BatAAr

BatAAr is a rock band who was formed in Gothenburg - Sweden, in 2005.

They were so sweet to do this interview for us and the blog!

Members of the band: 

Seb - Vocal - Twitter

Patrik - Guitar - Twitter

Simon - Guitar - Twitter

Felix - Bass - Twitter

Tobias - Drums - Twitter

Here you go: 

1; When did you get into music?
Simon: We all got into music in different ways, I guess. Personally, as a child I had all this pent-up creativity with no means of expressing myself properly.
It was at age 11, when I got my first guitar that the journey began.
Patrik: I was raised on a lot of different music, and I think that shows in the variety of my own taste as well. I truly got into music quite early. My favorite artists were always discovered by myself and it kept going and changing with time. I guess the first thing I truly became a "fan" of was Spice Girls when I was like 6 years old!
Felix: I think I was about 13 when I started playing the bass during music class. Shortly after that I bought my own bass and taught myself how to play.
Tobias: Same as Felix, I started when I was 13 and got serious when I was asked to join BatAAr.
Seb: Not sure...

2; How do you guys know each other?
Simon: Felix and I are actually kind of related. I've known him since we were kids. Then me and Patrik met at the age of 13 when we went to school together. We didn't speak much at first but at around the age of 15 we were as close as humanly possible. It was then that we figured we should start a band together.
Patrik: Simon went on to suggest his relative Felix for bass duties...
Felix: ...and I in turn suggested Tobias for drums!
Patrik: It took a few years of trial and error, until Seb applied for the position of vocalist.
Seb: It felt really natural to join, since we had known each other in the underground music scene for a while.

3; When was the first time you were performing?
Felix: It was at a place called "Fängelset", wasn't it...?
Patrik: It was a disaster...
Tobias: It was the first time any of us stood on a stage in our entire lives. It was about 5 years ago... I think.
Simon: We bit off a bit more than we could chew for that show. Even though everything was terrible, we actually sold the place out because we asked everyone we knew to come!
Seb: I hadn't joined the band as vocalist at the time, so I can't answer this. My first show with BatAAr was a few years later!
Patrik: I think it's necessary to add that all of this was in a period of learning! We weren't at all serious with music in the same way that we are now.

4; What are your thoughts on music today and the music from the past?
Patrik: I think there's a lot of awesome aspects to music from "back then" and now. Every era has its pros and cons!
Simon: Music today is a mixed bag. It's easier to get famous due to better technology, giving bands a fair chance without a huge budget backing them. BUT, the bands that are terrible today are REALLY bad, no matter how famous they are. I don't listen to old music that much, but I realize it was needed at the time to push music and evolve it towards what we have today.
Felix: It's both bad and good though, because people without talent and sellouts keep increasing all the time.

5; Who are your influences?
Seb: I am my own influence.
Patrik: Good answer, a lot of the time we get influenced by things that happen in our lives or emotions we feel.
Simon: Yeah, we don't let other artists "show us the way" that much in terms of what we do ourselves, but there were of course people who made us want to make music to begin with!
Patrik: Also a good answer. I, for example, would have never picked up a guitar if it wasn't for Kaoru, the guitarist of Dir en grey. I saw one of their music videos as a kid and decided I wanted to be just as awesome as him. Nowadays I'm doing my best to be myself without forgetting all the valuable things his influence has given me.
Felix: I feel the same way about Justin Chancellor from TOOL and Flea
from Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Tobias: I enjoy having my own sound, but I really admire people like
Mike Portnoy, Thomas Haake, Daniel Svensson and Adam Gray.

6; What's your all time favorite album?
Seb: Soilwork - Stabbing the Drama
Patrik: DIR EN GREY - DUM SPIRO SPERO
Simon: Pass! I have yet to find the perfect album!
Felix: Veto - Everything Is Amplified
Tobias: In Flames - Soundtrack to Your Escape

7; Are there any books or movies that inspire you, both as a person
and as a band?
Seb: The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne
Felix: "The World's Fastest Indian" and "Into the Wild"
Patrik: The Harry Potter books and "Catcher In the Rye" by J.D. Salinger are the only books I've read in forever that really moved me. I'm also very inspired by video games. My favorite video game series is Final Fantasy. I've grown up with it. My favorite movie is OldBoy or Battle Royale... I have a lot of favorites!
Simon: Geez! I'm the opposite. I never read all that much, and movies and games have given me lots of inspiration through the years, but I can't pick favorites at all.
Tobias: I have no idea.

8; What is your favorite animal?
Simon: I would like to have a cat as a pet. But if you meant favorite
overall I'd say owl!
Patrik: I'm born in the year of the snake, so I'm always going to have an unexplainable love for snakes. Mine and Simon's favorite animals are a bit important, our fans should take note of this. They'll know why quite soon! I also love lizards, frogs... Scaly things! But cats are fine too. Oh, and corgi dogs! They're adorable, of course.
Seb: I'm not an animal person, but I guess I like dogs.
Felix: I guess I like dogs too.
Tobias: Cats, because they don't let anyone mess with them!

9; What is your absolutely favorite thing to do in the summer?
Patrik: Work on new music.
Simon: I enjoy traveling to different cities, I suppose.
Seb: Touring and working out!
Felix: Hanging out, just enjoying the season.
Tobias: Rehearsing and perfecting my drumming.

10; Do you have anything exciting coming up in the near future?
Patrik: We are working on new songs right now. We can't say when we'll have them released, but we're working hard every day.
Seb: Until then, we'll have our mini-tour with the Russian band Icon In Me. March 10th here in Gothenburg and March 11th in Stockholm! You don't want to miss it.
Simon: Keep your eyes peeled. You won't be disappointed!

11; Do you have any advice to people who want to make music but maybe
is unsure of it?
Patrik: Just do it.
Seb: It's not that hard, really. Just follow your heart and walk the path you want to walk.
Felix: ...and please, find a worth in what you're doing. Otherwise you're both kidding yourself and your listeners.
Tobias: If you're serious about it, take nothing for granted. Nothing!
Simon: You can't be unsure about making music if it's truly your passion. Music is a way of life. It's not for everyone. Don't let yourself be defined by others.

BatAAr, facebook: www.facebook.com/BatAAr

BatAAr, twitter: www.twitter.com/#!/BatAArofficial

BatAAr, last.fm: http://www.last.fm/artist/bataar

BatAAr, youtube: http://youtube.com/user/bataarofficial

BatAAr, reverbnation: http://www.reverbnation.com/bataar

Surrender The Coast

Surrender The Coast is a 'Hardcore with a Southern Rock Twinge' - band from Leicester in the East Midlands of England. They're some really nice guys, with a big passion of music, and makes extremely cool music themselves. 


They've been so kind, to yes to do this interview for us and the blog, and so that you guys can read it, and maybe learn some more facts about the band or maybe even get to know a new band!

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1; When did you get into music?

Well I know that I was brought up with music all around me. My parents had a very diverse taste in music with my Dad being very much into his classic rock from the 60’s and 70’s. Compared to my Mum, who was much more into her 80’s New Romantic and mainstream music. But I really started developing my own music taste when I was about 11 or 12, when bands like Finch and Linkin Park were at the top of their games.

2; How do you guys know each other?

Dave, Nick, Joe and I have been in and out of bands with each other since we were 14. Dave was in a band with my younger brother for a little while before he started playing with us. And then, Dan was introduced to a few of the lads through some friends when they were looking for a drummer.

3; When was the first time you were performing?
The first show we played was at a local bar supporting some of the very good friends of ours in Buenos Aires. We then went through a few changes line-up wise about a year later and are now a five piece band. Playing our first show with Essex based post-hardcore band Shadows Chasing Ghosts.

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5; Who are your influences?
Across the five of us we have a huge range of influences, but we also have a core base of bands that all of us listen to. While She Sleeps are a big band that we’re all fans of, but Of Mice and Men, Alexisonfire, Bring Me The Horizon, Bury Tomorrow, Emarosa, A Day to Remember, Dead and Divine and The Devil Wears Prada have all influenced us in one way or another.

6; What's your all time favorite album?
I can only talk about this from a personal point of view, but my favourite album of all time would have to be by Bryan Adams. The album ‘So Far So Good’ was basically the CD I was brought up on for as long as I can remember. 

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8; What is your favorite animal?

A Liger, it’s pretty much my favourite animal, bred for its skills in magic.

9; What is your absolutely favorite thing to do in the summer?

I have two things that I like to do during the summer, go on holiday and enjoy the sun as much as I can or to get out on tour as much as we can. It’s  one the things you have to do as a band and I genuinely enjoy doing it.

10; Do you have anything exciting coming up in the near future?
We have lots of things coming up in the next few weeks. We released our new EP on the 3^rd February 2012 and will spend the best part of the summer playing shows up and down the UK in support of it. We have big plans for late 2012 or early 2013 where we want to get across to Europe and try and play a few shows. Apart from that, we have a new music video coming in the next few weeks which we’re all very excited about.

11; Do you have any advice to people who want to make music but maybe is unsure of it?
The best advice we can give to anyone who wants to be in a band is to make sure you really love what you’re doing. So much time and effort needs to go into being in a band, so make sure it’s something you really want to do before you go throwing all your time and money at it.

Buy their EP on BigCartel!
Or download it on iTunes & Amazon mp3 - or you can stream it via Spotify.

Surrender The Coast, facebook: http://www.facebook.com/surrenderthecoast

Surrender The Coast, twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/surrendertcoast

Surrender The Coast, BigCartel: http://www.surrenderthecoast.bigcartel.com/

Surrender The Coast, iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/surrender-the-coast/id376826948

Mutineers

Mutineers is a melancholic indie pop band from Manchester, formed in 2010. Find their debut album "Friends, Lovers, Rivals" from 2010 on iTunes or Spotify.

In the band there's:
Michael Reed - guitar

Nicholas James Mallins - vocals / guitar

Iwan Gronow - bass

Jack Mitchell – drums

Here you go, an interview with Michael from Mutineers:

1; When did you get into music?

I think i've always been into music, i don't think it's really something that happened all of a sudden with me, especially with the sort of surrounding i've been brought up around, music has always been a constant in my family home as i'm sure it is in the majority of other families throughout England...and particularly Manchester...it probably stems from the fact that the weater ain't so hot up here, you find ways of entertaining yourselves indoors.

2; How do you guys know each other?

We've been what you could call "drinking buddies" for a good while, even before we started to play music with each other...it was a very natural thing to hook up and start putting together the album etc..

3; When was the first time you were performing?

Our 1st show at Mutineers was a couple of years back...we've all performed live in previous bands & projects however...

4; What are your thoughts on music today and the music from the past?

It's always exciting to find something new to listen to and get into, whether it be a totally new artist from the last year or 2 or some random psychedelic album from 1967 found in the bottom of a bargain bin....that's the beauty of music, it's new to you if you haven't heard it before regardless of when the recording actually originates from.

5; Who are your influences?

In general we like good pop music....songs with good hooks and interesting musicianship...i think around the time of the album sessions we may have been listening to a lot of 80s guitar music..the likes of Bunnymen, Cure, New Order...and i think that does come out when you listen to it....saying that, we love all sorts of stuff that may have had an influence indirectly...anything from Bowie through to Radiohead, Motown...etc...

6; What's your all time favorite album?

That's a hard one as it always changes...for today i'm enjoying Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys...yesterday i had The La's debut on..

7; Are there any books or movies that inspires you, both as a person and as a band?

I've always loved stuff like Lost in translation...high fidelity...that sort of stuff......one of the 1st things i read when i was younger was the double Julian Cope book of Head on & Repossessed...i think that was quite inspiring...you should all check it out.

8; What is your favorite animal?

I like Turtles.

9; What is your absolutely favorite thing to do in the summer?

Not be in Manchester in general.

10; Do you have anything exciting coming up in the near future?

Looking forward to having the next album out and for people to get on the songs and the progression that we've made....we have a big one off show in Manchester in June with a slighlty re-jigged band line up for live gigs...to signify the end of "Friends Lovers Rivals" album and the start of the next chapter...that should be exciting...

11; Do you have any advice to people who want to make music but maybe is unsure of it?

Only do it if you absolutely love it because nobody other than the top rung of musicians & bands actually make any money out of it...below the likes of Coldplay, Killers, Foo Fighters et al there is a massive pool of bands and singers scraping around desperately for that little bit of recognition that will move them up the ladder.....other than that, just believe in what you do and never give up! X

 

Go follow Mutineers on twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/mutineers__ and like them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mutineersofficial

Turn Up Music!

OK, so there's some news! :D

The name of the blog is now offically changed to: "Turn Up Music" instead of Esplorare La Vita.
And with that, the blog have got a new blogger too, which means we're now three girls who run this blog, awesome, right?

But stay tuned, there'll soon be some more news, and hopefully some more interviews! :)

The Emissary

We're sorry guys! We've had this interview for a quite long time now (January 28th), but I (Sara) completely forgot about it. Sorry! -Anyway here you go, The Emissary.

1; When did you get into music?- We've all been into music since we were quite young! Josh Has been playing drums since he was 7 years old and is now 15, and has always had a thing for post hardcore music. Chad and Michael started up a band back in high school and both played guitar but now michael plays bass. Dan started screaming in the middle of highschool. And wes has been into music since before he could remember. Even in 5th grade he was in bands playing shows and writing music with guys 10 years above his age.

2; How do you guys know each other?- Chad and Dan were already in a band when wes found one of their songs on youtube and asked them if they'd like him to record their band. The band had actually just broken up, so they asked wes if he would just want to start a new band. So they did! Originally the line up was Dan, Chad, Wes, Ben and Caleb, Ben and caleb being all of their long time friends. But, eventually the line up settled with Josh who knew dan from a band he had before, and michael who originally got into music with chad. 

3; When was the first time you were performing?- Our very first show as the Emissary was April 9th, 2011. The line up at that time was Wes, Dan, Chad, Josh, and Ben.

4; What are your thoughts on music today and the music from the past?
- We all think music today lacks the inspiration and meaning that music is meant to hold. And that truly genuine music is beginning to be less and less appreciated. Yet, in the past music had more emotion and power to it. We all want to bring back that feeling.

5; Who are your influences?
- Our first album was influenced heavily by Akissforjersey, and our newer music is very very influenced by arms like yours, and oceana.

6; What's your all time favorite album?- Most of the guys in the band can agree that Either .Architect. or My Silhouette by Arms like yours are our favorites of all time. Josh has been listening to arms like yours for 2 years non stop and him and Chad went to california to see their last show and just hang out.

7; Are there any books or movies that inspires you, both as a person and as a band?- The bible is all of our inspiration for music.

8; What is your favorite animal?- We all like penguins. They're just too adorable!

9; What is your absolutely favorite thing to do in the summer?- Playing shows! Nothings better than making music with your best friends, and praising Jesus!

10; Do you have anything exciting coming up in the near future?- March 11-15th we're going to North Carolina to record 2 songs and we're going back to finish an EP this summer. We're also most likely playing some shows in california!

11; Do you have any advice to people who want to make music but maybe is unsure of it?- Go for it. Music is music. Stay true to it and dont give up, write for meaning, and write for what you stand for. Dont have a goal to get famous, because nothing is better than reaching a fan with your music and impacting their life.

Check them out right here and like them, they need 8000 likes before the end of March, help them/us fans, guys! ;) - And follow them here.

MDLS Newsletter!

Check this out guys!
Mama's Dirty Li'l Secret put us in their newest newslatter!
Too awesome ;) 


Thank you! 

Modern Ghost!

Pierre from the band 'Modern Ghost' were so kind to answer our questions.
Thank you Pierre!
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1; When did you get into music?

Pierre: I personally got into music when I was about seven years old. My older brother, Frederic, had just discovered Blink-182. I remember, they hadn't even released their album 'Dude Ranch' at the time. They were a minuscule band. Somehow, he had managed to get a cassette tape of their first album, and that eventually found its way into my mom's car. I remember my mom putting it in the car stereo, trying to figure out what it was. I was blown away. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. It was a whole new experience for me, and it branded me in a way that could never be explained. 

2; How do you guys know each other?

Pierre: Graham and I met over at a music college. If I'm not mistaken, that would be somewhere around 2006. My jazz ensemble had to perform for a final exam, and our drummer had just decided to fuck off. A friend of mine gave me his phone number, and so I called him the night before the actual performance. Without even knowing who I was, he accepted to fill in for my exam. He saved my ass, and has been saving my ass ever since. I'm a lucky guy.

3; When was the first time you were performing?

Pierre: I wouldn't be able to tell you exactly when our first show was. We've played countless amounts of shows over the years, and it would be impossible for me to pin-point exactly when and where our first performance took place. 

4; What are your thoughts on music today and the music from the past?

Pierre: Today's music is garbage. Don't get me wrong; there's a ton of really good bands that are still around and putting out quality material. My issue is more with the new generation of bands that just make horrible, horrible music. No one has a message anymore. It's all about looks and the insipid side of the music industry. Everyone's playing the same shit. It makes me sick.

5; Who are your influences?

Pierre: I wouldn't say we have direct influences. Our music is the direct result of Graham's playing and mine combined. We're usually pretty good at isolating ourselves from outside music when we write new material. We listen to a lot of metal and weird garbage. I'll throw in some Justin Bieber in the mix every now and then for good measure, but as a general rule we try not to listen to music that could potentially relate to our style of music. 

6; What's your all time favorite album?

Pierre: Personally, I wouldn't say I have an all time favorite album. I have several that really move me in different ways, though. But I guess for the purpose of this interview, if I had to pick one album that really changed the way I think in general, I would have to pick 'The shape of punk to come' by a Swedish band called Refused. Beautiful, beautiful record. They've been broken up for about 14 years now, and are actually getting back together this year. I couldn't be more excited, to tell you the truth.

7; Are there any books or movies that inspires you, both as a person and as a band?

Pierre: I can't speak for Graham, but personally I'm a really big fan of anything Christopher Nolan has ever done. He really knows how to make beautiful art. His Batman trilogy is just mind-blowing. I've actually had the privilege to be given a minuscule part in his next film 'The Dark Knight Rises'. I've been a Batman die-hard fans for years, and being a part of this legacy is a dream come true. 

8; What is your favorite animal?

Pierre: My favorite animal is and will always be the dog. This being said, after losing my best friend Sally from diabetes complications in December, I can honestly say I will never get another pet. She was my soulmate, and I promised myself I would never replace her. There is so much to learn from dogs. They are fascinating creatures, and I really wish we had better means to communicate with them.

9; What is your absolutely favorite thing to do in the summer?

Pierre: I skateboard a lot. I totally suck at it, but it clears my thoughts and helps me cope better with the day-to-day life. Other than that, we just do regular stuff. We're boring people. 

10; Do you have anything exciting coming up in the near future?

Pierre: Man, oh man. We have so much coming up this year, it's amazing. We'll be releasing out debut video for a song called 'Without You' in two weeks. The video is just mind-blowing, and we couldn't be happier with it. Following the video will be a brand new song from a brand new album we're releasing in the spring. Then, once that's out, we plan on finally reaching out to the States and promote it there. Then, in the fall, we're gonna be releasing another album. Yes, that's a total of three albums in one year. We like to stay active and keep writing and making art. The response to our first release has been mind-blowing, and we plan on keeping things going steadily for the next while. 

11; Do you have any advice to people who want to make music but maybe is unsure of it?

Pierre: Do it for the right reasons. Don't get shitty tattoos, and don't get your ears stretched. That shit's just not cool once you hit your 30's and realize no one gives a rat's ass about your shitty band. Work on the music FIRST, and don't make your image a priority. If you do, you'll fail miserably. It's easy to have initial success, but once the dust settles, it's the depth and quality of your music that'll help you sustain a long, healthy career. 

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Follow them here and like them here.

They're definitely worth it! :D