nasmore – Welcome to Hell

By starrymag | March 24, 2023

By: Lisa Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

 

A) I think it’s different from track to track, but still, I hope one can identify my DNA from song to song. I’m experimenting with the fusion of genres leaning mostly towards “alt-pop,” but it’s more than that. It’s alternative rock at its finest—with hints of pop, rock metal, hard rock, cinematic soundscapes and classic rock influences. My sound can be eccentric and moody, romantic and lovely or dark, intense, eerie and poignant.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) I’m a big fan of Imagine Dragons. I find their songwriting fantastic! I frequently listen to trailer music and soundtrack composers such as Hans Zimmer, Tommee Profitt, musicians of League of Legends, and others. I can listen to Billie Eilish and appreciate the mastery of Scorpions, The Weeknd, Coldplay, Maneskin and The Score.

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song, “Welcome to Hell.”

A) This track is a collaboration with two amazing artists: Neil Taylor & La Strange. Stylistically it is a fusion of cinematic industrial rock, a little bit of heavy metal, and a pinch of pop. There is so much musical chemistry mixed in this song to trigger your imagination and drag your mind to visit dark places. Hell – for example. [laughs]

Remember this famous saying by Freddie Mercury? He said:

“Oh, I was not made for heaven. No, I don’t want to go to heaven. Hell is much better. Think of all the interesting people you’re going to meet down there!”

One day this quote pops up in my mind, and I start envisioning these surreal, grotesque pictures of twisted reality. Like I am in a fantasy world on the streets of the middle eastern market full of weird people, and I’m talking to this evil-looking travel agent lady. And she says with this thick Moroccan accent:

“Hello dear! Do you believe in Hell? Did you ever think about what it is like? Would you like to take a peek? Just for a day or two? Stay in a hotel situated by the beautiful burning sea of lava with a nice spectacular view of torture and punishment. Or maybe visit a rock concert thrown by the Devil himself? Most of us humans do not require a reservation. Curios now? Well. Just come pick your nightmare, and we will serve it to you, cooked to perfection. Regardless of what your plans are, you are always Welcome to the Hell!”

Then, almost immediately, I had this whole song in my head. It took me only half an hour to write the lyrics and record a melody (I was simply pouring it. A rare surprise!). And then the real work began.

I knew it had to be a duet, and I knew I needed a gritty hard rock male voice and a beautiful yet very powerful female voice. So, I invited Neil Taylor  and La Strange to work with me on this song. Neil’s voice fits the song perfectly, and that guitar solo, ufff, it gives me goosebumps every time! And La Strange is amazing! Her voice is so powerful – precisely what’s needed. Then, our “Sound God,” or in this case, “The Devil of Sound” Chris Egert, had to cast his mixing and mastering spell on this track. And voila!

 

Q) The song was streamed more than 125,000 times in just a week! How did that make you feel?

 

A) Excited, proud, happy and thankful! It did hit five Spotify charts and stayed there for a month, reaching #10 in New York City.

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

 

A) I can only guess. Maybe because it’s different and triggers imagination in people? Many artists used Hell as a subject matter in their art. But this song gives it a somewhat different angle. Also, sonically, a lot is going on in this song. I hope it is anything but boring.

 

Q) How does the video for the track play into the message behind it?

 

A) The full music video for this track is yet to come. But we produced a few short teasers. I hope people would love to immerse themselves in its dark and eerie environment. We wouldn’t want to give them a full movie, but rather give enough to trigger their imagination to run on steroids while travelling dark places and meeting weird characters, scary dancers, and listening to heavy metal music played by all kinds of evil creatures.

 

Q) What is your songwriting process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

 

A) It varies. Most of the time, I have the whole song in my head. I wrote “Welcome to the Hell” in about half an hour – lyrics and melody. The challenge is to be free at that moment, or else I will forget it. Sometimes I will have the music first or the lyrics first. But in this case, it won’t be “blast” songwriting.

 

Q) How much of a hand do you have in the production of your music?

 

A) I produce all my songs entirely by myself. I just love the process of looking for the right sound, designing the song structure, working with vocalists, recording all the layers and then polishing each and every sound. By the time I’m done, I probably listened to the song thousand times. Maybe less, I don’t know. But my ears are usually totally fried after that. Interesting fact: when production is completed, I listen to the song with a feeling like it’s not mine, as if it’s just some cool song you hear on the radio…Weird…

 

Q) Will there be a full album or EP coming in the near future?

 

A) Yes, we are working on this new album, and my gut feeling tells me it will be all about Hell. There are enough ideas for a multi-season series about Hell in my head. I promise the album will be anything but boring!

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform, and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

A) I don’t really perform yet. But I would love to throw one big open-air performance in Paris or Rome and have every artist I ever collaborated with perform there one day. Dreams, dreams. But you are probably dead if you don’t dream, right?

Here is a very famous (among me) saying (by me). It describes it quite well: “Life would be boring if it weren’t crazy, and one must be as talented as reckless and grow a little devil inside to enjoy the warmth of the light beams.”

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

 

A) Dan Reynolds, Billie Eilish, or Coldplay. Or maybe with Tommee Profitt and Sam Tinnesz.

 

Q) What album/band are you currently listening to, and why do you dig them? 

 

A) Oops. You caught me. I don’t listen to any at the moment. But if I had some free time, I would love to catch up on new releases by artists who produce dark music or just rewind and repeat the last album by Imagine Dragons.

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

 

A) It helps to stay connected with fans, friends and colleagues. But the more important thing about social media is that you can share more of yourself with people. You can say so much in your songs. It’s a lot to say in terms of emotion, which is the most precious and beautiful commodity. But then, like after the Storm, everything calms down and you have time to relax and think. And then you share these thoughts on your social media. And people know the next Storm is coming….

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

A) The next Storm is coming! It will make you dive deep, swirling into its world and make you feel happy or sad, excited or scared, brave or hesitant. And it will be anything but boring.