LIT – Alternative Blogzine

Lucy asked VANESSA about their new album “Ave Agony”….

Hey guys, your new album „Ave Agony“ has been release some days ago. How has been the feedback so far?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  We are happy. Theres an endless queue of goth sluts in front of our doors, and everyone wants to lick our ass. What else do you compose music for?


What is the title of the album „Ave Agony“ about?

Samir Hauser (Vox): Its about coming of the age of slow conking out. Thats what we appreciate.

What do you sing about on the songs of the new album?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  Theres lot of topics covered on the new album, they mostly originate in our own experiences. For example: „Cop on speed“ track is about „friend“ of ours that was snitching on us to the police, „Hello, conk out“ is a suicide manual for midlife crisis, „Mirrors“ is about that bastard each of us carries inside and try to kick out of the door time to time… simply said, they are real life stories.

Your last album has been released in 1997. What was the reason for the long break?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  Our artistic restlessness and unfocused ambition. Each of us pursued different things. I have become cabaret singer, others were locked in asylum.

What impact did the last twelve years have on your, your taste of music and the music you create?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  We were influenced mostly with stories of people around us. And certainly also couple of movies and new records. But we have always highly appreciated story – artist without story is useless. We don’t listen to anything which lacks a story.
There are many cooperators on the new records, e.g. Alexander Hacke of Einstürzende Neubauten. What was his input to the new material?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  Alex is a man with a story… a brilliant story. Sometimes our stories meet, and this recording was the case. Perhaps we share common view on things.
Miroslav Papez aka Moimir Papalescu (Keyb):  Alex got full multitracks of some songs. He remixed them completely and created his own arrangements. He’s done a lot on effects and also on acoustic drums which he gave his signature sound and massive pressure compared to our original mix.
It’s done the songs good, they are a lot heavier then before, exactly how we wanted them to be. Good work, Alex!

You use your mother language for your lyrics. What is the philosophy behind it? Don’t you fear to limit yourself to your home country because nobody will understand your messages in other countries?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  I think our message is strong enough, it’s obvious what’s going on and what we want. What we dont want is to use english just to be another wannabe global band.

What can you tell us about Adolf Lachmann and his work for your cover on „Ave Agony“? I think this is very impressive…

Miroslav Papez aka Moimir Papalescu (Keyb):  Adolf Lachman is a real ace. We’ve tested the cooperation before, on the cover of one of my other projects, Die alten Maschinen. That’s the band where amongst others you can hear Gerald V. Casale of the American legend Devo playing and singing. The result there was excellent, so we asked Adolf for cooperation again for the Vanessa cover. He’s produced a cover which exactly matches the apocaliptic mood of Ave Agony. In this country, where the V-sign is the symbol of the Velvet Revolution, the picture of this dishonoured symbol in the year of its twentieth anniversary caused a lovely stir.

VANESSA is a very general term and name. I think not all the people outside Czech Republic are familiar with your band and name. What can you briefly tell us about the band?

Samir Hauser (Vox):  Vanessa is an fusion reactor – it can change people… It creates high pressure and temperature , where light elements become heavy… Model person is created from transurans, untouchable by environment… Vanessa is not just about music, its about ritual, which can change those who want to change.

You have been around in the business for several years now. What has changed and what are the biggest challenges for you in the next years?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  To compose music is as difficult as build Lego house. Each dickhead with notebook thinks he is a world savior. Vanessa will lead you to places you don’t dare even to think about. The difference between us and them is the difference between seeing a cocaine movie with Johnny Depp you see on Saturday night before you go to sleep, and between a weekend on crack and LSD.

In your biography there are words like Porn or Masochism used to describe your music and live performances. What can you tell us about the connection to VANESSA?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  I think that porn and masochism is unignorable and natural part of life. As is the air, city trams or cop walkies. We live in the world made up of this, it influences us and creates our stories.

What is so extraordinary about your live performances?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):  Ted Bundy’s Electric chair and Mukamba’s snuff porn collection samples on the projection wall.

What are you planning for 2010 and the future?

Daniel Rodny (Keyb):   „Ave Agony“, our last album, should have brought people to their knees. We want to play a lot of gigs and finish them off.

Miroslav Papez aka Moimir Papalescu (Keyb):  We’ve started on a new album and we’d like to play live a lot, many gigs in the Czech Republic, but also a lot in Germany. We believe that people in Germany will understand us, because its Germany, where the cradle of electronic music  is.


Thanks for the interview and we wish you much success and all the best for the new year!

VANESSA @ www:

www.vanessa.cz

VANESSA @ Myspace:

www.myspace.com/vanessaebm

by PromoFabrik (www.promofabrik.com) – January 2010