Featuring Dave from Winter Soul | Interview by Ruud Dreessen aka ebm-industrial.nl 4 februari 2010 0:54
01- For the first question will be - Thanks Dave that you have found time to give answers to these questions, How are you doing?
I'm doing great, thanks for chatting to us!
02-Hello Dave what noise do you make in Winter Soul?
I write the music and record vocals in studio, as well as doing live vocals on stage.
03-How's the start of 2010 been for you thus far?
Hectic. I recently moved to a new city to be closer to the centre of the South African industrial scene. Packing and moving my studio as well as loads of other stuff has kept me busy!
04-do you know the Netherlands?
Haven't been there yet myself, although everyone I know who's been there say it's an awesome country - I'd like to visit Europe this year.
05-For a lot of people, this is probably going to be their first full introduction to Winter Soul so how about you tell us a little bit about how you guys know each other and how the band came together?
I've been making music since 1998, but it was only in 2006 that I started working seriously on an album. I used to frequent a few local Goth/Industrial websites, and met up with Paul and Philbrey there.
Paul Baumgartener is the musician behind Garten der Asche, a Johannesburg based Industrial band. A 5 track demo was compiled in 2006 and expertly mixed & mastered by Philbrey Botha from Garten der Asche.
In 2007 I met Suzanne, a classically trained musician, and the two of us worked on a stage act for the 2007 Goth Industrial Gathering. The other members of the band who helped us accomplish our first live gig were Philbrey, Philip and Sarel. I am truly grateful to know people like these!
06- Do you follow the electronic music Industrial / Electronica / Gothic ,do you have any other favourite bands?
My favorites are Suicide Commando, Hocico, Wumpscut, Grendel, A7IE, Wynardtage, Nurzery Rhymes and many more harsh bands. I also listen to Gothic rock and Black metal.
07-How is your relationship with other electronic bands?
I mentioned Garten der Asche earlier, without them I would never have published my music. I've also worked with the metal band Semyazah, as well as several South African musicians
08- Can you give us a brief run-through of Winter Soul story so far?
After our first show in 2007, where we opened for Battery 9, we played other shows across the country. In 2008 we opened for VNV Nation in Cape Town - that was great honour for us. We also released our first album "Reactor" in 2007, and had 2 of our songs included in the compilations "When Angels Die" and "Noise Terror 2: world wide electronics"
We are currently working on our second album, and hope to release it by mid-2010
09- How did you start to make music and what is Gothic for you?
I started DJing and making hard trance music at first, but the whole dance music scene seemed to lack depth and meaning. The energy was there, it just seemed empty somehow. When I first heard Suicide Commando, I knew I'd found what was missing.
10-What did you guys do for a living before Winter Soul?
I'm a mechanical engineer and Suzanne is currently studying biochemistry.
11- When did you form Winter Soul? What inspired you to make music together?
2007. I was looking for someone with the talent and presence to perform Industrial music live. I found those qualities and many more in Suzanne.
12- What are your top ten favorite Industrial / Electronica / Gothic Club Songs of all time? What would you consider your favorite cd's?
Wumpscut - Soylent Grün
Dulce Liquido - Pissed off
Dulce Liquido - Antichristianos
Hocico - Bloodshed
Suicide Commando - Raise your God
A7IE - Cage
Grendel - Guilt by association
Grendel - Pax psychosis
Emily Autumn - Liar (manic depressive mix by ASP)
Aesthetic perfection - I belong to you
My favorite CDs are my collection of Prodigy albums
13- What are the future plans for Winter Soul?
We're currently working on our second album, and will be playing more shows this year.
14- tell me about "Reactor" compilation "Noise Terror Volume 2" ?
I was contacted by Johan van Roy (Suicide Commando) who asked if we would like to have one of our songs on the compilation. This was a dream come true for me and a great honour to have my music on a CD with Suicide commando, as well as Grendel, Noisuf-X and others.
15-What are you currently listening to on your MP3 player?
Wumpscut.
16- By the way do you like my questions? tell me what you think about it! ;-)
Hehe, there certainly are plenty!
17- What is the main idea, the message you want to leave to people who listen to you? What is your motto?
music is mostly metaphorical, so not many people will find the deeper meaning - I write songs to process thoughts and stuff in my head.
I suppose one message would be to never let other people destroy your confidence and creativity out of their own jealousy.
Motto? Mmm… MAXIMUM RADIATION!
18- What's the name of your band? where did the name come from? or what's the story behind the band name?
I fucking hate summer. The name Winter Soul also refers to the concept of nuclear winter - surviving a desolate and harsh environment created by other people.
19-If people don't know what you and your music are about, how would you describe Winter Soul?
Distorted digitized souls hardwired to the sound of radiation-soaked machinery,
Winter Soul leads the revolution in South African Industrial music.
20- Referring to "Reactor", where did the concept come from? What's planned now that your album is finished? or anything else you're working on? Tell me why you chose this title "Reactor". Tell us a few words about the concept of this.
Re
actor refers to the Chernobyl disaster of 1986. I used a lot of elements from the event as metaphors for human existence.
21- Some quick-fire questions: guitar or synthesizer?
Synth!
22-band or solo
A bit of both - one man shows don't work, but band politics can destroy creativity, so compose everything myself while consulting with my producer, Philbrey. The other members of the band come into play when we rehearse and play shows.
23-How is the current promotional tour going for supporting this album?
As we released Reactor quite a while ago, our focus is now more on the new album.
24- What do you think of a modern Gothic and about Industrial / Electronica / Gothic scene?
It's constantly evolving and changing, there are loyal followers of these genres of music and I think the scene will be around for many more decades.
25- What's your favorite track of yours?
Legacy of Violence.
26-What and who gets you excited about music today?
My friends an band members, as well as the SA scene in general.
27-Our usual question - what is music for you?
Fuel.
28- What was your best live experience so far?
Cape Town 1997 - our first show. The response we got was amazing! Fantastic bands, crowd and event as a whole.
29- Please list the name, age, school, and respective instrument of each band member
Dave - 29 - programming and vocals
Suzanne - 23 - live keyboards and synths
Philbrey - 26 - vocals and production
30-What are your views on the current state of this Industrial / Electronica / Gothic scene in South-Africa in terms of creativity and audiences? And the scene in other countries?
There are some amazing bands in South-Africa, the scene is growing, but becoming more underground.
31- You have very nice numbers` tell me about lyrical compositions what you can tell about the done work? How does your music creation process work? How do you create a song?
I start by creating loops, which progress into more complete tracks over time. While I'm working, I usually get some idea in my head, from there I think of lyrics and merge lyrics and music into a whole. I work on several tracks at the same time, doing a bit here and there till they reach completion.
32-What genre of music do you consider your work to be? Who are your major influences?
I consider my music to be Industrial. My man influences are Suicide Commando, Hocico, Wumpscut, Aslan Faction and Dulce Liquido.
33-Since the music industry is more open now to purely electronic music has this made things easier for you?
Definitely. If it weren't for the internet and online communities focusing on electronic music, Winter Soul wouldn't exist.
34-So what are your main influences as a band at the moment?
Musically I'd say A7IE and Wumpscut
35-What is currently inspiring your material as an artist? tell me all about the Industrial / Electronica / Gothic scene of South-Africa.
Interactions with people, and seeing how people deal (and fail to deal) with the world around them.
36-Do you think that people from the music press didn't expect you to grow up musically?
I doubt anyone did. I never studied music, so when we played our first show, a lot of my friends were surprised.
37-what is the key to making music from Winter Soul and what inspires you to keep growing as a musician?
The joy of making beautiful noise with awesome technology!
38-How do you see the future of download / Copyright in area of goth-Industrial / Electronica / Gothic music ? What are the best ways to develop it in your mind ?
Digital download is the way to go. The only thing I'd like to see is a way to easily get hold of band artwork - like a magazine with each album full of lyrics, photos, artwork and interviews. Cd booklets are never enough.
39-what was your childhood like?
I am lucky to have great parents and a wonderful childhood, I don't know where I'd be today without my family.
40-If there was one thing you want people to know about your band what would that be?
mmm… probably that we are South-African. This fact usually surprises people.
41-Please let us know about your upcoming plans, some new releases you like to confirm here
New album coming in 2010 - more info to follow.
42-It has been a pleasure to interview you on your musical activity, Well, any last words to your ebm-industrial fans?
Stay Riveted!
43-and what is next on the South-African agenda?
There are several events planned for this year, most of which are listed on local club websites and Facebook.
44-How can fans-to-be gain access to your music? Do you have a website with sample songs or a demo CD?
You can hear us on Facebook, Myspace and Last.fm
45-How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together?
Most of the improvements have been in the sound quality of our music, I've got much better equipment since I started making music, which helps a lot.
46-How is the new line-up working out?
Fantastically, I am honoured to work with such talented people.
47-And, finally, what does the next twelve months hold for the band?
We are planning a show in June in Pretoria as well as the album launch.
48-Any last words?
Thank you for the interview, and thanks again to everyone who's supported us over the last 3 years.
49-Thank you for your time Dave. Good luck!
Keep it brutal!
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