Interviews: Diamantide

On this new occasion, we had the opportunity to interview the Melodic Progressive Metal band Diamantide from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

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

Max: The name is the combination of two Italian words: Diamante, and Mantide. Diamante means Diamond, while Mantide means Mantis. When you merge the two you get Diamantide! You will be able to see the visuals on our album cover. The idea came from a project I had in my drawer since my very early musical journey, but I never found the right fellows to make it happen. Finally, we are here! 

2. Why did you want to play this genre? 

Max: I grew up listening to all genres of music, but at the age of 10 my neighbor made me listen to “The Number of the Beast” album by Iron Maiden: it was love at first sight. From that moment I never looked back and I became an eager metal and hard rock listener and fan. Europe, Queensryche, Crimson Glory, Helloween, I could mention tens of other bands I listened to countless times and shaped my influences. Then I bounced into the game-changer ones: Nightwish, Yngwie Malmsteen, Whitesnake, Evergrey, and Dream Theater which still today are my heroes and the source of endless inspiration. Metal is genuine, unites people, something very much needed in the society we live in.

 

Nadin: The genre gives me more freedom to express myself through the complexities of time signature changes and key changes. It’s like a musical adventure that brings a lot of inspirational insights. 

Joe: Progressive rock/metal has always captured my attention due to the creativity, complexity, and musical journey (storytelling). The band Rush was a huge influence in my early days, and then later with Dream Theater, Nightwish, and Meshuggah. With our music, I love the challenge of creating original music and taking the same approach from our influences. 

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

Max: Myself and Joe (drums) played together in another band for about 2 years. I noticed Nadin (vocals) on a famous musician platform and contacted her on social media when the project was out of the drawer. After a year we were able to get in touch and she loved the music and here we are. We met Alex at a gig where we were playing in different bands and after seeing him playing I contacted him asking if he wanted to join. And that was it, Diamantide was formed. 

4. Each band member's favorite band? 

Max: Dream Theater, no doubt! 

Nadin: Backstreet Boys 

Joe: Rush 

Alex: Dream Theater 

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs? 

Max: literally everything! It can be something I see or hear during the day, an emotion which I feel inside me, a story I love, a sudden melody striking in my mind which typically gets recorded in my iPhone in the dictaphone app, but most of the time is a way for me to convey emotions I would not be able to communicate in other ways. 

Nadin: when I really like the music, when it resonates with me, then the rest comes out of nowhere. I guess it’s called Muse, right? 

6. Where was your last gig? 

Max: Our last gig was in December 2024 at the Quarter Note venue in Sunnyvale, previous to this gig we played at the Goldfield in Roseville in November, a venue that saw artists like Yngwie Malmsteen and Sebastian Bach around the same period. Very cool venue! 

Nadin: Hey, it was my birthday gig! First time I ever celebrated it on stage and the vibe was really magical! 

7. Where would you like to act? 

Max: Around the whole world! The Metal festival we would really love to play is Waken, that would be absolutely insane! In general, we would love to be part of big metal festivals like WOA, Sweden Rock, Aftershock, and so on. 

8. Whom would you like to feature with? 

Max: we have those bands we all really love and we would really love to open for. A dream for all of us would be to open Dream Theater, you have to dream big right? We would absolutely love to open for Evergrey, also considering their singer, Tom Englund, sings on one of our songs (Born Again). We are a female-fronted metal band, so opening for Battle Beast or Nightwish would be something absolutely stunning. These are our heroes! A special mention to DGM, an Italian progressive Metal band that we love. Mark Basile, DGM singer, performs in our album bonus track Madness. 

Nadin: Backstreet Boys! (I’m joking) Max already voiced it! 

9. Whom not?

Max: Music is the most beautiful form of art and expression, so it is hard to find a ‘whom not’. However, we don’t really like mixing politics with music. You can convey your emotions and ideas without necessarily getting into a political narrative. 

10. Have any of you ever suffered from stage fright? Any tips for beginners on how to beat that? 

Max: Strangely enough no, apart from the natural tension you have every time you need to get on stage when you are in between being nervous and having the adrenaline kicking in. I said strangely as I am not very comfortable doing public speaking and presentations in front of big audiences, but playing on stage in front of many people really always felt very natural. And once you are on stage, you really don’t want to get down! 

Nadin: not stage fright, but camera fright. It’s an emotionless spectator with no soul and no feedback. 

Joe: Not really. I think it’s natural to be a little nervous (adrenaline) before hitting the stage, then after the first 2-3 songs, you settle in and enjoy performing for the audience. 

11. What bands have inspired you the most? 

Max: Dream Theater, Evergrey, Nightwish, DGM, Iron Maiden, and Queenshryche are probably my main Muses. 

Nadin: I can’t name particular bands, each band I have listened,to  gave me different insights 

Joe: Rush, Iron Maiden, Meshuggah, Dream Theater. 

Alex: Dream Theater, Evergrey, Queensryche, Helloween, Pink Floyd, The Beatles 

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

Max: are we allowed to say that? We received an email from a fan asking for a personal item from each one of us to fill its own collection of preferred band members personal items so that he or she could do some magic rite to convey positive energy to us. Was a bit weird I have to say.

13. What do you think of your fans? 

Max: nothing would be possible without them. We can only feel unconditional love for them! 

Nadin: Guys, if you’re reading this! We love you and are sending you our best positive thoughts! 

Joe: We’re extremely grateful to our fans! We hope you enjoy our musical journey and look forward to performing our music for you! 

14. What do you think of our site? 

Max: Love it actually! The layout is super simple and straight to the point with a lot of visuals which is great! Great to see the behind the music and behind the scenes, which really allows you to get more into the band's reality. Loved the compilation widget with the player of the featured bands at a glance which I am listening to while answering the interview questions! You gained a new viewer! 

15. Something to add? 

First of all, Thank You “Breathing the Core” for the opportunity you are giving us to share who we are and get known by your fellow followers. We do not take anything for granted, and this means a lot to us. You are one of the most important vehicles for original music to get out there in an era where cover bands are too often the focus of live events! So stay tuned for the imminent Diamantide self-titled album release on February 21 thanks to the amazing Wormholedeath Records (we love you guys) and keep rocking! Metal never dies!