Breathe Atlantis - Interview

Hey Breathing The Core fans! Here we bring you the second interview of this day. In this case to the Post-Hardcore Metalcore  band Breathe Atlantis, from Germany. They are epic so nothing more to say than enjoy the interview and like their FACEBOOK PAGE!

1.Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

First of all, we had a complex thought concerning the balance between two worlds, which are traditionally described as opposites: on the one hand the so called “every-day-life” in a not satisfying society and on the other hand something like a landscape of creativity, imagination and arts. It’s a tightrope walk between these two phenomena, which affect each other. A likewise circumstance is focused in E.T.A. HOFFMANNs THE GOLDEN POT (1814), where the land of imagination is named ATLANTIS. So, while we are able to take a breath of Atlantis, we are able to stay alive in this society. It gives us the strength to move on and to create something new, to dissolve the old structures and to build new bridges. In this direction, we BREATHE ATLANTIS to set sail and to find an own path. And also your music reflects this mode of thought.

2.Why did you want to play this genre? 

We’re all making music for a long time in former bands, so we were affected by a huge continuum of different genres: the good old punk-rock- and HC-stuff, some southern-rock-bands and metal-giants may build one pole. The other extreme is seen in the electro and dubstep-parts of our tracks and also from another perspective in some sophisticated parts. Between these extremes we combine without rules or schemes. I think, it can be described as a critical soundtrack to a postmodern society, while we are living in rhizomes and crossing borderlines. We just do what we feel like doing. Every member of BREATHE ATLANTIS was able to bring in his own musical experience, so every single one is going to express themselves in their own ways and thus identify with the songs. This is very important, because being a band means more than playing just a few nice chords: you need to have a message. And this message has to be true. It is your face. So the lyrics and the music are carried and lived by every one of us. I personally think this quantity of sub-sub-sub-genres shows that nobody wants to be labeled. Especially as an artist. You have to spread your own words in your own way. But you also have to reflect about your doing and know where you are from, what are your roots, your musical bloodline, and never deny it. In other words: you have to deal with this postmodern structure, which exists in the organizational chart and in arts. You can read our answer the lyrics and music of BREATHE ATLANTIS.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed? 

Hara (drums), Joschi (guitar) and I (bass) have known each other before. We used to play together in a former band, so we also knew our personal and musical dispositions. We became close friends while spending night after night in our rehearsal room making music or just hanging around together. Also touring through Germany and the UK made us stay close. With Jan (guitar) and Nico (vocals) we were able to complete the puzzle. This constellation is perfect.

4. Each band member favourite band? 

Hara: NoFX
Joschi: Fury in the Slaughterhouse
Jan: Memphis May Fire
Nico: Asking Alexandria
Leif: Pennywise <3

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

Mostly there is a problem you have to fix, as easily as it sounds. You recognize something deep inside yourself, a thorn you thought you already had defeated. Or maybe you notice, that something social went wrong in some way and you want to take action. You want to change something. For an example: you look at a few kids in the streets and watch how they act or what they are doing and you imagine, what everything could look like in about twenty years. What I want to say is that we can take part in this world while giving perspectives or alternate values. Everybody can change something, but first you have to face problems. Then you have to believe in what you think is the right solution. Show some backbone. You can give something to the world. Our debut album SHORELINES is a concept album and deals exactly with that: it gives perspectives and offers alternative values. It shows, how a complementary pluralism can guide you through this postmodern arrangement what society became. You just have to open your eyes and see, what is happening outside. Don’t you want to change something? This inspires me to make music and to make this world become a better one. Start a fire. Also our music works that way. It’s an example of how you can break the framework. You are not true, because you write the same music one thousand others wrote before.

6. Where was your last gig?

Last weekend we’ve play at a location named OPIUM in Essen. Essen is a city in western Germany and next to Duisburg and Oberhausen. This area is called “Ruhrgebiet”. The show was fucking awesome. We played as headliner and it was pure earthquake. But best was, that we’ve played with a friended band of us and so we all partied very hard. That was fun. We know each other for years and so we had to party a lot.

7. Where would you like to act? 

Definitely Groezrock, Belgium. Joschi, Hara and I used to be at this festival a few times and the mood is fucking amazing. Everybody is friendly, open hearted and peaceful. No hate, and nobody who is pissed because of anything. You can see that these people don’t visit this festival just for their favorite band and disregard the rest or because they want to prove something. There is no king of the moshpit – we all are the moshpit together. They are really open-minded and we’d love to be part of it one day.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Chris Fronzak of ATTILA. This guy is amazing. I loved their old record SOUNDTRACK TO A PARTY (2008) and what Chris is doing is unbelievable. For example SODA IN A WATER CUP: this was five years ago and but still up to date. His double-double-double growl-scream-rap-up-tempo is fascinating and ahead of the time. He is bringing the humor into the moshpit. He is creative, talented and skilled in a unique way. I think he is a very intelligent vocalist. Knowing how to play with clichés and make them work for himself.

9. Whom not? 

Dunno, we are open-minded.

10. What bands have inspired you the most? 

This question can’t be answered. Our Music and also our lyrics are influenced by many different bands, writers and directions of thoughts, so the inspiration can’t be reduced to only one line. We are a knot of lines and some of these aren’t even musical. For example: our album SHORELINES can be read in tradition of KANTs transcendentalism and according to Neo-Kantian CASSIRERs philosophy of symbolistic forms. It grasps aspects of QUINEs WORD AND OBJECT, follows GOODMANs LANGUAGE OF ART and WAYS OF WORLDMAKING and connects the dots to DELEUZEs and GUATTARIs ‘rhizomatic’ in A THOUSAND PLATEAUS. We also named E.T.A. HOFFMANNs THE GOLDEN POT before when we talked about the meaning of our band name. These thinkers inspired as well as bands we love.

11. What do you think of our site? 

The first thing I thought about your page came straight from my heart by reading the headline, because your name is very close to ours: BREATHE ATLANTIS and BREATHING THE CORE – seems to be a perfect match!!! Apart from that I really appreciate, that you aren’t ignoring young and new bands. On one hand, you report about bands that are already established in the music scene and are used to have a lot of attention. But on the other hand, you present new and unknown bands from around the world. You really help them, increasing their audience, which is a very good thing. A concept, that is worth to be supported. Thank you guys for this.