Posted on: October 25th, 2016 by Greg Jordan
METALHEALTH Interview 16th October 2016.
Greetings reader. Here’s an interview i did recently with ace German band Black Daffodils. Take it easy.
– Hello Black Daffodils. Welcome to Metalhealth and thanks for being here.
Andrea: Hi Greg, thanks for having us here!
– What does good mental health mean to you?
Michael: That’s a very good question, since there is no easy answer. Good mental health means, at least to me, staying well-adjusted. No one can avoid stress, frustration or grief in his or her live completely, which I think are great risks in triggering mental problems. But as long as you are able to compensate by relaxation, achievements and happiness, that’s OK. Of course I am aware, that this is a very, very simplified opinion which only applies to mentally healthy people, and even there everyone has his or her own level of resilience.
– I agree with you. Well said. How is life for you off the road or when you’re not gigging? Especially after a tour or big event, is it difficult to adjust back into life at home after time on the road? If so, how do you adjust/cope?
Andrea: Since we all have a job it sometimes can be really stressful if a gig is on the same day you had to work before. Sometimes we have to drive a long way back home after a show and we are awake almost 24 hours. This can sometimes be exhausting. But most of our gigs are on Saturdays and this is much better because you are much more relaxed.
– What motivates you? What keeps you going?
Michael: Since I never was the “settle-down-guy”: Learning and experiencing new things is the greatest motivation for me.
– Are you a positive thinker? How do you stay positive?
Michael: Definitely yes. If something does not work out, I just repeat my mantra: “Could have come worse!”
– Have you experienced any tough times personally that you’d be okay talking about? If so, how are you/did you get through this.
Michael: Luckily, not really. On a small trip down memory lane, I think my biggest setback was quitting my university studies after only one year. Of course, that was not received very well by my family back then. Not at all, to be honest. What did I do? I decided, that a Masters degree is definitely not my way to go and went for a Bachelors degree (Back then, that were two entirely different degree programs here in Germany.). Although my family did not like that at all (NO REAL UNIVERSITY!), I really loved that school and got my B.sc. quite fast. One funny thing I’d like to mention here: I did get a M.sc. a couple of years later, after I quit my job (Why? Honestly: I was getting bored.) to enroll at a Masters program. I really loved going to university then. Maybe we sometimes just need some time.
– What does making music mean for you? Why do you do it?
Andrea: It is our passion and we don’t want to miss it in our lives. It feels great when a new song comes to life and it feels even greater to play live. It is something where we can be very creative.
– Enjoyed listening to and watching the video of Into the sun, from the album of the same name. I love the cover artwork for Into the sun and also the Broken flower album. They look really cool. How was the recording process for these records? Did you bang it down live, or record an instrument at a time etc?
Andrea: Thank you, glad that you like it. The recording process of these two cds was similar. When we recorded Broken Flower we did the drums and vocal in a studio and recorded the other instruments ourselves and on Into the sun we recorded everything ourselves – everyone of us recorded his instrument. The covers of these two records were made by me.
– Congratulations all round Andrea. So what are your plans with Into the sun? Some more touring or any dates you can mention? I see you have the female metal night gig coming up October 29th. Huge! Any other projects musical or otherwise happening?
Andrea: Yes we already did a lot of gigs this year after the album was released. A few days ago we had our first unplugged gig, which we enjoyed very much. We plan to do some more smaller acoustic shows in near future. We will also have some more dates with our Into the sun Tour this year. One of them is the date you mentioned. And in December we will also play our first show abroad in the Czech Republic.
Next year our band will have its 10th anniversary and we also intent to have a cool anniversary show, but there are not yet any concrete plans for it.
– Looking forward to your 10th anniversary! I think the Czech Republic will be amazing.
Ok, last question. What would you say to fans who are struggling with their mental health, or doing it tough at the moment?
Michael: Since I have some friends who were struggling with their mental health, I can only suggest to accept that you have a problem and try to get (professional) help as soon as possible. Delaying this two steps will most likely enlarge a problem/illness which could be cured.
– Thank you Black Daffodils for taking the time to talk with us. We wish you safe travels, and all the best with the album and gigs.
Check out links to the bands excellent music pages below. Take it easy out there. Greg \Mh/.
www.black-daffodils.com
www.facebook.com/blackdaffodils
