interview with Quintessente
Where are you from? We are from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
What year did the band form? 1994.
What are your names? / Who plays what?
André Carvalho – vocals
Cristiano Dias – guitars
Cristina Müller – keyboards and vocals
Leo Birigui – drums
Luiz Fernando de Paula - bass
How is it that you started playing music? The band started with Cristiano and Rodrigo, our former drummer. They invited André to the band and later the other members joined the band.
Have you had other previous members? Yes, it’s hard to keep the same people during so many years, but André and Cristiano have been together since the beggining.
Did you make music even when you were young? Yes, we all have been studying Music and playing our instruments since we were young.
What's your style of genre? We play Heavy Metal with elements of Doom, Death and Gothic Metal.
What inspires you? The life, Nature, the universe.
How often and where do you reherse? Once a week.
How have you developed since you started with the music? We started as a Death/Doom Metal band but naturally we began to combine elements of Gothic Metal, Symphonic Metal and even Progressive Rock.
Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? Yes. We released our album Songs From Celestial Spheres a few weeks ago and we intend to spread our music to as many people as we can get.
Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that? We did our album all by ourselves but a label could help in many ways, so we are open to everything.
What made you decide to make this music? We all like Heavy Metal music.
What are your songs about? Reflections, philosophy and everything about human nature.
Who does the composing and writes the lyrics? Commonly Cristiano show us the music or a riff and we all compose together, then André and I do the lyrics. Leo and Luiz joined the band in the beginning of 2017 and they also contributed in the composing of the songs of our new album.
Do you compose in a certain environment? Sometimes in the studio or at home.
Have you done any covers live? Yes. Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, Venom and Type O Negative.
What language do you sing in? English but we have a song with a part in Italian.
Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? We try to vary always.
What was your latest gig? We played in a music venue in Lapa, Rio de Janeiro, in May 2016. It was a great show because we played some new songs. By that time we were composing Songs From celestial Spheres and the audience appreciated the new stuff. After this gig we dedicated our time to rehearsal and record the new album.
Where do you plan to gig the comming year? In 2017 we intend to play in Brazilian cities and then extend the tour through South America.
When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale? In the last year we developed shirts, mugs, mouse pads and a few stuff with our logo and images about our songs. Soon we’ll sale our new CD.
Where can people buy your merchandise? You can find everything at http://www.znstore.com.br/merch/quintessente
What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records nowadays? It’s good to have many ways of spreading music and we need to adapt to what is new. I always buy CDs and everything related to the bands I love and I think the most part of people do the same as I. So, even with downloading music, there´s still space to CDs, DVDs, etc.
How do you think the music industry have changed because of this? I think now the musicians have the control of everything and there’s more freedom. It’s hard in the beginning because bands and musicians need to spend a lot of money but everything is more genuine and without external interferences. The great change is that labels and musicians have almost the same importance and it’s good! In the past a lot of artists were tied in contracts with almost all benefits to the labels.
What do you think of my work? It’s great to see somebody supporting bands from all over the world and many bands without a label. You play an important role!
How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? I hope it could reach a lot of people from other countries and this is awesome!
Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? Old bands like Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Slayer and others will always be our great inspiration when composing, but there´s a lot of great present bands which recreate Heavy Metal. It’s important to be aware of the new without forgetting the past.
What advice would you give other bands or artists? Always do what you really love and do with your heart!
Do you have any new material? We released our new album “Songs From Celestial Spheres” in last May 5th and we will release the CD soon.
What are your web sites?
How can people reach you? In our website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Spotify and all music platforms.
What are your plans for the future? Now we are focusing in the release of Songs From Celestial Spheres and planning our tour.
