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In recent years cold wave electro music “lives” its own renaissance, many bands and many labels are getting involved in the genre and among the most important and talented artists is Ash Code. Two LP’s and few singles so far were enough to put their name in festival’s billings, and getting invited almost all over the world. In Last Day Deaf we are fond of this specific genre, and as you may have noticed many bands and artists from that beloved universe have been hosted or mentioned in our webzine. Therefore, we felt it was about time for Ash Code, and they kindly accepted an interview…so, play their latest ‘Posthuman’ LP and enjoy our conversation!

Hello Ash Code, you are in the middle of a big tour, how is it going so far?

Adriano: Hi! The concerts were good overall. The feedback is positive everywhere.

Earlier in October you released the official video for ‘Posthuman’ out of the homonym LP. How long did it take you to make it? And a few words on the story behind it and its aesthetics.

Claudia: The videoclip was filmed in collaboration with our Polish friend Sandra Roczen.  She immediately agreed with the concept we wanted to represent. The first part was shot in Berlin directly by us, the other scenes were shot by her in Norway and Poland; considering also the editing it took three months to finish.  In the video you see the spiritual path taken by the protagonist, who wakes up in a contemporary reality, maybe even a bit futuristic, full of technology. We see her walking in an urban and postmodern context, struggling with smartphones and PC. Then at the crematorium she began to reflect on the meaning of her life and about existence in general. At the zoo instead she realizes with her own eyes what we are doing to nature, and then she decides to escape to a completely natural dimension. We can notice this in the last scenes immersed in the wild landscapes of the Norwegian fjords. The aesthetics of the final part were inspired by the cover of our LP: We see her dressed in white wearing mask, which symbolizes a full merger with the environment, as well as on the ‘Posthuman’ cover.

You are moving on a certain pace according to your studio releases, 4 singles and 2 LP’s, in almost 2 years. Having offered a few “classic” so far songs, which actually put your name on high rank in the scene. What does really success mean for the band?

Alessandro: Success is always nice to an artist, because it means people love the music and love the issues that the band traits. The audience’s approval is crucial, if someone says “it’s not important”  he doesn’t speak the truth.

Why did you choose to cover the classic new wave ‘I Can’t Escape Myself’ song from The Sound? Should we expect more surprises like this in the future?

Alessandro: We love The Sound very much. We saw that no one had ever released an electronic cover of that song; it was fun to work on this experiment. Currently we’re enjoying making remixes for bands we love, the first one was ‘Katarsis’ by She Past Away. We haven’t planned other covers yet.

Electrowave, coldwave blended with some dark elements consist your art. What is actually pushing you in creating that music?

Claudia: The kind of music we play is surely the result of what we listen, but it is not something rational, it is natural to play in this way. We are driven by the desire to communicate our thoughts and feelings through music.

What are you inspired from, when composing and arranging your songs?

Alessandro: Our favorite artists and the desire to experiment inspire us  a lot. Usually we study the structures of every track,  we love trying to learn different ways to play.

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Lyrics-wise we can easily find reactive elements, together with social statements, and sometimes a poetic approach. Please share with our readers a few words about how you create the literature in your songs, and also where inspiration in lyrics is emerging from?

Claudia:  About the lyrics there are many things that inspire us: travel, books, movies; but most of all our personal experiences. The titles of our albums are drawn from philosophical concepts that have impressed me greatly. Lyrics from ‘Empty Room’ and ‘Tide’ have been inspired by our lives’ events. ‘Dry Your Eyes’ speaks of interpersonal relationships and misunderstandings that can spoil them, ‘Crucified’ is about the sense of dissatisfaction which can sometimes overwhelm us, ‘Drama’ is a kind of mantra written with the intent to take charge of other people negative feelings to free them from their pains.

What is really the name Ash Code hiding?

Alessandro:  At the beginning we were looking for a name that contained the initials of our names, A and C, then came Ash Code and we liked it immediately for the image it evoked, coded ash, we are nothing but ash.

I always ask the artists in the genre, what are their thoughts on the electro-cold-dark wave revival  these days. Many musicians and many fans have been attracted now to the genre, so what do you think it is, that really magnetizes people in that musings?

Claudia: 80’s was a period of economic prosperity, but many ideals that had thrived in the previous decade had been fading, so I guess people experienced a sense of emptiness and anxiety, described in the mood of cold wave and post punk. Today, for different reasons, linked to the economic crisis and the fear of the future, those feelings are back, and people feel close again to these sounds.

What are Ash Code’s future plans?

Adriano:  To make songs for a new LP and continue to tour, we have a lot of gigs planned in 2017 and in August we’ll make our first South American tour too.

Thank you very much for that interview, Ash Code last words on you!

Adriano: Thank you very much for the support and love… it means a lot to us!

Photo credits: Sandra Roczen (first one)Xavier Marquis (2nd one)

 Mike Dimitriou