CL: Hello A:m:f, you are a german industrial rock band. Please be so kind and introduce you to our audience.
A:m:f: Hey, I’m St.KIA – vocalist and songwriter from all:my:faults. The whole project exists for about six years now I guess. I started with it after I left my former alternative band in 2003. After a few years, 2 years to be specific, I found joe:riot who was willing to perform with me in this band. He created our logo, does all our graphical stuff and photos, is writing lyrics and does even vocals on our songs. The rest of the work rests with me, as I play all the instruments, do the programming of the songs and finally I sing and scream (laughing) Oh, and I’m also responsible for the other half of the lyrics.
So, unfortunately as joe is very busy this time with his graphic-work, I’ll answer the questions by myself for you.
CL: The classic influences of industrial rock are bands like the early Nine Inch Nails or Numb. What are your influences for your music?
A:m:f: We started as a Band with very dark influenced music - soonest you can hear that on our first demo - but always with influences from other musical styles. Myself, as I’m writing the songs, I always listened more to Alternative, Metal or Hardcore Bands. It was after my break with my old band, where I started to develop my own songideas, but I used more electronical instruments and drums than I used by then. And I wrote these songs in a time where I was in a really bad shape… so they’re full of melancholic themes and sounds!
Well, I guess that’s why most of the people would describe it as Darkwave/Gothic, although I never pigeonholed a:m:f that way. To me it was always an expression of my feelings. When I felt a song had to be more metal, than it was more metal, when I felt more electronic, it was more electronic. I never tried to write songs for a genre. I always tried to write songs that can be felt either way. I guess people started to describe our music with industrial-rock just because of the electronical elements combined with guitars and screams.
I personally had – as I said – never a fixed genre for a:m:f.
CL: You say about your own music, that you lead industrial rock to new horizons. What makes your kind of this style especially from others and how sounds these new horizons?
A:m:f: Hm, good question. Guess it’s because there is really no other band playing similar stuff. Yeah, I know, most of the bands are sayin’ that. But it’s because we’re mixing too many of styles. There are industrial-rock sounds, yes. But including 8bit sounds on our newer songs, having Tech-Elements, screams and growls rotating with clean vocals, breakdowns, heavy guitars and one song will even be rapped! Well, in my songwriting I just do what I want you should know. And I guess that’s what even our fans like and maybe even expect.We always had and will have some surprises on our records. On “neo.NøiR” we had on the one hand the opener ‘Gesenktes Haupt // Geschlossene Augen’ which was really off-beat compared to the rest of the album and we had that last hidden track, which was a pure acoustic track and again completely different.
On our next album it won’t be much different with unexpected turnarounds.
CL: The live performance is especially at the genre of rock music very important. What can we expect at your gigs?
A:m:f: So, now we’re touching the sore spot. For over 3 years we had not the possibility to play a gig. Not because of we don’t want, it lacks on musicians. Really!
As I hold that it’s a shame to play such music with drums and stuff from a MD or tape. Until this project won’t turn into a complete band the music won’t be played live. That’s my opinion. And we played live. Years ago. When the music was much more electronic. Drums and Synths from MD, guitars and vocals live… at that time it was okay. But today, no! Never!
So here’s another call to musicians from Germany: Drums, Keys and a Bass player, that’s all that would be needed.
We often tried, but never got the right musicians to get this band back on stage. I really don’t know why. But that’s in part a reason why joe and myself do play in other bands too.
CL: Your new single is called “First aid killed the jerboa” what is the background of this special title?
A:m:f: Haha, well, it was just because I thought one day of what would happen if someone really tries to give first aid to a really really small and fragile animal Would it survive? So that was the moment that name was born (laughing)
Some may call it ‘metaphysical considerations’ , but in the end it was all just fun.
CL: “Taste these forbidden fruits and they’ll do you much worse than just throwing you out of paradise” is one song from “First aid killed the jerboa”. Do you have any imagination of paradise and how it look like?
A:m:f: I guess paradise is a world where the human race finally doesn’t exist. At least for any other life-form.
CL: On your last year album and your new single you have also German and English tracks. Is it important for you to make music in both languages and what is the reason for this?
A:m:f: If I’d say that I always know in which language I’ll write a song, I’d be telling lies. I like both languages. Sometimes a song is ‘German’ – sometimes a song is ‘English’ to me. It depends on how I feel the song. So yes, I would say that it is important to me to write in both languages. I don’t know how to explain otherwise.
CL: The single should be a little appetizer for your new album. Can you tell us some more details about album number two? Maybe the title or the releases date?
A:m:f: Well, as I said before, the album will be full of variations. It will go on the way we took on “neo.NøiR”. IMO it’s the next logical step in our music. The both songs on the single are a really good outlook what will happen on our next record. The title is not fixed yet and will finally be released when it’s done...