EMQ’s With Spektrvm
Hi everyone! Welcome to another EMQs interview, this time with Greek Heavy Metallers, Spektrvm. Huge thanks to them for taking part.
What is your name, what do you play and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?
Hello, we are Spektrvm. Thanos (vocals), George (Guitar), Nick (Guitar), Mike(bass), Lyo (Drums). Our music style can’t really be very specifically labeled. The most generic title would be Heavy Metal, but sometimes we are more Doom, sometimes more Progressive, more Folk, more Nu, Alternative, Modern and so on. It really depends on who is listening to it, and what comparisons their minds make while doing so. Mike (bass) and George (guitar) met in high school and bonded over their shared love for music. They formed a covers band initially, but after a couple of years, they decided that it was time for original material.
How did you come up with your band name?
The name came up during a brainstorming session by the initial group, as “Spectrum” originally, because of the diversity of musical tastes within the band itself, and the completely different styles of songs they would be performing. Later on, with the finalisation of the line-up, and the album’s content inspiration, the name took on various different meanings, and was finalised to Spektrvm, which of course is pronounced the same, but now written in the old Anglo-Saxon form, to contribute to the later ideas.
What Country / Region are you from and what is the Metal / Rock scene like there?
We are from Athens, Greece. The Metal / Rock scene here is very decent with more than dozens of great bands, that deserve recognition, due to their originality, uniqueness and skill, in a list that is too long to write down.
What is your latest release?
After releasing 2 video clips in June of 2022, our latest release was our debut album, “Blood for Heaven” which can be found on all major musical platforms.
Who have been your greatest influences?
Some of our influences are Tool, Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold, Metallica, Guns ‘N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, Pearl Jam and a dozen other great artists, even outside of the Rock / Metal scene, that have left their small mark, translated in this album. As for the next one, who knows?
What first got you into music?
I can’t speak for the former members, but for the current line-up it was definitely music itself. The magical feeling that brings tears in your eyes when you hear something completely awesome. We wanted to be able to cause this to other people, while also being able to pass our message to the world, in hopes of contributing to making it a better place.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?
On the top of that list would definitely be our inspirations, but we would take the opportunity to collaborate with any musician and / or band that we objectively find to be sound, while also respecting their personality and values.
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
There is not just one on that list. Some of us dream of the Download festival, or Wacken Open Air, Rock in Rio and many more. We aspire to one day appear, where some of the greatest of all time have performed and entertain a massive amount of fans in the audience.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
There is nothing in this list that is not in the list of “NSFW”.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
Thank you so much for supporting us, but also the music scene in general. We love you very much and can’t wait to see you on the 7th of July at Rockwave Festival in Greece, where we will be opening for the legendary Deep Purple, along with Saxon, Asking Alexandria, As I lay Dying and more! We’ll bring our A-Game and we expect you to do the same.
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
I would say Freddie Mercury. He had so much more to give, and his death was a tragic loss. We could also argue for Dio, but he lived a full life.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
We love the energy and the feeling of the stage. We love writing our own material and expressing our music. Also, how familiar we can become in 45 minutes on a stage with people in the audience that we have never met before. Music brings you closer. Hate is a strong word, but we could argue that we dislike how being a musician is not considered as a “real job” by some people.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
We would love to see musicians being promoted based on skill again, and not on trends as a product, or through nepotism / status.
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
Each of us has a different one of course, so for me (Thanos), I would say that “Ten” by Pearl Jam would be my favourite album so far. There might be independent songs from other albums and artist that I like more, but as a whole, this one takes the cake.
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?
Everyone has their own understanding and way of intimacy with music. So, this is a personal question to each person specifically, but most would probably say Vinyl.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
We played our album’s live release at Temple Athens, as headliners, with a decent amount of people in the audience, 2 great bands, an awesome venue, and special effects (fire, smoke, dry ice, robotic lights etc.) which has had some great reviews and we were really proud of putting it together.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
Thanos is a teacher, George is a confectioner, Nick is a stock investor, Mike is a hairdresser / bartender, and Lyo is a small business receptionist / manager. I think that with or without music, that would still be what each of us does.
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
If we were to only invite alive ones, it would be David Draiman, Slash, Jason Richardson, Flea and Luke Holland, one greatly respected musician for each of our spots.
What’s next for the band?
We are now starting to write material for the next album, we are looking to release a single this year, and the second album to be released at the end of this year or early 2024. We have some gigs lined up, in various countries, with a big one coming up as we said, on the 7th of July at the Rockwave Festival in Greece. Everything will be updated on our social media, so no one has to miss any of our next moves.
What Social Media / Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
You can find us on Facebook under Spektrvm , on Instagram under spektrvm.official , on our YouTube Channel under Spektrvm Official , on Spotify under Spektrvm. Click on any of the hyperlinked words to be immediately transferred to each of our channels.
Time for a very British question now. As an alternative to the humble sandwich, is the correct name for a round piece of bread common in the UK either a Bap, a Barm (or Barm Cake), a Batch, a Bun, a Cob, a Muffin, a Roll or a Tea Cake?
Though we are not British, we would have to go with Barm or Barm Cake. Though Tea Cake sounds nice as well.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Thank you so much for the invitation to this interview. It’s been lovely. Keep supporting the Metal / Rock scene. Spektrvm Out!
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