Robex Lundgren virkblogg.

What´s the name of your band? Blackslash

How was the band formed? Blackslash was founded by the bass player Alec Trojan.

Can you tell about your band? We are a Heavy Metal band from the South of Germany. Our Music is heavily influenced by the NewWaveOfBritishHeavyMetal and all the great bands of those times back in the 80s.

Where are all band members from?/Who does what in the band?

Our hometown is Donaueschingen,Germany, which is a small town in the Black Forest.

Clemens Haas –Vocals

Christian Haas – Lead Guitar

Daniel Hölderle – Rhythm Guitar

Alec Trojan – Bass

David Hofmeier – Drums

What was the ambitions of the band when you started? We simply were hot for Heavy Metal! Playing live on stage and having a good time. That is why we started playing old school Heavy Metal and this is what it’s still all about!

Could you explain your music to someone that haven't heard you? Imagine Steve Harris having a Baby with Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy. This guy would be our songwriter.

Where was your first gig? It was a birthday party in a garage. And it was pretty sucky.

Where was the latest gig? The latest gig was at the “Rockcafe KISS” in Hechingen, Germany. It was a club show together with the German Heavy Metal heroes of “VICTORY”.

What genre do you feel you are? Traditional Heavy Metal

Why did you pick that particular style?/What are your songs about? Because that’s the only genre we’re really into. We wouldn’t be true to ourselves doing any other style only to become more popular, because Heavy Metal is what we really love.

Our songs are just stories and tales. The lyrics are not important for our music, because our songs are no social criticism or any stuff like that, at all. We simply take those lines that sound bitchin’ and fit into the Heavy Metal cliché and it’s done!

Do you write your own material or mainly covers? Original songs only!

Do you have any clips on YouTube?  Yes. We released are debut album “SEPARATE BUT EQUAL” (10€) in 2013, which is available on Amazon etc. And last winter we did the “Stellar Master EP” (3€), which can be ordered on our homepage or on our Facebook page. Check out our stuff on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Blackslashband

What year was the band started? 2007

Where have you played from then till now? All over Germany, and a few gigs in the Netherlands.

Witch band is the best you´ve seen? Iron Maiden and Toto are definitely one of the TOP 5.

Is it always the same songs live? Depends on the show and how long we are allowed to play.

What has been the best/most promising gig so far? One of them was the support gig for Kissin’ Dynamite on their Megalomania-Tour in the Netherlands.  And the upcoming show with Skull Fist will be awesome!!! (at least we hope so)

What are the plans for the rest of the year? As I already mentioned we’re going to do a new album in April this year. So this is temporarily the focus of our attention. But of course we hope for some great live shows this year, as well.

Is it easier to get your inspiration from older bands or from bands more modern? Definitely old bands. I really don’t want to claim that modern bands, which play modern music suck, but to be honest: They suck!

How do you feel about the downloading of music instead of buying albums?

Nothing is more constant than change. So it’s pretty natural that music industry has become a different business by the development of a multimedia society. Of course the situation for bands and artists has become more difficult the last 20 years considering the profit of selling records. But the downloading of music goes together with a wider spread of music, than it has ever been. There is always a downside of the medal you’ve got to live with.

As long as we sell our records and merchandise on our concerts we are perfectly alright with this. And those who really appreciate the value of a great cover artwork and the physical value of music will buy albums no matter what.

What would be your dreams for the band? I want to make my band one the most important and most famous bands in the Heavy Metal scene. I would be proud if we could ever reach the status of bands like Skull Fist or Enforcer which are the heroes of the underground scene.

When you are on stage, what do you fear most then? To shit in my pants.

How important are your fans? They are the engine, which keeps the whole thing working. Without them we won’t be able to play any shows or to release any CDs. No fans – No music!

What's the funniest/most memorable thing a fan has done for you? There was a girl, who’s drawn a manga style - picture of us. This was very cute and we really appreciate people doing things like that. It makes us happy and makes us feel like what we’re doing is alright.

Name 2 of your own songs you like at the moment?

Stellar Master

All those nights

What do you feel is the best live band you've seen? Toto

What drives a band that isn't all that famous and renowned to try to make a living on their music and to keep playing? It’s all about passion and love for the music. Of course you hope for the great success but actually it’s not about how much money you make, or how much girls you get after a show. You have to love what you’re doing and if you manage to make living on it, be grateful and enjoy it.

Any pearls of wisdom for all other bands out there? Be awesome and play tight. And give a shit on all those “you’re not true - fuckers” out there!

Describe your show, visually and musically. It’s homage to the 80’s Rock shows. Tightleggings, ammunition belts and a lot fog on stage, accompanied by two-part guitar lines and a tight heavy metal sound.

How do you view the music industry of today? No money – no glory. That is basically how music industry works today. And this is also what we have experienced several times in our career. It’s obvious that you couldn’t become a millionaire by selling records in our “download-society”, especially in our genre. You need to play live as much as possible, but the problem is that most of the support shows/tours for the great bands are buy-on offers.

What is best/worst with playing the clubs? There’s nothing bad with playing the clubs. This is the shit! That’s the origin of Metal-concerts and it’s an atmosphere you can’t enjoy anywhere else. You have such a close interaction with your fans, which is the best thing about playing live.

Tell us about upcomming gigs and why we should be at them? There’s an upcoming show with SKULL FIST on June, 3rd 2015. Just check out the Skull Fist tour plan to get further information. If you’re into Traditional Heavy Metal this concert will blow your mind!