SYMI - The gate of lions (GR)
http://www.symi-gate.musicpage.com/

This time my requirements for interview were higher than the past and I decided not to send my questions by email (well... not with Dragonland though), as it usually happens with online magazines, but to try something closer to the live version of phone. And what else than chat? It took me about a week to find the apprpriate chat-site (we could do it on a chat program, but the guys didn't want to install anything in their pcs). A site that has a lot of fun and crashes (we had crashed all 4 once) one time per 1 hour. Not bad, eh? The hard thing was to gather the guys to a private room in order to make the interview come true. Finally i think (and hope) I made it even if i had 3 members of Logar's Diary on the other "line". Just read what follows and enjoy our 1 and 1/2 hours conversation about their debut "Book 1: Iostros" and many other topics i've chosen for them to answer...

1. SYMI-GATE: FIRST OF ALL... CONGRATULATIONS ABOUT YOUR DEBUT! PLEASE TELL ME A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE RECORDINGS AND HOW HARD WAS TO PROGRAM THE DRUMS.

H.H.: THE RECORDING WAS DONE AT FELIX' ROOM, AT HIS PC, SO THE MEANSES WERE VERY LIMTED! BUT AFTER ALL WE ARE QUITE PROUD OF THE OUTCOME, AS WE HAD NO PRODUCER - NOONE BUT US!

C.U.: WE HAD A LOT OF TIME.

SYMI-GATE: WELL...I THINK THE PRODUCTION IS GREAT IF I TAKE UNDER NOTICE THAT IS A SELF-FINANCED WORK...

H.H.: THANKS!

C.U.: THE DRUMMING WAS A COMPROMISE, BUT WE WANTED TO DO IT THE BEST POSSIBLE WAY. WE ONLY HAVE A CHANCE IF WE ARE BETTER THAN THE OTHER, SO WE TRIED OUR BEST.

2. SYMI-GATE: OK...HOW ABOUT THE BAND'S FORMATION? HOW YOU GUYS GATHERED TOGETHER? MAYBE SCHOOL FRIENDS OR SOMETHING?

C.U.: STEVEN AND I MET IN THE HOSPITAL AT OUR CIVILIAN SERVICE AND MICHA WAS THERE, TOO.

SYMI-GATE: THAT MEANS U WERE STRANGERS BEFORE...?

H.H.: YEAH, EXCEPT STEVEN,FELIX AND ME, SO, NOT REALLY.

C.U.: STRANGERS IN A STRANGE LAND!

SYMI-GATE: YOU MUST HAVE SET UP THE BAND, NO? I MEAN STEVEN, FELIX AND HAGGEN...

H.H.: NO. ACTUALLY STEVEN WAS THE ONE WHO HAD THE FIRST IDEA ABOUT IT. FELIX AND I WERE WORKING TOGETHER IN ANOTHER PROJECT.

C.U.: FIRST STEVEN, THEN ME, THEN FELIX AND HAGEN AND THEN MICHA. IT WAS STEVEN/S IDEA.

M.K.: MET STEVE AND CHRIS IN THE HOSPITAL.

3. SYMI-GATE: ARE THERE ANY DEMOS BEFORE IOSTROS?

C.U.: NO. JUST FOR REHEARSAL FOR OURSELVES.

4. SYMI-GATE: ARE U PLANNING TO GET A REAL DRUMMER INSTEAD OF PROGRAMING?

H.H.: YEAH! WE HAD ONE AS WELL, BUT HE LEFT THE BAND.

SYMI-GATE: WHAT HAPPENED? BECAUSE OF PERSONAL DIFFERENCES OR MUSICAL ONES?

C.U.: HE WAS NOT A POWER METAL GUY. PERSONAL DIFFERENCES, BECAUSE ACTUALLY HE WAS VERY GOOD. NOW WE ARE TESTING THREE NEW DRUMMERS...BUT THEY ALL ARE FROM OUTSIDE OF BERLIN.

5. SYMI-GATE: 541 FIRST CDS WERE SOLD OUT AND NEW 518 ARE OUT NOW! WHAT WERE UR AMBITIONS BEFORE THE RELEASE, AND WHAT NOW?

H.H.: WE PLAN TO GET A LABEL DEAL, BECAUSE THE IOSTROS ALBUM WAS MADE TO FIND A LABEL

M.K.: GET A DRUMMER AND PLAY LIVE!

C.U.: OR TWO! :-) I WANT TO BE ON THE STAGE AND HEAR THE CROWD SING LOGAR SONGS!

SYMI-GATE: BUT YOU EXPECTED TO SELL THAT MUCH?

C.U.: IT WAS KIND OF FULFILLING A BIG DREAM OF ME. WE HOPED SO... BUT I DONT THINK IT IS SO MUCH YET.

H.H.: NO! OF COURSE WE THOUGHT THAT WE'D NOT SELL THE 500 CDS. BUT YOU NEVER KNOW! SO NOW WE'RE QUITE EXCITED.

M.K.: NO, WE DIDNT EXPECT THAT RESONANCE.

6. SYMI-GATE: HOW U STARTED COMPOSING THE ALBUM? FIRST LYRICS AND THEN MUSIC OR OPPOSITE WAY? AND HOW HARD WAS TO COMBINE BOTH SIDES?

H.H.: OPPOSITE WAY. THE LYRICAL CONCEPT" DOES NOT MEAN ALL THE SINGING-LINES, THOUGH. SOMETIMES THERE WAS ONLY A SINGING MELODY OR SO. OF COURSE YOU MUST TRY TO REACH THE LISTENER.

C.U.: EACH SONG WAS WRITTEN DIFFERENTLY, BUT THE LYRICAL CONCEPT CAME BEFORE THE SONGS. THE COMBINING WAS NOT TOO HARD. STEVEN DID A GOOD JOB! SOMETIMESD WE HAD TO DELETE A GOOD RIFF, CAUSE IT DIDN'T FIT, BUT WE WILL USE THEM LATER.

SYMI-GATE: WELL...EACH SONG REQUIRES TO BE UNITE AND PERSONAL. AND YOU CHRISTOPH WROTE THE INTROS VERY GOOD I THINK...

C.U.: THX! IT WAS NEEDED IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND THE LYRICS BETTER

7. SYMI-GATE: DEJA-VU COMBINES A LOT OF MELODIES ON THE ALBUM. LONELY ON THE SERPENT RIVER, IOSTROS, TRAVELLING TO THE BLOOD WOODS, A TROUBARRDOUR'S BALLAD AND HOME OF THE TRADERS. ALL THESE SONGS IN ONE, CORRECT?

C.U.: YEAH. LOGAR SITS ON A WATERFALL AND REMINDS HIS ADVENTURE. THERE'S NOTHING NEW IN THIS SONG, ACTUALLY IS SUPPORTED BY THE OTHER ALBUM MELODIES. COULD BE...I DONT REMEMBER IT EXACTLY.

M.K.: NOT TRADERS.

H.H.: I THINK YOU ARE CORRECT! WELL LISTENED!

C.U.: TRADERS NOT... NOT SURE.

H.H.: I THINK YES!

SYMI-GATE: I THINK THERE'S ONE PERSONAL MELODY ON DEJA-VU EXCEPT THE ONES I SAID (I'M SURE ABOUT THEM AS I'VE LISTENED THE ALBUM OVER 100 TIMES!!) AND I ALSO THINK THAT ALL MELODIES THERE FIT GREAT!

C.U.: YEAH, THE MAIN MELODY. IT LINKS HIS REFLECTIONS. SO LESS??? :-) I LISTENED TO TEH CD ABOUT 5000 TIMES AND I CANT STAND IT ANYMORE :-) WE NEED A NEW ONE!

H.H.: LOL I'M DEAF NOW , TOO!

8. SYMI-GATE: SURE U NEED! I NEED ONE TOO! LOL WHAT ABOUT A LABEL CONTRACT?

H.H.: YEAH. THE NEXT OUTCOME WILL BE A RUNNING WILD COVER.

SYMI-GATE: I KNOW THAT....BUT ABOUT THE LABELS? WHICH LABEL IS CLOSER TO YOU? MAYBE BLACK LOTUS? YOU ASKED FOR ITS EMAIL BEFORE ... :))

H.H.: I THINK WE CAN'T SAY ANYTHING SO FAR, BECAUSE WE HAVE TO CHECK OUT THE OFFERS THAT CAME UP

SYMI-GATE: BUT WHEN U THINK U'LL HAVE A CONTRACT SIGNED?

H.H.: ...OF COURSE WE WANT TO IMPROVE AS SOON AS POSIBLE, SO WE'RE SOMEHOW IN A HURRY, BUT ON THE OTHER HAND WE DONT WANT TO MAKE ANY MISTAKES, ...SO MAYBE IN A FEW MONTHS WE'LL BE ABLE TO DECIDE SOMETHING.

SYMI-GATE: WELL.....BEING FAST HAS ITS ADVANTAGES AND ITS DISADVANTAGES IN EVERY WAY.

H.H.: YES THAT'S IT!

9. SYMI-GATE: CHRISTOPH, YOU SAID YOU HAD TO PREPARE A SPEECH FOR THE UNIVERSITY... WHAT IS YOUR OCCUPATION THERE AND WHICH ARE YOUR PRIORITIES? UNIVERSITY OR LOGAR?

C.U.: HAD I??? SHIT! IT WAS ABOUT CLONING... METAL IS MY LIFE! THEN COMES MY GIRLFRIEND, THEN MY FOOTBALL AND THEN MY WORK. AND THEN HAGEN (LOL)! LOGAR ARE MY MAJOR PRIORITY SINCE TWO YEARS.

H.H.: ARGH!!

10. SYMI-GATE: I THINK MOST OF THE POWER METAL BANDS ARE INFLUENCED BY IRON MAIDEN AND HELLOWEEN... DO YOU BELONG TO THIS CATEGORY? IF YES WHY "A BIG FUCK" TO THEM? AND IF NO, WHICH ARE UR MAIN INFLUENCES? MAYBE BLIND GUARDIAN AND RUNNING WILD?

C.U.: WE ARE NOT! IRON MAIDEN COMMERCIALIZE AND SELL THEMSELVES. WE DONT CONSIDE THEM BEING TRUE METALLERS AND IM NOT TALKING MUSICALLY. THEY SELL THEMSELVES, WE DONT LIKE THEIR BEHAVIOUR. 100 DM FOR A TICKET... 50DM FOR A SHIRT... 1000 SINGLES!

H.H.: RIGHT!

11. SYMI-GATE: WITH A NAME LIKE LOGAR'S DIARY ALL YOUR ALBUMS SHOULD BE CONCEPTS ABOUT LOGAR'S ADVENTURES... HOW MANY "BOOKS" YOU THINK YOU'LL RELEASE?

H.H.: 1461

C.U.: 331

M.K.: AS MORE AS WE CAN!

SYMI-GATE: ...AND I ALSO GUESS THE NEW ALBUM WILL DEAL WITH AXANDRIA, BECAUSE IT'S SAID ON THE LAST INTRO SOME WAY...

H.H.: I THINK ONE CANNOT FORESEE THIS, I LIKE HER, ALTHOUGH SHE IS AN ELF.

C.U.: COULD BE. I DONT LIKE HER. SHE IS AN ELF AND I HATE ELVES! BUT LOGAR LOVES HER. SO LETS SEE WHAT WILL HAPPEN. THE THING IS THAT LOGAR IS THE ROLEPLAYING CHARACTER FRON STEVEN, SO ALL WE WRITE IS ALL WHAT HAPPENS DURING THE RPG. SO ONLY STEVEN CAN INFLUENCE TEH STORY. CLEAR?

H.H.: HE AND HIS GROUP!

12. SYMI-GATE: WHAT ABOUT YOUR COUNTRY'S METAL SCENE? DO YOU THINK THERE ARE ANY NEW GOOD BANDS WE CAN HOPE FROM THEM IN THE FUTURE AND IF YES, WHICH ARE THEY?

C.U.: YEAH ALOT OF! GORGONS EYES FOR EXAMPLE, LOGAR'S DIARY :-)

H.H.: NO NOT THEM!

M.K.: DONT FORGET DAWN! DAWN IS NO POWER METAL THOUGH!

C.U.: THE FORGET DAWN. CUSTARD IS STRONG, BUT QUITE GOOD MUSICIANS! BUT NO UNDERGROUND. ALSO STORMBLADE, GALLOGLASS, FADING STARLIGHT, CIRCLE OF GRIEF IS ALSO GREAT, BUT NOT PURE POWER METAL. WE HAVE A STRONG SCENE, BUT IT'S HARD TO FIND A DEAL NOWADYS. TWO YEARS AGO IT WAS BETTER. NOW EVERY LABEL HAS THEIR BANDS AND THE FANS ARE FED UP.

H.H.: AND SOMEHOW THERE ARE MORE BANDS THAN FANS.

C.U.: IN THREE YEARS POWER METAL WILL BE SHORT AGAIN. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF SELLING AND TASTE. WE PLAY OUR MUSIC CAUSE WE LOVE TO DO THAT.

H.H.: YEAH, IT HAS A CONSTANT CHANGE.

SYMI-GATE: I STARTED WITH SCORPIONS AND NOW I DON'T HAVE TIME TO LISTEN EVERY ALBUM I GET... THAT MEANS TOO MANY BANDS!!!

C.U.: COOL :-) LIMP BIZKIT CAN EARN MONEY.

H.H.: THERE IS SO MUCH I MISSED, IM SURE

SYMI-GATE: LIMB BIZKIT PLAY RAPPY STUFF THAT IS NOT MY CUP OF TEA. I LIKE TO DIG THE OLD RELEASES AND GET MORE EXPERIENCED ABOUT MY FAVORITE MUSIC. MY INTERESTS ARE GROWING SOMEHOW... FOR EXAMPLE, NOW LYRICS HAVE MORE INTEREST TO ME THAN THE PAST.

C.U.: EVERY WEEK I DISCOVER A NEW GREAT BAND. THE SCENE LIVES FROM IDEALISTS LIKE YOU AND ME. MANY NEW BANDS ARE CLONES, BUT IF THEY ARE GOOD CLONES THEY ARE STILL GOOD... LOOK AT INSANIA. GREAT, BUT A CLONE. OR HEAVANLY! SOUNDS LIKE GAMMA RAY BUT GREAT! BUT THEY SOUND LIKE EARLY HELLOWEEN TOO. ITS A CLONE BAND, BUT STILL WITH FEELING. SO CLONE CAN BE NO CRITERIA FOR A GOOD BAND.

13. SYMI-GATE: LONELY ON THE SERPENT RIVER YOU HAVE ON YOUR WEB SITE FULL... BECAUSE YOU THINK IS THE MOST REPRESENTATIVE SONG OF THE ALBUM?

C.U.: MAYBE... ITS FOR THE METAL FANS AND SYMPHONIC FANS. IT COMBINES OUR STRENGHTS.

H.H.: SOMEHOW THERE IS NO SONG WHICH IS TOTALYY REPRES. BECAUSE THERE ARE SO DIFFERENT. BUT WE THOUGHT THIS ONE ROCKS! AND SO WE TOOK IT.

C.U.: YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE OTHER TWO SAMPLES JUST SHOW OTHER SIDES OF THE BAND.WE HAVE MANY FACES.

H.H.: YEAH SO THAT TH PEOPLE CAN SEE THE CONTRAST SIDE

14. SYMI-GATE: ENDING THIS LONG(!!!!!!) INTERVIEW (WE MADE IT AT LAST!)...YOU HAVE MY BEST WISHES WHATEVER YOU CHOOSE TO DO IN THE FUTURE AND SIGN WITH A GOOD LABEL.

C.U.: THX! HOPEFULLY. AT THE MOMENT WE ARE CHCKING IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED IN US

M.K.: THX!

SYMI-GATE: AND THE LAST WORDS BELONG TO YOU (USUALLY A MSG TO THE FANS)...

H.H.: THANKS VERY MUCH FOR THE SUPPORT!

C.U.: DO YOU KNOW WHAT KEEPS A BAND ALIVE????

[SYMI-GATE: I THINK THE CHEMISTRY OF THE MEMBERS AND THE FANS]

TALKING TO PEOPLE LIKE YOU!! WE WOULD BE VERY HAPPY TO GET SOME FANS IN GREECE! TO TOUCH THEIR HEARTS WITH HONEST METAL!

H.H.: THIS WAS OUR FIRST ONLINE-INTERVIEW, SO IT WAS QUITE HARD... MANY GREETINGS TO THE WHOLE SCENE, ESPECIALLY IN GREECE!

M.K.: IT WAS HARD FOR ME, THEREFORE YOU GOT NO ANSWER FROM ME!

SYMI-GATE: THANKS A LOT GUYS FOR YOUR TIME AND IT WAS MY HONOR TO BE THE FIRST PERSON TO TAKE AN ONLINE INTERVIEW FROM YOU! HAIL!!

Interview by Stamatis

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