Interview with Vocalist and Lead Guitarist Aeilko of Hardland (Dutch)

October 18, 2020

Interview with Vocalist and Lead Guitarist Aeilko of Hardland (Dutch)

Photo by DCH Photography

By Mick Michaels

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

CV: Do you feel Heavy Metal music in general is viewed differently by fans in Europe compared to fans elsewhere, especially in America, and if so why?
Aielko: No not really! I think being a metalhead is a way of life and this lifestyle is being embraced all over the world in the same passionate way! What differs is the numbers…some countries have a bigger population, larger percentage metalheads, so bigger venues. But living the lifestyle…views on Heavy Metal are the same all over the world!

CV: What do you feel makes Heavy Metal music so alluring to the fans? What is it about the music that personally resonates so strongly with you?
Aeilko: The power, the expression, the loudness, the passion, the lifestyle. Let’s be honest here: a metal shirt looks a million times better than a Jonas Brothers shirt will ever look!!! Denim and leather look way better than fluorescent clothing! \m/

CV: Has Metal splintered into too many sub-genres in your opinion, thus, making it harder for newer bands to actually classify themselves as one style over another? Is it confusing for fans as well?
Aeilko: Naah, there’s something for everyone. But why label to begin with? Why does everything always have to be labeled in our lives? Can’t we decide whether we love something without a label being stuck to it? What’s with people anyway that they need labels!?

CV: How would you describe the current state of the music business considering we are now living in a COVID aware, and maybe even feared world? Have things drastically changed long-term for artists and bands given the recent pandemic? What are your thoughts?
Aeilko: Difficult one…I do believe that things have changed more than we probably ever would have thought. It offers new options. Artists and audiences have to become creative about this new situation, but also about future engagement…because, even if we can cut off the sharp edges of this virus, it will never leave us. New varieties of this one or new ones will come and it will start all over again. So we better try and come up with new ideas on how to make this work in a way that both sides…artists and fans, can have a great experience either way! Just because something has always been a certain way, doesn’t mean it could never evolve into something else that can be just as awesome. Don’t ask me for solutions because I realize that’s difficult, but so was going to the moon or do open heart surgery and all of that we have succeeded in coming up with answers. So I’m sure we can also come up with a great way to deal with this matter.

Photo by Rod van Dalen

CV: What do you feel makes your band and its particular approach to songwriting work? What keeps the band together and making music?
Aeilko: Up until now we haven’t really been writing as a band. Our rhythm section doesn’t add much melody! They keep the groove going! The other band members write each in their own way…I usually write complete songs, while others write partly themes that others add to. Whatever the approach is, only one thing what matters most to us and that is the song itself. No matter who contributes what, as long as the song benefits from it, it is acceptable for us. No room for egos. We write in a style based on what we grew up with listening to, but put those features in a very modern production. So there are lots of 70s and 80s influences in our music but it all sounds very modern! What keeps the band together is that WE do not label ourselves…we write whatever we love and that’s also how we pick the songs for our albums. We pick whatever we love, not necessarily what fits a certain label. First of all, we want to be proud of and happy with whatever we release. Quality is important. So we have our music mastered at Abbey Road by the same guy who’s also responsible for (re)mastering work of the Beatles, Rush, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple….and HARDLAND! We all prefer our music to be varied but very recognizable as being HARDLAND. That’s the biggest compliment we received in all the reviews we got so far: great variety, but still very recognizable and awesome production. No matter how awesome a band like AC/DC is…I got all of their albums! ...we could never create albums like that…one dimensional music!

So in short…the love for music and being creative keeps this band easily together!

CV: On a more global view, how do you see your band’s music and songwriting separating itself from just being another Heavy Metal act?
Aeilko: Haha, that’s a hard one. To be honest? We are stubborn Dutch rockers with a big heart for and a wide open approach to Rock and Metal in general. That’s also the way how we write our music. But with all of that being said we are very much aware of what’s going on today. Today’s sounds, today’s feelings about music and what’s going on in this world. So, even though we integrate 70s and 80s atmospheres into our music, we will always be aware of the era we live in and make sure our music fits the current soundscapes of Rock and Metal! Perhaps that’s also why we were recently chosen as a solid 3^rd best Rock band in the Benelux, right after Golden Earring and Vandenberg!! We must be doing something right!

Art by Frans Mensink

CV: Can an artist truly be unique? Some would argue there is no such thing as being unique; that it’s nothing more than a compounding of influences making an artist who or what they are. Would this then say that artists today are destined to be just copies of those who have already come to pass?
Aeilko: Yes and no! Everyone is unique…no one has your voice, your creative thoughts etc. Ever since Beethoven and Bach no new chords or notes were created. But to think that therefore every new artist is a replica of his predecessor? I don’t think so at all! I believe that every artist has his own story to tell, lyrically, musically, emotionally. Sure, every emotion has been sung about! That is the reason why people resonate so well with the emotions of artists. They recognize something in it that they have felt themselves. Every era has their own emotions, feelings etc. Some will outlive this planet, but some are very time-bound. Therefore I believe that every artist is unique, even if they have similarities with other bands or other eras. There’s always an audience who loves what you do! You just need to find them, or they need to find you!!

CV: Are there life lessons to learn being in a Heavy Metal band that you feel cannot be taught elsewhere? If so, what are they?
Aeilko: Yes! In my humble opinion Metalheads, Rockers are a type of people who are overall very open-minded and have a greater level of acceptance to others. Live and let live! That alone would make for a way more relaxed world than it is these days. The way Metalheads and Rockers are able to express themselves, live up to their abilities is something a lot of people could learn from. I’m sure there is more to be learned, but this is what comes to mind first.

CV: What do you feel makes someone a “rock star”? Does being a rock star automatically make one iconic or are the two completely different in your opinion?
Aeilko: Being a “rock star” does not make you iconic by definition. Becoming iconic takes a lot more, I think. First of all you need to stand the test of time to become iconic, or create something that is so typical and specifically accepted and time-bound. But then you would be called an icon after a certain era has passed. A Rockstar, in my opinion, is anybody who speaks to a large audience for a longer period of time. An Icon is someone that stands specifically for a certain era, music style, or whatever made them iconic! But hey, wat do I know? I’m neither one…yet. Haha.

CV: What's next for you? What can fans expect to see coming as the world looks to surmount a new normal laced with a load of restrictions?
Aeilko: Whatever happens to our future, we will be continuing to write timeless music with references to what lots of us have great memories about. We will always find a way to keep engaging with fans, followers, audiences. Back in the 50s and before that, music was also much more local and less stadiumized…is that even a word, as it has become since then.

So perhaps we all go back to what it used to be back then, smaller scaled performances, radio and MTV and VH1…as they used to be, will become more important to artists and their following…all of that in new ways, MTV and VH1 on internet. YouTube in a different way…even more so specialized in music videos, special channels per style if you like, so they can attract their own following. YouTube as it is today is way too general…family movies…nothing wrong with that, music videos, instruction videos…everything’s there…but you can’t identify with it. Artists and audiences need identification. So, a lot will change in how we consume our music and videos today to what it will become in the…hopefully near future. Maybe bands will create more so than now their own channels to identify themselves with their audience. We are heading for some major changes in how we all will be experiencing and consuming music and art in general in the future. Challenging and also mighty inspiring, I think.

CV: Thank you again Aeilko for spending some time talking and sharing with our readers. It was a pleasure. I wish you all the best and continued success.
Aeilko: Thank you very much for having us, Mick and coming up with these really interesting questions. You made me really having to think about some of the answers! If people like to get to know us, I like to invite them to our website…there are all sorts of links to different channels where they can hear, watch or read about us or get in touch with us!

Check out Hardland at:
Official: https://www.hardland.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HARDLANDRocks/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hardlandrocks/

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My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, show host, 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.