9+1 Q&A with VAZUM

What inspired you to first start making music? And how did you come to be in your current incarnation? Or if you prefer, a brief bio about you.

My dad played drums and jammed with his friends so I was around music while growing up. Listened to a lot of Beatles early on. Then in my teen years I got into grunge and metal. I studied music in college as a jazz student which exposed me to a whole different world. Then I played in multiple bands as a drummer for years. I slowly wrote songs during that time period. Then one day I decided to take my demos more seriously and worked on an album. Shortly after I formed a band with a few of my friends and now I am the frontman which is exciting.

Provide us with some info about your latest release…

‘Void’ was released in November of 2018 and is very much a snap shot of where the band was at the time. We wrote and recorded the album in a span of about 6 months, drawing heavily on our 90’s influences and approached it as a straight rock record.

Which ones would you consider your main influences both music-wise & non-music-wise?

Billy Corgan, Marilyn Manson, Trent Reznor, David Bowie, Dave Gahan and Peter Murphy have all had a strong impact on me. Some more recent than others. I don’t read as much as I should but I’m currently into Albert Camus, George Orwell and Charles Baudelaire. My favorite director is David Lynch.

In what way does your sound differ from the rest genre-related artists/bands and why should we listen to your music? In other words, how would you describe your sound?

This band has a strong underbelly – the bass and drums carry the song and propel it in a unique way. The guitars are more dissonant than usual and vocals are coming from the point of view of someone who is disassociated from the rest of the world and very much wrapped up into their own head.

Please name your 3 desert islands albums, movies & books…

Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins, Pornography by Cure and Violator by Depeche Mode.

The Stranger by Alfred Camus,

1984 by George Orwell and The Flowers of Evil by Charles Baudelaire. Lost Highway, The Big Lebowski and Natural Born Killers.

Do you prefer studio or performing live and why?

Live definitely. It’s a lot of fun to be on stage screaming into a microphone. I enjoy the in-between song banter and meeting people after shows.

Is there any funny-unique story you would like to share with us, always in relation to your music ‘career’?

I was nicknamed ‘ice man’ while touring in Spain with the Muggs last year as their drummer. After a show in Vigo a fisherman named Gonzalo commented on my stoic stance while playing drums and said I was ‘cold and calculating like the ice man.’ His English was difficult to understand but he clearly made out those words.

Which track of your own would you point out as the most unique and why?

‘Eyes Out’ is a song that could only have been made by this band. It’s a collaboration that began with the bass line which me and the rest of the band added our flavor to. It’s a little prog-rock sounding, a little goth and a little grungy. The lyrics are about a girl that had gouged her eyes out while on Crystal Meth. I read her account of the story which I used to base my lyrics off of.

Would you like to share with our readers your future plans?

We are releasing a new album this Summer called ‘Variant’. We are very excited, it has 5 original songs and 2 Bauhaus covers, ‘She’s in Parties’ and the ‘Passion of Lover’s.’ We’ve been having a lot of fun playing the new songs live.

Free question!!! (Ask yourself a question) you wish to answer and haven’t been given the opportunity…

Q: Describe your creative process.

A: Most songs start on the piano or acoustic guitar with a vocal melody. Once I get something like a verse and chorus together I’ll record a demo. A lot of times I’ll only keep one part of the original idea, like a guitar or bass line, and come up with new parts and vocal melodies while doing the demo. So the end product is vastly different than the original idea.

Photo credits: Tim Meeks (1st one), Mike Pfeiffer (2nd one)

Curated by: Christos Doukakis

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