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metalcore made in
austria
Modern Metalcore made in Austria is what
THE SORROW stands for. Since 2005,
the band comprising of Andi, Dominik,
Mätze and Tobi has recorded three successful
albums. Their debut was given the “Album of
the Month“ honors by Metal Hammer Germany
in August 2007. THE SORROW supported bands
like CHIMAIRA and SEPULTURA and embarked
on their own headliner tours. In 2012, the time
has come for the fourth long-player »Misery
Escape«, which marks the first release under the
banner of Napalm Records. We met Tobi (bass) to
speak about the band and the new record.
What can we expect from »Misery Escape«?
“It is an album that combines the power of the
first two records and the catchiness of
our self-titled third long-player in a
very impressive way, at least in our
opinion,“ smiles Tobi. THE
SORROW developed
their distinctive band
trademarks like mixing
heavy riffs and anthemlike
refrains, and this is
exactly what we can
expect on »Misery
Escape«. However,
the band took further
steps, according to Tobi.
In fact, »Misery Escape«
is obviously the result of
professional decisions: “We
never had such a powerful
sound on a record before, so
you can expect that your head might be
blown off,“ laughs Tobi before he continues:
“Seriously, though, we took another step
ahead, improved the things we had to,
and left things we liked how they were,
and thus, we’re really happy with it.“ This
sounds great. The band’s device for the third
recording was “anything that doesn’t sound
dramatic won’t get on this album.“ It seems that
it was the band’s device for »Misery
Escape« more than ever.
»Misery Escape« was
recorded in
S k y
van Hoff’s Barracks Studios in Ratingen, near
Dusseldorf. So, you’ve changed studio and producer
for the first time. How was the atmosphere in the
studio? “The atmosphere was relaxed at some
points, less relaxed at other points. But that’s how
it is in a studio - pressure`s getting high from time
to time.“ That’s for sure. In fact, we can often hear
stories about problems and fights in the studio, and
THE SORROW faced some challenges this time. Tobi
explains: “We caught a fever and started to work on
the songs over and over again.“ Besides the creative
parts, the guys had to deal with health problems, as
well. “Mätze, our singer, had an infection of his
vocal chords, and everything
had to be put on hold
again.“ So this is
why Tobi
summarizes
the recording period as a far too long.
But this is the way it is: unexpected things will happen,
even to professional bands like THE SORROW.
But let’s focus again on the new record. On the cover
of »Misery Escape«, we can see ancient keys and a
mystical keyhole. Tobi, can you give us an idea of
what it is about? Is there any special story behind it?
“There’s not really a story behind; it’s just the thing
that everyone can choose to be in misery or not,“
says Tobi before continuing: “No doubt, bad things
happen to most of us in our lives, but it’s up to
every single person if he accepts the bad stuff and
goes down with it or fights and might be able
to rise and gain new strength.“ From this point of
view, the idea behind the artwork unfolds beautifully.
“The keys represent the option to choose; the
keyhole stands for the fact that you never know
what to expect.“ What a great metaphor for life!
And it seems that there are some parallels between
the story and the recording time in the studio, but
THE SORROW chose truly a powerful way out of the
annoyance. Now we know much about the new
record, but who are the guys behind THE SORROW?
Let’s have a look inside the band and behind the
scenes. As we already have heard, Mätze is the singer,
and he also plays guitar. Andi plays guitar, as well, and
Tobi plays bass while Dominik takes care of the drums.
Tobi, who is responsible for the songwriting? “The
songs are mainly written by our guitar players,
Andi and Mätze.“ But for »Misery Escape«, things
are bit different, as Tobi explains. “Most of the music
on the new record was written by Andi.“ The new
studio and its surroundings and producer brought
obviously fresh air to the band, as well: “Our producer
Sky had an interesting and important influence
on our songwriting.“ So for the songwriting itself,
what’s the inspiration? What inspires THE SORROW to
write lyrics and songs? “Inspiration for the lyrics is
mainly life itself - for the music, as well - but the
biggest inspiration when it comes to music is
music again, all kinds of.“ We touched upon it in
the introduction: THE SORROW are an Austrian
band; their home is a part of Austria called
Vorarlberg. In this area, they live in cities like
Dornbirn or Bregenz. Tobi reveals
that he lives in a small village in
the countryside, “really close
to rivers, mountains.“ This
close proximity to nature has
impact on their life besides the
band: “We don’t really have
a big city around here;
if you live in Dornbirn,
you’re in the mountains
within 20 minutes.
That’s cool... I enjoy
being in the mountains,
trekking, climbing and stuff,
and so does our drummer
Dominik, as well.“ So everybody
has still some time for hobbies as long as
the band is not in the studio or on tour, right? “It
depends. Mätze plays ice hockey and works
out, but Andi is busy with the band 24/7,
hahaha...“ THE SORROW are obviously sportive
Austrian guys - respect! That’s something that you
can notice when you see them live onstage.
For Napalm, it is a big pleasure to have an Austrian
band on its roster. What does THE SORROW thinks
about being on Napalm? “There are some bands
we’ve already known since ages, MONSTER
MAGNET or KARMA TO BURN for example.“ So,
have you guys already checked out your Napalm /
Spinning Goblin colleagues? “Bands we really like
are HATESPHERE or HUNTRESS. We already played
a European tour with DEVILDRIVER in 2007 and
GRAVE DIGGER´s Manny Schmidt played a guitar
solo on our debut album. So I think that we’re in a
good company!“ Maybe there’s a new collaboration
up on the horizon, who knows? What are your dreams
and visions? Tobi responds: “Hopefully, a lot of soldout
shows all over the world.“ Before we talk too
much about dreams, are there any more concrete
plans for THE SORROW? “We’ll hit the stages in
Germany, Switzerland, and of course Austria to
promote our new album and to get your heads
bangin´...“ Sounds great, and it seems that no one
should miss THE SORROW’s upcoming gigs. Tobi, do
you have any last words for our readers?
“Horns up...“
Alright, here we go!