Interview

AMENRA

Mardi 14 mars 2006

1.Hello pals, how is going AMEN RA since the new album "Mass III" is out?
I guess you in front of nice success with such album? Distributed all over
Europe and even in the States by Earache? Are you happy of all that
happenning to you?

Maybe you ought to rephrase that question.’coz the deal with codebreaker is off.due to financial reasons (concerning the label). And therefore the deal with earache also went down the drain…

Technically the mass III album isn’t officially released yet, since the releasedate on HYPERTENSIONRECORDS is set on the 23rd of February..
We are really proud of what we have accomplished on this alsbum,the recording went really well and we were lucky to be able to work with zlaya hadzic, who mixed the record together with our own vince.
I am really happy that we got the deal with our good friends of hypertension, that makes us labelmates with our friends of starkweather and red sparowes..

2. Actually AMEN RA is on the road for a couple of years already. I
remember have seen you for the first time on a show in a squat in Gent
years ago. That was already awesome. Next one was to open for great
screamo band FUNERAL DINER from the States in Frontline in Gent again. And
now you have made a mini tour with awesome PELLICAN (us) and are back from
a tour with veterans STARKWEATHER (us). Music has evolved through years to
get deeply and darkly emotional but surely extremely heavy as fuck! Why
creating such music...From where comes that feeling od "darkness"?

I don’t know really. It’s just there.
Different mental states that a man endures during the process of life can be divided in extremes.either you’re happy or you’re unhappy.something in between is not worth mentioning, you know. people don’t think about life until they are confronted with one of those extremes.positive or negative..i suppose we picked that negative side to sing praises to…

Why?
It’s not like we made a decision to write dark n heavy music.it’s just what came out of our fingers.it’s us.
The music has always been deeply personal/emotional that never evolved..but the creative process hasn’t changed at all..
Change is always..there is no point in not evolving. every human wants to evolve into something better…

3. Actually how was both tour with PELLICAN (us) and STARKWEATHER (us)? We
don't see the band touring a lot outside of Belgium? Are you limited by
the fact you are working full-time job?

Yes and no.
Only now we feel that the time has come to look beyond the borders of our lil country.we weren’t working on a certain scheme or something that we had to to this or that.we just start with Belgium and move further away from home as time passes.there is no plan to quickly conquer Europe and then the world..
We don’t play all that often…that is why it took a while for the people here to get to know us, now that they have, it’s time to expand that territory, slowly but surely.

The full time jobs aren’t really the issue here.

4. AMEN RA seems to be a very productive band untill now : "Mass I", split
with VUUR, the 4-way split CD on my label Heart On Fire with Impure Muzik
and Recap Rec, the LP on Grave Escape Records, the "sermons" MCD, and now
the "Mass III". Have i forget something? What's next for the band? What's
the best records in all of that for you and why?

You haven’t forgotten anything my friend.
Pretty productive it’s okayit’s not like we ve been sitting still and doing nothing that’s true.

We released most of it by ourselves, coz we felt it was time to get those particular songs in the open.for every certain period there’s a certain mass that has to be held, stories to be told whatever..you know what I mean..

Next?
There’s the official release of mass III, there’s a split with kortrijks HITCH coming on vlasvegas recs, probably a split with our friends of RISE AND FALL..maybe starkweather..and then off course by the end of 2006 we ll start recording for our mass IV album..

I suppose every band likes their most recent work most, coz that is still close huh.you still remember the vibe of making those song in our lil rehearsal room. Wounds of the lyrics still hurt.i’d have to say mass III

5. AMEN RA seems to pay a lot of attention the artwork stuff. Like the
great one sided LP on Grave Escape and so on. Again all are very dark
stuff. I guess some of you are working like graphist or so? Do you see an
album like a full artie thing, from music to artwork?

Kjm our bassplayer is a graphic designer, does a zine called bats and has his own clothes brand called tête de mort.. I do most art direction for our artwork and kluze a close friend of ours does most of our artwork and designs..

.yup music artwork lyrics everything.it’s a package deal.i feel we only get our message across when there s a clear message spoken.all those different aspects have to form a greater whole..
Everything is so important to us..

6. I've already witness something going around christian imagery in the
visuals and lyrics of AMEN RA. I mean cross, but with a crow on it. But
also title like "am Kreuz" (for Christ maybe?), "ritual", "offerande",
"sermons", ... Even songs were called "prayers"...and in the lyrics we see
such imagery used? Why? is there a special meaning? Or is it just a tool
of expression?

It is a tool of expression indeed.the metaphors used in the bible or catholic religion are so strong and embody the sphere of the music so well, that it has become a part of the music through the years..the cross as a symbol for pain, martyrs..the dove nailed to the cross..symbolically the image of the highest for being a martyr for everything beneath him..
Life is sacrifice.you give to receive.
I am not catholic or whatever.but I do believe in life itself.everyone has to believe in themselves..that is why in a way.we are creating our own religion our own belief..we believe in life.in ourselves..
I means a hell of a lot to us, but it’s all difficult to explain

7. Collin, you seem to write deeply personal lyrics. Very dark, and kind
of an outlet for depression or oppression? I had already witness such kind
of lyrics when you were in SPINELESS...but here it is even more dark. I
had read a reason of it in the Semtex magazine...but am not sure if i can
ask it about you again?

I am not a depressed human being. I look at everything in a realistic way.
The thing is I tend to absorb and reflect upon negative aspects of life more..

I sing about the things that hurt you me everyone.i create a certain sphere that everyone want to get out as quick as possible. I sing about adversity.

And no the fact that my dad died isn’t my only drive.millions of people lost loved ones.shitloads of people aren’t such a happy person as I am.well I empathise.i feel what we all feel.when we think we are the most pathetic person on earth.

Like you said yourself.i sung like that in spineless that is ten years ago now.and I still sing like that.and I always will..

8. Some of you were part of SPINELESS before. And you surely don't know
but i was big fan of your band? What do you think of it, regarding the
past? Maybe you think it's funny i was fan of that band? I should put some
old SPINELESS pics on ShootMeAgain maybe? Is the band still link to what
we could call the H8000? What's your felling about this? Are still
straight edge like xSPINELESSx ? (that one is a stupid one...who cares
again about being XXX today?)

no I didn’t know you were a fan of spineless and I’m thankful for that.
I do care about being sxe today.and no that’s not a stupid question.some of us have been sxe for over a decade now.and it’s not because we don’t x up or write songs about it anymore that we don’t support that certain lifestyle anymore.see .it isn’t important indeed to relationships with eachother.it’s not like we care about whos sxe and who s not in amenra.there are far more important things to keep ourselves busy with these days.

We are still linked to h8000 yes.because we ‘re still a bad from that h 8000 area.and since we’re still linked to the hc scene from time to time.people still stick that logo on us.it doesn’t bother me.i don’t care.
I think it’s funny.the h 8000 crew was our crew when we were teenagers.it was really cool hanging out together then.when you’re that age.you need shit like that to identify with.you just want to be a part of something.you know.
It s funny..

9. I've seen you two times playing in Liège...But that city seems to be a
fucking bad experience for you on the two times? First one there was a
crusty drunken punk fucking up the show you played. And second one was on
the show with ENGINE DOWN (us)...A show I co-organized in a bad club
called "Phoenix"...and that time the club organizers asked you always to
turn down the volume...harrassing you all the time, and even cutting up
energy while playing. Would you play Liège again? ;-) Have you got such
horrible adventures in other places? We want bad stories...

no only liege sucked hard ;)
haha

well.yeah the volume is always our big problem.
I remember we played with ultraphallus.i’m glad I got to see em then.
And yes of course we d love to play liege again.

10. I read and heard you had played a show for a demonstration of
underwear by "La Fille d'O"? Wasn't it strange for you, playing hard and
heavy music on a demonstration of girls in underwears? What was the
feedback you had there? What was the response you got from the scene after
that experience?

Well.they hadn’t heard something like that before.eh.

Murielle, who does the la fille do lingery line, is a good friend of ours and she asked if we wanted to do that.it was in the historical centre in an old postbuilding.it was a one in a life time opportunity to play there for us.plus it was a whole new audience for us.so why wouldn’t we.,?I never really saw what all happened I wasn’t really fonned of the idea but hey we did it…

I was kinda weird.especially for the 12 girls how the fuck do you dance on amenra? I wouldn’t know…

11. AMEN RA members are also part of other activities in the scene, or at
least music wise i guess? I think of BATS mag, Yoda zine maybe, sound
engineering, etc etc. Please developp and promote your other activities?

Mathieu me and vince play in a sideproject called kingdom.it’s instrumental for now.
Vince does electronics in officer jones.he s a sound engineer producer makes your dvds whatever he does it all.matt n me are busy solo too.mondy like I said does bats zine with ape and has his own clothing line called la tête de mort
Me and kjm are into art, and do art shows/exhibitions from time to time

12. What are the bands that influence and have influence AMEN RA music?
Who are your music gods? Some would say ISIS, NEUROSIS stuff but i would
have also read bands like BOTCH, and CONVERGE?

Fuck.everything and everyone that crosses my path and leaves me in awe…is my inspiration.life is our inspiration man.
Fuck.massive attack tool wovenhand you name it..

Yeah.maybe the main recaognisable ones are neurosis and isis.pelican switchblade..
Everything we hear and see inspires us.it’s not like we make music with 5cd in our hands..

13. You are all part of the hardcore scene for a while now...How do you
see the evolution of the Belgian hardcore scene? Stagnation? Evolution
since that H8000 vibe? Diversification? Boring?

Diversification does the trick well…like I said some thing we’re still h8000 hc you know.the thing is we don’t belong anywhere anymore.and that is cool.it’s not like 9years ago where everyone was playing metalcore or whatever anymore.more subscenes thrive..

14. You all seem to become kind of "crazy" while you play...Like if you
were only in your own world you create with the atmosphere you bring at
the show with music, and lights. But also i've witness Collin having his
own moves when he sing...kind of animal move maybe? Very expressing...
Is this all part of AMEN RA, part of a whole concept? Explain.

I guess so it’s not like we have a choreography going on.you just let go.you know.it’s not like we have to jump on a certain part of song fuck that shit.
We close our eyes.and do or move wherever the fuck we wnat

15. What AMEN RA knows about the Wallonie scene? If there's one existing...?

not much.i think we ‘re not seeing enough of it.get us over there ;)

16. Ok, thank you RA, thank you all of the answers. And thank you for the
great songs you offered me to release on the 4-way split CD with GAMENESS,
GANTZ, and VUUR. Final words to you...And hope to see you more often in
Wallonie.

Thank you j

TU AS AIME ? PARTAGE !