Part 2

For your current release, what kind of energy were you looking for?

Our debut album Live was recorded live during our first tour and thus took the pulse of the stage. The album is intended to capture and somehow hold on to the tension and energy of the moment. It's about the “beauty” in the rawness, with true and genuine character.

It felt like I was driven by this strange cocktail of adrenaline and wanderlust, where laughter mixes with longing and desire and every moment is like a heartbeat. It's sweat and shadow, neon bleeding into darkness. I associate it with a walk off the beaten track, where we’re committed to honesty and let you have a deep look inside.

The album is a coming together of all these components (including the previously mentioned ones) in a live setting. Four months after forming my trio, we played a first tour and this is what came out of it. I think it's young, fresh, raw and somewhat unpolished - a snapshot taken in time.

How do you capture the energy you want in the studio?

We have planned the studio session for our second album for the coming summer and I'm really looking forward to it.

We have been constantly working on our sound for almost 2 years now since the band was founded and a lot has happened and developed during this time. Our rehearsals now are  mostly sets, so we can get as close as possible to a live experience.

The second album will be a pure studio album, with the audience aspect removed. I think we are now so well-rehearsed that we trust each other blindly and can really go anywhere together. With this trust comes a lot of energy and courage, a willingness to experiment, to take risks and to be free. Together with our engineer, our hang is complete and we're ready to go.

For me personally, it's important that I can be in a calm and relaxed state - both physically and mentally - so that it's really all about enjoying the dive into the music and about that anything can happen. This applies equally to the studio and concerts. Music, people and space - the energy then arises together in the moment.    

What role do factors like volume, effects like distortion, amplification, and production in general for in terms of creating the energy you want?

For me, effects play a big role, even outside of the energy question. Basically, a nice, fat clean sound with a bit of reverb is probably one of the best things you can get on a guitar.

But I'm a big fan of distortion and overdrive and I also like to use other effects like granular delays, ring modulators and so on. I think it allows me to create a new sound and a strong identity of my own.

And that's exactly what I'm trying to achieve for myself. It is very important to me to have my own language, to create my own style that corresponds to me and my ideas and reflects my personality in music. I fall in love with the guitar again and again through all these possibilities.

And then of course, dynamics play a huge role in our interplay. It offers and creates contrasts and represents all the mountains and valleys that we can experience inside and outside of music.    

In terms of energy, what changes when you're performing live on stage, with an audience present, compared to the recording stage?

As our debut album is a live album, I'm really looking forward to our second production in the summer.

However, I believe that with the trio we've created a vessel that is a kind of “energy well” for us. Playing together always brings us closer, makes us feel a connection, bond and sense and allows us to ride all the waves or take a deep dive together. The trust is blind, Marius and Alessandro are like brothers to me.

In a live context, there is no hiding and hopefully no holding back. From the very first note onward, there are no fears for me in the trio or in music and I can be myself and feel at home. This is desirable for all stages and situations, whether live or in the studio. This is incredibly valuable for me in life and music.

How does the presence of the audience and your interaction with it change the energy of the music and how would you describe the creative interaction with listeners during a gig?

I believe that an audience can transmit this energy to itself and thus multiply it. Sharing your music with people is something very special and very beautiful. It is also something very intimate, you are completely open, honest and show all sides of yourself ... the strong and perhaps the great, but also the very vulnerable and small ones.

Ideally, you don't put on a mask, but instead you take everything off when you play. You leave it behind and always start together from a common point zero. The audience also starts from this point with us.

Our aim is to create a kind of musical journey or trip in a live context. For us, but also for everyone in the room. These experiences can and may vary from person to person; we are perhaps more of a mediator.

When an audience dives deep into this journey with us, it can also be strongly felt on stage as concentrated energy, which carries an incredible power. So sometimes the emergence between pieces or longer parts is a bit strange and out ...  in the sense of: “Shiit, we're back on earth?” ... what else do you say then?

What kind of feedback have you received from listeners or concert audiences in terms of the experience that your music and/or performances have had on them?

Our concerts are always a bit different, and I have the feeling that we are constantly growing together as a band with our musical material.

It's nice that people get involved with our music and can immerse themselves in it. Many people see images or go on a kind of journey through the concert, associating personal experiences or feelings with the music, which is wonderful feedback for us. It not only opens up new paths and areas for us.

Someone once told me that my music saved her life during a very dark time. Feedback like that puts everything into perspective.

Would you say that you prefer to stay in control to be able to shape the energy or do you surrender to it and allow the music to take over? Who, ultimately has control during a live performance?

It's about the music and I serve as “the one who plays or operates the instrument” ... so it's not really about me. I think it's wonderful when the music takes over and I'm allowed to take “conscious”, intuitive and clear decisions. It's a game or play of control and somehow with the loss of control.

I sometimes picture myself walking on a high wire and next to me is the abyss. It's also about the question of losing control. I can only walk this path through absolute honesty in the music and through channelling this energy.

The energy that music is able to generate can sometimes be overwhelming. How, do you think, can artists make use of this energy to bring about change in the world?

Music shall embody honesty and openness, something in which we can all recognise ourselves. Music and energy stand for togetherness, in all situations and moments of life, for exploration and different shared experiences.

It uses this collective energy of human experience, where different emotions, experiences and transformations come together - and this takes us all further. Fully involved, with enjoyment of the process, with complete intrinsic motivation.