Welcome back! It’s been quite a journey since our last interview with Esodic on our old site 20 years ago. Today, they share their evolution and upcoming EP.
1. Can
you tell us about the origins of Esodic and how the band formed in the
underground music scene of Amman, Jordan?
The band
was formed before my time in 2003. Back then, the only way for metal heads in
Jordan to meet up was either at one of the very few local shows or online chat
rooms on MIRC. At that time, I was playing in a cover band with Mohammed
Sharkasi. He was the one who introduced me to Esodic’s original guitarist,
Marwan Kayyali. Shortly after we met, Marwan asked me to joi the band when
their original drummer moved to Switzerland in 2004.
2. What
were some of the challenges and obstacles the band faced while establishing
itself in a region where playing metal was counter-cultural and often met with
opposition from authorities?
There are
an array of obstacles and challenges of just being a metal fan in Jordan. Even
just walking down the street you are harassed, searched, and detained by cops
for wearing a shirt with a metal band or logo on it. Playing a show or being an
active member of the metal scene in Jordan would get you in way more trouble,
by getting the attention of authorities who deemed us a national security
threat to the moral fabric of the culture.
In the
early 2000’s, both Esodic and other members of the metal scene were detained, questioned,
and locked up for days (and sometimes weeks) just for being associated with the
scene, especially for those with no government connections to ask for leniency.
The authorities would even confiscate our personal belongings including tee
shirts, cd’s, magazines, posters, and anything else that defined us as metal
heads. I won’t even go into further detail about the physical, mental, and
psychological torture that we had to endure at the hands of these superstitious
zealots in charge of trying to eliminate our type in the public.
3. How
did living in the socio-political climate of the Middle East influence Esodic's
music and lyrical themes?
Just by
living in Jordan, being exposed to the social norms, witnessing the general
political agenda of the region, and seeing how brainwashed people are was a
rich resource for lyrical inspiration. Referring back to my answer in the above
question, we often drew on these types of experiences when writing our lyrics.
4. Could
you share with us the story behind the band's name, "Esodic," and its
significance to your music and message?
“Esodic” is
a medical term that means ‘conducting impulses towards the brain and the spinal
cord from the surface of the body’. This is a metaphor that perfectly
encapsulates how a revolution happens in a system or country where people would
unite and attack the leader or a king: the center; as our band’s theme
surrounds mainly politics and political themes in the Middle East.
5. You
mentioned the Global Battle of The Bands in 2005 as a pivotal moment for
Esodic. How did that experience impact the band's trajectory and confidence in
pursuing music on a larger scale?
In Amman
during the early 2000s, the intelligence department was cracking down on
activities in the metal scene, forcing it to shut down. In 2005, a friend told
me that there was going to be a chapter of a global ‘battle of the bands’
competition happening in Jordan and I immediately signed up the band to
compete. During the battles, I found out that the metal scene was actually still
very much alive and people were hungrier than ever for metal music. Sadly,
Esodic was not able to advance to the international battle in the UK due to
corrupt organizers of the event, who chose to send a non-metal duet to
represent Jordan (it was also cheaper to send 2 people rather than a whole
band). However, this didn’t discourage us one bit and only fueled us to
continue working and finalize our first EP, “Mirrors of Disgrace”.
6. With
members disbanded and scattered across the world in 2010, what led to the
decision to release the EP "Mirrors of Disgrace" in 2018?
After
tracking the “Mirrors of Disgrace” EP at the School of Audio Engineering of
Amman in 2010, we tried to find someone to mix and master the tracks, but were
unsuccessful. Mixing metal requires a special kind of expertise, patience, and
attention to detail to make a metal record sound good. Since it’s not a popular
genre in the region, we couldn’t find anyone in Jordan who could help us, so
the tracks stayed with me as raw files on a harddrive. In 2015, I moved to Los Angeles.
I was at a metal show in L.A. sometime in 2018 when by chance, I met and
befriended Damien Rainaud, a music producer who had produced albums for Fear
Factory and DragonForce. I commissioned him to finalize the mix and master the
tracks and I could finally self-release the EP. This was a decision that I took
upon myself since the rest of the band had abandoned the project and decided to
take different paths in life.
7. What
inspired the themes and songs on "Mirrors of Disgrace," considering
they were written and recorded over a span of 6-8 years during tumultuous times
like the Arab Spring?
These songs
were mainly inspired by the conflicts happening in Israel, Palestine, Iraq, and
Syria, and what was driving the mentality of the suicide bombers and the
brainwashing that goes into militias raising babies to be dead soldiers. The
Arab Spring took place towards the end of 2010 when the songs and the themes of
“Mirrors” were already formed. However, the ideas and the lyrical themes were
driven from the conflicts leading up to it and the general political and social
conspiracy theories in the region. The event that ignited the Arab Spring was
when street vendor Mohammed Bouazizi set himself on fire in Sidi Bouzid,
Tunisia in response to the confiscation of his wares and continued harassment
and humiliation inflicted upon him by the government.
8.
Esodic reunited for MetalDays Festival in 2019. How did it feel to come
together again as a band, and did this experience influence your decision to
work on a new EP set for release in 2024?
After the
release of “Mirrors of Disgrace” in 2018, dear friends of mine, Rok and Nina,
who I had met attending prior Metal Days festivals, took notice of the release
and contacted me with an offer for Esodic to perform at Metal Days in 2019. The
only original member who was able to join was Marwan, so he and another friend
of mine from Los Angeles made it to Slovenia for the festival and delivered a
fiery performance of the EP. The reception we received at the festival
reignited my hunger to write and perform metal, and I was inspired more than I
had been in a long time. Due to the COVID pandemic in early 2020, no one toured
for a long time so I took that opportunity to choose a new line-up for the band
based in my new home of Los Angeles, and we spent a lot of time during lockdown
furiously writing new music.
9. Tell
us about the creative process behind your upcoming sophomore EP, "DE FACTO
DE JURE." How does it compare to your previous work, and what can fans
expect from this release?
Most of the
riffs for “De Facto De Jure” were improvised in the jam room and later refined
and finalized in the studio. For our first EP, the song structures were written
by one of the band members and then brought to the rest of us and we would
finalize it together. For this record, we wanted to write the material live and
make it more raw. We entered the writing process with an emotion before
conveying that idea in our instruments. Since I am the only member of the current
line-up originally from the Middle East, I would conceptualize the ideas for
each song, and my bandmates, Michael, Kevin, and Brenno, would then help morph
these concepts into lyrics to go with the musical structures we sketched out.
Fans can expect a completely different sound on this EP; we have incorporated
much more than the typical metal line-up of instruments. I am very proud that
we were able to track live instruments that give more of a traditional Middle
Eastern sound to the record.
10.
Could you share any insights into the meaning and inspiration behind your
recent single, "UNDOING," which was self-released in October 2021?
“Undoing”
marks the realization of a new age for the band. It talks about my experience
with self-growth, and when recreating yourself, there are always old versions
that try to come back and haunt you, hence the opening line of the song: “Still
alive, I can’t find a knife that will flay your life in two”
11. How
has the addition of new members, Michael Nolasco and Kevin McCombs, contributed
to Esodic's revitalization and evolution of sound?
Having
Michael and Kevin on my side, and later Brenno, has equipped the band with the
right artillery for better execution and to force our unique sound onto the
metal scene. These guys are focused and bring valuable individual tools to the
table to create richer and stronger material for the near and far future.
12.
Looking ahead, what are Esodic's goals and aspirations for the future, both
musically and in terms of reaching a wider audience with your music and
message?
Our main
goal is to get out and perform our music live on tour and in festivals. We want
to not only showcase our new format and sound, but also really bring attention
to the plights of the Middle East. Hope to see you all from the stage soon.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire