Interview with: Darkside of Innocence

Hell on Fire: Hello Pedro and welcome to H.O.F, everything ok with you?

Pedro: Hello Nightshade, everything’s fine! To commence with, let me say that it is a great pleasure to be “here” with “Hell on Fire” answering to this interview! I’m grateful for the opportunity.

Hell on Fire: So tell me a little about how everything started with the band?

Pedro: Well, it was about 4 years ago in 2005, with a previous name of “DARK RITUAL”; when I and a great friend of mine, decided to create a rock/metal band inspired by a Gothic/Black/Dark movement and, many bands such as Cradle of Filth, Children of Bodom, Kamelot, Dimmu Borgir, Sonata Arctica, Epica, Within Temptation among many others in that style, were great influences to us... Later André Reis joins the band as our keyboardist (funny story here since he wasn’t turned to the metal scene or anything related to it ahah he is now our guitar player) and Pedro Bandeira started playing drums for us. Back then I didn’t know what I was doing; I was just a kid with the dream of having a band you know? Making some beautiful music, write some beautiful lyrics because I love to write poetry and I always did. We started to gain some knowledge about music as we grew in life and in the music scene; we were really lacking experience in a lot of fields as well, we were just enjoying music after all, even if the same wasn’t any good, we just loved it.

Hell on Fire: You guys at this moment have a really solid and well made sound, the main differences to me between the other songs is with the new track “The Eve To A Colder Epoch” that somehow reminds me some of Dani from Cradle Of Filth influences in your voice, do you agree with me? Your sound is running in a path more athmospheric with choirs mixed with the instrumental, these are also your objectives for the next tracks to come?

Pedro: Thanks for the words my friend! Yes and I totally agree with you, although actually we’re inevitably running into other influences, Cradle of Filth was without any doubt, my main and strong inspiration to start singing/screaming (whatever you may call it) and doing music since I entered in the metal world by listening to them. Yes we always wanted to do something very atmospheric/dark/romantic using these aspects you found on “The eve to a colder epoch” or “Bloody Mistress”, what I mean is; the feminine vocal, a lot of choirs, keys and the orchestration as well, used on our music, has ever been something we would like to include on our songs, maybe the most important thing for us and as the time passed by, we found means/experience to put that on our environment and it is of course a path to follow and followed on the next ones as you may notice on the debut entitled “Infernum Liberus EST” we’ve recorded, soon to be released.

Hell on Fire: Did you have or had any kind of singing classes?

Pedro: Unfortunately, I didn’t and I don’t know if that is bad or good ahaha, since I’m simply not aware, if I’m using my throat technique correctly or not, which can be really bad, since you can happen to obtain some drastic problems and you may even end up mute. However and despite of that I always try to avoid the mistreatment of my vocal chords improving my skills every single day in order to prevent a greater damage you see? Nowadays I can sing like this a lot of days continuously which mean that I have a better control over my voice; back then I would simply grasp a lot if I would attempt something like that for a couple of hours ahaha which I think that is a positive progress since I’m not harming my voice that much and this is my main priority to be honest. It’s a natural process of evolution that helps you on your road.

Hell on Fire: What does your lyrics talk about?

Pedro: Very good point you’ve got here my friend, thanks for asking. This is something that I love to talk about since my lyrics are 50 per cent of this band, the soul of our music (for me) and they carry out the message I bear. Well at this first album (“Infernum Liberus EST”) I chose a fantastic thematic, a dark fantasy tale where I gave life to an imaginary world full of melancholy, destruction, sorrow drama, darkness, It’s sort of apocalyptic as well and a little bit of romance can be found here and there(I couldn’t let it pass for sure), you’re going to hear about these things and anything related to it as you let the story unfold, throughout the whole album, because they represent my soul, my creeds and a little bit of my beliefs. To tell you a little bit more about it; “Infernum Liberus EST” talks about Laila; daughter of Sophia, an innocent however powerful child that was supposed to bring peace to Vália (the name of the planet where the action takes place) that is evilly seduced by Aneon to unleash her mighty hatred upon the same planet. Aneon is a greedy demon which had a plan of vengeance upon the gods that imprisoned him for aeons! I influenced myself in an apocalyptic vision I have of the real world, so it is basically a parallel theory I’ve came up with, creating something truly mine. Personally and to go further into the question, I also have a Gnostic perspective of spiritualism/religion whatever you want to call it where I get all my inspiration and strength to keep writing and as you may notice on the next album (that we’re already working on eheh) you’ll find references on our lyrics to what Darkside of Innocence ought to accomplish: Sophia, V Empire, Portugal, Feminism, Sapience, The Seas, Moon, Apocalypse, Arcadia, Misanthropy, Pentagrams, Love, Dragon, Fantasy and my dreams, the Templars and all sorts of things involved, all of it mixed up with dozens of Romance, poetry, theatre and drama.

Hell on Fire: Which song gives you more pleasure to perform and also which was for you the best concert/s of Darkside of Innocence so far and why?

Pedro: There is not only a single song that I enjoy to perform the most when it comes up to live appearances because when we make something then it’s for real, we don’t want anything to be left aside, we always try to make everything at the same level and equal even if in different ways. If possible I would play every single show according to our CD music line, because as you’ll see the songs don’t make that sense you find on the studio version, for me of course, they all match perfectly if played in a sequence that you’re not allowed to play when it comes to certain live appearances because sometimes you don’t have the time needed to make the show more of your own and personal which is a pity…Hmm… Maybe the first time we’ve been on Oporto, we were really young back then but we’ve got such a great reaction from the crowd and they received us very well, a night to remember for sure. Another one was at Nyktos Bar; recently we played a very special and personal gig with Necris Dust, they were returning to the stages after one year (I think), gladly they invited us and we loved the way the 2 bands hanged together that day/night, it was an awesome show and soon more with them are to come!

Hell on Fire: What do you like to do in your free times?

Pedro: Nothing special, I loose all of my time with Darkside of Innocence, otherwise and if it is not for that, I write a lot, play piano, see some movies, listen to music (which I’m doing less and less ahaha).

Hell on Fire: What can you say about the actual Heavy Metal panorama in Portugal?

Pedro: Well for me it’s never been better! Portugal has ever had something special; the fantastic crowd and the way people receive you here! That makes all the difference! Many are those who complain about people that don’t support the underground/metal movement in Portugal, that they simply don’t go to the events taking place here, and with the great quality that you find today specially in our tiny country, (which are not few the bands with great potential) well you can find that weird/hard but I think that it happens in every country, with every band, with every promoter, there are good shows and bad shows when it comes to the number of people appearing, I think that it is very important to mention that and it’s completely fair to see an empty venue and perfectly acceptable to find one completely packed. It doesn’t depend on the quality of the band itself it depends in a lot of factors. We already tasted the both sides of the question; a lot of people have gone to see us live, we also played for almost sold out venues (the recent shows for example) but on the other hand we already played for 20/30 people and we know that it is not easy to go to every single show we play, concerts are made of that, we’re the ones who choose that risk, if people are going to be there or not, well you never know. Otherwise this fantastic crowd I told you about, is calling for what we’re having nowadays in Portugal; a giant “tsunami” of festivals, big concerts and dozens of underground gigs in the national territory and you wouldn’t bet that with this crisis stuff everybody is talking of, people would go so fluently to these gigs and it would possibly happen, but hardly or not to believe they go, they save enough money, go far and they live it as they wouldn’t have any other life than that. Caos Emergente, Metal GDL, Vagos Open Air, Ilha do Ermal, SWR Barroselas, Rock In Rio, Optimus Alive, Super Bock Super Rock, Barreiro Metal Fest, Moita Metal Fest and other ones that keep rising every year make me proud of being Portuguese since if you look well to the line up these promoters have been gathering all these years (without talking on other specific but BIG concerts like Megadeth, Judas Priest, Anathema, Dream Theatre, Slipknot and so on) you’ll understand that we’re not in the presence of an ordinary country when it comes to that and who would believe or say again that all of them happen every year and People besides of going to those underground concerts are still motivated by this unexpected fever!? Portugal has always been a country of trve warriors as you can remember by our great history when we conquered half of the world and it is the way people are when it comes to Music in Portugal, strange but very interesting reaction. Not to mention that a lot of bands are releasing new CDs every single year and as the time pass by with an even more astonishing quality!!!

Hell on Fire: Talking about supports, do you think that Portugal have enough ones to live only with a band? If not, why? Does your town help the bands?

Pedro: Well yes, I do believe that in Portugal as in any other country of the world, it is possible to live playing in a band only as a way of life, if that is your question, you can look to a flagrant example in Portugal; Moonspell they’re “extreme” to the common ears and they play metal somehow however they can live of it. Obviously it is hard for everyone to keep struggling without any helpful resources but, it is possible somehow to reach there with a lot of work and dedication as Moonspell already shown to the Portuguese People. Well it depends, we didn’t receive any support from our town yet but that’s maybe because we didn’t look for any of it…

Hell on Fire: Do you remember with which bands did you grow up listening to? And what are your favourite bands and singer/s of all time?

Pedro: Ahah, to be honest I can’t quite remember, I think those pop/rock oldies everybody listen to like Abba, Scorpions but when I was younger I didn’t pay much attention to music… Well at the moment I’m feeling more into Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir, Epica, Black Dahlia Murder, Opeth, Wintersun among many others… As for singers my favourites are; Simone Simons from Epica, Khan from Kamelot, Shagrath from Dimmu Borgir, Dani Filth, and Trevor from Black Dahlia Murder

Hell on Fire: If you had to choose 1 band to share the stage with and only 1, what would be the band and why?

Pedro: Well honestly some time ago I would pick Cradle of Filth without any doubt and maybe nowadays for what they were and for what they still mean but to admit I have this dream of playing with Wintersun because despite of our differences I think we have a lot in common and Jari (guitarist and composer for Wintersun) is a great musician that I admire a lot!

Hell on Fire: What can you say about the actual members of the band?

Pedro: Well all I can say till now, is that I found myself really happy and proud with the persons behind Darkside of Innocence. I’m surely surrounded by incredible musicians; Let me demonstrate my truthful respect for André Reis our guitar player and one of the founding members, for he is one of my idols. Personally he is someone who understands me perfectly, we’re in perfect harmony and he knows exactly how to make me feel alive, a living genius for coming up with all these brilliant ideas, heavy riffs, enthralling melodies, giving me a multi-verse, full of amazing and wonderful new stories, a big sea of inspiration and creation for me, that let me know and imagine precisely the upcoming notes, chords, scales, rhythms leading to great results, pleasing me in a lot of ways and sensations. Needless to say that he is one of our masterminds. Without any more compliments, we’re all lucky to have him on board. Then Pedro Bandeira our drummer, another musician with awesome technique, great creativity and versatility, he is with us since the beginning and he always shown great and different skills, he’s more into a percussionist style so he is really good with his hands, I really appreciate the way he plays and I’m not saying this only because he’s on DOI, I honestly am saying this and you’ll understand what I mean when you listen to our album, once again I’m pleased to have him on our side and finally but not last Paulo Roque that joined recently to the band offered us his great technique and perspectives to improve our music the way we did, obviously he wasn’t the main reason for our suddenly change but if something big changed and the way it did change, it was somehow because of his presence on Darkside of Innocence, you may notice a lot of changes on DOI lately and Paulo helped a lot in that way and Arcanjo our bass player, a guy with great feeling which introduced us the concept of groove ahahah! Cheers to my mates!

Hell on Fire: It seems somehow when i listen to the track “The Eve To A Colder Epoch” that you guys are preparing maybe 1 album, can you talk a little about that? Do you have in mind for soon 1 new work?

Pedro: Well you’re right and as I told you before, I can tell you that we already recorded this album “Infernum Liberus EST”. We’ve been working on it these 2 past years; this is a long announced album that took us a lot of time to make, we weren’t really happy with the results at all, we even had to modify all of our songs because they simply weren’t sounding the way we wanted. These past 2 months we’ve been recording all the instruments for “Infernum Liberus EST” and finally for my joy it is now complete at last, we’re just adding some feminine vocal lines to it and then it’s practically done! I can only tell you that this is going to be far different from what everybody have listened from us so far and the production came out with great great results. Since you’re speaking of “The Eve to a colder epoch” it is going to be on it as well and the same applies to the old “Bloody Mistress” but now with a different and more mature sound quality! I’m very satisfied in that field and hopefully those who listen to this album think the same. I already told you that it’s going to be a dark fantasy tale with romantic/sorrowful/darkened elements attached to it, mixed up with an apocalyptic vision that I have. About music itself it’s going to be something really melodic, heavy and completely dark, influenced by classical music, Arabic scales, a lot of Metal Subgenres (including a progressive approach) and a Gnostic perspective to give it the soul it was lacking. It is a complete soundtrack for an epic story with some heavy but very melodic guitar riffs and solos, a powerful drum and a groovy bass playing as its background, accompanied also by an orchestra to give some big emphasis and making you hopefully travel around this imaginary, magic and completely intense world we created! We also invited Casper, the violinist for Dominia which has made a wonderful job on one of our tracks! But words or feelings are yours to take after listening to it.

Hell on Fire: Until now Darkside of Innocence among many others doesn’t have a label yet, this is 1 of your objectives to find a label? For you which are the benefits of it?

Pedro: It’s of course that one of our main goals is to attain a good Label soon, one that can offer us some proper conditions to release our records, spreading our message to a greater quantity of people! However it is still early to think about it, yet too early to talk about something like that; we’re not in a hurry we just don’t want to be on the pressure of finding a label, I think that everything will happen on the right time.

Hell on Fire: When are going to be your next concerts and where? There’s any special 1 that you are anxious to?

Pedro: Well we’ve got some scheduled concerts so far; Hate Fest happening this 11 July with our great friends Hate Disposal at Leiria, then we’re heading north to Oporto more precisely this 26 September on Metal Point, then we’re playing at casa de Lafões here in Lisbon, to end the dates and possibly our last gig before the “Infernum Liberus EST” release, the “Gaia Em Peso” Festival! As far as I’m concerned, I’m not only anxious about one of these gigs, I’m anxious for every one we’re going to play; each concert is special to me, that’s why we’re playing them, because every one is a different one, where you enjoy life at its max and where you can learn something different.

Hell on Fire: What do you wanna say to the people that always supported Darkside of Innocence since the beginning?

Pedro: Well first I just need to thank Amorosa once again, our beloved friend that accompanied us practically, since the very beginning of our short existence. I think it’s never enough to show great gratitude before what she keeps doing, to what she has ever done to send us even higher, after all these years, for all the kind moments she always tried to offer us, her presence on ALL of our concerts and more than anything; her important existence in our lives as persons and as a band. Without any doubt more than a friend, truly one of us! And then of course, to the rest of those who keep supporting us, here’s our honest gratefulness and hopefully you keep giving us the hand you always give us, showing us that we really worth something.

Hell on Fire: Thank you very much for your time for this interview and hope to hear soon about Darkside on stage and with new works!!!

Pedro: I’m the one who’s grateful for this Interview Nightshade, I really enjoyed to answer all of your interesting questions and I clearly notice a great improvement on “Hell on Fire” when it comes to this point. Congratulations for all of your work and achievements so far and I’m pretty sure that everything will run according to your plan, I wish you great success for the life to come. And of course you’re going to hear about Darkside of Innocence at least I’m hoping ahahahaha! May Sophia be with you all! Keep it true!




By: Nightshade

Darkside of Innocence Myspace Here