SUICIDAL DARKEST FUNERAL GRAY

Here i post only my drawnings.Also occasionally i post interviews from bands that help keep my hand going on.So today PLANKS ladies and gentleman!!!

A band and an interview that is true to the bone. Great worlds and great music are hidden here so you better read closely and hear them at an speaker-blowing volume to get them better. Planks are putting on the right influence’s for me such as heavy dark aggressive emotional music somewhere between Breach, HydraHead Music,and Pure fucking Black Metal they are keeping us to waiting for FUNERAL MOUTH their third album released this September on Golden Antenna.vKeep reading and then listen to one hellish black trip the manage to offer. Ralph is telling us what is all about.

I think this is your first interview in Greek soil isn’t it?

R: That's indeed true. Thanks for having us.

Although you are a relatively new band your releases have proven really flattering since you have already a split with the godly and legendary Tombs.

R: Well, new? We started in 2007 and already released two full-length records, played more than 170 shows, toured all over Europe and the East Coast of the USA and are about to release our third full-length. So far for new, haha.

Tombs - Are they 'godly'? I think they'd prefer 'satanic'. Tombs are great. Mike, their singer, is a longtime friend of mine and Tombs and Planks started around the same time with the same musical plan. But both developed different in their sound. I don't know if our records are flattering, but they are indeed well received. I'm really glad a lot of people dig what we do, because this gives us the opportunity to play cool places and meet awesome people. I'm also really glad people still follow us, even though we transform and progress our sound from record to record.

“The Darkest of Grays” has haunted me since I first heard it. You are using a variety of genres in your sound from hardcore, blackmetal, crust to post metal and darkwave and they work successfully. Whenever I listen to the record a sense of pessimism overwhelms me with a need for a triumph of the human soul to be found all over.

R: Well, thank you. You pretty much summed up what we try to achieve. I'm always willing to let various styles influence my songwriting as I listen to a bright variety of genres. They only have one thing in common: They are all dark and more/less negative. I can't stand happy bands – I just feel no connection to this.

I try not to copy a genre but use its methodologies and dramatics to create something interesting. Benny and Frank have a different set of influences and bring this to the table once we work on the songs I bring to the table. That makes it something unique in the end.

'The Darkest Of Grays' was and is a very private and personal record to me, at least on the lyrical level. It is autobiographical and deals with two terrible years I went through. But in the end I'm still here – living life, breathing air. Soon our new record 'Funeral Mouth' will be released and it sounds different. Where depression and fear ruled 'The Darkest Of Grays' a cold and romantic melancholy underlies the sound, even though it still deals with human failure and consequences of emotional downfall.

Your songs from the split with “Lentic Waters” follow a more postpunk, darkwave and blackmetal approach and I completely dig them. Honestly I can’t wait to hear your sophomore full length album as nothing else in the world.

R: Again, thanks. If you like the Split you will definitely dig ''Funeral Mouth''. For me it sounds like a blend of darkwave, postpunk, grunge, Hydra Head heaviness and Scandinavian Black Metal. Imagine Isis, Darkthrone, Alice in Chains and Mastodon playing songs by The Cure. It will be out Oct.12^th on vinyl,CD and digital through our new label “Golden Antenna“. We will offer it two weeks before that on our Bandcamp – so, soon you can listen to it.

The world we are living in is going through an identity crisis and a banking crisis, making us poorer and poorer by the day while the rich are getting richer. By playing music we have the power to spread a message. But, is that enough in your opinion? I say this because unfortunately the common man is still numb.

R: The problem is: if you want to spread a message with music, what will you do if no one gives a shit and doesn't read the lyrics? I grew up in a hardcore scene where lyrical content was important. The guys in my first HXC band were older and showed me a lot of bands that really put emphasis on lyrics and meaning. I studied the lyrics, translated them, talked about them, wrote letters to the singers etc. I put a lot of energy and thought into the process of writing lyrics. It's unfortunate only a few people ever tried to see something in them and talk about them. But well, it's a climate shift in society today. Music to many is just another fast food product they consume „on the move“. Honestly, when was the last time you sat down and actually just listened to a band, read lyrics and thought about it? I find myself hardly ever doing this since society demands so much time and energy.

But still, my lyrics are nothing critical towards society. They are strictly personal. I was never into talking about this in my lyrics. It may sound egocentrical but I have enough to deal with in my small world and find it hard to focus on bigger frames. But in the end you are right, it's a shit system humanity moved itself into. Especially the „identity crisis“ part is frightening. I'm a teacher and honestly: I wouldn't want to grow up right now. It so much more difficult than it was 20-20 years ago..

I see you that you tour and perform live very often. I hope that one day we would be able to make a stop in Greece.

R: Actually we don't tour that often and play not as many shows as we could and would like to play - but all three of us have a packed “real life”. But man, to play in Greece would be fantastic. We played so many parts but never so far away. Our friends in Omega Massif and Black Shape Of Nexus both played there not too long ago. But they got their flights payed, so that's that. For us it's just not possible to do it by ourselves, at least on a financial level. That's with a big, fat UNFORTUNATELY.

Recently you released all your split releases with other bands. What is your opinion about the internet and free downloading. Is it good for a band or no? To be honest the only way for a band to make money is from the merch and sometimes you can save enough to buy a beer.

R: The ever going discussion about stealing from the internet pains me. We always offered all our stuff for free relatively short after the records came out. We mostly only had vinyl, so people had the chance to get the music for their car, iPods or whatnot. For us to offer all the stuff online was the best idea ever. In the beginning Narshardaa found our Demo on some blog that reposted it. They liked it, contacted us and released the first LP. The same happened when Southern Lord found „The Darkest Of Grays“ on a blog and liked it. The re-relased it on CD and ever since then so much happened for us. We're really grateful for every person that downloads it, spreads the word, put's it on his/her blog or reviews it.

And for the money discussion: In all fairness – Bandcamp is the best! I think everybody should offer music on Bandcamp. People can listen to it and if they decide it's cool they can get it directly. No majors involved and about 98% of the cash flows directly to the band. We have all our stuff for various prices on Bandcamp. If you feel like shooting us a cent, do it. If not, find a download with google that is for free. In the end we're glad if someone listens to the stuff. This made all that happened possible: us playing shows all over the place and people buying merch. Only this way it's a hobby that makes fun and is balancing the expenses. A win-win situation.

What do the planks do when they don’t play music and they don’t tour?

R: I work as a teacher in secondary school. Frank works as an electrician and Benny studies social sciences.

The neocrust movement is rising rapidly lately. Is it because people are feeling desperate or is it another trend that will pass over the years? New bands are spreading like mushrooms but do you remember what happened with the rising of post-metal bands three years ago?

R: Isn't that brand past already? For me neocrust was the wave around From Ashes Rise and Tragedy some years ago. Or do you refer to the „HM2“-Hardcore bands that spread like crazy? It's all not exactly my cup of tea. There are some killer bands among them and often genuinely nice people, but most bands are copycats of what Entombed, Dismember and Disrupt did many years ago. I can see those bands live and feel entertained but it's not the music I listen to at home. Yes, it's certainly a trend. The most annoying part is the usage of pseudo-dark and satanic imagery. That's so lame. Most of these bands are party dudes and happy surfers. It's phoney bullshit when they print upside down crosses on the shirts or go all wild before they even play the first chord. Thank you Trash Talk. I rather stick with the originals.

Could you recommend some good contemporary bands that might be good  for us to discover?

R: I always like to praise ALARIC from the US. Members of Noothgrush playing a mix of Killing Joke, Amebix and Rudimentary Peni. Great, dark stuff. As said, I don't listen too much of the  newer hardcore bands, but THROWERS from Germany are damn fine. Also from Germany is a band called O (the symbol for a circle). They are a collective of musicians and artists playing the best and darkest post rock since GY!BE. They will release their debut very soon and people should really keep an eye on them. Mostly I listen to dark and cold wave music now. Maybe I'll trade in my guitars for synths very soon. Since you spoke about Crust before, please check out GUN MOB. That's Benny's other band. Somewhere between Martyrdöd, HHIG and Cursed – and yes, they actually REALLY sound as heavy as the comparisons.

What does the future hold for Planks?

Oct.12^th ''Funeral Mouth'' will be out. Our new bass-player Marius will join around the same time. We will play some festivals and shows and talk about touring the States again next year. And if you find enough people that throw together, then we'll fly into Greece next year and play for you (and them). Also, the states will only happen if there is a financial support. Well, we will see. In general we will just slow the pace a bit as we live in three different cities all over Germany now.

I honestly thank you for this interview. I hope we could make another one when the new album is out. Thanks again!

R: Sure thing. Thanks for inviting us to do it. And yes, please „come again“.


Planks
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