Interviews: SANDNESS

This is a new interview with the Hard Rock band SANDNESS from Italy. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

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

To answer this question we need to go back to June 2008, when our very first show was already scheduled but we didn’t have a name yet. The event’s promoter contacted us saying he needed a name in order to create the flyer and we were like “ok, the time has come”. One day, Giulio (who played with us from 2008 to 2009 and was later replaced by Robby) texted “what about Sand ness?” It didn’t have any real meaning but we immediately liked the sound of it. Giulio was studying philosophy so he gave the word some very contorted meaning but we have since forgotten it. We could contact him and ask, but we think that sometimes it’s better to leave a bit of mystery...

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

When I asked Metyou to join the band I was sixteen and I was in love with Motley Crue and all of those 80’s hair metal bands. That’s the main reason why we decided to play this kind of music, even though now we are not as glam/ sleaze as we used to be during our first years. For the new album Play Your Part, which will be released via Rockshots Records in May 2022, we tried to keep that 80’s vibe while also taking inspiration from the rock scene of the ’70s from pop music from different decades. We mixed all those genres with a modern sound and we liked a lot the final result, so we hope that you will like it as much as we do.

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

 I met Metyou in high school and we were friends before becoming bandmates. When our first guitarist Giulio told us that he wanted to leave the band, we started looking for a new guitar player and we met Robby at a party. He had a great look (he still does!) and we discovered that we also loved the same kind of music. Days later we met him at school and he told us that he played guitar, so we asked him to audition for the band and here we are 13 years later. Now we are like brothers.

4. Each band member's favorite band?

Mark: Motley Crue

Robby: Queen

Metyou: Rush

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

It depends. Sometimes we just really want to talk about something that's been on our mind for a while. When Robby is the one that comes up with the themes his stories are usually extremely complicated, and my objection is always the same: "cool, but we need to say this in 4 verses". So we sum it up, simplify it and boom, we got the lyrics. For this album, we also worked a lot together via Skype during the lockdown.

6. Where was your last gig?

We played after almost two years of stopping at a small club here in Northern Italy last December. We used that as a warm-up show to prepare for the upcoming shows of 2022.

7. Where would you like to act?

We would love to go back to normality as soon as possible and play everywhere. But if I have to choose I would love to play in Japan.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

They are too many to mention only one.

9. Whom not?

To be honest we never thought of that. All artists of all genres have their personal way to express themselves.

10. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

Stage fright is a normal feeling. Even now after 14 years and thousands of gigs, we are still a bit nervous right before the show. And that’s because on stage you have to do everything right to put on a good show, but sometimes things go wrong and there’s nothing you can do about it. Technical problems, health problems. But you are a band, and a band is like a family. And you can always count on your band bros! You have to be strong, jump on stage, and play for the audience!

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

We have three different musical backgrounds and influences. Generally speaking, my main influence is hard rock from the ’80s (Motley Crue, Whitesnake, Michael Monroe) and from the ’70s (Rolling Stones, T-Rex, Cheap Trick), but I'm also into modern bands like The Struts and Ghost. Metyou prefers heavier music, like In Flames and While She Sleeps, but also classic rock/metal acts like Pink Floyd, Ozzy Osbourne, and Rush. Robby's all-time favorite band and main influence are Queen, but he's also influenced by Def Leppard, Iron Maiden, and the Royal Republic to name a few. Our main goal is to keep our sound as diverse as possible, so we listen to as much music as we can, regardless of the genre.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

Our home address, haha.

13. What do you think of your fans?

They are incredible! They are the gasoline that gives us the strength to go on and overcome any difficulties. We want to thank everyone that keeps supporting us! We love you!

14. What do you think of our site?

It’s great! You gave space to A LOT of bands from all over the world and this is really cool! We are here too so.. THANK YOU!

15. Something to add?

We want to thank you again for giving us this space and for giving it to a lot of other bands too. If you are interested this is the video of our new single Hight Tide: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzT1TSfAnPU We hope that you will like it! Our new album Play Your Part will be released via Rockshots Records on 20th May 2022 and here’s where you can pre-order your copy:

SPOTIFY LISTEN: https://spoti.fi/3LjjfAF

CD PRE ORDER: https://bit.ly/PYP_CD

VINYL PRE ORDER: https://bit.ly/PYP_VINYL

DIGITAL: https://bfan.link/play-your-part