Dead End Interview

This interview has been answered by vocalist Bryan Boorsma ( B:) and basplayer – bandleader Alwin Roes ( A:)

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?

B: We've been busy planning new shows and a couple of tours to bring the album abroad, we have some great things in store!
A: and believe it or not, we are already working on our new album that’s due June 2017 hahaha

2.You have a new album coming out in September, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

B: Of course it differs from the stuff the band did in the past, but we wanted to keep the Dead End sound. The old death, doom, gothic sound.
A: I think the biggest ‘change’ is that we have some new influences from Arjan and Jeroen that give some songs a bit more tempo as it has been in the old days, a new writing duo as in the old days, but yeah, we aimed for the typical Dead End sound and feel, as we read in the many reviews, we succeeded in that.

3.The band was broken up for 21 years, what was the cause of the split and also the decision to reform?

A: in 1993 we left the scene with the farewell 7” Wartime in Eden, mainly because we had 2 side’s within the band, there were me and Micha who wanted the bigger plan for the band, and there were Jeroen, Eef and Gunther, we just started a higer education and were not prepared to do the touring and stuff what was on Dead End’s road to come,
‘Cause Roel ( Vic Records ) wanted to re-release our old songs ( as we did in 2015 on Forever is Not Eternal ) we got in touch with each other again, and when we made a facebook page to let the old fans know we would release this stuff we got so overwhelmed with responses that I decided to jump right back in and this time were going for the kill !!

4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?

B: Most of the lyrical topics are about a state of mind, feelings or experiences,
And they happen to be in the Dead End style , so also they’re all is in the line of a developed Dead End.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Dead End'?

A:……… hm , a good question, all we wanted was to stand out in the crowd, so no unreadable logo like some bands have, and not some guttergorekillbloodevilsatan name, this one is loud and clear, and as we see the many posters we are on with our name and logo…. We stand out.



6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?

B: We've played a couple of great shows the past year, including Metaldays, Dutch Doom Days and Lucky Rocks and we have many great ones coming up, like Veghel Deathfest with Unleashed.
A: on stage we try to give the audience a total show, sound, looks, stage setting, all is taking extra care of, everything counts if you want to make a difference…

7.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

B: Yes, a lot actually. We try to visit as many countries as possible.
A: there’s one coming up soon we are not allowed to tell it yet, but also we are going to do Stockholm, Karlstad and Gotenborg, and we are looking forward to that one, its kinda in the belly of the beast you know, we are pretty Scandinavian influenced, so were curious how we are received there. But also we are going back to Lithuania in a few months, we had a blast there last year, so its great to go back and see our friends again. Belgium Germany Portugal and france are also on the plan but non confirmed yet.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your newer music by fans of doom and death metal?

A: well, 5 out of 5, 8,5 out of 10, 8 out of 10 and so on… every single one until now was great. But also phrases like: ”best album of 2016,” “ brilliant “ and the one I liked the most:” Like a modern day Black Sabbath meets Death Metal “… all cool stuff.
Old and new fans, reviewers we don’t now personally and some of them are known as pretty critical, so we are very proud so far.
B: Pretty good, we were excited to find out what the responses of the old-school fans were and they are beyond our expectations. It blows our minds.

 9.Are any of the band members also involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?

B: Our drummer Harald also plays in Pictura Poesis and he is also playing together with Alwin and ex-Dead End member Jeroen R in Into The Arcane. Jeroen G sings in a Rammstein tribute band Vannstein and I play in Deathwalker.

10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

B: I believe we are going to keep on doing what we do. Make music, play shows and just have a good time.
A: Dead End is reborn, and we proved with this new album, in this new line-up we are still Dead End with what we do now, I think we are ready to evolve, we got very close doing this new album and the chemistry is very good, what the next album brings us nobody knows, we were kinda looking very focused on staying in the Dead End style with this album, and we proved we could, and not even with making much extra effort, it came natural actually.
 so the new album is gonna be a challenge in many ways, but it will be Dead End. That’s for shure.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

B: We've mostly let us be inspired by the old death/doom metal with a bit of gothic here and there.
A: the nice thing is that we don’t even share the same likes, Arjan is more into the more brutal bands, and Jay ( Jeroen Gijsbers ) is more thrash and rock’n roll metal stuff, Harald has a very wide taste also, from symphonic to slam hahahaha, me, I have my phases, I can listen to bands like Dark Tranquility for a while and than all of a sudden I have Manowar or Candlemass spinning in my car-radio. But I think that’s a good thing, I think the variety of our likings and who we are makes this band, age’s between 26 and 44, from different parts of the country and not all having the same taste brought us were we are now, we think with an open mind, and end up like Dead End…. And so far, this seems to bring us a perfect result. And we like it !!