Interview withMalice Rime (guitar, synths, backing vocals) of Omega Lithium
“The vision of a reformed society's way of thinking. The aggression of the distorted guitars, the simplicity of the electro beats, wrapped in a haunting atmosphere, and a rebellious point of view through it. Influenced by industrial, metal, gothic and rock, emerges a distinct sound that creates the passage through the ruined world of inner destruction.” That’s like the band describes itself on its MySpace site. The release of the album ‘Dreams in Formaline’ out on 18th September is reason for us to take a deeper look onto that band and its future plans.
Reflections of Darkness (RoD): Hi Malice! First of all thank you very much for taking the time to do this interview. So what have you and the others been doing lately? I’m sure you are very excited for your album release on September 18th right now?
Malice: Of course we’re excited; it’s one of the most important things in our lives. It’s like having a child - everything we do and think of is currently dictated by the release of the album.
RoD: So how would you introduce the band and your sound in a few words to readers who are still unfamiliar with OMEGA LITHIUM?
Malice: Well, we are female-fronted industrial gothic band. We are combining aggressive guitar riffs with electronic background, all wrapped up in gothic atmosphere.
RoD: What I noticed is that you are all still very young (Mya, for example, is only 19 years old), and you are still newcomers who are about to release their very first album via Drakkar Records. So how long have you been around in this line-up and under the name OMEGA LITHIUM? How did you come together as a band?
Malice: Ahh, the history… We all played in various bands and projects before this.
But I always had the idea of making the industrial band. So, two years ago, I called my two close friends, Torsten and Zoltan. Then we decided for the name. Soon we met Mya and decided to call her to join us. RoD: I’d like to know about some of your personal experiences. When did you exactly start playing guitar or any other instrument, and what made you start? Are you coming from a musical background which exposed you to music at an early age, or did your interest in music evolve throughout the years?
Malice: I started playing guitar in the summer of 2003, but I was always fascinated with the music. We had a lot of underground bands in our town, and as a kid I used to hang around the place where they used to rehearse. And that’s where my decision to have a band one day was born.
RoD: What would you say are the band’s main influences, or which band / artist had the biggest impact on you so far?
Malice: We are influenced by many bands, and many genres. From industrial sounds of Ministry, Rammstein, NIN, gothic romances and ballads of Type O Negative, electro sound of Depeche Mode, aggressive riffs of Pantera and In Flames, energy of rock bands like Muse… They all find place in our influences.
RoD: How did you come up with the band name OMEGA LITHIUM? Is there a special meaning behind it, and what does it mean to you?
Malice: Well, the simplest explanation is that “Omega” is the last letter of the Greek alphabet, and it signifies the capital end of something. “Lithium” is metal used as a drug in treating the addicts and persons with bipolar disorders, mania and depression. So it can be understood that “Omega Lithium” can signify the last or the final drug for curing the humanity.
RoD: What are you trying to achieve with OMEGA LITHIUM in the long term? What are your musical visions and goals?
Malice: We want to express ourselves, to expand our music worldwide. We want people to see the world through our eyes with the help of our music.
RoD: What really appealed to me from the start is that you are from Croatia - a country that is not particularly known for having a huge metal scene or a huge metal following in general. Would you say that it is difficult for a metal band to find recognition and acceptance there, or is there a kind of community of metal bands that is always helping each other?
Malice: Yeah, Croatia is small country and we don’t have much metal audience. But in general, we have a lot of underground metal bands. But there is lack of interest from the media, and audience in general and that’s the main problem. Most of the people from available audience have their own bands, and that’s how we get caught in circle with no end or exit. We try to help each other as much as we can, but that’s not enough. RoD: Your debut album is called ‘Dreams in Formaline’. Why did you choose that name? What are the band’s “formalin dreams”?
Malice: Imagine dreams forced upon us, preserved with the help of formalin. The dreams we are forced to dream, to fit in this cold world. Dreams dead and canned for a museum. Maybe we are all dreaming right now and someone is feeding on our dreams and telling us what to dream and how. Life was never more real than a dream.
RoD: In this connection, is there any underlying lyrical, musical, or atmospheric concept that runs through the whole album? And does the title contribute to that concept?
Malice: Yes, there is a concept. We are trying to show that this world is cold and people are alienating. They are wallowing in consumerism, trying to imitate someone else’s life and humanity, and in the end forgetting how to simply be human. We try to shake the people while relating to social conflict, conspiracies and the dark side of humanity.
RoD: Speaking of concepts, I noticed that your cover artwork is pretty much full of small details and appears to be diligently thought out. So how important is the visual element in OMEGA LITHIUM? And how does it connect to the sonic element?
Malice: We always stated that visual element is a big part of the identity of the band. We are trying to give whole pack; visual and sonic, so the audience can enjoy on more levels.
RoD: You have just released the video to your first single ‘Stigmata’ which I thought was a good choice for a first single. In general I think the video had a quite dark gothic feel to it, and it kind of reminds me of the atmosphere in Tim Burton movies. What can you tell me about the storyline and the shooting of the video?
Malice: The shooting was great experience for us. The guys from “Rock the Nation”
and “iCode” are great people, and they helped us a lot. And about the storyline… as you can see, it’s about the lost girl who finds her way into the company of something more (or less) than humans. But there are lot of details indicating something more, and in conjunction with the lyrics, it creates a new puzzle for listener to uncover. We can’t spoil all the fun, can we? RoD: For the production of your album, you have teamed up with Victor Love from DOPE STARS INC. How did this collaboration come about?
Malice: Victor is a great guy, with great ideas and a lot of experience. It was most important collaboration for the sonic identity of the band. He helped us with many things, not only production, and we are grateful for that.
RoD: You have recently announced that you are going to tour in support of the popular German folk metal act SUBWAY TO SALLY in December. What do you personally expect from this tour? And are you simply looking forward to it, or are you also a bit afraid that the folk metal fans might be shied away from your somewhat different sound?
Malice: We are expecting fun, and we are looking forward to the tour. I believe that audience in Germany isn’t narrow-minded and that they can show appreciation for any kind of music if it’s quality. We believe we’ll be accepted great, and that people are great there.
RoD: To conclude this interview, I’d like to hear your thoughts on the current state of the music business, especially in terms of the metal genre. Do you think it is getting harder and harder for newcomer bands like you to come out? Do you think we have too much music to choose from nowadays? And what do you think will the future hold for your band?
Malice: It’s hard to come out, as you stated. There are many great bands, and there is always this never-ending quest for originality. You must be something special to succeed; otherwise you are buried under the identity of the same music you love and play. We firmly believe we’ll make a breakout and continue making excellent music.
RoD: No matter what, I wish you and your band mates the best of luck for your future endeavours, and I surely hope you will be able to achieve all your goals! Thanks again for answering these questions!
Malice: Thank you very much for the opportunity and the interview. Bye!
{jos_sb_discuss:21}
Comments powered by CComment