Scorpio: Hello, Thomas! This is Vladimir from The MetalList Portal. Congrats on the new album "Victory". It's really good. Let's start :) We won't go into the band's history - anyone who's interested can read it on your website. So let's begin by discussing your new full-length "Victory". First, the cover. It reminded me of IRON MAIDEN's "The Trooper" :) So, victory over what?
Thomas Hansen: Hello! IRON MAIDEN's "The Trooper", hmm... maybe! I haven't thought about that before. As the title suggests, this is a victory for me and the band in many ways. It might not be a huge victory, but it's still a victory. For me, because I had a really hard time a few years ago, but I managed to get back on my feet and I think I came out of it pretty well. For the band, it's a victory because even though we face so many setbacks, we always manage to survive and get better. With this album, we've made our best work so far, so that's also a victory for us. There are also many other reasons why we wanted to call it "Victory", and one of them can be seen on the cover.
Musically you've moved towards the thrash metal side. Why did you decide to go with a heavier sound?
We did have one or two songs on the first album that were very thrash metal, so it's not entirely new for the band to use thrash elements in the music. I try to mix power metal with elements of speed, prog, and thrash, as well as other styles. I didn't deliberately decide to make this album heavier - that's just something that happened naturally. I think it might have been because of everything going on in my life and with the band during the last few years.
Whose idea was it to include two instrumental pieces, and what meaning do they have? All the music is written by me, so I guess I'm responsible for that, hehe. We've had one instrumental song on every album so far, and on this one we have two. Many people will say they're just filler, but they were made to serve a purpose just like any other song on the album. The first one, "In Memory", was made as a tribute to our former bass player who died in a car crash a few years ago. The second, "When Darkness Falls", is kind of an intro to the next song "Fortress of Solitude", so they're connected to each other.
For the second time, you've recorded the album at TopRoom Studio. So you must like the sound you get there and the atmosphere, am I right?
Yes! It's a very nice studio, and the sound engineer and owner Borge Finstad is a very talented man. We're very pleased with what he does.
I saw the video from BORKNAGAR's "Epic" album recording at TopRoom. They really had a lot of fun. Were there any funny moments during the "Victory" recording?
Haha, nice question! Well, there were many funny moments as always, and some of them can be seen in the studio video we posted on our webpage. We had a beer jam where we played on beer cans, and we had another jam using a snare drum, a bass drum, an out-of-tune acoustic guitar with only 2-3 strings, and a Hammond organ. Great tune we came up with there, hehe.
Why did you decide to start your own record label to release "Victory"?
After recording the album, we sent out promos to many labels and got 5-6 offers, but none of them were worth taking. It would have been a risk, and we might have ended up in the same situation again. Now we have 100% control over the music.
What was the conflict with Sound Riot, the label that released your first two full-length albums? Was that also a reason to release the new CD yourself?
Those people don't know what the words TRUST, HONESTY, and RESPECT mean, and when you also don't care about your bands and screw every band over, you don't belong in this business. They showed us the ugly side of the music industry. So yes, that's one of the reasons I started my own label. You can read the full story here.
Is Epicus Records going to release only GAIA EPICUS albums, or do you have plans to release other bands?
The main priority is of course GAIA EPICUS and my own solo album, which I've started planning. But I've already begun looking for other bands to sign and release on my label.
What are your concert and touring plans?
As soon as we find a new bass player and guitar player, we'll go out and play as much as we can. Hopefully that will be soon, and hopefully we'll get to play in as many countries as possible. I'm already working on building good connections for concerts and touring.
Do the band members play in other groups?
At the moment, it's only Ole the drummer, and he has a lot of different projects going on.
What bands do you like? What's on your current playlist?
My favourite bands - you can probably guess by listening to my music :) hehe. But if I were to list some of them, it would be MEGADETH, STRATOVARIUS, HELLOWEEN, GAMMA RAY, MASTERPLAN, IRON MAIDEN, DREAM THEATER, and many more. At the moment, I'm just waiting for the new MEGADETH album and also the new GAMMA RAY live DVD.
Imagine you're organizing a metal festival. Who would be on stage? All the bands I mentioned in the last answer, and GAIA EPICUS as headliner. Hahaha.
That's cool, heh! What is the future of power metal?
Power metal will stay alive! Get used to it :)
Which bands are your best friends?
Anyone who's nice to people and doesn't suck! Hehe.
- TOP 5 heavy/power albums of all time:
I only have a top 3 list. 1. MEGADETH - Rust in Peace 2. METALLICA - ...And Justice for All 3. IRON MAIDEN - Somewhere in Time
- Today is the 1st of April - April Fools' Day. So let's hear a funny joke from Thomas Hansen.
GAIA EPICUS will release a pop album in 2008! Yeah! That will happen!!! :) Ha ha ha... or will it?
- Your last words, Thomas, for your fans and our readers.
If you like melodic metal with good catchy songs that also has elements of power, speed, and prog metal, then check out our new album! The worst that can happen is that you find a great new band to like :)
Thanks for your time and interest in GAIA EPICUS!!!