INTERVIEW WITH STROMMOUSHELD
Questions answered by: Maels
Interview has been done on 03/09/2003 by e-mail
Interviewer: Anja

StrommoussHeld is a Dark Industrial Metal band from Poland. I first heard about it when Maelstrom (vocals/guitars) contacted us and asked if we could meet during his visit to Ljubljana. So we met at the statue of Preseren and did a short night tour of Ljubljana, especially of all places that have anything to do with the metal scene. The plan was to do the interview that same night but due to different reasones we latter decided to do it by e-mail.

Hello Maels!

Živjo Anja and all Firegoat readers!

It's been almost a month since your visit to Slovenia. Are you still so excited about my country? Do you plan to come back one day (to visit Orto bar and Skeleton again, he he)?

Yeah, of course. I'll be back in October, because of the Transcendental Route 2003, StrommoussHeld's European tour. We'll also do "Tour de Bar" with horse-burgers' final again in Ljubljana, hehe. I'm still excited about Slovenia. I especially love Ljubljana, Bled and Piran! Well, in fact I'm studying Slovenian Language here in Poland.

Ok, let's go to more serious questions. Please tell me a short history of StrommousHeld.

Well, the previous question was serious. :) StrommoussHeld was created in 1999 by Norrim, Ulv and me. We recorded some demos, played some gigs and signed a deal with Italian Avantgarde Music. They released our debut album "Behind the Curtain" and are going to release the second.

Where did you find that name and what does it mean?

It's a secret now... Maybe in the future we'll tell more about it. Our name is really hard to spell, our music is hard to describe and we are really hard to understand as people and musicians.

Is there any special philosophy behind StrommoussHeld?

Yeah, braking boundaries, borders and resistance. Discovering new forms, genres and mixing it all into one.

You don't like to label you music but if you had to, how would you describe it?

Well, some say it's Dark Psychedelic Industrial Metal. The others say it's Avantgarde Black Metal. I think all of them are right but I don't care about it. We are trying to find an absolutely new genre. This is our main aim.

Before releasing your debut "Behind The Curtain" you released two demos ("Vexilla Regis Prodeunt Inferni..." - 1999 and "Being As A Compromise" - 2000) and a promo CD "My Microcosmos" - 2001. These releases quite differ from one another...

Yes, of course. Second album will be different, too. We don't like to stay in the same place, we always try to develop and just move.

What kind of reviews did you get for "My Microcosmos" and "Behind The Curtain"? (Most of the reviews I managed to find were in Polish.)

Well, most of "Behind the Curtain" reviews are in English in fact (Possibly but not on the net! - ed.). They are really good. We got only two bad reviews in the USA, but Americans will probably never like our avantgarde point of view. I'm curious about Slovenian reviews though...

You signed a contract with Avantgarde Music. How are you satisfied with their work so far?

Yeah, I think it's ok. It's great when your advertisements are in Terrorizer, Legacy and other magazines. StrommoussHeld has a great start chance, unfortunately most of debuting bands today don't have that. It's still too early to say more about Avantgarde's work. We'll see in a few months, I guess.

Since March 2003 your line-up consists of six members. Before that you have gone through quite some line-up changes. Do you expect this to be a steady line-up?

I hope, yes. We recorded "Behind the Curtain" as a trio, but now StrommoussHeld must be stronger than ever.

You were also involved in Dark Gallery and Sirius but those bands don't exist anymore... Are you involved in any side projects at the moment?

I don't think much about my past bands. StrommoussHeld is my first serious band. I'm playing in the Arthefact also. This is my solo project. Now I'm gonna release the "Simulacra" single and get a good deal with a good label.

You told me that your plan is to do a tour in the fall... Will this be your first European tour and where have you played so far?

Transcendental Route 2003 is our first European tour, but we have played Psycho'n'Roll 2002 tour (8 gigs in Poland and 2 in Slovakia), some gigs on festivals (for example "Metalmania 2003" with Samael, Vader, Opeth, Anathema - the biggest fest in Poland and "Brutal Assault Open Air 2003" in Czech Republic with Malevolent Creation, Kataklysm, Pungent Stench and Hollenthon). After the Transcendental Route 2003 we're gonna play 17 gigs' tour Dark Stars Festivals with Closterkeller, Moonlight, Sacriversum and Delight here in Poland.

What was the response of the audience on your concerts so far?

It depends, but usually we have a very good response. The best gig we've ever played is this one on "Brutal Assault". Besides that it was the one of our biggest.

What are your future plans (besides the tour)? I know you'll soon start recording a new album...

We'll probably enter studio in the first half of 2004. "2econd floor temple" needs many hours of recording session, so it will be probably out in 2005.

Is there anything you would like to say to our readers?

Slovenia is one of the most beautiful places in the world. Hope to see you all, my Slovenian brothers, on our gig in October. Don't forget to visit our website at: www.strommoussheld.tk. Feed your curiosity, discover the world behind the curtain...