Interviews

Daeonia
August 1999

These Dutch goth rockers have a new album out called Craven, which was recently slated by Metal Hammer. I reviewed their single (a cover of Sisters Of Mercy song Alice) in the last issue, and thought it was OK, but the fears I voiced in the review seem to have been confirmed by the Metal Hammer review. Anyway to be fair I interviewed the band and they seem like nice guys. Drummer Sebastiaan Verwey answered my questions...

Most of our readers will probably not have heard anything about you. Could you introduce the members of the band and tell us what the most annoying habits of each person are.
Guitar:
Michael Bink
Most annoying habit: Has long and interesting conversations with himself during rehearsal.
Guitar: Eric Hazebroek
Most annoying habit: Sometimes takes us on a 'small driving trip' after which we usually end up in the middle of nowhere miles and miles from home.
Bass: Arjan Heijden
Most annoying habit: Can say very sarcastic things and make it seem like he's joking
Synth: Jorrit v.d. Weide
Most annoying habit: Hates all music apart from three or four bands and is very explicit about that.
Drums: Yours truly (Sebastiaan Verwey)
Most annoying habit: You must be kidding!!! (Eric : "Has a life that consists of books, books, computer, books, his girlfriend, books.... and a little bit of drums too")
Vocals: Michel de Wilde (has left the band recently)
Most annoying habit: <no comment>
Honestly: We work together very very well as a band. There's nothing in our way as far as songwriting and performing are concerned.

Where are you from?
We are from Holland, and most of us live in or around The Hague

From your biography I see that you have been together for several years, but I have never heard your name in the UK until now. Do you have a following outside the UK?
We do not have a large following in Holland, or anywhere else. We've never attracted much attention in our hometown, since we were never 'metal' enough for the general taste. Most people who hear Daeonia are either very enthusiastic, or don't know what to make of it. The music that we make is still quite unheard of here in Holland. It's either goth metal (which we certainly are not) or elektro that people like. Also, we are not a band that plays the local club 15 times a year and never gets out of town. We don't like that. Most of the gigs we do are in other parts of the land. But, as a consequence, we haven't obtained a 'band of followers' yet.

daeonia2.jpg (5852 bytes)Do you do lots of gigs to promote yourself? Have you played with any particulatly cool bands?
We're planning to do a tour with the British wave band Christian Death. This should have taken place some time ago but it was cancelled due to various reasons. If all works out, it will take place somewhere coming October or November. But as for now, we don't play a lot, mainly because we are looking for a new vocalist. Michel has left us some months ago and we haven't found a proper replacement yet, but we are very busy trying new people. As soon as that is settled, we will play more and promote Craven on stage as much as we can.

Your music could be described as goth metal, though obviously not in the My Dying Bride sense. Do you consider yourself a goth band or a metal band? I know from experience that the goth scene can be very bitchy and judgemental - have you experienced that as a band?
We consider ourself a goth rock band. Though we've started out as a goth metal band, we've progressed long since into some sort of goth rock band. Craven still has a little bit of a metal edge, but the new material is less metal and more goth rock/ 80's wave. We haven't had any very negative reactions from the existing goth scene up to now. This is partly because we're right in between the My Dying Bride bands and the electronic goth bands of today. I cannot imagine that any of those two sides could have trouble with us because, we don't fit in very neatly in either of those 'scenes'. Also, nowdays every metal band that employs a keyboard player and a female vocalist calls itself a goth band. In our opinion, it takes more than that to be a goth band.

In a few sentences, explain to our readers why they should buy your music.
Daeonia combines a modern sound with an atmosphere of the wave bands in the 80's. Without sounding oldfashioned we bring to life catchy, dark, emotional music that picks you up and doesn't let you go. As of yet, there is no band alike in this genre. Together with an intense and mesmerising live show, Daeonia is worth listening to.

Judging by your choice of Alice as a single, I assume the Sisters Of Mercy are a large influence on you. What other bands influence your music, and what other bands do you like?
Besides Sisters, there is only Fields of the Nephilim as a mutual source of inspiration for the band as a whole.
daeonia3.jpg (3917 bytes) As individiuals, the music we listen to is much more divers, ranging from Depeche Mode to The Mission, from The Tea Party to classical music. We do like to 'group' ourselves with a new breed of goth bands from America, such as London after Midnight, Autumn, Faith and the Muse and Switchblade Symphony. The Craven CD has also been released in the US and reactions are very positive. We do not sound similar to those bands, but we would enjoy playing with them, because we do bring about a bit of the same atmosphere.

In ten years time, do you think Daeonia will still be going strong?
That depends. If we get the chance, we will probably continue playing as long as we can. Nevertheless, we cannot look any further than a couple of months, or sometimes days. As for now, it's still uncertain what people think of us. The reviews of Craven are starting to appear here and there, together with some interviews. We hope to be well-received and to play a lot, and evolve further into what we are doing. Daeonia has by no means reached its end station.

What are you favourite 3 albums of all time?
Fields of the Nephilim - Elizium
Sisters of Mercy - Floodland
London after Midnight - Psycho Magnet

And so much more that it is impossible to name every band that fits my mood on a certain occasion. I listen to a lot of different music. Those slots can be filled by a large variety of bands. It's simply impossible to list only three. Nevertheless, Fields and Sisters will always be there.

What was the last album you bought?
The Tea Party - Triptych (excellent cd!!!)

What was the last gig you went to?
Lacuna Coil

On a totally non music related subject - what do you think the worldwide effects of the millenium bug will be? I might even give out a prize to the person who guesses closest! (If I'm still alive to do so!)
Hehehe, I personally think that the millennium bug, apart from maybe a few small calamities, will not cause the earth to collapse. Unfortunately, I know as much about computer programming as I know about playing guitar..... so I could be dead wrong. Who knows?

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