Interview with the Members of Dreams in Darkness

August 26, 2020

Interview with the Members of Dreams in Darkness

By Mick Michaels

COSMICK VIEW: Hello! Welcome to The Cosmick View. Thank you for taking some time out of your day to chat with me, it's greatly appreciated.

CV: Given so many major changes over the last several decades, is the music industry a viable and stable enough environment for new artists and bands to even attempt to make a successful career in your opinion?
Martin Tenebris: It depends on what is called success…the world of music, constant work and creativity are the values that lead to growth, personal and spiritual success regardless of commercial success and that is always there, it is infinite ... but it is a reality that If you want to be commercially successful, you need broadcasting and unfortunately, many bands in the area do not have it, they are undervalued, they do not have the necessary support to get to other places and it is a fact that it is very difficult to make a living from music. Nowadays with social networks it is a little easier and it helps a lot, we are lucky to be part of Shadows of Death Records and it is something that is giving us a very important leap in the race, without it would not be very difficult…monetary success is very difficult, the real success will be that our music can be enjoyed by all possible people.

Giselle Stoker: The musical environment in my country is really big, but growing as a band is difficult. The support of Metal movement is important beyond being a somewhat small environment. But the greatest difficulty is that when doing a live show the bands are the ones who must pay for the venue as well as for the gear and transportation.

Cristian Bertrand: I think it may be viable to a certain point, since records or merchandising are not sold as they were 20 or 30 years ago, so the labels no longer invest what they used to invest in the bands. I think new bands can be successful, but if you compare them to bands from the 70s, 80s or 90s, the difference in "success" is very different. Now you are successful if you have thousands of followers in your social networks.

Gabriel Nonasco: Having on mind the last decades, I believe that the music industry is reliable and stable, all thanks to the new services to be able to acquire the creations of artists and bands in general, nowadays social networks are widely used to be able to share their creations and acquire more followers throughout the world.

CV: How do you see your band separating itself from just being another Heavy Metal act?
Martin Tenebris: I consider Metal more than a musical style but a way of life, where you can navigate without restrictions or censorship with total freedom to create and live. Dreams in Darkness partly reflects that, the human in his different states through music, fear, courage, sincerity, melancholy, darkness, rage and pain, heavy music that carries Heavy Metal as a banner to endow it with our deepest experiences , influences and feelings, in this way achieve our own identity, beyond the style.

Giselle Stoker: Our band has many artistic influences, not only from the music of other Heavy Metal bands we grew up with, but also because of the influence of movies on our music. This can be observed when listening to the keyboard intervals which are very reminiscent of the composer Danny Elfman.

Cristian Bertrand: I think that by not trying to imitate another band or by not forcing ourselves to sound in a certain way it gives us the possibility to differentiate ourselves from bands that do a style similar to ours.

Gabriel Nonasco: We always try to make each song something unique and different from the rest and it really attracts a lot of attention.

CV: Has the band's music and style of songwriting changed drastically since the group first formed?
Martin Tenebris: That's right, it has changed over the years, it has gone from being a solo project, to a solid and formed band of 4 members where each one contributes their musical art to improve the project and give it new directions…the style has mutated from to be a gothic and dreamy landscape where keyboards commanded a world of nostalgia and melancholy, to the harshness, strength and darkness that today gives it a new sound and format but without losing its roots. We are the 4 to perhaps give a physical body to that cloak of sounds that traveled introverted.

Giselle Stoker: Our music was growing and changing as each member entered the band. I could say that now the band has a broader concept when it comes to composing.

Cristian Bertrand: The way of composing for the band has changed from album to album. In the first album, Martin did everything. For the second one Martin wrote the lyrics and Giselle collaborated with the lyrics for "The Hunter". For The Souls Pit, Martín, Giselle and I wrote the music and the lyrics. And you can hear that difference because we all have very different influences.

Gabriel Nonasco: I would not say that there was a change but that the compositions matured over time.

CV: What do you see as the biggest change in the music industry since the band first formed?
Martin Tenebris: Having a record label is a huge change for the band, I am very grateful to Shadows of Death Records for choosing us and working with us. The difference in terms of dissemination of our material and reaching people is huge compared to the previous albums.

Giselle Stoker: One of the biggest changes we saw when the band formed was the way people listen to and buy music. For example, digital platforms opened a path for us to places that we did not think our music would reach.

Cristian Bertrand: I think the biggest change was the fact that now everything is heard from platforms and most of the people no longer listen to full album, but unfortunately, they listen to separate songs or playlists.

Gabriel Nonasco: Currently streaming services are very popular such as Youtube, Spotify, etc…which in 2016 was not common.

CV: Has digital technology made everyone an artist on some level in your opinion?
Martin Tenebris: We are all artists, we all create in some way, the person who writes a prose that composes a song whatever the path brings out of the blue something new to the world, digital technology facilitates creation, but it is in the feeling and value of the same is what makes the artist in my opinion.

Giselle Stoker: I believe that technology helped us all to learn easier and faster. Also to compose and record everything with the quality we want from our own homes. Even the classes to learn to play an instrument years ago were expensive but now the ease of YouTube gives us new possibilities.

Cristian Bertrand: Again, the fact that now everything is heard from platforms and most people no longer listen to full albums, but only listen to separate songs or playlists.

Gabriel Nonasco: Thanks to digital technology, everyone can now be a high-level artist if they try and exploit all the available resources…which I think is great.

CV: Has Metal, or even music in general, splintered into too many sub-genres? Why do think there are so many classifications of music types? Can this be confusing for the fans?
Martin Tenebris: It is something that was going to happen sooner or later and I usually enjoy it, the diversity of this intangible wonder that is music and above all our beloved Metal could not be encapsulated in a few genres…creation is infinite, without limits. I don't think it exists in confusion if not growth and openness towards new forms and styles, in any case each person chooses what to listen to…I like to enjoy and respect the works.

Giselle Stoker: I think that although there are many subgenres, people also expanded their tastes by having more access to more music not only related to heavy metal.

Cristian Bertrand: The high number of sub-genres is because people can mix many completely different styles of music and do something original. I really don't think people have a problem with that.

Gabriel Nonasco: Both Metal and Rock, Pop and other genres have been divided into many Sub-Genres…too many for my taste. I think there are so many Sub-Genres more than anything because of some special characteristic that a song or band has. It really is often confusing on many occasions because one listens to a song and can say that it is of a specific genre and as the music evolved a lot, perhaps it is no longer that genre that one thinks but another.

CV: How would you define “iconic?” What do you think makes an artist iconic?
Martin Tenebris: An "Iconic" artist may be someone who influenced you because of the similarities of life, because of their art or maybe because it prompted you to believe in what you do and above all to grow, most of the time they are anonymous. "Lunecra" is a project of a solo artist who remains anonymous, whose sole member was inspiration and a icon of the first album of Dreams in Darkness…that's what I consider an Iconic artist, the others are more influences.

Giselle Stoker: I think an iconic artist is the one who puts his personality in everything he does and that expression can be seen not only by a fanatic. I think the iconic is the result of artistic expression to its fullest potential. For example Björk, who left a mark in music history.

Cristian Bertrand: For me, a band or an artist is iconic when they are references of a certain style of music.

Gabriel Nonasco: Iconic would define it as "something distinctive". In my opinion I think that an artist is "Iconic" when you really see that he is doing what he likes, sharing with his fans in person, being humble, a good person, always fighting to do what he likes.

CV: Should young artist even strive to become a “rock star” Is being a "rock star" even a relevant term nowadays? What are your thoughts?
Martin Tenebris: In no way…the artist should strive to transmit his art in the purest and most sincere way, be constant and persevering in personal and musical growth, have a passion for creating, moving and transmitting, carry in music the magic of accompanying the listener in the different states of mind, life, beliefs and make him feel better…his own peace and a way of life. Being a Rock star is something totally irrelevant, it is a result that can have different processes to reach him, not always the noblest.

Giselle Stoker: I think we all dream of being Rock Stars as children but nowadays we don't see new Rock Stars. That is because the music now reaches more places but at the same time from a more independent way. The distance between musicians and followers is closer.

Cristian Bertrand: I think people should focus on growing personally and artistically, not to be a rock star.

Gabriel Nonasco: Every young artist should strive to become a "Rock Star" because you can really become one if you really want it with all your heart.

CV: What message do you want your music to convey to the world?
Martin Tenebris: Our music, our art is a pure form of expression, a conjunction of our personal experiences and experiences throughout our lives, both lyrically and musically it carries a lot of depth and value. Many of our spectators will reflect on them and will be accompanied by the same reason that led us to compose each song. I want our music to awaken the best senses and pleasures of the human being, to accompany them in each moment of solitude, to know that they are not alone in their thoughts.

Giselle Stoker: The music we make is inspired by moments we live. I would really like our music to accompany those who listened to it in bad and good times, so that they can enjoy every feeling that we put into each musical theme.

Cristian Bertrand: Our music can be very cold at times, and at times very emotional. I think a lot of people can feel and identified with that. It can fit with your moods.

Gabriel Nonasco: I want everyone to feel that in life there are ups and downs of all kinds of magnitudes, that they are not alone because there are many who would be willing to help them even in other countries.

CV: What's next for you? What can fans expect to see coming?
Martin Tenebris: My desire is to create music infinitely with my band mates. Finish our new album soon and enjoy the opportunity to be part of this dream. We will give fans what I believe is the most careful and beautiful album of Dreams in Darkness , a sound journey full of rage, nostalgia, magic and strength that sails over a sea of melancholy, full of passages, moments of madness, emotion and explosion, for unpredictable moments. It will be our most precious gift to them.

Giselle Stoker: Now the new album is coming. It was hard work for the entire band. The moments we had to live when recording the album were complicated. Now we have to enjoy it and spread it. We are eager to play our songs live.

Cristian Bertrand: The next thing for us will be to go out and play live to show people the new album. I am sure that many people will enjoy it.

Gabriel Nonasco: I work on what I like and I really hope you like what you can hear. What is coming is something big and we will surprise you.

CV: Thank you again for spending some time talking and sharing with our readers. It was a pleasure. I wish you all the best and continued success.

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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Dreams-In-Darkness-143123726132494/

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My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, dreamer and guitarist for the traditional Heavy Metal band Corners of Sanctuary. Writing has always been a creative outlet for me; what I couldn't say in speech, I was able to do with the written word. Writing has given me a voice and a way for me to create on a multitude of platforms including music and song, articles, independent screenplays, books and now, artist interviews. The Cosmick View is an opportunity to raise the bar and showcase artists in a positive and inspirational light. For me, it's another out-of-this-world adventure.