1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
1. Paul Stadman: the band originated on the 3rd of July, 2007 in Cherkessk (Russia), when the name «Defiance of Decease» was created. We play Doom-Death Metal with the elements of other musical styles. By now we’ve released an album named “Suicide”, a music video (“Death in Fire”) and had one of our songs (“Like a Star in the Sky”) took part in a music compilation «Рок знамя vol.3». There have also been a lot of concerts, and after our first long-play release the band went touring in the South of Russia.
2.In September you had released your first album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?
2. Ricardo Digolos: the music can be described as doom-death metal mixed with dark metal, just as it was originally planned. The lyrics had been written much earlier than the music was composed, so we tried to express all the feelings and emotions of the stories through instruments and even to add some more. That is why there’s much dark and depressive, but also energetic and romantic about the album.
3.The band has been around since 2007 but waited until 2015 to release any music, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time period?
3. Paul: there were many things that prevented the album from coming out earlier like an unstable lineup, lots of concerts, rearrangement of music and studio problems. A certain amount of songs had been composed by 2009, when the first concerts started. After those it was decided to record the songs, but soon enough we realized that they had to be changed and improved, so we put off the record sessions. The period of often lineup changes and a two-year break came after (there were no concerts, and we came together quite seldom just for rearrangement). In 2012 all the lineup problems were finally solved, and the band returned to the Darknagar Records studio (which moved to Pyatigorsk that caused some troubles). By 2014 the album had been recorded, mixed and mastered, and we began a search for a label to release it. As we know, it is now Narcoleptica Productions, and the album came out in September, 2015.
4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
4. Paul: according to the title our debut album is dedicated to life and death, people’s fight against themselves. Following the lyrics some of them find the solution. And this may be either a suicide or an attempt to find the strength inside to live on. Some are helped by their friends, like it happens in «Blade of Death”. Some are successful in their suicidal intentions. For example, “Death in Fire” main character seeks peace hoping to have it after death. He believes his soul becomes whole with the wind as his ashes do, but, as it turns out, he is to suffer more than he did when he was alive, and the degree of suffering depends on the type of death he chose. Some lyrics don’t actually have a conclusion allowing our audience to decide what happened in the end. Such things as love and nature are planned in the nearest future.
5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name ;Defiance of Decease'?
5. Paul: the band’s name is tied to the first album’s concept, but it doesn’t mean that all the others are going to be connected with a physical death. “Death” can also mean disappearance of feelings, when love “dies”, loss of morality, destruction of nature. It was I who created the name. I was inspired by the poems I had written. When they were ready we made a little bit of an adaptation process for them to fit the songs.
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?
6. Paul: there are different opinions and different reasons. Our former drummer Arthuro Doretti, for example, thinks that the first concert is the best one, because his family was there. The most of the band thought in the same way until the autumn tour. I suppose the best concert was in Maykop with its big (really big) stage and truly crazy crowd. Stage, lights, sound and everything else is beyond any comparison.
Sergio Darksol: I can’t choose a concrete show. Every one of them is a lot of emotions, and it doesn’t matter where we play. I’ve met dozens of really good people at the shows, and it’s a great happiness to see them. Every concert leaves many memories that will be with us forever making us relieve that emotional storm again and again.
Juliana Stadman: there were not so many such great concerts. It depended mostly on the crowd and organization. As for me, there were no bad shows, for every one of them taught me something, and I use this experience to improve my stage performance. Different things happened: gear troubles, inactive crowd (especially when we visited a completely new place). I think that the best concert was in our hometown in 2014 (CheRocky Festival). Open air, rain, it was really a hard thing to forget. There were also remarkable shows in Vladikavkaz, Novorossiysk and Maykop. And the one that took place in Maykop was just amazing!
Woldus Barden: there are three special shows for me: Rock On in Essentuki, CheRocky and the one in Maykop which I find to be the best out of all.
7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
7. Sergio: after the first tour we started to think about the next one, but much bigger one this time. Thirty towns were planned, including Moscow, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Kazan and others. But then a problem we couldn’t fix appeared. Despite the fact that some town had already agreed, Woldus was recruited to the army (there is conscription in Russia). Now we’re making some new material and have small shows, but the time for greater ideas will come, when Woldus returns.
8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of gothic, doom and death metal?
8. Limephes Whitecholer: slowly but surely “Suicide” gets reviews from various counties. For example, the have already been reviewed by Italian, American and Russian resources and rated quite highly which, of course, gladdens us. There is also a video review from “Rock News” youtube channel. The album has been sent to many countries, so other reviews are being awaited from all parts of the world. Well, and there is also some good reception of our album throughout social networks.
9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
9. Paul: we don’t plan any radical changes, but some experiments with genres close to ours like, let us say funeral doom metal, are expected.
10.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?
10. Paul: it was my idea to play doom-death metal. At that time I listened to “Dark Reality”, “Crematory”, “Estatic Fear” and “Death”. Sooner friendship with “Sacratus” and music of such bands as "Saturnus", "My Dying Bride", "Hieronymus Bosch" finally made me create my own band that would play doom-death metal. Though not everyone shares my tastes in the band, we all support the idea of playing such music. Lately I’ve been listening to "Dominia", "Mourning Beloveth", early “Tiamat”, “Tristania”, early "Anathema", "Fu Xi". I also listen some classic rock music, for example, “Guns'n'Roses", "Accept", "Kingdom Come", "Doro Pesch" and, of course, "Ozzy Osbourne".
Sergio: my musical tastes spread far across the field of all types of music. And the reason is my listening to various kinds of music, whether it is rock, pop or rap music. If the song is stuck to my mind, I listen to it. Many people don’t understand me in this case. I can name such bands as "Rammstein", "Metallica", "Volbeat", "System Of A Down", early "Nightwish", "Cradle Of Filth", "Dimmu Borgir", "Children Of Bodom", "Korn" as my favorite.
Juliana: I listen to various kinds of music. Since childhood I’ve been in touch with classical music. When I was a teenager, I was listening to everything roughly saying, I was in search. These days I’m interested in classical music’s sub-genre, choral music. I am deep in it and do my job with great love. I was affected by such compositors as Bach (Мesse h-moll), Mozart (Requiem), Carl Orff, Shostakovich, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Chaikovsky. When it about something heavier, I prefer Black Metal. I can call such bands as "My dying bride", "Anathema", "Saturnus", "Kauan", "Dimmu Borgir", "Behemoth", "Immortal" as the ones that influenced on my style. But a brick for the rock music life and vocal basement gave “Evanescence".
Limephes: My musical style was and is being formed by different kinds of music, but there are some bands that affected me much greater than the others, and these are”Edge of Sanity” (especially Crimson and Crimson II), Theatre of Tragedy (the whole of their music I have to admit) and Lordi. I was much influenced on by Sonic the Hedgehog’s music . Nowadays I listen to many various bands and explore new songs and genres.
Woldus: when I was young, I listened to whatever I heard: pop, rap, shanson. But then my father introduced me to “Sektor Gaza” (I was 12-14). I liked it, and that is when it all started. I found myself fond of such bands as “Metallica”, “AC/DC” and others. When my friend Nikita and I formed a band, I began to listen to heavier music. And when I became a part of Defiance of Decease, doom, death, thrash and such genres came into my life. I also learned how to listen to extreme vocal, despite the fact I couldn’t bare it earlier.
Ricardo: Mostly I like classical music: Bach, Mozart, Beethoven. If to speak about bands similar to ours, I prefer Agalloch. But the most of heavy music that I listen to is not like our own: Bullet for my Valentine, Ill Nino, Metallica, Slipknot. I’m quite busy these days, so there’s very little time to explore new music.
11.What are some of your non musical interests?
11. Paul: I was fond of martial arts years ago, especially karate. I have a blue belt. I play football, but I’m amateur here. I find myself interested in reading classic English literature authors like Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte and others. I play computer games and use social networks. Three years ago I started my own small computer business. I have also been experiencing some concert organization stuff recently. And I’m a big fan of making wine, brandy and chacha.
Sergio: I was looking hard for a hobby during my childhood. I tried arts, dance, judo, radioengineering, but none of these was a success. When I was a little bit older, I got interested in household appliances and even planned to work as a sale assistant. I also liked fire protection during my military service, for I was a fire truck driver. But when I returned home, I was not very lucked with the fire protection. These days I have a job connected with knitwear production, organize rock concerts in my hometown and the nearest ones, organize bus tours. I can say that I spare some time playing computer and video games.
Juliana: it’s a very difficult question for me, as I’m always in music. I’m to become a conductor soon, so I teach a choir. I attend different musical shows, either it is something more classical in a theatre, or something heavier at a rock club. My interests are walks around the city, shopping (as for many women, and I’m not an exception). I like cooking and have some practice in this sphere, and I always try to seek something new and interesting for me.
Limephes: computer gaming means a lot to me. I often play old and new games, interested in industry news. The most part of my life (including music) is somehow connected to video gaming. I’m also always eager to learn something new, so I would call myself sort of an information faggot.
Woldus: I study in medical college, like cooking and eating some tasty things. Got into anime some time ago.
Ricardo: I work as knitwear programmer and play poker with my friends. If we’re speaking about computer games, I’m a World of Tanks and FIFA fan.
12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
12. Paul: live in music, breathe in music, we hope that metal lives in your hearts.
Limephes: there’s no such thing as bad music, but there is one as bad people.
Woldus: waiting for demobilization…
Ricardo: live, create, make progress.
