Gothminister
"Happiness in darkness"

ragazzi: "Gothminister is quite new, especially in Germany. How did the whole project start?"
Alex: "I have always been interested in horror movies. I started watching them at the age of eight. And I also drew horror cartoons. I think the dark and unknown is our most important source to creativity and inspiration.
It was in the late nineties when I discovered the Goth scene in Norway, which was still very small at that time. I missed a leader of this scene and so I created Gothminister.
It was very strange: I went out at night. It was freezing cold and I walked all alone. The wind blew through my shirt and I got very sick. I took antibiotica for 120 days without a break, but it was the wrong dose. So it could have gone really bad. When I was almost completely down I wrote the first songs for Gothminister and this made me happy again."
ragazzi: "Is the choice of the name Gothminister a result of the situation in Norway's Gothic scene?"
Alex: "Yes, in a way. I was very critical towards the Gothic scene and they criticized me as well. But now they respect me very much because they agree with me. Someone had to put a pointing finger at the scene, because it was eating itself. They would not allow any new artist, they would not expand, they would only claim to the old Gothrock bands. I wanted to change that by adding more crossover styles to it. Gothminister should have an image based on the English Gothic novel, fantasy and the Middle Ages.
Meanwhile Gothminister has become a big star in Norway. We are on National TV and they are showing documentaries about us."
ragazzi: "Alex, you already started making music in 1988. What kind of music was it at that time and who has influenced you?"
Alex: "In the beginning I was very much in all sorts of metal. And later in industrial metal. Breakdance was also very popular, they used a lot of pretty cool electronic tunes. When you blend all these parts together plus the superhero cartoons you have Gothminister. Gothminister is somehow like the superheroes: both do not have any limits."
ragazzi: "Is Gothminister a one-man-show?"
Alex: "At the moment we are four on stage. But when it comes to the songs I do everything on my own. Gothminister is my idea and my concept and it started indeed as a one man project."
ragazzi: "What about your inspirations apart from horror movies?"
Alex: "I am very fascinated by dark pictures. Other influences come from graves, churches, Gothic architecture or just from walking in the dark. And from movies, of course."
ragazzi: "What was the last movie you enjoyed?"
Alex: "I was pretty fascinated by "Hannibal". And I like watching the classics again and again, e.g. "Frankenstein"."
ragazzi: "Your message is "Happiness in darkness". The darkness is quite obvious in your music, appearance and performances. Where is the happiness?"
Alex: "It's in the lyrics. In contrast to the music almost all of them are very positive. They are about hope and love and not killing yourself. The happiness is the result of the darkness. We get inspired by the darkness. Darkness makes you happy.
I am a very positive person. Gothminister is a kind of mentor, who wants to help people by giving them music and self-esteem. I want everybody to believe in themselves."
ragazzi: "In another interview you said that you just trust yourself. Why?"
Alex: "You could rely on other people as well. But what I meant was that in the end you always have to believe in yourself, you have to decide on your own."
ragazzi: "The new album is called "Gothic Electronic Anthems". Is it 50 percent Gothic and 50 percent electronic styles?"
Alex: "The whole concept is a blend of Gothic and electronic music. And it's called anthems because it is a collection of the best 11 out of 100 songs I wrote."
ragazzi: "Do the two styles Gothic and Electro express anything special?"
Alex: "Yes, Gothic stands more for old times and electronic for modern times."
ragazzi: "You have a very significant voice. Do you have to train it in a special way?"
Alex: "What is most stressing is the whispering. It is hurting your voice. I have been singing for 14 years now, so my voice is pretty trained. The more you scream, the better your voice gets."
ragazzi: "In how far is the artwork important to you?"
Alex: "The most important thing is good music. If you have an image, it's a bonus. If you have an interesting image, people notice you. You are not just one of thousand bands. In Norway you have 199 bands and there is Gothminister. It's the only band in Norway with this particular image. But nowadays it's changing since we have a Gothic boom."
ragazzi: "What about your plans concerning live shows? When will you be in Germany?"
Alex: "Things have to be planned properly since I am a perfectionist. So it is a bit late for summer festivals like Wave Gotik Treffen. We concentrate on Scandinavia this year and on Germany next year. But I like to do just a few shows in Germany this autumn, too."
ragazzi: "Why is it worth watching Gothminister on stage?"
Alex: "We have a Gothic horror show with theatre, pyro and videos. And we are planning to involve the audience, so that people can effect our show."

Stefan



Zurück