1. Can you tell us a little bit about the band for those that have never heard of you before?
Sure – thanks for giving us the opportunity to spread the word about DESOLATION! Well, we've been around since 1994 and so far we've recorded three albums that have established us as a fairly well-known underground act in the northern part of Germany. In 2014 we celebrate our 20th anniversary and hope to make yet some more new friends and fans.
2. How would you describe your musical sound?
That is always a difficult thing to do if your music doesn't fit the common categories easily. We've mostly been described as a melodic death- black metal act. Somebody recently pointed out that we have an urban feel to the music, and I guess that fits our new album DESORIENTED quite well.
3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Our new album deals with questions of belonging and the idea of home – where is our place in this world and which values do we navigate by? This may sound rather theoretical, but in the songs there's always a certain perspective that explores these concepts, for example in "Dorothy" I imagined how it would have been if the little girl from Kansas had not returned home but ended up a cheap whore who breathes her last in a seedy hotel, which itself is a metaphor for this world where we never quite belong... I guess some of the lyrics may seem a bit strange at first, but there's certainly plenty to explore.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name Desolation?
To be quite honest - we were fifteen, sixteen when we formed the band and wanted a cool-sounding, simple name that somehow would help to describe our sound. One of us idly flicked through his LP collection and pulled out a Morbid Angel record: Abominations of Desolation – and there it was. Apart from the fact that now there are a few other bands by that name in the US and GB, we're still very happy with it.
5.What are some of the best show that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
We've enjoyed sharing the stage with such fine bands as God Dethroned, Disillusion or Malevolent Creation. Currently we're playing some gigs with our good friends in Bloodwork. Our gigs tend to surprise fans who only know our CDs, as we have a much more brutal live sound while at the same time preserving the melodious aspects of the songs.
6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future/
As I said, 2014 will see our 20th anniversary and we'd like to play a couple of special shows to celebrate, but so far we haven't really made any definite plans.
7.Currently , you are unsigned are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
We are currently affiliated with Rebellion records, a small German label that supported us in our search for a distribution solution. We're very happy with the current arrangement, but if an interesting metal label were willing to back our work with a somewhat larger budget (i.e. larger than our own...), that would be a great opportunity.
8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black and death metal?
Worldwide? Wow – that’s a bit hard to tell from where I’m sitting J. Judging by the reviews we’ve received, people have responded well to the fact that our music is far from boring – that there are worlds within the songs that want to be explored. Fortunately (or unfortunately?) it’s not music for the masses, yet at the same time it’s not only music for the die-hard death metal fan, but other people can relate to the more melodic or experimental parts. So we’re very glad that there are always listeners who give the CDs the couple of run-throughs they need before you get hooked.
9.What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
That’s impossible to say. We certainly will not part with any of our trademarks. DESOLATION without prominent keyboards would not be DESOLATION, no matter how much some people whine about the fact that we use them. And we’ve always liked to experiment, so I guess there will be lots of experiments in the future. However, our music has always come from the heart, not the head, so we won’t turn into a math metal band all of a sudden.
10.What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your msuic and also what are you listening to nowadays?
That is as diverse as the six people we have in our band. Our drummer and main songwriter is head over heels into progressive rock, while I listen to early nineties European death metal exclusively. The one band we can all agree on is Samael, so there may be some influence from that side…
11.Outside of music what are some of your interests?
Again, this is quite different for all of us. Felix is a passionate downhill biker, whereas to me bliss means a good bottle of wine and a fine piece of literature. The band and extreme metal is our common denominator and the basis of a fine friendship that has lasted almost twenty years. Job and family commitments allowing, we spend a lot of time with each other, so everything beyond that pretty much has to play second fiddle…
12.Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
First of all thank you for taking an interest in DESOLATION. We love what we do and we’d love others to enjoy our particular kind of metal. If you’re the least bit curious now, go to www.desmetal.de to find out more and have a good listen.
Please go out and support your local underground – wherever that may be. Go to concerts, buy CDs and shirts, talk to the bands and keep the metal alive. HELL YEAH!
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