We interviewed the guys from ESC about their new album "Eight Tousand Square Feet" and about many funny stuff....
Hi guys, many thanks in advance that you take your time to answer our questions. Well, you have been around for some years and this is the new release coming soon after the phantastic album of 2008.
So what have you been up to inbetween?
G. Diesel: Hi and thanks a lot for the interview! Hypecrash and Chainheart dedicated some of their time to composing music for their side project, Hystakmine. Then we started composing our new album, which took us quite some time because we wanted it to surpass the two previous ones, so we all gave our best to make that happen.
Maybe we should remind our reader about the band line-up. Hypercrash, can you shortly tell us some key facts about Chainheart?
Hypecrash: He’s usually a down-to-earth guy. He enjoys driving his 4x4 vehicle over everything and he plays the guitar while he watches a show on DVD and listens to music on his stereo, all at once.
Chainheart, what is the most intriguing fact about Glamour Diesel?
Chainheart: He eats Corn Flakes while drinking Coke.
G. Diesel, what was your first impression when you met Hypercrash and did it prove to be true?
G. Diesel: He actually ringed my doorbell and asked me for a Gameboy game, and I didn’t even know him. So my first impression was „you gotta be kidding me!!“.
And Hypercrash, please introduce IDK to us?
Hypercrash: He's a drummer, and I guess all drummers are crazy so yes, he's the craziest guy in the band.
How do you four describe your sound?
Hypecrash: Our sound is melodic (mostly dark melodies), the beats are pretty intense and the vocals are harsh. We really try hard to make our music sound unique among hundreds of clones and we carry a little bit of a „metal feeling“ from our previous incarnation as a band, even if we don’t include guitars.
How did you meet and plan to form a band of that genre?
IDK: We already had a band before, for more than ten years. One day we decided we neded a radical change so we started composing songs in a completely different style and since we all enjoyed aggressive industrial music, here we are. I played the drums and now I sing so it was a pretty radical change.
What is the meaning of the album’s title „Eight Thousand Square Feet“?
G. Diesel: Eight Thousand Square Feet is the size of a mansion where all the concept takes place. A guy enters that same mansion and he finds several different dimensions and creatures inside of it. He is confronted with his past and fears for his future.
The entire work is build up as a comic strip. What can you explain about that concept?
G. Diesel – As I was starting to explain before, the album tells us the story of a man whose life changes radically as soon as, one night, he enters an abandoned mansion inside a huge dark city. I tried my best to make the story fit the songs really nicely. We had the help of a fan of ours with some of the images and since I had previously written a huge text, originally meant to be included on the booklet, I decided it would hit the listener in a stronger way if it was depicted in images, even if it only has very small excerpts of the full text.
Let’s go back in time for a moment... What do you preceive to be the differences between the new album and it’s predecessors „Matte“ and „Enhancer“?
Hypecrash: In my opinion, this album sounds a bit like a mix between Matte and Enhancer. If you listen to songs like “Correcting God’s Design” you’ll see what I mean. The obscure and moody part that’s characteristic of Enhancer and the melody and strong choruses sounding a bit more like Matte, filled with leads. This wasn’t intentional but I can’t help but feel this when I listen to it right now. I really enjoy the rhythm section of songs, so this time I tried my best to enrich it. I think ESC’s identity is really present in this third work.
How had been the reactions on the first albums?
IDK: They had been just awesome. People from all around the world have sent us very positive feedback and this is what kepts us going and gave us the creative impulse to create new and better music.
Do you think you have more fans in your country or abroad?
Chainheart: Abroad, of course. I’d say the biggest part of them is in Russia, Central and Estern Europe. Portugal is a very small country with a very small scene.
Ok, „Eight Thousand Square Feet“ contains twelve songs. Is there a favourite song for you guys that you can name spontanously?
IDK: I guess we all agree that White Beast is our favourite.
Why is the song „Eight Thousand Square Feet“ giving the name for the album or vice versa?
G. Diesel: I chose that name for the song because of the dark mood that song transmits. It is exactly the mood I want people to feel when they think of the mansion where the story takes place. I actually chose the name for the song after I had named the album.
„Correcting God’s Design“ is a cool title and i can see several images in my mind about that. What do you like to correct?
G. Diesel: There are many things I’d correct actually, but bearing the concept context in mind, that song is about our main character trying to fight against what god has chosen for his destiny. The whole experience of the man inside the mansion is to be seen as redemption from his past sins.
Who or what is „Raiva“?
Raiva actually means „raiva“ or „anger“ or „rabies“ (disease) in Portugese. This is a song where our character thinks about how he was mocked all his life so one day he decided to end all the mockery and murdered all of those people. He can’t help but feel he’s paying for those sins inside the house.
„Le Voyage d'Ivoire Sophisme“ – why French language? What is that song about?
G. Diesel: The title is in French but the lyrics are actually in English. The song also integrates with the concept in the story, describing another experience of our character inside the house. I have to be honest with you and tell you I have actually chosen a French title because it sounds great in French. Haha!
Jan L. of X-Fusion collaborated on that song. How did this come to happen?
Hypecrash: The song “Le Voyage d’Ivoire Sophisme” was initially meant to be an instrumental song with the Portuguese name “Psicose Dolorosa” but we ended out thinking it would sound great with vocals. I won’t hide that X-Fusion and Noisuf-X are two of my favourite bands so it was a privilege to be able to work with Jan so we spoke with him to learn about his availability and interest and the final result was absolutely awesome.
What happened at -48°C in your world?
G. Diesel: That is the temperature our character faces in one of the rooms/dimensions he is transported to. 12ºC is too cold for us so if this happened in our world, bye bye ESC.
«Leitbild» is the only German track with Carsten of [:SITD:] participating on it. In what extent did he take influence on the song or sound?
G. Diesel: “Leitbild” was, together with “Concrete” and “An Horizon Inside Four Walls”, one of the songs I wrote for this new album. As soon as I finished it I really thought to myself that it would sound awesome with Carsten’s vocals. I always loved [:SITD:] and they were one of the main reasons we started playing this style so it was an honor for us to have him singing in one of our songs. I asked him to write the lyrics in German and he ended out creating a great, great lyric for the song. I am really please with the result and I’m sure both ESC and [:SITD:] fans will love it so I also invite them to give it a listen!
How long did you work on the album? Are there any remarkable anecdotes about the production process?
IDK: Apart from the usual goofing around, nothing really remarkable I can think of at the moment. We worked for quite some time on the album because we can’t always be together because of our professional lives and also because we wanted the sound to be close to perfect this time.
If you have superpowers, what kind of will they be?
G. Diesel: Hmm, I’d like to be able to eat everything I want and still maintain a healthy blood. I just got a blood analysis done and I’m screwed! Invisibility would be nice though...
IDK: Invisibility too I guess.
Hypecrash: Is there anything better than invisibility?
Chainheart: I guess not. Invisibility too. Haha!
Can you reveal us what are the most important things in your lifes that you could never abandon?
All: Our families and true friends of course.
Given Britney Spears would suddenly appear in your bedroom at night. What would you do?
G. Diesel: I’d play chess with her. I’m pretty sure I’d win! For Christ sakes, couldn’t you choose Christina Aguilera instead?
IDK: Strap her to the bed and make her listen to Mr. Bungle for twelve days.
Hypecrash: I’d call the guys at the mental hospital.
Chainheart: I’d call the police.
What would you spend a Million Dollar Jackpot on?
G. Diesel: Hmm, a big house and travel a lot I guess.
IDK: I need some months to think about that.
Chainheart: Travel for as long as the money lasts.
Hypecrash: Go round the world.
What are your spontanous thoughts about the following topics:
Economic crisis
G. Diesel: Weren’t we always on a crisis? I’ve grown with that word ever since I was born and to be honest, I’m not living any worse now than I did before. It’s a pity for people with a very small income on numerous families though...
Oil pollution
Hypecrash: People responsible for that should be punished severely.
Barak Obama
IDK: He seems like a good guy but I’m afraid he’ll be captured by the big octopus of political evil just like everyone else.
God
G. Diesel: I can’t say I’m a religious person but I respect people who believe in something.
Belief
Hypecrash: You need to believe in yourself if you want to go anywhere with your projects in life.
ESC
Chainheart: My favourite key on the keyboard. Could do with one in real life too.
Greece
Hypecrash: looks like a great country to visit but I can’t forgive them for winning the Euro cup here in 2004.
Music
IDK: Can’t live without it.
Skinny Puppy
G. Diesel: Makes me want to breakdance.
Madonna
Hypecrash: There’s worse.
The Cure
IDK: Disintegration is the soundtrack for many of the sunny afternoons on my terrace drinking beer.
Mr. D’Angelo
G. Diesel: He‘s the boss! Really cool and funny in real life too!
Past
G. Diesel: Yesterday.
Present
Chainheart: Today.
Future
IDK: Michael J. Fox.
What are your aims, wishes or plans for the future of ESC?
All: We hope to play live abroad as much as possible. That’s our main aim for the future of ESC.
Many thanks for answering all those questions and we wish you much success for the third album „Eight Thouand Square Feet“ for ESC. Now we have some time and space for your final words....
All: Thank you so much for the kind words. The interview was great and really funny! We’d like to ask everyone who enjoys electro-industrial music with character, identity and intense beats to give us a listen. We promise you won’t be disappointed!
ESC @ Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/edensyntheticcorps
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