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Interview
Deutsche VersionInterview mit Ashent (30.11.2009)
HH: Hi, how are you?
Gian: Hi Michael, here everything is proceeding in a great way! After 6 months from the release of Deconstructive we are completely satisfied about this album, about our new label and about the audience's feedback, and the sum of these things gives to us a lot of energy in order to create every day new excellent music.
HH: Could you tell us a bit about Ashent, about the deconstructivness of your music, about what you want to present us.
Gian: We formed the band in 2001. Since then we gave light to an EP and 2 full length albums, Flaws Of Elation released in 2006 by the Italian Lucretia records, and Deconstructive, released six months ago by the Finnish Lion Music. Since the very first days we had only a clear idea about the band and about the music that we wanted to play: no genres and no rules. We want to shape our ideas, and believe me, we have a lot of ideas because, first of all, we are music listeners. So you can find growl vocals or high-pitch singing, blast-beat tempos and orchestral moments. I am very demanding when I judge our music but, at the same time, I am also very proud of the work that we are doing.
HH: How important are the lyrics for your music? What do you mean by the title of your album "Deconstructive"? Is there a connection to the post-structuralists like Foucault or Derrida?
Davide: Lyrics are very important for us and are strictly linked to the music. Our lyrics have different levels of interpretation and sometimes they may sound a little hermetic 'cause of the figures of speech we use frequently to express our ideas in a poliedric way. We usually don't tell what we want to tell in a direct way, but we want the listener to understand what we want to say by the lyrics. We chose "Deconstructive" as the title of the second album because it summarizes the process we started after Flaws Of Elation and that is still working: we are always developing our still by deconstructing what we have done since yesterday and reforming it in the next step of our musical evolution. The concept of deconstruction was taken directly from architecture and Derrida's philosophy and it supposes the capability of think the space in a non Cartesian space, which is rigid and codified. We think that our way of concepting music is similar to the free way deconstructivism concepts the space: no schemes, no limits!
HH: What types of reactions have you received so far in terms of your last record?
Gian: Deconstructive has been very appreciated, with a lot of amazing reviews and a lot of interest about the band. I started to understand it when, after the release, we received a lot of requests in order to participate in radio shows, or to play live, or to do interviews. When we released our first album, Flaws Of Elation, the promotion was very difficult, now everything is easier.
HH: Are you satisfied with Deconstructive?
Gian: Deconstructive is an important step in our music career: it is the sign of our constant artistic evolution and with the help of our label, this album is giving us a lot of visibility. We're receiving a lot of visits on our website (www.ashent.net) and on our official Myspace page (www.myspace.com/ashentband). We are selling a lot of merchandise, and this is great, because it means that people love the band. The most important thing now is to play live as much as possible.
HH: Did the reviews meet your expectations or are you surprised by the feedback that you got?
Davide: We knew that Deconstructive stands in a higher level that Flaws Of Elation- the music, the performance, the production are better for sure -, we also knew that Lion Music is a great label with an excellent promotion and distribution net but we didn't imagine how wide could have been the step with our second album! We had a lot of good/excellent reviews from all around the word, we had a lot of interviews, contacts and requests and our name has grown up a lot in the international metal circle since the release in march 2009. We are very happy and excited and we want to improve ourselves day by day as live and studio musicians. The feedback we have are our daily bread!
HH: Your album is nothing for the beer drinking guy who likes to growl and listen to some easy Metal. What type of audience are you looking to reach with your music?
Davide: We know that our music is not a music for easy listener. Our songs are more linear and shorter than the average prog compositions, but we use to merge a lot of style and musical influences together and this may sound stunning for people who aren't in confidence with nothing more than classic metal. We have a different approach to music, as I told you before: no schemes or limits! We only play what we feel we want to play! We hope not to narrow the circle of fans; we want to reach the widest range of people possible, in and out the metal world.
HH: What is your general ambition behind your work?
Gian: To write music is the only thing we care. We want to compose great songs and awesome music. By the way, as I said, to play live is very important: I am very bound to the live side of our artistic life, because to feel the vibes of the audience is awesome. I am addicted to this!
HH: What are the differences between the Italian metal scene and in other European countries, especially in Germany?
Gian: The main different is about the size of the "scene". In Italy there are a lot of great bands in all the kinds of Heavy Metal, but there isn't space on the important medias. From the point of view of the market, metal music is a very small business here and for example it's very difficult find a metal cd in a music shop or to have visibility on national radio shows or televisions. We have also very good festivals, but is impossible to read or to watch something about metal in the normal channels. So, the scene cannot develop itself.
HH: What are your plans for the future? Are you planning a new album or a tour?
Gian: We are trying, also with the help of our label, to promote Deconstructive in the best way. Of course the best way to promote our music consists to play live, but in this period is quite difficult to organize a tour: we are trying to play more shows as possible, and I want to tour over the Europe during the 2010, definitely!
HH: Imagine your music is a kind of Italian wine. With what type of food would you offer this wine?
Davide: hmmm, nice question... First of all I think our music could be compared to a strong Italian red wine like Amarone, Brunello or Chianti and I think we could match it with a grilled beaf or wild-boar stew. Simple but refined, strong and tasteful !
HH: Any last words?
Davide: I feel hungry after the last question ! Thank for all you support guys, you are very important for the music and for the new bands. Keep on the good work and stay metal, always!
Gian: Stay metal and keep in touch!
Sophos