Interview with the band Cold in Berlin
Cosmick View: Hello, and welcome to The Cosmick View. Thanks for taking some time out of your day to speak with us. It's greatly appreciated.
CV: Do you think modern Heavy Metal music has evolved past its origins? Or are things relatively still the same?
Adam: It has and it hasn’t. The technology involved has obviously evolved, but the majority of the time it’s still a bunch of musicians on stage with their instruments.
Maya: I love heavy music in all its forms. The cool think about metal is that there is some many genres and niches that you can go down. For me it is really just about that feeling when you see a band live and it all kicks in, the noise, the crowd, the feeling.
CV: Does Metal still draw people to want to listen and engage the music while challenging the audience to imagine becoming a musician themselves?
Adam: Metal has a history of “technical proficiency” – the fastest riffs, the wildest solos – which obviously appeals to some people. My preference is for that mysterious intangible force that engages you emotionally.
Maya: I am not sure that metal, in particular, engages the audience that way. I think it is almost a collective worship of the music and the warmth of the crowd. I think metal can challenge an audience to consider the power of non-conformity which is very powerful for the alternative scene.
CV: Many believe that success for a band relies on three major components; good distribution, good PR and good booking. In the new modern music industry, all of that is without a doubt achievable by the artist themselves. Do you feel more and more established acts will go the independent route and eliminate the middle man component?
Maya: Those components are clearly useful. I guess there’s examples of success without some of those components. So long as there’s middlemen, artists will be happy to use them and concentrate on what they feel is more important.
CV: Do you feel that the idea of a band eliminating those second and third party partnerships; labels, management, bookers, etc., and doing things on their own, is a direct result of artists and bands being misled and taken advantage of for so long?
Adam: There’s a history of mismanagement and some famous examples. That and just the practicalities of the internet enables a modicum of independence.
CV: Do you feel there is a need or want for artists of any style or genre to rise above the past and to do more musically… artistically? Or can a level of comfort be reached and maintained as a means to sustainability?
Maya: I think it is probably different for each artist and what they are hoping to achieve. For CiB we don’t ever make albums that sound exactly the same but all our songs whether they are really heavy, more goth or quite poppy are definitely and defiantly ‘Cold in Berlin’. The themes and the style ties everything together. I think the past in music is SO important as knowing the lineage of your style/genre can be really inspirational and support you in creating wonderful new ideas. I love the links between genres as this is often where really interesting stuff happens.
Adam: We say we embrace and defy genres. I love doom guitar riffs, but if one of our songs doesn’t require them I won’t play them. The good thing about Cold in Berlin is we’ve never pigeonholed ourselves and we’ve never let ourselves get comfortable.
CV: Many critics believe music is irrelevant today... just background noise. As a musician who is out there writing, releasing, and performing, from your perspective, do you still see music relevance in the world today? Is there a connection?
Adam: The worst music, like AI generated music is background noise.
Maya: I feel a very strong connection to our audiences. We recently played a festival in Austria called House of the Holy. A young woman in the audience was crying. She was obviously having a very emotional connection to our show and music. I put my hand out and she held it while I was singing in the audience. Moments like this remind me the impact writing and performing music can have. At a goth show recently, a woman came up to me and thanked me for making music that speaks to women. She said she found the lyrics moving from a feminist perspective and this meant so much to me.
CV: Has music in general split into too many genres and sub-genre classifications in an effort just to please an indecisive audience in your opinion? Is it just more of a marketing ploy to funnel buyers to a specific brand?
Adam: Genre niches have got a bit much. It’s a response to having access to “all the world’s music”. Again, for those listeners who care, you’ll hear multiple genres across our music. For others, hopefully they just here a good song.
CV: What more can fans expect to see coming from you in the remainder 2025?
Adam: Our next single Hangman’s Daughter is out on 5th September https://lnk.to/9TrvXk we’re release a second single in October. Then our 5th album Wounds https://lnk.to/YjvSIa is out on 7th November.
Then we’ve got these UK shows.
Friday 7th November – Necroscope club night – The Arches, Coventry
Saturday 8th November – Carpe Noctum club night – The Library, Leeds
Saturday 22nd November – Corporation – Sheffield (supporting NFD)
Sunday 23rd November – The Garage – London (supporting NFD)
Saturday 31st January – The Lexington – London – Wounds album launch show
CV: Thanks again for taking the time to share with our readers. We wish you all the best and continued success.
Adam: Thank you, these were good, different questions.
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My name is Mick Michaels...I'm an artist, music fan, songwriter, producer, author, show host, big 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.
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