Teraz Rock - Polish Interview with Von, 2003
Posted: 22 Mar 2005, 21:02
Thanks to our very-well organized friend Paint It Black 
who saved the Polish interviews before they vanished in cyber-space I'm re-posting two of them. The third one needs to be translated again, unless another much better organised person than me has it saved on their hard disk!
This one is quite funny! I have translated it as literally as differences in Polish-English grammar and language allowed... TERAZ Rock is a mainstream rock magazine in Poland, that used to be quite good (sadly, not any more) and Wieslaw Weiss is one of the very old-date Polish music journalists. Have you noticed that VON was quite patient with him (all the questions about the name etc)
Here is the original link http://muzyka.onet.pl/mr,1141016,1,424,artykul.html - there are also some cute photos
The Sisters Of Mercy "I need to get pissed to sing a note"
Wieslaw Weiss: You name comes from one of Leonard Cohen's songs. What his music meant to you?
AE: nothing
WW: so why have you decided to use that name?
AE: Every band needs a name. If you cannot decide on one, then a promoter will put any name on the poster advertising your gig. We've been considering naming ourselves "Captains Of Industry". And it has not got anything in common with Cohen.
WW: I know that you at the beginning you were a drummer in this band:
AE: a terrible drummer
WW: So how did it happened that you were promoted to the singer's position?
AE: The guy who was singing really wanted to play guitar. And they were planning to fire me because I couldn't play drums very well. So I offered to be the singer. Nobody else wanted to sing. In fact, I cannot sing at all. You cannot say that what I'm doing is "singing". It is something between talking and singing. And on our first recordings it was just horrible - you cannot listen to them and not feel sick. But later on, when we started producing our own recordings, and we could cover all the faults, it started sounding bearable. But I still feel sick before the gigs. I need to get pissed to sing a note.
WW: so you bought a drum machine. Was it so difficult then to find a good drummer?
AE: You know, even nowadays it still can be difficult to find a good drummer. In my opinion, there are a few good drummers. But we had also another reason - we could not afford one. We could not afford a rehearsal studio. And bands with live drummers need rehearsal place. You cannot rehearse in your flat because your neighbours will call the police. And they will make you forget about playing very quickly. It was so much easier to use a drum machine. And it became our friend later. And now... Now it is TSOM leader!
WW: What do you mean?
AE: It is the only thing in the band you cannot replace. In all these years we wrote two maybe three songs that could sound better with live drums. The drum Machine became a crucial part of what we do. I cannot imagine TSOM without it. If we were to change something, it would be the last thing taken into consideration.
WW: Let's talk about "Floodland" - your best known and the greatest album...
AE: It is a special album. It became popular because it has been quite well promoted. The record label gave us a lot of cash for videos and other promotional stuff. You know, then I had an idea that instead of getting bored by all the promotional activities, we can visit some nice hot countries and have fun on the beach. The overall effect was quite good, even MTV played our songs a few times - that was enough to ensure that "Floodland" sells well. But obviously that album was not only good because it had a few videos and sold well. There are some really good, pleasant songs on it. In my opinion this album is great. I still listen to it quite often and I'm proud that I wrote an album like that.
WK: How did you get ideas for the songs like "This Corrosion", "Dominion", "Lucretia..."?
AE: I don't know. I don't remember it very well. Most of them were written on paper serviettes in some bars. And some of them even give you direct clues that they were written on paper serviettes in some bars. But you know, when you are writing a song on a paper serviette, your memory does not record exact circumstances when you wrote a certain phrase, melody or verse. So I cannot answer your question. It is just the effect of some drunken reflections.
WW: is it true that while you were recording a video in some Arabic country the locals offered you a camel for your bass player Particia?
AE; Not sure if it was a camel. They were smitten with her though. One of the reasons was that she was great in horse-riding. But I don't remember any details of that trade. Maybe it was for a camel? If that's true, I should have taken that camel.
WK: What is your opinion on "Vision Thing"?
AE: Another great thing. It is sad that the lyrics are valid again. I was saying back then that Bush was the biggest idiot. Now, 10 years after, we have another dangerous Bush. And the songs sound like they were written about him. Obviously, the Americans didn't have a clue what that album was about. Sod them. I wonder if Tony Blair have ever listened to it?
WK; Why there aren't any more TSOM albums after Vison Thing?
AE: Ask the people from Warner Bros. They indeed promote my old albums but are not interested in paying for a new one. If they'd put the cash on the table, you'd have another TSOM album tomorrow. The new material is ready. I have plenty of new ideas. And I'd like to release them. But people from Warner Bros. are not interested at all. So don't count on us to release a new album. It is unlikely to happen.
-----
who saved the Polish interviews before they vanished in cyber-space I'm re-posting two of them. The third one needs to be translated again, unless another much better organised person than me has it saved on their hard disk! This one is quite funny! I have translated it as literally as differences in Polish-English grammar and language allowed... TERAZ Rock is a mainstream rock magazine in Poland, that used to be quite good (sadly, not any more) and Wieslaw Weiss is one of the very old-date Polish music journalists. Have you noticed that VON was quite patient with him (all the questions about the name etc)
Here is the original link http://muzyka.onet.pl/mr,1141016,1,424,artykul.html - there are also some cute photos
The Sisters Of Mercy "I need to get pissed to sing a note"
Wieslaw Weiss: You name comes from one of Leonard Cohen's songs. What his music meant to you?
AE: nothing
WW: so why have you decided to use that name?
AE: Every band needs a name. If you cannot decide on one, then a promoter will put any name on the poster advertising your gig. We've been considering naming ourselves "Captains Of Industry". And it has not got anything in common with Cohen.
WW: I know that you at the beginning you were a drummer in this band:
AE: a terrible drummer
WW: So how did it happened that you were promoted to the singer's position?
AE: The guy who was singing really wanted to play guitar. And they were planning to fire me because I couldn't play drums very well. So I offered to be the singer. Nobody else wanted to sing. In fact, I cannot sing at all. You cannot say that what I'm doing is "singing". It is something between talking and singing. And on our first recordings it was just horrible - you cannot listen to them and not feel sick. But later on, when we started producing our own recordings, and we could cover all the faults, it started sounding bearable. But I still feel sick before the gigs. I need to get pissed to sing a note.
WW: so you bought a drum machine. Was it so difficult then to find a good drummer?
AE: You know, even nowadays it still can be difficult to find a good drummer. In my opinion, there are a few good drummers. But we had also another reason - we could not afford one. We could not afford a rehearsal studio. And bands with live drummers need rehearsal place. You cannot rehearse in your flat because your neighbours will call the police. And they will make you forget about playing very quickly. It was so much easier to use a drum machine. And it became our friend later. And now... Now it is TSOM leader!
WW: What do you mean?
AE: It is the only thing in the band you cannot replace. In all these years we wrote two maybe three songs that could sound better with live drums. The drum Machine became a crucial part of what we do. I cannot imagine TSOM without it. If we were to change something, it would be the last thing taken into consideration.
WW: Let's talk about "Floodland" - your best known and the greatest album...
AE: It is a special album. It became popular because it has been quite well promoted. The record label gave us a lot of cash for videos and other promotional stuff. You know, then I had an idea that instead of getting bored by all the promotional activities, we can visit some nice hot countries and have fun on the beach. The overall effect was quite good, even MTV played our songs a few times - that was enough to ensure that "Floodland" sells well. But obviously that album was not only good because it had a few videos and sold well. There are some really good, pleasant songs on it. In my opinion this album is great. I still listen to it quite often and I'm proud that I wrote an album like that.
WK: How did you get ideas for the songs like "This Corrosion", "Dominion", "Lucretia..."?
AE: I don't know. I don't remember it very well. Most of them were written on paper serviettes in some bars. And some of them even give you direct clues that they were written on paper serviettes in some bars. But you know, when you are writing a song on a paper serviette, your memory does not record exact circumstances when you wrote a certain phrase, melody or verse. So I cannot answer your question. It is just the effect of some drunken reflections.
WW: is it true that while you were recording a video in some Arabic country the locals offered you a camel for your bass player Particia?
AE; Not sure if it was a camel. They were smitten with her though. One of the reasons was that she was great in horse-riding. But I don't remember any details of that trade. Maybe it was for a camel? If that's true, I should have taken that camel.
WK: What is your opinion on "Vision Thing"?
AE: Another great thing. It is sad that the lyrics are valid again. I was saying back then that Bush was the biggest idiot. Now, 10 years after, we have another dangerous Bush. And the songs sound like they were written about him. Obviously, the Americans didn't have a clue what that album was about. Sod them. I wonder if Tony Blair have ever listened to it?
WK; Why there aren't any more TSOM albums after Vison Thing?
AE: Ask the people from Warner Bros. They indeed promote my old albums but are not interested in paying for a new one. If they'd put the cash on the table, you'd have another TSOM album tomorrow. The new material is ready. I have plenty of new ideas. And I'd like to release them. But people from Warner Bros. are not interested at all. So don't count on us to release a new album. It is unlikely to happen.
-----
