Thursday, September 21, 2017

Deafkids Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?

Since the recording of our last album, which was in May 2016, we embarked on a European tour in the summer of the same year (it resulted in a live recording "Live in Slovenja 2016" which can be heard on our bandcamp) and kept with our stuff here in Brazil, spreading the sound and the message around. 2017 undoubtedly is the year we played most in life, many and many shows and many more to come. In November we will tour North and Northeast Brazil for the first time, and then in December we'll play with Neurosis, so we're very excited with these next steps.

2.You have a new album coming out in October, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?

It's kind of complicated for us to describe the musical sound of this album in terms. The initial idea was to follow with the creation of increasingly frenetic and rhythmic sounds, something more bodily than mental, as a natural continuation of the path taken in our previous release (which contains the song "Configuração do Lamento", which came to be the name of the next album). The theme to be explored on this album came naturally and together with the idea of the sound we wanted to create - corporal, with the dense energy of the flesh and mental fragmentation, confusion and fear, violently psychedelic repetition, inspired by contexts and realities that we live and shares - as human beings and as Brazilians in all the nuances that are implied on it.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?

Mental deprogramming. It is a very long way to go, to explore how we are programmed and manipulated psychologically from a historical context of patriarchal exploitation, cruelty and corruption, and how do we perpetuate this culture and all it's reflexes that act as shadows within us. Living in this schizophrenic state of conflict, violence, competition, tension, confusion and fear is perhaps what has inspired us most to explore, to know better, to resist and to discharge these denser vibrations that put us down and put us against ourselves and each other.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Deafkids'?

Deaf Kids came out of things I was writing at the time I was planning to start the project,
it was something like: "Blind, dumb and deaf kids of a blank generation".

5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage perfromance?

There are several and several shows that are in our memory as a very intense experience, but one that we could quote was the show we did in a squat called Koma F in Berlin in 2016. The place was fully packed, and the sound was so loud and energetic that there was not a person in that place who was not dancing or moving, somehow out of their minds and delivered by the sound experience. We could describe it as a sonic discharge, loud, energetic, psychedelic, agressive, bodily, wild, it is a moment where we are displaced from this dystopian and schizophrenic reality that we live. It's a show to indulge yourself to the noise and frenetic rhythms.


6.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?

This year we've played like crazy around Brazil (the way we like it). In November we will be touring for 2 weeks in the North and Northeast of Brazil and in December we'll have the honour to be playing with Neurosis in Sao Paulo in their first concert ever in South America. For next year we have tour plans in North America and Europe, and wherever we can reach and make it viable. We are like nomads, a road band, so call us to play :)

7.Over the years you have been a part of a few splits, can you tell us a little bit more about the bands you have shared these recordings with?

we did a split in 2012 with "O Mito da Caverna", which unfortunately never came out in physical material (later our side was released on tape), which is a band from São Paulo that is not currently active. It was like the slowest band in the world, and the content brought by the vocalist Augusto Miranda (a great artist, who made the cover of this split, btw) was politically and wonderfully fucking great. In 2015 we released a split with Timekiller, which is a solo project of Garrett Ranous, an American who left Arizona to live in Brazil, and through a French friend in common, he met Deaf Kids and went to meet us in Volta Redonda, our small hometown, near Rio de Janeiro. We had a band together in a short time called Sick Visions (https://sickvisions.bandcamp. com/), and in Volta Redonda he recorded Timekiller's first record, of which he had the pleasure (Dovglas) to play the drums of this EP. And I would say it sounds like a motorcharged very raw and dirty jap-like punk. Then he went back to the US where he recorded those songs for the split,. Today he lives in Vietnam.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your recordings by fans of underground music?

It's been great so far. We are an underground DIY band that started 7 years ago in a industrial countryside of Rio de Janeiro, you know? We never had much expectation of how things would be, if not, doing what should be done. On a worldwide level, I think we still have a lot of people and places to "hit" with our music and to share the message, but we could say that feedback is and has been very positive by fans of underground music in general, from punk to metal, from psychedelic to noise and experimental. It's not uncommon for us to hear from people that our sound is something very unique, and this is very satisfying for us because that's what we've been naturally looking for. We've heard a lot of "terms" for our sound along the road, like "Hypno Beat",
"Psychedelic Crust" and "Goa Punk", and so on hahahah

9.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

Good question man. Hopefully crazier and more challenging than ever.

10.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

A lot!!! We've been influenced by everything I think. From Funk Carioca to Discharge, from Samba to Throbbing Gristle, from Tribo Massahi to Funkadelic, from Racionais Mc's to King Tubby, from Underground Resistance to Paebirú, JB de Carvalho to Fela Kuti, and so on. We listen to a lot of stuff, I am really addicted to Reggae/Dubwise and Eastern and Middle Eastern music. I guess we're all into the same musical vibes, we love Brazilian music in general, afro-latin music, 70's psychedelic and experimental music all over the globe, we love the blues and spiritual jazz, african and brazilian tradicional drums, etc.
Music is one of the most unbeatable sources of power. Music is the guide and the path, too.

11.What are some of your non-musical interests?

the whole aesthetic part of Deaf Kids (artworks, merchandising, posters, etc) is made by me and by Marcelo, the bassist.
(But in this case I wouldn't say it's non-musical because is totally connected). Anyways, besides Deaf Kids, we have our personal artistic work, I am a Graphic Designer and he's an art-educator. Besides that, I don't know, we're into simple things in life, we're not the type of persons that have our both foot deeply into the ways of Babylon, if you know what I mean. In a simple way, we're interested in the ways that leads to self-knowledge, like psychology, Aatrology, ancient eastern philosophies, psychedelic experiences, for example..

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

People from everywhere: Invite us to play in your countries, your gigs, your festivals, your cities, your squats... We're travellers and we would love to share this musical experience with you all. Righteousness is gonna destroy the wickedness! Peace.

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