Interview with:
Mariusz Duda of Lunatic Soul and Riverside
Mariusz Duda is a singer and a bassist from RIVERSIDE, a post-progressive Rock/Metal band from Warsaw that gained recognition with their ‘Reality Dream’ trilogy albums, on which they followed with ‘Anno Domini High Definition’ LP and accompanied DREAM THEATER on the tour as their opening act. Duda has also created a solo project ‘LUNATIC SOUL’ comprising of two albums (for now), which take the listener on a journey that is in his words “an oriental-trans-psychedelic-verbal-musical journey through the pitch darkness available to those who have... a lunatic soul.” During my phone interview with him, Mariusz Duda has discussed the impulses and nature of it as well as matters of RIVERSIDE and several other subjects...
Reflections of Darkness (RoD): In an interview with Metal-Zen you said that one of the reasons for creating your solo project LUNATIC SOUL was to develop yourself further both as a singer and a musician. Having now completed the two albums how would you describe this developing journey and has it met all your expectations?
Mariusz: I’m happy with the fact that I did something of my own which had a different character than the music I did together with RIVERSIDE. I wanted to create something divergent that will be good in terms of music itself not only and because I wanted to prove I can do something and I’m very happy that I did the LUNATIC SOUL in two versions –Black and White with different musical landscapes. I feel complete, I feel that I have to say something more not only in a strictly rock band, but also as an individual artist, which means it also makes sense to do this in the future too.
RoD: Did you enjoy working on a bigger instrumental scale on these albums as there were for example harmonica, flute, piano, acoustic guitars as well as other instruments for you to explore?
Mariusz: I always loved the rhythm section. In the past I’ve also played drums and in RIVERSIDE I play bass guitar. I still had a wish to work with all these strange oriental instruments in the future as well so I am very happy that I could have most
of these instruments on LUNATIC SOUL. Besides it was good to remind myself how to play keyboard, as I usually play acoustic guitar as well as the bass guitar and the albums were composed on acoustic guitar and keyboards and on piano. It was very helpful to remind myself and recall how it used to be. I’m hoping that it’ll be valuable in my future projects.
RoD: LUNATIC SOUL is described as a journey through the land of the dead, an Afterworld, a place somewhere in-between, what has brought you to work with that concept?
Mariusz: I wanted to create a story in two colours - black and white having read about the customs of Slavic and Germanic people who worshipped black and white Gods of Death, the history and myths about it. Symbolically both colours were present at the funerals – for example women in some regions of Poland and Germany used to wear white scarves during funerals. Usually death is associated as Dark, but the symbol of white was closely connected with Death in their myths and customs too – the scarves... fog...or within Irish Folklore, the White Horse who was said to take the souls of heroes and the soldiers to the other side. With the ‘Black’ Album I wanted to question the Afterlife, with the ‘White’ I wanted to question our lives, what is our place in the world, what we are doing so we can avoid leading lives in futility. I wanted to bring into being something such as the movie ‘The Road’ in a musical way.
RoD: Interestingly enough, I was going to ask you what movie would it be you’d want to make a soundtrack for, so ‘The Road’ would be one of them?
Mariusz: Yeah [laughs]
RoD: Why does death and transience fascinate you as they do? Is it the mystery or is it making sense of life against the contrast of its opposite and the catharsis of it? Personally I have come out feeling really at peace after listening to the albums, which was a welcomed and not that usual experience for which I must thank you.
Mariusz: That’s a huge compliment, thank you. My fascination doesn’t lie just with death but also with everything little bit dark, including some things connected with the worlds in-between, worlds between reality and imagination, some things connected with psychology, the personal stuff in our minds. And of course not death just as The End and nothing else but everything that lies between it and life. The concept of LUNATIC SOUL was based around the beginning of a kind of near death experience, these in-between states of being are background to my lyrics and stories that I have in mind.
RoD: In the promotional photos for the album there is a sense of solitude of man in the vastness of turbulent nature, there is a palpable sense of foreboding. There’s connection and alienation at the same time. Would you agree with my interpretation of them or what is yours?
Mariusz: What I wanted to create is to show again my own personal hero...alone... I don’t know why all those heroes are always alone, but I think it’s one of those very intimate things that are connected to such as souls of other people who listen to this music. All these deep thoughts about their lives and the things they’re going through 
are mostly based on some kind of sadness. They are the things you contemplate in the moment of peace, when you find a shelter, when you can slow down and think about life and reflect on everything. Some people need a prayer, some need only few minutes alone, nowadays we miss that - in these days of rush. And I always want to create music that you can use in these personal moments, when you can find a little time for yourself.
RoD: Where there any inspirations regarding bands/musicians and even musical traditions in Poland too to some extent?
Mariusz: I can of course say I used to listen to CZESŁAW NIEMEC for instance, who created some very beautiful music in late 60’s and early ’70’s and I also used to listen to a lot of Progressive Rock in the past, mostly the style of the ‘70’s. Well, so I did listen to some Polish music but to be honest it wasn’t my inspiration at all. I like it, but it wasn’t, unfortunately, something in Polish music that was compelling me to express myself. The sound of it was very specific and I’m not talking about Polish oriental sounds, but what came out in the 80’s - Cold Wave, some strange dance, and alternative music.
I appreciate very much and adore Lech Vanerka, his music fits very well with the Polish language, which can be very awkward to work into music, but his music sounds very nice. It wasn’t really an inspiration for LUNATIC SOUL music either though, but I like his very specific sound of early ’80, as for example JOY DIVISION, all that kind of early ‘80’s music. This guy, Lech Vanerka was also not just inspiring for me because he played bass and I’m fascinated with that instrument, but he was one of my admired personal heroes because he also composed music – he had a great mind!
RoD: You have also mentioned that you were inspired by ghost films for the albums; I would say that your music definitely stimulates the listener visually also so I’d like to ask which ones in particular played their role in influencing you?
Mariusz: The music itself is my main inspiration; I’ve mentioned to you some music in the past, but it’s very hard to find something new that could surprise me so these days I pay a lot of attention to movies, to the visuals as an inspiration for my own music. I think maybe someday I will do something myself, shoot a movie, write a script...but things like this help me to write music that is very visual as you said and I hope it is.
Movies that have something of reality mixed with the dreams, films that tackle the imagination of the character. I love something between an artistic movie and a simple good movie, films of David Lynch, Roman Polanski, Andrei Tarkovsky [RoD interjects that those films are especially fitting for Duda’s music] for instance...but even Christopher Nolan, who made Inception, a commercial movie with something more, but of course also artistic films of Ingmar Bergman, Michael Haneke, Federico Felini. I really appreciate what they have to give.
RoD: In the interview I mentioned with my first question you have stressed the importance of originality in what you strive for, how much would you say growing up during the former regime in Poland in your formative years under the uniformity and conformity that also produced this sense of rebellion in the need of the artist to be original. Is this the place that you’re coming from in regards to originality or what is it?
Mariusz: It’s always important to find a balance of originality that can be also broader in scope, not only in one’s own country and this is much bigger challenge to do. You can say it’s a very assured thing or not so huge a thing like it should be when you’re just famous all around the world. All those years were very hard and
we still have some burden inside of us that it’s hard push forward, to move on. I am from the generation that remembers the era of Communism, the things that were hard to find, but I believe that when you really want something you just need to do it step by step slowly till you can finally reach it.
I found that the success of RIVERSIDE abroad is a proof to many that it’s possible that they can do it too and that there is no more need for divisions between Poland and the rest of the world because it’s hard to travel from Poland to somewhere else, especially with the Rock music. So far the Metal bands have had success, and RIVERSIDE also joined that circle too. I think everything’s changed now, this younger generation can forget about it and it’s a good thing because when you are still thinking how hard life is you can just sit and do nothing or you can write very nice poetry, then it depends if you want to keep it in a closet or show it but you just need to take a risk, and nowadays a lot of young people are taking it.
When you try to sound like someone else you can create very nice album but you’ll be famous for only short time, when all those emotions are burnt down, the moment is destroyed. When this band step by step tries to develop their own style, they come to an understanding that there are some things that must be original, to have specific sound with some kind of depth. I find that these days many bands are trying to find their very own style, but if they try to be someone else they will disappear sooner than later.
RoD: For the Riverside fans as well - what are the plans for the near future of the band - what can they look forward to?
Mariusz: We are preparing new material now, two materials even! While we are composing the album to follow on ‘Anno Domini High Definition’, we are thinking about doing a mini album which will be connected with our next tour, and next year we are planning to do a ten years anniversary tour! Although we have been known from 2004, we have started in 2001! We want to play some old songs and new songs especially prepared for the tour. And we are thinking about the big album to be released in 2012, I hope before the end of the world! [laughs]
RoD: What do you think you will take from your solo experience back to playing with RIVERSIDE?
Mariusz: Many things, I explored some music soundscapes, mellow to silent ones and I know in RIVERSIDE we can maybe return to some things we can show to other people and ourselves of course. It’s not as if RIVERSIDE wants to be a Prog Metal band who is playing harder and harder and faster and faster. ‘Anno Domini’ was a very specific album because it was about our times, future, times in a big permanent rush, now we think we should slow down a bit, and do something in a more silent way with good, nice melodies. I realised whilst doing LUNATIC SOUL I missed some kind of depth in our music, now we need to do something with more reflection and more space and I’m very happy we’re making new songs with a different approach.
RoD: What has been the favourite part of your life as a musician so far?
Marius: When I realised that I can connect my passion with my job. I think the greatest thing that can happen and what I’m thankful for and what I wish for everybody is to connect the things you’re doing daily, your job, what you’re doing for a living to your passion because that makes sense and when I got it I became a very happy man!
RoD: What would be the message to your fans, fellow ‘lunatic souls’, those who will be reading this?
Mariusz: I’d like to thank them. I’d like to say that I hope I’ll have those souls to accompany me to my nearest projects. I hope, I am sure that I will continue on this “Lunatic Soul” journey in the future also; I hope that people will find it attractive...
RoD: Fantastic! Thank you ever so much, you’ve been great!
Mariusz: Thank you so much!
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