The Anix – 25-07-2011

Interview with: The Anix
By: Nina Mende

How did the recordings in the studio go? Why did you pick Jürgen Engler as
producer?
We recorded the songs in various stages, some on the road, or in hotels rooms, tour buses, airports etc. I did a lot of writing in the last couple years while being on tour with Apoptygma Berzerk when we had free time between shows. Jurgen found us in Texas while we were playing the SXSW Festival. At that time, we had about 5 songs done, and played a few of them at the show. Jurgen approached us and expressed his interest in working with us, and nearly a year later we did just that. Jurgen saw our vision and did not want to change our sound like most producers have tried doing in the past.

This is your second album. How is “Sleepwalker” different from “Demolition City”?
Where did the inspiration for it come from? What does each song mean to you?
I think of our first album “Demolition City” as a simple children’s toy. Our new record is so much more complex, detailed and advanced than all of our previous work, that I wish this was our debut record. The songs were written while I have been having a problem with sleeping, and other sorts of strange things happening to me at night. We were inspired by a lot of movies and movie scores. Hans Zimmer is a huge influence that I wanted to incorporate into our songs. I would usually write the songs were certain movies in mind, mainly comic book based movies like “The Dark Knight”, or “Watchmen”, “The Crow”, “Blade Runner”, “District 9”, “Tron”. I have also been recently obsessed with “IAMX” which played a part in the creativity process.

Who picked the remixes – and how did you decide who you want to remix your songs? Why did you decide to release the new album with a second CD full of remixes?
Our label put us in contact with several artists that were interested in doing the remixes. We also hand picked a new artist called “Invader!” and wanted to give him a chance to show the world his talent. The remix CD gives buyers a better value for the money, and also gives club promoters and DJ’s something to play in the club, which can help promote our shows and expose us to new fans.

The cover of “Sleepwalker” shows an army in the desert with gasmask on. What is the story behind the cover?
We are very interested in comic books and the idea of good vs. evil. The army in the photo represents the villain in our battle against the music industry. It is a constant wall we have to fight through to survive. Everyone out there has some kind of wall or barrier in their life that they are fighting to overcome, including you I am sure, so I want our fans to know we have the same problems as everyone else.

Why did you decide to put a cover of “Cry Little Sister” on the album? What does this song mean to you?
“Cry Little Sister” was one of the first songs from a dark style movie that became a theme song. When people hear that song, they instantly think of the movie “The Lost Boys”. We wanted to pay a tribute to that idea, because it is one of my top priorites to have our songs featured in movies. The original version of “Cry Little Sister” is so similar to our music style, that we just had to do it. We also did a cover of “Burn” by The Cure, which was the theme song from the movie “The Crow”. I had to do that song, because it has been my favorite song of all time since 1994 when it was first released.

What do you love most about being on the road and what about being in the studio?
When I am on the road, I feel like I am doing what I was put on this earth to do. Of course we are still learning, and have a lot to improve on, but the more we tour, the better we will get. Seeing people that pay their hard earned money to watch us perform is the best payback a musician can get. I am my true self on stage, the person I am offstage is not completely real. I have never found anything else that brings out my true self like touring does, however the process of recording new songs is pretty close. I get extremely involved when in the writing process, I will stay awake for days, not eat, and basically just block out the real world until I finish the song I am currently working on. I become obsessed.

You shot an awesome video for the upcoming single “Glass”. tell us about it: The idea, the shooting….
We worked with a director that does a lot of big commercials here in the US. His style is very unique and that caught our attention. We wanted to take elements of all of our favorite movies and directors and make our own version of it. The video is kind of grungy and dirty looking, while at the same time has a sort of high tech theme going on-just like our music. The face paint in the video is basically showing the dual personalities you have when you are a performer. You have the person offstage, and you have the person you must become while on stage. We shot the video in different places in Hollywood and Downtown Los Angeles, over the course of about 5 days.

How do you keep up with being the guitar player of Apoptygma Berzerk and having your own band The Anix? Do you still manage to spend some time with family and friends with your busy schedule?
It is incredibly difficult to maintain both bands and have a personal life outside of music. Many of my relationships are suffering because of it, but that is just one of many prices to pay for being in this business. If I didn’t love being in both bands, I would save myself the stress and just do one, but thats not going to happen any time soon Smile

To what extend did playing with and being part of Apoptygma Berzerk influence you?
Becoming close friends with Stephan Groth was one of the biggest influences I have had. He took us in, let us open for his band back in 2009 when no one else would even write us an email back telling us to fuck off. He showed me how to be a pro, what to expect and what not to expect. I look up to him very much, and I am honored to have him playing on a couple of the tracks on our album. We actually used his studio in Norway to record some of the keyboard parts for the album since he has one of the best analog synthesizer collections around. The entire Apoptygma Berzerk crew has taught me so much, and been a huge highlight of my life to be able to know and work with them.

What are your plans in the future?
Our current plans our to tour Europe throughout 2012 and build a foundation there. Also we are working on a new Apoptygma Bererk album to be released in 2012, so I will have to really use some time management to do both bands properly!