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Deadverse

Lire cette interview en FRANÇAIS

DEADVERSE is one of these many good rising bands from Switzerland. They're about to release their first full-length, which was a good reason for me to do an interview with Clive, the singer of the band.

Hey ! How are you ? What are you going through in your life at the moment ? Anything exciting ?
Hi, just great. I suppose the most exciting thing at the moment is getting the recordings done for our new LP which should be out in April if all goes well. Other than that, just waiting for Mother Earth to bring on the spring and summertime this side of the globe!

Could you please tell me what your band DEADVERSE is all about ? Who are you ? What do you do in the band ? When did you start and what’s the main purpose of the band ?
DEADVERSE started out as a punk rock band somewhere in 2007. Roman (guitar) and Lorenz (drums) were the initial members whereas soon after I joined them on vocals and later Boris on bass. We'd practice on Sundays without a real goal really, trying out new stuff and mixing ideas we thought sounded cool for us at that point in time. Somehow it seemed to work out and we started writing songs with more purpose. Soon after we then recorded our first 7", before we really played any shows. We had a choice of some 20 songs which we'd written but only put down like 8. We then kind of realized that it wasn't all that bad, and were quite stoked with the outcome. So we've taken it from there on I guess...

Where do you get your inspiration from for lyrics ? Is it a conscious and thought out process or do you prefer waiting for something to furtively pop into your head ?
I'd say it's a thought out process when it comes to a whole album or 7". I do find that there should be concept behind a stack of songs one would find say on a 7" or LP. Whereas there are situations where something just comes to mind based upon a happening or experience or even thoughts pondered on in the past. All our releases seemingly have a theme, obviously for me a bit easier to believe as I get to write the lyrics. But there is definitely a band based theme. I guess a lot of it is also based upon the band's name as well, because it was only then that the lyrics really received an ideal.

Who came up with the name DEADVERSE and what’s its meaning ? I remember the first time I heard of your band was because of Mike, who I had just done an interview with when FALL APART was still around. At the time, the US band VERSE was reaching its peak of popularity and a lot of people familiar to hc/punk were really into them. And believe it or not, just because of that, I thought choosing DEADVERSE as bandname was kinda strange, which is of course a pretty dumb thought from my side looking back ! I know you sound nothing like VERSE, but I guess that’s what my subconsious ordered me to do, who knows…
I can see where you're coming from and it had crossed our minds as we'd heard of VERSE before, but we never thought these worlds would collide because in the end we wanted to do it OUR way, and not stand in any ones way or even copy something for that matter. We started out with a "working title" called DEAD END KIDS which has a slight punk attitude to it as so did the songs we were writing in the beginning. But as our "songwriting" progressed we couldn't fit it into a genre as we ourselves didn't actually know where this was going. The name DEADVERSE was the first one on top of a list of thought out band names we came up with. It just stuck! Up until then I didn't have much of the lyrics on paper but soon after we chose the name I found myself moulding the name around the content of the lyrics and vice versa. I eventually came up with nothing, but found out in the process of doing so that I didn't even have to look that far, just paying attention to ones surroundings and questioning social and political misgivings was enough to fit the shoe. We process thought, voice our opinions and in the end effect it just all means nothing ergo it's all just DEAD VERSE. Everyone has thoughts or problems others can't comprehend or even fathom. It's about questioning the lack of listening in general!!!

Then came the first time I experienced a DEADVERSE show ! And what impressed me the most were that passion and that energy you expressed on stage. It was so raw and intense that it was as if you were going to blow up literally, especially you Clive ! And off stage, the constrast is hitting, you’re totally cool and easy going and even slightly shy. I might be wrong, I haven’t known you personally for a very long time…but do you recognise yourself in my description ? And how much of an impact has this band on your personality ?
I've heard people say I'm shy and I guess I'm not the extroverted type but obviously being given the chance to express oneself does tend to overwhelm me at times, and what better place to do it with 3 other really good friends that are whole heartedly down with what we are trying to do. I'd go as far as saying that Lorenz, Roman and Boris light my fire! They're just brilliant at what they do!

What kind of crowds do you usually draw and how interactive are you with these crowds ? From my modest experience in bands playing live shows, I must say that it’s not always easy to know if people like your band or if they’re extremely bored with it, as they’re not really demonstrative or visibly receptive. So what do you get from these crowds ? Appreciation ? Frustration ? What else ?



It's hard to say which types of people actually pitch up at a show, but I guess mostly there's all walks of life. We never payed much attention to who we wanted to "impress" or which agenda we'd end up pursuing. Obviously we do enjoy it when people are receptive to what we do, but mostly we're glad if even just one person in the crowd was touched by the music in some way... now isn't that just a loverly idea?

I recently heard of a hardcore punk band refusing to shoot any videos at all, arguing that it’s too commercial or something. I know you did a small video for DEADVERSE. So why did you do it and what do you think of videos and self-promotion ?
We're firm believers of the DIY aspect to things. Our last two releases were done this way and the video was totally DIY as well. Roman finally bought himself a digital photo camera before we went on a weekend tour with FALL APART and made the video in his room at home with the crappy video function. We thought it was great and posted it. Otherwise I don't think we'd make a commercial video, but we'll never know. If the idea is good and makes sense then why not? If there's a point to get across then we're open for ideas, be it through the music or as a visual bonus. Whatever bro!

What do you do for a living ?
I work as a draughtsman.

Is DEADVERSE a political band ? I know you put out a split record with UNVEIL, which is overtly political with their vegan straight edge agenda and the few other issues they tackle through lyrics. I suppose you’re a bit different in terms of approach and how you manage your band, but I know for a fact that you were open enough, so to speak, to share a split record with a political band. So back to the question, are you a political band ?
First off, thumbs up to UNVEIL! I think it's great what they're doing, and I hope to see more of them in the future. In addition to that, they are really nice guys. We always enjoy their company, and were fortunate enough to share a split CD with them. I still love the contrast of the idea as we do have a different style to put it bluntly. But I guess we both have something to say and what better way to do so. Even though we're not overtly politically orientated, there is a touch of politics on a social level. It's more about querying things that people go through on a day to day basis, and why things have become what they are, and what's left to do, but all on a personal level. It's about objectively illustrating our suspicions and laying them out on the table for someone to see where we're coming from and maybe even spark a thought or a memory that someone can hopefully relate to and maybe say: "Yes, I know exactly what you mean", or "I've never thought of it that way...". It's more about going behind and questioning actions to understand the reactions.

What are your views on what’s going on down here in the underground music scene ? Are there a few bands from the French speaking part of the country that you like ? And what do you know about Romandie ?
I think the underground scene isn't one that's meant to be popular, hence the name obviously. But there are a lot of people that are really into putting up shows and helping out bands that need to get out there. Obviously a lot comes from who you meet and who you've met which in certain cases does tend to make it easier for a band to get some stage-time, honestly speaking. Even if it's for next to nothing, just getting to play for a small audience in a cramped room always proves worthwhile. Unfortunately I don't know jack about the Romandie, or any bands from that part of Switzerland except for your band AGAIN’N’AGAIN, BLOWN and ARCHERS AND ARROWS. And I remember a band called EASTWOOD, round the 90's. Which is really poor on my part, as I haven't really made much of an effort. I guess it's also a bit because we've never played in the French part, which we'll definitely look into in the near future.

Besides music, what do you really like doing ? Do you like sports ? Travelling ? Knitting ? Cooking ?
I love traveling and that's the main reason why I have a full time job. And yes cooking just hits the spot. Other than that I surf when I can.

Do you vote ? Do you believe in democracy ?
I do believe in a certain kind of democracy. I don't believe everyone should have to vote about everything all the time. That's just showing off. People are just losing common sense about overcoming day to day hurdles, and everything gets discussed till it's boring. I find there are bigger things at stake that should be discussed, not petty shit!

Are you a home-loving person or are you rather a very sociable one ? And do you like spending time alone ? I’m asking you this cause I feel that nowadays a lot of people spend their whole life whining about their loneliness. I don’t wanna put everyone in the same basket cause I’m pretty sure some have a really hard life and have difficulty in dealing with loneliness. But I do believe loneliness has its benefits too. And then again, you’re likely to get people feel sorry for you if you’re a loner, even though it’s your own choice to live this way and how you are. In parallel, you never get anyone think you’re a weirdo because you’ve got a lot of people all around you all the time. So what’s your opinion ? (Which is one more question ! Clive, sorry for being so boring and elaborating questions that are that long !)
Well believe it or not, but being an only child I've had my share of loneliness. Not in a bad way either. My parents travelled around in Africa where I was born, so it was always meeting new people and going to new schools on a regular basis. Finding kids in the neighborhood proved quite a task at times because everything's so far apart. So I guess I'm a bit of both. I really like hanging around at home, doing next to nothing, but on the other hand I love being places and meeting people. Can't really answer that one.

Do you like reading ? What are you reading right now and what’s the best book, article or lyric line you’ve ever read ?
I do like reading. Although I haven't gotten round to reading much lately - which is a really stupid excuse, I know. The best book I'd say I've read is "To Kill A Mocking Bird" by Harper Lee, or "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S. Thompson.

What are your plans for the future with the band ?
We'll see where it goes. We're releasing our first LP this year and hope to get to play lots more. I guess we're just taking it one step at a time.

What are your five all-time favorite records ? And why ?
Ok this is a difficult one and it's really hard to narrow this down. At the moment I'd say:

NEW BOMB TURKS – « Destroy O' Boy » : I just love the attitude of that album.
PUBLIC ENEMY – « Fear Of A Black Planet » : This LP I bought in South Africa in '92. Need I say more?
SEPULTURA – « Arise » : Yes I know!? But it just brings back some really good memories, even my mom would dance to it as we were doing the dishes together!
GO IT ALONE – « The Only blood Between Us » : Just has to be in there somewhere... Still love listening to this one too.
HOT SNAKES – « Suicide Invoice » : It's really that good.

Anything to add ? Any shout-outs ?
I would just really like to say thanks to all the guys and bands that helped us out over the last 3 or 4 years. Check out the following locals if you haven't heard of them: BEGGARS&GENTRY, SEED OF PAIN, LOW FAT ORCHESTRA, UNVEIL, DRAMAMINE (fom Münster DE). Thanks to Samuel Hartmann for helping us with the recordings and especially to those who have bought our records and have come to shows. Thanks to you Bastien for wanting to do this interview, even though I took so long.

Interview : Bastien

Plus d'infos :

Label : Take It Back Records

MySpace : www.myspace.com/deadverseband

Site Web : Pas de site

Site du label: www.myspace.com/takeitbackrec

Interview cliquée : 19748 fois

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