9/9/2005
1. Okay, let’s start immediately: Here in Germany you’re still unknown. So please, introduce yourself to our readers. Who is SVENIA? What kind of music are you playing? When did you start? Who’s responsible for which kind of work in your band?
To begin with, we heartily greet your readers and all the staff at Gothic Paradise.
We are a gothic band born in 2001: Leonard is the singer, Dusk plays the guitar, Hicks plays the bass and Lord of Illusion is on drums.
Leonard writes the lyrics and the music, the other components of the band are responsible for the songs arrangements and the keyboards are recorded by Hicks.
2. What’s the meaning of your bandname?
Pratically speaking, Svenia is an italian word but its use is very rare in the modern language, rather negligible. It means a simpering and wheedling behaviour, mawkishness, a kind of vampiric hypnosis that causes faint.
3. In former times SVENIA were 5 members. Why did Manuel, the keyboard player, left the band?
Manuel wasn't born to be in Svenia. It was good to play with him but we had musical divergences. As far as we won't find the most talented and motivated keyboard player in the world, Hicks will record the keyboard sounds with the help of a very qualified musician, engaged in other musical projects.
4. You also had changes on the guitar, twice. What were the reasons for these substitutions?
Anyone who plays in Svenia must want to play and question himself at the 100%: he has to aim at making a living out of music.
Probably the former guitarists hadn't these features but now by luck we have found a stable line-up that will alllow us to work harder and look ahead with much more optimism.
5. You’re from Italy, where the sun always shines and people are in a happy mood. How comes you’re singing of the dilemma of love and death covered in this melancholically sound?
First of all, let's not forget that Romeo and Juliet were italian, from fair Verona: their story of love and death has been told by Shakespeare, in one of his most famous tragedies. Italy, like most places in the world is full of medieval town, castles and wilderness, source of inspiration for the most ancestrial minds....Moreover, it isn't true at all that the sun is perpetual here. This is what the most people would like to believe, because they're afraid of approaching the fascination of the darkness and the mysteries that are hidden in it even if we can assure that almost everybody is attracted by them.
Anyhow, every season plays his part here too, we have a dark winter with fewer hours of daylight and a sunny and warm summer.
6. Listening to your music, comparisons to the Finnish Love-Metall-Band HIM is very close. What’s your attitude to this band as well as to the comparison to them? Would you call your music ‚Love-Metal‘, too?
Definitely HIM are a good band and they succeeded in imposing theirselves with their Love Metal. We began in 2002 with a four-track live demo (In The Shadow Of Death In The Shadow Of Love) and we were very satisfied about the positive judgements by the metal press and webzines. I think it's normal that a reviewer has to describe to the reader the kind of music the band plays and in many cases he does so holding a more famous band up as an example: as for us, we have been compared to HIM. We think we play the same kind of music as HIM and many other bands play (Type O Negative, 69 Eyes, Sentenced, Charon etc) and if our final outcome is similar to theirs, this is only a similarity due to the kind of music we all play.
The roots must be sought in a melting pot of different musical styles met during the years, glam, new wave, 80's pop music, heavy metal, in the end resulting in a very personal gothic rock, a tormenting melancholy melody blending with an enthralling metal.
We are also inspired by authors like Hesse, Poe, Baudelaire and many Shakespearian tragedies. Ah....as for the "Love Metal" we refrain, we leave the patent to them.
7. Do you still know how you got into contact with dark music? How old have you been? What was the decisive thing to go the way of dark music?
We grow up listening to everything, but joining our moods together, this is the sound we gave birth to, violent and tender, ruthless and frail, a sound to be in love with. Even if this musical journey is not in one's deep soul, it's enough to listen to it and let oneself be carried away by it without any fear. We have always loved dark melodies.
8. Not long ago, you joined your first record label called Gothic Slam Records. Who was looking after whom? How did you manage to get a contract at Gothic Slam Records?
Everything happened by chance. At Gothic Slam they listened to some tracks of ours, they liked them and they immediately contacted us.
Without wasting time we signed the contract they proposed to us because it seemed very interesting. We are very glad and thrilled about this and we are very sure this label will help us a lot because it's made up of extraordinary people with a lot of enthusiasm, willing to do things properly.
9. Your debut album, you’ll release on October 15th at your label, is called „Black Heart“. At the discography on your website I found a demo album called „Black Heart“, too, from 2004. Is this the basement of your full length album?
Yes, it is. All the four tracks will be in the album. At that time we published only 500 copies of the demo. It had to be a little but delightful appetizer.
10. The tracklist of „Black Heart“ is a compilation of songs from your demo albums. Just 2 new songs I recognized. Will the sound on „Black Heart“ be a bit different than on your demos? What can we expect of your debut in general?
I answer your question with the tracklist of the new album:
- Burial in autumn
- My nuptial sepulchre
- In the shadow death in the shadow of love
- Last prayer
- Celestial crime
- Love me to death
- Endless river of cry
- Cursed
- Death is waiting for your heart
- Infernal Forest.
Some tracks of this album were already in our second demo “Angelical Poison", but that demo has never been released and pratically these songs are completely unpublished. This album is 100% Svenia sound: so prepare yourself for an immersion in our world of wonders and dreams, of love and death. Hearing is believing!
We never expect the most from any situation so that we can't be disappointed by any failure whatsoever and this is what we suggest everybody. Obviously one has to be optimistic, but to begin with, we are content with a niche but authentic audience, that loves us for what we can create, for what we are and that allows us to make a living out of music (we are satisfied with little, aren't we?).
11. What expectation do you have of „Black Heart“ and its release in Germany, Austria and Switzerland? Why the release just for Italy, Germany, Austria and Switzerland? Are there European releases planned as well?
The album will be released by the middle of October in Italy, Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The label has chosen these stages to begin with. If sales do well, the rest of the world will have to wait a couple of months. By the way, everyone will be able to order our album at our official website and at other cd-selling websites. So by the middle of October every fan will be able to listen to our album.
12. In your home-country you already gave many of concerts. Will there be European concerts, too? Which band would you like to tour with (no matter if European concerts are planned or not)?
Obviously there will be gigs abroad too: with such a professional label as Gothic Slam is, everything will be easier. We are planning the gigs for the Black Heart Tour starting soon after the album release. Which band would we like to tour with? Each of us has his preference and to do no wrong anyone we won't answer this question.
13. How’s the resonance of fans in Itlay? Do you already get resonaces from elsewhere?
Luckily, in Italy there are many people listening to Svenia. Every concert of ours has been a source of great satisfaction for us because we have always received widespread success. However , thanks to the Internet, we aren't completely unknown abroad, on the contrary! Every day we receive e-mail from around the world by people congratulating us and asking over and over again when the album will be released. Now we can confidently answer that "Black heart" is about to be released.
14. Next point I recognized at your discography is the song „Death Is Waiting For Your Heart“. This song is on two different demos and will also appear on the album. Does this song have a special meaning for you?
As we've said before "Angelical Poison" has never been published. We are very attached to "Death Is Waiting For Your Heart" because it's our first video. Moreover we are particularly attracted by the sound of the flutes, they have something ancient, gothic as if they would fascinate us back in time.
15. Where did you shoot the related video clip? How was the video-shoot like? Will you shoot more videos for your songs?
As you have said , we have signed for Gothic Slam not long ago, so we haven't talked about this topic yet. Naturally we will shoot other videos. As for the shooting of "Death Is Waiting For Your Heart" video we can say it was a beautiful experience, a good job, made together with our friends in Milan. It's still possible to download this video from our official site www.svenia.org.
16. The music-business is mostly very tough and little bands – especially in the beginning - can’t live from their music. So, how do you earn your money besides the band? What do you do for a living?
As the times go, it's really hard to live only on music if one isn't famous. Especially when one begins. Each of us works or studies but obviously our dream is to make a living out of music only. We believe in this and we will try our hardest as we are doing now. It would be wonderful to make money doing a job we love so much and that we would do with pleasure for free too.
17. What are the most important things for you in life to aim at?
We could seem expected but the truth is we would like to reach the hearts of the people and dwell in them as our sepulchral melodies dwell in ours.
18. Who’s your idol – no matter which category your idol is from? For what reason did they became your idols?
We don't have one in particular , we are fans of many music and movie artists but we don't have a number one idol.
19. If you could change something in your life or do something in a different way than before, what would it be?
We believe in destiny and maybe we will do again the same things we have done so far, the same errors too, because the errors teach us to live. One must never complain, even in the most difficult times, life is made of those too....for everyone!
Thank you, guys, for taking time and patience! Wish you lots of success with your band and music in Europe as well as all over the world. 
Thank you, it has been a pleasure. We love you all. We hope you will wander with us for eternity as darkness will rule in your heart.
Stephy (GothicParadise.de)
Leonard and Hicks (Svenia)
