Tribal Machine – Industrial/Rock

(This is the only interview I could save, the rest are MIA).

TRIBAL MACHINE
Industrial Metal Rock

Sever Bronny – Vocals, keyboards, sequencing, programming, additional guitars
Brian ‘Meta’ Hartlen – Lead guitar
Brad Wutke – Bass, additional graphic design
Ken Pretty – Live drums

For more information on Tribal Machine:
http://www.tribalmachine.com
http://cdbaby.com/cd/tribalmachine
http://www.myspace.com/tribalmachine

Interviewer: Hawk Chavez
mousagenrepromotions@gmail.com

Since late September of 2005, big and bigger things have happened for Tribal Machine, they are quickly on the rise. I got the opportunity to interview vocalist/keyboardist/additional guitarist Sever Bronny about what makes the band tick; among with other remarkable events.

MG: The newly released album title, ‘Soldiers in a War of The Mind’ is intriguing. What is the concept behind the title?

Sever: The war itself is about control of thought through propaganda methods and advertising. It is the common person versus those who own the Medias and the large corporations. Those of us who are losing this war on the mind are painted with brands, or hold unquestioned views identical to those emphasized by the people in power.

MG: When a band is created, the first matter at hand is establishing the band’s genre. Your band is categorized as industrial, electronica, and folk rock. Indeed you’re industrial and electronica; however how do you figure the folk rock in your style?

Sever: You’ll hear some of the folk rock influence on the album with songs like “One More Time”, “Oversold the World”, and “Pheromone”. I wanted to put a genre in there that reflected the ‘folkish’ story-telling side of Tribal Machine. It’s an interesting part, and although it doesn’t sound like folk music on the first pass, part of my musical roots come from old Polish folk songs which I sang as a kid. It really is there to describe the story-telling side of Tribal Machine more than the sound.

MG: When was Tribal Machine born, are the band members the original line-up?

Sever: Tribal Machine was born in around 1997, where I was trying to think of a name that best reflected me and the work I was doing. It was a one-man band then, and remained so for many years. Various musicians came and went through-out the years, each filling a role in the band for a short period of time. In 2003 I started working with the guitarist, Brian Hartlen, who really brought a unique understanding to the band. Then in 2004 I brought Brad Wutke in on bass and Kristy Farkas on keyboards. Kristy ended up moving to Japan but that didn’t stop us from doing shows. At this point we’re just getting ready to integrate a drummer into the line-up.

MG: You have often been compared to Nine Inch Nails, was that the initial intention for the band’s sound?

Sever: Actually it was NIN that really sucked me into music, over ten years ago now. Because I was religiously listening to Nails the influence was unavoidable. At the time I was pretty much imitating them, without realizing it. It took many years of toil before I was able to find myself in the sound as an independent and unique musician. I think one of the things that helped me do that was that I stopped listening to music altogether, aside from what I would create. I think this allowed me to branch off in my own direction. I’m like a sponge and sometimes if I really like something it will subconsciously creep back into my latest creations. I am getting better at twisting things though now and turning them into new ideas. I am not sure if it is possible to be truly original, but I think you can use ideas and put a new twist on them. Doesn’t it feel like everything has been thought of? I do feel however that something like the album has not happened before. It’s like a puzzle with the pieces coming from so many different places.

MG: Most artists say they knew early in their lives they wanted to follow the musical pathway. When did you know music was the path you wanted to follow?

Sever: I knew music was the path for me when I picked up a computer and started making music on it in 1996. I was so hooked that I decided I had to go to a music program after high school. I was just dead-set on it. Oddly enough I hated institutionalized music. I used to play the trumpet in school, and after grade nine, when I no longer had to take music classes; I quit and swore I would never read another musical note again. By the time I had to go to college I was around 18 years old and I was addicted to Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy, and various others from the genre. I was making music quite a bit, experimenting with distorting drum machines and keyboards, as well as screwing around with basic melodies and vocal techniques. I just kept at it and loved it. It was more powerful than any drug I had taken, although I never write under the influence. Everything is written sober.

MG: Studies say most mainstream bands don’t put a lot of emphasis, hardcore meaning, and emotions into their music. What is your opinion on this matter, have some bands gone astray whereas once they go mainstream, they cannot retrieve the heart and soul of the music?

Sever: You got to ask yourself if some of those bands that have gone so mainstream had any soul or heart in the first place. But hey, I think you have to love what you do, and at that level of the game it becomes a business to bands, they have so many people to support, so many responsibilities, and sometimes the art gets lost in all the pressures involved. People – like myself when I was younger – romanticize music and think on idealistic terms, but it doesn’t always work out that way. There’s a lot of hard work involved. I do however believe that there is a serious lack of creativity in the mainstream, and it’s sickening. I think it’s a symptom though. A big factor is the record label. Labels choose bands that are ‘safe’, bands they think will make them money. Labels don’t gamble nearly as much as they used to, nor do they stick with artists to develop their careers like they used to back in the day. Now this does leave a lot of room for independent musicians however. I think great music is there it’s just hidden, whether it’s on myspace or on internet radio, or wherever. As far as I am concerned at this stage of the game the life of a musician is quite lonely. You are on your own, fighting it out, and there’s not much support out there other than your fans. It’s very grass roots, which isn’t a bad thing I think. It’s simpler. ‘Power to the people and the bands’ I suppose.

MG: Would you consider your band even becoming mainstream material, and if so; how would you produce it differently?

Sever: I am not sure if we’re mainstream material, if I had a shot at a larger audience I think I would use it to say things not everyone would like, musically or not, so we’d probably be shunned to some degree. I’ve always thought there is so much left to be said, and if I knew there were more people listening I would like to think I’d take the opportunity to speak up. The new record touches on that. There’s a huge vacuum in music right now, there’s so much superficial garbage out there and nothing is being said that needs to be said. It’s sickening and I feel I have to have a backbone and say something musically. It’s just this intrinsic thing that has been haunting me for years. It’s freeing. I feel alive when I write something I think matters. After all, why am I doing this? It certainly isn’t for the money or for fame. It’s because I get my kicks writing a great song and seeing it spread like a virus. But it’s especially rewarding to me when the song has something to say.

In my dreams, the ideal use for one of my songs is a protest rally, where people are marching down a street trying to accomplish something and kicking ass. I would like to be their soundtrack, that’s all. Ideally of course. That was the motive behind the last record in a sense, and it will be clearer and more focused with the next record. As I get better at it and my skills improve and I learn more, I’ll expect more from myself too, and I don’t intend to back off. Becoming more popular would only energize me further and I’d use that to really try and say things that need to be said. Oddly enough, because labels are so safe nowadays, I don’t see us being heard on your local FM dial anytime soon. I believe, however, that you can be successful nowadays without having to go mainstream. It’s just a smaller scale. I’d like to see the world with the band. That’d be nice, but on my own terms. I’d like to be able to put food on my table using the music one day. I have come to believe that people knowing your music and recognizing you is an essential side-effect to becoming a professional musician. If you really want to be successful you have to get your music out there, and by getting it out there people will know who you are. Sort of a catch-22 situation.

MG: How do you arrange the times to practice?

Sever: Right now we rehearse once or twice a week, which is subject to change once the drummer steps in. It’s tough working around people’s schedules though. After all, people have to put food on their table and so they have jobs. I understand though, it’s not like this band can supply a roof over their heads right now.

MG: How do you prevent getting burned out with projects that you work on?

Sever: I have a strange writing style. I’d work on a song and then leave it for weeks or months at a time, then I’d go back to it almost by chance and edit or re-work material as I see fit, then repeat the process until I happen to finish the song. The time in between allows me to regenerate. Writing music can be quite draining so you need to pace yourself. Writing more doesn’t necessarily mean better quality either. Inspiration is the key, without it you might be better off sticking pins under your fingernails or something. Hey at least then the pain will give you an endorphin rush which in turn might inspire you to try something that works instead. I don’t recommend that route though. The hardest process for me is writing lyrics. I sit there and I’d listen to a verse or chorus for hours, sometimes literally banging my head against the wall until something comes out. When it comes to lyrics I have to force it out and really push hard for something that makes sense. It’s always such a terrible temptation to say nothing meaningful and leave it just because it’s catchy, and it does happen. I get lazy, what can I say…

MG: What advice do you have for people trying to become musicians?

Sever: That’s funny that you ask that question because I get a lot of artists approaching me through the myspace site asking for advice. If you really want to be successful in music nowadays you have to forget about record companies and demos. Work on the songs and make them the best that you can make them, let there be no doubt in your mind that your songs kick ass, and if you feel insecure about them you’re not ready yet. When you are ready with great music, start promoting it, do everything yourself, learn it all from the bottom-up. Create your own opportunities and be the master of your own destiny. Nobody is going to lift a finger to help you. If you sit there and expect people to come to you and make you some kind of rock star, stick to your day job. Remember that you choose what you do not change.

Release a record when people are actually starting to demand one. There’s nothing more disheartening than watching your life’s work sit there and gather dust, I went through that with the first album “The Awakening of the Animal” in 2002. Didn’t have a clue what I was doing, wanted to blow my head off rather than face the truth. I made 100 copies and ended up giving most of them away.

Invest in a home studio. That will save you loads of money later. Do all the production, recording, promotion yourself and only spend some money on mastering. Make sure you read plenty of books about the industry too. I am constantly reading and learning about what’s going on so as to stay informed, even so I feel like I still have so far to go. Make sure you know why you’re doing it. Make sure it’s for the right reasons; be wary of your ego, vanity and especially your self-esteem. In the end remember it is supposed to be fun and you’re only human, so you will make mistakes. Be honest and keep your integrity intact. It helps to listen to lots of motivational tapes too.

MG: What do you want to achieve on this musical journey?

Sever: I want to tell a story that is interesting, provocative and interactive. I want to be able to share my life’s work with people and have some understanding there. I want to develop a bond that we can converse over. I want to leave this world knowing I made a dent, a difference. And yes, I want to provide the soundtrack for at least one protest rally.

MG: How did you come up with your band’s name?

Sever: Through a grueling process of trial and error. In the end I decided on Tribal Machine because it most represented my point of view. I wanted it to say something. I can see it describing some sort of social construct now. It can mean many things and I am a big fan of multiple levels of thought, especially with words / lyrics.

Thank you kindly for the opportunity Hawk!