Interview с Nightfall : DARKSIDE.ru

llo Efthimis! Please tell me the latest news. What is happening now in the dark kingdom of Nightfall?

- Hello my friend. These days we are in the recording process of our new album. And we are very excited about it.

This is great news! And when can we expect the album?

- In 2024. We are working on it already.

As far as I can see, the band is now stepping up and actively touring. It seems that all the troubles of recent years, including the COVID crisis, have only made you stronger?

- I kept the band off stage for many years, for personal issues, so I am kinda used to long breaks. Troubles always leave scars but if we can find solutions and make successful decisions, they are tolerable. I am not fan of the phrase “what does not kill you makes you stronger” though. I know many cases where troubles solved at a high cost.

Many musicians complain about the increased costs of organizing tours. What difficulties do you face in this regard?

- Same as everybody else. Costs have skyrocketed and we cannot do anything about it but deliver a good show wherever we are booked to play, so people be fully satisfied about their time and money they spent in coming to see us.

Indeed, you pay a lot of attention to the theatricality of the band'

s image on stage. Are there any other ideas that you would like to implement to develop the band's image?

- All money we receive from a promoter is going to be used to level up our stage show. That theatrical element is very important. Together with music, it is becoming a holistic experience for the crowd. People stand firm and look at us like mesmerized lions. It is fantastic coz you feel the connection.

Nightfall now has a very interesting lineup. Please tell me about each member, and how did you manage to put them together?

- We are a cool team of 4 people; playing with Fotis, Kostas, and Vasiliki is superbly nice. I have known Fotis (ex-Septicflesh, ex-Chaostar, ex-Necromantia etc.) for many years. He did not play the drums at our “Diva Futura” album in ‘99, because we found someone else in the last minute. So, being together now is like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Kostas (The Slayerking, Nocta ) is an old friend, from “Lyssa” album times, and Vasiliki is the first female musician ever joining Nightfall, and that’s wonderful. My approach to the band’s musicians has always been the same: I welcome their contribution and discuss all their ideas like equal among equals. My motto is “if it is to succeed, it will be a success for all; but if it is to go down, we all go down together”. We are a team. I

don’t like the recent trend in the scene where one or two main members hire session musicians and call it a band. A solo artist is a solo artist, a duet is a duet, and a band is a band that works collectively. Everything shall go through band’s collective grinder for the outcome to be the product of all, not of a single man or two. This makes it special. So, yes, accepting all as equals is essential when running a band. That’s my bet.

Eight years have passed between “Cassiopeia” and the latest album “At Night We Prey”. How did you feel recording the album after such a long break?

- It is amazing to reenter the recording studio with new guys, after a hiatus. You feel like being reborn and this adds a freshness to the outcome. I love that feeling.

Why did Nightfall break up in 2013 after the release of “Cassiopeia”, what went wrong?

- It used to happen before. If you go back to the band’s story, you will reckon 4 seasons – sort of like Netflix series. And for some reason, all of them 4 fall in exactly different decades, with different label by our side each time and a different line up. If we were super popular like Metallica, I guess there would be conspiracy-theory lovers who would come up with crazy stories about how this happened.

Back to your question, the truth is t

hat I’ve never been the kind of musician who wanted to release stuff often for the sake of business. For me, art is not a commodity to put it in the production line and have a steady performance. We are not machines. The story I wanna tell, the message I wanna convey each time, and how it is best to do the recorded and presented, are things that take time.

- How do you create songs? Where is the origin of your desire to create?

Suffering and how we humans cope with it through the years, is a very fascinating topic. I am lucky to have this band to turn my suffering into words and music and share it with people who feel similar.

- Is the music you create healing and therapy for you?

Music to me is a spiritual thing.

- Let's now look at “At Night We Pray” in detail. It seems that in some way this album was a return to the roots. And it's not just the music, you even brought back the old Nightfall logo. Is this a reinvention or just nostalgia?

It is both. Talking of nostalgia, you remind me of Darkness Forever chorus:

“Aborted mission - Lost in space - All dead by nightfall
Holograms of demon hunters blow the lights out
Falling stars - Night disguised - Endless sea of wrath
Nostalgia of oneiric days - Knights of death swallow

the seven rays”

Please tell us about the concept of “At Night We Pray”. Have you been developing the idea for the album and the songs all these years?

- At Night We Prey is about depression. I’ve been a victim of it myself, and for many years I refused to accept it. When I got to terms with it, I decided to share my story with the world. I wanted to inspire young people who may feel that way; I tell them to open up, accept it, seek professional help, and strengthen themselves against bullying or stigmatization by society. When we were young, we blamed society for all evils and wrongdoings, but now that we are older, it is us who lead. It is us now we have to pave the way for young people toward a better future. This is the story behind At Night We Prey, and I am so proud about it, because it is 100% true and serves a higher purpose than just offering music to headbang to.

That’s what. So depression is not used here in a “common” sense or in a self-destructive context (as for example in depressi

ve/suicidal black metal), but is meant as a concrete mental problem?

- We are talking about the real thing and not the feeling. I got to know people with mental disorders being bullied and pushed to isolation by others; people who needed help, but left alone. Rejected. With At Night We Prey we want to attract everyone’s interest in this part of the problem, the social one, and potentially convince people to get educated about it. Mental disorders happen naturally. It is not the end of the world and definitely it is not something one has to be ashamed of. You go to the doctor, and you lead a cool life. It is so simple. But at the same time, it is so difficult for people who suffer from it to accept it. It happened to me. You know why? Because most people out there don’t care about others. They just rank people, based on stereotypical views. Stereotypes for mental disorders are very tough. Crazy, lunatic, toxic, and the list of negative adjectives goes on. And that’s bad for society and everybody. You could be called names and find yourself under a greater deal of pressure and negative criticism. Recently there’s a stupid trend coming from the States about how to avoid toxic people. They are some silly wanna-be gurus who feel it is right to judge people by their moods and get them isolated. People with mental disorder fight with the

demons within, and certainly are not always a calm companion. But to stigmatize them as toxic is unacceptable. Imagine to be rejected and isolated at the exact moment you need people’s support the most. Devastating. I tell my story to inspire people with mental disorders to stand on their feet and for all others to embrace them.

When did you realize you were suffering from depression yourself?

- As said, I was a denier for many years. I did not want to believe I was affected by it. I was raised in a society where people simply believed one is either normal or crazy. Any problems that were not visible, were considered nonexistent, or “things for girls”, if you know what I mean. And as long as you experience aggressive mood swings without being able to control them, you become aggressive too. Your life quality goes down, and people don’t like to be around you. You’ve been stigmatized. To accept your condition, open up, and seek professional help is the only way to fight back. To be alone in this battle, it does not work. So, lets tell everyone about it.

In general, the word depression has deeply entered the lexicon of many people in recent years. It seems that the state of disappointment and depression is becoming global. At least in the "Western World".

- Feeling disappointed or down i

s another story. Depression we are talking about, the real one is a clinical state that’s caused by biochemical functions in one’s brain. It is a condition beyond feelings. Like a broken leg, it needs treatment. Neuroscience has progressed dramatically the recent years, that’s why we read and hear more about depression and other mental disorders. Western societies have become more aware of situations that cause aggressive reactions and try to understand and control such behaviors.

But it still seems that this is not enough. We heal with one hand, and with the other hand we cancel out all achievements. What we see is that primitive instincts, rage and behavioral stereotypes come to the surface again. If you scrape off the thin patina of “civilization”, then underneath it a man is still standing in a cave with a torch in his hand. I have always believed that the goal of every person and humanity as a whole is to grow above oneself, defeating the atavisms of the past. But the history of mankind says otherwise…

- You’ve put it right: they indeed come to the surface. Primitive instincts cannot die. They are well rooted in the very core of our existence. Philosophy, religion, science all aim to minimize the impact that animal instinct has on our actions. And that’s what civilization is all about.

Let's get

back to Nightfall. “At Night We Prey” was released on Season of Mist. How comfortable do you feel on this label, do you plan to continue working with the label?

- French culture seems to be very close to Greek. Thanks to France, the Greek metal scene has become known to the world. It was Nightfall’s “Parade into Centuries” and Holy records that officially opened the gate in 1991. Since then, more Greek bands got signed to French labels and great things took place. So, yes, being with Season of Mist is awesome. Our new album will be with them again.

This year the single “Mean Machine” was released – a cover version of The Cramps song. Please tell me more about this single. What was the purpose of releasing it, and why did you choose this cover-song?

- It’s a cover we did back in the 90s, for the Japanese edition of Lesbian Show album. A friend of mine told me it is not available anywhere online, so we uploaded it. I chose that song back then because it sounded like a desperate scream of someone who society ranked him as mean; mean because of his style and looks, and not for his actions. So, at the end, discouraged as he got by all that negative reaction from everybody, he decided to play the role they assigned to him. The role of the bad guy. I don’t really know if the original song carries such a message, but this is how I interpreted it. And because that’s pretty much how society treated us back in the 80s and the 90s here, because of our image, the music we listened to, and everything that made people think negative about us, I got related to it. I remember most of us tried to prove them wrong, but some accepted that role and fucked up their lives.

What is your biggest disappointment with Nightfall, and what is your greatest success?

- The fact that we are still around, and people care about Nightfall, is a success. All the people I got to know and speak to, and learn their stories, thanks to this band is a success to me. I haven’t been disappointed by this band at all.

How is your project The Slayerking going?

- Oh, thanks for asking Alex. I love both albums. However, The Slayerking does not have a big fan base to get full support, and since its studio productions and live performances are too expensive, we have to take it slowly. Hopefully there will be a third album in the years to come.

The Greek metal scene has long become legendary and has its own unique atmosphere. Do you think it's possible to one day see a joint tour or at least a mini-festival featuring Nightfall, Rotting Christ, Septicflesh and Varathron? Is this realistic?

- This idea has been discussed quite a few times, yet never officially. I am 100% for it. It would be magnificent.

Thank you for your answers, Efthimis! I hope we can meet in better times. I hope we have at least one more chance… What would you like to say to end this interview?

- It’s my pleasure to talk to you Alex. I hope things in your region will calm down soon and people to live in peace again. Stay physically and mentally healthy and show the world the greatness of Russia in the field of arts your country has a great legacy in. I truly wish this bloody war with Ukraine to stop and people of Russia and Ukraine find peace together. And then, we hope to have the chance to play there. Our guitarist’s son is learning Russian, and it would be a good opportunity to do some exercise.

16 окт 2023 the End

Nightfall

Depression is a clinical state