L.I.G.O.
Arcana Noctis: To start, please give us an introduction to L.I.G.O, its purpose and the reason for its inception.
Albert Einstein: Basically, I incepted the band for the purpose of creating good extreme music. Frankly speaking, my plan was to start off with releasing a CD on a small but decent label. Now we've got it, thanks to the band members and, of course, Alex Kantemirov who gave us a chance. Now we're just doing our job i.e. making the music we want to make.
Edwin Hubble: Good extreme music is the key point, I fully agree.
Arcana Noctis: "No One Safe" has just been released on More Hate Productions (Russia). What are your feelings towards this recording? How do you feel you've progressed since the "Singularity" EP?
Albert: Our music became more complicated, and the texts also became more complicated and serious. We're learning to play music - it's basically a never-ending process, despite the significant experience we all have. Now we know more about sound and we hope that the new album will sound more understandable and interesting.
Arcana Noctis: L.I.G.O is pretty unique sounding music. I expect the reactions to this are quite extreme, love-it-or-hate-it attitudes... Am I right?
Albert: Fully agree with you. And we like it. We'd rather have people hating us instead of demonstrating this "kinda-sorta" attitude. That's more positive.
Edwin: I think you've got it right here. "No One Safe" is an extreme incarnation of extreme music, and the sound is absolutely uncompromising. Even I sometimes have a hard time listening to it... So no wonder there'll be many people who will undoubtedly dislike our music, even though they might have nothing against Metal music in general. L.I.G.O. sounds challenging in so many ways, be it broken rhythms or uneasy melodies, whatever. We wish it sounded clearer, but there's nothing we can do about it now that the album is out... However, we'll be working a lot on sound clarity when doing our next album.
Arcana Noctis: Your second album will be called "Handle Your Business". This sounds like quite a frightening proposition as you've had to practice extra hard, such is the complexity of the music. Isn't "No One Safe" fast and complex enough? Or are you gonna get more extreme and technical as time goes on?
Albert: It's the other way round. "Handle Your Business", we believe, will sound softer. Yet more complicated, much more complicated. And more difficult to play, too. "No One Safe" was easy to play, I was the only person who had difficulties with playing. "Handle Your Business" is not that easy. Well, I believe the only thing that became harder is the lyrics. In terms of sound and rhythm section density we'll kind of hide our teeth and claws. However, we may well show them once again on our third album. I believe we'll make it sooner or later.
Edwin: Well, actually, the title has nothing to do with the progress of our music in terms of technical complexity etc. "Handle Your Business" is a shocking story I once read in the Internet. I found it so impressive I immediately thought of writing a piece of lyrics on this subject, but eventually it ended up becoming the album title. Frankly speaking, our music has significantly changed since the release of our debut album, so focusing on social issues seemed to be the right thing to do. Reading this story simply triggered our creative efforts and helped outline the entire concept of the album. I used to have some ideas as to what the lyrics should be about, but these lacked shape and form. Once the title was in place, I knew in which direction to wander...
Arcana Noctis: Tell me more about this story...
Edwin: I can't help thinking I've talked about it many times already - which doesn't make any sense at all, for I've only discussed this issue with the band members so far. You know, I used to think a lot about this issue, and now I feel a bit exhausted, let me put it this way. Well, there was this 12 year old girl named Nicole who went to a birthday party, and the birthday party girl's boyfriend somehow kissed our Nicole and the birthday girl's mother urged her daughter to "handle her business"... Eventually, Nicole ended up in a coma after being beaten nearly to death by the birthday party hosts and attendees. That's the story. As you see, L.I.G.O.'s no longer focused on black holes and singularities etc.
Arcana Noctis: You might be slightly displeased at me saying this, but I think "Death Metal" is a perfectly adequate description for L.I.G.O. For all your uniqueness, the basic elements of Death Metal are there, which is something you can't really deny. Is Death Metal a legitimate form of musical expression, only limited by the individuals who play it, or as an archaic generic term that should just left behind as music advances into the 21st century?
Albert: We're OK with playing Death Metal. We don't care about all this bullshit and all these speculations about what Death Metal is, where it goes, why and how and all this rubbish. When we started working on "Singularity", it turned out to be the most convenient format. "Handle Your Business" will sound more like Prog Metal with Thrash/Death Metal ingredients, at least that's the way we want it now. If tomorrow we realize that all we want to play is Cyber Grindcore - believe me, that's what we'll do! We're not worshippers, we never pledged allegiance to Death Metal, are you following me? We believe we're making really good music, and the format is not a priority. Yet there's one thing we can promise you: L.I.G.O. will be a harsh project, as we've got other projects to make softer and lighter sounding music.
Edwin: Actually, we have no problem being labeled whatever others want to call us. It's the least thing we would ever care about...
Arcana Noctis: So you would say that your inspiration comes from other forms of music, like Prog Rock, Jazz etc.? I have to confess, I don't listen to many kinds of music other than the old Black/Death style (Hellhammer, Beherit, Sarcofago, early Mayhem). Nothing else feels brutal enough. I do, however, have an appreciation of bands like Divina Enema, who seem to really go out on a limb and try something different. To what extent do I represent the typical L.I.G.O fan?
Albert: Well, I can't say I like Jazz. Progressive and Jazz are not the same to me, although my favourite progressive bands, say, Atheist, Cynic, Ephel Duath etc. also have Jazz roots. Pure Jazz is not my cup of tea, no way. Going back to your list: for many years I've been a fan of Hellhammer. Just imagine: I've got an LP of their album called "Apocalyptic Raids"! Mayhem are my gods, but... They became ones only after Blasphemer joined the band! He's a really brilliant composer, that's what I'm trying to say... OK, going back to the question: I don't know what L.I.G.O. fans look like, as I've never met any of these "fans" in the primeval meaning of this word. I know some people who LIKE our music, but there are no FANS among those. And those people are all different. Some of them are grown-up persons (sometimes even older than we are) who usually don't listen to such music at all; and there are also these stupid teenage headbangers. By the way, we reserve the right to decide how to treat our listeners: if we don't like someone, we'll make sure this someone is aware of that. Buying our CD alone doesn't make you a nice guy, you've got to BE a nice guy. First of all, we like smart people. I would rather talk to a person who would say something like "hey you guys, you're lousy dummies; look, you've got this thing screwed up, and that one screwed up, too, and that's what could have been done better, you see?" It's much more productive than talking to a gladsome moron who can do nothing but admire our music. That's one of the reasons we're still using our nicknames...
Edwin: As long as you like our music, it doesn't matter whether you're a TYPICAL or ATYPICAL fan, does it? And, going back to Jazz: I can't say I'm a Jazz fan; however, I've been to a couple of concerts. I enjoyed visiting Elvin Jones (R.I.P.) and Billy Cobham's concerts...
Arcana Noctis: To me, the name L.I.G.O sort of sounds like "Lego". Is that a coincidence or something more? Could your music be interpreted as "building blocks of sound"...?
Albert: We never intended to convey this very meaning when giving a name to our project. However, this does make a lot of sense: our music is built of bricks, that's my manner of writing music, and that's what most listeners notice when listening to our music.
Edwin: Sounds funny but you really have a good point here. Comprehending new L.I.G.O. songs is never an easy cup of tea, for I need to concentrate a lot and use all my imagination to grasp the inner structure of the song and to understand how all these bits and pieces of melody correlate to each other to form a coherent plot with an exposition, climax and denouement. Sounds theatric, doesn't it?
Arcana Noctis: To a non-musician like myself, it sounds quite frightening. So how does the typical (if that word can ever be applied to you) L.I.G.O song materialize? Tell me how long it takes for your songs to transform from scribbles on a scrap of paper into a fully formed recorded track?
Albert: There's no point in talking about "No One Safe". We've turned this page already, and we're doing everything differently now. It's very simple with "Handle Your Business": I started writing music, and Edwin suggested the central idea and the album title. I spent the next 1,5 months writing the music and never stopped till all the tracks were completed. In the meantime, Edwin was collecting information for the texts. I wrote the music using MIDI software and gave the MIDI files to Edwin. It took him 4 months to write lyrics to the music. Then there was a time-out when I had to put L.I.G.O. aside. Two months ago we started brushing up the tracks (final checkouts and adjustments of music and lyrics), after which I distributed the parts among the band members so that each musician could work on them on his (her) own. In April, I believe, we'll start working in the studio i.e. recording drums and (maybe) bass. It will depend on how busy we will be and whether the studio and the sound producer will be available as well as on many other things.
Arcana Noctis: Control or lack thereof, seems to be a reoccurring theme in L.I.G.O.'s lyrics. The fact that people allow themselves to be dictated to and can't break away from their mundane, hum-drum existence. Don't you think this is simply because people are unable to think for themselves and need to be controlled? What do you think about the fact that there are leaders and followers in life?
Albert: It's obvious. I don't want to speculate a lot on this subject. Even if I wrote a huge article I wouldn't have covered all the aspects. That's what I'll say: people not only do not want to make decisions themselves, there's another thing about it. People cannot make these decisions. Adequate decisions, I mean. It doesn't look good when people obey to the orders they get from upstairs like a flock of sheep. But it's even worse when they start making decisions independently. All this leads to chaos. I support the utopian idea of a strong, unprejudiced and democratic government. However, I can't see it happening now.
Edwin: It's always been typical of Russians to be willing to submit themselves. Russia has been an Orthodox country for ages, and this "Power comes from God" principle has been (and still is) flourishing here. But I think there's even more to it. It's something about people's mentality, I believe. It's difficult for me to say if it's any different with other nations. Do you think Brits prefer being governed?
Arcana Noctis: It's no different, despite the nationality. The same herd mentality is prevalent whether it's Russia, India or Great Britain. Tell me how the general situation in South Russia is at the moment, since the Beslan school siege and the recent assassination of the Chechen leader. Is there much tension between Orthodox and Islamic communities?
Albert: We don't see a lot of changes down here in Krasnodar, you know. Russia's different, you see... Both Chechnya and Krasnodar Krai are situated in the south of Russia; however, the distance is great enough. Combat actions take place quite far away from where we are. Fortunately, we've only had one terror act in Krasnodar: three bus stops were simultaneously blown up in different areas of the city. That's all. What's happened in Beslan is horrible. But you can't understand HOW horrible when you're hundreds of kilometers away from the place. When you're saying you "sympathize" it's far from being real sympathy as long as your family or friends are not concerned. You see what I'm driving at? We're watching what's going on and we are glad it's not going on where we live. At the moment it's too early to say the situation is stabilizing. According to the mass media, it's changing for the better. However, I can't say I believe Russian media anymore. Anyway, whatever's going on, it's a very slow process. Maybe the situations are REALLY changing for the better. But it's really difficult to understand it DOWN HERE...
Edwin: As far as Russia is concerned, it's not so much Christians vs. Muslims; it's more about nations being insufficiently tolerant towards each other in general. And religion is not the only difference between them. It's also culture, language, everyday habits... I think we're not the only multinational country in the world, so I'm not telling you something absolutely new. Basically, whatever religious code of conduct you take, it's all about helping people get along with each other. I wish it always worked that way... Alas, it doesn't.
Arcana Noctis: What were your feelings when George Bush was re-elected? Shock? Tell me your feelings on the world's most powerful headcase.
Albert: I was disappointed, not surprised. I have nothing else to say. I was reading "Stupid White Men..." by Michael Moore the other day and couldn't help reflecting on what's going on in the States. As far as the book itself is concerned, it became clear to me that Moore himself is part of this vicious system he's allegedly struggling with. I mean, he's a smart and nice and brave guy, but that's not all. It's what lies on the surface. While a lot lies beneath. Maybe even he doesn't know everything. I won't be surprised to learn that Bush's financing him indirectly (or directly?). Man, I won't be surprised! There's one thing I can say for sure: I'm FRIGHTENED to see such (really stupid!) people coming to power, it's FRIGHTENING to see people voting for them, to see them manipulating the ballot boxes (which seems to be true). Fuck, WE ALSO LIVE HERE! The Bushes are around us! And that's one more thing "Handle Your Business" is about! That's why this conceptual album is not all about Bush: we're saying that it's not all Bush. He's great evil, but the same evil one can as well live next door to you or me. Bush's just got the leverage, and that's what makes him worse than others. That's the only difference. He may even not be the worst guy, when viewed from this perspective...
Edwin: If I ever run out of ideas, Bush will make sure I always have something to write about. At least for the next 4 years... Well, that was a joke. Had he not been re-elected, our songs about Bush would probably sound more abstract, so to say. We all wished Kerry had won the elections. Well, we'll see what comes out of it. Obviously Bush's not the smartest president America has ever had. And the problem is he's not only an American phenomenon. Japanese guy died in Iraq because of the American invasion, does it make sense? On the other hand, lots of natives died in Iraq under Hussein. It's all bad, whichever side you take. What's going on today does look like an absorbing thriller movie, the only exception being that we can't just turn off the TV when feeling sick and tired of the scenario. We're all part of this show. Sounds trite enough; however, there's nothing I can do about it. Leaving all these totalitarian countries alone and letting them handle their own business is a utopia; however, sending GIs or simply bombing the whole place down without even bothering to take part in contact combat activities is absolutely ridiculous. All we can do is raise this issue in our songs; we fully realize it won't change anything; however, we just can't be silent...
Arcana Noctis: OK, we will leave our discussion there for now. Any closing thoughts?
Albert: Thanks for showing interest in what we're doing. Let's hope we'll have something new to talk about pretty soon :-))))...
Edwin: Cheers to everyone, and... Talk to you soon :-)
Albert Einstein: Basically, I incepted the band for the purpose of creating good extreme music. Frankly speaking, my plan was to start off with releasing a CD on a small but decent label. Now we've got it, thanks to the band members and, of course, Alex Kantemirov who gave us a chance. Now we're just doing our job i.e. making the music we want to make.Edwin Hubble: Good extreme music is the key point, I fully agree.
Arcana Noctis: "No One Safe" has just been released on More Hate Productions (Russia). What are your feelings towards this recording? How do you feel you've progressed since the "Singularity" EP?
Albert: Our music became more complicated, and the texts also became more complicated and serious. We're learning to play music - it's basically a never-ending process, despite the significant experience we all have. Now we know more about sound and we hope that the new album will sound more understandable and interesting.
Arcana Noctis: L.I.G.O is pretty unique sounding music. I expect the reactions to this are quite extreme, love-it-or-hate-it attitudes... Am I right?
Albert: Fully agree with you. And we like it. We'd rather have people hating us instead of demonstrating this "kinda-sorta" attitude. That's more positive.
Edwin: I think you've got it right here. "No One Safe" is an extreme incarnation of extreme music, and the sound is absolutely uncompromising. Even I sometimes have a hard time listening to it... So no wonder there'll be many people who will undoubtedly dislike our music, even though they might have nothing against Metal music in general. L.I.G.O. sounds challenging in so many ways, be it broken rhythms or uneasy melodies, whatever. We wish it sounded clearer, but there's nothing we can do about it now that the album is out... However, we'll be working a lot on sound clarity when doing our next album.
Arcana Noctis: Your second album will be called "Handle Your Business". This sounds like quite a frightening proposition as you've had to practice extra hard, such is the complexity of the music. Isn't "No One Safe" fast and complex enough? Or are you gonna get more extreme and technical as time goes on?
Albert: It's the other way round. "Handle Your Business", we believe, will sound softer. Yet more complicated, much more complicated. And more difficult to play, too. "No One Safe" was easy to play, I was the only person who had difficulties with playing. "Handle Your Business" is not that easy. Well, I believe the only thing that became harder is the lyrics. In terms of sound and rhythm section density we'll kind of hide our teeth and claws. However, we may well show them once again on our third album. I believe we'll make it sooner or later.
Edwin: Well, actually, the title has nothing to do with the progress of our music in terms of technical complexity etc. "Handle Your Business" is a shocking story I once read in the Internet. I found it so impressive I immediately thought of writing a piece of lyrics on this subject, but eventually it ended up becoming the album title. Frankly speaking, our music has significantly changed since the release of our debut album, so focusing on social issues seemed to be the right thing to do. Reading this story simply triggered our creative efforts and helped outline the entire concept of the album. I used to have some ideas as to what the lyrics should be about, but these lacked shape and form. Once the title was in place, I knew in which direction to wander...
Arcana Noctis: Tell me more about this story...
Edwin: I can't help thinking I've talked about it many times already - which doesn't make any sense at all, for I've only discussed this issue with the band members so far. You know, I used to think a lot about this issue, and now I feel a bit exhausted, let me put it this way. Well, there was this 12 year old girl named Nicole who went to a birthday party, and the birthday party girl's boyfriend somehow kissed our Nicole and the birthday girl's mother urged her daughter to "handle her business"... Eventually, Nicole ended up in a coma after being beaten nearly to death by the birthday party hosts and attendees. That's the story. As you see, L.I.G.O.'s no longer focused on black holes and singularities etc.
Arcana Noctis: You might be slightly displeased at me saying this, but I think "Death Metal" is a perfectly adequate description for L.I.G.O. For all your uniqueness, the basic elements of Death Metal are there, which is something you can't really deny. Is Death Metal a legitimate form of musical expression, only limited by the individuals who play it, or as an archaic generic term that should just left behind as music advances into the 21st century?
Albert: We're OK with playing Death Metal. We don't care about all this bullshit and all these speculations about what Death Metal is, where it goes, why and how and all this rubbish. When we started working on "Singularity", it turned out to be the most convenient format. "Handle Your Business" will sound more like Prog Metal with Thrash/Death Metal ingredients, at least that's the way we want it now. If tomorrow we realize that all we want to play is Cyber Grindcore - believe me, that's what we'll do! We're not worshippers, we never pledged allegiance to Death Metal, are you following me? We believe we're making really good music, and the format is not a priority. Yet there's one thing we can promise you: L.I.G.O. will be a harsh project, as we've got other projects to make softer and lighter sounding music.
Edwin: Actually, we have no problem being labeled whatever others want to call us. It's the least thing we would ever care about...
Arcana Noctis: So you would say that your inspiration comes from other forms of music, like Prog Rock, Jazz etc.? I have to confess, I don't listen to many kinds of music other than the old Black/Death style (Hellhammer, Beherit, Sarcofago, early Mayhem). Nothing else feels brutal enough. I do, however, have an appreciation of bands like Divina Enema, who seem to really go out on a limb and try something different. To what extent do I represent the typical L.I.G.O fan?
Albert: Well, I can't say I like Jazz. Progressive and Jazz are not the same to me, although my favourite progressive bands, say, Atheist, Cynic, Ephel Duath etc. also have Jazz roots. Pure Jazz is not my cup of tea, no way. Going back to your list: for many years I've been a fan of Hellhammer. Just imagine: I've got an LP of their album called "Apocalyptic Raids"! Mayhem are my gods, but... They became ones only after Blasphemer joined the band! He's a really brilliant composer, that's what I'm trying to say... OK, going back to the question: I don't know what L.I.G.O. fans look like, as I've never met any of these "fans" in the primeval meaning of this word. I know some people who LIKE our music, but there are no FANS among those. And those people are all different. Some of them are grown-up persons (sometimes even older than we are) who usually don't listen to such music at all; and there are also these stupid teenage headbangers. By the way, we reserve the right to decide how to treat our listeners: if we don't like someone, we'll make sure this someone is aware of that. Buying our CD alone doesn't make you a nice guy, you've got to BE a nice guy. First of all, we like smart people. I would rather talk to a person who would say something like "hey you guys, you're lousy dummies; look, you've got this thing screwed up, and that one screwed up, too, and that's what could have been done better, you see?" It's much more productive than talking to a gladsome moron who can do nothing but admire our music. That's one of the reasons we're still using our nicknames...
Edwin: As long as you like our music, it doesn't matter whether you're a TYPICAL or ATYPICAL fan, does it? And, going back to Jazz: I can't say I'm a Jazz fan; however, I've been to a couple of concerts. I enjoyed visiting Elvin Jones (R.I.P.) and Billy Cobham's concerts...
Arcana Noctis: To me, the name L.I.G.O sort of sounds like "Lego". Is that a coincidence or something more? Could your music be interpreted as "building blocks of sound"...?
Albert: We never intended to convey this very meaning when giving a name to our project. However, this does make a lot of sense: our music is built of bricks, that's my manner of writing music, and that's what most listeners notice when listening to our music.
Edwin: Sounds funny but you really have a good point here. Comprehending new L.I.G.O. songs is never an easy cup of tea, for I need to concentrate a lot and use all my imagination to grasp the inner structure of the song and to understand how all these bits and pieces of melody correlate to each other to form a coherent plot with an exposition, climax and denouement. Sounds theatric, doesn't it?
Arcana Noctis: To a non-musician like myself, it sounds quite frightening. So how does the typical (if that word can ever be applied to you) L.I.G.O song materialize? Tell me how long it takes for your songs to transform from scribbles on a scrap of paper into a fully formed recorded track?
Albert: There's no point in talking about "No One Safe". We've turned this page already, and we're doing everything differently now. It's very simple with "Handle Your Business": I started writing music, and Edwin suggested the central idea and the album title. I spent the next 1,5 months writing the music and never stopped till all the tracks were completed. In the meantime, Edwin was collecting information for the texts. I wrote the music using MIDI software and gave the MIDI files to Edwin. It took him 4 months to write lyrics to the music. Then there was a time-out when I had to put L.I.G.O. aside. Two months ago we started brushing up the tracks (final checkouts and adjustments of music and lyrics), after which I distributed the parts among the band members so that each musician could work on them on his (her) own. In April, I believe, we'll start working in the studio i.e. recording drums and (maybe) bass. It will depend on how busy we will be and whether the studio and the sound producer will be available as well as on many other things.
Arcana Noctis: Control or lack thereof, seems to be a reoccurring theme in L.I.G.O.'s lyrics. The fact that people allow themselves to be dictated to and can't break away from their mundane, hum-drum existence. Don't you think this is simply because people are unable to think for themselves and need to be controlled? What do you think about the fact that there are leaders and followers in life?
Albert: It's obvious. I don't want to speculate a lot on this subject. Even if I wrote a huge article I wouldn't have covered all the aspects. That's what I'll say: people not only do not want to make decisions themselves, there's another thing about it. People cannot make these decisions. Adequate decisions, I mean. It doesn't look good when people obey to the orders they get from upstairs like a flock of sheep. But it's even worse when they start making decisions independently. All this leads to chaos. I support the utopian idea of a strong, unprejudiced and democratic government. However, I can't see it happening now.
Edwin: It's always been typical of Russians to be willing to submit themselves. Russia has been an Orthodox country for ages, and this "Power comes from God" principle has been (and still is) flourishing here. But I think there's even more to it. It's something about people's mentality, I believe. It's difficult for me to say if it's any different with other nations. Do you think Brits prefer being governed?
Arcana Noctis: It's no different, despite the nationality. The same herd mentality is prevalent whether it's Russia, India or Great Britain. Tell me how the general situation in South Russia is at the moment, since the Beslan school siege and the recent assassination of the Chechen leader. Is there much tension between Orthodox and Islamic communities?
Albert: We don't see a lot of changes down here in Krasnodar, you know. Russia's different, you see... Both Chechnya and Krasnodar Krai are situated in the south of Russia; however, the distance is great enough. Combat actions take place quite far away from where we are. Fortunately, we've only had one terror act in Krasnodar: three bus stops were simultaneously blown up in different areas of the city. That's all. What's happened in Beslan is horrible. But you can't understand HOW horrible when you're hundreds of kilometers away from the place. When you're saying you "sympathize" it's far from being real sympathy as long as your family or friends are not concerned. You see what I'm driving at? We're watching what's going on and we are glad it's not going on where we live. At the moment it's too early to say the situation is stabilizing. According to the mass media, it's changing for the better. However, I can't say I believe Russian media anymore. Anyway, whatever's going on, it's a very slow process. Maybe the situations are REALLY changing for the better. But it's really difficult to understand it DOWN HERE...
Edwin: As far as Russia is concerned, it's not so much Christians vs. Muslims; it's more about nations being insufficiently tolerant towards each other in general. And religion is not the only difference between them. It's also culture, language, everyday habits... I think we're not the only multinational country in the world, so I'm not telling you something absolutely new. Basically, whatever religious code of conduct you take, it's all about helping people get along with each other. I wish it always worked that way... Alas, it doesn't.
Arcana Noctis: What were your feelings when George Bush was re-elected? Shock? Tell me your feelings on the world's most powerful headcase.
Albert: I was disappointed, not surprised. I have nothing else to say. I was reading "Stupid White Men..." by Michael Moore the other day and couldn't help reflecting on what's going on in the States. As far as the book itself is concerned, it became clear to me that Moore himself is part of this vicious system he's allegedly struggling with. I mean, he's a smart and nice and brave guy, but that's not all. It's what lies on the surface. While a lot lies beneath. Maybe even he doesn't know everything. I won't be surprised to learn that Bush's financing him indirectly (or directly?). Man, I won't be surprised! There's one thing I can say for sure: I'm FRIGHTENED to see such (really stupid!) people coming to power, it's FRIGHTENING to see people voting for them, to see them manipulating the ballot boxes (which seems to be true). Fuck, WE ALSO LIVE HERE! The Bushes are around us! And that's one more thing "Handle Your Business" is about! That's why this conceptual album is not all about Bush: we're saying that it's not all Bush. He's great evil, but the same evil one can as well live next door to you or me. Bush's just got the leverage, and that's what makes him worse than others. That's the only difference. He may even not be the worst guy, when viewed from this perspective...
Edwin: If I ever run out of ideas, Bush will make sure I always have something to write about. At least for the next 4 years... Well, that was a joke. Had he not been re-elected, our songs about Bush would probably sound more abstract, so to say. We all wished Kerry had won the elections. Well, we'll see what comes out of it. Obviously Bush's not the smartest president America has ever had. And the problem is he's not only an American phenomenon. Japanese guy died in Iraq because of the American invasion, does it make sense? On the other hand, lots of natives died in Iraq under Hussein. It's all bad, whichever side you take. What's going on today does look like an absorbing thriller movie, the only exception being that we can't just turn off the TV when feeling sick and tired of the scenario. We're all part of this show. Sounds trite enough; however, there's nothing I can do about it. Leaving all these totalitarian countries alone and letting them handle their own business is a utopia; however, sending GIs or simply bombing the whole place down without even bothering to take part in contact combat activities is absolutely ridiculous. All we can do is raise this issue in our songs; we fully realize it won't change anything; however, we just can't be silent...
Arcana Noctis: OK, we will leave our discussion there for now. Any closing thoughts?
Albert: Thanks for showing interest in what we're doing. Let's hope we'll have something new to talk about pretty soon :-))))...
Edwin: Cheers to everyone, and... Talk to you soon :-)