pistols, The Clash, Judas Priest,
Motorhead, Motley Crue, Guns 'n Roses, The Cure, Depeche Mode, Nirvana,
Manic Street Preachers...
hey I could go on forever about this :)
What type of practice schedule do you
have?
Each Sunday at 8pm. That is if
we're not recording or touring of course.
What is your favorite gift ever given to
you by a fan?
Love and affection, I'm tempted to say :) In our experience fans tend to
steal our clothes and then we have to try and get 'em back.
What are your plans tours and festivals
wise this year?
Well we recently did the Mama Trash festival in Helsinki,
Finland and
since that we've been keeping ourselves busy here in Sweden.
We'll be
doing a festival gig in Zarasai, Lithuania
on August 2 and shortly after
that we'll return to Finland
for seconds.
Are you planning on expanding your tours
to the US this year?
Nothing planned at this point. We'd surely love to!
How valuable do you feel internet radio
will be to the future of new
artists?
Internet radio has done great for Violent Divine these past 3 years.
We've had lots of support from on-line radio from all over the world
actually. Besides that POD-shows are great exposure as well. It's a new
great way to discover new music and you don't have to settle for what
the record industry wants you to hear. For bands, it's a revolution in
exposure and freedom.
What is the craziest thing some one has
done to meet you?
Traveling from the other side of the planet to see a band perform seems
crazy enough to me :)
Do you feel a Street Team is vital to
the expansion of new artist fan base?
Definitely! Street teams are very important in lots of ways. They work
to bring attention to the band and the music while the band is on tour,
but perhaps more important is that they help spreading the work about
the band while we're not in their area and keep things going locally.
This is also a great way for fans to get closer to the band, like a fan
club where you're actually a vital part of the success of your favorite
band. And... when you're on tour you have their expertise to guide you
to the best bars and clubs :)
What would you consider your fan base to
be?
From what I know we have quite a broad fan base. From 10 year olds to
their parents. Obviously most fans we meet are from teens to mid 20' but
I guess that's because it's a period in a person's life of lots of
parties and a rock'n roll life style :)
How is your album dong so far?
I think the debut album we released in 2006 did quite allright being a
debut from a swedish band on an independent US
label. We look forward to
release the follow up album later this year...
Do you notice a difference in the
audiences based on the countries?
I think an audience is different more from what king of show you're
doing and they also can vary a lot from city to city. A club gig in a
small town in mid winter is very different from an outdoor festival.
Some say japanese, european and american audiences are very different,
but we've only been in Europe so far so... I wouldn't
know :) Since
we're quite a new band, we've done lots of supporting other bands, which
is a great way to introduce new people to the band.
What's your favorite country to tour in?
Right now, my heart belongs to Finland!
Have you listened to Castlestone Radio?
What do you think about its variety?
Like it a lot actually, but I also have a very broad taste in rock
music. I like almost any kind of rock music with distorted guitars so...
Castlestone is perfect for me.
Could you imagine yourself doing
anything other than what your doing now
career wise?
If so, what would that be?
I guess I'll always be working in the music industry. Once you do I
think it's impossible to imagine doing anything else. I don't know why,
the atmosphere, the community
What inspired themes of your music?
girls girls girls :) eh... I guess human relationship is the main topic
on the next album... at least the darker side of it :)
What process do you use to create a new
song?
Most songs come from Gus, the drummer. He locks himself up in his
bedroom with a cheap guitar, a lousy microphone and a PC. That means
that Gus is creating the song with full arrangement, e-mail it out to
the band for feedback. If we feel it's a Violent Divine song, I go in
and redo the lyrics and then we try it out in rehearsal to make any
necessary adjustments... we're not the type of band to do
"jam-session"
because I guess none of us has that kind of patience :)
Do you feel added pressure as the singer
and songwriter for the band?
Writing songs in Violent Divine is not any pressure since Gus probably
could write like 30 songs in a month's time and most of them would be of
very high standard. Besides that the rest of us have been main
songwriters in previous bands so we're quite relaxed when it comes to
writing songs.
Being a singer in Violent Divine is me being exactly where I want to be
so... no pressure what so ever :) it's more of a pressure going to the
supermarket to pick up a six-pack :)
Who would you like to tour with?
Any band who like to party :) Musically there are so many bands that
we'd love to do shows with ... any of our influences of course. I think
the most important thing is that the bands can be relaxed and hang out
together.
What would be your dream tour?
Right now I think it would be great to do some sort of tour the other
bands in the Mama Trash family. Simply take the concept of the Mama
Trash Fest for a trip around the planet. That would definitely rock.
--
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--:: VIOLENT DIVINE ::--
mail: info@violentdivine.se
web: www.violentdivine.se
Trig: www.trig.com/violentdivine/invite
MySpace: www.myspace.com/violentdivine
Promotion: Jo Sheldon | www.mamatrash.com | mamatrash@mamatrash.com
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